--ICE-- a Success

Last night I had the opportunity to attend --ICE--, an event sponsored by the SGA's Office of Diversity Affairs. The event focused on celebrating the various cultures comprising the UMBC community through a fashion show of various styles and some unique performances.

From colorful outfits to exciting dances (and even an intense display of weaponry) the event showcased the people who make our campus so unique - and such a wonderful place to learn, not only academically but about our world.

Several other upcoming cultural events include ASIA and Norouz. ASIA is by far the largest Asian cultural event of the year and is being held this Friday night. Norouz is hosted by the Persian Students Association. I had the opportunity to attend it last year and had a wonderful time. This year tickets for students to both events are free, so if you're looking for something to do on campus this weekend, stop by the Commons info desk and pick up yours.

Elani Odeyale Addresses Prove It Winner Selection

Today, Green Space was announced as the 2008 Prove It! Winning Proposal. A well-developed proposal, the space will be both practical and aesthetically pleasing, using a well-trafficked but underutilized space. This project is realistically achievable within the upcoming months, and the campus community will be invited to share in the creation of this project. Green Space serves as symbol of Prove It!, demonstrating the significant potential of academic innovation and student ingenuity. Especially given the monetary and time constraints of the intiative, we believe this proposal best represents the ideals of Prove It!. Congratulations, once again, to Michelle, David and Thomas.

As the chair of the Selection Committee, it is imperative that I express how impressed we were by these final proposals. Each of the Final Five projects presented a worthy addition to our campus. It's equally important to consider the combination of factors that impacted our decision. As I stated in this afternoon's ceremony, Prove It! challenged the entire campus community and reflected the realities of creating change on such a large scale. We are currently coordinating a meeting with the finalists to share recommendations for important modifications as well as the next steps for each of the finalists. I am excited to say that this will not be the last we hear of the final proposals.

Thank you to all who were involved with Prove It!--from the students who accepted the challenge to submit their ideas to the staff members who worked tirelessly on advertising efforts--you are greatly appreciated and should take pride in your role in such a ground-breaking initiative.

Sincerely,

Elani

Elani Odeyale
Vice President, SGA
Prove It! Selection Committee Chair

Interested in contributing to Zwybak? Send an email to com2@umbc.edu

SGA Presidential Candiates

There are three tickets vying for SGA's Presidential office this year. All three have created websites with information on their platforms for students interested in getting more information.

Michael “SteelWolf” Comberiate (running mate = Sonia Siddiqui): steelwolfforchange.com

Steve Gilmore (running mate = Tokunbo Elegbe): http://gilmore.umbcsga.org/

Elani Odeyale (running mate = David A. Indek): http://umbcnow.com/

Remember, voting will be held from April 21-April 23 via Blackboard.

Prove It Announcement Ceremony

Prove It is gearing up to announce the winning proposal this Wednesday, March 26th in the UC Plaza.

From the invitation:

Come celebrate student ingenuity and its contribution to the UMBC community at the unveiling of the winning Prove It! proposal.

The "Final Five" proposals are...

• Student Creative Center
• Transforming the Study Place
• Revamping the UMBC Pond
• Green Space
• Ropes and Challenge Course

As always, more information is available on the official Prove It website, including short videos detailing each of the proposals.