The East Texan EXTRA November 2018
Vigil to honor servicemen, women and families By John Parsons
For more information on Veteran’s Vigil and activities, go to http://www. tamuc.edu/admissions/veteransAffairs/veteransVigil/schedule.aspx
The 27th annual Veteran’s Vigil, dedicated to men, women, and families of all eras who have served or who continue to serve is set for Nov. 8 in the Texas A&M University-Commerce Rayburn Student Center. An opening reception will begin 9 a.m. in the RSC second-floor conference rooms with the opening ceremony at 9:30 outside RSC with Buddy Gregg, DVM lighting a vigil flame. Gregg is a Navy veteran, a member of the Veteran’s Vigil committee, and
or contact Pearson at Dustin.Pearson@tamuc.edu or 903-886-5123. TAMUC is committed to providing access and reasonable accommodation in its services, programs, and activities for individuals with disabilities. Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accommodations will be made in accordance with the law. To request ADA accommodations, communicate your needs before Veteran’s Vigil by calling Veterans & Military Services Office, 903-886-5123, or veteranservices@tamuc.edu.
graduated from then East Texas State University in 1964. Volunteers from TAMUC’s Student Veterans Association will be serving as sentries for the flame throughout the day and veterans wanting to participate may sign up for a 30-minute shift at https://appsprod.tamuc.edu/CMS/ veteransvigil/Signup.aspx?t=133. Veterans do not have to be a member of SVA to sign up as a sentry. “Retired Chief Master Sergeant Vance Clarke is this year’s guest speaker for the opening ceremony,” Dustin Pearson, veteran and military coordinator and Veteran’s Vigil Committee chairman, said. Some of Clarke’s major awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit, Air Force Meritorious Service Medal with nine oak leaf clusters, Air Force Commendation Medal with two oak leaf clusters, National Defense Service Medal with one star, Air Force Achievement Medal with three oak leaf clusters, and Outstanding Airman of the Year Ribbon, according to a TAMUC press release. Irving Marine Corps Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps will present the colors during the opening ceremony under the command of MSGT Bernard Miller. Irving Marine Corps JROTC will retire the colors during a 4 p.m. ceremony extinguishing the flame with the Hunt County Honor Guard providing a 21-gun salute. SVA will sell raffle tickets Oct. 1-Nov. 11 with prizes including a tailgating package, a pellet grill, and an outdoor fire pit. Contact an SVA officer or Pearson for tickets. In addition, Nov. 8-11, veterans will receive a 10 percent discount in the RSC bookstore on clothing, supplies, or gifts and will also receive a free lunch in the RSC cafeteria courtesy of Sodexo Nov. 10 with their military ID or proof
Dustin Pearson
of veteran status.
Alum inducted into TCCJA Distinguished Hall of Honor By Kylah Roach A&M-Commerce alum and East Texas native, Dr. John Neal, received the Distinguished Hall of Honor award from the Texas
John Neal
Community College Journalism Association Oct. 12 at the Rayburn Student Center. “I didn’t expect to be inducted, and I’m so gratified to be given that honor,” Neal said. “I’ve always heard people say how they feel humbled by an award, and I never knew what that meant until now because I feel like, ‘wow’, someone appreciates so much how I’ve worked very hard.” The convention attracted 150 students from 14 Texas community college journalism programs and featured live contests for the students, workshops led by professionals in the journalism field, a banquet, and awards ceremony. “I went to a two-year college,
which was Kilgore College, for my undergraduate, so I have a special fondness for two-year colleges,” Neal said. “I like TCCJA because it’s made up of students who are just starting out in their studies and in journalism. There’s something more personal about it, and I like that because you can get to know the other people and other advisers more easily, as well as the students get to know each other was well.” TCCJA has their annual convention at different four-year universities to give students a chance to visit potential universities they may transfer to, network and learn from journalism professionals and each other. The convention will be held at Baylor University in fall 2019.
