Picture this: you’re exiting your linear algebra class with a notebook full of matrices and an aching brain. As you exit Skiles in the direction of the CULC to begin your eight hours of homework, you spot a poster. 

Six actors have donned fake beards and cowboy hats, posing with a bright logo: “The Trail to Oregon!”

You dismiss the poster — there are hours of studying ahead of you, and you do not have time to spare.

Except this has been your routine for weeks; every day is a cycle of work and classes with no escape in between. 

This is precisely the reason that third-year ID major Hope Kutsche, co-founder of StarTech players and director of “The Trail to Oregon,” wanted to bring this production to campus. 

“It’s jam-packed full of good laughs, which I know everyone could use right now, and, for a couple hours, we’ll take you out of the 21st century to a simpler time,” she told the Technique. 

“We as a cast really do just love doing this musical together, and I feel like it really shines through in the performance and fills the whole space.”

“The Trail to Oregon” is a comedy musical originally performed and produced by Team StarKid, an American musical theatre company founded by Darren Criss, Brian Holden, Matt Lang and Nick Lang. The company is best known for their production “A Very Potter Musical.”

“I chose a StarKid show because their troupe has a writing style that is great for low budget productions, and their shows are so wonderfully silly and ridiculous,” Kutsche said. “It just seemed like the perfect reprieve from the current state of the world.”

Kutsch was inspired to bring StarTech to life during an arts shortage brought on by the pandemic.

“Sometime last summer, I realized that it’s been years since I’ve performed in a show,” she said. “Musicals used to be my life, but then the pandemic hit. After talking with some friends, I realized we all felt the same way — we really missed opportunities to perform for an audience.”

Kutsch partnered with her friend Harper Roberts, who had originally introduced her to StarKid musicals. Roberts is a third-year biology major at Georgia State University but has been involved with DramaTech since her freshman year.

Together, the pair bought the rights to the show and put together a cast from members of DramaTech’s improv troupe. Every production cost came out of the troupe members’ own pockets.

Despite the shared members and venue, StarTech is not at all affiliated with Tech’s primary theatre troupe.

“We aren’t DramaTech, and we aren’t competing with DramaTech,” Kutsche said. “This year, DT decided to only do two shows instead of our usual three, which gave us a perfect November to January time frame in which to rehearse without overlapping other productions. “When I decided to try and produce a musical, DT also had not yet set in stone whether or not the spring musical would happen, and I wanted my friends and I to have the opportunity with or without DT.”

Unlike other productions on campus, the primary intention of “The Trail to Oregon” was the enjoyment of the cast and crew, rather than to put on a high quality show.

This emphasis on fun brought forth not only a uniquely strong bond among the cast members, but also an engaging and exciting show to watch. “Trail to Oregon” involves the audience in a unique capacity that will leave viewers delighted, relaxed and ready to return to their linear algebra homework.

“The Trail to Oregon” is playing Feb. 4 and 5 at 8 p.m. in the DramaTech Theatre. Tickets are $10 sold at the door. All attendees must be 18+.

During every curtain speech in the run of “Comedy of Errors” at the Shakespeare Tavern Playhouse, the Stage Manager delivers a shocking surprise: the fictional actor intended to play one of the lead roles is unable to attend the performance. Mary Ruth Ralston, who is already playing another leading character, must perform in their place.

In a bold decision that showcases Ralston’s talent and brings down the fourth wall of the show, we see her struggle to “learn” her lines onstage and perform as two characters in the same scene — a challenge with potential to go horribly wrong. 

Ten years ago, this might not have happened on the Tavern stage. Ten years ago, the theatre scene in Atlanta and beyond looked a bit different. 

In August of 2015, Lin Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton hit Broadway and reshaped what mainstream theatre could be. Casting almost every member of the principle cast as people of color, Miranda showed critics that nonwhite actors could be marketable for any role, even founding fathers.

Nearly five years later, many of these actors, along with millions of other Americans, took to the streets to protest the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and countless of other victims of racial violence. 

In the aftermath of the Summer of 2020, Americans have been forced to reevaluate the effects of not only racism, but sexism, homophobia, and other prejudiced ideas in every corner of our lives — the theater is no exception.

