University of
North Carolina
Wilmington
Seahawk Parents Learning About Student Happenings
Inside this issue:
Volume IX, Issue 2
Students
Spend Fall
Break
Helping the
Homeless
1
Healthy
Habits for
Healthy
Students
2
Students
Become
Successful
Quitters
2
Your
Opinion
Matters
3
Family
Weekend
2007
Pictures
3
Visit our
website at
www.uncw.edu/
transitions
FALL 2007
Students Spend Fall Break Helping the Homeless
Positioned on the calendar right before or
after many course’s mid-terms, Fall Break
is a time normally reserved for relaxation
or catching up on school work that never
quite seems to get finished during the
week. Yet this year a group of nine
UNCW students used this break as a
chance to experience an alternative break
education and address issues of homelessness in our nation’s capital. Sponsored by
the Center for Leadership Education and
Service (CLES), these students traveled to
Washington, DC over the long weekend
to volunteer with the largest homeless
shelter in the United States: Community
for Creative Non-Violence (CCNV).
Beginning in the 1970’s, CCNV is a full service
homeless shelter and staffed completely by volunteers. The shelter houses over 2,500 people,
providing food, shelter, case management and
educational support for residents. UNCW students were first given an hour long orientation
on common misconceptions about homelessness
and the center’s history and mission. After orientation, students worked directly on a residential renovation project which will provide more
space for single mothers and their children. Following work on the renovation project, students
were also given the opportunity to interact with
residents to hear their stories.
social work major. Amber Wilson, a junior business major and CLES fellow highlights the importance of the visiting CCNV, “It’s very important
that someone understands that homelessness
isn’t just a problem for a few of us. As a community member, it’s my responsibility to take care
of all of my neighbors especially those who are
homeless.”
Students interested in a similar alternative break
experience are encouraged to contact CLES. In
the spring, CLES plans to offer three alternative
break trips – an Urban Poverty trip to Atlanta,
GA, a community development trip to Ecuador
and a sustainability based trip to the Gulf Coast
region. For more information on alternative
break trips, contact the Center for Leadership
Education and Service via email, cles@uncw.edu,
(910)962-3877 or by visiting the website at
http://www.uncw.edu/stuaff/leadserv.
Students who went on the trip gained an
awareness of the problems facing the homeless
and the diversity of those affected. “Before this
trip, I had a stigma about homelessness. This trip
Submitted by Logan Sheehan, AmeriCorps VISTA, Center for
made me realize that anyone can be homeless;
there’s a man here who had passed the bar, but Leadership Education and Service
is now homeless,” says, Tyla Merloni, a freshman
Page 2
Healthy Habits = Healthy Students
The common cold and flu are familiar to nearly everyone.
UNCW health care providers see numerous patients during
the winter months suffering from a combination of symptoms
such as fever, headache, cough, sore throat and body aches.
Whether at home, school or work, people who practice
healthy habits will protect themselves from picking up or
spreading germs, which can help prevent illnesses and reduce
the number of days your son or daughter misses class!
Unfortunately, college life can be a different world when it
comes to lifestyle choices. It’s often easy to let healthy hygiene and lifestyle behaviors slip. Encouraging your student to
practice healthy behaviors will not only have them feeling
better, but will also help them perform better academically.
when soap and water are not available.
•Cover your cough. It can prevent the spread of
germs. Use a tissue when coughing or sneezing and then
throw it away. Also, remember to clean your hands, and do
so every time you cough or sneeze. If you don't have a tissue,
cough or sneeze into your arm above your hand.
Don't contaminate. Try not to touch your eyes, nose or
mouth. Germs are often spread this way, which is why hand
washing is so important.
•Keep your distance. Avoid close contact with people
who are sick. If you're ill, stay home. You can help prevent
others from getting sick.
