The Prairie Vol. 95 No. 17

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February 12, 2013 • Vol. 95, No. 17

WT evacuation surprises students Ashley hendrick editor

W

TAMU issued a campus wide evacuation Monday at about 1:45 p.m. All students were ordered to leave the campus grounds immediately until further notice.

According to WT police, the evacuation was only a drill the University had been planning for some time. All students were instructed to remain off campus for two to three hours while the drill was being conducted.

“When I first heard the alarms go off, I didn’t quite know what it was,” Ian Montez, senior Electronic Media major, said. “It was really blindsiding and I didn’t know how seriously it was to be taken.”

Students dropped what they were doing and walked off campus as soon as they could, herded by professors and police officers.

“I just rode with it and got off campus as soon as I could,” Montez said. “Fortunately, whenever the alarms went off, I was already done with classes, so I’m just relaxing pretty much and getting ready for the evening.”

Some people were very upset, however. A high school tour group from El Paso brought prospective students to tour campus.

“It does have to be a surprise,

Buff baseball season begins.

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oPinion

Single Awareness Day is not a tragedy for singles .

AlEx MontoyA/thE PrAiriE Police officers block entrance onto campus at 4th street..

we get that,” the tour leader, who asked to remain anonymous, said, “to see how it goes and how people react, but I would think you’d check with admissions first to make sure you don’t have a situation like this.”

The campus tour was underway, beginning with a presentation first, when the evacuation notice was sent out. “ [The students and parents] got to see nothing,” she said. “We’re leaving today. This is it. It’s pretty disappointing.”

After the evacuation notice

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was sent, police officers swept through campus buildings to check for any students who had not yet evacuated, said a WT police officer who declined to give his name.

A press release from the WT Office of Communication and Marketing stated University officials appreciated the support of local law enforcement agencies for helping with the evacuation drill.

The University’s crisis management team will review the drill, evaluate the performance and make improvements where needed.

“Today’s drill is an important part of campus safety,” Dr. J. Patrick O’Brien, University president, stated in the press release. “We are proud of how our students, faculty and staff responded, and we believe the drill was a valuable tool in preparing us.”

Regular campus operations resumed at 5 p.m.

Alex montoyA And KAti WAtson Also contributed to this report

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Students weigh in on Sexual Responsibility Week

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Rumors of scholarship instability swirl Education activist recovers WT bowling begins F B R Hunter FitHen reporter

umors of a decrease in the amount of financial aid available to WTAMU students have recently circulated around campus, but according to Dan Garcia, Vice President for Enrollment Management, there is really nothing for students to worry about.

“If anything, the number of scholarships available to students over the last year has increased,” Garcia said. “We continually have donors that are giving us money, and as our enrollment increases, we set aside at least 15 percent of designated tuition to pay for

scholarships. Nothing is anticipated to change for continuing students.”

A decrease in the Initial Texas Grant Awards spurred some of these rumors.

“It’s on the table to decrease it from $5,000 a year to $3,000 a year,” Jim Reed of Student Financial Services said. “But that funding would be for incoming students, and wouldn’t affect current students. The government doesn’t tend to make quick decisions when it comes to large amounts of money, but they are quick to make new regulations that we have no control over. So whenever a particular issue is brought up, we’re always quick

to notify students of any possible changes in financial aid, or any other issue. Overall, the resources available to students, if anything, are getting better than worse.”

With this in mind, current students already receiving financial aid or other scholarships can expect to continue receiving them.

Students can be assured that if there was ever a time that WT was experiencing financial difficulties, the university would continue providing help for them.

“If something did cause a decrease in the amount of money we are able to provide to qualifying students, we would try our best

to find other ways of providing assistance,” Reed said.

One way WT is helping to increase the amount of money available to students is by switching from Coca-Cola products to Pepsi products in campus vending machines.

“The contract with Pepsi is much better in terms of what it means for our students,” Garcia said. “There were some incentives to switch to Pepsi, such as more money going to student scholarships.”

Some students are not deterred by the rumors and are still confident in WT’s scholarship funding.

“I think scholarships are

with the public.”

Crouch, who started the event, said she ultimately wanted to expose the public to the local art the panhandle has to offer.

“The Art Walk was started as a means of exposing the public to the artists we have in this area, and there are people from all over the area that will attend Art Walk to view and purchase art,” Crouch said.

One of the galleries displaying their art is the West Texas A&M art department.

“West Texas A&M has a student and experimental gallery which is geared toward displaying the stu-

dents’ work and to do that we have student exhibitions, group student exhibitions and faculty exhibitions during the Art Walk,” said Marcus Melton, assistant professor of Art. The Art Walk provides people with a unique opportunity as well.

“There is a lot of opportunity to see a wide variety of art work here at Sunset,” Melton said. “This is a very unique community of artists.”

Ultimately Melton and the students of the WT art department appreciate the support.

“We appreciate the students who come out and support the WT art program and all of the gallerys,”

Melton said. “It’s great for me and the students to expose our work and show what we are doing to the public.”

