The Prairie, Vol. 94, Issue 7

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Prairie

Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2011

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PULSE hosts Alcohol Awareness Week at WTAMU

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rom Oct. 17-21, PULSE will be hosting the National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week.

Every day, there will be different activities around campus to raise awareness about the issues of consuming alcohol. Campuses across the nation will be participating as well.

“It’s a national university campaign,” Assistant Director of Student Activities Stephanie Brackett said. “It’s more of how to drink responsibly.”

Brackett said it is very important for

students to know what to do when they, or a friend, have consumed too much alcohol.

“It’s important to step up and not be a bystander, to step in and say ‘let me make sure you get home safe,’” Brackett said.

“You will also learn what to do if someone you know gets alcohol poisoning.”

She said this is one of the biggest campaigns hosted by PULSE. “We just really want to make a difference in a student’s life,” she said.

“This is something that is not often taught in the class room and this is also something all college students are affected by, whether it’s by a friend, a stranger or themselves.”

CORE Student Consultant Brianna Moore said the week’s activities will be helpful for students around campus.

“The activities that will be open for the students, they will enjoy it,” Moore said, “Hopefully, students who are very open about alcohol consider what they have learned and learn how to handle their alcohol a lot better.”

Junior Cali Saye said he thinks students shouldn’t drink.

“I just never wanted to drink,” Saye said. “But as I was growing up, my friends wanted to drink. When Alcohol Awareness week came along, they were surprised to find out that people died in car accidents related to alcohol.”

book, they want to tell me how they want to write a book,” Thomas said.

Thomas is a writer of historical romance novels and women’s mainstream fiction. She wrote her first book in 1987 and since then has written a total of 34 books and 11 short story collections.

Thomas is a New York Times and USA Today Bestseller.

Long contacted her again because he wanted to invite her to take the position as the in-residence writer at WT. Thomas

agreed to meet with him and visit the school.

The job required that Thomas maintain four and a half office hours a week.

Her book topics or writing style would not be interfered with or controlled.

The point of the program is to give students a chance to speak and interact with a writer to learn about the career field whether it be the plotting, character creating, writing or publishing aspect.

“Nine years ago when I took this

According to WT’s Associate Director of Student Financial Services Marian Giesecke, many scholarships have been removed from the state’s finance budget.

Some of the state-funded awards that are no longer offered include the Robert C. Byrd Scholarship, the Professional Nursing Scholarship, and the Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership (LEAP) Grant. Dan Garcia, vice President for enrollment management at WT, said there are a number of resources that

have been discontinued because of state budget cuts.

“One was the Teacher Aid Exemption,” Garcia said. “If you were a teachers’ aid and you wanted to come to school … the tuition was waved. That was discontinued this year. There was an exemption for dependents of military personnel who were deployed. That’s been done away with this year.”

While the removal of these scholarships came from the state level, finan-

Photo by Krystina Martinez Alcohol Awareness Week will also address the dangers of drinking and driving.

Jodi Thomas helps WT students with writing skills Lisa heLLier

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odi Thomas was speaking at a library grand opening in 2003 when Russell C. Long, then the president of WTAMU, walked up and asked to speak to her. Thomas, a writer, thought that he wanted to write a book and did not call him back.

“A lot of people don’t want to write a

opportunity, I really took it with the idea that I wanted to help the writers of the future,” Thomas said.

Thomas said that one of the most important things she teaches students is the business of writing. It is important to her that students understand what is going on and how the publishing world works.

Jodi Thomas continued on p. 2

Financial Aid undergoes cuts affecting students CoLTon harada MCoM 3309 news ediTing & reporTing

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ome WT students may have to find a different way to pay for their college tuition next year. WT officials say several different forms of financial assistance are undergoing changes that may mean less aid for students.

InsIde sporTs:

news:

WT volleyball lost in road game against TAMUK.

New dorm is being planned for construction.

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enTerTainMenT:

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Finish the three puzzles and win a $10 iTunes Gift Card. Turn in your answers at FAC 103.

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cial aid may possibly receive changes from the very floor of Congress. According to Garcia, a bill is currently being discussed in the U.S. House that would change the requirements to receive a Pell Grant. Some of the changes could include eliminating funding for students taking fewer than six hours and requiring recipients to have received a high school diploma or equivalent.

Financial Aid continued on p. 3

CaMpus Life:

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uTip helps maintain WT safety.

Employers prefer to hire technology savvy people.

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Feature Prairie Job market looks for technology savvy employees 2

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obs can be hard to find, but in today’s job market, having technology knowledge can make or break a résumé.

“You need to know how to leverage the current technology,” WTAMU Director of Career Services Denese Skinner said.

