Be Good. Be Orange.

Oregon State is a great academic school and because of that has developed a strong reputation for itself. Reputation, I believe, is built on by your moral compass and by the actions influenced my your moral compass. Oregon States reputation all starts with the students and staff blazing new trails and have the ambition and focus to achieve their goals. When I asked my friends what “being Orange” meant to them, each friend shot back with their own interpretation of the understanding of what it means.  Most of the answers received is that “being Orange” means to be committed and/or driven, hardworking, and to have school spirit. They based most of their reasoning on message they got from the Oregon State commercials. “Being Orange” seems to have a different or a somewhat different variation of what it means to each student and professor on campus.

I have a different understanding of what “Be Orange” means to me. Walking around campus, library, MU, and many other places, I see people are always hard at work doing something. There is a strong feeling of ambition and determination here on campus, and to me, this is what “be Orange” means to me, to have ambition. Without strong ambition and determination on campus, I believe Oregon State would not have the reputation that it has now. Ambition is a very important moral value to have because that is what will help you to reach your goals. Oregon States “Be Orange” campaign is there to help us build our moral compass and to keep each student and teacher with the ambition and determination to finish their goals.

Walking around campus, especially during finals and midterms week, is when I see the motto “be Orange” really stood out. This is when the value of ambition is prevalent. But I see ambition on campus all year round. I see “Orange” in the barometer and when I hear about research and positive things that are happening at Oregon State.

The way I try to “Be Orange” is by trying my hardest in all that I do. I try to bring ambition and motivation in to all aspects of my life in order to achieve my long and short-term goals.  To me, “Be Orange” is a great motto because there is so many definitions of what it can be, but it can also help to motivate people and guide them in their schoolwork and overall day-to day life. Because the motto of “Be Orange” can have multiple definitions, it means that it can influence a person life based on what their definition of “be Orange” means to them.

“Being Orange” is being ambitious; it is having the drive and motivation to reach personal short and long term.  It is having the courage and strength to stick to your goals and see them through. The best way to promote “Be Orange” is by exposing it and its multiple definitions to incoming freshman. This would help them to develop a moral compass and to welcome aspects of growing, instead of fearing it. But exposing it to freshman only is not enough, it is important to promote “Be Orange” in all activites/research labs, sporting events, etc. in order to reiterate the meaning. I walk around campus and I see “Be Orange” occasionally, but it would be a good idea to have “Be Ambitious, Be Orange” and “Be You, Be Orange” and any other moral values that you could put into the phrase in order to reiterate that “Be Orange” can have multiple meanings. It is important to develop a strong moral compass to help guide you through life, and “Be Orange” is a great motto to help develop those moral values.

Tags: beorange, phl205
Posted in #begood | No Comments »

“Orange” is a representation of the values that represent Oregon State University, these values are that the administration here at Oregon State want all of its students to embody. These values range from accountability and diversity to integrity. Many of these values are lined out in the OSU Strategic Plan that was put in place by the President in 2004. This plan lays out what accomplishments that OSU wants to do along with the values that the administration wants to instill in its students. These values that are laid out in the Strategic Plan are accountability, diversity, integrity, respect, and social responsibility. Every student is a part of the Oregon State’s community and is a citizen of Oregon State, however the values that are stated in the Strategic Plan are values that state what the required values that one needs to be an exemplary citizen of Oregon State.

While Oregon State as a whole have a definition of “Orange” values students have other values that they also identify with. Many students talked about defining “Orange” as a value of pride. Pride is a high or inordinate opinion of one’s own dignity, importance, merit, or superiority, whether as cherished in the mind or as displayed in bearing, conduct. Pride can be expressed by confidence in oneself or by overconfidence in oneself and his or her abilities. The reason that they give Oregon State this value is for the fact that we stick behind our sports teams even if they are losing. In other words they stated that as students they have pride in our school and what it stands for these values are the ones stated above in the strategic plan. Many people that I asked that gave me values when I asked them why they picked this value they refer to our athletics teams. This is what some believe “Orange” stands for however I want “Orange” to stand for something besides this.

