Buff Bulletin Board

The Buff Bulletin Board, a listing of campus announcements, is a service of Campus Communications.

 

Join our study on sleep and circadian rhythms, delayed sleep-wake phase disorder

The Sleep and Chronobiology Laboratory is looking for people with delayed sleep-wake phase disorder or people with late bedtimes or healthy people with typical bedtimes.

The purpose of this study is to improve our understanding of mechanisms of delayed sleep-wake phase disorder (DSWPD). We are testing patients with DSWPD as well as healthy people without DSWPD. The study is 6.5 weeks long with six in-person visits at CU Boulder.

You may be eligible for this study if you:

  • Are ages 16–30
  • Have a diagnosis of delayed-sleep wake phase disorder or have late bedtime after 1 a.m., an inability to fall asleep and difficulty awakening when required for school/work
  • Or are healthy with typical bedtimes and no sleep concerns

Study activities include:

  • Health screening
  • Monitor on separate occasions your sleep, mood, eating times for one or two weeks and blood sugar levels while living at home
  • Live in the sleep laboratory on two separate occasions for 48–66 hours (approximately 4.75 days in total)
  • Blood and saliva sampling and reaction time, mood and ability to think testing

Compensation is up to $1,725. Get study details and apply.

Join our research study on sleep and circadian rhythms

The purpose of this study is to examine how light exposure and meal timing influences circadian rhythms in healthy people ages 17–40. 

The study is seven weeks long with eight in-person visits at CU Boulder. Participants live in the sleep laboratory on two separate occasions for 7.7 days (15.4 days total).

Compensation is up to $4,093. Get more information and apply.

Join a 30-minute paid research opportunity

The PIEES Study (Peer-Mentorship’s Impacts on Engagement, Emotion, and Stress) is recruiting participants! The purpose of the study is to explore the effect of peer mentorship on engagement, stress and emotion in students. Simply complete a 29- to 39-minute survey to get a $15 gift card! You must be 18 years or older and a CU student to participate.

BFA Excellence Awards nomination deadline Jan. 31

The BFA Excellence Awards specifically recognize outstanding work and a concerted effort to make advances in the academy. The chancellor provides financial support for these prestigious awards, and a ceremony in the spring recognizes the winners and features a keynote by the Hazel Barnes Awardee for that year.

The BFA will select up to three winners in each category. Each winner receives a $5,000 monetary prize, along with a commemorative engraved plaque and gift bag. 

The deadline to submit nominations is Friday, Jan. 31.

Higher catch-up retirement contribution limits available for employees nearing retirement

As of Jan. 1, the Secure 2.0 Act introduced enhanced catch-up contributions for individuals aged 60–63 and the CU voluntary retirement plan options have adopted this feature effective Jan. 1, 2025.

This enhanced catch-up provision allows employees to contribute additional money to their age-50 catch-up contributions. For example, the 2025 catch-up contribution limit for those over 50 is $7,500, but if you are age 60–63, your limit increases to $11,250. This increase applies to CU’s voluntary retirement plans: the CU 403(b), PERA 401(k) and PERA 457.

Donate a meal swipe to a fellow Buff in need Jan. 28–30

Help fight food insecurity on campus Jan. 28–30 by participating in Swipe It Forward! Anyone with a meal plan can donate one swipe per day. As you check-out, tell the cashier you would like to donate.

Accepting donations at the following locations:

  • C4C Dining Center
  • Village Center Dining
  • Alferd Packer Grill
  • The Alley
  • Sewall Dining Center
  • SEEC Cafe
  • CU on the Run
  • Libby on the Run

Don’t have a meal plan but still want to help? Donate to the Basic Needs Center or register to volunteer.

Enjoy a reduction in retirement plan fees for 2025

The University of Colorado routinely reviews its retirement programs to ensure it provides competitive retirement benefits. A recent review successfully initiated a reduction of administration fees for the CU retirement plans administered by TIAA effective for 2025.

This reduction is part of CU’s ongoing commitment to provide the best possible benefits to help maximize employee’s retirement savings.

Important 2024 tax forms arriving soon

By Jan. 31, all 2024 W-2s will be sent to the mailing address employees had on file in the employee portal as of Dec. 15, and available in the employee portal shortly afterward. Form 1095-C will be available in the portal by March 3 for employees eligible for 2024 health benefits.

Student orgs: Apply for UMC office space, lockers by Feb. 14

The UMC is accepting applications from student organizations for free office space or lockers for fall 2025.

A central office is a fantastic way for your recognized student organization to become more accessible and productive, which will help you grow membership, promote your events and programs, and fulfill your mission. In addition, the Center for Student Involvement (CSI) has lockers available for student organizations to use.

Apply online. Groups that currently have space must reapply! Applications must be submitted by Feb. 14 at noon.

Adult piano lessons offered this spring; prior experience required

Take piano lessons with an undergraduate piano intern this semester! These lessons are for students, staff or faculty who have had at least three years of previous piano instruction (no exceptions this semester).

The instructors are undergraduate piano majors (juniors and seniors) taking a piano pedagogy course. No university credit. Professor Alejandro Cremaschi supervises the interns.

You must have a piano or keyboard to practice. Get more information.

Colorado Shakespeare Festival summer camps registration open

Hello world

Registration for all 2025 summer camps now open!

The Colorado Shakespeare Festival offers summer camps for kids and teens (ages 6 to 18) on CU Boulder’s campus. Students will rehearse, stage and perform a shortened Shakespeare play (scenes for Sprites). Camp Shakespeare and Shakespeare's Sprites are a fabulous way for kids and teens to explore theatre and Shakespeare in a creative and supportive environment.

Shakespeare's Sprites (ages 6–9)

Shakespeare’s Sprites is a playful introduction to the Bard for ages 6–9. Discover the fun of Shakespeare through pool-noodle fights, silly insults, Renaissance songs and lively scene work. Each week culminates in a final showing for family and friends. This program is the perfect way to instill a love of language and theater in your child. Students enrolled in Shakespeare’s Sprites should have basic reading skills.

Dates

Session 1: July 7–11, 2025, 9 a.m.–noon
Final showing: Friday, 11:30 a.m., Loft Theatre

Session 2: July 14–18, 2025, 9 a.m.–noon
Final showing: Friday, 11:30 a.m., Loft Theatre

Location

University Theatre building (on campus at CU Boulder)

Tuition

Early bird (before March 1): $265/session
Regular (on or after March 1): $295

Discounts available for multiple sessions or registering two or more siblings.

Camp Shakespeare (ages 9–18) 

Camp Shakespeare is a fabulous way for kids and teens to explore theater and Shakespeare in a creative and supportive environment. Working in small groups, students learn about Shakespeare by rehearsing, staging and performing a shortened play. Camp Shakespeare will culminate in a free public performance in the Roe Green Theatre.

Dates

Camp days: July 21–Aug. 8, 2025 | Monday–Friday, noon–4 p.m.
Final performance: Saturday, Aug. 9, 9–11 a.m., Roe Green Theatre

Ages 9–11: "Doctor Faustus"
Ages 12–14: "The Tempest"
Ages 15–18: "Richard II"

Location

University Theatre building (on campus at CU Boulder)

Tuition

Early bird (before March 1): $1,040
Regular (on or after March 1): $1,185

Discounts available for registering two or more siblings. Scholarships are available (email csfedout@colorado.edu).

While the Hellems building, which surrounds the Mary Rippon Outdoor stage, is under construction, we're moving our Camp Shakespeare performances indoors. Curious about the renovations? More info here!