Champion equestrienne - :See Sports
friday,october 3, 1986
cabrinicollege, radnor,pa. 19087
vol. xxxiii, no. 4 photo by Monica Palko)
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ParentsWeekendtakesoff by L~ah Cascarina
With the annual ushering in of autumn, several things have come to be expected: the falling ofleaves, the briskness of the air and the arrival of Parents Weekend. "A lot of hard work, energy and cooperation have gone into the planning of the weekend," Rita Calicat, director, social activities, said. "I strongly believe that it will be very successful." As with all the previous Parents Weekends, the underlying theme is the experience of bringing families and the campus community together for a weekend. There is a slight change in the annual routine, however. This year, Parents Weekend is being packaged as a total weekend event, starting on Friday, Oct. 3 with fall convocation and continuing through Sunday, Oct. 5. "We want to be able to show parents another good Cabrini experience by having a weekend-long event where parents are meeting parents," James Fitzsimmons, dean of students, said. "By keeping people here on campus, we can show them both student and faculty successes so they can continue to feel good to be a part of Cabrini." Fitzsimmons also said that he hoped that the packaging of the weekend program would give parents more of a feel of what the college was all about. According to Joe Giuffre, president, Kappa Sigma Omega, a big complaint in the past was that there was never enough to keep the parents occupied. As a result, this year the organizers planned a diversity of activities hoping to appeal to a variety of tastes. Another one of the changes in this year's program is a $15 charge. This charge, however, was not meant to be construed as an admission fee, but rather as pre-payment for meals. "It (the fee) was never meant to niake money," Fitzsimmons said. "It will not even cover the food costs." It was also thought that it would be quicker and easier to pay for the meals before hand. By doing so, they hope to eliminate long, inconvenient lines. "We've packaged the meals differently as part of the whole weekend," Calicat said, "in an attempt to encourage parents to stay on campus with their kids." Fitzsimmons said that the quality of the menu was upgraded in another effort to encourage the parents to stay on campus, rather than venturing off to eat. This year Saturday's lunch and Sunday's brunch will be served outdoors, weather permitting, on linen covered tables. Pasta salad, fresh fruit, and cheese wheels, turkey salad, sauteed beef tips and mushroom, rice pilaf, green beans, and almond cookies in buffet style will be served for lunch. Sunday's brunch includes sliced fruit, scrambled eggs, sausage, french toast, jello molds, seafood Newbourgh, and assorted cheeses. A buffet table with cakes, pies, mousse and beverages will be placed out for dessert. "It becomes most important for the freshmen, because their parents aren't used to not seeing them for two or three weeks," Fitzsimmons said. "But we would like it to be a campus-wide event where all will participate. I hope it would be as special for senior parents as it is for the freshmen parents." Some of the events highlighting Parents Weekend are: the the Hospitality Center, the Resident Hall receptions, the President's Forum, the float parade contest, and the Presidents Reception and dinner/ dance. All these events are scheduled for Saturday. The first of the events to occur are the Resident Hall receptions. Each residence is giving a reception for their parents.
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These "wild" freshmen are prepared to welcome back Mom and Dad. "The idea of the receptions is to give the parents a sense of resident life and enable them to interact with other parents of the residents," Calicat said. The Float Parade Contest is scheduled for Saturday afternoon. Each individual residence and the commuters wiJl be competing. Prizes will be awarded in the following categories: overall winner, most creative and artistic, most orignal and most enthusiasm/participation. This years theme is "Cabrini - The Greatest Show on Earth."
