COLLEGIAN THE CA M ERON U N I V ER SIT Y
Monday, September 26, 2005
News
Informing the Cameron Family Since 1926
Around the world in 5 days By Kenny Scarle Staff Writer
Kite-flying and band sound combined to kick off the International Festival events. PLEASE SEE PAGE 10
A&E
Theatre production wouldn’t be the same without professional costume design. PLEASE SEE PAGE 8
Sports
Maya Angelou said it best: “We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry and we must understand that all the threads of the tapestry are equal in value, no matter what their color.” This week, in celebration of the great diversity on campus, the university is presenting “Diversity Week 2005, Going Global: Around the World in 5 Days.” This is a celebration of the multicultural aspects of the campus, with students coming from, to name just a few, Canada, the Asian/ Pacific Islands and the Caribbean. The week will be filled with activities, performances, demonstrations and displays that showcase the cultures represented here. This event gives people the opportunity to understand more about their fellow students. Diversity Week will open today with CAISA, the Cameron American Indian Student Association on the lawn of the Science Complex at 11:30 a.m. Former President of CAISA, Terri Poahway, is very pleased with this. “This is a great opportunity for the students,” Poahway said. “Cameron is so diverse, with so many different people. This week is also special to the tribes in this area, as Lawton was a reservation at one time. It gives them a chance to show people who they are and what they can do. It’s great that Cameron gives this chance to students and the community.” CAISA will be presenting various dancing and singing exhibitions, a pow-wow and twelve different kinds of fry breads. Student Development Specialist, Tara Lennox, provided the schedule of events for the coming week.
“Monday will start us off with the American Indian students,” Lennox said. “Tuesday, the Ebony Society will be presenting the Buffalo Soldiers and food from the Dry Beaver barbecue.” Tuesday will also include a cultural showcase at 8 p.m. in the Shepler Mezzanine. This showcase will represent the many numbers of cultures on campus. The Cameron Programming Activities Council (PAC) has been very active in the planning of this event. PAC Co-chair Blake RedElk reported that PAC has been helping with details and making sure everyone is represented there. “Each organization will bring items that represent its culture, from food and clothing to dance and song,” RedElk said. “Not only is it a fun, but it is great to celebrate and understand each other, seeing
Brain Gain grant aids student opportunities By Petulah Olibert Staff Writer
Jet lag effect ends in early exit during games. PLEASE SEE PAGE 9
Voices
Mexican Marines aid U.S. in aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. PLEASE SEE PAGE 3
Office: Nance Boyer 2060 Phone: 580•581•2261 E-mail us at : collegian@cameron.edu First Copy Free - $.25 for each additional copy Contents © The Collegian 2005
Volume 79 Issue 5
This year Cameron University is the recipient of the Brain Gain grant. Usually awarded to schools committed to improving and developing their various educational facilities, the grant is directed at strengthening the key areas of CU’s institutional weaknesses. According to Senior Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management Larry Kruse, author of the proposal, the initiatives of the grant are three-fold: to develop an assessment of student populations; to establish and develop training for academic advisers and to develop and pilot an early alert system for at-risk students. Already on the test field is the early detection system for at-risk students. The program is designed to make students aware of their lack of academic progress in classes. This summer, the pilot system was introduced to select Cameron students and faculty. Tested only on zero-level courses, the early warning system has proved successful. According to Kruse, the project made a difference where none was seen before. “The intent of the early detection system is to notify students when they’re not doing well,” Kruse said. “Many students don’t know how they’re faring in class. They don’t keep up with their grades. The premise of the system is that we cannot help students unless we know how they’re doing, and the early detection system does that.” Although the pilot system was used only for zero-level and non-credit courses, Kruse said, there are plans make it campus-wide next year. According to Kruse, the instructors who
Please see DIVERSITY, page 4
SOCA hosts pageant, celebrates diversity By Lauren Slate Staff Writer
Courtesy Graphic
participated have a screen attached to their class roster. If a student isn’t doing well, the instructor places a check mark next to one of these four areas: non-attendance, low test scores, late or uncompleted work or homework. A letter generated by the office of student services is then sent to the student and a copy is sent to the instructor. The letter provides direction for the student on how to remedy their situations. The system, though still in the early stage, made a telling difference. This summer, only 29 percent of at-risk students received a failing grade. Forty-two percent of the students received letter grades, while 29 percent took the option of withdrawal. That, said Kruse, is a marked improvement among at-risk students who, under ordinary circumstances, would have made a 100 percent failing rate.
It is 30 minutes past show time in the seatfilled room of the Shepler Mezzanine, as an audience of students, friends and family quietly await the arrival of the Miss Socarnival Pageant contestants. Behind the slightly opened doors of the side room there is cramped chaos as the girls scramble to find safety pins, lipstick and hairspray to put the final touches on their outfits for the opening number. This was the setting last Sunday, as I applied burnt orange lipstick to marketing senior and Miss Socarnival 2004 Mimi Hirai’s lips. I had a pen in my other hand as I wrote the description I would read for business freshman Angjeliqi Marko as she modeled her evening wear. As her chaperone, it was my duty to be creative and to decide if she should be the “Queen of Anger,” reflecting her emotion theme for her carnival costume, or the “Queen of the Night,” the symbolic black capturing the dark essence of mystery. Five drafts later, the girls are going out to dance in puffy cornflower blue sleeves, matching blue skirts, white tank tops and sneakers, with pom-poms in hand. They introduce themselves with confidant, vibrant descriptions nostalgic of Jamaica, Lawton, Grenada and Albania. In between performances, CU students and students from neighboring junior high and
Please see PAGEANT, page 5