Highland Park Planet (http://highlandparkplanet.org/author/phersh/page/6/)
Highland Park’s downtown tree lighting will be Nov. 27, with a visit from Santa on a fire truck. An additional treat is that Highland Park’s gingerbread house competition returns this year. From 7-8 p.m. all are welcome at the Welkovitz Pavilion next to 212 Raritan Avenue for the annual tree lighting, complete with music, caroling, hot chocolate, candy canes, and Santa on a fire truck. The Gingerbread Houses will be on display at the Saturday Nov. READ MORE
Rutgers University and Tel Aviv University (TAU) today signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) in mid-November 2021 that will further the collaboration between the two research universities and establish a presence by TAU at the NJ Innovation & Technology Hub, a 550,000-square-foot, $665 million project in New Brunswick, N.J. The Hub will be home to a new Rutgers Translational Research facility and the Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. The MOU was signed in Tel Aviv, Israel, by Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway and Ariel Porat, president of TAU. New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy joined the ceremony virtually. “I traveled to Tel Aviv to sign this memorandum of understanding in person because this is an important initiative that reflects Rutgers’ commitment to excellence and our recognition that there is no limit to the power of partnerships,” Holloway said. Rutgers and TAU have previously collaborated on projects, including a monthly series of joint scientific symposia exploring research topics such as the COVID-19 pandemic, drug discovery, cybersecurity, gene therapy, nanomaterials and ancient and modern identities in Yemen. The MOU will amplify the universities’ alliance by establishing a research grant program to seed what are expected to be enduring collaborations across disciplines between Rutgers and TAU. READ MORE
Princeton Ballet School presents The Nutcracker Suite: Scenes from a Holiday Classic, a one-act suite of dances inspired by The Nutcracker. This unique outdoor production, features Princeton Ballet School students and pre-professional Trainees, plus professional dancers from American Repertory Ballet on Saturday afternoon, November 13, 2021.Click here for tickets to the 1:00 pm or 3:30 pm performances $15 General Admission $10 student/seniors password: PBS10Highland Park is particularly fortunate to obtain this taste of The Nutcracker event that preceeds the American Repertory Ballet’s full production of The Nutcracker in upcoming weeks at theaters throughout New Jersey.The Highland Park show will be outdoors at the Welkovits pavilion in downtown Highland Park, next to Main Street Highland Park at 212 Raritan Avenue. Chairs will be provided, but feel free to bring your own if you have more comfortable ones!This event is made possible thanks to the generous support of:* Miller’s Rentals * New Jersey State Council on the Arts * Middlesex County Cultural & Heritage Commission
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Jonathan Scott Holloway, whose tenure is being shaped by a profound political reckoning and other global challenges, told an audience gathered for his inauguration as Rutgers’ 21st president that he believes education paired with public service can save democracy as he announced initiatives to make the university a leader in serving the common good. “Our daily news cycles have left us with a national rhetoric about politics, knowledge, citizenship and service that seems to take delight in mocking efforts to shore up institutions, to pursue ideas, to disagree civilly, to serve the common good and to share in our wealth,’’ Holloway said in his address, which was livestreamed at watch parties on the Rutgers-New Brunswick, Rutgers-Newark, Rutgers-Camden and Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences campuses. “I despair at this state of affairs, but instead of seeing colleges and universities as a manifestation of all that is wrong in our society, I see them as all that can be right.’’
Holloway highlighted his belief in the excellence that exists at Rutgers and his plans to build toward something even greater as he outlined his vision that focuses on access, research and service. “When I look at Rutgers, I want to see a place that aspires boldly to be both a leading engine of world-changing research and a vehicle for social mobility for students across the socioeconomic spectrum,” Holloway said. “This is what excellence looks like.”
