 "Photo: UP file photo")
 "Photo: Photo courtesy of Elissa Rudolph")
 "Photo: Photo by Elizabeth Whitton")
 "Photo: Stephanie Colaianni")
 "Photo: Jim DeYonker/The CW")
 "Photo: Illustration courtesy of FAU")
 "Photo: UP file photo")
 "Photo: Illustration courtesy of Laura Daniels")
YEAR IN REVIEW
Here are just a few examples of FAU facilities that were expanded and Owls who made newsworthy accomplishments last year.
Recreation & Fitness Center
In January 2009, students were introduced to something besides a parking lot at the north end of the Breezeway. Now, they’re greeted with a free workout in the 38,000-square-foot Recreation & Fitness Center. The project took five years to complete, and it has resulted in a state-of-the-art facility that’s inhabited by a constant stream of sweaty students.
The new gym replaced the facility in the Oxley Center, which was cramped and full of busted equipment. The Recreation & Fitness Center holds two basketball courts, cardio equipment and free weights that are available for student use.
The Recreation & Fitness Center isn’t done yet. Within the year, it’s expected that the center’s additions — a pool and food area — will be completed.
[Devin Desjarlais contributed to this report]
Elissa Rudolph, assistant registrar
When she isn’t helping run the Office of the Registrar, Elissa Rudolph helps run one of the smartest organizations in the country.
In July she was officially elected chair of American Mensa, a national non-profit organization whose sole requirement for membership is a high IQ score. Its 57,000 members have all scored in the top 2 percent on an intelligence test.
Although Rudolph works full-time as FAU’s assistant registrar, her position as chair of American Mensa — a volunteer position — keeps her nearly as busy. Rudolph oversees a 20-member board and approximately 25 committees, and she works with the organization’s paid staff.
“It’s like running a corporation,” she said. “Being chair is almost like a full-time job.”
In addition to fostering intelligence, American Mensa also seeks to provide a social outlet for its members, which is what attracted Rudolph when she joined in 1975.
“When I joined I was a single mother, and I was looking for a social network. I had a very small family, so I was looking for that kind of community. … As time went on, when I met people through Mensa, they became my friends. And so I have people who are almost like family members dating back that far,” explained Rudolph. “We have grown up together.”
Dunkin’ Donuts
The fall semester brought countless changes: new classes, new books, thousands of new students, and a new dining option for those visiting the Boca campus. Dunkin’ Donuts opened up inside of the library in the beginning of August, but having a doughnut shop inside of the library doesn’t disrupt studying students, as the eatery is conveniently positioned.
“The location’s as close to the front door as we could reasonably place it so that people can find it, use it, and then leave the library if they prefer,” explained William Miller, FAU’s dean of libraries. The Dunkin’ Donuts sits across from the librarians’ desk in the lobby with its own glass doors.
Since its opening, Dunkin’ Donuts has seen a myriad of customers. It’s not just frequented by students; professors also stop by.
Student body
The student body got a face-lift last year.
After admissions standards were raised during the spring semester, the average student became smarter and the student body expanded.
Starting March 15, 2009, FAU toughened its requirements for incoming students. This change meant applicants had to have a 3.5 GPA and a 1600 SAT score — up from a 2.6 GPA and a 1450 SAT score.
Despite the harsher standards, FAU received more applications for the 2008-2009 school year than it had for previous school years.
In fact, by the spring 2009 semester, the student body had reached a new milestone.
“As of today, student headcount officially passed the 28,000 mark, the highest in FAU’s history,” bragged then-FAU President Frank T. Brogan during the State of the University Address he gave on Sept. 9, just days before he left office.
[Emiliana Delgado contributed to the reporting of this story.]
Courtney Davies, former student
Last year, then-sophomore Courtney Davies traveled to Miami to audition for America’s Next Top Model. Last week, she moved to Los Angeles.
Davies appeared on national television in September as a cast member of the 13th season of America’s Next Top Model, a competitive reality TV show. Judges voted her off the show after just a few episodes, but Davies’ career hasn’t suffered for it.
“A lot of good things turned out of it. I got signed with an agency right after,” Davies said of her experience on the show.
Fall 2009 was Davies’ last semester at FAU, but it won’t be the last Owls see of her. Her budding career will put her back on TV before long.
“I actually just did a Burger King commercial. I was also just in a Lil Wayne music video,” Davies explained. “A lot of things have taken off. It’s been awesome.”
Culture and Society Building
This year, independent and international films will be given a home at FAU. A movie theater is being constructed alongside the Performing Arts Building on the Boca campus. The theater is going to contain four screening rooms with plush seats and will be part of a building that will also contain 14 classrooms.
The building’s second floor will house the Department of English, along with the School of Communication and the Department of Languages, Linguistics and Comparative Literature. Altogether, the building will cost more than $20 million. That cost is being covered by several sources, including a $3 million donation from Ernesto Rimoch, the president of Living Room Theaters, and a $1.5 million donation from the company itself. The rest of the project’s funding was provided by the state.
The theater is projected to be completed this year, and its films will be open to students and the public.
[Stephanie Colaianni contributed to this report.]
Trevor Raborn, student
Senior Trevor Raborn has a unique pastime: He helps fight cancer.
The biology major volunteers for the South Florida Bone Marrow/Stem Cell Transplant Institute in Boynton Beach. The institute is headed by oncologist Dr. Dipnarine Maharaj, who helped discover a cure for solid-tumor cancer.
The cure has already been proven to work in mice, so Raborn is helping Maharaj complete clinical trials with human patients.
By educating the FAU community about Maharaj’s research and networking on campus, Raborn helps find additional donors who are willing to donate white blood cells to Maharaj’s cancer patients. Raborn started by getting his roommates and friends involved but has also reached out to Today & Beyond Wellness, Student Government and various student organizations. Student Government has even written a resolution that will ensure FAU is recognized for its participation.
“Now there’s an official document that shows that when the study is published, Maharaj will recognize FAU students, Student Government, and everyone that has been involved with the process,” explained Raborn.
As of press time, five of 29 targeted patients had participated in the clinical trial, thanks largely to Raborn and other donors, most of whom are FAU students.
Click here to read the resolution or click here to learn how to get involved.
Laura Daniels, alumna
Bus riders in Broward County may soon find themselves sitting in the shade of a solar-powered bus shelter designed by an FAU alumna.
Laura Daniels, a mother of three who received her bachelor’s in architecture last month, designed a bus shelter in her Advanced Architectural Design class during the spring 2009 semester. Shortly thereafter, the design was selected by Broward County Transit as one of several new bus shelters to be constructed. Daniels has been working on the project with Anthony Abbate, associate professor of architecture, since September.
Daniels’ design includes shelter from the sun and rain, a bike rack, and even solar panels. A real-time sign, which will notify passengers of the bus’s arrival, will run on solar power. The bus shelter is expected to be built this year.
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