11.12.19 issue of The Standard

‘Bear With Us’ Promoting sexual assault awareness to students

Humble Pleasures Clothing brand represents beauty of the Midwest

Perfect record

Men’s soccer completes perfect regular season

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M I S S O U R I S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

VOLUME 113, ISSUE 11 | THE-STANDARD.ORG The Standard/The Standard Sports

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2019

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‘Onward, Upward,’ ongoing

Luncheon highlights MSU resources

TINSLEY MERRIMAN Staff Reporter @merrimantinsley

KAYLA CURRY Staff Reporter @kaylalcurry

During homecoming, Missouri State University held the “It’s On!” event.

Hosted by the MSU Foundation, the reception had students filling Juanita K. Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts.

The main speaker of the event — MSU alumni John Goodman — revealed MSU’s “Onward, Upward” campaign, a $250 million fundraiser for the university.

Vice President of the University Brent Dunn said all 2,200 seats in the theater were filled, and 2,500 more students were waiting outside to hear what Goodman would announce. Some managed to make it into the lobby to watch the release on closed-circuit TVs, but according to Dunn “a couple thousand” students did not manage to make it inside.

With the turnout being large, so were the costs.

Food and shirts were provided to attendees, and the event ended with a fireworks display. Dunn said while they do not have the final cost, the majority of the payment for “It’s On!” was paid for with private money.

Dunn said the fundraiser is divided into four areas: student scholarships, faculty support for professorships and chairs, program support for different departments and facilities support for renovation and construction.

“The whole campaign is really to transform the university from the time the campaign started to the time it will end,” Dunn said. “Our goal is to see change in everything that we do at the university. To allow more students scholarships to new capital projects.”

Senior history major Hannah Fuller was an attendee of the event but didn’t

The Missouri State University Foundation kicked off their “Bears in the Know” luncheon series on Nov. 6, highlighting different areas of MSU that people may not know exist. The spotlight organization this month was MSU’s Center for Resource Planning and Management, or CRPM. CRPM has a unique partnership with the Southwest Missouri Council of Governments, a regional planning commission. SMCOG is the only regional council in Missouri affiliated with a university, allowing both organizations to benefit from the partnership.

During the presentation, Jason Ray, executive director at SMCOG, explained the services SMCOG is responsible for including transportation planning, economic development, homeland security regionalization and regional policy.

With the help of an “army of interns” from MSU, his office is able to conduct other services such as sidewalk assessments and residential assessments in which students were able to assess almost 3,000 residential structures in the Marshfield community.

They also worked with the 911 center to identify over two dozen structures with addresses that were either mislabeled or were wrong in the 911 database.

“We worked with 911 to correct those issues, so now if there is ever an issue at one of those addresses, 911 has good data they can rely on,” Ray said.

Interns are also responsible for creating the cost of living reports, which Ray says is a major reason people are attracted to Springfield as a place of residence.

“Our student interns are

Photos by JAYLEN EARLY/THE STANDARD

The Bill and Lucille Magers Family Health and Wellness Center offers 8 free counseling sessions per semester to Missouri State University Students.

Counseling Center faces backlog M. TODD DEARING Staff Reporter @mtodddearing The Magers Health and Wellness Center’s Counseling Department said they have seen an influx of students over the past couple of months, which has lead to longer waiting periods ranging from two weeks to nearly a month.

This backlog of patients has led to many students becoming dissatisfied with the counseling center.

According to the Director of the Counseling Center, Rhonda Lesley, the reason for the backlog is due to the stigma

against mental health, counseling and therapy becoming less prominent each year. She said students at Missouri State, especially the younger generations, have become more curious about their mental health.

“People are more open to seeking therapy now more than ever,” Lesley said.

More students coming to the center means the department needed to hire more counselors. According to Lesley, two new counselors were hired with plans to hire another part-time counselor until the influx of students is alleviated.

Junior elementary education major Keigon Bruneteau, who

u See IT’S ON, page 2

has been waiting a month for a counseling session, said other counseling centers she has gone to have typically found placements much sooner.

“Sometimes within 24 hours, never more than a week, and they’ve had more availability than the counseling center,” Bruneteau said.

The staff tries to remain in communication with students until availability shows up or someone cancels.

“Their communication has been pretty good for the most part,” Bruneteau said. “They actually just called me again this morning to refer me to two other places.”

Despite the Counseling Center’s efforts, some students are still frustrated with the long wait time and feel like they are being forgotten.

“I’ve been on the waiting list for almost two weeks now,” freshman information technology student Jacob Munro said. “I have seen no indication that they are trying to move things along, and don’t see my appointment happening anytime soon.”

Unlike Brunteteau, Munro said he does not believe they have been effectively communicating.

“The staff hasn’t helped me yet, they told me they

would call me,” Munro said.

“When I tried to schedule an appointment, I filled out a questionnaire and then was sent off.”

Magers has referred students to other counseling centers, such as the Ozarks Counseling Center, Center City Counseling, Burrell Behavioral Health and the Jordan Valley Community Health Center. However, Lesley said there is only so much they can do, as these counseling centers are facing a similar problem of not having enough staff to meet the current demand.

“Around this time of year this influx always seems to happen and always seems to get bigger,” Lesley said. “It affects all counseling centers in town, not just ours.”

Lesley said as mental health has become an increasingly open issue, counseling centers around the country will have to adjust. The counseling center will eventually need to hire more staff.

“Though we’re backlogged, we’ll always see a student in crisis regardless,” Lesley said. “In cases of emergency appointments, the counseling center does offer emergency sessions available at almost any time.”

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Student proposal brings additional security to Craig Hall GRETA CROSS Digital Editor @gretacrossphoto This semester, Missouri State’s Student Government Association passed a student security fund proposal to install four security cameras at Craig Hall.

The project was spearheaded by SGA Director of Administrative Services and junior health services major Patrick Seacrist. Seacrist said Student Body President Abdillahi Dirie assigned him the project to work on at the beginning of the year.

“When we ran for office, students brought up the concern of increasing security measures on campus,” Dirie said. “Our campus is safe, but we should always look to improve it and add more features, so we wanted to focus on what we can add to increase security measures.”

Dirie said the proposal was suggested by senior musical theatre major Sarai Harding.

Harding said her idea for the proposal came from an interaction with a campus security guard in Craig Hall.

She was working in the academic hall early one morning when, she said, a campus security guard made conversation with her, mentioning how if anything “sketchy” were to happen in Craig Hall, the safety department would not have footage.