Holloway’s inauguration, traditionally the official installation of the president, took place more than a year after he joined Rutgers due to the COVID-19 pandemic. READ MORE
If you are reading this and have not yet voted early or by mail, please get to your polling place Tuesday, Nov. 2, 6 a.m. until 8 p.m. Democracy is fragile, and voting is the glue that holds it together. Even though the two Highland Park Council members Stephany Kim-Chohan and Tara Canavera are running unopposed for re-election to council, they need to know that people care. With your vote, you can hold them accountable for their job of representing you in an ethical, intelligent, and caring manner. In all the other positions on the ballot including that of governor, the incumbents have challengers. Earn the privilege of citizenship by voting. There are two public questions to be voted upon. READ MORE
The intersection of Raritan Avenue and North Fourth Avenue is being investigated by Highland Park Place as an intersection of concern, after two people in two different incidents were hit by cars at this during the month of October. In the first incident, the man succumbed to his fatal injuries. A man in his 70s riding a bike was hit by a car there on the morning of Oct. 17. Then on the morning of Oct. 19, a woman was hit trying to walk across the same intersection. READ MORE
All Rutgers University faculty and staff must be vaccinated by Dec. 8 for the university to comply with an executive order signed by President Joe Biden, Antonio Calcado, executive vice president and chief operating officer, said in a message to university employees. Biden signed Executive Order 14042 on Sept. 9 requiring that employees of entities with federal contracts be vaccinated against the coronavirus. Guidance from the Federal Worker Safety Task Force affirmed that the order applies to Rutgers. READ MORE
Rutgers University-New Brunswick and Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences celebrated the Classes of 2020 and 2021 in an extended weekend of pomp and circumstance that recognized their resilience and gave recent grads a chance to participate in beloved traditions missed during the pandemic. “We didn’t get the closure that we wanted, and I lacked it for both of my graduations,” said Alya Bukhari, who received an undergraduate degree in 2020 from the School of Arts and Sciences and a degree from the Graduate School of Education in 2021. “This was a moment to get that closure. For me, Rutgers was meeting the most important people and having them, along with my friends and family, support me. It was all worth it.”
The celebration began early Thursday with a formal hooding ceremony for doctoral graduates at the Rutgers Athletic Center and concluded late Sunday afternoon upon the Lawn at Wood Lawn Mansion with the School of Engineering. READ MORE
Bomb threat under investigation
Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone, Middlesex County Sheriff Mildred Scott, and Director Anthony A. Caputo of the New Brunswick Police Department announce on Monday October 25, 2021, a bomb threat to the Superior Courthouse of Middlesex County is under investigation. Earlier this morning, the Middlesex County Sheriff’s Department was made aware of a bomb threat concerning the Superior Courthouses located at 50 Paterson Street and 120 New Street in New Brunswick. The Courthouses and Middlesex County Administration Building were subsequently evacuated by the Sheriff’s Department. The investigation is active and continuing. Anyone with information is asked to call the Middlesex County Sheriff’s Department at (732)745-3271 or the New Brunswick Police Department at (732)745-5200. READ MORE
After careful consideration and comprehensive research, and in recognition of the increasing threat that severe weather poses to Johnson Park, the Middlesex County Board of County Commissioners have made the decision to close the Johnson Park Animal Haven. The process to move all animals from the haven to new homes across the state is underway. “For generations, Middlesex County families have visited the animals at the Johnson Park Animal Haven; the park has not only brought joy to those families on their visits but provided a much-needed home for animals that would otherwise be euthanized or be unable to survive in the wild. We recognize and appreciate the support that has been given to the haven throughout the years,” said the Board of County Commissioners. “Due to Johnson Park’s location within a flood plain and the real, undeniable threat of climate change, it is in the best interest of the animals to close the Johnson Park Animal Haven and rehome them in more resilient locations.”
Middlesex County officials, including those within the Office of Parks and Recreation, worked closely with resident groups advocating on behalf of the animals, including the Friends of the Johnson Park Animals, as well as local animal sanctuaries and zoos to determine the correct course of action. READ MORE