Last year, Atlanta artist O’Neil Delapenha became the first person of color to direct a mainstage show with the Atlanta Shakespeare Company (ASC), a long overdue title reflective of the changes taking place within ASC and many other theaters throughout the nation. Delapenha’s take on Othello streamed virtually.

As the perceived danger of COVID-19 waxes and wanes with time, theatres are cautiously reopening their doors to patrons. On Jan. 8, Delapenha’s second mainstage show for the Tavern, the Comedy of Errors, opened for a live audience.

Comedy of Errors, an early play of Shakespeare, is deeply problematic. The main plot revolves around two sets of identical twins with the same names getting mistaken for each other in the town of Ephesus. The second pair of twins, Dromio and Dromio, serve as slaves for the first, Antipholus and Antipholus.

Much of the slapstick comedy of the show involves punny wordplay from Dromio, who then receives beatings from Antipholus. 

What may have been amusing for an Elizabethan audience is difficult to watch from a modern lens.

However, Delapenha remolded the abusive relationship between Antipholus(es) and Dromio(s) to be one of lighthearted humor, tender affection, and loyal partnership. For once, the connection between the two is truly joyful to watch.

Another surprise to audiences was the casting choices of the director. Multiple roles written for men were played by women. While gender-swapping is nothing new for Shakespearean stages, it was pleasing to see actresses embracing their femininity whilst playing male roles.

A particularly empowering choice of casting was Rivka Levin as the Courtesan. The Courtesan, a Renaissance prostitute, is a beautiful character with sultry persuasion over the men of the play. Levin, standing at around four foot nine is a self-described chronically ill Jewish woman. In her Courtesan costume, she is not only stunning, but living proof that beauty has no body type. 

Despite these choices, certain parts of the play still bring
down bodies that do not align with society’s standards. The character Nell, a kitchen wench married to one of the Dromios, becomes the butt of many jokes within the show. Nell is described as fat and ugly and smelly, values that may give us a cheap laugh at the expense of people who see themselves as those traits.

Vinnie Mascola brings the character to life with a delightful, genderbent take on the role. Seeing a man with a full beard bring his voice up several
octaves and trot around in high heeled booties is admittedly hilarious. But what message is it sending to women in the audience with more masculine traits? No one deserves to leave the theatre feeling uglier because of what they saw.

With such an innovative take on the show that stands up to the racism and misogyny of Shakespeare’s time, it is important to also expect body equality as well.

Nonetheless, “Comedy of Errors” is a breath of fresh air for Shakespeare fans who are tired of the same plays. In 400 years of Shakespeare, it is reasonable to expect redundancy within performances; it is seemingly impossible to make a unique set of choices for a play that has been around for so long.

However, this show is unlike anything even the most familiar of fans have witnessed. Whether this is their first Shakespeare show or their fortieth, audiences are left not only tickled with laughter, but with a new idea of what Shakespeare can be. 

Comedy of Errors is running through Feb. 6 at the Shakespeare Tavern Playhouse.

There are many steps in my morning routine. I shower, I brush my teeth, I pick an outfit to wear. If I’m feeling especially motivated, I’ll wear some jewelry. Maybe a pair of statement earrings or a cute little ring. Maybe I’ll wear my Star of David. 

This is where things get complicated. How am I getting to class? If I’m taking MARTA that day, it’s an instant no, unless my collar is high enough to cover it. What classes do I have today? 

Do I know my peers in those classes well enough to trust them? A lot of thought goes into the necklace. It’s easier to just not wear it.

So what? It’s just a silly necklace. But it’s not just the necklace, it’s every Jewish emblem I own and every Jewish space I choose to occupy.
Every little thing can and will identify me as a Jew. 

As a white-passing person, it feels silly to fret over these things. I don’t wear my identities on my skin, and this protects me in many scenarios. However, whle being able to blend in may be a privilege,  having to do so is not.

As some may know, this weekend an armed gunman entered a synagogue in Colleyville, Texas and held four Jews inside hostage. 

They remained there for 11 hours until they were safely freed. They survived, but how many haven’t? 

This was not an isolated incident. 

There have been so many stories that haven’t been publicized.