The public enjoys the environment of the Art Walk just as much as the artists do.

“This is the first time I’ve ever been here and it’s been fantastic,” Kiefer Shipman said. “Everyone is so friendly. They will talk to you about the work out here.”

One art gallery, which is represented by Center City of Amarillo, uses the Art Walk to display their latest painted horses.

“The First Friday Art Walk has

Brittany Castillo

very important,” Yesenia Castro, freshman Math and Science reporter ifteen year-old Malala Education major, said. “WT does Yousafzai was discharged a fantastic job of offering as many from the hospital on Feb. 8, scholarships as they do, and after an assassination attempt a few because of this, so far I’ve earned months prior. two free semesters, and maybe According to The New York more to come.”

Times, the Pakistani school girl was Garcia assured students shot by the Taliban in a van returnthat scholarship funding has not ing home from school on Oct. 9, decreased and is safe for the time 2012. The bullet entered above her being. left eye, grazed her brain and was “The big picture we can take lodged in her neck. away from this is that scholarship Yousafzai underwent immediate funding hasn’t decreased. Most of surgery in Pakistan to remove the it is pretty even to what it was in bullet and six days later was airliftprevious years, and some funding ed to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital has actually increased,” Garcia said. in Birmingham, England. She was

Artists come together to display their work

Connor Woods reporter

F

rom 5 to 9 p.m. on the first Friday of every month, hundreds of artists gather at The Galleries at Sunset Center to display their work at the First Friday Art Walk.

The monthly event draws a large crowd as it offers many free attractions.

“We have this party once a month and there is no charge for anything,” Ann Crouch, coordinator of the First Friday Art Walk, said.

“We have a free buffet, live music [and] the artists are here to talk to people and become acquainted

STAFF

Editor-in-ChiEf Ashley Hendrick ASSiStAnt EditorS Rebekah St. Clair Brooke Self WEB Editor Daniela Fierro Ad MAnAGEr

Zivorad Filipovic dESiGn Editor Kati Watson CoPY EditorS Brooke Self SPortS Editor Matt Watkins Photo Editor Alex Montoya

rEPortEr Tyler Anderson Brittany Castillo Hunter Fithen Alex Gonzalez John Lee Laci McGee Megan Moore Tori Nicholls Phoebe Sinclair

Rebekah St. Clair Preston Thomas Keltin Wiens Connor Woods Abigail Grace BJ Britain Tori Dinkfeld Reba Underwood Morgan Buie Jennifer Hendrick

initially discharged on Jan. 4, with plans for additional surgeries to rebuild her skull.

According to The New York given us the opportunity to display Times, Yousafzai rose to promithe horses that are painted by the artists,” Sallye Hand, assistant at Center City of Amarillo, said.

Hand also believes that looking at art is one of the most important parts of the Art Walk.

“I think looking at art is a very personal experience,” Hand said. “I think everyone should get out there to find what they like. It’s about finding what creates that emotional experience.”

The First Friday Art Walk is held the first Friday of every month.

The next Art Walk will take place on March 1.

WEB ASSiStAntS Ernesto Arizpe Georgia Romig LAYoUt ASSiStAnt Katie Nichols PhotoGrAPhErS Thomas Koenig Cale Bloskas GrAPhiC dESiGnEr Christopher Brockman

The Prairie is a student-operated newspaper 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 staff.

The Prairie verifies the legitimacy of the advertising appearing in The Prairie, but cannot be held liable for any advertising claim made in this publication. The Prairie has a circulation of 1,500 and is printed by the Amarillo Globe-News.

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.

nence through the British Broadcasting Corporation in 2009 with a diary blog describing her life under the Taliban rule. She expressed her passion for education conquering her fear of Taliban tragedy.

“I was afraid of going to school because the Taliban had issued an edict banning all girls from attending schools,” Yousafzai wrote in early January 2009. “But my heart was beating fast - as I have to go to school tomorrow.”

WTAMU student Rikki Boelens, junior Mechanical Engineering major, is inspired by Yousafzai’s strength.

“It’s inspiring to know she would go to such lengths for an education,” Boelens said.

Shortly after sharing journal entries in 2009, Yousafzai was featured by The New York Times in a documentary illustrating her daily

challenges and vowed aspirations of becoming a medical doctor and politician. According to The New York Post, this “western thinking” made her the primary target of the Taliban.

On Feb. 4, four days before leaving the hospital, Yousafzai reassured the world of her strength in a video statement provided by ABC News.

“I’m getting better day by day,” said Yousafzai. “I want to serve the people. I want every girl, every child to be educated.”

WTAMU student Katy Spruiell, a junior Advertising and Public Relations major, applauds Yousafzai’s brave efforts.

“It’s refreshing to see someone stepping out and being courageous,” Spruiell said.

alex Gonzales reporter

owling is in full swing this year for WTAMU. With 46 students on crew, the WT bowling team has shown it can be just as competitive as the other traditional college sports. The coach this year, Mark Scroggins, who has been with WT for 15 years, is excited about the upcoming conference championship in San Antonio, but even though 16 students are on the team, only eight can travel at a time.

