There weren’t any
romantic dinners or exotic vacations. An exchange of gifts with sentimental
value never happened, either.
The University of Utah and the Pac-12 Conference recently
celebrated their one-year anniversary, and although they weren’t serenaded on
an Italian gondola it’s safe to say this marriage is a perfect fit.
Utah football, specifically, is reaping the
benefits from the alliance. With excitement at all-time level, every game at
Rice-Eccles Stadium has sold out for the past two seasons with attendance
exceeding the 45,000 maximum capacity.
“Interest has just
boomed to the point where if new season ticket holders want tickets you had to
donate 15-hundred dollars,” said Chandler Wride, the annual fund director for
the University of Utah.”
The demand for Utah sports is through the roof. The Pac-12 announced that every football and men’s basketball game will be televised nationally
on six regional networks – Washington,
Oregon, Northern California, Southern
California, Arizona and for Utah and Colorado – the Mountain.
The 12-year
television contract with ESPN and Fox is estimated at $3 billion – the most
lucrative deal in history.
With seemingly
unlimited exposure, Utah ticket sales will reach a pinnacle on Oct. 4
when USC, an early national-championship contender and preseason No.1 team,
invades the hill. On Stubhub, tickets on the 59th row are priced at $589
apiece.
Utah and the Pac-12 is a case of love at first
sight. The two instantly clicked and this was just year-one.
The University of Utah:
why it’s a great place to get your graduate in communications
By Andy Page
Choosing where to get a graduate degree in communications is never easy
for college students especially if it is out of state. Stephanie Bor, a graduate
student in the University of Utah communication program shares why the University of Utah is a great place for grad
students both native to Utah and from out of state wanting to come study
communication.
“I had never been to Utah before I got accepted to the program,” says
Bor. “It was really weird coming here the first time and flying into Salt Lake
not knowing where anything was or what to expect but knowing that I was going
to spend the next four years of my life here.”
Bor, originally
from Chico, California, shares how she came to love living in Utah.
“I learned to love the snow,” she says. “ I really like Park City and getting away and going
snowboarding for the day to clear my mind from school.”
Explaining that although she has grown to love the snow, Bor says snow
is not all that makes studying at the U of U so great. She says that it’s how
well the communication department at the U sets itself apart by mixing the
disciplines of speech communication and mass communication.
“In all of our seminars
and classes there are people from all different kinds of back grounds and I
really have found it extremely useful to hear the perspective of speech comm.
and redirections to shine a new light on a subject and expand my knowledge,”
says Bor.
According to the U of U communication website,
the graduate program is known for its closely connected faculty and students
which give students the flexibility to design their individual programs of
study.
“It’s very independent," says Bor. “ There are a lot of options and you
can take courses outside the department and even have faculty outside of the
department on your committees.”
As advice to all incoming
communication grad students, Bor suggests that students remember that, “this
program is what you make of it.”
Everyday University of Utah students and faculty gather at the campus food court at lunch time.
Most of the students eat around four times a week at the university food court, spending in average 7 to 10 dollar each time. For some students such expense can pass unnoticed, but for others it can add significantly to their budge.
Picks of the University of Utah Food Court at Lunch Rush Hours
Angela Armero, Psychology undergraduate student at the U, says that the service provided at the U of U Food Court isn’t good as other places and the prices are to high.
“I think if they lower their prices they would probably get better business and they also should stay open until later, because students at night time don’t have anyplace to eat.” Armero said.
Mamber Armero, current student at Salt Lake Community College, visited the University of Utah before transferring to the institution next fall and noticed that the food court prices at the U seem to be higher than at the SLCC, but it offers more choices.
“At the community college I have to spend a minimum of 3 dollars if I want to pay with credit card, so my minimum spending is 3 dollars and my maximum 7 dollars usually.” Mamber said.
Kwan Klein, Political Sciences undergraduate student at the U and also part time employee at the campus food court, defends the services provided by the Food Court saying that people, especially students are always complaining about money.
“I don’t think prices are any different than other places. It’s is reasonable because the food is really good and people also tends to get a lot food.” Klein said.
Klein says that differently of the SLCC, the U of U Food Court doesn’t have limit for credit card spending.
