Submitted by Mariah Givens, Cultural Arts Committee Member

I just got the details on this Spring’s KU Style Project and I’m trying to hold on to my bloomers! The contestants are all so unique and ready to participate in this thrill of a night. The stylists were hand picked from numerous applicants eager to expose their talent, to turn drab into fab. However, the fun is not just the night of the event (March 14 at 7pm). The events that lead up to the contest include up close and personal interviews, cultivation through shopping, and utmost rubbing shoulders with some of the fashion advocates of KU. The contestants chosen are those who are somewhat… in the clouds about style. Some of them include Graduate Students simply dressing for convenience (nothing wrong with that) but with no true insight on how to dress to flaunt their true personality. The cherry on top just may just be the awesome prizes. I’m expecting a bang of personality to shine through both contestants and stylists by the end of the night. I will be keeping the entire campus involved on what all is going down these next 3 weeks… let the showdown begin.

Submitted by Kimberlee Hinkle, Assistant Coordinator for Communications and Online Media

When I joined SUA as a committee member last January, the thought of applying for a leadership position terrified me. I had every intention of continuing with the path I was on, believing that I wasn’t ready or experienced enough.  A then leader, and a now very best friend was able to convince me otherwise. She sat down one day and asked me what position I was applying for. At a board meeting that night, each and every leader in SUA got up to talk about their experience in their respective positions. It was then that I decided I would apply.

Saying that SUA has completely changed my life would be an understatement. I have learned so much about myself as well as so many others in the organization. I have been given the opportunity to prove what I can bring to an organization, and received so much in return. I have built life-long friendships, and been a part of a community dedicated to enriching student lives

I encourage everyone to apply for a leadership position (here’s the link), because it truly is an amazing experience. You don’t even have to be a current member to apply. We currently have three leaders who weren’t members of SUA before applying for their positions, and are thriving. So, hurry up – apply! It’s 100% worth it!

Submitted by Andy Kriegh, VP of Communications

Two years ago I had a very unique and memorable Valentines Day. I had just joined Student Union Activities and was lucky enough to be selected as one of KU’s representatives for the National Association for Campus Activities’ National Convention in Boston.  Many people may groan at the thought of going to a conference, but this was not your average conference; this is one where you may run into a celebrity around any corner like Snooki, Jamie Kennedy, or Ralphie May just to name a few.

Even though meeting Snooki from Jersey Shore was a highlight of the week, it couldn’t top the performances of truly talented acts on the stage. Between the acts such as musician Ryan Cabrera and comedian Kirk Fox, one act stood out above all; and that act was (drum roll…) BABY WANTS CANDY. I was not sure what to expect from a group named BABY WANTS CANDY, but I knew it would be great coming from a group that has produced notable stars like Jack McBrayer (Kenneth from 30 Rock) and Seth Meyers from SNL. I could not have prepared myself for the whirlwind of energy that BABY WANTS CANDY would throw at the audience over the next twenty minutes.

BABY WANTS CANDY’s breath taking (from laughing too much!) act is an hour-long completely improvised musical based off ideas the audience yells at them. No two shows of theirs is the same, when you go and see them you will know that you are exclusively seeing a one-time ever production (How exclusively VIP does that sound?!) During the act that I enjoyed, BABY WANTS CANDY took the audience on a trip through Sarah Palin: The Musical, a roller coaster account of Ms. Palin falling in love with a polar bear she was hunting with the necessary love ballads and duets between Ms. Palin, the polar bear, and a Russian included.

BABY WANTS CANDY’s unique and hilarious performance on that 14^th day of February, 2010 was one of the greatest and most memorable Valentines Day gift I’ve ever received. If you want an exciting and memorable experience, come receive your late Valentine’s Day gift SUA has to offer for you on Monday, February 20^th in the Kansas Union Ballroom at 6:00 pm with a free BABY WANTS CANDY performance and free pizza!

Submitted by Kevin Wright, Films & Media Committee

Preparations for SUA’s 4th Annual International Film and Food Festival are well underway! The event, which will take place on Sunday Feb. 19th, calls for student film submissions, which will be screened during the all-day event. This year proves to be even more exciting than years past, as the Films and Media committee will be teaming up with the Culinary committee in order to provide students with international food to correspond with the films! If that wasn’t enough excitement for you (and we don’t know why it wouldn’t be), the prizes we’ve lined up are phenomenal! The first place winner will win $500 and an internship with a film company in Mexico City, with second place winning $350 and third place winning $200.

