A solution has finally arrived for University of Oregon students struggling to stay active in the brisk fall season. Healthy Oregon, an initiative program on campus supporting a healthy lifestyle, is hosting their fifth 5k race: Run with the Duck.

On Nov. 9 at 9 a.m., students, faculty and staff members can all join The Duck to run, jog or walk a 5k around Hayward Field. The event is designed specifically to cater to all levels of physical activity and to simply encourage getting outside and moving.

According to Marci Torres, the director of the Health Campus Initiative, when the event was first created 30 people from across campus came together with a gift that would fund the health initiative for five years. The initiative for Health Campus focuses on nutrition, physical activity and stress management for students.

“To kick the initiative off, we did a run to help increase participation and we have grown from about 30 people to about 500 people who participate in it,” Torres said. “It encourages people to be active whether they walk, run, whatever it is and come and be social and just enjoy being outside and being active.”

Healthy Oregon is self-proclaimed to be campus-wide and to see how the infrastructure of the UO and the environment on campus can support healthy behaviors daily. The initiative supports anything from physical health, mental health, spiritual health, cultural health — anything and everything.

“We are trying to set the example for other universities across the country on how to be healthier and how to be in an environment that supports healthy behavior,” Torres said.

Now there is a training program prior to the run that uses a combination of weekly training sessions to help participants get in shape and train for the event. The program is designed to cater to each participant’s skill level, meaning that participants could train to walk, jog or run. The training program and the run is free for university students, faculty and staff.

“I am volunteering for Run with the Duck because I think that health and fitness can be really positive ways of reducing stress in our lives,” volunteer Elizabeth Cantor said. “I love volunteering at races, period. It’s so cool to see finishers, especially those who have never run before, accomplish something that they may not have thought possible. That’s what I’m excited for about this weekend!”

Volunteer and undergraduate at the UO Amber Goldstein explained that this event is also a great way to give back to the community.

“I am volunteering for the run because I have a passion for fitness and I want to share that passion with others hoping that I can change people’s lives.”

Your parents can finally find your apartment at 16th Avenue and High Street again.

For many years, High Street was unmarked at almost every intersection due to college students removing them from posts and taking them home. Prior to this, High Street signs had already been replaced approximately 350 times. After a hiatus in replacements, High Street was unmarked for quite some time before a news station couldn’t find its location, which attracted the surrounding media.

“It got national media attention for a while because a local television station couldn’t find a single High Street sign,” said Tom Larsen, Eugene city traffic engineer. “We have since made some changes on how we mount those signs and now they are a lot more difficult to steal.”

Missing street signs is not uncommon in Eugene. Signs go missing frequently and, according to the City of Eugene, approximately 2,300 regulatory signs are repaired and more than 1,000 street signs and 350 other signs are replaced every year.

“Overall there are about 32,000 signs in town,” Larsen said. “When something like a sign goes down we send someone out 24/7 to go and replace it. We respond to signs missing on a complaint basis and every year or so we go out and check signs to make sure they are in good condition and still there.”

According to Eugene law, the city is required to have driver-related signs, such as stop signs and speed indicators. However, it is not required to have signs signifying the name of a street. Larsen explains that putting street names up is simply a courtesy to citizens rather than a city requirement. This does not mean that signs are simply up for grabs and will go unnoticed. Street signs cost anywhere from $20 to $30 depending on the length of the name. Signs that are stolen with longer names such as “Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.” are considered by law to be second-degree theft, but Oak Street’s may not have such grave consequences.

“If UOPD encounters street signs in private possession, the signs would be confiscated,” UOPD Communications Director Kelly McIver said. “Signs remain the property of the city or the government entity that paid for them and placed them.”

Regardless of what sign it is, stealing a street sign is considered a misdemeanor, according to Eugene police, but could also be a higher-level offense if the stolen sign led to an injury or death. For example, if an ambulance could not find a victim because the lack of a street sign, the theft would be taken more seriously.

More recently the construction of street signs have been improved and a better adhesive has been installed to prevent sign theft.

College students are constantly faced with common causes of sleep deprivation, such as stress and anxiety, all night study sessions, interrupted sleep and eating patterns and exposure to alcohol and drug abuse. Many students have accepted these causes as unavoidable and simply continue on with the same sleep patterns.

For Brett Kane, sophomore at the University of Oregon, sleep is an essential element to being successful in school. Kane gets an average of six hours of sleep per night, supplying him with enough energy to focus and be efficient in his classes during the day. A good night’s sleep varies for each person, but for college-aged students, sufficient sleep is generally considered to be eight or more hours per night.

