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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (March 30, 2005)
| National update | & Come Join the Fun! 13th & Lawrence1 683-1300 • www.ber9sskish0p.com www.dailyemerald.com your place for news classifieds reader polish -^-archives and more^ U.S. REPRESENTATIVE • 4TH DISTRICT * OREGON PETER DeFAZIO AN INVITATION TO A TOWN HALL MEETING Due to overwhelming demand, I have scheduled another Social Security town hall meeting. Please come to share your thoughts and concerns. Wednesday, March 30 5:30 - 6:30 PM Harris Hall Lane County Courthouse 125 E. 8th Avenue Eugene For more information, please call 1-800-944-9603. This ad was prepared and published at taxpayer expense. Exchange program lures students to Utah's peaks BY DEBBIE HUMMEL THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ALTA, Utah — For hundreds of col lege students, the choice between making the first tracks through a mountain of powder snow or trudg ing through the cold for an 8 a.m. English literature class would be an agonizing one. Westminster College in Salt Lake City is making that decision much easier. A new program, Winter at Westminster, lets students from oth er colleges make their turns and get credit, too, from January to May. For $2,500 on top of the standard $12,651 for tuition and room and board, students get a season pass to Alta and Snowbird resorts and other outdoor activities. Here’s how it works: Students at tend regular college courses Monday through Thursday, leaving Fridays and weekends open for the pro gram’s planned excursions to the mountain runs above Salt Lake. This is the pilot year, with three students taking part. Next year, school officials hope to allow up to 100 students. This year’s group has participated in Nordic and freestyle ski jumping clinics at the Utah Olympic Park and an on-site avalanche class with the mountain patrol at Snowbird. Plans also call for a three-day yurt camping trip in the remote Uinta Mountains of eastern Utah, where the group will snowshoe, backcountry ski and learn about avalanche safety. “It’s been the semester of a life time,” said Jill DeVleming, a 20-year old junior at Whitman College in Walla Walla, Wash. DeVleming had been turned down for an internship with a snowboard company and planned on getting her snowboarding fix by riding on her school’s team. But while she was supposed to be working on a paper last November, she just couldn’t shake a “snowboarding bug.” A quick Internet search turned up the Winter at Westminster program. “i called home and said, ‘Mom, guess what I’m doing next semes ter?’ I cleared everything within three days,” she said. She took a leave of absence from Whitman, but all 12 of the credits she earns at Westminster will trans fer toward her double major in art history and economics. Not only has the program afford ed her dozens of outdoor opportu nities, including snowboarding dur ing a season when resorts in her native Washington are hurting for snow, she also scored an internship at the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association’s headquarters in Park City, Utah. “It’s really just solidified my dream of working in the ski indus try,” DeVleming said. Westminster is a small, private liberal arts college. Shortly after school president Michael Bassis took over in 2002, the school began working on a new plan to promote its location near several world-class ski resorts and former Winter Olympic venues. “Most of the other schools that have advantageous locations for recreation are three hours away from a city. We have the best of both worlds,” Bassis said. Sarah Selznick West, formerly with the USSA, was hired as the program’s director. She said she’s been impressed with the students’ enthusiasm. “We want to bring students here to the college to show them the experience of Utah’s diverse landscape, to honor Utah’s Olympic heritage and to network with industry leaders and entrepre neurs,” she said. The program partners with sever al leaders in Utah’s ski industry, and through this year’s trial run the number of outdoor opportunities available to the students has grown. A last-minute addition of a biathlon clinic was a hit with the students, West said, particularly with Brennan Ziegler. The 21-year-old from Oakdale, N.Y., enrolled in