’14 CHaSS Week focuses on college’s pride, feedback
Student feedback and pride are the main focuses of this year’s College of Humanities and Social Sciences Week, held March 29 through April 4.
Matthew Anderson, CHaSS senator, said the week got a kick-off a little early with Poetry and a Beverage on Saturday night.
“We teamed up with the student association (USU/SA) to do that,” Anderson said.
The annual Quiz Bowl was held Monday in the TSC lounges. Anderson said the bowl has put all of USU’s colleges up against each other in a tournament of wits for the past 10 years.
“It really has a good turn-out every year,” he said.
Anderson said his goal for this year’s CHaSS Week is for the students to gain pride in their college.
“I want students in our college to know that they’re important,” he said. “We should be a visible part of campus, and we have a lot to contribute to the university and to society as a whole.”
Several of the events scheduled reflect this goal.
A new event held today in the TSC lounges will help students understand what can be done with a degree earned from the college of CHaSS, Anderson said.
“We will have individuals talk about what you can do with your degree,” he said. “We will have career services there and the advising office, just to kind of show individuals in our college and out of our college what you can do with a CHaSS degree.”
Anderson said the college will be conducting a survey for students in Old Main, the agricultural sciences building and the Ray B. West Building from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Thursday.
“We are building a new CHaSS building and want to get their opinion on that, as well as just on their educational experience in general and how it could be improved,” he said.
Natalie Smoot, assistant to the CHaSS dean, said the theme of what to do with a CHaSS degree will continue Friday with guest speaker Todd Jorgenson speaking at 11:30 a.m. at the Alumni Center.
Anderson said Jorgenson, a periodontist with the dental team for the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, was selected because of his unique career path.
“It’s a good opportunity for students to see that you can be really successful,” he said. “He will talk about how his degree has helped him in his field, even though you wouldn’t think it would.”
Kaela Baucom, the arts and lectures director on the Student Traditions, Activities and Arts Board, said Slam Poet Night, featuring Joshua Bennett, will be held Friday at 7 p.m. through the combined effort of the CHaSS Council and USU/SA.
“Joshua Bennett is a famous slam poet,” she said. “He’s performed at the White House and has done a lot of other various work.”
Baucom said the activity is a resurrection of the former Beat Poet Night, which was started by students about five years ago.
“They wanted to do an event that encompassed poetry more because Poetry and a Beverage is drawn more towards the music side nowadays,” she said. “Eventually it kind of just fell apart, and I decided to pick it back up again.”
The week will wrap up Friday night with a showing of “Anchorman 2,” Anderson said.
“That’s why we have the theme, ‘Stay CHaSSy, USU,'” he said.
– ashlyn.tucker@aggiemail.usu.edu