TRANSFORM Volume 1 - Issue 4 May 2012

Transitioning issue: Meet the New Mentors (cont.) Jump

Goodbyes Jump

Goodbyes (cont.) Jump

Special points of interest:

- Do You Know FoCo? - Jump

- Do You Know Colorado - Jump

- Do You Know CSU? - Jump

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M A Y 2 0 1 2

M e e t t h e n e w m e n t o r s

Andrea Vanderbilt-Castle Rock, CO

Fall 2013

Hello friends! My name is Andrea Vander-

bilt and I transferred over to CSU in Fall

of 2011. I am a junior, majoring in Natural

Resource Management with a minor in

Sustainability and I love the Earth!!! I am

so excited to be at CSU and in Fort Col-

lins. CSU is an incredible University with

so many opportunities. I spend a lot of

time on campus, and I don't mind, but

when I have time to play, I enjoy riding

my bike, working with plants, spending

time with good friends and doing anything

outside (hiking, climbing, backpacking,

sand volleyball, rafting,... you name it!).

I had such a great experience transferring

here to CSU and I am hoping to pass that

kind of experience along as a Transfer

Mentor. I hope to be a resource and friend

to any student transferring to CSU, (or

any student in general), and I am very

excited to meet the new students and

really help immerse them into life as a

CSU Ram!

Kasimir Carranza - Corpus Christi, TX

Class of 2014

Hello, my name is Kas and I am a proud, to be, a CSU Ram! I

transferred to CSU in the fall of 2011 from Front Range Commu-

nity College, Larimer Campus. I moved to Colorado a few years

back in search of new experiences. I am proud of my Texas roots,

but I absolutely fell in love with Colorado! I tell my friends that I

got to Fort Collins as quickly as I could. I love to be outdoors en-

joying warm weather with family and friends. I enjoying exercis-

ing, reading, going to concerts and I spend entirely too much time

watching BBC and National Geographic documentaries about

space and deep sea exploration, jungle wildlife, early civilizations,

and medical technology.

I absolutely love CSU and all of the people I have met since I have

been here. I am very excited about the opportunity to work with

incoming transfer students and the amazing team of people in the

Orientation and Transition Programs department. I look forward

to meeting a whole bunch of people and am eager to be a resource

for them in what may be a difficult and stressful time in their life. I

believe that people helping people helps make the world beautiful.

I enjoy being an active member of the CSU community by partici-

pating in Alternative Spring Breaks (through the SLICE office if

you were curious), the Academic Advancement Center as well as

various student-led clubs on campus. So if you see me around

campus say hello! I love a good chat with friends! Go Rockies!!

Meet the other four new

mentors on page 4!

TRANSFORM Volume 1 - Issue 4 May 2012

I wait all school year for sum-

mer in Fort Collins. Besides having

so many amazing outdoor activities

to keep me occupied for relatively

cheap, a lot of the CSU students go

home for the summer, creating a

small town feel that is missing dur-

ing fall and spring semesters. Fewer

students in town also means shorter

lines at Café Mexicali and elbow

room on the sidewalks in Old

Town.

Some of my favorite summer time

activities in Fort Collins

Picnics along the

Poudre River. There are plenty

of pull offs along the Poudre Can-

yon Highway where you can park

your car and walk down to the

river to put your toes in the water

or to watch the white water rafters

and fly fishermen. Just be warned,

you’ll lose cell phone service once

you enter the canyon.

Frisbee Golf. There are some really fun Frisbee golf courses in Fort Collins that I never get tired of playing through. The courses I like best are Boltz Middle School and Edora Park because they are fun for people of all skill levels. There is also a course at Hughes Stadium that is a little more challenging but still a lot of fun. Never played or just starting out? Talk to the guys at Wright Life in Old Town and they’ll help you get started. Hikes to Horsetooth Rock and Horsetooth Falls. The Horsetooth Mountain Park is the trail head for both hikes and has a huge map posted with the length and difficulty of the different trails so it’s easy to pick a hike that will work for you. Music Festivals in Old Town. The Jazz festival in July is my favor-ite, but there are concerts all sum-

mer long in Old Town that incor-porate many different genres of music. To find the dates of music festivals and other Old Town events check out:

Farmer’s Markets. There are a couple different loca-tions that hold farmers markets on Saturday mornings. There is one in the shopping center on Shields and Drake and another one on Oak Street in Old Town. They are a really fun way to help local people and pick up some of your groceries at the same time. I suggest bringing cash and a bag to carry all the amazing fruits, vegetables and breads you pick up.

Having the opportunity to be a

transfer mentor has been amazing.

I never felt like I was working

when I was at work because I got

to spend time with a great group of

people I would have hung out with

anyway. You guys have given me a

Katie Chew— there are lots

of reasons to be out and about

in the beautiful Colorado sun!