“It’s a yearlong process,” Scroggins said. “Deciding what eight to choose from can be very difficult because they are all good.”

The bowling team at WT has about 14 tournaments a year. This year’s men’s captain is senior Civil Engineering major, Seth Rutledge. “’I’ve been bowling for the last eight years of my life, but these last

four years have been amazing with my WT team,” Rutledge said.

Every year as team members graduate, new students come in.

“I look forward to getting to meet the new kids on our team,” Rutledge said. “Trying to rebuild the team, and getting to know each of the different player’s personalities, and working together.”

New to this year’s team are twins Ashley and Brianne Hansen, premed and biochemistry major respectively.

“College bowling is more of a team sport rather than individual,” said Ashley.

Bowling for the Hansen sisters has been a life long practice as both girls have been bowling since four years old.

“We practice together twice a week for two hours,” Brianne said.

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Former CBS reporter to speak at WTAMU A letter from the Student Body President D “

Ashley hendrick editor

Hi mom,” reporter Betty Nguyen spoke quickly. Her time was short. “I’m alive.

I’m okay. And I’ll call you when I can.”

This was the only call Nguyen got before she and her media crew continued to sneak their way through body infested waters in Myanmar.

“I was a little overwhelmed,” Nguyen said. “Foreign journalists are banned in that country. So for me to get into that country, for us to get just a small crew in there so we could capture these stories, it was a bit of a mission impossible, if you will.”

The mission, as she chose to accept it, was to enter the country of Myanmar, whose government was not only neglecting the people in need after a devastating cyclone hit the area, but were also declining any aid from the U.S. Nguyen and her crew risked their lives to capture the atrocity of the disaster and share the images and stories with the rest of the world.

“We knew people had died,” Nguyen said. “We knew there was an immense need around people. They were not getting food. They were not getting aid. At the same time, my family at home didn’t know exactly where I was and if I was okay.”

This was the life of a journalist Betty Nguyen and it’s this life experience, along with many others,

Nyguen will be recollecting on Tuesday, Feb. 19 at 7 p.m. in the WTAMU JBK Legacy Hall.

“I hope that in some small way I can inspire students to do more than just chase a career,” Nguyen said.

The lecture is one of many activities during Communication Week, a weeklong celebration put on by the communication department of WT from Feb. 18 to Feb. 20.

“We participated in the International Day for Eradication of Poverty back in October and thinking ahead to Communication Week, we also wanted to have some kind of speaker that had a connection with communication, but also had a connection with humanitarianism,” Dr. Trudy Hanson, department head of communication, said.

Nguyen was born in Vietnam, but fled the country with her family after the war. After entering the United States, she attended the University of Texas in Austin and began her journalistic career after graduating with a degree in Broadcast Journalism.

“As I was graduating high school, I initially was going to become an attorney because growing up in a very Asian household…to become a doctor or lawyer or engineer, those were the different career fields that brought honor to the family,” Nguyen said.

But after reflection, Nguyen did what many young college bound students did. She changed her mind.

“I figured my parents had sac-

rificed so much to come to this country and to chase this American dream,” Nguyen said. “So it would be, really, a dis-honor to them, and myself, if I wouldn’t do that for my life.”

After college graduation, Nguyen began working as a reporter at KWTX-TV, the CBS affiliate in Waco, Texas. She then moved on to KTVTTV, the CBS affiliate in Dallas, Texas and eventually worked her way up to CBS News as a correspondent.

Her career since has allowed Nguyen to travel and cover stories from all around the world, from cyclones in Myanmar and the hurricanes in Galveston, Texas to apartheid-era prosecutions in South Africa in 2007.

“I have been given the honor of recording history,” Nguyen said. “It has allowed me to have a ringside seat on the world and it has allowed me to grow both professionally and personally.”

Her passion does not stop at recording history, however, but influences her desire to change the future as well. After visiting her home country of Vietnam with her mother, Nguyen decided enough was enough.

“I saw people just like me who were living in grass huts with dirt floors,” Nguyen said. “They were bathing in dirty creeks and drinking water from those same dirty creeks.

That just made me realize that not only am I so very blessed, but that there’s such a huge need out there

in the world and Vietnam is just one of many, many countries.”

So in 2000, Nguyen and her family established Help the Hungry, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing humanitarian aid to poverty stricken areas around the world. “[It’s] been such a labor of love for us because not only does it give back to the country where I’m from and the people that really are stricken with immense poverty, but it helps me to understand that there’s more to life than just a job and paycheck,” Nguyen said.

It has been Nguyen’s adventures all over the globe and witnessing the poverty and devastation that often accompanies humanity, that has compelled her to take on the responsibility of service to those in need.

