March 2008 Archives

If you weren't on campus last Thursday, you missed out on what will most certainly be a new tradition for the Southern Miss campus.

It's going to be such a busy weekend!

Thursday, we formally inaugurated our new SGA president, Melissa Cirino into office, and enjoyed her first speech as president as well as Vince Fabra's final speech.  Simply put, it's hard to really put into words how wonderful the Southern Miss student experience is... but these two came close to catching lightning in a bottle.  Truly inspiring and heartfelt speeches that show how great their leadership is and will be on this campus.

We'll have footage of both their speeches and the party that followed in the next day or so.

The party... I hope you got to see the spread they had!  Burgers, fried catfish, hushpuppies, muffalettas, boiled crawfish, Starbucks coffee and desserts-- all free for anyone.  Live music, all the student community, the party was a huge success, and even though this one was particularly to celebrate Dr. Saunders' inauguration, it looks like it may become an annual celebration for the SGA inauguration.

Tonight, Dr. Martha Saunders was formally inaugurated as the 9th president of Southern Miss.  Many students have started to call her Aunt Martha- she's driven, super-intelligent, funny and friendly- I wouldn't be surprised if she fought crime in her spare time or could speak to animals.

Betwen the huge crawfish boil on Saturday, Priority Preview, or anything else popping up around town, I hope you're able to get your feet wet with all of the happenings down in Hattiesburg this weekend.  It's a great time to be a Golden Eagle.

Don't forget, exams, research papers, and the end of the semester is only 5 weeks away.

Here's a video I took of Sam's concert at the Boom Boom Room in downtown Hattiesburg last Saturday. 

Sam Zeanah Band- "Ogygia"

Well, it's actually Southern Miss Music Wednesday... sometimes uploading videos gets tricky.  Enjoy this week's video.  Next week, Sweet Peach 6.

Hey guys, no video here, just some thoughts.

I was reflecting on my experience at Southern Miss, and I am really happy with my decision to attend school here as well as the decisions I've made to be involved in different projects and organizations. I am not involved in what one may consider the main ways to get involved - SGA, GEWW Crew, Eagle Connection, Southern Style, etc. By no means am I saying these are bad organizations and you shouldn't be involved in them, but I was never very interested in being a part of these organizations.

When I was a freshman, I experienced a dilemma common to the first year experience - I wanted to be involved on campus and leave my mark, but I didn't have a clue what clubs I wanted to be a part of. I tried out for Freshman Associates (the freshman branch of the SGA) and Lambda Sigma Honor Society, and was rejected by both. These were two organizations that many top students were a part of, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't upset about not getting into them.

I am now a junior, and I stay very busy. I have finally found the ways to get involved that fit me perfectly. For one, I'm a producer/writer for this video blog. I started a band with 4 other USM students (shameless plug - we're playing Sat., 3/22/08 at the Boom Boom Room at 9 PM). I am the Assistant Director for the Southern Miss Magazine, a cable news show run by students in the Mass Communication & Journalism department. I'm in a fraternity where I've met some of the best friends I'll ever have. In addition, I do various musical performances and video projects.

So if the top organizations aren't a good fit for you, try your best not to get discouraged. This point is preached in many a campus tour and brochure - USM has boatloads of student organizations. And if you don't find a single organization that fits you, start your own.

List of Student Organizations

 

 

Whether of not you're excited about coming back to school after spring break usually depends on where you went and who you spent it with.  If you were skydiving over the Rockies, you're probably reluctant to come back so soon... if you spent three hours in the waiting room of the dentist (like me), you probably felt differently.  Sam and I will be posting a short doc on our spring breaks very soon.

In the meantime, go ahead and send your photos of your spring break to samandjakeusm@gmail.com, and we'll be glad to throw them up online.

Oh yeah- check back later today, new video goes online before suppertime.

 

-Jake

One of the segments of this blog will be showcasing the original music of student musicians here at Southern Miss.  Here's Sam Zeanah performing "April Fools."  Next week, Matthew Funches.  Enjoy.

What's up?  You've stumbled onto the new student video blog for the University of Southern Mississippi.  My name is Jake Meek, and I'll be working with Sam Zeanah to bring you this SPV blog-- a continual investigation into  student life here at Southern Miss.  We'll be filming short documentaries, interviews with students and faculty, student musicians and pretty much everything else that's a part of the student experience.  We're always looking for new ideas-- please feel free to email us at samandjakeUSM@gmail.com.As for this video: how do you celebrate the beginning of the new semester?  For us, Syllabus Day is a true holiday here at Southern Miss.  How your syllabi look on day one will determine the outcome of the entire semester...