“My biggest takeaway from the convention is seeing the students so excited about journalism,” Neal said. “I’m very concerned about the First Amendment and freedom of the press, and to see this kind of excitement about journalism is very encouraging to me.” Neal is a retired journalism adviser from Brookhaven College who received his second masters in English from A&M-Commerce because he wanted to teach. He calls his wife, Leslie, his “newspaper adviser” due to her waiting up late hours of the night during his time as an adviser. TCCJA Hall of Honor recipients have served 10 years or more as a media adviser.
UPD & Health Services
Website helps Commerce residents, Police track crime By Cydnee Drake
LexisNexis’s public crime map, Community Crime Map, is a website that connects law enforcement with the community, in order to reduce and improve the safety of the residents within the surrounding area. Community Crime Map is available all over the country. The website goes beyond crime mapping by alerting the public about recent crimes. It communicates between the public and law enforcements through anonymous tips. It helps to empower the public on making better decisions, by putting technology in use by law enforcement. The website analyzes and interprets crime activity into the hands of
the public. Commerce residents and Texas A&M-Commerce students are able to use this website to see if any crime such as theft, aggravated assault, or robbery has happened in their geographic area. Community Crime Map is a safe website for all to use, in order to be informed about crimes within Commerce and etc. A&M- University Police Lt. Jason Bone said, “Community Crime Map is a good website to keep students and Commerce residents informed on what is happening.” To learn more about this website go to www.communitycrimemap.com.
Flu Season: Prevention, treatment Now that summer is over, flu season is coming up and there are some ways to prevent and treat it. To get vaccinated each year is the best ways to prevent seasonal flu. Good habits like covering your cough and washing your hands can often spread germs and prevent illness like the flu from happening. Here are some tips on protecting yourself and others from the spread of germs: 1. Avoid being close to other people that are sick and if you are sick keep your distance away from them, in order to protect others from getting sick. 2. If possible, stay at home and this will prevent the spread of illness to others. 3. Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue, which will prevent the spread of germs to others 4. Cleaning your hands will often prevent the spread of germs, but if hand soap and water isn’t available use an alcohol-based hand rub. 5. Avoid touching your face like eyes, nose and mouth, in order to prevent contamination on yourself. 6. Try to practice good habits on preventing the spread of germs. Frequently try to clean and disinfect where ever you’re at. Be active, drink plenty of fluids, get some sleep, manage your stress and eat nutritious foods. To get treatment, in order to prevent the flu students can go to the Health Services Center on the Texas A&M-Commerce campus or to the CVS pharmacy. Visit https://www.cdc.gov/flu/protect/habits/index.htm for more information. Photo left: The waiting room of the Health Services Center. (Photo By Cydnee Drake)
A&M-Commerce named top graphic design college in Texas by Jordan Ader Texas A&M-Commerce topped the 2018 ranking for best graphic design colleges in the state of Texas, according to a list of the top 10 performing programs in Texas published by GameDesigning.org. GameDesigning is one of the premier websites in education and career help for game designers across the world. Their rankings took four categories into consideration while compiling the list: professor reviews, hands-on experience, employment rate, and tuition. There are more than 12,000 students enrolled at A&M-Commerce, which, based off admission requirements and their 45 percent acceptance rate, was ranked by Niche.com as the 17th most difficult Texas college to gain admission. Yearly average tuition is just under $8,500 and average yearly room and board is just above $8,500, making it the fourth-least expensive college to crack the Top 10. GameDesigning praised A&M-Commerce’s art department for their practical foundation across all disciplines of graphic design, as well as their specialized course material and experience opportunities in new media oversees the graphic design program, which offers both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in visual communication. Graduates of the program have gone on to win numerous national and international awards. Their work has been
