Beginning this semester, the University Shop has joined forces with one of the most popular and respected textbook rental websites, Chegg.com. Although many students have rented textbooks from Chegg and other online rental sites in the past, they can now rent textbooks from the University Shop, through the on-campus rental program, Powered by Chegg.
The University has recently been recognized as one of the top schools in environmental sustainability by the Sierra Club, an environmental organization. The Sierra Club’s annual list, titled “Cool Schools,” ranks the University as No.
In the fall 2009 semester, the University approved the selection of Google as the new platform for student e-mail at Villanova. This summer, UNIT began migrating e-mail accounts of all current undergraduates, as well as those who had graduated in the last two years, to the new Gmail system.
Three-day event acclimates new students to campus
Two weeks ago Villanova welcomed 1,650 new freshmen, as well as 65 transfer students with the start of the 2010 New Student Orientation. The Class of 2014, as well as the transfer students, were welcomed and fully immersed into the Villanova community by 111 staff members consisting of orientation counselors, administrative assistants and members of the steering committee.
The Office of Learning Support Services, previously an on-campus resource for students with documented learning disabilities, has opened up its services to all Villanova students and will continue to undergo a series of expansive changes between now and the fall semester, according to director Nancy Mott.
As thousands of freshmen adjust to new schedules, new tasks and new living spaces, one newly arrived professor, Joseph Lennon, has been quietly getting into a routine of his own as he begins his first year at the University, moving into the position of director of the Irish Studies program.
As thousands of freshmen adjust to new schedules, new tasks and new living spaces, one newly arrived professor, Joseph Lennon, has been quietly getting into a routine of his own as he begins his first year at the University, moving into the position of director of the Irish Studies program.
A professor in the University’s civil and environmental engineering department, Robert Traver, recently received the United States Army Corps of Engineering’s Outstanding Civilian Service Medal for his research on Hurricane Katrina.
Despite planning for the loss of the University’s year-to-year lease of Kaul Hall at Rosemont College, space became available this past June for the 30 resident who currently live there. In previous years, the University has rented living space in Kaul Hall on the campus of Rosemont College, located just down Ithan Avenue from Villanova, to cope with the high demand for housing.
After a full academic year, the environmentally friendly renovations to Fedigan Hall are living up to expectations, according to Facilities Management. “Water [conservation] was the easiest to quantify,” said Associate Vice President for Facilities Management Robert Morro.
The end of the 2009-’10 academic year will see not only the graduation of the senior class, but also the end of several professors’ tenure at Villanova. Over the past five years, Villanova has seen 35 faculty members retire, and this year, eight more are joining them.
The University’s elimination of the unsanctioned outdoor drinking event on West Campus during the traditional NovaFest weekend was successful, according to both Ryan Rost, assistant dean of students for Judicial Affairs, and Rev. John Stack, O.S.
Approximately 40-60 graduating Villanova seniors pursue post-graduate volunteer work each year, many of whom enter alternative teaching programs, according to the Office of Campus Ministry’s Web site. Such programs include Teach for America, Alliance for Catholic Education, Operation Teach, Response-Ability, Blue Engine Fellows and others.
Outgoing Student Body President Dan Gelwicks and Vice President Spencer Curtis would campaign for a second term if they could. “Unfortunately, they’re forcing us out,” Gelwicks said. “They’re making us graduate.” Gelwicks and Curtis said they accomplished the major points of their campaign this year, which included improvements in the areas of academics, athletics and communication.
Campus Activities Team sold about 2,100 tickets to this year’s spring concert, The Fray, according to Director of Student Development Tom Mogan. “I thought we would do better than we did,” Mogan said. One-third of the tickets sold went to faculty, staff and guests.
Jamie Hyneman will speak at the University’s Commencement for the Class of 2010 on May 16. Hyneman, a special effects engineer and host of the Discovery Channel TV show, “MythBusters,” will be giving his first commencement speech. He will also be receiving an honorary degree from the University.
Thirty-six communication majors were inducted into the Alpha Rho Chapter of Lambda Pi Eta Communication Honor Society last Saturday during the 17th annual ceremony, which took place at Paxon Hallow Country Club in Media, Pa. All students inducted displayed academic excellence throughout at least 60 hours of completed college coursework and 12 hours of communication study.
In keeping with the University’s push to “go green,” the College of Engineering has launched a Master’s degree program in Sustainable Engineering as well as a certificate in Sustainable Engineering. The requirements for the MS degree consist of 30 credits, or 10 courses.
Villanova athletic teams run, promote, work the event
Running with the Wildcats, a 5k run hosted by student-athletes, takes place at 6 p.m. tonight on Main Campus to support the “Each One Counts” foundation. Registration for the event begins at 4:30 p.m. The fee is $10 and all funds go directly towards providing sick children with therapies including massage, hydro, art, music, pet and yoga.
