Regular Decisions Released Tonight!

Regular decisions will be released tomorrow at 8:00 AM! Look on your OPUS account and you will be able to view your decision and your letter online. You will also be receiving a decision packet and hard copy of your letter next week. Good luck with your decisions and remember to sign up for our Spring for Oxford events for accepted students.

Alternative Spring Break 2010

“All work and no play make Jack a dull boy”

This is why we have spring break! So, Jacks and Jills across the United States can take a breather from academics and extracurriculars. Still, sometimes work and play can be a match made in heaven. Trust me, I worked and played this spring break and loved every moment of it. 

I always thought that my first college spring break would include a tropical vista, bikinis, crystal clear water, my best girlfriends, days of much needed R&R and a really expensive price tag. I was prepared for this and ready to shell out the big bucks to have a typical, run-of-the-mill spring break—that is, until I heard about Alternative Spring Break.

Here at Oxford, the Alternative Spring Break trip is insanely popular. You can’t just sign up and go—you have to apply and be chosen. Being the person I am (I sign up for everything) I applied and I got it. I actually didn’t expect to be chosen. I had plans to go to Puerto Rico but a chance at ASB pushed that all aside. I still had an awesome time but it was significantly less expensive than Puerto Rico and I worked with a great cause!

I probably have y'all wondering: “What makes ASB so special?” Well, let me start from the very beginning.

A group of 29 students (including myself) and five faculty and staff volunteers (including Dean of Campus Life, Joe Moon) traveled to New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama last Saturday at the beginning of our spring break. We spent the following week taking in New Orleans culture and food (yum!), bonding, having warm and fuzzy moments, soaking up some sun on the Gulf Shores, and building a six bedroom house for a family of 13 (yes thirteen!) African refugees with Habitat for Humanity.

I’m still amazed that we managed to fit everything that we did into seven days. It was a truly awesome experience. I didn’t know anyone going on the trip but the trip really encouraged us to bond and talk to new people. We’re like one big happy family now :) We learned how to work together, have fun together, and live together. Now, we can’t get enough of each other! We’ve actually been having mini ASB reunions ever since school started again.

Check out this link for our news coverage!

'Til Next Time,

Imani :)

P.S. Happy St. Patty's Day, Y'all!

 

Springing Forward!

Spring is here and the quad is blooming with excitement! The students just came back from spring break (as Lizzy noted) and the end of the semester is approaching. We had two groups of students go to some unique locations this spring break. A group of 32 students chose to forego the usual tanning, swimming, and beach activities to build a house in Mobile, AL. We also had a group of student that traveled to Ecuador for Dr. McQuaide's Social Change in Developing Societies course.
Look out for Oxford 101 which will be on March 21st. This event is for 9th-11th graders who would like to gain a good insight into the college application process. Register online today!

The End of Spring Break

I'm actually writing this blog post from 36,005' in the air (thank you Delta and inflight Wi-Fi!). Well, it's the end of spring break. Less than 2 months of the semester left and then I shall be graduating from Oxford. It's scary knowing that I won't be coming back to Oxford in the fall. It's also scary that I only have about 6 weeks until finals (so much work to do!).

Anyways... much has happened so far this semester. I joined Gamma Phi Beta at the Atlanta campus. It has been a wonderful experience. I have met so many wonderful people through the sorority and I'm excited to be at the Atlanta campus full-time next year to take full advantage of the sorority. This week is clue week, so I'll be getting "clues" from my big sister (I don't know who she is yet... hence the clues). I'm quite excited. It's something nice to come back from spring break to. I declared a Biology major and as of right now, I am pursuing a MD/PhD dual degree. I applied to several summer research programs, but I have not heard back from all of them yet.

Spring break was a lot of fun. I went back home to NYC with a friend of mine. We did a lot of sight-seeing around the city: The Bronx Zoo, the Statue of Liberty, MoMA, Guggenheim, every Apple store (Curtis works at an Apple store in Georgia), and lots of walking throughout the city. We also saw a lot of shows: In the Heights (I was blown away!), Joan Rivers, God of Carnage, The Addams Family (so amazing - it's going to be a huge hit!) and The Miracle Worker (Abigail Breslin was amazing as Helen Keller and Allison Pill was an excellent Anne Sullivan). And of course some shopping! Haha.

Well, we should be getting ready for landing soon. Much more later!

Peace and love,
Lizzy

February Fun!

February has been a busy month for us! Financial aid is in full swing and Scholars Weekend last week was a huge success! The sun is finally coming out and campus looks gorgeous, although campus did look beautiful in the snow as well. Throwing a frisbee or studying out on the quad are just beginning as Spring quickly approaches (finally!).

