Drive around the parking lot, try to work at a computer in the library, or just try to sit in a classroom, and you’ll quickly notice a reoccurring problem. In every instance, two words will slip out of your mouth: not enough.
At first, I was convinced that there were more students on campus. I admit, the parking situation has always been a problem, and with limited space, the Parking and Transportation Department is doing all it can to increase the number of parking spaces. However, as a senior, I can’t recall any other year when there has been such a lack of resources on campus in term of computers and classroom seats available to students.
Office of Planning and Institutional Research, which keeps data for the University, says that student enrollment has increased by about 100 students, although they won’t have definite numbers until October. That’s not a big enough increase to warrant such an epiphany on my part. Nevertheless, the problem still exists.
Unless it’s 7:30 a.m. or 6:00 p.m., it’s almost guaranteed that students will have to wait for a computer in the library. Once a student has obtained one, he or she has to pray that the Internet works correctly, that the floppy disk drive is functioning or that there isn’t a long line at the printers, another phenomenon I personally don’t remember witnessing in the past.
The problem that is probably the most severe is one commonly seen in K-12 public schools: class size. The university boasts that over 75% of classrooms have 26 or fewer students. If that statistic is accurate, I must have very bad luck, especially as a senior. I have classes where there aren’t enough chairs for students and they have to either sit on the floor or lean against a wall. I’ve past by the LC, peaked through the glass doors, and observed the same problem in other classrooms. Perhaps the statistic is correct, and only 25% of classes have this problem, but, that’s 25% too many.
With the price tag this university has, there is no excuse for even one student to have to be sitting on the floor or standing in line for computers. We pay too much money for the right to have a comfortable learning environment. If this were a public school, I would understand the need to be accommodating. Students there pay less, and have a much larger population to contend with. At the University of Miami, however, many students chose to come here because of the “small” student population that it boasts to have. Yet, everywhere I look, there is not enough. But since student body size remains average, I’m sure administrators are aware of the problem and will be quick to fix it.
Until then, I urge students to be mindful and accommodating of the university’s lack of resources. Allocate an extra hour to look for a parking space, use the library computers for work, not games, and bring comfortable pillows to sit on in class, perhaps even your own folding chair.
Jean-Paul Renaud is a senior majoring in journalism and political science.
Campus seems short on resources this semester
Orange Bowl security personnel needs an overhaul
Am I the only one who was very disappointed at Saturday’s football game? And I am not talking about the lifeless performance by the number one team in the nation. What I found most disappointing was the so-called Orange Bowl Security team, who were even more pathetic than the Hurricanes offense.
It is the same story every game. The aisles are always so full of people, you can never be quite sure if they exist at all. Inevitably, some drunk frat guy (perhaps in an inebriated attempt to impress the girl next to him) successfully redefines the term “moron” by throwing a half-full beer bottle into the unsuspecting crowd. Or, utilizing the most recent weapon of choice, an entire section of fans throw those little Miami Hurricane CD’s, causing everyone to dive for cover as they fly around like malignant Frisbees threatening to put out an eye or slash a gaping wound into someone’s neck.
On top of that, there is more weed going around than at a Dave Matthews Band concert, and there are so many fights, I’m not sure whether to watch them or the game. And to put the icing on the cake, at Saturday’s game there was a guy in the student section with a cow bell. Maybe I’m the one who is crazy, but how can you bring a large, heavy metal object into the game, but you can’t get in with an umbrella? Oh wait, that’s right. Umbrellas can be used as weapons. What was I thinking?
So, where is the security during all of this? I’ll tell you where they are. They are busy being more ineffectual than our offensive line. Saturday marked the third time in my years here at the University of Miami that I have asked a security guard to clear out the aisles, and for the third time they didn’t even so much as answer me. They merely looked at me with an expression that seemed to say, “So what. Is that my job?”
Why are these people not being fired? At the very least they should have to dress up like clowns so that they could entertain us while they do nothing. The fact is that if there is ever a serious emergency (and at a stadium that sells beer, it is only a matter of time), someone is going to end up dead. I don’t care how good the EMS may be at the Orange Bowl, there are so many students in the aisles that not even Willis McGahee could find an opening. And if they’re not going to clear the aisles, they could at least arrest that drunk frat guy.
Travis Atria is a junior majoring in English literature.
CIA, FBI admit mistakes too late
Recently, a CIA officer and an FBI agent testified before Congress on how their respective agencies failed repeatedly to pursue two terrorist suspects who would later play major roles in the September 11th attack. However, this was no ordinary testimony. Fearing that their lives would be threatened because of the information they divulged, the two agents spoke about the failures while seated behind a five-foot screen that concealed their identities.
