Volume 55, Issue 13

GEORGIA REGENTS UNIVERSITY

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VOLUME 55, ISSUE 13

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NEWS | PAGE 2

A new group consisting of students and faculty gather to read and edit as a community.

TUESDAY, MARCH 12, 2013

ARTS & LIFE | PAGE 6 Nude models provide traditional inspiration to art students.

SPORTS | PAGE 11

After a rough 2012 with the bats, Augusta State baseball team ramps up its offensive production.

Behind the fence at Happy Tails

JACQUELYN PABON I STAFF

Dogs living at Happy Tails Rescue in Appling, Ga., wait to be adopted, fostered or transferred by Thursday, March 14.

Rescue owner, Department of Agriculture and former volunteers speak out about one-year suspension of shelter license By JILLIAN HOBDAY news editor One Columbia County animal rescue will officially be shut down Thursday due to unsanitary conditions, improper waste control and lack of animal records. By this date, owner Baraba Gleittsman and her staff must find homes for dozens of homeless dogs. It was just a routine and unannounced inspection at the Happy Tails Rescue in Appling, Ga., Wednesday, July 11, but this one inspection sparked a barrage of re-inspections and violations issued to the rescue, ultimately culminating in a stop order, license suspenison and an $11,000 penalty.

According to the consent order signed by Gleittsman and Gary Black, the Georgia Department of Agriciculture Commissioner, 65 dogs were counted on the property July 11, all of which had no records on the premise at the time of the inspection. This lack of record keeping is defined as a violation of “humane care” by the D.O.A. Other violations issued that day included housekeeping, due to an accumulation of feces and urine; sanitation, because dog enclosures were wet and need of cleaning; classification, because dogs in the same cages were fighting; poor lighting; and no displayed license. Due to these findings a stop order was issued – Gleitsman could no longer take in animals but could only adopt and transfer them. Despite these finds by the D.O.A, Gleitts-

man said things like lighting and lack of license have been the same since inspector Tammie Coward first visited the property. “All I can say is many of the things that were written had already been in existence – the crates, the lighting, the situations,” Gleittsman said. “The reports that came out early made it sound like this was some horrible ‘doggie-dungeon.’ I promise you it’s not fancy. I’ve paid for all of this out of my own pocket, but everybody is safe and they are fully-vetted if they are old enough.” Department inspectors returned to the premises Thursday, July 12, and Friday, July 13, to explain the stop order and record keeping requirements. However, after numerous reinspections and despite the efforts of Gleittsman

and her staff, the conditions at Happy Tails did not comply with the requirements of the D.O.A. Mark Murrah, the manager of animal protection, said issuing violations is common and the department gives an organization time to correct the violations. He said some can be accomplished in one day, others in 30 days. “Many cases the violations are corrected and no further action is required,” he said. “On this particular occasion, we went back on multiple re-inspections within the last six months and some of the violations have been corrected. However, she has not been able to correct all of them. The stop-order has continued because the rescue organization is not in compliance yet... see RESCUE on PAGE 3

Rape at Paine College campus leads to arrest

AZZIZ: ‘We messed up’

By RON HICKERSON chief reporter

By TRAVIS HIGHFIELD editor-in-chief

Sheriff Richard Roundtree of the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office announced in a press conference Friday that police officers arrested an Augusta man on charges of rape, attempted rape, burglary and armed robbery. After police officers found evidence incriminating Jairus Dantzler, 18, he was arrested in connection to sexually assaulting a student at Paine College Thursday morning, March 7. According to the police report, police officers responded to a reported sexual assault at 1:30 a.m. Thursday morning, where they learned a student at Paine College had been assaulted in the first floor bathroom of the Graham Hall Dormitory building. Interviewing the victim, police officers were given a description that matched Dantzler. Along with the description, Roundtree said officers found an unattended book bag near the scene of the assault that held documents linking Dantzler to the incident. “Mr. Dantzler was located on 2800 block of Thomas Lane,” Roundtree said. “After a brief foot pursuit, he was taken into custody. Mr. Dantzler was originally charged with misdemeanor obstruction of a law enforcement officer. During the investigation, we were able to connect Mr. Dantzler to other incidents: one, another attempted sexual assault that occurred on Paine College campus in November of last year and a home invasion that occurred on the 1800 block of Belmont Avenue in February of this year.” He said police officers were able to connect Dantzler to these instances because of their similarities, as well as other physical evidence found at the scene. According to the police reports,

in the November incident, after a student lay down on her bed in her dorm room an attacker tried to get on top of her, but she was able to fight him off. The February incident was described in a similar manner with a man trying to sexually assault a woman while she was lying in bed. Both of these incidences also included robbery. Brandon Brown, the vice president of institutional advancement for Paine College, was also present at the press conference. He said college officials have been working together to increase security and promote the safety of its students since the November incident. Brown said the college’s Campus Safety office is currently creating a certified police force under the new leadership of Joe Nelson, who was hired Monday, March 4. “We are pleased that we have hired Chief Nelson who is in the implementation stages of certifying police officers to take over the day-to-day tasks of the Campus Safety office,” he said. He said the implementation process will begin by hiring four certified law enforcement officers who will be able to patrol the college campus. When asked how this recent attack will impact how the Department of Public Safety patrols of both of Georgia Regents University’s campuses, William McBride, the director of Public Safety and chief of campus police, said this event definitely reminds Public Safety officers to maintain vigilance. “All we can do is increase our patrols and make sure that we don’t have any unusual events,” McBride said. Though horrific, sexual assaults like the one at Paine College are not a rare occurrence in the United States, said Katie Koestner, the executive disee PAINE on PAGE 2

University president claims responsibility for view book Georgia Regents University President Ricardo Azziz took full responsibility for a view book that was recently distributed featuring altered photographs of Augusta State University athletic teams. Azziz said Wednesday in an email sent to faculty, staff and students that the photos were in no way meant to erase the achievements of the Augusta State athletic programs and reiterated that Georgia Regents is “proud of ASU’s and GHSU’s past accomplishments.” “The alteration not only represented an error in judgment, but demonstrated an insensitivity to our history, to GRU’s history, rooted as it is

GRAPHIC BY JILLIAN HOBDAY I STAFF

An altered photograph in the Georgia Regents University view book shows Augusta State University basketball players with jerseys lacking the university name.

in the long traditions and richness of our seminal universities, Augusta State University and Georgia Health Sciences University,” he said. News of the altered photographs was first reported by The Augusta Chronicle on its website Wednesday, Feb. 27. The senior vice president of communications and marketing, Da-

vid Brond, responded quickly with an email of his own Thursday, Feb. 28, calling the altered photos “an error in judgment” and saying the photos “do not reflect the views of University leadership, the Office of Communications & Marketing, or the Athletics

The gun control debate

see VIEW BOOK on PAGE 2

What does it mean? Who does it affect? And when? By JILLIAN HOBDAY news editor One month and two days after the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary, President Obama addressed the nation and put forward a policy proposal to reduce gun violence; this plan, which waits on the senate’s vote, is considered an infringement on the Second Amendment to some. The plan, named “Now is the Time,” addresses four major points: strengthening background checks, banning military-style assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, making schools safer and increasing access to mental health services. “We won’t be able to stop every violent act,” said Obama in defense of

gun control, “but if there is even one thing that we can do to prevent any of these events, we have a deep obligation, all of us, to try.” According to the plan, which can be found on the White House website, the president believes in the Second Amendment but also believes “common-sense” steps can and should be taken to prevent mass shootings like that of Sandy Hook in Newtown, Conn., and Aurora, Colo. The first step, the plan suggests, is to close background check loopholes. The plan proposes a required background check on all gun sales and to strengthen the system. For those against the gun plan like Amanda Bryant, the chair of the libertarian group in Augusta, Ga., and a political science major, stricter

background checks are focused on the wrong type of individual. “Those who go through the background checks are not the ones we need to worry about,” she said. “It’s the ones who obtain the guns illegally, the ones that do the backdoor sales.” At the Second Amendment Rally at the Augusta Commons last month, the general consensus on background checks was that they are a reasonable and legitimate part of owning a firearm. However, the most talked about issue at the rally and in the media is Obama’s second step: banning military-style assault weapons and highcapacity magazines. The shooters in Aurora and Newtown both used a type of semiautosee GUNS on PAGE 3

PAGE 2

TUESDAY, MARCH 12, 2013

NEWS www.asubellringer.com

Author talks Anne Boleyn, body image By RYAN MCCLAY staff writer

The voice of

Georgia Regents University EDITORIAL STAFF adviser MATTHEW BOSISIO mbosisio@gru.edu editor-in-chief TRAVIS HIGHFIELD thighfie@gru.edu copy editor LEIGH BEESON kbeeson1@gru.edu news editor JILLIAN HOBDAY jhobday2@gmail.com arts & life editor KRISTIN HAWKINS khutchi2@gru.edu sports editor JOHN-MICHAEL GARNER jgarner6@gru.edu chief reporter RON HICKERSON rhickers@gru.edu production manager KELSEY DONNELLY kelseydonne@gmail.com production assistant JACQUELYN PABON jpabon@gru.edu staff writers FARRELL BROWN KEREYIA BUTLER FATIMA FRASHER JAMIE LOWE RYAN MCLAY REBECCA PERBETSKY JACOB SCHARFF MEGAN STEWART ASHLEY TRAWICK JORDAN WILLIAMS

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When assessing women in modern American culture, Susan Bordo looks back to one of history’s most enigmatic women, Anne Boleyn. Author Susan Bordo was the keynote speaker at the 2013 Women’s Symposium “Our Bodies, Ourselves, Our Voices: Health and Human Rights in the 21st century.” She visited Georgia Regents University Saturday, March 2, to discuss her new book about Anne Boleyn, King Henry VIII’s second wife, and what modern women can learn from her. Bordo, who holds a doctorate in philosophy, is known for titles such as “Unbearable Weight: Feminism, Western Culture, and the Body” and “The Male Body: A New Look at Men in Public and in Private.” Referring to her new book, “The Creation of Anne Boleyn,” her speech at the symposium mainly addressed body image. Bordo’s interest in Boleyn began when she was contacted by a journalist about collaborating on a book about famous women who defied the standards of their time. “I read everything I could get my hands on,” she said. “The more I read, the more I realized how little solid historical knowledge there was of her and how much a creation of our imagination she is. She’s a little like Marilyn Monroe in that way.” After more research, Bordo decided to embark on her own project about the mythology of Anne Boleyn. “She is someone who, from what we’ve managed to put together, had a lot of savvy and intelligence, and she was schooled in courts of some extremely powerful women,” Bordo said. “They

CONTRIBUTED BY MARIE DREWS

said she wasn’t beautiful, but she managed to make others think she was.” During her speech, Bordo discussed the many myths surrounding Boleyn, from the color of her hair, her beauty mark and the possibility of her being born with a sixth finger. She said that she was startled to find that many of the historians she researched relied on highly-biased sources. They passed down many myths about Boleyn through actual history books, not just novels and movies and

portraits. Alongside Boleyn, Bordo also looks to modern celebrities as positive examples on the topic of body image. “How many actresses do you know that start out fuller-figured and gorgeous and in a matter of years are whittled away to nothing?” Bordo said. “Part of the reason I love (Queen) Latifah and also Christina Hendricks (of ‘Mad Men’) is because so far they haven’t done it.” If Boleyn were living today, her career might resemble that of actress Ashley Judd, Bordo said. Judd recently said she might run against Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky, in the 2014 midterm elections. “She would be someone possibly in politics, having come to it outside of politics,” Bordo said. Cheryl Hopson, an assistant professor of black literature, studied under Bordo at the University of Kentucky. She said she considers Bordo to be a sort of “mythbuster.” “I respect her work ethic,” she said. “I respect the precision of thought. Her knowledge base to me is just so expansive and the way she sort of pushes at ideas. She’s an iconoclast… I would recommend her work to students and academic alike.” For students interested in these works, an employee of the Georgia Regents bookstore said that copies of Bordo’s published works would be on sale for the next two to three weeks on campus. Though Bordo began her research for her newest book from a sea of influential women like Queen Latifah to Cleopatra, she found that modern women can still look up to in Anne Boleyn. “It’s really hard to find role models today, and they’re precious when you find them,” Bordo said.

rmclay@gru.edu

Students, faculty form collective writing community By JAMIE LOWE staff writer

Eat, think and be literary – that is exactly what they do. Students in the creative writing track wanted more bang for their buck in the fall semester of 2011. They wanted more hours with their professors and more hours of creative feedback from classmates. Students wanting more from the creative program approached Anna Harris, a lecturer in English studies at Georgia Regents University. Harris then founded the Non-required Readers’ Meetings. The meetings occur twice monthly at the Pizza Joint downtown and are a chance for students and faculty come together to workshop, or spend time reading and reviewing, student writing outside of the classroom. “We ripped the name off of the ‘Anthology of Non-required Reading’ that’s published every year,” Harris said. “(The students) wanted another opportunity to get feedback from other professors and students who weren’t in the same class.” The professors aren’t the only

ones who like getting to know everyone a little better. Erin Armstrong, a senior creative writing major, shed some light on the students’ love for the meetings. “We get together and eat and read work-in-progress writing,” Armstrong said. “(My favorite part) is being able to get together and have a beer with my professors while we talk about creative writing.” The Non-required Readers’ Meetings consist of students bringing multiple printed copies of their work and everyone reading the piece. Each person gives feedback on the work, including the professors present. Everyone eats pizza and chats idly about subject matter from inside and outside of the classroom. “Besides reading the students’ writing we get to learn who’s making their own films, what they’re doing out of classes, who’s in a band, who’s friends with whom,” Harris said. “It’s all very informal.” There are two ways to submit work to the meetings for work-shopping. Students can print out copies of their work and distribute them to the group members at the Pizza Joint for

reading. There is also an opportunity to e-mail the submission, which will then be posted to the group’s Facebook page for everyone to read and prepare comments about before the meetings. Jared Hegwood, an instructor of English at Georgia Regents, is one of the co-founders of the Non-required Readers’ Meetings. “Anna and I wanted something for the creative writing students to do outside of class,” Hegwood said. “We went to grad school together, and we both really liked the communal aspect of it. … The point was that we all trusted each other. That’s already happening here.” The Non-required Readers are allowed to hangs posters around campus, but they are not a chartered club and receive zero funds from Student Activities. The Non-required Readers’ Meetings are geared toward writers in the local, collegiate community. There have been alumni, high school students, students from other majors and students from other nearby universities that have attended the meetings in the past, Hegwood said. That being said, Harris and Hegwood

History club makes mark for future

jlowe12@gru.edu

Paine CONTINUED from PAGE 1

By MEGAN STEWART staff writer A non-chartered club focused on old ideas is starting the semester with new faces. Although the History Club has been an organization around campus for decades, it has been on hiatus until recently. In the last year and a half, the history department and its students have decided to bring it back to life, said Hubert van Tuyll, the department chair of history and the academic advisor of the History Club. The first meeting for the spring semester was held Thursday, Feb. 21, where the president of the club, Shelby Doyle, a sophomore majoring in biology, was acquainted with a room full of new members. The club does not usually keep the same members with the pass of each semester, said David Hopper, a junior majoring in history. “If people have friends, it’s obviously easier to stay there,” he said. “Since it is one, a commuter school and two, a college to begin with, people are going to come and go.” The meetings are generally informal and members meet in the conference room in the history department to discuss what they should do for that current semester as far as fundraisers, trips to historical sites and even running for office positions, Doyle said. “Typically what we do as a group is just go on many day field trips throughout the semester,” she said. “But we usually have just done one big trip each semester.” Since the club returned from hiatus with Doyle holding the president position, she and other club members have hosted different events to raise money for trips. “My first semester we did a Jeopardy night, and we raised money to go

aren’t ready to open the meetings up to the whole CSRA community just yet. “We’ve talked about it and asked students what they think,” Harris said. “It’s harder to talk about the writing in a bigger group and it’s hard to facilitate a bigger group. We’d have to change the format, which we’re hesitant to do because it would seem more structured.” Neither the students nor the professors are interested in losing the current format of the program. “I really enjoy being there to answer questions for them that we may not have had time to answer in class,” Hegwood said. “If there’s a question about general life, grad school or teaching that I can answer then I want to do that.” Both Harris and Hegwood stressed that the event is open to anyone who wants to join the writing community. “If you’re interested in getting better and finding a community that won’t lie to you about your writing, then come on down,” Hegwood said.