This summer, strike a Justin

Bieber piñata. Repeatedly. It’s one

of my favorite 4th of July traditions,

along with a bar-b-que in the yard

and some fireworks imported from

Wyoming. Following this, try a new

exotic restaurant; somewhere you

wouldn’t usually go, just to try it.

Ras Ka’s is a great way to try Ethio-

pian food; Maza Kabob serves tradi-

tional Afghan cuisine. Heading

South on College will bring you to

Nyala Ethiopian and Star of India,

which are located next door to one

another, behind Jimmy’s Fish &

Chips. Cafe de Bangkok on Eliza-

beth is a great taste of Southeast

Asian cooking, with intricate fla-

vors and textures. Shwarmize It and

Yum Yums are located on opposite

corners of Elizabeth and City Park,

and both offer delicious shwarma

style meats (although Shwarmize it

is cheaper, it’s also less authentic

than Yum Yum’s traditional Leba-

nese style of cooking). Wake up

early on a Saturday and eat brunch

at Lucile’s restaurant; grits and

gravy and a traditional Cajun menu

makes it a real treasure just 3

blocks North of campus on Mel-

drum. Silver Grill Café is another

great breakfast option, serving big

portions at affordable prices, and

their menu is mostly traditional

breakfast fare. If you’re a vegan,

not all hope is lost- Tasty Harmony

is a vegan restaurant which uses

creative recipes and exotic ingredi-

ents to make a flavorful and inter-

esting meal. Jax offers some of the

best seafood in Fort Collins, alt-

hough it’s a bit pricey for college

students (keep it in mind for date

night though). Hope you enjoy my

recommendations!

Have a great and interesting sum-

mer! I hope finals go well for all of

you, as well as any future endeav-

ors.

James Beitner—you don’t

have to be traveling afar to

enjoy international tastes

whole bunch of really great memo-

ries to look back on. Look me up

on Facebook if you want to stay in

touch, I’d love to keep up with

what everyone is doing. I hope all

of you enjoy the time you have left

at CSU. I’ll miss all of you!

Do You Know FoCo?

Fort Collins was founded as a military fort in what year?

ANSWER: 1864

Fort Collins was incorporated as a town how many years later?

ANSWER: 9

Play our Newsletter Trivia Game at the End-of-the-Semester Celebration on May 4th!

TRANSFORM Volume 1 - Issue 4 May 2012

- Find a patio with

friends and enjoy

summer!

Well, it's that time of year

again which means it's time

to say goodbye. I hope you

have all had an amazing

semester and I am so

thankful to have been a part

of your transition to CSU. I

hope you have a safe and

relaxing summer break!

Make sure to give yourselves

a pat on the back and take a

minute and be proud of all

the hard work you have done

this semester.

Not sure how to spend

your summer in the Fort?

- Rent a kayak or canoe on

Horsetooth reservoir.

Contact Inlet Bay Marina for

details about renting a canoe

or kayake.970-223-0140

- Take a blanket and a book

to City Park!

- Volunteer with The

Growing Project and learn

how to garden while

supporting a just and local

food system right here in Fort

Collins

Mayryanna Craver - enjoy the

sights and smells of Fort Col-

lins many parks and Gardens

this summer!

Summer in Fort Collins

Colorado - what a sight to be seen! So much of what I love in this town comes alive in the summer - everyone gets outside, days of the week become less distinguishable, and traffic seems to be but a distant memory. If you are one of the lucky CSU students (like myself) who will be hanging around this summer, get ready, it’s going to be awesome! Growing up in the mountains of Colorado, I’ve seen my fair share of beautiful landscapes, still I can never quite get over the immense natural beauty scattered throughout Fort Collins. If you haven’t already, take the opportunity this summer to explore some of the beautiful parks

and

gardens available throughout the city. The Gardens at Spring Creek - in addition to being an intoxicating visual and olfactory experience, these gardens also host an annual plant sale (Sat. May 12th), multiple summer camps, as well as many additional opportunities for artists and community members to get involved. The Farm at Lee Martinez Park - “The Farm at Lee Martinez Park has provided hands-on family fun since 1985. The Farm serves as an educational and interactive experience for Fort Collins residents and visitors. Your visit to The Farm will be an adventure for all ages. You can learn more about the industry that shaped this region, have interactive, hands-on farm fun, and introduce your child to

agriculture and farm life while visiting.” Various Parks Around the City - looking for some great outdoor swimming? Head over to City Park! Complete with water features to entertain kids (and adults alike!) and lots of grassy space to lie out in and enjoy the sunshine! Edora Park is another good one for all-day outdoor entertainment: with a Frisbee Golf course, BMX Track, War Memorial, and a plethora of sporting facilities you’ll never run out of things to do! Of course I haven’t even begun to exhaust the opportunities available in Fort Collins, but my hope is that I’ve left you with a good place to start! This whole year has been a wonderful experience for me and I will always cherish this opportunity to be your mentor!