featured in CMYK Magazine, the American Advertising Federation Awards, the Adobe Achievement Awards and New York City’s celebration of the best designers in advertising and branding, The One Show. A&M-Commerce’s visual communications major is an intensive, nationally-accredited five-year program and has three focuses: art direction, design, and new media. Each focus contains specific courses and opportunities designed to teach students the most prudent information to help them achieve their goals. An emphasis in art direction gives students the tools they need to function as part of a creative team specializing in marketing to target audiences, creating branding for clients, and creating single advertisements or entire campaigns in all forms of media. Graduates are proficient in directing work for artists across all mediums, as well as producing headlines, copy, layouts and storyboards. Students wanting to be a design professional follow visual communication’s design pathway, which focuses on applying conceptual skills by helping students develop and implement creative processes, visual problem solving, and conceptual thinking. Courses focus on many client-driven projects, like company visual branding and packaging, paper systems and much more. The focus in new media com-
Art Building on campus bines design proficiency and creative thinking with computer-based mediums and motion designs. Students learn everything they need to know to become inventive multimedia designers and stay ahead of the curve in their field, including motion graphics, modeling, animation and video, gaming concepts and interactive mobile and web applications. All visual communication classes above the sophomore level are held at A&M-Commerce’s state-of-the-art art facilities in downtown Dallas and introduce students to the design community
of the ninth-largest city in the United States. In order to be accepted into the junior-and-senior-level classes, students must submit their prior work for a portfolio review and have at least a 3.0 grade point average in core art classes. A&M-Commerce was also lauded for their career services, which include on-campus job interviews and interview training, on-and-off-campus internships, resume assistance, career and job search classes, interest inventory, and an extensive alumni network.
Alumni Center prepares for jam-packed homecoming week Excitement around the Texas A&M-Commerce campus is growing as students, faculty, staff and alumni alike prepare for homecoming week, which is choc-full of events from Oct. 21-27. Of the 25 events ranging from collegiate athletic competitions to dance club nights during homecoming week, six are hosted by the Department of Alumni Relations, which is based in the Alumni Center. These events include the Annual Alumni Golf Tournament, Alumni Open House, three alumni breakfasts and the Annual President Mayo Memorial Service. Registration for the 2018 edition of the annual Alumni Homecoming Golf Tournament begins at 8 am Oct. 26 at Webb Hill Country Club in Wolfe City, and tee-off is at 9 am. The $100 individual registration fee includes green and cart fees, range balls, two mulligans, breakfast, lunch and a drink. Participants may also choose to donate an additional $100 in sponsorship of a hole to have their name or business displayed on the course during the tournament. “The fees and donations from the golf tournament go to the Legacy Scholarship Fund, which offers scholarships to children and grandchildren of A&M-Commerce alumni,” Alumni Relations Membership and Communications Coordinator Rachel Mitchell said. Hosted at the Alumni Center from 8 am to noon on Oct. 27, Alumni Open House gives alumni a chance to register for events, meet faculty and other alumni, take photos with Lucky the Lion and the Lion Cheer and Dance teams, and more. “The purpose is to make the alumni center the main hub for meet-ups and such, we’ll have some food here from 8 to noon, along with information about all the weekend’s events,” Mitchell said. Alumni Relations will host three breakfasts for separate groups of prom-
inent Lion alumni: The Fifty-Year Club, Gold Blazer Alumni, and Distinguished Alumni. The events are designed to build camaraderie in the groups during the college academic year’s most festive time, homecoming. “Each of these events also has its own scholarship attached, so there is a Fifty-Year Club scholarship, a Gold Blazer scholarship, and a Distinguished Alumni scholarship,” Mitchell said. “The price of admission, along with generous additional donations by the alumni that attend these events, help fund these scholarships,” Mitchell said. The Fifty-Year Club Reunion Breakfast will open with a meet-and-greet session, followed by breakfast and an induction ceremony for the A&M-Commerce Class of 1968, and will close with a group photograph. “We invite back those who graduated in 1968 to be inducted into the Fifty-Year Club, and we invite all previous inductees to attend also,” Mitchell said. The Fifty-Year Club Reunion Breakfast is hosted in the Ambition room at the Rayburn Student Center and spans from 8 to 9:30 am on Oct. 27. The Gold Blazer Award is given annually to alumni for their service to the A&M-Commerce Alumni Association and the university altogether. Gold Blazer Award recipients are thought to embody the values of President Mayo. The Gold Blazer Alumni Breakfast will be hosted in the Pride room at Rayburn Student Center from 8:15 to 9:30 am Oct 27. A&M-Commerce’s website says that the Distinguished Alumni Award is presented to alumni for excellence in their profession, life’s work, or other worthy endeavor. All recipients must maintain a medium for service to A&M-Commerce, while furthering its interests and well-being, and possess a great appreciation for the culture of the university and all faculty, staff, students, and alumni.