CONTRIBUTED BY HUBERT VAN TUYLL

Members of the History Club raised money through fundraisers to Charleston last year to visit Fort Sumter and other historic Charleston sites like the city market.

to Charleston,” Doyle said. “We went there for a day, and we went to see (Fort Sumter) and kind of hung around downtown. The trips are usually pretty inexpensive; I think I spent maybe $20 that day.” Throughout the first meeting, the club discussed topics such as visiting Savannah, Ga., to see Fort Pulaski; the Biltmore house in Ashville, N.C.; the Hemingway home in Key West, Fl.; and more. The club currently holds an inactive charter status through the Department of Student Life and Engagement. “We’ve been chartered in the past,” van Tuyll said. “In fact, a year ago some of our folks investigated rechartering but my feeling about being chartered is that it is really not something that I want to do… For a relatively small, relatively informal organization, the benefits don’t reach up to the level that is required.” One of the benefits gained from renewing the registration for a charter status is funding, he said. “If you’re not chartered, you can’t get any money from them and that makes sense,” van Tuyll said. “The

other thing is that they can, of course, reserve space for you around campus. To some extent, I can do that for this club myself, and that’s why, actually, you have a number of student clubs around campus that come out of their academic departments.” When asked about chartering, Hopper said he disliked the idea of rechartering the club. “If I were running things, it would stay (the same)…” Hopper said. “It’s a lot of paperwork for not a lot of assistance.” Although many of the students involved in the History Club are majoring in history, it is open to anyone at the university, van Tuyll said. And students already in the club agreed. “The good thing about History Club is it translates into a lot of different career fields and interests for other people,” Hopper said. “You could go education; you could go politics, economics. To know things about what happened in the past really helps you in the future.” Concluding its first meeting, the club agreed that meetings would be held every other Thursday at 2:30 p.m.

mstewar7@gru.edu

rector for Take Back the Night Foundation. “A college campus has six assaults, on average, every 21 hours,” she said. “And in the United States, there’s a sexual assault every three minutes.” But college officials are trying to fight against those statistics. Because Dantzler illegally entered the dormitory, bypassing its security system, Brown said, college officials are investigating all facets of the situation. “We are continuing throughout the investigative process to fully engage all aspects of this incident, and we will do our due diligence entirely as long as we work with the Sheriff’s Department and to make sure that this never happens again at Paine College,” he said.

rhickers@gru.edu

View book CONTINUED from PAGE 1

department.” The Augusta Chronicle reported around 5,000 view books were produced for the Office of Admissions, totaling $10,000 in all. Prior to Azziz’s email, Vice Provost Roman Cibirka issued a statement claiming full responsibility for the approval of the view books. Cibirka concluded his statement with a promise. “In future recruitment materials to actively recruit undergraduate students to the best of our ability, we will give more careful consideration to the rich and highly successful histories of ASU and GHSU as they are the foundation of our consolidated university,” he said. The view books are no longer being distributed as officials work to produce corrected version.

thighfie@gru.edu

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PAGE 3 www.asubellringer.com

Cancer and sherbert punch

One woman’s journey of finding hope after being diagnosed with breast cancer By NIKKI SKINNER correspondent Nov. 15, 2012, everything changed for Sarah Frazier. She went from being the nurse to the one being nursed. Sarah Frazier was diagnosed with breast cancer at the end of last year. Doctors went ahead and took the aggressive approach, scheduling her double mastectomy for Wednesday, Dec. 12. By the end of January, she had begun her first of six rounds of chemotherapy. There were many concerns for Sarah Frazier, especially because her case is unique. There are not many cases found in patients under the age of 40. “When I found out about it, my initial concern was not for my wife,” her husband Christian Frazier said. “I knew she was strong enough to get through this. My concern was for my children and how they were going to comprehend all of this.” Their children’s response was just one of the many concerns looming in this family. One of their biggest concerns was how they were going to manage financially, they both said. For Sarah and Christian Frazier, it was scary to think about being out of work for 4 to 6 weeks. “I knew it was going to be a fi-

nancial avalanche on the family,” Christian Frazier said. Even with her insurance, it didn’t cover all of the costs. There are still the out-of-pocket co-pays, prescriptions and chemotherapy treatments, she said. With hospitalization fees and numerous doctor visits weekly, things started to add up, she said. The stress of cancer and financial concerns has been overwhelming, but her children and the support of others keep her going, she said. Sarah Frazier found that blogging was a great way to deal with everything she was feeling, so she started a blog entitled “Sherbert Punch.” One day, she was thinking about all the things that made her happy; sherbet punch is something that always made her smile, she said. “In the beginning, it started out as a way to let a lot of people know what was going on without having to make numerous phone calls,” she said. “Then almost immediately I realized it was a good way to get things out that I had bottled up inside.” It has all been a struggle, and the Fraziers were not sure where they were going to get the money. That’s when a group of her friends stepped in wanting to help. It was their way of being there for her like she had been for them so many times before, Christian Frazier said. And so they

By ASHLEY TRAWICK staff writer

CONTRIBUTED BY NIKKI SKINNER

Sarah Frazier, recently diagnosed with breast cancer in November, prepares cupcakes.

decided to put together a fundraiser walk in her honor called the Sherbert Punch Cancer Fight. “They wanted to do something symbolic for her, as well as help her financially,” Christian Frazier said. “From there it has morphed into a statement of empowerment.” The walk will take place Saturday, April 20, at Brookfield Park off Riverwatch Parkway. The walk will start at 8 a.m. There will also be a silent auction the same day. All proceeds will go to Sarah Frazier and her family. “Sarah’s job is to care for others selflessly,” said Shannon King, a friend of the family. “Now that she

is faced with this battle, we want to support her. We want help and make sure her family receives the financial support they need because she is our family regardless of blood. She is a part of our community, and it is important to support those around us.” The walk is not the only thing they are doing to raise money. Her friends and family have also made bumper stickers and are in the process of putting together other events for the rest of the year. To find out more about the walk and other upcoming events, visit the Sherbert Punch Cancer Fight Facebook page.

nskinner@gru.edu

Rescue CONTINUED from PAGE 1

We didn’t revoke the license outright – and that was an option.” Murrah went on to say that there were sanitary issues, structural strength issues with the crates and other problems that did not promote the well-being and overall health of the animals there, although none of the animals appeared to be in any “immediate danger.” “All we can really do is make sure that organizations licensed with the Department of Agriculture are adhering to the Animal Protection Act required by law,” he said. “She appeared to be attempting to take care of all the animals but not meeting all the requirements.” Apparently, these requirements and issues have been going on for a while. Shannon Grace, the former foster coordinator and vice president of the Happy Tails Board of Directors, said missing records were common and so were filthy conditions. However, the most important aspect of any rescue is vet care, in which the animals at Happy Tails were apparently lacking, she said. “(Barbara) would tell me the dogs were fully-vetted and spayed,” Grace said. “I found out they weren’t. So here I had a dog that we could have potentially adopted out with no records. Every dog I pulled off her property I had fecal exams done on. One-hundred percent came up with multiple internal parasites, some of them contagious.” Before ultimately resigning from the rescue, Grace attempted to get things under control, if not for the organization itself then for the animals. “This was not a rescue at that time if you treat animals like that and that was my concern - the animals,” she said. “I failed and I wasn’t the only one that was trying. The reason the board failed is because there are no by-laws. We were a bunch of

JACQUELYN PABON I STAFF

Happy Tails Rescue in Appling, Ga., currently houses 38 dogs in need of permanent homes. The organization’s license is being revoked by the Department of Agriculture due to unsanitary conditions, lack of record-keeping and other violations.

puppets. We had no power to make a change; everything is in Barbara’s name. So what’s the point in trying to change things if she continues to do things the way she wants to?” In a letter to the D.O.A., Grace attached a copy of an e-mail she sent to the Board of Directors in regards to a failed internal inspection as foster coordinator. In the e-mail, Grace described the conditions of three dogs at the rescue - one had a ripped ear and bite wounds, one recently spayed female had busted stitches and a third had deep wounds. “These three examples show you problems caused by overcrowding and lack of proper vet care,” Grace said to the board in the e-mail. “We would not tolerate this from any other foster home, why should this be allowed time and again at Barbara’s? And Happy Tails PAYS her monthy for this type of care?!” This e-mail was addressed to the board Wednesday, October 12, 2011.

Grace finalized the e-mail with a motion to cease all intake of animals and require Gleittsman to report injured animals to the board. However, after Gleittsman refused to follow policies agreed upon by the board, Grace resigned. Grace said Happy Tails is more about the quantity and not the quality. From 2008 through 2011, Happy Tails took 961 of the 1,389 animals released to rescue groups by Columbia County Animal Services. For this number, Gleittsman and Happy Tails supporters are both proud and upset by the current situation. “It’s just not fair,” Gleittsman said. “Nobody can argue with those stats. We pulled almost a thousand animals. Who’s doing the work? We are. Our goal is to be successful and save them all. There is nothing for us to be ashamed of and no other rescue group has done what we have done and been as effective, as you can see with those stats.”

Guns

CONTINUED from PAGE 1

matic rifle. The plan proposes not only to ban those certain types of weapons but to also limit ammunition magazines to 10 rounds. Both prongs were in place for 10 years under the 1994 Federal Assault Weapon Act. Michael McAdams, a sophomore history major who attended the rally with a Yugoslavian SKS rifle (similar to the AK-47) hanging over his shoulder, said the last time America tried to ban militarystyle weapons and high-capacity magazines under the Clinton administration, it didn’t work. “Statistically, these types of weapons are not the cause,” he said. “We can’t put a finger on what is, but we know what’s not. What they are proposing, and I’m not one to say that it’s ridiculous but many people here will, is not necessary.” Bryant said limiting guns to 10 rounds of ammo goes against the Second Amendment. “The main reason for it was to protect ourselves against a government under tyranny,” she said. “We can’t do that if we are only allowed 10 rounds of ammo... It doesn’t matter what the capacity of your magazine is. It takes two seconds to change a magazine and still continue to fire. Limiting our magazine capacity is not going to change a whole lot.” The third step of the plan is to make schools safer by placing up to 1,000 new school resource officers, or specially trained police officers, in schools. According to the plan, their presence will deter crime on schools. Lastly, the plan will improve mental health services by making sure individuals get treatment for mental health issues. This

Strategic committee works on a unified plan for GRU

JACQUELYN PABON I STAFF

A patron strapped with a rifle at the Second Amendment Rally Saturday, Feb. 9, listens to several speakers.

step will not only provide programs for teachers to recognize those who need help but also guarantee insurance coverage of such treatments. Those against the plan have little to say about the specifics like mental health and school safety but more about the general feeling of infringement. Individuals like Brad Owens, a speaker at the Second Amendment Rally, said making more laws is not the answer. “How many of you believe that law-abiding citizens are the ones going into these places and committing murder?” Owens asked at the rally. “Murder is against the law, isn’t it? Carrying firearms on schools is against the law, isn’t it? Convicted felons owning firearms is against the law, isn’t it? People with mental defects owning guns is against the law, isn’t it? Well, I just named a bunch

Happy Tails has done their best, Gleittsman said. Due to the stress of the situation, she cannot speculate whether she will reapply for her license in one year. However, she said all she can hope for is that the D.O.A. will change their focus and work with rescue groups to keep up with standards and regulations. She maintained that despite the numerous records of violations, the animals have been treated humanely. “Do you see one animal on this property that looks poorly cared for?” she said. “You know, they’re dirty because they are outside and it has been raining. Every one of these animals are fully-vetted and wellloved. I think this is unjust.” Any animal not fostered or adopted by Thursday will be transferred to other rescue groups. No animal will be euthanized. Gleittsman will still be able to run her kennel, Whisker’s Resort.

jhobday2@gmail.com

of laws that were broken, didn’t I? So how many people here believe another law is going to solve the problem? It’s never gonna solve the problem.” So if guns aren’t the problem and more laws won’t solve the unknown problem, then what will? Kim Davies, the department chair of the Department of Sociology, Criminal Justice and Social Work, said the first step to finding the answer is research. “There is data out there,” she said. “We just need to get the funding to access that data, collect more data, and then take a real look at what the data suggests. We need to make decisions based on real science, not ‘I’m horrified. You have to take guns away.’ Or ‘I’m horrified, you can’t take my Second Amendment rights away.’ We can’t decide on emotions; we have to be scientific about it.” And being scientific is one aspect of the plan. Obama proposed to end the freeze on gun violence research. Congress has barred the Centers for Disease Control to use government funds for research, what they consider “advocate or promote gun control.” Those being affected by the proposed gun plan are people like Buddy Lichty, the owner of Shooter’s Billiards Store & Gun Shop, who said Obama is the “greatest gun salesman.” For someone who constantly listens to the regards of gun enthusiasts, Lichty said a new law is not the answer. “It’s not going to do any good for the lawabiding citizens to propose what they’re planning,” he said. “Criminals don’t pay attention to laws to begin with so you’re forced to enforce what’s already on the books. Instead of the gun part of it, look at the mental health issues and other issues.”

