In a series of performances around Indianapolis, the IUPUI student jazz band will pay special tribute to the band's late director and local jazz legend, Jack Gilfoy.

The IUPUI Jazz Ensemble will perform Sunday, June 8, 2008, at The Jazz Kitchen in a multi-act concert celebrating Gilfoy, director of jazz studies at IUPUI and director of the Jazz Ensemble for 19 years prior to his death this spring. Gilfoy, a jazz drummer, played regularly at The Jazz Kitchen, considered Indianapolis' premier jazz club and restaurant.

Jazz bands as well as solo artists will take the stage from 3 to 6 p.m. June 8 at the Jazz Kitchen, 5377 North College Ave. The IUPUI Jazz Ensemble will play selections of "big band" jazz that they performed under Gilfoy's leadership earlier this year. Admission is free.

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IUPUI Police Officer Amanda Rice earned her Bachelor's of Science degree in criminal justice on May 11, 2008, thereby completing the IUPUI Police Cadet program.

The IUPUI Cadet program provides an opportunity to selected full-time students to work part time for the police department and obtain state certification through the IU Police Academy while working toward a college degree. The IUPUI Cadet Program allows students to gain experience in the field of law enforcement, earn college credits and get paid while working.

Officer Rice also successfully completed the full-time police office selection process and has begun her law enforcement career with the IUPUI Police Department

For the second consecutive year, the Delta Dental Foundation has awarded $75,000 to Indiana University School of Dentistry to assist in the preventive dental care of Hoosier children at greatest risk of developing dental decay and other problems that place a youngster's oral health in jeopardy.

The grant was awarded to Seal Indiana, a statewide mobile dental sealant program created by the dental school to identify, and provide preventive care to, impoverished children whose families are unable to pay for dental care in their communities. The funds will be used to further expand the school's outreach efforts in the state, covering the total cost of dental examinations, protective dental sealants, and fluoride treatments for additional children enrolled in Indiana's Title 1 (lowest income) schools.

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Eleven IUPUI staff members recently earned certificates in the year-long HRA Administrative Support Professionals Series program, completing 12 workshops, computer training and a writing improvement session. Designed for IUPUI clerical and administrative support staff, ASPS workshops use interactive training methods to reinforce the competencies identified by the IUPUI HRA’s Training and Organization Development office as essential for Administrative Support Professionals. Check the SignUp web site (www.hra.iupui.edu/signup) this summer for detailed instructions on how to register for the 2008-09 academic year series which will begin on Sept. 25, 2008.

Designing a road, seeing how a bridge works and touring the new Indianapolis Airport are just a few of the new experiences thirty Indianapolis Pubic School students will explore during the Indiana Summer Transportation Institute from June 9-13, 2008. The five-day summer educational program is hosted by Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) with support form the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA).

Since 1993, colleges and universities across the country have partnered with state and federal transportation agencies to host a Summer Transportation Institute, developed by the U.S. Department of Transportation. The program was created to increase the number of women, minorities and people with disabilities working in transportation.

"Parallel Interface" combines photographic processes from the past to the present to produce a stimulating exhibition sure to impress. You are invited to the closing reception on Friday, June 20th from 5:00pm to 8:00 pm in Herron's Photography lower level gallery 003, 735 West New York Street on the campus of IUPUI. The exhibition features a wide array of video art, photography, and installation art that push beyond the ordinary confines of photography.

A picture of Joie Ray sitting in the cockpit of a race car with a beaming smile dominates the cover of Dr. Patrick Sullivan's new book about the racing pioneer.

But it's hardly by chance that hovering behind Ray is a picture of his father, Joseph Ray Sr.

Brick by Brick

After all it was the accomplishments by both the African-Americans, one in racing and the other as a business and community leader in Louisville, Ky., that led Sullivan, a professor at the Indiana University School of Social Work, to write the book Brick by Brick, The Story of Auto Racing Pioneer Joie Ray

The framework of the book is Joie Ray's story, who as a young man dreamed of becoming a race car driver. In October 1949, Ray became the first African-American driver to obtain a license from AAA at Indiana's Salem Speedway after spending the previous two seasons racing at a variety of Midwestern tracks.