AuburnUPC

As the Vice President of Auburn UPC, one of my main responsibilities is preparing for Camp War Eagle!  This is the time where we can show the incoming freshmen what we do and hopefully recruit some new committee members.  I, as well as my fellow Exec members, have been very busy making sure everything is prepared so we can make a great first impression of UPC.  We have been making brochures to hand out and creating an eye-catching table display. We have also been in charge of contacting the company that will be providing our late-night entertainment option.

On the first day of Camp War Eagle, UPC participates in Tiger Tables. This is where we can show incoming freshmen what we are all about through our table display. We hand out the informational brochures, tell them about all of our great committees and events, and let them look at past pictures and event t-shirts.  We also let them know how to get involved with UPC, and that applications for committee go out on August 2, 2010.

The second night of Camp War Eagle is when UPC can actually show an example of what we bring to campus through our late-night entertainment option.  This year we are hosting a live game show. Game Shows To Go alternates between ‘Survey Says’ and ‘Do You Remember Being A Fifth Grader?’ for each session, and the freshmen that participate leave with cash in their pockets.  The students who participate get so enthusiastic and we actually had a girl win $100 just for answering a few easy questions!

I hope that many students will apply for our committees.  Remember that applications will be on our website, www.auburn.edu/upc, or in AUSC Suite 3130 beginning August 2, 2010. Please feel free to email me any questions at jew0001@auburn.edu

War Eagle!

Julianne Willis
UPC Vice President 2010-2011

My name is Matthew Ciuros and I am the director for Special Projects 2010-2011. I am very excited for the 2010-2011 term and eager to see Special Project’s events make an impact amongst the Auburn community. My assistant directors, Erica Martin, Amber McClellan, Kaitie Gallahue, and I have already delved into planning and preparation for our upcoming fall events in 2010. We have set standards and responsibilities for our future committee; the four of us just know our future committee is going to be a strong, efficient, and a constructive fighting machine. The four of us would like to encourage and welcome people to interview for the opportunity to serve as one of UPC’s Special Project’s committee members.

My Assistant Directors and I are new to the UPC Council and we are just thankful for the smooth transition. We have been calibrating with the former directors of Special Projects, Anne Smead and Ashley Sisk, to make the process swift and easy. Building from previous years is how we are instilling a strong sense of progression. The four of us have set constructive deadlines. These deadlines will help fine tune details of the events. We are currently calling representatives/ agents from outside resources to get information such as costs, availability, and expectations. With these details we will be able to narrow down the list of possible events and formulate the final list of events for the fall.

After we know which events we are going to coordinate for the fall we have to budget the events efficiently. After we meet the deadline for assembling a complete budget for the fall events, we will be ready to coordinate the actual planning details. These deadlines for event preparation extend into the summer break. My assistant directors and I are prepared to work and have conference calls during the summer in order to make sure our planning and preparation remains to follow our deadline goals. Getting closer and closer to the fall, my assistant directors and I have recognized that the opportunity of being selected as the leaders for our program, Special Projects, is going to become more demanding, however, we are ready and extremely excited for the Auburn community to partake in the events that we are planning.

War Eagle!
Matt Ciuros
Director Special Projects 2010-2011

Being a part of UPC Major Entertainment has been a huge part of my college career. I was on the Major Entertainment committee my freshman year, and this will be my third year as an Assistant Director for Major Entertainment. As an Assistant Director, I have really gotten the opportunity to gain a lot of insight into the production part of putting together a concert.

Our process begins with a blank slate – it’s open for us to get practically any artist from any genre that will fit into our budget. So, our first step in to get input from students; the concert is funded by students’ fees so why not let them have a say in it? We gather this information and choose potential artist/genre from that list. We also gain valuable real world experiences by communicating with Robby (our middle agent who works directly with the managers of various recording artists). We let him know what kind of show we are looking for, and he sends us information about the availability and price range of the artists we are looking to get. This is where we must work together and with our committee to decide which artist/concert date is right for us. We report that information back to Robby, and then the contract negotiations begin. That may be over-simplifying it because it’s actually a fairly rigorous process – but that is essentially how it all works.

As the concert-time approaches, we must work closely with UPC’s Public Relations committee because they are in charge of hospitaility for our artist. Publicity is also a very important measure for us to take. Without publicity (posters, facebook page, banners, etc.), few people will know about our concert. So, we must also work closely with UPC’s Publicity committee to be sure it is well-publicized. We must not only publicize the actual date of the concert, but also the dates/locations that we will be giving out tickets for the concert. The whole process is actually a lot of fun. I am currently working on/preparing for my 6th concert since I became a part of UPC.