In today’s tech-heavy world, knowing how to use many different technologies has become not just a useful skill set, but a requirement to get ahead in the job market.

“Many companies are looking for employees with technology skills,” Eric Spellmann, owner and president of Spellmann & Associates, said.

Rose Surace of SOS Staffing, a company that specializes in helping job-hunters find temporary positions in Amarillo, agrees with Spellmann and Skinner. She said to have a competitive résumé, college students need to be able to use all Microsoft Office programs.

“You‘ve got to know how to navigate a spreadsheet,” Surace said.

Other important technologies to know are the newest devices such as smart phones, iPads and being aware of useful apps. Skinner, Surace and

Jodi Thomas continued from p. 1

Thomas makes a point to have her doors open to students all morning from Monday to Friday. Anyone is welcome to meet with her to ask any questions they might have. Sometimes she will have storyboard progressions set up that shows students an element of her writing process.

“I do the business of writing here, and I do a lot of other things, so I work 5 days a week just like everybody else,” Thomas said.

Thomas also accepts an intern each semester that gets to learn about the writing process and helps with the daily things that writers have to deal with.

“She expects you to work, but she is very understanding and doesn’t have unreal expectations,” Carmen Terrell, an English graduate student and past intern for Thomas, said. the

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Thomas’ mornings are spent at her office in the WT library, and her nights are spent at her home study where she works on her writing.

Thomas did not start out as a writer.

She tried out a few other fields including teaching, but realized that she could not be as creative as she wanted to. At the age of 35, she decided it would be fun to write a book, but did not realize how much work it would take.

“Most people think you write it, send it off and sell it,” Thomas said.

According to Thomas, it is a much more elaborate and complicated process that requires a lot of effort and determination.

It took Thomas two years to get her first book published, and it did not sell very well. But, that did not stop her from moving forward with her writing career, and she continued to get books published.

Staff 2011-2012

Editor- Maria Molina Assistant Editor- Krystina Martinez Web Editor - Georgia Romig Layout- Kati Watson Ad Manager- Bryan Samuel Faculty Adviser- Butler Cain

Spellmann said students must have a profile and working knowledge of the big social media and blogging sites. “[Students should have knowledge in] Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter because employers will look at all of them,” Skinner said.

However, something that all jobseekers should be aware of, according to Skinner and Spellmann, employers will look at the profiles on these sites to judge the potential employee’s character and good judgment by the content that has been posted.

“They don’t expect you to be a stuffy person,” Skinner said. “They need to know what you have put out there.”

At the time, she was writing historical romance novels. She spent three months researching the market.

“I did it with the idea of what would sell, and I loved historical romance because I read it,” Thomas said.

After writing several historical romance novels, Thomas decided to move on to a new genre. She had won many awards for her historical romance writing and had hit the top of her game.

She made her decision to write mainstream women’s fiction. Her books mostly focus on the life of people in small towns and their relationships.

“I didn’t have any idea they’d be so popular,” Thomas said.

Her mainstream books did very well so she has stuck to that genre of writing. She still likes to write at least one historical romance a year because she loves it and she has fans who appreciate her doing so.

Reporter- Jes Roskens Reporter- Melissa Bauer-Herzog Reporter- Ryan Schaap Reporter- Matt Watkins Reporter- Lisa Hellier Reporter- Jordan Fry

Another large issue for employers when they hire college students is not lack of knowledge, but lack of professionalism and use of proper writing skills.

“A lot of college students don’t even seem to know how to spell,” Spellmann said In fact, speaking and writing properly on- and offline is what most employers rate as the number one quality they want in employees, according to the 2011 Job Outlook survey conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers.

“Sometimes I just write,” Thomas said. “I don’t really know what’s going to happen.”

Along with her position at WT, Thomas gives up to a hundred talks a year with various groups and organizations, and she also does some various blogging.

For Thomas, writing is a very rewarding career. She often hears from fans that her books offered an escape from reality. Thomas not only offers her audiences enjoyment through her books, but also gets to guide and teach students.

“The thing is, she cares about the students,” Jere Ellison, an English graduate student and past intern for Thomas, said. “She’ll work with you if you’re serious about working with her…I started the semester looking for a mentor, and ended it with a new friend.”

Reporter- Daniela Fierro Reporter- Monica Gambert Reporter - Brittany Castillo Public Relations- Aurora Ortiz Photographer- Alex Montoya

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

- First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

The Prairie is a student-operated publication at West Texas A&M University. It functions to inform, educate, and entertain readers accurately and responsibly. It does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the administration, faculty or students. The editorials that appear on these pages represent the opinion of the Prairie editorial board. The views expressed by other columinsts are the writers’ opinions and do not necessarily reflect the board’s views. Advertising rates are available upon request at (806) 337- 2090 or at theprairiewt@gmail.com. WTAMU Box 60754, Canyon, Texas 79016. The Prairie is distributed on Tuesdays during the semester and has a circulation of 1,500. It is printed by The Amarillo Globe-News.

