The Optimist Print Edition 03.02.18

Spikeball debuts as intramural tournament Page 4

SPORTS

A student publication of Abilene Christian University since 1912

Friday, March 2, 2018 Vol. 106, Issue 22

GOLF TAKES TEAM TITLE AT HBU INVITATIONAL Page 6

SMOOTH MOVE

COLE WIDDER STAFF VIDEOGRAPHER Alex Warren, senior animal science major from Houston, mixes fruits and vegetables for a smoothie in the campus center during Justice Week.

CALENDAR 3/02 •

Students’ Association Senior Banquet at 7 p.m.

3/03 •

ISA International Food and Fashion festival at 6 p.m.

•

Swing Cats Disney Dance at 7 p.m.

3/04 •

Civic Orchestra of Abilene Pied Piper Fantasy and other stories concert at 2:30 p.m.

3/05 •

GST guest lecture with Shaun Casey at 7 p.m.

BOX OFFICE FEBRUARY 23-25 1. Black Panther $111,659,000 2. Game Night $17,005,000 3. Peter Rabbit $12,760,000

4. Annihilation $11,071,000 5. Fifty Shades Freed $7,147,000

7

DAYS UNTIL

SPRING BREAK FEATURE

DR. SARAH EASTER WINS BEST PAPER Page 5

ISA, ASA prep Food & Fashion Festival

BY ASHLEY ALFRED STAFF REPORTER

The International Students Association and African Students Association are joining forces to produce an International Food & Fashion Festival on March 3.

The festival will feature 13 tables themed by countries from around the world. Each table’s food will represent a different

country’s traditional vegetarian or meat-based dishes and desserts.

“We want everyone to be adventurous,” said Kristy Ng, sophomore marketing and management major from Plano and ISA secretary. “We hope that people learn more about the origins and culture of their fellow students.”

Countries available will be the United States, Japan,

Honduras, Korea, China, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Nigeria, Brazil, Guatemala, Malaysia, Greece and Rwanda. It will also feature fashions from other African and Asian countries.

Aside from trying new foods, students will be invited to participate in popular games and learn more about the traditional clothing and culture as they travel.

The dining experience will be followed by a fashion show put together by ASA in which students will model traditional wardrobe from different African cultures. The fashion show will also feature some Asian fashion.

“We hope the students will have a great time trying something new with their friends, and maybe even fall in love with a new

dish,” Ng said.

Tickets have sold out in the past, Ng said, so it is important to get them before they’re no longer available.

Tickets are sold in the Campus Center for $5, cash or card, and are available on Eventbrite for $8.

Tickets will not be sold at the door.

Coleman Spears, senior computer science major from Abilene, and French Horn player for the ensemble, said he was excited to finally put on the show for everyone.

“We began rehearsing the pieces a few days before school began,” Spears said.

This concert has been on the ensemble’s and Dr. Ward’s radar for a while

now, and the work and effort put into producing such an event was not lost on Spears, who said that “getting to see this concert come to fruition has been an amazing journey in and of itself.”

On Sunday it all came together. Spears described one of the most meaningful pieces to him, American Guernica, a piece written

in memory of the horrific bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in 1963.

“The piece juxtaposes loud and frantic wind players with the almost serene yet deeply spiritual gospel piano,” Spears said. “Hailstork uses this to bring the audience through a series of painful emotions, evoking the tragedy associated with the prejudice that still runs rampant

through society today.”

The Wind Ensemble still has more events on the horizon, and next month Frank Ticheli, a world renowned band composer, will come to campus and perform a few pieces.

“We believe this event will truly be something powerful. Within the Black population of the world there are three major communities of people: Africans, African Americans and Caribbeans/Haitians,” said Grace-Kelly Muvunyi, junior nutrition major from Rwanda and current ASA president. “Each of these three groups produce men

and women that have very distinct cultures that greatly impact who they are and the experiences that they have had.”

The event is free and will offer chapel credit. Muvunyi said it offers an incredible opportunity to understand different cultures.

“This event gives a platform to ACU students from each of these communities to share the misconceptions

they have held, the misconceptions others have held against them and the truth they would like the world to know about them, their countries and their communities,” Muvunyi said.

“ASA believes that only through understanding can we build community, and that is what this event is designed to do.”

The event is open to any student desiring to attend.

“ASA celebrates and brings awareness to the massive diversity, culture and life of Africa and African people,” Muvunyi said, “but truly the heart of ASA lies in our community, and one thing we want everyone to know is that all people are welcome.”

AIGA is a national organization for graphic design students and professionals, with locations on college campuses across the country. In choosing ACU’s chapter, the DSVC will host students and successful alumni at a convention in April.

The DSVC convention

will have a combination of ACU alumni and other field professionals in the Graphic Design industry to share experiences and work with students.

“It’s a great opportunity for our students to hear alumni from ACU in our field who have done well,” said Paulina Servin, senior

graphic design major and president of ACU’s AIGA chapter from Mexico City. “We’re also putting together a small get-together with other Art & Design alumni to create more connections.”

Aside from the learning experience, juniors and seniors in attendance

will have the opportunity to share their portfolios to several studios to take critiques and enter them into competitions.

AMA14B@ACU.EDU

Ensemble celebrates Black History Month

BY CALEB MALTBY COPY EDITOR

ACU’s Wind Ensemble performed a concert to recognize Black History Month.

The ensemble played six songs featured, including “A Movement for Rosa”

by Mark Camphouse, “American Guernica” by Adolphus Hailstork and “Blackbird” arranged by Shelly Berg.

CHM14A@ACU.EDU

ASA to host Misconceptions of My Black Skin

BY HOPE CORDES COPY EDITOR

The ASA event Misconceptions of My Black Skin was postponed due to the ice days last week and will take place this Friday from 6-7:30 p.m. in Hart Auditorium.

The purpose of the event is to give voice to communities that are commonly misunderstood.