Last week nine sororities and eight fraternities came together for the annual Greek Week on campus. Starting on Saturday, the chapters participated in a plethora of events ranging from Flag Football to Skit Night and a Chariot Race. The week ended with a Greek-wide Mass on Sunday.
Head coach Andy Talley and the football team partnered with the National Bone Marrow Donor “Be the Match” program when they hosted a bone marrow drive in Connelly Center on April 15. This year’s slogan was, once again, “Get in the Game and Save a Life.
Approximately 600 students participated in the seventh annual Relay for Life, which was sponsored by the American Cancer Society, Villanova and Colleges against Cancer, and was held in the Pavilion from 7 p.m. on April 17 to 7 a.m. on April 18. There was a decrease in both teams and donations from last year, when $59,370.
Fraternity becomes chapter after three years as colony
Lambda Chi Alpha received its charter and became an officially recognized chapter and fraternity at Villanova on April 17. The fraternity was considered a colony for over two years before being chartered by the national LXA organization, following several years of operating exclusively as a local fraternity.
For the first time in a number of years, some prominent and long-standing campus organizations will have female leadership next year. Both Student Government Association and Blue Key Society are seeing female leadership for the 2010-’11 academic year, reversing a trend within each organization that has favored male leadership for the past several terms.
All-day event raises awareness, inspires footwear appreciation
Over 250 Villanova students and community members walked together in the TOMS’ One Day Without Shoes event on April 8. The walk was one mile around campus, and all participants left their shoes in their dorm rooms and went barefoot. Walking barefoot throughout the day simulated what life is like for people living in poverty.
Garey Hall, the former home of the Villanova School of Law, will soon be filled with several new offices when academic and administrative departments from around the University relocate to the building in June. The Office of Alumni Relations will move from its current location in Alumni House, which lies across Lancaster Avenue from Campus Corner and next to Moriarity Hall.
Philosophy of Women students rally against objectifying language
Today at the Oreo, Philosophy of Women students will take a stand against language that objectifies and degrades women. As part of an extensive class project, the Feminism in Action Project, the group “Out of Mouth, Out of Mind” will hand out fliers and display posters that discuss the damage and disrespect surrounding demeaning language.
‘Business Behind the Magic’ features speaker
The Villanova School of Business, in team with the Business in Entertainment Society, presented “The Business Behind the Magic” on April 7. The presentation featured Jeff Miller, Villanova School of Business Class of ’79 and 25-year Disney veteran.
The final piece of health care legislation and the student loan overhaul attached to it that President Obama signed on March 23 will directly affect Villanova students in broadening health care coverage and revamping education provisions. The bill, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, will enable students to stay on their parents’ health insurance until age 26 as well as affect changes in the method of the distribution of student loans.
Whether or not Villanova students are generally healthy has been studied through the University’s participation in the National College Health Assessment-II Survey. It is administered every two years, the last being in spring 2009. The NCHA-II Survey provides a wide variety of measures to gauge student health.
High salaries no longer take precedence during job hunt
A recent survey done by KPMG, an audit, tax and advisory firm, shows that the struggles in the job market are affecting which majors undergraduates choose to study. The survey notes that “as a result of the economic downturn, university students rate job security at a potential employer ahead of pay and benefits.
UNIT installs new software to protect against viruses
UNIT is currently in the process of implementing monitoring software that students will be required to download on their computers in order to connect to the Villanova wireless and wired network, beginning this semester with South Campus and moving campus-wide in the fall.
The University is on its way to reaching its $40 million fundraising goal for the fiscal year 2010, according to Vice President for University Advancement Mike O’Neill. As of last Friday, $38.6 million in donations had come in, up 14.5 percent from this time last year, according to O’Neill.
Class of 2014 hails from 49 states, 85 foreign countries
From this year’s total applicant pool, 5,998 students were offered admission for an admissions rate of 41.1 percent, down 5.3 percent from last year, according to Dean of Enrollment Management Stephen Merritt. The University received 14,367 applications for the incoming class of 2014, up 9.
Sixth annual walk, run raises over $9,000 for Nicaraguan water
Students can support one of Villanova’s most well-known campus organizations on Sunday when Water for Waslala’s sixth annual Walk for Water will be held at noon. Over 200 walkers have registered for the 5K walk/run so far, raising over $9,000 to provide residents of Waslala, Nicaragua with clean drinking water.
Four to five computing sciences and communication majors at Villanova currently participate in an internship program with the Vatican each semester, working to revitalize the way the Vatican communicates with the modern world. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” Vatican Internship Experience Program Director and Professor Jill Flanagan said.
