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(06/12/08 12:14am)
Senior Isabel Estevez has her hands full this summer. Revamping a Web site, creating and maintaining a blog, producing podcasts, writing press releases and meeting with campus leaders and news outlets are only part of her efforts to spread the word and promote campus sustainability. But as busy and determined Estevez is, she’s one of only 18 interns working to further sustainability at IU.\nTo continue the University’s ongoing environmental sustainability efforts, the IU Sustainability Task Force has selected 18 undergraduate and graduate students to work as fellows in its second running Summer Program in Sustainability. Broadly defined, sustainability is the responsible use of natural resources and promoting ideals of environmental stewardship.\nThroughout the summer, each intern will work on a specific project relating to sustainability. Project coordinator David Fuente said the program’s overall goal is to develop a network of students, faculty and staff who want to carry the conversation and process of sustainability forward. Projects have a broad range of goals, some of which are long-range research projects such as an overall campus greenhouse gas inventory, while others are very specific projects, such as advancing sustainable computing and improving alternative campus transportation, Professor Michael Hamburger said. \n“The basic idea of the whole program is to use the campus as a living laboratory for us to research and learn in a way that explores new opportunities for energy conservation, better resource use, recycling stewardship of the land, and so on,” said Hamburger, co-chair of the IU Sustainability Task Force. “This is a very exciting opportunity to get students directly involved in some of the key campus issues related to sustainability.”\nFuente said that one of the strengths of the internships is that it bridges the divide between sustainability theory and practice.\nThe internships are stages toward building up campus programs in sustainability, Provost Karen Hanson said.\n“These are outgrowths and continuants of the efforts of the Sustainability Task Force which suggests certain steps we might take on the operational and academic side to heighten our work and focus on learning experiences in sustainability,” she said.\nThe interns collectively represent almost every school on campus, at both the undergraduate and graduate level. There are staff mentors for each project who also come from a variety of operational units on campus. These factors, in conjunction with the program’s required 1-credit seminar on sustainability, will hopefully facilitate a strong community network dedicated to sustainability, Fuente said.\nEstevez was one of the 200 program applicants chosen for one of the coveted internship spots. Estevez, who will be working as the communications intern, said she believes the only way to achieve change is to educate people on the issues. \n“Personally I’d like to be able to reach a ridiculous amount of people and tell them what we’re working on and how sustainability effects everyone,” she said. “Hopefully we’ll build up enough support to make these sustainability positions more permanent.”\nNeil Sahu, a second-year graduate student in the School of Public and Environmental Affairs, is working as the Griffy Watershed intern.\n“My job is pretty much to develop a set of recommendations specifically aimed at IU’s administration for how they can minimize their impact on the Griffy Creek watershed,” he said.\nSahu will be conducting background research about the watershed and look to the goals developed by the City of Bloomington and the state to formulate recommendations for IU.\nThis year’s interns are more directly involved in taking these steps than last year’s interns, who focused mostly on developing recommendations for IU’s Sustinability Task Force report, released in early 2008.\nThere has been buzz about creating an office of sustainability, which many think would truly institutionalize the Sustainability Task Force’s efforts, but there’s no official plan for such an office as of yet.\n“I’m not certain whether there will be an office of sustainability, but there are already signs of institutional support and I expect that to continue,” Hanson said. “We’re all living on one small planet and we have a finite number of resources here. We have the obligation to leave the planet in good shape for our successors.”
(06/05/08 3:54am)
Some in Bloomington might know Indiana State Excise Officer Travis Thickstun as the guy who busted them for underage drinking or using a fake ID, but to many law enforcement officials, businesses, schools and civic organizations statewide, Thickstun is known for his extensive work as an alcohol educator in his 23-county district.\nIt should come as no surprise, then, that the Indiana State Excise Police recently selected Thickstun for the Educator of the District and Educator of the State awards.\n“He’s been around the area a long time and he’s a very knowledgeable professional,” said IUPD Lt. Thomas Lee, who has worked with Thickstun on many occasions. “He’s certainly a police officer of the highest caliber.”\nThickstun, an IU alumnus and Bloomington resident, has been an excise officer in this district for six years. Much of his energy is spent leading educational programs on alcohol laws, drinking and fake IDs, but his job involves a mix of responsibilities that take him all around the district.\n“One day I’ll do inspections in the three-county area, or send someone who is not old enough to purchase alcohol into a store,” he said. “Every day is different for us. It just kind of depends on what’s going on and what the officers feel is the most useful way to spend their time.”\nThickstun said compared to other areas there’s a lot going on in Bloomington during the school year, but the town slows down when the students leave for the summer.\n“During school there is so much that could be done in a city like this that the work doesn’t end,” he said.\nAs part of the never-ending work, Thickstun leads a number of alcohol education programs in Bloomington, some of which are targeted specifically toward businesses. Thickstun said one of the biggest aspects of his job is teaching business employees how to spot fake IDs. In the two-hour program, Thickstun passes out fake IDs for employees to inspect and tells them what to look and feel for. Thickstun also educates employees on some of the current fake IDs being confiscated.\n“We go through things to look for, we look at examples of real IDs that people have tried to use and point out problems with them and we go around the room to share information,” Thickstun said. “I actually get good information from people that work day in and out checking IDs, so it’s helpful both ways because they’ll tell me what they’re seeing.”\nLee said the programs are beneficial, considering how fake IDs are becoming more difficult to spot.\n“In this day and age with the use of computer imagery and the fact that fake IDs are really good, law enforcement has advantage over commercial business in that we can actually have the wherewithal to run and check the validity of a driver’s license and see if the person is who they really say they are, and that’s something commercial establishments can’t do,” Lee said. “Some businesses are better than others at making that determination and I think certainly to their credit excise has attempted to help these establishments develop that ability.”\nBig Red Liquors employees take Thickstun’s education class twice a year. Big Red Director of Marketing Rob Williamson estimated that Big Red employees caught more than 100 students with fake IDs last year.\n“The program is very helpful,” Williamson said. “Travis does a great job in teaching our employees what to look for, and in return we catch a lot of fake IDs. It has become more difficult to spot fakes, but on the other hand we’ve become more vigilant about locating them.”\nWhile businesses and law enforcement may praise Thickstun’s work, excise police often get a bad rap with IU students.\n“I guess folks in general kind of believe that it can’t happen to them and it’s always something that will happen to someone else,” Lee said. “These education programs have great potential, depending on the audience, because they communicate the reality someone and hopefully more people will get the hint about using fake IDs without having to be introduced to the criminal justice system. It might save them some grief.”\nThough it’s difficult to prove how well these programs work without empirical data, Thickstun said the anecdotal evidence points to success.\n“You’ll see stacks of IDs at businesses that attended a class, which shows how many IDs are taken and quickly turned over to us,” he said.\nThickstun cited helping people understand how their job works and helping them to improve as the most rewarding aspect of his educator job.\n“I think there are some places that genuinely want to take steps to do better at identifying fake IDs,” Thickstun said. “And that has an impact and it does make a difference.”
