The Chronicle

Issue date: 9/12/07 Section: News
Last update: 9/12/07 at 7:10 AM EST

Media Credit: ZACHARY TRACER GPSC President Crystal Brown addresses members of the student government group at its first meeting of the year Tuesday night at the law school.

The Graduate and Professional Student Council kicked off its first meeting with a strong turnout, officer introductions and plenty of Mexican food and salsa on the side.

The group­-responsible for coordinating graduate and professional student life on campus-discussed this year's agenda, and concentrated specifically on a new venture called Project Gaining Responsibility, Opportunity and Wealth. GPSC President Crystal Brown, a third-year law student, said she hopes to enhance the personal, social, academic and professional growth of graduate and professional students.

The meeting covered recruitment for different subgroups, including social life, community service and the Graduate and Professional Young Trustee steering committee.

Brown said she hopes to make Counseling and Psychological Services programs available to graduate and professional students affected by stress and depression.

She added that social interactions can help students relax in high-strain environments.

"You're going to school with future congressmen and women, doctors, lawyers and Fortune 500 CEOs," Brown said. "The best stress relief is going out, getting a drink and talking to someone."

Student Life Chairs, Jessi Bardill, a second-year graduate student in English, and Alethea Duncan, a third-year graduate student in chemistry, said they were very excited for this month's upcoming events.

GPSC will hold a bar crawl in Chapel Hill tonight, an open house at the new Graduate Student Affairs House on Thursday and a horseback riding activity on Saturday.

The council will also hold its annual day-long retreat Saturday. Stephen Gary, a second-year graduate student in Earth and Ocean Sciences and organizer of the event, said registration was mandatory and open to all graduate and professional students.

"It's an opportunity to feel comfortable interacting with other people who are here," Gary said.

This year, GPSC will again host bi-weekly faculty lunches in the Faculty Commons or elsewhere in the West Campus Union Building, said Xing Zong, a fifth-year graduate student in physics. He added that the lunches act as a great way to get more attention for the graduate students, who account for about half of the University's population.

"[Vice President for Student Affairs Larry Moneta]'s on Facebook right now," Zong said. "You can make him a friend and send him messages to pressure him into helping us."

The meeting concluded with a vote to verify the meeting schedule for the fall semester. General assembly meetings will be held the second and fourth Tuesday of each month.

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