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News Prairie WTAMU plans new dorm construction in December 3

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esidential Living is in the process of designing a new residential living hall.

The design will be similar to Centennial, but with a few features unique to the new building.

The new facility will be approximately 120 thousand square feet, about the size of two and a half football fields, and house up to about 400 residents. There will be sinks in the rooms and the completed hall will have a large, open courtyard, spacious enough for recreational activities. The

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courtyard will be about two to three times bigger than Centennial’s. The current residence hall’s design has a drop off or unloading zone on the east side.

“We are looking at several options to try and make the new building more green, and as environmentally friendly as possible,” Jon Behrens, senior director of Residential Living, said.

Because the building is still in the planning stage there are no exact decisions so far. The new hall does not yet have a name, but it does have a location: the parking lot behind Jones and Cross.

“We will actually begin tunnel and utility work as early

Photo by Maria Molina

The parking space behind Jones and Cross Hall where the new dorm will be built.

as December,” Behrens said.

That means the Western Construction trailers currently behind Centennial won’t move.

WT Social Work will host free conference for students Ashley hendrick stAff Writer

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social work conference will take place at WTAMU on Oct. 21 for students who wish learn more about the world of social work.

“It would be a great opportunity for all people in the (social work) major to come and learn and see what you could do by your senior year,” Cara Speer, Bachelor of Social Work Fields Coordinator, said.

The free conference will not only allow social work majors to attend, but all students of WT. It will offer a variety of specific workshops, from getting to know WT social work professors for the freshman to putting a résumé together for the seniors. There will also be a field fair, allowing the students to have time to explore career opportunities after graduation and possible internship placement.

“The biggest thing you can gain from the conference is the networking you do,” Anthony Inman, a senior Social Work major, said. “There are outside agencies there looking for field placement students. Even if you choose not to be a student in their field placement, you’ve met those people and you know what they do.

If you need them later…there’ll bend over

The hall is planned to open in the fall of 2013, so schedules are tight.

Despite the excitement of

Financial Aid continued from p. 1

“The proposal also does eliminate about 2.3 billion dollars worth of aid,” Garcia said.“[This is] about ten percent of the total Pell budget.”

While the current proposals would backwards to help you out.” not lower the amount awarded to fullThe conference will be put on by stutime students, Garcia said there is a posdents. Senior social work majors will set sibility that deeper cuts could be made. up and run the entire conference includIf so, some students may face tough ing teaching the workshops and ordering decisions. Mariah Fleeman, a Criminal lunch for an expected 150 to 200 attendJustice major whose Pell Grant normally ees. pays for all of her school tuition and fees, “We have a say in everything, like the said she fears she would have to take food and workshops and basically evout loans, enroll as a part-time student erything we want it to be about,” Lauren Paris, a senior Social Work major, said.

“It’s for our fellow students so we know what they want to hear.”

Even though professors will not teach the workshops, the students are qualified to do so, according to Inman, who will be teaching the Time Management workshop.

“I’m a full-time youth pastor, a fulltime student, I have a wife and two kids, and I volunteer at some of the schools around here, so time management is something I do on a daily basis,” Inman said.

According to Speer, some students cringe at the thought of an all-day conference, but said they have received good feedback in the past and most students will not walk away disappointed.

“It’s a lot of fun, there’s a lot of energy in the room and people usually love it,” Speer said.

a new hall and growth of WT, there is still some controversy about parking.

“Parking here is already ridiculous,” Ky Schoenenberger, a freshman and resident at Centennial, said. “I feel that it’ll be overcrowded and it’s not fair to make people who live on campus park all the way over at the FUBC.” However, parking will be a consideration before plans are finalized. A significant impact of the new hall is that it is helping WTAMU keep up with the steady increase in enrollment.

“Hopefully by this expansion we can increase our number of students and go past 8,000,” Amber Moore, a sophomore Broadcasting major, said.

or possibly withdraw from college until the money is raised.

“Each student is different,” Fleeman said, “For me I would have to cut back on the number of classes I took each semester and graduate later. I might have to take a year off.”

While there may be speculation on the reason for the budget cuts, Giesecke offered a simple reason for them.

“Because nobody has any money,” she said. “We all took a hit … and each university had so much that they had to reduce their budget by.”