(05/24/08 3:10am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The move from home to the shared dorm room is often a major downsize in space for IU students. Managing to store everything and decorate without breaking Residential Programs and Services rules is challenging, yet every year IU students manage to transform their 10-by-13-foot rooms into homes that reflect their personalities and interests. Senior Sara Wasser, a fine arts major, said the plain, white-washed walls of the dorm rooms are the perfect place to start.“See the walls of your dorm as an extension of yourself and the things you enjoy looking at whether it be objects, people or colors, and try to explore that,” she said. “Art is important for a space because it provides inspiration, comfort, warmth and style.”Organizing furniture is often the first step students take before decorating. Furniture differs from dorm to dorm. Some dorm rooms have modular furniture, which can be stacked and arranged in a variety of ways. Other dorms have a more permanent furniture setup with less opportunity for rearrangement. In either type of room, students have the freedom to arrange furniture and decorate the room however they want, as long as it doesn’t break any RPS rules. New students are given a guide for approved items in the dorms, but Residence Hall Manager John Goshert said that as a general rule, any electric item that “glows red” is prohibited, such as toasters and heating devices.Making efficient use of space is one of the biggest challenges students face upon moving into dorm rooms, Goshert said. “Students do everything to get creative with the limited space we can offer them,” he said. “Sometimes TVs and microwaves get put in the closet to save space.”Goshert said the easiest way to keep a dorm room uncluttered is to bring less stuff.“Don’t bring too much to begin with, that’s where students run into trouble,” he said. “A lot of people just bring so much stuff that the rooms fill up so quickly from the start and they never find time to organize it well.”Goshert recommends students bring essentials and then build from there. For students who need extra storage, he recommends plastic bed-support cups that elevate the bed off the ground to allow for more underneath storage space. Students can get them at Bed Bath & Beyond as well as Wal-Mart.The plain white walls in the dorms cannot be painted or nailed into, so many students hang posters with nondamaging sticky putty to give their rooms character. “The IMU poster sale each year is a great place to get stuff for your walls,” Wasser said. The poster sale is usually held during Welcome Week in the Indiana Memorial Union. Goshert said one of the most popular dorm-room shopping destinations for students is Target. In fact, the Bloomington Target is the second-highest-grossing Target in the country during back-to-college week, said Bloomington’s Target Human Resources Executive Ericha Wilson. “In the last couple of years our most popular items have been futons, bean bag chairs and all types of mix and match plastic storage bins,” she said. “A lot of students buy foam mattress pads and body pillows.”For students who don’t want to spend a lot of money decorating their dorm, Wasser recommends getting creative with things they already own.“You have to work with what you have and have fun with it,” she said. “If you have scarves, you can drape them across the wall. Once I cut up a Hawaiian lei and pasted the flower pieces around my friend’s dorm. Any effort that you put into something will make it more interesting and enjoyable to be around.”
(05/24/08 1:10am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Anyone who’s flipped through the IU undergraduate course bulletin can testify to the overwhelming number of classes available to students. With classes on topics from astronomy to human sexuality, rock history to bowling, it can be tough to decide on a schedule. But some classes at IU have become student favorites during the years.IU’s renowned Jacobs School of Music offers a number of rock history courses that quickly reach capacity each semester. Professor of Music Glenn Gass, who created one of the country’s first rock history classes a few decades ago, teaches the semester-long course Z202 “Rock History II: The 1960s,” among others. Andy Hollinden, a music professor, teaches the next phase in rock history in his class Z301 “Rock Music in the ’70s and ’80s.”“Everyone likes music,” Hollinden said. “When students learn a little more about music, they learn listening skills that they will be applying the rest of their lives. They’ll get into music they may have never heard of before or music they thought they hated, and they become more accepting.”Though rock history courses are not completely unique to IU, the scope, depth and sheer number of rock music courses offered is rare, Hollinden said. Gass teaches a course solely on The Beatles, and Hollinden teaches courses on both Jimi Hendrix and Frank Zappa. Many universities only teach such classes from a sociological standpoint and don’t spend as much time listening to the actual music, Hollinden said.“We teach (rock) music courses through a music school, and that’s the difference between IU and other universities,” he said. “We talk about their music. These guys were modern-day composers, and I approach these people as major artists.”Music courses aren’t the only popular history classes at IU. The online course “Traditions & Cultures of IU” gives students a glimpse into the University’s history by highlighting important dates and campus treasures. The online class has filled every semester and even overflowed some years. The online textbook is accentuated by photos from the IU Archives and film and audio clips, said Eric Nichols, who teaches the course.“The major feedback is that a lot of students really like the course and walk away feeling connected to the campus because they know a lot more about the institution and how it began,” he said. “Students also like the flexibility of the class since there aren’t set class times.”The School of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation offers an array of nontraditional classes. The school’s Department of Kinesiology boasts a variety of exercise-based classes, including yoga, weight training and fencing. The Department of Recreation, Park, and Tourism Studies offers more than 30 weekend excursions in conjunction with IU Outdoor Adventures, from rock climbing and white-water rafting to caving. The department also offers a weeklong ski trip during spring break that allows students to get class credit. These trips are open to all students, regardless of major, and some come with a fee, said Associate Professor Sarah Young, the department’s curriculum coordinator. “It’s a nice blend of doing something fun and learning something and getting college credit for it,” she said.
