Grants available for eclipse programs
Grant money is available from the Columbus Area Visitors Center to support events planned around the 2024 eclipse that will be Monday, April 8, 2024.
The time that the sun will be completely blocked by the moon in totality is at 3:04 p.m. that day. Officials anticipate the weekend leading up to the eclipse will provide a significant opportunity to entertain visitors, as well as residents, while they await the total solar eclipse.
A total eclipse of this magnitude will not occur again in this area until Aug. 12, 2045.
The Columbus Area Visitors Center maintains a grant program to encourage and support events which generate out-of-county visitor spending in Bartholomew County, create a vibrant quality of life, and advance the community brand.
In celebration of this rare cosmic event, the Visitors Center will provide non-profit organizations the opportunity to receive funding to produce events taking place Friday, April 5, through Monday, April 8, with the goal of attracting visitors to Bartholomew County.
The grant application and requirements can be found at https://columbus.in.us/grants-info/.
Online applications open for competition
Online applications are available for the 2024 Anna Newell Brown Awards for Vocal Excellence and the Betty F. Brown Awards for Instrumental Excellence, administered by Heritage Fund – The Community Foundation of Bartholomew County.
The competitions are scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 10 at Columbus Indiana Philharmonic’s Helen Haddad Hall, 315 Franklin St.
High school seniors who are Bartholomew County residents are eligible to compete in the annual contests for college scholarships or private instruction.
The first-place performer in each senior competition will receive a $3,500 award and may be given an invitation to perform with the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic. High school sophomores and juniors who are residents of Bartholomew County can compete for scholarships for music lessons or camps.
Independent judges from area colleges and universities will critique participants’ technique, interpretation and general musicianship.
Complete eligibility requirements and application link and instructions are available at heritagefundbc.org.
Applications must be submitted by 4 p.m. Friday, Dec. 7.
The Anna Newell Brown Awards for Vocal Excellence were established through the Heritage Fund in 1985 by Robert and Betty Brown to honor Brown’s mother, Anna Newell Brown. She was a distinguished vocalist and contributed greatly to the cultural life of the Bartholomew County community. The Betty F. Brown Awards for Instrumental Excellence were established by Robert N. Brown in memory of Betty. Mrs. Brown was a well-known and highly respected advocate and patron of the arts, both locally and statewide.
The scholarships aim to encourage formal vocal and music education for Bartholomew County students.
For more information, contact Scholarship Manager Jeanette Marsh at 812-376-7772.
Purdue startup in competition
WEST LAFAYETTE – An ag-tech startup launched by a Purdue University researcher-entrepreneur to strengthen worldwide food security could soon win a million dollars and garner international recognition.
LeafSpec LLC has been named one of 20 international startups to compete for $3 million in total prize money during the Grow-NY Food and Ag Summit in mid-November. The company has an exclusive license to manufacture and sell patent-pending, Purdue-developed, handheld plant phenotyping technology. Plant phenotyping is the process of measuring and studying the physical characteristics of plants, including their growth, development and response to environmental factors.
Jian Jin, LeafSpec’s president and CEO, developed the technology. He also is an associate professor in Purdue University’s Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering.
“LeafSpec is an accurate, affordable and portable hyperspectral crop leaf scanner,” Jin said. “Our handheld device and software can provide accurate and early detection of plant diseases, nutrient deficiencies and stresses from chemical sprays. This is done within seconds without damage to the plant.
“It then relays the measurement results to a farmer’s or scientist’s smartphone. This information can guide users to make quicker and smarter decisions on fertilizing, spraying and irrigation, saving their cost and improving the yield. The result is improved food security: additional crop resiliency and production that leads to more crops available for harvest and worldwide consumption.”
