Greenfest Philly will be held on Sept. 8 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Headhouse Row, found on 2nd Street between South and Pine streets. The event will have live entertainment, food, a beer garden and informational sessions on what it means to live green. Their website boosts attendance of more than 100 vendors and exhibitors for festival goers to check out. Though the festival doesn’t have their musical lineup up yet, last year’s performers included Cheers Elephant, Mount Joy, Abstract Verses and You Do You. Festival goers can find vendors and exhibits from organizations such as Drexel Smart House, Philly Aids Thrift and Yumtown USA. Admission to the event is free, but this year the festival is offering a “Greencard” for $25, which gives attendees $10 towards food, two beers, a shirt and much more. There will also be a free bike valet. Greenfest Philly is sponsored by the Clean Air Council. To find more information, visit greefestphilly.org.
Category Archives: Briefs
Philadelphia Museum of Art
Looking to bring a splash of fun to someone?
Sometimes college students end up with a kid by their side for the day, and one who isn’t easily entertained. If a student such as yourself or someone that you may know is stuck babysitting for the night, the Philadelphia Museum of Art may be the place to take them.
The Philadelphia Museum of Art has options for kids, families and friends through both audio and self-guided tours. For students who babysit or have younger siblings, there is a tour that allows kids to imagine they’re a knight getting ready to be in a tournament. The “Arms and Armors” collection will be viewed, followed by opportunities for drawing and writing. There is also a chance for kids to make their own rug through the “Discover Design” program, where Islamic art is studied for its colors and patterns. Lastly, interesting landscape paintings from all over Europe can be studied through the program “Looking at Landscapes.”
The Philadelphia Museum of Art is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays, and until 8:45 p.m. on Wednesdays through Fridays. It’s located at 2000 Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
Admission for students is $14.
For more information on visiting, the visitor’s hotline can be reached at (215)-763-8100.
School of Medicine named second best in Philadelphia
The School of Medicine was ranked the 51st best research medical school in the country, according to U.S. News and World Report. Temple’s rank was second of all medical schools in Philadelphia behind the University of Pennsylvania, which ranked fourth.
In 2012, Temple received nearly $94 million in National Institutes of Health grants, according to the university.
Check back with The Temple News Tuesday, March 26, for a full recap of the School of Medicine’s U.S. News and World Report Ranking.
Gimme some of Your tots, tot truck
On Sept. 10, 2011, a Twitter account named “The Tot Cart” tweeted, “A food cart. With tater tots. Just tots. Is coming. Soon. To a street corner near you. Philadelphia here we come.”
Less than two years later, the vision has come to fruition, as The Tot Cart had its grand opening in front of Speakman Hall on Saturday, March 16. The truck was scheduled to be open from 3 p.m. to midnight, but closed early at 8 p.m. due to weather conditions. Still, Julie Crist, the woman behind The Tot Truck, said she sold approximately 150 orders of tots.
“It went really well, despite the weather and students being on spring break,” Crist said. “It was a really good soft opening.”
The Tot Truck, as you might expect, serves only tots. In addition to the standard high-school cafeteria side dish, Crist’s menu offers specialty flavors, including buffalo, garlic parmesan and Indian-spiced tots. Her “drunk cheese tots,” are covered in cheese whiz, what she calls her “special cheese recipe.” Original tots cost $3 and those with toppings are $4.
Crist is a 2002 alumna of the School of Media and Communication and is employed full time by Fox School of Business as the Associate Director for the MBA program. She said she got the idea for The Tot Truck from her own experience in graduate school.
“I went to Drexel for grad school and there was a taco truck that was open from 11 p.m. to 7 in the morning and it would have students lined up in front of it,” Crist said. “I started getting the idea of doing something similar but didn’t know what to do, so I started messing with tater tot recipes.”
The truck will be open only on Saturdays from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. Crist said she might take the next couple of weekends off as she waits for the weather to clear up before doing another “full blown” opening on the first weekend of April.
Crist said the process she had to go through to get her own food truck on campus took about two years. She had to buy a truck, get approved by the Department of Health, take a food safety class and acquire a permit from the Department of Licenses for a “non-permanent vending location,” in addition to a vending license.
“It’s a lot of paperwork,” Crist said.
Why do all of that work for tater tots? Crist said she wanted to appeal to the schoolboy and schoolgirl in everyone.
“Why not tater tots?” she said. “Any type of person likes tater tots, anyone from a 4-year-old kid, to a college student, to adults. People have a nostalgic thing about tater tots. They were served them in the cafeteria in elementary school. I think they’re one of those things. People of all types like them.”
#Tubigchairs
- While this year’s Groudhog’s Day promised an early spring, the real sign on Main Campus that warmer weather is on its way soon is the return of the Adirondack chairs.Students making their way back to Main Campus from spring break yesterday were greeted with two oversized chairs that replicated the ones found throughout areas on campus – one cherry colored, one white colored with #TUbigchairs printed on the chairs.