Harding said the guard informed her the building hardly had any security cameras and the ones that were in place did not actually work.

“As a musical theatre major,” Harding said, “I am constantly rehearsing and in spaces on campus late at night for performances, and the idea of something bad happening with no evidence was terrifying.”

Harding took her concerns to friend and SGA Chief of Staff Tara Orr, where the proposal moved to Dirie and then Seacrist.

“Any student can ask to allocate funds from any sort of funding source we have,” Seacrist said. “We have a sustainability fund, a student initiative fund, a student security fund and that’s the one I used. Really, any student can come up with an idea and try to pass a resolution through SGA.”

Harding, student, said the guard informed her the building hardly had any security cameras and the ones that were in place did not actually work.

Seacrist began initial work on the project in late September, pitched the proposal at the Oct. 29 SGA meeting and saw it passed at the Nov. 5 meeting. Allocated funds can now be sent to the Networking and Telecommunications Department so construction can begin.

A variety of steps must be taken prior to the installation process. Coordinator of Telecommunications Steven Coffman said the department will first order the cameras and other required materials.

According to Coffman, the campus standard for security cameras is Axis because the brand has proved to be durable and high quality.

“Since this project does require some building modifications outside of my department, notifications will be sent to the Campus Construction Team to get on their project list for the building modifications,” Coffman said. Once the materials are received and the building modifications are completed, the camera installation may begin.

Including the cameras, wiring, installation, building modifications and additional items needed to record video, Coffman said the estimated cost of the installations is $8,000.

Of the four cameras, two will be placed in the center of the lobby facing the two main entrances inside. The remaining two will be located outside; one will be placed on the south roof

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A student has proposed to install cameras outside of Craig Hall after discovering a lack of cameras. facing the bike rack and south drive, while the other will be placed on the north surface of the roof facing the tent theatre area, Coffman said.

For the cameras not requiring building modifications, they will most likely be completed by the first of January, Coffman said.

“The others that require building modification will hopefully be completed in the first couple months of 2020,” Coffman said.

Although the main advantage of the cameras is an additional layer of security for the academic hall, Coff-

man said the cameras will also help the safety department respond to any situations that may arise in the area quicker.

“The video for the campus cameras is stored for 30 days and can be retrieved by the safety department for any incident that they might need to investigate,” Coffman said.

“There are a lot of public events that happen in (Craig Hall), so it is good we have some coverage there to make sure that our dispatch center will monitor when plays and other events are held there,” Dirie said.

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TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2019

‘Bear With Us’

Promoting awareness of sexual assault, bystander intervention to MSU students CONNOR WILSON Staff Reporter @connor4wilson At the front of the auditorium, Green Dot program coordinator Jenay Divin speaks about ways students can be proactive in preventing sexual assault and practice bystander intervention to make their campus a safer place. On a Thursday night, Carrington Hall seated over 100 students, with almost an even number of men and women in attendance.

During her presentation, Divin asked attendees how they would reach out to a friend who has been affected by sexual assault or domestic violence and is reluctant to seek help before pointing out one of the students to answer.

“I would say that educating yourself isn’t a bad thing,” the student said.

“That’s right, because educating yourself is half the battle,” Divin responded.

Bear With Us was an event held at Missouri State University to teach students about consent, sexual health and body autonomy and to answer any questions brought up by these issues.

“All of these relate to us as college students,” said Kaylynn Wake, sophomore sociology major, and president of Generation Action at

MSU, the daughter organization of Planned Parenthood.

The event was a collaboration of MSU Generation Action, Me Too Springfield, Xi Omicron Iota, Sigma Tau Gamma, Delta Zeta, Theta Chi and MO State Green Dot. The event was held from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. with a question and answer session to give students a chance to ask about topics that were brought up or not covered by the presentation.

Questions were submitted via text, rather than asked aloud.

“I feel like the anonymous aspect of sending a text, people are able to get their questions answered that they’ve kind of been carrying with them,” Wake said.

President of Me Too Springfield Jordan Harris said she helps at events like this because of her personal experiences. Harris said she was assaulted and wasn’t sure what to do or how to report it. With the rise of the national Me Too movement, she wanted to take the opportunity to help provide those resources and support to those in need.

Harris said Me Too Springfield aims to provide help to both men and women.

“We make it clear we stand for all survivors, not just one gender,” Harris said. “I think that sets the tone for the rest of the talks we give, that

this isn’t just a one-gender issue.”

Both Harris and Wake’s organizations have found much support in Springfield, with more positive reception than negative. They said education on these topics isn’t a partisan issue.

“Sexual assault doesn’t care if you’re a Republican or a Democrat,” Harris said.

MSU Generation Action is planning to hold another event called, “In Case You Missed It,” on Nov. 19, to continue the discussion of sexual education in a very in-depth presentation.

“We really believe open and honest conversations about sex are what change the culture around it and that there’s a lot of taboo that really doesn’t need to be there,” Wake said.

Wake said if there’s one thing students take from Bear With Us, she hopes it’s that all aspects of sexual assault awareness are connected.

“All the things we talked about tonight, it’s how they tie together to create a culture that can either perpetuate a safe place for a lot of people, or a dangerous place for a lot of people,” Wake said. “The fact that we didn’t learn about these things growing up in our education system doesn’t mean that we don’t need to know about them and that they’re not prevalent in our system.”

Photos by JAYLEN EARLY/THE STANDARD

Students listen to guest speakers from Me Too Springfield and Green Dot during Bear With Us at Carrington Hall.

It’s On: Reactions Continued from page 1

Photos by KAITLYN STRATMAN/THE STANDARD

(Above) Vice President Brent Dunn presents the plan for “It’s On!” with John Goodman.

(Right) Student Body President Abdillahi Dirie speaks on stage at “It’s On!”

manage to get a seat in the packed theater. Instead, she watched from the lobby as Goodman announced the fundraiser and outlined what it would do for the university.

Fuller, an employee in the Coger Theatre box office, said while it was exciting the university would be expanding areas, specifically the College of Arts and Letters, the release felt a bit bland.

“It’s exciting that they are expanding the university, and I think it’s nice they’re finally doing stuff for the arts like building the new tent theater building,” Fuller said. “But I think

that it was a lot of hype for something that was a little bit underwhelming.”

Dunn said the fundraiser is dependent on support from multiple private groups.

“Private support is just going to be more critical than ever before, and so this campaign is to attract new donors and get as many alumni and friends of the institution to invest in this agenda,” Dunn said.

