The Optimist Print Edition 9.01.17

Residence Life to allow more visitation hours for freshmen and sophomore halls Page 3 SPORTS

A student publication of Abilene Christian University since 1912

Friday, September 1, 2017 Vol. 106, Issue 02

CROSS COUNTRY POISED FOR NATIONALS Page 6

TEXAS STRONG

HOLLY DORN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

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Students’ Association Interest meeting

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Last day to drop classes for block students Freshman Follies Dance auditions

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9/4 •

Labor Day Holiday (offices open, class in session)

9/6 • •

Students’ Association Congress elections Freshmen Follies deadline

9/7 •

Students’ Association election run-off (if needed)

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Women’s pledging interest meeting -Cullen Auditorium

NEWS

PLATT HEADS TO D.C. Page 2

16

DAYS UNTIL

WILDCAT STADIUM OPENS

OPINION

ALUMNUS TALKS LGBT POLICIES Page 4

BY HALEY REMENAR AND ADRIENNE BARRICK

Hurricane Harvey swept through the Texas coast last weekend, devastating entire cities with a record of almost 50 inches of rain. Students, faculty, staff and the Abilene community are offering help.

The Department of Communications and Sciences and Disorders is gathering donations in Don Morris 116 and at the new Center for Speech, Language and Learning located at 1541 Judge Ely Blvd. Lory Chrane, instructor of communication sciences and disorders said Kelsey Tykal, senior communication disorders major from Houston, asked the department to gather donations which will be picked up by her friend who works at a radio station in Houston. Donations can include diapers, flip flops, baby wipes, batteries, toiletries, pet food, flashlights, and gallon and quart Ziploc bags. Donations will be accepted until Sept. 8.

Jenn Rodgers, instructor of teacher education, is raising money through her nonprofit, World’s Okayest Mom (WOM). She grew up in Houston and her brother, Ryan, was evacuated from downtown Houston. The group is accepting donations and selling T-shirts for $24.99 that feature the state of TexSEE HARVEY PAGE 2

Kelvin Kelley, senior communication major from Abilene, carries the Texas flag in the Opening Assembly on August 28.

CALENDAR 9/1

State works to provide relief for Harvey victims

Randy Harris to take 8-month preaching break

BY CHELSEA TWOHY COPY EDITOR

Randy Harris will take an eightmonth hiatus from preaching beginning Sep. 1.

Harris, spiritual director and professor for the College of Biblical Studies, said he has been traveling and preaching at churches almost every weekend for the past 15 years.

“My speaking and my listening are out of whack, so for a little while I’m going to talk a little less and lis-

PHOTO COURTESY OF STEVE BUTMAN

ten more,” Harris said.

Harris, who is also the spiritual director for the Siburt Institute for

Church Ministry, gave his last sermon at the break at a ministers’ luncheon hosted by SICM at the Hunter Welcome Center on Aug. 29.

The topic entitled “Does the Church Matter” was aimed to discuss the decline in church involvement throughout society, including the younger generation of churchgoers, and how there is an increase in the religious preference of ‘none’.

Harris spoke to the other ministers about how to recognize, ap-

preciate and highlight the church’s relevance. Afterward there was a discussion about what actions the church can take to engage its present reality and ignite its future possibilities.

Though Harris does not plan to preach again until April, he will continue to teach Bible classes in the meantime.

CTL15A@ACU.EDU

Student surveys lead to Steak-N-Shake franchise

BY HALEY REMENAR EDITOR IN CHIEF

Student surveys prompted the university to replace Quiznos and Pizza Hut with Steak-N-Shake, which opened Monday in the Campus Center, says Bart Herridge, Dean of Student Retention.

All on-campus dining is run by Aramark Dining Services, and Herridge campus dining. He said the results of student surveys led the university to replace Quiznos and Pizza Hut with either a gourmet burger option or upscale Mexican food.

“When we talk about, ‘what food do I want in the Bean,’ the survey information that keeps coming back

over and over again is very much a push toward healthy foods,” Herridge said. “But when you talk about the food court, everybody goes to ‘food court food.’”

Steak-N-Shake thas franchises at multiple college campuses, including the University of Texas at San Antonio, which officials looked at as a model. Aramark still employs the workers and operates the store, using Steak-N-Shake products and branding.

Herridge said the university didn’t want to put just another sandwich store in the food court, but wanted something that students might not be able to find anywhere else in Abilene.

The next closest Steak-N-

Shake location is in Fort Worth.

“And the shakes are a big deal,” Herridge said.

“There’s an expectation that we’re going to get some off-campus traffic from this.

No idea how much, no idea what that looks like. But we still have people coming to the Bean after church for Sunday lunch.”

The menu features the original burger, the signature steakburger, the single steakburger with cheese, and two hot dog options.

Classic shakes include chocolate, vanilla and strawberry and specialty shakes include Butterfinger, chocolate chip cookie dough, Oreo cookies n’ cream, M&M’s, peanut butter cup and Nutella.

Luke Fox, junior music major from Conroe, said he had tried Steak-NShake in Houston a few times before so he was excited to have a location on campus. For his first order, he got the signature steak burger with french fries.

“I think I’ll get it like once or twice a week,” Steak-N-Shake menu features Fox said. He lives classic and signature shakes. on-campus as a resident community leader in Ed- time she ordered, to getting wards Hall. the meal in her hands. As a Jade Rupley, junior com- junior living off-campus, she puter science major from said she probably will eat Colorado Springs, Colora- there only once every two do tried Steak-N-Shake for weeks. the first time Thursday. Her order of a single burger with cheese and fries took about HRR13B@ACU.EDU five minutes to get from the

Tom Craig to leave university after Sing Song

BY ASHLEY ALFRED COPY EDITOR

Tom Craig (‘89) will direct his final Sing Song in February 2018 before he leaves his position in the Office of Student Life to focus on his family antique business – The Antique Station.

