Optimist the
Vol. 98, No. 25
Weekday Getaway
PAGE 5 1 section, 8 pages
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
BREAKING NEWS, VIDEOS, PHOTOS, DISCUSSION AND EXCLUSIVE CONTENT
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FACULTY
‘Credible Witness’ addresses social inequality Adrianna Castaneda Contributing Reporter ACU faculty met Tuesday to discuss Dr. Salter McNeil’s latest book about spiritual and social reconciliation, A Credible Witness.
On Jan. 10, Dr. Salter McNeil, president and founder of Salter McNeil & Associates and leader in the field of racial, ethnic and gender reconciliation, will continue the conversation on racial reconcili-
ation at ACU through a discussion of the book. Dr. Garry Bailey, associate professor of conflict resolution, and Dr. Stephanie Hamm, assistant professor of social work, team-led a faculty
reading group centered on McNeil’s book. Hamm said the group could lead toward reconciliation and greater cultural competence on campus. “Reconciliation is an issue happening now in
our country, and historically, religious groups have not been coming together on these issues,” Hamm said. United by Faith, a faithbased group of ACU faculty and students, meets
LOCAL
once a month to talk about issues of race reconciliation with the intent of furthering the movement on campus and throughout the Abilene community, see READING page 4
ECONOMY
Grads prepare for job market Brittany Brand Contributing Reporter
If the warehouse was equipped with sprinklers, they were not working properly, Goettsch said. Half of the AFD’s force – about 30 firefighters, five engines and two ladder trucks – worked for hours to prevent the fire from spreading. “Ninety percent of the time, one sprinkler head will extinguish the fire,” Goettsch said. “It’s really uncommon for this many Abilene firefighters to be on the scene.” In addition to the sheer size
Recent rises in unemployment have worried some students searching for job opportunities after graduation. The unemployment rate rose from 9.8 percent to 10.2 percent in October, the highest rate since 1983, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Web site, www. bls.gov. Since the start of the recession in December 2007, the number of unemployed persons has risen by 8.2 million, and the unemployment rate has grown by 5.3 percentage points. Ben Martinez, junior accounting major from Abilene, said finding a job will be one of his biggest challenges after graduation if the economy does not improve. “If the unemployment rate continues to rise, there will be greater competition for jobs,” he said. The Web site reported construction, retail trade and manufacturing industries were experiencing the most job losses. The ACU Career Center
see FIRE page 4
see JOBS page 4
JOZIE SANDS Chief Photographer
Above: Firefighters worked through the night to ensure all hot spots were extinguished and all walls collapsed. Below: Five engines and two ladder trucks were among more than a dozen emergency vehicles around the building on Plum Street between North 4th Street and North 5th Street.
Fire destroys warehouse Colter Hettich Editor in Chief
HEATHER LEIPHART Staff Photographer
A two-alarm fire burnt an Abilene warehouse to the ground at 401 Plum St. on Monday. Abilene firefighters arrived on the scene shortly after 5 p.m., after a passing motorist noticed smoke coming from the building and called 911. Abilene Fire Department Lieutenant Greg Goettsch said he believed the fire began in the northwest corner of the 40,000-square-foot building. By 11 p.m., workers had collapsed
View a 360˚ panoramic of the scene as firefighters battled the blaze Monday night.
acuoptimist.com standing walls and were removing rubble to extinguish remaining hot spots. “At this point, we don’t have a dollar estimate of the losses and still no injuries reported,” Goettsch said. “I think we’ll be out here all night.” The investigation for the cause of the fire continues.
ART
Student artists make showing at area competition Christianna Lewis Contributing Reporter The Big Country Art Association Competition intimidated many students, but it didn’t keep them from participating – or winning. Last year, judges awarded first, second and third place to art professors, not students,
although the contest is open to anyone in the Big Country. So, when Isaac Castillo, junior fine arts major from Pleasanton, got a call from the BCAA treasurer, he said he thought she was just asking him to pick up his rejected work. Instead, he was informed his sculpture, an untitled abstract made
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from plaster, milk jugs and balloons, had won third place. “I wondered if anyone was interested in looking at this,” Castillo said, beaming, “As it turns out, I guess they were.” Rolando Diaz, a wellknown artist and 1979 ACU graduate, chose the entries for the show, which included several by
ACU students, said Dan McGregor, assistant professor of art and outgoing president of the BCAA. Diaz then selected three Best in Show winners from the paintings, photographs and sculptures. Each of the winners received cash prizes, and the BCAA honored them see CONTEST page 4
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WILDCAT FOOTBALL emerged on top after Saturday’s playoff nail-biter against Midwestern, 24-21. Get Optimist analysis and gamebreakers. Page 8
JOZIE SANDS Chief Photographer
Eric Grasham, senior ceramics major from Dallas, threw 100 bowls in his classroom for the Empty Bowls project.
Online THE MAYAN CALENDAR ends Dec. 21, 2012, and some worry the world might end with it. The new film 2012 might shake you up, but we’ll be around for ’13. Page 6
LOUDandCLEAR
PHOTO
Can the Droid compete with the iPhone? a. Yes, people are ready for something new. b. No, the iPhone already has won our hearts. c. We are all going to die in 2012. Warehouse Fire
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