HCC14B@ACU.EDU

Art and Design earns honor as AIGA school of the month

BY ASHLEY ALFRED STAFF REPORTER

The Dallas Society of Visual Communications (DSVC) has deemed ACU the school of the month based on the success of Art & Design students involved in the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA).

W W W. A C U O P T I M I S T. C O M

AMA14B@ACU.EDU

2

NE W S

FRIDAY | MARCH 2, 2018

Macroeconomics students win video contest

BY LEE MILLS STAFF REPORTER

Students in a Macroeconomics class recently won a contest sponsered by Cengage Learning with a video titled “$pend Dat Money.”

The project started a year ago when a select group of students were charged with creating content that would challenge them to incorporate their knowledge gleamed from

Macroeconomics into a music video spin-off of their choosing.

Katy Wick, professor of Economics, and students, particularly Ty Kelly, Sebastian Langdon, Chance Harris, Connor Lamberth, Taen Johnson and Grayson Burch, all brainstormed and came up with a clever remake of Lil’ Dicky’s music video $aving Dat Money.

They incorporated

many of the concepts from their class such as the Aggregate Demand Equation, Government Spending, GDP and others. The remake is oddly entertaining, and even if you’re not specifically inclined on these particular topics, it plays to many levels of understanding.

Wick said she loves the assignment and enjoyed “seeing the creativity. In their own words, it was an

interesting way to hopefully make the concepts stick.”

This change from the typical regurgitation of knowledge on tests to actually creating content around the subject matter gives students a break from the norm and create something that is both fun and educational, something difficult to achieve in a typical classroom setting.

Flipping the classroom has produced mixed reac-

tions in the world of academia, but there’s no question that it can produce some awe-inspiring results.

Taking Lil’ Dicky’s concept on wanting to create the most extravagant rap video ever while using the least amount of money, and using it to create a spin-off that is both entertaining and educational is truly a feat worthy of note.

Professors from other universities had the same

notion, voting the spinoff a winner of a Cengage sponsored contest. And although the physical prizes are minimal (plaque and $100), the bragging rights are numerous.

The video can be viewed at https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=_ mOG1Y5JRqY OPTIMIST@ACU.EDU

Cabinet Activity Board put on the laughs Thursday

BY BRIAN SWEETS STAFF REPORTER

Cabinet Activity Board hosted a free stand-up comedy event featuring Jon Fisher and Ben Hague in Cullen Auditorium Thursday night from 7:30 to 9 p.m. in Cullen Auditorium.

Jon Fisher and Ben Hague are professional comedians ACU found through their talent agency.

ACU CAB puts on free events throughout the school year for students to enjoy and make memories on campus.

“CAB’s main job is to provide on or off campus free entertainment

to the student body,” said Garrison Powell, junior biochemistry major from

Hallettsville. “The student directors for CAB tend to be diverse so that

we can have different event ideas that appeal to the different student

groups on campus.”

Powell said CAB has total control of the events they have on campus as long as it stays in the budget.

“The events that we put on throughout the semester are completely up to us,” Powell said. “Between the eight Cabinet directors we are each assigned one event to do a semester. Cathryn Coupe gives us pretty much free range with whatever event we choose to do as long as it stays within our budget. For me, when deciding what event to do I look for what is an easy way to entertain a group of people, and also what is something that people

don’t do very often.”

Powell said he looks forward to bringing new ideas and events to ACU campus.

“I look forward to bringing more events that go on through-out the day. That way students can come and go throughout the day,” Powell said. “I would love to bring something to campus like a petting zoo or something of that nature that I know would get people’s attention.”

OPTIMIST@ACU.EDU

Spikeball bounces into ACU intramural competition

BY HANNAH JOHNSON STAFF REPORTER

Spikeball has entered the field this spring semester, joining the existing slate of intramural sports. The first tournament will take place Friday, March 2 through Sunday, March 4.

Todd Rogers, director of intramural and club sports, said he was pleased to bring the sport to campus for the the first time.

“I’ve played Spikeball before, and it’s a lot of fun,” Rogers said. “I’ve played it in the summers with friends, and it’s always a good time.”

Last fall, a survey was sent to the student body to gauge interest in the

addition of any new intramural sports.

Rogers said Spikeball was the second most popular option chosen behind Settlers Of Catan, a strategy board game in which players earn points from trading resources and building towns. Rogers said Catan will be an intramural sport at a future date due to the potential for a large turnout and scheduling conf licts with other sports.

In Spikeball, two teams of two compete with each other by hitting a ball onto a small trampoline.

The players bounce the ball back and forth until it hits the ground or someone doesn’t hit the

Todd Rogers with spikeball equipment.

Photo by Hannah Johnson.

ball off the trampoline.

Everybody spikes the ball down onto the net. The first team that scores 21 points wins.

Spiking is not the only way players are able to hit the ball – other techniques are acceptable, Rogers said.

“There’s a little bit of strategy there where some people kind of underhand it and make a soft hit,” Rogers said. “As long as it bounces back off the net, it’s a clean hit.”

Joel Swedlund, executive director of the Student Recreation and Wellness Center, expects people will come to watch the tournament because of Spikeball’s growing popularity.

“I’m always excited to offer more options for our students,” Swedlund said.

“I think anything that we can offer that might have additional participants that maybe wouldn’t enroll in another option is always great.”

The Spikeball tournament will be free to attend for students, faculty and staff.

For more information, email Todd Rogers at tnr15b@acu.edu or Joel Swedlund at joel.swedlund@acu.edu.

HVJ11A@ACU.EDU

Beach Volleyball makes history in first tournament

BY LAUREN FRANCO CONTENT MANAGING EDITOR

For the first time in ACU history, the Wildcats took to the sand and snagged their first ever beach volleyball victory.

The junior duo Jacey Smith and Kendall Bosse stole the win against San Jose State’s Nandyala Gama and Lyndi, 21-15, 21-12, as well as over-

coming Benedictine’s Kat McCullough and Jackie Woods, 21-15, 21-12.

