September

* A University Honors Program lecture on “Jazz: An International Community?” featuring drummer Allen Carter, bassist Alexander Pershounin and pianist Simon Rowe is scheduled at noon Thursday, Sept. 4 in the Center for the Arts gallery hall. (free)
* A faculty recital featuring percussionist Allen Carter starts at 4 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 7 in Weld Hall’s Glasrud Auditorium. (free)
* MSUM’s Planetarium will feature the show “Amazing Stargazing” at 2 p.m. Sundays and 7 p.m. Mondays from Sept. 14 through Nov. 17. A clever cast of characters will teach you all about the Moon, meteors, comets, constellations and much more. General admission is $3; children 12 and under, senior citizens and Tri-College students are $1.50. The Planetarium is located on the MSUM campus in Bridges Hall 167. For more information or to arrange special group showings, call 477-2904.
* The Mid America Print Conference juried exhibition, featuring the work of 37 printmakers from across the country, will be on display from Sept. 15 through Oct. 8 at the Roland Dille Center for the Arts Gallery. The exhibit is based on the theme "agoraphobia" (the fear of going out in public). The exhibit is being held in conjunction with the conference, held in Fargo this fall, which includes other printmaking exhibits, demonstrations and workshops throughout the F-M area. (free)
* An MSUM Dean’s Lecture Series event on “Function Creep: Invasive Technology’s Daily Impact” by Michael Ruth from the Technology department starts at 3 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 17 in Center for Business 111. The lecture will define and identify “function creep” and explore some of its financial, workplace and social impacts. Called featuritis, or creeping featurism, it refers to products that overemphasize new features to the detriment of other design goals such as simplicity, compactness and stability. (free)
* MSUM will host a Naturalization Ceremony at 11 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 18 in the student union ballroom. U.S. District Court Judge John Tunheim will be swearing in the new citizens. The ceremony is usually held in a federal courtroom, but U.S. District Judge John Tunheim and his staff have agreed to hold it at MSUM as part of an educational event, the university’s annual Constitutional Law Series. It’s free and open to the public. For details, contact Prof. Andrew Conteh at 477-4009.
* MSUM English professor Lin Enger, author of the recently released novel“Undiscovered Country,” kicks off this year’s Tom McGrath Visiting Writer’s Series with a reading from his book at 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 18 preceded by a 4 p.m. talk on the writer’s craft, both in the student union’s Comstock Room 101. (free)
*An open house and guided tours will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 21 at the MSUM Regional Science Center’s interpretive center, located 15 miles east of Moorhead adjacent to Buffalo River State Park. Take part in some hands-on learning about Minnesota’s native prairie grasses and wildflowers. Enjoy a peaceful hour picking seed for the center’s prairie restoration program at 3 p.m. You’ll learn why the prairie ecosystem is important. For details, call 477-2904.
* Dr. Allan Chapman from Oxford University’s Wedham College presents a public lecture on “Galileo: The Man, the Myth and the Discoverer” at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 24 in MSUM’s Science Lab Building 104. (free)
* MSUM Theatre presents “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 30 through Thursday, Oct. 2 in the Roland Dille Center for the Arts Gaede stage with a 2 p.m. matinee Sunday, Oct. 5. It’s a lighthearted musical that brings the “Peanuts” comic strip to life. For tickets, call the MSUM box office at 477-2271.
* MSUM Theatre presents the regional premiere of “DOG SEES GOD: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead” Wednesday, Friday and Sunday (Oct. 1, 3 and 5) at 7:30 p.m. And Saturday, Oct. 4 at a 2 p.m. matinee in the Roland Dille Center for the Arts Gaede stage with a 2 p.m. matinee Saturday, Oct. 4. The show revisits the “Peanuts” gang a decade later. After the death of his dog, Charlie Brown turns to his friends to find closure. You’ll get a twisted insight into the adolescence of one of America’s most loved comic strip characters. For tickets, call the MSUM theatre box office at 477-2271.

October
* MSUM’s Regional Science Center presents a free family event, “Our Moon,” from 7 to 9 pm. Friday, Oct. 3 at its Buffalo River site, located 15 miles east of Moorhead adjacent to Buffalo River State Park. A crescent moon will be visible in the southwestern sky. Look at it through the center’s telescope. Venus and Jupiter will also grace the evening sky. Later in the evening, some globular clusters and other deep sky objects might be visible. For details, call 477-2904.
