Longform

McKaig to retire at end of school year

Dean of Students Dick McKaig said Monday he will retire at the end of this school year. “I just turn 65 next summer,” McKaig said. “It’s one of those timing things.” McKaig arrived at IU in 1971 and since 1991 has worked as dean of students, a job that made McKaig an administrator of and advocate for the IU student body.

Zips take home Classic crown; men's soccer wins, ties

Having won its two exhibition games by a combined score of 6-1, the IU men’s soccer team entered the Adidas/IU Credit Union Classic this past weekend with high expectations for its offense. But it was the defense, allowing only one total goal for the tournament, that enabled the No. 7 Hoosiers to start the regular season undefeated.

Trip to Lone Star state garners women's soccer team win against ranked team

The IU women’s soccer team (1-2-0) came into the Aggie Soccer Invitational unranked and winless. The other three teams in the tournament were all ranked in the top 14, but the Hoosiers were able to leave Texas with a split in the weekend’s games.

State sees surge in nurse practitioner enrollment

They write prescriptions, see patients and sometimes even maintain their own practices — but don’t think about calling them physicians. Around the state, a growing number of people are enrolling in nurse practitioner programs, changing the meaning of the word “doctor” in the medical world.

Midnight Madness draws hundreds of freshmen

Shrinking packages, high food prices fluster parents

Kids may be worried about homework, teachers and that pesky bully this school year. But parents? They’re leery about lunches.

RAW gets down, dirty to raise animal awareness

Briscoe Quad was home to more than just students Monday. Dogs gathered in the quad’s circle drive as students and members of Revitalizing Animal Well-Being gathered beneath the shade to bathe dogs while raising awareness about animal well being and the positive connection animals and humans have.

FaithFest turns Dunn Meadow into meeting ground for religions

Dunn Meadow was filled with the faithful Sunday afternoon as Orientation Programs and campus religious leaders presented FaithFest, a program where religious groups from across campus and Bloomington were invited to gather and talk to freshmen about their organizations.

Watch out for similar drug names

Take the generic drug clonidine for high blood pressure? Double- check that you didn’t leave the drugstore with Klonopin for seizures, or the gout medicine colchicine.Mixing up drug names because they look or sound alike – like this trio – is among the most common types of medical mistakes, and it can be deadly. Now new efforts are aiming to stem the confusion and make patients more aware of the risk.

Traditions and Spirit of IU energizes, educates

The excitement in the crowd is tangible. It feels as if Kellen Lewis just broke away for a touchdown. It feels as if D.J. White just threw someone’s shot into the stands. It feels like the pent-up energy of a few thousand freshmen, and we’re not even inside Assembly Hall yet. Traditions and Spirit of IU, a Welcome Week event geared at educating and energizing the freshman class, took place at 4:30 p.m. Friday afternoon in Assembly Hall.

New grocery delivery service debuts this week

A new Bloomington food service is aiming to make shopping for food accessible to even the laziest of couch potatoes. In fact, you don’t have to leave the couch to get the potatoes.

Homesickness common among new students

The transition from high school to college can seem exciting for many incoming freshmen, but experts say it’s often overwhelming. Moving into a new room, finding new friends and even learning the campus layout can stress new students. As a result, some start longing for the comforts of home.

$10,000 raised for the Community Kitchen at Chefs’ Challenge

On Friday, Bloomington residents settled into the plush seats of the Buskirk-Chumley Theater for a celebration of culinary creation in support of fighting hunger in Monroe County.SLIDE SHOW: 2008 Bloomington Chef's Challenge

Underage drinking citations decrease

Citations for underage drinking decreased during IU’s Welcome Week compared to past years.Indiana State Excise Police handed out 63 citations during Aug. 27-30, which is down 65 percent from the number of citations handed out last year. IU Police Department arrested 43 people during Aug. 27-31, an increase from last year’s 32 arrest count.Fifty minors were charged with illegal possession, consumption or transportation of alcoholic beverages this year compared to the 81 minors who were charged for the same last year, according to a press release from the Indiana State Excise Police.

Campaign overestimates office’s scope

Coinciding with Labor Day, State Senate candidate Matt Colglazier participated in a 37.4-mile “Walk For Workers” through the towns and cities of the 44th District. The area has lost more than 2,000 jobs recently, and Colglazier, an IU academic adviser, blames the losses on the lethargic leadership and lack of awareness of Republican incumbent Brent Steele. It’s dubious whether Colglazier has actually tapped a vital political resource or simply begun a desperate search for name recognition.

A year too important to forget

National and state elections will most likely dominate the news during this school year as we elect a new president and governor. But don’t let that constant drone from the television and major newspapers convince you that the only things worth your time this year are in Washington, D.C., and Indianapolis. In fact, our campus will be making decisions that will directly shape the next few years of fiscal policy and the next few decades of student life.

OK with dependence

From the day we are conceived, we need our parents. Once we are born, we continue to need them and enjoy the luxuries their income provides for us. At the same time, life’s speed bumps inevitably create tension with our parents. We get to college and the word “independent” goes to our heads. We assume that independent actually means independent of our parents. Who are we trying to fool here?

Outside the box

DISCLAIMER: Some of you pick up the IDS to be informed, others to be entertained. But what if you found yourself reading a column about one of the seemingly most boring, unobtrusive things in existence? Yes, you’ve guessed it, you’ve gotten yourself into quite a conundrum: You’re in the middle of a column about cardboard boxes (seriously), and you’re going to like it so much that you’re going to keep reading the whole thing.

Start off with the right look: The ‘homeless’ look is not in fashion

Look around you for just a moment and count how many people are wearing sweat pants, ripped T-shirts, house slippers and other similar items – you’ll probably lose count in the first five seconds. And while classes are starting here at IU, that is no excuse to carry on those lazy summer fashions. I recently took a stroll around campus in search for my next column inspiration, and, as usual, I was not disappointed with the amount of material I found. Just about everywhere I turned, I saw a couple of girls wearing wife beaters, sweats and a pair of Goodwill house slippers.

Fiasco ends Welcome Week, endorses Obama

Grammy Award-winning rapper Lupe Fiasco and his band 1500 or Nothin’ brought the IU Auditorium’s diverse audience to its feet Saturday night.