2008 Woodie Awards
A Tent Full Of Ideas
Groups Come Together To Improve Campus
Lindsay Larsen
Issue date: 4/11/08 Section: News
This weekend, rather than camping out for tickets, students will be camping out for ideas. In the interest of encouraging ideological dialogue, students wll form a large camp site, or "tent city," on Route 195, across from East, starting Friday and going through Saturday, April 19.
The tent city was organized by many different groups on campus, including Idealists United, EcoHusky, USG, and other organizations, said 3rd-semester communication and political science major Jason Ortiz, an organizer of the tent city.
The purpose of tent city is "to visibly gather all the students on campus who want to work towards substantial improvements in our university culture," Ortiz said.
Ortiz hopes that the tent city will create a dialogue about planning events and discussing ideas, as well as form new friendships.
The idea for the tent city came after "a frustrating funding board session with USG. We started talking about the institutional inertia on this campus and how it was so difficult to run events which can create a progressive dialogue on campus," said Alissa Becker, an organizer and 8th-semester resources economics major.
Students decided to form a group and discuss what could be done.
The students decided to create a tent city, where students could camp for as long as they wanted, and spend time together, said organizer Amanda Stauble, an Idealists United member and a 7th-semester political science major and human rights minor. The event is substance-free, and open to everyone, including faculty and staff, according to Stauble. The students will also have a tent set up with informational brochures about different groups involved in the tent city.
"I am really excited for tent city because it such an organic, grassroots, event that was organized in just a few weeks by a room full of like-minded strangers," Staubele said. "As an Idealists United member I have been hoping to build coalitions on campus between groups. Rather than competing for the same resources for similar events, it makes sense to team up," said Amanda.
The event is being held on the same week as other programs such as Idealists United Human Rights Awareness Week, and PRIDE week.
"I hope that tent city will bring together a lot of student groups who have similar missions so we can start working together instead of competing for resources. I hope that this event serves as a catalyst for more progressive events, forums and overall attitude at the university," said Alissa.
Amanda hopes it will get students involved in the UConn community and important issues.
"Whether it's human rights, the environment, sports, equality, or the color red-it doesn't matter what it is, as long as you care about something," she said.
The tent city organizers invite anyone to come by, even if they do not stay overnight. Tents are available for rent at the UConn Adventure Center in the Student Union.
Contact Lindsay Larsen at Linsday.Larson@UConn.edu.
The tent city was organized by many different groups on campus, including Idealists United, EcoHusky, USG, and other organizations, said 3rd-semester communication and political science major Jason Ortiz, an organizer of the tent city.
The purpose of tent city is "to visibly gather all the students on campus who want to work towards substantial improvements in our university culture," Ortiz said.
Ortiz hopes that the tent city will create a dialogue about planning events and discussing ideas, as well as form new friendships.
The idea for the tent city came after "a frustrating funding board session with USG. We started talking about the institutional inertia on this campus and how it was so difficult to run events which can create a progressive dialogue on campus," said Alissa Becker, an organizer and 8th-semester resources economics major.
Students decided to form a group and discuss what could be done.
The students decided to create a tent city, where students could camp for as long as they wanted, and spend time together, said organizer Amanda Stauble, an Idealists United member and a 7th-semester political science major and human rights minor. The event is substance-free, and open to everyone, including faculty and staff, according to Stauble. The students will also have a tent set up with informational brochures about different groups involved in the tent city.
"I am really excited for tent city because it such an organic, grassroots, event that was organized in just a few weeks by a room full of like-minded strangers," Staubele said. "As an Idealists United member I have been hoping to build coalitions on campus between groups. Rather than competing for the same resources for similar events, it makes sense to team up," said Amanda.
The event is being held on the same week as other programs such as Idealists United Human Rights Awareness Week, and PRIDE week.
"I hope that tent city will bring together a lot of student groups who have similar missions so we can start working together instead of competing for resources. I hope that this event serves as a catalyst for more progressive events, forums and overall attitude at the university," said Alissa.
Amanda hopes it will get students involved in the UConn community and important issues.
"Whether it's human rights, the environment, sports, equality, or the color red-it doesn't matter what it is, as long as you care about something," she said.
The tent city organizers invite anyone to come by, even if they do not stay overnight. Tents are available for rent at the UConn Adventure Center in the Student Union.
Contact Lindsay Larsen at Linsday.Larson@UConn.edu.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 3
IC
posted 4/11/08 @ 12:55 PM EST
Hey idealists!! I have some wonderful, innovative ideas that would ensure a much more peaceful and harmonious society right here at home:
- Close the borders
-Deport the hordes of illegal aliens
-Treat criminals as criminals, to include much more widespread use of the Death Penalty
-Cleave the size and scope of the federal government and all state governments in half
-Withdraw from the United Nations and kick their headquarters off of our soil
-Build our military up, have a draft, and decimate the middle east
-Privatize social security; greatly reduce the Medicaid and Medicare rolls
-Make recipients of welfare work for their checks
-Eliminate the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development and the federal Department of Education
-Hold a constitutional convention and add an amendment to the Constitution that would prohibit the United States from ever falling under the auspices of any so-called international law and would further prohibit any international tax from ev
IC
posted 4/11/08 @ 4:30 PM EST
Kaitlyn: Why, thank you...I'll bring the bagels and you can bring the cream cheese!
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