“I’ve always been taught, especially coming from Vietnam and going through three different refugee camps, that I’ve been very blessed to be an American, to be in a country where there’s freedom and opportunity, but with those blessings comes

ear WTAMU student body,

Last weekend I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to visit the capital of Texas - Austin. I was selected as one of two representatives serving my school through the Chancellors Student Advisory Council (CSAC). The council was created in 1982 to provide an avenue for all student leaders to address student issues common to all campuses within the A&M System. The CSAC consists of two student representatives from each institution and formally meets twice a year, once during the A&M System’s Board of Regents meeting and again at the end of the spring semester at the annual System Student Affairs Symposium. The group meets informally to discuss issues regarding higher education throughout the academic responsibility,” Nguyen said. year. My counterpart, Leif Knippers, Nguyen’s lecture will focus on and I have had the opportunity to the idea of passions without a paytravel to many unique meetings and check, to go out and make a differlocations throughout the past year ence despite the rewards, or lack of. but none have been as enlightening “I want them to understand that as our trip to Austin. We met with there is so much more to life than a legislators and aides to discuss and paycheck,” Nguyen said. “So much confront some of the biggest issues more to life than a title on a busifacing higher education today. Our ness card. There’s so much more discussions led us to topics such as out there that can be done and you allowing concealed carry on camreally, truly have the power, as one pus, tuition freezes, and the 135 individual, no matter how small you hour rule to name a few. I would start, to make a difference.” like to pass the information we have learned to the students at WTAMU.

LEAD WTAMU teaches students leadership skills cJ BerrymAn reporter

L

ead WT is a two-year academic certificate program at WTAMU that aims at leadership development for students. It is a co-curricular program, allowing students to garner academic credit hours while counting as an internship.

“The easy answer [to what the students gain from Lead WT] is their resumes will look amazing

for future employment,” Lead WT Coordinator Amber Black said.

“However, I think the better answer is that our students are really developing as leaders. They are doing a lot of self-discovery of their strengths and weaknesses and how to overcome [those weaknesses]. It is really cool to see the culture of leadership on campus and the want for WT students to leave a lasting legacy.”

Black said thanks to a grant funded by the Texas Pioneer Foun-

dation, Lead WT was able to kick off in the spring of 2012. Students in the program are required to complete 30 hours of community leadership services and work together on a group project either on campus or in the surrounding community. In accompaniment with their community leadership work, Lead WT students have been taking field trips to meet professional leaders from many different fields.

“We took a trip to Dalhart to meet Dyke Rogers,” junior Agricul-

tural Media and Communications major Marley Lee said. “He made his entire life out of nothing and has become a millionaire, but [one thing he mentioned] was that he wished he had some sort of leadership courses when he was coming up.”

“I went into the program with the expectation of getting a lot to put on my resume,” Lee said, “but it has changed to analyzing other leaders and learning from them.

There are a lot of leaders out there

CONCEALED CARRY ON CAMPUS: As most students are aware, current state law prohibits the possesand it really shows me that there sion of a firearm on a college camare many different kinds of leaders who contribute in their own way.”

Fellow junior Agricultural Media and Communications major Kelby Koelder said she has seen her Lead WT peers grow both as a family and professionally.

“We do a lot of work with people from different majors,” Koelder said. “I have personally gained confidence in my ability to be a leader, to get out of my comfort zone and network better.”

pus. Senate Bill 182 was introduced to allow the concealed carry of firearms at public institutions of higher education (WT included). This bill was proposed last legislative session but did not find the traction to become law. From my talks with legislators and people familiar with the issue, I can conclude that there is a much greater chance that we will see Senate Bill 182 pass this session. Please keep your ears open on this issue and voice your opinion at the Student Government town hall meetings on February 13 and 14 in the JBK Expansion.

TUITION FREEZE: A bill has been proposed allowing universities to freeze tuition rates for incoming freshman. In more simplistic terms, this would mean that an incoming freshman would pay the same tuition rate for all four years that they attended a university. The goal behind this proposal is to give students more predictability when budgeting for their college careers. A student would essentially have a choice between starting college at the frozen rate or to start at a normal rate and weather any tuition increases that may occur. On the surface this option sounds appealing, but when we dissect the issue we can only expect universities to raise the tuition of the frozen program much higher than regular tuition in order to protect themselves from cost increases.

In my humble opinion, I believe that a student would be better served by choosing the less predictable but likely cheaper option of forgoing a tuition freeze.

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THE 135 HOUR RULE: One of the main goals in higher education today is to improve graduation rates. In the near future, Texas public institutions of higher education will be funded by outcomes based funding instead of the current system of formula funding. Outcome based funding differs from the old formula based funding system in the way it calculates how much money an institution will receive from the state. Outcomes based funding relies heavily on the four and six year graduation rates of an institution instead of looking primarily at enrollment. Because one main goal in higher education is to increase graduation rates, the state is looking for ways to “persuade” students to graduate earlier. You can currently take up to 150 hours at an in-state tuition rate if you are a Texas resident, but anything beyond 150 hours and you will have to pay the out of state tuition rate. The proposed bill would reduce that number to 135 hours toward your degree. This change may not seem significant at first, but think about it this way: A typical degree plan requires 120 hours; the new 135 hour rule is only 15 hours beyond your degree, meaning that you have one semester of wiggle room. My problem with this proposal is that it neglects the fact that students often don’t choose a major and stick with it. A major change late in your college career could easily put you over the cushion of 15 hours. The goal of increasing rates of graduation is worthy, but at what costs to the students?