Craig made the decision to retire in November of last year to allow Student Life to plan for the future and prepare to keep Sing

Song and other key events running smoothly.

Craig began working for the university in 1998 as director of public and community relations. After a short hiatus, he joined the Sing Song team in 2007 as business manager and moved to director in 2008.

“For the Love of Sing Song” 2018 will be his 10th and final show as director.

“We began assembling a team of people about a year ago who could fa-

“

Making this transition will definitely tug on every emotion, but to me that means what we’ve done during the past 10 years has been good”

TOM CRAIG DIRECTOR OF STUDENT ACTIVITIES AND PRODUCTIONS

cilitate this transition and continue to serve our student organizations and productions,” Craig said.

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

Craig said after his departure, student activities coordinators Alyssa Ellison and Chris Herrington will continue working with student organizations and productions while Nick Tatum, assistant director of student productions, will work with Freshman Follies and Sing Song as he continues teaching in the Department of Communication and Sociology.

“Of course there will be sad moments here and

there,” said Craig. “Making this transition will definitely tug on every emotion, but to me that means what we’ve done during the past 10 years has been good.”

Craig says he will be happy to help where anyone may need him but that he is excited for what the future of Sing Song looks like.

AMA14B@ACU.EDU

2

NE W S

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2017

New year brings changes to old rules and structure

BY MIKAELA CLINTON STAFF REPORTER

With the start of a new semester, the Office of Residence Life is welcoming a season of change in many areas on campus to reflect the University’s goal to improve on-campus students’ living experience. This is includes the revision of ResLife staff terminology, rules regarding pets and visitation.

The change in terminology maintains the position of resident director. The changes pertained to the previously held titles of resident assistant and assistant director to resident community leader and senior community leader, respectively.

“This is a change that reflects the shift in ResLife toward community and, as a result, wanting to be more clear about the objective of our student staff members living on the halls,” said Jessica Nguyen, director of second-year residential experience.

Another significant change made in regard to the residential experience is the expansion of visitation for students.

In the past, visitation was on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6-11 p.m., with Tuesday reserved for men’s halls and Thursday for women’s halls. Under the new protocol, rather than designating visitation days by grouping the halls based on gen-

der, the new “open house” schedule will assign each residence hall a day of the week Monday-Thursday to have visitation hours between 6 p.m. and 11:30 p.m.

In addition to the weeknight schedule, freshman residence halls will have another open house on Saturday nights 4 pm to midnight.

Sophomore residence halls have a perk of seniority, with two additional open house slots in addition to their hall’s assigned weekday on both Fridays and Saturdays from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m.

Nguyen said the decision to change visitation hours came from the desire to allow more opportunities for students to build their com-

munity on campus and with each other.

“Students will have a place that they can go and study, hang out, and develop friendships all throughout the week,” Nguyen said.

“We are so glad to be able to offer that opportunity.”

The rules and regulations regarding visitation etiquette will still apply to all hours of visitation, but the residence halls will be employing a new procedure for checking in co-ed visitors. In the past, students would check into the dorm for visitation by leaving their contact information and student ID card or license with the desk manager. Now, students will sign in to a guest book, designating the room number

they are visiting and their information.

ResLife staff will be required to crack down on penalties that steep into three digit fines per person for violations, according to Annelise Hernandez, the resident director of Dillard Hall.

Andrea Morlett, a sophomore psychology major from Coppell and RCL in Sikes Hall, praised the revision to visitation and said the new structure will allow for a more relational college experience for students.

“Having the option to have a safe place for them to interact and partake in relationship building will promote more effectively the healthy communi-

ty that ACU strives for,” Morlett said.

Another expansion in the rules made was in regard to the pet policy, which now allows fish in a five-gallon-maximum tank.

Students can now enjoy fishy companions in their dorm rooms, although fish will be the extent of animals allowed in residence halls. Nguyen assured that there is no intention of further changing the pet policy because of the potential disruptions of noise and allergens that other animals could bring.

AKB12B@ACU.EDU

Educational Innovation Task Force begins second year of study

BY EVAN RODRIGUEZ COPY EDITOR

The University has chartered an Educational Innovation Task Force to examine the future of higher education, and ACU’s role in being at the forefront of innovation.

The task force was originally formed in 2016 at the behest of the Senior Leadership Team. This task force is a result of the current strategic plan entitled, In Christ and in Unity: Our Vision in Action, developed by the university

for 2016 until 2021. The task force is made up of representatives from all the colleges and has a three year charge.

Dr. Gregory Straughn, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, chairs the task force as they methodically examine ACU’s potential next steps in developing a new model of undergraduate education as laid out in the Strategic Plan. The university and task force believes that the innovation of the future will revolve around increasing efficiency and

finding more creative uses of technology in the classroom.

Regarding innovation, the Strategic Plan states, “We are committed to a rigorous, exciting undergraduate educational experience and a deep and broad offering of dynamic, respected graduate programs. We value innovation, critical thinking and academic exploration. We will continue to focus on our calling and responsibility to teach, research, mentor and serve.”

Straughn said the task force came away from last

year having identified four areas of interest regarding innovation at the university.

The task force will spend the next two years focusing on the role of faculty, the future of the credit hour, experiential learning and competency based education.

“Last year we spent a good deal of time getting a landscape for what innovation looks like right now in higher education,” Straughn said.

