Each year, the ITGA recognizes members that work toward improving the quality of life in campus communities. The ITGA Presidential Excellence Award is presented to a member that demonstrates exceptional performance in one of the following areas: Volunteer service, leadership or educational achievement. The Larry Abernathy Award is presented to a City, University and/or University student that best represents the mission of the ITGA. Recipients of the awards will be recognized at the ITGA City & University Relations Conference in May. Submissions are due April 1. To see past submissions and distinguished recipients of the awards, click here. Send questions to Beth@itga.org.

Due to the Polar Vortex, deadlines for the Call for Proposals, 2020 Host Bids, and early conference registrations were extended to February 15th. The 2019 ITGA City & University Relations Conference is May 19-22. Space is limited for the pre-conference workshops Level I and II, so please register soon. The conference tracks are designed to reflect the broad range of issues and stakeholders involved in growing a thriving community, while encouraging the exploration of the complex, nuanced and ever-changing challenges institutions of higher ed and their host communities face. Click here to submit a proposal. To read what your colleagues are saying about the value of attending the conference, click here. Be sure to book your hotel by April 18. For questions, contact Beth@itga.org.

The ITGA and the 2019 Host Conference Committee are pleased to announce that John Hechinger, a senior editor at Bloomberg news and author of the 2017 book, True Gentlemen, The Broken Pledge of America's Fraternities, will be one of the keynote speakers Monday, May 20. Hechinger was a 2011 finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Public Service and a two-time winner of the George Polk Award. Before joining Bloomberg in 2010, he was a senior special writer at The Wall Street Journal, where he focused on education and finance. His commentary has appeared in the New York Times and the Atlantic and on PBS NewsHour, NPR, NBC and CNN. Other Keynoters to be announced soon.

The University of Colorado and the city of Boulder are working together on community projects, including in the University Hill neighborhood. The project is part of a two-year effort to combine student and faculty work, through CU's Community Engagement, Design and Research Center, with community engagement for work on University Hill. "This is part of a general effort to bring the capacities of the university to aid the city of Boulder and other communities in Colorado in a more focused way than we've done on the past," said Brian Muller, the center's director and an associate professor in the environmental design program. Daily Camera

Cornell's Office of Community Relations annually sponsors a regional town-gown "drive-in" conference. This year, the "drive-in" conference will be Tuesday, March 26, 9:00am-2:00pm, in downtown Ithaca. This year's theme is "Transportation: Shared Community-Campus Wins," and we are seeking presentations tied to this broad topic. The conference features communities and campuses of all sizes, so please send Gary Stewart any ideas, and share with your colleagues. If interested in attending, please save the date for this event, free of charge. You will see more specs on registration soon. To see a summary of last year's event, click here. Cornell University Relations