The Lion's Roar 03/28/2017

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’ THE LION S ROAR 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

Hammond, LA

March 28, 2017

Lights, Cameras, get ready for the return of Greek Week JALINA FOURCADE Staff Reporter

Greek Week is back and invites students back into the world of cinema classics this year as teams of Greek chapters will base their festivities around films from the big screen. Greek Week is filled with major events such as the Volleyball Tournament on Sunday, Apr. 2 at 1 p.m. in Greek Village the Dodgeball Tournament on Tuesday, Apr. 4 at 6 p.m. in the Pennington and the Stepshow on Thursday, Apr. 6 at 7 p.m. at the University Center. The theme this year is movies and the selected themes are a throwback to iconic movies of the past. Each team was given two options for their theme and had to vote on which one they preferred. Alpha Sigma Tau, Sigma Tau Gamma and Phi Mu Alpha will join together for their “Ghostbusters” theme. Theta Phi Alpha, Delta Tau Delta and Zeta

Phi Beta will unite to represent “Titanic.” Alpha Omicron Pi, Theta Xi, Pi Kappa Alpha and Sigma Gamma Rho’s team will represent the movie “The Little Rascals.” Sigma Sigma Sigma, Kappa Alpha and Alpha Phi Alpha chose “Dirty Dancing” for their theme, and Phi Mu, Kappa Sigma and Theta Chi selected “Willy Wonka” as their team’s theme. This year the Order of Omega, a nationally recognized Greek leadership honor society, will be hosting a “Give Back” Day at La Carreta on Monday, Apr. 3 from 4 p.m. to closing to raise funds for the Southeastern Food Pantry. “Last year the Order of Omega raised several hundreds of dollars to enable the Food Pantry to purchase needed supplies,” said Assistant Director of the Office of Student Engagement Kyle Gallagher. “This year they are hoping to raise $500.” Changes are coming to Greek Week. “This year they will be

hosting a Cupcake Eating Contest on Sunday Apr. 2 at 4 p.m. and making the Dodgeball Tournament a permanent event,” said Gallagher. Greek Week accomplishes more than encouraging philanthropy. It also brings awareness to the Greek community and their values. “Greek Week benefits Southeastern by giving the larger community the chance to get to know each of our organizations and learn about what being Greek really means,” said Gallagher. Keep an eye out throughout the week as teams compete in a scavenger hunt featuring one letter of the Greek alphabet each day hidden around campus. There will be many other events, such as one fraternity’s penny drive, the Golden Silence and the Tug-o-War competition. For individuals interested in details about these events, the calendar of events can be found under Greek Week 2017 will take place Apr. 3 to 6 with events all over campus. The Greek organizations will take on the theme the Greek Life section on the of movies. Some of the events taking place are Cupcake Eating Contest, Volleyball Tournament, Tug-o-War and ending university’s website. the week is Stepshow and the awards ceremony on Apr. 6. File Photo/The Lion’s Roar

Roomie the Lion to get new look Understanding Lion’s Lagniappe Campus community encouraged to vote through Apr. 4 for Roomie’s new look

In the first option, left, Roomie appears with a different physique than before and a variety of different costumes. Roomie’s second design, right, may include his tail the same color as his mane and he may have jerseys instead of T-shirts. REGINA PERGOLA Staff Reporter

Roomie is getting a makeover, and students are encouraged to vote on what they want him to look like in the future. Students, faculty, staff and any fan of Roomie can vote on the new designs from Wednesday, Mar. 28 until Apr. 4. Each voter is allowed one vote that is linked to his or her email. “We have been working with a committee made up of stakeholders,” said Executive Director of Public and Government Affairs Erin Cowser. “The Alumni Association, the

Lion’s Spirit Squad, the studentathletes, SGA, anybody and everybody we could get in there that was interested and wanted to make sure we are going in the right direction. They were able to narrow it down to two sketches from two different companies.” The previous Roomie mascot costume has been used for seven years. “That’s the normal lifespan of a mascot costume,” said Cowser. “It’s definitely time. He needs a little bit of a makeover.” Cowser described the origin of the makeover idea. “That’s why this committee came together,” said Cowser.