Initially, Straughn and his team found that the future of the credit hour will include more online and accelerated

courses. However, Straughn stressed the irreplaceability of the community aspects of ACU, noting that online courses will always be nothing more than one component of the ACU experience.

Straughn said he and his team have looked to a number of universities as examples of innovation, in particular, Dallas Baptist University, Houston Baptist University and Azuza Pacific. They’re also examining schools outside of ACU’s normal sphere of influence, such as South-

ern New Hampshire and Washington University.

“I don’t think we’re limited to people that look like us or people we want to be like,” Straughn said.

“We’re just looking at what does it mean to innovate right now and what will it look like in 10 years.”

Ultimately, regarding the task forces future work, Straughn said the task force is excited for the future and glad the university continuously looks at innovation.

EMR16C@ACU.EDU

Political science professor joins U.S. Department of Justice

BY HALEY REMENAR EDITOR IN CHIEF

In 1991, Stuart Platt, his wife and his three children posed for a photo outside the U.S. Department of Justice office building. More than 20 years later, Platt, assistant professor of political science, will work in that same building beginning Sept. 18.

He will work in the Office of Professional Responsibility, investigating allegations of misconduct by federal workers. The office was created after the Watergate scandal in the early 1970s as a way to investigate high-level officers ranging from the FBI to the DEA

and U.S. attorneys who’s completely general and more. retired, she was like, “The director of ‘Why not?’” that office ... has tried Platt comes to the to transition to very role with years of senior, experienced experience in private people,” Platt said, and government law “who are not sitting practice. He served in judgement withas an assistant U.S. out having been in attorney, as a federDr. Stuart Platt and his family stand outside the the trenches themal prosecutor for the Department of Justice office building in 1991. Platt’s new selves and faced with Eastern District, a office is located around the top right corner of the photo.

(Photo courtesy of Stuart Platt) ethical dilemmas.”

U.S. magistrate judge Platt had a confor 12 years and tract with the university to mand and moving his wife an inspector general for the teach criminal justice classes and two daughters to Vir- Texas Department of Public for four years. He received ginia, not far from the DOJ Safety. He graduated from a call from the DOJ in De- office in Washington D.C. the United States Army War cember, near the end of the “He said, ‘Sure would College, served in the Army four-year term. Meanwhile, like to have grandparents Reserve and retired as a colohis son, U.S. Maj. Jonathan up here with us,’” Platt said. nel in 2012. Dr. Neal Coates, Platt, was taking a new com- “When I looked at my wife, chair of the Department of

Political Science and Criminal Justice, said Platt’s experience helped the department overhaul its curriculum.

“He brought a breadth to our criminal justice program that cannot be matched,” Coates said. “We’ll continue to soldier on with other persons each year who will benefit from Dr. Platt being before them.”

Platt often worked out in the evenings at the gym, and that was where he said he got to know students the most.

He said he will draw from his experience as a teacher when he starts his new role with the DOJ. He said teaching students how to apply the rule of law showed him

how ethical decision making doesn’t always come naturally to people.

“Part of it is innate to some people, but others have to really struggle to think about that decision-making process,” Platt said. “I found with students, some things came naturally, and some things they have to work at. And that’s true when you’re in those professional positions.”

Instead of issuing grades to students, Platt’s new role will be “grading” high-ranking U.S. officials.

HRR13B@ACU.EDU

Hurricane Harvey victims get support from Abilene community

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

The group is accepting donations and selling T-shirts for $24.99 that feature the state of Texas with a spiral-surrounded heart on the Texas coast.

The mission of World’s Okayest Mom is to help mothers who are on bedrest, have lost a child or are dealing with other difficult

circumstances.

Rodgers said women on the organization’s closed Facebook group saw another woman wearing a WOM T-shirt in a news video. The woman had been standing in line at a grocery store for hours with her son.

“That was a turning point for the women in the group,” Rodgers said.

“They realized, ‘Oh wow, these are our people.’”

Within 48 hours, the group raised $5,000 through donations. The organization’s board of directors chose to donate the money in a lump sum to Preemptive Love Coalition, the Red Cross and the Salvation Army. WOM posted the T-shirt design

Wednesday night at 9 p.m. and had more than 200 orders by Thursday morning.

“It’s amazing that people want to help and care for a place that’s been so devastated,” Rodgers said.

Police Chief Jimmy Ellison is confident that the school will work hard to resolve this issue quickly and efficiently. While he is

not involved in much of the process as student advisors are, he said, “I am quite confident in the university handling this situation.”

Hotels in the area have been honoring Governor Abbott’s suspension of both the state and local motel occupancy tax. “Comfort Suites University is also providing a 10% discount

in addition to the repealed tax” said Andrea, a front desk attendant. Rocky, general manager at La Quinta Abilene, stated that their rates are already very low, but they are also honoring the tax suspension.

OPTIMIST@ACU.EDU

POLICE LOG SELECTED ACUPD CALLS FOR THE WEEK 8/23/2017 11:45 p.m.

Athletics reported several unauthorized people inside the football stadium. Officers arrived and learned that several football players left before officers arrived. One non-student was also inside, advised to leave stadium.

08/24/2017 1:00 p.m.

Officers responded to a suspicious person call at HWC. The same person had been called in on several times earlier in the day. The person was issued a Criminal Trespass Warning and left campus.

08/25/2017 10:01 p.m.

ACUPD investigated a reported student-on-student assault complaint at Nelson Hall; ACUPD investigation continuing.

