inside Rhodes

Tomorrow is the first official day of finals. While I don’t have a final until Tuesday, I am about to become one of the most unreachable people on campus. However, before I retreat into my studious hole I wanted to send another post your way to give insight into campus life during finals.

While the academic calendar typically shows the last day of classes as Friday, April 25th, the truth is that the last day of class is actually a Thursday, because on that last Friday we have the Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity Symposium here at Rhodes. This is when all students have the opportunity to showcase what they have been doing all year. Click on the link to go to this year’s program and get an idea of the wide variety of things in which our students are involved.

Since I had Physics homework due that night, I only went to one program to support Stephen and I had a great time. Stephen presented with the help of six students from Snowden Elementary where he taught robotics twice a week for both semesters. This captured the attention of the local media and he was on the front page of the Local section of the Commercial Appeal (our newspaper) and on their online videos known as AppealTV. Click here to see what they had to say!

After URCAS and a little bit of relaxation, I headed over to the BCLC to get ready for the 5th annual BCLC Bash sponsored by C.H.E.E.R.S., the peer ed group of which I am a part! As a BACCHUS affiliate our typical activities are usually somewhat educational in nature, but the BCLC Bash is held from 11pm to 2am just before finals weekend to give students a place to relax without necessity for drinking. We had open gym, an inflatable, free massages, food, a band, coloring, crafts, henna tattoos, board games and more. We had a great turn out of over 150 people even though it was storming. It was our last event to be hosted with the graduating seniors so in a way it was a bit nostalgic. We finished cleaning up by 4am and I was asleep pretty much as soon as my head hit the pillow! Below is a picture of The Miner 49ers (the student band that played):

And yesterday… I had a day reserved for myself. Since my first final is not until Tuesday, I knew that it would be okay for me to use one day to just get a bit rejuvenated. Last weekend I had a horrible stomach bug and was glued to my bed and it really felt like I hadn’t had a weekend. So now, after taking my two days, I am ready to go. As I said in the last post, bring on the finals!

It is really important during this stressful and sleep depriving time of any college student’s life that you try to take time for yourself when you can. Sometimes, this may only be a quick dinner on campus with a friend, or 15 minutes of simply putting everything away and taking a deep breath. While you shouldn’t make a habit of it, never be afraid to look at a professors late work policy if you feel that an all-nighter is not your style. What I don’t suggest is what I have seen several people doing this week: It is not a good idea to go out drinking before the week of finals.

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Some information from my BACCHUS resources.

The following statistics show on average, students who drink the most alcohol receive the lowest grades:

• students average 3.1 per week
• students average 4.4 drinks per week
• students averages 5.6 drinks per week
• students average 9.5 drinks per week

Attention and Concentration

There is some evidence that chronic drinkers have a hard time keeping their attention focused and maintaining their concentration. Attentiveness and concentration are mental functions used in the classroom on a daily basis and are critical parts of the learning process. The degree to which these functions are affected depends on how much alcohol is consumed. Chronic long-term abusers of alcohol experience the major effects. However, social drinkers also develop deficits in their mental functioning. The more alcohol a person has when they go out, the more likely they are to experience negative effects.

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This is not the time of year to test this one out! To relieve stress: go for a run, vent to friends, visit the counseling center, visit the BCLC, or do cartwheels down the hallway (as long as you do it quietly since it happens to be 24-hour quiet hours.

Okay, wonderful people, I am out… ready to embark on final exam studying. I am just six days away from senior year. Wow!

I will blog again when I am a senior!

Good luck with all the challenges that will face you in the coming week. Comment if you have questions, remarks, well-wishes… insert your own option here…

Signing off to study!

Sarah