The information revealed was chilling. It showed that two of the most important agencies we rely on to ensure national security are just as tied up in meaningless red tape as the rest of our government. Moreover, it paints a picture of the extent of complacency that allowed the attacks to take place right under the noses of what are supposed to be the best defense and security agencies in the world.
In January of 2000, Khalid Almihdhar and Nawaf Alhazmi attended an al Qaeda meeting in Malaysia. They were identified as security threats but were never put on a watch list. Then, in October of the same year, al Qaeda terrorists attacked the USS Cole, and the CIA learned that the organizer of the assault had attended the same meeting as Almihdhar and Alhazmi in January. Even then, none of the men were placed on a watch list.
According to the agents’ testimonies, the CIA told the FBI about the men, but did not disclose any information about the meeting in Malaysia or why the men were considered dangerous. It was not until late August that the CIA formally “watchlisted” the suspected terrorists, but the FBI would not conduct a search for Alminhdhar because, according to supervisors, they could not “breach the wall separating intelligence matters from criminal investigations.”
It was after this rebuff that the testifying FBI agent reportedly sent an e-mail reading in part: “Someday, someone will die – and wall or not – the public will not understand why we were not more effective and throwing every resource we had at certain problems. Let’s hope the National Security Law Unit will stand behind their decisions then, especially because the biggest threat to us now, bin Laden, is getting the most protection.”
On September 11th, people did indeed die, as Alhazmi and Almihdhar passed through airport security unnoticed (the watch list was not used for domestic flights), and together with three other hijackers took over the plane and crashed into the Pentagon.
In light of the information against the FBI and CIA, President George W. Bush has agreed to the establishment of an independent commission to investigate the September 11th attacks, reversing his previous opinion. However, not everyone is pleased with the president’s decision as it excludes an investigation into intelligence lapses. Stephen Push, a leader of a group of relatives of the victims of the attacks accused Bush of trying to cover up the failures of the FBI and CIA. In light of the recent testimonies, a cover-up may be harder than it seems.
The fact that these two agents have only recently divulged this information begs the question, what were they waiting for? Why has it taken them more than a year to come forward? Could it be that their respective agencies traditionally deal very harshly with insiders who speak out against them? Or were they simply unsure of when the right time would be? Either way, one can only hope that it will not take this long to disclose vital information about national security in the future.
Wellness Center offers variety of fitness options
The Wellness Center [WC] has recently spent $150,000 replacing all of their resistance training equipment, said Chris Locke, WC director.
“The students are paying the Wellness Center fee and should get their money’s worth. That includes making sure students have the best possible equipment,” Ali Paredes said. “The equipment is up-to-date and there are a wide variety of machines for every muscle, unlike other places I’ve been such as the YMCA.”
The new Magnum equipment is located in the fitness room on the ground floor of the Wellness Center.
A longtime perk of the Wellness Center is the free aerobics classes offered to all patrons.
Classes are offered in everything from step classes to cardio kickboxing to funk aerobics.
David Porter, Assistant Director of the Wellness Center, is in charge of running the aerobics, studio cycling, yoga and a myriad of instructional programs.
It doesn’t matter how stressful the day is,” said Rita Deutsch, associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “By the time I get done I’m totally stress-free. The teachers are all professionally wonderful and they have the most broad-ranging, wonderful programs. I’ve seen a change in myself health-wise since I’ve been going and would encourage all students to take part.”
Students could entertain themselves for hours and never have to go to an aerobics class” Porter said.
Deutsch said she goes to classes three nights a week after work.
“It gets stress out and makes you feel like you’ve accomplished something in your day,” Paredes agreed.
Instructional programs such as studio cycling, various forms of yoga, swimming lessons, meditation, karate, fencing, soccer, weight training and tennis are all examples of what can be taken at the Wellness Center.
Dance classes such as hip-hop, swing, ballet, belly dance and salsa have been popular with students.
“I have already learned a lot after only two classes,” freshman Lauren Brown said. “It’s a lot of fun and the teachers are all really good.”
Intramural and club sports also run out of the Wellness Center. Intramural sports include flag football, floor hockey, inner tube water polo, ultimate frisbee, soccer and more. Participation has increased over the past year, with flag football growing from 61 teams last year to over 80 teams this year. Club sports offer a variety of different opportunities for students to compete against other universities at lower than the varsity level as well as to socialize and learn more about their given sport.
“Soccer is fun and relaxing even though the flag football teams take over the field,” said Angie Pendergrass.
UM student Ben Everard once found himself competing against a 60-year-old man in racquetball.
“He killed me. I was completely smoked,” Everard said.
