We [Expand] in the Corridor

This summer has been filled with great expansions in the Corridor.  Several additions have helped our community to grow and to increase our city's revenue.  Mercer University has made several additions to their campus throughout the past year as well.  Downtown Macon has also added more businesses, including a new buffet style restaurant and a drama and dinner theater located just outside the College Hill boundaries.  These are just a few of the new additions that impact both the citizens of Macon and its visitors.

       
If you're expecting guests and need to send them to a new, hip hotel with a historic flair, direct them to the new Orange Terrace Inn of Macon, GA.  This restored home is small, pet-friendly, and conveniently located between Mercer University and Downtown Macon at 800 Orange Terrace.  They also rent out their space for bridal showers, receptions and other social gatherings.  Lee Burg's, formerly known as Len Burg's, has opened behind the Federal Courthouse at 240 Post Office Alley.  Owned by Alex and Helga Lee, this restaurant serves a country southern style buffet.  The landmark downtown restaurant closed in 2005 after nearly a century of service.  They reopened on June 5 of this year under new management, with a new twist to the menu.  Aside from their buffet, they now serve Greek salads, Korean dishes, and sushi.

       

Mercer University has been constructing and expanding all across its campus.  Phase II of the Lofts at Mercer Village is near completion and the grand opening is set for Friday, September 28.  The new building will be home to the Center for Collaborative Journalism, a project funded by The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation to launch a journalism collaborative with Mercer University, The Telegraph, and Georgia Public Broadcasting.  These organizations will share space on the ground floor of the Lofts, with student apartments above. 

Another building set to open next school year is The Emily Parker Myers Admissions and Welcome Center.  Located across from Greek Village on Johnson Avenue, the new Admissions building is named after Emily P. Myers, who served Mercer for almost thirty years as the senior vice president for university advancement.

        

Mercer's most popular construction project would probably be the new football field. The Tony and Nancy Moye Family Football and Lacrosse Complex will be home of the football season set to begin Fall 2013. New head Football Coach Bobby Lamb has begun recruitment for the team and anticipation for the team and the season grows every day.

Get excited for all these new businesses and projects in the Corridor. Try out a new restaurant and support your local business owners to improve our economy and build a better community.  The Corridor is continuing to grow and make Macon a better city for everyone and we all can be a part of its expansion!

I [Prepare for School] in the Corridor

Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school. -Albert Einstein

The summer is winding down and kids from all ages are preparing to return to school within the next two weeks to begin another year of tests, studying, learning, and much more.  The season has been filled with incredible events such as last week's voting for the consolidation of Macon and Bibb County, the 2012 Summer Olympics; and, of course, College Hill Alliance's Second Sunday events, which take place in the evening during the summer months to avoid the record-breaking afternoon heat in Macon.

This week marks the beginning of children returning to school.  Some parents are getting their kids ready for their first year of school while other parents are preparing their seniors for their last year of secondary education.  Bibb County schools begin Monday, August 20, and the tax free weekend begins this Friday, August 10.  Get your school supplies with deals around town.  Barnes and Noble in Mercer Village has a wide selection for students of all ages to prepare them for the upcoming school year.

Mercer University students begin their classes Tuesday, August 21, but some of them moved in early this week.  Programs such as Opportunity Scholars and the Minority Mentor Program have upcoming freshmen move in a few days early to get a head start on their college experience.  Some members of Greek organizations move in this Friday, August 10, to prepare for an array of events like recruitment, fundraisers, and other unique programs.

On Monday, August 20, Mercer's Campus Life Department will host Bear Fair to inform freshmen about the hundreds of clubs, restaurants, and local businesses in Macon. The two-hour event gives on-campus clubs and off-campus businesses a chance to showcase what they offer and what they can anticipate in the upcoming year.

New Mercer Student Government Association President Mollie Davis and Vice President Joshua Lovett have big plans for this school year as well. Their Paint The Town Orange initiative plans to create a strong bond between students and the local business community by encouraging students to frequent local businesses and by having the businesses offer special discounts and post employment opportunities for students.

How are you preparing for school?  If you're done with school, stop by the University Center at Mercer University this year for volleyball games or Bear Field to watch our men's and women's soccer team.  Remember, you don't have to be a Mercer student to have school support for the Mercer Bears!

I [Am a Student Leader] in the Corridor

It's Better to Light a Candle than Curse the Darkness!

-Doug Pearson, Dean of Students, Mercer University 

 

This past weekend, Mercer University's former vice president, Ike Ekeke, and Campus Life Intern and recent Mercer graduate, Emily Halstead, put together the Mercer Student Leadership Retreat.  Carrie Ingoldsby, Campus Life Director and Cindy Drudy, Campus Life Assistant Director, oversaw the weekend's events, but this year it was run by Mercer's student leaders.  Almost 30 Mercer students traveled back to the campus Friday, July 27, to begin the retreat.  I was thrilled to be a part of it and see what I would learn from the experience.  After a few icebreakers and short introductions, the students got acquainted with one another and were split into groups.  Mercer graduate Deborah Ayoade, who was involved in several different organizations while at Mercer, also came to Macon to assist.

Groups were given multiple tasks to help them identify their strengths and weaknesses as individual leaders.  Students were classified into groups according their leadership styles: Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Conscientiousness.  There were three people in the dominant group, but the majority of the students were evenly split into the other groups.  We all realized the differences and similarities between our personalities and tried to understand one another.  Students also identified goals among their organizations and learned of different ways to collaborate with one another.  Saturday morning started with a rope course that incorporated many mental and physical challenges.  Despite the early morning and brutal heat, we managed to have a great time with one another while learning about integrity and teamwork.

Later in the day, things got serious as we broke down barriers between one another through a challenge called, Earthquake.  The goal was to order the tasks that a group should perform when an earthquake happens.  However, the ultimate lesson learned was to see how others perceive us while actively working as a team.  This exercise pointed out the good and the bad to see how we each can improve our ways of leading, organizing, and collaborating.  Cross the Line was another exercise that helped the students see past the people we thought we all knew.  By "crossing the line" if you fell into a certain category, we all learned more about each other and grew closer.  We all let down our walls for a second and encouraged one another to shine our own light.

By the end of the retreat, we had all grown closer bonds with students we may have never talked to, if we had we not attended the retreat.  This school year, Mercer University should anticipate more collaboration between student organizations and a few more waves across campus from faces that may have otherwise never known how much support they had from their peers.