Sept 29 Issue, The Montage

September 29, 2011

Volume 47 Issue 3

Student Activities Council hosts annual Fall Festival

PAGE 12

Buildings and Grounds Manager Willie Wright stays in tune with Meramec

PAGE 13

Womens basketball player Lauren Fischer attends Meramec, plays at Forest Park.

PAGES 16

WWW.MERAMECMONTAGE.COM

Math success; a national issue

Made in Mexico

Meramec students retaking courses frustrated by difficulty

Student aids city in Mexico

KURT OBBEREITHER NEWS EDITOR

CHRIS CAMPBELL STAFF WRITER After living a life in suburbia, STLCC-Meramec student Rachael Gloyd found out firsthand just how much she had been taking for granted. “[My parents] would say something about sending me to Mexico to live with the Mexican Indians every time I’d get in trouble so I would behave,” Gloyd said. “And then it ended up being me volunteering to go down by myself.”

A native of St. Charles, Mo, Gloyd Texas for a few months where she the Hispanic culture and then moved St. Louis where she graduated from North High School.

lived in enjoyed home to Parkway

“My parents are music directors for churches,” Gloyd said. “So we moved to Texas because they got a job offer.”

Gloyd’s family had been involved with humanitarian aid. Living in Neuvo Necaxa, a village in the mountains south of Mexico City, was one more thing to add to her list.

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY: Kelly Glueck Like other students at STLCC-Meramec, Jody Dewes has come back to the same math course from semester to semester. Dewes has taken college algebra five times.

“We are within the national conversation,” Former Dean of Math and Communications and current Interim Vice President of Academic Affairs Vernon Kays, Ed.D., said.

“The issue of success in mathematics is a national conversation.”

Kays said there are many factors to consider when looking at return rates including socioeconomics, demographics but most of all high school preparation.

“In general, the more underprepared a student is, the less likely they are to continue to be successful,” Kays said.

After his senior year at Kirkwood High School, Dewes took the Accuplacer placement test, ranked into intermediate algebra and passed the course at Missouri State University. He moved on to college algebra and failed the course twice. Dewes then came to Meramec a

“In general, the more underprepared a student is, the less likely they are to continue to be successful.”

- Vernon Kays Ed.D., Vice President of Academic Affairs

year ago and enrolled in college algebra. In his third round of college algebra at Meramec, he is studying to earn a general transfer degree.

Prior to the adoption of Achieving the Dream (ATD), a program dedicated to helping more students succeed at Meramec, the math department made changes to the organization.

For example, tests in the programs are no longer required to be completed on a deadline.

Math department chair and developmental education committee member Jim Frost said the department demands mastery.

“Say the third week of class they’d have to take a test whether they were ready or not,” Frost said. “They had to take it. They took it and had whatever grade they got. So there was a frustration in that whole process of getting a bad grade for the students. So what we have done is we’re demanding mastery.”

Gloyd spent a total of three months in Mexico on two different occasions. Gloyd said the culture shock was something she did not expect.

“I learned a little the first time I went down there, but the language barrier was a big thing,” Gloyd said.

Gloyd found the dialect and speed of speech difficult to adjust to with intermittent recollections from high school Spanish class.

Despite this, she approached the trip to Mexico optimistically. Gloyd said not being able to understand the language had a big effect on her.

“Even with not being able to completely communicate, I still have a love for those people,” Gloyd said. “Language is a big thing, but it’s not necessary.”

Now students must attain a 80 percent mastery of the course.

Gloyd said that emotions speak louder than words, but that it was the hardest part of her journey.

Students are given a schedule that says if you want to finish this semester, this is when you will take this test. But if students do not take it on that day there is no penalty.

“I didn’t have electricity. I didn’t have [running] water. We had to wash our clothes on a washboard. We had to boil water to heat it up for warm showers,” Gloyd said.

Some courses require students to spend a set number of hours in the math lab located in Communications South and next to the math department offices in Science West.

Gloyd said that electricity was available, for only an hour or two a day and flashlights were hard to come by.

“If you struggle with [math], it’s not necessarily your fault. You just need someone to explain it to you in a different way to try to foster the ability you have to think critically,” Mike Roman, math tutor, said.

Continued on page 5

“Once in a while, they would have lights on at night,” Gloyd said. “Do you know how scary that is? I had to walk down a mountain to use [the outhouse] at night.”

Continued on page 10

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2 News | September 29, 2011

A+ program: requirements, they are a changin’ Counselors gather at Meramec to address alterations to the Missouri program KAVAHN MANSOURI EDITOR IN CHIEF High school counselors from throughout the surrounding high school districts attended a luncheon hosted by STLCC-Meramec’s District Enrollment Management Department to discuss prospective changes to the A+ program.

glad to hear they will be able to take the test more than once so they have multiple chances.

Even beyond that, they can prove themselves through a semester at a community college,” Herman said.

Thirty-one high schools were in attendance Friday, Sept. 23 in SC 200. One of the changes like requiring a passing grade in the Algebra 1 end of course exam for the 2015 high school seniors to be an A+ student, included making retakes available.

Public Schools A+ Coordinator James Dishman, Ed.D., attended the meeting.

Also students have the opportunity to bypass the Algebra 1 end of course exam.

The “way around” the Algebra 1 end of course exam gives students the chance to attend a community college for a semester without passing the test. To obtain A+ financial incentive funds, the student must maintain at least a 2.5 GPA while meeting other A+ standard requirements.

Francis Howell North A+ Coordinator Anne Herman said she believes the changes to the requirements will help students succeed in college.

“I think for most students it will be okay. I was

Dishman said A+ gives students hopes and expectations to go to college.

“I think the big benefit is that these young people now have the hope to go to college.

The biggest problem we had in the past is that young people didn’t have the money to go and once they were here they didn’t have the money to stay,” Dishman said. “Now they have hope and expectations being able to go to community college with either A+ financial incentives or FAFSA money through the Pell grant.”

Although A+ gives students the opportunity to retake the test as many times as they like, the student’s school district has the final say on whether a student should take the test once or multiple times.

Dishman said that giving the district the final say limits the students who will be eligible for A+.

Transfer to Missouri State University

“We’re trying to get kids to the point where they have hopes and expectations to go to college,” Dishman said. “Now we’re putting another layer on there, and I know the folks want the students to do better -- we do too -- but we don’t want students to go off to college and to a bunch of remedial work. That’s not what it’s about.”

