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Ramsey seeks support
for her service project
Targets N.C. areas
underrepresented
BY MATT SAMPSON
STAFF WRITER
Dressed in a dinosaur costume,
senior Kalla Ramsey took pictures
with passersby Friday in the Pit
not in celebration of Halloween but
for her campaign for Homecoming
queen.
It was not an everyday sight in
the Pit
“I love the people’s reaction
when they see me,” she said of her
classmates.
“Everybody wants to be a dino
saur.”
The Essentials
Ramsey is a senior sociology
and religious studies double major
from Franklin, N.C..
She said the dinosaur costume
entertained many, but she also
understands that running for
Homecoming queen will require
hard work and dedication to make
it a reality
She said she decided to cam
paign for 2008 Homecoming
queen in order to gamer the struc
ture, funding and framework to
carry out her service project in the
spring semester.
“It happened all of a sudden,”
Ramsey said of her decision to
campaign. “I was walking across
campus with friends when we
started talking about the Carolina
experience.
“I never felt a quintessential
moment to run for Homecoming
queen. It just felt like it would be
challenging and rewarding.”
Ramsey said she made her deci
sion to come to the University dur
ing her senior year of high school.
Her decision was based largely
on its state-funded status and that
it gives an educational opportunity
to students of all walks of life.
The Project
Ramsey’s project will assess
areas in North Carolina that
are under-represented at the
University and invite high school
students from those areas to spend
a weekend at Chapel Hill.
Then the program would
encourage those students to apply
to the University.
UNC senior
Kaila Ramsey
is one of four
candidates
for 2008
Homecoming
queen.
Ramsey said she is specifically
targeting first-year and sophomore
students to prepare them for the
option of college while they’re still
younger.
High school students will stay in
dorms with current undergraduate
students from those under-repre
sented areas.
“I spent my whole life in a small
town,” Ramsey said. “I’d love to
give students from those areas a
chance for college.”
She understands that the
University prides itself on diver
sity, but she feels that this particu
lar demographic has been under
represented.
“We talk a lot about ethnic
diversity at Carolina, but we don’t
really talk about regional and eco
nomic diversity.”
The weekend is meant to serve
as a forum where prospective
applicants can find out how to
make college affordable, speak
with student leaders and talk
with academic advisers, Ramsey
said.
She wants students to be able
to have college as an option after
high school, regardless of whether
it is UNC they eventually decide
to attend.
“Many students in these regions
aren’t encouraged to pursue col
lege,” Ramsey said. “I’d like to
reach those students.”
She said she hopes her proj
ect will take effect for the spring
semester and that the University
will continue to host this weekend
after she has graduated.
“Looking at the fact that the
Homecoming queen represents
service, scholarship and character,
I feel I would be a good represen
tative of the student body,” Ramsey
said.
The Campaign
Ramsey said she wants her cam
paign for Homecoming queen to
strike a balance between working
hard and playing hard for the elec
tion.
‘I want my campaign to not
Homecoming 2008
Weekend for
underrepresented
> The program would identify
regions of the state underrepre
sented at UNC.
► Students from these regions
would come to UNC to learn
about college. J|
>- The goal is to encourage
students to apply to and attend
college, even if it’s not UNC.
Vote between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m.
Wendesday on campus or online.
only be serious and rigid, but I also
want to make light and have fun,”
Ramsey said.
In addition to her dinosaur
costume, Ramsey constructed
two photo opportunity stand-ups
made of plywood. On either prop
were painted a football player and
cheerleader or a Homecoming
queen and dinosaur for passersby
to enjoy.
“They laugh and have a lot of
fun,” Ramsey said. “They like to
see a candidate who is enjoying
herself.”
Ramsey will post the pic
tures she takes of the students at
the stand-ups on her campaign
Facebook group, which has over
350 members.
She said she wants the students
to tag themselves in the photos
and use them as their profiles pic
tures.
Many students have taken
advantage of the photo oppor
tunity, including iy Lawson and
Danny Green of the UNC basket
ball team.
Ramsey has been campaigning
for over a week and will continue
to do so straight through election
day Wednesday.
“My friends and I have been hav
ing a lot of fun campaigning out in
the Pit,” she said.
Ramsey hopes to take the oppor
tunity Wednesday to cap off her
campaign with another show in
the Pit
“I would love to have a dance
party out in the Pit Wednesday
night* she said. “That would be a
great end for the campaign.”
Contact the University Editor
at udesk@unc.edu.
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2008
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