“No minimum of maximum for credit card. Sometimes people will run their credit card for a quarter to pay a cup for water.” Said Klein.
Katie Hunt, Sustainability Coordinator of University of Utah, says that a lot effort is invested towards the quality of the food and the services at the U of U Food Court.
“We offer a number of health food choices at the food court and we are sneak about it because often they don’t look as health as they are.” Hunt said.
Hunt says that no-transfat oil is used in the food court, as an example the french fries, and they partner with the Seafood Watch to make sure to use sustainable fish for the sushi and any other dishes containing seafood.
Hunt also says that the food court at the university is run by the company Chartwells Dining Services, and as a company they also need to have revenue, however they do not sacrifice the students health or the quality of the service to obtain it.
“We are not the U of U on that sense, we are a company, we are a money maker but, between the Heritage Center and the Food Court we focus a lot on the student health and sustainability,” Hunt said, “As a prove of our commitment to the health of our students, we have a track nutrition program in our website, so students can check the nutrition content of what they are eating.”
Besides the efforts of searching meals that are grown locally, organic and sustainable, the Chartwells Dining Services also promotes and cooperates in several activities around the campus involving the food justice and sustainability issues, as such, the film activity promoted at the Student Union once a year involving a panel with food justice activists, and the Social Soup lecture and discussion monthly program.
The pre-consumed wasted scratches from all the kitchens are compost and send to fertilize the campus garden, to feed the pigs and chickens in the Salt Lake City area and to the Momentum Recycling Center for the county.
Athletic
students are huge part of going to college. Athletics bring in more money to schools than any other
program. These athletes spend
countless hours training, watching game films and sacrificing their bodies for
the chance to be known as best in the nation. They do all of this while trying to find the time to study
for a test on anything from econometrics to Anatomy. For most, academics is hopefully just a stepping stone on
getting to the next level.
In
order to become a professional football player in the NFL, an athlete must be
out of high school for three years before entering the NFL draft. During these three years, the athlete
may train and then enter the draft, or attend college for three years then
enter the draft. While skipping
the college rout might seem more appealing, it usually does not turn out as
well as one might hope.
With
going to college, the athlete gains experience and during that time is where
most of the NFL scouts do their “scouting.” While attending a college, athletes on the team, believe or
not, must have to be a student while playing a certain sport. This presents a challenge to the athlete
and brings up a question: Are they student athletes or athlete students?
“I
love the aspect of being an athlete, but the student part of college sports...
I mean, c’mon who likes school?” said Patrick Greene, the Longsnapper for the
University of Utah Utes.
Greene emphasized that being a student before an athlete is the most
important because most student athletes don’t play sports into the professional
level. “I know for me, a
longsnapper can play in the NFL for 10 plus years, its not very likely I will
get drafted.” He goes on to
explain how getting a degree is the most important part of college so that he
will have something to “fall back on” if going pro doesn’t work out.
Karl
Williams, a Fullback, agrees, “Some guys on the team have the mindset they are
good enough to go pro so they focus on the athlete aspect of being a student athlete.” There are over 420,000 student athletes in the nation and just
about all go pro in something other than sports. “I have heard of guys just on the team for the scholarship
and they happen to be good at sports.
They know they are not good enough to be athletes at a professional
level, so they work really hard in school,” added Williams.
Being
a student athlete implies that a student enrolled who plays a college sport are
involved in secondary activities that betters the college experience. As the NCAA states, “Student-athletes
must, therefore, be students first.”
The upsetting part is, most views on the athletes and in some cases views
of the school, puts more of a focus on the athletic programs, rather than the
academic, which takes away from the point of going to college.
The University of Utah’s ballet
department is highly selective in the students that are
chosen. Only 30 percent of the students that apply to the restricted
major are accepted.
Because
it is a restricted major, once students are accepted into the
University of Utah, they then must audition for the department in order
to get in. “We are rather strict, which helps maintain the quality of
our dancers, “said Regina Zahrin, assistant professor of the University of Utah ballet
department. “Those who make it to us have been dancing all their lives,
they grey up dancing
because it takes long years of training. That means that they are very
hungry and that means that they really want to succeed,” said Zahrin.
