Senior Class Gift Committee

Each year the senior class of Mercyhurst fund raises money to give a gift to the school- typically it is something that the seniors believe current and future Lakers could truly benefit from. This year, I was asked to be the chair of this committee and we are already working very hard to come up with awesome gift proposals.
Currently, a survey is being sent to all senior students, the survey will allow them to vote from several ideas that our committee has come up with as well as offer up ideas of their own. Last year's class raised over $15,000 and I would LOVE to be able to do that same, if not better (sorry class of 2011 hehe). Our committee has chosen to take on the motto of "Living the Dream" which is based off of a presentation we saw during our welcome week our freshman year.

Some ideas that the committee currently has for gifts is: an outdoor fire pit, a campus game room and an outdoor patio. Our committee came up with ideas and next week we will tally up the survey results to come up with the top three options chosen by our classmates.
Once the top three options are chosen, our committee members will present gift proposals to our president, Dr. Gamble and our vice president for advancement, Dr. Livingston.
We will also be planning fundraisers so that our classmates have opportunities to make a gift towards the fund. Check out our group on Facebook called: Mercyhurst College Senior Class Gift 2012 to see what we're up to!

Coming up this weekend: HOMECOMING HOORAY! Be on the lookout for lots of pictures!
Until next time- Go Lakers, Beat Gannon!

Ye Old Picture of the Week

Last weekend, my hisory class took a field trip to the Pittsburgh Renaissance Fair! My class which is a Mercyhurst "Faculty Led Study Abroad" class, will be traveling to France and London at the end of the term. Mercyhurst offers several different levels of study abroad opportunities, some for the entire year, some for a term and some mini ones like the one I'm going on which is for 10 days. Check out the LINK to read more about study abroad opportunities that you can take part in!!
My class is a lot of fun and we are truly getting a hands-on experience which is something that Mercyhurst is dedicated to. One can learn a great deal from text books and lectures but hte hands-on experiences that Mercyhurst offers students from all grade levels is something you won't learn from a textbook!

Experiential Learning Fair- Time to Get Involved & Fall Ball!

Greetings dedicated readers! A lot went on this past week, it was very busy, but as you know- that's how I like it to be!

Aside from classes, this week was really exciting for the younger students because it was the Experiential Learning Fair! This is a HUGE  campus event where every single campus club (over 85 organizations) are on display both inside and even outside of the student union. At the fair, students, especially freshmen who aren't involved in anything yet, get to walk around and visit the tables, talk to current club members and sign up to join and an all clubs they would like to!

When I was a freshman, this fair was really important for me. Funny enough, I went to the fair because I wanted to sign up for a club that I had in mind, when I saw the table for it, there was a long line so I decided to go back later. I turned around, and right in front of me was the table for the Ambassador Club and a student asked me if I wanted information, and well- it pretty much all took off from there!

He I am at the SAA table!

For more pictures from the Experiential Learning Fair, check out the Mercyhurst Facebook Page!



Once the weekend got here, it was time for more fun! Our Student Activities Council plans an annual Fall Ball and my roommates and friends all went to it! The ball was in Garvey Park, right in the center of campus, under a tent- it was perfect weather for it too! Check out the SAC facebook page (link above), "like" it and you will get a chance to see all of the events that they plan throughout the school year- it's always a fun time!




Mike and I!







Roomates!



The guys!



The girls!



Mercyhurst in the Top 50!

Check it out- Mercyhurst has been ranked in the top 50 by U.S. News and World Report!
Top 50, yes, but number one in our hearts!

Read all about it!

The Beginning of My Final Year

As sad as it is, my SENIOR year at Mercyhurst is finally here and on its way. Honestly, this is a very emotional time because everything that is happening is considered my "last."
My roommates and I have developed a motto for our senior year- "Whatever you want to do, do it, there are only so many tomorrows" as we go along through this school year, we will take advantage of the many wonderful opportunities that arise because our time together is almost through.
Looking back at my freshman year, senior year seemed so far away, I couldn't truly picture myself as a senior, at age 21 back when I was just 18 years old. Now that it is here, I want to make every moment last and make lots of fun memories to share for years to come.
If I can give any advice to students - TAKE A LOT OF PICTURES- my roommates and friends are perhaps annoyed at me, but a picture is a the best way to remember the fun and good times that were had.

