Rutgers Day 2013 Coming Saturday, April 27

WHAT: Rutgers Day, Rutgers University’s annual welcome and show-and-tell for the citizens of New Jersey 

WHEN: Saturday, April 27, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

WHERE: Rutgers’ Busch, College Avenue, Douglass and George H. Cook campuses in New Brunswick and Piscataway

HIGHLIGHTS FOR COVERAGE:

• Witness the start of a new tradition with the Rutgers Day parade at 11 a.m. on the College Avenue Campus. The parade, which will feature a variety of Rutgers clubs and student organizations, will start on College Avenue by Brower Commons, make its way down College Avenue through the Voorhees Mall and finish on Hamilton Street in front of the historic Old Queens building.

• Busch Campus is home to the annual Engineering Open House and boasts dozens of interactive events all day long. Don’t miss the thrilling chemistry demonstrations at the Wright-Rieman Laboratories at 11 a.m., 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. Fly high with a flight simulation program to get a sense of how planes work. Or if you’d rather stay closer to the ground, check out the Rutgers Navigator, a robot designed and programmed by students.

• As part of a nationwide campaign to discourage texting while driving, AT&T's special, in-vehicle texting simulator will make a stop during Rutgers Day at High Point Solutions Stadium.  The "It Can Wait" public service campaign was launched to address the dangerous practice that puts millions of Americans at risk. The software is able to recreate real-life driving scenarios including pedestrians crossing the street, red lights and cars changing lanes on the road. 

• Visit the Rutgers Oral History Archive to record your Hurricane Sandy story for the statewide “Stories from the Storm” initiative. The ROHA team will be stationed just outside Van Dyck Hall on Voorhees Mall on the College Avenue Campus.

• Ever wonder how a life-sized Barbie would look? Rutgers Project Heal, a student group that focuses on eating disorders and body image, will unveil a 5’ 4” Barbie constructed using a wooden frame, chicken wire and paper maché. It will be on display on the College Avenue Campus near Bishop House.

• Ambassador Camillo Gonsalves, permanent representative to the United Nations for St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), will visit the annual New Jersey Folk Festival and speak from the Skylands Stage on Douglass Campus at 12:20 p.m. This year’s festival will feature the music and culture of the Garifuna people of Central America. The Garifuna, who are descendants of Carib, Arawak and West African people, were exiled by the British from SVG to Central America. They now live in Belize, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Honduras. UNESCO proclaimed Garifuna culture a masterpiece of oral and intangible heritage in 2001.

• Bring your unused and expired medications to Operation Medicine Cabinet near Lipman Hall on the Douglass Campus and the Rutgers University Police Department will safely dispose of them.

• Twenty-two children who were affected by Hurricane Sandy will be chosen to play the final five minutes of the Scarlet-White game at High Point Solutions Stadium. Kickoff is at 3 p.m. Fans may make a $5 donation to the Hurricane Sandy New Jersey Relief Fund upon entering the gates. The Scarlet Knights will wear special “R Strong” logo helmets and jerseys featuring the names of towns that were affected by the storm.

GETTING AROUND:  Parking is free and shuttles will be available between the College Avenue, Busch, Douglass and George H. Cook campuses. 

BACKGROUND:  Last year, 75,000 visitors of all ages attended Rutgers Day to learn firsthand about the university’s range of research and service and to enjoy perennial favorites, including Ag Field Day, the Engineering Open House, the New Jersey Folk Festival and Zimmerli Family Day. 

In its fifth year, Rutgers Day is sponsored in part by Saint Peter’s Healthcare System, Barnes & Noble College Booksellers and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital. For more information, please visit http://rutgersday.rutgers.edu and check out the Countdown to Rutgers Day blog for updates.