Pirates Prepare for 2010 Polar Bear Plunge

GREENVILLE (1/12/2010) – The 14th Annual “Polar Bear Plunge” is set for Thursday, January 21, 2010 beginning at 7:00pm at the East Carolina University Student Recreation Center. All ECU students, faculty and staff are invited to soar into the icy waters of the outdoor pool.

The first 500 jumpers will receive a free t-shirt and students are entered into a drawing for a variety of prizes including the Grand Prize of a $150 Student Stores Gift Certificate. All jumpers are encouraged to bring a canned food item and “Feed the Bear” with all donations going to the North Carolina Food Bank. Those jumpers who bring a canned food item with them will receive an additional raffle ticket to double their chances of winning prizes.

The event started in 1997 as a part of the grand opening of the Student Recreation Center. That first year 35 students took the plunge and it has grown significantly each year. The number of jumpers surpassed 500 in 2008 and closed in on 600 in 2009. Organizers fully expect a greater number of participants this year.

Following the jump, food will be available for all jumpers on the Student Recreation Center Concourse. This is also when the prizes will be given out. ECU’s campus radio station WZMB-FM will be broadcasting live from the event. Students will also get a chance to learn a great deal about the many programs, activities and organizations at ECU through the “Get A Clue” involvement fair which will be held on the basketball courts inside SRC.

Registration begins at 6:30 PM on SRC Court #1 and all participants should bring their ECU One Card to sign up. Prize drawings are expected to begin at 8:15 PM. The event is sponsored by Campus Recreation & Wellness, Campus Living & Dining, and University Unions.

For more information call (252) 328-6387 or stop by 128 Student Recreation Center. You may also view pictures and video at our Facebook event “ECU Polar Bear Plunge.”

What: Polar Bear Plunge
When: January 21, 2010 at 7:00pm| Registration Begins at 6:30pm
Where: East Carolina University Student Recreation Center
Who: All ECU students, faculty and staff are invited to participate
Contact: Student Recreation Center – (252) 328-6387
Benefit: Jumpers asked to donate a canned food item to benefit the NC Food Bank

A Decade of Thanksgivings in the Big Apple

It’s safe to say Thanksgiving is Aaron Lucier’s favorite holiday. It’s not because of the turkey, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie. The ECU Director of Housing Operations says the real reason is Spiderman, Kermit the Frog and Shrek.

Spiderman Float at Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

They are among the dozens of gigantic floats soaring through the streets of New York City for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and Aaron has had a front row seat for the last ten years.

“It’s the energy,” said Lucier. “Some say you get a better view by watching on TV, and it’s generally warmer, but there is nothing like seeing it live. The crowd and the kids’ reactions to the balloons are wonderful. You always hear ‘Mom- look it is Mickey!’ or ‘Look! Look! It’s Sponge Bob!’ I love it.”
For Lucier, growing up in New Jersey and going to New York or Philadelphia was always part of the holiday plans. So when he arrived at East Carolina University and there was annual bus trip to New York, he jumped at the opportunity. Now it is an annual tradition.
“My family does not even ask where we are going for the holiday anymore,” Lucier joked.

Aaron Lucier at Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

He added that each trip involves much more than the holiday parade, such as visiting Times Square, attending Broadway shows and of course, seeing Rockefeller Center decked out for Christmas. His trips have also included watching NBC’s TODAY show from start to finish, attending an outdoor Eurythmics concert and having dinner with Chef Robert Irvine from the TV “Dinner Impossible” at Bobby Flay’s restaurant. (By the way, Bobby called to check in with the party during dinner).
So will this annual holiday tradition continue?

“Absolutely!” said Lucier “I would encourage folks to consider breaking away from the Thanksgiving table one year to travel together. And New York City, Times Square and the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is a great example of how to make that holiday very special.”

Join the club: ECU Club Baseball gives students chance to compete beyond high school

More than 40 million children play organized sports today, and fewer than 5 percent who graduate from high school will be good enough to play a varsity college sport.

No major revelation there. Some kids are college athlete material and some aren’t. But that doesn’t mean their love of the game dissolves at the end of high school.

Anyone out there who has loved sport is aware of the disheartening odds of making it to the college level. But college students have the opportunity to continue playing the game they love through club sports such as ECU’s club baseball program.

NCAA universities to meet at ECU to improve sports risk management

East Carolina University in conjunction with the ECU Police Department, will host a Sports Event Risk Management Training Workshop June 24-25 on the ECU campus in Harvey Hall. The workshop is funded and conducted by the University of Southern Mississippi Center for Spectator Sports Security Management, and is open to specific NCAA institutions.

The workshop targets five distinct authoritative groups of any NCAA university: police, athletic department, emergency management, fire/hazmat, and emergency medical/health services. The two-day training session educates each “action team” on various aspects of planning and risk assessment for sports events with expectations to implement these principles accordingly.

Event risk management delivery plans were designed particularly for NCAA I, II and III divisions to provide a standard foundation for security practices at all intercollegiate sporting events. Training sessions will cover several critical aspects of risk analysis. Action teams will develop awareness of terrorism, support regional and state prevention activities of potential hazards to sports events, conduct disaster exercises and develop guidelines for physical protection infrastructure.

The Center for Spectator Sports Security Management will hold 80 two-day training sessions and train an estimated 5,370 key personnel throughout the United States. Institutions invited to attend the training session at ECU are High Point University, the University of North Carolina Asheville, the University of North Carolina Wilmington, North Carolina A&T State University, South Carolina State University, the University of South Carolina, Appalachian State University, College of Charleston, The Citadel, Davidson College and Duke University.

Using social media: Step No. 2: Get your blog on

THIRD IN A SERIES

Did you know there are positive educational benefits to blogging? Some universities are utilizing blogs as a means to enhance educational outcomes. Blogs are being used as a competitive way to improve students’ writing skills and connections to each other by using a medium with which they are familiar. The students want their blogs to be the most popular and get the most responses. How can your department utilize blogs to enhance communication with your students?

Check out Pace University’s cutting edge Student Life blogs where students can read about other students’experiences — in their own words. They can also get advice from current students, learn about different activities and organizations, and hear about life beyond campus. Pace even goes as far as to say, “And remember, these are the thoughts and opinions of students – not the University’s.”

NEXT: DELIVERING YOUR MESSAGE

Using social media: Step 1: Weave a sticky Web to lure students in

SECOND IN A SERIES

Do you ever wonder, “Why aren’t the students coming in to get our brochures or guidebooks?”

“Why are they STILL saying they don’t know where we are located or what we do?” or

“Why can’t we get them to come to this new program?!”

Marshall McLuhan, the media theorist, had it right when he said, “the message is in the medium.”

Today, it’s all about having an online presence. You must weave your messages on “the Web” — the current medium of choice for information-seeking students.

New online tool helps faculty, staff assist students who are in crisis

East Carolina University’s Office of Victim Services is offering all faculty and staff a new way of signing up for a variety of crisis management presentations.

The office has created an online presentation request form that faculty and staff can access on via the victim services Web site. The form is being implemented as a new protocol for presentation requests. It will also provide faculty and staff with a detailed listing of their services.

The Office of Victim Services offers presentations centered on sexual assault, relationship violence, stalking/harassment and victim advocacy. With a focus on prevention and awareness these presentations provide students with important safety precautions they can take to reduce the risk of being a victim.