Aggies Elevated: continuing to grow

The transition from one Aggies Elevated class to two has come with a learning curve, but with the help of returning students and volunteers, the organization is making it work. 

Because Aggies Elevated participants have varied levels of intellectual disabilities, the growth in the number of students has created the need for more administrative organization. Second year students have helped to ease the transition for first year students by offering them advice and by giving the first year students another resource to rely on.

“We have told the first year students about our experiences and what kind of homework we had to get done just to give them a little heads up.” said second year student Jenna Mosher. “Sarah Bodily says that the first year students look up to us so we need to be role models for them”

Aggies Elevated has 30 volunteers working with students on a daily basis. 

“Without our volunteers and second year students, we couldn’t do it,” said Sarah Bodily, the Aggies Elevated program director. “We have volunteers helping students with both academics and independent living skills which makes the students’ transition from living with their families to living on their own much easier, and second year students providing support along the way.” 

Aggies Elevated is a two year certificate program offered by Utah State University that helps students with intellectual disabilities transition from high school to college to the working world. It provides classes focusing on independent living skills, career exploration, personal care techniques and study habits and gives students the skills that they need to live on their own and thrive in college and beyond. 

The first year program focuses on helping the students adjust to a new setting and to develop good study habits and living skills. In the second year program, students continue with the development of their independent living skills and study habits with the added opportunity to explore employment prospects through interest-based internships that are arranged by the Aggies Elevated program. The internships give students a chance to learn what they like and what skills they possess. Aggies Elevated also provides some classes to its students as well as enrolling them in some credit-earning classes on campus. 

Because Aggies Elevated is funded by private donors, its hopes for future expansion rely on increased funding. USU has provided assistance with a $10,000 grant for Aggies Elevated, but it is not enough to help the program continue to grow. Last year Aggies Elevated made a funding request to the Utah Legislature but that request was denied when the Legislature decided to fund other disability-related organizations throughout Utah.

In a further attempt to raise awareness for Aggies Elevated and to assist in its fundraising efforts, New York filmmaker Ben Stamper came to campus and produced a 10 minute documentary highlighting the lives and experiences of the seven original Aggies Elevated students. 

Aggies Elevated is one of only 217 postsecondary education programs for students with intellectual disabilities in the United States. 

More information about Aggies Elevated, including how students may apply, is available at http://www.aggieselevated.com/.

A safer walk to the Student Living Center

Utah State University has taken the first steps toward a safer walk to the Student Living Center along the east side of the Logan Cemetery on North 1200 East Street by installing new parkways, sidewalks, fencing and streetlights. 
“The sidewalks were getting unsafe,” said Ben Berrett, the USU director of facilities, planning, design and construction. “We had some underground electrical utilities that needed to be replaced, so it was a good time to start the project.”

Construction crews removed the existing sidewalks to create room for a new grass parkway between the street and the new sidewalks, providing a safety cushion between pedestrian and vehicle traffic.

New, wider sidewalks have been poured and a wrought iron fence has been constructed between the sidewalks and the Logan Cemetery boundary. For added safety, street lights have also been installed in the area for the first time.

“Getting from the Student Living Center to campus last year was difficult. The sidewalks were in bad shape, and walking at night was almost out of the question because there was no lighting,” said sophomore Natalie Webb, who was a resident of Rich Hall last semester. “I’m really glad to see they are fixing it. It was necessary.”

The project is ongoing, but Berrett said that he expects construction to be completed by the end of the 2016 spring semester. The sidewalks, streetlights, fencing and grass are all in place, but crews are waiting on another species of tree for the parkway strip that will not arrive until this spring.

“We are happy that we are making student walkways safer, as well as upgrading the overall look and feel of our campus,” Berrett said.

In conjunction with the sidewalk improvements, USU maintenance crews repaved the streets through the cemetery, upgraded irrigation systems, and replaced power utilities located under the new sidewalk.

Aggie Radio: Journey to FM

With the upcoming transition from webcasting to FM, Aggie Radio has changed its policies regarding programming. 

In previous years, students could create a talk or music show that would be broadcast on the station. However, with the upcoming conversion to FM broadcasting, the decision was made to limit the programming to a sports and news show in the morning, and alternative music during the day. 

“When you listen to an FM station, they have a genre and organized programming,” said the station manager Cody Scott. “We want to be as professional as they are.”

To ensure that the creativity of the students will not be taken away, Aggie Radio has started a digital podcast recording studio and podcast channel that allows any student in Aggie Radio to produce shows to be posted.

“Our slogan is ‘For the Students, By the Students,’ and we didn’t want to lose touch with our roots, so the podcast channel allows for student created content to still be available,” Scott said.

“I’m really glad that Aggie Radio decided to start a podcast channel, I was really bummed out when I thought I couldn’t have a show this semester, but now I know I still can.” said junior Morgan Casey. 

During the spring semester of 2015, Aggie Radio announced that it would be converting from webcasting to FM broadcasting beginning Sept. 23, 2015, after receiving approval from the Federal Communications Committee in the fall of 2014. 

Come September, Aggie Radio was not where it had hoped to be when the organization’s officers made the announcement. 

“September came around, and we just didn't have the funding. It’s looking like it will be closer to December 31,” Scott said. 

Aggie Radio recently received a $20,000 loan from USU and is actively working to fundraise the balance of the money for the conversion.

“We’ve hit multiple roadblocks with finances and adjusting policy, but we’re chugging along,” Scott said. “We will still begin shows this fall, and will continue to broadcast from our website. We’ll go FM when we’re ready.” 

Any USU student is welcome to join Aggie Radio. There is an interview application that can be filled out on the website at http://www.usu.edu/radio/.

Helicon West 2015 Preview

Helicon West is an open mic series that features works from local writers and poets, as well as featured speakers. The event occurs at 7 p.m. every second and fourth Thursday of each month, during the Utah State University academic year. Sept. 10th is the first event of this year’s academic calendar and the featured speakers are Lisa Roullard, winner of UAC 2013 writing competition, and Utah State University lecturer and non fiction author John Engler. The event is free and will be held in the Jim Bridger room at the Logan Library. All are welcome. 

Helicon West was started by USU poetry writing instructor Star Coulbrooke and professor of creative writing Michael Sowder, in 2005. Their mission statement is “Helicon West provides a regularly-scheduled place and time for members of the writing community to give their work a public voice, with no restrictions on levels of skill and no censorship of ideas or craft. Publication of readers’ work is a main goal.” 

Another aspect of Helicon West is the organizers' commitment to local businesses. They work to find businesses that will present a comfortable setting for authors to be heard, as well as encourage attendees to buy books or coffee which will, in turn, help the businesses. 

In conjunction with the USU Writing Center, Helicon West publishes an 11x17 themed poster called the “Broadside” that features art and short, locally written poetry. 

For further information regarding Helicon West, visit their website at https://heliconwest.wordpress.com/