911 CALL 1 ACCIDENT 3 ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIVITY 28 ALARM 9 ALCOHOL INCIDENT 2 ANIMAL CALL 2 ASSAULT 3 ASSIST 1 ATTEMPT TO LOCATE 2 BARRICADES 19 BICYCLE/SKATEBOARD CALL 1 BUILDING LOCK/UNLOCK 17

CART PATROL 3 CHECK BUILDING 286 CRIMINAL TRESPASS WARNING 3 DIRECT TRAFFIC 3 DISABLED VEHICLE 1 DISCHARGE OF FIREARM 3 DISTURBANCE 2 DOMESTIC DISTURBANCE 1 DRUG ACTIVITY/OFFENSE 1 ELEVATOR RESCUE 2 ESCORT 1 FOOT PATROL 13 FOUND PROPERTY 8 HARASSMENT 1

HIT & RUN 1 INTOXICATED PERSON 1 INVESTIGATION FOLLOW UP 12 LOST PROPERTY 1 MEDICAL EMERGENCY 2 MONITOR FACILITY/LOT 5 MOTORIST ASSIST: INFLATE TIRE 1 MOTORIST ASSIST: JUMPSTART 8 MOTORIST ASSIST: OTHER 1 MOTORIST ASSIST: UNLOCK 13 NOISE VIOLATION 6

OTHER 9 PARKING LOT PATROL 35 PARKING VIOLATION 12 PATROL VEHICLE: MAINTENANCE 4 PATROL VEHICLE: REFUEL 11 PUBLIC SERVICE 1 RANDOM PATROL 1 RECKLESS DRIVING 1 REPORT WRITING 1 SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT 1 SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY 1 SUSPICIOUS PERSON 1 SUSPICIOUS VEHICLE 1

THEFT TRAFFIC STOP TRAINING WELFARE CHECK TOTAL

1 1 1 1 639

POLICE CHIEF TIP OF THE WEEK: Welcome back to campus. Please remember to obtain your new 201718 Parking Permits and comply with all ACU Parking Regulations.

N E WS

FRIDAY | SEPTEMBER 1, 2017

3

Obituary

Schuetz remembered for welcoming spirit

BY LAUREN FRANCO CONTENT MANAGING EDITOR

Known for her giving heart and joyous attitude, Celina Scheutz always made herself available to friends, family and strangers. She is remembered by her passion for making others feel welcome and her ability to let others know they always had a friend regardless of where she was.

Schuetz, of McKinney,

passed away on Aug. 25, 2017, at age 20 in an automobile accident along with her mother, Catherine Elaine Walker.

Schuetz graduated from McKinney North High School in 2015 and continued her education at ACU, involving herself in social club GATA. “My fondest memory of Celina was sitting with her on the lawn of McDonald and talking about psychol-

ogy, said Sammy Michaels, a close friend of Scheutz.

“She had just gotten out of a psychology class and decided to come sit for a while.

She asked me, ‘what do you think it means to have true love for a friend? At what point do you know?’

I had no idea what to say.

I told her that and jokingly thanked her for asking me because it got me thinking. Celina always made it a priority to have depth in

her conversations. I think we had the mutual understanding that we’d always have a friend in each other. As busy as life gets, I can remember Celina and make an example of her heart by being present and available in my community, struggling or not. I’d like to think that Celina would really enjoy knowing that I’m letting others see that they have a friend in me.”

She was preceded in

death by her grandmother, Elizabeth Moreno. She is survived by her father, Major R. Schuetz of McKinney, Texas; brothers, Ryan Scott Richardson, Anthony Michael Earl and wife, Shelby, and James Castro; and grandparents, J. Arnold Schuetz and wife, Avice, and Gilbert Moreno, according to Turrentine-Jackson-Morrow Funeral Services.

A funeral service will be

held at 10 a.m. Friday at First Baptist Church, 1615 W. Louisiana St., in McKinney. Interment will follow at Ridgeview Memorial Park in Allen. The family will receive friends during a visitation from 7-9 p.m., Thursday evening at Turrentine-Jackson-Morrow Funeral Home in Allen.

HRR13B@ACU.EDU

Obituary

Coleman contributed to campus tech behind the scenes

BY HALEY REMENAR EDITOR IN CHIEF

Students, faculty and staff depend on campus computer servers, but few knew Gerald Coleman, the man who kept the servers running.

In 2005, Gerald started working in Information Services, where he worked closely with Robert Forkner, senior systems administrator. Forkner said he and his team were impressed with Coleman from the first interview, and soon learned he was relentless at his job.

“He was a bulldog,” Forkner said. “He was relentless about all the details. He

researched things, he would tell you what all your options were. Sometimes his vision of the project was more than what we could actually implement.”

While Forker handles the campus web portals, Gerald’s job was to maintain the VMWare servers owned by the university.

The servers host most of the data used by all students, faculty and staff.

Gerald played guitar at First Baptist Church of Buffalo Gap. Forkner and Gerald often talked about family and faith with “no judgement,” Forkner said.

In 2014, Gerald went on a

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mission trip to Zambia, and after the trip he became a deacon at COLEMAN the church, according to Harper Funeral Home’s website.

“Spiritually, he was somebody that I could confide in,” Forkner said.

“That’s really what I’m going to miss, is somebody I could confide in.”

About a year ago, Gerald and his wife, Paulette, moved to San Angelo to take care of his parents.

Forkner said his team ap-

preciated his work so much, they worked out a plan to allow Gerald to work from San Angelo. The biggest challenge Gerald faced was moving his 100-gallon and 500-gallon fish tanks.

Gerald had more than a dozen large fish in his home aquariums. He even put special LED lights in the tanks to emulate day and night, Forkner said.

