The Sunflower v. 124 i. 13

/The Sunflower WICHITA STATE’S STUDENT NEWS SOURCE SINCE 1896

THURSDAY, SEPT. 26, 2019

@sunflowernews

VOL. 124 • ISSUE 13

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@thesunflowernews THESUNFLOWER.COM

DREAMCATCHER

HISPANIC OR LATINX

’TIS THE SEASON

HIGH HOPES

KC Fashion Week was a dream come true for amateur model Jenna Hainke.

Columnist Aileen Rueda-Dacosta clarifies when each label makes sense.

Shocker men’s basketball held it’s first official practice Tuesday afternoon.

Softball Head Coach Kristi Bredbenner is excited for her team.

SEE ARTS • PAGE 3

SEE OPINION • PAGE 4

SEE SPORTS • PAGE 5

SEE SPORTS • PAGE 6

‘She brought light into the room’ Coworkers, faculty remember Mendi Cotter

BY KYLIE CAMERON

Mendi Cotter, director of communications for St. Paul University Parish at Wichita State, died Monday morning in a car crash.

In a Facebook post Monday evening, the Father David Michael said Cotter was driving through fog on Kellogg toward Cheney for auto repairs when an oncoming driver pulled into her lane to avoid stopped traffic from another crash, colliding head-to-head with Cotter’s car. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

Just before the accident, Cotter had dropped off her two children at school following Mass at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church.

“Please, keep us in your prayers,” the Facebook post read. “Especially, the family of Mendi. She is in heaven as she received Jesus this morning at Mass. She had the Food for the Journey!”

Cotter’s coworkers remember her as someone who was always positive and left an impact on all who came through the parish.

“Mendi was definitely a very important person here,” said Tony Cruzeiro, office associate at the parish. “Reflecting back on her and her life, the one thing that pretty much everyone agrees on is they remember her happy. They remember her smiling and her positive attitude.

“She brought light into the room.”

Cotter was also a graduate student at the Elliott School of Communication.

Elliott School Graduate Coordinator Lisa Parcell said Cotter was a vital piece of the school’s graduate program.

“Mendi was a warm, caring student who was supportive to everyone around her,” Parcell told The Sunflower in an email. “I enjoyed having her in class because she was

always willing to contribute to the conversation and offered her own unique perspective. Her passing has left a hole in our program.”

The last time Parcell spoke to Cotter, Cotter was planning her capstone project for her master’s degree. She said Cotter was thinking of combining two of “her loves” — her faith and photography.

“I wish she could have seen the project through, but I find comfort in the fact that she was excited about the work,” Parcell said.

“Mendi will be sadly missed.”

Cotter’s vigil and rosary service will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday at the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church, 645 N. 119th St. Her funeral will also be held there at 10 a.m. Friday.

Credo Coffee, a coffee shop located in the basement of St. Paul’s University Parish, is raising money for Cotter’s family through T-shirt sales. Each shirt is $10.

COURTESY OF ST. PAUL’S UNIVERSITY PARISH AT WICHITA STATE

Mendi Cotter served as the director of communications for St. Paul University Parish and was a graduate student in the Elliott School of Communication. She died Monday in a crash.

Faculty Senate renews debate over dropping 3 gen ed classes

BY MATTHEW KELLY

The Wichita State Faculty Senate renewed an impassioned debate Wednesday over a proposal to cut the university’s general education credit-hour minimum from 42 to 33 hours starting next academic year.

The proposal would retain a 12-credit-hour minimum for basic skills subjects but reduce the number of required fine arts, humanities, social sciences, and math/natural science classes to one each. Students’ three additional courses could be either introductory-level or advance fouses.

All undergraduate degrees at WSU require students to complete at least 120 credit hours. Cutting down on gen ed requirements would not lower the overall number of credit hours students have to take.

Music Sen. Aleks Sternfeld-Dunn argued that quality and content of classes are better measures of general education than a composite number of credit hours students take.

“There’s not a science to, ‘Oh, it’s at 36 credit hours or 39 credit hours that [students] suddenly become a functional human being for our society,” Sternfeld-Dunn said.

Philosophy Sen. Susan Castro proposed an amendment to keep the minimum at 42 credit hours, arguing that it’s WSU’s responsibility to give students a strong liberal arts education.

“The purpose of a university undergraduate education is very different from a technical school or a graduate program,” Castro said.

Music Sen. Pina Mozzani countered that cutting back on core classes while maintaining gen ed requirements is doing a disservice to WSU students.

“We have to consider our students more than the philosophical aspect of having this number of general education courses,” Mozzani said. “We are cutting our core curriculum.”

Castro’s amendment to maintain the 42-credit-hour threshold failed.

So did an amendment to lower the required number of hours to 30, the Higher Learning Commission’s bare minimum.

SEE GEN ED PAGE 2

DANIEL CAUDILL/THE SUNFLOWER

Bradley Saville works in his office space, where he prepares photos and videos for his business Video Midwest. While he primarily prepares photos and videos for real estate properties, he also shoots events and weddings.

Media arts major sees future in his video production company

BY RHIANNON TAYLOR

While college is meant to serve as a path to a career, many students are making their own way while earning their degrees.

Among those students is Bradley Saville, a Wichita State sophomore who earns his living through independent video and photo work.

Saville established his business, Video Midwest, about three years ago.

“It started out a drone photography business for real estate marketing — for potential buyers to be able to view,” Bradley said. “It then expanded to photography and shooting videos for events.”

Saville is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in media arts with a focus in filmmaking and a minor in marketing. He said he’s found that several of his classes teach new skills that he can apply to his business.

“I recall learning about color correction in a class I took last semester that inspired me to continue learning about it, which is essential for professional video production,” Saville said.

The videos he produces for weddings and other events can be produced into longer videos for at-home use or shorter

videos for social media.

Saville currently runs Video Midwest on his own, but he has high hopes for the business moving forward.