(05/22/08 12:37am)
Little 500 might be over, but interest in bicycling is still strong in Bloomington.\nIn the spirit of the bicycling season and the ground-breaking of the new B-Line Trail, WonderLab will introduce children and adults alike to the physics of bicycles during the Cycle Science program this weekend. \n“We thought it’d be a good time to focus on the physics and safety of cycling,” WonderLab Marketing Director Louise Schlesinger said. WonderLab, a nonprofit science museum, features permanent, hands-on exhibits and hosts a variety of programs throughout the year. Schlesinger said that the program, which is sponsored by the Bloomington Bicycle Club, explains the physics of bicycles at different levels of sophistication. Revolution Bike and Bean is a partner in the program and will lead various program activities.\n“Whether you are riding a tricycle or you’re an adult, there’s something that’ll appeal to everyone,” Schlesinger said.\nOutside, a bike safety obstacle course will be available for participants to complete. Participants will first go through a bike safety check, and all who complete the obstacle course will receive a certificate and have the chance to win bike accessories.\nIn one activity, participants will learn about the different tools used in bicycle maintenance and use these tools to take apart bicycles, said Revolution Bike and Bean owner Brad Titzer.\n“Once you get kids into cycling they’ll do it forever,” Titzer said. “That’s where it starts. To be part of that is inspiring to me.”\nTitzer will also be teaching the basic physics of gears and brakes. Some of the hands-on activities include building with K’Nex to learn how bicycle gears work, experimenting with gyroscopes and building model helmets for eggs and simulating a crash by dropping them from the second floor to learn how helmets work.\nChildren too young to participate in these events will have the opportunity to bring their bicycles and decorate them, Schlesinger said.\nSchlesinger said WonderLab expects 600 to 800 people to attend the event throughout the weekend.\nWonderLab is located at 308 W. Fourth St. Cycle Science will take place from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. May 24, with outdoor activities from noon to 3:30 p.m.; and from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. May 25, with outdoor activities from 2 to 4 p.m. \nAll activities are included with museum admission, which is $6 for children and $7 for adults. In honor of Memorial Day, all U.S. veterans and current service personnel will receive free admission. This particular program has a one-time admission fee, so participants can come and go throughout the day, Schlesinger said. \nFor more information about Cycle Science or WonderLab, call 337-1337, ext. 25.
(01/31/08 5:00am)
How in hell did we get here already? When "Saw" debuted in 2004, moviegoers were ready for fresh blood in the horror/torture genre after suffering through late-'90s teenybopper-filled entries such as "Scream." But a couple of gory traps here, a so-called twist ending there, and before you knew it, the series saved its best swerve for the American public: tricking people into watching four of them.\n"Saw IV" features Officer Rigg's (Bent) quest to find his fallen comrades that have been tested by Jigsaw (Bell) in previous films. However, Rigg's persistent need to save everyone leads him into his own series of tests contrived by Jigsaw, who lies dead in a morgue. Meanwhile, FBI agent Strahm (Patterson) tries to close the case once and for all, but of course, he falls into Jigsaw's trap as well.\nEven for the "Saw" series, this film is damn awful. "IV" falls victim to the worst part of the series by forcing characters (Rigg and Detective Hoffman) that had two lines of dialogue in previous films to the forefront and expecting us to care. The story is as contrived as others in the "Saw" canon. Bousman uses tricky transitions and scene juxtapositions in an attempt to disorient, but they're nothing more than gimmicky moves that don't work. The main swerve in "IV" centers on your knowledge of the time line of previous events, and it's blatantly obvious 35 minutes into the movie.\nPeople watch these movies for the "cool" traps, though, and if you're a fan, you won't be disappointed. Visually, the traps are disturbingly innovative, but leaps in logic must be taken to acknowledge many of their intricacies.\nThe bonus features are dreadful, including dry documentaries on the design of the traps and props, as well as a video diary from Bousman. They exist solely for these torture-porn nuts to stroke their own egos and allow you to see the reason these films are so terrible. \nThe bad news is that, due to its box-office success, "Saw" isn't going away, and I'm certain "Saw V" will hit theaters this Halloween. But plead with those around you to not fall into the sick trap it has planted for moviegoers.
