University of Mississippi - Ole Miss Yearbook (Oxford, MS)

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As students return to campus and the leaves begin to change, fall at Ole Miss can be quite the pleasant time of year. The semester started out with the bang of Welcome Week. Sponsored by the Student Programming Board, the week brought music, food and fun to new and returning Rebels. Overall, each event we have sponsored this year has been a success, said Bradley Baker, program coordinator for the Department of Campus Programming. The Student Programming Board has done an exceptional job this semester at planning different activities for students. The purpose of the SPB is to develop new ideas and turn those ideas into a reality. The fall semester has been jam-packed with activities and events that attract diverse groups of students. All week long, caricatures, game shows, a money machine, an IronMan obstacle course and a velcro wall were set up for students in front of the Union as they traveled to and from their first few classes of the semester. On Saturday, Aug. 27, students turned out in droves for Rumble in the Grove. Digital Underground, Tone Loc, Drew Holcomb, The Taylor Grocery Band, Sanders Bohlke and The Gospel and Jeff Johnson all performed. The Welcome Week events may have been an indicator that students would show up to the other activities that lay in store. Baker said. We have had high student participation in every activity, ranging from Rebel Nights to Homecoming Week to Welcome Week, he said. In my mind, some of the events that stood out the most included Ole Miss Idol and Poetry Slam during two different Rebel Nights, the Big Red Chair Photo during Homecoming Week and the outdoor activities we have had at the Student Union throughout the semester. The hands-on activities have included mechanical bulls, rock walls and bungee runs to name a few. Once students settled in, the events did not stop. From Poetry Slams to Rebel Nights at the Southern Breeze to various productions from the Ole Miss Theater Department and other companies to conceits from Percy Sledge and the Oak Ridge Boys, there was always something available to students to combat any boredom that popped up in their hectic schedules. Personally, I have enjoyed both the Poetry Slam and Ole Miss Idol competitions in the Southern Breeze, Baker said. Due to the high number of talented performers in both events, the crowd turnout was incredible. In turn, the high number of attendees made the atmosphere that much more competitive. On Tuesday, Sept. 6 through Sunday, Sept. 1 1, filmmakers and movie enthusiasts from far and away converged on Oxford for the third annual Oxford Film Festival. Participants enjoyed screenings, workshops, professional independent and amateur films, presentations and awards. At the beginning of October, the campus landed one of the largest concerts in Ole Miss history - the Mississippi Rising benefit for Hurricane Katrina victims, which was broadcast live on MSNBC. The Ole Miss theater department kept busy with various productions. The season included Our Town, The Rocky Horror Show and a holiday delight, Christmas Wonderland. Also in other performances, Manic thrilled a Ford Center audience on Friday, Oct. 21. I ' ve seen other performances (at the Ford Center) in the past, and they ' ve always been really well done, but they ' re always priced so that the average student can ' t afford to get into many, said Albert Scovel, a senior from Pascagoula. I really wanted to see La Boheme, but it was too expensive. Later in the semester came an Ole Miss tradition, Parade of Beauties, where Ole Miss sophomore Sarah Mokry, of Olive Branch, was crowned on Wednesday, Nov. 16. It will be neat to tell my kids and grand kids that I was ' Most Beautiful ' in a college known for having the most beautiful girls, Mokry said. I never imagined that I would win because there were 87 other beautiful girls in the pageant. In a pageant of this caliber, it is hard to imagine yourself winning it all. Any one of them would have been an amazing ' Most Beautiful. ' On Friday, Nov. 18, famed Republican Sen. John McCain gave a speech to a packed Gertrude C. Ford Center, focusing on the U.S. presence in Iraq. John McCain was really good, but the most impressive part was that we were able to get someone of that caliber in the first place, Scovel said. The Lott leadership Institute seems to be a really great asset to the university that hopefully will continue to bring in high quality speakers. I Kappa Kappa Gamma and Sigma Chi pledges at this year ' s Homecoming parade. Various artis ' at Rumble in I during Welcome W.

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m Students come out of hibernation after the long weather break with an energy found only during springtime at Ole Miss. ■ When the winter days have come RnHtQne f D:.dgmJ:s J .Io ve to hang in s. Ole Miss Vanessa Hayes J5 Ole Miss football fans get to meet md greet the new roster of players in April during Red Blue Week. Tight End Robert Hough walks through a tunnel of devoted fans. Students came out of hibernation after the long winter break to be greeted by royalty, good tunes and a new coach during spring at Ole Miss. Soon after the Spring semester commenced, Oxford and Ole Miss found out they would soon be entertaining royalty. Prince Edward, Earl of Essex, of the United Kingdom, made north ' Mississippi a stopping point on his tour to promote fundraising for the restoration of Windsor, the castle damaged by fire in 1992. Edward received a king ' s welcome at Ajax, Rowan Oak and other points across the city and campus. In April, cars newly-donned with O: The Coach stickers flocked to campus for fans to meet their new coach and to get a taste of football season to tide them over until the fall. Head coach Ed Orgeron made his debut amidst a sea of red-clad fans in his first official march down the Walk of Champions on Saturday, April 9. The Grove filled once again on Sunday, April 17, for the annual Spring Fest concert with a line-up of bands Campus Programming Director Jennifer Taylor called one of the best in years. The Student Programming Board had tried for years to book popular rock band Tonic and finally succeeded, Taylor said. Ole Miss alumnus Josh Kelley returned to play at the event and locals Wiley and the Checkmates joined in. As the month came to a close, the Double Decker Festival on the Square brought visitors to town once again and gave students and locals a chance to sample food, arts and even more sounds. This year ' s musical line-up on April 30 included local, or almost local, favorites such as the Circuit Riders, the Cooters, DayBreakDown, Healthy White Baby and Herbert Wiley and the Checkmates. The huge variety of famous performers was more than what expected, said sophomore Tiffany Dunn. It was really exciting and I hope to see something just as good again. Folk-singing legend Emmylou Harris closed out Oxford ' s biggest evening on the Square. As finals neared, weary students took a break for Campus Programming ' s new two-week-long event - The Final Stretch. We want the students to know that we care about them and that many of us have been in their shoes at some point in our lives and understand how stressful the end of the semester can be for them, Taylor said. Masssages and snow cones were given for free and games of pool were on the house at The Southern Breeze from May 2-13. Also during the exam week, the Associated Student Body gave away free Scantrons and Blue Books. It was great. All the stuff going on really helped me out during those exams, said sophomore Terrence Stevenson. As temperatures warmed, Ole Miss ' 2004-2005 school year wrapped up with commencement ceremonies on Saturday, May 14, 2004. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of several critically- acclaimed books David Halberstam was poised to address the graduates, but rain showers put a damper on the day. Graduation day is definitely a day I will remember, not so much for the ' great significance ' of the day but more for the dousing all of us received that morning, said May graduate Melissa Sindelar. While the rain stopped me from hearing David Halberstam ' s speech and from getting photo ops with my friends I wanted, graduation did provide some different, yet completely fabulous memories.

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