Hosted in the Traditions room at the Rayburn Student Center from 8:15 to 9:30 am Oct. 27, the Homecoming Distinguished Alumni Breakfast offers the honorees an opportunity to mingle, dine, and reminisce about their days at A&M-Commerce. A&M-Commerce’s Annual President Mayo Memorial Service, first held in 1921, honors the fifth-oldest Texas state university’s founder and his efforts to follow his creed, “ceaseless industry, fearless investigation, unfettered thought, and unselfish service to others.” “Not only do we honor President Mayo, we also honor all the alumni that have passed within the last year,” Mitchell said.
The memorial service will take place at President Mayo’s grave from 10 to 11 am on Oct. 27. Alumni Relations will also be hosting their annual Alumni Tailgate in the tailgate area at Memorial Stadium from 1 to 3:30 pm Oct 27. Alumni Association members are welcome to dig in to the food provided at the tent, and anyone can come by and socialize with alumni or meet the Alumni Relations staff. A&M-Commerce football’s homecoming game against West Texas A&M University at 4 pm Oct. 27 marks the culmination of homecoming week. Students, staff, faculty, and alumni will pack Memorial Stadium in hopes that the Lions earn their sixth win of the season.
The Alumni Center will host various activites during homecoming.
Advancement in Career Development by Isaiah Listenbee
A&M Commerce student and alumni networking with different companies seeking internships and employment at the Career Fair Oct.11.
Career Day provides students opportunity to a5end job-related ac;vi;es Many things are developing at A&M Commerce, here is an ongoing development wort keeping an eyes on. The Office of Career Development had their first Career Day on Oct 11. The event allowed for a wide variety of trademark professionals to direct their time and energy into assisting students with their career goals. “We made revisions to the program in order to create hands-on relationships between the student body and the campus career coaches,” Cindy Rios, marketing graduate assistant, said. The department re-developed the program in order to meet the students at their point of need, ensuring post-graduation job opportunities and internships. Career day included education sessions, resume workshops, job fairs, and dress to impress seminars. “ This fresh idea of a career day was a great way to represent the department as an all inclusive program seeking for students to obtain those job opportunities that are readily accessible to them,” Rios said. Throughout the day student had the opportunity to meet business professionals to seek internship and full time job positions. “The career fair offered a outlet for students to develop tangible skills that will benefit them on and off campus,” Lacy Henderson Director of Career Development said. Resume workshops were added to the program to strategically assist with individualising each resume based on students anticipated occupations. What originally was the annual career fair brought about this seperate idea of a career day. “Career day is a day set aside to provide an array of resources that pertain specifically to our students future. The purpose of the career day is to encourage students to be prepared for the work force regardless of their age or classification,” Rios said. Representatives from various companies got the opportunity come inside of the classroom and speak on their previous experiences and what the real world of employment consist of. Career day brought awareness to professionalism and the role that it plays in the average college career.