(11/06/07 4:30am)
Michael Hamburger, co-chair of the IU Task Force on Campus Sustainability, knew IU was a campus committed to improving sustainability, but it wasn’t until he received 200 applications for the task force’s internship program that he realized the magnitude of enthusiasm.\n“We were worried that we wouldn’t get enough applicants to fill the positions because we announced the internship in the middle of the semester, but we got hundreds of very engaged, bright and high quality students,” he said. “That, for me, was proof that there’s an incredible bounty of human energy here to solving these problems.”\nIU has made significant steps in improving campus sustainability, but there’s still a long way to go, he said. The Sustainable Endowments Institute’s annual sustainability report card, released two weeks ago, serves as a guidepost for how IU can improve. The report card uses eight different criteria to assess campus sustainability. Each school earns grades in every individual category and one overall mark. IU received an overall grade of “C”, and while not ideal, it is an improvement from last year’s “D+”. \nThe Environmental Protection Agency defines sustainability as ideas, aspirations and values that encourage people and organizations to become better stewards of the environment and promote positive economic and social growth. Hamburger said sustainability is not about a few specific policy changes, but is about universities having a new global-scale perspective on the impact of their actions and a long-term view of the life of the university. \n“I feel that this is an attempt to respond to a really pressing societal challenge,” Hamburger said. “In order for us to maintain a high quality of life for our children and grandchildren, we have to make some changes in the way all of us conduct our lives.” \nAdministrative support for sustainable practices is one area that IU has struggled with. Last year’s overall “D+” on the report card can be largely attributed to the administration’s complete drop in funding for IU’s Council for Environmental Stewardship. To improve sustainability efforts, the IU administration created the Task Force on Campus Sustainability six months ago, which was charged to bring students, faculty and staff together to make assessments and prepare a report on future directions the University needs to take to improve sustainability. \nThe task force will release the first draft of the report in the coming weeks, which Hamburger said will hopefully lead to some permanent tructure to support sustainability.\nWhile the implementation of the task force helped IU’s grade move up, IU still earned a “C” in the administration category this year. Paul Sullivan, IU’s deputy vice president for administration and co-chair of the task force, said that there has been extensive support from the administration but the “C” grade might be credited to the fact that IU does not have a permanent sustainability office.\n“It’s not clear to us exactly how they come up with these grades because they don’t explain the criteria to us,” he said, “but if you look at other schools that did well in administration, many of them have permanent sustainability offices.”\nSullivan said that a permanent office is one of the recommendations that the task force proposed in their sustainability report. \nPenn State was the only Big 10 school ranked by Sierra Magazine as one of its top 10 most sustainable schools. Penn State, which has a permanent sustainability office, earned high marks overall by the Endowments Institute and an A in the administration category. David Riley, director of the Center for Sustainability at Penn State, said administration plays a key role in campus sustainability and is a major reason Penn State performed well.\n“Our president, provost and chief financial officer are all very committed to increasing sustainability, and I don’t think you find that at many institutes,” Riley said. “Without this kind of commitment from administration, it’s an uphill battle.” \nRiley said from a recruiting standpoint alone, universities should value campus sustainability.\n“This generation is very attuned to environmental issues,” he said. “I feel like it will be harder to attract top students to any school if environmentalism isn’t a priority.” \nRiley also said that there is a large return on many investments associated with sustainability. In fact, IU’s only individual grade A on the Institute’s report card was in the area of investments. According to the report card, IU aims to optimize investment return and currently holds investments in renewable energy initiatives.\nMia Williams, a member of the task force and director of landscape architecture at the University Architect’s Office, said that while the university does face challenges in sustainability, IU’s administrative efforts have created major positive changes. \n“Many steps are being made in the right direction, but it will not be like flipping a switch for an institution this size,” she said. \nWilliams said increasing the number of drought-tolerant grasses and perennials, including more composted leaves in planting mix and moving to a drip irrigation system that uses less water than the old system, are actions IU has taken to improve sustainability.\nHamburger said IU’s “D” grade in the climate change and energy category is not fully deserved. Changing to low-energy fluorescent lighting in most office buildings and investing in an energy-efficient boiler system for the Central Heating Plant are two of IU’s major improvements in this area. IU is also looking at constructing Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design-certified energy efficient buildings on campus.\nIU has done remarkably well in transportation, said SPEA graduate student and task force member Jenny Sumner.\n“Just in general we’ve seen IU bus ridership increase every year which is amazing,” she said. “In the future ... we’ll need to look at issues like how you can increase ridership, increase routes and make access that much easier.”\nImproving campus sustainability requires involvement from faculty, staff and students, Hamburger said. He said he’s seen a lot of enthusiasm on campus on all levels, from the student group Volunteers in Sustainability to the upper levels of administration.\n“It’s easy to be daunted by the scale of the problems ... and changing some of the ways we do things, but I think what people are finding is that by making some strategic changes we can really make some significant impact on some of the problems we face,” he said. “It will be a gradual process, but we’re off to a great start.”
(11/06/07 4:02am)
IU students can now learn what’s going on around campus from their iPods.\nThe IU Foundation and the IU Student Foundation recently teamed up to create the Hoosiercast, a weekly podcast hosted by seniors and IUSF steering committee members Lauren Bailey and Doug Davis. The podcast, typically 10 minutes in length, is free and available on iTunes and the IUSF Web site. \n“It reminds me of when, in high school, you would hear announcements about current events or happenings,” Bailey said. “We basically talk about events going on around campus, ways to get involved, different seminars you can attend, fundraisers and anything else going on.”\nMore than campus announcements, Hoosiercast is also somewhat of a commentary show. The IU Foundation first tested the podcast this summer, with one person reading off a list of campus events. Gabie Benson, associate director of annual giving for the IU foundation, said they realized they needed two students rather than one to have some banter and interaction so it didn’t sound like a scripted reading.\n“The two anchors have a lot of personality and put their own comments and discussion in the podcast,” Benson said. “We let them put their own personality in it and we want to emphasize school spirit.”\nThe podcast is the first of its kind at IU. Benson said the podcast was created both to market the IU Foundation to students and inform them of what is going on at IU.\n“We have a lot of lectures and activities on campus that are made possible by donor support,” she said. “We want to let students know about the opportunities that IU donors are providing to students here.”\nBailey said the podcast is an excellent tool for students to learn what’s going on around them.\n“IU is really good at getting its students involved, but there’s so much going on that you might not know about,” she said. “It’s definitely to students’ benefit to listen so they can find out about maybe an organization they’ve never heard of or an event they’d like to attend.”\nCurrently, the IU Foundation is trying to find a way to track participation so they find out if students are actually listening to the podcast. Besides experiencing a few technical problems, Benson said the podcast has gone well so far this semester. \n“It took the shape that it really needs to be,” she said. “We’ve had a really solid four podcasts so far and we’re getting better and better every week.”\nThe podcast can be downloaded at iufoundation.iu.edu.
