The Sunflower v. 123 i. 55

MONDAY, APRIL 29, 2019 • VOL. 123, ISS. 55

THESUNFLOWER.COM

WICHITA STATE UNIVERSITY’S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1896.

WSU will cut, reallocate $1.5 million in university funds to pay for business building • $300,000 from the Barton School of Business • $675,000 from areas within the Division of Academic Affairs — this includes all of the other colleges • $200,000 from the Office of Research & Technology Transfer • $275,000 from “other divisions” — Muma said the “other divisions” that will receive cuts have not yet been decided • $100,000 from Athletics

BY ANDREW LINNABARY

Wichita State plans to cut and reallocate $1.5 million in funding from a variety of areas on campus to cover the cost of a new business building, Provost Rick Muma said Friday.

The cuts and reallocations to fund the $50 million building — $30 million of which was raised through donations before a plan to pay the remainder was finalized — are tentatively:

and cuts will be hard, as they will be permanent, since the bond payment will run at least 25 years,” Muma said in a press release announcing the cuts.

“Many departments and individuals will feel these cuts, but this is the direction we need to take, based on the outcome of the referendum and the university’s need to continue to evolve and grow.”

SEE BUSINESS PAGE 2

“We know these reallocations

COURTESY OF WICHITA STATE

Wichita oilman Wayne Woolsey and his wife, Kay, put a lead gift of $10 million towards the new business building, which will be named after them.

bearing the brunt Private donations almost completely funded KU and K-State’s new business buildings

60%

91%

85%

private donations

private donations

private donations

15% UNIVERSITY FUNDS = $70.5 MILLION BUILDING

40% UNIVERSITY FUNDS = $50 MILLION BUILDING

9% UNIVERSITY FUNDS = $60 MILLION BUILDING

Wichita State plans to pay for 40% of $50 million Woolsey Hall

BY MATTHEW KELLY

W

ichita State is moving forward with a plan to reallocate university funds to bond money for a $50 million business building on Innovation Campus.

Private donations will fund 60% of construction costs, but the university is shouldering more of the financial burden than Kansas State and the University of Kansas did for their

recently opened business buildings.

KU and K-State both opened new business facilities in 2016.

Private donations accounted for $60.5 million — over 85% — of KU’s $70.5 million Capitol Federal Hall. Likewise, donors paid for 91%, $55 million, of K-State’s $60 million College of Business Administration building.

The WSU Foundation has already raised $30 million for the new building, Woolsey Hall, which

Provost Rick Muma has said is “about as much as we can raise for the project.” Donors were promised that the rest of the money would come from “university funds,” Foundation President Elizabeth King told The Sunflower.

“It’d be problematic to go back to donors and say, ‘No one wants a business building here. We’re giving your money back,’” Muma said in January.

In March, students narrowly voted

Q&A with the new student body president, VP

BY AUDREY KORTE

Kitrina Miller was sworn in as student body president of the 62nd Session of Student Government Association Thursday. She and her running mate Michael Bearth won the election against three opposing campaigns earlier this month.

Together We Can, Miller and Bearth’s ticket, beat Isaac Rivera and Anisia Brumley’s Perpetual ticket by just 26 votes.

Bearth said he was confident he and Miller would prevail.

“I knew it would happen. It was going to be close, but I never had a doubt we’d take it,” he said.

MEET STUDENT BODY PRESIDENT KITRINA MILLER HOMETOWN

St. George, Kansas.

SIBLINGS

One younger sister.

IN HIGH SCHOOL, SHE WAS

down a referendum that would have raised student fees by $6 a credit hour to fund the remaining $20 million of the business building and other campus facilities upgrades.

University administrators maintained that Woolsey Hall would be built, regardless of the referendum outcome. WSU plans to break ground on the 136,000-square-foot facility later this year.

SEE PRIVATE PAGE 2

Separate Friday events touch on two pressing, difficult topics

BY AUDREY KORTE

KHÁNH NGUYỄN/THE SUNFLOWER

Kitrina Miller and Michael Bearth are sworn in as student body president and VP.

In the marching band. Senior year, she was the assistant drum major and worked on the school yearbook and newspaper.

something that interests me, teen pregnancy, stuff like that. I just want to help women.”

MAJOR

Miller’s experience with SGA is limited to her work in the student advocate office. It almost kept her from running.

