This past Friday in USGA, SCOPE went up for money from miscellaneous for weekend programming. Although the budget committee recommended giving the full amount requested, the students that represented their organizations, as well as the Senate that is supposed to be representative of the student body, voted not to give SCOPE any of the money. This was the second time around that SCOPE went up, and according to the USGA Treasurer’s manual, “both Blue and Gold Status organizations may only request Miscellaneous funding twice per event.” This means that SCOPE cannot go in front of Miscellaneous again to request money for our weekend programming budget.
For those of you that do not know, SCOPE is considered a media. There are only three medias at the university, the Charger Bulletin, Chariot Yearbook, and SCOPE. There is really no clear definition of a media, mainly because they all do so much that it would take forever to explain. Although I cannot speak for the Bulletin and the yearbook, I can speak on behalf of SCOPE.
SCOPE consists of eight different committees: comedy and lecture, day programming, film, Halloween and Spring Carnival, publicity, special events, tech, and weekend programming. Each of these committees holds an array of responsibilities, but the main one being to put on programs that are fun, free and open to all UNH students. As a media, SCOPE is required to hold so many events a month. On average, SCOPE holds about 20 to 25 events a month; that is, however, budget pending. Last year, there was a mix up and SCOPE’s budget was cut a substantial amount for this year. Aside from programming throughout the year, SCOPE is responsible for many of the traditions held at this university; i.e. hosting the Halloween Haunted House, Rock and Roll Week, Comedy Week, Film Week, and Spring Weekend. We do pride ourselves on many of the things we do, but the most crucial piece of the puzzle is weekend programming.
Aside from SCOPE being a media, the President, and both Vice Presidents of the organization are media heads. This basically means that because of the amount of work they have to do and put in, they receive a stipend for their work within the organization. Part of my job as president is to oversee weekend programming, and if we no longer hold weekend programs, then how can I be expected to do my job in the most efficient manner?
Many years ago, weekend programming was just a committee under USGA. Once the students realized there was a need for it, it was turned over to SCOPE, and it became a line item to ensure that programs would always take place. Today, SCOPE plans eight weekend events a month, these events range from trips to bowling, trips to the museum, making T-shirts out of bags, movie trips, sporting event trips, novelty events, stuff-a-bear, pumpkin painting, decorating recycling bins, trips to Broadway, our annual trip to Six Flags, our annual Easter egg hunt, and so much more. Many of these events are looked forward to by the student body, and if these events just stop happening, what does that mean for the university and the students?
Alcohol Awareness Week has been a fun, popular event for many years at the University of New Haven, where multiple clubs participate in various educational programs with the aim to educate students on valuable life lessons.
The 2012 Alcohol Awareness Week started on Monday, Oct. 15, and ran until Friday, Oct. 19.
The week kicked off Monday with a police Mock Sobriety Test and a Pledge to Not Drink and Drive hosted by the Fire Science club from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. in the Bartels Programming Space. There was also a Trash Cab Monday night, a UNH rendition of Cash Cab. The Trash Cab took place in one of the courtesy vans driving around campus.
Bianca from Student Activities rode in the Trash Cab, and asked various riders questions about alcohol to win gift cards. I participated in the event, and actually received a $45 gift card for answering questions correctly. The Trash Cab ran from 8 p.m. until 11 p.m.
From 8 p.m. until 9 p.m., guest speaker Wendi Fox presented “Trashed” in the Alumni Lounge. Fox preformed an inspirational stand-up comedy program based on her own life lessons since she is a former high-risk drinker. This Alcohol Awareness Program took the audience on a roller coaster ride of comedy and catastrophe all slammed together.
Tuesday, Oct. 16, Active Minds held “Candy Bar” in Bartels from 3 p.m. until 8 p.m. At the “Candy Bar,” students were able to “order” a specific drink such as vodka and Red Bull, Franzia Chardonnay, margarita, pina colada, Budweiser, etc. Instead of an actual drink, participants received a candy bag with the equivalent amount of calories the drink would have, but in candy. One option was a margarita, which has 550 calories on average, so students were given 9 fun-sized candy bars. Students were also given information on how long it would take to burn off these calories through exercises.
Active Minds President Elizabeth Field said, “I think most people are often unaware of how many calories are in their favorite alcoholic beverages. A margarita has more than 550 calories! This shows that alcohol can have a severe impact on people’s physical and mental health.”
Tuesday also featured Cooking with Alcohol, held by Sodexo in the Bartels Café from 4:30 p.m. until 7p.m., where they served different foods they had cooked in alcohol. The Fire Science Club presented the UNH Docudrama, a mock car accident in the Bethel lot which showed students the impact of alcohol and related accidents, from 6:30 p.m. until 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, Oct. 17, the Fire Science Club also hosted a Seatbelt Simulator located in the Bixler Breezeway from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. This event was supposed to convince students to always wear their seatbelts. The Trash Cab ran again from 8 p.m. until 11 p.m., and the event Dead Man Walking was going on all day. For Dead Man Walking, students, faculty and staff that volunteered wore either red shirts or black shirts. Those who were black shirts had statistics about deaths caused by drunk driving in Connecticut on the back of their shirts and represented those that had died. They did not speak all day to show awareness and respect for those who had passed. More people were wearing red shirts, which represented people who had been injured because of drunk driving in the state of Connecticut.
Thursday, Oct. 18, Fire Science club, ACJA, and Victimology held a obstacle course and root beer floats event in the Bixler Quad from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m. Anna David also spoke in Dodds Theater from 8 p.m. until 9 p.m. Anna David is a writer, television personality and addiction expert, and presented “Above the Influence: What’s in your Cup.” David’s experience as a recovering addict was moving, and she talked about articles and books she has written about the topic.
Her presentation broke alcoholism addiction and recovery into simple relatable topics. The most motivation came from her own personal experience and that she has been sober for over a decade. Addiction may be constantly in the news, and recovery from it is documented on a series of television shows, but very little about how to really cope with and get over these issues is really known.
Chi Kappa Rho and OSA sponsored Twisted Thursday: Drunk Goggles from 9 p.m. until 11 p.m. in Bartels, and ORL gave out pizza at the shuttle stop from 10 p.m. until 12 a.m.
Friday, Oct. 19, SCOPE and OSA sponsored a late night bowling trip, where there was free bowling, and food and prizes. The event ran from 9:45 p.m. onwards. It was another successful alcohol awareness week to inform and encourage students to be safe, and make the right decisions.
