THE STORIES in this newspaper impact our lives in profound ways. One changed mine forever. I was excited yet paralyzed with fear.
Tapping into a steady supply of money is difficult for most college students. While some can parsimoniously budget their summer earnings for an entire academic year, many find on-Grounds jobs a convenient way to pay for everything from bar nights to groceries. But given the recent hiring freeze and faltering economy, options for student employment may be waning. "It's too early to tell really," said Lacinda Childs-White, University Director of Staffing for Human Resources "We could be dealing with a number of situations." Human Resources offers jobs to students based on the demands of departments within the University, so making projections for the school year can be difficult until late August or early September, when most departments begin posting positions and students begin applying. While "there are less dollars, there is no hiring freeze on student jobs," said Greg Helmuth, Special Assistant to the Chief Human Resources Officer. University Human Resources currently has 1,590 students on its payroll, and is the largest on-Grounds student employer.
Starr Hill's restaurant, brewery and music hall serves as a mecca to students looking for food and a good time in a casual atmosphere. But despite its cosmopolitan flair, Starr Hill's history is as rooted in down-home Charlottesville traditions as the Foxfield races. Nineteen eighty-seven marked the beginning of Starr Hill's history, when Bok and Paul Summers - grandsons of Nobel laureate William Faulkner - founded the Blue Ridge Brewing Company and restaurant. Making a name for themselves right here in Charlottesville seemed the perfect way for Bok and Paul Summers to begin their careers. "We were both born and raised in Charlottesville," Bok Summers said.
With sun-dried dirt smudged all over his T-shirt and khakis, Adam Vandervort painstakingly sifted the newly dug dirt.
S pray-painted in black letters against a white wooden back ground, the message on the makeshift sign stuck in front of a house on Cameron Lane could not be clearer. "HELP STOP UVA GARAGE ON IVY BEFORE IT GETS YOU!" These types of signs along with emblazoned blue banners appear in the yards of many residents of the Lewis Mountain neighborhood, an area within a stone's throw of the University's proposed parking garage. On March 12 of this year, the University officially unveiled its plan for a piece of land slated for development down Ivy Road: a 1,180-space, five-story parking garage.
It was the night before classes and everyone was buzzing with anticipation at the beginning of the spring semester.
BLACKSBURG, Va.-VT. The branded-orange logo easily caught the eye of even the most unresponsive drivers. The dingy maroon windsocks strapped on the tops of the SUV's were unmistakable.
As she swatted a yellow jacket away from her soda, Newcomb balcony diner Sonia Gosain grimaced. "They're like telemarketers, they just won't go away," said the second-year College student. Gosain and other diners will be kept busy swatting this time of year, when swarms of yellow jackets and hornets descend upon dumpsters, trash cans and hapless diners around Grounds. During the summer months, wasps and hornets stay at their nests.
With its rolling hills and neoclassical architecture, Charlottesville seems to be the antithesis of an area like Manhattan.
TAZEWELL, Va. - I knew I heard something. It was only feet away from the house. There could be no other explanation: Someone, or something, had to be outside; but what (or who?) could be prowling around at 1 a.m.? I had to investigate.