Social Work — Miller says she is passionate about women’s issues and hopes to build a career around that.

“Domestic violence is

EXPERIENCE

SEE Q&A PAGE 4

In Wichita, Take Back The Night took a stand against sexual violence. In Topeka, the Kansas Supreme Court took a stand against banning abortion. Though the two events weren’t related, both speak to some of the most pressing, and difficult issues that women face.

Here’s what happened.

Take Back the Night (TBTN) came to Wichita Friday, bringing hundreds of people out to a downtown rally in public protest against sexual violence.

After audio problems delayed the start, two survivors gave powerful speeches about their experiences with sexual assault and how it’s impacted them and their family’s.

Using first names only, Jo-Jo told the crowd the questions people asked her after learning she’d been raped — “What were you

wearing?” “How long did you know the man and how well?” and “Were you drinking?” were common.

She said the most helpful question she was ever asked was, ‘What can I do to help?’ but few people asked her that, she said.

Surrounding the speakers were information tables from local organizations specializing in domestic violence, shelters, counseling, the courts, law enforcement, and medical care.

After another speaker, the march kicked off around 8:30 p.m.

The boisterous crowd followed a police escort about three quarters of a mile around the rally point.

The evening ended with a survivors’ circle for sharing personal stories of trauma.

TBTN is known as the earliest global stand against sexual violence, starting in the 1970s.

SEE FRIDAY PAGE 3

INSIDE

HOME RUN QUEEN

EMPTY SEATS

ROOKIE SUCCESS

Outgoing SGA President Shelby Rowell shares her parting words.

Softball senior Laurie Derrico tied the WSU career home run record with her 39th.

Eck Stadium reported and actual game attendance tell two different stories.

Former Shocker Landry Shamet’s NBA rookie season shattered expectations.

OPINION • PAGE 4

SPORTS/CULTURE • PAGE 5

SPORTS • PAGE 6

SPORTS • PAGE 6

ROWELL’S FAREWELL

NEWS

2 | MONDAY, APRIL 19, 2019

www.thesunflower.com

THE STAFF EDITORIAL

Editor in Chief Matthew Kelly Editor in Chief Elect Kylie Cameron Digital Managing Editor Andrew Linnabary Visual Managing Editor Madeline Deabler Culture Editor John Darr Opinion Editor Austin May Sports Editor Evan Pflugradt Photo Editor Selena Favela Sports Photo Editor Joseph Barringhaus

Man promoting Bible chat SUNFLOWER ARCHIVES — APRIL 2, 1986 threatens, follows students Turtles bog down

BY ANDREW LINNABARY

A man who had “some disagreements about the Bible” threatened and followed two students in the parking lot outside Wilkins softball stadium last Monday, campus police said.

The man was approaching students and asking them to join a Bible chat, Police Chief Rodney Clark said Thursday. The man — described by the students as medium-build, five-foot-seven, black, short-haired, and named Mario — started making threats after the students disagreed with his views.

He then “got real close” to one of the students and said, “I’m going to punch you in the face,” Clark said.

The students started to walk away when the threats began, but the man kept following them and continued to threaten them, Clark said.

“He said, ‘Whatever this means, you have one more chance.

Apostle Paul killed Christians.’”

Clark said the man then took the threats even further: “‘I’ve learned what the penalty for manslaughter can be, and it would be limited to eight years.’”

The man eventually stopped following the students, Clark said.

He never did anything physical to the students, Clark said.

The man isn’t affiliated with Wichita State, and never said if he was with a specific church, Clark said. The incident is still under investigation.

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KHÁNH NGUYỄN/THE SUNFLOWER

A worker installs carpet in The Suites, a 230-bed private residence hall that will open this fall on Innovation Campus.

WSU’s newest residence hall now offering tours

BY GLADIS PALENCIA

Housing and Residence Life is offering an early look at Wichita State’s newest residence hall, The Suites, with tours available now through the end of semester.

The Suites is a 230-bed private residence hall adjacent to The Flats apartments on Innovation Campus.

The building primarily features two-bedroom units, with some single-bedroom and four-bedroom units. Each room includes a private bathroom, a kitchenette area, a washer and dryer, and a living room.

Rooms at The Suites range from $3,415-$4,550 a semester.

Marketing and Outreach Coordinator Katie Austin said the new residence hall is a middle ground between a traditional residence hall and a full apartment.