The East Texan EXTRA is published as part of the Texas A&M University-Commerce student publica@ons. Content and design of the EXTRA is the responsibility of journalism and mass media students in the MMJ214 Basic Repor@ng class. Staff contributors: John Parsons, Kylah Roach, Jordan Ader, Andrea Aranda, Janae Blocker, Phillip Boulware, Jennifer Bussey, Mary Chavez, Drumel Cyrus, Cydnee Drake, Bailea Elam, Arrion Ellis, Jazzlyn Enbysk, Lauryn Harris, Lorenzo Harris, Ian Lucas, Charla Nalls, Brianna PaW, Courtney Reed, Olivia Warren, Antonia Williams. Faculty Adviser: Fred Stewart
SGA senator urges fellow students to get out and vote By Brianna Patt
Opinion
To raise student awareness of what happens in local mid-term elections and to get more students registered, the Student Government Association and L.E.A.D. are hosting a voter registration event in the Rayburn Student Center Atrium. This event will take place Oct. 2 and Oct. 4 and will feature sample ballots and information about the voting process and options available. “There’s two ends of the spectrum,” Grace Slayter, a senator of the Student Government Association said. “There’s some students that are into it (politics) and some that aren’t into it (politics) at all because they feel like it’s safe that way.” This event will include a table with deputy voter registers, who will help students vote, along with a computer set up so students who are unsure of their registration status can determine if they are or not. It will also feature a sample voting booth with ballots set up with different topics like immigration or climate change, then go through with the sample voting process. There will be stands set up for the College Democrats and College Republicans, who will have information about the candidates of their parties running in local districts. Also included will be applications so that absentee voters are still able to vote in their home county. “I really wanted to get people to vote and registered to vote,” Slayter said. “Not to influence or sway them, but I want them to be registered and make a decision.” Slayter was inspired to be part of this event
after interning during the summer for Kendall Scott, a Texas senate candidate for District 2. She was excited about him as a candidate and felt that the person he was going against had a poor impact on this school, as well as the state. She felt the topic of politics was something that college students tend to avoid because of how polarized things have been since the presidential election. To her, this is an important time to get involved in elections and politics. “I think it’s definitely something that people tend to avoid,” she said. “But I think it’s very important to just make people aware.” Slayter also wants students to know that registering in their home town does not mean they can vote in this county. To vote in Commerce, students must register again under their university address. If students would rather vote in their home town, then they can fill out the absentee application mentioned above. She believes that as college students, the vote in this county can make a substantial change in the students’ lives. For instance, according to Slayter, Commerce is considered more of a retirement community by those with power, and this results in few things for students. To Slayer, voting could change this. “If we want a say in what the government does,” she said, “with climate change, abortion, jobs, education, issues that impact us for much longer than they impact them (older white people who vote religiously), we have to vote now to make a difference.”
In today’s world - What is consent?
By Brianna Patt With the slew of sexual harassment claims that have hit every profession, the question of what exactly qualifies as consent has been raised, but not decided upon. So, what is a definition of consent that works? In July of this year, actor Henry Cavill made the statement that men will shy away from women in the wake of #Metoo. This statement shows the differing understandings of consent that men and women have. This is reflected in a survey done by Planned Parenthood, in which it was shown that while 27% of women believe that consent should be given during every step, 19% of men felt the same way. A much stronger disparity was shown when both men and women were asked if revealing clothes at a party meant the woman was “asking for it,” with 48% of women disagreeing and only 35% of men. So, where do these different ideas of what sort of sexual behavior come from? Well, as femi-nazi as this may sound, that is due to the patriarchy. In Spike Lee’s Netflix series, She’s Gotta Have it, the main character buys a little black dress to boost her mood and it ends up
doing something else entirely. All three of the men she dates react either as if the dress is too tight and short for her to be seen by other men in it, or as if she is something instead of someone, the reaction of the patriarchy. Men and women haven’t been typically taught about consent in the same way. As a woman, I can certainly attest to being taught that I can just avoid sexual assault and harassment by not wearing anything tight or short, not leaving my drink alone, not being alone with a man, not being alone at night, not flirting or kissing a guy and then suddenly stopping; the list is endless. But from what I’ve seen, men aren’t taught that these are worries they should share and are allowed the privilege and burden of being considered “strong”. The privilege being they don’t (from what I know) don’t have to worry everyday about something as small as their outfit being blamed for their rape or sexual harassment. The burden obviously being that when a man says he’s been raped or assaulted it’s been taken as a joke, or the guy is considered weak. In my opinion, the best way to rectify this is to teach men and women the same rules and regulations about sexual encounters.
