The 2010 Bullfest tradtition started on Monday and for those who have not participated in any events, you still have time.  Little Duval was on campus yesterday and unfortunately I was unable to make the comedy show, but I heard he was funny as "shut yo mouth"...lol!  For those who have not been able to partake in any of the traditional Bullfest festivities there is still the most anticipated events left; the gym party on friday, and the lawn carnival on saturday.  

These are the two events that I look most forward to because you get to let loose, while interacting and parting with your friends.  Bullfest is tradition here at Smith.  It's an end of the semester event that gives students time to unwind and not stress so much about their finals.  Bullfest is not just for Smith students, but for the community as well.  Since Smith is big on interacting with the community, Bullfest is an exceptional way to get people involved, while allowing the university to shed some love. 

Posted By: Chelsie Revis, Senior

I'm a graduating senior and I'm involved with many student organizations. It is so important to be involved on campus that some jobs may not hire you if there are none on your resume. Extracurricular activities are important to your education, because they help you apply what you've learned in the classroom, the abstract theories, and the philosophies; to a real-world example.

The other thing that's really important about being involved in extracurricular activities is, after you graduate, you've gained a lot of practical experience on the job.  Experience with other people, interacting and creating programs and budgets, and promoting your ideas. It is important to consider that there are a lot of people who graduate from college every year. Many of them will have majored in the same thing you did. They may have gotten the same grades that you did, so what are you going to do to make yourself stand out?

It is the extracurricular involvements that you have that will be the added value on your resume that will make you stand out and hopefully get you the job. Being involved expresses that you have an outgoing personality, you are a team player, and that you have the potential of being a leader. Whether you're on a sports team, in a dance troupe, or a representative in your student government, any college activity you pursue will offer you a lot to learn.

By pursuing college activities outside of your curriculum, you will learn a lot about the activity itself, and more importantly, a lot about yourself. Being able to interact with other people outside the classroom setting is a very important quality that one should have. Once you graduate from college, you will need to work with other people to some extent regardless of what you end up doing, and all of that work will take place outside of the classroom.

Posted By: Chelsie Revis, Senior

Bull Fest has always been a time of fun and relaxation for the student body before the end of the school year approaches. Every year it gets better and better with the various activities spread throughout that week. Bull Fest gives the chance for the student body to interact with one another for maybe the last time until they return home for summer vacation. Also, it is the last chance for the seniors to experience their campus as students until their journey into the alumni category.

So I say to everyone who can, "get out and have a good time." When you see a Bull Fest event going on, you never know, you might just enjoy yourself.

The schedule is as follows:

Monday, April 12, 2010 #MUSICMONDAYS

• No Grease 11:00am-2:00pm Family Dollar Room
• DJ Café-5-7pm Cafe
• Intramurals Basketball Game 7-9 Brayboy Gymnasium
• For the Love of Smith 9:00-11:00pm Student Union(Bullpen)

Tuesday, April 13, 2010 #TRUTHTUESDAYS

• Novelty 11:00-3:00pm Student Union
• DJ Café 5-7
• Golden Bull Awards(GBA's) & RIP The Runway 8:00-11:00pm Brayboy Gymnasium

Wednesday, April 14, 2010 #WILDOUTWEDNESDAY

• Big Novelty 11am-3pm Bullpen stage
• Listening Party for Toni Braxton & T.I. 5-7pm Cafe
• Comedy Show 9:00-11:00 Brayboy Gymnasium

Thursday, April 15, 2010 #THANKFULTHURSDAY

• Community Service Day-ALL DAY Block, Student Union(food provided)
• Operation Graditude(cards for soliders) 11am-2pm Student Union Rotunda
• Coloring For Life (customize your own cover & coloring books) 3-5pm Student Union Rotunda
• Education On the Block (DJ) 5-7pm University Block

Friday, April 16, 2010 #TGIFRIDAYS

• Red lightParty 10pm-2:30am Brayboy Gymnasium

Saturday, April 17, 2010 -Pan Hell #GONEGREEK

• Carnival 2-6:00pm Myers/Carter Lawn
• Basketball Game/Cookout 6:00-10:00pm Outside Courts and Plots

Posted By: Andrew Milden, Junior

Seniors...I hope that you are preparing for finals, because if not, I feel bad for you! It's coming down to the end of the semester and graduation is right around the corner. I believe seniors' last day of class is April 19-20 depending if you have any classes either of those days and after that...you already know: COMMENCEMENT.