Leann Knutson - Summer’s

a time for fun, relaxation,

and friends. There are so

many options for those to

all come together!

Congratulations on your

success and completion of

Spring semester 2012!!!

Do You Know Colorado?

Where’s the US Air Force Academy located?

True or false, we are the only state to turn down the Olympics?

True or false, we are home to the highest paved road in North

America?

ANSWER: Colorado Springs

ANSWER: True, in 1976 for the winter games

ANSWER: True, the road is located off of I-70 in Idaho Springs and it leads up to the top of Mt. Evans

TRANSFORM Volume 1 - Issue 4 May 2012

Matt Hodak - Aurora, CO Class of 2013 Hi there! I am a Junior here at Colorado State University and am majoring in Communication Studies with a minor in Political Science. I transferred to CSU in the Fall of 2011 hoping to get to know a positive community and a larger school setting with many opportunities, and I found exactly that. I'm enjoying getting to know Fort Collins well and am working to involve myself to get to know many new people and understand what CSU is really all about. I'm especially looking forward to getting to spend more time outdoors, getting in some hiking and camping in the mountains.

On campus here, I am involved with Alliance Scholars, an organization dedicated to creating a warm and academically successful community of students on campus. I also keep my vocal cords in action as a memember of the University Chorus.

I chose to become a Transfer Student Mentor because I have had my own experience adjusting to a very different college environment and I want to help others do the same. I feel that we all have different experiences as students, and we can grow from understanding one another's commonalities as well as our differences.

I'm very much looking forward to helping facilitate a positive mentoring environment and helping individuals find their own path at CSU.

M e e t t h e n e w m e n t o r s

Yao Li - China Class of 2013

Hey Rams! My name is Yao and I'll be a senior student in next fall. My major is Statistics and I love my major so much! It's hard to find someone sharing this hobby in common.-:( Anyway, I love cooking, dancing and playing the piano in my free time. I'm interested in parties, carnivals and all kinds of events. And you can easily find me fixing my eyes on a cute baby or a cute dog anywhere around the campus.

I have a fantastic transfer experience here. So I think it is the right time for me to do something for the incoming transfer students. I'm happy to be selected as a transfer mentor with the position of International Collaborations Coordinator. I hope I can contribute my passion and creativities to our transfer team, and do something useful to the transfer students.

I'm willing to make new friends and share stories with everyone. So I'm really looking forward to meeting all of you in this summer with the beautiful sunshine of Fort Collins.

Tim Burke - San Francisco, CA Class of 2013

Hey, I’m Tim, and your eyes do not deceive you, I’m an old guy. I prefer non-traditional student to adult learner personally. (I’m not exactly sure what adult learner means anyway). I’m a senior finishing my first year at CSU, majoring in Psychology with a minor in Philosophy. I’m from the San Francisco bay area but have lived in Colorado over twenty years, most of that time in or around Aspen.

I’m so excited to be a member of the Transfer Mentor Program and all the opportunities it will provide to make connections with my fellow students and staff here at CSU. Helping new students make a smooth and comfortable transition into life at CSU is just one of the many things I look forward to in this position. Please look for me out there; I eagerly anticipate meeting you, especially those non-traditional students like me.

Chelsea Williams - Ottawa, IL Class of 2016

What’s good CSU?! My name is Chelsea and I transferred into the Ram Fam in the spring semester of 2012. After a year playing volleyball and pursuing musical studies at Concordia University-Ann Arbor, I decided that college wasn’t the right place for me fresh out of high school. So in 2008 I had the opportunity to serve a year with Americorps National Civilian Community corps which absolutely changed my life. Landing a job at a non profit, I moved to Sacramento where I have been living up until the big decision to go back to school at 23. This time around, I am studying Biochemistry in hopes to eventually go onto med school to become a Developmental Pediatrician. And for my big dreams I needed a school that would fit all of my needs which led me Colorado State University and it couldn’t be a more perfect fit.

I’m originally from a small town called Ottawa, Illinois and have moved all around the US for the past 4 years so coming to Fort Collins I didn’t know a single soul. The Transfer Mentors were the ones who truly inspired me to become a Transfer Mentor myself. The events that they held every week, the unlimited resources they provided, and even the laughter that they shared really made my transition a good. I am beyond stoked to be able to make your transition an enjoyable one. Welcome to the Ram Fam and get ready to start a whole new exhilarating chapter!

Do You Know CSU?

How many deep is CAM the rams' entourage?

ANSWER: 10

True or false, CAM’s trailer is climate con-trolled?

ANSWER: True