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SportS Prairie Lady Buff volleyball gets sweep at A&M Kingsville 4

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Matthew watkins staff writer

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he No. 14 WTAMU Lady Buffs volleyball team went on the road to take on the Texas A&M University-Kingsville Javelinas on Oct. 15. WT swept the match

25-16, 25-22 and 25-18, improving their record to 21-2 and 12-1 in the Lone Star Conference.

The opening set was back and forth until TAMUK tied the score at 11 all. The Lady Buffs went on a 9-3 run to take a 20-14 lead. WT finished the set by outscoring the Javelinas 5-2.

TAMUK built a 17-14 lead during the

second set. WT would rally by scoring 11 of the next 17 points to win the set 25-22.

“It is a mindset to want to finish. We have the ability to. but we don’t,” Head Coach Jason Skoch said. “It is internal and we need to find it.”

The Lady Buffs dominated most of the third set, taking a 22-12 lead late into

the game. The Javelinas responded by scoring six consecutive points, but it was too little too late, as WT scored three straight to end the match.

The Lady Buffs next match will be against the Cameron Aggies on Oct. 18 in The Box. First serve is set for 7 p.m.

Women’s soccer has a weekend with mixed results Melissa Bauer-herzog staff writer

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he Lady Buffs kicked off their late season home game run this weekend. It didn’t go as well as they may have hoped when they faced some challenges on Friday against Texas A&M Commerce before taking on Texas Woman’s University on Sunday.

“We usually play better at home so we’re hoping to win the rest of our games now,” Center mid Becky McMullan said.

The team’s Oct. 14 game was their first match since their disappointing 5-0 loss on Oct. 7. They came out fighting but the TAM-Commerce Lions put the first tally on the board 23 minutes into the first half. They

followed that up with two more goals during the first half to go into intermission 3-0.

During the second half, WTAMU prevented the Lions from adding to their score, but WT couldn’t get the ball into the opposition’s net even with five shots on goal. The game ended after 90 minutes with a score of 3-0 with the teams each registering nine shots for the game.

“You don’t like losing and you certainly don’t like giving up three goals or any,” Head Coach Chad Webb said. “Because of some players with season-ending injuries, we had to experiment some in the first half and it didn’t go very well.”

On Sunday, WT was eager to shake off the last two shutouts they had experienced as they

took on Texas Woman’s University. The first half saw lots of attacks but no scoring action, ending the first half at 0-0.

The second half was another matter as Hannah Blakely put WT on the scoreboard only 56 seconds in. A little over four minutes later, Berklee Watson added to the scoreboard again to give WT a 2-0 lead. However, TWU wasn’t ready to hand the game over to the home team.

They scored twice in an eightminute time frame half way through the period and tied the game.

Although both teams attacked the nets mercilessly, there were no more goals scored in regulation, forcing the game to go into sudden death overtime.

Overtime saw both teams

having chances at goals but it would be Leslie Briggs, scoring her eighth goal of the season, who ended the game with three minutes left in OT to give the Lady Buffs the 3-2 win.

“I know our team has so much talent and want to win and we showed that today. No

hit Jamaine Sherman for an 18 yard score that put the Wildcats up 21-10. The Buffs made things interesting with 8:38 remaining in the fourth, as Vaughn found senior Brittan Golden from nine yards out after the Wildcats botched a punt. Sophomore holder John McSheffery ran in the two point conversion to pull WT within three points at 21-18.

ACU immediately answered on the first play of the ensuing drive as Gale connected with Justin Andrews for a 53 yard score to give the Wildcats a 28-18 lead with 8:21 left in the game. The Buffs offense would stall on their final three possessions of the game, allowing the

Wildcats to pick up the win.

“Tough loss. We just did not make enough plays,” Head Coach Don Carthel said. “They had several big plays that made the difference.”

matter what we’ll keep fighting,” left outside mid Melanie Shannon said.

The weekend games took WT’s record to 7-6-1 for the season. WT returns to The Pitch on Oct. 21 to take on Angelo State at 7:30 p.m.

Abilene Christian University Wildcats defeat Buffs Matthew watkins staff writer

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he No. 17 WTAMU football team traveled to Abilene on Oct. 15 to face off against the Abilene Christian University Wildcats for ACU’s Homecoming. The Wildcats overpowered the Buffs 28-18, dropping WT to 4-2 overall and 4-1 in Lone Star Conference play.

The first quarter was very defensively oriented. The Buffs stopped ACU on their first drive with two sacks. WT got the first points when sophomore kicker Sergio Castillo, Jr. hit a 44 yard field goal to give the Buffs a 3-0 lead.

