A blend of old and new activities, tours, and treats will shape Staff Celebration Week next month. Running from May 5 to 9 this year, the annual campus salute to staff has, in a sense, already begun with the free symphony rehearsal earlier this month for 150 staff members.

The ice cream social at noon on May 5 near the Cheadle Hall courtyard pond is the traditional launch of the week’s events, with administrators doing the scoops. However, this year drawings for prizes will begin around the same time. Results will be announced on KCSB-FM radio 91.9 at 11:45 a.m. each day of the week up to the final drawing at the Chancellor’s Barbeque on May 9 at the Faculty Club Green.

Entry forms for the drawings were circulated earlier as a part of the Staff Assembly’s spring quarter newsletter. Winners do not need to be present to win prizes, including the beach cruiser bicycle and the tickets to Lego Land contributed by the UCSB Associated Students.

The Professional Women’s Association’s annual conference is on May 6. For more details on its program, see the side bar story.

Staff Assembly and the Chancellor’s Staff Advisory Council organized the activities again this year. The week’s complete program is posted on the CSAC Web site <http://csac.ucsb.edu/index.cfm>.

New tours include the Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration’s Campus Flora Tour and a look at the Mosher Alumni House, while past favorites, such as glass blowing, the REEF Tank, the “Underground Library” tour, and Eyes in the Sky, will return.

Other highlights include a cookie exchange at noon on May 7, and a Town Hall meeting on staff housing with a panel of top administrators, set for noon on May 8 in ESB 1001. Among the panelists will be Donna Carpenter, vice chancellor, administrative services; Willie Brown, housing services director; and Joel Michaelsen, Academic Senate chair.

This event will be followed at 3:30 p.m. with a staff social, including refreshments, at the new Mosher Alumni House. For more details on these events, e-mail Greta Halle (greta@cs.ucsb.edu).

The barbeque on May 9 will have DJ-hosted music and the annual pottery sale as well as free food, the final prize drawing, and the Staff Citation of Excellence Awardees.