jhobday2@gmail.com

When the merger went into full effect, both campuses had to come together to create one cohesive plan for one university. The Georgia Regents University Strategic Planning Work Team is a group of faculty members from the Summerville and Health Sciences campuses who, according to the team’s online portal, create a plan including priorities that dictate what is important to the institution and a set of goals to ensure that those priorities are met and maintained. The first question that faculty, staff and students may wonder is what exactly is strategic planning? “Strategic planning, if you really start it from scratch, takes about a year and a half to go through the entire process of creating it because you really start at a foundational level figuring out who you are and what you want to do and what your ideas are and what are your visions,” said Ray Whiting, the associate vice president for institutional effectiveness. “The strategic plan is that larger plan that you’ve identified that you want your institution as a whole to start taking steps and moving forward with.” Before the consolidation, both the former Augusta State and Georgia Health Sciences universities had strategic plans. When the consolidation took place, it was known immediately that a new strategic plan had to be developed. “We have to show we have a plan and that it’s in use,” he said. “ASU’s plan was Action for Excellence. It was created a year and a half before consolidation. GHSU’s was called 20/20. They had not quite completed their strategic plan. Because ASU and GHSU already had strategic plans, we have to be re-affirmed by Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) as a result of the consolidation. The consolidation action team, strategically called CAT, created the strategic planning team for GRU.” As a result of the work team not being large enough to put together the plan, a strategic planning council was also put together to relieve hassle and ensue ideas, Whiting said. “We had 12 people from the Health Sciences campus and 12 people from the Summerville campus,” he said. “Once we had our ideas laid out, we handed it to them. They reworked them and gave us ideas back and we finalized them. We used that council as a way of getting a bigger picture and made sure we weren’t missing anything.” Robert Bledsoe, an associate professor of German, said the plan is a design of what Georgia Regents should look like in five to ten years and to provide a distinguished appearance for entering students. “We want, on some level, to make this a better, more attractive university for people to come to,” Bledsoe said. “The system of Georgia has designated us a research institution, so now we need to start acting and behaving like one and trying to figure out how that’s going to take place. As you know, there isn’t money everywhere so we have to figure out where we’re going to set priorities.” Another major goal for both campuses in the plan is to get the health system and their education components really working together more efficiently, he said. “What we both want is to be a model for employers who recognizes and actually utilizes people for diverse talents and being aware of how to nurture those talents and make it a welcoming place for everyone,” he said. “We don’t know who we are yet, and we’ve got to figure it out but there are things that we want to emphasize.” Whiting added the work team wants this to be Georgia Regents University’s strategic plan, a plan that everyone feels like they had an opportunity to participate in. The outline for the plan is expected to be completed by Friday.

atrawick@gru.edu

PAGE 4

TUESDAY, MARCH 12, 2013

OPINIONS www.asubellringer.com

editorial Non-apologies and buck-passing It was a bizarre non-apology. In an email to faculty, staff and students, Ricardo Azziz claimed partial responsibility for the admissions view book featuring Augusta State University athletes minus the Augusta State moniker. But instead of apologizing to the university and the greater community, Azziz simply made note of the mistake with the bolded statement, “We messed up.” You don’t have to tell us you and your team made a mistake, Azziz. We’ve pointed that out since the beginning. What needs to be heard right now is this “isolated incident” was just that, and we need to hear you apologize for being insensitive to the history of one of the state’s oldest and most storied universities. Let’s face it, we couldn’t care less for the history of a university that is less than a year old, especially for one that has undergone a merger the way Augusta State and Georgia Health

WHAT DO YOU THINK about the view book debacle?

Was it justified? Was it blown out of proportion? Should the administration apologize? email The Bell Ringer at bellringerproduction@gmail.com Sciences University has. This process has been long and grueling, no doubt. But when the student body has put up with the smoke and mirrors for as long as we have, attempts to erase the history of our dedicated athletes constitute the final straw. But we’ve got another bone to pick with you, Azziz. In your letter, you discredited the role of the “media” with the statement, “the degree of editorial

editorial policy

irresponsibility exhibited by a few members of the media reduces the resulting discussion about what is inarguably one of the paramount ventures for the future of our community and for Georgia to the lowest possible levels.” Clearly, you didn’t read our editorial in the Feb. 26 issue of The Bell Ringer, where we addressed the general misuse of the word “media.” If you did,

we’re sure you could have been a bit more specific about which members of the media you are referring to. You seem to have the wrong impression of what the role of “media” is. As a newspaper, we are happy to celebrate the successes of our community as they happen. We are equally happy to uncover the misdoings of the people we put in to public positions. We are protectors of the community, not inhibitors. We give a voice to the voiceless. We seek the truth and report it. While that may not be popular with you, to some, we are the white knights of the world; not much gets past us. So tell us, Azziz, what would have happened if no attention was paid to the misrepresentation of Augusta State’s past athletes? Would it have been a success on your part? You’re fighting something that is bigger than yourself right now.

CHECK OUT

Letters to the editor must be accompanied by the author’s email address. All columns and letters to the editor are the opinion of the author. The views expressed in the opinion section do not necessarily express those of The Bell Ringer, a designated public forum. Anything submitted to The Bell Ringer is open to be edited or rejected. However, The Bell Ringer staff gives all opinions a fair chance to be heard. All letters will be edited for grammar and style. If you would like to contribute a column or a letter to the editor, send an email to:

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Letter to the Editor A letter of resignation from the Student Government Association

Dear Editor,

With this letter, I resign from all Georgia Regents University Undergraduate Student Government Association activities. I feel that I have served the purpose that I was recruited to SGA for, but this service is useless in a broken organization. Since the beginning of the fall semester, I have come to realize that the undergraduate student body at Georgia Regents is not respected by some members of the administration, and the SGA is simply a tool at the disposal of administrators to either rubber stamp their initiatives or to be used as evidence that student representatives are unable to handle responsibilities. This has become too blatant for me to continue as a SGA senator. Additionally, I do not believe that the members of the Georgia Regents Undergraduate SGA have either the ability or capacity to change the course that the organization has been on for at least this academic year. I implore every member, executive officer and senator to resign as well. I hope that you all can recognize that this is the most responsible thing you could do as leaders and students at Georgia Regents. Doing the right thing is more valuable than any line on a resume, graduate school application, letter of recommendation or reference. In an attempt to persuade you all, I will discuss a few recent events surrounding the SGA, including the new constitution, training, the allocation of $5,000 to Student Activities, as well as the content of our meetings. The new constitution and by-laws awaiting approval by Dr. Kevin Frazier and a vote from the SGA are unacceptable and not a product of our organization. These two reasons are very much one and the same. The proposed constitution is unacceptable predominately because it was not written by SGA members and much of the content has been repeatedly argued against by the members of the Rules and Efficiency Committee. The drafts that were written by members of the SGA were repeatedly edited by the administration to remove items that were considered necessary, like SGA members having the ability to choose the SGA advisor. While members of the Rules and Efficiency Committee were initially informed that the constitutions of the Graduate and Undergraduate SGAs were not required to mirror each other, this quickly changed. These documents, which are essential to guiding SGA activities, have not been written by members and do not incorporate any substantial or substantive changes recommend

by the Rules and Efficiency Committee. The mandatory training that took place Feb. 1 is a clear example of the lack of respect on the part of the SGA advisors for more than one reason. First, the SGA executives and advisors should be aware, and may need to be reminded, that student senators are volunteers and receive no compensation for their time while the executive officers and advisors are compensated. Officers receive a stipend, and, considering they are assigned, advisors receive a paycheck. Second, we are not children. Student senators range in age, but every single member is of legal age to drive, vote and smoke while being solely and legally responsible for their actions. It is quite clear that this is not recognized when the advisors chose to use “team-building exercises” to share what they felt is unacceptable behavior or practices by the SGA. If they respected any of us, they would have spoken directly to the issues plus they would have shown that they value our time by ending the “training” at 4:45 p.m. at the twohour mark instead of deliberately dragging it out to 5:35 p.m. Furthermore, I have come to the conclusion that the advisors, past and present, have overstepped their role from advising to directing. It is vital that the SGA advisor be selected by the SGA. The reasons for this are provided on pages four to six of the ASU Chartering Handbook for Advisors and Student Leaders, a publication of the Office of Student Activities, as well as unambiguously stating, “The student organization should select the faculty or staff member” (5) and “The voluntary association between the advisor and the organization should continue as long as both parties believe the relationship is productive and mutually satisfactory” (5). The advisor(s) must also have the best interest of the entire student body in mind and be capable of removing themselves when there is a conflict of interest, real or perceived. It is difficult to express how disappointed I am with the SGA’s approval of Bill 0071213 that allocated $5,000 to Student Activities. Not only was the Senate disrespected by one of the advisors when there was a request to know how, when and where Student Activities’ budget had been spent by responding that it would not be provided because it should have

been asked for earlier, but I do not feel that any member of the administration that was there was honest with us. I want to make it very clear that I am not stating that either person lied, but I cannot accept their statements as honest. One reason for this is that the process was extremely rushed, and we were told that the need for the funds was just recognized and that it could, not would, have a negative effect on the travel of the student organizations that had applied. This leads me to believe that this is the product of incompetence, neglect or it was intentional. I am leaning towards intentional. This position is supported by the fact that 80 percent of Student Activities’ budget had been spent or allocated by December, and this was not brought to the SGA’s attention sooner. Senator Daniel Porter then raised the point that while looking through the minutes of previous years, he observed where reallocation of funds from the SGA to Student Activities for similar purposes occurred. It appeared that he raised this to show that it was within precedent to do so. This was denied by both members of the administration that were present. Senator Porter’s statement was substantiated by former SGA President, Vice President and Senator Ethan Holliman during a conversation this past week, Feb. 18 to Feb. 22. This was one of many opportunities that the SGA has been presented where we could have shown that we are responsible, deserve respect from administrators, can exercise prudence and will hold the administration accountable for its mistakes. Unfortunately, it seems that the SGA is easily deceived by the possibility of someone else’s mistakes being projected onto us. Somewhere following the first few SGA meetings of the 2012-2013 academic year, I began to consider resigning. It was clear that the SGA serves no real purpose, but there was the possibility that it could change. Obviously, that was a mistake. Because of this, in some strange way, it is not difficult for me to acknowledge that some members of the administration believe they have good reason to not respect the SGA based on the content and procedures of the meetings. Fall semester was consumed by a never ending discussion over T-shirts and nametags. How many weeks were we able to wear the nametags? This was accompanied by the desire from some to be recognized as mem-

“The correct action is to resign and encourage others to forgo the real or perceived benefits of bootlicking.”

bers of the SGA. It did not come across as the desire to be recognized so that students would be more aware of their representatives and how they could be utilized but more of recognition as prestige. I must acknowledge that there are a select few senators who have worked exceptionally hard with only the best intentions with their endeavors. The conduct of, and in, the meetings is deplorable as well. This is partly due to many senators joining during the semester and being unfamiliar with Robert’s Rules of Order. This is excusable, temporarily. Training should be held shortly, no more than a week, after induction so that meetings are more efficient; that is the point of using RRO. The real problem though is the fact that RRO are arbitrarily employed while an insignificant minority has a working knowledge of them. I guess the point of this is that if members of the SGA believe they deserve respect and to be taken seriously, they should at least be aware of the rules if they are going to try to pretend to play house. Over the past few years, I have grown to deeply care about Augusta State University, now Georgia Regents. The name has changed, but it is still very much the same institution. I look forward to considerable changes that will positively impact students, the school and the community. With this in mind, I truly hope that all members of the Undergraduate SGA resign from their post. What is currently in place is broken beyond repair. If a structure is non-functioning, a hazard and potentially interferes with progress in a community, the intelligent choice is to advocate for its destruction. It is my hope that the current structure can be replaced with a representative body that is accountable to students and elected in contested and competitive elections filled with talented, intelligent, driven candidates that possess the skills and abilities required to fulfill their duties. Lastly, please consider the points discussed. I do not expect a positive response; I can accept that. I do not expect this to have a positive effect. It would be impressive if someone had the courage to recognize they are enabling the maintenance of system that does not respect the most vital component through an organization that must be dissolved. The correct action is to resign and encourage others to forgo the real or perceived benefits of bootlicking.

