HAMMOND, LA
FEBRUARY 19, 2019
S O U T H E A S T E R N L O U I S IA NA U N I V E R S I T Y
Years
JACOB SUMMERVILLE STAFF REPORTER
On Feb. 17, 2009, the Board of Supervisors for the University of Louisiana System appointed Dr. John Crain as the president of the university. Serving at the university for a total of 32 years, Crain started as a faculty member for the College of Business, later becoming the department head. While serving in that position, the then provost and vice president of academic affairs became president, and Crain moved into the position as interim provost. “I served in that role when he was president for about seven years,” discussed Crain. “I was very fortunate during that time that he involved me significantly in all aspects of the university even though I had academic affairs, which is the academic colleges and related activities that were under my area of responsibility as the academic vice president. He also involved me in a lot of other aspects of the university.” Once he became president, Crain felt familiar with most aspects of the position. At the time of his appointment, however, public universities in Louisiana were about to experience a financial disinvestment from the state. “When I became president, the universities in Louisiana got probably two-thirds of their funding from the state, and the students paid the rest,” explained Crain. “Now, that’s pretty
with Crain see CRAIN, pg. 2
Where does Alumna makes strides in education the smoke go?
Hannah Dietsch, Louisiana assistant superintendent, Joni Lacy, talent project director for the Louisiana Department of Education, Stephanie Whetstone, Milken Educator Award recipient, Donna Edwards, Louisiana first lady, and Dr. Jane Foley, senior vice president of the Milken Educator Awards, pose at the presentation of the oversized $25,000 check to Whetstone. COURTESY OF MILKEN FAMILY FOUNDATION ZACHARY ARAKI ASSISTANT EDITOR
Stephanie Whetstone, a fifth grade teacher of science and mathematics at Bains Elementary School, became the first person in West Feliciana Parish to earn the $25,000 Milken Educator Award.
Whetstone graduated from the university in the spring of 2007. In college, she was involved with Phi Mu fraternity, the Excellence in Commitment to Education and Leadership program and the Student Government Association. She started teaching at Bains in August of 2014. Teaching students from gifted to special
needs, Whetstone aims to make her classroom a home away from home. “I want it to be a welcoming, comfortable place where they will want to come and learn,” said Whetstone. “I love the fifth grade curriculum because it encompasses skills that students will use for the rest of their lives. I think if you can make material more applicable to students’ everyday lives, they become more invested in what they’re learning.” The Milken Family Foundation, established in 1982, first gave out the Milken Educator Awards in 1987. Instead of accepting applications or nominations, the foundation works with state departments of education to select the honorees without their knowledge. “It’s highly selective, and we work with those departments of education,” explained Jana Rausch, director of communications for the foundation. “They appoint independent blue ribbon committees, and those committee members work with the department to confidentially seek out candidates and match their accomplishments by our criteria. We get the most extraordinary portfolios here at the Milken Family Foundation, and the Milken Family Foundation makes those final decisions.” Of the candidates, Whetstone was chosen
see WHETSTONE, pg. 2
Stand out with the first step ZACHARY ARAKI ASSISTANT EDITOR
As universities promote themselves as unique, one of the first differences incoming students experience lies in how these institutions welcome them. According to Anthony Ranatza, director of admissions, the current orientation format dates back to the late 1980s with orientation leaders. Ranatza compared how orientation has changed since its inception. “It used to be an auditorium full of the administrators talking at the students about what they needed to do, and as student life changed and continues to change, orientation evolves,” explained Ranatza. “I think the one part I have seen about orientation is it is constantly changing and constantly
improving to meet the needs of today’s students. The way we involve technology, the way we involve social skills and soft skills as well as academic skills to course advisement and placement and lots of other things has really kind of positioned us.” At orientation, incoming students learn background information such as traditions, the university’s academic structure and technical details such as their webmail and the emergency alert system. While certain elements remain consistent with university orientations such as scheduling classes, picking up a university ID, and learning about campus life, universities will tailor their programs to the student base. “Our orientation program is comparable to local
Weather
Tuesday H 63 L 62
At orientation, incoming students and their parents can check in with their orientation leader and color group before getting started on the rest of the day’s activities. Although every university will hold an orientation, their processes may differ. FILE PHOTO/THE LION’S ROAR universities’ programs as far as offering sessions, dividing into color groups, and learning about academic programs, but one huge difference is our students,” said Amanda Hammonds, assistant director of orientation and events. “We have to look at what it is
that our students need during orientation and make sure that we are serving them in such a way that all their needs are met during orientation.” Orientation programs may differ in the presentation of
see ORIENTATION, pg. 2
Index
Wednesday H 71 L 57
Campus Life ................................2 Opinions ....................................3 A&E ...........................................4
Horoscope, Crossword, Sudoku ...5 Sports & Fitness ..........................6 News .........................................8
The health risks from exposure to marijuana smoke resemble that of cigarette smoke including risks of cancer and heart and lung disease while THC blood levels were present at low levels in a well-ventilated room. ANNIE GOODMAN/THE LION’S ROAR ZACHARY ARAKI ASSISTANT EDITOR
Though an individual choice, smoking marijuana can impact more than the user. When Madison Walters, a junior biological sciences major, stayed in the campus residence halls, she noticed marijuana smoke in her room and the hallways from other residents including her former roommate. Walters said, “There is a very high amount of marijuana usage on campus by a very large amount of students, and the students that are using marijuana on campus don’t think about the effect that it has on the other students around them.” Walters discussed how this experience as a non-smoker affected her. “I’ve had my clothes and belongings start smelling like it after living in the dorms for a semester because so many people in the dorm building I was in smoked in their rooms on a daily basis,” shared Walters. “It had an effect on my job because I ended up having to get drug tested because of the smell being so strong on my clothes. I ended up having to move to the on-campus apartments at the end of the semester because the smell of marijuana got so bad.” Te t r a h y d r o c a n n a b i n o l , THC, is the primary compound Stay Connected With Us! Like and follow @lionsroarnews.
in marijuana. The study “Concentrations of delta9tetrahydrocannabinol and 11-nor9-carboxytetrahydrocannabinol in blood and urine after passive exposure to Cannabis smoke in a coffee shop” found that the blood of people who did not smoke marijuana but spent three hours in a well-ventilated space with people casually smoking contained trace amounts of THC, not enough to fail a drug test. The amount of THC in the blood and urine increased as the space became more confined and less ventilated. Beyond psychoactive effects, many of the health consequences of secondhand marijuana smoke resemble that of cigarette smoke, including ties to cancer as well as heart and lung diseases. Elucidating the effects of secondhand exposure to marijuana smoke requires further research. Daryl Julien, president of the Residence Hall Association, witnessed no marijuana being used in the residence halls. He discussed RHA’s procedure if the drug is found in the halls. “The RAs do checks,” explained Julien. “They walk around certain times of the month. They do checks within the rooms. First, it would be confiscated. If they are caught with it, UPD would probably be called,
see MARIJUANA, pg. 8 Volume 90, Issue 21 A Student Publication www.lionsroarnews.com lionsroar@southeastern.edu