December 2020........... .......... Rutgers University–New Brunswick
A Helping Hand for Those in Need
Community need is greater than ever this year. Here are some local opportunities to help those less fortunate this holiday season:

Join Winter Wishes by providing donations of clothing and toys for children ages 3-5 in the New Brunswick Schools preschool programs. Rutgers University Programming Association (RUPA) will do the shopping this year, but needs your help by adopting children’s wishes! Deadline Dec. 15.

Contribute funds through the 2020 Virtual Toy Drive to purchase toys and other items for patients in The Children's Hospital at Saint Peter's University Hospital.

Support Elijah's Promise with new or gently-used winter coats and blankets, or NEW underwear and gloves, and hygiene kits. Monetary donations are also welcome and the best way to support their mission.

Embrace Kids Foundation is seeking critical donations to support families of children with cancer, sickle cell, and other blood disorders.

Participate in Middlesex County/MCFOODS Happy Holidays Food Drive December 5-6 at East Jersey Old Town Village to help local families in need.

New Brunswick Tomorrow assists families dealing with COVID-19-related issues by providing some of the basic necessities, including rental assistance, emergency food, and more.

PRAB provides opportunities for individuals and families to become self-sufficient and work toward a better life for themselves and others.

New Brunswick Community Food Alliance provides a weekly listing of food distribution and pantries.
Holiday Happenings
New Brunswick is bursting with holiday offerings this month!

New Brunswick Winter Wonderland provides excitement all month long, including ice sculpting, selfie spots, caroling, live music, dance performances, and holiday shopping. All your favorite restaurants offer safe dining options, including heated, socially-distanced tents. Check the City Center website regularly for the latest updates and schedules.

Enjoy Holiday Carriage Rides on Thursday evenings December 3-17. Reserve your time online. Walk-up purchases permitted as space allows. $20 per carriage.

Groove to live jazz with more than 15 free, socially-distanced performances in December from the New Brunswick Jazz Project, including "A Very Jazzy Christmas" with the Champian Fulton Quartet December 23.

Stream a filmed version of "A Christmas Carol," starring Tony Award® winner Jefferson Mays, to benefit George Street Playhouse, as well as other theaters that have been devastated by the pandemic.

Check out the new online Rutgers Holiday Shop full of great gift ideas for the Rutgers fans in your life.

Play holiday themed trivia online with Suzie the Elf December 9, or clap, sing, and laugh along with Jim Brickman performing "Comfort and Joy at Home" during an interactive concert experience December 12, brought to you by the State Theatre New Jersey.

Join Rutgers University Glee Club and Kirkpatrick Choir for the traditional "Christmas in Carol and Song, A Virtual Celebration" December 12.

Keep the spirit of theater alive with a gift of memorabilia from the State Theatre New Jersey.

Shop your favorite brands at Rutgers kite+key tech store on Livingston Campus with discounts on accessories, computers, and more. Open to the public.
Experts in the News
COVID-19 Resources
Recently diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2? Apply to participate in a Rutgers-led clinical trial to assess the efficacy of a three-drug combination in treating people infected with SARS-CoV-2 who are asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic. To be eligible, patients must have been diagnosed within the previous six days, preferably within the last two days. 

Download the COVID Alert NJ mobile app to receive the most up-to-date information regarding reopenings, key COVID-19 data, and alerts if you have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive. The app is free and secure, and user information will remain anonymous. Available on Apple App Store and Google Play store.
Middlesex County residents can register for a walk-up COVID-19 test at the Youth Sports Complex, 419 Joyce Kilmer Avenue, New Brunswick, or a drive-up site on Ericsson Drive in Piscataway. Appointments required. The sites provide saliva-based test kits developed at Rutgers University.

Interested in learning more about COVID-19 vaccine research? Rutgers experts from the Center for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research are available for outreach in English, Spanish, and Chinese to community groups.

Stay in the know on COVID-19 with updates from our local communities:
Events, Classes, & Podcasts
Join Eagleton's Center for American Women and Politics online for its annual Senator Wynona Lipman Chair in Women's Political Leadership Lecture, featuring this year's chair, ABC News Correspondent Linsey Davis, December 2.