Growth in media and communication fields expected to continue thru 2026 Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook 2018
As uncomfortable as it may seem, the option offered up by a Vice news video entitled “Consent,” seems to be to discuss with your partner what there okay with and what’s out of bounds. Just like anything else in life, communication is vital. Man or woman, your body is your own and you shouldn’t modify your behavior to suit your partner when you want to say no. It doesn’t matter how PC it may seem to have affirmative consent, its clearly needed. Sexual assault and harassment don’t have to be as common if both sides agree to where that line is, and if some men stop thinking it’s a personal attack. Consent and changing the way men and women
Employment of media and communication occupation is projected to grown six percent from 2016 to 2026, about as fast as the average for all occupations which will result in about 43,200 new jobs. Demand for media and communication occupations is expected to arise from the need to create, edit translate, and disseminate information through a variety of different platforms. The media annual wage for media and communication occupations was $56,340 in
see it isn’t just about gender, it’s about giving both sides the power to say what’s okay and what isn’t. References McNamara, Brittney. “A Survey Looked at How Well People Understand Consent, and the Answers Are Shocking.” Teen Vogue, TeenVogue.com, 25 May 2017, www.teenvogue.com/story/consent-planned-parenthood-survey. Sharf, Zack. “Henry Cavill Worries #MeToo Is Preventing Men from Wooing Women Out of Fear of Being Called a ‘Rapist’.” IndieWire, 13 July 2018, www. indiewire.com/2018/07/henry-cavill-metoo-interview-men-rapist-women-1201983359/. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DhFyGz8wQaY https://decider.com/2017/11/25/shes-gotta-have-it-recap-episode-3/
May 207, which was higher than the median annual wage for all occupations of $37,650. The occupations listed by the Bureau in this outlook include announcers, broadcast and sound engineering technicians, editors, film and video editors and camera operators, interpreters and translators, photographers, public relations specialists, reporters, correspondents, and broadcast news analysts, technical writes, writers and authors.
Financial support for math students By Andrea Aranda The math department offers five types of financial support for graduate students, graduate assistantship, math scholarship, university scholarship, rollover scholarship, and supplemental funding. Graduate assistantship is offered to qualified students who will take two graduate classes and work 20 hours a week. “The work can be tutoring, paper grading, supplemental instruction, or teaching,” Dr. Tingxiu Wang, head of the mathematics department, said.
Graduate students with no experience are assign to do paper grading and tutor students. Those with experience will work with a professor and help them explain some concepts to students. Once the student feels comfortable and feel ready, they may be given a class to teach. The math department offers math scholarship and students can apply through MyLeo. They need to apply every year in the beginning of January to March. The award is announced in April or in May and can be used for next academic year.
Students can apply for scholarships from other university resources and apply for scholarships the university offers. Graduate school offers the Rollover scholarship to undergraduate students who continue to graduate school immediately after graduating.
tal funding, provided by the graduate school. There is no application required.
rather than having to get loans out from the university.
“If they are qualified for the graduate assistantship, then we will also help them get the supplemental funding,” Wang said.
Students applying for any of the financial support, must be math majors. No minor students will be accepted.
“Application is not required as long as they go to graduate school directly and can get the scholarship,” Wang said.
Financial support is offered to seven students. As any regular scholarship, students must meet the requirement of 2.75 GPA and take the GIE (General Insurance Essentials).
Graduate students who receive the graduate assistantship are recommended for the supplemen-
Financial support is recommended for GA students because it allows them to support themself
Financial support allows graduate students to support themselves rather than pay tuition. The amount a graduate student can get is about $12,000 per year plus tuition remission. Some students can get $14,000 with the financial support.
