SCREEN PRINTING EMBROIDERY TRIANGLE GRAPHICS Experienced Artlete • Sample Showroom 344-7288 EUGENE SltVim I KS STUDENT TANDEM SPECIAL $100 Video Taping Available Call Today: 895-3029 Coupon must be presented at time of purchase. Limit one jump per coupon per customer. Expires 12/7/98 Must have current valid student ID at time of purchase FIGs help new students grow Freshman groups ease the transition from high school to the University By Stefanie Knowlton lor the Emerald Most students would agree with Webster’s that a FIG is “a small, sweet, pear-shaped fruit." But contrary to popular belief, a FIG at the University stands for “Freshman Interest Group.” Established 16 years ago, FIGs are now a common part of the freshman experience. Some 1,000 students partici pate each year in FIGs. Students can join FIGs that focus on spe cific interests ranging from reli FIGS gion to history to business. Jack Bennett, director and founder of the FIG program, said FIGs share the goal of “con necting students to each other around an academic theme with student mentors.” The program is on a first-come, first-served basis. But FIG stu dents are guaranteed enrollment in a set of core classes that ad dress their interests. For instance, students in the “Exploring Italy” FIG take Italian 101,150 and 199, and Linguistics 144. “It’s a way to link students up with each other for their academ ic classes” said Marcy Hunt, a graduate teaching fellow who helps run the FIG program. Claire Robertson, now a sopho Graduation and persistence rates for freshmen FIG students' graduation and persistence rates are considerably higher than those of non-FIG students. FIGs after 4 years* Non-FIGs after 4 years* Graduated Continued Dropped out SOURCE: Jack Bennett, director of FIG program •for freshmen starting fait 1992 Katie Nesse/Emerald more and communications direc tor for the ASUO, said she be lieves the program makes life eas ier for freshmen. “I went to my first class in 221 Allen,” said Robertson, who was in a journalism FIG. “There was a couple hundred people in there, and I knew faces and names ... that was really nice.” Besides core classes, each FIG has two student leaders who help freshmen adjust to college life, such as setting up e-mail ac counts, registering for classes and navigating the campus. Student leaders also sponsor study sessions and recreational activities. "We encourage the FIG leaders to throw out ideas and then have the group formulate what they want to do,” Hunt said. The program is tracked through student evaluations. Sur vey results reveal that nearly 80 percent of participants believe FIGS helped them make the tran sition to college. FIG participants also have higher graduation and retention rates compared with non-FIG students. Although FIG students have average SAT scores and high school GPAs, 45.3 percent of them graduate within four years, compared with only 34.7 percent for the University as a whole. But students have made one suggestion for improvement: more FIGs. Only 45 exist now. “I was going to join, but the FIG I wanted to join was full,” freshman Emily Fenning said. The University is taking steps to involve more students. This year, a FIG for transfer students is being tried out in an effort to re tain students. “If students connect early to each other, to student mentors and to faculty, it seems to have a long-term effect,” Bennett said. Affordable Technology _ we build oomputers VOUr way PROUD MEMBER OF THE B. B. B. all systems standard with □regdn’s largest WHOLESALE COMPUTER MANUFACTURER IS NOW IN EUGENE FREE SERVICE UPGRADES • 64mb SDRAM •36x CD-ROM • 4.3Gb UltraDMA HardDisk • 4Mb S3 ViRGE64 3D Card • 56k kFlex FaxA/oice Modem • 16brt Yamaha Sound Card • 170w Multimedia Speakers • Windows98 w/CD/Manual Pka 512* AGP Mtfhertxd 3 5* floppy Dm*. 104-Wy Keytxxwi Sena Mouse ALL SYSTEMS | INCLUDE TONS □ F FREE, REAL software: Office Suite for Win 95. Quicken. . J Chessmaster 4000. Compton s 3-in- 1 Reference Set. Bodyworks 5.0. Mavis Beacon Typing. Complete U.S. & World ! Atlas Set. Kids.Zoo EYPLOREF . AND OYER 1 .000 more! visit 1 1 42 WILLEGILLESPIE RD SUITE! 1 3 1 ,SSS. BYTE. 1 23 hours: Mon-Fri 9-6 / Sat & Sun 10-4 WWW. .com We are an authorized Microsoft OEM ::6c Affordable let hrotogy tnc All trademarks property of their respective oy/ners. ' QAQ P-3001 • 32mb RAM 1 •24x CD-ROM I • 4.3Gb UltraDMA HardDisk • 4Mb 64bit 3D Video • 56k kFlex FaxA/oice Modem • 16bit Yamaha Sound Card • 170w Multimedia Speakers • Windows98 w/CD/Manual Plus- 512k AGP Mo*w*»occJ 3 5‘floppy Owe 104-key Keytoord Se Mouse ACCEPTED DIGITAL SVGA MONITOR INCLUDED >64mb SDRAM! •36x CD-ROM I • 6.4Gb UltDMA HardDisk • 4Mb S3 ViRGE64 3D Card • 56k V. 90 Fax/Voice Modem • 16bit Yamaha Sound Card • 170w Multimedia Speakers • Windows98 w/CD/Manual POS 440BX AGP Mc«nea 3 5‘ Fiopp, Drive, 104-kay Kerfxxjfl PS/2 Mouie SI499!