The Appalachian
TheAppalachianOnline.com
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Vol. 86 No. 22
House Speaker visits Appalachian, talks higher ed by HANK SHELL News Editor
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Margaret Cozens I The Appalachian
(L) North Carolina House of Representatives Speaker Thom Tillis responds to questions during Monday evening’s town hall meeting. The Student Government Association arranged for a town meeting with Speaker Tillis for Boone residents and Appalachian students to vocalize questions and concerns regarding the local community and North Carolina. (R) Teaching fellows junior mathematics and secondary education major Megan M. Kasper and junior secondary education and english major Dana W. Warlick stand up and thank Speaker Tillis for his work toward the Teaching Fellows Program.
orth Carolina House Speaker Thom Tillis answered questions from members of Appalachian State University and the wider community during a town hall meeting Monday at the Broyhill Inn and Conference Center. The event, cosponsored by the Student Government Association (SGA) and the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce, addressed a range of issues – but students in attendance were most concerned with higher education. Tillis (R – Mecklenberg) is head of the majority that approved the current state budget, which resulted in huge losses in state appropriations for higher education. The cuts have been a point of contention on college campuses this year and have, lately, manifested themselves in proposed tuition rises. But Tillis said education was hit
hard because it was a proportionally larger part of the budget. “North Carolina provides more funding to its university system than just about any other state and it’s going to continue to,” Tillis said in an interview after the meeting. Tillis also said tuition hikes are one way for universities to cope with cuts, but institutions should be transparent in implementing them. “I think what the universities will need to do is say, ‘If we raise tuition, how will that money be used?’ and convince the student population that it may be an okay thing to do,” he said. Tillis added that universities must manage tuition rises to keep them from rising to a “crazy level.” Though much of the meeting focused on current problems, it also zeroed in on solutions. During the meeting, a group of Teaching Fellows stood and thanked Tillis for working to reinstate the program, which was scheduled to be “phased out” in the coming year, due to the budget
decrease. “We are aware of the steps you have taken to reinstate our program and we just want to thank you for the words of encouragement you’ve given,” said junior Dana Warlick, vice president of Appalachian’s Teaching Fellows Executive Council. SGA Director of Civic Engagement Cameron Carswell played a major role in organizing the event and said she was pleased with the results. “There was a good number of students and adults here,” she said. “Regardless of party, I think it was successful in accurately representing the people who are representing us and showing that the government is not really out to get us.” Tillis was also pleased with the meeting. “The thing that I’m most thrilled about is just how civil the discourse is,” he said. “This isn’t necessarily a venue where you’re trying to convince somebody to change their political ideology, but it’s to have a respectful exchange.”
Second annual Candlelight Vigil honors victims of LGBT bullying by EMMALEE ZUPO Lifestyles Reporter
Students gathered Monday night for the LGBT Center’s second annual Community Candlelight Vigil, which honors the memory of teens who’ve committed suicide as the result of LGBT-related bullying. This year’s vigil was held in honor of Jamey Rodemeyer, 14, of Williamsville, N.Y. and Jamie Hubley, 15, of Ottawa, Canada. Both of their deaths were attributed to bullying and harassment. “I think we’re here tonight because being part of our community can be difficult. It can be challenging. I think it’s important to acknowledge that,” speaker Nathan Belyeu said. Belyeu is a 2008 Appalachian alumnus and is currently senior education manager for the Trevor Project, a national organization that focuses on crisis intervention and suicide prevention services for LGBT youth. “Those of us that are part of that community can attest that there are also wonderful things about being a part of that community,” Belyeu said during his speech. “There’s a certain strength that we gain from our experience.” On display at the vigil was a list of seven gay teens who recently committed suicide: Justin Aaberg, Raymond Chase, Seth Walsh, Asher Brown, Billy Lucas, Tyler Clementi and Zach Harrington. None of them were older than 19. The vigil also hosted a variety of speakers, including Mayor Loretta Clawson, Dean of Students J.J. Brown, Rev. Shelley Wilson of Boone’s United Church of Christ and several others. Participating campus organizations included the Jewish student ministry Hillel and the all-female a capella group Ear Candy. International graduate student Swathi Priya presented a Hindu blessing and song. Those planning the vigil attempted to include different religious and ethnic traditions in the vigil, committee member William Post said. “I thought it showed that we want to reach out to everyone – no matter your religion, no matter your race – and that we’re always here to support all ethnicities and
Olivia Wilkes I The Appalachian
Students gather during the Community Candlelight Vigil Monday night on Sanford Mall. The vigil, sponsored by the LGBT Center, included guest speakers Mayor Loretta Clawson and Dean of Students J.J. Brown.
all religions,” said Post, a freshman psychology major. The vigil also attempted to provide real and personal portrayals of Rodemeyer and Hubley, event volunteer Jay Burnett said. “I think it was really important to know that these were people who lived and loved and had fun and friends, just like all of us,” said Burnett, who is a junior studio art major. “It’s really important for people to be able to put a certain humanity to these people so it’s not just ‘another
gay teen dead.’” Mark Rasdorf, the LGBT Center graduate assistant who created the event last year, ended the vigil with a quote from Leo Buscaglia, an author and professor from the University of Southern California: “Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment or the smallest act of caring, all of which have potential to turn a life around.”