Dishman said the changes are more of hindrance for students than an improvement.

“Fewer students will be eligible for A+ and I believe that’s a detriment to our young people,” Dishman said. “There will be fewer of them eligible to access A+ schools financial incentive funds. I have a problem with fewer students being able to go to community college,” Dishman said.

Although Dishman sees the changes to the requirements as harmful, he said he sees what the state is trying to do.

“It will be a deterrent to some students because in the past it hasn’t been an issue,” Dishman said. “They have gone off to community college and had to do three remedial courses, so I can see what the states trying to do. I can see they are trying to get students better prepared to go to college.”

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Take Charge of Your Future

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News September 29, 2011 |

Meramec intervention team for students’ safety Behavioral Intervention Team established to address threats to students on campus TYLER BURRUS STAFF WRITER New measures have been taken to increase STLCC-Meramec’s campus security. Not only on the Meramec campus but nationally, the welfare of students and faculty has become a concern.

The Behavioral Intervention Team (BIT) was recently added to Meramec to help students and faculty create a safer learning environment, according to the BIT incident report form.

The BIT intends to prevent individuals from causing harm to themselves or to others. This can also include anyone who has violated the college policies stated in the student handbook or committed any criminal offenses.

Examples of such behavior would include drug or alcohol abuse, theft, assault or any type of property damage. Student misconduct, like sexual harassment, possession of weapons, physical abuse of any kind and academic dishonesty can all lead to the intervention of the BIT team, according to the STLCC website.

“We can keep track of the issues and concerns, but it’s mainly to be proactive and try to get help for students or a faculty member in need,” Linda Nissenbaum, team member and disability support services manager, said.

Members of the Meramec BIT include Linden Crawford, vice president of student affairs; Counselor Jason Duchinsky; Paul Banta, Meramec campus police chief; campus police officer Michael Beach and Nissenbaum.

Similar BIT teams are on both the Florissant Valley and Forest Park campuses.

“People can report this type of behavior to that team so we can intervene before any harm is done to that individual or another student,” Banta said.

According to Nissenbaum, communication between administrators and students is very important. Schools across the country are doing this in response to the Virginia Tech incident in 2007.

“There was a concern where people were not communicating with one another,” Nissenbaum said. “People didn’t know about the psychological issues the person was having.”

Banta said staying aware will make other possible incidents less likely to occur. The BIT and the students, faculty and staff members on campus are part of the process in alleviating the risk of a security breach according to Banta.

“Anybody can do a report-- faculty, students and the public,” Nissenbaum said.

If anyone notices suspicious behavior, they are advised to contact campus police, Banta, or the campus counselor, Duchinsky. An incident report form can be filled out online at https://stlcc.edu/ forms/incidentreport.html. Any reports filed will be looked into immediately as stated on the informational incident report.

PHOTO BY: Tyler Burrus Doors lead to the counseling and academic advising offices located on the second floor of Clark Hall. The Behavorial Intervention Team helps to prevent individuals from causing harm to themselves or to others. The team consists of members from the counseling department, campus police and Student Affairs. Students and faculty are urged to report potential threats.

Meramec helps in rebuild: club plans trip to Joplin, Mo. Joe Chesla and the sculpture club sponsor October trip to the tornado-devastated town MIKE ZIEGLER PHOTO EDITOR The STLCC-Meramec sculpture club is sponsoring a trip to Joplin, Mo., to continue work on demolished houses and deliver donations from the Meramec campus.

“There is plenty that needs to be done here. We have people who are in need on a daily basis,”Chesla said. “We have the abilities, whether people just need their yard raked, or their front porch is falling apart.”

Joe Chesla, sculpture and design professor and faculty sponsor for the trip, is taking 10 students with him to Joplin for the trip.

Chesla said he uses social work as a way to employ skills learned in the classroom toward real-world use.

The trip will last from Oct. 7-9.

“Taking the little knowledge we have and some of the tools, we can go make a difference a block away tomorrow,” Chesla said. “That’s kind of what I’m about.”

Chesla said he plans on using the time spent in Joplin as not only a way to give back, but to help students realize their abilities.

“These kids need to be thinking, and they need to be acting. That’s what the Joplin thing is all about: understanding their strengths and putting them into action,” Chesla said.

Support from students and faculty has come not only by donations, but personal visits to Chesla reinforcing the trip, Chesla said.

“Lots of people are coming and saying, ‘I’m really glad you’re doing this.

I’m really glad you’re engaging the students like this’,” Chesla said. “It is really interesting.”

Donations will be accepted until Oct. 7 in the sculpture lab in HE 131. A full list of items needed can be found at http://rebuildjoplin.org/give.

Items especially needed include laundry and dishwashing soap along with gas cards.

“It’s coming, but it’s coming really slow, which is fine,” Chesla said. “I know everybody is kind of strapped at the moment.”

After the Joplin trip, Chesla plans to work locally as well on social work to help the community.

Chesla urged anyone wanting to help but unsure as to what they can do, to either contact the organizers directly at 417-625-3543 or contact him for further information on how to help.

“It just needs to happen,” Chesla said.

CORRECTION In the Sept. 15th issue, the Meramec Campus Police Department was inadvertently referred to as “Campus Security.” Campus police employs armed, certified police officers versus campus security personnel. STLCC-Meramec, a statefunded institution, has an established police department.

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4 News | September 29, 2011

From electronics space to aerospace Center for Workforce Innovation prepares students for careers with Boeing, others KELLY GLUECK MANAGING EDITOR Unemployment is up and the STLCC Center for Workforce Innovation’s Aerospace Institute has teamed with industry partners to give students the skills they need to get back to work.

The 32,000-square-foot retired Circuit City building, next to STLCC-Florissant Valley, houses STLCC’s Aerospace Institute, the only program in the St. Louis area to offer aerospace manufacturing. Aerospace Institute Manager Becky Epps said that the program stemmed from conversations with the aerospace industry.

“The more we talked to Boeing and other suppliers, the more we realized there was this big gap where there were no trained people for aerospace,” Epps said.

Boeing and other partners worked with the institute to design a “cutting edge” program to enhance the recruitment of qualified workers.

The curriculum includes a two-week introductory fundamentals course. Upon completion, students have the option to go on to a five-week metal structure course, mechanical or electrical course.