Oxford College is a great value. The academics we offer here combined with the community oriented atmosphere and leadership opportunities make it a great place to start your Emory Undergraduate Career. About 98% of our faculty (even our PE teachers!) have the highest degree in their field and they choose to teach at Oxford because they love teaching 1st and 2nd year students. They want our students to succeed and are unbelievably accessible inside and outside the classroom.

A couple of Financial Aid reminders: Remember to turn in your FAFSA and CSS profile as soon as possible.Remember that the FAFSA is very important for us to evaluate your financial status and serves as your application for the HOPE scholarship (if you are a Georgia resident) and as a way for us to see if you qualify for work study. Here are the links for the FAFSA and CSS Profile.

Scholars weekend was a big hit! We had 65 candidates on campus to compete for the different levels of 4 year scholarships. We really enjoyed having them here on campus and we hope you got a great glimpse into the student and academic life here at Oxford. Thanks so much for coming and you should be finding our in mid- March about your scholarship selection.

Come on out and visit campus! We have 6 "Spring for Oxford" events available for Accepted Students in April. These events include a tour, student panel, lunch, a feature presenter, and Overnights are available the night before each event.
Spring for Oxford dates are as follows:
April 2nd April 16h
April 5th April 23rd
April 10th April 26th

Oxford 101 is a great way to be informed about the college admissions process! This event is for students in 9th-11th grade and offers a great sense of the admissions process. Oxford 101 will take place on Sunday March 21st.

Remember to visit our website and click on the "Admissions" tab for more details about these and other events. Also, if you applied regular decision check your application status online to ensure we have received all of your necessary documents. Until next time!

Volunteer Oxford

" The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others. "

Mahatma Gandhi 

I love this quote so much. The words are undeniable. I've done a lot of volunteering throughout my life. My mom has always encouraged me to give back to my community and to help others. Even as an adult, I still feel the need to volunteer my services when I can. Service helps you grow and I've really seen myself change over the past 18 years due to volunteering. This brings me to another awesome aspect of going to school at Oxford. I'll admit Oxford has a lot of amazing student groups on campus. Still, one of the largest and most popular "clubs" on campus is Volunteer Oxford. 

Through Volunteer Oxford students are given volunteer opportunities that seek to enhance our knowledge of society. In addition to that,  while volunteering we're given  a chance to learn more about ourselves. My first time volunteering at Oxford was with my Freshman Seminar class. With the help of VO we took on an "Into the Streets" service project at a local elementary school. We helped run a fall festival that they had in October. I had so much fun interacting with my classmates, students, and parents.

 I went on my latest VO "mission" last Saturday. A group of about 30 students went to Atlanta to help build a house with Habitat For Humanity. Initially, I was a little skeptical that 30 college students would be willing to give up their Saturday and wake up at 7 AM to do manual labor but Oxford didn't disappoint. Both of the vans were packed with eager students.

Once we arrived at the site we did everything. Volunteering with Habitat was so hands-on. We lifted floorboards, hammered nails, and even put up walls. I was in awe as I stood on the street and admired all that we had accomplished. We literally started with a foundation and by the time we were finished the house had a floor, insulation, and all the walls had been put up. Building a house is no small feat but as a group it was possible. By 3:30 PM we were done framing the house and headed back to Oxford.

In retrospect, I'm still a bit sore (building a house is workout) but the experience made it all worthwhile. VO is always posting new events and opportunities; I can't wait for my next chance to volunteer!

'Til Next Time,

Imani

A New Chapter

So this new semester has certainly started with a lot of changes! I just moved into the new building (East Village). I love my new room. Along with moving, I have some amazing classes this semester: Zoology, Human Nature from the Feminist Perspective(PoliSci 306), Art History, Chemistry 142 (this one is not exactly so amazing... but I need it for my major) and golf (so much fun!).

Zoology is quite exciting. I never knew that sponges or jellyfish could be so fascinating! My political science class is also really cool. It's with Dr. Shapiro (my favorite professor and advisor)and I feel so enlightened after each class. We just finished reading "Medea" which I thoroughly enjoyed. Now we are reading "Lysistrata" which is amazing-ly funny. Art History is quite enjoyable. I've been traveling a lot, so most of the work that we study in class I have seen.

And I joined a sorority: GAMMA PHI BETA! I love it! The girls are awesome. We had our Chapter retreat this weekend, which was a lot more fun than I expected.

Well, got to get back to studying (Zoology exam on Thursday!).

Peace and love,
Lizzy