UNH Today

DURHAM, N.H.—The University of New Hampshire will welcome eight speakers at its commencement ceremonies this May. Speakers will also be awarded honorary degrees. All of the ceremonies will take place between Friday, May 19 and Sunday, May 21, 2023, in the Whittemore Center Arena except UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law’s ceremony, which will remain in Concord’s White Park.

DURHAM, N.H.—Researchers at the University of New Hampshire are available to offer insight around climate change issues like warmer winters, ‘weather whiplash’, sea-level rise and the future of winter. At the forefront of climate change research, the scientists can offer insight into everything from the impact on ecosystems to the importance of reduced emissions and increased carbon storage. The researchers study a wide range of issues from disappearing snowfall to increased coastal flooding.

Disappearing winters

WHAT: The Carsey School of Public Policy at the University of New Hampshire will launch a new toolkit, Local Civic Health: A Guide to Building Community and Bridging Divides, to help local citizens assess the civic health of their communities. Civic health reflects the strength of local democracy, including factors such as how much people trust each other, show up at public meetings, get involved, vote and help neighbors.

DURHAM, N.H.—Researchers from the University of New Hampshire were part of a world-renowned team that found an intact shipwreck hundreds of feet below the surface of Lake Huron. Looking like it was frozen in time, the 191-foot, three masted sailing ship Ironton sank in the waters of Lake Huron in 1894. UNH’s autonomous surface vehicle (ASV) named BEN (Bathymetric Explorer and Navigator) provided state-of-the-art underwater mapping technology which was instrumental in the discovery.

DURHAM, N.H.—The franchising sector appears to be recovering robustly in the fourth quarter of 2022 as signaled by the strong performance of the RIFC 50 Index. The RIFC 50 jumped 11.9% with broad-based participation of all major business sectors and most individual index components. Of the 50 companies comprising the index, 34 had positive returns and 24 of them were double digit.

DURHAM, N.H.—Over 44 million people in the United States depend on private drinking water wells that are not federally regulated. Researchers at the University of New Hampshire and collaborating institutions found that current monitoring practices do not accurately reflect groundwater pollution risks because spikes in harmful bacteria, like those from animal and human waste, vary depending on the season—with highest levels observed from testing conducted in summer months when temperatures are over 90°F.

DURHAM, N.H. - The following students have been named to the Dean's List at the University of New Hampshire for the fall 2022 semester.

The following students graduated from the University of New Hampshire in December 2022. Students who received the honor of summa cum laude graduated with a GPA of 3.85-4.0; students who received the honor of magna cum laude graduated with a GPA of 3.65-3.84; and students who received the honor of cum laude graduated with a GPA of 3.50-3.64. Students are only graduated after the Registrar’s Office has certified that all degree requirements have been successfully completed.

DURHAM, N.H.—The funeral of Pope Benedict XVI will be a unique and unprecedented ceremony—reshaping traditional papal burials. Benedict resigned in 2013, surprisingly announcing that he would continue to live within the Vatican and be the first to take the title of Pope Emeritus. Michele Dillion, a professor of sociology at the University of New Hampshire and an expert in Catholicism, can talk about the historical significance of Benedict’s resignation, how it changes the funeral ceremony and the troubled legacy he leaves behind.

DURHAM, N.H.—A $2 million gift over five years from former University of New Hampshire ski team captain Tom Putnam will add to the endowment he established 15 years ago to support the team and launch fundraising for a ski facility.

Putnam will contribute $1 million to the endowment, which funds scholarships, coaches' salaries, training camps and equipment for the team, and $1 million to a new facility that will have locker rooms and lounges for the men’s and women’s alpine and Nordic ski teams at the Field House as well as a waxing room and storage for equipment.