I hope that you see the importance of these issues as much as I do. I have barely brushed the surface in describing these issues and there are many more that I simply do not have room to discuss. I would also like to take the time to inform you that we are a member in one of the biggest and best university systems in the world. The Texas A&M University System has 11 member institutions, a health science center and seven state agencies. There are students at each of the 11 other institutions who face the same problems that you face. I think it’s

important for you to recognize that we are a small piece to a much larger puzzle, but our actions can send shockwaves through the system. If you are passionate about an issue regarding higher education please contact myself, the University administration or even your state legislator. Don’t sit idly by and wait for changes to be made, MAKE THEM HAPPEN. GO BUFFS!

Nick Goettsche Student Body President

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Signing day overreaction WTAMU signs new WT Buffs baseball starts season off strong

Keltin Wiens KWts sports Director

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et me ask you something.

Were there cameras trained on you when you decided what college you were going to? Were there syndicated television personalities watching your every move when you announced your choice? Did you have administrators and professors jumping up and down and cheering in a room when you announced your choice of college? If this was the case for you, put this paper down and go about your life.

For the rest of us who made the decision in relative anonymity, does this mean that our decision is any less important? Of course not.

National Signing Day brutally knocked its way back into the sporting world’s consciousness on Feb. 6, giving all college football fans out there a little bit of a tease as to what the next four years in their beloved school is going to bring. No doubt, seeing where the

biggest (literally and figuratively) high school recruits sign certainly has an air of excitement about it.

But, is it really necessary?

Now, I am, by no means, saying that talented high school football players shouldn’t sign with a bigtime team nor am I saying that they shouldn’t get an education, but I think all the pomp about a single player signing with a team should be brought down a notch or two.

On National Signing Day, ESPN started the day with wire-to-wire coverage of the press conferences held by the nation’s best football players. The day started off with defensive end Robert Nkemdiche, the nation’s top recruit, deciding to play for the Ole Miss Rebels.

That early-morning announcement was greeted in Oxford by Ole Miss coaches jumping up and down and cheering when the decision was made. These coaches resembled the crew at Mission Control when Curiosity landed safely on Mars.

They were that excited to nail the country’s top high school football

player. This is where it gets a little ridiculous.

To be excited about new faces on your team is one thing. But have we, as fans of college football, allowed this kind of behavior to go unchecked for this long? I would argue that, at this point, when a big time player signs with a program, it is no longer about the education. It is only about the name recognition of the player and the university, now married as one. The simple fact that we idolize these top recruits and push them to sign with grade A programs without focusing any resources on the academic side of the school year after year doesn’t help to deter this kind of thinking.

Of course, this doesn’t happen to every player who is signing a letter of intent to play college ball, only the big-name ones.

The circus tent has got to fall down. The media have got to lay off. Honestly, if the top recruit chooses one school over another, that is his decision and, quite frankly, I don’t really care about it.

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players for season John lee sports reporter

T

he WTAMU Buffs signed 37 players on National Signing Day, Wednesday, Feb. 6. They signed 27 players on offense and signed 10 on defense.

The Buffs will be losing 30 seniors going into next season, so the opportunity for some of these incoming players will be there for them to make an immediate impact for the Buffs football team. The returning players will be carrying momentum into next season as the team went 12-3 last season but fell to Winston-Salem State in the National Semifinal Tournament.

One player looking to make an immediate impact in WTAMU’s running game is Amarillo High running back Joshua Woods. Woods helped lead the Amarillo High Sandies to a 10-3 record and rushed for 1,533 yards and 18 touchdowns as a senior.

“Josh is a talented local product who carried the workload for Amarillo High School this year,” Buffs

Head Coach Don Carthel said.

The Buffs signed three players from Waco, Texas: Toriese Thomas, an offensive lineman, Daron Jefferson, a wide receiver and James Griffin, a defensive lineman.

They also added some quarterbacks to add depth with incumbent quarterback Dustin Vaughan entering his senior year.

Ethan Brinkley out of Rockdale High School in Rockdale, Texas, along with Tanner Hodges from Burleson, Texas, was signed.

“Ethan is a multi-sport athlete who holds the school passing record at Rockdale. He is a competitor and a talented thrower who can flat-spin the ball. He is also a lefty,” Carthel said.

The Buffs did some work on their defense too, adding Connor Allen from Guyer High School in Lantana, Texas. Allen was named Defensive Player of the Game in the State Championship over Goergetown and helped Guyer HS to a 15-2 record. “[Connor] has tremendous athleticism and is a relentless pass rusher,” Carthel said.

Pregnant?