The Suites has more amenities than Shocker Hall, but not as many as The Flats, Austin said.

Both The Flats and The Suites are owned by The Flats of Kansas, a company that Regent David Murfin has 25% ownership of.

Prominent businessmen Nestor Weigand, Steve Barrett, and Ivan Crossland own the other three

PRIVATE

FROM PAGE 1 WSU’s current business building, Clinton Hall, is 40,000 square feet.

K-State and KU’s new facilities are 160,143 and 165,000 square feet, respectively.

WSU’s Office of Planning and Analysis lists five peer institutions and five aspirational institutions from around the country. One of WSU’s peer institutions, the University of Massachusetts Lowell, opened a $40 million, 52,000-square-foot business building in 2017.

The Massachusetts state legislature provided $25 million for the project, and private donors raised $12 million. That left just $3 million for the university to come

BUSINESS

FROM PAGE 1 In an interview Friday morning, Muma said the target amounts to cut in each division aren’t yet finalized, so he was unable to provide specifics when asked.

The reallocations are “all over the board” and are being made in a way to minimize “disruption” around campus, Muma said.

He said a breakdown of specific cuts will be provided “once we get it all settled and work with the offices.”

Some areas on campus have larger revenue streams than others, so they’re figuring out what each individual area can contribute, Muma said.

quarters of the company.

WSU closed another residence hall, Fairmount Towers, in 2017, when The Flats was below 20% occupancy. Students who signed up to live at Fairmount Towers were moved into The Flats and Shocker Hall. That led to Shocker Hall being put over capacity, and rooms were doubled and tripled beyond their normal occupancy.

WSU hopes the issue of doubled and tripled rooms will be fixed by the opening of The Suites, Austin said.

The three residences create a stair-step path for residents, she said. Shocker Hall will be just for freshmen. The Suites will be for returning students and freshmen.

The Flats will be solely for returning students.

The Suites opens in the fall semester.

“We encourage students to take a tour so they can see the space for themselves and really get a good idea of what living in The Suites would be like,” Austin said.

Tours of The Suites start and end at the front desk of The Flats.

Visitors must wear close-toed shoes and email Austin to schedule a tour.

up with — decidedly less than the $20 million WSU promised donors would come from university funds.

WSU administrators have stressed that the state of Kansas will not give universities any money for academic buildings.

Another of WSU’s peer institutions, the University of North Dakota, plans to build a $70 million, 115,000-square-foot business and public administration building.

UND plans to raise $50 million in private donations if the state provides the remaining $20 million.

One of WSU’s aspirational institutions, Oklahoma State, opened a $72 million, 147,450-square-foot business building in 2018. Another, Clemson, is in the process of constructing a $87 million, 170,000-square-foot business facility.

“But it’s too soon right now,” Muma said. “[We’re] still working with all the offices to say, ‘This is what we think you can contribute, now let’s have a conversation.’

“We respect the vote,” Muma said, in reference to a failed referendum vote on a student fee increase to fund the business building. “The students spoke. We made it really clear — here’s our options, and it’s going to happen, so this is how we’re going to move forward.

“It’s the only other option we have.”

WSU administrators had previously said that if a campus-wide referendum were to fail, a second, business student-only referendum would be the likely next option.

legislature: Get official miscellany out of the way I don’t expect you civilians to understand this, but there are specific terms used by professional journalists for specific news stories.

A lot of news I’ve been reading in various publications lately is what we in the business like to call “dumb news.” This refers to items so outlandish, silly, or unimportant that when you read them, you have to figure the news editor had a fight with his wife and decided that everyone else should have to suffer.

One of the great dumb news stories of the past few months has been featured often in recent issues of the Wichita Eagle-Beacon.

It seems that there is a teacher somewhere in Caldwell, Kan., who teaches a sixth-grade class. In order to teach the kids how bills pass through legislation and become laws — I swear I’m not making this up — the class has drawn up a bill to have the ornate box turtle declared the state reptile. This was news to me. I thought Bob Stephan had already been declared the state reptile years ago.

A controversy has arisen in Topeka over this class project.

Our legislators, the same people who vote to give university staff employees zip every year, are having trouble deciding what to do with this bill.