The Wildcats capped a 99 yard drive with a three yard touchdown run by Daryl Richardson to bring the score to 7-3 with 10:22 to go in the second quarter. ACU scored again after the defense stripped the ball from the arms of junior Khiry Robinson. ACU’s Reggie Brown took it in from four yards out to put the Wildcats up 14-3 with 7:36 left in the half. WT’s answer came when sophomore Dustin Vaughn connected with fellow sophomore Jeremy Watson for a 12 yard touchdown pass to cut the deficit to 14-10 going into halftime.

ACU regained their 11 point advantage when Mitchell Gale

The Buffs’ next game will be at Kimbrough as they take on Eastern New Mexico University on Oct. 22. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m.

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Campus Life Prairie uTip, digital signs help increase safety on campus 5

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he uTip program, along with the new digital signage around campus, makes WT a safer and more connected environment, according to WT’s police chief. uTip is an anonymous, non– emergency contact number that is connected to the University Police Department and received by administrative personnel at UPD.

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WT joins the many college campuses around the country that are using a Text-a-Tip program. The program was introduced to the campus during the summer and is helping students communicate with the University Police Department and voice their concerns to them.

“Since WT is pretty safe, they [the tips] are usually related to things like bad road conditions or lights that are out that make it less safe to walk around campus at night,” WT Police Chief Shawn Burns said.

Burns encourages the students of WT to text in any concerns they might have including loud music, rowdy parties, any vandalism they might witness and, even in some instances, an emergency.

“In emergencies cell phone towers go down, and voice transmission is not possible, but the texts will still go through. It makes communication in an emergency possible,” he said.

Digital signage is also making the campus a safer place. In case of an emergency, the screens around campus are capable of displaying an emergency

broadcast to warn students against bad weather conditions or a shooter on campus.

“The digital signage displays oncampus events that are going on and since we have started using this method, we have seen an increase in student attendance at events,” James Webb, Chief Information Officer of WT said.

The uTip program is provided to the WT campus by e2Campus. The uTip number to text is 79516 and the text should begin with WTAMU followed by the tip.

nity service, SIFE chapters compete in regional and national competitions in hopes of representing the United States in the SIFE World Cup. SIFE is open to anyone at WT and the WT chapter has 98 members with members from every college at WT. Marco Jimenez, chapter president, said that in addition to tutoring children and engaging in other community service efforts, they have several projects already planned.

“This semester WT SIFE is working on over 15 different projects,” he said.

“For example, one we are working with an MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) gym in Amarillo. We will work on its marketing, budgeting, and any other business help it may need.”

Each year, SIFE competes in a regional and national competition. The competitions involve giving a 30 minute presentation to judges from Fortune 500 companies. They are judged against other schools in their community impact. Braegar Sprague, WT SIFE’s marketing officer, said SIFE has brought in a regional championship for several

years.

“We have won at our regional competition 18 years in a row and have advanced to our national competition,” he said. “Last year we went and we presented the same presentation with some minor tweaks and ended up making the top 40 out of over 500 schools with SIFE programs.”

SIFE meets Tuesday mornings at 11:50 a.m. in room 221 of the Classroom Center. Interested students are welcome to stop by for more information.

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tudents in Free Enterprise, or SIFE, is a non-profit student organization that uses community service to help develop its members skills in becoming socially responsible business leaders.

Each chapter uses its knowledge of business to come up with projects that focus on improving the quality of life for people in need. Along with commu-

WTAMU Cricket Club sets their sights on regionals

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n Sept. 17, the WTAMU Cricket Club participated in the seventh annual W.P. Dayawansa Memorial Cricket Tournament at Texas Tech University.

The club beat out 16 other teams to win the tournament.

“People didn’t know about WT [at the tournament],” Navdeep Uppal, captain of the Buff Cricket Club, said. “After we won the tournament, people started to know of WTAMU and that there’s a Buff Cricket Club.”

The club is a relatively new organization on campus. They began playing cricket last spring for fun at the tennis courts. Dr. Eddie Henderson, the dean of the College of Education, and Bill Craddock, director of Rec Sports, suggested that the group form a team. “[When we went to the tournament], we didn’t even have shirts or bats to play

with but we won,” team member Sanjeev Reddy said.

The club not only won the tournament, but received all new equipment and team shirts. Although cricket may be unknown to most people, the sport is played in countries such as Sri Lanka, South Africa, Australia and India.

“It’s kind of like baseball, but it’s played very differently,” Uppal said.

There are three different ways to play the game: the day format, a type of match which is played from 9-5 p.m.; Twenty20, a type of match that is played for three hours; and the test format, which is played over five days from 9-5 p.m.