“Sometimes you have to see things through the eyes of people that are students,” said James Creedon, the senior vice president for construction, facilities and operations.
Creedon got the idea after his son texted him a photo of a pool and hot tub retailer that had a giant Adirondack chair in a display. Since Creedon’s son, who isn’t a Temple student, knew Adirondack chairs were laid out throughout Main Campus he suggested that Creedon should commission the chairs and include a hashtag to make them more interactive.
“I sent the picture down to our facilities management [team, which] runs our carpentry shop, and the guys down there loved it,” Creedon said. “Next thing I know we’re up and rolling.”
The large chairs were installed on Saturday, March 16, before classes resumed and that same day people began using the hashtag. Employees of the admissions office took the first picture that appeared under #TUbigchairs.
“We were at [the men’s basketball game] on Friday night, and [my son] told me, ‘Oh, it started!’ and he showed me stuff that was coming in over Twitter,” Creedon said.
The hashtag has also yielded results on Instagram, and there is even one video posted to Vine including the hashtag.
“Temple’s student body [and faculty] has shown time and time again that it’s very engaged in social media and very vibrant,” said Hillel Hoffmann, director of university communications.
Hoffmann said the first tweet with the hashtag was from the Temple Twitter account, @TempleUniv, on March 13, which teased to the return of the chairs.
One criticism the chairs have incited on Twitter is that the university could have spent money on more productive things. One tweet from @Its_DevinBurke said, “#TUbigchairs screams poor money management.”
Creedon said the total cost of both chairs was $400. The chairs were designed to seat four people, but more than that can be supported by the structures. The chairs are seven feet high and weigh between 250 to 300 pounds, Creedon said.
Pearson & McGonigle Halls outfitted with posters
The exterior of Pearson & McGonigle halls were recently adorned with several giant posters of Temple student-athletes competing in various sports.
The planning and design staff of university communications worked with facilities management to put up the signs, which contain the likenesses of student-athletes from the basketball teams, the field hockey team and the lacrosse team, among other sports.
The posters, which are displayed on the south side of McGonigle Hall on Montgomery Street and on the west side on 15th Street, were put up as a final touch of the construction on the recreation halls that were completed last year.
Temple student crowned Miss Philadelphia
Temple student Francesca Ruscio was crowned Miss Philadelphia on Saturday, March 2. The 20-year-old broadcast journalism major was one of out 17 women competing for the title, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Ruscio, according to the Inquirer, has overcome polycysic ovary syndrome, which she was diagnosed with two years ago.
Ruscio will now advance to compete for the title of Miss Pennsylvania.
TTN wins nine 2013 Student Keystone Press Awards
The Temple News secured nine awards from the Pennsylvania Newspaper Association yesterday, March 4. The Student Keystone Press Awards recognize student journalists throughout Pennsylvania.
TTN’s website won best website of all four-year schools in Pennsylvania. The site was redesigned by TTN Web Editor Chris Montgomery this past summer. Also, TTN took home four other first place awards in the feature story, personality profile, columnist and sports story categories.
In addition, TTN won two second place awards in the feature story and cartoon/graphic illustration categories as well as honorable mention in the column and editorial categories.
More than 70 percent have updated records
Two weeks after Temple started its spring campaign to have all students update their living addresses online, more than 70 percent have responded. Students are prompted to update their living address through a pop-up window after logging into TUPortal.
The number of eligible students who would see the window is 34,344, Dean of Students Stephanie Ives said. As of Friday, Feb. 22, 24,551 students have updated their living addresses.
However, Ives said not all students have logged into TUPortal to see the prompt, but, of those who have, the “vast majority complete the information the first time they see the window.”
Two sexual assaults reported to Temple police
Two sexual assaults were reported on Main Campus in the past two weeks.
The first case consisted of a sexual assault that was reported Feb. 4, stemming from an incident that occurred in Temple Towers the prior weekend, said Deputy Director of Campus Safety Services Charlie Leone.
The case involves two Temple students: an 18-year-old female victim and an 18-year-old male. No charges have been filed yet and the case has been referred to the Philadelphia Police Special Victims Unit, Leone said.
The second case involves a sexual assault that stemmed from an off-campus incident over the weekend. Temple police have not apprehended a suspect in the case, and are working with the Philadelphia Police Special Victims Unit to pursue further leads. The victim, a male Temple student, allegedly met the offender, another male whose affiliation is unknown, at a party and went back to the student’s residence.
A description has been released of the suspect: a black male, believed to be of college age, husky build, dark complexion, approximately 5 feet, 10 inches and 180 pounds wearing a red cap.