“I see the future of the business. I'm hoping to start hiring other people to help with work, and that way, I can start directing,” Bradley said. “I am a one-man band at the moment though.”

The most rewarding thing about it is getting to do what you love everyday along with setting your own guidlines and schedule.” ­— Bradley Sommerville, media arts sophomore

Saville said his business has consistently grown since he first started it while he was working as a customer service specialist for Best Buy. After about nine months, he decided to quit and focus on growing Video Midwest.

“I realized I wanted to put more into that and more time and effort into the

aerial photography, because I knew I could make good money,” Saville said.

The business has come with highs and lows, he said. While the learning curve associated with his work can be frustrating, he said it’s incredibly rewarding.

“The most rewarding thing about it is getting to do what you love everyday along with setting your own guidelines and schedule,” he said.

Looking back, Saville said he realized research was the driving factor that got his business off the ground.

“Research — checking out other companies, what kind of work they’re doing, what kind of pictures they’re taking, is an important learning process,” Saville said.

Saville also had to do quite a bit of practice in Adobe Photoshop, considering he wasn’t initially very familiar with it. He said he made time for practice to work on his craft and better his business.

Saville is just one example of a student who runs their own business on top of balancing the regular responsibilities of a college student. He demonstrates the knowledge and passion entrepreneurs develop when pursuing their dreams.

NEWS

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Arts and culture on the table at upcoming Wichita candidate forum

BY EMILY DULOHERY

EASTON THOMPSON/THE SUNFLOWER

The Wichita State University water tower sits on the main campus.

What is WSU’s plan in the event of a water treatment plant shutdown?

BY BEN JACOBSON

Wichita’s sole water treatment plant has become a point of concern for some residents following a recent report of its poor condition.

In July, The Wichita Eagle reported that 99% of parts at the 80-year-old plant are in “very poor condition.”

A major failure would require the entire plant to be shut down, potentially compromising access to running water for hospitals, schools, businesses, and homes in the most populous region in Kansas. That includes Wichita State.

So what’s the university’s plan in case the plant goes under? The answer is a bit complicated.

WSU’s Emergency Operations Plan (EOP) does not contain a specific contingency plan for loss of water in the event of a treatment plant shutdown. But in an interview with The Sunflower, WSU Director of Environmental Health and Safety Mike Strickland said the university does have a plan.

GEN ED FROM PAGE 1 The Kansas Board of Regents requested in 2017 that universities cap degree programs at 120 credit hours to promote on-time degree completion.

As a result, several of WSU’s engineering and music degrees had to cut back on core classes.

Art and Design Sen. Jeff Pulaski said he knows lowering the gen ed credit-hour minimum will disproportionately affect Liberal Arts and Sciences, but that other colleges felt the pain when they had to cut back on degree requirements.

“We had to drop stuff that we felt was very important for our students to learn, but we couldn’t touch gen ed,” Pulaski said.

Provost Rick Muma said the Regents deny any appeal for an exemption to the 120-credit-hour

Strickland said the plan would be based on how long the shutdown was expected to last, and it would be based on guidance from city and state officials on how to proceed.

Wichita officials have been working to develop an emergency plan specific to a plant shutdown, but it has yet to earn state approval.

Strickland said the university would first commission a team based on the level of emergency, in accordance with the EOP. Those responses are based on a threetiered system.

A plant shutdown would trigger either a level-two or level-three event based on the descriptions given in the EOP. Either level of emergency would activate the University Emergency Operations Center, which is essentially a rapid-response group under the President’s Executive Team.

After the groups were formed, they would be tasked with conducting an overview of the university’s on-hand water

resources and daily consumption rates.

Strickland said that information would help give the university an idea of how long it could sustain itself without outside water flow.

University officials would then coordinate with city and state officials, Strickland said, to determine the severity of the situation and then dispense aid to the university accordingly.

Director of Public Works Alan King told The Eagle in July that “Every hour [the plant] is running, it could fail — right as we’re talking, right now.”

Despite its reportedly poor conditions, Strickland said a complete shutdown at Wichita’s sole water treatment plan seems “unlikely.”

Wichita was recently approved for a $274 million loan to finance the construction of a second water treatment plant for the city, helping establish redundancy if the first plant were to shut down.

The second plant is expected to be open by 2024 at the earliest.

rule for a degree that another university already offers at the preferred credit-hour maximum.

Engineering Sen. Roy Myose said it’s unfair to ask professors to combine the curricula of multiple core classes into one.

“If that’s the case that you can’t stuff two classes together, how do we retain the [gen ed] goals and outcomes by chopping the gen ed curriculum?” History Sen. Jeff Hayton asked.

“As the chair of the [Gen Ed] committee, we grappled with that,” Faculty Senate President Jeff Jarman responded.

“We don’t think that the students at other universities who take less than 42 credits are somehow unprepared to be citizens in the world.”

Faculty Senate received a resolution from the Student Government Association last spring in support of cutting

back on gen ed credit hour requirements.

Sternfeld-Dunn spoke in open forum at last Wednesday’s Student Senate meeting to give senators an update on the proposal and a chance to ask questions.

At-Large Sen. Lauren Peterson asked what would happen to students who have already taken the required 42 gen ed credit hours.

“Students who are here now would have a choice,” Sternfeld-Dunn said. “They could either stay in the current catalogue they’re a part of . . . or you can choose as a freshman or a sophomore, you might choose, ‘Okay, I’m going to switch over and take advantage of the reduction of general education.”

Asked how students can best voice their opinions on the proposed gen ed scale back, Sternfeld-Dunn said they should email himself or Jarman.

The Sunflower, founded in 1896, is the student-run newspaper covering Wichita State University. The print edition is published Monday and Thursday during the fall and spring semesters and twice over the summer. The staff publishes daily online at www.thesunflower.com.

