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Prospective students and their parents flooded UC Berkeley's Sproul Plaza Saturday taking in the sights and sounds of Berkeley and gathering information, advice and tips on college life at the annual Cal Day.  

Trolley cars carried fresh-faced Cal admits and their eager parents down Bancroft Avenue along the southern portion of the UC Berkeley campus while the Cal band played fight songs by Wheeler Hall and a group of dancers from Cal's Dance Works jived to Michael Jackson's “Beat It.” 

Saturday's day-long event included information sessions on housing, student life, academic outreach, financial aid and a speech by Chancellor Robert Berdahl extolling the virtues of a Cal education and the quality of the faculty and resources at UC Berkeley. 

“The day has been very well organized. There's something for everyone here,” says Evelyn Elliot, the parent of a prospective Cal student. 

Parents received special attention at the Cal Parent information booth. Jim Mullen helped answer questions commonly asked by many parents at Cal Day, including concerns about housing, transportation and safety.  

“I think there's a lot of enthusiasm today and a lot of them (parents) are excited,” says Mullen.  

Mullen says that some students are still trying to decide between other schools like UCLA and UCSD and Cal. He says that Cal Day gives those students a great chance to see what Berkeley has to offer.  

“There's nothing like this anywhere else. UCLA doesn't have anything like this. This is a unique event,” expressed Mullen. 

A wide-array of Cal clubs set up tables at Cal Day, speaking with new admits and handing out fliers. Olivia Campbell from UC Berkeley's chapter of the National Organization for Women cited the importance of spreading the word about her club's presence on campus. 

“We want to let people know we are here. This is the first year of the club and previously there hasn't really been a feminist group on campus,” said Campbell. 

Danielle Smith of the Cal Gun Club says she's seen a great response from Cal students in the first semester of her club.  

“We've had quite a few people coming up to the table today. We've had 60-members join so far this semester,” says Smith. 

Smith says the Cal Gun Club plans to rent out a shooting range soon and continue to defend their second amendment rights. 

Other groups at Cal Day included the Iranian Students Cultural Organization.  

ISCO president Melody Mohebi says her group hopes to provide awareness of all aspects of Iranian culture including movies, poetry and dance.  

“This is one of our biggest membership events of the year. We've had a lot of people, a lot of alumni, come up and tell us they appreciate the fact that there's a more conservative presence on campus,” says Robb McFadden, former President of the Berkeley College Republicans. 

McFadden says that conservatives are not always allowed to assert their opinions on campus but that Cal Day has provided an opportunity to pass out more than 1000 copies of their publication, the California Patriot.  

Resting on a bench outside of Dwinelle Hall, Henry Chang said that he planned to tour Bechtel Hall and the rest of the engineering school with his son Steven. 

“Today has been very informative. There are some things I wish I had known before today but my overall impression is today has been very good,” says Chang. 

“We want to bring the history of the university to a broader understanding, to bring the past to individuals,” says Ann Lage, a member of the editorial board of the Chronicle of the University of California, a journal of University history.  

The journal, associated with UC Berkeley's Center for Studies in Higher Education, produces three journals per year each covering aspects of University history including the environment, social protests and the influence of women on the University of California. 

“Things have run really smoothly today,” says Justin Hsiao, a member of Cal's visitor organization services, a branch of the public affairs department on  

campus. Hsiao says visitors have asked questions regarding housing and parking, many wondering about parking cars while at the dorms.  

Hsiao noted that some visitors have also asked questions about academics, though most people simply needed directions to the next event at Cal Day. 

Other activities planned for the day included an ROTC flight simulator demonstration, a panel presentation on “The War on Terrorism: Military Tribunals and the Case of John Walker Lindh,” sponsored by the Rhetoric Department, a football scrimmage with the Golden Bears at Memorial Stadium and “Adventures in Gender,” a discussion on gender themes by members of the Sociology Department.