Unfortunately, we can’t accept every student submission (despite the fact that we’d love to!), which means somehow we have to narrow down the options. This year, we have sixteen submissions, but we only have four available spots for the event. With so few available spots and so many submissions, the Films and Media committee members are doing their best to make sure that the best possible films get screened.

To decide on the best films, we’re planning to watch all the submissions and select the best. We’re making an afternoon of it, so this Sunday, we’ll be watching and discussing all the submissions and then voting on the top four. We’re looking forward to seeing what KU students have created, and we can’t wait for the rest of KU to see as well, so make sure to come to the International Film Festival to watch some good films and eat some good food!

Submitted by Kimberlee Hinkle, Assistant Coordinator for Communications and Online Media

Welcome back to school, KU Campus! I don’t know about everyone else, but for me second semester picked up right where first left off. Everyone in the SUA Office is back in full swing planning the spring semester’s events and preparing for another great semester!

Just in case you missed it, we kicked off the semester with a carnival themed Calendar Release Party! I am absolutely in love with the look and feel of the calendar and hope you all are too. The event was a blast to plan and even more fun to attend. We had games, prizes, and even gave away a 42” TV, a signed KU basketball, two Amazon Kindles and tons of other great prizes to our Student Saver Card winners!  If you want to learn more about becoming a Student Saver Card member look here.

So, like I said, we have a ton of great events coming up. Some I can’t wait for are:

Comedy & Pizza Night, featuring Baby Wants Candy on February 20 - Baby Wants Candy is a musical improve troupe that will perform a 60 minute completely improvised musical brought on by a prompt from the audience. We will also have free pizza from everyone’s favorite pizza places around Lawrence! Vote on your favorite pizza and don’t miss out on this hilarious event!

KU’s Dancing with the Stars on March 2 - After the blizzard that threatened last year’s event, I’m super pumped to see how everything turns out this year. Think Dancing with the Stars, but with all on-campus celebrities! The “stars” and dancers have been coming in all week to meet each other and start preparations for the big day!

KU Style Project on March 14 - A spin off of Project Runway mixed with a little What Not to Wear! This homegrown event will throw together five makeover contestants with five on-campus stylists. The stylists will be able to “make-over” the contestant with a set budget and the winner will win $175! Makeover not your thing, but have a friend that you think deserves a wardrobe overhaul? Nominate them here!

There are so many more I could talk about! Pick up your calendar and keep checking back for more!

Are you scanning your SUA Student Saver Card at our events? Did you know, that by doing so, you could be entered to win some huge prizes? There are only a few more events this semester, and we’re upping the stakes! Make sure you scan your card at our events, and you’ll be granted tons of points! Now, here’s what you could win…

Tiers

Third Tier:       One flat screen TV: At least 76+ points

Second Tier:     One of three (3) $150 Target Gift Cards: At least 46+ points

First Tier:        One of five (5) $20 Dillons Gift Cards: At least 5+ points

And here’s how you can win it…

• Tea @ Three, Every Thursday, 3 pm- 1 point
• Campus Movies – 3 points
• Tunes @ Noon – 3 points
• Cosmic Bowling Every Friday and Saturday- 15 points
• 02/15 Dodgeball Tournament – 5 points
• 02/14 Valentines Day Open House – 5 points
• 02/19 International Film & Food Festival – 10 points
• 02/20 Comedy & Pizza Night featuring Baby Wants Candy – 15 points
• 02/27 Everybody Cut Footloose! Event – 5 points
• 02/28 Footloose Movie – 5 points
• 03/02 KU’s Dancing with the Stars – 20 points
• 03/14 KU Style Project – 15 points
• 03/27 Grocery Bingo – 4 points
• 04/04 Student Lecture Series, Bill Rasmussen – 15 points
• 04/19 Earth Day Burger Grill Off – 5 points
• 04/24 Grocery Bingo – 4 points

Submitted by Alissa Urich, Films and Media Committee

I am beyond ecstatic about the upcoming KU’s Got Talent this Friday Nov. 18. It is a great opportunity for students to showcase their talents when they may not have had another chance to do so. Being a member of SUA’s Films and Media Committee, I have experienced the auditions and talents first hand. Going into the auditions two weeks ago, I expected mainly singers and possibly some guitar players. To my surprise, there was a wide range of talent that was displayed. Student’s acts ranged from performing songs from common musicals, to different types of dances and even glow stick twirling. You could see the passion behind each and every act as they captured us with their voice, dance moves or music ability. During many performances I sat and watched/listened in awe, mesmerized by their God-given talent. The three judges were eager to give positive feedback and were also not afraid to give advice for future performances. I’m sure that their decisions to pick the top ten talents were an incredible debate, as each act performed so well.

