acuoptimist.com
Optimist the
Let it Snow, page 5
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Vol. 99, No. 34
1 section, 8 pages
THEATER
Winter weather postpones Eurydice performance
‘‘ ’’
rector Emily Rankin, senior theatre major from Abilene. “We just didn’t Staff Reporter think that we’d have enough time to The Department of Theatre’s per- be able to do everything we wanted formance of Eurydice was post- to do with moving a week of work. poned after wintry weather con- [It’s] better to be prepared.” As of now, the cast and crew are ditions delayed set completion, setting the cast back in rehearsal. all back to regular rehearsal, and “With the snow last week, it the production will run Feb. 17 didn’t allow us much time to work through Feb. 19 with the talk-back on everything. We’ve got a com- session scheduled for Feb. 18. Based on classic Greek mytholplicated set and we needed a little more time to get that up,” said di- ogy, Eurydice tells the tragic story
Marissa Ferguson
Incoming Stress
With the snow last week, it didn’t allow us much time to work on everything. We’ve got a complicated set and we needed a little more time to get that up. EMILY RANKIN // Director of Eurydice and senior theatre major from Abilene
of a young newlywed couple, and the depths of which love will go. “Orpheus and Eurydice are married, and Eurydice dies. Orpheus misses her so much that he travels to the underworld to rescue
her,” Rankin said. “He then plays beautiful music so that he can convince the lord of the underworld to let him take Eurydice back.” Rankin said that the particular piece they will be performing
A recent study shows freshmen stress levels hit 25-year high
see PLAY page 4
FACULTY
Campus mourns English instructor Jeff Craig
Managing Editor
Story by Christianna Lewis Illustration by Morgan Davis
Stress is no new concept in the life of a college student, but a recent study indicates that the emotional health of freshmen is worse than it was 25 years ago. Only 51.9 percent of freshmen had above average emotional health, according to a press release from the Cooperative Institutional Research Program. This is a 3.4 percent drop from 2009 and a decline from the 63.6 percent of freshmen in that category in 1985. The study is based on freshmen’s self-ratings of their emotional health over the past 25 years. The CIRP surveyed 201,818 fulltime freshmen at 279 of America’s four-year colleges and universities last fall alone. The CIRP Freshman Survey is the largest and longest-running survey of American college students, surveying more than 15 million students since 1966. John Delony, assistant dean for residence life, said he believed the national trends extended to ACU. However, he believes the rise in stress is more connected to economic uncertainty than an increase in the intensity of school loads.
is an updated version, and finds that Eurydice must make a decision, spinning the plot. “The thing is that it’s from Eurydice’s point of view, so you meet her in the underworld and see what she goes through while Orpheus is looking for her.” In line with the Department of Theatre’s mission to deliver thought-provoking pieces, Rankin
“I don’t believe that study is indicative of just college students,” Delony said. “I think that if they did that study for society in general, they’d find the same trends.” The study confirmed that the economy and financial strains on students’ families played a part in freshmen stress. The unemployment rate of students’ fathers (4.9 per-
cent) was at an all-time high and the rate of unemployed mothers (8.6 percent) showed increase as well. The amount of students getting college loans is at 53.7 percent. Carly Henderson, freshman biology major from Edmond, Okla., agreed that college see LEARNING page 4
V i c k i e Smith, instructor of English, died Saturday in Abilene, after a battle with cancer. She was 62. Smith taught in the Department of English until the first day of classes this semester but was unable to continue after being diagnosed with abdominal cancer. Dr. Cole Bennett, associate professor of English and interim department chair, moved into an office across the hall from Smith when he arrived at ACU in 2000. He said Smith was always asking her fellow professors questions to be the most effective teacher she could be. Bennett called Smith a “student of the craft.” “Vickie was an outstanding teacher, and her voluminous office files are a testament to her devotion,” Bennett said. “She was continuously inventing, designing and refining assignments for the see SMITH page 4
RESEARCH
Undergraduate Research Festival extends deadline happening at ACU. It gives students a chance to present Contributing Reporter their research results while The deadline to submit an giving faculty, staff and stuapplication for the third dents a chance to hear and annual ACU Undergradu- see what’s going on in variate Research Festival was ous disciplines across camextended to Feb. 10 be- pus. Students compete for cause of inclement weath- a range of prizes, which, in er. The festival will take previous years, have includplace in the Robert D. and ed cash rewards of $100. Dr. Greg Powell, director Shirley Hunter Welcome of the Office of UndergraduCenter on March 28. The purpose of the festi- ate Research, said the festival is to showcase the under- val has fostered some great graduate research activity collaborative work among
Samantha Sutherland
atmosphere in an environment that is meant to feel like a research conference. Jade Jung, senior chemistry major from Busan, South Korea is entering the festival for the third time. Jung said she is used to presenting her findings at chemistry conferences where the general audience already has a vast knowledge of science. At the ACU festival, however, she will be presenting in front see UNDERGRADUATE page 4
website
inside news The Springboard Ideas Challenge is accepting mini-business plans for big-business ideas until March 4. page 3
faculty members. Students have seen friends and colleagues involved and have called his office asking how they can get involved, which is how he feels it should be. The festival also offers students a chance to improve their public speaking skills and to develop confidence. “We’ve all been in this spot before and we are here to learn and be friends, not critics,” Powell said. He said the festival offers a professional but relaxed
opinion Changes to Presidential Scholarships will give more students the opportunity to receive awards, but more is expected of recipients. page 6
SAMANTHA SUTHERLAND // Contributing Reporter
David Kempe, junior biochemistry major from Tulsa, Okla., inspects a test tube used in an experiment.
weather video archives Find archived Optimist Sing Song videos from years past before this year’s show on our YouTube channel, youtube. com/acuvideo.
Abilene Christian University
Wed.
Thurs.
Fri.
25° 14°
37° 23°
51° 28°