The Wellness Expo will be held Oct. 16 from 5-7 p.m. It will be a large health fair with a Halloween Haunted House theme. According to Janet Tiberian, WC assistant director, the main purpose of this expo will be to improve the campus’ overall wellness.
“This event will expose students and the UM community to campus and community resources to help wellness. The more people get involved with different activities, the more their wellness will improve,” Tiberian said.
Dance demonstrations, massages and trial classes will be offered.
The Wellness Education Series held on Wednesday nights features the classes “Time Management for Perfectionists” and “How to Avoid the Freshman Fifteen,” along with cooking demonstrations of paella and Thai food.
For more information on Wellness Center programs, call 305-284-3253 or visit the website at www.miami.edu/wellness.
Awards make study abroad possible
The deadline for spring 2003 study abroad programs is Oct. 1.
Increased availability of scholarships for Study Abroad and accommodating UM tuition policies elicit little cost and great benefit to international study; a student could practically study in any country in the world at a cost similar to the same term in Miami.
“Any student who does participate in semester programs [abroad] maintains enrollment status, and academic scholarships are still applicable,” noted Chris Tingue, Assistant Director of Study Abroad and International Education and Exchange Programs (IEEP).
In short, this means if you pay your tuition here, and another student pays his tuition there, the two of you simply exchange locations. A semester at UM, then, is as valuable as a semester at the Universidad de Alicante in Spain, Sophia University in Tokyo or the American University of Paris, excepting related travel and living expenses that vary by program.
Several non-UM funded scholarship opportunities are detailed on the IEEP website. Generally, a student must be nominated by the IEEP office to be considered nationally for such awards.
The Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program offers US citizen students who are currently receiving federal Pell Grants competitive awards for study abroad. The award’s purpose, to “expand opportunities for study abroad for students whose demonstrated financial need might otherwise preclude them from such an experience,” promotes diverse participation and encourages travel to non-traditional locations.
As with most awards, early application is recommended because advisors from IEEP and Financial Aid must complete sections of the application. The Gilman award is especially competitive; for fall 2002 study, over 10 UM students applied, and only two were awarded scholarships.
David L. Boren scholarships, funded by the National Security Education Program (NSEP), are available primarily for non-traditional areas of study abroad, such as Asia, Latin America, Africa and Eastern Europe.
This award is also very competitive, contains a foreign language component and service requirement and encourages recipient students “to become integrally involved in global issues.”
The Freeman-ASIA Awards contribute to study in areas such as Hong Kong, Singapore, and Japan. A service requirement to promote study abroad in Asia on the UM campus seems only fair in return for generous charity to a student’s education and cultural wisdom.
Last year, the Rotary Foundation’s Ambassadorial Scholarships, the world’s largest privately funded international scholarship program, awarded more than 1,100 students nationwide the chance to be educated anywhere in the world. While abroad, scholars serve as ambassadors of education and goodwill to the people of the host country and present their knowledge of their homeland to local groups. Upon returning home, scholars again share their experiences that led to greater understanding of their host countries.
Limited travel grant funding, derived from a very generous local benefaction, has always been fairly competitive and is even more limited now, as a glut of eager travelers desire to take advantage of available resources.
Most heavily considered in awarding small grants are recent academic records and financial need. GPAs must now be over 3.0, and amounts range from $250 summer stipends to $2000 for a semester.
If you’ve noticed that side-note on your transcript alleging that your last 45 credits must be taken “in residence,” worry not: UM international exchange programs are still categorized as “in residence,” as students do maintain enrollment status at their home school.
For additional information on Study Abroad Programs stop by the IEEP office in Allen Hall 212 (behind the Memorial Classroom Building), or visit www.studyabroad.miami.edu.
Grads have hard time finding jobs that pay
Got a job?
College graduates and seniors are finding other alternatives to entering the job market since employers have cut back on college recruitment. Lower salary offers, lack of benefits and fewer openings are causing students to be less than eager about entering the work force.
Christopher Jones, vice-president of content and communities at Hot Jobs, forecasts that the job market will improve.
“One of things I tell people when they become scared about the job market is that baby boomers will retire and we’ll be looking at job shortages,” Jones said. “We’ll come from an employers’ market to a job seekers’ market. While it is slow right now, it won’t last for a very long time.”
However, Marilyn Mackes, National Association of Colleges and Employers [NACE] executive director said that the class of 2003 should expect to face even stiffer competition in the workplace than last year’s graduates.
The number of self-employed 20 to 24-year-olds rose from 235,000 in 1999 to 264,000 in 2001, said Stella Cromartie, economist for the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Meanwhile, college recruitment dropped 36 percent from last year, according to NACE.
Previous graduates agree, saying they are in it for the long haul.