Nov. 10, the campaign has gathered $151 million in funding, over half of its goal of $250 million. Dunn said the fundraiser’s planned ending will be 2022, though it may extend into 2023 depending on the amount raised by then.

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TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2019 | THE-STANDARD.ORG

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NCAA’s proposed policy changes may alter love of the game KATHERINE COOPER Columnist @k8iek8_ It is no surprise to some that the NCAA recently proposed changes for its rules to allow college athletes to receive compensation for the use of their name and likeness for things like royalties on apparel. This is seemingly a natural progression of the NCAA’s continued support for helping student athletes in any way they can.

Previously, policies were put in place to encourage financial aid for student athletes in the form of scholarships, stipends and extra resources to ease the stress of balancing Division I sports and a college education.

There are strong arguments

for allowing athletes to collect a check for their name and fame.

For one, these college students are creating such mass amounts of revenue for their universities and local apparel companies, while seeing nothing for it.

Some go so far as to compare it to slave labor, although that’s hardly fair, either. Brand deals, signed agents and marketing campaigns are often held off for when students draft into professional leagues, but with this new policy, students could sign these types of contracts with no issue.

The example that seems to be the strongest for this argument is Anthony Davis, former University of Kentucky basketball player, infamous for his unique eyebrow. During his first and only season in 2011-

2012, the phrase, “Fear the Brow” became popular amongst not only students and fans, but all over the Lexington metropolitan area. Shirts, hats, hoodies and any other merchandise you can imagine had this phrase and a sketch of his now trademarked unibrow; Davis got zero percent of sales.

This story is not unlike others across the country in various conferences. However, while college sports has become an industry entirely of its own, it is still just college sports. By bringing money and economic competition into the mix of an already insanely competitive environment, every single athletic relationship will change.

Recruiting tactics and strategies will be different. Coaching

By bringing money and economic competition into the mix of an already insanely competitive environment, every single athletic relationship will change. and teammate dynamics will be different, maybe for the better, but probably not. Fans already scrutinize the NCAA for allowing “one and done,” which is a phenomena where players will only play one season in college, and immediately head up to be drafted to professional leagues.

The possibility of brand deals and marketing a person instead of a team will perpetuate this problem.

There is also an argument for the sake of the athletes for this proposed policy. On its face, it seems that the real winners are the athletes themselves, as now

they can make big checks on doing what they already have been.

But these students — remember they are still students — already have a lot on their plates. Imagine adding commercial and branding shoots, interviews, and meetings for other revenue building schemes. This policy draws fans away from the actual sports and the love of the game and refocuses it on money.

College sports are exciting to watch for that reason — the athletes have something to fight for. They aren’t tied to million dollar contracts so they play hard to succeed in the professional realm. This proposed policy will alter just about every facet of college sports, and not for the better.

Fact versus fiction in true-crime dramas CHLOE SIERKS Columnist @chloes_16

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Netflix original ‘Atypical’ shows us life as it is, not as it should be ANNELISE PINJUV Columnist @Annelisepin If my generation has one thing figured out, it’s that life isn’t comparable to “The Notebook” or other cheesy romance movies. We’ve begun to acknowledge that everybody and everything is so weird and complicated — how could a movie or TV show possibly be relatable to everyone’s tangled lives? The answer is that it can’t. While fabricated films show young love ending with everyone happy and together are fun to watch, I don’t feel a sense of connection with the characters.

Today’s culture thrives on the idea that their life is just as hectic as everyone else’s. Netflix original “Atypical” does that very thing. This show encompasses teenage drama and real-life problems in a way that brings me back to my high school days. The story line surrounds a teen boy on the autism spectrum, his queer sister and their parents trying to work through the mother’s infidelity. Although not everyone can relate to this exact scenario, how the relationship problems are showcased and dealt with makes the show feel personal. The best part is that even through all their struggles, the family still shares heartwarming moments of togetherness that makes everything feel worth it.

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Having no family members on the spectrum, I have a lot to learn when it comes to the disorder. This show gave me insight into their lives and the lives of their loved ones. We could all stand to learn a little more about what it’s like to be in their shoes. Sam, the main character of the show, is shy and quiet but amazingly loyal, smart and artistic. His day-to-day struggles are present whenever there is loud music or conflict.

And though I am not a part of the queer comunnity, I think we can all relate to Casey, Sam’s sister’s prob-

Today’s culture thrives on the idea that their life is just as hectic as everyone else’s.

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lems with dating as a teen. It can all be weird and new and confusing and really hard at times, and following your heart is easier said than done.

She is a perfect example of being afraid to show off who you really are, but doing it anyway. Lots of people find love when they’re already in a relationship, which can be an extremely tricky situation to handle.

Their mother, Elsa, was not receiving the attention she needed from her husband, so she cheated on him with a bartender. Again, something a lot of married couples go through. The dad is heartbroken and so is Elsa, but they continue to go through the motions of raising their children while trying to piece their marriage together.

Casey learns from her mother’s mistakes that cheating is never the answer and deals with her problems using communication rather than rash decisions.

All in all, this show depicts real-life situations and heartbreak that is experienced by so many. Personally, watching a show that follows the characters through these hard times with family and relationships is much more cathartic than watching a rom-com where every episode ends happily ever after. We’re all experiencing the craziness of today's world, we might as well embrace it and learn to deal with it in the best way possible.

Podcasts. Documentaries. Movies and TV shows. True-crime entertainment has flooded the visions of our society, captivated our attention and made us all question why we can’t look away. I am no stranger to this phenomenon, as a subscriber to podcasts like “Wrongful Conviction with Jason Flom” and “Root of Evil,” as well as a loyal viewer of shows like “Forensic Files” and “Making a Murderer.”

I could probably name 20 more forms of true-crime entertainment that I have watched or listened to and recommended to others. I don’t question the validity of why these shows exist and have existed for decades, what I question is what this says about our society. Why do we enjoy watching some of the most real and gruesome crimes unfold in front of us as a form of entertainment?

In 2009 Michael Mantell, former chief psychologist of the San Diego Police Department, told NPR that being true-crime obsessed is “normal and healthy.” Cases like Ted Bundy and the Golden State Killer are historical and are just a part of life. Other psychologists have said that evil fascinates us

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All of these statements are agreeable as someone who participates in this genre of entertainment.

But I do believe that there is a fine line between true-crime that is informative and true-crime that is desensitizing our society — and we are walking along that line.

I am not making any fanatical claims that true-crime entertainment raises the crime rate, or saying we should boycott these podcasts and television shows.