(10/23/07 2:40am)
Teach for America will be holding an information session and alumni panel today at 7 p.m. in the Indiana Memorial Union’s Whittenberger Auditorium for students interested in the program. A Teach for America representative will be on campus recruiting in the next few weeks as well. \n“We recruit literally the best and brightest students,” said Lee Anne McKelvey, recruitment director for Teach for America’s Indiana Recruitment Team. “There’s a great wealth of leaders at IU. Last year we recruited 35 students; this year we are looking to recruit 45 or 50.”\nTeach for America is a national program that recruits recent college graduates to teach for two years in under-resourced urban and rural public schools. McKelvey will be on campus in the next few weeks interviewing potential candidates. McKelvey said that no academic background in education is required to work for Teach for America, and students of all majors \nare accepted. \nTeach for America corps work in 26 urban and rural locations around the country. There will be three new sites opened in 2008, one of which is Indianapolis.\nTeach for America hopes to recruit 50 students to work at the Indianapolis site, a relatively small corps compared to other urban sites. \nThe graduation rate in Indianapolis Public Schools is only 52 percent, McKelvey said. She compared IPS graduation rates to those of neighboring Carmel, Ind., where more than 90 percent of students graduate high school.\n“It’s totally unacceptable and something we just can’t allow,” McKelvey said.\nThe opening of the new Teach for America site will help improve education in Indianapolis, she said. \nDuring the info session today, IU alumni who worked for Teach for America will discuss their experiences and answer questions. \nChris Carlson, a 2006 IU alumnus in his second year of service with Teach for America, said he got involved with the organization to serve and help others. Carlson teaches high school biology and earth space science on the south side of Chicago. \n“It’s extremely rewarding and fulfilling,” he said. “Understand that teach for America is a movement. When you apply, you aren’t applying for a teaching job, you are applying for a movement.” \nFor more information or to schedule an interview, e-mail megan.hillier@teachforamerica.org.
(10/19/07 3:29am)
More than 60 IU students will gear up for the IU Dance Marathon’s second annual torch ride today. The 60-mile bicycle ride, which starts at the Riley Outpatient Center in Indianapolis and ends in Bloomington, was created to honor Riley Hospital patients and Ashley Crouse, a former IU student and IUDM organizer who was killed in a car accident in 2005.\n“The torch is symbolic with keeping Ashley’s memory alive,” said IUDM vice president of communications Jill Delaney.\nThe torch ride is the kick off event for this year’s 17th annual Dance Marathon. IUDM is the nation’s second largest student-run organization and more than $920,000 during last year’s marathon alone. \nThe torch ride is not a fundraising event, IUDM Director of Entertainment R.J. Clouse said, but is another way for IU students to get involved with Riley and give IUDM good visibility.\n“IU and riding go hand-in-hand, so to incorporate such a rich part of IU’s history with Riley is a great thing,” he said. “It’s also a great time to kick dance marathon into gear.” \nAlthough IUDM worked with the Little 500 riders’ council to recruit riders, both cyclists and non-cyclists will participate.\n“This is my first year doing the event,” Clouse said. “I’m not a biker previously, I just saw it as an opportunity to stretch myself and help the kids in any way I can.”\nAshley Crouse’s brother, Charlie Crouse will guide a brief dedication ceremony outside Riley at 8:15 a.m. Riders will be joined by a few Riley patients for the first half-mile of the journey, Delaney said. The ride will end at the IU campus in Bloomington.
(10/12/07 4:17am)
IU’s new and much improved Data Center will be recognized during a groundbreaking ceremony Friday. \nThe new, technologically advanced Data Center will serve as the new home for IU’s supercomputer, Big Red.\n“We have one of the world’s largest supercomputers and it’s extremely valuable in terms of dollar value and the data that we store,” said Larry MacIntyre, IU’s director of media relations. “It was determined that we needed a more safe, secure location for that computer. The new Data Center is a very safe structure for such a valuable asset.”\nThe supercomputer system was originally put in Wrubel Hall, an old academic building without any special features to protect Big Red from natural disasters, large scale power-outages and unauthorized people. The new Data Center is designed to withstand a direct hit by a tornado, high winds and earthquakes, is essentially fire-proof and has advanced security, MacIntyre said. \nUpon completion in 2008, the Data Center will be connected to IU-Purdue University Indianapolis’ computer system by an optical fiber network that will allow IU and IUPUI to both back up and share data over a highly protected, secure network.\n“So much of scientific research requires enormous amounts of data processing and data storage,” MacIntyre said. “Big Red gives us the capability, and that’s of use both here in Bloomington and in the (IU) School of Medicine where there is a lot of applied research being done.”\nIU President Michael McRobbie will preside over the groundbreaking ceremony. McRobbie actually proposed the idea of building Data Center a few years ago when he worked as IU’s vice president for information technology, MacIntyre said. \nThe new Data Center will not only ensure that IU’s supercomputer remains safe, but it will play a big role in maintaining and expanding IU’s research capabilities.\n“The new data center makes it possible to continue expanding our supercomputer and massive data storage facilities,” said Craig Stewart, associate dean for research technologies at IU. “In doing so we can keep pace with the needs of IU researchers and help IU lead the state and nation in innovative new discoveries.”\nThe University architect’s office hopes to have the building complete by spring 2008. The project costs an estimated $32.7 million dollars, said Christine Fitzpatrick, communications officer for the office of the vice president for information technology.\nThe groundbreaking ceremony will begin at 1:30 p.m. today at the center, northeast of the intersection of East 10th Street and the Indiana 45/46 Bypass.