The Sunflower — both in print and online — will be a timely resource of information about the Wichita State University community. It will report on news, issues, activities, academics and athletics, in addition to offering a forum for discussion, reviews and commentary. It will also be an effective learnig experience for students, who will have the final authority over what is published.

EDITOR IN CHIEF Kylie Cameron

OPINION EDITOR Kevin Benavides

MANAGING EDITOR Matthew Kelly

PHOTO EDITOR Easton Thompson

NEWS EDITOR Daniel Caudill

MULTIMEDIA EDITOR Eduardo Castillo

SPORTS EDITOR Marshall Sunner

ADVERTISING MANAGER Madeline Deabler

A & E EDITOR Ella Dominguez

FACULTY ADVISER Amy DeVault

LEGAL

The opinions expressed in The Sunflower editorials, columns, guest columns, reviews, advertisements, letters and editorial cartoons are not necessarily those of the staff, publications board, student body or the university.

The Sunflower is a member of Kansas Collegiate Media, the Associated Collegiate Press and College Media Association.

Copyright © 2019 The Sunflower. This newspaper, its design and its contents are copyrighted.

FIRST AMENDMENT Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the 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.

10 debate — are inherently tied to public art, Boone said.

“Arts play a really big part in that quality of life aspect,” she said, “And in being able to reduce that crime rate, and recruit and retain talent and companies — get them to take root here versus somewhere like Tulsa or San Antonio or Dallas.”

The Wichita Arts Council has a history of pushing for public and citywide support of the arts since its founding in 1966. During the 2016 municipal races, the Sedgwick County Commission’s threat to cut funding for public arts was met by a rally of all organizations with funds at risk, led by the Arts Council.

The motion to cut city art funding was then overturned, Boone said.

The council spearheaded a similar movement when CityArts — a community arts center in downtown Wichita — faced budget cuts.

“We were pretty successful in making sure our voices were heard and that funding was restored,” she said.

The forum is a similar avenue for the community to make heard their arts-related concerns — of which Boone said there are plenty.

“Within our arts community right now, we’ve had such a big groundswell of arts support, and it’s been a really big topic of conversation,” she said.

“We would love to have as many students as are interested come out and join us; that’s part of the reason we do it.”

Doors will open at 5:30 p.m.

Tuesday at Wave, 650 E. Second St. N, and the forum will run from 6 to 9 p.m.

Admission is free, and food and drinks will be available for purchase from Adios Nachoria inside the venue.

Question ideas from the community are welcomed, Boone said. Those suggestions can be submitted to ictpublicart@gmail.com.

COURTESY OF THE CITY OF WICHITA

STAFF Morgan Anderson Olivia Babin John Darr Emily Dulohery Selena Favela Karen Galindo Brogan Gillmore Ben Jacobson Audrey Korte Dalton Langham Sean Marty Khanh Nguyen Drake Robinson Nathan Schale Austin Shaw Lindsay Smith Maddie Spurlock Jeromiah Taylor Rhiannon Taylor Becca Yenser

Corrections The Sunflower is committed to accuracy in its publications. If you find an error in any of its publications, please email the editor at editor@thesunflower.com immediately.

Corrections and clarifications will be printed in this space.

Wichita Candidate Forum

by Wichita Arts Council Tuesday, Oct. 1 6 to 9 p.m.

WAVE, 650 E Second St. N

Century II Performing Arts Center sits in Downtown Wichita and has been the center of debate during the mayoral election.

Meet the Staff

MISSION

One free copy of The Sunflower is available to members of the WSU community. Additional copies may be purchased for $1 in the newsroom, Elliott Hall 019. The Sunflower is private property and unlawful removal or use of papers is prosecutable. The Sunflower is funded by a combination of print and online advertisment sales and student fees allocated by the Student Government Association.

Another month, another forum for Wichita’s political candidates — but this time, the focus will shift to arts and culture.

Candidates on the 2019 municipal ballot will gather Tuesday at Wave for a forum hosted

by The Wichita Arts Council.

Mayor Jeff Longwell and challenger, Rep. Brandon Whipple, were invited to attend, along with candidates for city council and the USD 259 Board of Education. As of press time, all but fifth-district candidate Mike Magness have confirmed they will attend.

The event, now named the Wichita Candidate Forum, has been held every election cycle since 2015, headed up by Shannon Boone of the Wichita Arts Council.

“We’ve always had a pretty good turnout,” Boone said. “Our arts community here is pretty involved, and when they know that they can make a change or make some impact in benefitting the arts community, they tend to show up and ask questions and get involved, which is fantastic.”

This year, candidates for all three offices will take the stage at once, and will each have the chance to answer questions curated by the Arts Council.

Answering order will rotate.

“Everyone gets an opportunity to speak without it becoming a debate,” Boone said.

Many of the questions will be based on topics submitted by community members.

The future of the Century II performing arts center and funding for the arts in schools are two hot-button issues likely to come up this year, Boone said.

Longwell and Whipple kicked off the general-election debate season Sept. 10 with a debate broadcasted live on KMUW, followed by a student-led municipal election forum on Sept. 15.

Neither candidate spoke extensively on arts in the community, but issues like retaining Wichita’s young workforce and reducing crime rates — which were both discussed at length in the Sept.

Contact Us 019 Elliott Hall 1845 N. Fairmount Ave. Campus Box 134 Wichita, KS 67260-0134 ADVERTISING Madeline Deabler: 316-978-6906 admanager@thesunflower.com

EDITORIAL Kylie Cameron: 316-978-6905 editor@thesunflower.com

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A&E

HAVE A STORY IDEA? contact The Sunflower’s arts & entertainment Editor, Ella Dominguez arts@thesunflower.com

A dream come true at the Kansas City Fashion Week

BY KAREN GALINDO

COURTESY Model Jenna Hainke walks the runway during Kansas City Fashion Week.

At the age of 15, Hainke was approached by a talent scout, and after some training, she began her modeling career.