* MSUM’s Planetarium will feature the show “Amazing Stargazing” at 2 p.m. Sundays and 7 p.m. Mondays from Oct. 5 through Nov. 17. A clever cast of characters will teach you all about the Moon, meteors, comets, constellations and much more. General admission is $3; children 12 and under, senior citizens and Tri-College students are $1.50. The Planetarium is located on the MSUM campus in Bridges Hall 167. For more information or to arrange special group showings, call 477-2904.
* A Graduate Student Lecture on “Evidence-Based Practice: Environmental Cues and Modifications Used in Special Care Units to Enhance the Quality of Life for Residents with Dementia” by Kristin Ostlund, a Speech-Language Pathology graduate student, starts at 3 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 7 in the MSUM library, room 208.
* Davis Mallory, a gay man raised in a conservative Southern Baptist community, talks about his rejection by his Christian peers and family members at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 7 in Weld Hall’s Glasrud Auditorium. He’ll also discuss being accepted by true friends and coming full circle in the experience of being gay in America. The talk is sponsored by the Dragon Entertainment Group. (free)
* A University Honors Program lecture on “World Enough, and Time: William Henry Jackson (1843-1942): Civil War Veteran, Landscape Photographer, Narrative Painter & Global Traveler” featuring philosophy professor Konrad Czinsky starts at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 8 in the Science Lab Building 118. (free)
* The Tri-College Jazz Combos are on stage at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 8 in the Roland Dille Center for the Arts Gaede Stage. (free)
* Kao Kalia Yang, author of “The Latehomecomer: A Hmong Family Memoir,” will read from her work at 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 9 and talk on the writer’s craft at 4 p.m. that same day in MSUM’s student union 101 as a feature of the Tom McGrath Visiting Writers Series. Yang was born in a Hmong refugee camp in Thailand in 1980 and six years later immigrated to the U.S. with her family, eventually settling in St. Paul. She’s a graduate of Carlton College and received a master’s degree from Columbia University. (free)
* MSUM’s University Symphony Orchestra is on stage at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 10 in the Roland Dille Center for the Arts Hansen Theatre.
* A student exhibit will be featured in the Roland Dille Center for the Arts gallery Oct. 13-29.
* Fall breather Monday, Oct. 13, and faculty in-service day Tuesday, Oct. 14. No classes.
* MSUM’s fall Choral Concert starts at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 17 at Moorhead’s Our Redeemer Church. (free)
* Biologist and herpetologist Tyrone Hayes, whose breakthrough discovery that frogs act as an early warning system about pollution, talks about his findings and the risks facing the environment at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 20 in MSUM’s Science Lab building 104. A Dragon Entertainment Group event. (free)
* MSUM’s Cheryl Nelson Lossett Performing Arts Series features cellist Matt Haimovitz and violin virtuoso Andy Simionescu at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 23 on the university’s Center for the Arts Gaede Stage. For tickets, call the MSUM box office at 477-2171.
* Maria Falzone’s lecture on “Sex Rules,” a funny and inspirational performance addressing serious sexual subjects in a frank and lighthearted manner, starts at 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 23 in MSUM’s Weld Hall Glasrud Auditorium. A Dragon Entertainment Group event.  (free)
* MSUM’s Concert Choir is on stage at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 26 at Moorhead’s Good Shepherd Church. (free)
* MSUM’s Band performs at 4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 26 in Weld Hall’s Glasrud Auditorium. (free)

November
* MSUM’s Honor Band performs at 4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 1 in Weld Hall’s Glasrud Auditorium. (free)
* A Day of Percussion runs from 1 to 10 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 1 at MSUM’s Roland Dille Center for the Arts Gaede Stage. For details, call the university’s music department at 477-2101 or visit www.mnstate.edu/music.
* MSUM’s Jazz Ensemble performs at 5 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 1 in MSUM’s Comstock Memorial Union ballroom. (free)
* MSUM’s Planetarium will feature the show “Amazing Stargazing” at 2 p.m. Sundays and 7 p.m. Mondays Nov. 2-17. A clever cast of characters will teach you all about the Moon, meteors, comets, constellations and much more. General admission is $3; children 12 and under, senior citizens and Tri-College students are $1.50. The Planetarium is located on the MSUM campus in Bridges Hall 167. For more information or to arrange special group showings, call 477-2904.
