A Guide to Freshman

Food Service

The URS Cafeteria opens from 7:00 am to 8:00 pm. It serves all kinds of snacks, drinks, ice cream and meals. You can pay with your cash or ID cards. You can put your cash into your ID cards at the Front Desk. Even if you do not buy your food in the Cafeteria, you can still use the tables to enjoy meals, to have your meetings with your friends and even to study.

Transportation

The URS Express is a shuttle service. The shuttle transports students between campus and the shopping center, leaving from the Mattson Center. Operation hours are between 9:00 am and 3:00 pm, Saturdays only. Round trip fare is $2.

Academic Support

All students have access to the Writing Center on the upper floor of Douglas Hall. Qualified volunteers will work with you on written work, grammar, vocabulary, and other academic skills. You can sign up for an appointment on the sign-up sheet outside the door, two 30-minute appointments per week maximum. The service is free of charge.

Health

The Fitness Center is on the top floor of Douglas Hall, it is committed to physical, emotional and social health. A doctor and nurse is available if you have health questions or need immediate medical help or personal advice. The cost is included in your medical insurance. Hours are Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 4:30 pm.

TEENAGERS lead an exciting life in high school, making friends and dreaming about the future. However, as all young people know, teenagers have plenty of worries too.

Do you know what British teenagers worry about most? A survey by the UK’s Department of Health shows that the top worries are losing weight (减肥) and fitting in (适应). Over 100,000 teenagers took part in the research.

Losing weight is a big concern among teenagers. This may be an effect of famous people with perfect bodies around them.

Adolescence is a physically and emotionally difficult time. Teenagers want to feel good about their bodies.

It’s also important for them to be accepted. Many teenagers were picked on (作弄) in high school. “Who should I eat lunch with?” “Who should I hang out with?” “Will I be accepted?” These questions are troubling many UK teenagers, according to the survey.

It’s interesting to see that family background has an effect on teenagers’ worries. Teenagers from low-income families worried more about losing weight and bullying (欺凌弱小). Teenagers from higher income families were more likely to worry about fitting in and peer pressure (同辈压力).

Today was a really big day for me. The last time I spoke in class was three years ago and it was terrible. I tried to say the letter “W” and made that strange sound. Everyone laughed and I haven’t spoken in class since.

But it’s been going really well lately. I’ve got a great doctor and I’m allowed to use my computer in class all the time. And guess what? This is really big news! When I listen to music on my headphones I can speak without stuttering (结巴)! That’s why I agreed to talk at the science fair today.

So I arrived at school early this morning to practise with my group. Our project is about using bacteria (细菌) to eat plastic. Unfortunately, when it was my turn to speak, I was so nervous that I chose the wrong music on my MP3 player. So instead of Mozart I was listening to my dance collection. The problem is that when I have dance music on the headphones I can’t stop myself talking in the same rhythm (节奏) as the music. So it just sounds like I’m rapping (说唱)!

Most people in school had never heard me speak before. They were really surprised when I started doing a rap about bacteria that eat plastic. I could see they were laughing at me. But when I finished they all stood up and cheered.

After we finished, everyone wanted to know me. They didn’t know about my secret use of the music on my headphones, so they just thought I was a great rapper! I checked my phone at lunchtime and I’ve got 187 new friend requests!