THE Vol. 95, No. 48
IN THIS ISSUE CAMPUS Burglaries solved
Two juveniles were detained in connection with automobile burglaries behind Nelson Hall, page 3
New editor
The Optimist chose its editor in chief for the 2007-08 year, page 3
Kirk Goodwin Run
The Kirk Goodwin Run, organized by Galaxy, will benefit local families in need of medical assistance, page 3
ARTS
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OPTIMIST
1 section, 8 pages
FRIDAY
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April 13, 2007
www.acuoptimist.com
Elections give clear-cut results n Matt Worthington, Daniel-Paul Watkins and Kevan Kirksey won their respective positions for next year by large margins after voting ended Wednesday. By KELSI PEACE FEATURES EDITOR
Matt Worthington was playing “Guitar Hero” and making some Easy Mac with his roommates when the SA elections committee chair,
Maher Saab, called with the election results. “I was like, ‘What’s the word?’ and he said, “‘How are you tonight, Mr. President?’” Worthington said. Worthington, junior English major from San Antonio, defeated Brandon Smith, international relations major from Kansas City, with 782 votes to 477, earning 62 percent of the vote. This year, 1,307 students
went to the poll. Daniel-Paul Watkins, sophomore political science major from Fredricksburg, Va., won the vice presidency with 819 votes, defeating Ryan Stephen, sophomore finance major from Spring, who received 450 votes. Watkins said he was confident the three-legged cat he used in his Chapel speech made the difference. “I felt like I was the un-
derdog,” Watkins said. “I felt like it was me versus the establishment.” In this case, Watkins said, the regular man won. “Thank God for three-legged cats,” he said with a laugh. Stephen said that while his supporters were confident he would win, and some did not vote, he thought it was back and forth between himself See
The story of a West Texas ranch told through the eyes of a Japanese Student.
By CHRIS HANSON STUDENT REPORTER
PAGE DESIGNER
Cowboys, rodeo and a ranch: Texas has a good old American tradition. In Abilene, I sometimes see people wearing cowboy hats, boots and belts with big buckles at Wal-Mart. People dress like cowboys and speak like cowboys. What a good old Western tradition. Growing up in Japan, I had so much interest in American culture. Drive-in theaters, high school prom and super-sized food, but more than anything,
SPORTS
See
SA page 7
n The Campus Center, Don H. Morris Center, and Sikes Hall are set to undertake major renovations during the summer months to enhance the facilities.
By ATSUMI SHIBATA
Film critic Cole Williams reviews Quentin Tarantino’s newest picture, ‘Grindhouse,’ page 4
Christal Pitts, junior graphic design major from Richardson, votes for the Students’ Association executive officers on Wednesday.
Buildings to receive summer fix
Konichiwa, y’all
Newest feature
BRIAN SCHMIDT SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER
RANCH page 5
During the summer heat, many buildings will be renovated, remodeled, built or altered. The projects include changes to McGlothlin Campus Center, Don H. Morris Center and Sikes Hall. Phil Schubert, vice president for finance, said the projects help enhance the student experience and meet the growing expectations of prospective students. The first phase of the Campus Center remodel involves replacing the Hilton Room with a more open looking food court, said Bob Nevill, director of physical resources. “The living room will stay intact; the post office will stay where it is; the book store will stay where it is, but most of the rest of the space will alter in some way,” Nevill said. The Don H. Morris Center renovation will begin this summer and is likely to continue See
RENOVATIONS page 7
Adjunct opens children’s home in India
Playoff implications
LSC South fifth-place ACU plays fourth-place Eastern New Mexico in Portales, N.M., needing a win to help their playoff chances, page 8
n Adjunct professor Ray Pettit and his wife, Amanda, decided to start a children’s home in India after hearing a guest speaker at his church. By LAUREN SUTTON OPINION EDITOR
Like many have done in the past, Ray and Amanda Pettit sent their $50 check to support Christian humanitarian work overseas. But for this couple, a monthly check was not enough. On June 1, after supporting an Indian ministry for 11 years, Ray Pettit, adjunct professor in the College of Computer Science, and his wife Amanda opened Sanctuary Home, a children’s home in Tenali, a town in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. The Pettit’s interest in India began after a guest speaker came to their church to talk
Netting an upset
The ACU men’s tennis team upset East Central, the No. 1 team in the South Central Region, page 8
SPEED READ Student loan concerns
Fifty one percent of student loan recipients say it will take them more than 10 years to pay off their student loans, up 5 percent from two years ago. The survey was conducted nationally using an online poll placed on the CollegeGrad.com home page during Feb., 2007. The results are based on more than 1,300 respondents. -CollegeGrad.com
EMILY SMITH PHOTO ILLUSTRATION
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Seven faculty prepare for sabbatical n Faculty members will take a sabbatical during the fall, spring or both semesters in the 200708 year to undertake academic pursuits outside of the classroom. By MICHELLE JIMENEZ COPY EDITOR
The 2007-2008 academic year will have to do without seven professors as they leave for year- and semesterlong sabbaticals. Sabbaticals, meant to allow professors time to pursue special interests. Spring 2008 will be Dr. Jeanene Reese’s, associate
Department of Journalism and Mass Communication
professor of Bible, missions and ministry, first leave on sabbatical. While on leave, Reese said she will work on writing and publishing three or four articles on the theology of service learning, on how to conduct scholarly research in the classroom, on the findings of what her students have shown her about what they have learned in the process of ministry and on how she has changed as a teacher in the seven years between finishing her dissertation and becoming a tenured faculty. Reese said she hopes the
sabbatical will be the “jumpstart, the deeper opportunity to write.” “This opportunity I’ve wanted to do for so long,” Reese said. “It’s really a process of getting ready for what I hope is going to be a rich experience.” Dr. Rusty Towell, associate professor of physics, will be on a year-long leave to continue his research on the PHENIX experiment at the Brookhaven National Laboratory on Long Island, N.Y. The purpose of the experiment is to understand what is inside of a proton and how it is built from the parts that are
Abilene Christian University
inside of it. “The way [the university] supports us and allow us to go do this is wonderful,” Towell said. “Not only does it give me a break from teaching so I can go do this, but it means that we can involve our students in a whole different way because if I’m overseeing a project, then I can easily plug in students next summer when they’re ready to work on it in ways that I couldn’t if I hadn’t been working on it all year long.” E-mail Jimenez at: mmj04b@acu.edu
ORPHANAGE page 7
SABBATICAL LEAVES n Dr. Frederick Aquino, associate professor of theology n Dr. Joseph Cardot, professor of communication and chair of the department n Dr. Michael Frazier, associate professor and director of computer science n Dr. Mark Hamilton, associate professor of Old Testament n Dr. Jeanene Reese, associate professor of Bible, missions and ministry n Dr. Rusty Towell, associate professor of physics. n Dr. Wendell Willis, associate professor of Bible, missions and ministry.
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