Some legislators feels that important legislative matters, like whether or not they should all vote themselves enough money to fly to England and crash Prince Andrew’s wedding, are being overloaded because of the turtle bill. The legislature has enough trouble doing anything, and when it’s confronted with actual work, it gets cranky and does nothing.

Others think the ornate box turtle shouldn’t get through the state senate so darned easy. A group from Hutchinson — again, I’m not even moderately kidding — wanted the catfish named state fish a few years ago.

Representative Mike O’Neal from Hutchinson is concerned about this. “How do you explain that the box turtle won and the catfish lost?,” O’Neal was quoted as saying.

What O’Neal fails to realize is that, since he’s dealing with a sixth-grade class, he should consider himself lucky. The kids could have worked up a resolution to have him impeached and replaced with Major Astro or Simon LeBon. In fact, considering the level of education I’ve experienced in Kansas, I’m surprised that most students even know what a turtle is. I suppose we should count our blessings.

Some of our elected officials

EXHIBIT OPENING: “REIMAGINING ALEPPO THROUGH PEACE AND PAIN: A CITY IN SYRIA’S WAR”

are also critical of the way this project has been handled.

They are afraid with the media attention given this story, the kids will get a warped idea of the way legislature really works. You see, with all the attention, the turtle bill is making it through the legislature easily. This could give the children the mistake assumption that all bills pass smoothly.

I tend to agree with our representatives on that point.

I wouldn’t want my kid to get the impression that the state politicians actually try to get legislation passed that their constituents are interested in. There is no reason to try and sell a child on that kind of nonsense.

Representative Dorothy Flottman of Winfield has other concerns. She is worried that this whole project will open the door to kids all over the state trying to make bills to run through the legislature.

I don’t think she has to worry.

It is pretty obvious to everyone, even children, that our representatives aren’t going to do anything for anyone unless there is a better than a 50/50 chance their participation will get them on the front page of the Eagle-Beacon.

Even the most naïve kid would never mistake our legislators for a bunch of old softies who are going out of their way to help the common folks. The kids who live on farms are pretty clear already of just how little the state cares about its people.

In order to clear all this mess up, I suggest that we now declare an official state everything so we don’t have to be concerned about mobs of school kids trying to understand our system of government. Here is the list: Official State Mammal: Richard LaMunyon.

Official State Drug: Downers.

Official State Toxic Waste Dump: Furley, Kan. Official State Dental Floss: Johnson & Johnson cinnamon flavor.

Official State Pothole: 17th Street from Hillside to Waco.

Official State of Mind: deep depression.

Official State Garment: Sears brand tennis shoes.

Official State Obsession: naked greed.

Official State of Emergency: being anywhere near the city of Wichita when they drop the big one.

Official State Insect: the mosquito.

Official State Sport: bowling for beer.

Official State Excuse: “We would have passed legislation helping the needy, the elderly and the jobless, but we spent most of our time fooling with this box turtle business so we never got around to it.”

LAST DAY FOR TULIP GIVEAWAY Time: All day

Location: Neff Hall, Second Floor

Location: Tulip beds at Morrison Hall, Clinton Hall, and Ablah Library ramp

Cost: Free!

Cost: Free!

Neff Hall will be home to a powerful photo exhibit with images from Aleppo. The opening will be followed by a discussion in 117 Neff Hall. Warning: some of the images are disturbing due to violent content.

Wichita State’s tulip gardens are a bright spot every spring, and your last chance to pick a tulip for your own garden is tomorrow. Blue containers for donations of canned goods will be available onsite if you wish to give back to the community while taking some of the community home with you.

WEDNESDAYS IN WIEDEMANN

HOW CAN I CONTINUE MY RESEARCH AFTER I GRADUATE?

Time: 2 – 5 p.m.

Time: 5:15 – 5:45 p.m.

Location: Wiedemann Hall Cost: Free!

The Wednesdays at the Wiedemann performance series will feature Lynne Davis this week. Stop in for a sweet and brief concert performed on the Marcussen Organ. It’s a great way to get a taste of live music on campus.

Time: 4 – 5 p.m.

Location: Ablah Library, Room 217 Cost: Free!

Research starts at the university but can stretch far beyond its walls.

Come to this event to learn how you can access WSU and State Library of Kansas resources after graduation so you can take your research beyond your degree.

