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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 17, 1997)
Students hold on to ‘Nite’ Annual event celebrates culture of India By Karl Anderson Staff Reporter Saturday night was a time of cele bration as members of the India j Students’ Association and the public | gathered for India Nite ’97. j The annual event, which included ! dinner, dancing and music, as well as a short skit, was held in the | University of Nebraska-Lincoln Centennial Ballroom of the Nebraska ■ Union. I The evening was organized and sponsored by the ISA, a student orga nization that helps students from i India adjust to the university and 1 community by providing them with a ! familiar cultural atmosphere. Ravindra Rathi, vice president of the ISA, said the event was designed ! to expose people to the different tra ditions of India and to give people a sense of Indian culture. This year’s India Nite was special j because it also celebrated India’s 50th | year of independence from Britain. The evening started with a tradi tional Indian welcome song given by Sada Sivudu. Following the song, the ISA welcomed two guest speakers to the microphone. Theron Snell, the director of for I eign student programs in the International Affairs Office, talked j about the work his office does with | international students and organiza | tions. Members of his office help for eign students adjust to the new envi | ronment they find when they come to ; the university for the first time. ! The final speaker of the evening j was Linda Crump, associate director ! of affirmative action and diversity ! programs. Crump talked about the importance of people celebrating ! who they are and the importance of ! people working together in thd uni versity. A multimedia presentation high lighted some of the accomplishments India has made in the past 50 years, including its emergence as a major center for software technology and a film industry giant. The show also honored some of India’s national heroes. Mahatma Gandhi, who lead India’s struggle for independence, Mother Teresa, and author Rudyard Kipling were includ ed in the presentation. The dinner was catered by Sitar, an Indian restaurant in Omaha. The food was served buffet style and offered guests a variety of different Indian dishes. “The food was wonderful,” said Bob Bergstrom, associate professor of English. The cuisine included chapatis, or unleavened bread baked on a griddle; Tandoori Chicken, which is prepared in a clay oven called a Tandoor; and paan, a very rich Indian pudding that mciuuc^ iicc, dimuuus miu spites. Rice is served with most Indian meals and is a staple in most Indian diets. Dinner was followed by a six man band that featured two key boardists, an electric guitar, a drum set and a vocalist. The band played seven songs that presented a sam pling of modern Indian music, which resembled American dance music. The first dance was a popular Indian dance that depicts a recently married daughter leaving her parents for the first, and probably last, time. One of many masters of cere monies explained that when Indian women marry, they typically never live with their families again. The dance is designed to show how deli cate the separation between daughter and parents can be. The evening also included a short skit entitled “The Pit.”»Tbe skit depicted a universal citizenWho falls victim to the middle class struggle, represented by a deep pit. The man is helpless as various nemeses of society, a journalist, a politician, a lawyer and two govern ment workers, try to take advantage of him while he is trapped in the pit. The man finally frees himself when he becomes aware of his own sense of pride and empowerment. A Jugalbandi, or drum competi tion, was performed after the skit. The Jugalbandi was described as a musical debate between two drum mers who try to outperform each other by playing a more complicated drum rhythm.A fashion show dis played some of the typical clothing worn by people from India. Common among Indian women is the “sari,” a versatile, one-piece dress that is often brightly colored. The sari is consid ered to be the national dress of Indian women. The evening concluded with one last dance originating from the Indian state of Punjab. The dance, called the Bhangra, was traditionally performed by farmers after the har vest. Now, however, the