The two main values that I want “Orange” to mean are honor and integrity. One of these values is already in the Strategic Plan and I wanted to emphasize this values importance and the other I wanted to show the importance of this in personal and work relationships between people. The reason that I want this is that if students have honor and integrity they will be desired because out in the work place for the fact that they will have the honor to be trustworthy to others and have the integrity to ask help with problems along with having the integrity to finish their work. Integrity is adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character. Integrity can be demonstrated by one’s ability to adhere to their own principles even when others around him or her are trying to convince them to do otherwise. One example could be not giving into peer pressure.  The reason I believe it is a good value because it requires work and thought to be a person of integrity. This work and thought require a person to take time and be mindful so that they can assess their values so that they can put their values to use when the time arises. Honor is honesty, fairness, or integrity in one’s beliefs and actions. Honor can be shown by simple acts such as not cheating on a test and telling the truth. As a value honor is very simple to do in many cases on a basic level but when a person exemplifies honor they go beyond what is asked of them. Honor requires a person to asses themself and to be true to their beliefs. The reason that I find these values to be extremely valuable to ethics is that they require one to think and asses themselves to see who they are and what values they stand for.

An effective way to introduce and communicate my message of integrity and honesty is to introduce it early by incorporating these values into the first year experience. The reason for this is that people are very impressionable with their first impressions and if students are started with these values they will carry them on for their entire time at Oregon State. This method can be compared to the anti-tobacco message that is given to kids in elementary school. If you introduce a concept early enough people will pick it up and incorporate it into a part of themselves and that is my idea of incorporating it into a part of the new first year experience which is part of the introduction of freshmen to Oregon State then it will be more effective in incorporating it if this were to happen. This method is like the old proverb of striking while the iron is hot.

The implementation of this plan would be most effective by putting a part of Orientation week that all new and incoming freshmen are a part of. This way a majority of freshmen will participate in the event. However this alone will not be enough to have it stick in their minds. Only covering this once will be ineffective in the long term because freshmen like most people will forget about it. And that is why to make this program the most effective there will need to be reinforcement sessions during the school year. Now these reinforcement sessions will not be possible in large groups because of classes and commitments that freshmen will have during the term. My solution for this is to train the Residents Assistance to then teach the freshmen. There are two Resident Assistance per floor in most halls with around 40 for each Resident Assistant. This way there will be smaller groups which will facilitate learning. It is feasible to do this once per term any more would put too much pressure and commitment upon both the Resident Assistance and the freshmen in the terms of time. This is the basic outline for implementation for me it can be tweaked and reworked so that it will be more effective.

Tags: #begood, honor, integrity
Posted in #begood, Assignments, PHL 205 | No Comments »

Submitted by Barret Neumayr

If you take a look around the Oregon State University campus, you can see how often the phrase “be well. be orange” is used. There is no specific definition to what being orange actually means. It could be used in a variety of ways, I believe the school’s definition is that of the strategic plan. The strategic plan has a set of core values, they believe these values are fundamental to our success. There are five core values on the strategic plan; accountability, diversity, integrity, respect, and social responsibility. Each of these values could mean a variety of things, although they all have one thing in common and that is being orange.

I think being orange means following the Oregon State strategic plan. I would say I don’t really have a true definition of being orange. It is not something you do, but something you are. I do believe that as students of this University we should treat everyone with respect and integrity. Being orange is much more than that. It is the ability to do what is right, no matter what the scenario. Being orange is having the courage to do what you believe is right. Being orange is being yourself and not following a crowd just to fit it. Being orange is going after your goals, but not pushing people out of your way to do so. Being orange is not being number one to everyone else, but being number one to yourself.

From a day to day basis a key example of being orange is going out of your way to help someone. If you see a person struggling to carry their groceries out to their car, we should help them. It doesn’t need to be some big event to help someone, but just little things. This would follow the social responsibility of the action plan. I think we all have a responsibility to help others that are obviously struggling with something. Sometimes it may be harder to really see if someone is having a hard time with something or someone who is being bullied. This is why Oregon State needs to have students take courses that help students spot this situations. If we are able to seek out those in need of help we will be able to engage with those people and really try to help them. Some people don’t always need help with physical issues like carrying out their groceries to the car, some people just need to talk to someone. That’s where being orange comes in, if we can show compassion to others just by taking a minute and listen to their problems we can help them find a solution. This can improve their life and of course improve yours. Those little acts of kindness add up, they make yourself feel better as well as the people around us.