Health Care

The President has unveiled a proposal for health insurance that puts American families and small business owners in control of their own health care. I second the motion! Many politicians are upset with Obama's Health Care Reform Plan. It's time to chill out Republicans..."Let this bill work." Let our constituents finally get health care. His proposal begins to give middle class families and small business owners the health care security they've been losing over the past 16 years. Health reform will make health care more affordable, make health insurers more accountable, expand health coverage to all Americans, and make the health system sustainable, stabilizing family budgets, the Federal budget, and the economy.

Expulsion

Not too long ago, several of our Smithies had an altercation on the yard, which resulted in the expulsion of some of our fellow classmates. Several dozen Johnson C. Smith University students rallied outside the West Charlotte campus to protest what they described as unfair treatment by school administrators. The protesters said they were angry over the expulsion or suspension of 15 students following an on-campus brawl in the wee hours of Jan. 18. The protestors said some of the students were suspended with no proof of guilt and without due process. "Education, not expulsion," some shouted to traffic passing along Beatties Ford Road. Others said JCSU President Ronald Carter was more concerned with protecting the school's image than with finding a just solution.

Final Words

Overall, as students, you should chill out some and focus on school and for senior graduation. Tuition is already an arm and a leg, so refrain from doing anything that may jeopardize the risk of your graduation, or simply staying behind an extra semester.

Since Obama has been in office he has carried a lot of weight on his shoulders. Trying to get America back on our feet, passing a bill that several politicians disagree with, and running our country while being a black man in America is a huge job, but I believe in his vision towards fixing society and will respect anything he decides that's beneficial to American citizens.

Since his arrival at the university more than a year ago, Dr. Carter has worked to improve JCSU's image and visibility. He raised academic standards last year to weed out students less likely to graduate. He also has worked to forge alliances with community and business groups. Some of you may disagree with his vision and method, but he is our president so you have no choice to respect him.

• Have you utilized your teacher's office hours?
• Have your reviewed your coursework?
• Have you read the chapters in the book you have been going over in class?
• Have you utilized your resources? (ex. Math Lab)

If you can answer all these questions with a "yes" for all your classes, then you are one hundred percent ready for your finals. If you have answered "no" to any one of these questions, this is a good time to make that "no" a "yes" before you get caught in the finals blues.

Posted By: Andrew Milden, Junior

Internships are very important because they give you a good look into what you may be doing with the major that you have chosen. Many times this changes student's minds in pursuing certain majors. This is great because the student doesn't have to waste four or more years in a major that after college they completely alienate themselves from. Internships also boost your resume and everyone knows it's always good to have a decent resume. When you have no experience at all but you have an internship, a company looks and sees that you are interested to learn more about your major and to build upon your school education.

Internships are also good way to enter a company and stay there for a while. Usually the people that are doing recruitment for internships have participated in the internship program at that company and are looking to bring people in the same way they were brought in. Also, when you enter a internship and impress the people that you are working for, you have gained contacts within that company. Usually when the company has put their knowledge into you, they would want you to stay so that they don't have to teach others the ropes, but now they have you to help the new hires.

There may still be time to obtain an internship, just head over to the Office of Career Services across the street and ask. Everyone should have internship throughout their college career to boost your learning, your resume, and to take a look at the real world.

Posted By: Andrew Milden, Junior

This semester has not been easy, especially since some professors have the tendency to overcompensate in their classes. I understand that some professors want to provide the full learning experience, especially since "we are paying to earn a degree." However, enough is enough! Professors, this is just some friendly advice, please give my fellow peers a break...lol!

The past couple months have gone by really fast. As for now, I plan on simply finishing school and taking a long vacation. My classes are starting to get a bit easier. Or maybe I'm getting smarter....nah, could that be it?

The best part about being a senior in college is that everything is like a new experience: the people, the places and the events. Being in your last year allows you to appreciate the university and the people that you meet along the way.