“It was an exciting moment when they clinched that first ever win for our program,” head coach Angela Mooney said. “They really did a great job competing against our competitions’ first pairs the entire tournament weekend. I believe their win gave our players a con-

fidence needed to move forward with the rest of our competitions.”

Coming from down in the set, Brooke Riley and Lauren Walker also stole a win over Benedictine over Caitlan Sammons and Sydney Nelson, 1621, 21-10, 15-14. But Benedictine won the other three matches to preserve the team victory 3-2 over ACU. “Overall our staff and

team felt really pleased with the play over the weekend,” Mooney said. “With each match, we gained more confidence and were able to really figure some things out for ourselves.”

The team went 0-4 in the tournament, coming just one game shy against Benedictine, falling 4-1 to San Jose State and getting swept by SJSU and Arizona, one of the top beach

programs in the country.

Mooney said moving forward, the team will train with the entire roster of 19, and there is possibility for change in the travel roster for the upcoming Grand Canyon tournament.

“As we grow and develop as a team, the lineup could change from one weekend to the next,” Mooney said.

“In all honesty, it is our hope multiple players will

start emerging and bring a bigger since of competition within our own group.”

ACU will return to action next weekend against the likes of New Mexico, Grossmont College and Grand Canyon University.

LMF14A@ACU.EDU

POLICE LOG SELECTED ACUPD CALLS FOR THE WEEK 02/21/2018 ACUPD received several calls about people sledding down the Wildcat Stadium embankment toward Ambler. Students and alums were advised of the danger of sliding into traffic on Ambler and the damage to the landscaping.

02/23/2018 ACUPD investigated several reported car burglaries in the ACU neighborhood.

• • • • •

1300 CEDAR CREST DR 700 EN 14TH ST 600 EN 15TH ST 1100 WASHINGTON BLVD 800 EN 12TH ST [3 DIFFERENT VEHICLES AT 1 RESIDENCE]

02/23/2018 An ACU student victim reported having been sexually assaulted at their residence by a known suspect. Case under investigation and forwarded to Abilene PD due to the location of offense.

ABANDONED VEHICLE 0 ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIVITY 36 ADVICE 1 ALARM 4 ANIMAL CALL 1 ASSIST 1 BARRICADES 1 BICYCLE PATROL 0 BUILDING LOCK/UNLOCK 26 BURGLARY (RESIDENCE) 2

CHECK BUILDING 336 CITATION ISSUANCE 1 CRIMINAL MISCHIEF 0 DOMESTIC DISTURBANCE 0 ESCORT 9 EVENT SUPPORT 0 FIRE 0 FOOT PATROL 12 GRAFFITI 0 INFORMATION REPORT 1 INVESTIGATION

FOLLOW UP 5 MONITOR FACILITY/LOT 9 MOTORIST ASSIST: JUMPSTART 7 MOTORIST ASSIST: OTHER 3 MOTORIST ASSIST: UNLOCK 11 OTHER 2 PARKING LOT PATROL 19 PATROL VEHICLE: MAINTENANCE 3

PATROL VEHICLE: REFUEL PROWLER PUBLIC SERVICE RANDOM PATROL REPORT WRITING SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY SUSPICIOUS PERSON THEFT TRAFFIC HAZARD TRAFFIC STOP

11 0 0 11 10 4 4 0 0 5

TOTAL

608

POLICE CHIEF TIP OF THE WEEK: The ACU area has again been targeted by car burglars. Please remember to lock your car at all times, remove valuables, and report suspicious activity to ACUPD.

N E WS

FRIDAY | MARCH 2 , 2018

3

ISA to conduct student officer elections “

BY STELLA WIESER COPY EDITOR

The International Students Association will have officer elections in the coming weeks.

ISA has seven open positions: president, vice president, treasurer, chaplain, AD/PR director and sports director, said Veronica Whitt, coordinator of international student services and ISA adviser. To run, one must be a member of ISA for at least a year, and specifically for the office of president, ISA prefers someone who has prior experience on the officer team.

“We’re mainly looking for people who have a heart for the international community in ACU and a heart to serve,” Whitt said. “Somebody who’s open-minded, cul-

One of the things that we’ve been pushing for or trying to make our goal is integrating our international community with domestic students”

turally sensitive, that kind of thing. Somebody who loves being a part of the diversity we have on campus and is an advocate for that.”

The process includes several steps, Whitt said.

The first step is online applications, which lasts two weeks and closes March 2. Next, there is a week of candidate interviews, which will take place from March 5-9. Those approved to run are allowed to campaign from March 19-29. Those running will give campaign speeches during ISA chapel on March 29, and then Whitt will open online voting after the chapel until midnight on March 30. Winners are announced by the next Monday.

Whitt, who served as ISA president during her senior year, said ISA

became her home away from home during her time at ACU. “We like it to be that place for our international students,” Whitt said.

“It’s all about community and enjoying being a part of a group that respects and appreciates cultural diversity but also wants to share that with the rest of the ACU community.”

ISA isn’t just for international students.

“One of the things that we’ve been pushing for or trying to make our goal is integrating our international community with domestic students,” Whitt said.

“We want everybody to feel like this is something they can be a part of, which is why I think it really helps to have non-international students as a part of our officer team . . . It fosters more of that environment of having

both groups represented.”

Kristy Ng, sophomore management major from Plano and current secretary of ISA, became friends with a group of international students during Wildcat Week her freshman year. She participated in ISA a lot during that year, including their two main events - the Ethnos culture show in the Fall and the International Food and Fashion Festival in the Spring.

book contest, students are asked to like, tag their friends and share the picture/post of the day within the 24-hour period to qualify for the contest.

To qualify for the Instagram contest, students can comment the correct answer to the question of the day within the 24-hour period. In both contests, participants can do this

only once a day before the deadline on Thursday.