Beginning in October, they will offer a composites and assembly course.

Continued on page 5

PHOTO BY: Kelly Glueck Instructor Robert Weaver instructs student Floyd Brown on wiring connectors on a FA-18 fighter jet door on Sept. 27 in the Center for Workforce Innovation. This was the electrical and mechanical course’s final project before graduation.

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News September 29, 2011 |

Math: Meramec students learn, students tutor Continued from page 1

PHOTO BY: Mike Ziegler Blake Riley, left, helps student Jayson Hill with a math problem on Sept. 26 in the math tutoring lab in Science West. Riley has been a math tutor at Meramec for five semesters. Riley was a former Fontbonne student and earned a “D” after his first round with college algebra. After spending five semesters tutoring math at Meramec he says Meramec math is “a goldmine.”

Dewes said he spends at least four hours a week receiving the free tutoring offered. However, he said at Missouri State, tutors acted more proactively, scheduling tutoring around the student’s schedule.

Also, mathematics final exams were not comprehensive, and although he did not pass, the courses were “a little bit easier,” Dewes said.

In some universities like Webster University, student who are not going into a mathematics intensive field are not required to complete college algebra.

Kays, who is a member of the development education committee, said one reason STLCC has become engaged in ATD is to improve developmental education courses like intermediate and college algebra, but he would like to see a substitute course for college algebra and a change in what is considered success in mathematics.

over the last five years as more students come underprepared,” Kays said. “We have more and more underprepared students especially in mathematics.”

Another obstacle, according to Kays, is improving the courses at Meramec with the lack of facilities like rooms to house math labs.

Kays said that is why math labs and tutoring are split between buildings.

Dewes said he likes using MyMathLab but has noticed an age gap in ability to navigate and use the program to complete homework and quizzes.

Blake Riley, another student math tutor, earned a D at Fontbonne University before coming to Meramec.

Riley has been tutoring for five semesters and said he helps between 60 and 100 students a day.

“The [associates degree] does not require college algebra,” Kays said. “It does now because we don’t have any other course option.”

Riley said he sees many students who “really just want a C” but that Meramec math is a “goldmine.”

Kays, who has been at Meramec for more than five years, said he has not seen major math changes during his years at Meramec.

Dewes said he plans to make better use of tutoring to receive a passing grade in college algebra.

“The faculty are working very hard at trying to improve it. It has not changed substantially. It may have gone down slightly in the success rates

“It’s weird; honestly, I could be almost a professor the amount of times I’ve taken the course, but it gets harder every time,” Dewes said.

CWI: career skills Continued from page 4 “Our partners have been in it from the beginnings, so they know what’s in the curriculum and what [students] are learning, so we’re hoping the name recognition of the Aerospace Institute will hold the high standard that we expect from our students,” Epps said.

Epps said that because the program was created using the aerospace industry’s model, the student is more likely to soar above the rest.

“Our goal is to meet those industry needs for the skilled, trained potential employees, and to get those people working. That’s why it’s eight hours a day, five days a week. We don’t do twoyears,” Epps said. “These people, for the most part, are in their late 20s, early 40s, and are unemployed. They want to get in there, learn a skill, and get back out to work.”

The institute’s first class graduates this week.

The second class has nearly doubled the size of the first. With the program growth, student Tom Shelton said he hopes there is light at the end of the runway for the unemployed.

“I’ve been a floor liner for the better part of my life. I always wanted to be an electrician. So I’m here working hard and bettering myself to get out there and get a job,” Shelton said.

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6 Opinions | September 29, 2011

Living the dream

Off the eaten path

USPS: whose problem?

JESSE HOFFORD OPINIONS EDITOR

KURT OBERREITHER NEWS EDITOR

Majic Market

The local food scene around STLCC-Meramec offers more than just coffee shops and diner food. If one looks hard enough, they can find food from many different origins without having to venture outside of Kirkwood. In fact within walking distance of the campus on the corner of West Woodbine Avenue and Andrews Avenue sits a little deli called Majic Market.

Majic Market’s main focus is not deli meats however. The item they are particularly proud of is their gyro. Pronounced “yeer-o”, the sandwich hails from Greece and usually contains lamb, lettuce, tomato, onion and a sauce called Tzatziki sauce, which is a goat milk yogurt-based cucumber sauce. All of these ingredients are then stuffed into a warm loaf of pita. Majic Market changes up the traditional gyro by using a lamb and beef mixture while still holding true to everything else.

The gyros at Majic Market are actually quite good. One should not worry about the fact that they are eating lamb if they have never had it. The mixed in beef softens the flavor of the lamb, making it less exotictasting for those that may be new to lamb

meat. The spices used in the meat are top notch; the herbs can actually be seen in the meat and really add some nice flavor and zest. Vegetables are all fresh and crisp and the sauce they use is also very good. Their Tzatziki sauce is made in-house from fresh cucumbers.

Inside, service is quick and friendly and the owner is very friendly as well. To place an order, customers simply walk up to the deli counter and order what they want, then pay at a separate counter near the entrance.

There is nowhere to sit and eat inside, but that should not detract from the great food being served. There is nothing wrong with sitting on the curb and enjoying a gyro with friends after class. Prices are fair and students who attend college at Meramec can get a 10 percent discount if they present their student ID. Majic Market offers a wealth of other items like deli meats and cheeses, sandwiches, wraps, chili and even breakfast. Hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday and they are closed on Sunday. Address is 640 W. Woodbine Ave., Kirkwood, Mo.

America kicks ass

Watching Americans kick each other’s asses KAVAHN MANSOURI EDITOR IN CHIEF

Being Americans, it is in our genes to be (A. fantastic, (B. make money, (C. kick the teeth out of each other or (D. all of the above.

D is the correct answer, readers.

America Kicks Ass, two and a quarter semesters in it is agreed upon that this is an accepted truth. To this day what some people fail to see is that it is not just what America is or what America makes that makes it so beautiful and great. No, no, it is not just that. It is also what we do. Since the beginning of time people have been beating the living tar out of each other, and doing it in some pretty innovative and interesting ways.

On one hand you have boxing, a popular American pastime that almost everyone can relate to in some way (beating opponent in face while also being beat in face). On the other hand you have a rather new and far bloodier way of knocking skulls dubbed mixed martial arts, more popularly referred to as MMA.