Sincerely, Richard Ledbetter lledbetter@gru.edu

THE BELL RINGER

PAGE 5 www.asubellringer.com

Cooking, loving, living RON HICKERSON chief reporter rhickers@gru.edu

Everyone always tells my wife she’s lucky she married a chef. No one expresses how lucky she is more than my wife herself, because she does not enjoy cooking. While she says I make delicious food (I’m not talking Top Ramen here), what she said she enjoys most about my cooking is the pleasure I take from it. So once we moved into our new house, the kitchen became my domain. Now, I set everything up the way it should be, I look for the tools I need to create cuisine in our small kitchen, and I dream about new appliances and gadgets that would make my life as a cook so much easier. As for where my love for cooking started, I’d say that cooking is in my blood. After my dad died, I asked my mom how I’m like him. She said I mainly reminded her of him because he, too, loved to cook. You could always tell when Dad was in the kitchen, though it was a full-sensory experience. Sure the kitchen would smell like whatever he was making, but his cooking was also an assault on the ears. As a deaf man, my dad didn’t understand the need for a soft hand in the kitchen, so the house filled with the sounds of banging pots and pans and slamming cabinet doors. To see him flailing around in the kitchen was also pretty entertaining, though you dared not get too close. What I remember most about my dad is him making breakfast. Dad went into work pretty early weekday mornings, so my sister and I would not see him before going to school. But on days that we both had big tests,

my dad would have made giant breakfasts consisting of pancakes, toast, eggs and bacon, always with notes wishing us luck on our tests doodled on our napkins. But every Saturday morning Dad would involve me and my sister in the kitchen. He would wake us up and take us to the kitchen in order to help him make breakfast for the family. He would take out our blue, plastic step-stool that was tall enough to help us reach the stove, and we would help him by putting bread and frozen Eggo Waffles in the toaster oven, cracking eggs into mixing bowls, and scrambling and pouring the yellow liquid into the hot pan, swirling the spatula the pan around slowly so as to not get egg everywhere on the kitchen counters. It’s always been one of my favorite memories. Ever since middle school when I began cooking whole meals on my own, I spend a lot of my free time trying to perfect my craft in the kitchen, whether it be by searching online for a new recipe taking notes from my cooking Godfather, Alton Brown, or trying to solve the culinary puzzles with the contestants on shows like “Chopped” and “Iron Chef America.”And that drive has often taken my mind off of my school work and stress from my day at work, giving me a task to focus on and an excitement to see the faces of whoever I’ll be serving. The point of this column (if you’ve stayed with it so far) is that hobbies are important. It wasn’t until recently that I thought of my cooking as a hobby because I thought hobbies were required to be impractical. But the key is to find something that you enjoy doing in your spare time – something that you’re already decent at so you don’t have to go and take classes for your hobby, which can add stress instead of alleviating it. An added tip is to find a hobby that includes people and creates community because, for me, nothing is as peaceful as doing something I love with family.

you

do have an opinion on things at GRU? if so, email us at bellringerproduction@gmail.com

All writing requires skill “Writing is a talent I’m thankful to have and to share.” ASHLEY TRAWICK staff writer atrawick@gru.edu

Reporting news is what I do. Every time you open this newspaper and see my byline, that means you’re informed by something I wrote, and it is something I did right along with the help of the other staff members. Writing is a talent I’m thankful to have and to share. I try my best to give you sufficient coverage of events happening on and off campus. Objective journalism is something I can handle; it’s subjective journalism that I have a problem with. If you’ve read the paper before, or, if not, picking this one up for the first time (don’t admit this in public), you may have seen my columns featured on the opinion page or on the website. Honestly, I didn’t like my work. I even told the editors, it’s OK if they didn’t publish them because I disliked them that much. Out of all of the content I’ve had published, they were, by far, the hardest pieces to write. It’s not easy for me to come up with 600 words about a topic either a student or a member of the community may be interested in reading about. Of course, the opinion section is where we don’t care and write about whatever we want. That’s the good part. The bad part is actually coming up with a column that you, the reader, would enjoy. It’s like completing a project in a class and the professor says you have the freedom to do whatever you want. I, like most of you, have probably thought, “What the hell am I going to talk about?” Presentation day finally arrives and you’re scrambling with index cards and working on your precious ten-slide PowerPoint when you should already know what to do and what to say. It’s the same for me when it comes to writing subjectively.

A lot of people don’t know this, but I’m a writer for an entertainment blog. Well, I was. I still am, but I’m more of an assistant editor now. Thankfully, the owner of the blog is a good friend of mine, but the process of writing a blog post can be frustrating, and we butt heads all of the time. It still is frustrating at times because when a story in entertainment is breaking, I have the urge to post it at that moment but my brain completely shuts down and AP style immediately takes over. I’m thinking, “This numeral should be spelled out” or “The photo should be like this.” He has told me over and over that our blog is far from a newspaper. He’s been running the blog since August 2010, so obviously he has way more experience than I do. Six months in and I still get figuratively tongue-tied. I asked him last week why does he think I struggle with it so much. I mean, I’m a journalist, for God’s sake. It’s my job to know how to write make sure the story is accurate. Grammar and structure go right along with that. So why is it so hard for me to write one simple post on Lady Gaga and her new music video or something Beyoncé may have done in the last few days? I have no idea and neither does he. I also asked him for advice and he said, “Learn your voice. Your grammar is great, and you know what you want to write. It’s how you write it that’s the problem. Learn how to colorfully express yourself. And read. Read a lot.” I agree with him. Although textbooks have really sucked the fun out of reading for me through the years, I’m falling back in love with it again. As time goes on, I really hope to improve my subjective writing skills as well. I’m not sure how, but I know I will. I have to. Working for major news outlets such as The New Yorker or the Associated Press or even Elle Magazine has always been a dream of mine, and I’ll continue to work on it one word at a time.

Read up on your regulations “Not that I am an expert on how an airport should run, but I would just assume that it would work like any other customer-service oriented place of business.”

MEGAN STEWART staff writer mstewar7@gru.edu

There are two sides to flying. On one side, being above the clouds and the ability to quickly travel to another destination is quite nice and convenient. On the other side, dealing with the actual airport can cause a huge headache. Not that I am an expert on how an airport should run, but I would just assume that it would work like any other customer-service oriented place of business. Yes, I know that it is my own responsibility to go on the website and look at the different regulations before boarding a flight in order to make the process easier for not only myself but for the people following behind me in line, not to mention those working to move that line. However, for those who do not normally or have rarely ever flown, why do the people working at the airports make it a significant hassle to board? Let me begin with my recent trip this past Friday out of Augusta Regional Airport. I arrived at the airport, early of course, and begin trying to print my ticket. Being that this was my first trip for business, all I had was my itinerary, which was emailed to me a week ahead of time. While I am trying to figure out what number to put in for my ticket, there was only one man working the kiosk, just standing around not doing anything. I was literally the only person at the kiosk and I said, right next to him, that I didn’t know what number to put on the screen. He glances over, saying absolutely nothing. I look at him and I explain that I needed help and he just points at a number on my paper and then walks away to stand by another kiosk. Granted, I did feel dumb because I overlooked the number, but it’s the principle. I shrugged it off because it was only a twominute irritation, and I was still excited about getting in the air and looking out the window above Augusta, Ga., and at the clouds, especially since it was a gorgeous day.

However, before I could accomplish that, it was time for the bag check. I grab two bins and fill them with my laptop, shoes and other miscellaneous electronics; placed my backpack and carry-on onto the table; and started to walk through. I go through the metal detector and one of the women there tells me that she needs to look in my bag. I assumed that maybe I forgot to take something out, which I did. I had my perfume in there, which was more than the 3.4 oz. that you are allowed to have in a carry-on. Dumb mistake on my part, I know, but I simply forgot the rule and had to have to bottle thrown away. She reached into my side pocket and found my Jawbone Jambox speaker I forgot I even grabbed from the house. As soon as she took it out, she looked up in an annoyed manner and sarcastically said, “Cute.” Perhaps I was reading into her reaction too much, but her demeanor was such that I was just some young kid who was trying to get one over on her. I wasn’t in the least bit trying to hide something like a speaker. Finally, after all of the boarding, loading my luggage and flying to Atlanta, I got off the plane and awaited my next flight to Tampa, Fla. This time I was in a huge airport. I pulled my next ticket out and it did not have my gate number printed on it. I had to go find someone and ask them if they could help me. I found a lady and told her my flight destination. She told me she knew exactly where I had to go and continued with the gate number without even looking on a computer. I questioned her to make sure she was correct by asking, “The 5:30 one?” She told me there was no such flight. Needless to say, I was alone on this trip and was starting to get extremely frustrated. Another man walked up, luckily, looked at my ticket and started typing on the computer. He found my gate number and then the woman said, “Oh, you have a Delta flight,” and she was just assuming I was taking the Amtran plane out of Atlanta. Despite being annoyed with the woman, I was able to find my gate, board the plane and enjoy the sunset above the Georgia skies.

Big-box stores limit music FATIMA FRASHER staff writer ffrasher@aug.edu

It has always bothered me that music has always been one of the first things to be censored in America. I know movies are rated before they are shown to the world, but when it comes down to buying a copy of a movie in stores like Wal-Mart, it does not bother to display the uncensored version as hard as it displays censored music. In fact, Wal-Mart doesn’t even give its consumers the option to buy uncensored music. It’s more like the megastore puts a gun to your head and says, “This is what you have to buy. If you don’t like it, get out.” Well, I say screw that to Wal-Mart; I will go to Best Buy where the company respects me enough as a consumer to get exactly what I want to pay for whether it’s explicit or not. Trust me, I am not going hard on Wal-Mart because I see that they are probably just looking out for youth in America and the parents that do not shop with their children, but at least put the explicit CDs in a case where I can see them to make a purchase. With the government censoring music on the radio and television, it is already doing enough in my mind when it comes to limiting profanity and provocative behavior. I think parents of young children should closely monitor what their children are listening to and buying through reading labels. This prevents children

from bringing home different CDs they are to young to listen to. I have never seen a generation that could bring something different into their parents’ house and the parents not know. So now we as consumers have to live with the brunt of bad parenting because parents want to boycott different artists. OK, so what if there are a few bad words and naughty pictures, it’s nothing they haven’t seen or heard anyway. In one of my classes, we talked about how we as Americans have already become so desensitized by just playing video games or watching television, so why continue to affect my shopping at Wal-Mart due to parental negligence? Maybe I am just completely selfish and so intertwined in my own world that I am missing the greater picture. All I know is that music in all genres move people in different ways. I mean, people work out, entertain with or even sleep to certain tracks, whether it is on the radio, iPod, mp3 player, phone or CD player -which is now totally outdated thanks to our new technologies -- however, we still love music regardless of whatever we listen to it on. I’ve heard a lot of people say that some music or certain artists have embedded messages that rot our children to the core. I do not know how true that is, but I can tell you I don’t think I have ever been affected by some message hidden in my music. Then again, how would I know? I think I am perfectly fine listening to anything, whether it is rock, metal, R&B or country. It would be funny, though, if the music industry had a Pinky and the Brain plot to take over the world, one radio at a time.

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PAGE 6

TUESDAY, MARCH 12, 2013

ARTS & LIFE www.asubellringer.com

Nude models bare it all for artistry By SI-LONG CHEN webmaster

T

he art department strips away people’s preconceived notions about nude modeling. Tom Crowther, an instructor of art and humanities, said he believes that the human form is one of the most supreme challenges for an artist because of the anatomical proportions, bone structure and body movement. Crowther said Georgia Regents University has provided figuredrawing classes for a long time, before he was a student at Augusta State University. “The human body has been a thing of mystery and wonder and has been one of the most popping to the fact the Greeks and the Romans made their gods look like human beings,” said Alan MacTaggart, the chair of the art department. “Even in Christianity, gods look like human beings.” Compared to animals, humans are harder to draw because of their unique shapes and musculature, MacTaggart said. The purpose of nude models is to provide the students with the opportunity to understand the human anatomy so that the students become more proficient in drawing and painting of a live subject. The art department welcomes models of different races, body sizes and ages. The diversity in models challenges the students to observe carefully, MacTaggart said. Models can be people from both outside and inside the school. “First of all, we have models that are clothed because we are

KRISTIN HAWKINS | STAFF

Andrea Rivera, a sophomore art major, paints nude model Erica Ruggles in a fantasy setting as an assignment for an art class.

interested in the forms,” he said. “Sometimes we are interested in the patterns and wrinkles to draw just as much as we are with skin. And we have models that are nude. It is more important for us to see the musculature, the bone structure, and (to) understand the anatomy.” It is important to acknowledge that models are not objects, MacTaggart said. Students are not allowed to make comments on the models’ looks. For safety reasons, models are required to bring a robe and wear sandals to walk around to room to prevent any injury from de-

bris.

“We ask the models, because we are painting them, to be very still, which means they do not engage in conversations with students in class,” MacTaggart said. “But we want our models to be well treated, so we encourage them to let the instructor of that class know if they need to take a break.” Modeling is a job to be taken seriously, Crowther said. “I make sure all my models, first and foremost, are in a comfortable pose,” Crowther said. Crowther said he enjoys draw-

ing with the students as well. All the models have been very professional and pleasant to work with, he said. One of the challenges for the students, and even for the instructor, is to take something 3-dimensional and render it into something on canvas. Many people do not realize how difficult figure drawing can be, Crowther said. One of the concentrations in the art department is pre-medical illustration, which is a graduate program, MacTaggart said. The students that are in that track have to understand the anatomy of the

human body through many science courses. They have more of the mechanical understanding of the human anatomy and are able to translate their knowledge into their artwork. Some students had the opportunity to go to the Georgia Regents medical campus to draw cadavers. Working with cadavers gives students the chance to see the structure of the human body on a different level, Crowther said, and that way students get to see the muscle and bone structures in rawest form. He added that this is a way to show how the body works because the human form is such an important part of art, he said. “This is a tradition that goes back to the Greeks, although the Renaissance is where it was probably more prevalent,” Crowther said. “For artists these days it’s a rite of passage.” Nude modeling has been a constant in art throughout time, Crowther said. “I like seeing what people come up with different perception,” said Erica Ruggles, a sophomore public relations major who models for Georgia Regents and University of South Carolina Aiken. “It’s hard to tell what can be comfortable in the next half an hour,” she said. Ruggles said her modeling career started around May or June of last year, and it was definitely a challenge sit completely; however, being a model helped her to be more comfortable with her body. Modeling is not just about looking pretty, Ruggles said. “It is harder than it looks,” she said.

schen1@gru.edu

New burger joint opens on Broad Street By MEGAN STEWART staff writer

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new restaurant to the downtown Augusta, Ga., area is bringing localized farm fresh foods to the table. Sean Wight, the owner of Froghollow Tavern, renovated the old Merry’s Trash and Treasure warehouse on Broad Street, down the road from Froghollow, in order to create a new farm-fresh burger joint called Farmhaus Burger. When coming to a decision for the name, Wight said he wanted to keep it short and simple. “I wanted the farm to represent the

local aspect of what we’re doing, and I wanted the shorter name,” he said. “My wife is German, so I kind of came up with (the other half) that way.” The restaurant opened its doors for a soft opening at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 22, and soon discovered the anticipation from locals wanting to try it out, said Darby Carpenter, the general manager of Farmhaus. “It was really busy; it was not soft at all,” he said. “We had a line out the door. We opened Thursday night and Friday night for soft openings and then all day on Saturday, and from the time we opened the door to the time we closed, there was a line to the door.”

JORDAN WILLIAMS | STAFF

Patrons dig into roasted oysters at Roast on the River hosted by Savannah Riverkeeper in North Augusta, S.C.

