Dance floor, grand piano among many unique amenities

When pre-business sophomore Sean McCleery first set eyes on his new home, he found himself strangely attracted to it.

"I have a thing for the newest dorms, and I think this is the biggest, greatest thing to come along to the UA," he said.

McCleery is one of 300 students who have moved into UA's newest residence hall, Villa del Puente, located at North Highland Avenue and East Sixth Street. The three-story coed dorm, housing fifty percent freshmen and fifty percent upperclassmen, is one of the newest and most elaborate residence halls on campus. [Read article]

Students now have until Wednesday to pay tuition without being charged a late fee

Students have an extra day to pay tuition, before they are forced to fork over an extra $50.

This is the second time that the Bursar's Office has extended the date when students will be penalized for late tuition payments.

These extensions are the result of difficulties implementing a new computer system that has also delayed the distribution of millions of dollars in financial aid and scholarships. [Read article]

Tuition increase violates constitution, they argue

Four UA students announced yesterday that they intend to sue the State of Arizona and the Arizona Board of Regents, claiming that the recent tuition hike violates the Arizona State Constitution.

The students, Rachel Wilson, Adrian Duran, Sam Brown, and John Kromko, said that the $1,000 tuition increase for resident undergraduates, the $1,250 tuition increase for nonresident undergraduates and resident graduates, and the $1,500 increase for nonresident graduates violates an article in the constitution that states university tuition must be "nearly free as possible." [Read article]

For years, gay rights advocates have pushed administrators to provide tuition, health, dental and life insurance benefits to same-sex partners.

With a recent string of national and local gay rights victories, OUTReach, a UA networking group for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender faculty and staff, the Diversity Council, and other campus groups have decided to reinvigorate the campaign.

"The people working on this have been patient, quiet and easy, and it is appropriate for us at this moment to move forward with this," said Ken Foster, head of UAPresents and former chair of the Diversity Action Council. "All the barriers are down now, and there is nothing to stop us." [Read article]

UA senior finds 270 million-year-old print in Pima breezeway

Greg Cranwell, a UA senior, has a habit of looking down at the ground wherever he walks, but he usually only notices the texture of the floor and the dirt tracked in by shoes.

As Cranwell, who is also a research associate at the Mesa Southwest Museum, left his physics class at Pima Community's College's East Campus one day last spring, he noticed something unusual in the stone floor. [Read article]

Organizers hope to avoid safety problems, interruptions

With new security measures in place, organizers are hoping to avoid the pitfalls that disrupted last year's Catfest.

Serious safety concerns arose last year, after students crammed into the mosh-pit, rushed the stage, and crowd-surfed, said Rachel Keller, the University Activities Board (UAB) director of national concerts.

A security guard interrupted the show, took the stage, and asked students to leave the pit, saying it had gotten out of hand. [Read article]

Intruders responsible for two incidents of vandalism and arson that took place two weekends ago at the construction site of a campus fraternity house are still at large, leaving UAPD investigators looking for leads.

The arsonists, whose identities are unknown, entered the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity (FIJI) house construction site sometime on the night of Aug. 15, or the early morning of Aug. 16, where they shattered four windows and three glass blocks and burned the blueprints for the building's sprinkler system. [Read article]

After more than a year and a half of listening to the concerns, requests and suggestions of students and faculty, the UA Academic Advising Task Force is changing the advising process for some colleges across campus.

"Advising needed to be centralized, there were too many places to go," Ann Parker said, coordinator of undergraduate academic advising and director of the advising resource center. [Read article]

Recent finding in Arizona concerns UA scientists

Now that the West Nile Virus has hit Arizona, UA scientists are urging students to take their own preventive measures to avoid the mosquito's fateful bite.

On Aug. 11, Arizona recorded its first case of the West Nile Virus, after a mosquito tested positive in San Simon, located near the Arizona-New Mexico border. Three days later, the virus was found in horses on the Navajo reservation, which stretches along northeastern Arizona. [Read article]

ÎSocial butterfly' enjoyed her first day, likes the union and doesn't know Luke Walton

Wildcat: How did you like your first day?

Larson: It was pretty easy, getting all the books was a little tough.

Wildcat: So you dropped rush, did you not like it?

Larson: I never thought I'd want to rush, and I found out it wasn't for me.

Wildcat: What do you do for fun? [Read article]

Things you always never wanted to know

· A person who is lost in the woods and starving can obtain nourishment by chewing on his shoes. Leather has enough nutritional value to sustain life for a short time.

· According to Professor Walter Connor of the University of Michigan, men are six times more likely than women to be struck by lightning.

· The outdoor temperature can be estimated to within several degrees by timing the chirps of a cricket. It is done this way: count the number of chirps in a 15-second period and add 37 to the total. The result will be very close to the actual Fahrenheit temperature. This formula, however, only works in warm weather. [Read article]

Resident Tuition
UA: $3604
National Average: $4,081

Room and Board
UA: $6800
National Average: $5,582

Travel
UA: $980
National Average: $749

Nonresident Tuition
UA: $12374
National Average: $10,428

Books
UA: $786
National Average: $750

[Read article]