Student Life
February 19, 2014
[POST AT 9:30] Campus Living Changes Made for Financial Savings and Sustainability
Changes to residence halls, small group housing, campus housing and Residence Life staff are to come. Residence Life hopes to create stronger communities and more stable finances. Chad Coleman, director of residence life and intramurals, said, “We’re solving more problems. That’s the gist of this whole thing.” These changes will be implemented for the 2014-15 school year. Miller hall will be closed, but Yoder 1 and Kratz 4 will be opened. Subsequently, there will be one less Resident Assistant position. Four small group houses will be closed. Hospital, Vita, Valesco and Adelphian houses will all be closed to students next...
February 19, 2014
Campus living changes made for financial savings and sustainability
Changes to residence halls, small group housing, campus housing and Residence Life staff are to come. Residence Life hopes to create stronger communities and more stable finances. Chad Coleman, director of residence life and intramurals, said, “We’re solving more problems. That’s the gist of this whole thing.” These changes will be implemented for the 2014-15 school year. Miller hall will be closed, but Yoder 1 and Kratz 4 will be opened. Subsequently, there will be one less Resident Assistant position. Four small group houses will be closed. Hospital, Vita, Valesco, and Adelphian houses will all be closed to students next...
October 22, 2013
So many clubs, so little time
Nearly three weeks have passed since student clubs lined the Union hallway advertising another year of hobbies and activism. This year, Goshen College has a grand total of 36 clubs, and Chad Coleman, director of student life and intramurals, said there has been a definite rise in the number of student organizations. “I think the Student Senate has a lot to do with [the increase in clubs],” said Coleman. “They have been putting out there that they have funding and resources for clubs. They have been more proactive . . . in getting students interested.” Not only are there more...
September 18, 2013
Student group builds bridges on campus
A new campus group called Campus Connections aims to enhance relationships between students of all class years through a peer-to-peer mentoring program. The founders, Hans Weaver, who graduated in May, and David Zehr, a sophomore, hope this new initiative will encourage campus diversity. Jan Zawadski, a German international student who graduated in May, and his vision for a more integrated student body inspired the program. “We were getting this not from just one corner of campus,” Zehr said of conversations in Student Senate about a more socially diverse campus, “but from a lot of different groups, that there was a...
September 18, 2013
New RDs find their place
Katie Dwyer-Zeman and Neal A. Friesen are among the many new faces that appeared this fall in the Kratz, Miller and Yoder buildings. Both are new assistant directors of residence life and student activities. Friesen, a 2007 GC graduate, recently completed his master’s degree in theological studies from Wesley Theological Seminary before joining the staff. As a new residence assistant director to Yoder building, he brought three years of experience as a resident hall director at Hesston College in Kansas. The first few weeks have meant many introductions for Friesen. However, as a graduate himself, he is able to reminisce...
April 3, 2013
Club Week discusses “global issues, local solutions”
The first-ever United Club Week is opening up dialogue around the theme “global issues, local solutions." Each night this week, Monday through Saturday, different clubs are hosting events that focus on social justice issues within their expertise. A group of students that represent different clubs on campus came together at the end of January to begin to organize this collaborative event. “The events will be representative of the greater student body because how many diverse people are involved," said Becca Yoder, a senior organizer. The club leaders agreed that this week was about uniting the campus and finding the similarities...
March 20, 2013
Social Reform Club challenges student employment policy
The Social Reform Club (SRC) hosted an informational meeting and dialogue on Saturday afternoon to discuss issues concerning Goshen College's student employment manual. Or, SRC leaders say, the lack of an adequate one. The conversation about the policies within the student employment manual began in September 2012 when the SRC began to investigate a student's immediate termination from an on-campus job. Their question was simple. Was the termination carried out fairly? In a search for policies, they reported that they were unable to find the manual after looking online and asking several faculty members. The fired individual then brought up the...
November 15, 2012
Fact Book makes data as close as the click of mouse
For years, a collection of facts about Goshen College finances, enrollment and student life was tucked away in a filing cabinet in the Registrar’s office. Scott Barge, director of assessment and institutional research, believes that access to this data, and data in general, can create a stronger campus. Though the information was public, faculty and students wanting access to the files needed to sift through them--making fact-checking a tedious and laborious process. Barge hopes to change this. Barge, along with other faculty from the Institutional Research Office, has produced Goshen’s first online, interactive “Fact Book.” Barge started assembling the book...