“Sports like football are only played in America, but cricket is a sport where a world championship really includes teams from around the world,” Shanal DeSilva, a graduate student from Sri Lanka, said.

“It will be a day where we will invite There is also an American College WT students to come out and learn how Cricket organization that holds to play cricket,” Uppal said. “A few more competitions all over the U.S. The Buff Cricket Club will be practicing hard for people will know about it, and maybe people will start to recognize us.” the ACC regionals, which will be held on “Maybe people will start to recognize a date to be determined. us.”

“We don’t have a cricket pitch so we have to go use one in Amarillo,” Reddy said.

Occasionally, the team will also practice with the Texas Tech Raider Cricket Club or the Amarillo Indian Association.

“This game is very new, and a lot of people don’t know about it, so it’s hard to get people in,” Uppal said.

Along with practicing for regionals, the club plans to put on an event Photo courtesy of WTAMU Cricket Club called Camp Cricket.

The WT Buff Cricket Club poses after their tournament win.

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WT Honors Program will travel to Carlsbad Caverns R V ubi

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tudents in WT’s Honors Program will soon be packing their bags for an adventure at the Guadalupe Mountains and Carlsbad Caverns. The three-day weekend trip will take place this month.

“Bill Banks is the person who organized the trip and will also be leading the students of the honors program,” Kathey Walker, administrative director at the office of Attebury Honors Program, said. “Trudy Hanson will be one of the sponsors going on the trip.”

“On this trip, students will be learning about outdoor safety and background education,” Walker said.

Before the students begin traveling, they were encouraged to get plenty of cardiovascular exercise.

“We have encouraged the students to prepare physically for this trip,”

Trudy L. Hanson, chair of the Department of Communication and sponsor of the honors trip, said. “We will be camping for five hours and all equipment will be provided. Students just have to bring their own personal items.”

“I am looking forward to going to the caverns because I’ve never been there before,” Samantha Hearne, a student of the honors program, said. “I’ve done some rock climbing and hiking to prepare for the trip and we are also going to King’s Palace.”

On Friday, Oct. 21, more than a dozen students from the honors program will leave from the Canyon Outdoor Pursuits Center at 8:30 in the morning. They are planning to arrive at 3:30 in the afternoon to Dog Canyon, New Mexico, where they will spend the evening at the campground.

The honor students plan a morning hike in the Guadalupe Mountains on Sunday, Oct. 23, and plan to arrive from their adventure to Canyon that night.

GRE is not necessary for some WTAMU admittance eRin MaRVin McOM 3309 news editing & RepORting

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n order to better serve their students and prepare them for the job force, many graduate programs at WT have decided to eliminate their GRE requirement.

“It’s not a one-size-fits-all admittance process,” Cheree Burleson, Graduate School admissions coordinator, said.

“For example, the social work program said that the GRE doesn’t tell anything they needed to know about the students.”

In some fields, she explained, such as art, music, agriculture and technical design, the GRE is not necessarily a fair representation of how a student will perform.

“The subtests really did not help predict who will be a good clinician,” Dr. Larry Barnes, graduate advisor for Communication Disorders, said.

The response thus far has been favorable.

“We now have a larger amount of students applying, who before had low GRE scores, but still had the potential of being a good clinician,” Barnes said.

“The new students coming in based on the new criteria are better suited than those admitted on just GRE and GPA…We definitely [are admitting] higher quality students.”

However, getting into these programs still requires an effort. The new requirements will force students to be more skilled in their field, and they will have to prove it.

“Potential students are evaluated on areas related directly to their chosen field,” Dr. Benjamin Brooks, graduate advisor for the Department of Music, said “For example, a potential Master of Arts student hoping to pursue music composition will submit a portfolio of works with recordings, transcripts, and a letter of intent.”

The Graduate School advises students interested in applying for a program to contact their office to see if taking the GRE is necessary.

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Last week’s answers

Can you finish first?

We are giving away three $10 iTunes gift cards.

Finish the three puzzles and turn it in at FAC room 103.

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Prairie Little International gives WT students experience 8

Ryan Schaap Staff WRiteR

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he Little International Showmanship Contest had it’s 60th year show hosted on WTAMU’s Nance Ranch on Oct. 11. The event had a record number of 152 freshmen participants as well as 17 student advisers. The International livestock competition has been around since it was developed in Chicago in 1902 and has been growing strong ever since. This version of the International Showmanship Contest at WT was a unique opportunity

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for students to gain experience in showmanship.

“I’ve had a lot of help from my teachers and learned from my friends,” Cooper O’Brien, a freshman Animal Science and Nutrition major, said. “I’ve been showing for quite some time since I was about 10 or 12. I never thought I would show again until I got to the college level.”