Most of us probably will never see each other again. Some people will probably relocate back home and others may stay in Charlotte, but I have never been out as much or meet as many new people this year than any other year here at Smith. Living in Charlotte, it's easy to catch up with friends but it's also easy to get lost in a world of schoolwork and clubs that we cannot always socialize with our friends and appreciate that we all go to the same university or live in the same city.

Once, I thought I knew exactly who I was and what I wanted to do. Now, I'm just beginning to figure it out. I've learned that most people are in the process of understanding themselves and who they want to become. Luckily, uncertainty is not a cause for despair, because people have their own different life experiences which shapes the ways in which they see the world.

As the semester comes to a close, I cannot believe how fast these four years of my life have gone by! I'm finishing college, made new friends, learned to make my bed, memorized thousands of dates and facts, written and edited hundreds of pages, tried to find time to sleep, figured out the quickest routes to get around in Charlotte, discovered how to use HTML format, and so much more.

Overall, this college experience has made me a more mature, humble and patient person, because OMG College is no joke!

Downloading and sharing copyrighted materials (video, music, books, etc.) without permission from the copyright owner is against the law. In this country copyright laws provide, that the owner of a copyrighted work has the exclusive right to reproduce the copyrighted work and distribute copies of such work to others. In general, any person other than the copyright owner who copies, uploads, downloads, swaps or engages in similar activities with respect to a copyrighted work without the written permission of the copyright owner is committing a federal crime.

Johnson C. Smith takes copyright laws very serious and will abide by all federal laws. Violation of copyright laws is considered to be violations' of the Student Internet Usage Policy of the student handbook. Any laptops returned to the Mobile Life and learning Center with obvious copyright violator programs will be re-imaged.

Should you need assistance removing a peer-to-peer application from your computer, please contact the helpdesk (email mailto:helpdesk@jcsu.edu or phone x4357).

Posted By: John Norris, Director of Information Technology

A new report from the Washington-based Education Sector organization released Tuesday called "Lowering Student Loan Default Rates: What One Consortium of Historically Black Institutions Did to Succeed," argues that institutions can work proactively to reduce default rates among former students using "default-aversion" strategies. Education Sector is an independent, non-partisan think tank that develops progressive education policy ideas and proposals. A high cohort default rate (CDR) -- the number of defaulters divided by the number of borrowers calculated annually by individual schools -- could render some institutions ineligible for federal aid thus endangering their ability to enroll students.

"The latest cohort default rates, which track students who left school in 2007, showed the largest increase since 1989, with 6.7 percent of (U.S.) students defaulting on their federal loans". "The classes of 2008 and 2009 face bleak job prospects, putting more students at risk of defaulting and suffering its consequences, which will ruin individual's credit and create mounting debt from accumulated collection fees and unpaid interest."

Since it usually takes roughly 14 months after graduation for defaults to show, most colleges and universities can keep their default rates low for recent graduates for the two-year period prior to when institutions have to report their CDRs for a given graduate cohort to the U.S. Education Department. However, with the federal Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) passed in 2008, colleges and universities will have to track student cohorts for three years, increasing the likelihood schools will see more defaulters in their reported numbers, said Erin Dillon, senior policy analyst and co-author of the Education Sector report.

This means that each institution will see increased (default) rates. Since the government began measuring the default rate in the early 1990s, nearly 1,000 schools have been denied participation in the Pell Grant program and other aid. Focusing on degree completion, the co-authors said, concurrently improves default rates for students who better their job prospects with full degrees. Those who don't finish, they say, have a harder time finding well-paying jobs and repaying loans. "Institutions do matter in lowering student loan default, even though demographics are a factor they are not the main factor," said Education Sector editor and report co-author Dr. Robin Smiles. "We found pretty powerful evidence that shows there is a lot an institution can do to improve the likelihood a student will graduate."

Posted By: Chelsie Revis, Senior

The step show was very interesting in its design because it didn't have the normal set up everyone would think, which would probably be the high school students going first and then the fraternities and sororities. Instead of doing that they mixed it up all together which I think was a pretty interesting idea. You were able to see the upcoming talent and then see some that have been in perfection for years. Some of the high schools actually were surprising, with their themes, talent, and precision.