“In typical Gerald fashion, he poured himself into it,” Forkner said.

Gerald didn’t have many other hobbies that Forkner can remember because he often spent time working on home projects for his wife.

Forkner said she kept him busy renovating the house when he wasn’t working.

Gerald died on Aug. 20, 2017 from complications after a a gastrointestinal surgery. He is survived by his wife, his son Todd and wife Trixy Coleman, grandkids Ashtyn Gillie, Justin Coleman, Devon Franks, Drew Barber, Devo Coleman and Arysta Coleman, his parents Larry and Joyce Barnes and brothers

Gary Coleman and Steven Barnes.

He was preceded in death by his son Shane, grandparents Robert and Teeny Morrison and grandparents Lawrence and Florence Barnes and brother David Barnes.

HRR13B@ACU.EDU

4

OP I N I ON

&

ED IT O R IA L

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 1, 2017

Parking is (not) a problem

#ACUparkingprobs

Too few spaces proves to be a rising issue for the coming school year The university doesn’t seem to believe that we have a parking problem, despite rising complaints in recent years. Instead of adding parking, they’ve taken away 109 parking spaces in a year that that saw the university experiencing yet another large incoming class.

One one hand, ACU has still not provided adequate parking for the rising numbers. On the other hand, it looks like the ACU Police Department is trying to solve this by implementing a new tracking system. But does this mean anything will happen?

Moreover, we recog-

@VERONIQUE_ONE 8/31/2017 11:14 A.M. When the professor is late to our 8am class because he couldn’t find parking #ACUparkingprobs @ERODRIG279

8/29/2017 7:38 P.M.

There are more feral cats than parking spots at ACU #ACUparkingprobs @CRISTEALIM 8/29/2017 10:52 P.M. If I had a car I would be mad too. #ACUparkingprobs @KELSEYGOIN 8/29/2017 3:01 P.M. I was 30 min early to class and still almost didn’t get a spot. #ACUparkingprobs

nize people simply don’t like parking farther away and they don’t like walking. Sure, that sounds lazy. But it’s one thing to be consistently late to a football game; it’s another to be consistently late to class. We understand that problems will arise during the busy times through the semesters, such as football games and Homecomings. But on a typical Wednesday morning trying to get to a 9 a.m. class, it can be completely frustrating to many students.

Who knows? Maybe Starbucks will benefit from all the students who turn to coffee to survive

their newfound sleep deprivation.

Not only this, but students have resorted to parking in dirt lots to avoid paying for a permit that won’t serve much purpose. The addition of Dillard took away an entire parking lot that was used for off campus students and repurposed it into a lot specifically for residents of Barrett and Dillard.

These are residents who view that lot as their last resort. Last year Dillard residents would rather park on the street closer to the building rather than a dimly lit lot farther away.

This year, 18th Street already is packed with cars.

Even though many students live in this area, it is also a residential neighborhood. In past years, it has been used as a last resort; yet this year, cars are parked bumper-to-bumper on side streets that are not university property.

Yes, the university has good retention numbers, but that goes with the higher student numbers and lower parking spaces.

Parking is a growing problem on campus, especially this year, and something should be done about it.

OPTIMIST@ACU.EDU

Treasuring the little memories

@LAUREN_FRANCO1 8/31/2017 11:37 A.M. should i fill up my tank before gas stations run out or save my killer parking spot??? #ACUparkingprobs

RATED R

HALEY REMENAR EDITOR IN CHIEF Senior convergence journalism major Albuquerque, New Mexico

@THELAURAWILSON 8/31/2017 12:47 P.M. I just made up my own parking spot so fingers crossed acupd believes its a real spot while I’m in class #ACUparkingprobs

Dear Celina, The last time I saw you, I helped you move out of Morris Hall. The last thing I wanted to do was go back to that hall (which had not been very good to me my sophomore year), but I wanted to see you before you left for the summer. So I helped you carry heavy boxes of clothes and books and GATA stuff.

GATA stuff in Morris Hall was what brought us together. I had left a GATA certificate with my name on it in the hall, and a year later

@CAMILLAKLAR 8/31/2017 11:45 A.M. When there’s once parking spot left and someone else gets it first #ACUparkingprobs

you went snooping in the lost-and-found and discovered it. You made a point of coming to meet me at a rush, and I knew you were destined to be my little.

On Bid Day before you knew I was your big, you came to me and cried in my arms because you were stressed out. During Bid Night, you asked me to hold some candy for you.

I couldn’t wait to tell you I was your big.

We were a perfect match, but not for all the normal reasons. We could not have

been more different. Sometimes you drove me crazy.

You were a terrible Flame, sleeping through Chapel then showing up late and without lipstick or a starched collar on your first fountain inspection. Sometimes you did dumb things, like driving all night to Dallas randomly on a Saturday night just because you wanted to “be spontaneous.”

But I could not have loved you more.

You were so loyal and faithful. You never gave up on GATA, even when you were having a hard time fitting in. You came to Lifegroup consistently even as you were dealing with a difficult breakup. When you went to Colorado for the summer, I knew you were going to be OK. You had

found a good place where you could make new friends and travel to beautiful places.

I could focus on the emptiness, and how much I miss you, but instead, I keep thinking about the fullness, of how much we loved each other. I love seeing people’s Facebook posts about you because I’m a proud big, and I just want to know everything about you. I just want to be with you and take another cute sorority picture and talk about clothes and life and Jesus. I’m treasuring every memory.

My sister in Christ, my little flame, I can’t wait to see you again.

