On the evening of Saturday, March 30, friends and family members came together to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the University of Richmond's a cappella group Off the Cuff. A segment of the concert was dedicated to recognizing OTC's three current seniors, Andrew Thomas, Ryan Cooke and Taylyn Hulse.
With the goal of promoting healthy habits on campus, the Wellness Education Bandits hosted Pleasurefest 2013 in the University Forum on March 28. The event's slogan was, "Everyone is looking for a little pleasure... but are you looking in the right place?" and advertised events such as puppy petting, a condom pinata and mini exercise classes. The Wellness Education Bandits is a new organization on campus run by Slade Gormus at the Student Health Center, said senior Jaclyn Pierce, a member of the organization.
The 2012-2013 edition of The Messenger, University of Richmond's student-run literary magazine, will be one of the largest editions in the magazine's nearly 100-year history, Rachel Bevels, co-editor-in-chief, said. The newest edition, due April 8, includes 128 pages of submissions, an increase from last year's 80 pages, Bevels said. Bevels, along with co-editor-in-chief Astoria Aviles and the section editors, reviewed each piece of fiction, non-fiction, art and poetry, and accepted about one-third of submissions this year, Bevels said. Bevels and Aviles had the tasks of not only taking over management of The Messenger, but also transforming the brand of the publication into a magazine that would continue to have a presence on Richmond's campus, Bevels said. The 2013 staff worked on creating a new look for the magazine, including a smaller paper size and new fonts and colors, which Bevels said she hoped would remain consistent in coming years. "We want people to see the magazine and say, 'That's The Messenger.
Ten students participated in the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement's Spring Break in Richmond program, which focused on education in the Richmond area for the second consecutive year. CCE staff members chose this theme because of the volume of students who regularly volunteer in schools or after-school programs, said Adrienne Piazza, the CCE coordinator for student development and educational programming. "I think there are two common responses to the question, 'Why are you interested in participating in this program?'" Piazza said.
Alan DeLorenzo, a former chemistry department staff member, weighed 335 pounds before beginning his weight loss journey at the Weinstein Center for Recreation and Wellness. When DeLorenzo began working at University of Richmond last year, he attended an employee orientation meeting where he heard about the Weinstein Center's Working on Wellness (WOW) program, he said.
In the spring of 2011, Kim Ray, a 2012 Richmond graduate, earned the first of what has now become five Philosophy, Politics, Economics and Law (PPEL) summer fellowships funded by the Charles G.
Students, faculty and staff worked together last weekend to present the University Dancers' 28th annual concert, Shifting Ground: New Voices in Dance, which they had been working on since the fall. "It's amazing to see how everything comes together with the lights and the costumes," senior Brianna Leporace said.
Five University of Richmond students founded a nonprofit organization last summer that has partnered with World Pediatric Project to give families receiving medical care in Richmond a chance to attend campus sporting events. Jimmy Maiarana is currently spending his junior year abroad at the University of Oxford, but before he left in the fall, he laid out plans to start a nonprofit called Chance to Play with four of his best friends. In an email to The Collegian, Maiarana said that Chance to Play's mission statement emphasizes sports' ability to release people from everyday challenges, and that the group strives to "assist individuals whose family lives have been affected by a medical issue by sponsoring participation in athletic camps, competitions and events." The founders of the organization hope to sponsor children nationwide to attend summer sports camps.
A business management class is applying class-learned skills to real-life fundraising by working with the Make-A-Wish Foundation this semester to help the wishes of sick children come true. Management professor Violet Ho's Organizational Behavior class connected with the Virginia chapter of the Make-A-Wish Foundation to help raise the money needed to grant the wishes of children between the ages of 2 1/2 and 18 who have life-threatening conditions, she said. The money needed to grant each wish ranges from $5,000 to $12,000, and the students have until April 16 to raise as much money as they can.