Six total winners, three for Facebook and three for Instagram, will be selected and announced on March 9 on the library’s social media. The six winners will receive ACU branded apparel, like hats and shirts.

“Students and faculty know there are activities

here in the library,” said Mollie Scherer, library communications and development officer, “and they know that by the promos we put out on display.”

But the idea behind the contests, Scherer said, is to generate more traffic and more awareness on the library’s social media sites.

“It’s a really simple engagement for ev-

VERONICA WHITT CORDNIATOR OF INTERNATIONAL STUDENT SERVICES

“It’s amazing how there’s people from all over the world that can come together like a family . . . they kind of have this all in it together thing, like, we may not be from the same place, we may not even speak the same language, our cultures are entirely different,” Ng said, “but they all have this warmth towards each other that’s hard to beat.”

Ng being on the officer team while not being an international student gives her a useful insight.

“I’m able to give them a different side of it,” Ng said. “I kind of like to see myself as a bridge, and this year that was the biggest thing I was concentrated on, just being a bridge for all the domestic students who would like to be a part of ISA,

because when you think of International Students Association, you just feel ‘oh, maybe that’s not for me.’ . . . but I found that there’s a lot of people who are interested and like expressing culture and finding out more about things all around the world.”

ISA isn’t just about fostering community within the international community at ACU. “We like to donate our proceedings to IRC or other organizations that give away to the Abilene community . . . In the end, it’s all about giving it away to others who really need it in the community,” Ng said. “It’s not an ACU thing. It’s an Abilene thing.”

eryone ACU, internal and external,” Scherer said. “We’re hoping to do this once a month, or one every two months.”

Follow the Brown Library on Facebook at

ACU Library and Instagram at @aculibrary.

ECW13B@ACU.EDU

Brown Library to offer contests for ACU apparel

BY HANNAH BOWLING STAFF WRITER

The Brown Library will start contests on social media this Monday.

From Monday-Thursday, students will have the opportunity to follow the Brown Library on Facebook and Instagram and compete in contests.

To qualify for the Face-

Spring/Summer

SALE!

GREAT DEALS! THOUSANDS OF ITEMS! Children’s spring & summer clothing, shoes, baby furniture and equipment, maternity including plus sizes, toys, games, books, DVDs, dress-up, layette, and much more.

Friday, March 2 • 9am – 6pm

Saturday, March 3 • 8am – 5pm

@DittosAbilene

www.dittosforkiddos.com

MANY ITEMS 25%

OFF!

MANY ITEMS 50%

OFF!

HEB15B@ACU.EDU

HOUSE FOR RENT

FOR RENT

LARGE FURNISHED HOUSE suitable for 4-5 tenants, $1600/month.

ONE BEDROOM CABIN, $375/month.

Only 1/2 block from ACU campus, clean, well maintained. No smoking. No pets.

1 year leases beginning June 1st. Please call (325) 513-6572 for more details.

1033 Piedmont Drive

NEAR ACU! Nice 3-4 bedroom, 2 baths Appliances and some furniture provided.

2 car garage, fireplace, fenced yard, covered patio. Safe, quiet neighborhood, No Pets.

Lease June 1, 2018. Call Nancy 829-1595.

LIMITED TIME OFFER

ABILENE CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS:

Need a ride home?

LEIPZIG, GERMANY • FALL 2018

BreakShuttle makes it easy to save time and money and avoid the hassle of getting home by providing DIRECT, SAFE and AFFORDABLE rides during breaks.

www.BreakShuttle.com

Available Spring Break 2018 with trips to

Dallas and Houston!

Visit brk.sh/go-acu to sign up today!

APPLY NOW TO STUDY ABROAD FOR A PROGRAM FEE OF ONLY $1,500!

This includes airfare, program excursions and experiences that will shape your life forever! Visit acu.edu/study-abroad or email camille.dickson@acu.edu for more information.

4

OP I N I ON

FRIDAY | MARCH 2, 2018

SA voting expects blind trust from students

THE ISSUE

Students’ Association requested that students vote for amendments to the SA Constitution through an email.

OUR TAKE

The voting process was very convoluted and asked a misleading question instead of a simple vote for or against.

The Students’ Association sent an email to the student body during February to ask students to vote on potential amendments to Students’ Association Constitution. The proposed amendments included bills such as an appointment for treasurer, the president and vice president being able to run on the same ticket and even changing the name of SA to Student Government Association.

Amendments and having the student body vote on those amendments even after Congress has passed them is democratic, but this isn’t exactly what happened with vot-

ing here. After clicking on the link to vote, you were asked if you trust the decisions of congress.

If you said that you did trust them, your vote was cast immediately in favor the Congress decision. The only way that you were able to receive more information was if you said that you didn’t trust Congress.

There are a few problems here. One was the misleading question asked instead of a simple vote in favor or vote against.

There is a clear difference between trusting SA congress and allowing for them to cast your vote for you; trusting Congress

should not be an issue in the voting process.

The only way for somebody to get more information on the bills or to vote on bills individually was to say that they didn’t trust Congress. There is a key

difference between asking a misleading question and straight-ticket voting, however. When somebody was to straight-ticket vote for an entire slate of candidates for one party, they know exactly what they

searched than white drivers and guns have gone off in schools 18 times this year. I’m not here to argue politics. Quite frankly, I don’t care how these problems get solved as long as they do in fact get fixed.

What needs to happen in our country is partisan politics need to be set aside, and focus turned to making sure our country is a country of freedom, justice and equality. We cannot sit back and say “Well, look how far we’ve come” because it doesn’t matter how much progress we have made if we haven’t fixed the problems altogether.

The only way these problems can be fixed is by society placing a priority on maintaining the

values in which our country is supposed to stand.

It takes every one of us to make our progress matter.

We can learn so much from people like Malala Yousafzai, who’s known for her activism for gender equality, Martin Luther King Jr., who fought every moment to ensure justice, and Rosa Parks, who boldly stood up for freedom.

