• Student Affairs
• BRANDEIS HOME

Fall Fest 2009

Thursday, October 22 to Monday, October 26, 2009

New England is the only proper place to be in the fall, and where better to enjoy the crisp, fresh air and radiant foliage than the idyllic Brandeis campus? Enjoy a relaxing weekend of events planned especially for students and their families.  Share the pride and spirit of the Brandeis community. See for yourself what makes Brandeis one of the finest centers of learning, teaching, research, creativity, commitment, and consequence in the country. Treat yourself to Fall Fest 2009.

Please see the detailed schedule of events for Fall Fest 2009 below.  

Thursday, October 22
Friday, October 23
Saturday, October 24
Sunday, October 25
Monday, October 26

Thursday, October 22

5:00-9:00 PM
Early Bird Welcome and Registration
Shapiro Campus Center Atrium
If you have registered for the weekend, please come and pick up a packet of information that will guide you through the weekend's activities.

6:00-8:00 PM
Genzyme CFO Presentation: Careers in the Pharmaceutical Industry
International Lounge, Usdan Student Center
Join the Hiatt Career Center for an opportunity to hear Mike Wyzga, theChief Financial Officer at Genzyme, discuss what it takes to manage the finances of a world-class pharmaceutical manufacturing company. Mr.Wyzga will also provide an overview of career paths in finance, healthcare and the sciences at Genzyme. Following the formal program, there will be an opportunity to network with the CFO, recruiters and alumni. Light refreshments will be provided.
Pre-register today @ cwlytle@brandeis.edu (subject line: Fall Fest - CFO Presentation) 

10:00 PM-12:00 AM
Family Game Night 
Ollie's Eatery                              
Have you missed losing to your child in their favorite card game? What about that round of monopoly you never got around to finishing? If your family gets together for a rousing game of rummikub once a week or if you haven't played a board game with your family since you were in elementary school, join us for an evening of fun and games, and of course, food. So whether your family has 2-6 players (or even if you're flying solo tonight) we have just the game for you - hope you'll come out and play!

Friday, October 23

9:00 AM-9:00 PM
Fall Fest Welcome and Registration Area 
Shapiro Campus Center Atrium
If you have registered for the weekend, please come and pick up a packet of information that will guide you through the weekend's activities.

9:00 AM-5:00 PM
Open Classes
Experience Brandeis academia up close and personal by attending a class.  Lists will be available in the Fall Fest Folder as well as at the Welcome Area in the Shapiro Campus Center.

1:00 PM – 3:00 PM
Pictures with Ollie
Shapiro Campus Center Atrium
Have your picture taken with Brandeis’ own mascot, Ollie the Owl!  This keepsake will help you remember your weekend once you have returned back home.

2:00 PM
Faculty Spotlight: Jim Haber (Biology)
Multi-Purpose Room, Shapiro Campus Center
Topic: Studying DNA Repair Inside Living Cells: Looking at Things Too Small to See
One of the hallmarks of cancer cells is their genome instability; instead of a normal set of 23 pairs of chromosomes, they have an astonishing number of chromosomal alterations, some of which create gene fusions that accelerate the transition of cells toward cancer.  These changes arise in cells that have lost their normal ability to repair chromosomal damage - breaks in the DNA chain.  My lab is interested in defining in molecular detail how chromosome breaks are normally repaired and what happens when this repair goes awry; what happens to the DNA and how is it acted upon by DNA repair enzymes.  We study repair events in living cells, even though a single DNA chain is impossible to see with even the most powerful light microscope.  Nevertheless we have found ways to "look at" these events in great detail.

3:00 PM
University-Wide Welcome Reception
Shapiro Campus Center Atrium
Visit with faculty and staff at this campus wide function.  Mix and mingle with other families and get to know who is here for the weekend!

