UHDS News

[Campus Living, Nov. 18, 2011] — Fall is not even over yet, but you may already be thinking about your plans for next year.  Does being a Resident Assistant (RA) fit into your plans?

If you are interested in getting to know others, helping support students in their transition and connection to college, and being a resource and mentor in the residence halls, then the answer may be “yes.”

Being an RA is a great way to get leadership experience, build your resume, and gain skills desirable to employers after college – including diversity, leadership, teamwork and more.  To learn more about the process and to get your questions answered, attend any of the following information sessions:

• 8 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 29, International Living-Learning Center, Auditorium 155
• 6 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30, Azalea House
• 7 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30 Callahan Hall Lounge

• 7 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 10, Memorial Union Journey Room

Applications are available starting Monday, Nov. 28 and close at 11:59 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 16.  More information and the application can be found by visiting www.oregonstate.edu/uhds/whyira.

Jill Childress, Resident Director, Weatherford Residential College

[Campus Living, Nov. 18, 2011] — Staying on campus over the Thanksgiving holiday?

Dining Services will host a festive menu of roast turkey, roast top round, mashed potatoes, turkey gravy and beef gravy, sage stuffing, baked yams, green bean casserole, Lyonnais carrots, tofu-stuffed acorn squash, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 24, at Global Fare in Arnold Dining Center.

Arnold Dining Center will be the only dining center open from Thursday, Nov. 24, to Saturday, Nov. 26, with hours of operation from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. All dining centers will reopen with normal hours on Sunday, Nov. 27.

[Life@OSU, Nov. 10, 2011] — Healthy meal choices are increasing on campus, and for one Oregon State student, it’s providing her an opportunity to practice skills that will help her land a job when she graduates in December.

Elisabeth Miller has had a busy fall term. She is about to graduate with a degree in Nutrition Food Management and is getting married this Friday. In the mean time, she’s been in charge of designing the menu for Pangea’s new all-you-can-eat vegetarian dishes on Meatless Mondays.

Each Monday, customers who chose the all-you-can-eat option get an entrée with three vegetarian items, and can request more of any or all three for free. And it’s not just a plateful of carrots. Miller said she’s carefully planned each offering to be tasty, nutritious and a bit adventurous.

“I try to include things that are familiar but with a unique twist,” Miller said. “I try to think about things that go well together, so they don’t feel like they’re just eating a plate of vegetables.”

Read more of “Healthy choices increasing in MU dining centers.”

[Corvallis Gazette-Times, Nov. 11, 2011] — Officials announced Thursday that nearly 25,000 students enrolled at Oregon State University this fall, a record total that includes a significant number of transfer and out-of-state students.

Overall, OSU’s student population is 24,977, up 5.1 percent from last fall. It’s the second-largest percentage increase of students within the seven-institution Oregon University System.

The numbers are based on an annual count of students during the fourth week of the term.

Among this year’s students, 1,804 are transfer students and 1,519 students hail from outside of Oregon.

A shaky economy explains the increase in both demographics. More people are likely to attend a community college and eventually a four-year university when unemployment is high, and budget woes in California and Washington have sent public university tuition in those states skyrocketing. That made Oregon’s public universities look appealing and provided OSU with its two biggest sources of out-of-state students.

[Corvallis Gazette-Times, Nov. 9, 2011] — Since returning from a trip to Europe in September, Oregon State University senior Jillian Grant has tried and failed to find food that tastes like the cuisine she sampled in Greece.

“The food was so good, but nothing else has compared,” she said.

Then Grant stopped by Taste of the Mediterranean, a University Housing and Dining-sponsored culinary event held Wednesday evening at Marketplace West Dining Center.

She filled plates with humus, baba ganoush – a baked eggplant dish – and grape leaf-wrapped dolmas, and changed her tune about American-prepared Greek fare: the food, she said, was “amazing.”

The event is one of two annual University Housing and Dining culinary events in the “Journey Through Culture and Cuisine” series. Organizers expected about 800 attendees – OSU students and employees, along with people not associated with the university.

Rich Turnbull, associate director for University Housing and Dining, said the university’s culinary team had prepared for Wednesday’s event for the last six months by researching the region’s traditional ingredients and techniques.

“It was almost like going through a history of the spice trade,” Turnbull said. “We’re really trying to be as close to authentic as possible.”

[Campus Living, Nov. 4, 2011] — All UHDS residence halls and cooperative houses remain open during the Thanksgiving break; however, during winter break and spring break only Bloss, Buxton, Cauthorn, Finley, Halsell, Hawley, International Living-Learning Center, Poling, Sackett, and West will be open.

Residents who are unable to leave campus during break periods are encouraged to live in one of these halls.

Residents assigned to open halls may remain in their rooms during break weeks, but will be assessed at a weekly rate of $124.25. If you are an INTO-OSU student, this charge is already included in your housing rate.

The deadline to sign up for winter break housing is at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 7.

Residents of all other facilities, and those who do not sign up for break housing, should plan on departing for winter and spring breaks (Dec. 11-Jan 7) and (March 25-31).

The break rates start on the Saturday after classes end at 11:59 p.m. and continue until the Saturday before classes resume at 8 a.m. Students who do not want to pay for break housing must vacate before – and return after –  this time period to avoid fees. Residents that stay past 11:59 p.m. on the Saturday after finals end will be charged for one week of break housing.

Room checks coming soon: In addition, UHDS will be doing health and safety checks of every room at the end of Fall and Winter terms.  If you want to be present schedule some time with their Resident Director or Resident Advisor.

Otherwise, staff will briefly enter your room, over the break to make sure that there aren’t any safety issues – such as waste in the trash, windows left open, or appliances plugged in (curling irons, extension cords, etc).

Brian Stroup and Kathryn Magura, UHDS Operations and Facilities

[Campus Living, Nov. 4, 2011] — It’s that Time of Year:  RA Search!

Fall is not even over yet, but you may already be thinking about your plans for next year.  Does being a Resident Assistant (RA) fit into your plans?

If you are interested in getting to know others, helping support students in their transition and connection to college, and being a resource and mentor in the residence halls, then the answer may be “yes.”

Being an RA is a great way to get leadership experience, build your resume, and gain skills desirable to employers after college – including diversity, leadership, teamwork and more.  To learn more about the process and to get your questions answered, attend any of the following information sessions:

• 7 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 17, Marketplace West Conference Room
• 7 to 8 p.m. Monday, Nov. 21, Memorial Union Journey Room
• 7 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 29, International Living-Learning Center, Auditorium 155
• 6 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30, Azalea House
• 7 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30 Callahan Hall Lounge

Applications are available starting Monday, Nov. 28 and close at 11:59 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 16.  More information and the application can be found by visiting www.oregonstate.edu/uhds/whyira.

Jill Childress, Resident Director, Weatherford Residential College