We cannot let the past 200 years of change and restoration fall to ruins purely because of our own ignorance. We must look towards the future with the intent to make it better each and every day. We cannot idly sit and wait for something to happen. We must make it happen ourselves.

US still on the way to greatness OVER THE HILL DAVIS HILL OPINIONS EDITOR Freshman Psychology major San Angelo, Texas

America has made leaps and bounds toward justice and equality, but we have not yet finished the race; structural violence, sex crimes and mass shootings remain prevalent in our society.

Whether it’s innocent people getting killed for no reason or the continuing cycle of constant poverty, our country is facing extreme problems that need to be fixed.

Our country has, however, done many won-

derful things. We strive to ensure freedom and equality on the international stage, work towards improving health and education at every turn and create standards for developing nations to follow. All of these wonderful things though, should not overshadow the fact that our country still has work to do.

A sex crime happens every 98 seconds, three times as many Black and Hispanic drivers are

DBH16B@ACU.EDU

Little less Fortnite, little more support I CAN’T EVAN

EVAN RODRIGUEZ WEB EDITOR

Junior management major Sugarland, Texas

This past weekend, the Department of Athletics promoted a student tailgate they were putting on for the Women’s and Men’s basketball doubleheader. The tailgate was sponsored and catered by Canes, Mr. Gatti’s and Buffalo Wild Wings.

However, many students grabbed food and left be-

fore the Women’s game had even begun.

This is just the latest and probably not the last, ham-fisted attempt by the athletics department to promote students attendance at ACU athletics.

Frankly, the athletics department, on no fault of their own, has been reduced to

Last week, the Optimist’s Editorial Board published an opinion piece about ACU tradition and student stress, and I found the article problematic for a variety of reasons. First off, valuing tradition is a totally separate issue from academic stress and Sing Song pressure. If the Editorial Board really believed that tradition is responsible for student stress, it would recommend canceling Sing Song, not canceling classes. For that reason, I suggest that we look, not at tra-

dition, but at the fundamental tension in Sing Song stress: the tension between academics and extra-curricular activity.

Here’s the thing: the point of coming to Abilene Christian University is to get an education. Our professors are under no obligation to help us out with the extra-curricular pressure we have put on ourselves. Granted, it’s a nice gesture. My Bible professor gave my class full participation credit just for showing up during Sing Song week, and I appreciated it. But while we

practically begging students to support student athletes.

Play a little less Fortnite, make one less trip across town to Tea2Go and go attend an ACU athletics event.

For example, on March 2324 ACU is hosting a track and field invitational. I understand if your reason for not going to a tennis match or baseball game is because you don’t understand how those sports work, but track and field is easy. It’s about who can run the fastest, jump the highest and throw the furthest.

Let’s be honest, there’s nothing to do in Abilene.

You’re already hanging out with friends on campus or at a restaurant, why not do that at a baseball or basketball game?

Oh and I almost forgot.

Those athletes competing?

Some of them are most likely your classmates or even fellow group project members. It’s not abstract athletes you’ve never heard of, it’s people engaged in the same community you are.

Athletics can’t do anymore to appeal to us. It’s time for the student body to step up.

EMR16C@ACU.EDU

are getting themselves into, but the SA voting process was more about confusion than it was about democratic voting.

Most students are going to have trust in their Students’ Association

Congress, but this does not guarantee that students won’t want to vote for bills individually or at least get information.

EDITOR@JMCNETWORK.COM

@acuoptimist @dmachine_7 02/27/18 1:04 P.M. A random girl used her bean bucks to buy me Starbucks in the library. May her life be blessed forever. #acudifference @coltoncpowell 02/24/18 1:32 P.M. I think we as a society should be able to come together as one and agree to stop putting raisins in cookies. @hayleeanne87 02/26/18 9:57 A.M. My goal in life is to be in shape enough to make it to the top of the admin building without feeling like my lungs are going to fall out of my body @_madisongrace__ 02/26/18 12:12 A.M. every time denver goes to taco bell he brings me cinnamon twists and says “i know how much you like those” and that’s how i know he likes me @CarleeStapp 02/23/18 1:56 P.M. I burnt my cinnamon toast crunch, dont ask how @hanna__no__h 02/27/18 11:42 P.M. she placed the box directly on the burner i was in the middle of using #exposed @hollyneese14 02/28/18 6:42 P.M. *Walks the long way so i dont have to tell the Girl Scouts no again

Letter to the Editor: We’re here for education, not Sing Song “We have to learn our limits, and act within them. After all, learning is why we’re here.”

JAKE BULLER JUNIOR ENGLISH/BIBLICAL TEXT MAJOR

all appreciate flexibility and understanding from our professors, we should never expect it from them.

To suggest that we should cancel class for Sing Song is absurd; such a statement implies that we should subordinate academics to

T H E

EDITORIAL AND LETTER POLICY Unsigned editorials are the opinions of the Optimist and may not necessarily reflect the views of the university or its administration.

Signed columns, cartoons and letters are the opinions of their creators and may not necessarily reflect the viewpoints of the Optimist or the university.

The Optimist encourages reader response through letters to the editor but reserves the right to limit frequent contributors or to refuse to print letters containing personal attacks, obscenity, defamation, erroneous information or

invasion of privacy. Please limit letters to 350 words or fewer. A name and phone number must be included for verification purposes.

Phone numbers will not be published.

Address letters to: ACU Box 27892 Abilene, TX 79609 E-mail letters to: optimist@acu.edu

our voluntary activities. In the end, the article reveals an emphasis on a university experience rather than a university education.

While I appreciated the disclaimer that “every extra-curricular activity is completely voluntary,”

the Editorial Board immediately contradicted itself by saying that we are “forcing students to practice for eight hours or more a week” while attending class. No one is forced, and even in the context of social clubs, club involvement is a voluntary act. If Sing Song is is all-but-required for club members, the solution is in reforming the club, not adjusting our class schedule.