America has found its new pastime. Forget baseball; instead of that base-running nonsense, let’s wear shirts that are far too tight for our bodies and call each other bros.

Plus, instead of a boxing ring all the fighting takes place in something called “The Octagon.” That has got to be the coolest name for a place to roll around the floor and relentlessly beat each other.

I tuned into one of these “UFC” matches and let me promise you, it was one of the most violent things I have ever seen in my life. Basically, one fighter will put the other fighter into some sort of body lock and then massacre him with punches of all sorts. The “haymaker” was by far the most American for me, (not to be confused with the Canadian country rock band “Haymaker.”)

Grab a beer, get some friends, visit your local mall and sell out their athletics stores supply of “Tapout” shirts and put the big match on. Because, folks, there is nothing more American than two guys beating each other to bloody pulps.

Surely, Ben Franklin, the first postmaster general, never foresaw the invention of electronic mail and by effect, the billions in deficits the U.S. Postal Service faces (USPS).

It may be easy for people to dismiss the Postal Service as an outdated means for junk mail to reach their front door, but the fact is that the USPS provides mail to every single home in the United States and employs 574,000 people nationwide.

Currently, the USPS is under threat of defaulting on a $5.5 billion payment into an employee retirement fund, jeopardizing ways to improve its business model by closing mail processing facilities in order to eliminate Saturday delivery.

Most importantly, these jobs are employment opportunities for people who did not feel the need to pursue a college degree – a choice that is becoming scarcer.

Could this be contributing to the contemporary tendency to throw the USPS harshly to the curb like yesterday’s trash? Is it an ignorant display of elitism?

These questions may have to be left unanswered, but money can almost always be a culprit. In fact, there is some confusion in who exactly is supporting the mail service.

Until the adoption of the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970, it was a tax-payer-supported entity, but it currently operates as an independent agency mandated by the federal government, relying on postage stamp sales and other postal products.

What’s even more intriguing, the USPS is so committed to providing service to every U.S. citizen that in northwestern Arizona, mail is still delivered via mule.

On the floor of the Grand Canyon, postal mule train is one of the chief ways the Havasupai Indians receive food since the nearest supermarket is 3,000 feet up and 120 miles away. They are grateful for the service that goes to all ends in providing mail for everyone including the places the UPS and FedEx cannot reach.

Nevertheless, the USPS still provides the cheapest ways for city dwellers and folks in the boondocks alike to ship in bulk, like flat-rate boxes or send a letter.

Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill recently stated that letters have been an integral part of American literature and history and urged Americans to send more letters.

The New York Times reported “There is something special about receiving a piece of first-class mail, knowing that it comes from someone you care about,” McCaskill said.

Obviously, the processing facilities are seeing less volume as bills are paid online and communication is transmitted instantly. However, how can one ignore a service that has been around since the days of the Founding Fathers? …Hell, you could even write a letter to your congressmen urging them to pass legislation extending its time period for the retirement payment or provide a long-term solution for the USPS. Whoever the recipient, write a letter, slap a stamp on it and stick it in your mailbox.

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September 29, 2011 |

Students, plus math, equals frustration Students should try harder and faculty should lend more of a hand KAVAHN MANSOURI EDITOR IN CHIEF

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Talk to most students around campus about how they feel about the mathematics department at Meramec.

More than likely an overblown rant will be unleashed about how Meramec has an unfair way of teaching math.

The rant might also include that Meramec’s math program is unfair and mean. While there may be truth to these angry rants, just as in any argument, there is an opposition.

While the numbers show that Meramec’s completion rate in mathematics-based courses are low, it is completely unnecessary to point the finger of blame towards the mathematics department. While classes may seem difficult at times, they are by all means possible, just as any course at Meramec is possible.

Sure, it might take some hard work on the student’s side, but contrary to popular belief, college is not all about hanging out in the quad, playing Frisbee and getting free food from student government events.

College is about working hard to get a proper education.

Whether it means studying until your eyes bleed or producing papers in quantities rivaling The New York Times, at the end of the day it has to happen.

It is time for students to take a hard look in the mirror and an even harder look into those College Algebra books and type in those codes required to register the software in mathematics classes. It might be a little frightening sitting in that computer chair that so many other students have sat in.

But keep in mind some have failed, but just as well, some have passed. It really all comes down to putting in the work, with all of the credit hours students stack up, it might seem impossible, but look at the math class as just another class. Look at the math book as another book that needs to be studied.

The mathematics department here at Meramec can take a little slice off the blame train as well. Arter surveying several students, it is clear that there are often complaints of being disallowed use of calculators, finding it hard to connect with instructors and often being shrugged off when asking for help.

For students in computerized courses some complain they feel like their “eyes are glued to a screen for over

an hour.” Why not? Most students coming from high school courses are used to face-to-face time with instructors. While handson-learning through educational programs is a great idea, it puts students into an environment they are not used to.

While all these atrocities are being committed against students, it is important to look at it from the instructor’s point of view, because at the end of the day there are fair arguments on each side of the pendulum.

What can be done to make everyone happy with taking mathematics courses at Meramec? That is the real question. What key will unlock the sweet spot in the middle of this pendulum of equations and algorithms?

First off, students should try to take it upon themselves to try harder and if they have tried as hard as they can, reach out to the teacher instead of instantly dropping the course. On the other side, teachers could make their classes a little more “real world” friendly. In other words, a calculator would be nice.

Another way the department could reach out to students is by holding an open forum for students to voice their concerns. It would be a nice way to see what students like and dislike about what the department is doing and students would feel more heard and appreciated.

This might take some time and effort on the mathematics department’s part, but it is a step in the right direction as far as student-teacher relations goes.

Change is tough. But as Bob Dylan wrote, “the times, they are a-changing.” Hopefully, if these small changes are accepted, there will enter a new outlook for students enrolled in math courses.

It’s time to stop playing the blame game and start playing the academic game. The best thing students and the mathematics department can do is find some common ground and build upon it.

Wounds of former students cannot be healed, but current students would appreciate being heard by the college instead of shrugged off and left out to dry.