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NEWS

www.thesunflower.com

FRIDAY

FROM PAGE 1 Multiple organizations in Wichita make TBTN happen annually. A joint committee decides what to showcase and how best to support survivors of sexual violence. The Wichita Area Sexual Assault Center plays a key role.

Mary Stoltz, Director of Survivor Services for WASAC said the organizers stand for justice and empathy. They march to “stop the shaming and blaming of victims in general while decreasing the sense of isolation,” she said.

“Part of our mission statement is to create a culture of intolerance around sexual assault,” Stoltz said.

SUPREME COURT RULING

Also on Friday, in a different part of the state, the Kansas Supreme Court ruled a recent abortion ban unconstitutional. Though the march and the court’s decision focused on decidedly different topics, women

who have been raped and impregnated by their attacker face the burden of deciding what to do next.

In a 6-1 decision, the court ruled that the state constitution upholds a woman’s right to abortion. The ruling blocked a 2015 law that banned the most commonly used procedure for second-trimester abortions, arguing that the state constitution protected the right of women to “decide whether to continue a pregnancy.”

Kansas was the first of 11 states to ban the abortion method in 2015.

Only two of those states have the ban in effect at present. Nine of them found that the ban is a violation of the bill of rights through a series of court cases and challenges that continue to change the rules for abortions and their availability.

The court sided with the plaintiffs in the case — two physicians who had performed the surgical procedure.

Citing U.S. Supreme Court case law, the justices said the ban would present an “undue burden to

MONDAY, APRIL 19, 2019

women” seeking to end a pregnancy, finding that the state’s bill of rights “affords protection of the right of personal autonomy, which includes the ability to control one’s own body.”

Friday’s ruling means the law, which banned the abortion procedure, will remain blocked. Because it’s based on the state constitution, abortion would remain legal in Kansas even if the 1973 Roe v. Wade case, that ruled that unduly restrictive state regulation of abortion is unconstitutional, is ever reversed by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The case comes amid other changes to U.S. abortion laws. Republicancontrolled legislatures have dialed back access to abortions, taking down other medical services and providers for women in the process. The result is that six states now have only one abortion clinic, the New York Times reported in April.

RAPE-RELATED PREGNANCY

Women impregnated by their rapists must come to terms with the

discomfort of raising their rapists child when deciding whether or not to carry their pregnancy to term.

According to a study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine in December 2018, (RapeRelated Pregnancy and Association With Reproductive Coercion in the U.S.) almost 2.9 million U.S. women experienced rape-related pregnancy during their lifetime.

The CDC says rape-related pregnancy is, “a public health problem where sexual violence and reproductive health intersect.”

The Sunflower spoke to Stoltz about the court’s ruling after Friday’s march.

She was quick to point out that WASAC does not take an official position on abortion. It’s outside the realm of what they do and what they provide, but she said she understands there’s a connection.

“One thing I’ll say, I understand as a feminist how important these laws are and how the big picture sometimes gets lost,” Stoltz said.

Stoltz said she’s never really seen

|3

state abortion laws have much of an effect on her dialy work with survivors over the last 12 years.

But she noted that there’s always a chance that abortion will be made illegal and that could have a rippling effect on rape survivors.

“We have access to it in the city that I work in,” Stoltz said. “I know there’s always a threat that they’re going to change the legality of it, but in my experience, it hasn’t changed much.”

What does pose a threat to WASAC’s services is more nuanced and centers around program funding, she said.

“I don’t think any legislator is going to come out and say, ‘I think rape is good,’ but there are ways to push us to the back burner and make it more difficult for us to work,” Stoltz said.

“People will push us to the back burner because it’s not that important to them. To me, it’s whether or not you see sexual violence as a major public health concern. I definitely think it is.”

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OPINION

4 | MONDAY, APRIL 19, 2019

www.thesunflower.com

Rowell: Healthy dose of skepticism, healthier dose of optimism defined SGA term In 2016, I came to Wichita State University in a pretty rough state.

My triplet sister Sally had just passed away, I left my dream school of Coe College, and I genuinely did not want to come to WSU. My initial reaction to being a student here was to keep my head down, go to class, come home, and simply get my degree.

After a year of grieving both my sister and my lost dream of going to Coe, I started to get more involved on campus, However, it was when Breck Towner and Paige Hungate asked me to run as an LAS Senator on their ticket, United We Stand, that my life at Wichita State changed dramatically. From the moment I was sworn in to the 60th Session Senate, I felt for the first time in about a year and a half that I was part of something bigger than myself, and that I could

LETTER TO THE EDITOR make a difference on my campus, and by extension, the world.