‘NINE’: Their older stuff was better

Blink-182 is back, and not just for the show they did Sept. 6 at Hartman Arena. This weekend, the band released their newest album “NINE,” and overall, it’s pretty meh.

The band, with their second album since the departure of guitarist and vocalist Tom DeLonge, took a heavier pop approach — doubling down on the worst parts of their last album, “California.”

Every song on the 15-track album comes off overproduced, especially in the vocal department.

If someone were to play “The First Time” without telling me it was Blink-182, I would have no idea it was them. It’s not until you hit the chorus that the song starts to have that same energetic and wild Blink-182 feel.

“Hungover You” is the most egregious overproduction offender on the album, sounding like a bad remix of a different band’s song.

One redeeming factor is that the album retains some of that classic Blink-182 punk that we all know and love, but “Hungover You” has none.

Every song details some aspect of bassist and vocalist Matt Hoppus’s journey through depression. And it’s those lyrics that really make it a Blink-182 album.

“On Some Emo Shit” is reminiscent of “Violence” or

An alarm rings, marking the hour at 9 a.m. A shower turns on.

A red-haired model rids herself of any moisturizer and makeup. She ices her face. A little past noon, she breathes in the warm, summer air, and makes her way across Kansas City to Union Station.

There, she meets her designer for the day. It’s an instant friendship — like two familiar souls destined to meet. After six hours of going over the game plan and sitting in the hair and makeup chair, the doors open to the public.

It is now 6 p.m. She breathes in deeply, trying to calm her nerves.

Sometime after 7 p.m., the anxiety transforms into excitement. Her heart beats loudly as she steps out into the lights of the runway — it’s a dream come true.

This was Jenna Hainke’s daily routine during Kansas City Fashion Week, which took place from Sunday, Sept. 15 through last Saturday, Sept. Hainke, a Wichita State junior studying English literature and creative writing, walked the runway for three nights out of the four. She said it was everything she had ever dreamed of.

“It was literally insane in the best way possible. It was the most amazing week of my life,” Hainke said. “I met 1,000 people and I made some connections with some designers. It was amazing. I would do it everyday if I could.”

Hainke modeled for Sarah Wilson Knitwear, Kyndra Jade’s “My Blonde Ambitions,” and Project Runway contestant Joshua Christensen.

MUSIC CRITIC

“Here’s Your Letter,” with the same melancholy that makes you want to play it after a bad breakup. It’s probably one of the better songs on an album that can be summed up as blah.

Blink-182 tried to do something different this album. Taking their late 90s pop punk and reworking it for a 2019 audience made the album a lackluster pop alternative.

They call this out in the song “Generational Divide,” asking the question, “Are we better now?”

The answer is that you were better when you were 23.

It’s hard not to look at “NINE” without looking at all of Blink-182’s discography. But their previous hits that defined them make this album their weakest to date.

Without DeLonge, Blink-182 is just a new rendition of +44.

It’s not horrible, but I prefer their older stuff.

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When I started modeling, that’s when I finally felt that passion for the first time.” ­— Jenna Hainke

“The culture of my high school was really like, ‘You play sports or you don’t really matter,’” Hainke said. “I would want to play all the sports so bad, because I just wanted to have that passion and I wanted to fit in. I would force myself to play sports that I hated.”

A few years later, at the age of 15, Hainke was approached by a talent scout who worked for a local modeling agency, Models and Images. After a 20-week training period, Hainke had finally found her passion.

“I literally fell in love with it, in just an instant,” she said. “When I started modeling, that’s when I finally felt that passion for the first time.”

With unrealistic beauty standards posted across city billboards and scandals of publications using photoshop to whitewash and slim down women in order to sell their content, models have had to face their own handful of stereotypes.

“The biggest misconception that I wish people would understand is that modeling — and it’s so hard for

people to believe — but very little of modeling is based on how you look,” Hainke said. “So much of it is the talent; so much of it is performing. You can put the prettiest girl on the runway, but if she can’t perform, then she’s not going to get any work. she’s not going to get any contracts.”

With some inspiration from her agent, Hainke said she’s grown to firmly believe that anyone can become a model, just as long as they have the drive to learn how to properly work the runway and move in front of the camera. She also admits that the beauty industry has caused damage to its followers, but that society has helped it grow from its mistakes.

“I do think there was a stigma in the past — not in the fault of everyone, but there was a culture that idolized unrealistic standards,” Hainke said. “I think that is a reason why that kind of stereotype exists, but I think now, it has changed so much. If you go to an agency, 90% of the time, they’re going to have a curve model development or a petite model development, which is also something really hard to be in, and I don’t think a lot of people realize that either.”

Regardless of if people understand her passion, Hainke continues to do what she loves with her head held high.

“I would love to do it as much as I can for as long as I can,” Hainke said of modeling. “So, if that means it’ll just be a hobby or a side thing for the rest of my life, then I’m okay with that. But if it means that it can be a fulltime career one day, then that’s awesome too. I’m just grateful for every moment of it that I get.”

Associate VP for special programs honored by The Kansas African American Museum

BY ELLA DOMINGUEZ

BROGAN GILMORE

Before modeling entered her life, Hainke said she tried to play sports in order to “fit in.” As a child, she even tried acting and creative performances.

The Kansas African American Museum (TKAAM) has named Deltha Colvin, Wichita State associate vice president for special programs in the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement, as a 2019 Trailblazer Honoree.

“Our 2019 Trailblazer Honorees symbolize the vast and significant contributions in our community made by African Americans,” said TKAAM Executive Director Denise Sherman in a news release. “Each one serves as an inspiration for others to forge their own paths and to strive for excellence.”

According to TKAAM, “a Trailblazer is a leader, a pacesetter, a pioneer, and each year TKAAM has honorary categories for individuals who have made a significant impact

in their respective arena.”

Colvin has been honored as the 2019 Education Trailblazer.

