UPB

UPB director says programming is alive and well

As the Director of the University Program Board I challenge the statements made in the September 28, 1998 issue of the "Our Opinion" column of THE CURRENT. Information I shared with representatives of the newspaper was inaccurately reported regarding recruitment for new members. As an example of membership being open to the general campus population, I have attended meetings of the International Student Organization and Pierre Laclede Honors College Student Association meetings to recruit applications for membership and to discuss the University Program Board purpose and goals. In addition, during EXPO the UPB sponsored a booth and distributed applications to interested students. Interviews were conducted at a meeting a on September 23rd and recommendations presented to the UPB membership at the September 28th meeting. New members are being added this week. The uncertainty about the number of board vacancies concerns members of the 1997-98 UPB who were reappointed and have failed to attend one of this semester's meetings. When their intentions are made clear any open positions will be quickly filled in accordance with the provisions of the constitution which mandates diversity according to the demographics of the campus student population.
The article also seems to imply that since Welcome Days have concluded there is no evidence of any programming being done by the board. Au Contraire my fellow student and uninformed reporter. Since September 11th, there have been three Wednesday Noon Live Concerts on the Patio of the University Center which have been enjoyed by hundreds of students who may stay only a few minutes between classes or who stay the entire two hours listening to music, eating freshly prepared food, chatting with friends or studying. Other Wednesday Noon Live events are planned for subsequent Wednesdays outside while the weather is nice and inside the University Center when becomes necessary because of the weather. The UPB advertised and encouraged students to attend the Great American Balloon Races in Forest Park September 18-19, sponsored forty students to attend the Gateway Classic Football Game at the Transworld Dome and recruited a team to participate in the Walkathon for Juvenile Diabetes on September 27th. The Cultural Series Experience St. Louis began on September 25th with a trip to Powell Symphony Hall for "Mozart, Mozart, Mozart" and will occur nine more times during the course of the academic year at various cultural venues in the St. Louis Metropolitan area.
Being planned for later this semester is a bicycle trip along the Katy Trail October 10th, a bus trip to the University of Missouri-Columbia Homecoming Football Game on October 17th, Midnight Madness October 14th, a lecture series featuring the expertise of the UM-St. Louis Faculty, a Paintball outing, and College Bowl the Varsity Sport of the Mind.
There is something for everyone at some point during the year and almost every program is free to UM-St. Louis Students. All one has to do is keep themselves informed through The Current, read the bulletin boards, look at the tent signs on food service tables, or read the mail that we send to students informing them of programs. The newspaper can help by being supportive, accurately reporting the information you solicit and promoting the sense of community we are trying desperately to build.
Any student wishing to participate may contact the UPB by calling 516-5531, calling the Office of Student Activities at 516-5291 or by e-mail at stuactv@umslvma.umsl.edu . We would love to have you help us transform UM-St. Louis into a vibrant collegiate experience for all students.
-Carrie Mowen, Chair
University Program Board