We can take being orange into our careers as well as everything else. I will use my field of study construction engineering management for example. There are many ethical decisions that we must make in this field. A major problem in the industry is bid shopping. Bid shopping is when an owner allows a contractor to see another contractors bid in hope for that contractor to bid lower than that so they can get a lower price for their project. This is against all the laws and codes about the bidding competition for jobs. Now, when I am in a situation like that I need to be orange. I need to make the decision to do the right thing. If I work for the company that is doing the bid shopping then I should tell them that I do not agree with what they are doing and will not continue to work for them if they continue this unethical practice. If I was working for the contractor then I should not give them a lower bid, but in fact inform other contractors what they are doing. Allowing the other contractors to make a decision if they want to continue working with them. I make the right decision, even though it could cost me my job. It is my responsibility just like how Mill said that we should seek pleasure, but not at the cost of others pain.

Besides the social responsibilities and accountabilities, being orange also brings together a community. We all have a particular characteristic that brings us all together, no matter what are major or passion is. Of course, that characteristic is being a student at Oregon State and being orange. Along with any community there is citizenship to that community. We all have rights and duties to ourselves, our school, and our community. As we go through our education, we are constantly getting moral values and ethics drilled into our head. At some points I tend to find it repetitive, but it is better to drill it into our heads now, then to have to learn it the hard way in the future. If we can’t show the core values of the strategic plan on ourselves, there is no way we can use them in our community. Everything starts with yourself, you can’t be respectful to someone else if you can’t even respect yourself. That is what being orange means, being able to have personal integrity, self-respect, and self-accountability and then being able to take those values and use them out in the community.

If we take accountability, diversity, integrity, respect, and social responsibility and mix them with courage, compassion and ethic spotting, we get the true definition of being orange. We could go through hundreds of examples of what being orange is, but at the end of the day being orange is all about just making the right decision. If you know you can help someone, no matter what the problem or situation is, help them. It is being respectful to everyone, no matter who they are. It is having the courage to step up and do what you believe is right, even if everyone else disagrees with you. Every person that graduates from Oregon State will have their own passions, their own career path, and their own life, but at the end of the day, no matter what they do, we will always “be orange”.

Tags: #begood, beorange, phl205
Posted in #begood, Assignments, PHL 205 | No Comments »

Have you ever walked through campus and saw a sticker saying Be Orange? Have you seen the posters on lampposts asking what is your orange moment? Have you walked past the library and notice in the windows that it is powered by Orange? Oregon State University is powered by orange, clothed in orange, and recognized by orange.  Yet what does it mean to be orange?

The simplest answer is a mixture of red and yellow. Wikipedia believes it represents amusement, the unconventional, extroverts, fire, activity, danger, or taste. Those might not be the meaning of our orange but, the idea that orange represents more than just a mixture of colors rather it can represent a feeling, emotion, or virtue.

Our orange belongs to beaver nation. To all those that have walked through these storied halls and dedicated themselves to this university. We wear orange yet we also think; breathe; live orange. The creed of this university says it all:

I believe in Oregon State,

Builder of men and women,

Seeker after truth,

Organized for the service of a great commonwealth.

I believe in her traditions,

A heritage from the deeds and dreams of yesterday;

In her sportsmanship and honor,

A reality with the students of today;

In her aspirations and ideals,

The assurance of a magnificent tomorrow.

I believe in her democracy

And her far-reaching bond of Beaver brotherhood;

And I realize that since she has accepted me as a Beaver,

If I degrade myself, I degrade her,

As I honor myself, I honor her.

I therefore pledge to her, my Alma Mater,

My loyalty, my love and my devotion.

President Ed Ray tried to capture the intangibles of being orange in his strategic plan where he lists it to include accountability, diversity, integrity, respect, and social responsibility.

Ambition, having or showing a strong desire and determination to succeed, is needed to uphold the creed and uphold those virtues in the strategic plan. Being ambitious comes with a heavy weight on our shoulders. Aristotle once said that a wrongdoing consists of extremes such as not being too ambitious that integrity is sacrificed or being content and unambitious.