“My lifetime of work has been about assisting the work and development of persons of color, limited income, first-generation, and persons with disabilities,” Colvin told The Sunflower in an email. “To know that there are those who care about what you are doing is significant. The support and the need of students and their families drive my desire for continued success and services to a variety of student populations.”

Colvin started her educational career as a tutor counselor in the Upward Bound program while in college. She soon became the director, and through her work and dedication, has helped thousands of students graduate from high school and obtain a college degree. She

still serves as WSU’s Upward Bound director.

“I have always felt the need to help others,” Colvin said.

As the special programs associate vice president, Colvin monitors the TRIO programs and writes grants to get services for students who may need the help.

“To this end, I am proud of the staff who are important role models serving limited income, first-generation students, students with disabilities, and students in foster care,” Colvin said. “Wichita State University has more TRIO (10) and GEAR UP (6) programs than any postsecondary institution in the country.”

The TKAAM Hall of Fame induction ceremony will recognize Colvin, and other community leaders, at a ceremony at 6 p.m. on Oct. 5. at the Hyatt Regency.

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Opinion

HAVE AN OPINION? contact The Sunflower’s opinion editor, Kevin Benavides opinion@thesunflower.com

As Kavanaugh allegations resurface, political tension continues to rise Judicial confirmation, the process of the Senate approving appointment members to judge positions, are a key point of importance within President Donald Trump’s administration. So it comes as no surprise that Trump’s second Supreme Court nomination was just as controversial as his presidency.

After an FBI investigation into sexual assault allegations by fellow Yale alumni Christine Ford and Deborah Ramirez, calls for Brett Kavanaugh’s appointment to be overturned, and a tense Senate confirmation hearing that included testimony from both Ford and the appointee himself, Kavanaugh was confirmed to the Supreme Court last October. Since then, another allegation against Kavanaugh has resurfaced, as well as further details of the past investigation.

This allegation, however, is not new. Rather, it is a further exploration of an account of Ramirez’ original claim against Kavanaugh.

Unlike Ford, since Ramirez did not testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee, those set to confirm Kavanaugh took little from her allegation.

MADELINE SPURLOCK COLUMNIST

Ramierz alleges that Kavanaugh put his genitals in her face at a college party during their first year at Yale. Maintaining his position in regard to fake news, President Trump responded to the release of the allegation through a tweet, assuming that the media, in all forms, is attempting to pressure Kavanaugh into more left-leaning decisions to prevent his impeachment.

This, however, further shows the lack of regard the current president feels towards women, as Kavanaugh has now been accused by two women of sexual assault, and another recent release shows the FBI’s lack of investigation into the original claim.

Since Kavanaugh’s confirmation,

reports detailed by CNN, The New York Times, and other prominent news outlets show a glaring lack of investigation conducted by the FBI around the allegations made by Ford and Ramirez. Sources within the government explained that they were given a narrow scope of investigation, not even looking into an entire third allegation, or interviewing Ford or Kavanaugh himself — or Kavanaugh’s other male peers from his time at Yale.

This minimal investigation is assumed to be fueled by the Republicans’ strict definition of a “credible allegation,” as well as the Senate’s willingness — or unwillingness — to review the 45-page FBI report. Despite the reason behind the narrow scope, the FBI investigation proved to be inefficient and more harmful than good, making sexual assault survivors like Ford and Ramirez feel unbeleived and exposing them to national criticism.

But how are the potential Democratic candidates taking the release of further information surrounding the second allegation?

Several key candidates, including Sen. Kamala Harris, a member of

the Senate Judiciary Committee that oversaw Kavanaugh’s original confirmation hearing, are calling for immediate impeachment or removal from the bench.

Other candidates backing this opinion include Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, as well as Julian Castro. However, former Vice President Joe Biden called for a further, and proper, investigation by the FBI to be done before proceeding with impeachment practices.

Politics in recent years are becoming more polarized by the minute, and the labels of “Republican” and “Democrat” continue to blind constituents to the truth of the extreme sides of the left and right.

There should not be a seated member of the United States Supreme Court, the highest court in the nation and one expected to uphold the highest of American standards and ideals, with two credible allegations of sexual assault and wittness testimony to verify his past actions, no matter the party.

Impeaching Justice Kavanaugh is not a political issue’ it is a sexual assault issue.

EASTON THOMPSON/THE SUNFLOWER

Students and faculty at the Office of Diversity and Inclusion work to bring inclusivity to campus. Their office is located on the second floor of the Rhatigan Student Center.

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion must operate on a low budget, and that sucks Wichita State is considered the most diverse school in the state of Kansas. For many minority students, RSC 208 is where they can be found on campus in their free time.

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion is considered “your home away from home,” according to the WSU website. For many of these minority students, it feels like just that.

The office operates on an overall budget of about $253,000. After total staff salaries and benefits, that leaves only about $79,000 a year for supplies, office materials, furniture, and programming, ODI Director Alicia Sanchez told The Sunflower.

The office has not seen a budget increase in the last six years.

To me, this budget does not seem

EDUARDO CASTILLO MULTIMEDIA EDITOR

fit for all the programming that the office does throughout the year.

The office was able to add a LGBTQ coordinator position funded through student fees, but they did not receive additional funds to program that new position. This makes no sense. In order to program all these new positions, the office needs more funding.

Additional office expenses include paper, ink, and food for events.

If you walk into the ODI office at any time, you will find an abundance of minority students and Greeks life affiliates. It attracts students of color from all around the campus.

The space is filled with conversation, laughter, and good times. The office recently expanded in order to better accommodate the large crowd it attracts.

This is practically nothing considering that the K-state Diversity and Multicultural Student Affairs office is housed inside an entire building.

If WSU is the most diverse school in the state, why is the ODI being housed in such as small

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Corrections: The Sunflower is committed to accuracy in its publications. If you find an error in a story, email editor@thesunflower.com

AILEEN RUEDA-DACOSTA COLUMNIST

Since it’s Hispanic Heritage Month, I wanted to write a quick memo to my peers on the difference between the terms “Latinx” and “Hispanic,” and when to use them.