A lot of hard work,energy
and cooperationhave gone into the planningof the weekend.I stronglybelieve that it will be very successful.' -Rita Calicat, director, student activities The President's Forum is a series of presentations given by Cabrini's seniors and administrators to the parents. The program's purpose is to inform parents of what is available to their children, highlighting specific student programs and college successes, both individual and collective. . The "Hospitality Room" is also a new addition to Parents Weekend. The room is being sponsored by the Parents committee and is to be held in the Great Room in Xavier. A cash bar and snacks will be available to the parents and students (with proper I.D. Jfrom noon to 4 p.m. The idea of the bar was also to promote the idea of staying on campus. "The bar gives the parents the opportunity to relax before dinner without leaving campus," Calicat said. "Family Fun and Enrichment" is a collaboration of activites designed to encourage families to interact with one another and with administrators. Between 1 and 4 p.m., faculty lectures, student goverment and drama presentations and games will occur. A rotation of the events has been planned so that the parents and their families will be able to participate in all five activities. Perhaps the biggest highlight of the event-filled weekend will be the inflation and lift-off ofa hot air balloon. Two chances for a ride will be raffled off to help pay for the weekend expenses. Chances are $1 a piece.
The balloon, owned by Lollipop Balloon Inc. of Downingtown, P.A., will travel beyond West Chester, hovering 1500 - 2000 feet during its journey.
''The weekend needed something colorful so parents can look back and think of something special," Fitzsimmons said. more Parents Weekend on 3
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---m1cscholarshios:
Reliefcomesin 'three's'
by Rachel Athalia Anderson
A 3.6 cumulative average (cum) is difficult to maintain, even for an upperclassman who is accustomed to college studying and college level material. It was decided that a 3.6 cum is too much to expect from college freshmen who are inexperienced both with college life and college level material, therefore the cum was lowered. A freshman now must get a 3.3 cum in order to receive and maintain a $1000 academic scholarship. ~ However, after freshman year, a 3.6 cum is needed in order to keep the scholarship. Formerly, incoming freshmen, as well as upperclassmen, needed a 3.6 cum entering Cabrini in order to receive the scholarship. "Freshman who are now in their sophomore year have to earn a 3.6 just like everybody else," Beth Lieberman, assistant director of financial aid, said. ''A 3.3 cumulative average isn't going to cut it from sophomore year to junior year. It only takes care of that freshman coming in with an academic scholarship." According to Dr. Joseph Romano, vice-president of academic affairs, there were requests from faculty members to change the policy. "Most of the requests that I've heard have come from the faculty who are right there on the firing line," Romano said. "They realize how hard the freshmen have it and what they go through." Arlene McEvilla-Dittbrenner, director of financial aid, said that it took a number of faculty advisors and students an entire year to come up with the new policy. According to McEvilla-Dittbrenner, the pressure placed on freshmen to maintain a 3.6 in order to remain in school caused too much stress. Romano thinks that freshmen sometimes have a hard time adjusting to college life. Therefore a 3.6 cum, in
addition to the major changes in their lives, is too much to handle.
"The first year is harder in terms of adjustment," Romano said. ''As people get more into their major and get the developmental courses behind them, they adjust better and perform better." Romano also found that a few freshmen were avoiding extracurricular activities and honors programs in order to maintain a 3.6 cum to keep the scholarship. "I think activities were a real concern," he said. ''They (freshmen) really agonized over how many activities they could do and still keep up their cum." Michelle Iatesta, senior, agreed with Romano. "I didn't go for the honors program freshman year," she said. "I think I opted more for the easier classes to get an 'A'." Another important factor that contributed to the change in policy was the fact that the 3.6 cum requirement caused many freshmen to lose their scholarships. ¡ Not everyone feels the new policy is fair, however. "They had to make a rule," Kevin Corcoran, junior, said, "which was a good rule. They just applied it wrong. It should apply to the whole school." "I do think it's fair," Lieberman said. "In your junior and senior year, you're well into your major, which is supposedly your strong point." Iatesta thinks very highly of the new policy. "I think it's excellent because as a freshman I think a 3.6 is too difficult," she said. ''They (freshmen) are adjusting to so much. They're adjusting to being away from home, they're adjusting to living with other people. To have that pressure of keeping their cum so high is just another added pressure. I think 3.6 is a little unrealistic." Romano thinks that the policy is fair and works for Cabrini. "You grow in age and wisdom," he said. "That seems to work hem.!t.