Matt Watkins sports Editor

T

he WTAMU Buffalo baseball team opened their season with a four game series against Colorado StatePueblo from Feb. 8 to 10 at Wilder Park in Canyon. The Buffs managed to claim three wins against the Thunderwolves over the weekend with strong pitching and defense.

After Pueblo Thunderwolves opened the scoring with an RBI single in the top of the fourth inning of the season opener on Feb. 8, WT answered with an RBI double by junior catcher Patrick Ramirez and a run scored on an error by the shortstop to take a 2-1 lead after four innings. The Thunderwolves responded with a run in the fifth, three runs in the sixth and another run in the eighth to take a 6-3 going to the Buffs’ half of the eighth.

WT posted a four-run inning

capped off by back-to-back homers by senior Tate Baker and junior Matt Redfearn to give the Buffs a 7-6 season-opening win. Junior Scott Cone (1-0) came in for 0.1 innings of relief for the win, and senior Ryan Houston, who started the game, went six innings and gave up five runs on nine hits. Redfearn finished the game four of five at the plate with a homerun, an RBI and two runs scored.

WT’s offense was completely stifled in the first game of a doubleheader on Feb. 9. However, shortstop Mario Sanchez hit two homeruns and had two RBIs in the Thunderwolves 5-0 defeat of the Buffs. Junior Joshua Weyker (0-1) went six innings and gave up five runs on eight hits for the loss.

The WT bats awoke in the second game of the double header, as they scored 17 runs on 14 hits in the game. Senior Parker Wood led the Buffs, going three-for-three at

the plate with two doubles and four RBIs on the day. Senior reliever Billy Gonzalez (1-0) got the win for WT, going 1.2 innings giving up no runs on four hits.

“It was about time our offense really got it going. We’ve really struggled swinging it so far,” Head Coach Matt Vanderburg said.

Junior Tyler McKnight led the Buffs to their third win of the weekend on Feb. 10. McKnight went three-for-three at the plate with a grand slam homerun, two doubles, two runs scored and six RBIs on the afternoon.

“We also pitched as well as a team can in the wind this weekend,” said Vanderburg. “Pitching and defense are going to be the backbone of this team this year.”

WT will host the University of the Southwest for a doubleheader on Feb. 12. First pitch of game one is set for 1 p.m.

CaLE BLOSkaS/ thE praIrIE Senior Ryan Houston pitches against the Thunderwolves.

WT falls to Mustangs tylEr andErson sports rEportEr

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his past week proved to be a gauntlet, as Lady Buffs basketball lost in heartbreaking fashion to LSC frontrunner Midwestern State 58-55 on Feb. 6 at the First United Bank Center before holding off a vicious Cameron Aggie rally 55-53 to rebound back into the win column in Lawton on Feb. 9.

On Feb. 6, the Lady Buffs held off an early press to stay within striking distance of the Mustangs, creating a low scoring affair early in the contest. While MSU was plagued with early shot clock violations, the Lady Buffs had trouble with missed opportunities and turnovers. Led by sophomore forward Chontiquah White, who scored 10 points off her post play, the Lady Buffs and Mustangs tied seven times and switched leads

four times in the first half alone. This back and forth battle resulted in a 28-27 Midwestern lead going into the break.

However, the Mustangs exploded out of the gate with an 8-0 run early in the second half, culminating in an official review with 11:45 left in the game over a foul by White, which ruled in favor of Midwestern. This prompted the pink-clad home crowd to become hostile, leading into a tough physical game by both squads. Fueled by the WT faithful in the stands, the Lady Buffs clawed back from a 46-34 deficit led by junior forward Devin Griffin and junior guard Casey Land. Despite the late rally, Midwestern avoided an overtime bout as Griffin missed the game-tying threepointer, leaving the score at 58-55.

In the effort, the Lady Buffs were led by Griffin,

who scored 19 points while White and Land each earned 12 points. The Mustangs were led by Kirsti DeGelia, who netted 16 points as teammates Andrea Carter tallied 12 points and Shatoia Gober hauled in 10 points.

“The girls fought hard through some tough circumstances,” Head Coach Krista Gerlich said. “We seemed pretty tight during the first ten minutes, but seemed to settle down and took care of the ball better.

Foul trouble hurt us in the second half having to sit [Chontiquah White] for a while, but we still had an opportunity at the end and I’m proud the girls put themselves in that situation.”

ONLINE SpOrtS

For more on the Lady Buffs weekend, visit theprairienews.com

8

ENTERTAINMENT

GAMES

February 12, 2013 | theprairienews.com February 12, 2013 | theprairienews.com

Circus Gatti at the Amarillo Civic Center Megan Moore reporter

T

icket collectors greeted everyone entering with excitement-filled smiles to the Thursday night performance of Circus Gatti. Once you gained access to the night’s show, there was an even bigger surprise waiting.

Elephants stood tall in the foyer, hay beneath their feet, playing with each other, one trunk messing with the other.

The crowds that were gathered around the beautiful creatures were torn from the scene by the sound of the national anthem beginning.