During the eight days of Chanukah alone, there were at least 16 reported acts of violence against the Jewish people, from the vandalization of our homes and places of worship to physical violence against our people.

Some argue that this incident and others weren’t motivated by anti-semitism, and while there were other factors at play, breaking into a specific religion’s place of worship and holding a Rabbi hostage is blatantly intentional; choosing to blame this occurrence on other reasons is ignorant.

Right now, among the fear and anger and sadness, the worst feeling of all is the one of abandonment. The silence from my non-Jewish acquaintances is deafening. 

When a community is in danger, we as the human race have the duty to look out for each other.

We must stand up for the Black community, the AAPI community, the Muslim community and so many more who are also facing hate in these times.

But the Jewish community is among those in danger right now, and the mass overlook of our peril causes the situation to worsen every day.

For my peers, I call for solidarity. For my institution, I call for action. 

Please do not let me become the next headline.

Growing up, I was persistently told I was a slob. Perhaps it was because my room was in a constant state of disaster or because I simply could not see any purpose in making my bed each morning. Making my bed or folding my laundry or brushing my teeth or, sometimes, even waking up each morning. It just seemed pointless to go through the motions of it all when I was just going to have to do it again tomorrow.

It wasn’t until high school that I received a diagnosis for my state of monotonous dread. As many would have guessed, I was severely depressed.

There is so much romanticization of depression in the media: the gothic-styled portraits of teenage girls with dark eyes and heavy eyeliner, the inhale of a cigarette when life is too much, the wrist marked with heavy scratches from an episode of grief. For me at least, that’s not what depression looks like.

On a good day, I wake up, maybe a bit slower than the average person, because I simply cannot fathom a morning where I get out of bed without watching at least 15 minutes of motivational TikTok. I take my prescribed daily medication, two small pills that make the world click into place. I drink my morning coffee, and I go about my day. Life is good, and life is normal, and life is worth living. But that’s a good day.

On a bad day, I sleep through my alarms — all sixteen of them. When I do wake up, it’s at least noon, and my bed feels too safe to leave. If I climb out of the sheets and covers, I have to face my problems: missed texts and dirty laundry and overdue homework assignments. It all feels like too much, and I usually retreat back to my sleepy bliss. On a bad day, I forget to take my medication, so the world is just always a little fuzzy and a little too much to bear.

On a bad day, life seems unlivable. For a mentally ill person, I do all the right things. I go to biweekly therapy sessions and every few months, check in with my psychiatrist to let her know the medication is still working. I exercise (or at least try to) and eat my greens and shower as often as I can manage.

And yet the bad days still come, and I have to force my way through the groggy sludge of despair. But despite the bitter reality of depression, there is more to life.

As I’ve gotten older and wiser, it’s dawned on me in little moments that I love being alive. A happy song with the perfect lyrics, morning drives with the windows rolled down, a stolen sunset with my boyfriend. I want to live each of these moments to the fullest and stay alive long enough to see dreams manifest themselves into actuality.

Even when life is heavy with hopelessness, I am desperate not to let my diagnosis define me. I am desperate to share my story in the hopes of spreading light to those who have momentarily lost their brightness.

I push on for my loved ones, for my peers who are also suffering, but above all, for myself.

On a good day, I make my bed (I see purpose in doing it, even if I’ll have to do it all over again tomorrow) and do my schoolwork and go on adventures and smile at the little things.

On a bad day, I take a deep breath and push myself out of bed in hopes of a brighter tomorrow. If you or someone you know is struggling with mental illness and is seeking help, please contact Tech’s counseling center atcounseling.gatech.edu.

When I was 16, I received a Star of David necklace from a friend. I wore it nearly every day of 11th grade, and I thought about my late Papa who had died just a few years prior.

Like many Polish Jews, my Papa was persecuted for his faith during the Holocaust. His parents nearly died in Nazi Labor Camps, and with faith and luck, my family barely managed to survive.

In the United States, we have a phrase: “Never again.”

Every year on Holocaust Remembrance Day, we as Jews make a vow that the violence and death and destruction of our people will never happen again. The woke Instagram stories of people from other faiths join us:
“Never Again.”