Lee Williams, 23, a 2001 UM graduate in systems analysis, remembered how even during his senior year technical majors had trouble finding employment.
“One of my professors in my management classes asked all 40 of us, ‘Who has a job set up after graduation?’ and out of those 40, only 10 raised their hands,” he said.
Those escaping the downtrodden path have sought summer internships or graduate school or have even become entrepreneurs.
“A no-brainer is finding internships,” Williams said. “Just get work experience because [students] who took internships and gained work experience can get more attention than someone who graduated with a 3.8 GPA with no work experience. A company can look at them and see how they can take those skills to apply to their company.”
After graduation, Williams took the only offer made to him: a Disney internship where he became a custodian at Disney World.
But during his stay, the FAA emailed Williams for a resume after a friend referred to Williams as a potential hire. Several emails, a telephone interview, a plane visit and background check later, Williams accepted a one-year $40,000 salaried contract with the FAA and now works under the Transportation Security Administration. Though his job does not offer benefits, Williams believes that he is “helping his country.”
“I’m satisfied and I have the unlimited potential to gain skills, [but] this is the government,” he said. “It’s not known for its pay. But comparing some pay for stability, that’s more valuable than a few thousand dollars for which I’d gladly exchange it.”
MaryAnn Guerra, 22, senior, began plans to open a jewelry and home decor business with her friend Heather Korn, a previous graduate.
An advertising and graphic design major, Guerra is anxious about her future but is confident about her prospects. She and her partner have established a web site (www.ooakstore.com).
“What I’m happy the most about is that I’m doing what I love to do,” she said about her preparations. “For me, the satisfaction is having done this with my partner and being able to do it myself, calling the shots my way.”
The depressed economy has prompted companies to offer smaller starting salaries than what graduates were expecting. For the first time, computer science majors received offers below $50,000, NACE reported in its summer salary survey.
Logistics/materials management graduates had salaries decrease 9.1 percent to $39,407. Offers to business administration graduates fell 5.6 percent to $36,429 and liberal arts majors saw their salaries fall below $30,000.
The best sectors were accounting, federal government, and healthcare. Nursing graduates averaged $38,459 while accounting majors earned $39,768.
Accounting firms expect to hire 30 percent more new college graduates this year than last year.
The federal government is increasing its college hiring and raised its starting salaries 15.4 percent from $35,188 to $40,598.
For students majoring in other areas, the best alternative seems to be to stay in school.
The Graduate Management Admission Council, which administers the GMAT, the equivalent to the SAT for business schools, saw an increase of tests taken, said Susan Swayze, director of research studies.
In the first six months of 2002, 82,855 GMATs were taken, up from 70,952 during the same six month period in 2001.
Schools like FIU, University of South Florida and Florida A&M University have also seen an increase of applications to their business graduate programs.
Nadesha Ranasinghe, 22, was a dot-com casualty when his former employer, dutyfreezone.com, relocated to Panama for cheaper labor.
“They pay next to nothing over there for technical help,” he said. “There’s a guy who gets paid $1,300 full time for programming work and that’s pretty bad – that’s maybe $15,000 a year to our standards.”
Ranasinghe, a UM computer science graduate, has now enrolled at UM’s Business School in hopes that an MBA will give him the skills to eventually run his own software company before he turns 30.
Allison Chang, 22, a 2002 graduate, worked in Miami at the accounting firm KPMG as an auditing intern.
Her previous internship with them led to a job offer. She told them she wanted to earn an MBA before starting.
“I got my job offer [from KPMG] when I was a junior, so I know I have a job [there],” she said. “It takes a lot of stress off of me. I know I had this to go back on if I didn’t find anything else. But I just wanted to get my masters over with. I don’t want to end up going to school and working at the same time because it would take five years.”
She offers job interview tips to upcoming graduates:
“Personality was most important,” she said. “They are not necessarily looking for experience in accounting, because they train you. They don’t expect people to come out of school knowing what to do. At the interview, they’re looking at your personality to see if you’re outgoing. For my profession, you’ve got to be able to talk to anybody, communicate clearly and be a quick learner.”
PASS Week hopes to guide students
It’s nearly a month into the semester and the pressure is beginning to build.
The first round of exams is on its way and the next holiday is not until mid-October.
The end of the semester is nowhere in sight and the thrill of being back in school has long passed.
“During this time of the year, people are starting to get homesick,” Mike Johnston, Student Government President, said. “PASS week will help them reaffirm their collegiate careers through the many activities and workshops offered.”
Pathways to Achieving Student Success [PASS Week] is the first of its kind, a series of informative events created to help UM students in a variety of areas that are important to their collegiate success.
“We don’t want students to be stressed,” Johnston said.