Pledge Drives helps keep campus radio station funded By Andrea Aranda
A&M-Commerce radio station KETR had their Fall 2018 Pledge Drive Oct. 1-8. KETR, founded in 1975, is a public radio station that receives some support from the university and rely on donor contributions. The pledge drive is use to raise money for the expenses of the station. It is held twice a year during the fall and spring. The goal for the drive is based on what is necessary to stay on the budget.
“How do you raise the money? The way we do that is to take some time form the hourly clocks and devote that time called fundraising brakes,” Mark Haslett, news director for KETR, said. During that time, they explain what they are. “KETR is a listeners supported radio station. We rely on you to provide the resources that we use to bring you these news,” Haslett said.
KETR news director Mark Haslett helps keep the A&M-Commerce campus and surrounding communities informed and up-to-date on
At the time of the drive, the station had some guest joining them for a while, including the president of the university and the mayor of Commerce There are two ways that people can contribute. They can contribute online at the KETR website, www.ketr.org, or they can call the station and provide their bank account and credit information. The most contributions KETR recieve, come from online donations.
events, activities, news and breaking stories daily on the National Public Radio station located in Binnion Hall on campus. Photo by Andrea Aranda
Radio & Television’s Role at A&M Commerce By Lorenzo Harris
The Radio & Television program is becoming a growing field as it’s a prominent medium in mass media today. The program at A&M Commerce prepares students in the field for different jobs such as broadcast stations, cable –TV, production houses and others. Students learn different skills like lighting, camera operation, and technical directing. The RTV program has had many programs over time such as Studio122, Speak Out, and Talk of the Town. T he RTV Program is housed in the Performance Arts Center which as a radio station and TV studio to help evolve students learning experience with hands on learning. The RTV program participates in many things across Commerce campus for instance the recording of sporting events, Radio KETR and Lions after Dark, and Club activities that hosted over the year. Most recently the RTV film crew will be participating in the 48-Hour Film Festival on November 2 through the 4 where a group will be given a list of instructions and have to create a and submit it in 48 hours. Courtney Reed is a part of the RTV program because she’s always had a fascination with working on TV shows and films. “I’ve always enjoyed writing and finding an effective outlet for my imagination but always found myself frustrated because I could never find the words to accurately portray what I saw in my head.”, Reed stated. Reed has always wanted to help other people bring their ideas to life in a way that they couldn’t. “The RTV department and the theatre department don’t really have any issues or challenges we face while being in the same building.” Reed states. “We interact more with the people in the journalism department than the theatre department. Occasionally, we get together to work on TV shows/films if we need actors/actresses but other than that, RTV tries it’s best to stay in its little corner in the back of the building. Only thing we struggle with is noise. Both departments are rather loud when we get excited about something.” Competition’s that the program participates in involve Sports commentary and play by play, Sports Package KKOM and KETR, and Short Film, all of which have had finalists in. prominent names to come from the program include Jason Osei, BJ Laudermilk, Jared Taylor, and Samantha Tolon. The RTV program is important to A&M Commerce as they are the backbone for broadcasting news across campus and develop of films and TV shows produced on Campus.
Photo courtesy of Courtney Reed
New Electrical Engineering Program
Commerce has a new Electrical engineering program and Craig Anderson and Charlie Didear are already channeling their inner engineer. TAMUC is trying something new this year and adding an electrical engineering program to under graduate studies. Students Craig Anderson and Charlie Didear say they get to be the “Guinea pigs” for the classes needed to take in order to graduate. “It has to be hard to be worthwhile” says Anderson. While the two students (Craig and Charlie) both agreed the classes can get pretty
rough, they say they “wouldn’t trade it for the world” The program is learning experience for everyone involved. Before the program can officially take off, it has to gain accreditation and the only way for that to happen is someone has to graduate. The students built Bluetooth operated cars for a project in which they say was “fun”. The new engineering program has brought people to this school like Craig Anderson and Charlie Didear who hope to find jobs after they’ve graduated. By: Janae Blocker
Fall Crossword Puzzle