What I am suggesting is that as a viewer, you should ask yourself, and then answer, ‘What about this podcast, television show or movie is so fascinating to me?’

Is it purely for entertainment? Then remind yourself that the case in front of you happened in real-life and is more horrifying than you could understand through a screen or headphones. Are you watching for historical purposes?

Then think about how these crimes may have affected the victims and everyone around them.

This may seem like an overly P.C. way of looking at what you may just see as entertainment, but too much desentization of gruesome and perverse crimes could have subconscious effects

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HUMBLE PLEASURES Brand emulates the beauty of the Midwest GRETA CROSS Digital Editor @gretacrossphoto

Photos submitted by Kennedy Girard

Models wear new crewnecks from Humble Pleasures, which will be for sale on the brand's Instagram, @humlepleasures.brand, Nov. 15.

College friends Kennedy Girard and Brendan Wright were casually texting one day about the idea of starting their own clothing brand. A few months later and the duo sold out of their first merchandise drop in just ten days.

“It’s been a surreal experience,” Wright said.

Girard and Wright met at Missouri State in the fall of 2016 and quickly became close friends. The two bonded over their favorite brands and aesthetic choice of clothing, but at the time, the thought of a start-up was not on their minds.

In early July, Girard, 23, and Wright, 26, started discussing the possibility of starting a brand together.

“We were both in a spot where we had nothing holding us down,” Wright said.

“Neither of us have a set career path or really any obligations, so we were just like, ‘Yeah, why not?’

“So, over the next several months we met up once a week and we just came up with a few staple designs to put out there and then one day we just pulled the trigger and made our first order.”

Humble Pleasures, the brand’s name, was inspired by the American rock band Turnover’s EP “Humblest Pleasures,” created to represent the cultural values of the Midwest.

“There’s a lot of humbleness and a lot of value (here),” Girard said. “That’s something that Brendan and I could relate to, and I felt a lot of people that we’re trying to sell our product to could relate to. I think being able to represent those values through our brand is something that’s uniquely special to the Midwest.”

The pair released their first set of merchandise, two different hoodie designs, in September 2019 on the brand’s Instagram account, @humblepleasures.brand.

The hoodies, one forest green with orange text, and the other a bright gold with maroon text, were designed to represent the tonal aesthetic of the Midwest.

“We can pull inspiration from all of these smaller, lesser known areas, the nooks and crannies within Missouri,

Kansas City or wherever, but it’s something that’s more catered to the things we see around here,” Girard said.

The warm, inviting colors Girard and Wright chose proved to be successful, as they sold their entire inventory within ten days of their first drop. Both agreed the initial level of support was more than what they anticipated.

“Granted, it was mostly friends, people we knew, but still it was awesome to see that many people genuinely interested in picking up something,” Wright said.

Girard said they plan to continue releasing small amounts of merchandise — around 20 items — as they want to be conscious about what and how much they are purchasing.

A week after getting their first order, Girard and Wright took a trip to Kansas City to network with different Midwestern artists and businesses who shared similar values with Humble Pleasures.

During the trip, they met with indie record label, French Exit. Girard said it was here that they were able to begin the conversation of collaboration.

“We’ve always had a dream of creating a visual lookbook, or film lookbook, and being able to showcase different music within the lookbook, have them represent our clothing,” Girard said.

During the trip the two were also able to briefly meet with artist Claire Cottrill, also known as Clario, after her performance and give her one of their hoodies.

“We are just waiting for the day she posts an Instagram story with it,” Girard said.

Girard graduated from MSU in spring of 2019 with an electronic arts degree.

Trail of Tears route runs through downtown Springfield PAIGE NEWTON Staff Reporter @PagesofPaigeM November is National Native American Heritage Month, otherwise known as Native and Indigenous Heritage Month at Missouri State University. This month is a time to celebrate the diverse cultures, traditions and histories of Native people.

According to the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), the month is a time to acknowledge the contributions that Native people have made and raise awareness about the challenges they have faced both historically and in the present.

In the 1830s, President Andrew Jackson passed the Indian Removal Act to secure Indian land for white cotton farmers. This act led to the forced removal and relocation of thousands of Natives from the Southeast region of the U.S. to the West.

The Natives took the journey on foot. The trip was deemed the “Trail of Tears” by the Cherokee, one of the tribes who faced displacement.

Roughly 4,000 Natives died as a result of the forced removal.

Of the nine states the trail runs through, Missouri has more miles of Cherokee Trail of Tears than any other state,

running about 600 miles.

The Trail of Tears runs through Springfield. The first group arrived in late 1837 and the last group left in February 1839.

Terry Whaley, the former executive director for Ozark Greenways, stressed the magnitude of this event.

“The Trail of Tears was a major experience in the development of the United States, which for many decades was forgotten, and brushed over in history books,” Whaley said.

“It is a story in our country’s development which needs more attention and needs to be told so the actions which lead to the Trail of Tears are not repeated.”

Ozark Greenways is a non-profit organization in Springfield that works towards creating interconnected trails for multi-purpose use. Whaley was executive director when volunteers of Greene County Historic Sites informed him land acquired by Ozark Greenways was very close to the original route of the Trails of Tears.

When acquiring the corridor of land, Whaley did not know it had any historical significance before being approached by the Greene County Historic Sites. Whaley had been working with a developer in 2003 to preserve

open space in a residential area.

After speaking with the developer, the developer decided to give Ozark Greenways a railroad corridor that ran through the subdivision. The railroad had not been used in over 20 years and was overgrown. At the time, Ozark Greenways had no immediate plans for the land. That is, until the volunteers from the Greene County Historic Sites reached out in 2010.

Volunteers at Greene County Historic Sites were seeking permission to place a sign that noted the historical significance of the land. This request inspired Whaley to investigate other areas in Missouri where the Trail of Tears ran through and consider the possibility of establishing a longer, stronger trail segment that could be added into their trail network.

Eventually, a mile-long trail composed of finely crushed gravel was placed along the corridor. The trail is located near Republic Road and Golden Avenue. Along the trail, there are six educational kiosks and a sign designating the trail as a National Historic Trail. It was the first one to be placed in Greene County and it took over a year to get approval to use the Trail of Tears logo. Whaley and the

Greene County Historic Sites had to get permission from the Cherokee Nation.

At the end of the trail, where the gravel meets concrete, a mosaic by local artist, Christine Schilling, can be seen. It is a Trail of Tears emblem surrounded by footprints.

