Christmas is coming up fast!

Posted on November 26, 2013 by Cherie

We all know that as soon as Thanksgiving is over people nationwide will hit the stores in the gifting rush of Christmas. So, the question is how do you find the perfect gift? Well, I always like to think of a persons interests, so for girls i always get jewelry because us girls like things that glitter no matter who they are. For guy friends I always get them something useful, like food, a scarf, gloves..etc. Guys can be really hard to shop for lol.

For my parents I often go with chocolates because there’s not much that they want that a college student can afford ha-ha. Well, its that reason and parents are even harder to shop for because most of the time they say that they have everything and that they don’t want a gift. so chocolates or college T shirts are the route I always take 🙂

Lets see for best friends I always get something kinda cheesy or at least something that reminds them of all the ridiculousness of high school.

Soooooooo for whoever you will be shopping for I hope that these tips/ideas help and good-luck!! Merry Christmas!!!!

Thanksgiving Plans

Posted on November 24, 2013 by Cherie

We know that a lot of students do not get to go home for Thanksgiving for their first year in college so here at Embry Riddle we try our best to ensure that our students have somewhere to go. For instance, the dining hall offers a Thanksgiving dinner for students who are here on campus, sometimes professors open their homes to students as well.

Seniors and other students who live off campus often will have all their friends over for dinner, and those who live nearby also bring friends home with them for the evening. All in all, it is holidays that show the community spirit that has developed here at Embry Riddle Prescott. We try are best to make everyone feel welcome and at home for the time that they are taking courses at our campus. And for those of us who have been here and have seen it many times we are proud to say that we come from Embry Riddle, and we care for our fellow students.

We invite you to apply and take part in our community here at Riddle, we will be more than happy to welcome you in!!! See you next year!!!

Holiday Travel

Posted on November 24, 2013 by Cherie

No matter how you will be getting home for Thanksgiving this year, the most important part of traveling is safety. I know we all hear this every year but, it is still essential to practice safety as you make your way home this holiday season.

So some things to look out for if you are driving are:

1. Driving late at night/tired

2. Ice on the road or bad weather conditions

3. Vehicle maintenance issues- before you head out check your oil, brakes, coolant….etc.

If you happen to be flying home:

1. Print your boarding passes and arrive at the airport early!!

2. Do not leave your items unattended EVER

3. Don’t be too friendly with strangers….yes we have heard this a million times but it still applies!!!

If you are just going down the road or across town:

1. Be aware of driving conditions

2. Do not rush, its better to get there late and in one piece than not at all…..

And of course no matter how you travel use your common sense. The main idea is to have a wonderful holiday and come back safe!!! On that note, Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!!!

Veteran’s Day Events

Posted on November 5, 2013 by Cherie

As we all know Veteran’s day is also fast approaching so you might wonder, what the students of Embry Riddle Prescott do to honor our veterans……well….we do alot of different things. From the ROTC side of life we do a veteran’s day parade, the Honor Guard (my team!!!!) does a 24 hour Vigil at the veteran’s memorial hospital, and we go out to the veteran’s hospice to keep them company throughout the day.As for the rest of the campus, not much really goes on because our students go out into the community to get involved with the events in downtown Prescott.

No matter who you are and what you do, just take a moment this Veteran’s day to stop and thank a veteran for their service. They volunteered to do what only 1% of Americans do, and have made immense sacrifices to ensure the freedoms that we take for granted daily. They should ever be forgotten, and neither should or POW/MIA.

With that said, have a good, fun, and safe veteran’s day. I look forward to participating in Vigil and the Parade again this year so you might be able to see me there if you can find me (I’m short and hard to see because i blend in with all the Air Force Blues) !!!

Test Off

Posted on November 2, 2013 by Cherie

This Saturday, right before Dining In (hyperlink to other blog!!!) the Honor Corps teams will be having our major exam called Test Off. To be a part of the teams and perform in the community all team members must pass test off. This will be my second time going through it, and I can’t really say that I’m excited, I honestly just want to get it over with.

Each team does Test Off differently, as a part of the Honor Guard Test Off includes knowledge, skills, marching, performances, and inspection. The knowledge portion is a written 1 hour exam over a packet of material that all the teams in Honor Corps must know verbatim. Our skills test covers skills with both flag and rifle movements, while our marching test is basically an FDE that all teams must pass. Each member of the Honor Guard must command one flag posting ceremony as part of the exam and pass with at least a 90. Then there is a 2 hour inspection during which you are drilled on procedures, knowledge, and critiqued on how you wear the ceremonial uniform.