dance is per formed at many official functions as a celebration of the joy of life. The four-hour event attracted more than 150 people and gave guests the opportunity to experience Indian culture and traditions first hand. Rosemary Bergstrom, adminis trator in UNL’s division of the College of Nursing, said the evening gave people a chance to meet and talk with international students. Paul Vinton, a senior psychology major, said he and his wife enjoy Indian food and culture a/wj were impressed with the whole evening. “The whole thing was great,” Vinton said. RHA considers open test bank By Sarah Baker Assignment Reporter The University of Nebraska Lincoln Residence Hall Association voiced its support for the idea of an open test bank for all UNL students Sunday. The idea that RHA supports consibis of a test bank system that will be open to all UNL students. The tests in the bank would be photocopies provided by students. If this test bank is approved in the future, professors would get a memo informing them of the bank and how it works, Brendan Arnold, Harper residence hall senator, said. “If professors don’t want their tests in the file, I will do every thing I can to keep it that way,” Arnold said. “We don’t want any cheating, plagiarism or disrespect within the test bank.” Arnold said as of now this plan is just an idea. “I am going to see where this goes, and if I get some support then we can see what happens,” he said. Arnold said, along with RHA President Ben Wallace, a formal proposal will be developed within the next few weeks. Arnold said RHA plans to take the idea to James Griesen, vice chancellor for academic affairs, and also to the Association of Students of the University of Nebraska “There are a few people that I ■ want -to meet with and get ideas, and see if the idea is a feasible < f. 17 18 19 “~20 21 22 £ Men's & Women's Men's Basketball/V Women's Volleyball/V Women's Men's Pre-Season Basketball vs. Western Illinois at Texas Tech, 7:00 pm Volleyball/V Basketball/V O Tourney/I Devaney Men's & Women's at Baylor, 7:30 PM v . New Orleans I O Entry Deadline 05 PM Swimming & Diving/V M/W Swimming Devaney, 7:05 PM NIKE Spirit Classic ( Diving/V n Devaney Husker Shoot-Out <9 • ^Devaney ^i •* r+ 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 § Men's & Women's M/W Cross-Country/V Men's Basketball/V Men's Football/V Women's Men's — Swimming & Diving/V ncaa Championships vsl Colorado State at Colorado Volleyball/V Basketball/V Husker Shoot-Out Greenville, SC Devaney, 7:05 PM _ 1 30 PM y5 jEXAS . vs texas-San Antonio * Devaney 11:00 AM M/W 8-Ball Pool/I ] WON'T FIT ON 28TH... Women's Volleyball/V Coliseum, 7:30 PM Devaney, 7 00 PM 5 Women's Basketball/V Entry Deadline Women's vs Texas a&m Women's < vs ■ Creighton Basketball/V i ^ Coliseum „ BaskEtbau/V • Devaney, *05 PM j Ca.leV.sic Class,c "► *30 PM oESSEgiL 3 ' *L_teg.J . Devaney - ' * 30 _ BwibiijbcWbM o Hi, I'm Steve Saylors, your NIKE student rep. Sports1/2Page tracks The UNL Men's Club Rugby team capped off another ^ upcoming sports and NIKE events at Nebraska. 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If you love rugby and you've got For more info, call (800) 890-6453 or go to info.nike.com. the competitive spirit, give them a call at 438-8762. —Megan Wiegert THE GOAL OF THIS SPORTS1/2PAGE IS TO INFORM STUDENTS ABOUT SPORTS ON CAMPUS NIKE DOES NOT SPONSOR ANY VARSITY, INTRAMURAL OR CLUB SPORTS ON THIS CAMPUS AND THIS PAGE DOES NOT IN ANY WAY IMPLY SUCH SPONSORSHIP. u These tests are meant to be study guides, not an easy way out” Petra Eccarius RHA speaker one,” Arnold said. “I also want to take this to ASUN and see if they have any problems with it.” RHA members had some ideas on how the test bank should work in the future. Petra Eccarius, RHA speaker, said she thought the tests should be provided without answers on them. “These tests are meant to be study guides, not an easy way out,” Eccarius said. Wallace also discussed future improvements in communication between RHA and the students liv- * ing in the residence halls. Wallace plans to begin holding round table discussions in January with the residents. “I want to get more input from the students living in the halls and see what kind of things they want,” Wallace said. Wallace said he wanted to make RHA more visible to stu dents and do more reaching out to the halls.