Savannah River advocates raise funds and awareness through oyster roast

see FARMHAUS on PAGE 8

By JORDAN WILLIAMS staff writer

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MEGAN STEWART | STAFF

Farmhaus opened its doors Thursday, Feb. 22, to burger-loving customers with local farm-fresh goods.

espect, protect and improve. These are the three cornerstones for the Savannah Riverkeeper as they strive in their mission of preserving the Savannah River, said Executive Director Tonya Bonitatibus. The river guardians belong to a non-profit organization that took form in 2001, Bonitatibus said. It was founded by a group of concerned scientists and advocates who wanted to focus on the river and

make it better. The organization is responsible for 400 miles of river and 10,000 square miles of watershed, Bonitatibus said. Its duties are directed toward watching over the water quality of the Savannah River, and it accomplishes this through its three word mission statement. Respect is gained by educating and talking to the general public about the uses of the river, Bonitatbus said. “You drink it every single day, and it is the fourth most toxic river in the United States,” she said. They also protect by keeping track of everything that is dumped in the river and improve by cleaning

up all the trash, Bonitatibus said. “We clean up about six tons of trash using volunteers every single year,” she said. “Whether it is big things or little things such as getting communities together to do clean up in that area.” Events such as Roast on the River are coordinated in order to raise money and help finance the eco-friendly establishment, Bonitatibus said. The fundraiser was held at The River Place with a live auction, an oyster roast and the performing band Acosta. Some of the products sold in the auction included Riverkeeper see ROAST on PAGE 8

New business serves as soundboard for economy-boosting technology

By JAMIE LOWE staff writer

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eople in Augusta, Ga., are excited about thinking. The Clubhou.se opened in December 2012 on Broad Street in Augusta. It is a functional space that allows members of the community to come together and collaborate. The building space is backed by an LLC business and is backing a 501c(3) nonprofit organization, Smart Kids. It was started by founding members of the club at Augusta State University to provide free wireless internet to low-income neighborhoods. Eric Parker, the project manager of the LLC company behind the club

and a co-founder, spoke at length about the club’s purpose. “We function as a co-working space, a think tank and education center,” Parker said. “We pay for the space on an operational level. We use our membership due to pay for the space and the utilities.” Anyone can join the Clubhou.se. There are memberships open to the general public for $100 per month, with a military, senior and student discount of $50 per month. Besides managing the Smart Kids non-profit organization, the Clubhou.se members are also facilitating new technology businesses and project concepts. “We’re a technology incubator,” Parker said. “We want to explore technology ideas that could lead to businesses for Augusta. We want to

create jobs in the area because once people aren’t worried about how they’ll eat and how they’ll pay their bills then they can start thinking about art and culture..” Events that the Clubhou.se has hosted in the four months it has been open have included lectures, technology club meetings, technology classes and a range of other events that are open to members. There will be free events during First Friday, as well as sprinkled through the rest of the month, that are open to the public. There are also founding members that are interested in the marketing of the club ideas, like Grace Bellangia, a founding member of the Clubhou.se. “I come at it from a new marketing standpoint so I look at the creative side of it,” Bellangia said. “We

opened in December, but we have big plans for events in the future. There’s no hidden agenda – we want to bring the technology groups under one roof so that they can have a space and thrive.” Founding members, like John Stewart, attend classes and help with events that the Clubhou.se has hosted. “I was here for the construction,” Stewart said. “I’ve not been down here as much as I’d like but I have attended a few classes. It’s a great place to come to learn new skills.” Members’ dues go to pay for the operational costs of running the space as well as funding the nonprofit Smart Kids. Members also receive access to meetings of groups such as the Technology Association of Georgia and other big-name groups that

are interested in technology. “Smart Kids mission is to bring internet to struggling neighborhoods,” Stewart said. “ Me, Eric and (others) are on the board of directors and our mission is to facilitate education. The point is to help teachers who want to teach others.” Members hang out after the events, chatting and answering questions that anyone has. Even though it might seem like just a place to hangout, at first, but when you talk to the members their passion for technology education and expansion is clear. “It’s a little daunting sometimes,” Parker said. “It feels like we’re leading a movement rather than running a business.”

jlowe12@gru.edu

THE BELL RINGER

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Big change heads to small venue By MEGAN STEWART staff writer

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local music venue in Augusta, Ga., intends to bring bigger names into the downtown area for the spring. Sector 7G, a music venue on Ellis Street downtown, is starting to pick up in business after having a slow end to 2012. “The winter is always sort of a slowing time,” said Bryan Levy, the owner of Sector 7G. “You have football in the fall, so people are engaged with that, then basketball in the winter and if people travel throughout Christmas or whatnot.” Alongside the locals being sidetracked with other activities, one of the venue’s biggest promoters, Nick Mitcham, the owner of Jams Booking, was also on a hiatus through those times.

CONTRIBUTED BY NICK MITCHAM

Fans of the metal bands Acacia Strain and Job For a Cowboy flood Sector 7G, a long-standing music venue in Augusta, Ga., during a show in 2007.

Mitcham has been known to bring in some of the most well known titles to the Augusta area for Sector. “I’ve been doing shows since around 2005, while I was in high school,” Mitcham said. “I’ve kind of built an audience that I promote to; I’ve built a reputation that I stand behind – that I do book bands and they do show up and put on good shows.” However, due to an over-

worked budget, Mitcham decided it was time for a break. “When bands come here, they require a certain amount of money, obviously, and sometimes people just don’t show up, whether they just don’t like the band or something like that,” he said. “In that case, I have to pay out of my own pocket, and it got to where I got my student loan, when I was in school, and I actually used like half of one

said. “I turned the page and there was an article on kids at a burn camp. And it was that fast. I looked into the eyes of that child. I realized that this camp was the only place where they could experience a normal childhood, and I realized how courageous and

Center Wednesday, March 6, in conjunction with the Southeastern Firefighters Burn Foundation’s 25th anniversary. “For the last (25) years, we have been serving burn patients and their families,” said Bobbie Jo Gainey, the

of my loans to pay for a show that just did really bad. That’s when I was like, I just got to stop doing this many shows and taking this much risk.” After being away from booking for a few months, Mitcham said he slowly started to get back into the promoting gig and started trying to get big names into the area but this time with more hesitance. “I’ve been submitting a bunch of offers,” he said. “I’m not as risky as I once was because there was a time when I was doing five shows a month, and I think there was a week where I had an A Day To Remember studio release show and a We The Kings radio tour and those shows just did immaculate numbers, like 5(00) to 700 people.” With the help of Mitcham and a more promising spring and summer crowd, Levy see SECTOR on PAGE 8

Film celebrates burn survivors By REBECCA PERBETSKY staff writer

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t only takes one tragic event to completely change your outlook

on life. At least that is what Megan Smith-Harris found out while directing and producing her film about burn survivors, “Trial by Fire.” “When you’re in the hospital, you’re a victim, and when you leave, you’re a survivor,” Smith-Harris said. “You don’t want to be defined by that label for the rest of your life because that is only a small part of your identity and that is one of the messages in the film.” Smith-Harris decided on the film’s premise while sitting and waiting with her crew in an airport. “I was looking through ‘People’ magazine, and I said (to the crew), ‘Let’s do something light-hearted,’” she

“When you’re in the hospital, you’re a victim, and when you leave, you’re a survivor.” -Megan Smith-Harris

brave these children and all burn survivors are.” When she first began filming the movie she said she wanted to honor the burn survivors’ courage and strength. However, during the process of making the film it turned into a film about how seven people picked up the pieces of their lives after they fell apart. The film was shown at the Maxwell Performing Arts

director of development for the foundation. “We were founded by Dr. Joseph M. Still and a group of firefighters and volunteers who thought it was important to have the family members close by to help out with the patient healing process.” Gainey said the film is just one way that the foundation can bring awareness to the community about a journey that a burn survivor goes

through. “It is a great way to kick off our 25th year,” Gainey said. “I think people who come and see this are going to leave feeling inspired, and they won’t ever look at a burn survivor the same way because they will be able to see their journey and everything they’ve gone through.” The foundation also raises money by doing a number of different events throughout the year including an annual rodeo event. Firefighters are a big part of the burn foundation, Gainey said. They raise 25 percent of the foundation’s income. Along with the foundation events like “Trial by Fire” and help from firefighters, the foundation also has very generous corporate supporters. One hundred percent of the money raised goes straight to helping burn victims in recovery and their families, Gainey said.

rperbets@gmail.com

PRESS PLAY: What are GRU students listening to?

Paige Miller, business marketing

Kerry Moore, early childhood development education

Sydney Ewerth, art

Cory Williams, political science

Around Town Bar etiquette in three simple steps By JAMIE LOWE staff writer

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uring recent visits to a few of the local bars, I’ve decided youth in Augusta, Ga., need to be reminded that there is such a thing as bar etiquette. I’ve made up a short list of things that I’ve seen, or heard of, that really should not happen if you know your bar etiquette. Being courteous includes these few steps. Read them. Some of you may even need to read them a few times. First, be nice to bartenders - they handle your drinks and run your tab. It’s the most obvious advice but some people miss that when they’re rude and wonder why they don’t get drink specials. It’s just the truth. They want to service everyone as quickly as possible. After being nice to the bartenders, you should also consider being courteous to your fellow patrons. The first step in being a smart, courteous patron includes knowing what you want by the time the bartender asks you for your order. This rule is relatively simple but can be violated in a number of ways. The first violation is the “Bro Order.” This is what I like to call the behavior of one person ordering drinks for all of his friends behind him. Usually the adult male, or female in some cases, gets to the bar to order. He places the order. His friends see that he is at the bar and say in his ear, “Oh, you’re at the bar. Can you order my drink, bro?” This is rude. Make your full order for yourself when you get to the bar. Don’t change your order when the bartender comes back. Usually, if you do, bartenders will look at you funny and move on to the next person ordering. That funny look means you’ve lost most of their respect you had when you walked up to the bar. The second step in being a smart, courteous patron includes acting like you would if you had a girlfriend, boyfriend or common sense. This includes following the rules of the bar. Don’t break things. Don’t steal things. Don’t look up women’s skirts. The last one’s just plain weird. In general, don’t do silly things that will make others uncomfortable and get you thrown out of the bar. The final step in being a good bar patron is to have a good time. Again, simple. Right? Not so for some people. I am an emotional person and embrace the therapeutic nature of crying and angry outbursts. That doesn’t mean that I do them all at the bar. If you need to cry, please don’t weep openly at the bar. Take one of your girls and go to the bathroom. Even though I support emotionalism that doesn’t mean I want your tears in a drink that I just paid $8 for to get after standing at the bar for ten minutes with smelly drunk people. The same goes for the overly aggressive people at the bar. Take it outside. Because if you hit me when you meant to hit him, I’m going to be angry. Especially if you make me spill that $8 drink I just paid for, remember? So, everyone, do the right thing: Be a courteous bar patron.

jlowe12@gru.edu

Corks and Canvas combines art and dining By JORDAN WILLIAMS staff writer

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t’s not a class or a club but a social activity. Corks and Canvas is an event similar to going out to dinner or the movies but instead provides an opportunity for participants to experience something new, said Manager Renee Myers. The social painting events take place in various restaurants and bars, and at each event an artist is present to guide partakers in a step-by-step process of replicating the feature painting for the night, Myers said. “It’s literally like having somebody take you through a recipe,” she said. “If someone came in your kitchen and said, ‘Put in a spoon full of this and a spoon full of that,’ could you make a cake? Yeah.” It’s the fresh ideas and distinction of Corks and Canvas that attracted interest from participant Cheryl Mulvehill. “I think it’s very unique and fun concept,” she said. “It gives you an opportunity to express

JORDAN WILLIAMS | STAFF

April Henry, an art instructor for Corks and Canvas, gives step-by-step instructions to participants for the reproduction of a cowboy boot portrait at the Indian Queen.

yourself and have a little bit of fun in a nice and relaxing atmosphere with your friends.” The art instructors hired by Meyers are from the local area and are signed to independent contracts, she said. “I’ve got currently seven artists, and they range in age from 21 years old to probably 50”, Myers said. “Some of them are just getting started and some are well es-

tablished as artists who are commissioned for their work.” Artist Emily Shakal said her job with Corks and Canvas is her first as a painter, and she enjoys instructing the participants. “I like being able to teach people how to be creative,” she said. “I believe people think that’s not really teachable, but if you can guide people through thought and through different patterns, they

can actually recreate your painting in a different way, which is really cool.” Myers said that Corks and Canvas is still growing and seeking more painters who could cover events, and it would be a great opportunity for art students to earn money for their portraits. However, there is no set salary and the artists are paid based on their availability and the works they submit. “It’s an independent contractor job so you know I call them and I say, ‘Ale House wants us for the 13th and the 19th. Are you available on either of the nights?’ And if they’re available, that’s great,” Myers said. Each artist is asked to submit four paintings for the gallery every month, and it is from these that Myers will choose which painting to feature for an event. “If three of them are inappropriate, then I’m probably only going to call and ask them to work maybe one time that month, but if everything they submit to me is right on target, then they’re going to get more calls,” she said.

When deciding on which portrait to feature, Myers said she cannot pass judgments based on her opinion alone. “Art is subjective,” she said. “I need to be aware that although this painting might not be of my personal taste that doesn’t mean there’s not 2,000 people in the CSRA that wouldn’t love to come out and paint that.” Reservations are open to anyone older than 16 and little to no painting experience is required, Myers said. The participants with limited painting experience provide positive challenges for the instructors, Shakal said. “I think it’s hard sometimes thinking of how to phrase things properly and how to simplify it, but it actually helps me to become a better artist,” she said. So far Corks and Canvas have events reserved at Carolina Ale House, 5 O’clock Bistro, Oliviana’s, Nacho Mama’s, Malibu Jacks and The Cotton Patch for the month of March, Myers said.

jwilli43@gru.edu

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TUESDAY, MARCH 12, 2013 www.asubellringer.com

Patrons and staff get funky at ’80s night at Sky City about 300 to 500 people to Sky City every First Friday of the month, Rubio said. Markus Favors, a member of the door staff, said he has been working at Sky City for about four years and works at almost every First Friday ’80s Night. “Usually we have four door guys, but for ’80s Night we typically have five guys,” Favors said. “There’s the regular groups of drunks that come in. Sometimes we have break dancers that come in and dance. That’s pretty awesome.” Walter Lane, a bartender at Sky City, worked during the ’80s Night Friday, March 1. “It’s gets frustrating sometimes,” Lane said. “ As a bartender, you want to serve everyone as

By JAMIE LOWE staff writer

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ime after time patrons feel forever young at ’80s night. Sky City has hosted ’80s Night on First Friday for the last few years in downtown Augusta, Ga. Coco Rubio, a co-owner of Sky City, spoke highly of the event in all its different aspects. “Everyone usually has a really good time,” Rubio said. “It’s a great money-maker for us. We can count on First Friday as a busy night for us. It’s also great because, since I DJ, we don’t have much to set up.” Usually ’80s Night brings

quickly as you can and sometimes you just can’t be quick enough.” Even though the doors open at 8 p.m. there are very few people who show up before 10 p.m., typically, said David Newall, another bartender at Sky City. “Up until 10:30 p.m. or 11 p.m. it’s pretty dead,” Newall said. “Around 11 p.m., everyone comes in all at once and it gets a little crazy.” ’80s Night is a success not only because of its atmosphere but also because of the range of music genres that are played, Rubio said. He said he likes to play ’80s genres that include hip hop, punk rock, hair metal and R&B. Rubio speculated that all the genres that are played during ’80s Night enhances

the allure for all music lovers. “Considering how many people are here it’s pretty quiet,” Rubio said. “Everyone’s usually hanging out and having a good time. It’s usually a drama-free event.” There aren’t many things that can get a patron thrown out of ’80s Night, Lane said. There is, however, a list of offenses that could get a person hauled out of the building, including fighting, destroying property, insulting staff and going in the opposite sex’s bathrooms. “Really you just have to act like you have some sense,” Lane said. “That and we have staff stashed around on the other side of the bar to make sure things don’t get too out of hand.” Sometimes there is an ’80s

