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FRIDAY MARCH 31, 2017
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131st YEAR ISSUE 43
THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF MISSISSIPPI STATE UNIVERSITY SINCE 1884
Open Letter Project encourages campus conversations by Kristina Norman Staff Writer
It may seem old fashioned, but Mississippi State University’s Writing Center’s new letter writing project wants students to start writing letters again. The “Open Letter Project” encourages students to write anonymous letters to other students. Students who participate in the project respond to the“Dear Other Side of the Fence” prompt, in which students write about what they want others to know about themselves and their experiences. Students can write on anything from gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, race, religion, politics and beyond. Antoinette Hayden, a lecturer in MSU’s English department who started the project, took her idea to the Writing Center’s director, Kayleigh Few. Few liked her idea and approved it. Afterwards, Hayden typed up a proposal which the two refined together. Few said
her role with the project is to help Hayden in whatever way she can to make it work. So far, Hayden and Few have received a lot of interesting responses. Some of the letters submitted to
specific to an issue or struggle that the person writing it is going through,” Few said. Overall, Few said she has been impressed with the letters submitted and the number of submissions
response the project has received across MSU’s campus has been positive, especially from those in the sociology and education departments. Stephanie Bennett, assistant professor in
narrative, informational, argument and opinion writing. Additionally, the class teaches how to effectively communicate through writing. Bennett said after seeing the email detailing
Before participating in the Open Letter Project, Bennett said she worked with Maroon and Write and the Quality Enhancement Plan which encourages lifelong writing. Bennett said students,
the project, she knew the it would work nicely with the things her students had learned in class. “I thought it was a neat assignment,” Bennett said. “It’s something that is applicable both at the college level, but can also be applicable in the K-12 setting.”
especially those entering the education field, can carry the project with them after graduating to classrooms of their own. Melinda Pilkinton, associate professor of sociology, said she received Hayden’s email and thought it “sounded like a good project.”
Jenn McFadden, The Reflector the project have been calm, while others are filled with intensity. Few describes the letters submitted by students as “very personal,” but also unique. Letters range from topics about sexual identity, eating disorders, religion and more. “Most of them are
they have received. She said the Writing Center’s contest offering gift cards gives students incentive to participate. Few said this is the first time the Writing Center has done a project like this and did not know how others would react. The support and
MSU’s Department of Curriculum and Instruction and Special Education, teaches a middle level literacy writing intensive class which prepares students for teaching fourth through eighth grade. In the class Bennett teaches, students focus on
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New club aims to vault students into gymnastics by Claire Bryan Contributing Writer
In the South Eastern Conference, eight schools have collegiate level women’s gymnastics. Out of the six remaining schools, only two provide opportunities for students to participate in gymnastics. Mississippi State University, along with The University of Mississippi, The University of South Carolina and Vanderbilt University, does not have either a collegiate or club level gymnastics team. MSU students Mikhaila Selby and Brie Bibel grew up in gymnastics and have a passion for the sport. Upon coming to MSU, they began working at the Academy of Competitive and Performing Arts in Starkville, teaching gymnastics to stay connected with the sport they loved. As Selby, senior from Greenville, Mississippi, was brainstorming ways to incorporate gymnastics into her Montgomery Leadership Program capstone project, she began to investigate bringing gymnastics to MSU. As she researched, Selby found teams across the U.S., discovering her idea was possible.
MSU hosts 27th International Fiesta by Emmalyne Kwasny News Editor
Mikhaila Selby | Courtesy Photo
Mikhaila Selby and Brie Bibel stand in front of balance beams at the Academy of Competitive and Performing Arts. Selby and Bibel are creating MSUʼs first club gymnastic team incorporating their love for gymnastics with their love for Mississippi State.
What began as a joke after work is now on its way to becoming a MSU student organization and then a club team within competitive sports. Becoming an organization on MSU’s campus is a tedious process and, “It was basically a lot of paperwork honestly,” Selby said. In order to become a Sports Club within the Competitive Sports office at MSU, students must
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first go through the Center for Student Activities and become a registered student organization. After students have a registered student organization, they meet with the competitive sports office and provide their constitution, contact information of officers, and evidence of at least 10 members. While the process can be tedious with many meetings and paperwork,
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the faculty strives to help students as much as possible to make their activity a part of MSU’s campus. Getting the club started, however, has not been an easy task for Selby and Bibel. “Looking for people has been the hardest thing and we’re still working on that,” Bibel said. “We’ve got people, but it’s hard to make the hours work.”
FORECAST: Starkville will see a beautiful weekend ahead. The skies will be mostly sunny to welcome Old Main this weekend. Have a great weekend, Bulldogs!
Mississippi State University’s 27th annual International Fiesta will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on April 1 on the Drill Field. World Neighbor’s Association and Holmes Cultural Diversity Center are the primary organizations sponsoring the event. The fiesta will feature organizations, clubs and departments with displays and booths exhibiting the countries the groups chose to represent. The free event will have dancing, music
performances, singing and a fashion show. Kei Mamiya, program director for Holmes Cultural Diversity Center, said the fiesta gathers students, faculty and members of the Starkville community together “The International Fiesta also provides people with opportunities to interact with people of different nationalities and backgrounds to develop a broader understanding of various cultures and today’s globalizing world,” Mamiya said. “It would be an amazing opportunity to try authentic dishes and see cultural performances from various countries.” INTERNATIONAL FIESTA, 2
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