I am not saying I have ever experienced a taste of genocide or ethnic cleansing.

Today, I am granted the privilege of a safe life with open practice of my beliefs. But my family, just a few decades ago, was not granted this privilege. And in 2021, I fear that people may be forgetting or even abusing the phrase, “Never Again.”

For starters, there is no way to condone the actions of the Israeli government.

While there is misinformation flying from both sides of the argument, one thing is very clear: wrongs are actively taking place, and we as a world must hold the government behind them accountable.

Let me make it very clear that the word “government” means just that.

The government does not represent the ideas of the nation itself. The government does not represent Jews. In fact, the current Israeli administration is going against every Jewish value there is.

However, when people reflect their judgements of the government onto the Zionist movement, I fear they do not fully know or understand the meaning of the word Zionism.

Oxford Languages, the top Google result, defines Zionism as “a movement for … the development and protection of a Jewish nation in what is now Israel.”

Putting aside the argument of who has the right to the land, let’s look at the Jewish people.

Before the establishment of Israel in 1948, Judaism was the only one of the three primary Monotheistic religions to not have a country with a majority population of its faith.

To this day, Israel stands as the single majority-Jewish nation in the world. So when I see people, the same people who write “Never Again” on their Instagram stories once a year, actively calling for the end of the only Jewish state to exist, yes, it does come across as antisemitic.

For those who are not familiar with the Jewish faith, Jerusalem is the Mecca of Judaism. We pray for it. We pray facing it. We pray that we may one day return to it. Regardless of who “has the right to the land”, this country holds a special place in our faith that it simply does not for any other religion.

I have seen the argument that people are able to criticize Saudi Arabia and other majority-Muslim countries (key word: countries) without being called Islamophobic, but I want to point out the forgotten word: “government.” People are able to criticize the government of Saudi Arabia without being called Islamophobic.

If people actively called for the end of the existence of Saudi Arabia or its people, I think the Muslim population of the world would have a serious problem.

Following centuries of genocide that began way before the Holocaust, the Jewish people want one thing: the right to have a country on the land we pray to on a daily basis.

This is not an unjust request or something that other religions do not already have.

Beyond religious reasons, having a country to which Jews can flee in the case of another genocide against our people is a necessary tool for protecting the meaning of “Never Again.”

In the past month, for the first time since 11th grade, I’ve actively chosen to not wear an obviously Jewish symbol around my neck. Not because it doesn’t match my outfit or because I don’t want to sweat onto the chain, but because I am afraid.

So when people tell me that their words are not antisemitic, I kindly request that they shut their mouths and listen up.

Women have the right to decide what is or isn’t sexist. People of color have the right to decide what is or isn’t racist. But when Jews are in the picture, their right to claim that something is actively harming their community is suddenly erased.

Regardless of what you believe, you simply cannot give an entire oppressed people a double standard in this case. It paves the way for future erasure against us. And it simply isn’t fair.

I am a political person; I am driven by a passion for social justice and equality in the world. And to be frank, the events taking place in Palestine are no exception.

I ache for the families who are being harmed, and I ache that the violence is being perpetrated by a country supposed to represent my Jewish homeland. But calling for the end of an entire country and wishing death upon its people is extremism and hate by any definition.

I truly wish for peace in Palestine and across the world, but above all, I wish for the continuance of a Jewish nation that protects us as a people against future harm.

Like every other bright-eyed girl in my second grade class, I listened to Taylor Swift religiously. I owned the “Fearless” CD and played it on my Sony music player constantly. In the days before lyric websites, I relied simply on my own listening and memorization to know and cherish every word on the album.

I laughed and cried and smiled along with hits like “Love Story” and “You Belong With Me” and looked forward to the day where I too would fall in love and have my heart broken and have the strength to do it all over again. Like the song, I too would one day be “Fifteen” and experience everything Queen Taylor promised would happen when I hit high school.

Eventually, though, the magic wore off. I became an emo kid, sporting my Fall Out Boy t-shirts and despising anyone who still had the courage to like Taylor Swift. Love was a thing of fairytales, not of the fluorescent lighted halls of my middle school.

