Florida State University - Renegade / Tally Ho Yearbook (Tallahassee, FL)

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Students find image enhancing costly but fun AKINGIT it Photo by Bill Garrett Have you ever faked Seriously, now. Have you ever? On campus, it was not uncommon to run into thousands of students who had done it. Fantasy ? Exaggeration ? Enhancement of the mediocre? Sure, I ' ve faked it. But I don ' t share that kind of information with just anybody, a student who wished to remain anonymous said. Do not think the topic of discussion here is the S - E - X word. Guess again. The controversial, yet very personal issue, was students, mostly women, who disguised their natural selves with artificial hair color, extensions, nail tips student buffs her acrylic nails . This was to assure that there were no air bubbles for a smooth and natural look. riair extensions are one of the many ways which women choose to enhance their appearance. and tropical tans in the height of North Florida winters. On a random day, in a random class, I counted nine people out of 1 7 who either had monster acrylic nails or obviously were suffering from the curse, senior au naturale Tifanny Mordini said. Mordini described the curse as punishment. Three weeks after someone picked a fabulous color at the salon everyone could see that they were being punished with grotesquely dark roots springing from their scalp. And if the curse did not punish fakers enough, incriminating photos surely did. One weekend when I went home, I found a picture of my mom with a frosted blonde afro, Toshia Harper said. She normally had straight, brown hair. She said she was pretty cool then but I couldn ' t help but laughing. Some students had families which were ultra conservative in the 1970 ' s and could not seem to find any blackmail pictures. A personal survey could be conducted daily. At the Union on any Wed., the rainbow assortment of Life Saver-colored hairdos could be seen blooming on the stairs of Moore Auditorium. And at any local gym, brown, bulging biceps and suntanned, blondes could be spotted in the dead of Tallahassee ' s dreary winters. Being a slave to fashion did not come cheaply either. Acrylic nails could cost as much as $35 for a set and had to be filled at least every two weeks for $15. Over a year ' s time, acrylic nails could cost a faker $425! The hair coloring industry made a fortune off victims who paid from $25 to $50 initially. Necessary touch ups were needed every eight weeks or so depending on the color and the touch ups could cost as much as the original coloring. It did not take a mathematician to calculate the big dollar signs in image enhancing tactics. Money is no object when it comes to looking as good as I possibly can, sophomore Dee Jackson said. I do not want a $5 haircut because I am a firm believer that you get what you pay for. Certainly, the idea of faking it was not a new one and all efforts to fake it were not disasters. Marilyn Monroe was a prime example of a mousy Midwesterner gone Hollywood, as her hair changed from brunette to platinum. It was possible to make millions off of charlatan images in the 1990 ' s. Some superstars faking it included Andre Agassi, Madonna and even RuPaul, the seven-foot tall, platinum blonde transsexual pop star. The theme of the decade could have been said by Andre Agassi, Image is everything. By Wendy Diehl Faking It 25

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24 Student Life

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; Pike ' s probation was extended three more years by the University but they RE BACK They were back and the news shook the campus. Although denied a return to campus by both the Interfraternity Council and the University administrators, Pi K appa Alpha decided to come back with or without University recognition. The Delta Lambda Chapter of nKA had their charter revoked in 1988 when members refused to cooperate with the police investigation that followed the gang rape of an 1 8-year-old student. At the FIKA fraternity house, the girl was given alcohol and then raped by several fraternity members. She was then taken to another fraternity house and dropped in their foyer, after members had painted demoralizing words and another fraternity ' s symbols on her thinks. When the police questioned nKA brothers, the entire fraternity refused to cooperate. Their refusal to cooperate with the police prompted the University to kick the fraternity off campus for five years and prompted their national office to revoke their charter. The fraternity was denied a return to campus because of an unofficial nKA group, the Firemen ' s Club, which operated during the term of the fraternity ' s suspension. The University gave the chapter an additional three year suspension because the alumni association violated the terms of the original suspension by assisting in the creation of the illegal underground club made up of nKA members. Even though the University deemed this a reasonable punishment, the nKA did not. The fraternity ' s newly colonized members, local alumni and national office were ready to challenge University authorities. We feel we were unfairly denied recognition by the University review committee and the Interfraternity Council. We are going to reco Ionize the chapter, Bob Hall, president of nKA ' s local alumni chapter, said. Pi Kappa Alpha met with the Panhellenic Association to discuss possible sorority involvement with the fraternity. By Dody Perry Since the fraternity was not recognized by the University, sororities refused to have social functions with nKA or mix with them in any way. We flat out told them we would not support them. We have no intention of assisting them in any way, shape or form, Panhellenic President Julie Dunn said. The community seemed wary of the fraternity ' s return due to the fresh memory of the student ' s rape. It made various Tallahassee women ' s groups angry, concerned and frustrated. ( Phe unofficial group) shows that they have no respect for women in this community... they don ' t have the ability to follow rules, Lynn Rosenthal, executive director of the Refuge House, said. Starting an unwelcome colony on a campus was not a common occurrence for nKA fraternity. In fact, it has never happened according to the nKA National Director of Expansion Stevan Vincent. We have never done this before, Vincent said. We have never gone to a university without approval. This is a special case... We feel that nKA can have a positive impact on FSU. We owe it to the alumni and the students who contacted us to get a colony. The Pikes were back and they were trying to prove that they were not the same guys that were here five years ago. The National nKA fraternity and the Alumni AA Chapter wanted a colony started on campus with or without the approval of the University. The colony had several requirements to meet before they could receive their charter again. The requirements were the toughest on campus including a combined 3.0 GPA and 60 hours of community service per member. This accounted for a combined total of 3 500 man hours of community service. We are looking for scholars, leaders, and most importantly, gentlemen. Every person that wears the Pike letters will be watched, from the president to members, and it is important that the people we rush represent the three qualities that we demand, Kent Braughman, President of the nKA colony said. All we are asking for is a chance to prove ourselves. president, Kent Braughman, discusses the future. Including house renovations. I he house on Wildwood Drive reopened when the Pikes came back to campus. 26 Student Life