SOLD OUT!
Buses leave Usdan Student Center at 4:45 pm
Family Night on the Town:  Food, Fun and Laughter!
Join other Brandeis families as we enjoy a night out in Boston featuring one of Boston's longest running improv shows. Improv Asylum's nightly show has been described as a “hilarious mix of Whose Line is it Anyway? meets Saturday Night Live!”. The cast takes suggestions from the audience and creates comedic scenes on the spot – nothing is predictable, anything can happen and it’s never the same show twice! Package price includes transportation, ticket to the Improv Asylum, and a limited menu dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe in Boston (including tax and gratuity). For more details about the dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe, please click here. We recommend this show to patrons 16 years and older. 
Tickets are no longer available for this event.

Beginning at 5:30 PM
Shabbat Services
Services will include Orthodox (Sherman Function Hall), Conservative (International Lounge), and Reform (Berlin Chapel).

7:00 PM
Hillel’s Shabbat Dinner and Oneg Shabbat
Levin Ballroom, Usdan Student Center
Shabbat dinner tickets are available for purchase through Friday afternoon at the Welcome and Registration Area in the Shapiro Campus Center.  All current Brandeis students who wish to attend Shabbat dinner should sign up at the register in Sherman Dining Hall before Thursday afternoon.  No dinner refunds will be given after 12:00 noon on Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2009.  Please contact the Hillel Foundation for additional information.

8:00 PM
VoiceMale presents Fall Fest 2009!
Schwartz Auditorium
Bring your friends! Bring your parents! Bring anyone and everyone you know to VoiceMale's Fall Fest concert! VoiceMale will be debuting new songs, original songs, freshmen solos,  and songs off of our newest studio album, Suit Up. We will be selling copies of the album, which has songs featured on BOCA 2009 and Voices Only 2009, along with homemade cookies and other tasty treats.  Free admission + young, attractive men singing in suits = a great event! 

8:30 PM
Student Events’ Film Series: "Up" 
Golding Auditorium
Carl Fredricksen spent his entire life dreaming of exploring the globe and now in his 78th year he launches his house into the sky via thousands of balloons. Right after liftoff he discover she has a stowaway in the form of an over optimistic 8-year-old Wilderness Explorer named Russell. This hilarious journey takes you into a lost world with the least likely duo on Earth.

8:30 PM and 10:15 PM
Shabbat Walk
Leaving from Main Gate
Brandeis students will be available to walk families staying at the Newton Marriott back to the hotel.

9:00 PM-12:00 AM
Friday Night Fever
Sherman Function Hall, Hassenfeld Conference Center
Catch it. Join us for an extravaganza of fun times! Come see Peter Boie, the self-proclaimed magician for non-believers! Peter has won honors at competitions around the country for his exciting show “where you stop thinking whether it’s real or not, and you just enjoy it.” Then, everyone can tie-dye a shirt, dance to disco tunes and snack on a buffet of food, including cotton candy. Dress-up to transport yourself into the hippie era and take a picture with some iconic representations of the 1970s. Student groups will showcase their talents for all to see—Brandeisians are so talented! Play on our enormous inflatable Twister with your friends and family. Friday Night Fever will be a great place to create and collect your Fall Fest Memories. Admission is free with your registration key chain! Fun is what Fall Fest is all about—come have it!  Bell bottoms and platforms recommended, but not required. 

Saturday, October 24

9:00 AM-5:00 PM
Fall Fest Welcome and Registration Area
Shapiro Campus Center Atrium 

Beginning at 9:00 AM
Shabbat Services
Services include Orthodox (Sherman Function Hall), Conservative (Berlin Chapel) 

9:00-11:00 AM
Croissants and Conversations
International Lounge, Usdan Student Center
Start your day with a delicious continental breakfast and a chance to meet faculty and staff from across the University. 

SOLD OUT!
Buses leave from Usdan Student Center at 9:30 am; Buses arrive back at Brandeis by 4:30 pm
Create Your Own Boston Adventure!
Enjoy an afternoon with your family exploring all that Boston has to offer. Choose from any of the exciting activities below or explore the city on your own!