Love, Your Big HRR13B@ACU.EDU

Letter to the Editor

Former SA president laments ‘ACU Bubble’ on LGBT

I write today in the hopes that you will share this message with your readers.

Whether they agree with me or not is less important, although I do hope it will bring about a new discussion on campus relating to ACU’s policies towards LGBT students. Unlike most who have chimed in on this subject, I’m uniquely qualified to do so. As a 2002 graduate of ACU, former Executive President of the ACU Students’ Association, and someone who has worked professionally for LGBT equality at the national level for over 12 years, I offer a perspective that’s less focused on feelings and more on actual experience.

I’m not writing today to have an argument about whether or not your Student Handbook should be changed so that LGBT students can be viewed as equal in every way on campus. I have had these discussions behind the scenes, and, quite frankly, I’m too emotionally exhausted to keep having them.

ACU’s policy is what it is.

You are a private institution and must do what you think is appropriate. I vehemently disagree with policies in place impacting LGBT students, but I’ve given up on ever being truly welcomed or accepted with my husband at alumni events, homecoming, or even casual gatherings with students I graduated with. I’d be remiss if I didn’t say that I have a handful of friendships from ACU that have sustained me to this day, friendships that in many ways have saved my life.

However, for ACU to welcome my husband and I would be false acceptance, an acceptance that too many LGBT students and alumni have experienced.

Acceptance, just like love, should be unconditional.

ACU’s current policies towards LGBT students are policies that stem from tolerance. The problem is that tolerance is not meant for human consumption.

We tolerate colds and the flu, traffic on our way to work, lines at the airport, bad cell phone reception, our steak not being cooked

to perfection, and other miniscule mishaps on a daily basis. We should never tolerate people, but rather merely things that happen to us. People don’t crave tolerance, they crave acceptance.

Today, I’m writing to hand back my diploma to ACU, a diploma I earned ten times over by my service to the university, both as a student and as a representative. Whether it was earning a national debate championship for the university or working countless hours as President of the Students’ Association, I gave back. It’s not that I have all bad memories from being a student, quite the opposite. I remember having fun with my brothers in Galaxy Social Club, winning Sing Song, cracking up over jokes at the Bean, grabbing the best BBQ in the world at Harold’s for lunch, cookouts on the weekend, fundraisers for charity, and moments of sadness that brought us all together. I was a Senior and President of the Students’ Association the

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

JASON MIDA PRESIDENT OF MIDA ASSOCIATES

morning of September 11, 2001 when the planes hit the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. I remember going to Chapel, crying on top of one another, being afraid like never before, and truly being confused about the world we were living in. I remember opening up the Students’ Association offices so that concerned students could make calls to parents that were traveling on business that day. I remember being thankful that I was in such a caring place on such a horrific day.

While all of these memories bring warmth and a sense of belonging, they do not change the fact that I simply do not belong to this community.

Yes, I wish I could turn back time, to say otherwise

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

“

Today, I am writing to hand back my diploma to ACU, a diploma I earned ten times over by service to the university.”

would be dishonest on my part. My life to date, while incredibly substantive and rewarding, has also been filled with heartache. I wish I could have come out and attended a university that not only tolerated LGBT students, but celebrated them. Alas, I did not. I wish I could say that my coming out to my family was a good experience and that it brought us closer together, but it didn’t. I wish I could say that my childhood friends were supportive when I came out, but 9 out of 10 weren’t. I wish I could say that my father wasn’t ashamed of me when he died of lymphoma in 2009, but I can’t know that for sure. I wish I could say I don’t suffer from depression and anxiety from years of being

repressed, but I do. I wish I could say that my being openly gay, married, and successful has somehow moved the hearts and minds of ACU leadership, but it hasn’t. I wish I could say my heart hasn’t been hardened over the years by rejection, but it has.

To end this letter, let me say that I’m not angry, I’m just sad. I can also say with sincerity that I love a lot of people at ACU and that I genuinely believe that policies towards LGBT students stem from a lack of education, knowledge, and experience in the real world. We’ve all heard of the “ACU Bubble”, and that’s because it exists. For this graduate, I can’t attempt to live in it or to gain acceptance in it any longer.

After all, bubbles aren’t designed for growth. I need to move on, as do all ACU LGBT Alumni. Today, I’m no longer part of ACU in any form or fashion, but I believe in the saying that if you love someone or something enough, you have to know when to let it go.

O P T IM IST

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MONDAY | SEPTEMBER 1 2017

From pews to

PROFESSOR Bringing both community and connection throughout his department, Ryan Jessup explores the different ways of modeling what it means to be Teacher of the Year.

F E ATUR E

5

BY EMILY GUAJARDO ARTS AND FEATURES EDITOR

A

cool breeze escapes beneath the entrance door to the Department of Management Sciences. A slow creak is heard when the heavy door is slowly pulled open letting the once cool breeze disappear into the air - -silence. Doors left and right are shut with small sounds of fingers lightly clacking along the keyboard.

And at the end of narrow hallway, Dr. Ryan Jessup’s corner office is seen left open releasing a small, faint light.

“I’d like to think of myself as like Lewis and Clark,” said Jessup.

“Just like how they went out in discovery and explore new topics, I think I’m trying to do the same thing.”

During May 2017 Commencement, Jessup, assistant professor of marketing, was named Teacher of the Year for his efforts inside and outside the classroom. Filled with a love for constant learning, Jessup has a degree in marketing and cognitive psychology.

“It was very unexpected, and I’m very thankful for it,” Jessup said, his hands softy closed on his lap. “And I do know there are lots of other good professors who haven’t won that I think deserve to win as well. I think it is quite an honor and just very humble.”