The night’s event had begun and children’s faces glowed. Many of the attendees had never been to the circus before.

“It’s our first time but we will be coming back every year,” freshman Special Education Major Alexa Deal said.

The opening act was a young woman who could hula-hoop more than one ring at a time. It was nothing short of amazing when she was able to complete her act only missing one ring.

As the night progressed, the audience was indulged in magic tricks and acts where Leo the clown cleaned up the rings in between the featured acts. The impressive acts were few and far between with acrobatics and a motorcycle that could run across a tight rope.

The intermission was 15 minutes longer than the expected amount of time, but children were

able to buy light sabers, light up snow cone cups, and balloons. After the intermission, the crowd was anxiously waiting the poodle and elephant acts.

A wagon filled with fluffy white poodles shortly entered the ring with tails wagging.

They performed their act with precision as they jumped through their hoops right on cue.

The act exited the arena, and a group of dancers took their place.

They danced to a song about Africa

Hogwarts comes to the Amarillo Library Daniela Fierro Web eDitor

G

ood and evil child wizards skipped through the library to enjoy “An Evening at Hogwarts” at the Amarillo Public Library on Feb. 8.

The library hosted this event after the positive response they received for their Yule Ball this past January.

“It’s taken us a month and a half to plan and set up this event,” Amanda Hope Shelburne, Youth Department worker at the library, said.

Shelburne said the point of the events the library hosts is to show the community what the library has to offer.

“I am blown away and pleased with the outcome,” Shelburne said. “We want to show that we’re not just bunch of stuffy old cat ladies and we like to have fun.”

Shelburne said they want to showcase some of the things they have going on from Harry Potter to comic books.

“Once you come in for one thing you look and see that there’s graphic novels,” Shelburne said. “‘Oh, you got DVD’s?

Awesome.’ It exposes people to the collection we have.”

The event featured wand making, a

Quidditch relay, pin the tail on the Dragon and played the movie where they replicated the signature drink of Butterbeer. They also paired up with the Don Harrington Discovery Center, who helped put up a “potions” table.

“I’m sort of a fan [of the Harry Potter franchise],” Renea Dauntes, a grad student at WT, said. “My son is and he came dressed as Harry Potter.”

Dauntes had disguised herself as Bellatrix and said the event was great because it exposes the children to literary events they can get excited about and not just play video games.

“The [game] stations they have are really fun but I’m not brave enough to attempt Quidditch,” Dauntes said. “The library staff is very good about staying in character and they’re all very sweet.”

Terri Walker works at the East Branch of the library and came in to help with the event.

“I think it’s a great opportunity for the community to come together and experience books and the thrill that comes with them,” Walker said.

Walker said the turnout was more than she expected.

“I’m very excited and I hope we get to do [more of these events soon],” Walker said.

and introduced the two elephants to the ring.

The elephants entered with grace and a fast pace. The crowd went wild when they performed their headstands and balancing

acts.

“It was fascinating, all the stunts that they did,” Johnny Allen Middle School sixth grader Jose Desantiago said. “It’s my first time at the circus and I liked it all.”

The crowd cheered as the two beautiful beasts left the arena and went back to the foyer where everyone could get pictures after the show and so that they could get some water.

“The elephants were our favorite. They would wave and hold hands with their tails and nose,” Hayden Hughes freshman Nursing Major said.

“They just had a lot of Megan Moore/The Prairie personality.”

Can YOU finish first?

Elepahants balance on stools at Circus Gatti.

We are giving away $10 iTunes gift cards.

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

Last Week’s ansWers

9

10 FEATURE

February 12, 2013 | theprairienews.com

opinion 11

February 12, 2013 | theprairienews.com

Sexual Responsibility Week commences There is no such thing as singleness F W Rebekah St. ClaiR RepoRteR

ith Valentine’s Day on the horizon, the use of sexual responsibility is more relevant than usual. Before being intimate with a partner, students who are in a relationship are advised to make sure to ask the right questions and communicate any kind of medical history.

“It’s not a bad idea to get checked before and be truthful about what you had in the past. Even using condoms isn’t 100 percent,” Wendy Hearn, registered nurse of Student Medical Services, said.

SMS provides condoms, birth control, emergency contraception, and the Gardisil vaccine. They also test for all STDs for a lab fee and if

students are diagnosed, they can bring their partner with them to SMS to get more information about the disease. SMS has one physician, Dr. Jim Gibbs, two nurse practitioners, Wendy Hearn and Candy Marshall, and two registered nurses who are also graduate students, Hayley Robinson and LuAnne Rickwartz. If a student is more comfortable with a particular gender performing examinations, the student may request to be seen by the physician or nurse practitioner of their choice.

In 2012, 80 confirmed cases of Chlamydia and twelve confirmed cases of Gonorrhea were reported to the Health Department by SMS. These cases did not include the amount of people who came in with

only symptoms and got treatment or those who came in because their partner had been diagnosed and asked for treatment, according to Hearn.