“I
have been dancing since the age of three and pre-professionally since
I’ve been out of high school,” said Vinnie Prisbrey, graduate student of
the University of Utah’s ballet department. Prisbrey was also one of
the sugar plum fairies in last years “The Nutcracker” show performed by the University of Utah’s ballet department.
“I
chose the University of Utah because it’s such a classically based
ballet department. They have really strong teachers like Maureen Laird
from Ballet West that have really helped me to grow,” said Bailey Wheeler, ballet student at the University of Utah.
Although
the major is very demanding of students, they enjoy taking fewer
academic classes which allows them more time for dance.
“What
I like most is how I get to dance all day long and only take a few
academic classes during the day. That way I really get to focus on how I
perform, my training, and how I can better myself as a dancer,” said
Wheeler.
Ballet
students train for long hours and put on performances at the University
of Utah in their own Hayes Chirstensen Theatre, located in the Marriott Center for Dance.
“I like to perform. It’s a lot of training and practices,” Prisbrey said.
The
strict criteria of the department and professors who are and have been
dancers themselves, keep students motivated and looking forward to a
career in ballet. “It’s like singing. If you don’t have a voice you’re
not going to make it into opera,” said Zahrin jokingly. But the reality
of it is that it is true.
The Academy of Dental Careers is continuously providing free
cleanings and sealants to children who lack insurance or funds to afford dental
work.
As part of their twelve-week program, students at the
academy donate 10 to 15 hrs of service to their communities. Jan Boyer, director of the Academy
said, “We implemented the program because we felt it was important for the
students to give back to the community. “
Students are given the opportunity to plan, organize, and
carry out the service projects. “Free cleanings and sealants” is held two to three
times a year. The sealants help prevent cavities, while the cleaning removes
tartar build up.
A family of eight children was benefited from one of these events. Douglas Gordiano, a father of eight children all under the age of 15 said, “I
currently don’t have insurance because I was laid off. I can’t afford a dentist
appointment for all of my children. I appreciate the services the school
provides."
Students from the Academy also believe in the importance of
patient education. As one of the service projects, they had to prepare a 30
minute oral education class and present it to kindergarteners, first and second
graders, members of the Boys and Girls Club, and the Boys Scouts of America.
With donations from dentist in the community, students are capable
to put together hygiene kits to give to the children at the time of patient education. The hygiene kits include a toothbrush,
toothpaste and floss.
Monica, a current student, expressed her feelings after
giving oral hygiene education at Rosamond Elementary School, “ I feel like I am
more prepared to talk to my patients about health care at home… it was really
fun, I really enjoyed it!”
Boyer, Director of the Academy said, “ This is a great
experience for students and also for the people that receive the benefits… We
reach out to the public were ever we see that there is a need.”
The Academy of Dental Careers will continue to provide Dental Health Education,Free Sealants and Cleanings.
University of Utah Students Have
Unlimited Access To News By Germanus Roland Seikaly
With
all the choices that University of Utah
students have to access news, what kind of platforms are they using, with so
many outlets to seek out newsworthy events, what is the choice of U of U
students? Simone
is a graduate student I interviewed, she stated, “ I like the Internet, it is
fast and easy and very convenient”. With convenience and ease, the Internet
with its speed and ability to update news faster than radio, television and paper, is a reoccurring trend for student
gathering news worthy events. Even
though paper readership is drastically declining, it is still offered for free
to students on the campus of the U of U.
The
more I searched around the campus looking to see how students gather their news
I found that most were engaged in reading from computer screens and smart
phones. I asked Simone when she reads the paper, “ I use to read the paper
mostly for the obituary
section. I have to admit, getting news from the Internet is more convenient and I can be updated of breaking news on my
smartphone.”
Television news is becoming less attractive to students because of more choices the Internet provides. I asked Simone if she
likes watching television news like the locals and national news programs,
“Watching the local news anchors are not always my first choice but if I want
to get more in-depth on a story I watched on the news telecast, I will go to
there website if the story interests me. For national news, I like to watch Brian Williams on NBC.”
With
technology ever improving, the students of the U of U will be on the cutting
edge on how to gather news. Paper and television news are still stalwart’s of a
century gone by, their use may no longer be attractive to the younger
generation and at one point may be extinct.
By Trevor Phibbs
