Meadows Brown Bag Preview
INSIDE
Outdoor adventure thrills
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Diversity on campus
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Women’s soccer seasons starts
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MONDAY
SEPTEMBER 24, 2012 MONDAY High 97, Low 72 TUESDAY High 95, Low 72
VOLUME 98 ISSUE 18 FIRST COPY FREE, ADDITIONAL COPIES 50 CENTS
ACADEMICS
SIDNEY HOLLINGSWORTH/The Daily Campus
SMU has risen four points in the U.S. News and World Report’s Rankings.
SMU’s academic ranking rises Courtesy of Hillsman Jackson
Meadows School of the Arts Dean Jose Bowen and Dedman College student Julian Spearman jamming on keyboards at the close of TEDxSMU Hilltop.
TEDx spreads ideas on Hilltop JAN ANDERSON Staff Writer jnanderson@smu.edu More than 200 people gathered in the Bob Hope Theatre Friday to listen to 21 SMU students, faculty and alumni relate “ideas worth sharing” at TEDxSMU Hilltop. Ideas at the event ranged from a very colorful form of music notation and high performance dress shirts to why everyone should learn to be comfortable with being uncomfortable to the importance of coding. Even though TEDxSMU has been in existence for about four years, this was first time the TEDxSMU conference has happened on the SMU campus. At the fourth annual TEDxSMU event in the Dallas Arts District this past December, SMU community members had to pay for tickets. This TEDxSMU conference was free to SMU students, faculty and staff. “The driving force behind
bringing a free TEDxSMU conference back to campus were the deans of the Lyle School and Meadows. We understand that a ticket price of $150 for our full-day conference can be unreasonable for a student so [we] worked to offer events that are lower in costs or free,” Heather Hankamer, TEDxSMU director of operations, said. TED is a nonprofit organization that is dedicated to “Ideas Worth Spreading.” TEDx, a part of TED, according to the TEDxSMU website, “offers individuals or groups a way to host local, self-organized events around the world.” “[TEDx is a] place with great ideas,” sophomore Kelly Kiser said. “We all need more of those.” SMU seniors Greg Walters and Mesa Thomas both said they had not been able to attend TEDxSMU events in the past. Walters enjoyed senior Chrisian Genco’s talk on why everyone should learn program systems. “He is really engaging, really good at bringing technical concepts
to a practical and universal level,” Walters said. Thomas liked what Christopher Bhatti, SMU director of external and alumni relations had to say about the benefit of being uncomfortable. “I liked him because he was talking about education and being uncomfortable. Many times we are always set on a plan but sometimes opportunities arrive that can change your life,” Thomas said. A friend invited senior Corinne Matthews to TEDx. Although she had heard of TEDx before she wasn’t very familiar with the concept. But once there, Matthews didn’t regret it. “I liked the opera one and I liked the general atmosphere and learning so much new about different subjects,” she said. Hankamer said her favorite moment from TEDxSMU Hilltop were the conversations that happened outside of the theater. “During the break the discussions were lively. Great ideas and passions were presented inside
the theater and it’s fun to hear the discussions they spark outside the theater,” she said. During the four-hour conference, the 2012 to 2013 TEDxSMU Young Fellows were announced. The program offers 14 selected students the chance to attend TEDxKids @SMU and TEDxSMU for free. Recipients of the fellowships came from Lyle, Meadows, Dedman Law, CaldwellSimmons, Cox School of Business, Perkins and Dedman College. In exchange for free admission, student attendees are required to complete a service project. Students who have attended TEDxKids @SMU have contributed more than 2,000 service hours to the community. The main TEDxSMU conference in December is an all-day event for pre-registered participants. The program ranges from personal discussions of physical and mental journeys to demonstrations of high-tech gadgetry to real-life lessons from entrepreneurs.
