The College of Idaho has long enjoyed a tradition of excellence in the sciences. The commitment to studying nature began with founder William Judson Boone and continues today through collaborative faculty-student research and hundreds of alumni enjoying careers in scientific fields.

The interplay between science and religion has been discussed and deliberated for centuries. The debate comes to the Treasure Valley this month as Karl Giberson, one of America’s leading scholars on the creation vs. evolution controversy, delivers the lecture “Are Science and Religion at War?” at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 15 inside Langroise Recital Hall on The College of Idaho campus in Caldwell. The lecture is free and open to the public.

The College of Idaho’s effort to create the Intermountain West’s first endowed chair in Judaic studies took another major step toward its realization with a combined $350,000 gift from the Craig H. Neilsen Foundation and alumnus Ray Neilsen (’88) on Jan. 23. The gifts were announced during the grand opening celebration of the exhibition From Haven to Home: 350 Years of Jewish Life in America, which is showing inside the Langroise Center at C of I through March 19.

This last weekend was a blast– not only was it the half way mark of Winter Term, but my handsome suitor was in town, and we got to explore the local scene.  Last time, we visited Lucky Peak, which was appropriate in the 90 degree weather in mid-September.  This time around, however, we hit the town.

The College of Idaho Department of Theatre & Speech Arts is set to present the inaugural C of I Play Reading Series, a sequence of four performances in which the actors read the dialogue in the script without the elements of scenery, costume or lighting. The series kicks off Jan. 24 with Poona the F*** Dog and Other Plays for Children (NOT a play for children), written by Jeff Goode and directed by Joe Golden, chair of the C of I theatre department. All readings in the series will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the Langroise Studio Theatre on the C of I Campus in Caldwell.

The College of Idaho campus is home to a surprisingly robust international population, with 97 students from 46 foreign countries currently enrolled. This month, student groups including Senate and the International Student Organization are sharing the diverse talents and cultures present on campus by putting on the second annual Diversity Week, a series of nightly events which culminates Jan. 19 with the C of I Cultural Show. The Cultural Show will feature students performing poetry, music and dance from their homelands beginning at 7 p.m. in Jewett Auditorium.

The College of Idaho for years has strived to increase awareness and interest in Jewish culture and history throughout Idaho and the West. Those efforts continue this winter as the College hosts From Haven to Home: 350 Years of Jewish Life in America, a traveling exhibition made possible by the American Jewish Historical Society and Jewish American History Month. The exhibition will run from Jan. 9 through March 19 inside the Langroise Center for Performing and Fine Arts on the C of I campus in Caldwell.

I’ve gotten lost. I think it started sometime a little before Thanksgiving. I feel strange saying that a lot’s going on at the moment, (because when is that not true for anybody?) but it’s the only way I can honestly express how I’ve been seeing life.

The Feast of Carols is a longstanding College of Idaho tradition that rings in the holiday season with a musical celebration. This year, new choral director Dr. Brent Wells hopes to take the tradition to new heights. The Feast of Carols has been moved to Jewett Auditorium to accommodate a larger crowd, and Wells hopes to fill the building with guests both from campus and the Treasure Valley community for this year’s concert, which will begin at 4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 4. Admission is free.

The College of Idaho will host the sixth annual Langroise Holiday Arts Fair on Friday, Nov. 11. This year’s fair is set to run from 4  to 7 p.m. in the foyer of the Langroise Center for Performing and Fine Arts on the C of I campus in Caldwell. The event, which is free and open to the public, presents an opportunity to view and purchase art created by College of Idaho students, faculty, staff and alumni.