There has been much confusion from all sides about the term “Latinx” and how it differs from terms that people have been accustomed to for so long.

In fact, some who fall in this category are still not sure what their race or ethnicity is when it comes to official forms. Youtuber Kat Lazo touched on this when she spoke at WSU last week.

“We may not be a race, but we are racialized,” Lazo said.

Because of this, colorism is prevalent in Latinx countries and communities. This, along with other factors, contributes to the lack of acknowledgement of privilege — factors such as classism, ableism, or education. The United States Census even had to change their forms to clarify what the differences actually mean. For starters, the terms have widely been used interchangeably, but they are not equal.

To keep it short and sweet, Latinx is based on origin or ancestry to Latin America, and Hispanic is based on Spanishspeaking origin or ancestry Latinx is essentially no different from the term “Latino” that has been used previously, but it removes the gendered expression at the end of the word.

For example, unlike Hispanic, Latinx would include Brazilians but excludes Spaniards. And to further explain, ‘Spanish’ is used to describe someone who comes from Spain. It is a nationality as well as a language. So, it is not used to describe most Latinx and Hispanic people. Because so much of Latin America was colonized by Spain, many don’t want to use terms that identify them as belonging to Spain.

G. Christina Mora, a professor at UC Berkeley, broke it down into even simpler jargon. To be Hispanic is to have a sense of community through a connection to Spain. To be Latinx is to have a sense of community through a history of colonization from Spain. And since you can’t actually tell if a person is Latinx or Hispanic just by looking at them, the best solution is to always ask and to make sure you use the label someone is most comfortable with.

Also, Mexican is not a derogatory term, but make sure a person is actually from Mexico before referring to them as such. Just as not every person from Asia is Chinese, not every person that who Latinx or Hispanic is Mexican.

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Opinion Letters should concentrate on issues, not personalities, and must be fewer than 350 words. Letters may be edited for accuracy, clarity and length. Please include your name, WSU affiliation and a phone number for verification purposes. To submit letters, email opinion@thesunflower.com or submit at www.thesunflower.com.

space? Why has it not seen a budget increase? How can Wichita State pride itself on being the most diverse campus when it does little to fund diversity programs?

To me, it seems that the office is lacking adequate funding and stretching its resources thin.

Resources will only get thinner if the office chooses to expand its programming, as it almost always wants to do for the good of the students. The problem? They are told that there is not enough money to go around.

WSU should pay more attention to the office that helps to retain the diverse groups of students the university claims to be so proud to represent.

The difference between Latinx and Hispanic, and when to use each

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Sports

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’TIS THE SEASON

EASTON THOMPSON/THE SUNFLOWER

Wichita State Head Coach Gregg Marshall addresses the media ahead of the Shockers’ first offical practice of the season on Tuesday in the Charles Koch Arena Concourse. It was Marshall’s first public media appearance of the season.

Shockers offically start practice for the 2019-2020 basketball season

BY MARSHALL SUNNER

Wichita State Head Coach Gregg Marshall made his first official media appearance Tuesday ahead of the Shockers’ first practice of the season.

The Shockers’ lead shot-caller addressed a multitude of topics ranging from the team’s incoming freshmen, offensive capabilities, leadership, and more.

Here are three takeaways from Marshall’s time with the media: INJURIES

Last season, the Shockers dealt with their fair share of injuries throughout the year. So far this preseason, Marshall has said Jaime Echenique, Asbjorn Midtgaard, Tyson Etinnee, and Noah Fernandez have all suffered ankle injuries.

“We’ve had some foot injuries throughout the course of the summer,” Marshall said.

“Everyone should be good to go now.”

Fernandez, a freshman, was seen in a walking boot for precaution on campus Monday. He did participate in Tuesday’s opening practice.

Morris Udeze suffered a torn labrum in his shoulder that halted his season after just 16 games last year. He was unable to apply for a medical redshirt because of the number of game appearances he had already made. Marshall said Udeze is “fine” for the upcoming season.

DEFENSIVE ADJUSTMENTS

Last year, Marshall said he saw multiple freshmen give up easy baskets in defensive transition by drifting towards the ball, rather than the basket. From summer workouts, Marshall said he’s already seen his team make better decisions on the defensive end.

“I told them to think of it like soccer,” Marshall said. “How many times do you see the goalie come out to the midfield and try to do something? No. He stays back as the last line of defense.

“There’s many times last year we weren’t staying back, and it’s changing.”

POSSIBLE REDSHIRTS

Marshall admitted that one of the team’s big-men will likely have to redshirt for this upcoming season.

This year’s roster features seven big-men — forwards or centers.

“We will probably look to redshirt someone at that position.”

Last season, Echenique and Midtgaard saw significant time at the center position. Udeze played more minutes than Isaiah Poor Bear-Chandler before his injury sidelined him for the rest of the season. Three newcomers will also be on the roster — freshmen DeAntoni Gordon and Josaphat Bilau and junior college transfer Trey Wade.

Marshall said during the press conference that Wade “could replace” a lot of Markis McDuffie’s minutes from a season ago.

BY SEAN MARTY

Wichita State officially started practice for men’s basketball Tuesday.

A common theme the past two seasons for the Shockers has been the number of new faces within the program. The Shockers welcome six newcomers to this year’s team, down from 10 last year.

So far, Head Coach Gregg Marshall said he’s been impressed with the group as a whole.

“Maybe we’ve taught it slower, a little more thoroughly, but this group has picked things up well,” Marshall said. “Hopefully, with adding their talent and understanding of what we’re doing, we won’t see as much of a slow start as last year. Last year was the youngest team I’ve ever had, and one of the youngest in the country. This year’s group isn’t nearly as young, but still young.

“We’re talking 10 of our 13 players are freshmen or sophomores.”

One of the major rule changes in the NCAA last year was the increase of practice time from two to four hours during the offseason.

