An Oozeball Tournament was canceled on Saturday after an hour of waiting with only one team present.

Organized by Doug Carty, Director of Campus Recreation, and Brandon Burton, three teams were signed up by the deadline on Friday. “We were hoping for more of a turnout because of the nice weather,” said Carty. The event has been held for twenty-seven years, and this was the first time it was canceled.

The event was scheduled for 1:00 p.m. on Saturday May 1 behind Lakeside Educational Center on the volleyball court. Nearly ten spectators waited an hour before the decision was made to cancel the event. Burton attempted to contact the other teams by phone, with neither answering. Carty acknowledged the events overlap with spring weekend, but refused to change the date prior to Saturday.

Junior Sean Carroll was to serve as the referee for the event. “It began to look doubtful after a half hour, but we expected more people on such a nice day. Doug and Brandon put a lot of work into this,” said Carroll.

Sophomore Sarah L’Estrange was among the students waiting for the event to begin. “I don’t think I would ever play, but I thought it would be fun to watch,” said L’Estrange.

Rob Harpin was the captain of the only team that came to the event. Carty said this traditional event was a “missed opportunity”. There has been no word on when or if the event will be rescheduled.

A new format for spring open house brought 526 prospective students and family to campus on Saturday.

According to the Admissions Department, prospective student attendance was the same for spring open house as the new winter open house, with a slight decrease in family accompaniment. Adding a new winter open house did not lead to the decrease in interest for the more traditional spring event. Both of the events this year saw a large increase in attendance over the 2009 fall open house.

In previous years, different presentations were scheduled throughout the day where clubs and departments spoke to incoming freshmen. This spring, open house took a more laid back approach where all departments were represented during one presentation in Pierce Hall. After the main presentation, club representatives greeted families in the library courtyard. Tours then ran throughout the day, stopping in different areas to talk with current students in areas such as athletics and the Pierce Media Group.

According to the Admissions department, the few presentations about academic life, athletics, student life, and financial aid were all well attended. Having a strong, visible student presence throughout the day was one of the focuses of admissions. “This new format gave faculty more of an opportunity for face-to-face time with prospective students, which led them to a better understanding of what we have to offer,” said Dr. Kristen Nevious, Director of the Fitzwater Center.

Outside of Marcucella Hall and the library courtyard were lined with tables representing the different clubs and organizations on campus. Faculty members from a variety of majors stayed in Pierce Hall following the main presentation to help possible students better understand the majors offered. Committed freshmen for the fall semester sat with faculty to select classes for their first semester at college.

The revised format let tour guides spend more time in areas such as residential life, the Fitzwater Center, and athletics. This change allowed families to interact more closely with current Franklin Pierce students and get a better feel for the different departments. “I think the new format gave people a better idea of how the station runs. Tours spent more time in the studio talking to us,” said Eric Taverna, FPTV Programming Director, who spent the day greeting families in the Fitzwater Center studio.

The nice weather, large turnout, and revised format led Admissions to receive a large number of positive emails. “It was a great day. There was lots of energy and enthusiasm from the FPU community that was positively felt by our prospective students and their parents.” Said Quimby. Photographs of the event can be found on Franklin Pierce University’s Facebook page.

The Gamers Club held back-to-back video game tournaments Sunday evening with a mixed turnout.

The first tournament featured the WWE professional wrestling game “Smackdown vs Raw 2008” for the Xbox 360. Five students participated in hopes of winning wrestling related prizes. Jeremy Clauntzer, Gamers Club member and organizer, said, “We decided to put this tournament together because this kind of game is not usually represented in our clubs tournaments.”

Junior Joe Landini came in first place and recieved a luchador mask and a replica championship belt. The second place participant was awarded with a package of memorabilia designed after the WWE superstar Rey Mysterio.

With the support of a group of his friends, Landini went undefeated in the tournament. “Even though I dominated, I had good competition and it was a fun time,” said Landini. In all four of the matches Landini participated in, he played as former World Champion Edge. While only five students participated in the actual tournament, there was a group of ten spectators.

Immediately following the wrestling tournament, Pierce Hall began to fill up for a “Super Smash Bros. Brawl” tournament. This event drew nearly forty students last year and fell just short of that this year. Like the previous tournament, there were more spectators than participants, but Gamers Club officials considered it a successful event. The winning student received a gift card for Nintendo Wii Points.

Photo by Nick Caramico

by Nick Caramico
edited by Phil Enright

Alumni participated in community service activities across the east coast as part of President Birge’s Inauguration week.

From Manchester, NH to New York City, Alumni represented their alma mater to give back in honor of the new President. Shirley English-Whitman, Alumni Relations Director, reached out to active members of the Alumni Association in hopes to get as large a turn out as possible. Ten events over two days in eight different states were organized for the weekend of April 10 and 11.

In Garfield New Jersey, Regina Bonito from the class of 2005 worked with Habitat for Humanity to rebuild a run down storefront. Previously an ice cream parlor and apartment, the building lay abandoned just off the main street of Garfield’s business district. As an effort to raise the town’s small business economy, Habitat for Humanity was enlisted to make an affordable, attractive, and safe building for a rising entrepreneur.

