Hoosiers

[BSUPhiSig'92]

Hey DigitalAngel- I'm from Ball State too! But I graduated in '92 and live near St. Louis.

Hoosier, when I was at Ball State, the "unofficial nickname" I always heard everyone use was "Testicle Tech"

[Tom Earp]

What is A WHO IS YOURS?

[hoosier]

Party school title has Indiana abuzz
University says ranking is loopy

By Robert Becker and Bonnie Miller Rubin
Tribune staff reporters
Published August 20, 2002

Their school went from unranked to the top of the heap, but officials at Indiana University weren't exactly breaking out the bubbly Monday on the news that their university has been named the No. 1 party school in the country.
In its annual--and very unscientific--survey that ranks everything from best campus dorms to least-religious students, the New York-based Princeton Review placed IU's Bloomington campus atop the hangover heap, ahead of such party stalwarts as the University of Florida and Clemson University.
It was an honor that IU officials and some students found perplexing and unfair.
"I don't understand that," said Bill Stephan, IU's vice president for public affairs and government relations. "Last year we were unranked and this year we're No. 1."
IU wasn't the only Midwestern school surfacing in a Princeton Review survey. Wheaton College finished second to Brigham Young University in the category of "Stone Cold Sober Schools," and Northwestern landed the best overall academic ranking.
While release of the Princeton Review's survey may have generated debate around the beer keg over the years, it had rarely inspired true controversy.
That changed this year when the American Medical Association called on the Review to eliminate the party school category because it "glamorizes" alcohol abuse.
"It also creates a myth that that's the way most students are behaving," said Richard Yoast, director of the AMA's office of alcohol and other drug abuse.
IU officials joined in the AMA's criticism Monday, sending officials at Princeton Review, which is not affiliated with Princeton University, a strong letter that rebuked the survey results as "patently absurd."
But Princeton Review officials denied that their list promotes or condones heavy drinking or drug use.
The survey, which is based on an average of 300 student responses per campus, merely reflects the realities of campus life, Review officials say.
"For us to take out one category would negate the worth of the list," said Erik Olson, editor of "The Best 345 Colleges," which contains the survey results.
Olson also noted that when colleges place well in less dubious categories, he doesn't hear any complaints.
"When they're on great lists, they love us," he said.
The criticism this year by the AMA has some education officials fearing that the fight will have the unintended consequence of giving such surveys greater visibility.
"Unfortunately, the AMA's denouncement of this category of the Princeton Review will only elevate its stature and visibility among gullible 17-year-olds," said Sheldon Steinbach, general counsel for the American Counsel on Education, a Washington-based organization of college and university executives.
IU officials weren't the only ones disparaging the survey findings determined by answers to questions on alcohol and drug consumption, popularity of fraternities and sororities, and number of hours spent studying outside of class. Students, too, seemed puzzled by the top party school label.
The university has cracked down on underage drinking, suspending or expelling five fraternities in the past two years for alcohol-related violations.
"I wasn't aware of it being a big party school, and I don't agree with that [label] at all," said Nadia Bianchi, who hails from Oak Park and is about to begin her senior year at IU.
Mike Conroy, a 2002 graduate and Flossmoor resident, said a "Gestapo atmosphere" has prevailed the past two years, with police raiding house parties.
"The frats are under a huge microscope, but that has just pushed the problem somewhere else," Conroy said. He noted that bars are more crowded than ever, "only now with underclassmen, which you never used to see."

[meheron]

Ball State Kappa Alpha Theta alumni , but for some reason I am still at good old bsu

[bubblevicious]

Alright, so how many of go to Indiana University?

[BSUPhiSig'92]

Meheron, When did you graduate from Ball State? I am a Phi Sig, so we used to hang out with the Thetas all of the time. Quite a few of my brothers married 'em too, and I almost did!!!

[AOII_Luv]

I go to IU. Can't wait to get back...it is right around the corner! Move-in starts the 28th for everyone...stay away from campus, because you will never get through! CRAZY!

[lindsay_iu]

IU here too! I'm very ready to go back.

[bubblevicious]

Lindsay_IU and AOII_Luv~

U know when we go back to campus it's gonna be CRAZY!! I'm totally psyched! When do u girls move-in? Where do ya'll plan to kick-it your first night back? My boy is in DChi, so I know that's where I will be. It's gonna be wild. If u girls eva need to chill, just holla!

Hoosier & Greek Luv!

[erniegurl00]

Sorry I'm not from IU, but I am a Hoosier!! I'm a Pi Phi at Butler University. (But, if it makes you feel better I'm considering IU for grad school. LOL )

Erin

[xo_sue]

Indiana State University Alum

Anyone from Hanover? Another big greek school in Indiana!