Evans Towne Market brings locally-grown produce, fine art and education to locals By KEYERIA BUTLER staff writer

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t’s all about connecting local farmers to local people. As the Evans Towne Farmers Market begins to sprout fresh fruit, vegetables, dairy, handcrafted goods and more, the goal is to get to know your farmer on a one on one basis. “The Evans Towne Farmers Market is just one of the farmers markets that we organize,” said Kim Hines, the director of Locally Grown, a non-profit organization that makes the farmers market possible, and one of three members of the Market Committee for the farmers market. “One is an online market of Augusta (Ga.) locally grown. The interim farmers market is what’s known as a traditional market so that market will be an opportunity for people to actually attend, see the food before they order it, meets the farmers, that kind of thing.” Sponsors from all over the area come up with themes for the market that make every week that the market is open interesting and make it have its own appeal. These themes help promote the market, involve the community and gain more customers to the sponsors business just by being involved, Hines said. “For example, Butler Automotive, they are a local sponsor, and although they don’t have anything to do with food, they are a local business that provides underwriting for the farmers market, and in exchange they get to promote their own business and they get to set the themes,” Hines explained. “So, the theme is serve it up right, which is a nice theme for food and any kind of business.” All of the goodies will be brought in by many local farmers, who live within 100 miles of Augusta with most of them living less than 50 or 60 miles of Augusta, Hines said. These farmers are also committed to using

KRISTIN HAWKINS | STAFF

Eros Bisto opened its doors to its downtown costumers with a combined 45 years of experience in Greek cuisine.

sustainable practices, and some of them are certified organic and some are not. But they’re all committed to a certain way of growing, living and being, she added. Eric Becker, a farmer at Shady Creek Greens and a grower for Augusta Locally Grown’s online market, said many people don’t realize the process it takes to get one vegetable or fruit on the plate rather than getting fresh, local food that has been picked within the last day or two. “I think that’s the biggest thing is that people don’t realize the supply chains,” Becker said. “A lot of your produce and stuff is coming from a long ways away, and you have all these days of after something was harvested. You take a head of lettuce in California – have you ever thought how that head of lettuce gets to your plate? It was growing out on a field. Some, probably, migrant worker cut it, (and) how long did

Farmhaus CONTINUED from PAGE 6

During service Saturday, Carpenter said they closed the doors for a couple of hours in order to catch up on prep. “Since we make everything fresh here, there’s not just, ‘Hey grab another bag of whatever,’” Carpenter said. “If we need more fried pickles, we have to cut more pickles. If we need more this, we have to make more that. It’s not where we can just run to the store and grab things. We actually make everything fresh and by hand, so we needed to recoup.” With so many things going on for Wight, he said he is getting little sleep at night. However, with the help of his sous chef, things are running smoothly, he said. “Adrian Bear is my sous chef at Froghollow, and he’s handling that restaurant while I open the new one,” he said. “We’re just working together everyday, trying to make sure both places are kept up to our standards.” The same standard that is held at Froghollow for its employees has also been passed down to Farmhaus, Carpenter said. “We brought the same model here: to train your staff better than anyone else’s (and) offer a product that’s better than anyone else’s,” he said. “I’m not saying that to be vain,

it sit in the field, did it sit in the sun, was it packaged in the field, how soon did it get to the cooler and how long did it sit in their cooler?” Vendors from local farms, artisans and others are invested in making this very first year for the market a huge success. Sandi Johnson, a farmer at Hexemaus Farms and a participant in the market, said she specializes in baked goods and wild berries but will be selling shelling peas, sugar snap peas, 2 different kinds of carrots, 4 varieties of onions, lettuce and herbs. “The big thing is with the whole buy local thing is get to know your farmer, know where your food comes from,” Johnson said. “See, as a farmer, I’m looking at it in the opposite direction I want to know where my food is going. I want to know that the 4 and a half hours I just spent out in the rain in the muck spreading out mulch (that) the folks that are

“We’re just working together everyday, trying to make sure both places are kept up to our standards.” -- Sean Wight but it really is.” One of the biggest contributions to the busy opening of Farmhaus was the utilization of social media by the director of operations, Jennifer Krapp, Carpenter said. The restaurant is more relaxed than Froghollow, he said. Upon entrance, customers walk toward the bar and get greeted by a staff member with menus in hand. The employee then runs down the menu and directs customers to the cashier at the end of the bar where they can place their orders, grab a number and take a seat while their food is prepared. “It’s a much less structured setting, and here the whole process is: you come in, order your food, find a seat and be awesome,” Carpenter said. “It’s very critical that everybody does that because if people come in and there’s a big line and they try to save a seat for somebody, then the people ordering don’t have a place to sit. So, if everybody waits in line to place their order, by the time they get (done ordering) we have a seat for them. The whole process works.”

Having a new place to get fresh handmade burgers also has the locals excited, said Brandon Davis, a sophomore at Georgia Regents University majoring in computer science. “When I saw the sign for them to open, I was really excited,” Davis said. “When I finally got to go and build my own burger, I was so happy. There was so much to choose from, crazy things that just make me want to go back just to taste them.” On the other side of Farmhaus is another part of the lot Wight purchased where he has plans to build another restaurant and apartments. “They bought the whole building,” Carpenter said. “Seven apartments upstairs, which are awesome, and next door is going to be our wine bar. It’s going to have 60 wines by the glass, plus we have a brick pizza oven we’ve already built in there (for tapas).” Wight did not want to comment on the future restaurant or any established date for it.

mstewar7@gru.edu

eating the lettuce out of it know it’s organic and appreciate it and value it.” Aside from fresh food, there will be music, cooking demonstrations, local artisans, handcrafted goods and more, but the turnout will determine if The Evans Towne Farmers Market will be here again next year, Hines said. “A lot of it will depend on how the public responds and whether or not the farmers feel like it’s worth their while, so it’s going to take everyone’s effort to make this happen so it’s a true experiment in community events,” Hines said. The Evans Towne Farmers Market starts Thursday until June from 4:30 to 7 p.m. on the grounds of the Columbia County Public Library.

cover band that comes to perform and other times there is new art hanging on the walls around the bar at the front of the building. “I’d encourage people to look around at the building,” Favors said. “Just drink a beer, chill and look at the art. Take it all in while you’re here.” Staff members said they encourage drinking responsibly, hefty tips and crazy dance moves. However, workers are serious about the safety of all their patrons. “We just want people to be safe,” Lane said. “Call a cab or get a DD and don’t be mad if we cut you off. Other than that, we want people to come to ’80s Night and have a good time.”

jlowe12@gru.edu

Sector

CONTINUED from PAGE 7

foresees prosperous months ahead. “We’ve got all sorts of neat stuff,” he said. “(Mitcham’s) birthday show is going to be Emery, which is going to be really cool... I actually, personally, like Emery a lot so that’s going to be fun for us. We’ve also got a Veara hometown show that’s coming in this month on (March) 22, and that’s been cool because it’s actually been a hot minute since they’ve played and they’ve actually been working on new material with an album to release sometime this year.” Although the venue is looking forward to seeing a lot more faces soon, some locals find it too centered on hardcore music, said Russell Williams, an Augusta local who began as a huge Sector 7G advocate but has slowly stopped attending its shows. “I feel like, as I’ve grown and matured, I have grown away from the types or genres of music accustom to Sector,” Williams said. “(I would like to see) more EDM (Electronic Dance Music), dubstep, trance, house and electro house. They have raves, but they need bigger names.” The raves that the venue has every month are put on by The Fence Sitters; however, the majority of attendees are still oriented toward hardcore music, Levy said. “We get the stigma of being the hardcore venue, and it kind of stinks,” he said. “It’s not necessarily what I set out to be and not necessarily what I’d like to be represented as. It just so happens that the people who put on shows book more hardcore shows than other genres just because it seems that the community that comes out to Sector responds to those shows better than they do if we have, say, a pop show or a rock show.” Other locals, such as Matthew James, a freshman majoring in criminal justice at Georgia Regents University and the drummer in the band Garden City, agreed with Williams in terms of genre expansion but said he still likes to attend the venue as much as possible. “I like the venue because it’s a great place for local bands to start out and receive some recognition in the music scene and for others to hear new music,” James said. “Being a busy college and also working often, it’s hard for me to attend as often as I used to. But I still go from time to time.”

kbutler7@gru.edu

mstewar7@gru.edu

Roast

CONTINUED from PAGE 6

gear, a hunt with famous rifle maker Kenny Jarrett, gift certificates, rowing lessons and wind surfing lessons, Bonitatibus said. The program manager Marissa Harris said that Roast on the River will go a long way in helping the Savannah RiverKeeper continue its operation and achieve its goals. “We’re non-profit so the only money that we receive is from memberships and from donations, so our events are very important,” she said. “Our money from the last roast we had is helping us through this roast in Augusta and the one in Savannah.” Bonitatibus also agreed that Roast on the River is very critical to the organization’s success but in ways that extends beyond finances. “It’s a big fundraiser so it helps us stay open, keep going and protect the river, but it’s also a really important opportunity for everybody to come together,” she said. The Riverkeeper has limited office space so Roast on the River provides a chance for all the members to be under one roof, Bonitatibus said. As of lately the organization has been attempting to launch an education program, and a lot of the money earned from Roast on the River will go towards that project, said Harris.

The plan for the program will be to construct a 14-acre river education center that will provide information such as historical facts and the resources of the river, Bonitatibus said. Besides hosting Roast on the River, the organization also has a Paddlefest, said Kenny Bottoms, a 9-month volunteer. “The Paddlefest is a race with canoes and kayaks from the Locks in Evans (Ga.) to here,” he said. Bottoms said he discovered the Savannah Riverkeeper through The Augusta Chronicle application and saw it as a chance to give back to community. “It’s fun, and it gives you an activity with a goal,” he said. “You get to do something good without having to be compensated.” Another event the riverkeeper’s take part in is Benderdinker, Bonitatibus said. “That is a canoeing and kayaking trip with bands that are out in the middle of the river,” she said. “So you go kayaking around and you’ve got bands playing out there in the river.” Bonitatibus said that most of the organization’s events are geared toward bringing people as close to the river as possible.

jwill43@gru.edu

THE BELL RINGER

PAGE 9

COMICS: ENTERTAIN YOURSELF www.asubellringer.com

CROSSWORD

1.

Test your knowledge of current issues covering Georgia Regents University, pop culture, news, music, sports and random trivia

2.

3.

4.

DOWN 2. Former Chicago Bull basketball star who took a trip to North Korea to meet Kim JongUn 3. Meeting of the College of Cardinals to elect a new Bishop of Rome

6.

5. 7.

9.

8.

10.

11. 13.

12.

4. The government agency that announced a new policy to allow small pocket knives on airplanes

14.

5. Popular show on AMC that is being revamped by airing all episodes in black and white

15.

6. Four-year-old digital currency created by an anonymous hacker 9. Videogame released on March 5 that reboots a classic franchise

ACROSS 1. Rolls-Royce’s fastest production model ever

11. Founder of Napster and the 9th youngest billionaire in the world

7. On March 8, the final Augusta State University Student Honors ______________ was held to recognize fellow students for their academic achievements.

14. A baby from Mississippi was recently “functionally cured” of the ____ virus which causes AIDS.

8. Local pop-punk band signed by Epitaph Records in partner with Running Man Records 10. Right-handed pitcher, Dylan _____,

In the last issue...

ACROSS 1. Breakthrough 3. Pistorius 7. labrador 8. meteor 9. quartet 11. Underground

12. folderol 13. Casablanca

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from Jacksonville, Fla., is Augusta State University’s team leader in ERA. 12. The Half-Blood Prince’s favorite antidote 13. Three-day golf tournament beginning on March 15 hosted by the Women’s golf team 15. Fundraiser held on March 9 for Savannah River Keepers featuring live music, oysters and beverages provided by Sweetwater Brewing

Those Little Basterds DOWN 1. Buffalo 2. Unconditional 4. Boar’s Head 5. Greenteam 6. selfie 10. Audubon

The Bell Ringer The Voice of ASU

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by: Brewster & bREWSter

TUESDAY, MARCH 12, 2013

PAGE 10

SPORTS www.asubellringer.com

Flatline crowns new champion

JAGS SPORTS SCHEDULE

Wrestling company returns to Columbia County By JACOB SCHARFF staff writer

BASEBALL March 12 at Erskine March 15-16 vs. Lander (Lake Olmstead Stadium) March 19 vs. Anderson (Lake Olmstead Stadium) March 20 vs. Newberry (Lake Olmstead Stadium) March 23-24 at Georgia College & State

MEN’S GOLF March 24-26 at Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate, Bulls Bay Golf Club (Awendaw, S.C.)

WOMEN’S GOLF March 16-18 Insperity Lady Jaguar Intercollegiate, Forest Hills Golf Club (Augusta, Ga.)