Co-directing the junior class act was my personal choice. I examined what I could handle and then de-

cided to make a commitment. I made that commitment, fully understanding that I could have major exams or projects due during Sing Song week (and I did).

My Greek professor, for instance, was well within his right to schedule an exam right before our Wednesday dress rehearsal.

What we need is not for someone to cancel classes for us; what we need is to act like adults and understand what we can really handle. We have to learn our limits, and act within them. After all, learning is why we’re here.

O P T IM IST

published by the department of journalism and mass communication staff and management board Haley Remenar Editor in Chief Lauren Franco Content Managing Editor Jonathan Raitz Sports Director Amber Chavez Video Director

Emily Guajardo Arts and Features Editor Evan Rodriguez Web Editor Hannah Null Adam Dorrel Show Host Max Preston Assistant Sports Editor

newsroom (325) 674-2439

sports desk (325) 674-2684

Davis Hill Opinion Editor Ernesto Guajardo Cartoonist Jessica Clark Newscast Producer Daniel Tapia Graphic Designer Katie Cripe Graphic Designer

Stella Wieser Copy Editor Caleb Maltby Copy Editor Hope Cordes Copy Editor Trevor Wyatt Sports Reporter Davis Denton Sports Reporter

photo department (325) 674-2499

Laurel Drain Videographer Cole Widder Videographer AJ Carter Videographer Allayna Ford Videographer Ashlan Smith Videographer

advertising office (325) 674-2463

Holly Dorn Staff Photographer Matthew Baker Staff Photographer Madison Fichtner Staff Reporter Lee Mills Staff Reporter

multimedia desk (325) 674-2463

Kenneth Pybus Faculty Adviser

Cade White Visuals Adviser

Celeste Kinkade Advertising Manager

subscriptions ($40/Year) (325) 674-2296

FRIDAY | MARCH 2, 2018

F E ATUR E

5

The Cross-Cultural Scholar of British Columbia

PHOTO BY EMILY GUAJARDO

Dr. Sarah Easter won best paper award for her dissertation

Winning the best paper award at the Academy of Management annual meeting, Dr. Sarah Easter focuses on the coalition between organizations working toward ending homelessness in Western Canada

BY EMILY GUAJARDO ARTS AND FEATURES EDITOR

A

fter a sixteen-month study in Canada, Dr. Sarah Easter decided to immerse herself into a coalition made up of more than 40 churches, non-profits, governmental and business organizations working toward one common goal – ending homelessness in Victoria, British Columbia.

In the midst of working alongside other colleagues and her committee, Easter found some interesting findings within her research and consequently won the best paper award for her dissertation in the Managerial and Organizational Cognition division at the annual Academy of Management meeting.

“I was really surprised when I won,” Easter said. “I was at the interest meeting with my division where they give updates on what’s happening in research, and I knew this paper was in the proceedings, which was already great. And then, to be sitting there and hear my name called was quite surprising, but humbling. I’m so appreciative to all the people who helped me along in the process and getting the paper to where it was. And then, everyone who was part of the coalition who was willing to share their story and journey.”

Easter, assistant professor of management, said her dissertation, titled Process in Negotiating Identity in a Cross Sector Partnership, focused primarily on the coalition’s interactions, members and how their various interpretations, focal points and strategic planning impacted their overall goal.

After returning from a one-year assignment in 2010 as a business development and marketing adviser in Vietnam, Easter decided to study at the University of Victoria for her doctoral degree and began to work alongside other scholars who have a passion for sustainability and cross cultural management – this was the start of her coalition research.

“I was involved in a lot of their meetings, sitting in and trying to understand

how do they all work together,” Easter said. “They all have a common interest to solve this very significant issue, but they all have different ways of working. The governmental players handle things in more of a planning-based manner. A lot of the businesses were focused on efficiency. The nonprofits were focused primarily on the people experiencing homelessness and making sure that all of the solutions they were coming up with were beneficial to them. And so, it’s all these different ways of working, and they have a common goal, but they do things differently, and they’re tensions there.”

W

hile Easter did manage to encapsulate the coalition’s interactions, she also found how complex the nature of wanting to tackle any societal topic can be.

Whether it be ending homelessness, reducing the negative stigma around persons with disabilities or understanding the reasoning behind governmental social policies, Easter wanted to know what a real coalition could do if given the chance to make a change.

“I think homelessness is a really significant, societal issue,” Easter said, “and I was really interested in how this particular coalition was going about that. What were the challenges associated when you bring so many different players together? What are they capable of ?”

With her intellectual spirit and tranquil persona, Easter was able to dig deep into uncovering the issues and problems which arose within each collaborative player.

While some organizations interpreted the mission of ending homelessness as literally removing people sleeping on the street, others understood the mission in a broader sense, like understanding the concept of minimum wage and potential policy changes as a whole.

Easter said this caused some serious lack of communication and understanding of the overall plan.

“I would say that some of the main issues were that some organizations felt like they were on the same page and they

weren’t,” Easter said. “I repeatedly heard among the players the phrase ‘we are a partnership to end homelessness,’ and everybody commonly used that language.

And as I talked to the different players, I found that many of the them had very different ideas of what homelessness meant.”

“And because they didn’t make that explicit in terms of what they meant by homelessness, even though they did have the basic underlying understandings, people would always try to have different meetings and push their agenda by what they wanted to do about it. So, the topic about what we meant by ending homelessness was fluid – it was always moving.

As opposed to everyone being clear about what they actually meant.”

The lack of concrete identity found within the coalition caused the entire effort to slow down and therefore not gain enough progress. Because of this, Easter took her findings and recommended that the coalition have an explicit mission statement and identity – something she hopes future coalition advisers will take up when adding new organizations to an existing coalition or creating a new coalition entirely.