Photo by Nick Caramico

Hoping to have the structure complete in ten months, Habitat for Humanity representative John Pagliaro said, “A build like this depends on the volunteers. These Alumni will get us moving ahead on the framing of this building.” Pagliaro instructed Alumni and other volunteers on safety precautions before having them break up into two teams. Half the group was responsible for putting support beams on the main floor for what would later become the new exterior walls. The remaining Alumni began work on chiseling the old foundation to get ready for a new one.

Bonito spent much of her time carrying lumber from the main floor down to the crew in the basement. “Community Service means to me giving back to whatever community you call home,” Bonito said. A graduate of the Business department, Bonito was involved in community service since her time at the college and saw this as an opportunity to reach out to fellow alumni near her hometown. Graduates from as recent as 2008 and as far back as 1972 came out to show support for the college they attended for four years of their lives.

Current Sophomore Stephanie Lewis attended the Blackstone Park Cleanup in Providence, Rhode Island. Jaki Gaudet from the class of 2003 organized the clean up of grounds and walking trails of the park. “This event gives hope that even after we graduate, we will be able to find opportunities to get together and give back,” said Lewis.

James Birge will be inaugurated as the 4th President of the University. During the week leading up to the historic event, many different departments have organized activities to commemorate the occasion. The office of Alumni Relations encouraged former students to find a good cause near their current homes and organize a community service project.

Footage of these events filmed by Fitzwater Center Scholars and Fellows will be organized into a video package for the Inauguration. President James Birge’s Inauguration will begin at 11:00 a.m. in the Fieldhouse on Saturday April 17.

Due to controversies over last year’s results, the Department of Residential Life has made significant changes to the 2010 Housing Lottery.

This year, the Department of Residential Life has made all students lottery numbers public in an effort to avoid the issues of the past. Many students were left disappointed and confused upon leaving lottery night last year, still questioning their future housing situation. This confusion led to a second lottery night, where those with lottery numbers in question re-selected their housing.

Beginning April 26^th, students will be able to log on to eRaven and view their lottery number and where they stand in the overall lottery. A student’s lottery number is calculated by multiplying their GPA and their earned credits. This number is added with your roommate or roommate’s number. The roommate group with the highest number will select their housing first moving down the list until all students have selected. With the list being made public there is the hope that there will be no disputing the final list.

“Publishing lottery rosters ahead of time will make students aware of their housing option before lottery night and let them know if their roster needs to split up,” said Director of Residential Life Ken Ervin.

While this is the most important change to the actual procedures of lottery night, several new housing options will be made available. Students who will be sophomores in the fall will again have the option of Granite Hall suites that began last year. In addition, Monadnock hall will be comprised entirely of single rooms for sophomores. Both sophomore area housing in Monadnock and Edgewood will offer a common lounge area on each floor. These lounges will be equipped with tables, chairs, a television and a DVD player. Seniors in the fall will have the option of a three-person apartment in Sawmills.

“With all the new housing changes including co-ed and wellness, we have the widest options of living we can offer,” said Junior Area Experience Director Michael Lynch.

To be eligible to participate in the housing lottery, students need to be registered for classes in the fall, pay $250 housing deposit, pay any financial holds, and complete all judicial sanctions. On April 6^th and 7^th, lottery cards and room and board contracts will be available in Pierce Hall between noon and 2:00. Students wishing to room together will then submit a roster to the Residential Life office in New Hampshire Hall. Students will need to turn in their cleared lottery cards and completed roster on April 21^st.

photo: FPTV

by Nick Caramico
edited by Phil Enright

Franklin Pierce Alumni will return to campus to assist Mass Communication students in finding internships and gaining networking skills.

The second annual Networking Event will take place March 31^st in Pierce Hall. This is aimed at Mass Communication and Graphics majors to inform them on life after graduating from Franklin Pierce. Several alumni and current seniors will participate in a Career Panel for the first half of the event. Trent Spiner, reporter for the Concord Monitor, and Stephen Lacey, staff writer for Renewable Energy World, are among the alumni that will be present.

The panel will offer tips to enter the business world after graduation and advice to start a career in media. After each panelist has an opportunity to speak, ten minutes will be allotted for a question and answer session. “The most important thing students should do while still at Pierce is get involved,” said Spiner. “If you want to be a television reporter, join the TV station. If you want to be a newspaper reporter, write for the Arrow. Without that experience, media outlets will be hard pressed to hire you, let alone bring you in for an interview.”

Rosemary Nichols, Director of Career Planning and Placement, said that her office received good feedback after last year’s event. The event will be very informal and is open to anyone said Nichols.

“Even though there are many resources out there, Networking remains the number one job search tool,” said Nichols.

After the panel is over, the attendees will have the opportunity to ask more personal questions in the reception portion of the event. Two alumni from ESPN will be present for the reception. “Networking is key to anyone’s success in this industry in particular, and knowing people is a big part of that,” said panelist and current senior Nalina Shapiro.

The event will begin at 5:00 p.m. in Pierce Hall on Wednesday, March 31st.  Contact Rosemary Nichols for more information.