His office is filled with books, pieces of artwork created by his daughter and a giant whiteboard scribed with numbers, charts and words that make no sense to the untrained eye. On the corner of the board, a small list consisting of past, present and future research projects are shown with pieces of the lists altered, erased or simply set aside.

Jessup said he realized his love for research just after he graduated college and began working as a church pew salesman in Atlanta.

And after a few years of being on the front lines of the selling regime, Jessup realized that he actually didn’t enjoy selling. Instead, he became curious as to why someone would buy pew ‘A’ versus pew ‘B’ and how they came to that decision.

“I can remember going and visiting these churches to sell them the church pews, and I realized I was more interested in why a church bought from me or didn’t buy from me as opposed to whether they bought from me,” Jessup said. “I realized that’s not the right attitude for a salesperson. That’s the right attitude for like an academic to have.”

S

ince then, Jessup has been asking the real questions: Why do we buy something? What makes one demographic more susceptible to purchasing a product than another? Can we quantify if a marriage will last or not? Although these questions may seem a bit unorthodox, Jessup believes constant research can answer some of life’s most complex questions.

Dr. Mark Phillips, chair of the management department, said Jessup has helped the department by focusing on working with students.

“Ryan has played a key role in helping us do research involving students,” Phillips said. “Besides being one of our top researchers on his own, he has consistently helped students work with him.”

Working on over ten research projects at different times and phases, it is evident Jessup has enough work to go around. His dadlike fashion and wide eyes compliment his eagerness to learn and teach. Even when speaking, his vocabulary is utter proof of how educated he is just in case you don’t catch glimpse of his doctoral degree leaning proudly on his desk.

“Ryan’s students find that he teaches complex material in a way they can understand,” Phillips said, “but more importantly he is actually more concerned with helping them grow and mature, which for most people is a huge gift to receive.”

Jessup has become the face of pure energetic curiosity in the College of Business Administration.

Dr. Sarah Easter, assistant professor of management, said Jessup is always ready and eager to start new research projects with whomever is willing.

“Dr. Jessup is constantly thinking about new research ideas and engaging in discussions with his colleagues and students about new ways of looking at the world of decision making,” said Easter in an email, “[He’s] very passionate about making the marketing topics that he teaches accessible, relevant and practical for his students.

And, he does so in his own unique and quirky way.”

However, Jessup does more than just research. Starting up one of the faculty intramural soccer teams, Jessup loves to be a part of a community just as much as he likes studying them.

“He’s the father of those teams,” said Don Pope, associate professor of department of management sciences.

Pope said Jessup always brought a lot of family and collegiality to the campus – something he is truly grateful for.

And just as each project is slowly erased from the whiteboard hovering over Jessup’s desk, another idea pops into his mind. The project is written on the left corner now accompanied by other current projects. Looking proudly at the projects still left on the board, Jessup knows he still has much more research to do and a long way to go.

“I’d like to think of myself as like Lewis and Clark,” said Jessup. “Just like how they went out in discovery and explore new topics — I think I’m trying to do the same thing.”

6

SP ORTS

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2017

Cross Country looks poised for nationals

PRESEASON POLLS

Football

Team

SHA UCA McNeese SELU Nicholls SFA Lamar ACU HBU NWSU UIW

Pos. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

STANDINGS Volleyball

Team

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

ERICA BOLADO ONLINE MANAGING EDITOR

Gabryelle Thompson, an ACU Sophmore at the time, competes at the McMurry/Bill Libby Invitational for Cross Country.

BY TREVOR WYATT SPORTS REPORTER

The Cross Country season begins this Friday, and both teams are in good shape to improve greatly upon last season’s ninth place finish.

On the men’s side, runners look to get off to a hot start despite losing two seniors from last year in Reid Rivers and Sterlen Paul.

Sophomore Drew Cummings, who emerged as one of the Wildcat’s top runners last season at the Southland Conference Championships, said there’s no limit to what the men’s team can do this year.

“We’re a lot stronger than we were last year,” Cummings said, “and honestly we’ve had really promising workouts with a pack of guys we’ve never really had before, and I think it shows the sky is the limit for us, who knows what we can do?”

Cross Country coach Jarvis Jelen agrees with the sentiment that the team is a lot stronger, and credits not only the returning members but the incoming freshmen.

“We have a completely different team than last year,” Jelen said, “but they look great. We lost a couple of seniors but everyone we brought back developed really well and we also brought in two really good freshmen in Roy Kipkorir from Kenya and Connor Miller. [Roy] just arrived a few days ago and should be eligible to practice soon after getting through the visa process.”

The men’s team looks good, but the big story in the Southland Conference cross country world is the return of the four redshirts from last season for the women’s team: sophomore Carnley Graham, senior Diana García Muñoz, and senior twin superstars Allie and Michaela Hackett.

The Hackett sisters are two of the top runners in the nation, and the return landed them a preseason ranking of first in the Southland Conference and second in the south-central region ahead of teams like the University of Texas, Texas A&M, and Baylor, and only trailing Arkansas. Both Allie and Michaela ran unattached in events last season, finishing first and second in both the UCLA 10k and the UNT 5k.

“Definitely our first goal is to win conference,” Michaela said. “and with the preseason rankings having us second, it’s definitely humbling, but not too much of a surprise. We as a team are going to compete every day and we are very good at what we do, but it’s great to see our team get recognition from other people and see that other people know what we are capable of doing.”

Allie echoes her sister’s sentiment, and said that hopefully they can make it to nationals as a team.