Topics of PASS Week include academic workshops; mind, body and spirit and financial forums; preparing for life beyond college; and special programming – “Oh, no, they didn’t: Adjusting to Roommates,” “The Right Way to Study” and “How to Get Your Work Done and Still Have Time For a Life” are among the workshops and sessions offered.
According to organizers, by contributing to PASS Week, the faculty, staff and alumni of the University of Miami, as well as the surrounding community, hope to direct students to the resources they need at the various stages of their undergraduate careers and beyond.
“I think it’s a great opportunity for students to learn about topics ranging from time management to scholastics,” said Joseph Fernandez, PASS Week moderator through the MORTAR board. “PASS Week will be beneficial to students mainly because it will make college go by more smoothly for them.”
“I think PASS Week is a good idea because a lot of students get overwhelmed,” junior Christina Sanda said. “It is a good way to teach students how to manage time effectively.”
Senior Christie Marie Toledo said she feels she would not benefit from the sessions.
“I don’t know if I’ll be able to be involved with PASS Week because I’m too busy with school and work,” she said. “I learned how to manage my time the hard way. Working has helped me manage my time more efficiently.”
At the end of the week, prizes will be raffled as an incentive for attending PASS Week activities; only students who attend at least one event from each of the five topics will be eligible.
Each type of event is coded by color: Academic Workshops, yellow; Special Programming, purple; Mind, Body & Spirit, blue; Preparing for Life Beyond College, red; and Financial Forums, green.
Among the prizes are gift certificates to Book Horizons, Bed, Bath & Beyond and other participating companies. Also, admission passes to the Miami Seaquarium, Vizcaya Museum and Gardens and Venetian Pool, among others, will be raffled.
The grand prizes for PASS Week are travel vouchers and a round-trip to London from STA Travel.
To enter the raffle, students must get their “PASS Postcard” punched at one event of each color and submit them in the collection box located in the reception area of the Academic Development Center (UC 208) before noon on Friday, Sept. 27 or at the collection box located at the PASS Barbeque (location will be announced at the end of the Week) before 6 p.m. on the same date.
Winners will be chosen randomly at the barbecue.
“I wish they would have had a program like this when I was a freshman,” Johnston said. “I would have definitely taken advantage of it.”
For information on PASS Week activities, visit their web page at www.miami.edu/passweek.
UM’s Band of the Hour is “better than ever”
Better than ever and bursting with ‘Canes spirit, UM’s Band of the Hour is set to lead the football team all the way to Phoenix, Arizona for a sixth national championship title.
So far this year, Band of the Hour has performed at the 2002 Freshman Picnic, a pep rally and three football games.
The marching section of the band, under the direction of three-year veteran Dr. Michael Dressman, has grown in the past few semesters and currently includes students representing over 40 different academic majors.
“The band is now better than ever,” said Dressman at the Traditional First Rehearsal, where President Dr. Donna E. Shalala and faculty sat in and listened to the band play Hurricane fight songs.
The entire band consists of over 170 members comprised of band members, Hurricanettes and color guards.
Some of the benefits of being in the band include going to all of the home games, meeting new people and traveling on all-expense paid trips to championship bowl games.
“Now is a great time to join; there are definite perks going to the football games,” band captain Joe Bagierek said.
Tyneshia Tatum, a junior saxophone player, performed at the Rose Bowl Parade and game in Pasadena last year.
“The game was awesome; the parade was awesome. It was so much fun,” Tatum said.
The band ensemble also allows students from other colleges to participate.
Currently Students from Miami-Dade Community College and Florida International University are among the schools represented.
“There are a lot more new people and it is a lot more enjoyable than last year,” sophomore color guard Vanessa Llizo said.
Although the band does not perform competitively, it has earned numerous plaques and honors for performing at bowl games.
“This year we should only get better,” senior clarinet player Alina Matusow said. “We have new uniforms and we’re not split – like this section and that section – this year we’re more of a band.”
Even students outside of the band have noticed the positive changes.
“I think the band is good. They should be credited for their work,” Amos Legrand Jr., a senior political science major said. “I’ve seen them on the IM field practicing in the extreme heat.”
If anyone wants to join the band, members say the only requirements are to be dedicated and willing to practice and, of course, have fun.
The band has a schedule that includes the rest of the season’s home games, homecoming, and a trip to Phoenix, Arizona to the Fiesta Bowl for a sixth national title game if the football season continues its winning streak.
For more information on the band and their performance schedule, visit their web page at www.miamiband.org.