“Having only five or six new guys is amazing compared to nine to 10 newcomers last year. Being able to do the four hours was beneficial,” Marshall said. “You might not have seen it in the beginning of the year, but hopefully, by the end of the season, you saw some improvement.

“That doesn’t happen unless you

get to practice a couple of hours in June or July. We’re able to do that again this year.”

Marshall said he feels the team is in a much better position than it was a year ago.

In previous years, the program would have to go “full-on” around the middle of October, since that was the earliest teams could work with their players.

“We’re ahead because of all the work we’ve been able to do this summer,” Marshall said. “We’ve got 70% of our system in, and it’s Sept.

24. Now it’s a matter of backing off a little bit.”

Marshall said he wants to make sure he’s not overworking his players.

One of the major question marks facing this year’s team is who will replace the scoring prowess of Markis McDuffie and Samajae Haynes-Jones, who accounted for 42% of the team’s scoring a season ago.

So far, Marshall said he can count on many different players on the roster to produce consistently.

“I don’t know who it will be at this point, but I do know that we have a lot of guys that can score the basketball,” he said.

The first time fans will be able to see this year’s Shocker team will be on Oct. 5 in the team’s annual Black and Yellow Scrimmage.

The event is set to begin at 11 a.m. at Charles Koch Arena.

Wichita State to host NCAA recruiting academy

BY MARSHALL SUNNER

Wichita State was selected last week to be one of four hosts for the second annual running of the NCAA Basketball Academies.

The academies are designed to give prospective college athletes a glimpse into the student-athlete experience, while also allowing other collegiate coaches from across the country to scout and evaluate players from the high school classes of 2021, 2022, and 2023.

Participants in the academy will go through drills and participate in various scrimmages conducted by coaches from all three NCAA divisional levels. These coaches will

be determined at a later date.

On top of the playing, players and their parents will also be coached in life skills that are designed to get the participant ready for the life of being a college recruit, academic eligibility, and life on a college campus.

The event will take place from July 20-26, 2020. WSU will be joined by the University of Connecticut, the University of Utah, and Winthrop University in hosting the academies.

Athletes wanting to participate in the academy are required to already be registered with the NCAA Eligibility Center before signing up. The NCAA will pay travel expenses for the athlete and one legal guardian.

FILE PHOTO: JOSEPH BARRINGHAUS/THE SUNFLOWER

Charles Koch Arena is covered in snow before a weekend basketball game last season. This summer, Koch Arena is one of four host sites for the second annual NCAA Basketball Academies.

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Derrico adjusts to new role with softball program

BY SEAN MARTY

EASTON THOMPSON/THE SUNFLOWER

Wichita State Head Coach Kristi Bredbenner speaks with her team during the Shockers’ home fall ball opener against Southern Nazerene last Saturday at Wilkins Stadium. The Shockers won the game 18-3.

Bredbenner hopeful for success in upcoming spring season

BY MARSHALL SUNNER

Last year, the Wichita State softball team saw an abrupt ending to their season. The team was slated for a semifinal matchup with No. 1-seeded South Florida Bulls, who won the American Athletic Conference regular season title.

In the previous week leading up to the conference tournament, the Shockers beat the Bulls in two of three games to end the regular season.

But they wouldn’t even get their chance to knock out the champions in the tournament.

The semifinals were cancelled due to weather, and WSU’s hope of making the NCAA Tournament was crushed.

“I thought we had a really good chance at making a run for the NCAA Tournament,” Head Coach Kristi Bredbenner said. “I felt like when it (the conference tournament) ended, we were playing our best softball of the year.

“We can’t put all of our eggs in one basket in winning a

tournament — we are better off working for an at-large the entire year, and that’s what we have got to try to do this year.”

Bredbenner said she doesn’t believe the team’s urgency this season will come from that outcome a season ago, but does see it as a quality learning point moving forward. The team struggled to stay healthy throughout the course of the season, and she saw that when the team was healthy, they could be dangerous.

“We needed to put it all together in March, and it happened in April,” Bredbenner said. “When you get to a situation like that, you’re taking yourself out of an opportunity for an at-large bid to the tournament. It’s a lesson.”

She also said the team needs to stay more disciplined throughout the entire season — not in “spurts.”

Last season aside, Bredbenner said she’s hopeful for the spring season. Over the summer, the team brought in a new pitching coach. Pitching is an area the team struggled in last year. Morgan

Lashley joined the staff after being a graduate-assistant for nationally ranked Alabama a year ago.

Bredbenner said she’s hopeful that Lashley will bring a new aura to the pitching staff this season. “[Lashley] is bringing a whole new philosophy than we have had the last four years,” Bredbenner said. “It’s a much more structured, much more fundamentally based philosophy where we are going to start from a beginning spot and progress, but we can’t get better if we don’t have a good foundation.

“The pitchers are learning a lot, and growing. That’s what they were craving these last few years. When it comes to March, April, you’ll see a much more productive, deep pitching staff that’s focused.”

WSU got their first action of the year Saturday against Southern Nazarene, which kicked off. The Shockers’ eight-game fall season.

Bredbenner said she was “just excited to see the first game.”

“I liked seeing everything,” Bredbenner said. “Game management, our hustle, our

nervousness, experience, making mistakes and overcoming them — I felt like we have a lot of things to work on, but it was an opportunity for the kids to show me what we need to work on.”

Bredbenner said she has high expectations for her team. She said that if the team can stay healthy, then they’ll compete at the top of the AAC and should earn an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament.

“We’ve got a very difficult schedule,” Bredbenner said. “But with our players, I’m comfortable playing a tough schedule. If we can win the games we are supposed to win, which got away from us last year, and pick up some wins in games we weren’t supposed to win, then I think we’ve got a shot.

“If we stay healthy, I think we can be great.”

WSU continues their fall ball season Saturday against Central Oklahoma at Wilkins Stadium. The game is scheduled to start at 1 p.m.