(10/08/07 5:29pm)
Playboy magazine will be in Bloomington today and Tuesday in search of women to pose for its “Girls of the Big 10” issue.\n“We are basically looking for the all-around girl next door, someone really bubbly and happy with a lot of school spirit,” said Playboy spokeswoman Tina Manzo. “We want the girl you’d see at your math class on Friday or a girl you’d run into at the bar.” \nPlayboy will visit each of the 11 Big Ten schools to photograph women for the magazine pictorial spread, which will run in the May 2008 issue. Playboy featured four women from IU in their 2003 “Girls of the Big 10” issue. Manzo said the turnout at IU has been good in the past, and they expect around 70 to 150 candidates to try out.\nDuring tryouts, women will go through a mini-interview process with a photographer and take test shots wearing a swimsuit. The photographer, a stylist and an assistant will be present during the tryout. After the initial interview, women who are called back have the option to pose partially or fully nude for the magazine, depending on how comfortable they are, Manzo said. \nThough Playboy is looking for girls who represent IU, University officials do not endorse the try-outs or the issue, Dean of Students Dick McKaig said.\n“Basically, I think the institution’s primary concern is that no property of the University or University trademarks are used,” McKaig said. “Usually these magazines are legally savvy enough to avoid any of that because there is obviously no endorsement or involvement of Indiana University, and we wouldn’t want to be depicted as a sponsor.” \nMcKaig said beyond trademark, it’s an issue of how students choose to represent themselves. \n“I would ask students to be careful, because there might be other implications that come from being in the magazine,” McKaig said. \nManzo said that girls of all different shapes, sizes and hair color are welcome to try out. \n“Appearance-wise, there really isn’t any requirement,” she said. “My advice would be to come with an open mind and really show the photographers that you embody the spirit of your school. Be confident, sexy and sophisticated.”\nParticipants must be 18 years of age and bring a student ID to the interview. Women interested in scheduling an appointment should call 312 315-7342
(09/12/07 11:50am)
Fire alarms prompted two evacuations of Woodburn Hall Tuesday for the second time this semester. \nThe Bloomington Fire Department responded to a pulled fire alarm in the academic building at 5:30 p.m. A faulty smoke detector in the third floor hallway was the source of the problem, said BFD Chief Steve Coover. But around 6:30 p.m., BFD were again called to the same scene in response to a second false alarm. This time, nearly 40 students waited outside for the situation to be resolved. \nBFD Battallion Chief Mark Webb said the alarm was due to a malfunction in the fire \nalarm system. \nWebb said he notified IU about the problem. \nLast week, a similar incident in Woodburn caused classes to be delayed or canceled. Some students complained that this has been a continual problem in the past few years.\n“This seems to happen with a lot of frequency in Woodburn,” said graduate student Brandon Wilkening. “I can recall at least a half a dozen times that this has happened in the past \nfew years.”\nVasabjit Banerjee, a political science graduate student and teaching assistant, \nsaid the pulled fire alarms are a major interruption to classes.\n“It’s really disruptive when this happens,” he said. “It happened at roughly the same time last week, so this is twice this semester that my classes have been interrupted.”\nFreshman Kirsty Gentry’s professor told students to go home as they waited outside for the building to be inspected by BFD.\n“I guess I’m ok with having to go home this time,” she said. “Last time it was really irritating though because we just stood outside for 20 minutes and then had to go back in.”
(09/06/07 4:00am)
If the horror movies of the 21st century could be described as anything, it would be the era of splat and the remake. While studio execs have been banking on modernized versions of older horror movies, filmmakers like rock star-horror buff Rob Zombie have been treating horror fans to the blood and gore they crave in horror flicks. So, if the two united, Zombie's remake of "Halloween" should have served as the perfect love child (or two-headed monster) of the pairing.\nZombie's "Halloween" begins with a 10-year-old Michael Myers (played wonderfully by Daeg Faerch). Struggling with a turbulent home and school life, young Michael shows signs of being an extremely disturbed individual; a social outcast who prefers to constantly wear a clown mask to hide his ugliness. All the bad signs come to a head when Michael begins reacting to his antagonists. After his sister Judith abandons his trick-or-treating plans on Halloween, a brutal massacre ensues, and Michael is sent to a mental institution under the supervision of Dr. Loomis (Malcolm McDowell).\nFifteen years later, a grown Michael Myers (Tyler Mane) has become silent to the outside world. Always masked, Michael spends his time working on his vast compilation of homemade masks. He also learns that Dr. Loomis will no longer meet with him, and that Michael is soon to be transferred from his current mental institution. At this point, the plot weaves into the original story line of "Halloween," as Michael searches for his baby sister Laurie (Scout Taylor-Compton), whom he had a soft spot for as a child. \nOn the surface, "reimagining" "Halloween" was a good idea by Zombie. He had the credibility, and the approval of John Carpenter, to explore the 1978 classic. But the movie falls short at times when Zombie opts to shock the audience. The original succeeded on little gore, and while gore is one of Zombie's strong points, holding back in a few scenes could have helped the impact of the overall story. The domineering Michael was very menacing and intimidating, but his violent and powerful strength along with his grunting made him reminiscent of a comical Hulk-type figure at times. \nUnfortunately, Zombie's "Halloween" faced the uphill battle of remaking a classic, as well as living up to the expectations of what Rob Zombie could do with "Halloween." And while the movie had several strong aspects like adding depth to Michael Myers, it still pales in comparison to its predecessor. Sometimes, Rob, less is more.
