I n d ep en d en t
Issue no.
S t u de nt
V o ic e
o f
B o is e
S tat e
Sin ce
1933
37
January
30
2012
Volume 24
w w w.arbiteronline.com
Boise, Idaho
First issue free
Top Stories
Zzzzzzz...
Students who don’t get enough sleep only hurt themselves.
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Townhomes
Lincoln Townhomes should be dorms for incoming freshman.
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ROBBY MILO/THE ARBITER
Although Boise State lost to UNLV 77-72 in overtime, the 6,000-plus crowd was energized by the flash mob.
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MW Troubles
Flash mob hypes arena crowd Suzanne Craig
Developing News Editor
The Broncos haven’t been comin’ round the moutain this season.
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In a well choreographed dance routine to a mix of songs, fans showed their support for the newly motivated Bronco basketball team as part of a flash mob organized by the Corral and athletic marketing. The idea was proposed at the end of last semester to the student fan-group, the Corral. “It sparked a lot of interest, so we decided, ‘Why not?’ ” Max Forkner, junior com-
munication major persuing a public relations certificate, said. Forkner is treasurer for the Corral and helped arrange the flash mob. Practice was held last Monday and around 250 people showed up, according to Forkner. Even more participated in the actual flash mob Wednesday. Ashley Cox, sophomore communication major and also a member of the Corral, thought it was a huge success. “To fill the entire student
section was incredible,” she said. Participants of the flash mob arrived to the game early for a practice run and free pizza. Most of them wore orange Corral shirts and complementary blueand-orange wigs which were handed out at the door. With less than seven minutes left in the first half and the Broncos closing the lead, the flash mob was signaled via whiteboards. Mobbers jumped to their feet and danced in the stands to a medley of “What
is Love” by Haddaway, a YouTube clip and Chris Brown’s “Yeah 3Xs.” “(I did this) to have fun. I always wanted to do a flash mob,” Maxi Lichtenhagen, fifth-year business major, said after the game. The administration had fun with it too. In the second half, Bryan Vlok, sophomore health care information management major and marketing intern for the athletic department, heard administrators through his headset asking if the mob would
Student creates book exchange site
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perform again. “They were asking, ‘Mob again?’ and I said, ‘why not?’ and asked the students if they were interested in going again and they went ‘Yeah!’ and were up and ready. (The flash mob) pumped the crowd back up,” Vlok said. “Getting a standing ovation twice (after both mobs) was amazing,” he said. Vlok confirmed they were willing to try arranging it again, so students should keep an eye on their email for an invitation.
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David Wuerth/THE ARBITER
Nursing student Matthew Willis created a textbook exchange website for BSU.
A new textbook exchange website created by nursing major Matthew Willis launched Jan. 10 of this year. The website, SemesterKey. com, allows Boise State students to post and purchase their textbooks online. Students can easily search for textbooks on the site. If the sought-after book is not yet posted, an email will be sent to the student’s account when the book becomes available. Students selling books can post them on the site and SemesterKey will simultaneously create a post on Craigslist. Willis got the idea for the website about six years ago, but didn’t have the necessary web-design skills to make his vision happen. Before enrolling at Boise State, Willis attended BYU. At the conclusion of a semester Willis encountered the challenge most college students face—selling his books back to the bookstore. When the store practically offered him pennies for the textbooks, he came up with his own solution. As students would come in to the bookstore, Willis would stand next to the books he wanted to sell. He would then offer his for approximately $10 less than the bookstore’s price. “I thought if there was a medium of exchange that could facilitate what I just did, that would be awesome for students in general,” Willis said.
Over the course of four years, Willis learned the skills necessary to create the exchange website. After spending two years working in online marketing for the business FitWall, he gained extensive experience in web design and learned programs essential to creating his new website. Overall, Willis is happy with the product. More students are discovering SemesterKey each day and he’s received only positive feedback so far. However, Willis does have plans to improve the website in the future. Although he wishes to be discreet with the details of the advancements, he did say he wants the site to become a one-stop-shop for other things students typically look for, beyond textbooks. He wants to make the beginning of semesters a little less complicated for students. Willis does acknowledge his website could potentially take business away from the Bookstore and, therefore, take away money from scholarships, but he believes it will even out in the end. “I know that a lot of the (money from) books from the bookstore goes toward scholarships, but I’m willing to bet that putting together the savings that we’re giving to students collectively will outweigh that number quite a bit,” he said. Willis’s main goal is to help students financially. “I designed this thing so that students could save some money. My only hope is that students will use it,” Willis said. arbiteronline.com