Tickets Now On Sale For Warrior Golf Tournament

09/28/11 23:03 PM

By Sara Carabasi/ Big D Plog scarabasi@smu.edu Golf tournaments usually consist of pros like Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson. This year, however, one golf event will feature slightly different competitors. So who will be partaking in the first ever Warrior Open Golf Tournament? War veterans! Those who have served in the United States armed forces and have been severely injured are invited to participate in the two-day golf tournament. The event will be held at Las Colinas Country Club on October 10 and 11. For those of you who want to support our troops, general admission tickets are now on sale (military members go for free). Because the contestants fought during Operation Iraq and Operation Enduring Freedom, ClubCorp joined with the Bush Center to become a major...

Bishop Arts District Welcomes Fall Weather with October’s Saturday Market

09/28/11 22:53 PM

By Grace Roberts/Big D Blog groberts@smu.edu As fall weather finally makes its way into Dallas, what better to do on a weekend afternoon than shop and peruse at an outdoor street market. On Saturday Oct. 1, the Saturday Market, which takes place the first Saturday of every month except for the blazing hot months of July and August, returns to the historic Bishop Arts District in North Oak Cliff. While exploring the area of evocative 1920s buildings, shoppers can experience a variety of vendors featuring locally made crafts, art, food and more. If you’re new to the neighborhood, be sure to check out all the boutiques and restaurants that make Bishop Avenue worth the trip. The monthly event also includes a live music performance—this weekend, join the residents of the Oak...

LifeWalk Hosts Annual 5k to Support AIDS

09/28/11 13:33 PM

By Logan May/Big D Blog ljmay@smu.edu   Want to get some exercise and help a cause? Well, lace up your running shoes and pull out your wallet. Life Walk will be hosting their annual 5k race to support AIDS funding for the Dallas community on Sunday, October 2 at 1 p.m. in Uptown. Life Walk began in 1990 as a way to provide funding for services to the AIDS community of Dallas. Dallas has experienced a 21 percent increase in known HIV infections since 2001 and 20,000 people are currently living with AIDS in the Dallas metroplex. The race will begin in Robert E. Lee Park at Turtle Creek and go through the beautiful neighborhoods of Uptown. Individual fees to participate start at just $40. So bring your family, friends, pets, and running gear to support a great cause for...

Student Population Rises and Funding Falls for Highland Park ISD

09/28/11 08:15 AM

By Anna Kiappes/Big D akiappes@smu.edu With the economy still down, many families are downsizing and moving out of their districts, but for Highland Park ISD the student population has gone up at least 100 students from this time last year. In a statement released from superintendent Dr. Dawson Orr, the district is trying to keep up facilities to match the increase in students.The statement also projects that total student enrollment will be 8,000 in 2019.   While this does increase class size numbers, it also increases a chance for more teaching positions. The district also released the news that they are behind on district funding thanks to reduced state funding. This means by the year 2013 the district will have a short fall of $1,601,440. Additionally, the district have...

Social Media Club Dallas, bringing tweeters together

09/26/11 10:47 AM

By Katie Tufts / Big D Blog ktufts@smu.edu Calling all social media junkies! The Social Media Club of Dallas, or better known as SMC, held their second anniversary celebration at the Angelika theater on Thursday evening, welcoming a crowd of about 250. For the second year celebration, the SMC had a six-speaker showcase, discussing the successful integration of social media into more traditional client campaigns. The speakers came from agencies across DFW, and each gave a 10-minute case study on their client and how social media (mostly Facebook and Twitter) helped build and market their campaigns. Remember the time when it was rude to be using your cell phone while listening to a presentation? Well, those days are long gone, at least in this digital crowd. Being a first-timer to SMC...

Chaz Bono Dances Amidst the Controversy

09/20/11 22:43 PM

By Logan May/ Big D Blog ljmay@smu.edu Chaz Bono, formerly known as Chastity, has broken free from the shadow of his mother, the legendary Cher. He has created quite the buzz after joining the cast of ABC’s Dancing with the Stars as the first transgender contestant. On Monday night’s premier, Chaz received plenty of praise from the judges, and showed viewers he is worth the hype. Viewers started a trending topic with the hashtag #ProBono on Twitter as a way to show support for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) community. What else sparked from his debut on the hit ABC show? Heightened security. Chaz Bono will now be fully protected at all times throughout his time on the show, TMZ reported on Monday. Although no specific threats have been made, the...

Deep Ellum Art Walk Kicks off Saturday

09/20/11 08:28 AM

By Joe Richardson/ Big D Blog joeyr@smu.edu Does art move you, stir your soul or send your mind into a philosophic spiral? If it doesn’t, you might not want to hit Deep Ellum on Saturday Sept. 24 at 6 p.m. The galleries of Deep Ellum and Expo Park are participating in the Deep Ellum Art Walk. Enthusiasts of art, music and walking can view installations at places like Mokah Art Gallery, Kettle art and more. A night of art, culture, drinks and the best part- it’s free. The event is being presented by the Deep Ellum Foundation. The foundation hopes to “enhance the interests of the neighborhood as a whole.” Big D is a digital journalism class blog produced independently of The Daily Campus....

Experience Your Parents’ Prom in Oak Cliff

09/19/11 16:30 PM

By Grace Roberts/ Big D Blog groberts@smu.edu   We’ve all seen pictures, or at least a movie (ever seen the 1980s Footloose or Sixteen Candles?) from our parents’ high school years and wondered, “What were they thinking?” in regards to the attire they wore to prom.  Many of our parents are guilty of once wearing the floor length ruffle dresses and pastel-colored tuxedos of decades-past proms, and the humor of the Polaroids never gets old. If you’ve ever wished you could relive the prom experience of the ’80s, Oak Cliff is hosting an event benefitting the Oak Cliff Conservation League just for you.  Titled “Oak Cliff Prom – As Tacky As it Gets,” the theme of the event is “Under the Stars” at the Texas...

Another round of layoffs at the Dallas Morning News leaves 38 jobless

09/15/11 09:21 AM

By Katie Tufts / Big D Blog ktufts@smu.edu The newspaper business is not the place to go when looking for job security these days. With print newspapers becoming steadily more archaic and the economy still in a slump, newspapers are having to lay off staff members in large quantities. The Dallas Morning News laid off another 38 staff members last week, one of a few rounds of layoffs since 2008. These layoffs included copy editors, assistant editors, reporters and photographers according to “DMNcuts”, a blog that follows the Dallas Morning News layoffs. “DMNcuts” also gives information about news industry job postings and condolences to those who were recently laid off. This is news that could be disheartening to journalism students (like me), but...

Deep Ellum Outdoor Market mixes music, art, community

09/13/11 08:50 AM

By Joe Richardson / Big D Blog joeyr@smu.edu I’m sure you’ve heard of Deep Ellum, but have you really experienced Deep Ellum? If not, the Deep Ellum Outdoor Market wants to change that. On Sept. 17 the market will open in the parking lot behind the Café Brazil on Indiana Boulevard. At the market, local people residing within 150 miles of DFW can sell all kinds of things. I assume that the market will include the art and eccentricities for which Deep Ellum is known. Like most events in Deep Ellum, there will be music. Music has been a part of the culture of Deep Ellum since jazz and blues came to Dallas in the 1920s. The songs might have changed in the years since then, but it’s still thundering out of the bars and giving Dallas something to groove to.  ...