The Black & Magenta Spring Greek recruitment
Bid week has begun on Muskingum’s campus Martin Kurtz Orbit Media Reporter Last year, there was a change in Greek recruitment at Muskingum University. In 2013, “formal” recruitment was changed to fall semester rather than waiting for the spring semester. Formal recruitment is the Bid Week process that students go through to join a Greek organization. Spring
recruitment, which is done solely through bidding starts on Jan. 26 and ends on Feb. 3. This week includes parties, invites to membership, as well as other events. Two Greek events this semester are The Greek Mixer and Greek Week. The Greek Mixer was held on Jan. 22. This event served as a last chance opportunity to give or receive interest from
an organization. The other event is Greek Week, which is an annual competition between all of Greek Life. This event will happen later in the semester. With the formal process being moved to fall, there is a new informal process that is only in its second year. The added process was included to allow students that couldn’t participate in the fall to join in the spring. “We realized that there
are certain populations that wouldn’t be able to join in the fall,” said Stacey Allan, Director of Greek Affairs. “For example, football [players] is a very large portion of students. They could join if they wanted to, but realistically, they’re not going to.” GREEK LIFE, continued on Page 3
Animals keep warm at The Wilds
Natalie Wittkopf pets a Rhino inside of The Wilds. Josey James housing. Orbit Media Reporter “About half of our species are housed inside in the winter,” said MiImagine being from Africa or anoth- chele Clawson who is a part of the aner warm climate and having to experi- imal management team at The Wilds. ence a cold Ohio snow storm without a The Wilds is a non-profit conservaproper coat. Many species of animals tion center in Cumberland, Ohio. What at The Wilds are not prepared for win- is now known as one of North Amerter with a thick coat of hair or a layer ica’s largest conservation centers was of fat to keep their bodies warm. In or- once just 10,000 acres of reclaimed der to keep the animals warm and safe mine land. The Wilds are approximatefrom these harsh conditions, The Wilds ly 27 miles away from Muskingum has many facilities used for winter University.
T H E B L A C K & M A G E N TA
Josey James/Black&Magenta The Wilds is home to many endangered species from around the world. Some of these species come from parts of the world with warm climates. These animals cannot tolerate Ohio’s chilly winters and must be kept inside heated barns. Other animals thrive in cold conditions and will remain outside in pasture for all four seasons. THE WILDS, continued on Page 3
Vol. 119, Issue 14 Jan. 26, 2015 Kathryn Kellar, Editor-in-Chief
Police to use body cameras Christine Holmes News & Managing Editor The New Concord Police Department is expecting to have all officers armed with HD body cameras by March 1. The equipment will be purchased in part with a $2,991 awarded to New Concord Police from the Edward Bryne Memorial Justice Assistant Grant. A citizen’s anonymous donation will help pay for costs not covered by the grant. “The growing trend in law enforcement now is going to be body cameras,” said New Concord Chief of Police, Trevor Hayes. “There [is] some legislation in with the state to try to get every officer to have a body camera, and we just want to kind of stay ahead of that.” Body cameras are not a new concept to New Concord Police. They experimented with the devices three years ago, but didn’t find much success. Hayes attributes some of the cameras’ failure to their small size, which made finding the power switch difficult for officers. “Now that the technology has advanced, we’re going to try it again,” said Hayes. According to Hayes, the new body cameras are expected to have easier access for officers. They will be placed on the chest, projecting outward, with a power switch on the side. Once the camera is on, the officer only needs to tap the camera to begin recording. An outside company will manage all video recordings for court proceedings. According to Hayes, the purpose of the body cameras is to protect both officers and citizens. He said he doesn’t want to think it is related to issues in places like Ferguson, Missouri, but it is in the back of his mind. “No officer wants to be in that situation [Ferguson], so if it does help having cameras, then we’ll take that step,” said Hayes. Hayes said the cameras will be useful in day-to-day situations such as noise complaints.
Jim Burson Author Talk Page 2 Village Council Update Page 4 Senior Year as Told by Kandee Page 6