The IMU Celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month

Did you know Hispanic Heritage Month starts on September 15 and ends October 15?  Well, many people dont know this.  It's very important that we celebrate more than our own culture.

The Indiana Memorial UnionGallery is showcasing a Latina artist named Bertha E. Gutierrez.  The title of her work is called "My Fire." Her paintings depict what life is like being an immigrant in the United States.  She uses bold vibrant colors that help illustrate the hardships she goes through being Latina.

Please take the time out to do an activity or learn something new in spirit of Hispanic Heritage Month.  Most Resident Halls feature information on the different Indiana University has several event s going on so I encourage you to check the main website for future events.

The Manhattan Shorts arent Short on Entertainment

This week Bloomington had the chance to host the Manhattan Short Film Festival.  The short films will be shown in 203 cities and across six continents.  The festival is in its 12th year and many winners have gone on to win oscars.  The Manhattan shorts consist of 10 films from across the world that will be screened by over 100,000 people.

The winner will be decided by the viewers.  At the end of the festival you fill out a voting card that will be tallied with votes form all over the world.

I thought the films were interesting.  I had never been to a film festival before and didn't know what to expect.  I thought they were going to be these weird French films with the word "fin" at the ending scene. Yes, some were odd but most of them left me wanting more.  I could really see some turned into full length movies.  It was fun seeing films from all over the world.  Good luck to all the contestants!

Students Weave the Night Away

For many of my faithful readers, you will recall that I attended a yarn dyeing workshop last spring.  Well, remember the yarn I dyed?  It's back!  That's right, I finally have the chance to do something with that yarn.  I am currently in a weaving class and I love it.  Weaving is way more time consuming than I thought but the finished product is well worth it.

The class is mixed of expert weavers and beginning weavers.  This is a great combination because at times when the teacher isn't available you can ask a fellow classmate.  Especially when you find yourself weaving late into the night and you cant contact the teacher.

The most labor intensive part about weaving ,besides dyeing, is preparing the loom.  This takes several steps which are very time consuming.  If one step is not done correctly then that can throw your whole progress off.

Learning new things can be challenging at first but very exciting.  Indiana University offers a wide variety of classes for whatever you want to learn more about.  I have taken and found classes that I thought never thought existed and IU continues to amaze me.  If your willing to go outside your comfort zone and try something new then go for it!

Black Student Orientation held at the Neal-Marshall

The Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center is home to many students and events.  They pride themselves on providing a safe haven for the Black American students that attend IU.  They hold several events that are directed towards the Black American students and staff on campus.  The most popular events are the Brown Bag Series, Black Knowledge Bowl, Juneteenth Freedom Celebration, and Black Student Orientation.

The fourth annual Black Student Orientation at Indiana University Bloomington was held on September 10, Friday.  This welcoming event displays the resources at IU and the its Bloomington surroundings. The event featured several speakers that touched on the importance of unity on campus.  Many Black students requested that there should be more chances for them to become involved in the community.  In an effort to solve this problem, the Black Student Orientation was started in 2007.  

Taste of the Union

The best thing about Welcome Week is all the free food.  Welcome Week events are guaranteed to have free food for all to enjoy.  Every year students get the opportunity to sample the restaurants in the Indiana Memorial Union (IMU).

Restaurants such as Burger King, Pizza Hut, and Sugar & Spice offer students free samples of their menu.  Students can sample a wide range of treats like no-bake cookies to chicken sandwiches.

Not only did this event have free food but also they had plenty of entertainment.  Lucky participants got to enjoy karaoke, animal ballon artists, and one minute photo booth so friends can capture that special moment.  Hope you enjoyed the Taste of the Union.

Welcome IU Students

Welcome back IU students! I hope you're having a great transition to Indiana University, whether your new or an old face here on campus. I’m Dayja and a returning blogger for RPS. This is my last semester at Indiana University and I’m hoping to make it an interesting semester.

I had a very exciting summer. This summer I had the opportunity to travel to Ghana. I studied the Ghanaian language at IU and wanted the chance to use it fulltime. So for 3 months I lived and traveled in Ghana. The first month I taught English and literature at a local middle school. The rest of my time was spent traveling the various landmarks that Ghana had to offer.


My favorite site was the Kakum National Park where we walked across the famous canopy walkway bridges.

I had a truly great experience in Ghana. I loved experiencing another culture so different from my own. It made you appreciate the things you didn’t have as well as the things you didn’t want. If you ever get the opportunity to travel outside the United States, take it. I promise you won't regret it!

Luau Barbecue at Collins

To help get students ready for summer vacation, Collins Residence Hall held a luau.  Originally it was schelduled for outside but due to the rainy weather it was moved inside.

The luau had all th best elements of summer including snowcones, barbecue, and grass skirts.  You could also get your picture taken infront of a faux water wave.  When the food was close to being gone, they ended the night with a movie.  They watched 50 first dates to continue with the Hawaiian spirit.