High school came and went, and I didn’t even remember to miss out on the great romantic adventure I had been promised years ago. When Taylor made her powerful return with “Reputation” and “Lover,” I didn’t notice. I didn’t care.

With “Folklore” and “Evermore,” I at least batted an eye. I liked “August” and “The 1” and “Cardigan.” But none of Taylor’s folk-pop bliss would ever stimulate me emotionally the way “Fearless” did when I was seven years old.

And then Taylor’s Version, a newly rerecorded version of the “Fearless” album, was announced, and the new “Love Story” dropped. Was it a marketing stunt? Most likely. Did it sound the exact same? Yes, and this is a hill that I will in fact die on. But did I care? No; in fact, I listened to it on repeat.

Before the rest of Taylor’s version dropped, I wanted to be ready. I listened to the original album a handful of times, crying and singing along, and something clicked. I never fell in love in high school like I had wanted to. But this, right now, is when I can most relate to “Fearless.”

“Fifteen” is the story of freshman year of high school, experiencing the highs and lows of romantic infatuation and realizing that one’s true potential lies outside of a relationship.

Currently, perhaps a few years delayed, this is precisely what I am going through.

This past year has been one of extremes: the depression of quarantine and the euphoria of starting college and the rage of current politics and the terror of the future.

This past year, I’ve also fallen in love. And through that process, I’ve realized my own inner power: the power to survive, to flourish, and despite everything, to love fiercely.

The lyrics of “Fearless,” describing a feeling of utter devotion and infatuation, pretty much sums it up. Taylor’s promise, albeit later than expected, is finally coming true. I am growing, changing, and evolving beyond what I thought to be possible. And I’m so grateful that Taylor Swift has become the soundtrack to it all.

For me personally, I need “Fearless” now more than ever. Right now, there is no better time for Taylor’s Version.

Across the Southeast and the rest of the country, Tech is a leading university in sustainability.

From the recently completed Kendeda Building, one of the first carbon negative buildings in the U.S., to the Serve-Learn-Sustain (SLS) academic plan, the Institute truly goes above and beyond in giving back to the environment.

One of the biggest elements of Tech’s sustainability plan is its dining project.

“Our purpose is simple — to make a positive impact on people and [the] planet,” the Dining Services website said. “Our sustainability plan starts with people. People are at the center of everything we do and so we’re focused on equity and wellbeing of our employees and consumers, the people in the communities where we live and work, as well as the people in our supply chain. We also focus on the wellbeing of our planet by minimizing environmental impact across all of our operations, from the foods we serve and facilities we operate to the vehicles we drive.”

From the ingredients purchased to the container the food goes out in, every element of the dining process is implemented in a way that reduces the maximum amount of energy used and waste produced.

Campus dining purchases local, seasonal and responsibly sourced ingredients as often as possible and conserves waste by using less single-use materials and by donating excess food.

Even the way food is produced is done in a way that reduces Tech’s environmental footprint. The dining team keeps a close watch to make sure as little energy and water is used as possible.

A prime example of this is the leftover fryer oil that is converted into biofuel. When food is distributed to students, it is done so in compostable containers, reducing the single-use plastic that gets thrown away.

Tech intentionally does not use plastic trays, which according to a 2009 study conducted by the University of California Santa Barbara, lowers the average waste generated by a person by 54%.

The most well-known aspect of dining sustainability, as seen in the form of bins around campus, is its composting project. Since the mid-2010’s, dining halls across campus have been collecting compost, organic materials that can biodegrade quickly into the soil.

In 2018, the opening of the West Village Dining Commons, which is located on West campus marked the first time compost bins were used in the student seating areas of a dining hall.

Since then, CompostNow has opened at the Graduate Living Center and North Avenue Apartments.

Currently, composting is available at 13 different locations: 6th Street Apartments, Cloudman Residence Hall, Crecine Apartments, Graduate Living Center, Harrison Residence Hall, Howl Residence Hall, North Avenue Apartments, Woodruff Residence Hall, the Exhibition Hall/Rising Roll, North Avenue Dining Hall, West Village Dining Commons, the Kendeda Building and the Krone Engineered Biosystems Building

This rapid change was primarily brought on by the student body, who argued that composting directly reinforced Tech’s goals in sustainability for waste diversion.

