Blog #5

1.)         Could you give me some background on how you became president of the panhellenic council?

2.)               What are your responsibilities as president?

3.)               How long are you allowed to be president for? (As in only for one year? One recruitment season? Or for longer?)

4.)              If you were not president during the spring 2011 formal recruitment who was?

5.)              Did you hold a position during the last recruitment? If so what were your responsibilities?

6.)              How did your experience compare to this year’s recruitment from last year’s?

7.)              What was the system for dropping sorority houses last year?

8.)              How did it compare to the new computerized system this year?

9.)              I heard that the system has always been computerized, but in previous years Rho Gammas had to input girls answers in the computer themselves. Why the change?

10.)          Do you think having the girls put there own answers in is a better system? Why or why not?

11.)          Do you think the new system offered more privacy for the girls?

12.)          Were the more problems reported this year with the new computer system than with the system used last year?

13.)          I know of one girl who reported being dropped from a house that she was not supposed to be dropped from and then had to miss their philanthropy night. Did that happen last year as well?

14.)     Were there any other situations similar to that one that happened this year? Were there more this year or last?

15.)          How long did it take for girls to drop houses last year compared to this year?

16.)           How did the number of girls participating in recruitment this year compare to last year?

17.)          How did the number of girls who dropped recruitment altogether compare with this year to last year?

18.)          Do you have any advice for girls who are considering going through recruitment in the Spring or next Fall?

19.)          Do you have any advice for the next panhellenic president?

20.)     Over all, in a few sentences could you explain how your experience with last year's recruitment compared to this year's?     

Blog #4

I have decided to write my feature article on the 2011 formal sorority recruitment week. I have emailed the Panhellenic President, Ms. Courtney Hooper, to set up an interview time for later in the week. This article would be ideal in an issue of Cosmopolitan or Seventeen (Magazines). My article would be perfect for either of these publications because it deals with an issue that is relevant to their target audience. A good part of my article will be the interview with Ms. Hooper, since that is where most of my research will be from. Most of the interview articles in those magazines are set up with a formal article leading up to an informal question and answer sequence. However, because I have other information besides the interview I am not sure if I will set my article up that way. These publications target girls mostly in their teenage years and early twenties so the tone is typically informal, but the articles still follow the rules of a news article. Because the readers of both Seventeen and Cosmo are typically younger females I would try to keep them interested with a shocking angle to my story. Instead of being a story just about the sorority recruitment I will try to focus on some of the scandals, but I will also show how the Panhellenic council resolved all of those issues quickly. The readers of these publications would most likely be interested in photos of the recruitment week or statistics on how many girls participated, dropped out, and how many are in each sorority. 

Blog #3

Roberts advises this student to improve their essay on college football by avoiding the obvious arguments. He says this will help them avoid writing the same paper as every other student. According to Roberts the student should instead go for the unique, and therefore harder to prove, arguments. This impresses the professor and keeps them interested. Roberts also argues that the student should also try to use more specific examples instead of general statements. General statements are unlikely to persuade the reader to agree with an argument. However, if the student uses a specific story to prove what they are saying it is more likely to convince their audience to agree with them. Additionally, Roberts advises the student should get rid of obvious padding. Just because there is a specific word count the student should not turn four words into forty with out adding any new information. Roberts states that just because students are younger and less experienced does not mean they should demean themselves by writing "in my opinion," or other similar phrases. They should instead simply state their opinion in an authoritative way. Roberts also says the student should avoid phrases that are cliché. He says they are acceptable on occasion, but too many can cause the essay to loose its meaning. Also word choice is important. Roberts reminds the student that fancy words are not always better and the flow of the essay is the most important thing. 

Specifically in the student's essay on college football I would suggest that they use Roberts' advice regarding the use of more specific examples instead of general statements. The student uses very vague ideas and does not give any support. Instead of arguing that college football is bad because a "high school star was offered a convertible if he would play football for a certain college," the student should have put some more research in and found a specific example. 

Blog #2

Stephanie's Playlist

Take Me Back To Beach Week

1.) Wiz Khalifa "No Sleep"

                    -...we pretty much blasted this song every morning that whole week. 

2.) Zac Brown Band "Knee Deep"

                    -"...the only worry in the world is the tide gonna reach my chair."

3.) Kenny Chesney "Summertime"

                    -"School's out and the nights roll in..."

My Lovely Boyfriend

1.) Tim McGraw "My Best Friend"

                    -...well this is our song

2.) Kenny Chesney "All I Want for Christmas is a Real Good Tan"

                    -"Well, if you're thinkin' bout getting me a present this year 

                       Let me put a bug in your cute little ear 

                       How 'bout two tickets to a tropical shore

                      Where we don't have to wear these winter clothes anymore..." 

3.) Lee Brice "She Ain't Right"

                    -His song to me...

Great Friends, Great Times

1.) Kenny Chesney "Out Last Night"

                    -"We went out last night

                       Like we swore we wouldn't do

                      Drank too much beer last night 

                      A lot more than we wanted to..."

2.) Katy Perry "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)"

                    -"It's a blacked out blur But I'm pretty sure it ruled..."

3.) Dierks Bently "Am I the Only One"

                    -No I'm not.

We Will Probably Never Grow Up

1.) Montgomery Gentry "While You're Still Young"

                    -"Blowin' out Spring break with your not right friends

                       Wake up on the beach with new ink on your skin

                       Do something scary and dumb while you're still young"

2.) Kenny Chesney "Young"

                    -"We were brave, we were crazy, we were mostly young."

3.) Kenny Chesney "Beer in Mexico"

                    -"Maybe I'll settle down, get married 

                      Or stay single and stay free

                      Which road I travel is still a mystery to me

                      So I'll just sit right here, have another beer in Mexico..."