Kansas State University - Royal Purple Yearbook (Manhattan, KS)

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The Greek Idol annual contest showcased events that included song and dance. Students who made It through the audition rounds would compete for the title of K-State Greek Idol. Drew Otte, Beta Theta Pi and sophomore in architectural engineering, did the Napoleon Dynamite dance during Greek Week in the K-State Student Union Courtyard. Greek Week provided students with a range of free activities, including: community service, Greek Olympics, Greek Idol, alumni and family gatherings and house lunches in the Quad. In the tug-of war, a Greek Week contest, Jessica Rodriguez, Alpha Delta Pi and sophomore in food science and industry, and, John Yingling, Lambda Chi Alpha and junior m life sciences, compete against other greek community members. The Peters Recreation Complex held all events for the Greek Olympics. Admission to the Greek Olympics was free for participants as long as they wore their Greek Week button. It was just exciting, it was pretty high intensity and everyone was yelling, Rodriguez said. We were all victorious and running into the crowd. Alott Costro Gi-cck Week 15

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greener Manhattan ) Continued from page 13 The Greek Olympics were moved mdtMirs to the Peters Recredtion Goniplex and .iH the events had an emphasis on philanthropy then m the previous years, Richardson said. The Olympics consisted of a tug-of- var competition, dodgeball tournament, relav race and three-legged race. Jessica Rodriguez, ADFi and sophomore m animal sciences and industry, said she liked Greek Week because it was low key but still tun. I actually didn ' t realize I was going to participate in Greek Olympics because I showed up in jeans and didn ' t really know what was going on, she said. As soon as I arrived I got thrown into tug-of-war, and after that I was hyped up, so I went to my car and changed and even participated in a dodgeball game. I ' m definitely participating again next year. Monday, a community service opportunity called The Greening of Manhattan began and continued tor the duration of the week. These were projects that helped improve the overall environmental conditions 1:1 the comnumitv. ! lie Greek Idol competition Thursday pitted members from greek houses against each other as they performed songs and skits for the entire greek communitv. Greek Idol continued to be the most popular event this year, despite having to move it indoors to the Union Courtyard due to weather, Richardson said. I thought that would discourage people from coming, but the courtyard was packed, in addition to the next two levels abcwe the courtyard. It actually made the atmosphere cool because if you looked up you could see herds of people leaning over the rail and cheering for their favorite contestants. At the Greek Awards, on Friday, houses were recognized for their achievements and excellence as a chapter over the course of the school year. Overall, the planning committee was pleased with the participation from all of the chapters, Virgo said. I felt like being a part of this organization was a way to truly gi -e back to the greek community that gives so much to me, and I wanted to spread my support for people who have helped me to become a better person, she said. Mostly 1 wanted to show the entire Manhattan coninuinity the size of the philanthropic heart that all of K-State ' s greek chapters share for the communitv. 14 Student Lite

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In the back of the (Union Pacific Depot). Mansour Alkhalaf. freshman in computer science, listens at the Saudi Student Club meeting Oct- 1 (Americans) behave better around strangers than in Saudi Arabia (They) smile and talk to strangers like they know them. At home they don ' t do that. Mansour Asiri. senior in mechanical engineering, said There ' s a big difference for sure. But It ' s always fun to try something different. The Saudi Club was founded December 2005 and gam members every year Dif Dim For many students, the ehoice to come to Manhattan mvolved visitmg campus, attending senior days, communicating with admissions representatives and receiving scholarship notifications. However, this was not the case for all. For two students from Saudi . ' rabu, snow, parental pressure and the size of the town were the deciding factors. Mansour Asiri, senior in mechanical engineering, said one of the pushes to come here was the weather — more specifically, the snow — since Saudi Arabia had weather comparable to Texas. The weather in Kansas is very different (than in Saudi Arabia), Asiri said. At first, I was really e.xcited. but it ' s really cold. I have to wake up early just to clean ice off my car. Besides the snow, Asiri came to Manhattan after receiving a scholarship from SABIC hinovative Plastics, a Saudi Arabian company, for five years of schooling: one vear to learn English, which he spent at Texas A M University, and four years to obtain a bachelor ' s degree. The scholarship paid for all school expenses and gave Asiri a monthly allowance. After graduation, he would be required to work at least five years for the company. It ' s awesome to get a scholarship from them, Asiri said. Out of 10,000 people who applied, only 100 got the scholarship. Despite heavy amounts of work, Asin found time to get involved with one of his passions: soccer. He said he was afraid he would not get to play soccer in the U.S. because of its lack of popularity, but found a budding interest on campus and became involved m the Saudi intramural soccer team. Football is fun, but I don ' t understand why America doesn ' t like soccer, he said. It ' s the most popular sport in the world. In football, you ' re either tat or fast. There ' s no skill. Hazem Alkotami, sophomore in industrial engineering, came to the universitv after beintr 16 Smdent Life