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meramec montage

8 In-Depth | September 29, 2011

Fall 2011 fashion GRAPHICS BY: Lilly Huxhold and Tomi Storey

In-Depth September 29, 2011 |

do (girls): go neutral Return to classic camel. It’s a chic alternative to black that works around the clock. don’t (girls): wear feathers in your hair Just don’t do it. Enough said. do (boys): layer with a vest The vest can be one extra barrier against the cold or act as a finishing piece on slightly warmer days. don’t (boys): tuck your shirt into jeans It’s very unflattering. Leave it untucked, unless you wear a button-down over it.

men’s

do (girls): pops of color Wear simple outfits with bright accessories that keep your look versatile. don’t (girls): wear leggings as pants Wear leggings as you would a pair of opaque tights. Jeggings are an exception to this rule. do (boys): stay a little rusty Shades of brick, rust, and red are the new preppy neutral. don’t (boys): wear socks with sandals Not only has it been tacky since forever, but it defeats the whole purpose of wearing open-toed shoes. do (girls): try tailored pieces Invest in a pantsuit. It can be worn with everything from a tee to a sequined tank. don’t (girls): shy away from leather skirts With leather shorts a “must” for summer, it should come to no surprise that leather minis (paired with the right tights and boots) would become a fall fashion trend.

women’s

do’s and don’ts Fall Fashion 2011

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meramec montage

10 Art & Life | September 29, 2011

Mexico: Student humbled by time in Mexican village Continued from page 1

Because many people in Mexico survive off of iniquities, the crime in the villages surrounding Nuevo Necaxa is much worse than Gloyd was familiar with in St. Louis.

“People, that’s what I was afraid of. We had five murders the first week up the street [from] where I was at,” Gloyd said. “There [are] murders all the time in that area. So to use the bathroom at night is so scary. So scary. I had mace on me all the time.”

Gloyd’s experience with the orphaned children in the village, however, outweighed the culture shock and fear.

“I considered myself more like a nanny. Making sure everybody is doing what they’re supposed to do. I cleaned. I cooked,” Gloyd said. “I probably made over 3,000 tortillas while I was there. I bonded with the children. They don’t have anybody to look up to. Their moms are prostitutes and their dads are dead or they never knew their dads.”

Nuevo Necaxa is not a typical “village,” Gloyd said. It does not follow even the typical Mexican lifestyle that Americans are aware of here in the United States. “[The village] was mainly children. We’d have families who didn’t have a place to live come stay with us,” Gloyd said. “People recovering from alcoholism or drugs. It’s like a rehab, but it’s also like an orphanage.”

Culturally, even something as simple as waving incorrectly would be considered a sexual advance, Gloyd said.

SUBMITTED PHOTO Meramec student Rachael Gloyd holds a child from Nuevo Necaxa, Mexico. Gloyd spent a total of three months on seperate occasions in the Mexican village.

“They’re not big huggers, but I gave all the kids hugs all the time. I taught them how to high-five. I always sang to them too,” Gloyd said. “And probably the coolest thing is riding home from church in the back of a truck with 15 kids, and just holding on and hoping you don’t fall because there’s a mountain, singing all the way home.”

Gloyd is majoring in international business and plans to travel all over the world, volunteering wherever she can.

“I want to do this for the rest of my life,” Gloyd said. “There’s so many places that ‘need,’ and that’s where I want to go. My friend just got back from Kenya, Africa, so the next time he goes, I’m thinking about going with him.”

Gloyd said she enjoys the experience of different cultures and the positive feedback from the people she has met on her trips.

“You see people who have nothing and come from nothing, and you look at yourself and you just want to not do what you were doing,” Gloyd said.

“Change your ways. It’s really humbling that they’re so happy still, regardless of what they come from.”

Gloyd said she encourages everyone to get involved with humanitarian aid.

SUBMITTED PHOTO

“To people who want to go down there,” Gloyd said. “I’d say keep an open mind and an open heart because it’ll change your life.”

Meramec student Rachael Gloyd takes a photograph with several of the children she cared for in Nuevo Necaxa, Mexico. Gloyd said she traveled to Mexico to aid the village.

*

* at the crestwood location for all of your school, team, or holiday function.

Crestwood (314) 822-4909 South County (314) 894-1600 Eureka (636) 938-7090

Art & Life September 29, 2011 |

Searching for a cure

Meramec student studies infinite stem cell possibilities in Washington University program AMBER DAVIS ASST. ART & LIFE EDITOR With having success, several local news crews would come into UC Davis Stem Cell Program to do stories.

Lindsey and his crew would give their input about how they felt stem cell research could help society.

“I really feel that our work out [in Sacramento] does have much potential for many people with fatal diseases; such as Huntington’s disease and HIV,” Lindsey said.

Lindsey’s research at UC Davis was to track the progress of the stem cells while inserted into the test rats and primates. One experiment Lindsey conducted was to cut the femoral artery (the largest artery located in the thigh) on their test rats. The Mesenchymal stem cells were inserted into the femoral that allowed other cells to come in the injured area, which released new capillaries or blood vessels. The new blood vessels went around the injury which allowed blood flow to continue down the leg.

PHOTO BY: Tyler Burrus Matt Lindsey demonstrates looking through a microscope in a biology lab. Lindsey,22, started stem cell research during his sophmore year of high school.

While most high school students were cramming for tests, worrying about homecoming or procrastinating, Matt Lindsey, a STLCC-Meramec student, started lab work for stem cell research.

“In my high school I worked in an independent study class, which was called Authentic Science Research with my teacher Cheryl Epperson. It was a three-year class so you started your sophomore year,” Lindsey said.

The program Lindsey participated in lead him to his mentor Gerhard Bauer. Bauer was the director for the Good Manufacture Practice Facility which was located in the cancer facility at Washington University. Lindsey then became a lab technician with Bauer to monitor an “ultra-clean facility.”

Not only did Lindsey monitor dividing blood cells, he also had to make sure temperatures were right and he had to measure the levels of bacteria inside the incubators. The purpose was to protect the study from contamination by outside bacteria or certain amount of particles in the air.

“We had to clean out water vats so a bacterium was not growing in [the study],” Lindsey said.

“Then I had to do settling plates that allowed when the air flow bacteria particles in the air will fall on the settling plate if it grew a certain amount of colonies, (above 3 colonies) then it was considered to fail. From there, we had to do a whole cleaning of the facility to decontaminate them. So there would be no contamination into the samples that we would be transplanting into a patient.”

One patient had to come in regularly to Washington University for blood transfusions.

“He was deficient to platelets and we could produce enough of them and give him a high concentration of these platelets. With these stem cells that he would not have to come in for treatment as much,” Lindsey said.