Campus Calendar and News Briefs
TODAY
Survive College without Becoming a Statistic- Presented by Janet Lieberman, this is one of the presentations of PASS Week. UC 237 11 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Pathways to Achieving Student Success (PASS) Week is your chance to broaden your horizons through a variety of innovative, fun and free workshops during the week of Sept. 23 – 27. For more information about workshops, prizes and to download your PASS to this exciting week, please visit www.miami.edu/passweek.
SEPTEMBER 25
Dispel the Diet Myths! Learn the truth about weight loss by attending a presentation on “The Science of Weight Loss.” Tony Musto, exercise physiologist at the Wellness Center, will outline how to increase your metabolism through diet and exercise and how to use it effectively to lose weight the scientific way. This free seminar, from 6 – 7 p.m. in the Wellness Center conference room, has limited seating; please call 305-284-5433 to register.
SEPTEMBER 26
Taking on the Real World: Alumni talk about making it “out there.” A PASS Week workshop aimed at helping you learn about post-graduate opportunities. 7 – 8 p.m., Stanford Residential College Classroom.
OCTOBER 2
“Soul-Searching: Neuroscience & Philosophy,” a symposium to explore the relationship between philosophy and the neurosciences, from 6:30 – 8 p.m., Room 148, Eaton Residential College. Featuring Dr. Lynn Durel, Psychology; Dr. Simon Evnine, Philosophy; Dr. Harvey Siegel, Philosophy; Dr. Charles Siewert, Philosophy; and Dr. David Wilson, Biology.
OCTOBER 6
The Society of Bar and Gavel will host its 3rd annual RACE Judicata, a 5K run/walk around the UM campus to raise money for the CHARLEE Family Cares Homes Program. This program provides alternative housing to emotionally challenged children in the Miami-Dade community. For more information, visit the Dean of Students office at the Law School, room 212, or send email to barandgavel@law.miami.edu. Come out and run or walk for a great cause!
OCTOBER 8
The UM Department of Theatre Arts announces Totally Tuesdays, four performances at the Ring Theatre exclusively for students and featuring free admission and free intermission soft drink. The first play, Oct. 8, The Laramie Project, starts at 8 p.m.; theatre doors will open at 7:30 p.m.
OCTOBER 26
The Department of Multicultural Student Affairs, in conjunction with the Princeton Review, invites you to take a FREE Practice Test and Support the UM United Way Campaign! Practice the MCAT, LSAT, GRE, or GMAT. RSVP by calling 800.2Review or visit www.PrincetonReview.com.
Meningococcal Meningitis immunizations are available at the Student Health Center. Although vaccination is available to all students, freshman students who reside in dormitories and other on-campus housing are at increased risk for this rare but potentially serious infection. More information is available at www.miami.edu/student-health.
Elections for Student Government are just around the corner, Sept. 23- 25; mark your calendars and VOTE! To find out more, visit www.miami.edu/student-activities and click on Elections Commission.
Students who DO NOT wish to be listed in the new University of Miami’s Telephone and E-Mail Directories must notify the Registrar, in writing, on or before Friday, Sept. 27.
Tickets are now on sale for this year’s Festival Miami presented by the School of Music which continues virtually non-stop through Saturday, Oct. 26. Call 305-284-4940 to purchase tickets or for additional information.
The Toppel Career Center presents Toppel 101 (formerly Senior Orientation) from Sept. 4 to Nov. 25! This is your opportunity to get acquainted with the career resources you need, whether your plans include employment or graduate study.
Join the Episcopal Church Center in a four-week video and discussion series as they take a look at fundamentalism in the three major monotheistic religions and examine whether there is a link between fundamentalism and violence. Go to the ECC on the corner of Stanford and Levante Sept. 25, Oct. 2 and Oct. 9 at 7:30 p.m.
PSI CHI, the National Honor Society for Psychology, will hold general meetings every other Monday (10/7) in UC 245 at 6 p.m.
Be a part of the President’s 100. Applications are due Oct. 4. For more information visit www.miami.edu/p100.
Information kiosks are finally coming to campus thanks to Facilities and the School of Architecture. Professor Luis Trelles assigned all third-year architecture students to design a campus kiosk.
A committee comprised of professors at the School of Architecture and Vice President of Real Estate Sergio Rodriguez chose three designs from the 60 entries. David Leiberman presented first place winner Abraham Gordon with an award for his design at a short presentation at the School of Architecture. Intended to create an innovative area where students and the University can post announcements related to student activities, events or other “bulletin board” type flyers, the kiosks will be built by spring break and located at the Wellness Center, UC and between the Ashe and McArthur buildings.
Convocation center almost complete
The University of North Carolina Tar Heels will have the honor of being the first basketball team to play against the ‘Canes at UM’s new convocation center next year.
The game on Jan. 4, 2003 will herald the unofficial opening of the center after a semester’s worth of delays.
