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Show StatesmanCampus News Friday, April 17, 2009 Page 3 Briefs Students hostparty to try to avoid taJdngftnal Campus & Community By APRIL LARSEN staff writer With three big sports events Saturday, a business class hopes to score big by throwing a tailgate party for charity the same day. The event will be near the student entrance at Romney Stadium from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., according to organizers. The games include Softball against Louisiana Tech, noon; the Blue and White Spring Football Game, 2 p.m.; and the Mark Faldmo track invitational, all day, according to information provided by the Ateam student coordinator, Brian Watts. The 10 students who organized the event for their final project in managing organizations and people, hope to raise $750-1,000 for the SEED Foundation, said group member Shauna Kennedy, culinary arts senior. The SEED Foundation is a non-profit charity which lends small amounts of money, or "micro-loans," to private residents of Peru so they can build their own businesses, generate income and pay the loan back to help another person, said Megan Schaer, interior design sophomore who has previously raised money for the charity. In addition to fundraising, if the group earns a minimum of $750 they don't have to take the final exam, Kennedy said. She said there will be a raffle and carnival games to raise the funds. She said the group is excited about the prizes local businesses have donated in support. "Logan businesses have been incredibly supportive," Kennedy said, "We have received prize donations from Logans Heroes, The Bluebird Restaurant, Papa Kelsey's, Angie's, Shaffer House Bakery, Little Caesar's and more." Members of the group pulled their individual resources together to create the event, said Zane Wells, civil engineering junior. Group member Brad Peterson, who is in the university aviation program, arranged the grand prize: a 90-minute airplane flight around Cache Valley. Kennedy said the group will also sell Tshirts they expect will be very popular. "They are awesome," she said. "They say, 'BY-Who?' and on the back, 'U can kiss our A.'" Kennedy said the shirts will cost $10, or $12 for an extra-large size. Wells said the project has already been very rewarding. "Everyone has had their own assignment as part of the preparations and none of us have ever put something like this together. It's been a good experience for us," he said. Still the group is looking forward to Saturday, for various reasons. Kennedy said she expects everyone will enjoy themselves. "It will be a lot of fun. There will be a lot of games, and winning a flight is pretty exciting. I'd want to win that," she said. "We're all going to be hanging out as students and community, having a good time." Wells said he likes the idea of celebrating USU and fostering school spirit. He said he thinks people should come not only for the present state of Aggie athletics but for the promising season to come. "With Coach Andersen here, the Aggies are picking up momentum and this is a chance for the community to get excited for the team ... also, to get out of the final," he said. The event is on Facebook under "USU Tailgate for SEED." Raffle tickets cost $1 each. They are available by contact through Kennedy at 816-591-5808 or shauna.k@aggiemail.usu. edu. They will also be available in the TSC Friday, as well as at the party. Advance purchasers do not need to attend the event to win prizes. -maryapril@gmail.com Psi Chi collecting box top donations By KADE DELIS staff writer Before working for their degrees in psychology, a group of students are working together for the betterment of local elementary schools. Instead of therapy, they're using box tops. Giving back to the community, the National Honor Society in Psychology, or Psi Chi, is collecting numerous food box tops to donate to local elementary schools. Psi Chi is a federation of chapters, conducted by psychology majors, in more than 890 senior colleges and universities. This is the first year in which they have done this donation. With 20 to 50 members at USU involved in Psi Chi already, they are open to anyone willing to participate and collect box tops with them, said Bailey Bell, secretary of current counsel service projects at Psi Chi. "It's easy to participate," Bell said. Psi Chi has been active in gathering box tops from grocery store items such as breakfast cereal, Betty Crocker cake mix, Yoplait yogurt and childcare products for the Box Tops for Education Program, a program supported by huge food companies, who give money back to schools who donate box tops. Each box top is worth 10 cents. According to Box Tops for Education's Web site, the potential income from this program is up to $20,000. There are donation boxes labeled Box Tops for Education all over campus open to anyone who purchases any of the participating products. Bell said'Psi Chi is unclear how many box tops they have now. "We will donate them all at the end of the year," Bell said. The program now accepts box tops donations from the tops of older cereal products MEMBERS OF THE NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY OF PSYCHOLOGY incorporate service in their mission through a Box Tops for Education drive. Donation spots across campus allow students to drop off their box tops and contribute to elementary education. Box tops collected at USU will be donated to Box Tops for Education at the end of the year, photo courtesy of PSI CHI such as Cheerios and newer organic products like Cascadian Farm cereal, the Web site states. Throughout its history, the program has donated earnings to community schools ranging from $10 million to $250 million, it states, and the number of Box Tops schools has grown from 30,000 to 86,000. "We're reaching out to the community as part of our service mission," Bell said. "We're making trips to campus recycling bins, jump through boxes and salvage box tops in order to collect them for elementary schools." Bell said they consider this a nice thing to give back to the community. One school they had in mind to contribute was Woodruff Elementary School. "We wish to incorporate service into our mission and the activities we do," Bell said. "We want more people involved, so we can be more productive." . Bell said the areas where any