There are three sets of footprints — a mother, father and child.

Whaley says there was originally opposition and concern to the making of the trail, because it runs behind a neighborhood.

“Yes, there was concern and opposition,” Whaley said. “Education, outreach, good communications and relationship building got us through it well enough to build sections of trail.”

Whaley is proud to have brought awareness to the Trail of Tears.

“Springfield has a great opportunity to capture the storytelling of the experience and the stories of the Cherokee people,” Whaley said.

Mary Kromrey, current executive director for Ozark Greenways, finds that the trail offers a moment for people to reflect on the tragedy of the Trail of Tears.

“Walking along this trail provides an opportunity to be quiet and to be reflective about

He said the program did a good job of emphasizing the importance of connections with other artists.

Along with the potential of a visual lookbook, Girard and Wright have big plans for Humble Pleasure’s future.

The team hopes to become a cut and sew brand, allowing them to have more say in garment dimensions and fabric materials. With brand growth, the more opportunities the two will have with choosing sustainable materials, like organic cottons, hemps and recycled polyesters.

“One of our end goals, if we ever get to the point to make this sustainable, is to start making donations to Missouri Conservation fund and help support local park projects because a lot of our inspiration is pulled from the environment or natural terrain of the Midwest, and that’s a value that I think Brendan and I want to ingrain in our brand identity,” Girard said.

Right now, Girard said the brand may not be that level of caliber, but they are already making grassroots efforts to support different charities. For the month of November, 5% of all profits made will be donated to Movember Charity, a global organization dedicated to “changing the face of men’s health.” The charity works to fund research towards prostate and testicular cancer and suicide prevention for men.

“We don’t want it to be all about the clothes, we want to support other people’s efforts as much as we can,” Girard said.

Girard and Wright both work full-time jobs and live over 40 minutes apart from one another, which can make scheduling difficult. However, both agree the brand is their “passion project,” and has yet to feel like real work.

“It’s definitely scary to take that leap, but I think it’s more exciting to think about all the possibilities,” Girard said.

“Whenever Brendan and I were starting this, we just had to jump and go for it.”

As for their second Humble Pleasures merchandise drop, navy blue embroidered crewnecks will be available for sale via the Instagram account as of Friday, Nov. 15. In the weeks following, beanies and long sleeve T-shirts will also make an appearance.

N ati onal Nat i ve Ame r i can He r i tage M ont h

MACKENZIE SPAIN/THE STANDARD

This sign marks the Trail of Tears route that runs through downtown Springfield. this time in our nation’s history where people, like you and me, were forced to leave their homes,” Kromrey said.

Whaley said the reactions of those walking the trail are strong.

“It can be a very emotional experience for anyone who

takes the time to learn the story and reflect that you are walking where Trail of Tears Native Americans also walked,” Whaley said.

Kromrey said they are currently working towards acquiring more of the corridor to extend the trail.

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2019

THE STANDARD

BRENNA LUMLEY/THE STANDARD

5 Pound Apparel is located on South Street in downtown Springfield.

SHANNON NOONAN Staff Reporter @shannon_noo 5 Pound Apparel, a local clothing store in Springfield, has partnered with Ozarks Food Harvest, a local food bank, to make donations.

5 Pound Apparel’s mission began in 2010, hoping to support charitable causes, both locally and globally, through their sales of clothing and accessories.

According to 5 Pound Apparel’s website, they “have a simple concept — everything in our store gives back to someone, somewhere.”

For each item created and sold by 5 Pound Apparel, they donate five pounds of food to OFH. 5 Pound Apparel makes monetary donations to OFH, which is then used to purchase the five pounds of food to provide to those in the Ozarks.

Aside from this main collaboration, 5 Pound Apparel holds food drives, fundraisers and hosts a recurring holiday campaign.

Although this year’s holiday campaign has not yet been coordinated, Sara Roelke, communication coordinator for OFH expects the event to be similar to previous years.

Customers who make a donation to OFH through 5 Pound Apparel are given the opportunity to write their name on

Long-distance relationships pose challenges for students KELSEY BENACK Staff Reporter @kelseybenack

5 Pound Apparel gives back a T-shirt shaped, paper ornament and hang it on the Christmas tree located in 5 Pound Apparel’s store.

“Giving back to our community is the foundation of our brand and our store,” Brina Thomas, owner of 5 Pound Apparel, said. “We are so thankful for every person that chooses to shop with us.”

According to 5 Pound Apparel’s website, the company was founded on a dedication “to the principle of offering quality products that help make the world a better place.”

Because of 5 Pound Apparel’s community-driven mission, they choose to carry other brands that align with that mission including TOMS, a company that designs and markets shoes, Ten Tree, a company that plants ten trees for every item sold and United by Blue, a company that removes one pound of trash from the ocean for every item sold.

In 2012, 5 Pound Apparel decided to shift their donations to be made locally.

“Ozarks Food Harvest was the natural choice,” Thomas said.

OFH’s mission is to transform hunger into hope by distributing food to 270 nonprofits in the Ozarks and creating different programs throughout the community. u Read more at the-standard.org.

Some students enter college thinking they have found their epic love, on par with a Nicholas Sparks romantic drama. However, sometimes it can feel like love stories end up more like a Shakespearian tragedy.

Even long-term relationships are put to the test as couples find themselves battling the distance that comes with moving away for college.

Transitioning into college can be difficult as it is. But on top of other inevitable issues such as time management and homesickness, people in long-distance relationships have to learn to live without the immediate company of their significant other.

Local Relationship Counselor Scott Brown explains that distance can often provoke serious struggles.

“Distance itself decreases the ability to meet our immediate physical, social, sexual, emotional and relational needs,” said Brown.

“Relationships are designed to meet those needs, and distance presents obstacles.

Couples separated by physical distance have to rely on the hope of meeting longterm goals and best interests with no assurance it will happen.”

Brown said when the needs of a relationship are neglected because of distance, partners may submit to feelings of loneliness, unfaithfulness or other distractions to cope.

Are all of the hardships

Weekly Crossword © 2019 King Features Syndicate

ACROSS 1 Poehler’s pal 4 Alias letters 7 Envelope part 11 Frosty 13 Wire measure 14 “The Amazing --” 15 Killer whale 16 Everything 17 Basin a ccessory 18 Intended 20 Burg 22 Sedona automaker 24 Electronic dance music 28 George who played 007 once 32 Sandbank 33 Lotion additive 34 Massachusetts cape 36 Knitting stitch 37 Pays attention 39 Balearic island 41 Went to a restaurant 43 Cow’s comment 44 Responsibility 46 Formal decree 50 On the rocks 53 Jazz style 55 “Damn Yankees” vamp 56 Pickle herb 57 “See ya” 58 And others (Abbr.)

