Flix makes room for student finance group
Andrew Chestnut
Editorial Columnist
Erika Bresee
Flix was initially concerned with sharing a space with the Xavier Student Investment Fund. However, both Flix and XSIF say that that they are able to co-exist well in the Gallagher Student Center.
Flix movie rentals has been forced to share its space with the Xavier Student Investment Fund in the Student Business Development Center, also known as “The Max,” on Sept. 26, initially causing some inconveniences for both organizations.
Half of the Student Business Development Center, located on the ground floor of the Gallagher Student Center, now houses the XSIF.
Although the process was initially troublesome for both Flix and the XSIF, they are now cooperative neighbors.
Partitions between the two entities have made more shelf space available to Flix, though the XSIF reports having less space than in their old location.
The XSIF, a group of finance majors who manage a portion of the university’s endowment, had previously used the Dean’s conference room in Hailstones hall, but was moved out due to faculty expansion and a subsequent lack of space, according to Dr. Raghu Tadepalli, Associate Dean of the Williams College of Business.
“The dean’s office made the decision over the summer that it would help both the XSIF students and the Entrepreneurship Center students to share the space since both are wonderful showcases for their talent,” said Dr. Tadepalli.
Flix has used the real estate free of rent since it replaced Fed-Ex/Kinko’s in February of 2007.
X-Press Laundry is also headquartered in the Student Business Development Center in a limited capacity.
Zach Dehaemers, accounting owner of Flix, said no one in the Williams College of Business or the Xavier Entrepreneurial Center, which oversees the Student Business Development Center, informed Flix that they would be sharing a space.
“We first found out about it when Jim Bergman of Physical Plant was in Flix to fix TV wires,” Dehaemers said.
The news came during a month in which Flix recorded its highest revenues in nearly three years.
Flix contacted Dr. Daewoo Park, director of the Xavier Entrepreneurial Center about sharing the space with XSIF. Dr. Park said he fought for Flix, according to Dehaemers.
“The XSIF was moved into Flix to use the Flix location more efficiently and to create better synergy between entrepreneurship and finance areas,” Dr. Park said, adding that frequent visits by XSIF students will generate more revenue for Flix.
“In the past, the WCB has not supported its entrepreneurial students or student businesses the way it says it does. Flix’s problem has been the lack of communication flowing between the WCB and student businesses,” Dehaemers said.
After presenting Flix’s case to Dr. Tadepalli, Dehaemers is confident that although the current occupancy of the Student Business Development Center will remain as it stands, representation for student businesses will be improved in the future.
The XSIF also experienced early difficulties associated with the move.
Senior Nick Alter, the XSIF’s student liaison to Flix, said, “Flix and the XSIF are very different in their operations and schedules which makes sharing a room a tricky task. When Flix is in operation, the doors are open and since the student center can be very noisy at times, it makes it hard for us to concentrate or perform research.”
“The XSIF is generally happy about the opportunity for the student body to get to know more about what we do. The situation is temporary and both groups have made a lot of changes, albeit not voluntarily. Even though it is not optimal for either group, it is still possible for us to have a good working relationship,” Alter said.
According to Alter, the XSIF will likely move into the new Williams College of Business after it is constructed.
“Cookout for a Cause” goes on despite problems
XU’s CAC faces collaborative difficulties
Amy Windhorst
Campus News Editor
Saturday’s “Cookout for a Cause,” hosted by the Student Government Association’s Community Affairs Committee (CAC), faced a multitude of setbacks but ultimately carried out its intended goals of service and collaboration.
The broken event was pulled together by collaborators from both University of Cincinnati and Xavier, who were able to serve approximately 400 individuals a free lunch.
The cookout was scheduled to take place at 11 a.m. Sunday morning in the parking lot of Lord’s Pantry, a local organization offering prayer and food to the Over the Rhine community.
Xavier’s CAC collaborated with members from UC’s student government in organizing the event.
“UC was in charge of reserving the space,” said James McShane, Xavier’s Community Affairs Committee Chair.
Unfortunately, there turned out to be some slight oversight on UC’s part—such
as the fact that the Lord’s Pantry had no parking lot to speak of and
the site was under construction. As it turned out, a member of UC’s committee
had entirely fabricated the supposed reservations at Lord’s Pantry.
This discovery was made at 9 a.m. Sunday morning—only two hours before
the cookout was scheduled to begin.
Not wanting to postpone the event, McShane, along with Neil Kimmet, UC’s Director of Community Service and Ryan Pontsler, UC’s Associate Vice President of Community Relations, scrambled to find a new location.
“Neil and Ryan did their jobs very well,” said McShane.
Around 10 a.m., Kimmet found a space. The team set up their grills on the sidewalk just outside of Lord’s Pantry at 12th and Race Streets.
Through the confusion, Xavier lost the participation of many of its volunteers. Representing Xavier at the cookout wer McShane along with junior Carter Johnson and senior Ola Shokunbi.
Kimmet and Pontsler were able to arrange for a number of UC volunteers to help cook and distribute the food.
“Through all the failure, it was a success,” said McShane. “Our main goal was to serve as many people as possible, and we were able to give lunch to about 400.”
All of the buns and half of the meat used were donated by Kroger.
Drinks and chips were purchased through SGA. By the end of the afternoon, all of the food had been used.
McShane anticipates that future events will run more smoothly.
“We are looking to do the event [again] in the spring, this time with a bit more foresight from the mistakes of this year,” he said.
For now, all’s well that ends well for McShane: “The main goal was accomplished, and for that I am very proud.”
Police Notes
Oct. 16, 12:55 p.m. — Campus Police responded to a holdup alarm in the Comptroller Office. A student worker accidentally set it off.
Oct. 18, 12:44 a.m. — Campus Police and Residence Life investigated the report of a loud party on the first floor of the Commons. One student was cited for failure to cooperate.
Oct. 18, 2:30 p.m. — A visitor in the Admissions lot reported his or her vehicle had been broken into and a purse and cell phone stolen from the vehicle.
Oct. 19, 3:40 a.m. — Cincinnati EMS transported an underage student with possible alcohol poisoning to Good Samaritan Hospital.
Oct. 19, 3:49 a.m. — An underage student was cited for urinating in a parking lot on Cleneay Avenue.
Oct. 19, 4:38 a.m. — Campus Police, while on routine patrol, recovered a stolen vehicle from Elmwood, Ohio. The car was in the Alumni/Dana lot.
Oct. 19, 6:38 p.m. — Two students reported that an athletic van had been broken into during a trip to Chicago. An iPod and CDs were taken.
Oct. 19, 9:37 p.m. — Campus Police and Residence Life investigated the odor of marijuana on the first floor of Brockman hall. One student was cited for possession of drug paraphernalia.
Oct. 21, 12 a.m. — Residence Life reported the theft of a “Welcome to Brockman,” sign stolen from the lobby.
Oct. 21, 12 a.m. — Residence Life reported the damage of an exit sign and wireless internet hub on the ground floor of Brockman hall.
Oct. 21, 12:30 a.m. —An extremely intoxicated student was cited for underage consumption when observed falling into the bushes in the Elet lot.
Police Note of the Week
Oct. 19, 5:42 p.m. — A visitor attending the cheerleading competition at the Cintas Center was threatened by three family members.
