By ERIN HOPKINS

Staff Writer

"Love Lines,” a program about relationships, sponsored by the Student Speaker's Bureau, was held March 17 in the Student Center, Main Floor.

Robert Burt, coordinator for Student Speakers Bureau and clinical coordinator for Counseling Services, said relationship concerns are a big issue.

"The reason we came up with [Love Lines] is [because] a sizeable number of students that we see in counseling express relationship concerns," Burt said. "Maybe there are some people that would not come to counseling but would come to a program like this."

Students were greeted at the door by one of the SSB members with a handout called "Love GPA", a relationship test. Burt said it is an excellent assessment of the quality of their relationship or a past relationship.

"They can figure up their relationship GPA, just like you would figure up your GPA here at Tech based on a four point scale," Burt said. "If your GPA is 3 or 3.5, the relationship is going pretty good. But if your GPA is 2.0 or lower, then there is something going on in the relationship that is wrong."

Students also had the opportunity at the beginning of the program to fill out index cards with questions they had about relationships and place them into a box to be answered during the question-and-answer portion of the program.

The SSB members performed a skit on how a bad relationship looks and how to recognize it. The skit portrayed a couple who met in a bar and the course of their relationship. It showed the tendency that some couples face. When the skit was over, the members discussed the skit and how students could apply it to their relationships.

Courtney Bryan, a member of the Students Speakers Bureau and a junior finance major, was one of the members who performed in the skit.

"I think it made people see that other people are going through the same things, it's not just them," Bryan said.

After the skit, a panel of SSB members answered the questions the students turned in at the beginning of the program. The members gave answers based on their own experiences. Students were also able to ask any other questions they had at this time.

The program ended with a presentation about the characteristics of healthy and unhealthy relationships.

The overall program confronted common concerns and questions about relationships in ways students could relate to.

Kristin Ginn, a junior mechanical engineering major, said, "It provided a good perspective on how to keep a good relationship going."

Burt said students are also encouraged to visit the counseling services at any time about any further questions they may have about their relationships.

Andrew Scott, a junior mechanical engineering major, said, "I thought it was very helpful on seeing what a healthy relationship would be like."

At the end of the program, door prizes were given out. Four students were given a gift certificate for a romantic dinner for two.