This is a lot to prepare for however, we train 4 days of the week in order to achieve a high level of excellence. In the end it all pays off because we get to perform at the cardinals game in phoenix, in flag retirement ceremonies, funerals, etc. It is a real honor to be a part of a team that exists to pay respect to those who came before us. It is for this reason that I participate in Honor Guard and take the time out of my week to practice. So, on that note I will be off to Test Off this Saturday to reaffirm my status as a Guardsman and continue honoring those who came before. Wish our team luck!!

Warrior Week

Posted on November 2, 2013 by Cherie

This week in Air Force ROTC is what we like to call Warrior Week. It is basically the week that we all bring the competition to prove which flight is the best in the detachment. The week includes flight competitions in sports, knowledge, and fitness. As well as costume contests for Halloween and wrapping it all up with an event called Dining In.

So we are beginning the week by constructing costumes, and wearing them to lead lab on Wednesday. I am not sure what my flight has decided to wear quite yet but, the overall theme of Warrior Week is combat superheros so it should be pretty interesting. I’m thinking superman T shirt and BDU pants, that superhero-y right?

Alpha Flight, the coolest flight Ever!! We won the costume contest!

Then we will have a bunch of sports, hopefully not cow tongue Frisbee like last year….that was really gross but amusing to watch. When the sports are all over then we will do knowledge competitions, and here at Dining In who won Warrior week and earns the Warrior Flight of the semester award.

Dining In, like I said earlier is a military tradition where the detachment gets together and enjoys each others company. During this time we have toasts to those who came before us and those who can no longer join us in our traditions. After the toasts, there is something called a grog, it is really really really disgusting but, if you did something really dumb durign the semester you are called to the grog. If you don’t have a witty rebuttal then you must drink a cup of grog to the last drop. If anything is left when you flip the cup upside down you have to take another serving!!!!

When the grog is all done we will eat and listen to guest speakers talk about their military service. When we are all done it is time for some fun, we go outside and have an epic water balloon fight between flights. At Embry Riddle we have Dining in at the Flight line in a maintenance hanger so its pretty entertaining to see people running around in costumes in the airport parking lot with water balloons.

Pumpkin Carving

Posted on October 27, 2013 by Cherie

Today some of our RA’s or Resident Assistants organized a pumpkin carving contest in preparation for Halloween. Some of the pumpkins were pretty awesome and others just plain gruesome. Overall though, the event was just another goofy even that we have here at Riddle to bring our students closer together around the holidays.

Our student body comes from all over the world, so when participating in events such as the pumpkin carving party it is entirely possible that you may meet someone who has never taken part in the tradition before. I met two such people today and it was really cool to be able to hear about their countries and make new friends all because of a simple tradition!

Events like this bring all of our students closer, and create a community on our campus that is unlike any other. We all love it here and we would like to invite you to come on over for a campus visit and experience it yourself. For a campus tour click here and learn more about what Embry Riddle Prescott has for you!!

Volunteer in the Community

Posted on October 22, 2013 by Cherie

Volunteering is a fun opportunity that can have amazing rewards in regards to personal growth, I strongly encourage you to go out there and get involved in the community wherever it is you choose to go to college. Some ways that Embry Riddle Prescott students get involved are: volunteering in local schools, tutoring, awareness walks, air shows, and cemetery cleanups.

Since I have been a student at Embry Riddle Prescott I have volunteered in vigil, cemetery cleanup, benefit auctions, air shows, and cemetery research. The one volunteering project that probably stands out the most, besides vigil is the cemetery work. Its kind of strange for a college student to be going out and cleaning up an old cemetery that know one even remembers, but it is something that i enjoy doing.

Embry Riddle’s AFROTC Honor Guard

I really like this project, as unlike my other volunteering experiences it is an ongoing effort to honor the veterans and other nameless individuals that are buried in a forgotten cemetery not too far from Prescott. The reason I have grown so attached to this work is that I actually had my first performance as a member of Honor Guard in that cemetery. Since then I have wanted to continue honoring those who lay at rest there, and my hope is to remind others to honor them too.

So what I mean when I say that volunteering can enhance your character is that you might find a passion in a very strange place, that overall will make you a better person. Ever since I began to volunteer in the cemetery I have achieved a greater respect for life and a curiosity about those who are unnamed. It has been a year since we started the project and every day I work a little on it, hoping that I will get closer to finding their names. There hasn’t been much luck but, within the next few years my goal is to inspire others to continue this work and to not allow our predecessors be forgotten.