While it may seem like a tedious process and a lot of hard work, it is all worth it the moment the stage lights come on and you see thousands of cheering Auburn students who are enthralled with the concert that YOU played a large part in preparing; that is a moment where you get to just lean back with your arms crossed and smile at such an achievement. There is nothing like seeing hard work come to fruition, and that is a moment I have gotten to experience time after time during the past few years while I have been a part of UPC.

JR McKissick

Major Entertainment Assistant Director

This semester we’ve spent a lot more time planning City Lights - Tiger Nights than we did in the fall. Every week we have a meeting with the advisers to keep them updated- and us on target! We decided on a theme a few months ago, so we could begin planning. After that, our ideas just started flowing! It seemed like every meeting we came up with more awesome stuff to include in the event! Picture Koozies, Personalized Street Signs, Inflatables, Food, Bull Riding, FLY…. and so many more things were dreamed up. We’ve included a lot of new things at this Tiger Nights. Last semester we did a good job of changing up the food, and we continued to add to the variety this time too. This time we’ve added a lot of different activities as well. The theme of City Lights-Tiger Nights really let up expand our borders and take Tiger Nights in several directions. Our committee members have been so helpful with publicity and brainstorming. We owe a lot of the decisions (like what cities to include, representative food, t-shirt design, activities, etc) to them. The event ended up being a complete success. The turnout was amazing and the response from students and the Auburn community was overwhelming. I think this Tiger Nights was extremely fun to plan and even more fun to experience!!

Claire Ritchey

2009-2010 Assistant Director of Tiger Nights

The Special Projects Committee and Speakers and Comedians Committee came together to bring in the founder of TOMS Shoes Blake Mycoskie to the plains on Wednesday, March 31st. To bring Blake in we started last fall and finalized everything with his agent over Christmas break. But in between then and the actual event a lot had to happen - we printed tickets, posters, got wristbands, sold tickets, scheduled for his pick up from the airport and all the hospitality for him. The event and turnout was awesome, we had people lined up at 4:30pm to get a wristband to meet him. During the lecture, he went over how he started TOMS Shoes and the problems he encountered and how he overcame them. His speech was very motivating and uplifting. My favorite part of the night was seeing all the different TOMS everyone had on!!

Anne Smead

Director of Special Projects

Painting on the Plains, the Fine Arts Committee’s last event of the semester, was a roaring success. Held Tuesday, March 30, on the AUSC green space, Painting on the Plains gave Auburn students the opportunity to explore their creative sides. We had two sessions with two different paintings to choose from. The first painting was a “Funky Tree” which despite its bright and funky colors, had several guys in attendance. We had around 25 people successfully create a “Funky Tree” painting to take home with them. In my opinion, they did a great job! Our next session featured a “Toomer’s Corner” themed painting. The sign ups for this session were completely full and we had around 40 participants. This painting was a little bit less structured and gave attendees a chance to add their own spark of originality to their painting. The tiger eyes that were central to the painting gave several people a bit of trouble because of the precise nature of the symbol. When everyone’s was complete, with streamers of toilet paper and colorful fans, each painting was unique and looked great. Overall, Painting on the Plains was a huge success and gave those who may have doubted their painting abilities a little bit of a confidence boost; because I didn’t see a bad painting all day!

Glendinning Johnston

Assistant Director of Fine Arts

UPC Films, this past Tuesday, hosted its first dinner and a movie double feature Twilight and Twilight Saga: New Moon. In preparation for the movie, we made sure the event started at an early time because we knew that students and faculty would not want to stay out that long. We had to contact the movie vendor, Swank, to place an order for the two movies. Next, we had to make sure that we were going to be able to use the Auburn University Student Center Ballroom and reserve it at least a semester in advance. We also had to order dinner for the event through Tiger Catering, who did an excellent job! Lastly, was ordering the decorations for the event which turned out to be extremely amazing. Throughout the process, as a group, we learned how extremely important it was to be very organized and to also be very wise about our budgeting and advertising. Ultimately, the event was a great success. Granted, we expected a lot more people to attend but, it turned out to be a very fun and exciting night for everyone! Our next movie is Up in the Air on March 4th in Haley 2370..hope to see you there!!

Celeste Waugh - Assistant Director of Films

I’ve been involved in UPC’s Fine Arts Committee since my freshmen year, but this semester I made the decision to try and become more of an influence on Auburn’s campus through UPC. As a new Assistant Director to the Fine Arts Committee, I have learned so much in just a few short weeks. Right off the bat, we began our spring semester with a wildly successful Open Mic Night, which was held at Starbucks. Soon after, I began attending council meetings and learning about the many behind the scenes details that go into planning a big event!

