The New Sounds Festival, which highlights some of the best contemporary music in the world, kicks off Thursday, March 14, and runs through Friday, April 5.

The 2013 Pioneer Music Educator and Visiting Scholar Symposium, hosted by the School of Music, features several events that are free and open to the public March 12.

Acting at its Feb. 27 meeting, the WMU Board of Trustees authorized a lease agreement with a national firm that will manage the campus bookstore operations.

Some campus services at will be on reduced hours during WMU's spring recess, which begins Monday, March 4, and continues through Sunday, March 10.

Jeanne H. Carlson of Novi, Mich., and James F. Hettinger of Fennville, Mich., have been elected to serve for 2013 as chair and vice chair, respectively, of the WMU Board of Trustees.

The all-student cast will give several performances of Shakespeare's classic tragedy "MacBeth" March 14-24 in the Williams Theatre at the Gilmore Theatre Complex. Tickets are now on sale.

The Kalamazoo Film Society will present the film "The Impossible" Friday through Sunday, March 8-10, at WMU's Little Theatre. The film is rated PG-13; admission is $5.

"A Tribute to Doo Wop," featuring Cornell Gunter’s Coasters, Bobby Hendricks' Drifters and Larry Marshak’s Tribute to the Platters, is coming to Miller Auditorium for one performance at 8 p.m. Friday, March 8.

Bridgett Blough, a certified natural chef and founder of The Organic Gypsy, a food truck business, will speak at 8 a.m. Friday, March 8, in 2150 Schneider Hall. The event is free, but registration is required.

The College of Aviation's maintenance director, Scott Austin, has been named a Regional Aviation Maintenance Technician of the Year, putting him up for selection as 2013's top U.S. aviation maintenance technician. 

The Student Recreation Center will be the site of an open house sponsored by University Recreation for WMU employees and retirees from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 27.

In a formal session Wednesday, Feb. 27, the WMU Board of Trustees will welcome new members Michelle Crumm and Ronald Hall and elect a chair and vice chair to lead the board during 2013.

The Walker Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnic Relations will sponsor a fundraising dinner from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Friday, March 15, in the Bernhard Center Ballroom. Reservations are requested by Wednesday, March 6.

Dakaboom will bring its unique blend of musical comedy to Western Michigan University's campus at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 27, in the Bernhard Center's North Ballroom.

Students who would like to be a positive role model and mentor for a group of incoming first-year students are encouraged to apply to be a Fall Welcome ambassador. Applications are due by 5 p.m. Friday, March 15.

WMU is offering a comprehensive preparation course for the GMAT in its regional facility at 2333 E. Beltline Ave. SE. The instructor-led course costs $450 and will be held Fridays and Saturdays from March 1 through March 22.

Twitter messages by Dr. Jeffrey Angles requesting Japanese books to support WMU's recently launched Japanese major resulted in thousands of book donations and many touching letters.

Prescribed burns are planned through the end of February at Asylum Lake Preserve to dispose of piles of brush that have accumulated as a result of University efforts to remove invasive vegetation.

Members of WMU's Alpha Tau Omega fraternity will camp out for 48 consecutive hours Tuesday through Thursday, Feb. 19-21, to raise funds for Kalamazoo Valley Habitat for Humanity.

The next Distinguished Speaker Series talk will be presented by William A. "Bud" Brian, founder and original owner of Budco. He will speak at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 27, in 2000 Schneider Hall.

The Lawrence Lithography Workshop will exhibit prints in the Richmond Center for Visual Arts' Monroe-Brown Gallery Thursday, Feb. 21, through Friday, March 22.

WMU students Brendan Duffy, Shane Petersen and Alec Robbins will compete Thursday, Feb. 21, for the title of this year's funniest Bronco, followed with a set by Roy Wood Jr.

Dr. Hal B. Jenson, founding dean of the WMU School of Medicine, will speak at the Keystone Community Bank Breakfast Speaker Series at 8 a.m. Friday, Feb. 22. Continental breakfast will begin at 7:30 a.m.

Dr. Leroy R. Ray Jr., professor emeritus and former director of the Black Americana Program, died Feb. 12 at age 82. A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 16, in Bloomingdale, Mich.

The contributions of Chinese women writers in China’s historiography will be outlined in a talk by visiting Chinese scholar Dr. Clara Wing-chung Ho at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 21, in 2028 Brown Hall.

The conference and lecture Wednesday and Thursday, Feb. 20-21, will feature Johns Hopkins Professor Brian K. Gibbs as well as a series of workshops to address the serious health disparities in American society.

A national non-profit organization has given WMU's career center gold-level certification for 2013 as a place where lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students can find career resources.

School of Music students will perform the second act of "Die Fledermaus" as part of an opera workshop planned for 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 21, and 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 22, in the Dalton Center Recital Hall.

Genre-bending band the Red Sea Pedestrians will perform at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 20, in the Dalton Center Recital Hall. A discussion hosted by Dr. Dan Jacobson will precede the show.

Dr. Jocelyne Cesari, professor at the French National Center for Scientific Research, will present the talk "Islam and Democratization: Lessons Learned from the Arab Spring," at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 19, in 2008 Richmond Center.