Presently, there are student organizations at Tech pushing sustainability even further through their individual work, including the Student Government Association (SGA) Sustainability Committee (@sga_susco), Students Organizing for Sustainability (SOS) (@sos.gatech), and Engineers for a Sustainable World (ESW) (@gt.esw).

Anyone looking to get involved with sustainability on campus can follow any of these organizations on social media and attend
their events.

From both the administration and student body, a generous amount of time and thought goes into campus dining sustainability. For more information, visit georgiatech.campusdish.com.

While the announcement of a cancelled Spring Break was met with little enthusiasm from the student body, the replacement “Wellness Days” were still a welcome break from the regular school week.

Many among the study body still harbor resentment towards the Tech administration for cancelling the week-long vacation period supposed to take place in March, including second-year LMC major Lily Arnold.

“I did have to dedicate big chunks [of my Wellness Days] to working on assignments, due to deadlines being the next day,” Arnold said.

Others, while maybe still missing the Florida panhandle, were able to make the most of their days off. Second-year IE Chloe Sun, rather than seeing the sand and the sea, took her Wellness Day to see a junkyard and rocks, among other things.

“For my Wellness Day, my friends and I decided to drive up to Chattanooga,” Sun said. “On our way up we stopped at the world’s oldest junkyard and saw some old cars, and we stopped in Calhoun, Georgia and saw this place called the Rock Garden.”

Upon arrival in Chattanooga, Sun and her friends ate lunch along the riverfront.

“It was beautiful,” Sun said. “We walked through the town. We got some ice cream. We walked over the pedestrian bridge. Then, we drove up to Lookout Mountain and went to Ruby Falls.”

During her time off, Sun was able to focus on having fun with her friends, rather than the stress of the semester.

Even if travel across state borders for a day was too difficult, others took day trips to different spots around Atlanta.

“[My friends and I] all piled in my car, and we all went to Little Five Points,” said Allison Horan, first-year BIO.

“We got some discount records, and then after that, I went back to my dorm, and I painted on my records that I got. It was a very fun wellness day.”

Horan was excited to not only do a fun craft, but also to see some friends she had not seen in a while.

“It improved my mental wellness for that week,” Horan said. “I felt that having that Wednesday off and not having Chem lab definitely made me feel better, even though I had a test on Friday.

I felt semi-stressed about it before, but that Wednesday off gave me peace of mind, because if I wanted to study for it I could and if I didn’t want to, I didn’t have to.”

Overall, Horan’s outlook on the Wellness Days was positive.

“I liked the two random days off, because I wouldn’t have gone on a vacation anyway,” Horan said.

“Having the two days off, I could either get caught up on work or go see friends like I did or I could go get lunch with my mother.”

“The possibilities were endless, except for going to take a trip to the beach or something. I enjoyed [my days off], and I know others enjoyed them too.” While a trip to the beach or a week-long escape from work would be ideal, students were still content to simply make the most of the days off they were given. “It was definitely still a good break, but I would definitely say if we had more time like an actual spring break, that would’ve been preferred,” Sun said. “For the situation that we’re in, I think it was a good alternative.”

Course scheduling is something every college student dreads. The perfect schedule is always just out of reach, something of the imagination but never of reality.

While your ideal schedule may not be fully possible, the closest you can get to it is by preparing smartly.

By following these steps, we can not guarantee you will get every class you want, but we promise that it will make registration go as smoothly for you as possible.

Plan ahead

Come registration day, you want to be prepared.

An extra few minutes of your time in advance is well worth the saved stress when your registration time slot arrives.

Pick out the classes that you would like to take on OSCAR a few days before. Always check prerequisites to be fully certain you are eligible for the class and be sure to have a handful of backup classes just in case.

In order to see your schedule visually before committing to it, sign up for a free account on Courseoff, an application designed to help college students plan out their schedule simply and easily.

Be advised that Courseoff does not include course descriptions and prerequisites, so make sure you are using it alongside OSCAR.

The night before registration, copy the CRNs of the classes you want to take into a note on your computer. As soon as your registration time slot opens, paste those CRNs right into your browser. This will allow the quickest access to your first choice classes.

