 "Photo: Jacob Naasz")
The Spirit Rock, located on the lawn between University Theatre and Green Hall, is the most recent landmark to grace the landscape of the university.
According to the Student Government Web page, the Spirit Rock is a conduit for free speech for all UTD students and student organizations. Anything from encouraging messages to event announcements can be painted on the rock. People interested in writing on the rock, however, must supply their own paint.
During the April 15 unveiling ceremony, Ana Tavares, historical studies junior and student body vice president, said the Spirit Rock was inspired from a similar project which was undertaken by the students of the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
Basheer Benhalim and Felicity Lenes, student body president and vice president for the 2006-07 school year, were responsible for proposing the idea for a spirit rock, Tavares said. Darrelene Rachavong, vice president of student affairs, and Donna Rogers, dean of students, were also instrumental in bringing the initiative into fruition.
As a contributor to the Spirit Rock project herself, Tavares said, "The status (of the Spirit Rock) is monumental … (it is) an outlet for school spirit … 365 days a year." Tavares said, "It's here to do whatever you want with it … within regulation."
The guidelines as stated on the Student Government website prohibits obscenity, defamatory statements and statements that incite violation of law. Student Union employees will monitor the rock for violations.
The Spirit Rock currently situated on campus is temporary, Tavares said. It was already part of UTD and was merely transferred to a more prominent location. Its continued presence on university grounds is dependent on positive feedback. It will be replaced permanently by a larger boulder if the concept receives support from the students and staff after a trial period.
As for the cost of the temporary rock, Tavares said, "The rock (currently) on campus did not cost anything … (the only expenses incurred were) the sign in front of the Spirit Rock and the materials for the unveiling. As for the rock that will be replacing it, I cannot give an accurate estimate as to the cost, because we do not yet know how much it will be to transport the rock."
Many students seemed optimistic about the newest venture to promote school spirit. Diana Kao, literary studies sophomore, said it's "going to be a great brand new tradition at UTD." She carefully penned "spread the love" on the Spirit Rock using a green paint marker.
Natalie Price, ATEC junior, had a similar outlook on the Spirit Rock. "It's a good effort on the part of the school to promote spirit," Price said. She added that she enjoyed being around people who exhibited university pride.
Electrical engineering junior Ashish Mishra pointed to the benefits of having a Spirit Rock on university grounds. "There's nowhere else on campus where you can publicly write graffiti," Mishra said.
The Spirit Rock unveiling was largely informal. Students and staff alike milled about casually, gathering in small groups to take turns decorating the gigantic boulder. Popular slogans scrawled on the Spirit Rock included, "Go Comets," and "Whoosh."
Students also jotted comments like, "the Rock rocks," and "We love UTD," on the stony exterior. One person even added a cultural touch with the Chinese salutation "Ni hao" - which translates to "Hello." Jacob Naasz, ATEC senior major, even spray painted a blue panda and a white monkey onto the rocky surface to add artistic flair to the Spirit Rock.
Steven Rosson, business administration junior and student government president-elect, continued on the vein that the Spirit Rock is a vehicle for creative expression. The Spirit Rock, Rosson said, is a "wonderful idea and a fantastic outlet for UTD students to express school spirit and creativity."
Isaac Herandez had a more skeptical reaction. He expressed some concerns he had about the Spirit Rock. Hernandez said that his initial impression of the rock upon first seeing the hunk of stone on Facebook was it was "ugly." He added that he didn't particularly like the sign "Spirit Rock" placed in front of the rock itself. "It doesn't need to advertised," Hernandez said, "traditions need to be passed down by word of mouth, not signs." Hernandez said that even though its appearance leaves much to be desired, the Spirit Rock will likely turn out to be a "good tradition."
A few days after the unveiling ceremony, the amalgamation of comments made by various students and student organizations was painted over. The Spirit Rock instead bore a single message in black letters that stood out starkly against the white paint. The quote, taken from Danish philosopher and theologian Kierkegaard, stated, "People demand freedom of speech as a compensation for the freedom of thought which they seldom use."
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