See you at the poll Editorial board interviews all candidates in SA race Opinion Page 4 vol. 103, no. 46
wednesday, arpil 8, 2015
1 SECTION, 6 PAGES
Amendments pass Congress, head to student body for vote
what’s INSIDE NEWS Fifty seniors selected as University Scholars
brittany jackson
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managing editor Congress passed a bill March 25 amending three aspects of the Students’ Association constitution. The bill may pass if a majority of the student body affirms the amendments in Wednesday’s spring elections. The amendments would alter student body representation in SA, adding more than 14 positions in the Congress, as well as adding rules pertaining to Students’ Association dues. Beau Carter, SA president and junior political science major from Farmers Branch, said he and Caleb Orr, SA vice president and sophomore political science major McKinney, began re-evaluating the constitution last year. “I think both will close the gap that has sort of come between Congress and the student body to actually inspire action from our Congress members,” Carter said. The first proposed amendment changes the former process of electing one representative for each 250 students of each academic building to electing one representative for each 250 students of each college, including the Colleges of Arts and Sciences, Biblical Studies, Business Administration, Education and Human Services and the School of Nursing. This change may add two to three positions to Congress. “Representing your building is kind of ambiguous, when it comes to representing those who inhabit the building I think it’s more important to focus on colleges, which may span buildings but show people they’re all of one interest,” Carter said in the SA meeting. The second proposed amendment would elect 14 representatives from university-sponsored groups
SPORTS Softball drops two out of three against rival Incarnate Word
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OPINION Letter to the Editor: Orr and Beau respond to last week’s editorial Page 4
SPORTS Baseball goes 2-2 over four-game holiday stretch Page 6
ARTS Local band kicks off summer tour in Abilene
austin kilcullen staff Photographer
Beau Carter, current SA president and candidate for next year’s SA president, speaks in Moody Tuesday night.
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Faculty vote approves MBA program betsy smith student reporter
NEWS OME documentary to be screened by faculty and staff Page 3
SPORTS The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree for Cody Huson, son of former MLB player Page 6
what’s online
University faculty recently voted and approved a new Master of Business Administration program for ACU’s Dallas-Fort Worth campus. A total of 112 faculty members voted to approve the degree. 15 voted not to affirm it and six abstained from voting during the faculty vote March 31. “The MBA is a key program in ACU’s desire to partner with adult professional students to advance their career and deepen their understanding of their life and work as a response to God’s call,” said Dr. Stephen Johnson,
Savanah Silva hosts this week’s newscast covering arts, sports and more
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vice president of academic affairs for ACU Dallas. The university announced its expansion to North Texas March 17 as an effort to offer courses for non-traditional students in the area. “ACU Dallas is a bold and exciting opportunity to serve adult students in graduate and professional programs and more fully live into our mission to educate students for Christian service and leadership throughout the world,” Johnson said. Johnson said business education is the most soughtafter graduate degree program, and with more qualified applicants than spaces available, a campus in the Metroplex enables the uni-
versity to provide a Christianbased education to those in search of one. Jay Goin, executive vice president for ACU Dallas, will help move the development of the Dallas campus along. “The MBA is an important part of ACU’s growth online,” Goin said. “It’s the most popular Master-level degree in the U.S. and also has tremendous reach internationally. With multiple industry tracks, it’s a good choice for many Christian professionals who want to build higher level skills while learning how to truly integrate faith and vocation.” MBA program submissions are in their final preparations and are awaiting
approval by the regional accreditor, Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCC). Johnson said he anticipates receiving that approval later in the summer allowing the program to launch in the fall. “Course development has already begun,” Goin said. “We’ll be ready to begin offering the program soon after we receive authorization to do so. The university is hoping to admit students and begin teaching later this year. ACU’s accredited program will be desirable and unique, and we’ll see interest from many students with strong academic and professional backgrounds.”
Goin said ACU hasn’t offered an on-campus MBA for more than a decade and that he believes directing their efforts online will allow a much greater reach. “The MBA program development will continue with courses being developed through late spring and summer,” Johnson said. “ACU Dallas with the College of Business Administration will work to identify a key academic leader for the program that will reside in Dallas. That search will begin immediately.”
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University technology policies cause confusion elijah Evans
ONLINE
see amendment page 3
online managing editor Most students walk into class and immediately pull out their laptops or iPads. However, Kaitlyn Kanis approaches class differently than the average iPad-toting ACU student by forgoing electronics during class. When Kanis sits down in the classroom, she pulls a pencil and paper from her backpack and takes notes the old-fashioned way. “I prefer using pencil and paper and traditional notecards over technology,” said Kanis, sophomore environmental science major from
Churubusco, Indiana. “I really do not like using the iPad for course work.” The ACU administration has regularly encouraged and mandated the use of student and professorial technology in the classroom. However, Kanis’s actions highlight an increasingly common trend at ACU. Some students and faculty are shunning the encouraged university practices and developing their own philosophy for classroom technology. In some cases, the students’ personal and unique philosophies disregard the university policy. The university requires all incoming students to
Abilene Christian University
purchase or own an iPad for the mandatory Cornerstone class, which takes place in the fall of a student’s freshman year. In previous years, the university funded the purchase of the iPads through rebates at the campus store. Two years ago, the university decided to discontinue the rebates. Now, students are required to purchase the iPad on their own, without the price factored into tuition. “I bought the iPad because I was told by the ACU administration that I was required to have one for class participation,” said Lily Auker, sophsee tech page 5
jarred schuetze chief Photographer