Experience of a Lifetime

Entering its third year, the Community Relations Facilitator (CRF) program continues to promote inclusive and welcoming communities in the residence halls, cooperative houses, and dining facilities through facilitated workshops and programs.  As a function of University Housing and Dining Services (UHDS) the CRFs work within the residence halls and cooperative houses leading discussions and activities around issues of diversity and social justice. Read the rest of this entry »

There are many ways for one to identify in terms of sexuality such as straight, gay, lesbian, asexual, and so on. One word though, has many uses, like a Swiss army knife of sexuality, and that word is Queer. The word Queer allows someone to create their own context around sexuality. It gives people a tool to expand on constricting social scripts, and its flexibility can give a sense of comfort to know sexuality does not have to be static. I identify as Queer, and I still prefer women as my sexual partners. This change of identity happened over the summer. Read the rest of this entry »

You never know what you get yourself into until you fully emerge yourself into it. Hi everyone, my name is Melissa Rico and I am the Community Relations Facilitator for the Westside.  I am ending my fourth week on the job and already I have so much to say, think about, learn, and most importantly, DO! Read the rest of this entry »

Last year at OSU I went through some amazing changes/realizations in my position as a Community Relations Facilitator. It took me over two terms of intense self reflection and training to finally grasp the concepts behind these things called social justice and diversity. I thought I would never again see myself disrespect or oppress another identity through my words and actions. I believe it was my young, cocky attitude that came out when I believed that I only needed a year worth of learning to really know everything I needed to know. The realization of how wrong I was hit me during this summer as I returned back to my hometown and started hanging out with the friends I hadn’t seen on a regular basis for a year. Read the rest of this entry »

Welcome to OSU and UHDS!    As UHDS’ Registered Dietitian, I would like to share that we are deeply committed to creating environments that encourage wellness.  In an effort to promote physical wellness, our goal in dining services is to make the healthy choice, the easy choice. Read the rest of this entry »

Monday, April 19^th

• Social Justice and Human Experimentation @ 5-6 in MU 208
• Day in the life of a gender queer @ 3:30 in Pride Center (PC)

Tuesday, April 20^th

• Radio Movimiento @ 5 in MU 213
• Showing of Glee @ 9pm in PC

Wednesday, April 21^st

• Chipotle Workshop @ 5-6:30 in CCCC
• Volunteer Meeting @ 2-3 in PC
• Queer Sex 101 @ 4 in PC

Thursday, April 22^nd

• MANNRS Earth Day @ CCCC
• HIV Testing @ 10-2 in PC
• Bites with Beth @ 11:30-1 in PC

Friday, April 23^rd

• The Voices Project: Being Black @ 12-1 in Batcheller

Working as an Activities Coordinator for the Residence Hall Association (RHA) here at OSU is a blast.  My seven fellow officers and I get many cool opportunities, from working with student leaders in many other organizations, to putting on large programs such as Casino Night or the Winter Formal.  When I think of the work that I have been part of this year in building community, in defining why we are “residence halls” and not “dorms,” I get very passionate and excited.

When I was asked to blog about my experience with RHA, as a program planner, I thought I would take the opportunity to convey my feelings about planning this year’s RHA/After Dark Casino Night program.  When I first started to imagine what I wanted Casino Night to look like this year, I started thinking BIG.  Earlier in the year, I had been baffled by the large attendance to our RHA/Hall Council Winter Formal program (almost 750 attendees).  I wanted to go bigger.  My aim for Casino Night is 1,000 attendees, bigger than any previous RHA program I was aware of.

In order to put on a large program like this, I knew I needed a lot of volunteers and programming resources.  Because of RHA’s great partnerships, I was able to get OSU After-Dark on board, which consists of Dixon Rec, Late Night, and the Student Events and Activities Council.  Together we delegated the MANY tasks and responsibilities between our organizations.  Responsibilities include securing resources for food, movies, bingo, Wii, casino games, prizes, check in booth, raffle, karaoke, lining up live performances by Outspoken, Divine, and a Hypnotist, getting our 80 volunteers, ordering t-shirts, Pepsi donations, decorations, the wedding chapel, and renting tables and chairs, not to mention all the tiny details I could take a whole paragraph to list.

A lot of work went into this program and it is a phenomenal experience to get to bring it all together, but it can be pretty nerve-wracking having to trust so many people to the quality execution of their duties.  Keeping up with all the assignments and making sure everyone knew what they needed to know had me feeling like a chicken with my head cut off, especially since much planning was happening during reading week, finals and spring break.  I had to push myself to stay on top of everything and to trust my fellow planners and volunteers.  Writing this piece over spring break leaves me wondering how the program will turn out and what all of my and so many other’s work will amount to.  In the end, my philosophy on programs is that it doesn’t matter how many people attend, as long as they get something out of it.