Seeing who made the final list was honestly like waiting to open a birthday gift; I was so eager and anxious to see who would be performing at the final KU’s Got Talent. I am beyond excited to see what the finalists are going to bring to the table, as I have already had a preview of their abilities. I am in charge of the decorations for this event, and preparing for it has made me even more excited. Films and Media have worked incredibly hard on this event and I have no doubt that it is going to be an amazing show. The talents that students at the University of Kansas have are incredible and I’m very happy that this has given those students an opportunity to showcase them.

Submitted by Christy Khamphilay, Assistant Coordinator for Communications and Traditional Media

I remember a friend posted a video on my Facebook wall last fall featuring the comedy troupe The Second City. The next day when he found out I hadn’t seen the video yet, he insisted we watch it and stood over my shoulder as I clicked on the link. For those two minutes, I didn’t stop laughing as I watched the improv performance this group put on for their audience. In the past, I would always choose seeing a musical or play over a comedy show, but after watching more of their videos, I became a fan of The Second City and improv comedy.

Last February, I went to a conference in St. Louis, and to my surprise The Second City was performing a showcase. After seeing them live, I became more of a fan as I watched them switch in and out characters so well I couldn’t tell if the performers were speaking as themselves or as someone else. The only thing that mattered to me was that I was laughing throughout their performance. There’s something about seeing an improv comedy group because you never know what’s going to happen and it’s always different every time you watch a performance. So if you have free time on Wednesday night, I encourage everyone to purchase a ticket to see The Second City perform live here at KU. Who know when you’ll get another chance to see them showcase their talents live on stage?

Are you scanning your SUA Student Saver Card at our events? Did you know, that by doing so, you could be entered to win some huge prizes? There are only a few more events this semester, and we’re upping the stakes! Make sure you scan your card at our events, and you’ll be granted tons of points! Now, here’s what you could win…

Tiers

Fifth Tier:        One (1) Flat Screen TV: At least 90+ points

Fourth Tier:     One (1) Signed KU Basketball: At least 66+ points

Third Tier:       One of Two (2) Amazon Kindles: At least 41+ points

Second Tier:     One of Five (5) $20 Gift Cards: At least 21+  points

First Tier:        One of 50 Drinking Glasses: At least 1+  point

And here’s how you can win it…

• Tea @ Three, Every Thursday, 3 pm- 1 point
• Campus Movies – 3 points
• Cosmic Bowling Every Friday and Saturday- 1 point
• 11/14 Toys for Tots Begins- 1 point per toy donated
• 11/16 The Second City, 8 pm – 20 points (was @ 3 points)
• 11/17 Thanksgiving Open House, 11 am – 5 points
• 11/18 KU’s Got Talent, 7 pm – 15 points (was @ 5 points)
• 12/1 – 12/3 Last Campus Movie – 8 points (was @ 3 points)
• 12/8 Last Tea @ Three, 3 pm – 5 points (was @ 1 point)
• 12/8 Late Night Winter Bash, 9 pm – 10 points

Submitted by Christy Khamphilay, Assistant Coordinator for Communications and Traditional Media

For me, one of the best things about summer vacations consists of sleeping in until noon. So, for someone who does not like waking up early in the morning, I needed to find a way to stay awake for a three-hour Public Speaking class starting at 8 a.m. Of course, grabbing a cup of coffee would be the obvious choice, but I disliked the taste of it.

However, one morning I had no choice but to buy coffee if I wanted to stay awake for class. I wanted to buy the sweetest coffee, so I chose a drink called the Carmella. While I was waiting for my order, I noticed The Roasterie provided the coffee like how they do here on campus. When I got my drink, my lack of sleep overcame my hesitation and I took a sip. Surprisingly, I enjoyed. It had the taste of coffee, but the caramel and whipped cream mixed in made it so much better.

After that, I found myself returning to purchase a coffee almost everyday after that. My coffee habit continued into the fall, so I still purchase Roasterie coffee on a regular basis. Maybe I would have grown to like coffee somewhere else, but I will always credit The Roasterie for starting my love of coffee. Thanks to our Culinary Committee, students will have a chance to attend a free private tour of The Roasterie plant in Kansas City on Friday, Nov. 11. Having the chance to receive a behind-the-scenes look at the place where it is created is a great opportunity, so I encourage everyone to pick up a voucher to attend.