student can donate box tops include in the TSC by the Hub, the entrance to the library behind the book detectors and next to the entrance to the education building. -k. del@aggiemail. usu, edu Reality: Learning vicariously through the Internet H continued from page 1 Wiley said his class also held conventional class in a physical classroom occasionally, but because he was trying to teach his class, not only how to teach using technology but how to use new forms of technology, he said incorporating Second Life into his curriculum was beneficial. However, practical application of new technology wasn't the only benefit of using Second Life in the classroom, he said. "A number of times I went to Wn*r is SICOND LIU? 5MOWC«S£ COMMUNITY conferences where I was unable to teach my class; but even if I was in China, I could still get online, show up in Second Life and have class in a normal way," Wiley said. However, both Wiley and Louviere agree Second Life isn't necessarily the best way to teach a class. Louviere argues that, while the essence of a lecture - asking questions, engaging in debates and getting feedback - can all be achieved in Second Life to some degree. having to take the time to learn a new program puts an unnecessary burden on students. "For the most part I would discourage (the use of Second Life in the classroom) unless someone is really motivated to support this. Reason being, as you're learning to get into Second Life, it takes a lot of upfront work. You have a lot of learning just to use the technology which puts more work on the students," he said. Louviere said professors wish- LMD tociN QLOGS SUPPOBI GET STARTED \ fflft Dance > - .loin the Internet's largest Mser-crealed, 3D virtual world community. Membership is free! ,7ork > r Second Life is an onlii: 3D virtual world ima<;iii and created by \\r. Residents. Shop) '•S \ ftnv»ltu» "t±% Explore > PIay> Love ) Learn > FEW UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS ACROSS T H E N A T I O N use Second Life as an online classroom, but t h o s e w h o d o s a y i t h a s i t s b e n e f i t s . STATESMAN il ustration ,' ^ \ ^ £ v ; - - f ; j ; . .'.• •,/-•;';. '• \ -; '• ••., •••:. •',"', '.-'• BFA artexhibit features students Art students representing the Class of 2009 at USU will exhibit their work in a culminating exhibition that opens Monday, April 20, and continues to April 30. The exhibit can be seen in the Tippetts Exhibition Hall of the Chase Fine Arts Center. The gallery is open Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. A free opening public reception is Friday, April 24, 7-9 p.m., at the gallery, and all are invited. The exhibit is considered the "crowning event" of the students' education at USU. For information, contact the art department office, 7973460. VSU-Tube contest displays talents To showcase the lalents of aspiring filmmakers, Utah State University's Caine School of the Arts sponsors the first USU-Tube Short Film Festival April 24 in the Caine Lyric Theatre at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $5 and can be purchased by calling 797-8022, online at http:// boxoffice.usu.edu/ or at the door. A call for entries was released in February asking for short films to be submitted for consideration. The films were required to include two elements (an alarm and a pair of red shoes) and a choice to include three of a number of listed elements. The films could not be more than four minutes long, excluding credits. Four prizes are to be awarded, including Voter's Choice (determined by the number of first place votes each film receives), Highest Hits (determined by the number of hits each film receives on the You-Tube site), Judges Choice (determined by a panel of judges votes) and Overall (determined by a combination of the other three prizes). Prizes range from $1,000 for Overall to $500 for Voter's Choice, Highest Hits and Judges Choice. All four prizes can go to one film, contest organizers said. More information on the films festival, along with links to view and vote for the selected films, is online at http://caineschool.usu. edu/filmfest.aspx. Students featured in Gallery Walk ing to implement Second Life into their curriculum have to ensure the burden of learning a new The Alliance for the system doesn't outweigh the pros Varied Arts is proud to presand the students are gaining someent "Transcending Borders" thing from the use of Second Life. by Tony Clennell, local USU "It's coming back to what do ceramacist student and we want students to learn? Do we "Longing for Honeybees" want them to learn how to use by Tara Hawkins, local poet Second Life, or do we want them to and artist. There will be learn the material specific to their various works on display class?" he asked. from April 17 through May Wiley agrees with Louviere 9 at the AVA Gallery. The and said he would only suggest opening reception for these implementing Second Life into a shows will be during the classroom where the program can Gallery Walk April 17 from be rendered useful. For instance, 6 to 9 p.m. Come and enjoy if a biology teacher really wishes the imagery created by to use Second Life, they can go on, Hawkins' poems and collage purchase and island, and build a art and the earthy appeal of model of whatever the students are Clennell s ceramic works. learning about. The students can While you are in downthen fly around the model and wittown Logan, visit the other ness it from all angles. galleries/businesses that are But if students were only going participating in the Gallery to meet in Second Life and listen Walk April 17 from 6 to to a lecture, it may not be worth it, 9 p.m. as well. The other he said. businesses participating are Louviere said since Wiley left in the Cache Valley Gallery the spring of 2008, no instructors at The Art Center, Caffe on campus axe using Second Life ibis Gallery, Global Village in an official capacity through the Gifts, St. John's Episcopal university. Church, Summerfest Office "Some professors may be using and Gallery, S.E. Needham Second Life, but there is no formal- Jewelers, Why Sound, Utah ; ized system set up right now," he Public Radio Downtown said. "There very, well could be Studio and Winborg j • professors using it and we're just Masterpieces. not aware of it." .-^ / ; . , -greg.boyles@aggiemaiLusu.edu ^Compiled from staff ' and media reports |