59 Benefit 60 Shrill bark 61 Wonderment DOWN 1 Gifttag preposition 2 Ireland 3 Village People hit 4 “I -- Camera”

5 Scottish garment 6 Apportion 7 Dowager’s pet, maybe 8 Legislation 9 High card 10 Apiece 12 Pony rider of song 19 Can metal 21 Horror director Craven 23 Kimmel’s network 25 60 minutes 26 Drug dealer’s foe 27 Earthenware pot 28 Dalai -29 Came down 30 Region 31 -- Kippur 35 Water barrier 38 Helios’ realm

40 Coffee, slangily 42 Pudgy 45 Nutritious bean 47 Greek vowel

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48 Talon 49 Story 50 Egos’ counterparts 51 Spy novel org.

52 Wapiti 54 Energy

that come with long-distance relationships worth it?

Caleb Hyde, a freshman who has been with his girlfriend for almost 11 months, admits it was a rough transition.

“The most important thing is to be honest with each other, and make sure you keep in touch,” Hyde said. “Let them know how much you miss them.”

Hyde said his girlfriend plans on attending MSU next year, so the conflict of distance is only a temporary obstacle for the couple.

Freshman Nicole Hellman, a digital film and television production student, has been with her boyfriend for eight months.

“The hardest thing about transitioning to a long distance relationship has just been missing the little things,” Hellman said. “After having a long day, I just want to hug him or go get ice cream with him. Not being able to has been really hard.”

While Hellman sees her boyfriend almost every weekend, she knows it is a privilege not everyone may have.

She suggests couples make plans for the next time they are going to see each other, so they have something to look forward to. She also emphasizes the importance of communication.

Hellman recommends avoiding conflict over text if possible.

“When your biggest form of communication throughout the week is texting, miscommunication is bound to happen,” Hellman said.

“Rather than continuing to try and text it out, FaceTim-

Graphic by JADIE ARNETT/THE STANDARD

ing or calling is so much more beneficial.”

Freshman Allison Kuykendall had a different experience than Hyde and Hellman; she recently cut ties with her hometown boyfriend. They dated for almost a year and a half.

“I knew it was time to end things when my relationship began stressing me out more than my school work,” Kuykendall said. “I felt guilty about going out with friends, and now I don’t have to.”

Some long-distance relationships will endure and some will fail, just like any other kind of relationship, but if a couple is serious about staying together, what can they do to raise their chances of survival?

“Couples need to be aware of their partners needs, and remember to still try to meet those needs in creative ways

while their bodily presence can not logistically do so,” Brown said.

Brown said couples should try gestures such as ordering flowers, remembering important events and daily activities of their partner and attempting to spend as much quality time on the phone or FaceTime to simulate a face-to-face physical presence.

According to Brown, intimacy and companionship are the driving forces of relationships, so a couple seeking to stay together needs to make sure these aspects are met despite the distance.

Every relationship differs, depending on the two individuals in it.

But if a couple aspires to live out their romance-novel-like love story, they may need to work hard to meet each other’s needs, communicating along the way.

6

THE STANDARD

sports

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2019 | THE-STANDARD.ORG

PERFECTION Men’s soccer team finishes regular season with 16th win AMANDA SULLIVAN Sports Editor @mandajsullivan After a full regular season, the Missouri State men’s soccer team is still undefeated.

The Bears are heading into the Missouri Valley Conference as the No. 1 seed in the Valley and ranked in the top 10.

They will face the winner of the Nov. 13 Drake-Valparaiso game on Nov. 15 in Chicago.

Senior Matt Bentley leads the Bears with 13 goals, more than double that of the next in line which is junior Josh Dolling. He has six.

The offense as a whole has shown it is a force to be reckoned with. The Bears have outscored their opponents 39-10 this season.

Head coach Jon Leamy said on Monday the Bears need to work on their goals against.

In the last six games, the Bears have allowed seven of those 10.

Another struggle for the Bears comes from those 16 wins. Missouri State has played every Valley team twice this season. The Bears most recently played Drake in their final game of the season, and won 3-1.

The Bears scored first but Drake tied it up at one before MSU went on to score two back-to-back goals near the end of the game — one apiece from Bentley and Dolling.

MSU’s 13 shots that game sits close to their average of 13.3 shots per game. Opponents average 7.3 shots per game.

Leamy attributed that to the Bears’ defense, which is led by senior Ben Stroud, redshirt junior Kyle Hiebert and juniors Connor Langan and Greg Stratton. Redshirt junior Michael Creek has made his name for himself back in the goal. The keeper has 32 saves for a .762 save percentage.

Leamy said the defense — and the offense, realistically — will be tested during the tournament. As much as they’ve seen the other teams in the Valley, those teams have seen the Bears as well. Leamy said the Bears will prepare the same way they have for everything and take it one game at a time, though.

Leamy said the Bears will head to Chicago on Wednesday in preparation for the tournament. If the Bears win Friday’s game, they will play on Sunday at 1 p.m. All games are being broadcasted by ESPN and can be found on ESPN+.

File photo by BRENNA LUMLEY/ THE STANDARD

Forward Josh Dolling, right, celebrates with senior forward Matt Bentley, left, and senior midfielder Stuart Wilkin after the Bears scored on Loyola for a 2-1 win on Nov. 3.

Women’s soccer Bears end season with loss at home in conference tournament semifinals TJ SCOTT Sports Reporter @iamtjs_ The Missouri State women’s soccer team hosted the Missouri Valley Conference Women’s Soccer Championship this past weekend.

Even though the Bears played host, they were unable to make it to the championship on Sunday after losing 4-3 to Illinois State on Friday in overtime.

There was no shortage of offense in this match as seven goals and 26 shots were tallied between the two teams, which was quite the opposite of the teams’ previous matchup that ended 1-0 in favor of ISU. Despite ending the season in heartbreaking fashion, Bears head coach Rob Brewer said he was happy with how his team played.

“I’m so proud of what the did today,” Brewer said. “They could’ve given up at 2-0, they could’ve given up at 3-1, but they just kept finding ways to get back in the game.”

ISU moved on to play Loyola in the final round but lost 2-0, giving Loyola backto-back MVC Tournament Championships.