So come out to Casino Night this Friday, April 2 from 9pm-1am at Dixon Rec Center for this epic RHA event!

Cheers!

Nik Bowen

OSU RHA Activities Coordinator

www.oregonstate.edu/dept/rha

Over the last month at the Wellness RoundTable Series in UHDS dining centers we have been talking about “energy balance” and choosing foods that are “nutrient dense”.

What does all of this mean?

Energy balance means balancing the calories you take in with the calories you burn.  In general, a moderately active male (age 18-25) needs about 2800 calories to maintain balance, and a moderately active female (age 19-25) needs 2200 calories.   Surprisingly, calories can add up quickly and although the lore of the “Freshman Fifteen” is more myth than fact, on average, college freshman gain 4 pounds during the first year due to “energy imbalance”….calories taken in are MORE than calories burned.

For some, this may be the first time you are completely responsible for your own meal planning and you may struggle navigating towards choices that meet your needs.  To help you to make balanced choices, UHDS has online menus available with nutrition information, ingredient and allergy information.  Additionally, calorie information is posted on Calabaloos menu boards and all soup labels in the dining centers.

UHDS dining centers have a myriad of “nutrient dense” options; that is, options that pack a lot of nutrition with fewer calories such as fruits and vegetables available on salad bars, fruit carts and grab and go areas.  There are many lean protein and dairy options such as grilled chicken, lean turkey, beans, and lowfat milk, cheeses and soy based products as well as whole grain options such as oatmeal, brown rice, quinoa, whole wheat bread and rolls available in all dining centers.

Additionally, the dining centers have options that are “energy dense”; they pack a lot of calories and they may be “empty calories” such as sugary soda, candy bars and chips.  While these are often perceived as unhealthy options, it is about balance and these options should be considered a “sometimes choice” rather than a daily choice.

Curious about your energy needs and ways to make your diet more “nutrient dense”? Find out more at MyPyramid.gov website.

We will be resuming the Wellness Rountable Series in the Dining Centers on April 13^th!  We look forward to seeing you there!  Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any comments, questions or concerns regarding nutrition and wellness in our dining centers.

Best of luck on finals and have a wonderful and relaxing Spring Break.

Be Well,

Tara Sanders

Registered Dietitian

Oregon State University

University Housing and Dining

Office: 541-737-3915

Cell: 541-602-9736

So, last Wednesday UHDS hosted Soul Food Café at McNary Dining for the 3^rd year in a row.  Soul Food Café is one of several “Journeys through Culture and Cuisine” that UHDS has hosted over the last few years and last week’s event was designed to celebrate Black History month.  Each of these cultural events is an outgrowth of our Diversity Initiative which is a multi-faceted approach to creating communities that are open, caring and supportive of students from all cultures.  As a department, our Diversity Initiative is aspirational.  We know we have more work to do to creative inclusive environments, but we are dedicated and committed to the journey and we ask the rest of the campus community to join us and support us as we travel on our journey.

Working with our campus partners brings great energy to these events and I appreciate everyone’s involvement.  The Tye Curtis blues band also brought energy to last week’s event and they rocked the house.

The menu created by our culinary team was also truly exceptional and coming up real soon will be available daily at Cooper’s Creek BBQ which will open next month at Marketplace West.

Rich Turnbull

Just another person loving the Cooper's Creek ribs.

I had a pretty busy week this time. I had two midterms already, one from chemistry and the other one from Math. I feel like I did well on those midterms, hopefully. You know sometimes we feel like we did 100% well on the exams, and at the end we get lower compared to what we expected. Like I said, I had a pretty busy weekend but it was good because I can say that really did something and not just being bored doing anything.

I want to talk about my experience at the Soul Food Café. My experience can be described in only one word, and that is amazing.  I went to the Soul food Café event after my CAMP class which ended at 6:00 pm. When I got out from the class, I was rushing to get the McNary dining. I was really tired and hungry that day, and I just wanted to get there to grab some food to eat. When I got there I was really surprised. As I was getting inside McNary I got the sense that that environment was so moving. I wanted to walk all around and see what was going on. I heard good music going on, people were walking around, and other people were eating, laughing and having a good time.  As I was getting in, I realized that a jazz band was playing live, and that got even more excited. I got really keyed up when I heard the keyboard solo as the band was playing. You know I love to play the piano, and seeing someone who plays the keyboard made feel really energized. That was one of my favorite parts of such event. Also, the food was great, and I loved those pieces of the meat, and the fried bananas. Many people were walking around McNary, and the environment was perfect as for someone who just wanted to have a good time, and forget about the stress from our classes, midterms, and just to have a good time, and get relaxed.

Roberto