Eight months ago, two University of Richmond graduates left corporate jobs that they found to be unfufilling to start their own business, Be Good Clothing, in San Francisco. Mark Spera and Dean Ramadan, both Richmond College '10, were roommates during their junior and senior years at Richmond and were looking for the next step after realizing they were unhappy in their post-graduate jobs, Ramadan said. Spera studied business administration with a concentration in finance and moved to San Francisco after graduation for a job at the corporate office of Gap Inc., he said.
The Octaves released a promotional single, "Too Close," on Feb. 14 for their new album "Ricochet," which will mark the singers' exciting return to the recording world of a cappella, said junior Jared Feinman, The Octaves' music director. "We are making something bigger than just our voices," Feinman said.
New legislation approved by members of the Virginia General Assembly would allow programs, such as Teach for America, to be present in Virginia, said Deanna Haurie, coordinator of campus recruitment for Teach for America. "The legislation allows for people with alternative certification to be able to teach in Virginia schools," Haurie said.
It is difficult to imagine not knowing how to type on a keyboard or how to open an Internet browser to access Facebook.
A new viral dance craze called the Harlem Shake has found its way to Richmond's campus, and the ice hockey team and the Rowdies jumped at the chance to take part in it. The Harlem Shake is a dance move performed to the song of the same name by the electronic musician Baauer, said junior Josh Grice, the vice president of marketing for the Richmond Rowdies.
Westhampton College staff hosted a dinner for four-year roommates on Feb. 7, an annual tradition celebrating lasting college friendships among senior women. The steak and wine dinner was held at the Westhampton College Deanery and was attended by 16 women, said Kerry Fankhauser, associate dean of Westhampton College. Attendees participated in a variety of roommate-themed trivia games, which eventually got very competitive, Katherine Utz said.
University of Richmond graduate Zoe Romano will run all 2,088 miles of the mountainous Tour de France bicycle route this summer, with the goal of finishing one day ahead of the cyclists. Romano, who graduated in 2009, plans to begin her run May 18 and finish July 20 at a pace of 30 miles per day, she said. The run is a fundraiser for an organization in Richmond, World Pediatric Project (WPP), which provides medical care for children in Central America and the Caribbean, and in critical cases, brings them to the U.S.
Robert Agaba is not a typical University of Richmond student; he is a 28-year-old sophomore from Rwanda, who is about to become a father. Agaba came to the U.S.
When Rachael Bilney first mentioned her fraternal twin sister, whose nickname is "Sam, " while being recruited by Richmond basketball coaches, she was told that there might be a place for Sam on the men's team - that is, until they learned that her name was Samantha and their looks weren't the only similar thing about them. "Rachael told the coaches, 'I have a twin--Sam'," Sam said.
Many junior Westhampton women, donned in long, white dresses, are escorted down the steep staircase of the Jefferson Hotel each February to receive their class rings. But, this is one of the last years women will wear white dresses to Ring Dance.
As spring semester kicks into high gear, Richmond students are already looking forward to the next chapter of 2013: three sunny and homework-free months of summer break. Although classes end in May, many Richmond students will continue to work throughout the summer at internships around the country and internationally, said Katybeth Lee, manager of internship programs at Richmond's Office of Alumni and Career Services. Summer internships are a national trend among undergraduate students, and this tendency holds true at Richmond, Lee said. An internship that provides professional work experience and helps establish valuable industry relationships before graduation is ideal, but the process of securing such an opportunity can be confusing and anxiety-inducing. As January comes to a close, many students are starting to feel the need to make concrete internship plans, including juniors Alexa Gowdy and Alicia Tamarkin. Gowdy said she had felt extremely pressured to find an internship because of the competitive job market, parental expectations and resume boosting. Tamarkin, who is in the process of applying for a summer accounting internship in Columbus, Ohio, is also stressed about getting an internship because not having one will make it harder to find a job after graduation, she said. As the weeks fly by, it may seem as though there is barely any time left to find an internship, but Lee and the other career advisers will be available to help guide students through the search and application processes in the coming weeks. "The way you look for an internship depends on what you want to get out of it," Lee said.
