Office Hours -- Vice president for human resources Audrey Smith will not hold her regularly scheduled office hours in East Baltimore on April 3 from 1 to 2 p.m. Hopkins employees planning to visit her office should call 410-516-8113 to make other arrangements.

Urban Health Council Meeting -- Those with an interest in the East Baltimore community and urban health issues are invited to attend meetings of the Urban Health Council. These meetings are open to the public and provide an educational forum covering such topics as updates and activities of the Johns Hopkins Urban Health Institute; substance abuse issues, services and treatment; community programs and updates; managed care policies; and federal and state initiatives and how they impact Baltimore.

Further meetings are scheduled for March 29 and May 31. All meetings take place from noon to 1:30 p.m. in the School of Nursing, 217 Pinkard Bldg.

For information contact Julia Ro at jro@jhmi.edu. For more information on the Urban Health Institute, visit the Web site at www.med.jhu.edu/urbanhealth.

Seated Massage -- The Department of Occupational Health Services, in conjunction with the Office of Benefits Administration, is offering seated massages. JHU faculty and staff can receive a 15-minute massage from a certified massage therapist for a reasonable fee. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 410-516-0450.

Research Fund Award -- The Thomas and Carol McCann Innovative Research Fund for Asthma and Respiratory Disease is soliciting applications for its 2001 award. The fund is intended to provide seed support in the amount of $6,000 to new faculty investigators with unique ideas who wish to generate preliminary data for the purpose of pursuing more substantial extramural support.

Only junior investigators with faculty appointments in the School of Public Health are eligible for the award. Applicants must submit a two- to three-page description of studies planned, the relevance of the studies to asthma and respiratory disease and a proposed budget.

Submit applications to E. Wm. Spannhake in W1102 School of Public Health. The deadline for submissions is April 2. For more information contact Cassie Klein at 410-955-3257 or at cklein@jhsph.edu.

Relay for Life -- The second annual Johns Hopkins Relay for Life will be held Friday, April 27, through Saturday, April 28. The American Cancer Society's nationwide signature event, Relay for Life--an overnight team relay--raises money to fight cancer and raise awareness in the community. During the relay, team members camp out while they enjoy entertainment, food, games and camaraderie. The Relay for Life will take place rain or shine on the upper quad of the Homewood campus beginning at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and ending late Saturday morning.

Those interested in working on the planning committee or forming a team should contact Eden Blum at 410-516-0345, Sharon Young at 410-516-7227, Cindy Haebler at 410-955-9253 or Nicole Partridge at 410-955-1197.

Grief and Loss Support Group -- The Counseling Center offers a support group for any student who has experienced the loss of a close friend, parent, sibling, grandparent or others and would like to explore the impact of that loss. For information contact Sara Maggitti or Rosa Kim at 410-516-8278.

Career Workshop -- "First Step: Discovering Careers That Fit" is the topic of a two-session workshop intended to help identify a student's career options by clarifying interests, strengths, skills and work values. The next workshop is scheduled for Mon., April 2, from 3 to 5:30 p.m. For more information call the Counseling Center at 410-516-8278.

Annual Easter Egg Hunt -- The International Society will hold its annual Easter Egg Hunt on Sat., April 14, from 10 a.m. to noon at the Decker Garden, adjacent to the Johns Hopkins Club on the Homewood campus. The event will take place rain or shine. Parking is ample and convenient, and the event is free and open to the Hopkins community. For more information, call 410-955-3370.

Graduate student appreciation week -- To celebrate National Graduate-Professional Student Appreciation Week, the Graduate Representative Organization at Homewood is hosting a series of events for all graduate students beginning on April 2.

The events include Coffee Hour at the Gilman Hall Coffee Shop, 3 to 4 p.m. on Monday (free Cafe Q mug, free coffee); Happy Hour at PJ's Pub, 6 to 9 p.m. on Tuesday (giveaways, drink specials, free food); Deans' Luncheon, noon to 2 p.m. on Wednesday in the Great Hall of Levering Union (free buffet lunch with the deans); Open Microphone at the One World Cafe, 6 to 9 p.m. on Thursday (drink specials); and a Booze Cruise on the Inner Harbor on Friday.

Tickets for the cruise are $30; food, music, beer, wine and bus transportation are included. The bus will leave Shriver Hall at 7:30 p.m. and return at 11:30 p.m.

Contact the GRO at 410-516-7682 for more information.