However, according to the University Health Center at the University of Georgia, on average, most college students get six to seven hours of sleep per night due to an overwhelming amount of course work, extracurricular activities, jobs and parties.

“If I get less than four hours of sleep I find it a lot harder to stay focused, which makes it difficult to pay attention in class and do well on assignments,” Kane said. “It definitely makes it harder to stay awake during a lecture, especially if it’s a lecture where you’re not actively participating in it. Just sitting and listening to a professor talk for an hour and a half, I might unintentionally zone out, which would cause me to miss a lot of the information that the professor is giving us.”

According to the University of Georgia Health Center, a lack of sleep not only affects students’ daily performances, but it affects their overall well-being. Not getting the necessary eight hours of sleep per night could be the reason students are struggling in their classes or even why they might gain the notorious freshman 15. Sleep deprivation can cause educational issues such as missed classes, poor classroom participation and difficulty concentrating.

Health issues such as hallucination, declines in glucose metabolism and blood pressure, weight gain and an increased risk for mental issues can be an effect. However, according to the National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health, sleep patterns can always be changed. Regularity is essential for sufficient sleep and picking a specific time to always go to bed will help the body recognize when to rejuvenate itself.

Additionally, keeping your sleep area dark, quiet and separate from your study space will help the body distinguish between where it can rest and where it should be stimulated.

Finally, leave at least three to four hours before going to bed after consuming any type of stimulants, caffeine, alcohol or food.

With many of the buildings on the University of Oregon campus approaching the century mark, not only are many of them ready for an upgrade but they are in need of seismic reinforcement to prepare for the inevitable earthquake.

The “megathrust” earthquake, which has been predicted to hit the Cascadia subduction zone within the next 50 years, could have a magnitude of 9.0. Additionally, Scott Ashford from Oregon State University told The Oregonian that while shaking usually lasts 30 seconds, this earthquake could cause shaking from three to five minutes.

According to the Oregon Resilience Plan, the state’s infrastructure will remain poorly prepared for threats unless action is taken. To help reach these goals, the Deferred Maintenance Project at the UO is enabling significant improvements to the mechanical, plumbing and electrical systems in the buildings as well as ensuring safety protocols are being met for when an earthquake occurs.

“From a response standpoint, I would say we are actually ahead of the curve,” said Andre Le Duc, executive director for Enterprise Risk Services at the university. “Compared to a lot of campuses we actually have a full incident management team who are trained to respond to all types of crises or emergencies.”

Along with these more prominent projects, upgrades are being made to various safety concerns such as fire alarms, sprinklers and exit pathways.

“When we are doing these comprehensive renovations, we try to make improvements to the functional spaces within the buildings in order to better suit the programs that occupy the buildings,” said Darin Dehle, director of capital construction. “This process of upgrading buildings will be ongoing. … As funding is available we will continue with further renovations.”

As construction on Straub Hall is currently underway, many other buildings on campus have gone through extensive renovations for seismic purposes. Peterson, Anstett and Fenton halls in addition to the Central Power Station have all gone through complete renovation to ensure stability for when an earthquake hits. Additionally the brick veneer on the outside of both PLC and Chiles Hall were both done to ensure current seismic standards were met.

“We are looking at every opportunity to improve the fundamental aspects of the buildings, making the buildings more efficient and more green.” Le Duc said. “We are also making sure that we are building to the highest building code standards which includes the seismic remodel.”

The seismic standards are provided by the National Institute of Standards and Technology and are based on the effective national code that applies, the location of the project, the type of occupancy and any special seismic factors specific to the building.

Steve Mital, UO director of sustainability explained that university staff presented what they thought to be several safety issues at multiple Oregon universities as stated in the Oregon legislature. This provided them with funding and permission to take action for renovation.

“UO has indeed targeted some buildings for seismic upgrades,” Mital said. “This kind of work often requires getting into the guts of a building which is very expensive.  It presents a good opportunity to do energy efficiency and conservation upgrades at the same time.”

Last year, out of more than 900 University of Oregon students registered with the Accessible Education Center, 172 reported having a primary psychological disability. This means that 20 percent suffer from disabilities such as depression, post-tramatic stress disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, bipolar disorder and many other related disorders.

Despite being called a disability, having a psychological deficit is something that is very common for many individuals, including college students. According to the 2012 National Student Health Survey, out of the 1,442 students who participated, 500 reported feeling so depressed in the last year that it was difficult to function.