My roommates and I in a first day of school pyramid!

So far, the school year has been really good for me, I really enjoy my classes thus far! A little run down is as follows:
Business Policy and Strategy taught by Dr. Daryl Georger is my senior year class that encompasses mostly everything learned throughout my time in the Walker School of Business. As a Business Management major, I am grouped with students from other concentrations such as Accounting, Finance and Marketing to complete a strategic plan for an actual company while utilizing knowledge from other Business courses we have taken.
Global Communication taught by Dr. Anne Zaphiris will be an extension of a course that I took last year titled Communication Theory and Research in which my group and I conducted how Muslims are framed in American media. Our research paper was accepted to conferences in Washington D.C. in which we placed in the top four and Buffalo NY in which we placed in the top five. In this class, my group will extend our research to international sources to discover how Muslims are portrayed in both national and international media.
European History taught by Dr. Randall Howarth is a bit more than a class because it is also a study abroad opportunity. Within the term, our class will study both French and English monarch history and prepare to create a documentary. At the end of the term, the class will travel to Paris and London for 10 days! I am very very excited for this, it will be my first time abroad! While we are on the trip we will be filming and creating a documentary of our studies!

Student Alumni Association tailgating before the first home game!

So, as you can tell, I am already fully emerged in my classes and enjoying them very much so! I have a lot of work ahead of me, but it should be expected from higher level classes.
I hope your school year is off to just as good of a start as mine - here's to senior year!

Welcome to Mercyhurst! Welcome Week, Flash Mob, Day of Service

I must say- at Mercyhurst, we REALLY know how to welcome new students.
I just wrapped up "Welcome Week" here at Mercyhurst. I was the Student Chair for Summer Orientation and Welcome Week along with my co-chair, Richard. He and I along with the "Laker Leaders" worked extremely hard to lead the freshmen and new students and help their transition into college. I am pretty sure that all had a blast!

Just a few of the things we did throughout the weekend were help the students move in to their campus residence halls, a Kick-Off party in the Mary D'Angelo Performing Arts Center where the students got a chance to meet their Laker Leaders.
Our Student Activities Council help a "Casino Night" in the park where students had a chance to win really cool prizes- even an iPad - pretty awesome! A "Blacklight Bash" was held in our rec center where students were able to dance the night away wearing white t-shirts which glowed in the dark and one of my facorite events- a Hypnotist- Keith Kartkut always comes to Merychurst during Welcome Week, his shows displays to students that you can have fun without drinking! 

My FAVORITE part of the weekend was the big surprise that we worked on all summer -A FLASH MOB!
Check it out on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7TAkiKhUQ0
We worked extremely hard on it and it was so much fun- we were even on the news. The flash mob took place before our Annual Day of Service in which over 800 students went to locations all over Erie to provide service- part of the mission of Mercyhurst College. Freshmen were able to see that:
1. There are a lot of things to do on campus outside of the class room and
2. Service is extremely important to the school and we are dedicated to helping others.

Here's some pictures from the weekend:

Now that Welcome Week is over, I am exhausted, but ready for classes to start!

Picture of the Week - Summer Orientation #3

Here's all of the Laker Leaders who worked our 3rd Summer Orientation. It was a great day, we got a chance to meet a lot of the incoming freshmen. It was a great day for them too- they got to meet other students who are in their class and meet their academic advisor.

A students' academic advisor is extremely helpful! When I started out as an undeclared student, my advisor was helpful in directing me towards the area I was interested in. Once I declared as a Business major, my new advisor, Dr. Yalcindag meets with me before each term to make sure I am working on track and taking all the right classes. We're very lucky to have such dedicated and hard working professors :)

Welcome to Mercyhurst, Class of 2015!