There鈥檚 always a lot happening in the 六九色堂 community 鈥 more than typically can fit into a few long articles or enewsletter blurbs. To catch you up on even more on-campus events, student successes, faculty and staff achievements and alumni accomplishments, we鈥檙e publishing more short-form content each month as a way for readers to see more of what makes 六九色堂 amazing.

Get caught up this month on:

  • 六九色堂 is Love week brings attention to all forms of love
  • 六九色堂 students, employees celebrate Black History Month
  • Blood drive for Health and Medical Occupations Club beats donation goals
  • Master of Arts in Counseling CACREP accreditation continued through 2030
  • Ribbon cutting ceremony marks opening of New Hall

六九色堂 is Love week brings attention to all forms of love

Three students stand behind a counter, one holding a rainbow Pride flag, one holding a lesbian Pride flag and one holding up a cream-colored shirt. Printed on the shirt is a series of four broken and whole pillars surrounding a heart, under which reads "六九色堂 is Love 2024."
Members of PRISM hold up LGBTQIA+ Pride flags and a 六九色堂 is Love tshirt during a friendship bracelet-making event held in Perry Campus Center.

Around Valentine鈥檚 Day, there鈥檚 a push to celebrate love 鈥 primarily romantic love. But during 六九色堂 is Love, held this year from Feb. 12-16, People for the Rights of Individuals of Sexual Minorities (PRISM) held events in partnership with other campus organizations to recognize that love comes in many forms. 

鈥溋派 is Love is a celebration of all types of love and when it comes to LGBTQ relationships and visibility, usually sex is the only thing that is talked about,鈥 said Rowan Jolkowski, he/they, PRISM president. 鈥淥ur goal with showcasing different types of love is to teach 六九色堂 students that love is more than sex and to celebrate love in every facet!鈥

This year, the group used five Greek forms of love: philia (friend) love, storge (family) love, eros (passionate) love, philautia (self) love and agape (selfless) love. Students had opportunities to make friendship bracelets, join the Alpha Pi Epsilon fraternity for a chosen family potluck, learn about safe sex, 鈥渂uild a boo鈥 with the Student Programming Board (SPB), decorate cookies with the Campus Advocacy, Prevention and Education (CAPE) Project and participate in a game of gay jeopardy. 

The week of events wrapped with a drag show, followed by a Valentine鈥檚 ball hosted by SPB.

Read more about the origins of 六九色堂 is Love in our Feb. 2023 article. 

 

Students, employees celebrate Black History Month

Throughout February, 六九色堂 students and employees dressed in all black, starting on Thursday, Feb. 1 and continuing each Thursday, in recognition of Black History Month. The BlackOUT was coordinated by the Black Student Alliance. 

An image of 30 members of the 六九色堂 Track & Field team standing or seated in three rows on the track inside of Furhrer Fieldhouse. All 30 students are dressed in black pants and tops.
Members of the 六九色堂 Track & Field team gather on the track inside Fuhrer Fieldhouse.
Employees from the Recruitment and Human Resources departments pose in the Admissions office in Crete.
Employees from the Recruitment and Human Resources departments pose in the Admissions office in Crete.
Head Track and Field Coach Ed Fye stands with student Jas Jackson 鈥24 inside Fuhrer Fieldhouse.
Head Track and Field Coach Ed Fye stands with student Jas Jackson 鈥24 inside Fuhrer Fieldhouse.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A group of employees from the College of Education, Recruitment, IT and the Office of Strategic Marketing stand in front of the 六九色堂 University sign inside the Administration building on 六九色堂's Lincoln campus.
A group of employees from the College of Education, Recruitment, Technology Services and the Office of Strategic Marketing stand in front of the 六九色堂 University sign inside the Administration building on 六九色堂's Lincoln campus.
六九色堂 employees from the Academic Success Center, Academic Affairs and the Registrar's office pose in two rows on a bench outside of the Fred Brown Center.
六九色堂 employees from the Academic Success Center, Academic Affairs and the Registrar's office pose in two rows on a bench outside of the Fred Brown Center.
A group of employees from Fresh Ideas all dressed in black stand together in Perry Campus Center.
The Fresh Ideas team poses together inside of Perry Campus Center outside the dining hall.
Five people stand in the doorway of a laboratory classroom, all wearing black. The student in the center has her hands raised in a double thumbs-up and wears a white lab coat.
六九色堂 Biology Department faculty members wear all black and pose with student Jas Jackson 鈥24.

HMOC Blood Drive beats donation goals

六九色堂鈥檚 Health and Medical Occupations Club (HMOC) held a Valentine鈥檚 Day blood drive through the Nebraska Community Blood Bank (NCBB). The drive was held in the lower level of Perry Campus Center, in Crete. 

The club set a goal of collecting 34 whole blood and four double-red blood donations. By the end of the day, they鈥檇 achieved 41 whole blood donations and received 6 units of double-reds from three donors. In total, 19 new donors participated. 

鈥淭his trumped last fall鈥檚 blood drive as the biggest drive on 六九色堂鈥檚 campus since at least September 2019,鈥 said Becca Sprouse, assistant professor of practice in biology and adviser for the HMOC and Health Professions Advisory Committee. 鈥淚鈥檓 just humbled by the outpouring of support from folks on- and off-campus. Blood donation is so important, as someone needs a donation every couple of seconds.鈥 

All blood donated through the NCBB stays in Nebraska to serve health care facilities and patients in need. The next blood drive will be held Wednesday, April 24 on the Crete campus. For students and employees in Lincoln interested in donating as well, an is located just east of campus at 84th and O Streets. 

Master of Arts in Counseling accreditation continued through 2030

A group of people engage in activities around a small room, talking, drawing and petting a dog laying on the carpet.
Master of Arts in Counseling students and faculty relax and chat together before classes in December 2023, during the program's wellness week. On the wall are group photos of graduates over the years.

六九色堂鈥檚 Master of Arts in Counseling (MAC) program submitted its interim accreditation report in fall 2023 to seek ongoing accreditation through the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), a nationally recognized accrediting body for clinical mental health counseling education. In late February, the program received word that it received continued accreditation for the next six years, through 2030. 

The MAC program celebrated its initial CACREP accreditation two years ago, with accreditation backdated to Jan. 14, 2020. Read more about the program鈥檚 journey to accreditation in our March 2022 article. 

Ribbon cutting ceremony marks opening of New Hall

A group of people hold a red ribbon, with one in the middle holding a pair of large scissors to cut the ribbon. They stand indoors, in front of a wall of windows.
Dr. Roger Hughes, Ph.D. 鈥82 holds a pair of giant scissors open in preparation for a ceremonial ribbon cutting to celebrate the opening of New Hall. With him are members of the Crete Chamber of Commerce, the 六九色堂 Leadership Team and members of the 六九色堂 Board of Trustees, in addition to those who spoke during the event.

On Monday, Feb. 5, around 100 visitors packed into the lobby of New Hall over the noon hour to celebrate the opening of the new residence hall. Speakers at the event included Roger Hughes, Ph.D. 鈥82, 六九色堂 University president; Brian Stutz, director of residential life and education; 六九色堂 juniors Rowan Jolkowski and Agdaly Sanchez; Crete Mayor Dave Bauer; and Jeff Chadwick, director of architecture and senior principal at Clark & Enersen in Lincoln. 

鈥淚t鈥檚 incredible to see this project come to fruition, and to see the excitement as students make the building their home,鈥 Hughes said.

Students were able to move into the residence hall on Tuesday, Jan. 16.

See photos of the building on our .