Ambition can be seen everywhere on this university from the students spending their Friday nights studying in the library to the grounds keepers shoveling snow to keep the sidewalks accessible. Linus Paling, our greatest alumni, had the ambition to stop nuclear testing in the atmosphere and through much of his life fought that war. Jacuzzi Rogers, a 5’ 6” running back, worked tirelessly to transform from the un-recruited running back from Richmond Texas to a running back for the Atlanta Falcons in the NFL. Without the strong desire to succeed they keep showing not only beaver nation but the entire nation what it means to be orange.

At times ambition can lead to mistakes since no person or institution is perfect. For instance, the university has misguided ambition with the building of a 4,500-square-foot four-story basketball practice facility. The building is absolutely beautiful and overlooks all over the turf fields. A 15 million dollar investment that may bring championships to this university and returning our athletics back to the famed days of all of the athletes painted inside of Gill Coliseum and recreates the “dreams of yesterday”. The ambition by the university in this scenario is a wrongdoing according to Aristotle. Overly ambitious actions can jeopardize the integrity of what orange stands for. There are improvements that can provide service to the welfare of our community such as uniformed signs throughout campus, proper disability access to all parts of campus, and the improvements to many of the building that are home to small yet important college such as public health, Art, Chemistry, Physics, Ethnic Studies, Language, English, etc.

Even though I gave the university a B in a report card that I wrote that took into account their inability to provide an experience and facilities that are all equivalent no matter the college. Now, I would give OSU an A-, because misguided ambition is better than no ambition at all. In a pursuit for success in all trades decisions are made and its in our nature to be able to adapt since being orange is having a strong desire to succeed no matter the situation and resources provided.

Beaver nation never take down your stickers or signs. No matter the current affairs, no matter the athletics success, this university stands for more. Everyone involved is seeking to improve the commonwealth for today but also for tomorrow. No matter the resources, facilities, or weather, we have a desire greater than any other university to succeed and honor this university through our actions and findings.

There is s saying that you bleed your favorite teams color, well we don’t bleed orange. We don’t keep being a part of this university hidden. We wear it proudly and show everyone what being orange is through our car stickers, clothes, and actions. Be ambitious OSU. Be Orange.

Tags: #beambitious, #BeaverNation, #PoweredByOrange
Posted in #begood | No Comments »

Be Proud. Be Orange. By: Matthew Guzman

“What does it mean for you to be Orange?” That is the question most people ask students and alumni from Oregon State University. Many people respond with different answers such as: “We’re known for our sports programs”, “Our engineering program is one of the best on the West coast”, or even “The community is so large, yet close with one another”. Whatever people think about the Orange community, we think about it in a positive way that is mostly true because whatever one thinks, most people of the same community think the same way. Being in a community means that people grow with one another and when the opportunity arises, they will not hesitate to help those that are in need. The academics aspect are true, we do have one of the best university engineering courses in the PAC 12. Including the many academic clubs that continue to excel, there are many social and athletic clubs that bring people closer together through sister and brother hood that form bonds into the working environment. But being Orange, first and foremost, to other students that attend Oregon State would be that we’re a school that takes school pride seriously; an example is that we wear and represent our school colors proudly. Being proud about our school is one of the reasons why people like our school. A lot of peers from different schools wear our shirts even though they go to schools like UW, USC, or UCLA. Something else about school pride is that when people ask “what college do you go to?”, tell them “Oregon State”, and if they respond ‘the ducks’, we will always proudly say, “No we’re beavers, get it right”. When coming from a small island community such as Hawaii, it’s safe to say that people bond when you know someone else is from the same place. You mostly have the same values and interest, therefore you feel comfortable with them. Oregon State is the same way, when someone says that they are from Oregon State, most people will always feel comfortable in a stressful environment.