The Bears ended the season

with an overall record of 115-2 and a conference record of 4-2-1, landing them at third in the MVC. MSU had one of its most successful seasons in recent years, recording its most wins since 2011 and their highest finish in the Valley since 2017 where they finished second.

MSU played well at the beginning of the season, racking up a 5-1-1 record through its first seven games of the season and dominating its nonconference opponents.

The key to the Bears’ success was their defense, giving up only six goals during those first seven games.

With reigning MVC Goalkeeper of the Year Kaitlin Maxwell in the net and preseason first-team defender senior Brittney Robinson on the backline, the Bears were nearly impossible to score on.

They held several teams scoreless at the beginning of the season and had a great defensive showing against UMKC and Tulsa. MSU tied UMKC 0-0 and beat Tulsa 5-1.

After finishing their nonconference schedule, the Bears faced tough opponents to start their conference games.

MSU picked up two wins against Valparaiso and Drake

Photos by BRENNA LUMLEY/THE STANDARD

(Left) Junior Emma Skornia settles the ball in front of two Illinois State defenders.

(Above) Several Bears players look back at the goal after Illinois State scored in overtime to win 4-3.

Illinois State led 3-1 at one point in the second half, but MSU tied it at three to force overtime. but dropped a game to Loyola and tied Evansville, giving them a 2-1-1 record in conference play.

In its next three conference games, MSU went 2-1, beating Northern Iowa and Indiana State but losing that 1-0 game to Illinois State.

The Bears still finished third in the conference.

Along with their best record in eight years, the Bears had seven players selected to all-conference teams and one award winner.

Senior forward Ashley Coonfield was joined on the

all-conference first team by redshirt sophomore forward Anna Durnin and Maxwell.

Maxwell also won her second consecutive goalkeeper of the year award.

Junior forward Jordan Eickelman was the lone Bear on the all-conference second

team, and senior defender Olina Einarsdottir was on the all-conference honorable mention team.

Freshman midfielder Jade Loftness and freshman forward Unnur Bergsdottir were both selected to the all-freshman team as well.

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Former volleyball All-American confident about team’s future

Impact of losing a

BRENNA LUMLEY/THE STANDARD

Junior Emelie Orlando jumps for the ball.

program pillar The volleyball program has proved to be one of the winningest teams in the sport, ranking fifth in the entire NCAA with 1,267 wins as a program entering this season. They trail only Nebraska, UCLA, Brigham

Young and Penn State.

Wins have been harder to come by this season for Missouri State. The Bears are on pace to have their first losing since 1998 and their first season in which they finish 10 or more games below .500 in program history.

“It’s been a learning and growing process for everyone, “ interim head coach Manolo Concepción said last month.

“I am lucky to be surrounded by this group of great players and great learners. We are still not done with the first round of the MVC. “We are still in the fight.

We are still in the battle. The girls are coming in every single day to battle like it was the first day. I’m excited about that.”

Johnson also said she keeps tabs on the team and is aware the team is having a tough time navigating through the season.

“You have to keep in mind they had a dramatic change in their program just days before their preseason training began,” Johnson said. “That is a difficult adjustment to make for any team. I think that alone speaks volumes about Coach’s impact on the program, university and community.”

Johnson said she’s also “great friends” with the new coaching staff that includes Concepción and sisters Sara Thomas-Dietrich and Carly Thomas. She said she respects how hard they are working to create a smooth transition to continue building the legacy of the volleyball program.

“They have started to hit their stride in the last few u See FUTURE, page 8

Swim Bears make a splash in conference opener MSU went out with a bang, grabbing top titles in both the men’s and women’s 400 freestyle relay.

The Bears have two more home meets against Drury and Evansville before the season is over.

“We’re excited about the home meets,” head coach Dave Collins said. “We feel like we race pretty tough in our home pool in front of our home crowd.”

Collins said while it’s important for him to get his team on the road and comfortable in different environments, not having to interrupt the training — or sleeping — schedule is pretty nice for his athletes.

“This place erupts on the pool deck here at home, and our swimmers are able to feed off that.”

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The Missouri State men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams collected 13 firstplace finishes in their wins over Southern Illinois on Saturday.

In their third of five home meets this season, the men’s team dominated the Salukis 15982 while the women touched out Southern Illinois 132-111.

Missouri State has more home meets on this year’s schedule than in past years.

MACKENZIE SPAIN/THE STANDARD Typically, the seasons alternate The Missouri State University hosted Southern between travel-heavy and then Illinois in a home meet on Saturday, Nov. 9. home-heavy. This year happens to have more meets in Springfield. top spot in both the 1,000- and after a first-place finish the 200 Junior Libby Howell and 500-yard freestyle events. freestyle, followed by teamsenior Antonio Thomas each Sophomore Arthur Cury mates junior Anna Miller and paved the way, claiming the started a four-event win streak senior Samuel Senn in the 50

freestyle. Howell claimed the fourth victory in the 200 individual medley. Cury and Miller also led the pack in the 100 free.

Senior Haley Allen earned her first career win in the 200 butterfly with a time of 2:07.85.

“To finish my senior season with more home meets is really special for me,” Allen said.

“It really brings everything full circle. The energy at home is unmatched.”

Second-year Pawel Krawczyk didn’t stop the momentum there, pacing his way to a 1:51 200 butterfly to take the top spot.

Senior Sarah Allegri earned first in the 200 backstroke with a time of 2:04.75. Sophomore Connor Funke and third-year Michael Hampel went 1-2 in the 200 breaststroke, securing their enormous lead over Southern Illinois.

It seems to be that Missouri State athletes have a knack for going viral on the internet.

Over the past several years, MSU athletes have had videos of themselves go viral — one set a world record for box jumps, and another hit a game-winning half-court shot.

Regardless of the feat, these Bears have experienced a level of internet fame that many people will never achieve.

The trend of viral MSU athletes started in 2017 with football standout Dylan Cole. Cole was on most NFL scouts’ radar, but he hadn’t received an invite to the NFL Combine, forcing him to showcase his freakish athleticism at MSU’s pro day.

Cole posted 32 reps of 225-pound bench press, along with a 39 inch vertical and a 4.52-second 40-yard dash. On April 14th of 2017, Bleacher Report posted a Twitter video about Cole, promoting him as a worthy draft prospect and highlighting his pro day performance and collegiate success.

The video garnered 280,000 views on the Bleacher Report Twitter page and helped Cole become more acquainted with the casual NFL fan, as he was a relatively unknown prospect beforehand.