SOFTBALL March 16 vs. Francis Marion March 17 vs. UNC Pemroke March 20 vs. Carson-Newman March 21 at Erskine March 24 vs. West Georgia

MEN’S TENNIS March 12 vs. Concord March 17 vs. Flagler March 19 at Anderson March 21 at Columbus State March 24 at Young Harris

WOMEN’S TENNIS March 12 vs. Concord March 14 at Erskine March 17 vs. Flagler March 19 at Anderson March 20 vs. Indiana (Pa.) March 21 at Columbus State March 24 at Young Harris

They may not be as big as companies like World Wrestling Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action, but independent wrestling promotions can still make big impacts in their regions. Flatline Professional Wrestling had its first show in August 2012 and has held one show a month since then. The March of Champions show that was held Saturday, March 2, marked FPW’s eighth and biggest show yet, dubbed the company’s “Wrestlemania” by one of its more prominent stars, Anthony Henry, who has been with the company since it started. At March of Champions, Henry said he was the No. 1 contender for the Flatline Championship held by Brandon Parker. “When we did the first Flatline Wrestling Championship, to crown the new champion, we did a full tournament deal,” Henry said. “(Parker) went over on me. He beat me in that match with some shenanigans. After that, I was kind of upset, and I came back, and it was one of those things where I wanted the rematch. Finally we’re here now.” FPW is owned by two men, Daniel Mayne and Chris Wiggins. Both said they are big wrestling fans, but their paths to becoming coowners were a bit different. “I got into wrestling because of a video game,” Mayne said. “I really liked the storyline and all that behind it, so that’s what got me into watching it every Monday night and just falling in love with the actual storyline part of it, not so much the in-ring but just the creative side of it. There (are) so many avenues you can go down to tell a story and entertain people.” Mayne said he woke up one day and decided he wanted to own a company. As a result, he bought a ring and subsequently started renting out Patriots Park gymnasium. Wiggins is not only a co-owner of FPW, but he’s also a writer and an in-ring competitor for FPW, and he has a full-time job as a firefighter for Augusta, Ga., he said.

JACOB SCHARFF | STAFF

Former Flatline champion Brandon Parker grabs the bottom rope in an attempt to to force the current championship-holder “The Pecan Tan Superman,” Anthony Henry, to break his Texas Cloverleaf submission hold in the March of Champions’ main event, held during the first week of March at Patriots Park in Grovetown, Ga.

“I wrestled in high school and I had some friends at Harlem High School who got into some Renegade shows back in the 2002 time era,” Wiggins said. “They were like, ‘I think you’d be a perfect fit for this group here in Harlem because you’ve got wrestling background.’ I got involved in 2002 to about 2005. We were doing Renegade shows, and then in late 2005 (or early) 2006 we started doing actual independent promotional shows.” Wiggins also said that March of Champions marked FPW’s first Tables, Ladders and Chairs Match and that he would love to eventually see FPW do a cage match, as there has never been one done in the Patriots Park gymnasium. March of Champions’ first match actually featured Wiggins in six-man tag team action as part of Team Wright vs. Team Fireman. Team Wright came out victorious after Wiggins made a pinfall on The Fireman.

The big TLC match was the fourth match of the night and would determine the first ever Pulse Champion. The match was just as wild as TLC matches from the big companies with one competitor, Shane Hexxon, going through a pyramid made of three tables late in the match. In the end, the man known as Charlie Anarchy climbed the ladder and became the first Pulse Champion. Henry and Parker competed in the main event of the evening for the Flatline Championship. Both men traded blows for about half an hour but neither could end the match. Finally, after multiple attempts, Henry locked in a submission typically known as a Texas Cloverleaf and forced Parker to submit, earning Henry the championship. Henry said he and all the other Flatline stars will return to Patriots Park Wednesday, April 7.

jscharff@gru.edu

Softball team shows signs of life By FATIMA FRASHER staff writer The Lady Jaguars started their softball season off on a rough foot, but through the adversity they have remained resilient in spirit. The Lady Jags have played a total of 22 games this season, winning only seven of those games. However, the team has shown signs of improvement after losing its first seven games and 10 of its first 11. “I think we are definitely a lot more excited,” said sophomore third baseman Gabriela Medina after a 9-5 win over Catawba at Jaguar Field Wednesday. “We see what we can do (and) all the potential that we have. We started getting fast moving and got everybody pumped and ready to go. Now we are starting to play better as a team together. We are all new here, (but) we are ready to go. Let’s see what we can do.” During Wednesday’s doubleheader, the ladies held their own in brisk weather. The cold air might have affected the team during the first game, which Augusta State lost 3-1, but the Lady Jags were completely warmed up for the second game, outfielder Lauren Yeargan said.

RYAN MCLAY | STAFF

Augusta State outfielder Laura Brown, a former pitcher and one of the young team’s senior leaders, shags fly balls during a recent practice at Jaguar Field in Augusta, Ga.

“We just got stronger as a team,” Yeargan said. “We are working hard getting it put together, (and) we are coming around.” This year’s team consists of mostly underclassman players who are working on polishing their skills this season. Even though there are not many upperclassman players, the influence from the junior and senior players can still be strongly felt, Yeargan said. “Just them being out there

working hard should show (the younger players) how to do it and a lot of our upper-class players (are) doing that,” she said. Having a young team could present problems for some, but assistant coach Kristen Jones said inexperience can be overcome with hard work. “I wouldn’t say we have a problem,” Jones said. “We have a very young team, and it’s just adjusting. It’s a transition for every-

body, so I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s a problem, just a learning curve.” When a team is having a difficult season, it’s important to emphasize the basic, Jones said. “We just kind of had them refocusing, working on the small stuff, executing, working on having timely hits, stepping up and having people do the job,” she said. “We typically try to move people around and whoever gets hot, we move them throughout the order. For the most part, I think we are starting to settle in and kind of find what works, just finding what meshes and who mashes well with together.” Despite this year’s struggles, the softball team remains a closeknit unit. With the year trickling closer to the end and teammates going in different directions, people will be missed, Yeargan said. “There (is) always a family when you play, so going away from family is always hard,” Yeargan said. Yeargan said the team remains in high spirits and eagerly awaits its remaining games. “It’s not how you begin,” Yeargan said. “It’s how you end.”

ffrasher@gru.edu

Five years later, Jags reflect on run to title game

By FARRELL BROWN staff writer

Five years ago, the Jaguars’ men’s basketball team advanced to the Elite 8 in the national tournament for the first time in school history, en route to the national championship game. The trip to Springfield, Mass., was Augusta State’s first of three consecutive appearances in the Elite Eight. “We just wanted to go to Massachusetts,” former center Garret Siler said of the 2007-08 team. That season, the Jags achieved an overall record of 27-7 and a Peach Belt Conference record of 17-3. The team scored an average of 76.9 points a game and outscored their opponents 2,615-2,356 on the season. They also snagged 37.4 rebounds a game while out-rebounding their opponents 1,273-1,104 for the year. “Everybody was considering us a powerhouse,” said Howard Brown, a redshirt freshman during the ’07-08 season. “From 2006 to 2011, we were a (Division-II) powerhouse.” The biggest struggle for the team came

before the season started. During preseason conditioning, head coach Dip Metress said he noticed one of his key players having trouble breathing. After being checked out by doctors and team physicians, it was announced that Tyrekus “A.J.” Bowman, the PBC player of the year for the season prior, had three small holes in his heart that had been there since birth. “We thought his career was over,” said former guard and current assistant coach Jamie Quarles. Bowman was medically cleared to play more than a week before the start of the regular season opener at Montevallo and went on to average 19.3 points a game (673 points total) and 7.5 rebounds a game (256 total) while chipping in with 68 assists, 42 blocks and 48 steals for the season. He would also repeat as PBC Player of the Year that season. Although Bowman was the star of the team, Quarles said the every player on the team was a key contributor. “We had a real close-knit relationship from guy one all the way to 13,” Quarles said. “I think that helped that team become one of the best teams in school history.” A large part of the team’s success was

teammates’ camaraderie both on and off the court and their ability to make the game fun while still doing their jobs and performing at high levels. The group still keeps in close contact, Quarles said. The team played also with a level of selflessness. Most of the older players on the team had a special bond because most of the team members from the ’07-08 season were still guys that were around when the team wasn’t as successful, said another former guard and current assistant, Demetrius Howard. Brown said the team also showed an ability to overcome adversity. “We lost two games in a week, and it got too serious for us,” he said. “So coach let us have an off day where we just had fun and games just to make the game fun again” When the ’07-08 Jags hit a rough patch in the season, Metress said he decided that a change of scenery would benefit his squad. One day when the team arrived at practice, it was met with buses and Metress’ command of “Let’s go.” He took the team to a local park with an outside basketball court. The team spent its practice playing basketball games. The practice calmed the team down and

reminded players how to have fun while they play, Howard said. It sent the team on a run that would eventually land it in a national championship game. After defeating Central Oklahoma in a 106104 overtime thriller and then winning a 56-50 slugfest over Alaska-Anchorage in Springfield, Mass., the Jags had earned the right to play Winona State for the national title. “(It was) unprecedented to go up there as the team with the worst record in the Elite 8 and then to play in the championship against a team that was in the championship game three years in a row,” Metress said. The Jags lost in the championship game to Winona State by an 87-76 score, but Metress said he still has fond memories of getting to coach his team on the season’s biggest stage. “The national anthem was being played,” Metress said. “I remember turning to my sister and saying ‘We’re playing for a national championship.’ It went that quick.” The 2007-08 edition of the Augusta State Jaguars started a dynasty and the winning culture that the program has become accustomed to, Brown said.

fbrown19@gru.edu

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PAGE 11 www.asubellringer.com

Men’s Peach Belt All-Conference Teams

First Team

Second Team

Shahmel Brackett, UNC Pembroke: 16.5 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 3.0 apg, 40.0 3pt % Ante Gospic, Flagler: 18.2 ppg, 9.8 rpg, 1.5 apg 54.2 fg %, Ishmael Hollis, North Georgia: 15.2 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 2.0 apg, 39.5 3pt % Malcolm Jackson, Young Harris: 20.3 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 2.3 apg, 78.4 ft % Paul Larsen, USC Aiken: 13.6 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 59.5 fg %, 71.9 ft %

F - George Blakeney, UNC Pembroke: 15.0 ppg, 10.0 rpg, 1.1 bpg, 56.6 fg %

JORDAN WILLIAMS staff writer G - Troran Brown, Montevallo: 18.3 ppg, 5.9 apg, 48.9 fg %, 39.1 3pt %

Third Team

year,” Boose said. “At the beginning, I was just swinging the bat and I didn’t really have any type of approach. I was just going up there and trying to hit the crap out of it, but now I’m going up there and trying to put the ball in play and get base hits more now.” Even though he has a few good hitters at his disposal, Cooper said he knows that the team can’t just rely on those specific players to pick up the slack and win games for it. “If everybody gets to the capabilities they have I think we’re going to be OK,” Cooper said. “Right now I know we have some guys who are hitting way below what they should be hitting and that’s making us struggle, but if we cut down the strikeouts and get some guys going, I think we’re going to have some chance to make some noise.” Cooper isn’t just expecting the team to continue progressing offensively but said he has also set a goal for the team as a whole. “I think my biggest goal is to cut down the strikeout percentage,” Cooper said. “If we can hit .280 (to) .290 as a team, we’re going to be very competitive in our league and have a chance to play in the postseason.” Right now the team is 2-4 in the Peach Belt Conference, but Cooper said that the Jags are going to have some ups and downs when playing some of the best teams in the nation.

Who can stop the Miami Heat’s dominance over the Eastern Conference? The answer is nobody. For eight years I have been following NBA basketball, and for eight years I have been a fan of the Miami Heat. Ever since the Shaquille O’ Neal and Alonzo Mourning days, I have proudly represented my team and stood by its side through thick and thin. I remember in 2008 when we had the worst record in the NBA at 15-67, and all we had to show for it was a No. 2 pick in the draft. It was then that I declared the NBA Draft lottery and the concept of a franchise’s future dependent on chance totally ludicrous. One would think after suffering the embarrassment of being the worst team in the NBA, the least we could get was a No. 1 pick, right? Wrong. That year the Chicago Bulls were awarded the No. 1 pick, and the electric Derrick Rose along with it, while my team had to settle for future first-round bust Michael Beasley. However, those days are ancient history and our big three went from Mario Chalmers, Michael Beasley and Dwyane Wade to Chris Bosh, LeBron James and Wade during the 2010 offseason. It was the summer that ended the days of Wade carrying the entire team to the playoffs only to be booted out in the first round by a mediocre Atlanta Hawks team. Now, three years removed from one of the biggest deals in the history of free agency, the Heat have played in back-toback NBA Finals and are poised for a third straight appearance. As James and his gang defend the title, it seems as though a repeat is inevitable. The only teams in the Eastern Conference who appear capable of beating the Heat are the Indiana Pacers and maybe the New York Knicks. Some fans could argue that the Chicago Bulls will make a run with Derrick Rose returning, but that crowd is both silly and naïve because the Bulls simply don’t have the manpower to compete against the Heat. Although Joakim Noah is a stud and so is Carlos Boozer, neither match up well against the best players on the Heat team. Even if Rose returns, the Bulls will still struggle. It has been almost a year since Rose took the court, and that fact alone would leave any player rusty and out of shape. Not to mention he hasn’t played with this year’s Bulls team all season, which will cause limited team chemistry. If anything, it would do Rose and the team a favor if he just sat out the whole year because a knee injury is serious business. One potential threat would be the Knicks, who have the scoring machine Carmelo Anthony and a roster full of capable players. The only knock against the Knicks is their history of recent playoff failures, and even though they beat Miami twice in the regular season, things tend to change during the playoffs. This leaves only one more team that could stop a thirdstraight championship appearance for the Heat, and that is the Indiana Pacers. Although they may not receive much attention, the Pacers are a well-built team centered on defense and a grindit-out philosophy. I remember very well how the Pacers pushed the Heat to a tough 6-game series, and I will never forget how hard they fought Miami. But if the Heat are playing at their best, then the Pacers will suffer the same fate as last year. Of course, James will have to deliver more spectacular performances and the Heat will need to play great team ball, but it does not seem crazy to predict a repeat of last year NBA Finals.