Currently, being Orange as I have explained it is the best example of how I want it to be. Being proud about where a person comes from is great for confidence in making other choices that translate to the real world. Making key choices that affect your life positively can make one more ambitious, which is what employers look for when interviewing potential candidates for positions. I want Orange to mean that everyone part of our community is accepting of others that aren’t apart it, to also instill the positive values that we have learned to them so that we can let them feel what we feel. If students of Oregon State don’t feel the close bonds of being classmates, lab partners, roommates, athletes etc., after graduating, then I don’t think that the institution hasn’t done its job. It hasn’t made one come in contact of others that can potentially help guide people through college and make it a more enjoyable experience. What I want Orange to be is that to get the best education that I can possibly get, in order to fulfill on of my goals of getting a job for a successful career in a field that I want to go into. When people fulfill their duties when graduating, I want them to continue acting how they would if they were still at Oregon State.

The phrase “Be Orange” can be spread how anybody sees fit in a positive way that it should be. Even if it’s just helping someone with a small task, that person is representing Oregon State University, because if that person happens to be in the work environment and asks where you’re from, you’ll impact the school’s reputation in a positive way. Being proud is setting the tone for any activities that you undertake, whether it is a personal project or an altering decision that affects other individuals. It creates a positive mental attitude that other people can feed off of and therefore create a team that can accomplish difficult feats. When creating this team, one inadvertently creates an environment of a community, which comes back to the first and foremost value of my definition of “Be Orange”. There is a purpose about how people act in a community, they provide for it and reap the benefits of those actions when presented.

Tags: #begood, phl205
Posted in #begood, Assignments, PHL 205 | No Comments »

Submitted by Kaitlin Muramatsu

Being orange means you are a part of this Oregon State community. Your actions reflect not only you, but how people see the school. Each person has different values, different things that they think are important. I believe that as a community we represent these different values by the diversity in majors and classes or clubs and activities. One of the great things about being an Oregon State student is that there are countless majors and classes available to us. If we decide to switch majors we have that opportunity; we care able to find where we fit in this school. I always see posters for clubs and campus activities and I see new things to do all the time. If students are passionate about something they can make new clubs to find others who relate to them.
In a time when it seems like everyone is going to college and being a college graduate feels like it means less I want to find a different way to stand out. Our college we choose has a reputation the will precede us, we all want it to be a good reflection and for me that means, I want people to know that I am respectful, I am a hard worker, I am open, and I am creative. The way that we get our school to reflect good things is to do those good things. As much as the school says about us in general it is us that give the school a reputation; our actions as individuals and as a community creates an image for students at the university.
Being orange should mean that we are respectful to others, but also ourselves. Life is a balancing act between others and yourself. We cannot expect to treat others the way we want to be treated when we don’t care for ourselves. Understanding ourselves can be the hardest thing, we are tough on ourselves and don’t see what other see. Why would we speak harshly to ourselves when in the same situation we would give others encouragement? If we can encourage ourselves we can genuinely encourage others. We build a connection with other students as soon as we decide to go to this school, we may have completely different reasons for choosing the university, but we have chosen the same university. We are part of the same community, trying to get an education, to build relationships, and to go from here.
Being orange should mean that we work hard, learn a little of everything even when we don’t want to. Bacc Core classes can be tough, they’re not all classes that we instinctively want to take or think would be fun, but regardless, they are there for a reason whether we agree with them or not, we work hard through the classes. We learn all sorts of things about the world and gain a little knowledge in different fields. I think doing this is good not only to be “well rounded” but we see things other than those that we are focused on and are important to us. It means that we work our hardest, we make mistake, but we learn from them. We grow and improve and do things that are quality, which we can be proud of.
I want being orange to mean that I’ve come from an open community. A place that is welcoming and accepting, and full of people from all walks of life. I want it to mean that I have been in a community full of real people, who are individuals. I want people to see Oregon State and see a university that is a place for equality. I strongly believe in treating human beings equally. I want my school to show that we care about everyone.
Being creative is a special value for me, I want a career that lets me be creative and express myself, so I want to surround myself in a community that values the arts and imagination. I think that society often forgets the value of art and creativity, we are aesthetic beings, we like things that look nice, but it feels like we under value those who create those thing we enjoy. I want to come from a school that recognizes those who do music and art are just as important as those who do math and science. Sometimes we only see one talent, but people are talented at different things and they are all important.
What I want Oregon State to represent may not be the same as others, but at its core I want people to see me as a student from Oregon State and think that I am worth giving a chance to. I want them to think fondly of the school. This involves the things I do, I must do the things that I want from the school; so, I will be respectful, I will work hard, I will be open, and I will be creative.

