When the College of Public Health announced it was starting a new student ambassador program to put a “face” on the college, Carmen Smith knew she wanted to be a part of it. Her enthusiasm for the ambassador program is eclipsed only by her excitement about her studies and career path.

Former University of Iowa wrestler won't be satisfied with participation in the 2012 Olympic Trials. He wants to wear a singlet sporting the red, white, and blue colors of Team USA.

Leah Price, professor of English and chair of history and literature at Harvard University, will discuss force-reading in Victorian Britain at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, April 19.

Organist Dean Billmeyer, a guest of the University of Iowa School of Music, will present a free recital at 4 p.m. Sunday, April 22, in the Congressional United Church of Christ.

The International Chemistry Olympiad will be held in July in Washington, D.C.

The most famous operatic adaptation of Shakespeare’s timeless tale of young love doomed by feuding families will come to the stage of the Englert Theatre when the University of Iowa School of Music presents Romeo et Juliette by Charles Gounod April 26-29.

Come decorate a bag with Meskwaki designs, meet Captain Planet, and learn potato stamping during Family Weekend, Saturday and Sunday, April 21 and 22, at the University of Iowa Pentacrest Museums. The Museum of Natural History and Old Capitol Museum are offering a variety of free public programs for all ages.

The collaborative community art project Stir-Fry, which uses art to focus on how people resettle into new communities and cultures, will culminate its semester-long activities with a series of free public events from 5 to 8:30 p.m. Friday, April 27, at the Iowa City/Johnson County Senior Center Assembly Room, 28 South Linn St., Iowa City.

Pianist Richard Shuster, a guest of the University of Iowa School of Music, will present a free recital of nine nocturnes by Gabriel Faure at 3 p.m. Sunday, April 22, in the Riverside Recital Hall.

RiverFest is raging through Iowa City April 22-29 with its annual pre-finals spring rush of music, art, and more. Highlights include performances by noise-pop duo Sleigh Bells and rock band Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, as well as a weekend of theme parties in the Iowa Memorial Union.

Demands of the Dead: Executions, Storytelling, and Activism in the United States, edited by Katy Ryan, is now available from the University of Iowa Press.

The Iowa City Book Festival will announce this summer’s author lineup at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, April 18 in a special media event in the Old Capitol Museum Senate Chamber. Several local authors slated to participate in this summer’s festival will be available to the media during this event, including Larry Baker and Zach Wahls.