THE BG NEWS
ESTABLISHED 1920 | An independent student press serving the campus and surrounding community
WEEK 15 FOOTBALL SCOREBOARD
BG
17
Monday, December 8, 2014
VOLUME 94, ISSUE 45
NIU
51
WWW.BGNEWS.COM
BALANCING BODY & MIND Four Chinese acrobats perform different stunts for community members at the Bowling Green Middle School By Natasha Ivery Reporter
On Dec. 6, the Bowling Green community, faculty and staff came together to view a performance never experienced before in Bowling Green, the Chinese Acrobats. Sponsored by the Office of Multicultural Affairs, the program was held at Bowling Green Middle School at 7 p.m. Krishna Han-Frey, assistant director for Diversity Education Programs, was the coordinator of the event. He said he held the event at Bowling Green Middle School to bring students, faculty and the community together in one common space. “A lot of people asked, ‘Krishna, why didn’t you have this event on campus?’” Han-Frey said. “I held it at Bowling Green Middle School because I wanted to bring people together, the entire community and not just the one surrounding campus, so people could say they had something in common.” Chinese acrobatics is a 20 centuries old art form of expression that reflects the history of the Chinese culture. It can often be dangerous and challenging due to the physical limits that a performer is pushed to. Special and rigorous training is in order before anyone is cleared to perform. The show, which consisted of 10 different acts, featured an MC and four Chinese acrobat artists. There were three girls and a boy. The youngest was 17 while the oldest was 19. Adorned in colorful two-piece outfits, the acrobat artists performed several tricks. The very first featured one of the girls standing on one hand while atop several building blocks varying in height. Another consisted of a different girl balancing a candle on her forehead and in her mouth. Carefully and cautiously, she lit one candle single-handedly using the other. Another woman rode a unicycle while balancing and flipping dishes and spoons onto her head with one leg. The audience participation segment featured the male acrobat artist teaching six audience members how to flip a straw fedora hat onto their heads and asking audience members if they knew how to speak Chinese. The most dangerous performance of the night came when the contortionist performed. Contortion is the most popular movement in Chinese acrobatics. The girl appeared on-stage and sat on a rug. She performed various moves that twisted her body in different shapes and she also ended up balancing a crystal chandelier set on both of her feet, head and stomach simultaneously. Han-Frey said he brought the show in the first place because he wanted to showcase a different type of diversity. “The Cultural Exchange Students Across America program
See ACROBAT | Page 2
Trustees approve $60 million in funding
ICE SKATING
Board members support future funding for University building renovations By Kendra Clark Campus Editor
TRAVIS WILLHOITE | THE BG NEWS
PAIR OF skaters enjoy the public skate at the BG Ice Arena.
FALCONS DROP TITLE GAME The BG football team was defeated 51-17 by Northern Illinois in the Mid-American Conference title matchup. The Falcons will have one more opportunity to take the field in a ball game. | PAGE 3
The Board of Trustees approved over $60 million to be used for the upcoming renovations for the University in their meeting on Dec. 5. The renovations and construction funds were broken into different categories for different projects. Included in these projects are approval for parking lot and road renovations, Union renovations, classroom update project, Greek Housing project, Eppler Complex renovations and more. The most expensive of the expenses came from the Greek Housing project, where Chief Financial Officer Sheri Stoll
HOLIDAY TRADITIONS
asked the Board to approve the funding for the construction of the housing. The total projected cost of the project is over $37 million. “We put a great deal of time to student success,” Stoll said. “Housing is an important part of that.” The second most expense item for approval, which Stoll was asking for $13 million, was the new infrastructure for buildings scattered around the University like Moseley Hall, Hanna Hall, South Hall, University Hall and the Centrex Chiller Plant. “It will be disruptive to normal traffic and pedestrians,” Stoll said. “It might also prevent August graduation from being in front of University Hall, but
Columnist Abigail Kruse talks about how you should enjoy time with your family during the holidays. She adds that you should learn about important family traditions during this time. | PAGE 4
these need to be done.” The additions for the buildings include new electrical services, heating, cooling, new sanitary sewer lines and more. Another upcoming change is the approval for the Union renovation, which plans to take the Career Center from the Math Science building to the second floor of the Union. “The layout for the office will be a wall of glass, so people can easily see inside the Center,” Stoll said. In total, the cost for the renovation will be $2 million. Lastly, another upgrade project the University is taking on is the classroom upgrade project.
See TRUSTEES | Page 2
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CHRISTMAS MOVIE? “A Year Without A Santa Clause.” Jordan Spidel Freshman, Early Childhood Education