When my Dad passed away in June 2017, this sense of duty carried me through the rest of my time in the 60th. Although my personal life was surrounded by chaos and uncertainty, I became certain of this — through SGA, I had a second family.

Through SGA, I had purpose.

Wichita State gave me a home that I never even knew I wanted or needed, and for that, I’m extremely grateful.

ISN’T IN THE PLAN RIGHT NOW?

Q&A

FROM PAGE 1 “I didn’t know, you know, how senate meetings worked entirely, because I would only have to go once a month.”

Her advisors encouraged her to submit the application and run anyway. She asked Bearth to be her running mate, and they never looked back.

“Just because you don’t have experience doesn’t mean you can’t learn,” Miller said.

EXPECT TO HEAR HER TALKING ABOUT

Student services. She hopes to see student support services moved to Clinton Hall once the new business school building is built.

“Knowing that there will be a place that all those services can move to and expand — I just want to be able to know that that will happen.”

Q&A 1. WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE RESTAURANT IN WICHITA?

“Doo Dah Diner. I love breakfast food.”

2. WHAT’S ONE THING YOU WISH THEY OFFERED ON CAMPUS THAT

“Honestly, I wish Taco Bell could come back to the RSC.” 3. WHAT’S YOUR SIGN?

Gemini.

4. ARE YOU A MORNING PERSON OR A NIGHT OWL?

“Definitely a night owl.”

5. DO YOU SPEAK ANY OTHER LANGUAGES THAN ENGLISH?

“Not fluently, but I am taking ASL (American Sign Language) class currently.”

6. IF YOU WON THE LOTTERY THIS SUMMER AND NEVER HAD TO WORK AGAIN, WOULD YOU STILL RETURN AND FINISH SCHOOL?

“I would still finish my bachelor’s and go on to grad school.

After that, I would probably start up a non-profit.”

7. WHAT WAS GOING THROUGH YOUR HEAD AT THE INAUGURATION CEREMONY? HOW DID YOU FEEL?

“I was nervous but also so excited. I was worried I was going to mess up the swearing in like I did when I swore in as student advocate last year, so making sure I didn’t do that again was the main thing going through my head.”

When I decided to run for Student Body Vice President and eventually moved into the position of Student Body President, these same sentiments carried me forward. When I was elected, I remember a distinct line from a Sunflower editorial piece.

It said, “The Sunflower hopes [they] assume their posts with a healthy dose of skepticism, balanced out with an even healthier dose of optimism.” It turns out, this was the best advice I ever got throughout my tenure as Student Body Vice President and Student Body President.

These jobs are incredibly difficult for anyone to endure, as Executive members in SGA, we see the good, bad, and ugly from many different viewpoints. Having to balance sometimes opposing opinions and perspectives is difficult, but I think no matter what, realizing what my

job truly was kept my grounded.

At its root, being in SGA means serving students. Not serving yourself or any other group or single person on campus, just students. At times, it seemed like I was being pulled or stretched in a million different directions, but at the end of the day, rereading that quote over and over made me realize that while my job or certain times were difficult and complicated, my mission to serve students didn’t have to be.

While my tenure as Student Body Vice President and President has not been easy — it’s been extremely difficult — I still have no regrets.

When I look back over this year, I’m incredibly proud of the work that has been done, both in SGA and throughout the rest of campus.

It’s incredibly bittersweet knowing that in a few weeks, I’ll be leaving

this place I have grown to call home.

While there have been very few easy moments for me at WSU, I’ve genuinely grown to love this place and the people here. The next few years will be incredibly transformative for WSU, and while I wish I could be here to witness it, I know WSU is in incredibly capable and caring hands.

So, to echo the words of The Sunflower, my fellow Shockers, go into next year “with a healthy dose of skepticism, balanced out with an even healthier dose of optimism.” Know that you are all capable of going through the hard moments and achieving great accomplishments.

Good luck, and continue to make WSU better for the next generation of Shockers.

MEET STUDENT BODY VICE PRESIDENT MICHAEL BEARTH

Veterans: Ways to improve veteran services, representation, and programming.

HOMETOWN

Q&A

Japanese (fluent but out of practice), and a touch of sign language (would love to be fluent eventually).”

