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Ad space is limited and is taken on a first-come, first-serve basis. Contact the Business Manager at business@ technewsiit.com for more information. LOCAL 8' NATIONAL ADVERTISERS To place an ad, contact us via email at business@technewsiit.com. AUSTIN GONZALEZ opinion@technewsiit.com TechNews | Tuesday, OctoberZOth, 2015 Loving and living life to the fullest Ricardo Torres TECHN EWS WRITER “Sophomore leadership retreat [is] probably the only place where you can meet someone you’ve never talked to before, and by the end of the week feel like you’ve known them all semester," said Todd Wilson These words spoken by a fellow IIT student express the powerful impact the retreat had in our lives and many of us can relate to. The Sophomore Leadership Retreat was only a weekend long but I dare say that the friendships that were formed will last a lifetime. The retreat, the third of its kind held by HT’s Leadership Academy, was filled with exciting team activities where we would learn to trust each other and explore our own fears and limits. “I think the most fun part was the event on Sunday, the high ropes" said Phan Minh Triet. As fellow IIT Student Phan state ed, one of the favorite activities was the High Ropes. In this activity the students had to come plete obstacles referred to as elements high above the ground. The high ropes event was definitely out of my comfort zone. As I prepared with my partner, I looked up at the elements and judged that they would not be too hard to complete. Then our turn came to go up the ladder. I saw my partner go up and I followed and began to climb. Upon reaching the top, I could feel my legs begin to shake and found myself not being able to let go of the safety ropes beside me. My partner and I began to hesitate as we were scared to even begin the first element. We finally gained the courage to try and cross the element and I went in first. As I took a step for ward to step onto the tight rope, I could see the ground below me and I quickly moved back After encouragement from my partner and my own assurance that I was safe with the harness, I took the first step onto the tight rope. I be gan to move further into the element. I could feel the rope move back and forth beneath my feet. My partner followed me close behind. She then reached for my hand and we helped each other maintain our balance. This is when I was thankful for having a brave partner who helped me discover that it was not so bad af ter all. As a fellow IIT student, Precious Eboh, stated, “Hanging more than 20 feet in the air with my partner, I learned the need for efi’ece tive communication, trust and interdepene dence and risk taking" When we reached the other side of the tight rope, we were filled with happiness and excitement. From that moment on, we learned to trust each other and contine ued to complete more elements. On behalf of the sophomore class I would like to thank all the great people who made this experience possible for all of us. Also, a special thanks to the Pretty Lake Staff, George Langlois, and Rodney Vallejo helping us explore ourselves and allow us to live to our fullestl Photo courtesy of Ricardo anres IIT student Facebook group changes name Kevin Zheng TECHN EWS WRITER In the middle of class, I was alerted that someone had tagged me in a Facebook thread. HT Student Subarno Saha had tagged me in a post made on the former Admitted Undergrad page regarding changing the group name to be more inclusive. When the group was originally founded in 2007, its intention was to create a community where admitted students were able to discuss and bond over this new chapter of their life, a new journey, 4, 5, or even 6 years of unforgettable experiences. At the time, the group was a mere few hundredpeople and it has grown to nearly 3,500 people today For those ofyou who don’t know, a recent HT alumna is the founder of the group. Christina Noonan was a student in the College of Architecture and graduated earlier this year from the HT Institute of Design with her Master of Design degree. When asked what inspired her to create the group, she said she was “just a fellow student who noticed a need for a more collective voice for students and a place for people to better share ideas and questions." When asked to elaborate on more details, Christina said, “I actually created the group before I even moved onto campusl I started the group by connecting with people I had met during Camras interview weekend and others that I had interviewed with. The combination of current students and new students made for the perfect combination to create great dialogue and share stories about how to prepare for college. Soon many more people sought to join this group to get the inside scoop and personal advice from students. Jerry Doyle was one of the first administrators to recognize the power of the collective and envision a way in which the group could serve an even greater purpose. Over years of collaboration, the group has become a collective voice for the student body It is a place to ask questions, publicize events, help others, share concerns, and have a voice that has never been stronger. I’m personally really excited that the local community is doing to take notice of the vibrant community that we’ve built. I recognize that it means that our group is much more public facing that it’s ever been, but it also means that the university has a better sense of the goals and values of the collective student body I’m thrilled that members of the group widely remain open and respectful to their fellow peers and that it continues to grow daily" Christina is now in New York changing the way businesses communicate with their customers through user experience design and strategy As the group grew and grew, its members now include more than just undergrad students but included graduate students, alumni, and some university staff members. The group has turned into this university’s public forum ranging from posts about events run by student organizations to financial aid announcements and reminders from the administration. The group had grown so large that the name “Illinois Institute of Technology: Admitted Undergraduate" no longer accurately represented the group. A thread was started on the group about two to three years ago, and in that thread there were debates ofwhether we should use IIT or Illinois Tech in the name, I made the suggestion of Illinois Tech Student Community because TechNews corrections Last issue, in an article c the Sex Games event held in MS it reported that the event V ‘ hosted by Re dence Hall Assoc ition Th informatioi er ing incorrect. The author of the ously reported the event V dence Hall Asso I felt although there were a wide variety of categories that the members belonged to, I felt this group was a community meant for students. It was created by a student, run by students, and the purpose of the group is for students, so I felt that name Illinois Tech Student Community was appropriate, the group is meant to serve and connect students, even the ones who graduated. People seemed to agree with it, however the name could not be changed at the time. Facebook had a policy where groups with over 500 people could not change their name for reasons not clear to me. However, sometime recently, Facebook had decided to change that policy and I was able to change the name to what it currently is now. Students reacted almost instantly on the page making comments from “Finallyl” and “It only makes sense" to a GIF of Ron Paul with lasers behind him with a flashing caption reading “IT’S HAPPENING" When asked how he felt about the group name change, Business Administration student John Ramirez remarked, “I like the change. As time went onI started feeling that ‘Illinois Institute of Technology: Admitted undergraduate’ was no longer a relevant name. As more students graduate or continue on to their masters and PhDs it was clear we needed a refreshed name. I like the new name. It’s not only all encompassing but makes this page a welcoming place for all IIT students." Please continue to post your stories, questions, concerns, and anything else you deem appropriate for the page. It’s been a great honor being an admin for this wonderful Facebook community and please remember to search for Illinois Tech Student Community or ITSC to find the groupl by the Resident Ad\ ors of East, Fowler, and North Ha e apologize for the confusion.