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jwill143@gru.edu

G - Re’mon Nelson, USC Aiken: 13.0 ppg, 6.4 apg, 45.1 3pt %, 79.1 ft %

Frank Adams, Young Harris: 18.3 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 45.0 fg %, 75.1 ft % Scott Ferguson, Georgia College & State: 15.7 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 42.9 fg %, 40.2 3pt % Evrik Gary, Francis Marion: 18.2 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 2.5 apg, 35.2 3pt % Vince Martin, Young Harris: 17.1 ppg, 8.0 apg, 4.2 rpg, 39.5 3pt % Ryan Weems, Augusta State, 15.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 1.7 apg, 34.3 3pt % Ronald Zimmerman, USC Aiken: 15.4 ppg, 1.9 apg, 43.7 3pt %, 73.3 ft %

G - Aric Miller, Armstrong Atlantic State: 23.7 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 4.1 apg, 33.8 3pt % F - Drico Hightower, Montevallo: 16.7 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 1.9 apg, 61.2 fg %

Coach of the Year

(tie) Vince Alexander, USC Aiken; Ben Miller, UNC Pembroke

Player of the Year

Freshman of the Year

Re’mon Nelson, USC Aiken

Quamain Rose, UNC Pembroke

Defensive Player of the Year

Juron Dobbs, Clayton State

Women’s Peach Belt All-Conference Teams

Second Team

First Team

Brittany Hill, USC Aiken: 8.3 ppg, 5.9 apg, 2.9 rpg, 86.7 ft % Mimi Hill, North Georgia: 14.0 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 1.6 apg, 50.3 fg % Tanchelle Hollingsworth, Augusta State: 10.2 ppg, 3.1 apg, 2.6 rpg, 75.3 ft % Shanteona Keys, Georgia College: 16.8 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 1.3 apg, 37.2 3pt % Kayla Mobley, Clayton State: 10.3 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 1.9 apg, 53.6 fg % Taren White, Columbus State: 12.8 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 1.6 apg, 44.9 fg %

F - Taylor Beverly, Montevallo: 17.3 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 1.2 apg, 49.9 fg %

G - Drameka Griggs, Clayton State: 19.4 ppg, 3.5 apg, 54.1 fg %, 51.3 3pt %

G - Williesha Spencer, Flagler: 16.9 ppg, 4.4 apg, 2.7 rpg, 40.2 3pt %

Third Team

Taylor Ayers, Augusta State: 11.3 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 1.9 bpg, 45.9 fg % Stephanie Huffman, North Georgia: 12.3 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 3.0 apg, 43.7 fg % Shacamra Jackson, Clayton State: 8.2 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 1.4 apg, 49.7 fg & Jazmine Kemp, UNC Pembroke: 11.5 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 2.6 apg, 50.0 fg %

G - Daniela Tarailo, USC Aiken: 14.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 2.0 apg, 41.9 3pt % F - Jaymee Carnes, North Georgia: 18.2 ppg, 9.7 rpg, 2.1 apg, 45.3 fg %

Coach of the Year

Nate Teymer, Augusta State

Player of the Year
 Drameka Griggs, Clayton State

Freshman of the Year

Kayla Pryce, Clayton State

Defensive Player of the Year

Shacamra Jackson, Clayton State

Jags swinging hotter sticks this season By REBECCA PERBETSKY staff writer Through the first month of the 2013 season, the baseball team has shown some encouraging improvement with the bats. After last year’s rough 13-37 season, the Jaguars have turned their offense around for the better. Chris Cooper, the head coach of the Augusta State baseball team, said while the team is hitting better this year, they still have room for major improvements. “We are trying to work more on bunting by hitting more little whiffle balls and golf ball-sized balls to focus in on the eyes and the concentration,” Cooper said. “We have been averaging about 9 strikeouts a game, which is killing us.” Even though the baseball team is averaging such a high number of strikeouts, it has still been able to plate its share of runs thanks to the addition of some newcomers and improvement from returning players. “We have some good offensive players,” Cooper said. “I really like my team. I know our record doesn’t show right now, but when you look at it, Jeff Rice is swinging the bat really well, J.D. Sabo is hitting the ball well, and (Kevin) Dodson is swinging pretty good.” Rice currently leads the team in batting average, and he attributes his mental game and having an approach every time he goes to the

REBECCA PERBETSKY | STAFF

Augusta State catcher Zach Murray participates in bunting drills during a practice at Jaguar Field as the Augusta State players look to sharpen their skills handling the bat.

plate as reasons for his success. “I have an idea of what I want to accomplish during that specific atbat,” Rice said. “In doing so, I have become more successful in getting that stuff done as opposed to just going up there and swinging.” However, Rice isn’t the only player on the team who has used this strategy. In fact, Rice said that the team as a whole has adopted this way of thinking. The batsmen have an idea of what they want to accomplish and how to go about doing that. “I think last year we didn’t really have a specific goal in mind or an approach,” Rice said. “But this year by setting that and actually running through the process of getting there

Heat on track to repeat

it’s really helped us out.” Rice isn’t the only player who is off to a hot start at the plate. Shortstop Hunter Boose, a freshman from Greenbrier High School in Augusta, Ga., and cleanup hitter for the Jags, is yet another offensive player for the Jags who has helped the team in a big way, but the coach has said he could be more consistent. “Boose has been up and down,” Cooper said. “As a freshman you expect it, but I expect more out of him.” Even though Boose has experienced some difficulties, he said he is getting better as he gets more experience under his belt. “I think I have 14 runs this

PAGE 12

TUESDAY, MARCH 12, 2013

SPORTS www.asubellringer.com

Teymer named Coach of the Year By FARRELL BROWN staff writer

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After leading the Lady Jaguars to one of the greatest seasons in school history, Augusta State head coach Nate Teymer was appropriately honored Tuesday, March 5. Teymer was named 2013 Peach Belt Conference Women’s Basketball Coach of the Year. The announcement came from the PBC headquarters in Martinez, Ga. Teymer, from Urbandale, Iowa, paid his dues before earning the Peach Belt’s highest honor. He graduated from Grand View in Des Moines, Iowa, and has a master’s degree from Georgia Southwestern in Americus, Ga. From 2003 to 2005, he spent two seasons as the assistant men’s basketball coach at Shorter in Rome, Ga. He’s also spent time as an assistant coach in men’s and women’s basketball at Georgia Southwestern and Grand View. “He’s very capable,” said Augusta State director of athletics Clint Bryant. “We knew that when we hired him, based on the job he did at Southern Polytechnic taking a team that was really down, 5-22, and taking them to being a national contender at the NAIA level.” Teymer was the head coach of Southern Polytechnic from 20052010. He helped the Lady Hornets turn their program around, taking the squad from a 5-22 record in his first season to a record of 30-5 in his last. He also coached the team to its first-ever NAIA national tournament appearance. He was named the 200910 NAIA National Coach of the Year for his work. Bryant said he has been sur-

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CONTRIBUTED BY BREA BOUTWELL

Nate Teymer, who was named the Peach Belt Conference’s Coach of the Year for the 2012-13 season after leading Augusta State to a 21-6 record and outright PBC East championship, instructs his team during a fall practice at Christenberry Fieldhouse.

prised at how quickly Teymer has been able to guide the Lady Jaguars back to the top. “He’s done just what we thought he would do and (is) probably a little bit ahead of schedule in what we thought he would do it,” Bryant said. “I thought it would take at least three years to get things re-established then by year four or five reap the benefits of it. But he’s been able to do it and reap the benefits in year three, which I think is outstanding.” On April 1, 2010, Teymer was introduced as the eighth head coach in the 37 years of Augusta State women’s basketball. Teymer has taken the program from winning one game in 2011 and eight games in 2012 to a No. 1 seed in the PBC Tournament. In

his third year as the Lady Jags’ head coach, Teymer led Augusta State to a 21-5 overall record and a 14-5 record in conference games. In the previous four seasons combined, the team has only had 12 conference wins. “We are really proud of him,” senior guard-forward Eryka Menzies said. “He worked really hard to turn this program around. Under Teymer, Augusta State had its first 20-win season since the 2007-08 season. They won the PBC’s East Division for the first time in 10 years. The Lady Jags also cracked the national rankings for three weeks, which was the program’s first time ranked in the national poll since the 2003-04 season. “It’s nice to see other people rec-

Antcliff impresses coaches

ognizing his hard work,” Menzies said. Ranked seventh in the most recent NCAA Southeast Region rankings, the Lady Jags were awaiting whether they would play in the NCAA Tournament at press time. Teymer’s Coach of the Year award makes him the first Augusta State women’s coach to receive the honor since Lowell Barnhart won it twice in the 1991-92 and 1994-95 seasons. “We feel like he’s done an exceptional job in rebuilding and reestablishing our women’s program,” Bryant said. The Lady Jags made their second straight appearance in the conference tournament after failing to reach

Keep up with Jaguar sports online at: www.asubellringer.com the tournament the previous two seasons. They lost in the quarterfinals of the tournament to North Georgia Thursday afternoon, 70-60. Despite the setback, Bryant still praised Teymer’s coaching philosophy. “He’s settled in on a style of play that I think is a little bit different than other teams,” Bryant said. “He runs the amoeba defense, which seems to give people a hard time.” The amoeba defense is a matchup zone that isn’t used much these days, Bryant said. He also noted that the playing style Teymer has implemented also features an aggressive offense that doesn’t turn the ball over much.

fbrown19@gru.edu

Jags must get stronger in the post

JOHN-MICHAEL GARNER sports editor

KEREYIA BUTLER | STAFF

Freshman golfer Maverick Antcliff, a native Beaudesert, Australia and one of Augusta State’s top performers during the spring, works on his iron play while practicing at the Jaguars’ athletic complex.

By KEREYIA BUTLER staff writer Well, he sure did stick it to those NCAA requirements. After having to sit out on golf for one year, Maverick Antcliff, a freshman, has completed the requirements that forced him to sit out last year and has shown that he deserves to be on the golf course along with the rest of the Augusta State team. Antcliff said he started playing golf when he was 11 years old after his grandmother took him out on the course one day. Then, at age 15, he started taking golf more seriously. Antcliff’s first event was the Puerto Rico Classic in February, and then he competed at the Forest Hills Collegiate Saturday, Feb. 23, an event the Jaguars won. Antcliff said he’s been pleased with his play thus far this spring. “I got off to a solid start,” Antcliff said. “There was nothing like outrageously good or it wasn’t disappointing. I just want to put my pretty good foot forward, and I think I’ve done that so far.” Kevin McPherson, the head coach for men’s golf, said Antcliff has multiple qualities that will help take him to the next level in golf. “(He’s) got every tool in the game,” McPherson said. “He’s got a good men-

tal aspect about golf. He’s got that more of a professional mentality. He knows what to practice (and) what it takes to make it to the next level, and I think this is a stepping stone for him in order to, one day, make it to the PGA tour.” Antcliff said he takes the time to practice seven days a week, and it shows on the course and on the scoreboards. Antcliff’s scoring average is one of the best on the team right now, and, because golf is a team sport when it comes to the collegiate level, his scores have counted in all of the 4 rounds this year, McPherson said. “His game is somewhat boring,” McPherson said. “He hits it straight, he hits it long enough, hits a lot of greens, puts it well, (and) he has a good short game. He (plays) what they call boring golf, but boring golf is good golf where you don’t make a lot of mistakes and have a lot of falters.” Meechai Padung, Antcliff’s teammate, said Ancliff has made an instant impact at Augusta State. “Since he’s reached eligibility, he’s been contributing big time, I think,” Padung said. “He’s been playing great, even before he was playing he qualified really well. He’s been playing well since I got on the team.” Antcliff had some difficulties when he first arrived

at Augusta State because of eligibility requirements that didn’t allow him to get any athletics scholarships - therefore forcing him to pay for his school expenses - but he stuck it out and it’s paying off for him, his coach said. “This is his first semester in college golf,” McPherson said. “He’s been here for a little over a year now. (Puerto Rico) was a great start to the season and kind of to his college debut. I think that means a lot. I think that’s very important for a player to get off to a good start because it keeps them motivated. It keeps them driving a little harder. It always gives them a little extra edge of passion.” As Antcliff is a great competitor, Padung said he would rather play alongside him rather than against him. One thing is for sure: Antcliff said he definitely wants to go professional. “Depending on how things go here, if they go the way I want them to, then I’ll stay here and turn pro,” Antcliff said. “If not, then I’ll go home and go through the Asian Tour or European Tour and try that.” Antcliff is off to a great start, and the way things are going for him he said he will continue to progress even further. “I’m just happy to be out there,” Antcliff said.

kbutler7@gru.edu

A 60-53 loss to Montevallo in the Peach Belt Tournament Friday brought an end to a men’s basketball season the Jaguars would be happy to see forgotten forever, its remains blasted to the moon. At 6-0 and ranked No. 12 in the country in midDecember, the Jags looked like an NCAA Tournament lock. By February, they had become as irrelevant as Sam Worthington’s post“Avatar” career. It didn’t take Dick Tracy to figure out the team’s precipitous decline. Beginning Thursday, Jan. 17, with the team sitting at 8-3 and in first place in the Peach Belt Conference’s East division, Augusta State began dropping parts on the highway. That day, starting forward Harold Doby was arrested and suspended indefinitely. One day later, second-leading rebounder Chad July was kicked off the team. Two weeks after that, promising point guard Josh Samuels got the boot. All told, taking into account dismissals, suspensions and injuries, four of Augusta State’s top nine players at the beginning of the season combined to miss 43 games, give or take an exploding body part. By the time the Jags’ engine wheezed across the finish line, the team stood barely above .500 at 14-13. It was the team’s worst record since 2003-04. As they search for answers this offseason, the Jags’ most pressing need is obvious: They have to get tougher inside. After the losses of July and Doby, Augusta State had become thinner than Keira Knightley in the post. By the end of

CONTRIBUTED BY DAVID WICKER

Augusta State guard Devonte Thomas collides with two Lincoln Memorial defenders during a 67-53 loss on Wednesday, Dec. 19.

the season, Al E. Cat might have been the team’s most viable option at center. Making matters worse, 6-foot-9 Travis Keels, one of the team’s sole survivors in the paint, played his final collegiate game against the Falcons. Fortunately, help is on the way in the 6-foot8, 240-pound form of K.J. Sherrill, a transfer from

looks solid. Devon WrightNelson took a step back after his outstanding freshman year, but he remains one of the Peach Belt’s more gifted players. Ryan Weems and D’Angelo Boyce make up a strong starting backcourt, with Devonte Thomas providing firepower off the bench. It’s not like the Jags are a long way away. Seventeen of the team’s 24 losses over the past two seasons have been by 8 points or less. But at some point, moral victories start to feel hollow. The Jags have to start figuring out a way to pull out more of these close games at the end. A stronger post game would have doubtlessly turned some of those narrow defeats into victories. Two years removed from their last NCAA Tournament game, it would be an overstatement to say the Jags are at a crossroads. But after slipping from 30 to 17 to 14 wins in the past 24 months, a bounce-back season in 2013-14 will be important in order to re-establish direction. A couple of big bodies would go a long way toward returning the Jags to their accustomed perch atop the conference.

“The Jags’ most pressing need is obvious.” Division-I Charlotte who redshirted this season. He should give the team an interior presence on both ends of the floor that it lacked even before July (average points per game: 3.8) was given the heave-ho. But relying heavily on Sherrill, who suffered a broken arm and a serious knee injury while at Charlotte, carries some risk. Even if he stays healthy, there is the ever-present possibility that he won’t live up to outside expectations. (Does the name Kelth Cameron ring a bell?) Head coach Dip Metress will surely be scouring the ends of the earth this spring and summer to find reinforcements for Sherrill. The rest of the team

jgarner6@gru.edu