Tags: #begood, becreative, phl 205
Posted in #begood | No Comments »

Submitted by: Jacob Deffenbacher
Oregon State defines being Orange by their core values. These include accountability, diversity, integrity, respect, and social responsibility. In this case accountability refers to good treatment of what the school had provided. The school provides us with a beautiful learning environment, great classrooms, devoted teachers, and a plethora of tools to improve our learning experience. It is our job as students to be accountable to the school and the student behind us to treat what we have been given with care and gratitude. In the large public college setting we are given the opportunity to study and learn along-side students of different beliefs and backgrounds, this allows us to expand our knowledge of the world and the people in it from the comfort of our own University. Integrity can be often overlooked because it is hard to come by anymore, but it is an important value especially in college. As technology continues to advance it becomes easier and easier to take the easy way out and cheat, whether that be on an exam or homework. It is our jobs as students to be stewards of honesty and to make strong integrity an important value in our lives. While it may be a very self-explanatory, respect is an important value to remember. As the old saying goes treat others how you wish to be treated, but is more than that. As a community we should desire the best for each other, and the starts with respect, respect for the University staff as well as our fellow students. I believe social responsibility refers to our responsibility to not only ourselves but to the University as a whole to put our best foot forward in our classes as well as our actions around campus. To represent strong morals and values in our daily lives.
I want be Orange to mean pride and a desire for growth. I want us to have pride in our school and what we have accomplished while we were here. To be able to look at our student community and be proud of what is represents. But to also be proud of our individualism and how even though we may be going through the same motions here at school we are all unique in our own way. I also want Orange to represent growth. That we aren’t to just sit around and watch the world improve around us but that we desire to be stewards and faces of that growth.
In this speech Jeff Daniels from the T.V. show Newsroom is asked why America is the best Country in the World, his response may surprise you.

Although this speech may come from a television show I believe its message and ideas are very important. As American’s I believe it is very easy for us to claim at being the best before actually think about, and some of the statistics that Jeff Daniels shared were quite staggering. He claimed that America isn’t the best country in the world anymore, but it sure used to be. And I would add that it can be again. But that comes down to us, comes down to how we spend these four plus years at Oregon State. Will we be a part of the, “Worst. Generation. Ever. “, or will we be responsible for improving this country, for bringing about growth and prosperity. It is with that in mind that I say Be Proud, Be Orange. It isn’t an arrogant boastful pride of how great at sports you are, or how many parties you blacked out at, or how many woman you’ve slept with, but a pride in the student body, in what we have and will accomplish.

Pride in the student body starts with the individual. Be proud in who you are and don’t let anyone change that. A community isn’t a bunch of cookie cutter copies of people, but a group of individuals, a group of people with differing beliefs, differing ideals, and differing views on how the world works. “If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be?” 1 Corinthians 12:17. Everyone has their own role and spot in community, and it is the differences in people that make the community more complete not separated. Each person is responsible not only for their own future but also the future of the community, because it is this generation, our generation that will shape this country for the good or bad in the time to come. It is important to grow as individuals as well as a community and that we direct this growth to help improve the world around us. Whether that be through new technological advances, improvement in the green movement, or even growth in the way we treat and think of others.

It is with that I say be proud, be orange. Be proud of this University and the time you spent here, and when you leave this school live a life that makes the university proud you. When you disperse across the country after your time here be beacons that represent Oregon State and set the bar high for others behind you, show what it means to truly Be Orange.

Image:

http://ericstoller.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/eric-stoller-powered-by-orange.jpg

Tags: Be Proud, Growth, We are the Future
Posted in #begood | 1 Comment »

Be YOU. Be Orange.

By Katelyn Miller

Oregon State is a community that values diversity, so how do we identify a common value within a community with so many different individuals? I think the value that all Oregon State students share is the ability to be undoubtedly themselves. Being Orange is being YOU!

Oregon State University has over two hundred different degree programs and a student body from one hundred different countries. These two statistics exemplify just how diverse our community is! An Oregon State student is an individual who tries to be the best version of themself, whether that be the best engineering student they can be or the best business student they can be. It’s about being YOU and taking care of yourself!

