The Signal Sleuth Crossword

Complete the puzzle using clues found in this week’s edition of the Signal!

know who she was, what she was like and why we have this competition named in her honor,” Garrett said.

The competition is a rewarding time for the students, but also for the vocal instructors at Ouachita.

“Every year, I’m always amazed at how well our students do,” Garrett said. “They really bring their best to the competition, and it’s exciting to sit back and watch them and see how they’ve grown, even in the preparatory process for the competition. This year, I am very excited about our evening program with Susan Goss and Marjorie Halbert and excited for our current students to learn more about Mary Shambarger and her history, the impact that she had on the school and what this competition really means.”

Mary Shambarger was and is an Ouachita treasure, and her legacy is one that few can compete with.

Across:

3. Name of the OBU women’s basketball player who just reached 1,000 career points

4. Name of this year’s Muse Project show

7. Coach Knight just became president of this sports association

8. Last name of the couple who met at Ouachita and now lead the communications department

9. Name of the upcoming music competition

10. Social media platform banned on several college campuses across the U.S.

Down:

1. Name of the theological library

Christian studies students visited

2. Newly crowned Miss Ouachita Baptist University

5. The Signal slogan: The heart of ________ News

6. Dean leading the Christian studies trip

11. Acronym for upcoming international event

BY AUSTYNN CROCKER Staff Writer

The current Governor of Arkansas, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, was inaugurated on Jan. 10. Since her inauguration, she has caused quite a stir in the Arkansas government, already signing seven executive orders. These executive orders include banning critical race theory in schools, banning the term Latinx from important government documents and an executive order repealing former mask mandates, among others.

As the first female Governor of Arkansas, it was theorized that she would begin with a more mellow approach to the office but looking back at her past as former President Donald Trump’s Press Secretary, it is not surprising that she began her time in office with a flurry of executive orders. As Press Secretary,

Sanders was unapologetically assertive in her position, which is the type of governor Arkansas needs.

Governor Sanders has had some controversy regarding her executive orders, including banning critical race theory from schools.

“It is technically defined as an examination of systemic racism in American law and society,” Emily Washburn said, a writer for Forbes magazine. Governor Sanders has repeatedly defended this executive order, explaining, “It’s incredibly important that we do things to protect the students in our state. We have to make sure that we are not indoctrinating our kids and that these policies and these ideas never see the light of day.”

The banning of the term Latinx in all legal documents is another executive order that has sparked controversy, especially among members of the non-binary His- panic community. Before Sanders’s order, Latinx was a term used to encompass Latina or Latino, but it was not recognized as a real word according to Real Academia Española. Her reasoning behind passing this bill was written into the document stating, “The government has a responsibility to respect its citizens and use ethnically appropriate language, particularly when referring to ethnic minorities.” Although the non-binary community has taken offense to this order, it appears to not have been Sanders’s goal to exclude minorities, but instead to dissolve harmful language.

The Governor’s first month in office, while productive, has provoked hostility over pertinent issues. Critical race theory and the term Latinx were issues unbeknownst to most Arkansans, and while important, were not dire.

Sanders has entered office with a Republican majority, where she faces little push-back from her colleagues. This has allowed her to execute almost as many orders as she can, but in her first month, her focus should have been on bills such as her education plan, rather than the controversial topic of critical race theory. Although she has taken advantage of her major- ity position, the future of her term appears productive. Her education plan seeks to give teachers a minimum $50,000 salary. Giving teachers a better salary will not only aid school faculty but also students who, in turn, will receive a better education. Governor Sanders places high value on education, which is a much-needed outlet for her to focus on during her time in office.