Nine of the men’s basketball games will take place in the facility – five of which will be nationally televised on ESPN and CBS – as well as nine of the women’s basketball games for the 2003 season.
“The general consensus is that having this building on campus benefits men’s and women’s basketball teams and will help in recruiting and attendance,” said David Touhey, operations manager for the convocation center.
“One of the big complaints students have always had is that they would go to games if they did not have to go downtown.”
“Who wants to get on the metro?” junior Ronnie Ozuna asked. “[The convocation center] will be more convenient to attend the games, instead of having to go all the way to the Miami Arena.”
Plans for a ribbon-cutting ceremony and a community open house will be announced in upcoming weeks.
When asked about construction Touhey said:
“No major problems; you know there are different things from time to time, as there is in any type of construction, but no, construction has been going along great,” he said.
The target date for the opening of the center was previously scheduled for fall 2002 but was postponed until early 2003, said assistant athletic director for communications Mark Pray in an article in the Feb. 15, 2002 issue of the Hurricane.
Pray cited problems with attaining steel for the installation of the roof of the center as the reason for the delay.
With a total estimated cost of $48 million, the as yet un-named convocation center, located at 1 Dauer Dr. on the UM campus across from the University Metrorail station, will be the new home for the Hurricanes men’s and women’s basketball teams as well as 27 executive suites.
The center is a multipurpose three-story arena consisting of 184,000 sq. ft. and 7,000 seats.
“The center creates a good atmosphere for campus life. Different kinds of cultural events, speakers and concerts exhibits can now be hosted on campus because there is a facility of significant size that can handle the performances,” Touhey said.
Complete with carpeted locker rooms, a player lounge area, a training weight room and banquet facilities, the center will also be used to host commencement, lectures, academic conferences, and community events.
“Events such as concerts are just starting to be scheduled for the beginning of next year,” Touhey said. “We are working with a lot of national and local promoters to bring in shows.”
Another advantage to having our own convocation center is more on-campus job opportunities for students, Touhey said.
“I would love to hire student employees to be ushers, ticket takers and box office personnel,” he said.
The convocation center was originally going be named the Ryder Center, but then Ryder gave the naming opportunity back to the University after they decided to change their involvement in the project.
Ryder System, Inc. donated $9 million to the project.
UM is currently searching for another sponsor for naming rights to the center.
For more information, or for pictures of the University of Miami convocation center, visit http://hurricanesports.ocsn.com/ot/convocation-flash.html.
Perv – A Love Story, by Jerry Stahl
Check out the second book by the author of Permanent Midnight, the acclaimed memoir chronicling the efforts of a struggling writer who finds success, but then drowns in the pitfall of stardom and loses his soul while injecting loads of heroin into his veins. Perv takes place in the ’70s when Nixon grabbed hold of the White House, Woodstock was over and the Vietnam War was booming on the other end of the globe. Back in Pittsburgh, 16-year-old Bobby Stark just got thrown out of prep school for getting caught in an orgy with a townie. Yet all public schools are on strike, so he’s left at home with his neurotic, pill-popping mother, her crew of disturbed boyfriends (his father had stood in front of a streetcar to kill himself) and microwave TV dinners. His sense of ennui grows strong enough for him to seek out his kindergarten-love, Michelle, a disillusioned Hare Krishna, and they go on a hitchhike together to ultimately reach the “haven” of Haight-Ashbury in San Francisco. On the way, however, they encounter two hippies-gone-mad, Meat and Varnish, both highly fueled by their libido and drugs, and the trip only starts here. Stahl’s prose is heartrending and often humorous, probing deep into the tremulous world of teenage angst. Even more, Stahl reveals, in this novel, the darker and more sinister sides of the days of flower power and Day-Glo.
~Omar Sommereyns
We Get Wet: Paper Bag These Party Albums by DJ Quik and Tight Bro’s From Way Back When
Tight Bro’s From Way Back When
Lend You a Hand
***1/2
Lend You a Hand would be the perfect soundtrack if you ever decided to chug a fifth of Jack Daniel’s like it were a miniature carton of apple juice. You’d savor the last sip, and then wish the bottle was a tiny box so you could just stomp all over it, and smash those smiley cartoon apple faces to bits.
Realistically, Tight Bro’s liquored up AC/DC sound will make you destroy your stereo (to get closer to the music), or leave you dangerously befuddled in a 30 car pileup on I-95. That’s what you get for selling your soul to rock ‘n’ roll – so be it – it sure beats selling your girlfriend for trance.
John Belushi might have dug Tight Bro’s music. It’s easy to picture him (shirtless, of course) holed up in an expensive hotel, chasing creamy skinned bimbos with furred bikinis, while “Gimme the Key” blares loudly in the background.