“It was at the suggestion of the Alumni Association, that said we need to sit down and take a look at the some of the things that people love about the current Roomie and some of the things that people have said that we could probably improve upon.” The final two chosen mascot costume designs that voters will be able to view have been selected based on a series of criteria other than looks such as wearer comfort and visibility, ease of assembly and materials. The new design will be structured on more than looks. “Some of that is utility of the suit, the person wearing the suit, we have to make sure that they are going to be safe or mobile,” said Cowser. “Crazy things that you wouldn’t think about like will he or she be able to put the suit on his or herself.” Mike Legendre, an alumnus who has worked with Disney corporations on their mascots and costuming provided insight on these criteria. “He was able to provide advice via long distance because he lives in Ohio,” said Cowser. “He was a tremendous asset in this process. Both of the companies have been great about saying that they will get all of these things right with our considerations. It’s exciting. We will do a reveal after Roomie does his own personal makeover.”

and who is involved off campus REGINA PERGOLA Staff Reporter

Free samples and information were given out at the First Annual Merchant Festival hosted by Campus Card Operations. Businesses where students can use Lion’s Lagniappe came together and set up stalls to allow interested students to taste their products. “This is our off-campus Merchants’ Fest,” said Director of Campus Card Operations Pamela Hoover. “This is really to help us to offer the students to meet with all of our off-campus merchants, who participate with our Lion’s Lagniappe program and give them an opportunity to sample some of their goods.” On Mar. 23 from 2-4 p.m., these businesses set up tables in the Student Union Breezeway. They offered a selection of their goods to any interested parties who passed through the breezeway. Vendors and samples included chips and dip handed out by Applebee’s, strawberry lemonade and 20 percent off coupons from IHOP, chocolate or vanilla custard from Eddie’s Famous Frozen Custard and more. Lagniappe users can use the GET app to make online deposits into their Lion’s Lagniappe account, check their recent transactions, report a lost or found ID and identify all Lion’s Lagniappe merchants. Campus Card Operations held a raffle for a basket of goods, and they also offered free merchandise

Eddie’s Frozen Custard Owner Edward ‘Eddie’ McGhee, above left, was one of many employers who attended Merchant Fest to inform students about the restaurants and other eateries who accept Lion’s Lagniappe. Regina Pergola/The Lion’s Roar to anyone willing to show or download the GET app on their phone. “It’s really nice,” said Hoover. “They’re donating their time and products, and we will be giving out some prizes.” The point of the festival was to raise awareness of outside businesses that accepted lagniappe. Lagniappe is money that students can put on their campus IDs and use as a debit card on and off campus. “So hopefully, it’ll introduce them to our Lion’s Lagniappe program which is what our office does as well,” said Hoover. “I think a lot of students may not be aware of the off-campus merchants program. That’s really what we’re promoting.”

Smoothie King had a table set up with pamphlets about health and free smoothie samples. “We are passing out smoothies,” said Matthew Montgomery, general manager at Smoothie King. “Showing everybody about our business.” Students can support local businesses and the university by visiting Lion’s Lagniappe merchants. “We’ve been a part of the Lion’s Lagniappe program for about three years now and loving the influx of new students that come and see us every day,” said Montgomery. More information on the GET app or the Lion’s Lagniappe program can be found at Campus Card Operations website.

University students rise above competitors in local vocal competition LARSHELL GREEN A&E Editor

Half a dozen university fine and performing arts students were recently given top honors at a local vocal performance competition. Six university students were honored at the Louisiana Chapter of the National Association of Teachers of Singing competition, which took place at Northwestern State University in Natchitoches on Saturday, Mar.11. First place winners of the competition were sophomore Sara Cage in the women’s division, Lauren Gibson in the senior women’s division, Alfred Harper in the freshmen men’s division and Cody Sires in the older student adult women’s and men’s division. William Dopp, a student residing in Independence and a member of the Southeastern Community Music

School ranked second in the high school men’s division. Michelle Guillot was awarded second place in the younger advanced women’s division. Dr. Stephen Rushing, professor of voice has been a member of the university faculty in 1992. He describes the competition as an opportunity for students to receive criticism from other professionals in the field while allowing them to perform in a public venue. “It really helps boost their morale as they advance to the finals, or they place in the finals,” said Rushing. “It’s a reflection of their general abilities among their peers across the state.” According to Rushing, competitors arrive in the morning and sing for two to three judges in one room. They come in prepared to sing three selections and go through several rounds of ranking in the competition.

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“Usually they have to have one song in a foreign language, one in English and the third one can be whichever one they want, oftentimes they’ll choose opera,” said Rushing. “In the first round of the competition, they’ll sing two selections, one that they’ve chosen and one that the judges chooses. At the end of the day, their scores are tallied. Usually the top three or four will advance to the final round and then they will sing again for a different set of judges altogether. Those who advance to the finals are ranked and then those are tallied.” Cage explains that the competition was held for members of the Louisiana chapter. The two other chapters of Mississippi and Arkansas make up the competition that will occur later at nationals. Cage also believes that the Six university vocalists were recently honored at the Louisiana Chapter of the National Association of Teachers of Singing competition which required them to prepare three selections. see VOCALISTS, pg. 2 Students performed for two to three judges at each level of the competition. Courtesy of UCCS Index

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Campus Life.................................2 Opinions.....................................3 A&E............................................4

Horoscope, Crossword, Sudoku....5 Sports.........................................6 News..........................................8

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Volume 88, Issue 23

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