There are currently 800 nontraditional students attending UW-Eau Claire, and if graduate students are added, that number rises closer to 1,200, said Bonnie Isaacson, nontraditional student adviser.

“Many people are surprised to hear that there is that large of a number . on campus,” she said, adding that this is one of the reasons why she organizes the nontraditional student week.

“I’m doing this not only to honor and recognize those students but also to just bring more awareness to the entire campus that there is a large group here.”

Sponsored by Nontraditional Student Services, Student Development and Diversity, Sigma Gamma Zeta II and the UW-Eau Claire Foundation, the annual event starts today and goes through Saturday.

The week’s activities are as follows:

Tuesday
Noon to 1:00 p.m. – Brown Bag informal gathering to visit with other nontraditional students in the Badger Room of Davies Center
2 p.m. to 3 p.m. – Financial Counseling and Budget Management Informational Session. Wisconsin Room, Davies Center

Wednesday
6 p.m. – Dinner at El Patio, 228 Water St., and “Jazz at Night” in The Cabin, Davies Center

Thursday
Noon to 1 p.m. – “Stress Management Brown Bag” in the Arrowhead Room of Davies Center

Friday
7:30 p.m. – Singing Statesman concert, Gantner Concert Hall, Haas Fine Arts Center. Anyone interested in attending the concert as a group can meet in the lobby prior to the show.

Saturday
11:30 a.m. – Free hot dogs, hot chocolate and cookies for nontraditional students and their kids at the Children’s Center cafeteria on campus followed by a special reserved showing of the planetarium show at 12:30 p.m. Cost is $1 a family. RSVP by Tuesday.