A

lthough Easter understood the administrative tensions that arose because of the lack of a focal identity for the coalition, Easter firmly believes various organizations can work together toward a common goal like ending homelessness if they are willing to put forth the effort and set aside their missional differences.

“I really believe strongly that it takes a lot of different organizations and individuals with different skill sets, working together in order to fix significant issues like homelessness,” Easter said. “I saw that growing up in church where churches would work with other churches and local government working with business in order to try and solve issues. I was generally interested in how the government realm, business realm and non-profit realm and how they work together in what I what call a ‘cross-sector’ partnership.”

“I was generally interested in how the government realm, business realm and non-profit realm and how they work together in what I call a ‘cross-sector’ partnership.”

Dr. Sarah Easter

assistant professor of management

Piling information on top of information, it is evident Easter knows what she’s talking about. From teaching Strategic Management to Business and Sustainability, Easter is eager to share her love for cultural research in the sustainability realm with her students.

After having several findings on both the partnership and individual levels and combining the necessary literature, academic theories and qualitative data into a 300-page dissertation, Easter said she hopes this example can inspire her students to understand the importance of the big picture.

“Especially when we’re talking about sustainability for a company, I want students to know that there are a lot of opportunities for businesses to be an active player in trying to solve societal issues, but there’s also a lot of challenges,” Easter said. “And I think this project really highlights those opportunities of bringing together these diverse players – and you really need them – but it’s really complex and really challenging. And we need to be thinking about both at all times. We need to look at the whole picture when it comes to fixing an issue.”

With hopes to publish her paper in a journal soon, Easter is excited to continue her passion for cross cultural research and is eager to see where else her path may take her.

EAG13A@ACU.EDU

6

SPORTS

FRIDAY | MARCH 02, 2018

STANDINGS Men’s basketball Team

Nicholls SELU SFA SHSU Lamar NOU UCA ACU TAMU-CC McNeese UIW HBU NWSU

Ovrl. SLC.

21–9 15–2 20–10 14–3 24–6 13–4 18–12 12–5 19–11 11–6 14–15 11–7 15–15 9–8 15–15 7–10 10–17 7–10 10–17 7–10 7–20 2–15 6–24 2–15 4–24 1–16

Women’s Basketball Team

LAUREN FRANCO CONTENT MANAGING EDITOR Wildcats perform walkthroughs in Wildcat Stadium. Football began spring ball on March 1 and will conclude April 6 with a spring game.

Wildcat football begins with spring training

BY MAX PRESTON ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

With the month of March officially rolling in Thursday, the football team also began its spring football workouts the same day for the first time in Wildcat Stadium.

Although last season had many “firsts”, 2018 brings some of its own as Head Coach Adam Dorrel will oversee his team in the spring for the first time coming off of a regular season. Redshirt freshman quarterback Luke Anthony will also see his first spring as the potential starter for the 2018 season.

Dorrel said he’s ready to develop Anthony this spring.

“We want him to continue to grow and learn the offense, which I think he’s doing a phenomenal job of,” Dorrel said. “You can have 20 guys doing what they’re supposed to be doing, but if the quarterback isn’t a leader, you’re not going to have a good football team, so we’re confident Luke is going to do that.”

Anthony started in two games during the 2017 campaign. Despite losing both games, he produced an impressive stat line completing 29 of 45 passes and throwing for 345 and two touchdowns against North-

western State while setting two single-game school records against Sam Houston, completing 37 passes and throwing 67 times. He also threw for 297 yards and five touchdowns.

Besides Anthony, the Wildcats will return senior wide receiver D.J. Fuller and sophomore running back Tracy James to the field.

On the defensive side, the dynamic safety duo of sophomore Bolu Onifade and junior Brandon Richmond, both combining for 148 tackles last season, will look to continue success in the defensive backfield this year.

Anthony said it’s excit-

ing to get another chance to take the field this spring.

“Spring ball is an awesome opportunity for us to continue developing as a team on both sides of the ball,” Anthony said.

“It’s a unique chance for us to get to go head-tohead with our own guys, which will make it really fun and it will show us where we stand at this point in the offseason.”

Along with the positives coming into the spring, Dorrel said there are specific areas the team will be focusing on.

“For me, I think we have to be better on offensive line play than we were last fall,” Dorrel said. “Obvi-

ously we have to see that improve offensive wise.

We also have new faces at linebacker, someone will have to step up to replace Sam Denmark.”

Dorrel also said he will look to see improvement from his team in stopping the run, as well as cleaning up aspects of special teams.

With a disappointing 2-9 overall finish in the 2017 season, the Wildcats will certainly look to make its strides in achieving a better record for the 2018 campaign, and that prep work begins this spring.

The men’s and women’s tennis teams each began their conference season on the right foot, sweeping Nicholls State 6-1 and 5-2 respectively.

Head Coach Hutton Jones said it’s a good start but the team has to put together its best performance each time out.

“We have a chance to be good this year, but we’re not good enough to play poorly and win,” Jones said. “We have to show up and play to our top end to compete in this conference. I felt like both teams, without some toughness and without some perseverance, that match could’ve have turned at any time. Both sides showed a lot of grit and showed a lot of perseverance.”

For the men, senior duos of Hunter Holman and Paul Domanski, and Henry Adams and Brad Gleason earned doubles victories to give the Wildcats the early lead.

In singles action, junior Josh Sheehy and sophomore Jonathan Sheehy rebounded from their dou-

NICHOLAS CROMWELL STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Senior, Whitney Williams, returns the ball to her opponent. bles loss to each take care of Nicholls No. 1 and No. 2 in straight sets. The Colonels got one back at the No. 3 line, but Holman and Adams each took a third set tiebreaker and Domanski posted a 6-0, 7-5 straight set win to finalize the team victory.

With the win, the men are now 9-7 on the season overall and 1-0 in Southland Conference competition.