George Street Playhouse participates in Healing Voices: Caregiver Stories with the New Jersey Theatre Alliance December 3 via Zoom webinar. Submissions of creative prose, poetry, theatrical monologues, and plays that reflect the theme of caregiving or the personal healing experience by New Jersey writers will be read by professional actors.

The Stress Factory in New Brunswick has a full December lineup, including Darren Fleet December 3-5; the Fierce Factory Drag Show December 9; Michelle Wolf December 10-12; and more.

On December 3, view the lecture I Don't See This Happening Anywhere Else: Reflections from the Grassroots on Latinx Resistance in the Anaheim/Santa Ana Region" at the John W. Chambers II Oral History Graduate Fellowship Lecture.

Hear an online lecture on "Ultra-Orthodox Israeli Women and their Reproductive Lives," presented by Rutgers' Allen and Joan Bildner Center for the Study of Jewish Life, December 7.

On December 7, enjoy an online lecture from the Zimmerli Art Museum that spotlights the work of Russian-American artist Ilya Kabakov. University of Toronto professor Ann Komaromi will discuss how Kabakov’s later work with found “trash” objects in the 1980s is distinct from similar practices by artists like Robert Rauschenberg.

The Zimmerli Art Museum presents a free film streaming of "The Irony of Fate, or Enjoy Your Bath!," a 1976 screwball comedy/love story, a New Year's Eve classic in Russia. View December 26 - January 3 with related live virtual events December 26 and 30.

Are you a NJ resident who has a son or daughter in an out-of-state college? Consider the 2021 Rutgers–New Brunswick Winter Session. NJ residents pay in-state tuition. Take advantage of remote/online delivery options.

If you are a New Jersey resident, 62 years or older, who would like to audit Rutgers courses tuition free, apply to the Rutgers Senior Citizen Audit Program to audit online courses during the spring semester on a space-available, noncredit basis.
For Kids
Rutgers Cognition and Learning Center is looking for infants and children to participate in fun research studies from your home. Online opportunities begin for babies as young as three months old and children up to age 5.

On December 4, the Rutgers Geology Museum presents "Ask a Geologist: Digging into Archaeology." Learn about the basics of archaeology, and hear about field experiences while excavating archaeological sites near Rome. On December 18, learn about Archaeological Entomology, or how bugs can be used in archaeology during "Ask a Geologist: Bugs From the Crypt." Programs are online and free!

Get creative with Art Together, a free online family art class from Zimmerli Art Museum December 5 and January 2. Artists of all ages are welcome, but the class is best suited for those ages 6-13, and their grown-ups.

Registration is open for spring programming with Rutgers Community Arts. Choose from virtual programs in art & design, dance, film & animation, and music. Private lessons also available.
Around Town
Participate in a Vital Blood Drive at Robert Wood Johnson Hospital for whole blood and plasma from recovered COVID-19 patients December 8. Appointments required.

New Brunswick City Center offers socially-distanced Rutgers football watch parties each week on giant screens in the pedestrian dining plaza on George Street. Cheer on the Scarlet Knights as they take on Penn State December 5, and Maryland December 12.

Rutgers men's and women's basketball teams are off to a hot start. Although you can't see the action in person at the RAC, you can still help fill the stands and support the hometown team with a Rutgers University FanCutOut cardboard cutout. Order by December 15.

Rutgers Cinema, on the Livingston Campus, is open to the public, with health and safety protocols in place. Upcoming features include, The Croods: A New Age and Mank. And, see cinema classic movies with free admission starting every Saturday through Dec.19.

Shop at and support local farms. Check out the Grown in Middlesex County interactive website to find farmers markets, u-pick farms, and Christmas tree farms.

Cook's Market, an open-air farm market at Rutgers Gardens, remains open on Fridays and offers a variety of local goods, produce, meats, cheeses, and prepared foods. Pre-ordering is encouraged for select vendors through the gardens' online store.

New Brunswick Free Public Library now offers access to Brainfuse JobNow, an online service designed to support the job search process. JobNow features live online coaches who, among other things, assist in resume/cover letter preparation, and help patrons prepare for job interviews. 
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