App alum, Trevor Project staffer recalls journey to acceptance
Former student is leader of national non-profit for LGBT suicide prevention, started processs of coming out at ASU by MEGHAN FRICK Associate Editor, Editorial Content
Appalachian State University welcomed back one of its own Monday - a man who started one of the most important journeys of his life in Boone. Nathan Belyeu, a 2008 Appalachian alumnus, is the senior education manager at the Trevor Project, a national nonprofit focusing on crisis intervention and suicide prevention for LGBT youth. He was a keynote speaker at Monday’s Community Candlelight Vigil, which honored the lives of LGBT teens who fell victim to bullying and harassment. Belyeu said he started the process of coming out during his time at Appalachian. “I was never fully out at App, but I told good friends who have remained my good friends for all of these years now,” he said.
“I started to be comfortable with who I was here. I look at this as the place where it all began.” It wasn’t always easy, Belyeu said. He was often afraid and he didn’t initially find much acceptance among his family. Those experiences led him to a career he didn’t initially expect. He majored in communication disorders at Appalachian, but knew by the time he got to graduate school at UNC-Greensboro (UNCG) that he wanted to work with LGBT youth. “A lot of times, when a person comes out it changes everything about the way you view yourself, the way you view the world,” he said. “I was on one specific career path and then when I came out I was like, ‘Is that really what I want to do with my life?’” Belyeu started working as the coordinator for LGBT health at UNCG. As graduation drew nearer, he applied for a position with
the Trevor Project, a group that was quickly gaining national prominence. “I was shocked that I got it,” he said. “I was like, ‘Really? Really?’” Today, Belyeu manages speaking, outreach, curriculum and development for the nonprofit. During his visit to Appalachian Monday, he spoke with groups across campus including RAs, LGBT Center volunteers and faculty members - in addition to his talk at the vigil. Sophomore exercise science major Taylor Bailey attended both the LGBT Center lunch and the RA dinner and immediately noticed Belyeu’s presence. “His personality was one of those that would light up a room,” Bailey said. Ultimately, Belyeu hoped to leave Appalachian with the desire to become a community where everyone is accepted and
welcomed to grow. “Even if it’s something you don’t understand - someone being LGBT - or something you don’t agree with, understand that the person across from you is a person,” he said. “We want everyone, all students at Appalachian State, to feel supported, to feel that they’re encouraged to be who they really are and to be the best that they are. I think that’s a real foundation of this institution.” In keeping with the mission of the Trevor Project, Belyeu reminded students that sometimes, all it takes is being there to listen. “I look back on my own life and what helped see me through some really difficult times was those few people, those few friends,” he said. “Sometimes you think, what can one person really do? But one person can do everything. All it takes is one person to be there for you.”
AppalCART Silver Route may decrease frequent crowding on Pop 105 by HANK SHELL News Editor
by ABBI PITTMAN Intern News Reporter
A new AppalCART route could bring further support to students living along the Pop 105 route, university officials said Tuesday. The proposed Silver Route would run the Pop 105 Route in reverse. “The Silver Route has not really been announced,” Parking and Traffic Director Barry Sauls said. “It is in the planning stages and the details of it are really only known here on campus.” Buses are often filled completely before reaching stops beyond
University Highlands, leaving students like Student Body President Lauren Estes behind. “With the Silver Route running a reverse of the current Pop 105’s route, students who are on the campus side of Highlands, like myself this year, will not be passed by a bus that is already filled to capacity,” Estes said. “The student government is working on a piece of legislation in support of the addition of the Silver Route, and we are excited to see our student fees going to something that will so greatly benefit the student body.” Currently, there are three buses running the Pop 105 route, but Sauls said it’s not enough.
“Even with three buses running the route full-time, there are still capacity problems at certain times of the day,” Sauls said. “Running the route in reverse will also allow us to address an issue with the Studio West Apartments on Highway 105.” Sauls said students at Studio West would not have to cross 105 to reach the current bus stop, which is being temporarily addressed by a pedestrian walkway, installed by the N. C. Department of Transportation. Graduate student Crystal Ford lives at Studio West. “A lot of people don’t actually stop through the cross walk,” Ford said. “I’ve almost actually been hit
by someone, honestly, so it would be great if an AppalCART bus could actually run right by our drive instead of making us take the chance of going to the crosswalk with people being in a hurry, rushing around.” Ford, who is currently studying college student development, also said the new route would make her long bus trip to campus much shorter. Other changes to the current routes would include transferring the Caldwell Community College stop from Pop 105 to the Silver Route, further alleviating current overcrowding problems. “The increased capacity should definitely benefit the students
along the route,” he said. The route would still serve University Highlands. If approved, AppalCART will purchase a new bus for the route, bringing its total share of the cost to $145,000, though Sauls said the price could be lower or higher depending on the funding appropriations received from state and federal transit authorities. The route is currently in a planning stage, and is awaiting approval from the university Fee Committee as part of the Transportation Fee proposal. The Chancellor and the Board of Trustees must then approve it. If approved, the route will be operational in August 2012.