“Students do not have to report mental illness to anyone at any time in order to be a member of our community, and there is a lot of stigma associated with mental illness, making students hesitant to report,” Stan Dura, director of Student Affairs Assessment and Research, said.

Similarly in 2011, the American College Health Association’s National College Health Assessment took a nationwide survey of college students at two- and four-year institutions and found that about 30 percent of college students reported feeling so depressed that it was difficult to sleep, eat and do everyday activities at some time in the past year.

“It’s a very common public health problem. For a 15 to 20 year old, suicide is the third-most common cause of death,” said Robert Brasted, psychiatrist and medical director of behavioral health at PeaceHealth. “A younger person has a brain still in development. You put a lot of these stressful things together and you might not deal with those things so well. And there you have a recipe for some possible depression.

Brasted explained that depression is made up of biological, psychological and social factors and despite the normality and frequency of the problems, there are still negative connotations about mental disorders. There are a number of things in students’ everyday life that can contribute to feeling overwhelmed and depressed. He explains that public health education needs to be made more prominent on campus and that if students are exposed to these resources, they may be better off when a critical situation occurs.

“Information needs to be given out to everyone and be readily available. That way if you are a person who is getting depressed you can think back to someone you know who has dealt with or been around someone who has dealt with depression,” Brasted said. “It then becomes part of your support system and you are not alone because you know that one-third of college students get moderately depressed.”

UO Active Minds, a club dedicated to supporting those affected by mental health illnesses is hosting the “Awkward Social”on Thursday, Oct. 17 at 4 p.m. to take a step in the right direction to remove the negative stigma associated with mental health illness.

The event promotes the “I Am” campaign, a fight to help anyone affected by a mental illness. There will be poster making, a photobooth and various performances from local bands, a cappella group On The Rocks and improvisational skits.

“Once people see that they are not alone it will be easier for them to reach out to all of the resources we have here on campus,” said Ryan Slight, publicity chair for UO Active Minds. “It’s really changing the conversation from negative effects of mental illnesses to positive ones.”

On a nice day, Eugene could compete with just about any other city in the United States. But when the Emerald City gets thrown up against places in Spain, Italy, Greece and other areas around the world that offer study abroad programs, the choice is obvious: pack up and go, especially if the cost to stay in the rain exceeds the cost of the sun.

Studying abroad has been a dream of sophomore Tori Kookootsedes’ since her older sister did the same five years ago. Now in college herself she is looking to study in either Europe or possibly South America.

“I want to study abroad because I want to study other cultures and the architecture in other countries because they are fascinating,” Kookootsedes said. “I will probably end up studying abroad under my business degree due to my global contextual requirements. I want to double dip my classes into experiencing the country.”

With more than 180 international university programs available, students at the University of Oregon have the opportunity to travel to places all around the world with the study abroad and internship programs. The UO works with programs such as the Council of International Education Exchange and IE3 Global Internship programs to help students add a unique experience to their undergraduate education.

Although it changes from term to term, Seville, Spain is currently the most popular place of interest. Seville, along with a variety of other destinations, hosts classes for the business, journalism and teaching development majors along with extensive language courses. There are many study abroad programs that provide a wide variety of study options for students. However, there are also places that focus on one particular major or language such as Barcelona, Spain which focuses on urban design majors.

“Students who take this journey, who de-center themselves from the familiar, who cross into other worlds and stay there long enough to really tell a joke, make a friend and see the world in another language and mindset gain truly invaluable skills,” said Dennis Galvan, vice provost for International Affairs. “Most of all, they learn the challenges of being far away and having to figure out a new environment push people to discover residence and confidence in themselves they did not know they had.”

Although the prices vary from place to place, studying abroad isn’t always as expensive as students may think. Seville for example has an estimated cost of $41,860 dollars for a year which includes round-trip airfare, academic books and supplies, lodging fees, academic fees and even accounts for personal spending. To put this in perspective and considering all the same cost indicators, an out-of-state student at the UO pays about $3,000 more than an experience abroad.

Similarly, considering all aspects of student costs, an in-state student will pay $24,379 dollars per year. When going to Monteverde, Costa Rica for a year would cost approximately $19,600.

“I found a program and a location that were perfect for my major and I got to get some real world experience,” said Jae Jensen, UO undergraduate student who studied abroad in Germany. “I think the cost can be high but there are a lot of scholarships opportunities. If they apply early enough there is a lot of money floating around for study abroad.”