Not all of us are going to be the next President or Nobel Prize winner or be the very best in our respective fields. It’s ok not to be “number one” – being the very best doesn’t always entail happiness for everyone. Being the very best often includes extreme amounts of pressure and expectation. Just because you aren’t “number one” doesn’t mean you are a failure, rather what matters is that you are the best you can be.

Being the best version of yourself means that you not only embrace your strengths but your weaknesses too! An authentic person is one who is undoubtedly themselves, flaws and all. Oregon State students are authentic and real!

How do we identify “Orange” on campus? We see “Orange” when that one student raises their hand in a lecture hall of five hundred students. We see “Orange” when we watch students chase each other around campus playing the quarterly “Zombie” game. We see “Orange” when someone holds open a door for someone. “Orange” is being YOU – it can be weird, normal, average, or extraordinary.

The way we promote “Orange” is by creating a welcoming social environment on and off campus.  Creating this welcoming environment starts with each individual. We first must respect ourselves in order to demand respect from others. “Orange” students respect themselves and others. With this respect we allow others to be themselves without the fear of being judged.  

The way I express my  “Orange” is when I’m playing volleyball. As a member of the Oregon State Women’s Club Volleyball team, I find myself undoubtedly being me when I am on a volleyball court with my teammates. I express so many of my values and personality traits when I’m playing, such as passion, dedication, hustle, excitement, and happiness. I’m truly happy when I am doing what I love and I think that’s what being “Orange” is all about: doing what makes you happy.

Being “Orange” is also a mindset – one that’s about being confident in who you are. We don’t all come to Oregon State University knowing fully who we are, but that’s the great part about our community is that we help each other find our “Orange.” College and life are about creating ourselves and finding what makes us happiest. The best version of ourselves is a happy version – find what makes you happy, find what makes you “Orange” and that’s the best version of YOU!

Posted in #begood, PHL 205 | No Comments »

Submitted by Aaron Dosono

What does it mean to be orange? Those of us at Oregon State University understand that being orange can mean much more than just the intermediate hue of red and yellow. Being orange means being a part of the Oregon State University community. The OSU community includes everyone that is or has been a part of OSU. This includes the employees(ers), students, alumni, the extended branches and those that contribute to Oregon State. But how does one become a part this community?

From the Office of the Dean of student life, the OSU student shared values highlight that being a part of the community start with the individual and each individual has many values to follow and uphold. These include and are not limited to being responsible, respectful, open, aware and honest. Following and integrating these values greatly reflect the integrity of the individual. In the community the sum of all individuals reflect the integrity of the community.

It is my opinion that to be orange is to be yourself as best as only you can be. Orange is more than in the words you say but in actions you do; it is the follow through of your words through your actions. Orange is being more than just an individual but as being a part of a community. Typically in a community you are inherently being accountable for yourself and for others. Orange is about being aware of yourself, your surroundings, your actions and their consequences. To me being orange is like going to the gym. When you go to the gym for what ever your reasons whether it be improving physical fitness, relaxation, chillin with friends, or something else, you have a set plan and set responsibilities. You have responsibilities toward yourself to make sure you are performing with proper technique and are aware of your health by proper hydration and managing fatigue. This is an example of self care. In terms of being orange, being orange is also being able to recognize and know yourself. If you don’t take care of yourself in the gym, you are in danger of injury.

In the gym you also have the responsibilities to be aware of those around you, this includes those you spot as well as those whom you share the gym. It is in everyone’s best interest that you keep common courtesies such as patiently waiting for benches and machines rather than being a total a-hole and selfishly taking things without regard for others. It is also in your own interest as well as the gyms(community) best interest that you utilize the equipment correctly and safely. The OSU community offer plenty of resources for each and every individual. Being orange is being able to recognize diversity as strength and by making the most of our resources. Being orange also means having and showing respect by treating others, as you would have them treat you. By being respectful is to treat others with civility, dignity, and by being compassionate towards them. No individual is the same but each should be treated with the same respect. Being orange can be described as being accountable through being loyal stewards of good will toward others. We are able to exercise this by being connected and by taking care of those whether they be out in the community or even those closest to us.