To help prepare for this event, the students played “Quiz Bowl” to sharpen their knowledge of showmanship.

Teams of five answered questions from a program called “Quality Counts.” This program teaches young people the importance of ethical behavior in caring

for exhibition animals and showing good character. The game is along the lines of Jeopardy, using buzzers when the team was ready to answer a question.

“We would come out to Nance Ranch and practice about every other day and work with the students for two to three hours,” Jay Brandon, a senior Agriculture Education major and student advisor, said. “Some students have never shown before while the other students, who have had the experience, were a great resource to teach the ones without the experience.”

Not only did the students participating in the competition learn from the event, but the student advisers

learned as well.

“Agriculture Education majors were able to teach students about the animals.

It is a great experience for us on how to teach in the real world,” Brandon said. “This event helps the freshman meet new people and to get them out of their comfort zones.”“It’s been tons of fun,” Jonny Maciel, a senior Agriculture Education major and student advisor, said. “It has been a teaching experience to me in the long run when I become an Agriculture teacher. I’ve got a great group of kids and it’s been a great experience. It’s great for them to build relationships with each other and older classmates.”

Photo by Ryan Schaap

Photo by Ryan Schaap

Cooper O’Brien (left) learns sheep showmansheep from Calvin Daugherty (middle) and Jarad Flores (right).

Summer Townsend shows her pig to the judge.

Matthias Merkel-Hess displays art at Northen Hall Daniela fieRRo Staff WRiteR

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n Oct. 13, guest artist Matthias Merkel-Hess visited WT for the first time to display his artwork for the public.

Merkel-Hess’s collections, Featherstone and Devil’s Tower-LA, is now on display at the Mary Moody Northen Hall Formal Gallery. It opened with an artist talk and then the gallery opening followed.

“I was invited by Amy Von Lintel to come for the week,” Merkel-Hess said.

“When I arrived on [Oct. 8], I spoke in a few classes.”

Merkel-Hess said he started to make art 10 years ago when he had just finished his undergraduate degree at the University of Arkansas.

“I went back to school and got a Masters in Fine Arts,” he said. “Most of my work is based on pottery and the history of pottery ceramics.”

Merkel-Hess said that American icons inspire his artwork.

“This show has the [Devil’s TowerLA], which is the first national monument that’s in Wyoming,” MerkelHess said. “My other half of the show is inspired by Don Featherstone, who sculpted the original plastic pink flamingos.”

Assistant Professor of Art History

Amy Von Lintel invited Merkel-Hess to WT. “I admire his work, he’s got a lot of ideas behind it, creative language and philosophy,” Von Lintel said. “[His work] isn’t just beautiful objects, but beautiful objects with deep thought.”

Von Lintel said that Merkel-Hess makes people question art and said that he always thinks outside the box.

“That’s why I brought him here,” she said. “His work isn’t just about pretty objects; he didn’t just go into a gallery and think ‘that’s a beautiful painting.’

That’s not what he does; he makes us question what art is.”

Assistant Professor of Theatre Costume Design Anne Medlock said

that Merkel-Hess’s art exhibition was beautiful.

“It’s lovely and interesting,” said Medlock. “I love that he picked something so common and made it into beautiful art. His artistry is just phenomenal.”

Medlock said she loved that the feathers on the Featherstone flamingo drawings are gorgeous.

“I like how he has painted each individual pluck of the feather on the Featherstone collection,” she said. “His other work, Devil’s Tower-LA, is really interesting because it’s different from the Featherstone flamingos collection.

It’s always good to see different artwork from the same artist.”

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Campus Life Prairie WTAMU students celebrate Fifth Quarter at Wesley 9

Brittany Castillo staff Writer

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elebration of WT’s victory was in full swing Homecoming night at the Wesley Foundation. Students conducted their usual postgame gathering, called Fifth Quarter, which included music, pizza, dancing and fellowship.

Maroon Platoon President and Fifth Quarter MC JD Newman said about four years

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ago, Justin Carpenter created a way for the football players and fans to mingle after a home game. Having a passion for parties and clean fun, Carpenter utilized the Wesley Foundation building to carry out his idea.

“Justin was known to always enjoy a sick party after a good game, and wanted to create a safe atmosphere for everyone to do that,” Newman said. “He wanted to provide an alcoholfree place for people to come and relax with their friends.”

Jessica Morrow, a Fifth Quarter regular, also attended the Homecoming party. “Aside from the usual dancing, there was a push-up contest amongst the football players,” said Morrow. “It was fun as always” In addition to the Wesley Foundation, other organizations contribute to these weekly gatherings as well. “CORE brings the pizza, Rec Sports provides drinks, and the Residence Hall Association always brings great giveaways,”

Fifth Quarter Coordinator LorAnn Garrett said. “Many people put in effort and work to get everything together.”