SIBLINGS

1. WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE RESTAURANT IN WICHITA?

Derby, Kansas He’s the third of four children

IN HIGH SCHOOL, HE WAS

“Very shy.”

MAJOR

Originally, Bearth majored in art history while studying at Wichita State his first time around. After one year, he left to join the Marines. Now that he’s returned to school, he’s majoring in mechanical engineering and physics.

EXPERIENCE

A former Marine Corp battalion maintenance management chief, Bearth worked as student involvement ambassador, veteran’s senator, PAVE advisor (peer advisors for veterans education), and president of National Society of Scholars. Now, his only job is to support Miller and serve the students of WSU. EXPECT TO HEAR HIM TALKING ABOUT

Sakura Japanese Cuisine, on West Douglas.

2. WHAT’S ONE THING YOU WISH THEY OFFERED ON CAMPUS THAT ISN’T IN THE PLAN RIGHT NOW?

“For everyone, I wish there was a better after-hours contact/ service for student services dealing with physical and mental health.”

3. WHAT’S YOUR SIGN?

Gemini.

4. ARE YOU A MORNING PERSON OR A NIGHT OWL?

Both.

“More so morning. I wake up and am immediately ready for the day, but at the same time, I enjoy staying up late and staring at the stars whenever I get the chance.”

5. DO YOU SPEAK ANY OTHER LANGUAGES THAN ENGLISH?

“Yes. French (a little), same goes for German, Spanish (can hold slow conversations),

— Shelby Rowell, outgoing Student Body President

6. IF YOU WON THE LOTTERY THIS SUMMER AND NEVER HAD TO WORK AGAIN, WOULD YOU STILL RETURN AND FINISH SCHOOL?

“Yes. In addition, I would take up a few trade school courses.

For what I personally want to do with my life, training and education are very important to success.”

7. WHAT WAS GOING THROUGH YOUR HEAD AT THE INAUGURATION CEREMONY? HOW DID YOU FEEL?

“To be honest, I was thinking about the other inaugurations/ appointments I have been to or through, and what it must feel like for those individuals who have just started their involvement with the Student Government Association for the first time.

In the past, it has been during a shared meeting of outgoing/ incoming sessions, but this time it was singling out the incoming session. For the first-time senators (and maybe some returning senators), I felt they felt like they were really joining something — not just going through the motions.”

Spring Sculpture Dedication Tom Otterness Shockers

Don’t Let

Stress Pop Your Bubble from Wellness Services & Housing and Residence Life

11am - 1pmth May 13 RSC North Patio

Break up your stressful finals with popcorn, bubbles, bubble wrap, snow cones, swag and tips from your friends at Wellness Services.

Sunday, May 12 3:30 P.M. Reveal and Remarks 4:00 P.M. Reception South Lawn Duerksen Fine Arts Center

Shockers extends the imagery that first appeared in the large-scale outdoor sculpture Makin’ Hay (2002), which was on loan to Wichita State University between 2015 and 2017. The new work depicts two field hands in an embrace during a break in their work. The installation celebrates camaraderie in the face of hard work, Kansas’ agricultural heritage as a wheat-producing state, and the history of the WSU mascot and nickname, “shockers,” which originated with university students who early in the 20th century earned money for their studies by shocking wheat in the summers.

Shockers was commissioned by three siblings, Adam Beren, Amy Bressman, and Julie Platt, in honor of their mother, Joan S. Beren, who for decades was one of the strongest supporters of the arts at WSU. Joan Beren received a Master of Arts degree from the Fairmount College of Liberal Arts & Sciences at WSU in 1983 and was an ardent champion of the university and, in particular, the Martin H. Bush Outdoor Sculpture Collection for which she established a conservation fund in 2016. A native of Wichita, Tom Otterness is widely known as one of the most prolific public sculptors in North America. His works in bronze are recognized for their playful, cartoon-like appearance and accessible nature even as they often touch on serious topics of social inequality. Shockers is his second sculpture to be installed permanently on the WSU campus, following the beloved Millipede (2008).