Meanwhile, the women needed a little longer to put away the victory than the men, but still did so in convincing fashion. After taking the doubles point, seniors Lucile Pothier and Whitney Williams took the No. 1 and No. 2 lines to give ACU the advantage.

Pothier responded with 6-2 and 6-4 wins in sets two and three after dropping the first set and Williams

provided a straight-set sweep 6-1, 7-5.

Pothier was also named the Southland Conference Women’s Tennis Player of the Week after posting her sixth straight individual win and fifth straight doubles victory.

However, Nicholls got two points back at the No. 3 and No. 4 lines as sophomore Sarah Adams and junior Autumn Cross-

MJP14B@ACU.EDU

noe each faltered. But the Wildcats’ freshman came through in the No. 5 and No. 6 spots, as Nini Memishishi and Ileana Mocciola came away with dominant performances and the women improved to 7-3 as a team and 1-0 in conference this spring.

“We can go undefeated in the regular season and go to the conference tournament and still not be able to go to the NCAA’s,” Jones said. “It’s more like creating the right look of how you’re competing and that other stuff will come. We’re trying to create a feeling out there.”

The women return to conference action on Saturday against Central Arkansas a day after they host the University of Houston. The team is on a three-game win streak after wins over New Mexico and Midwestern State preceded the conference victory against Nicholls.

The men will also be back in action this Friday when they welcome Rice to town. They get back to conference play March 10 against Lamar.

JMR13B@ACU.EDU

Golf earns first team title in three years

BY JONATHAN RAITZ SPORTS DIRECTOR

After what most would consider a less-than-ideal start to a highly anticipated spring season, the Wildcats responded with their first tournament win since February of 2015.

ACU shot 7-under-par as a team for a total score of 857, and junior Garrett Glanton shot 7-under-par to finish third individually and lead the team to just its third team victory during Shaw’s tenure.

The Wildcats grabbed the lead in the early going but finished the first round in second place, seven shots behind Bradley. In the second round, though, ACU posted the lowest team score and cut Bradley’s lead to just one shot in heading into Tuesday’s fi-

nal round.

Bradley retained that lead for most of the day, but it was freshman Alex Clouse and Glanton coming through on the 18th hole to secure the win. After Clouse eagled the hole to give ACU a one stroke lead, Glanton added insurance with a two-putt birdie that led to a celebration and two-stroke advantage over Bradley to clinch the team championship.

“I think it’s a huge boost for us because it shows the guys that they can play well from the start of the tournament and continue that until the end,” head coach Tom Shaw said. “In this event, we were able to come back from a deficit, but also lose the lead and regain it and close the deal. We need to be in more of those situations to help us

grow stronger as a team in the future.”

“

“I think it’s a huge boost for us because it shows the guys that they can play well from the start of the tournament and continue that until the end.”

TOM SHAW MEN’S GOLF HEAD COACH

Glanton went 67-71-71 to record a total score of 209, and Clouse finished in a tie for 11th that included teammate and fellow classmate Chase Allison at a three-round total of 215. Sophomore Bryce Dooley came in at 6-overpar for the tournament, and junior Kade Miller carded a total of 227 to round out the

Wildcat scorers.

University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley finished in third for the tournament four shots behind Bradley and six shots off ACU’s pace. Houston Baptist was the only other Southland Conference competitor to break the top-five, finishing at 5-over-par. Other Southland Conference teams at the tournament included Central Arkansas, Incarnate Word and Southeastern Louisiana, whom finished in eighth, ninth and tenth place.

Shaw said this win, which is the first against an entirely Div. 1 field, was a good team win.

“This one was different because it came against a much stronger field and against some of our conference opponents,” Shaw said.

16–1 15–2 13–4 11–7 10–7 10–7 9–8 8–9 7–10 6–11 3–14 2–15 1–16

Baseball Team

TAMU-CC ACU SELU SHSU HBU NOU NWSU UIW Lamar UCA Nicholls McNeese SFA

Ovrl. SLC. 7–1 6–1 6–2 6–3 5–3 5–4 4–5 2–4 3–6 3–7 2–6 1–7 0–7

0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK Women’s Tennis

Tennis sweeps Nicholls, returns home

BY JONATHAN RAITZ SPORTS DIRECTOR

Ovrl. SLC.

Lamar 21–6 SFA 23–5 UCA 20–8 NOU 15–14 TAMU-CC 17–11 Nicholls 15–13 ACU 15–12 McNeese 12–16 SELU 8–20 HBU 10–17 UIW 4–24 NWSU 7–21 SHSU 4–22

“The other ones were nice, but they didn’t involve some of the same opponents that we’ll face in our conference Championship in April. This one was a true team win because everybody contributed, and we played well from top of the lineup to the bottom.”

The Wildcats schedule gets tougher as they head to the Bob Sitton Invitational next weekend, a tournament they played in last season and finished in 16th. After that the team will head to the West Coast for one of the toughest tournaments in the program’s history, The Goodwin, which is hosted

by Stanford and will feature defending national champion Oklahoma.

JMR13B@ACU.EDU

Senior Lucile Pothier remained red hot as she extended her singles win streak Pothier to six games last weekend with a victory over Nicholls State competitor Stephanie Barnett. She also won her fifthstraight doubles match alongside freshman Nini Memishishi. Pothier was recognized as Southland Conference Women’s Tennis Player of the Week honors for her performance.

Golf The golf team won its first tournament since 2015, and junior Garrett Glanton Glanton played a huge part in it when landing at third overall for the tournament. He came in clutch when sinking a birdie putt on the final hole of the tournament Tuesday to give the Wildcats the win. The third place finished also tied his best career finish in a tournament.

Baseball Despite earning no hits against the University of Texas–Permian Basin Tuesday, juFarkas nior infielder Dalon Farkas had a very productive weekend series when facing Texas Southern. He hit for a .385 average with two home runs and six RBIs while scoring three of his own runs during the series.

For more, check out ACUOptimist.com Or follow us on social media @OptimistSports