Issue 1, Vol 144, The Brunswickan

Page 1

632576 (,*+7 3$*( ,16(57 !! 9$56,7< 5('6 %(*,1 1(: &$03$,*1 Volume 144 · Issue 1 • September 8, 2010

www.thebruns.ca

brunswickan canada’s oldest official student publication.

Welcome UNB Frosh

Hundreds of new first year students gather at Blast Off 2010, representing their houses and celebrating the beginning of their university careers. Andrew Meade / The Brunswickan

/PSHY` 7HPNL :TP[O 5L^Z ,KP[VY The University of New Brunswick campus was a blur of bright red and bustling activity this weekend as 600 new students were welcomed to campus. Orientation Week began on Friday when new students were dropped off to register, pick up their Orientation kits and begin their university careers. The theme of this Orientation Week is The 2010 Olympiads, a modern take on Greek culture and fraternity/sorority traditions. “We wanted a theme that was a little bit more mature than our most recent years. It’s something that everyone can kind of relate to, the whole Animal House (1978 movie), toga-type of deal,” Stephanie Lord, orientation chair for 2010, said. Orientation Week officially took off on Friday night with Blast Off, a massive event to help students get to know each other

and start the week off big. The first full day of Orientation Week has been traditionally reserved for Shine Day, a day of canvassing and fundraising for Shinerama. Shinerama is the largest post-secondary fundraiser in Canada and raises funds for cystic fibrosis research. Hurricane Earl brought inclement weather to Fredericton on Saturday, pushing Shine Day back to Sept. 11 for safety reasons. Though Shine Day organizers were disappointed the weather left a hole in the Orientation schedule, students made due. As Earl poured down on Saturday, hundreds of students slid down a makeshift slip and slide on the quad, popular music blasting loudly in the background. On Saturday night, first year students did Togopalooza, a Greek-themed dance party, as well as a games night. The first half of the week was filled with traditional residence events and ice breakers. Orientation Week is alcohol-free and

Lord said the events are meant to make people feel welcome. The orientation chair said students generally have high expectations of university life and partying, largely because of how university is portrayed in popular media. “It’s hard to meet those expectations, especially when liquor cannot be involved, but it was good. We had really good energy and we’re looking forward to the next set of events,” Lord said on Saturday afternoon in the midst of orientation fun. The corn boil on Monday for new UNB and St. Thomas University students drew a crowd in the hundreds, as well as several booths from local businesses and politicians. Matt Evans and Sean Bampton, two first year students from the residence community, came to sunny, Monday afternoon corn boil. “(Orientation) has been pretty fun, I’m not gonna lie. I’ve met a lot of nice

people,” Evans said. “Everyone is really nice and they keep us occupied all the time. You’re never bored here.” Bampton praised the orientation and residence teams for their warm welcome and help while moving in. “People helped us move in immediately. It was really good,” he said. The pair said university was a great time so far, but jokingly noted that classes have yet to begin. Rob Walton, a second year student on the Red Shirts orientation team, said he was enjoying welcoming new students to campus. He helped direct students on Friday evening. “We’re trying to be really energetic and make it seem like UNB is a really good place so that they’re more comfortable because it’s a strange environment,” he said. He said he was glad he chose to take on a leadership role in Orientation Week this

year. “I was actually talking to one of the parents and they thanked me,” he said, adding that parents told him that first years would have been “lost” without their help. Lord said there were Red Shirts stationed at every campus entrance on Friday to welcome new students to the community. “There is a Red Shirt at every entrance, pretty much harassing them with signs and shouting and screaming,” she said. “We are here to create a safe, social atmosphere for everyone to bond outside of their collective houses… It’s completely all-inclusive.” Orientation Week continues with an international student campus and library tour at 4:15 p.m. this afternoon and the Freddy Beach welcome barbecue tomorrow evening at Officer’s Square. The week wraps up with Shine Day on Saturday, followed by a kick off concert featuring Marianas Trench and The Zolas.

UNB Student Health reformed after student initiative (SL_ 2YLZZ 5L^Z 9LWVY[LY The UNB Student Health Clinic has made several changes over the summer in response to major problems with the registration system that came to a head last year. They replaced the old paper registration

system with an online registration and scheduling system that will make it easier to book an appointment. Clinic Manager Patricia Eagan says this change will make the clinic run more smoothly once the new system is in full force. Prior to the new system everything was done manually. “Now we’re able to take registration

and enter it into the system and it links you to your appointment that we’re booking for you. It will provide us with a wealth of information,” Eagan says. The clinic is now taking bookings over the phone, another major change that will eliminate lining up at 8:15 in the morning in hopes of securing an appointment that day, although students are still welcome to

walk in and make an appointment. In an effort to harmonize the new changes with the old system, the clinic is expanding its telephone hours so the students who are waiting have 15 minutes after the clinic opens to register before telephone lines open. Eagan stresses the importance of being very specific about the reason for the

appointment when calling in. This will be necessary for staff to plan the correct amount of time to book the appointment for. The clinic has also implemented booking into the next day to accommodate students who were unable

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