Ask for help

You are never alone on registration day. There are 26,000 resources all around you: your faculty and peers.

The first person you should talk to is your advisor. Most advisors have a sample of classes they recommend you take for each upcoming semester. At the very least, this provides a few class ideas that may help.

Next, consult other students in your major. What classes did they take when they were in your stage of their degree?

What professors do they recommend?

Most majors on campus have group chats, Canvas pages or Piazzas for this very purpose.

Do not be afraid to drop a message in yours to ask what courses may be best for you.

For a specific professor, many students turn to RateMyProfessor, a website for students to anonymously rate their professors based on their content, engagement and difficulty.

Even if reviews can be biased or exaggerated, it still gives a general idea of what different professors are like.

Breathe

You may get your perfect schedule. You probably won’t. Either way, you will be fine.

You will work with your advisor to get a full schedule of classes that will in some way suit your academic needs.

Just because you have to put off taking Health for another semester does not mean the world is ending. Even if you leave registration with half the credit hours you need for next semester, this is actually completely normal. The add-drop period is the saving grace for most students here at Tech. Use it to your advantage.

The worst thing you can do for yourself is cause yourself unnecessary stress over things beyond your control. Registration might not be perfect, but there is always next semester. The add-drop period is the saving grace for most students here at Tech. Use it to your advantage.

The worst thing you can do for yourself is cause yourself unnecessary stress over things beyond your control. Registration might not be perfect, but there is always next semester.

Atlanta history was made in 1996 when the city hosted its first Olympic games. Last week on March 4, the Student Center Programs Council (SCPC) hosted its own Olympic games right in Bobby Dodd Stadium.

SCPC set up cornhole, spikeball, soccer and field goal kicking on the field and allowed students to compete as individuals or as teams in the different games.

There was also an option to spectate the event from the stands.

This is the first active student event that has taken place at Bobby Dodd — no previous event has involved physical activity.

“Recently, Bobby Dodd changed what type of field they had, so now we’re allowed to have events on it,” said Amulya Noone, fourth-year NEURO and a member of SCPC. “We were just in contact with the athletics team. They just had a few regulations, like nothing could be staked into the ground, and we had to decide games based off that.

“But it was just mainly contact with the other organizations on campus, telling them what the event was and what would be involved, and they were excited to have an event here.”

SCPC sold out of tickets for the event, giving away 45 competitor tickets over the course of three different time slots during the duration of the event.

While perhaps cornhole is not as momentous as Olympic track or swim, this was still a much needed event for students.

“The sense of time has really changed and shifted since COVID, and so I think it makes it even harder to feel like you can breathe and you can time for yourself,” said Briana Anderson, fourth-year LMC. “Before COVID, this is what I would do — I would go out to an event or with my friends, and … physically leaving whatever [my] study space was.

“… Virtual hangouts and stuff are great, and they do some of the job, but they don’t do the whole job of what in person events do.”

Anderson and other attendees all agreed that their main intention for attending the event was to take a moment away from the stress of school.

Without a spring break, students have struggled with maintaining a healthy, hard-working mindset following the halfway point of the semester.

“It’s just been a tough semester for everyone,” said Ian Yang, first-year CS. “It’s really good to de-stress, just get your mind off of things, get out and run around, get some exercise that I know we all desperately need. [Exercising] keeps us healthy, helps boost our immune systems and everything, but it also just gets us out, gets us moving and active.

“Also, we’re not cooped up in our rooms just inhaling the same air that we’ve been inhaling. It really helps us flush our systems and get our minds ready to keep working.”

Zachary Dearman, first-year AE, agreed that the opportunity for physical activity provided at the event, was a healthy break from his schoolwork.

“Staying physically fit is just good for everyone’s immune system, so being able to come out here and enjoy the fresh air, maybe feel like Jeff Sims every once in a while, felt good,” Dearman said.

It’s not too late to join in on the fun. Other upcoming SCPC events include Tech Feud on March 12, GT Day at the Zoo on March 13 and Sting Break 2021 on March 16.

Students can learn more about these events and reserve free tickets at studentcenter.gatech.edu.