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Study Abroad Program offerings and student participation rates have both doubled since 1996 at the University of Colorado at Boulder and international education officials are hoping to build on that momentum this year during the nationally designated "Year of Study Abroad," which kicks off at CU-Boulder April 13.

Undergraduate students in civil and environmental engineering who want to use their skills and knowledge to help people in the developing world can now follow an approved curriculum at the University of Colorado at Boulder. The new Bachelor of Science degree track in Engineering for Developing Communities integrates sustainability, appropriate technology, renewable energy, international education and development, business, health and humanities with the traditional curriculum in civil and environmental engineering.

A team of three University of Colorado at Boulder undergraduate students has been named among the top winners in the prestigious Mathematical Contest in Modeling for the third year in a row. CU-Boulder students Brian Camley, Pascal Getreuer and Brad Klingenberg gave up their Super Bowl weekend in February to solve a contest problem about the most efficient way to position and move sprinklers for irrigation. Last week, they were named one of 12 "Outstanding Winners" from a field of 748 teams that entered.

Sixteen University of Colorado at Boulder graduate specialty programs were rated in the top 50 nationally in U.S. News & World Report's newly released America's Best Graduate Schools 2007. Five CU-Boulder graduate specialty programs were rated in the top 10 nationally in results released March 31. An additional six programs were rated in the top 20 and five others in the top 50 in the complete rankings released later that day, for a total of 16 in the top 50.

The scientific concepts of light, polarization and optics will be explained through a number of experiments, including creating a giant soap bubble, during the April 15 CU Wizards show "Light, Polarization and Liquid Crystals." University of Colorado at Boulder physics Professor Noel Clark and chemistry Professor David Walba will present the show at 9:30 a.m. in Duane Physics room G1B30. The show, aimed primarily at students in grades five through nine, is free and open to the public.

Frank Press, White House science adviser to President Jimmy Carter from 1977 to 1980 and former president of the National Academy of Sciences, will speak at the University of Colorado at Boulder on Tuesday, April 11.

Five University of Colorado at Boulder graduate specialty programs were rated in the top 10 nationally in a new but limited U.S. News & World Report graduate school rankings report scheduled for release March 31.

The University of Colorado at Boulder is making preparations to accommodate the approximately 10,000 students, faculty and staff who use Regional Transportation District bus service in the event of a vote to strike by transit workers on Sunday night. In the event of a strike, some buses serving the campus will continue to operate and others will not. Special parking and shuttle arrangements will be made. All pertinent information and a map are posted on the CU-Boulder Parking and Transportation Services' Web site at ucbparking.colorado.edu/.

University of Colorado at Boulder Professor Patricia Limerick will testify on barriers to the cleanup of abandoned mine sites before the U.S. House Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment on Thursday, March 30. The hearing will begin at 10 a.m. EST in room 2167 of the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, D.C. The hearing will be webcast live at www.house.gov/transportation .

The University of Colorado at Boulder School of Law will offer two free legal education workshops to explain the impact of the American Indian Probate Reform Act, which goes into effect in April. Titled "What Will Happen to Your Land When You Pass On? What the New American Indian Probate Reform Act Means to You," the workshops will be held April 7 from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the Rolling Thunder Hall at the Sky Ute Casino in Ignacio in southwest Colorado and April 22 from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Denver Indian Center, 4407 Morrison Road.