The following are some key tips for staying healthy and avoiding illnesses such as the flu, the common cold, and Staph in•Maintain good health. Get plenty of sleep. Drink plenty
of water and eat nutritious foods. Get regular exercise. Manfections this winter season:
age stress. Being healthy helps protect you against the flu or
•Get a flu vaccination. According to the Centers for Dis- can help you overcome it without getting too sick.
ease Control, the flu vaccination is the single best way to prevent seasonal flu. Visit the Centers for Disease Control Web For more information, please contact the Abrons Student
site for specific details about flu vaccinations: http://
Health Center at 910-962-3280 or visit
http://www.uncw.edu/healthservices
www.cdc.gov/flu/protect/keyfacts.htm
•Wash your hands. Keeping your hands clean is one of the
best ways to keep from getting sick and spreading illnesses.
Health experts recommend the use of soap and water often,
especially after coughing or sneezing. It is also wise to carry
alcohol-based hand cleaners in your car, backpack or purse
Sources:
http://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/flu/
http://www.cdc.gov/flu/protect/habits.htm
Submitted by Trisha M. Schleicher, MS, CHES, UNCW Health Educator
Successful Quitters
Are you ready for your student to quit smoking tobacco?
Hoping this New Year’s Resolution will stick? You can help
them join the 70% of UNCW students who don’t smoke!
Some students are “social smokers” and only smoke with
friends or at parties, which often turns into daily use. Talking
with your student about their smoking habits can help them
decide to quit or prevent them from using.
If your student is ready to quit, encourage them to use
campus resources, such as our quit tobacco website: http://
seahawks.stopsmokingcenter.net or quit kits available in the
CROSSROADS offices in Westside Hall and the Student
Recreation Center. Both have information and strategies to
develop a personal plan for quitting. Students can call
QuitlineNC at 1-800-QUIT-NOW for free, confidential,
personalized help available from 8am to midnight, 7 days a
week.
Provide support for your student, even if they go back to
smoking. One cigarette didn’t make them a smoker and
won’t change the hard work they have done to quit. Most
cravings last less than five minutes, so encourage them to call
you or a friend or find another healthy way to distract
themselves when a craving hits.
Help your student make a list of the reasons why they want
to quit and post the list in places where they will see it often,
like a mirror, refrigerator, and steering wheel. Identify the
moods, feelings, places, or things that trigger desire for a
cigarette and try to avoid those triggers.
Incentives may help your student quit. Devise a plan with
them for short and long-term rewards for their success. For
example, they can collect the money they would have spent
on cigarettes and use it to buy something fun!
Remember to keep trying one day – or hour – at a time.
Most smokers try to quit many times and need both their
own willpower and the support of friends and family before
they are successful. Good luck!
Submitted by Rebecca Caldwell, Director of CROSSROADS
University of
North Carolina
Wilmington
University of North Carolina
Wilmington
Office of Transition Programs
601 South College Road
Wilmington, NC 28403-5997
Phone: 910-962-3089
Fax: 910-962-7151
E-mail:loganc@uncw.edu
The Office of Transition Programs would like to hear
from you. In the next month, you will receive a survey
about the SPLASH (Seahawk Parents Learning
About Student Happenings) newsletter. Your
opinion is important to us and we want to
provide you with the best parent newsletter
possible. We cannot do this without your help.
The survey will be administered electronically
via email. All returned surveys will be
anonymous. The questions will cover a variety
of areas including distribution , content, format,
etc. If you have any questions, about the
survey and how the results will be used, please
email Christina Logan at loganc@uncw.edu.
Your
Opinio
n
Matter
s!
Family Weekend 2007
The Office of Transition Programs is responsible for providing a comprehensive program that will assist all students and their families in
their transitions to and from
the University. This program
exposes new students to the
educational opportunities
within UNCW, orients them to
the academic and cocurricular life of the institution, and assists them in their
on-going transition to the university beyond orientation.
The Office of Transition Programs also assists parents in
their transition and understanding of the UNCW environment, services and
changes within the university.
The office is also responsible
for a comprehensive senior
transition program designed
to help seniors make meaning
of their college experience,
celebrate their achievements
and prepare them for life after
college. In addition, the Office
of Transition Programs is responsible for the coordination
of Commencement.