“The Fifth Quarter is really a collaborative, campus wide endeavor,” Mikey Littau, director of the Wesley Foundation, said. Littau invites all students to stop by the Wesley for Fifth Quarter, which is held on Saturday nights after home football games. He believes “God is the author of celebration” and having fun is a

great thing to incorporate into the weekend.

Photos Courtesy of Wesley foundation MC Jd neWMan hosts a Push-uP Contest at fifth Quarter

Combs helps recruit international students to WT KiMBerly Crist MCoM 3309 neWs editing & rePorting

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n 1975, the International Student Office at WTAMU was created by Jack Muthersbough, a professor in Geosciences. In 1992, Kristine Combs was named director of the office after serving two years in support of the office.

During her 18 years, Combs has been a part of a whirlwind of change in the department, from the early years of less forward recruiting styles to the hands on, involved recruiting styles of today.

“Kristine is an administrator that cares about her students. She spends selfless time calling both students and parents to ensure that their enrollment and transition to life at WT is easy as possible,” Dan Garcia, vice president of enrollment, said.

The same feelings echo throughout the administration of the university.

“Kristine Combs has a passion for working with international students and helping them to succeed. As laws and programs change, her willingness to work with us in the College of Business has been invaluable. I appreciate her dedication, professionalism and the opportunity for us to work together,”

Dr. LaVelle Mills, associate dean for the College of Business, said.

But it’s not just her passion for recruiting that makes Combs a pivotal point of the International Student office, but also her “go get ‘em” attitude with being a part of programs to help in the recruiting of students. With her work, WT was one of the first schools in Texas to become a part of the International Student and Exchange Visitor Program, a program started in 2002 as a database for Immigration and Customs Enrollment as a way to better monitor school and exchange programs. Combs also served as the North Texas State Representative for the

National Association of International Educators. And more recently, Combs and the International Students office was honored with the Export Achievement for Recent Accomplishments in the Global Marketplace award from the U.S. Department of Commerce, an honor received while in Quito, Ecuador.

Traveling is just one of the perks of the job.

“Traveling is a great part of it, but you have to learn to juggle it all to continue to be successful,” Combs said. It’s not just travel for recruitment of students.

It’s travel to conferences and training seminars to ensure that WT stays ahead of the game with International Students.

fair, said.

Booths at the fair included: blood pressure screenings, stress management stops and alcohol awareness. However, with all of the information available to students and faculty the main focus was making the flu shots available.

“It is very beneficial to get the flu shot because a person can get very sick for up to about two weeks without any way to treat the virus. The flu is very contagious and it spreads quickly in close quarters, such as college campuses,” Amanda Moss, senior Nursing major and team leader for the fair, said.

During the week the students were able to administer more than 150 shots, and 120 were given on the first day. Nursing students said the booths also got plenty of attention, especially

the beer goggle test. There, students were able to wear special goggles that simulated what it’s like walking while drunk.

Although this fair was to help inform students about their health and the upcoming flu season, more faculty showed up than students.

“There is no proven reason why there were more faculty than student participants, but we theorized that the faculty is more aware of the benefits of the flu vaccine,” Moss said. “Faculty and staff generally represent a population older than the average college student, and are more concerned about measures to prevent illness than younger people who feel (wrongly so) that they won’t get the flu because they are young and healthy.”

“I have gotten a flu shot virtually

every year for the past 30 years,” President Dr. J. Patrick O’Brien said. “In those years I didn’t get the shot, I got the flu. Getting the flu shot is the prudent thing to do as it reduces the risk of getting the flu.”

Nursing students were able to participate and be involved in the fair if they are enrolled in one of Dr. Helen Reyes’ specific classes. While in this class they plan for the fair as well as practice giving shots. All nursing students were able to help with the other booths.

“They [nursing students] get the satisfaction of helping community health to improve and to vaccinate the public.

It was also a great opportunity to get involved more with WT students and faculty,” Lane said.

Nursing students host health fair to help fight flu stePhanie WilliaMs MCoM 3309 neWs editing & rePorting

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o help fight the flu season the WTAMU Nursing program hosted a health fair Sept. 29 through Oct. 6 in the JBK and Activities Center on campus.

Nursing students talked about health at booths, ran health tests and gave flu shots.

“The booths were free. We wanted to create something for students that was inexpensive and a way to get them involved. The flu shots for students were fifteen dollars and twenty for faculty. All proceeds benefited WT nursing,” Logan Lane, senior Nursing major and financial coordinator of the