* A student exhibit will be showing in the Roland Dille Center for the Arts Gallery Nov. 3-19. (free)
* A University Honors Program lecture on “Perceptual Development: Color Vision, Depth Perception and Emotional Interpretation in Human Infants” featuring psychology professor Elizabeth Nawrot starts at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 5 in Science Lab Building 118. (free)
* Yuko Taniguchi, author of the prize-winning novel “The Ocean in the Closet,” will read from her work as a feature of the university’s Tom McGrath Visiting Writers Series at 8 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 6, preceded at 4 p.m. by a talk on the writer’s craft, both scheduled in the student union Comstock Room 101. (free)
* Snowfire, MSUM’s vocal jazz ensemble, is on stage at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 11 in Weld Hall’s Glasrud Auditorium. (free)
* Comedian and Fergus Falls native Chad Daniels is on stage at 8 p.m. Tuesday Nov. 11 in MSUM’s student union ballroom. In 2003, Daniels performed as a finalist in Comedy Central’s Laugh Riots competition, the Montreal Just for Laughs Festival, which got him enough attention to make his network television debut on the Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn. Since then he has released his debut comedy album “Two Minutes for Stale Hacking,” performed on Comedy Central’s Live at Gotham, recorded his second album “Busy Being Awesome,” and taped his own half hour special ‘Comedy Central Presents… Chad Daniels’. A Dragon Entertainment Group event. (free)
* MSUM’s Band performs at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 12 in Weld Hall’s Glasrud Auditorium. (free)
* A Dean’s Lecture Series event on “One Program’s Tapestry of Teaching, Scholarship, Service and Student/Teacher Growth: Weaving a Unifying Approach” by Shawn Ginther from the School of Social Work starts at 1 p.m.  Thursday, Nov. 13 in Comstock Memorial Union 101. (free)
* Knucklehead Zoo, one of the nation’s premiere professional break dance troupes, is on stage at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 19 in MSUM’s student union ballroom. They are the two-time U.S. National Champions at the prestigious “Battle of the Year” competition, break dancing’s equivalent of the Super Bowl. A Dragon Entertainment Group event. (free)
* MSUM’s Jazz Ensemble performs at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 20 in Weld Hall’s Glasrud Auditorium. (free)
* MSUM’s Bass Ensemble is on stage at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 21 in the Roland Dille Center for the Arts Fox Recital Hall. (free)
* MSUM’s Band is on stage at 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 23 (for location, go to www.mnstate.edu/music) (free)
* MSUM Theatre presents its fall children’s production, “Wonderland,” at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 22 in the Roland Dille Center for the Arts Hansen Theatre. Using familiar characters and settings from “Alice in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking Glass,” it follows the story of three American school children who find themselves lost and in trouble. For tickets, call the MSUM box office at 477-2271.
* Fall break at MSUM is Nov. 26-28. No classes.

December
* A student art exhibit will be showing in the Roland Dille Center for the Arts Gallery from Dec. 1-15. (free)
* The MSUM Planetarium presents its traditional holiday season show, “Star of Bethlehem” at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Sundays and at 7 p.m. Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays from December 1-21. Was it a comet, a supernova, a triple conjunction of the planet Jupiter with Saturn, or a miracle? Whatever it was, the event reverberated through the centuries and changed millions of lives. The show will also explore the stars and constellations of the winter night sky. General admission is $3; children 12 and under, senior citizens and Tri-College students are $1.50. The Planetarium is located on the MSUM campus in Bridges Hall 167. For more information, call 477-2904.
* A Dean’s Lecture Series event on “From McEnergy to EcoEnergy: A Discussion of the World’s Transition to Sustainability” by Dennis Jacobs from the Corrick Center starts at 7 p.m.  Thursday, Dec. 4 in the Center for Business 111. (free)
* MSUM Choirs & Orchestra perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 5 and Saturday, Dec. 6 at the First Presbyterian Church in Fargo.
* MSUM’s annual winter commencement: 2 p.m., Friday, Dec. 19.
* Winter break: Dec. 19 through Jan. 11.