“When I graduated, I moved out there with them and I became the staff research associate. I took on more responsibilities; I developed different processes for deriving Mesenchymal stem cells from the umbilical cord blood and from the placenta,” Lindsey said.

During the time Lindsey lived in California, George Bush was in office. Bush did not allow embryotic stem cell research due to ethnical issues. Once President Obama was elected into office, the spring of 2008, he eliminated the barrier for stem cell research.

Lindsey said he has always wanted to go into the medical field. He is getting his prerequisites at Meramec to accomplish his nursing degree. After he gets his prerequisites finished Lindsey plans to move on to Washington University’s Barnes Jewish Hospital School of Nursing. Lindsey said he would then go into a Master’s program.

“I really had a heart for the intensive care units and the ER when I went on career shadowing.

But as I worked more in the medical field and saw what nurses do I really enjoyed that environment,” Lindsey said. “Once I specialize in there I definitely want to obtain my Ph.D. and do more of the planning and managing aspects of nursing and eventually get into teaching.”

“That was a pretty exciting time and we were a new stem cell program. [The program] was on the leading edge of everything,” Lindsey said.

Rocky Horror Picture Show Preview Meramec’s first play of the semester is The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Check out our preview for the play at meramecmontage.com

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Currents

“My job [in the ultra-clean facility] was to transfect stem cells. When they divided to white and red cells, I wanted to see if they still maintain that gene that I inserted into them,” Lindsey said.

Once Lindsey graduated from high school in 2007, he joined his mentor Bauer to move to Sacramento, Ca. Lindsey attended school at the University of California-Davis (UC Davis). Lindsey also helped Bauer with his stem cell research program while in Sacramento.

“The mouse would have his leg paralyzed; he wouldn’t be able to walk [without the Mesenchymal stem cells]. Twenty-one days after the injection this mouse is having function in his leg again,” Lindsey said.

Get Published.

No Joke.

Now Accepting Submissions 2011:April 30 • November 22 2012: December 1 • February 16 Submit your original art in Jpeg format

mccurrents@my.stlcc.edu

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meramec montage

12 Art & Life | September 29, 2011

Managing a ‘city within a city’ Buildings and Grounds Manager Willie Wright serves Meramec with loyalty and dedication KAVAHN MANSOURI EDITOR IN CHIEF The office is clean and well-organized, with the same egg-white wall paint seen inside STLCC-Meramec’s many corridors and classrooms. On top of one of the many filing cabinets sits a book entitled, “The ABC’s of Buildings and Grounds Management.” This office keeps Meramec running. It belongs to Buildings and Grounds Manager Willie Wright, and serves as his command post for keeping Meramec running every day.

Wright was raised in Mississippi where he attended Coahoma Community College. He began working with STLCC over 40 years ago, working with the district office downtown. There, he worked in the design department.

Wright held several different jobs with STLCC before coming to Meramec, including serving as an architect technician and as the Physical Facilitator representative. Wright came to Meramec 23 years ago as manager of building and grounds, and has been in the position ever since.

Wright said that being the manager of buildings and grounds requires a nurturing attitude towards the campus.

“It’s more like a parent type thing. It’s kind of in your blood. You feel loyal to being around to make sure everything’s working,” Wright said. “It’s a nurturing type effect you need to have in this job. You have to like it; I wouldn’t have been here for 40 years if I didn’t like it.”

Wright sees Meramec as not only a campus, but also as a community.

“Meramec is really a city within a city; we are surrounded by all types of residents. Meramec, to me, is our New York Central Park; everything happens right in the community,” Wright said.

Wright added that the campus also has a park-like atmosphere.

“Students walk through this campus like a park. Students might not even notice it, but there are a lot of activities here in the evenings and on Saturdays and Sundays,” Wright said. “Meramec is like a park and I think that is a good setting for students.”

Being at Meramec for over 20 years has given Wright the opportunity to get to know the campus and its student population.

Wright said the student population at Meramec has always been something he has enjoyed.

“Basically, it’s just a nice place to work. I always enjoy the students we have here. It’s fascinating to see the change in students over the years,” Wright said.

Wright added that he can relate to the students because he himself attended a community college.

“As a person, I can relate to a lot of the students because I was a student myself. I know exactly what they’re going through,” Wright said.

Behind this manager is a team of hard working employees, which is exactly what Wright relies on to keep Meramec running. The staff at Meramec is tasked with keeping a 78-acre college campus up-to-par on a day-to-day basis.

Don’t be mistaken though, Wright said that without his dedicated staff his job would be impossible and that Meramec would be a different place without the people who maintain the campus on a daily basis.

“Imagine 1,300 people, in and out of the campus. In and out of the bathrooms and facilities. If that doesn’t get done, what this place would look like, you‘ll understand why the staff is important,” Wright said.

PHOTO BY: Mike Ziegler Willie Wright, buildings and grounds manager, talks with Neil Hall, Meramec shipping and recieving clerk, as he goes over packages to be delivered across the campus. Wright has worked for STLCC for 40 years.

Wright said that above all, Meramec comes first. He said that he is proud of Meramec’s accomplishments and that the campus has always been a leader for STLCC. “Meramec always took the lead. I think that’s a very good thing. We’ve always been a conservative campus and we’ve never let our leadership get in the way of working through the district,” Wright said.

At the end of the day, while some go home and take their mind off work, Wright stays in sync with Meramec.

“They’re like a family. I couldn’t do what I can do without a good dedicated staff.”

- Willie Wright, Buildings and Grounds Manager

There is a special relationship between the staff and Wright. He added that what he does could not be possible without his team.

“They’re like a family. I couldn’t do what I can do without a good dedicated staff,” Wright said. “They understand the mission we have here, which is to serve the students, the staff and the faculty. Everybody who comes on board knows this is what we’re here for.”

“When I leave Meramec, I’m always still in tune with Meramec. Even with my iPhone.

It gives me a jump on anything. Some instructors might need something, they’ve got a question or a problem they need solved. It gives me an opportunity to work on it before I even get to work.”

In the “Physical Plant Operations: User’s Guide” there is a forward from Wright.

In the forward there is a list of leadership competencies that must be displayed by the buildings and grounds manager.

Wright said that his job is all about those qualities.

“We’re all fighting for the same things here. I try to be the advocate to get those things done,” Wright said.