University of Oregon senior Sean Thorne was just another student sitting in his 95-minute marketing class fall term of 2012. To save himself from boredom, he pulled out his phone and started exploring Facebook and Twitter. Little did he know that small act, which students do constantly every day, would inspire him to jumpstart a business that could change his life.

“I love Twitter but I was frustrated with the content,” Thorne said. “It’s not 100 percent relevant to me, my school, my college campus and my friends. Right then and there I started sketching and figuring out what I would want in a network for myself.”

From that epiphany, Thorne created Hallspot, a social networking website and mobile application aimed at college students. The service differs from the typical social media site in that it aims to connect individuals in real-time rather than in past and present events. Thorne explains that the site will allow students to network in an interactive map and to check in to locations and events to find out “What is happening right now.”

“He started with a simple idea but then rather than let it die on the back of a napkin ­— the burial ground for most ideas — he went after it with all his intensity,” said Steve Thorne, Sean’s father.

Hallspot may be Thorne’s most well-known and successful idea but the desire to connect and explore student networks has been a passion of his for years. Freshman year he produced a website designed to give incoming students advice on what he found relevant and important. This blog allowed Thorne to learn about what was possible on the internet and how important social media can be.

“Sean’s incredibly motivated,” Hallspot co-founder Adam Tirella said. “He likes to be involved in every step of the process from product conception, through development, and into promotion. He’s passionate about what he does and because of that he’s a great networker.”

According to Thorne, Hallspot is financially viable until October 2014 and the launch party hits the University of Oregon on Wednesday. Thorne’s creation will allow students to connect with the network around them through an interactive map of their campus.

More than a quarter of undergraduate students at the UO have already subscribed and Thorne soon hopes to expand the project to other universities.

Thorne, a 22-year-old business major, has grown up watching his father and many family friends tackle large projects with consistently mixed results. Thorne’s father says Sean grew up learning that the success or failure of a project should never prevent him from taking a chance and pursuing the next one, especially if there is a chance that it could be something he would enjoy.

“He is certainly not afraid of failure,” Steve Thorne said. “As a matter of fact, failure is never a word he would use — even if the project were not a success.  He has said, ‘Failure is just an opportunity to learn.’”

The switch from high school to college can be a shocking one. Along with new people, responsibilities and living arrangements, students are thrown into new courses. While these classes are meant to act as an educational exploration, students are being charged top dollar for classes that leave something to be desired.

The Center of Education and the Work Force states that by 2018, 64 percent of jobs in Oregon will require at least a post-secondary education. In addition, many jobs already require greater demands such as a master’s degree or Ph.D.

Most colleges exist as a four-year crash course and extensive learning process about a certain career, yet they are transforming into an expensive extended exploration process that allows students to explore new pathways.

“College gives students the opportunity to take classes in subjects that they have never taken before,” said Roger Thompson, University of Oregon vice president of enrollment management. “Students come to college to explore.”

Deciding what career path and major you want in college is no longer completely necessary due to the fact that most majors require additional education after college anyway. Many undergraduate degrees can stand alone in the field of interest but cannot get students the specific job they want.

“In America we believe that you can become whatever you want to be,” said Virginia Farkas, career center assistant at South Eugene High School. “With a major like international studies, there are a lot of things that you can do with it, but there is not a direct pathway.”

The Pearson Index of Cognitive Skills and Education Attainment shows that compared to other countries, the United States ranks 17th in overall education with a 38 percent graduation rate from tertiary education. The educational system in the U.S. is not ranked very high, but it does allow students the freedom to choose the direction of their future. South Korea, the second best educational system with a 68 percent graduation rate from tertiary education, has a strong national pride in education, holding students to a higher standard until they become successful in the field of science or engineering, according to Edudemic. This track determines what the students career will be and what they will specialize in for the rest of their education. The students lose the freedom of choice but gain a deeper knowledge of their career path before graduating from high school.

Having the freedom to choose a career is a great benefit.  But just like anything, it comes with a price.

In the fall of 2012, 31.8 percent of first year students were undeclared, with 23 percent of sophomores in the same situation.

“Undecided students have a little bit better trajectory,” said Lori Manson, assistant director for UO academic advising. “They go through a period of exploration so when they do finally decide they are more sure of the direction in which they are going, but it all depends on timing.”

Yet this period of exploration can add up quickly. In-state students who take 16 credits a term and live off campus during their first two years can put down $67,207, while the price tag of out-of-state students can hang as high as $109,929.

With boxes and bags weighing first-year students down, the streets of the University of Oregon, from Agate to Alder, were filled with teary-eyed mothers hugging their daughters and proud fathers patting their sons on the back Thursday. Among the commotion, Wesley Shelmire stood alone.