September 27, 2012
Alcohol panel: Can consuming consume you?
Students may know Bill Born, the Vice President for Student Life, as someone whose job involves enforcing Goshen College's "no alcohol" policy. But during this Monday morning's convocation, students saw him on the front of a beer bottle. Born said the can was picked up by a security guard last year who declared it one of the night's “best finds.” The words emblazoned on the can,“Culture for service; Beer for pleasure,” would become the title of a panel discussion held during the convocation about drinking and recreational drug use at Goshen College. The panel consisted of four representative members of...
April 11, 2012
Student Senate members elected for 2012-2013
Every year Goshen College elects new Senate cabinet members to lead the student body. The overall job of Student Senate members is to oversee student clubs and club budgets and be a voice for the student body to the administration. This year, Student Senate received seven applications for the three open cabinet member positions. According to Shirley Shriner, “This is the largest number of applicants we have seen in several years.” From those seven applicants, the student body will elect three new cabinet members. In total there will be four people working as Senate members next year. The fourth one,...
February 2, 2012
Student mothers balance studies, kids
Every night while her peers are studying or hanging out in the Connector, Sayira Caldwell stays in her dorm room and chats with her son on Skype before heading to bed. “When we Skype, he cries because he wants to see me in person,” said Caldwell, a sophomore nursing major. “I wish I could be with him. It’s not the same.” As a full-time student, Caldwell lives in Yoder dormitory during the week. Her one-year-old son Brandon, meanwhile, lives with her parents in Indianapolis. Every other weekend Caldwell makes the three hour drive home to be with him. She would...
September 28, 2011
Student Life discontinues ‘Geek card’
Goshen College students will be Geeks no more, as Student Life seeks alternatives to the “Geek card.” Geek cards, which previously served as a $35 pass into events hosted by the Campus Activity Council throughout the school year, will not be issued this year. Bill Born, the vice president of Student Life and dean of students, is calling on the Student Senate to consider alternatives to the Geek program. It’s time to consider “what a new direction might be,” Born said. Michele Fanfair Steury, who resigned as director of student activities during the summer, introduced the Geek cards more than...
April 7, 2011
Pope and Steen’s hour after to be packed with student talent
Looking for something to do this weekend? Look no further than Newcomer 19, where beats will be dropping and the party will be hopping as Jeremy Pope and Carl Steen, both seniors, host their “Party Hardy” hour-after. It’s called “Party Hardy” for a reason: they will be expecting a lot of dancing from their audience. “It’s all going to be uptempo,” says Pope. “It’s just going to be fun. Too fun.” “This hour after features some R&B tunes, takes us back to the 90’s, and includes some current tracks,” said Angelica Lehman, a junior. Lehman will be providing vocals on...
February 17, 2011
“Happy Hour” with Bill Born
About 40 students crammed into Java Junction for a question and answer time sponsored by Student Senate last Friday, Feb. 11 at 4 p.m. Bill Born, Vice President of Student Life, invited students to ask any questions regarding administration or campus life issues. Resident Directors Chad Coleman, Heather Goertzen and Jake Shipe were also present to respond. Several issues addressed by students were violations (on and off campus), library hours, campus security, commuter student involvement, the role of the police on campus, the RFC pool and the closing of three small group houses. One significant topic was campus security and...
September 30, 2010
Fall kickoff ‘out of this world’
Hundreds of eager Goshen College students packed themselves into Sauder Concert Hall Friday evening for the Fall 2010 Kick-off. This year’s theme was “Goshen Goes to the Moon,” which was quickly apparent in Campus Activities Council’s opening “Space Jam” routine. Traditionally, CAC has instigated a theme for each Kickoff and hosted the show in addition to their year-round duties planning campus events and hosting hour-afters. Friday evening's talent show displayed a variety of student talents including a whirlwind of 80's dance hits, a vampire love story, vuvuzelas and an epic cello solo. The winning act of the evening was a...