If it sounds too “rawkish,” have no worries. Tight Bro’s (I’m not sure why there’s an apostrophe in their name) avoid becoming jangled hick noise by stealing the blues. On “Show Me,” lead singer Jared Warren (formerly of Karp) thrusts his hips with lightning bolt power as he hollers “Show me a woman that’s got a good man, and I’ll show you a woman that’s doin’ all she can,” until his vocal cords collapse like an old barn.
The highlight of this album is a cover of the Animals classic “Inside Looking Out.” It runs on spirited guitars, maracas and a throbbing bass until the jamboree session sputters out, the sun rises and the kegs are empty. The themes scattered about Lend You a Hand are a given: lousy heartbreaks, sizzlin’ romance and doing doughnuts, but that doesn’t mean you’ve ever heard tunes this bitchin’.
If classic rock stations were smart (or weren’t owned by corporate monopolies), they’d start slipping songs from this disc on after midnight, right beside the usual staples by Hendrix, Deep Purple and T. Rex. But, as we all find out sooner or later, usually from Mick, you can’t always get what you want, and unfortunately classic rock radio will never play Tight Bro’s, especially now that they have called it quits. So grab the JD, unset your alarm clock, turn the music up full blast and imagine a perfect world – until some RA narcs on your door and absurdly questions why you’re blah blah blah.
For more info: www.killrockstars.com.
DJ Quik
Under Tha Influence
*****
This is the party album of 2002.
You disagree?
OK player – that must be why Dr. Dre is jocking Quik’s beats. You know that moderately wack single “Addictive” by Truth Hurts with the lax verse by Rakim? Contrary to rumor, Quik made the beat, not Dre, and the beat is uncut hotness – the only thing that makes the track worth a quick listen. Every beat on Quik’s Under tha Influence is forty galaxies beyond that one.
The intro/first track, “The Proem” features Shyheim, the blue chip member of Wu-tang’s extended fam, and Talib Kweli, currently the most dynamic lyricist on the scoreboard, slaying jewels all over Quik’s neo-gangsta Cali production. A massive hurricane of beats and R-rated lyrics is about to touchdown – don’t worry about hiring a DJ, just leave this disc on repeat.
On “Come 2Nyte,” Quik comes with three verses (he’s the producer who rhymes and writes his own lyrics) of explicit head nodding that rock like Too Short on Ritalin, while Truth Hurts drops an adequate hook. “Put It on Me” showcases some guest production by Dre, and just to hate, it’s clearly the weakest beat on the album. It plays like crisp leftovers from 2001, with Dre’s spacey, patented production doing nothing more than retracing his past moonwalks. When you skip past a track blessed by Dre, that’s crunk taboo, but Quik is Kobe to his Shaq – quicker handling, more versatile slams – which would you rather see with the ball?
Before you can answer, “Murda 1 Case” and “Ev’ryday” score off of two fast breaks. The former bounces around like Milf jugs to a ragga hook, as Pharoahe Monch “sells fakes Gucci bags on eBay.” The latter washes a choppy Cali synth line over some thumpin’ Southern dirt influence, as Quik reassures a husband that “Truth is she had homies/I was horny/So we laid on the bed and made sandwiches.” Hah.
The album’s most tripped out record, “50 Ways,” is the also the one (read: only) track with a sense of social and spiritual morale. It combines a subtly ascending beat with a marching drum roll and somehow captures the reflective memories of an innocent, long forgotten summer. The lyrics, “Now which part of this movie did I just miss? /Did I really sell my soul to this big, red bitch?” paint a literal confrontation with the devil, similar to DMX’s “Damien,” (but good) before eulogizing a dead friend, “But when you start to bubble, then your friends, they spite you/And if you go to church, then hip hop don’t like you.” The track is so def because you can sink into it like Johnny Depp on an Elm Street mattress, or stay afloat partying the night away.
Adding to the scorching beat marathon is a 4 minute-long sax instrumental entitled “Quik’s Groove 6.” Several West Coast rap collectives dabble with jazz, especially Madlib and Stones Throw, but when has an artist claiming Compton this hard displayed the balls and musical know-how? Daz Dillinger, Kurupt, Snoop – go ahead bring out the whammies.
Toss in some above par G-funk bangers, zero lame skits, zero rock crossover idiocy, and tadow! – an album that will get your friends off the couch (if not, seek new ones), and solidify any weekend bash (2 keg minimum) as legendary (by UM house party standards). Go to your nearest record store and paper bag it.
For more info: www.dj-quik.net.
Hunter Stephenson can be reached at hurricaneaccent@hotmail.com.