Taflinger, Wichita State carry confidence even during 6-match losing streak

BY MARSHALL SUNNER

Megan Taflinger tries to keep the frustrations out of her head.

For the past three weeks, Taflinger and the Shockers have faced one of the nation’s toughest volleyball schedules, including matchups with three top-five ranked teams and five total ranked teams.

Taflinger acknowledged the difficulty in going up against these teams’ caliber and size. She admitted it can be frustrating because they’re bigger, faster, and stronger. It’s not easy to lose six matches in a row.

“For me personally, it is hard for me to lose that many games in a row and still be okay with yourself,” Taflinger said. “It’s difficult because I am giving it my all and still failing. It’s a challenge for me mentally and physically.

“For the team though, I really hope we stick together and pull it out and understand that who we were playing were really elite teams. The mentality was that if it was a win, then great, but if we lost, then we learned from it.”

The redshirt sophomore said she’s focused on learning from the adversity rather than just dwelling on the losses. She’s had to learn to be “okay” with getting blocked while on the offensive side of the ball sometimes, she said.

“The biggest thing that I learned from those matches was that there was some really giant blocks out

there,” Taflinger said. “It’s the hardest thing to be a little undersized and have to go up against girls who are really physical and really talented.

It’s difficult because I am giving it my all and still failing.” ­— Megan Taflinger, sophomore

“I learned to be okay with going up and just trying my best, and if I get stuffed, then that’s what it’s going to be.”

As for the team’s learning experiences, she said she hopes they’ve learned how to compete.

“I hope we learned that competing is a virtue — if you can’t compete, then why are you playing the sport?” Taflinger said.

The Shockers knew going into non-conference play that they might emerge with a sub-.500 record. But Taflinger said the team had realistic expectations, and she hopes that helps them in the long run.

Taflinger said the players in the locker room understand that the conference season to come is most important.

“We are still competing,” Taflinger said. “If we do well in non-con, and the conference tournament, then we still have a chance at making the NCAA

Tournament.”

Another item the Shockers have been struggling with so far this season is putting a consistent lineup on the court. Senior libero Kara Bown made her return to the lineup last weekend in Nebraska after being benched in the Shockers’ home tournament the weekend before. The setter position is still getting reps from three different players.

But Taflinger sees a positive out of the interchanging lineups, and even credits the underclassmen for making the team better in the long run.

“As an older person, watching a younger person from the bench

makes the team better in general,” Taflinger said. “If your younger players are pushing your older players to play better, then we are going to receive that challenge and work harder to be out there.”

The Shockers open up conference play on Friday when they travel to Tulsa. One thing Taflinger said the team can leverage is their youth.

“It’ll be interesting to see how they adjust to our younger players and attackers,” Taflinger said.

“They haven’t seen a lot of us play — just Emma (Wright) and I. “We just have to do what we do — compete hard and see if we can pull a win out of it.”

KHANH NGUYEN/THE SUNFLOWER

WSU sophomore Megan Taflinger goes up for a kill during the team’s game against Wyoming last Friday.

After a successful playing career at Wichita State, where she tied the school home-run record, Laurie Derrico is shifting her role to the director of operations with the WSU softball team post-graduation.

“I’ve been getting the spring season ready, so any flights we have to book, any buses that we need all season long, hotels, things like that,” Derrico said. “I’m also in charge of making sure the girls have all the apparel they need for practice and for games.”

Derrico also organizes recruiting visits for prospective Shockers.

This year, there are supposed to be around 15 recruits who will visit with the team. That puts some extra jobs on Derrico’s to-do list.

“We have recruits coming in a lot, so I help with organizing their weekend here — making sure that they have something fun to do, making sure they have time to meet with Coach Bredbenner, where they can try on uniforms and things like that,” she said.

So far, Derrico said she feels like her transition from student-athlete to director of operations has been a successful one. Sticking with the program has made the transition easier.

“I knew I was going to miss softball a lot, cause it’s been my life forever, but being able to still be a part of it — especially with this program and the people I’ve played with — is still awesome to see them getting better and seeing the team getting better,” Derrico said. “I still miss it, but it’s nice to still be a part of it.”

Although Derrico said she isn’t 100% sure what she wants to do in the future, she could see herself in a coaching position at some level.

“I think my plan was to be a college coach. I don’t know exactly if that’s what I want to do anymore,” Derrico said. “I might stick to a more high school role — try to be a high school coach, teacher, and then work my way up to an administrative role. I’m not positive.

Everything’s unknown right now.”

Shockers travel to take on Tulsa

BY MARSHALL SUNNER

The Wichita State volleyball team travels to Tulsa Friday to kick off American Athletic Conference play against the Golden Hurricane.

The Shockers are currently riding a six-match losing streak that dates back to early September. In the past three weeks, the team has won just two out of their 20 sets of play.

The Golden Hurricane come into Friday’s match with a 7-6 overall record. Their most notable wins have come against LA Tech, Oral Roberts, and UMKC. Statistically, Tulsa is led offensively by Dilara Gedikoglu, who has tallied a team-high 188 kills through 13 matches of play. She’s averaging 3.84 kills per set while hitting .208.

Right behind Gedikoglu is Callie Cook, who has 102 kills and a teamhigh .389 hitting percentage.

The Golden Hurricane’s defense is paced by Cook, who also has a team-high 54 blocks this season, including seven solo blocks. In the back row, libero Taylor Horsfall leads the team with 246 digs.

Gedikoglu adds 123 digs to the team’s total.

As a whole, Tulsa is being outhit on the season 631-615. They’re hitting under .200 and have already recorded 263 attacking errors. The Golden Hurricane’s strong suit comes on the defensive side of the net, as they have 111 total blocks this season.

Friday’s match is slated to start at 7 p.m. inside the Donald W. Reynolds Center in Tulsa. It will not be video broadcasted, but can be listened to on the GoShockers website.