So as you can see, volunteering has made a positive impact on not only myself but, on the community. Now people know about the cemetery and our work there, we are getting an even bigger following every year. It is my hope that others will find their own passions while volunteering and will pursue them in order to make not only themselves, but their community a better place.

Freshman Dorms

Posted on October 13, 2013 by Cherie

A topic which I get a lot of questions on while doing campus tours with incoming students is what are the dorms like? Well, you have asked the right person!! We have 14 residence halls on our campus, of these halls the break down is as follows 🙂

5 Freshman Halls- Each of these halls (1-5) has 3 stories and the dorms are arranged in what is called a suite, there are several suites on every floor. In each suite there is a lounge which includes a refrigerator, a two burner cook stove shelving units, cabinets, a coffee table, entertainment center, 2 couches, free WiFi, and free cable TV. In the rest of the dorm there are three bedrooms, there are two people to each bedroom. All of the bedrooms have two bunk beds with large desks, two dressers, two filing cabinets, and closet space. There is also two bathrooms, well equipped for 6 people to share and a hallway with more cabinets and a closet for longer hanging items.

Additionally each room in the suite has its own climate control system. These dorms are really nice to live in and quite spacious in fact. I really enjoyed living in them during my freshman year and I hope that you will too!

The other halls are 5 upperclassman apartment style rooms, where you and 3 other students would live. These include a larger closet space, a larger lounge, and a full kitchen. There are also suite style rooms in the upperclassman halls where you and a single roommate share a room, and you share a community bathroom with 3 other students. These suites do not have their own kitchens but, there is access to a community kitchen in the hall.

The remaining 4 halls are for international students, transfer students, and overflow housing. These rooms have access to a large community kitchen and are shared only with one roommate. In addition all of our halls on campus have access to a large laundry room where students can do their laundry.

Staying Healthy

Posted on October 8, 2013 by Cherie

Its that time of year again everyone! The weather is cooling down and all of our favorite winter coats are being dug out of the closets and worn throughout campus. Unfortunately, this also means that the cold season has also returned. So here comes my list of tips and tricks to stay healthy and succeed in school this winter.

1. Vitamin C- this can be found at literally every store in a variety of different forms. Vitamin C boosts your immune system and gives you energy.

2. Hydrate!! No matter who you are and what you do it is important to hydrate properly as this helps prevent illness and also helps you focus/ stay awake in class.

3. Stay Warm- wear layers and lots of them. If you get too hot you can always take off a layer and put it in your backpack. Gloves are also a great thing to have so that your hands do not get dry, crack and bleed. This can be a painful problem to deal with while taking notes in class.

4. Multi Vitamins- these just supplement your nutritional values. In other words, they help keep your body balanced so that you can perform better in school and keep yourself from getting sick.

5. If you do get sick, the best thing is mixing emergen-C supplements with orange Gatorade, it tastes like orange soda (YAY) and the combination boosts your immune system, electrolyte levels, and energy. This really helps you recover quickly from any illness, it works 9 times out of 10 in my personal experience.

6. Wash your hands!!! I know you hear this all the time but, it is a serious issue!!! You can cut down on the spread of germs by 90% by just washing your hands. Please, please, please do this, it is simply gross if you don’t!!

7. Cover your moth/nose- if you have to cough or sneeze cover your mouth or nose to block the spread of germs that go flying. It is best to do this using the inside of your elbow so that you don’t spread germs by using your hands to cover a cough/sneeze. If you do use your hands then WASH THEM. Better yet carry hand sanitizer 🙂

8. Throw tissues away- if you have a runny nose, make sure you throw your tissues away and immediately wash your hands. This cuts down on the spread of germs!!! And you don’t have to pick up nasty tissues.

9. Wash the dishes- Don’t leave any dishes laying around, and wash them using HOT soap and water. This will eliminate germs and keep dishes clean.

10. (Last one I promise ) Wipe down door handles and frames- this is best to do if oyu or someone you live with is sick or has been sick. It removes germs from the surfaces that we most frequently touch so that they cannot be spread to others.

Overall, just be considerate of others. No one likes to be sick so keep that in mind, and if you do become sick and need more information or would like a check up then stop on by our Wellness Center on campus. Good luck in school everyone, stay healthy!!!!