When it was it all was said and done, the ladies of Delta Sigma Theta from Fayetteville State University and the brothers of Phi Beta Sigma from our very own Johnson C. Smith University won first prize. Winning the CIAA step show correlates months of practice, sweat and tears, and a lot of hard work, but in the end to hear your name being said when it is all done is a priceless feeling.

Posted By: Andrew Milden, Junior

First, Emanuel had to shut-down her pc in order to reboot, so the pc would reset. Next, he had her log-on. She then had to click on the icon that she was experiencing the issue with in order to find out the source of the problem. Emanuel then used a method that is referred to as "trouble shooting", which is a systematic search for the source of a problem so the issue can be made operational again. Finally, Dr. Butler tried using the second link of the moodle site, which was successful and fully functional.

Being that I'm a Web STA, I usually only complete web related jobs.  If, you did not know...let me inform you that STA's play a major role here at the university. STA's help assist professor, students, and faculty members with pc or laptop related issues. They take and place work-orders, which are uploaded to a site called track-it that allows STA's to view work-orders that have been completed or are still in the work process.  Emanuel has taught me the process and procedure that is taken while working in the field as an STA.

Posted By: Chelsie Revis, Senior

Please make sure your computer is updated with the latest anti-virus protection and is set to update itself on a regular schedule.

If you have any questions please contact the JCSU Help Desk at helpdesk@jcsu.edu or call ext. 4357.

Need more?

This week's Learn "It" Over Lunch session "Getting the most out of the JCSU helpdesk." Thursday March 4, 2010 Perry Science Hall 12:30 p.m.

Posted By: John Norris, Director of Information Technology

As most of you know, our proud Golden Bull boys and girls owned the CIAA last year. Both our boys and girls won championships, so my question is who will win this year? If you plan on attending any events, I hope you have reserved your ticket, because it is going to get a little chaotic and for those who have never attended CIAA week, like you freshman, I hope you enjoy!

The 2010 CIAA basketball tournament kicks off this week today, February 24-28, and for the fourth consecutive year it will take over Uptown Charlotte. I moved here about four years ago, so for the past few years I have witnessed the tournament and CIAA grow. The number of people visiting and amount of money being pumped into the local economy has set records each of the last three years. The recession is sure to have an effect this year, but I don't think it's going to slow down the partying.

The thing about CIAA week is that for five or six consecutive days Charlotte is a non-stop party scene: day parties, after parties, concerts, fashion shows, live broadcasts from radio shows, and celebrity appearances galore. The CIAA puts on its own official events including a step show, concert, health forum, career expo, and fan experience in addition to the men's and women's basketball teams from 10 historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), including yours truly Johnson C. Smith University, competing for the conference championships.

Oh Oh Oh...C-I-C-I...AA!!!

Posted By: Chelsie Revis, Senior

What if you could do your research from a phone, see if something is in the library, or just find out the library hours?

Now all of these things are available - and we are interested in your feedback as we add more!

One really cool feature is the ability to search many of our databases from a web site designed to work with your phone. You can see the pdf's, email them to yourself or save the information for later. You can check our catalog and see if the book you need is in the library.

We have also found some interesting tools that are useful from your phone - such as the journal Nature - that puts your research literally in the palm of your hand. Access everything, anytime, anywhere! Come and explore the JCSU Mobile Library (and make sure you use your mobile phone...)!

Editor's note: Want to learn more about using mobile applications? Beth will be hosting this week's "Learn 'iT' Over Lunch" all about mobile applications, Thursday at 12:30 p.m. in Perry Science Hall (SHA) 215.

Posted By: Beth Martin, Instructional Technology Librarian

1. 123456
2. 12345
3. 123456789
4. password
5. iloveyou
6. princess
7. rockyou
8. 1234567
9. yankees2009
10. Abc123

Avoid using any of these passwords and make sure you have a different password for work, school and personal accounts. Experts say the best way to guess someone's password is to start with names of people close to the user (wife, son, pet). Other favorite passwords tend to relate to slang words or sports mascots.

JCSU recommends changing your password at least once per semester. Think your password may have been compromised? E-mail helpdesk@jcsu.edu immediately

Posted By: John Norris, Director of Information Technology