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Daily Wildcat
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Diving coach’s successor named
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serving the university of arizona since 1899
BUYING ESSAYS: EASY PLAGIARISM
By Zack Rosenblatt Daily Wildcat
Former Arizona diver Omar Ojeda is expected to take the place of diving instructor Michele Mitchell, who, after 15 years, has moved to the newly-created director of operations position for the swimming and diving teams. After receiving 10 to 15 applicants, a hiring committee that included Mitchell interviewed three coaches and offered the job to Ojeda, who hails from Mexico City, Mexico. “Omar was one of my former divers,” Mitchell said. “He bleeds red and blue, but that wasn’t why he was hired. He is one of the best young coaches in the world right now.” The UA is in the process of obtaining a work visa for Ojeda and, as a result, Mitchell has been forced to pull double duty, working as both the diving instructor and director of operations. Because the hire is not yet official, Ojeda was unavailable for comment. “He is patiently waiting,” Mitchell said. “He’s not really involved with the program right now because he can’t be. The process should be complete this week. The minute it is done, he can come on board officially.” As a coach in Mexico, Ojeda produced an Olympic bronze medalist and a world junior diving champion, Mitchell said. His familiarity with Arizona will make the move to NCAA diving a smooth one. “Mexico has a lot of good divers and a lot of that was because of him,” she added. “He knows how we do things,” she added. “He already understands the system that is in place here at Arizona. All the kids know him because he is an alumni and they have
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Photo illustration by juni nelson / daily wildcat
By Amer Taleb Daily Wildcat
Essay writing companies sell students examples they can use as a base for their papers. What thousands of students actually do with them is a different story. For upward of $26 dollars a page, John Crestani’s company, Youressaywriter.com, provides students with sample essays, research papers and dissertations. His employees are
pre-screened and put through a series of tests to ensure they’re effective writers. About onethird of them are ex-teachers. But Crestani said the service is meant for students in times of desperation, not for regular use. “If some one eats McDonald’s every single day, they’re going to become unhealthily fat. It’s going to be really bad for them,” he said. “Same thing here.”
People caught in difficult circumstances find his service valuable, including mothers returning to school, parents buying their kids entrance essays and especially international students, he said. “It’s useless,” said Ez-Adeen Naji, a Pima Community College international student from Iraq. “Buying essays doesn’t help me because I
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GPSC seeks entries for Nov. showcase By Eliza Molk Daily Wildcat
Ernie Somoza/ Daily Wildcat
Astronaut Fred Gregory, right, gives a check for a $10,000 scholarship to UA student Cameron Upchurch. The Astronaut Scholarship Foundation has awarded 3.2 million dollars worth of scholarships since its creation in 1984.
The GPSC is searching for top student research and creative projects for its Student Showcase. The 19th annual showcase, hosted by the Graduate and Professional Student Council, will occur Nov. 4 under tents in front of the UA Main Library. Applications must be submitted by Oct. 7. Recognition, feedback and cash awards will be given to graduate and undergraduate students in all 12 categories. Chris Cornelison, events director of GPSC and a graduate student studying public administration, said the event shows why the UA is one of the leading research universities in the U.S. This is why the council encourages undergraduate
students to present their research in addition to graduate students, who are often working on research as part of their degree, he said. Cash prizes range from about $60 to $750, according to Cornelison, and six $1,000 “higher prizes” will be awarded due to a large donation given to the library. Last year, 106 projects were displayed at the showcase. Benjamin Blonder, the 2010 Student Showcase President’s Award Winner and a Ph.D. student in ecology and evolutionary biology, said presenting at the showcase gives students the opportunity to put a “better face to put on for the public” in the wake of budget cuts.
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Astronaut foundation gives Admissions revamps website’s accessibility scholarship to ‘rock star’ By Eliza Molk
Senior first from UA to be named Astronaut Scholar for cell research By Stew McClintic Daily Wildcat
The UA’s first Astronaut Scholar received a check for $10,000 at a presentation on Wednesday evening. Cameron Upchurch, a senior majoring in molecular and cellular biology, received the scholarship from the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation during the event in the Kuiper Space Sciences building. Upchurch was awarded the scholarship for his research in molecular and cellular biology, particularly concerning endocytosis, which is the process cells use to absorb nutrients.
“Basically he is a rock star,” said Joaquin Ruiz, dean of the College of Science. The Astronaut Scholarship Foundation has given more than $3.2 million in scholarships since it started in 1984. The UA is among a small list of schools that are eligible to receive this scholarship award. UA alumnus and astronaut Tom Jones recommended the UA participate in this scholarship program last year, said Julie Norwood, director of Donor Services. The seven members of the Mercury 7 space program started the foundation. One of these seven, Col. Fred Gregory, presented and signed the check on behalf of the foundation at the event. He said that this is the most prestigious award in the science world and gives a large monetary value with, “no strings
attached.” The scholarship goes to undergraduate students entering their junior or senior year who demonstrate scientific prowess in the various fields of science, engineering or math. However, the scholarship is not extended solely toward students majoring in aeronautics or space sciences. “This scholarship is based on merit,” Ruiz said. Upchurch thanked the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation, Col. Gregory and the adviser who nominated him as well as his department and his peers for helping him and supporting him. Upchurch said that he hopes to be able to continue his research and that this scholarship was a huge honor to be nominated for. Upchurch said that he wants to go on to be a physician investigator.
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The UA’s renovated admissions website aims to be easier for prospective students to use. The renovation, driven by combined efforts from the Office of Admissions, Student Affairs Systems Group and Student Affairs Marketing, includes “Who’s My Recruiter” links, a new media room and features about the UA experience. In addition, it has student specific links for prospective incoming freshmen, transfer students, international students, re-admits, non-degree seeking students and parents and alumni working with students. Kasey Urquidez, the dean of admissions, said the reason for the revamp is for students to get the information they needed in fewer clicks. “We’d had the old site for a couple of years, and students were looking
online at all hours of the night to get information on their own,” she said. “It (the website) goes directly to certain pages, makes more sense and we’ve gotten good feedback.” The “Who’s My Recruiter” link is “more streamlined,” according to Urquidez, and includes an interactive map to help students find their recruiter by state and school. Urquidez said that meeting with a recruiter personalizes the UA application experience, and gives prospective students all over the country a “real connection” to answers regarding the university. The website renovation took about a year from the idea to the execution, according to Robin Meeks, the project manager to revamp the site at Student Affairs Marketing. The hardest part about changing the website, she said, was “managing the stakeholders”
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