New England Aquarium - Founded in 1969, the New England Aquarium is a global leader in ocean exploration and marine conservation. The Aquarium is one of the premier visitor attractions in Boston, with over 1.3 million visitors a year. Over 70 exhibits feature a variety of aquatic creatures in naturalistic habitats. Meet playful penguins, touch tide pool dwellers, watch divers feed sharks, and more! Also stop by the 3-D Simons IMAX Theatre for a hair-raising experience.  Tickets are no longer available for this program.

Boston Duck Tours – You've never toured Boston in anything that comes close to Boston Duck Tours. The fun begins as soon as you board the "DUCK", a WWII style amphibious landing vehicle. You'll cruise by all the places that make Boston the birthplace of freedom and a city of firsts: the golden-domed State House to Bunker Hill and the TD Bank Garden, Boston Common and Copley Square to the “Big Dig”, Government Center to fashionable Newbury Street, Quincy Market to the Prudential Tower, and more. And just when you think you've seen it all, there's more. It's time for "splashdown" as the DUCK splashes right into the Charles River for a breathtaking view of the Boston and Cambridge skylines, the kind of view you just won't get anywhere else. Tickets are no longer available for this program.

Museum of Fine Arts - One of the greatest museums of the world, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, houses approximately 350,000 pieces including some of the world’s greatest collections of American and European paintings, English and French silver, prints, photographs and drawings, Egyptian Old Kingdom art, American decorative arts, and Asian art. Special exhibition “The Secrets of Tomb 10A: Egypt 2000 BC” introduces visitors to the concepts of the afterlife in the Middle Kingdom by taking a journey through the remarkable tomb of the Djehutynakhts and its many objects. It also offers an opportunity to gain insight into the fascinating era in which the couple lived by viewing sculptures, jewelry, furniture and other objects representing high officials of their time.  Tickets are no longer available to this program.

Museum of Science – A hub of research and invention, the Museum of Science is New England’s most visited cultural institution. The Museum moves visitors to think like scientists through hands-on, minds-on experiences. Watch an exciting electricity show featuring the world’s largest Van de Graff generator, learn about physics in the park, or look at over 100 rescued animals! With over 500 interactive exhibits, there is so much to learn! Tickets are no longer available for this program.

Transportation only – Explore Boston on your own without the hassle of city driving and parking. Buses will stop at each of the locations above, all conveniently located around the city.   Tickets are no longer available for this program.

11:00 AM-2:30 PM
Faculty Presentations
Students and families are invited to join our distinguished faculty and staff in a unique opportunity to connect with some of the University’s brightest minds in an intimate setting.

1:00 PM - 4:00 PM
ArtsFest: The RoseArt Museum
The Rose is home to one of the most extraordinary art collections of any academic institution, spanning the early Modernists to the visionaries and innovators of the 21st century. Visit the museum during its preparation for the fall exhibition opening October 28. Free and open to the public. 

3:00 PM
Faculty Spotlight: Peter Conrad (Sociology, Health: Science, Society and Policy)
Olin Sang Auditorium
Topic: The Medicalization of Society
In the past several decades an increasing number and variety of human problems have become defined and treated as medical problems. Examples include ADHD, alcoholism, erectile dysfunction, social anxiety, obesity and aging. This talk examines the origins and consequences of medicalization in our society.
Professor Peter Conrad is the author of The Medicalization of Society: The Transformation of Human Conditions into Treatable Disorders (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2007).  

5:00 PM
"Louis Brandeis: The People's Attorney"
Multi-Purpose Room, Shapiro Campus Center
This documentary about Brandeis has been popping up on PBS stations across the country. The documentary was commissioned by the Savings Bank Life Insurance Company of Massachusetts (SBLI) in honor of their 100th anniversary. Brandeis, among his many other accomplishments, created the system of savings bank life insurance in Massachusetts and was one of the founders of SBLI. The hour long documentary provides a good overview of Brandeis' life with a slight emphasis on his days in Boston.

Beginning at 5:05 PM
Shabbat Services
Services include Orthodox (Sherman Function Hall), Conservative (Berlin Chapel), and Reform (Pearlman Lounge). Kiddush/3rd Meal will take place in Hassenfeld Lobby and Hall.

