Cheers & Jeers: $847K Grant helps SU community get off the Hill

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Posted: 9/5/08

Cheers & Jeers: $847K Grant helps SU community get off the Hill

Cheer: Cheers to Syracuse University finding a more effective way to connect campus life to the Syracuse community. Thanks to the Syracuse Campus-Community Entrepreneurship Initiative at SU, 53 community-based projects will be funded by $847,000 in grants. The initiative is a collaborative effort on behalf of academic institutions, students and faculty, community members and groups within the Syracuse community. This seems like it will be much more effective than any of Chancellor Cantor's current campaigns - of which there is no end in sight, it seems.

Jeer: Syracuse University and State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry students are eligible to win free tickets to the premiere of "The Express," a movie about SU football legend Ernie Davis. Although this may seem great and generous of the university, only 144 tickets are being given away, a relatively small amount compared to the thousands of students (potentially) looking forward to the event. A double jeer for the high price tag of $44 for tickets that are supposedly being "given away."

Cheer: Ra Ra Riot, a band started at Syracuse University, appeared on "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" Tuesday evening. It proves that big things other than famous sports dignitaries can come out of Syracuse. The Conan stop also gives a little hype to the band's Juice Jam appearance.

Cheer: Hooray for multi-tasking! Select Brazilian pubs have installed urinals with miniature plastic soccer goals. The green base ("grass") is actually a urinal deodorizer and mothballs serve as soccer balls. The ingenious idea is ESPN's creative (though slightly privacy invading) advertising method. Above the urinal, the sign reads "Soccer is good everywhere, but it is much better on ESPN channels."