(08/29/07 4:00am)
In the aftermath of the suspension of five fraternities at Purdue, IU administrators and the Interfraternity Council is taking steps to ensure that fraternity parties at IU remain safe. \n“When we took over we set the bar a little higher, and we haven’t had any problems so far,” said IFC President Mike Piermont. “There can always be an isolated incident, but as far as the whole community is concerned, I don’t see there being any problems here.” \nAccording to a press release, Purdue suspended five fraternities in the past two weeks for violating the school’s alcohol policy, as well as IFC policies. Even though IU has not suspended any fraternities recently, chapters have been suspended or even expelled from campus in the past, said IU Dean of Students Dick McKaig. \n“Fraternities might tell you we’re a little aggressive, but I’d certainly like to think that we’re doing a good job,” McKaig said. \nPiermont said one thing fraternities can do to avoid problems is to have their own members monitoring functions. Since beginning his term as IFC president, Piermont said there haven’t been the sort of problems at IU that would result in suspension. \n“I thought it was kind of interesting that (Purdue’s) IFC stepped up and suspended five chapters,” he said. “We could do that, we’re allowed to do that, it’s in the bylaws if we wanted to. I don’t know the specifics but it would take a lot to get suspended by me.” \nThe IFC requires that every fraternity register its functions in advance so that IFC executives can inspect and monitor the parties to make sure no rules are being broken and safety regulations are being followed. \n“A few IFC executives go around to the parties and go through a point by point checklist,” Piermont said. “We try to prevent problems before they start.” \nSeveral of the sanctioned Purdue fraternities were busted for not registering their events in advance. Piermont said IU’s IFC can fine fraternities up to $1,000 if they fail to register their events. \n“For the most part, when fraternities aren’t registered it’s because they forgot or there was a miscommunication,” Piermont said. “As long as they have full security and the house is safe we usually won’t fine them.”
(06/28/07 4:00am)
Patriotic Fireworks Manager Josh Hernly sleeps in a tent with 3,000 pounds of explosives. Sounds dangerous, but as long as he doesn't smoke in the tent, there's nothing to worry about.\nWhen the hustle and bustle of the business day begins, Hernly rolls out of his air mattress bed to open up the tent, welcoming the world outside to join him in his firework specials. Stretching far past dinner time and darkness, the tent remains open until the final customers stop rolling in, and then it's back to bed for Josh to enjoy another night sleeping in a tent with a ton and a half of explosives.\n"I just blow up my air mattress and camp out," Hernly says about guarding the tent for a fortnight.\nPatriotic Fireworks is a company based out of Indianapolis, with a number of temporary businesses that open for the 4th of July season, like Hernley's tent by Cheeseburger in Paradise. \nJust up the road at Campus Costume, Owner John McGuire replaced his Jack Sparrow pirate display with a 35-inch Roman candle. Throughout the seasons, the locally owned costume store switches from selling Halloween costumes to Christmas decor, and this year, for the first time, John decided to break into the fireworks business.\nCostume sales were low during past summers, so in order to boost revenue, John decided to import fireworks from a distributor in Toledo, Ohio.\n"It was either this or the balloons, so we figured the 'boom boom' was the way to go," says Dario Andolini, a Campus Costume employee.\nBeing their first year selling fireworks, Andolini said Campus Costume has the lowest prices in town. \nLike McGuire and Hernly, firework businesses from all over the state decided to open up a seasonal shop in Bloomington. The summer's freedom festival brought in the managers of Anderson Fireworks and Mike's Fireworks. Both Ben Smith and Brad Barnes said they had friends in the business who recruited them.\nBen, manager of Anderson Fireworks, says the store opened toward the end of June and will close around July 6. Anderson Fireworks rented their retail space for only two months. Ben said he expects sales to increase as time ticks toward the holiday.\n"We've had a decent amount (of sales) for opening so early," Ben says. "We hope to make a lot of money."\nBrad, meanwhile, has been shooting off fireworks with his brother Greg in the parking lot of Varsity Court since he started working at Mike's Fireworks. Looking to increase sales during the summer, Mike's fireworks also started marketing their own brand fireworks. Inside the store they show a video that emphasizes the type of boom their brand firework has. \nNineteen years ago Steve Porter saw a man on the side of the road selling fireworks. He thought to himself, "selling fireworks would be a nice business to get into." Years later, he owns the only all-year firework store in town, Steve's Fireworks.\nSamantha Porter, Steve's daughter, said they do sell fireworks all year round but since fireworks are truly in season in the summer, they sell bibles in the off season. \nPorter explained that they have a new program running this year that offers customers a discount card that allows them 50 percent off of the entire store. She added that they have never raised their prices since they've been a working business.\nAfter July 4, these pop-up shops stay around town for a few days for customers to collect any last minute clearance bargains. The fireworks are then packed up and shipped out of town to their storage locations, to await the next firework season. It's then that Hernly finally deflates his air mattress, McGuire replaces the unsold fireworks with a giant Dora the Explorer costume, Smith and Barnes head back on to their hometown and the Porter family breaks out the bibles again.