8:00 PM
Fall Fest Variety Show
Levin Ballroom, Usdan Student Center
Brandeis is overflowing with talented students! Come join us to see all the terrific talents of many of our campus performance groups! Our acts will include a collection of our amazing a cappella and dance ensembles and more! Be sure not to miss this amazing production!

8:00 pm
World Music Concert: Obbini Tumbao
Slosberg Recital Hall, Slosberg Music Center
Salsa to the Afro-Cuban tradition through the ebullient rhythms of congas, timbales, bongos, piano and bass.  Mix in two dynamic vocalists and a sizzling horn section, and Obbini Tumbao will transport you to another world. “If Mambo Kings Poncho Sanchez and Tito Puente got together to jam with the Buena Vista Social Club, it might sound something like Obbini Tumbao.” — Boston Phoenix. Sponsored by the Brandeis Music Department.  Visit here for more information. 
Tickets: $10-$25

8:30 PM
Student Events’ Film Series: "Up"
Golding Auditorium

Back to Top

Sunday, October 25

9:00 AM-10:00 AM
Passport to Brandeis Scavenger Hunt Drop Off
Levin Ballroom, Usdan Student Center
Submit your Passport to Brandeis on your way into Coffee with the President to have your score tallied! Winners will be announced after Coffee with the President. 

10:00 AM
Coffee with the President
Levin Ballroom, Usdan Student Center
Join President Jehuda Reinharz, Ph. D '72 and Senior Vice President Jean Eddy as they address the state of the institution and Brandeis' future. This will be a question and answer session to meet your interest.  Breakfast will be available onsite.

12:00 PM
Darfur Stoves BBQ 
Great Lawn, Shapiro Campus Center
Come to a BBQ to benefit Darfur Stoves, an organization dedicated to supplying women in Darfur with fuel-efficient cooking stoves. These stoves are not only sustainable but also reduce the time women spend searching for firewood, subjecting themselves to the risk of rape. Enjoy speakers and entertainment, and we will also be selling our T-shirts and Bead for Life jewelry. Hosted by STAND: A Student Anti-Genocide Coalition and co-sponsored by Students for Environmental Action.
Suggested donation $5.

1:00 PM-3:15 PM
Faculty Presentations
Students and families are invited to join our distinguished faculty and staff in a unique opportunity to connect with some of the University’s brightest minds in an intimate setting.

1:00 PM
Brandeis Music Fest
Slosberg Recital Hall, Slosberg Music Center
Brandeis’ own Wind Ensemble, Jazz Ensemble, Chorus & Chamber Choir, Brandeis-Wellesley Orchestra and Early Music Ensemble will perform.

10:00 AM and 7:10 PM
Catholic Mass
Bethlehem Chapel
The early mass will be a special service open to family and friends with a continental breakfast following.

Back to Top

Monday, October 26

9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Open Classes
Experience Brandeis academia up close and personal by attending a class.

 
Back to Top

Throughout the Weekend

Hold Thy Peace presents
Romeo and Juliet
Thursday-Saturday: 8:00 PM, Saturday and Sunday: 2:00 PM
Carl J. Shapiro Theater, Shapiro Campus Center
Come see the classic story retold in a modern setting amidst the streets of Manhattan! Hold Thy Peace, Brandeis' Shakespearean Society,will present the tale of Juliet and her Romeo. Admission is free and open to the public (though donations gladly accepted!). Produced by Tegan Kehoe '10; directed by Elana Friedland '11; stage managed by Emily Baum '11.

Brandeis Players presents
Lot's Daughters
Thursday-Saturday: 8:00 PM, Saturday-Sunday: 2:00 PM
Ridgewood A Commons
During the fall of 1944, amidst the foothills of Appalachia Kentucky, two women embark on a forbidden journey of the heart.
Produced by Lily Nagy-Deák ’11; Directed by Robert St. Laurence ’11; Stage Managed by Alex Corsaro ‘12