Editorial: Except for Sandy, a thumbs-up year

The 2012-13 school year was a time of change on campus. Rider wisely invested time and money to improve student dining satisfaction as the brand-new Daly’s officially opened after weeks of renovation over the summer. The dining hall has done a complete 180, and became unrecognizable. The Bronc Diner, a favorite among students, was demolished in order to help expand the dining hall. New food stations such as the Parm station where students can get a number of pasta dishes, and the new Daly’s Grille, allow for a broader selection of choices. Part of Cranberry’s was also renovated. Andrew J.’s was created to replace the C-store in the old Daly’s, and a Subway completed an improved Cranberry’s.
Campus Changes
The new residence hall that is connected to Ziegler Hall was officially given an awfully long name, Hank and Bonnie Moore Hall, in a ceremony back in September. Communication students were also graced with a remodeled J-lab in January. Many students are taking full advantage of the new facilities since all of the computers were updated as well.
The room selection process also got a major face-lift. Thanks to StarRez, students were able to select their housing for the following school year online. The online process was much easier than previous years since the selection could have been done from the comfort of your own dorm room. The awful task of waiting in line was eliminated and the process was more convenient.
We were faced with some unexpected difficulties very early in the school year because of Superstorm Sandy. The hurricane devastated our state and gave some students challenges that they are still trying to overcome today. There is still a lot of damage in some of the Shore towns where some of our students live. The process to rebuild is a long one, however, progress is slow. The campus was closed for more than a week and even though Rider is at a state of normalcy now, some students’ homes still are not.
It wouldn’t be a completed school year without some scandal. A mysterious website was created known as RateRider where pictures of female students appeared side by side. People who visited the website “rated” the pictures and points were given to the winner. The administration blocked the website on Rider’s servers on Oct. 23.
Top notch shows
We had some great performances this year by the School of Fine and Performing Arts and Westminster College of the Arts, with productions of Cole, Nine, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Crumble Lay Me Down, Justin Timberlake, The Misanthrope and The Crucible. J.Cole and Miguel also took the time to perform (to some students’ displeasure) at Rider for this year’s fall concert in October.
Awards
As for the athletes, some teams sparked special pride, like field hockey, who came out on top yet again. This year, the team won its third consecutive NEC title. Rider’s cheerleaders also finished on top of the pyramid. The team competed in the American Cheer and Dance Reach the Beach 2013 Nationals in the coed college division and won, becoming national champions for the second year in a row.
Our very own The Rider News won a total of 17 awards from the New Jersey Press Foundation and the Society of Professional Journalists, exceeding any previous staff. Model U.N. also won big. They represented Israel, and took home the highest honor when the team received an “Outstanding Delegation,” which is only awarded to 21 of the more than 200 delegations. This is the fifth consecutive year Model U.N. has earned this prestigious recognition.
Going Green
Rider continued to go green. For the fourth year in a row, we participated with other schools across the country in Recyclemania, the eight-week long recycling competition. Rider was ranked 14 of 228 in the Grand Champion category with a 63.19% recycling rate.
Additionally, with the installation of the PepsiCo Dream Machine last year, the company recognized the university with a Certificate of Recycling Excellence and was acknowledged for having one of the top-ten performing Dream Machines in the nation. For a medium-sized school, Rider has taken large steps toward going green.
Until next year…
And there is more to look forward to next year. The campus will shift from Blackboard to a new system known as Canvas. Memorial Hall will undergo a makeover. The building’s exterior will be worked on, and a central cooling system will be installed. With these new changes and a clean slate, 2013-14 will be an even better school year.

The weekly editorial expresses the majority opinion of The Rider News. This week’s editorial was written by the
Opinion Editor Danielle Gittleman

Printed in the 5/3/13 edition.