RENOVATION
KATYA DEAHL Contributing Writer kdeahl@smu.edu U.S. News and World Report’s Rankings of Best Colleges released its latest ranking of the nation’s top universities on Sept. 12. Southern Methodist University has moved four spots higher on the list. Out of 280 institutions on the list, SMU is now ranked No. 58. “It’s obviously good news that SMU continues to move up in these rankings, because prospective students and their parents do pay attention to them. As the father of a college-bound high school senior, I can attest to that,” journalism professor Mark Vamos said. Only two other Texas schools ranked higher than SMU — Rice University and the University of Texas at Austin. However, SMU is ranked higher than its biggest rival Texas Christian University, which is No. 92. “Honestly, I am not surprised SMU moved up in rank from last year. It is raising its standards for acceptances
and, in turn, raising its standards in the classroom,” junior Chelsea Harrison said. “It truly is producing more knowledgeable students.” U.S. News and World Report considered various factors for determining the rankings including peer assessment scores, high school counselors’ ratings, graduation and retention rates, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources and alumni support. But Vamos cautions that rankings don’t indicate everything about the quality of a university. “It is, and should be, only a small factor in the college selection process,” he said. Location, campus life, extracurricular activities, sports, range of available academic classes, cost and availability of financial aid should also be considered. “A ranking can aggregate all the information it collects to give prospective students an idea of how a college compares to other colleges and can hint to choosing the right university when combined with a campus visit,” junior John Liedtke said. U.S. News relies on two pillars for its ranking system.
See METHOD page 3
SERVICE
‘New’ Varsity fails to impress Varsity renovations not complete, Hughes-Trigg director says ERICA PENUNURI Contributing Writer epenunuri@smu.edu The freshmen may not see it, but practically every other SMU student does. What had been a vintage pub-style space lined with old dark wood, welcoming booths, a hum of conversations and warmth is now a vast room with scattered seating and harsh lighting. There it is, the former hotspot, sitting in all of its fluorescent, humdrum glory. “I used to come here all the time,” senior Brandon Frier said. “But now it just looks like a high school cafeteria.” This is the Varsity center. The old student haven is now in a state of transition. Students and administrators are disappointed in its current condition. “The thing I’m most disappointed about is that we wanted it done before the school year began,” Richard Owens, director of Hughes-Trigg Student Center, said. These days many students aren’t even aware of the renovation plan. They stroll into the Varsity
SIDNEY HOLLINGSWORTH/The Daily Campus
SMU’s Mustang Heroes second annual “Sleep in a Box” event promoted poverty awareness Saturday night.
Students sleep in boxes for charity SIDNEY HOLLINGSWORTH/The Daily Campus
The renovations for the Varsity should be completed Spring 2013.
center with books tucked under their arms, a crumpled Chick-fil-A bag in hand and a slippery cup of iced coke in the other. They only need to take their eyes off their balancing act for one moment to stop in their tracks. “When I heard ‘remodel’ I thought it would be better than Café 101,” SMU senior Mary Jordan Higgins said as she looked up from her lunch and glazed over the new Varsity center. “They definitely downgraded it,
not upgraded,” she continued and let out an exasperated laugh. “This is just awful.” It isn’t aesthetically pleasing now, but the final operation will be an upgrade according to Owens. “Heck, I walk in there and say this is so boring and bland,” Owens said. “But it’s easy for me to move past that because I know what is coming.” So, there’s the big question:
See FUTURE page 3
KATELYN GOUGH News Editor kgough@smu.edu The quad in front of McElvaney Hall was littered with boxes. Pizza boxes slightly bigger than the ones from Mac’s Place and industrial sized cardboard boxes covered the lawn. SMU’s Mustang Heroes hosted its second annual “Sleep in a Box” event to promote poverty awareness Saturday night. “I think it’s a great [way] to just promote awareness in a fun,
creative way,” freshman Sam Perry said. “It’s just a great way to get to know each other and share the same values about homelessness.” Mustang Heroes was created just three years ago. The studentrun organization already has over a hundred members and plans to raise $5000 for local organizations. President Carissa Grisham said that she hoped that the event broke some stereotypes students have about the homeless and motivated them to get involved “Everyone who comes out has a great time,” Grisham said.
Mustang Heroes partnered with Vogel Alcove, a local organization that works with homeless children. President and CEO Karen Hughes believes that raising awareness is the first step to getting people engaged in the community. “I think it’s good for this generation to understand that so much of what is good in this world comes from philanthropy,” Hughes said. “Most people don’t think of children when they think of
See DIFFERENCE page 3