(04/30/07 4:00am)
The IU rowing team left Lake Wingra in Madison, Wisc., with a bronze medal and seventh as a team overall at the 2007 Big Ten rowing championships Saturday.\n“I think in terms of our personal advancement as a team, IU did well,” said freshman Michelle Marchese. “Each boat came off the water pleased that they had great rows, but I think most of the girls were just disappointed with the outcome of the races.”\nThe Big Ten conference is one of the toughest in NCAA Division 1 rowing. Most of the crews the Hoosiers raced against have been consistently ranked in the top 20 throughout the season. Minnesota came out on top, followed by Michigan, Ohio State, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Iowa and IU. \nIU’s second varsity four came home with the team’s first Big Ten varsity medal in the history of the program. They finished with a time of 7:23.762, behind Wisconsin and Minnesota.\nIU’s first varsity had the second most successful run during the event, taking second in the petite final and sixth overall. \n“The morning was questionable,” senior Stacey Young said. “It wasn’t horrible, but it just wasn’t our best, and you must be at your absolute best at Big Tens. The afternoon race felt great, though. ... It was one of the best races we’ve had this season, if not the best.”\nBoth the first varsity eight and second varsity eights took seventh overall in the day’s races. \n“We realized that we are still improving and growing, not only as a boat but as a team,” freshman Emily Kasavana said. “There were definitely improvements and promise shown for South/ Centrals (regatta) and for the future.”\nThe relative inexperience of the team proved to be the biggest disadvantage for the Hoosiers going into the race. While the majority of Big Ten varsity crews comprise mostly juniors and seniors, a majority of seats in IU’s top boats are filled by freshmen and sophomores. However, the Hoosiers have shown considerable strides this season and are focusing on the future.\n“We have been practicing for this for months now,” sophomore Madison Spruell said. “We went there and did what we could. We raced crews that had more experience than my crew, but it didn’t stop us. We will be back next year.”
(04/27/07 4:00am)
After two weeks off from racing, the IU rowing team will be back in action at the Big Ten Championships in Madison, Wis., on Saturday. The Hoosiers will face their toughest competition of the season during the premier conference race.\n“We’re ranked as one of the bottom boats going into this,” said IU Coach Steve Peterson. “Big Ten’s is one of the hardest races of the season, because there are no easy crews. For us there is no room for error.”\nIU will be bringing its first and second varsity eights, first and second varsity fours, and one novice eight. IU’s second novice eight will not be racing due to injuries that will prevent two of the rowers from competing. \nIndiana will be facing Wisconsin, Michigan State, Minnesota, Iowa, Michigan, and Ohio State throughout the day. Ohio State, winner of last year’s Big 10 championship, is the highest ranked team in the event. \n“We need to stay focused and not get flustered if we’re next to OSU or another high ranked crew,” Peterson said. “It would be naive to think that we can knock out the fastest boats, but we think we can beat Iowa and Wisconsin.”\nPeterson hopes his varsity crews will leave with a gold in the petite final, but thinks the varsity fours have a chance of making the grand final. Compared to the other teams, IU has a very young crew, with top varsity boats comprised of mostly freshman and sophomores. \n“The more times we go against crews like this, the better it will be for us,” said Peterson. “Our crews are more inexperienced because they’re so young, and that’s definitely the biggest obstacle for us.”\nThough IU doesn’t go into the race with high expectations to win the championship, the crews are pleased with the boat speed they’ve acquired throughout the season. \n“Our crews have definitely gotten faster recently,” said Peterson. “In the beginning of the season, it’s about getting as fast as you can. At this point, we’re working on really sharpening and refining our race plan, and maxing out the power we know we have.”
(04/19/07 4:00am)
After playing WiiSports for the first time, I immediately began to anticipate the release of two games that would expand on the foundation that it had laid down; those games were "Fight Night" and "Tiger Woods." \n This version is clearly unlike any others, as it is the first where you actually swing your controller like a golf club. The game has instantly become far more interesting than its predecessors because it no longer helps to know buttons, you must know how to hit a ball with fade, draw and topspin. Luckily for novices there are tutorials and tips to help out. \n Once you get on the links there are plenty of options to keep you entertained. You can play as Woods, Vijay or about 50 other golfers (including personal favorite John Daly) or create your own player to take on the PGA Tour. This option is amazingly similar to the real life Tour; different tournaments are held every weekend on the calendar and to stay for Saturday and Sunday, you must make the cut after the first 36 holes. Other game modes include match play, stroke play and a golf version of H-O-R-S-E called "T-I-G-E-R." \n The main problem with "Tiger Woods" is the accuracy of the controller. The majority of the shots register pretty well, but every once in a while the ball will be hit before you actually took a swing, or it will have unwanted fade placing you square in the bunker you aimed so hard to avoid. There also seems to be no real control over the strength of your swing, as every successful swing is hit with "110 percent" power and usually lands farther than anticipated. While the Game Face mode has an incredible amount of customizable options to design your own player (including three different follicly challenged hairstyles: combover, receding and balding), the courses feel uninspired and repetitive.\n This game runs miles around its closest competition, the golf game in WiiSports, but that's not saying much; it was supposed to. When judged on its own, it has a ways to go in terms of performance and graphics, two components which I'm sure will be improved in subsequent versions. In the end, playing "Tiger Woods" replicates the feelings of real golf: One minute you'll be extremely relaxed and enjoying the scenery, but the next minute you'll have to do all you can not to throw your Wiimote into the television.
(04/19/07 4:00am)
THE RIDER