Being orange is a lot more than virtue and traits of character that you achieve by practice;  Knowing yourself through self-evaluation and by recognizing the accumulation of your past and your goals toward the future is also a very important part of the orange-esque. In the gym, if you avidly evaluate yourself and keep track of your progress, it is easy to find areas that need improvement, make gains, and better yourself as a whole. Knowing yourself and knowing your truth is a step in the direction to be orange. Knowing yourself and how to care for yourself reflects your ability to care for others. In the gym before you can spot others, you must first understand the proper lift to understand the proper spot procedure otherwise you may injure yourself or the person you are spotting.

Like in the community, the body needs to be trained with a variety of exercises rather than sticking to ones that you are comfortable with. There are many different exercises for each individual muscle group and each need to be trained equally and properly. In the community you must be open-minded to seek other ways of improving your self and the community. Keeping an open mind allows one to learn and grow. You must be diverse and accepting of new exercises while also understanding the impact of each. Being orange is about learning and growing in virtues and spreading it to others by example. Being orange means being rational, looking at the whole situation rather than in one-sided parts. It is to consider the consequences of each action before doing and by choosing to act in a way that will benefit the greatest number.

Being orange is being a change; it is being an original and having the authenticity and audacity to “shape the mold.” Being orange is being part of the community by having an understanding of your surroundings and your situation. It is to be humble, to listen, and to react appropriately and to be useful. It is to be mindful and to be strong in your beliefs of what is right. Being orange is being an stimulus for positivity. To strive for excellence and inspire others to do the same. It is to challenge yourself to be better, to grow, and to be strong.

Tags: be orange, Be PHL205, Beaver Nation
Posted in #begood, PHL 205 | No Comments »

Be Orange

            To “Be Orange” is something unique and special to be part of. At the same time being orange had a different meaning to all of us. We all have a different perspective to being orange in our minds. Professors, students and staff have a different image of being orange. It doesn’t have to be the same, but at the same time be meaningful to the person.

To sum, being an alumni is part of being orange. Others being part of a sports team. Clubs, organizations or staff can be also be a part of being orange. Each one has their outlook what means to “Be Orange”, and that fine because that is suppose to happen. We can’t all have the same value what is to be orange. I have a different outlook to being orange.

To “Be Orange” has to come from the heart and become something that we all would be proud of. So to me the value of being orange is pride. Yes pride because its what ignites the love for something special. In more detail, when we become part of a club or organization in campus. First we have to learn as much as possible about what we are getting into. At the same time we have to have a liking before we decide to get into a club, organization or anything in particular group of some kind.

So once we are in it we can build from it. Once the person has finally felt comfortable, that is where it shows. That is when the pride comes out. Where that person feels honored to be in that group and not be ashamed. Where I’m going with this is that’s the same thing about being orange. To be part of beaver nation is something that should bring a smile and pride within us.

Pride in graduating and becoming an alumni. As a Alumni, we show our education and pride by applying for jobs. With that in mind, Alumni show what is to be orange with their degree from OSU. They express their feelings about being orange and the pride that comes with being orange. They can send a message the experience they’ve had at OSU and the people they know can talk about to other people or students. This will enhance the power of recruiting future students and they can become part of being orange.

To be orange comes from a tradition that goes way back and has continued as of now. Where has the pride from being orange? Simple, the students are the reason. They are the key that has built the pride of OSU. They are the reason behind being orange. I’m not saying that the school isn’t a factor, but the students have to be the ones that are happy to be here. Not just the school, but support everything about the school. Whether is the football team, frat or a club. We as students have to stand behind it all the way.

Let’s not forget about the students around us. We have students that come from different countries and from different cultures. So pride also has to be within us. To have the freedom at OSU and express ourselves without the fear what others think. We are part of a big community that should be supportive about their peers. No matter how different they are. We had to stand united to show the pride of being orange.

Pride is my value and feel it is something has been here since the day it w as build and continues to be built on. It is our turn to keep showing our pride of being orange. The best way for my by expressing my message is by spreading the word. Maybe some flyers or spread it through my friends so they can also do the same. This is just an idea, but it could actually work. I am proud of being a beaver and I pride myself on being orange.

Posted in PHL 205 | No Comments »