Art & Life September 29, 2011 |

PHOTO BY: Mike Ziegler

Student Activities Council hosts Fall Fest 2011

Activities and food awarded through participation in annual festival LUKE BLOUNT STAFF WRITER

At Fall Fest 2011, the Student Activities Council (SAC) put a spin on the festival. Rather than just hand out free food, SAC had students participate in a variety of carnival-style games in order to earn their lunch.

SAC representative Troy Rolen said SAC wanted students to be more involved in the festival.

“We wanted students more involved and for people to start talking to each other and get to know more of the students instead of making it a commuter campus make it more of a home away from home,” Rolen said.

PHOTO BY: Mike Ziegler Left Photo: Kaitlin Hayes tosses a blow-up globe through a hoop during Fall Fest held in the Student Center Quad on Sept. 21. Top Photo: Francheska Jelks participates in the ring toss game. Bottom right: Herman Davidson claims his free lunch. Fall Fest was held to highlight groups around campus, it is an annual event.

Check out Fall Fest 2011’s video at http://MeramecMontage.com for more coverage.

PHOTO BY: Alex Kendall

.com

meramec montage

14 Art & Life | September 29, 2011

Colleagues host Faculty Art and Music Showcase Rachael Freeman STAFF WRITER The sound of the bass guitar was the instrument resonating throughout the room on Friday, Sept. 23 at the Faculty Art and Music Showcase.

The elements of bluegrass, blues, reggae, rock, country and jazz were apparent in the bands tune.

the assistant for the music department.

Meramec professors Gary Gackstatter, James Ibur and his band Alien Souls united to perform their first instrumental and vocal ensemble, accompanied by an assortment of art.

“Well, a year ago I [told Gackstatter] I play music a little bit,” Ibur said. “[Gackstatter said], ‘well come on in the room and let’s play,’ [so] we played.”

Gackstatter, coordinator of music and Ibur, associate professor and coordinator of ceramics at Meramec, showed their artistic talents from the moment guests arrived at Humanities West room 102.

Ibur was recapping the moment the ideas of showcasing first arouse.

Those present were seeing two teachers embrace their love for music and share their gift of art.

This showcase was anticipated for a year by Gackstatter and Ibur.

“Music has life and I want to live.”

- James Ibur, Fine Arts Professor

Guests were greeted as they entered the room by an array of Gackstatter’s ink drawings, and Ibur’s clay doumbek drum, bottle drum and large abstract bowl. Guests were not only able to appreciate the art by sight and sound.

“I thought it was great mix of music. The addition of the art to me was spectacular. I think this was a great event for Meramec,” said Lamar Fitzgerald,

“Gary ended up playing with my [music style] and I ended up playing on his [music style] with my band. It was really cool,” Ibur said.

Ibur and Gackstatter said they were both proud of their performance. They were accompanied by percussionist Mike Reifsteck, vocalist J.J. Skiver, bass player Tony Zerbolio and percussionist Ron Sikes. This collaboration created the sounds for the evening.

Kate Gurley, 4 years old, showed her admiration for Gackstatter and Ibur’s music.

Gurley twirled and danced throughout the evening as Dorothy Bardwell, Jean Rocchio and Rosann Duane from the Rose Hill House, a Lutheran Senior Service glanced from afar.

“Dorothy said to me ‘Well I’ll tell you if I don’t like it’. She was pretty opened minded,” said Debbie Corson, Vice President of Student Affairs Office.

“I think it helped to have the little girl playing, dancing and jumping around.”

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While Gurley danced Gackstatter, Ibur and Alien Soul entertained the audience throughout the evening.

Linda Tope, an audience member, said

PHOTO BY: Rachael Freeman James Ibur, Meramec ceramacs instructor, performs during the Faculty Art and Music Showcase on Sept. 23 in HW 102.

Ibur performed with Gary Gackstatter, coordinator of music, during the showcase.

the show touched her heart.

“I like how [Gackstatter] would set up the song so we could appreciate the song even more.

[The introduction about] his teacher back in Oklahoma, being a former teacher [myself], touched my heart to know that he wrote a song for her,” Tope said.

The showcase was a way for them to encourage students and the community to appreciate art.

“Music has life and I want to live,” Ibur said.

Gackstatter and Ibur said it was time for them to express what they love and stand behind what they do. “[The showcase is about] standing for originality, standing up for creativity, [and] making it available for students to see that the faculty members actually do what they are talking about. We are not just people behind a desk,”Gackstatter said.

50-Minute Workshops

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Learn how to become more competitive in the marketplace through a wide variety of helpful resources targeted toward resume, cover letter, job search, and interviewing development.

November 4, 2011 Series I: Resume & Cover Letter Development November 11, 2011 Series II: Job Search/Application November 18, 2011 Series III: Interviewing and Networking All Sessions: 10 a.m.-11 a.m.

Student Center Room 125

For more information contact: Career and Employment Services Tel: 314-984-7611 Email: CES@stlcc.edu

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Sports September 29, 2011 |

From Webb-ster to STLCC

COMMENTARY

AARON McCALL STAFF WRITER

Cardinal number five

Jonathan Webb appointed sports information director In the world of sports, only a select few are privileged enough to play sports at the highest level.

Those who hang up the cleats somewhere down their path, but do not want to give up sports, have other avenues to follow.

Becoming a statistician, broadcaster, trainer or sports journalist keeps ex-players around.

As a three-sport high school athlete in basketball, baseball and wrestling, Maplewood-Richmond Heights 2007 graduate, Jonathan Webb, saw sports media as an opportunity to further his career in sports.

“Sports are what drove me all the way through high school and college,” Webb said. “When it became clear I wasn’t going to be playing a sport at the next level, it became, ‘How can I incorporate this into my career?’”

Starting off at Webster University as the sports editor for their paper, The Ampersand, the new graduate took advantage of the opportunity to become the sports information director for STLCC athletics.

Along with keeping up the STLCC athletic website, attending home athletic events and covering games for the Meramec, Forest Park and Florissant Valley campuses, Webb is in charge of putting STLCC athletics on the map and in the media. “[I’ve covered games] just about whenever I can,” Webb said. “I have probably missed three home sporting events to this point. Certainly it takes some time to get acquainted with the athletes now that you have multiple consolidated athletics. I’ve got a lot of coaches and athletes to meet.”

Webb credits his knowledge of public relations to an internship with the St.