New to the UO, Shelmire hasn’t been to his hometown of Dallas, Texas, since the end of May. Now he’s embarking on the college experience on his own. In fact, Shelmire didn’t even attend his high school graduation before starting on his new life adventures.

Instead, he packed up his bags and moved to Idaho to follow his passion: white-water kayaking.

Participating in a summer camp for boys called Mondamin, he spent the summer kayaking risky terrains like the North Fork of the Payette River and pursuing his passion. He first started learning the way of the water at 10 years old. His father, Day Shelmire, remembers the story of his son’s first water experience. The two traveled into the forest in a canoe. Terrified of the adventure before him, Shelmire decided that he never wanted to get in a canoe again. His father looked at his son and told him, “The only way out of the wilderness is to ride the canoe out.”

Now, Shelmire spends his time careening off 60-foot waterfalls.

“He’s the ballsiest guy I know. If he sees something he wants to do he does whatever he can to go out and do it,” Crosby Crevelt, one of Shelmire’s closest friends and his roommate in Idaho, said. “What really sets him apart is he just doesn’t care what anyone else thinks.”

With summer coming to an end, Shelmire packed his bags and drove to Eugene to start another adventure. Despite being alone for so long, Shelmire embraced moving into his residence hall as another exciting adventure.

“Why would you want to stay in the same place all the time?” Shelmire said. “It just seems boring and it’s a lot more exciting when you are going to new places.”

Although he was away from his family all summer, Shelmire’s mother, Mary, still feels close to her son.

“As a parent, we are trying to make what he wants to do happen, but when he actually left, it became reality and it’s been really tough,” she said during a phone interview.

However, being away from Texas also has its advantages for Shelmire. He’ll have more opportunities to kayak in Eugene than he would in Dallas. He plans on getting involved in the UO’s Outdoor Program this term and kayaking as often as possible. Even Shelmire’s father agrees that Oregon may be a better fit for his son.

“There’s nothing in Texas for Wesley,” he said.

So many exciting events and news have taken place on campus this year, from the Dalai Lama’s visit to the altercation between a law professor and student activists in the EMU amphitheater.

James Olmsted was caught on video harassing a student, taking his phone and putting it in his pocket during a confrontation that took place near the EMU amphitheater. The fight happened during a mock border check-in exercise organized by Students Against Imperialism. Now, Adell Amos is taking over all of Olmsted’s courses.

“We were prepared for having people who were not going to agree with us,” said Jaki Salgado a co-founder of students against imperialism. “We never expected anyone to come up to the group and be so blatantly racist.”

Soon after, the Oregon State Board of Higher Education voted to add the EMU renovation and expansion project to the Oregon University System’s Capital budget. The request was approved, and $84.3 million will be put in towards the renovation and expansion from the state. In November of 2012, a total of 4,006 students voted for the referendum put forth by the ASUO regarding the project, which meant that students will pay a $67 fee per term, starting fall of 2014 to help fund the project.

Later, news quickly spread that the UO Department of Public Safety would be turning into a full-armed police force, therefore changing its name to the UO Police Department, originally starting off the year an unarmed force. The name change would be a small step in the direction to a full-service force with 11 official officers in fall of 2012, with the intention to expand and is expected to take up to six years to do so. So far there has not been a change in the arms that campus officers carry, but as of Friday, June 7, 2013, the UO has decided to move forward with the decision of higher arms for the campus officers.

One of the biggest controversies this year was the Social Host Ordinance, which went into effect March 2 and holds residents criminally responsible for hosting, organizing and allowing an unruly event or social gathering. This ordinance states that property owners and event hosts can be penalized with multiple violations under one household. Residents effected soon after the ordinance was implemented reported that each resident was fined $350 for unruly gathering and $350 for noise complaint for a total of $700 total per resident.

“Every resident there (was fined), including the guy who just biked in from the bar while the cops were at our house — he wasn’t there, (but) he got the fine,” said one of the residents. “I was fast asleep in my room. They (the police) came and shined their lights through my window, I got the fine.”

The past year has been very successful for UO basketball but unfortunately Matthew Knight Arena was still unable to meet ticket sales expectations.The arena is expected to return $7.7 million in operating revenue — just over $3.2 million short of what it was projected to gross when the athletic department originally drew up a funding model back in December of 2010.

Throughout the year we have had our ups and downs here on campus, but overall, it is just another school year in the life of a student.