Our second event of the semester was a Murder Mystery held Thursday, February 11, in the AUSC Ballroom. A new event to the UPC calendar, more preparations that usual had to be made for Murder Mystery. I was fascinated by the endless phone calls and contacts made to make this event happen. As a new member to council, I was very eager to help everything run smoothly. My main job for this event was handling the catering. As I quickly learned, this was not such an easy task. After several calls, emails, and visits I felt fairly positive that the catering aspect of the event was to run perfectly. Being new and all, I was really nervous that my one job would end up going wrong. I can honestly say a huge weight was lifted off of me when I saw Tiger Catering roll up to the ballroom. Needless to say, the pasta was absolutely delicious! As with everything, you learn things to improve for next time, but overall the event went smoothly. It was really nice seeing the simple, elegant decorations bring the event to life. We had an amazing turnout of over 150 Auburn Students; and based on the laughter I heard from outside the ballroom, I’d say the event was a success!

Overall, I learned that details are crucial and how vital double-checking the plans can be to achieving a hassle-free event. Most importantly, starting all of this early is vital. It was nice to see how all of the committees worked together to make a single event happen; from publicizing for the event to evaluating the good, the bad, and the ugly of the night. I know that personally, it was gratifying to know that my involvement, as insignificant as it may be, had something to do with it all coming together.

Fine Arts next event is a Song Writing Competition, so if you’re a fan of Open Mic Night, be sure to come out and join us March 11^th!

-Glendinning Johnston Assistant Director for Fine Arts

There is no way to describe being a part of University Program Council - you get to meet new people, plan events for Auburn students, and form friendships with other council members. Not only have I made life long friendships, but I have learned leadership skills that I will not only be able to use in UPC again, but in my future career plans. If you are interested in being a part of UPC council applications go out of February 15 on our webstie www.auburn.edu/upc.

-Anne Smead, UPC Director of Special Projects

I joined UPC in the fall of my freshman year at Auburn because I moved to Auburn from far away and didn’t know anyone when I started here, so I thought it would be a great way to get involved on campus. Little did I know how big of a part in my life that UPC would eventually play. I am now a junior here at Auburn and currently the Director of Publicity Committee. UPC has taught me so many things about leadership, hard work, communication, and team work. If you are interested in applying, council applications come out in February and committee applications will be out sometime in the early fall. If you would like to get involved on campus, I strongly encourage you to get involved in UPC!

-Aaron Grubbs, Director of Publicity

UPC  has been such an awesome experience.  I joined the group late because a position became available and I decided to jump on it! I’ve enjoyed every second of being a part of such an amazing team. Everyone was so welcoming and I ended up meeting a lot of new people who have become some great friends. Ive learned tools and leadership skills that I know will help me with the career I choose.  I encourage everyone to apply and see what a great experience UPC can be!!!

-Sarah Early, UPC Assistant Director of Public Relations

Being a member of the University Program Council has made my college experience amazing. I honestly cannot imagine life without UPC. It is through UPC that I have gained leadership experience, and I have met some of my closest friends who will probably be lifelong friends of mine. I chose Major Entertainment as my number one committee choice but I listed a couple of other committee options as well (Speakers and Comedians and Public Relations) to have a safety net in case I did not get my first choice. Having a fall back plan is always a good idea. I knew I wanted to be a part of UPC, so it would have been a reckless decision to only choose one option.  If you fail to plan, you plan to fail. Always have a Plan B. It turned out, that I was actually chosen for Major Entertainment!

As a Freshman, I did not really know many people at Auburn so it was a very comforting experience to make new friends. I attended the UPC committee retreat, and we played ice-breaker games to get to know the other members of our committee better. After all, this was going to be our “co-workers” for the next 2 semesters; it was vital that we knew each other and were all comfortable around each other so we could work effectively and efficiently.

Planning the concerts was a blast! I got to learn about how contracts work and how to run an event (hire security, rent staging and lights, negotiate a contract with a band via a middle agent, etc.). It was all new information to me, but it is all information that may be useful in the future in a business situation. UPC provides hand-on experience that no class can teach you through lectures or memorizing information from a book. My experience as a committee member inspired me to be a leader, so I applied to be a Council member. I have spent the last year and a half as an Assistant Director for Major Entertainment. Being a part of UPC is an experience that I would not change for anything in the world. It has required work, but it has been work with some of my closest friends. Applying to be a member of UPC is a decision that you will certainly not regret. The UPC office is located in the AU Student Center Suite 3130. Stop by to ask when and how to apply. Upon entering our office you will make new friends! You have been warned!

-J.R. McKissick, UPC Assistant Director of Major Entertainment