Nominations for 2002 Martin Luther King Jr. Award -- Nominations are due this week for the 2002 Martin Luther King Jr. Award for Community Service. The award recognnizes outstanding commitment to volunteer community service by faculty, staff, graduate students and retirees of The Johns Hopkins University; and staff, employees and retirees of The Johns Hopkins Hospital.

The award will be presented to those who demonstrate the same spirit of volunteerism and citizenship that characterized the life of Dr. King.

Winners will be honored at January's annual Johns Hopkins Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration Celebration, which this year will feature special guests Danny Glover and Harry Belafonte.

All nominations must be received no later than Oct. 18. For a nomination form, see http://www.jhu.edu/~outreach/mlkaward.

Pilot Project Grants -- The Johns Hopkins NIEHS Center in Urban Environmental Health is offering pilot project grants of up to $20,000 for April 1, 2003, through March 31, 2004, to stimulate new lines of research on such topics as the adverse health impact of hazardous environmental exposures on populations; how the interaction of socioeconomic status and environmental exposure contributes to health disparities; early biological effects of environmental agents in urban populations; community outreach and environmental health education; the molecular epidemiology, exposure assessment and mechanisms of action of agents found in the urban environment. Deadline for submission is Jan. 15, 2003.

Application guidelines are available in Room E7527 of the Bloomberg School of Public Health or can be requested by calling Kay Castleberry at 410-955-3720 or by e-mail to kcastleb@jhsph.edu.

Fall Orientation -- An orientation for postdoctoral fellows will take place on Tuesday, Oct. 29, from 3 to 4 p.m., in the Woods Basic Science Building auditorium. Interested individuals can meet representatives from the benefits, international, professional development and parking/transportation offices. A reception follows the orientation. For more information, go to www.med.jhu.edu/jhpda.

Intersession Instructors Needed -- Instructors are needed for the 2003 Intersession mini-course program, January 6 to 24. The courses will involve music, art and dance as well as other subjects. Interested individuals can pick up an application in the Student Development and Programming Office in the Mattin Center or call 410-516-2224. Applications are due Nov. 1.

Request for Proposals -- The Acheson J. Duncan Fund for the Advancement of Research in Statistics is requesting proposals for small grants to support research projects in statistics, probability and stochastic processes.

Faculty and students throughout Hopkins are eligible to apply for funding for collaborative projects with a member of the faculty in the Mathematical Sciences Department. Items funded might include, but are not limited to, travel to research conferences and workshops, computer equipment and software, matching funds for grant proposals, short-term visits of collaborators to Hopkins, interdepartmental seminars, partial support for research assistants and seed money for new research. Most grants from the fund will be smaller than $5,000.

Proposals should be brief, preferably no more than three single-sided pages, provide itemized expense estimates and be signed by each investigator. Proposals may be submitted at any time to the committee chair, John Wierman, Mathematical Sciences Department, 104 Whitehead Hall.

Provide Thanksgiving Dinner to Families in Need -- Help provide Thanksgiving dinners to families in need through the Vernon Rice Memorial Butterball Turkey Program. The program was initiated in 1993 by Vernon Rice, a maintenance mechanic for the Homewood campus vehicle fleet, who died last December. Donations of $15 will purchase a Butterball gift certificate to help identified families purchase a turkey or other food items for Thanksgiving.

To participate, send a $15 check, made payable to JHU Butterball to the Office of Faculty, Staff and Retiree Programs, Evergreen House, 3rd floor. For more information, go to www.jhu.edu/~hr1/fsrp/butterball.html or contact Matt Smith at 410-516-0345.

Adopt a Family for the Holidays -- The Adopt-a-Family Program gives Johns Hopkins departments and individuals a chance to help provide families with gifts, clothing and food. Families are identified by the Baltimore City Department of Social Services. Various nonprofit health and human welfare agencies, including women's and children's shelters, are also "up for adoption."

Apply to adopt a family or agency online at www.jhu.edu/~hr1/fsrp/adopt_fam .html or by contacting Matthew Smith in the Faculty, Staff and Retiree Programs at mattsmith@jhu.edu or 410-516-0345.