Faculty, staff and returning students are on hand today to unload cars and vans as new students and families arrive on campus.  Across all academic units, Anderson University will welcome a total institutional population of approximately 2,800 undergraduate and graduate students when classes open on September 2.

Although precise numbers are not available until the third full week of classes (week of September 22), the university is projecting an increase of 12-15 percent for first-time freshman over last year.  Within this year’s enrollment are approximately 600 new undergraduate students and a total undergraduate population of roughly 1,850 students.  The AU undergraduate student population includes persons from more than 30 international countries and 47 states.

US News and World Report has again ranked Anderson University among the best universities in the Midwest offering master’s level degree programs. Institutions in this category offer a full range of both undergraduate and master’s level degree programs.  The magazine’s 2008 guide to “America’s Best Colleges” marks the fifth consecutive year that Anderson University has been listed among the best in its class.

A bacteria, E. coli, has been the culprit in a wide range of food poisonings.

Bruce Applegate, an associate professor of food science at Purdue University, thought there must be a safer, cheaper way to detect the food-borne pathogen.

Anderson University is preparing to welcome new students to campus from Aug. 28 to Sept. 1 as a part of New Student Orientation. The campus theme this year is, “Root. Grow. Bloom.”

According to Dean Branson, director of student programs, the purpose of new student orientation is “to provide new students and their parents with a structured, comprehensive introduction to opportunities at Anderson University, to assist new students in their transition to the institution, and to integrate them into the life of the institution.”

Visitors to the AU website can now get automatic news updates through RSS (really simple syndication) feeds. Users can track the latest news about their major or favorite AU sport or see upcoming calendar events by subscribing to RSS feeds.

“This technology makes it easy for anyone to keep track of what’s going on at AU according what interests them most,” said David Hynds, Web Content Specialist.

Beginning at 8:00 a.m. on Friday, August 8, Anderson University alumni will have access to www.AndersonAlums.com – a new social network exclusively for Alumni. Visitors to the site will be able to view a special video message as part of the site launch and enter a promotion to win a new iPhone (device only; recipient will need to establish a monthly contract with their wireless service provider.)

For the first time, Anderson University is hosting a summer camp for teenagers considering careers in the music industry.

The camp, an offshoot of the university’s student-run recording label Orangehaus Music, offers campers early exposure to sound engineering, music marketing and other skills not usually covered outside of a recording label office or college class.

Anderson University has named Marcie Taylor as the new athletic director. Taylor replaces Michael Zapolski, who has served as athletic director since 2003. Taylor has worked as associate athletic director of Anderson University since 2005.

“Marcie Taylor brings devotion to athletes, coaches and programs, and to the wider mission of Anderson University,” said Dr. James L. Edwards, president of Anderson University. “Over these years as a teacher and coach, she has equipped herself to take on this assignment and to move our intercollegiate athletic programs to greater successes. We are delighted to have her leadership in this major institutional role.”

AU School of Theology honored Rev. Adrienne Holmes with the 2008 Distinguished Alumna Award, James Cook with the 2008 Distinguished Ministries Award, and Dr. John Aukerman with the 2008 Distinguished Service Award.

About 300 people at the Anderson University Heritage Dinner sang together in honor of David Coolidge and his wife, Shirley.

“God our maker, God most holy” rang through the L-shaped Shield Dining Room. The song was most appropriate since the verses were written by David Coolidge in 1962.