Two Bears went viral in 2018 — the first of which was current MSU junior Tyrik Dixon.

Dixon wasn’t an MSU athlete at the time, but the fame he gained from his viral video followed him to Springfield.

“After it happened, a lot of people were asking me about it and stuff,” Dixon said. “That happened at my other school — Middle Tennessee State — but some people here at Missouri State have asked about it too.”

Dixon was playing in a basketball game against The University of Texas at El Paso in the viral video. Dixon brought the ball up the court and crossed the defender over.

He waited a few seconds and

TH

CLAIRE NIEBRUGGE Senior Sports Reporter @claireniebrugge

TJ SCOTT Sports Reporter @iamtjs_

TY

Despite being in graduate school 1,500 miles away at Stanford, one of the best players for the Missouri State volleyball program said she was “incredibly sad” to see Melissa Stokes’ career end after nearly 25 years as the head coach in August.

Lily Johnson, who is a four-time All-American and and three-time Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year, said Stokes is one of those people from MSU she will always hold near and dear to her heart.

“She took a chance on me as an undersized outside hitter in high school and didn’t stop believing in me since the day I received my first recruiting letter from Missouri State,” Johnson said. “She developed me as an athlete and shaped me into the woman I am today.”

Stokes resigned on Aug. 12 following an investigation into the program for NCAA violations.

The investigation found three NCAA violations including allowing a non-qualifier to accompany the team during a foreign tour without personally paying all costs associated with the tour, allowing currently enrolled players to participate in volleyball camps and

providing additional financial aid to student-athletes in the form of reduced or free living.

Stokes is the winningest coach in Missouri Valley Conference history. She spent 23 seasons as the Bears’ head coach and helped Missouri State to 10 NCAA Tournament appearances.

Johnson signed with MSU to play in 2014 and graduated after a historic career in 2017.

After finding out about Stokes’ resignation through a press release on Twitter, she said she gave her former coach some space during the investigation.

Since the news broke a few months ago, Johnson was able to chat with Stokes a few times. Johnson knows Stokes is still busy, so they don’t keep in touch as much as people think, the former player said.

“I’m okay with that,” Johnson said. “She is a lifelong mentor and friend to me. No amount of time will change our relationship or my ability to turn to her for anything.”

Johnson also said she hopes to get the opportunity to reconnect with Stokes face-to-face in the future.

For now, Johnson said she respected Stokes’ decision to resign and will support her wherever she ends up.

“That’s what she’s always done for me.”

U

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DEREK SHORE Senior Sports Reporter @D_Shore23

Athletes look back at their viral video moments

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TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2019

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SIERKS

KNOW

on our minds. The obsessive interest in serial killers is not a personality trait or a “fun fact.” True-crime is not just a new movie starring Zac Efron that is over when you close your laptop. Watch true-crime TV shows, listen to true-crime podcasts and talk with friends and family about what you saw/heard.

But do not let this entertainment change fact to fiction in your eyes.

invaluable to our office,” Megan Clark, SMCOG’s senior planner and internship coordinator, said. “They’re integral team members for everything from data collection and analysis to leading public meetings and presenting to elected officials.”

Continued from page 3

VIRAL Continued from page 7

did it again, this time causing the defender to fall. Dixon then pointed at the defender, as if to point out that he had just crossed him over. The video has over 4 million views on YouTube and is one of the most disrespectful crossovers in college and professional basketball.

Former football player Deion Holliman also went viral in 2018.

After his playing days in

Continued from page 1

Springfield were over, Holliman got a chance to play with the Arizona Hot Shots in the newly formed Alliance of American Football, but that’s not where his viral video stems from.

While working out in hopes of playing professional football, Holliman unofficially broke the world record for the highest box jump with a jump of 65 inches.

The record is not official because the correct paperwork was not filed by Holliman to certify his jump as the world record.

“I’m more focused on playing football than jumping on

Student interns also worked on planning projects which earned national awards.

One notable project mentioned during the presentation was a comprehensive plan for the city of Ozark created by students. Ray said it is the first online, interactive plan created in Missouri, and most private firms do not have access to software like the one used for this project.

Many comprehensive

boxes all day,” Holliman told The Standard last October.

After Holliman posted the video to all of his social media accounts, Bleacher Report reached out and asked him if they could post his video, and he obliged. The video tallied 332,000 views on the Bleacher Report Twitter page, placing him among the likes of Cole, Tyrik, and former basketball player Jarred Dixon as viral athletes from Missouri State.

In February of 2019, then senior guard Jarred Dixon hit a shot that no MSU basketball

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2019 planning projects begin as student practicum projects before becoming contracted, Ray said. For example, students created a vision project for the city of Billings for a class. It ended up winning an Outstanding Student Project award from the American Association of Planning last year, and this year, the city of Billings contracted SMCOG to turn the vision into an actual comprehensive plan.

fan will soon forget.

MSU trailed Illinois State by two points with 7.8 seconds on the clock. ISU inbounded the ball, but it was batted around by players from both teams. Jarred was able to get ahold of the ball, and he heaved a half-court shot as time expired.

The basket was good. Fans went wild in the stands while players and coaches stormed the court to dogpile on Jarred. The video amassed 1.3 million views on SportsCenter’s Twitter page, and it was also featured as a SportsCenter Top 10 play.

“We are able to do high quality projects for the communities we work with because of our MSU student interns,” Clark said. “Our partnership with the CRPM at MSU allows us to collaborate on projects, present to classes about planning, and hire students to work on actual projects that are helping find solutions for real problems.”

Some of SMCOG’s for-

FUTURE Continued from page 7

their stride in the last few weeks,” Johnson said. “I can’t wait to follow them through the rest of their season.”

Johnson, who leads the program in kills and attacks, said she will always be a loyal fan of the Bears even through the tough times. She said she is confident in the future of the program.

“We don’t say ‘Once a

mer interns who have recently graduated already hold positions with the City of Springfield, MoDOT and other organizations with focuses in development and planning after gaining experience through the internship program.

“We’re an organization not a lot of people know exist, but a lot of the projects we work on impact people’s day to day life,” Ray said.

Bear, always a Bear’ for nothing,” Johnson said. “I am confident that moving forward, the individuals who lead the team in the many years to come will hold the spirit of our program’s tradition close to their heart and keep Missouri State on the map on a national scale.”

The volleyball team has a 9-20 overall record and are 6-9 in MVC play, which ranks seventh in the conference. The Bears play at Evansville and Indiana State from Nov. 15-16 next weekend.