Spencer’s Sports Desk

Louis Rams, recieving on the job training through the professional organization.

It just takes a moment to reflect. Now take a moment to count out 40 seconds.

While working for the Rams organization, Webb was able to make connections and network his way through the sports media world.

One… Two… Three… Done?

Meeting Rams players and members of the media within the franchise, Webb was given a chance to do some public relations work at Super Bowl XLV in February 2011. “[Working for the St. Louis Rams] was huge in doing public relations at the highest level,” Webb said. “There is nothing above the National Football League.”

Combining his experience with the St. Louis Rams organization and his time spent with The Ampersand, Webb has brought his experience together in the sports media world.

Now imagine standing at home plate in the middle of Busch Stadium with the backdrop of the St. Louis city skyline just beyond the stadium grounds and for those same 40 seconds, a thunderous, roaring ovation chants for the one who wears jersey number five.

In a moment where chills are felt up and down the spine, only to grow into goose bumps, number five tips his helmet to the crowd and to the city of St. Louis. To Cardinal Nation, he is saying ‘Thank you.’

What began 11 years ago, in 2001, has reached the end of a chapter. Although the next page, at the moment, is left blank, if the page is turned the other way, the memories begin to flashback and individual moments become miniture movies played in the mind.

However, it is not originally where he saw himself heading down the avenue of former players.

It’s the moment when he hit a home run in his first at-bat at Busch Stadium in 2001; when he gave St. Louis one more game at the old Busch Stadium in 2005. He was an outfielder and third baseman turned first baseman; a world champion in 2006. Then there were those 40 seconds this past Sunday.

“I really thought sports journalism [and] the beat writer direction was the way I was going to go,” Webb said. “Even up to about two years ago.”

Regardless of the unwritten chapter ahead—number five will always be a Cardinal.

Although Webb does not lace up his cleats anymore, his new game is bringing the athletes and coaches to life through the printed word—lacing the bond between fan and athlete, fan and coach, and fan and sport together.

All the while, Webb is able to meet new people and share the camaraderie amongst them, giving all fans of Archer athletics a reason to celebrate every sporting event.

“I get to meet the athletes and the coaches and build relationships with them,” Webb said.

Meramec Campus Science South Lobby

October 10, 2011 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

UPCOMING LADY ARCHER SOCCER HOME GAMES 10/4 at 4 p.m.

National Depression Screening Day Thursday, October 6, 2011 Business Administration Building--Room 105 10am-2pm 5pm-7pm

10/11 at 4 p.m.

This event is:

10/13 at 4 p.m.

Open to the public Confidential Free

10/16* at 11 a.m. *at STLCC-FLORISSANT VALLEY

For more information, call Jason Duchinsky at:

(314) 984-7565

The Counseling Department at STLCC-Meramec will offer mental health screenings, resources and referrals.

We are here to help you.

Thinking about employment after graduation?

Come out and meet with healthcare providers currently looking for top-notch candidates.

Several organizations within the greater St. Louis area will be represented.

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meramec montage

16 Sports | September 29, 2011

rching between campuses Lady Archer basketball team prepares for season, away from home ALEX FIKAR STAFF WRITER

PHOTO BY: MIke Ziegler Lauren Fischer, middle, congratulates teammates during practice at Meramec on Sept. 26 after a give-and-go basketball drill. Both the men’s and women’s basketball teams have been forced to practice at Meramec, while new renovations are being made to the Archers home-court at STLCC-Forest Park. Fischer played for the Rockwood Summit Falcons last season, scoring 204 points, with 128 rebounds. The lady Archers begin their season at home during exhibition on Nov. 1. The is the first season of the Archers.

Every level of basketball presents its own set of challenges. As players take their game to the next level, student-athletes heighten their seriousness both on and off the court, looking for the grade in the classroom and victory on the court.

With the large majority of the new-look STLCC Archer women’s basketball team attending classes at Meramec, and head coach Shelly Ethridge still maintaining her office and P.E. classes at Meramec, the Archer’s have had to deal with a new adversity that Meramec basketball players have never had to deal with—traveling from classes at Meramec to the home court at STLCC-Forest Park.

Lauren Fischer, a freshman guard for the Archers, attends Meramec. As a senior for the Rockwood Summit Falcons last season, 5’10” forward Fischer single-handedly scored nearly 25 percent of her team’s points all season. Scoring 204 points all year, Fisher averaged 9.3 points per game. The other 12 Falcon players combined for 649 points all season. All the while, Fischer maintained a 3.5 GPA. In October, the lady Archer basketball team will be running their program strictly at STLCC-Forest Park’s campus. This time Fischer will be forced to find her niche in the college game, balancing school, work and the game she has played since the third grade.

“The college standards are greater and the mindset is different,” Fischer said. “The focus of

college basketball is more about winning, rather than just the experience itself.”

While juggling 15 hours of practice per week, Fischer has to plan out an average of three hours a night for homework, while also losing hours at work from an average of 20 hours a week to less than eight hours.

“I can only work one day a week…my paychecks are tiny,” Fischer said.

When the season starts in early November, those players who attend Meramec, along with head coach Shelly Ethridge and assistant coach Melanie Marcy, will have to leave Meramec and travel to the Forest Park campus every day for practice, home games and catching the bus to travel. The Forest Park campus, a 25-minute commute from Meramec, will be opened on Nov. 1 as the new home of the STLCC basketball teams, when the lady Archers will play junior varsity McKendree University team as an exhibition game at 5:30 p.m.

“When the season actually starts, I will have no time for a social life…[the Archers] will have to eat, sleep and breathe basketball,” Fischer said.

While adjusting to a new atmosphere surrounded by time management and a non-stop schedule of class, practice and homework, Fisher finds herself on the constant-motion mentality.

“Time management is definitely an order,” Fischer said. “I map it out. I probably have three

calendars—phone, refrigerator, planner… I have to have something on me all the time. I plan out practice times, weight lifting times… Everything is very time oriented. I have a lot of late nights—a lot of caffeine.”

Fischer, along with the rest of the Archer community, is hopeful that the late nights pay off.

“We plan on going all the way to nationals,” Fischer said. “Anything else is unacceptable.”

“The college standards are greater and the mindset is different,” Fischer said. “The focus of college basketball is more about winning, rather than just the experience itself.”

- Lauren Fischer, Freshman Guard