the program to fill the space between his gradua tion from Suffolk County Communi ty College in New York and his plans to go to James Madison Uni versity, which doesn’t accept midyear transfers. “It was a good school, and I’d be able to come to Utah and snow board and ski on supposedly the greatest snow on Earth, which I’ve found to be true,” Ziegler said. Utah has spent millions market ing that feeling, using the motto “Greatest Snow on Earth.” But the state often lags behind its neighbor Colorado as the first place people think of when it comes to winter time fun. Winter at Westminster is a “win-win situation for the industry and the school,” West said. Trip Initiator's Clinic Tuesday and Thursday April 5 and 7 Become an OP trip initiator: it's easy. The first night covers OP philosophy, liability, trip planning, and procedures. Thursday we'll go over the use of the equipment facility (The Barn), the gear, vehicles, safety procedures, and more. Attendance at both sessions is required to become a trip initiator. Free! Tuesday, 5:30pm: Outdoor Program Thursday, 5:30pm: OP Barn OP Kayak Pool Sessions Tuesdays, April 12,19,26 and May 10,17 Practice your skills in Gerlinger Pool on the UO Campus for five skill-builder sessions. An OP staff person will be on hand to offer informal tips, but instruction is not provided. Reserve your spot early by pre-paying at the OP Office. Pool Session: $3 UO students and co-op members, $5 general admission, OP kayak rental $5 (first-come basis). Tuesdays, 7:30pm - 9:00pm: Gerlinger Pool Banff Mountain Film Festival Friday and Saturday, April 15 & 16 The 29th Banff Festival of Mountain Films offers big-screen adventures highlighting mountain culture, environment, and sports films. Advanced ticket sales begin March 29th at EMU Tickets, REI Eugene, and all Fastixx outlets. Tickets are $8 for UO students/co-op members; $10 general admission (students and co-op members must buy tickets at REI or EMU to receive discount). Prices will increase $2 at the door. Friday & Saturday, 7:00pm: McDonald Theatre Birds of the Willamette Valley Friday & Saturday, April 22 & 23 Join Dan Gleason for a fascinating slideshow on "Birds of the Willamette Valley," followed by a bird-watching outing in the Pisgah area the following morning. The presentation is free, and the outing will cost $4. Pre-pay and register at the Outdoor Program. Friday, 7:00 pm: 110 Willamette Hall O .. Saturday, 7:30 am: meet at OP Bam (lltli 8 University) Accommodations for people with disabilities will be provided if requested in advance. ?■!.. .11 ■■■■!■« ftp , r,V. ,■ Rock Climbing 101 Saturday, April 23 The OP and Outdoor Pursuits Program (OPP) bring you a fun day of rock climbing and technique instruction, tailored to beginner and intermediate climbers with 2.5 hours of instruction. $8 for students/co-op members, $10 general admission. Rent SRC rock shoes, harnesses, and belay devices for $3. Registration limited to 10 persons per clinic. Pre register at the OP office. Session I • Saturday, 10:00 am • 12:30 pm: Skinner's Butte Climbing Columns Session II - Saturday, 12:45 pm ■ 3:15 pm: Skinner's Butte Climbing Columns New Hikes in the Central Oregon Cascades Wednesday, April 27 Author and hiking guru William L. Sullivan takes us on dozens of new trails between Salem and Bend included in his guidebook, "100 Hikes in the Central Oregon Cascades." Along the way, expect anecdotes about local history, wildflowers, and outdoor lore. Author of 12 books about Oregon, including one of "the 100 most significant books in state history", the Outdoor Program is proud to host this Oregonian legend. Wednesday, 7:00 pm: 177 Lawrence Hall 15th Annual Rogue River Clean-UP Thursday-Sunday, April 28 - May 1 Have a blast picking up trash as we float and hike the Rogue banks, picking up garbage between Rainie Falls and Mule Creek Canyon. Local businesses support the effort with food, boats, gear, and other donations. Sign-up at the OP office on April 1st at 5:30 pm . Space is limited, experienced rowers needed! Estimated cost $40-$50. Thursday, 7:00am: OP Barn OP Barn Trip Facility and Rental Program 346-4 {loth & University) General Information: OP Office 346-4365 (Basement of EMU, Room 37) http://oytdoorprogram.uoregon.edu UO Outdoor Program University of Oregon Room 37 EMU ,_) Eugene, OR 9^403