Travis Lubbe, senior Broadcasting major, suggested the best way to ensure that people know what they are doing is to make sure that they are not under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

“Do it in the most sober state,” Lubbe said.

Students understand that intercourse can lead to unexpected pregnancy or contracting of a STD. “Regardless of how long you’ve been with someone, whether it is two years, two months, or two seconds, know the possible consequences,” Izaak Chavez, program

director of KWTS at WT, said.

The fact that SMS does give contraception to students for free gives students who do not have a lot of extra money a place to go to help protect themselves and practice sexual responsibility.

“I think it’s very good,” Lubbe said. “Some students are like me and are very broke, so free stuff is awesome.”

If a person is not quite ready to make that leap into an intimate relationship and fears that Valentine’s Day is a lot of pressure, group dating is suggested.

“It’s good to have groups so you have someone to help you get home if something goes wrong,” Hearn said.

Finding a group of friends to do

something for Valentine’s may be or most of the world, Feb. 14 one of the ways to take the pressure is just another day of another off. month of another year. For “Meet with people who you the United States however, and Ausknow have similar interest and do tralia, France, Canada, Mexico and lights off golf or something,” Chavez the United Kingdom for that matter, said.

Feb. 14 is more than just a day. It’s a Valentine’s Day is generally celebration of love, romance, chocogeared towards couples, but some late addictions, cheesy Hallmark students use the day to show their cards and pay day for hundreds of loved ones they care. jewelry salesmen.

“I think it is great for not only Valentine’s Day is not just ancouples, but for family too,” Lubbe other day. It’s a second chance. A said. “You get to express how they chance for faded love to blossom are prevalent in your life.” once again, a chance for men to Others are a little more cynical be forgiven for all their mistakes and find Valentine’s Day as a reguthroughout the year, a chance for lar day. women to be pampered and a “It’s really a Hallmark holiday, chance for all singles to suddenly but if people need a day to say ‘I love become aware, more so than ever you,’ that’s fantastic,” Chavez said. before, the tragedy of their singleness.

Yes, as it so happens Valentine’s Day shares its small 24 hour window with Single Awareness Day. But what does it mean to be single? Does singleness demand not being married? Does is it mean lacking that one special someone in your life? Is Valentine’s Day a celebration of the relationship between a couple in love? If that’s the case, than all the so called “singles” can and should celebrate Valentine’s Day. Let’s take a brief look back at the origins of Valentine’s Day. Though there is much mystery around it, the most popular beginnings of the Day fall to a saint and martyr known as St. Valentine.

The legend contends that Emperor Claudius II of the third century in Rome thought single men made better soldiers than those

with wives, therefore banned young men from getting married. Outraged by such a law, St. Valentine continued to marry young men and women in secret. He was later put to death for his actions.

This particular saint will forever go down in history as potentially the first Cupid of the Catholic Church. The modern Cupid of today, for all the pictures of a man in a loin cloth pairing up young couples by spearing them with his magic arrows, was never seen with anyone himself. Commercial Cupid is single as was St. Valentine. So if this man, whom this very special day is named after, was a tragedy of singleness, does it not make more sense to celebrate that specific part of his life?

Nevertheless, whether we celebrate the man himself or the ideas

for which he was put to death for, it does not matter. Feb. 14 will forever be stamped as St. Valentine’s Day but not a day meant for those in romantic relationships. It’s a day to celebrate love. Love toward a spouse, toward a boyfriend or girlfriend, toward a child, parent, sibling or a friend. Celebrated author Jane Austin hit the nail on the head when she wrote, “There are as many forms of love as there are moments in time.” Of course, she was no stranger to romance herself, as the stories go, but nevertheless.

So long as there are people in your life will there be a reason to celebrate love, and so long as there are more Valentine’s Days will there be the day after, full of candy and chocolate sales galore. Now, there’s something to celebrate.

Stock ExchangE

QuesTion of The Week

“Should West Texas A&M University allow students and teachers to carry concealed hand guns on campus and in classes?”

“I don’t feel that they should. Our campus police are amazing and always quick to respond..”-- Jennifer Marie “I would say yes you should be able to carry a gun on campus. I am not going to be unarmed if someone shoots or does a bombing at our college. I would rather be a leader/hero and save thousands of lifes rather than watch them be lost.”--

Samantha Marasco

The Prairie will be asking a Question of the Week every Tuesday through Facebook and Twitter. Reply to our Question of the Week post on Facebook or use the hashtag #ThePrairieAsks on Twitter to respond. Student responses will be printed in the next edition of The Prairie.

12

PHOTOS

February 12, 2013 | theprairienews.com

This Week in Photos: Basketball and Evac Alex MontoyA & KAti WAtson Photo editor & design editor

Part of the Buff Basketball team sitting on the sidelines.

Maroon Platoon supporting basketball on game day.

Senior Mason White attempting a free throw.

Traffic cones are used during the drill to block off entry onto the University.

facebook.com/theprairiewt

An officer directs traffic off of campus during Monday’s evacuation drill.

A Local televison station covers the University’s evacuation drill.