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SUNFLOWER WICHITA STATE UNIVERSITY’S STUDENT-RUN NEWS SOURCE
MONDAY • MARCH 30, 2015
VOLUME 119, ISSUE 80
RECEIVING BARDO’S BLESSING
File photo
Grace Memorial Chapel was contructed on the Wichita State campus in 1963 to be a place of worship for all faiths. Because its current pew layout does not provide the space people of some religions need to practice, university President John Bardo has given the go-ahead to make changes to the chapel and restructure it into the Interfaith Prayer Space.
Administration gives approval to revamp chapel, meet needs of all By TJ Rigg EDITOR-IN-CHIEF @TJ_Rigg
In a letter sent to Student Body President Matthew Conklin, University President John Bardo gave approval to make changes to Grace Memorial Chapel, also known as the Interfaith Prayer Space. The chapel sits about 200 feet north of the Rhatigan Student Center and is a place of worship for students. For some time now, concerns have been raised about whether the space accommodates all faiths. Now that the plan has an approval for change, the chapel will undergo some reconstruction to make it usable for students, faculty and staff of all religions. Change coming to Interfaith
has been something Conklin and Student Body Vice President Brandon Baltzell have worked on since they ran for election to Student Government Association’s highest offices last spring. Over spring break, Conklin said he sent a formal request to Bardo, asking for redevelopment of the chapel. “They hadn’t received a formal document with a ‘check yes or no’ type of situation,” Conklin said. “I sent that and some supporting materials that have been covered before.” Last week, Conklin received a reply from Bardo regarding the chapel. In it, Bardo wrote that Harvey Grace, whose husband the chapel is named for, specified in her will that the chapel was given to the university as an all-religions chapel.
“From a university perspective, so long as the basic structure of the chapel is not changed, removing pews should not present a problem,” Bardo wrote. Bardo tasked Wade Robinson, vice president for Student Affairs, with reconstituting the Grace Memorial Chapel Use Committee to oversee the process and finalize all plans. The committee consists of students, faculty and staff who have been a part of the process from the beginning. Robinson said he met with members of the committee individually last week and brought them up to speed on what the restructuring will look like. He and Conklin then met with Physical Plant and Facilities employees to work out the logistics of the process. Robinson said he was pleased
with Bardo’s response to Conklin’s proposal. “We knew that the proposal was a good one,” Robinson said, “[it] met the requirements of what the will said and what the usage committee said in 1963, and Matt had done great homework. All of those concerns were addressed, and we’ll move ahead.” Both Conklin and Robinson said they anticipate a dedication ceremony late in the semester, sometime during the last week of April or first week of May. As an adviser to SGA, Robinson said his main objective was to support what Conklin and Baltzell and other students wanted. He described his role as being a facilitator. “I’m glad they’re able to achieve one of the goals they set out to do, because we want Student Govern-
ODI presents 2015 Phenomenal Women Awards By Danielle Prewitt & Chelsea Moore STAFF REPORTERS @danimal902 @chelsealalamoore
The Office of Diversity and Inclusion presented the seventh annual Phenomenal Women Awards in Beggs Ballroom in the Rhatigan Student Center Thursday.
The ceremony recognizes one outstanding woman each in the categories of faculty, staff and students for their hard work and contributions to the community. “We are recognizing women around this campus who are doing such great things and have been for such a long time,” said Danielle Johnson, ODI’s program coordinator. “Women are
still considered a minority, so it’s important to showcase who they are.” This year’s awards ceremony encompassed the life and legacy of the late Maya Angelou with a speech from Sandra Bibb, dean of the College of Health Professions, who spoke on the importance of being a phenomenal woman.
Reflecting on the well-known prose of Angelou’s famous book of poems, “Phenomenal Woman,” Bibb said, “It took me to a place of deep reflection … of who I am and who I am becoming.” About 50 people from the university and the surrounding community attended the ceremony. See the recipients below.
Award recipients
FACULTY
Shirley Lefever-Davis: Dean of the College of Education
This is Lefever-Davis’ first year as dean, and she described winning the Phenomenal Woman Award as a humbling experience. “We have a lot of programs and initiatives that we are in the process of implementing,” she said. “I see a lot of potential here at WSU, and
for right now, I’m trying to do the best job I can.” Before WSU, Lefever-Davis spent 14 years at the University of Arkansas. She earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Kansas State University, as well as her doctoral degree in Curriculum and
Instruction in 1991. Coming to Wichita State in 2005, she served as department chair for Curriculum and Instruction and was appointed associate dean of the College of Education for undergraduate programs in 2008 and senior associate dean in 2012.
STAFF
LaWanda Holt-Fields: Director fo the McNair program As director of the McNair program, Holt-Fields provides services for those hoping to foster their success in completing a degree. She received her bachelor’s degree from the Elliott School of Communication in 1991 and earned her
master’s degree in education in 1999 from the Administration, Counseling, Educational and School Psychology Program at WSU. “This award is a great honor and a great surprise,” HoltFields said. “I’m proud to be
recognized, and I’m glad that I have great friends that will come out and support me.” McNair aims to help students reach the next level of academia. She is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and advises WSU’s Zeta Beta chapter.
STUDENT
Sein Lengeju: Public administration graduate student Sein Lengeju is a graduate student earning her master’s degree in public administration. She’s a campus representative with the Clinton Global Initiative, and is a campus leader for the “Up to Us” campaign. “I am very humbled, and at the Photos by John Romero
same time, wasn’t expecting this, so it’s a great surprise,” Lengeju said. “There are many other women on campus doing great things that should be recognized.” She is a member of Maasai, a nomadic tribe indigenous to the Kenyan and Tanzanian commu-
nity. She represents the Maasai people of East Africa at the United Nation Indigenous Expert meetings. In her free time, Lengeju volunteers at Beech Elementary and Bostic Traditional Magnet School, teaching languages to first grade students.
ment to be successful,” he said. “I’m proud that they’re able to achieve one of the many things they set out to do when they started.” Bardo wrote in his letter that any further modifications to the chapel would need to be reviewed and approved by Tony Vizzini, provost and senior vice president for Academic Affairs, after consultation with general counsel Ted Ayres and the director of facilities planning, Eric King. For now, though, Conklin said he is happy with the restructuring coming in several weeks. “I’m hopeful,” he said. “I’m excited. It was a lot of work to get to this point.”
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Visit thesunflower.com to find background, continual coverage of the Interfaith Prayer Space
New SGA candidates debate By Cole Yancey STAFF REPORTER @CAYancey21
The campaign for the new Student Government executive branch began last week with the placement of campaign materials on campus. The elections continued Thursday with a debate between competing campaigns in which the four candidates representing two parties expressed their plans if elected. The candidates On one side are Manon Marcotte, presidential candidate and Dalton Glasscock, her running mate for vice president. Marcotte is a junior psychology major. She heads the Organizational Outreach committee for SGA and is a member of Tri-Delta sorority, Phi Xi chapter at Wichita State. Glasscock is a sophomore studying business management and is the chief of staff for SGA. On the other side are Joseph Shepard and Khondoker Usama — president and vice president, respectively. Shepard studies criminal justice, is a senator in SGA and serves as president of the Multicultural Greek Council. See DEBATE on page 2
To see a video of the debate between the SGA candidates, visit thesunflower. com.