“I think winning conference is obviously on everyone’s mind,” Allie said, “but our first and foremost goal is to place in the top 2 out at regionals. That would take

Team

Alexandria Hackett, an ACU Sophmore at the time, competes at McMurry/Bill Libby Invitational for Cross Country. us as a team directly to nationals.”

The sisters also know that nothing is guaranteed this season– both expressed sentiment about the possibilities of injuries or “secret weapons” other teams could have.

But coach Jelen said the team is looking poised for a nationals run.

“These girls are some of the greatest I’ve even seen,” Jelen said.

“And I originally thought we were going to be ranked around fourth

but after looking at our team and other teams, it’s not a stretch that these girls can go to nationals. We just have to keep people healthy and keep working hard and hopefully get that second spot and that auto-berth to nationals.”

TMW13A@ACU.EDU

FOOTBALL MATCHUP PREVIEW 2016 SEASON

ABILENE CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY (0-0)

26.8

POINTS PER GAME

36.7

113.2

RUSH YPG

350.0

278.5

PASSING YPG

106.8

37.9

POINTS ALLOWED

31.5

JONATHAN RAITZ SPORT DIRECTOR

UNIVERSITY NEW MEXICO (0-0)

MAX PRESTON

ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

The Wildcats are coming off a less than ideal season, but there has been a lot of change in the offseason. The gun-slinging, dual threat redshirt junior quarterback, Dallas Sealey returns with a balanced backfield in sophomore Tracy James and senior De’Andre Brown.

While the defense is anchored by preseason all-conference linebacker, Sam Denmark. There are still questions in the secondary that first-year head coach Adam Dorrel will be looking to answer early this season, but I expect the Wildcats to compete from start to finish on Saturday. Unfortunately, this New Mexico team is coming off a nine-win season capped by a bowl victory over UTSA, and it returns a 1000-yard rusher in Tyrone Owens and quarterback in Lamar Jordan, who ran for over 700 yards a year ago. The Lobos get this win, but ACU will turn some heads.

The Wildcats have a lot of returning leadership on the field this season including Sam Denmark, Dallas Sealey, Dante Hibbert, and Nik Grau. However, the overall team performance of last year still has me questioning if the team can pull through and get a victory especially against a Lobo team that has been to a bowl game the last two years. De’Andre Brown did not have the season ACU expected him to have last year which poses questions about their backfield. The Lobos return QB Lamar Jordan, who went 7-1 in his eight starts last season, and running back Tyrone Owens, who became the 19th player in school history to rush for 1,000 yards in a season at 1,084 and scored seven touchdowns. New Mexico also runs the option, which if ran efficiently, can be difficult to stop. I’m going with the Lobos in this game.

Final Score: New Mexico 38 ACU 17

Final Score: New Mexico 35 ACU 20

DAVIS DENTON SPORT REPORTER

TREVOR WYATT SPORT REPORTER

I am a firm believer in underdogs. ACU has momentum going into this season with a brand new football field, an end to the D-I transition period, and a three time national championship winning coach in Adam Dorrel.. A solid backfield with two workhorses in De’Andre Brown and Tracy James will bring balance to an offense that couldn’t find a complete rhythm and averaged 27 points a game.

New Mexico returns touchdown machine Richard McQuarley, who scored 18 times and popped off 656 yards as well as a 1100 yard rusher in Tyrone Owens and athletic quarterback Lamar Jordan who totaled 740 yards rushing and 680 passing. The lobos struggled on defense last season surrendering over 400 points and i believe ACU quarterback Dallas Sealey will lead the Wildcats to a win. His gamer mentality and swagger on the field is infectious and i personally see the Wildcats catching the lobos napping.

Dallas Sealey was arguably one of the most electric players in the Southland Conference last season, with the ability to throw the ball a mile and scramble through the defense with his run game. ACU also returns kicker Nik Grau, who despite battling back problems has come back to become one of the highest point scorers in ACU history. However, even with a different backfield I don’t think there’s a running back on ACU’s roster that can manage a 1000 yard season, and besides all-Southland Conference linebacker Sam Denmark, there’s a lot of questions about the defense. Without a stronger running game and a questionable at best secondary, expect a well played game against New Mexico, but I think the Wildcats lost their first game of the season.

Final Score: New Mexico 31 ACU 28

Final Score: New Mexico 41 ACU 24

3–0 1–0 1–0 3–1 2–1 2–1 1–2 1–2 1–2 1–3 0–3 0–3 0–3

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

Soccer

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

ERICA BOLADO ONLINE MANAGING EDITOR

Ovrl. SLC.

Ovrl. SLC. 2–1 2–1 2–1 2–2 1–2 1–2 1–2 1–3 1–3 0–2 0–2 0–2

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

DORREL DAILY Obviously we have a huge challenge in front of us.

We’re playing a team Dorrel that won nine games and won a bowl game last year. But I feel like our program has grown since we got here in January, and if you’re seeing growth in the program and your team is getting better that’s all you can ask for as a coach.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK In her first collegiate tournament, freshman Katelyn Mueller Mueller paced the Wildcat offense with 28 kills, recording 12 kills in two of the three games. Mueller played a significant part in ACU’s upset victory over a top-100 RPI team in Wyoming, as she looks to be an added weapon opposite last year’s kill leader in junior Jacey Smith. Mueller earned Honorable Mention Southland Conference Offensive Player of the Week.

Fortunately for the Wildcats Chapa picked up right where she left off Chapa last season, contributing 45 digs last weekend. In the games against Wyoming and South Dakota, Chapa dug out 21 balls in each match, a feat she accomplished just six times last season.

For her defensive efforts over the weekend, Chapa was named an Honorable Mention Southland Conference Defensive Player of the Week.