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Back                                Continued

Best Alcohol-Ed Program
     The "dead" roam campus once a year at St. Leo University. During the annual "Dead Day" in March, dozens of students "pass away," representing the number of daily drunk-driving related deaths.
     St. Leo President Arthur Kirk, Jr. accompanies the grim reaper, who suddenly appears in classrooms to pronounce 55 students "dead." The living dead then must wear a black T-shirt with the inscription "Who drank, Who drove, I died—Who’s Next?" and give 10 black armbands to friends as a reminder of how many others are impacted by their poor alcohol choices.
     Until the candlelight vigil later, they attend class, eat lunch, and go to the library—but only as ghosts, because they’re not allowed to speak or respond. "They’re visible, but not heard," says Jennifer Bowman, a resident assistant who’s one of the coordinators. "The president sent a mass e-mail to faculty and staff, asking for their participation. Students were expected to go to class. It was a constant reminder. There are only 500 students on campus, so everyone saw it all day. What would it be like if important figures—Greek leaders, resident assistants, and the Student Government Union president—were dead? It was pretty scary."
     Director of Residence Life Sarah Richard-Oumedlouz credits her RAs for taking the initiative to successfully promote and produce this highly effective education program. "They just took the entire program and ran with it," she says. "One of the RAs was responsible for researching statistics, while another one went to SGU officers, Greeks, and athletes and got them to be the dead people. It’s not an administratively run program—it doesn’t even come out of residence life. The biggest thing I did last year was sign a requisition for T-shirts. They ran it themselves. That’s what I was so impressed with.
     "When you’re on a small campus, by the end of the day it’s a pretty overwhelming message," Richard-Oumedlouz says. "You should have seen the looks on people’s faces in the cafeteria. They were saying ‘you can’t talk to her’—they were educating one another. That’s so much more powerful than me telling them what to do in front of a podium."
Contact Bowman at razzcrazy@aol.com or Richard-Oumedlous at sarah.richard-oumedlouz@saintleo.edu.

Best Religious Mixer
     A priest, a rabbi, and a minister walk into a college…sounds like the start of a bad joke, right? This rare site actually occurs each March at the University of Miami, where 15 different religious groups unite in the school’s annual Religious Diversity Week. Dr. Donn Tilson developed the program as a project for his Public Relations Campaigns class, with the Greater Miami National Conference for Community and Justice as their "client." "It was a great opportunity for students to learn not only about what religious heritage has to teach, but also to understand the rich variety of perspectives and beliefs," Tilson says.
     Activities include a Holocaust Memorial Vigil in UM’s Hillel Jewish Center and a "prayer wall" where students can pin their special requests. In addition, participants could attend a Catholic mass on campus, and take free tours of religious art at the local Lowe Art Musuem.
Contact Tilson at dtilson@miami.edu.

Best Coffee Break
     After a hard night of cramming, the Hard Drive Café at St. Petersburg Junior College, Clearwater Campus gives students their morning dose of caffeine as well as free internet access. The SPJC facility offers 10 web-connected computers, as well as four computer-equipped booths, couches, and easy chairs with numerous laptop hookups. Former provost Dr. Steven Johnson came up with the idea developed a plan to build the café in a building already going through renovation—it’s now the Clearwater campus’ showpiece structure. "It’s a high-tech meet, greet, and eat place where students can get food and surf the internet," says Debbie Proctor, student activities coordinator. "We did away with our cafeteria food service and put in the café, crossing the barrier off having food and computers in the same room."
Contact Proctor at proctord@spjcc.edu.

Best Environmental Initiative
     Imagine walking to class, and on your way you run across a bear or panther on the prowl. For students at Florida Gulf Coast University, such animal sightings are common. The Fort Myers school tries to encourage the least interference with nature as possible.
     "Ultimately, with all the additional building, our campus will be an island of preserved wetlands," says Dr. Win Everham, chairman of the division of ecological studies. "We have a general ecology class developing pamphlets to inform students how to interact with the wildlife, which will be given out at the August orientation."
     The school also prohibits the use of blackboards and uses an energy-saving air conditioning ice cooling system—the unit makes ice at night and then releases it during the day as air conditioning.
     Four sub committees at the school organize different areas, with one main goal—to monitor the university’s impact on the environment.
Contact Dr. Everham at eeverham@fgcu.edu.

Most Fun for All Ages
     Last year’s "Fallfest" at Polk Community College offered something for everyone. The Winter Haven Campus hosted a kids zone with attractions including a petting zoo, face-painting, a pumpkin patch, and a haunted house. While the young’ens were getting spooked, older kids could tour the Fine Arts Gallery, cruise over to a classic car show, or watch future paramedics practice their skills during a simulated crash. Free hamburgers, hot dogs, and homemade ice cream rounded out the 14th annual event, along with performances by PCC’s music groups.

Best Wild Event
     Take a walk on the wild side with Brevard Community College’s "Tropical Excursion, " hosted by the school’s Veterinary Technology program. The event let students observe, close up, many of the zoo’s inhabitants, such as monkeys and birds. Trainers took some of the animals out of their cages after hours so participants could get hands-on experience. "Mr. Science," a local teacher, also attended the excursion and performed tricks for the kids.
     In addition to ticket sales, the Veterinary Technology group raised money through a silent auction to benefit the Brevard County Zoo. "We organized the event in less than six weeks and plan to be more prepared for next year," says Michelle Earltinez, a student veterinary technician.
Contact Earltinez at earltinez@brevard.cc.fl.us.

Best Beauty Contest
     On the catwalk, on the catwalk, yeah! Students at Edward Waters College participate in the annual Campus Queen competition, modeled after the Miss America Pageant. In its fourth year, the event has averaged three to four final contestants.
     Qualifications for the position include a minimum GPA of 2.5, and 30 credits. Students must also be unmarried, childless, and complete 25 hours of community service. "It’s a high honor to win," says Diadra Lane, student activities director. "The student will serve as an ambassador of the college and participate in a photo shoot for Ebony magazine."
Contact Lane at tatlum@hotmail.com.

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