SPORTS/CULTURE

www.thesunflower.com

MONDAY, APRIL 19, 2019

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Laurie Derrico ties WSU home run record with 39th

JOSEPH BARRINGHAUS/THE SUNFLOWER Wichita State senior Laurie Derrico runs home after hitting a home run in the sixth inning of Saturday’s first game against Tulsa. Derrico’s 39th home run tied the WSU record for most home runs hit in a player’s career. Derrico has seven long balls this year. Madison Perrigan and Ryleigh Buck lead the team with nine home runs a piece this season.

JOSEPH BARRINGHAUS/THE SUNFLOWER Derrico makes a diving catch during the game against Oklahoma State in Stillwater, Oklahoma, on March 6.

KHÁNH NGUYỄN/THE SUNFLOWER Derrico runs home during the game against Houston last Tuesday at Wilkins Stadium.

Taylor Swift’s new single WSU drops final road series game to No. 25 Tulsa puts the ‘me’ in ‘shame’ There’s one big problem with the “self-love” movement: some people really do suck. Of course, all of us have pitfalls in our lives that we stumble into when our problems overtake us. We find ourselves treating the ones we love badly as we flail in the darkness.

For some, shame and guilt push them to climb out of the hole. Then, there are those who simply rationalize their own destructive behavior. They plunge deeper and deeper into the hole of obnoxious self-absortion until nobody can stand them long enough to help them out.

Somewhere deep within that hole, a speaker is blasting “ME!”

by Taylor Swift as an army of zombies rhythmically plunge their shovels towards hell. It’s hard to tell what’s worse: Swift’s inane self-love lyrics or the throwaway Target-brand beat she sings it over.

It’s as if Taylor wrote “ME!” as a joke, accidentally hyper-inflated her ego listening to it, and became convinced that everything she writes is worth a six-figure music video accompaniment. Now we have a flaming trash heap of a song that’s geared towards encouraging other people to release their trash heaps into the world. We’re all going to die in the smoke.

Don’t get me wrong — self-love anthems are not bad by default.

Beyoncé nails this category with an effortless sophistication.

Katy Perry has built up quite a track record of effective, self-celebrating hits. Even Swift’s own discography boasts its own run of optimistic anthems.

The songs tend to work because at their core is writing that is true, focused, and musically appealing in some way. Often, the lyrics to these tracks might be simple and cheery, but they’re not going to snap you out of the soul-lifting vibe with their stupidity.

“ME!” probably will.

Many times.

“But one of these things is not like the others / Like a rainbow with all of the colors.”

All rainbows have all of the colors. A rainbow with all the colors is exactly like all the other rainbows. The line doesn’t work logically as a simile, and it definitely doesn’t work as an LGBT

JOHN DARR

CULTURE EDITOR pride declaration, as many have theorized online. If it’s an LGBT pride line, why is it sung by a straight woman who’s celebrating her own individuality?

Maybe it would make more sense if Brendon Urie, who last year came out as pansexual, sang it, but the line is actually changed when he echoes the melody in the following pre-chorus.

The incompetence of the line is almost lost among the remarkably generic chorus (“I’m the only one of me / baby, that’s the fun of me.”) and the cringefest Kidz Bob bridge about spelling: “Girl, there ain’t no I in ‘team’ / But you know there is a ‘me.’”

Seriously? There’s a “me” in “team?” By your method, Taylor, there’s also an “eat,” a “meat,” a “mate,” and most importantly, a “tame,” which is probably the most friendly way to characterize a spelling section in a modern pop song. Maybe if you have to rearrange and cut letters in order to make a spelling joke, you should rearrange and cut the joke itself.

The wonderful thing about art in general, especially in the internet age, is that it puts on display the huge range of individual voices in the world. People have been saying the same things over and over again in different, creative ways, but how they say those things can still make core ideas shine by giving them a slightly new name or dimension.

None of what Taylor is saying is new. She’s simply saying it in a newly incompetent, yet simultaneously played-out, fashion. We know from Taylor’s discography that she can write wonderful pop songs. Unfortunately, “ME!” makes us hope that this abrasively self-loving Taylor isn’t really the person she says she is.

JOSEPH BARRINGHAUS/THE SUNFLOWER Wichita State freshman Sydney McKinney goes for a double play during a game against Tulsa Saturday at Collins Family Softball Complex in Tulsa, Oklahoma. WSU won 4-0 Friday before losing 3-4 and 1-3 to the Golden Hurricane Saturday.

Alpha Phi Alpha back-to-back Step Show champions

AUSTIN SHAW/THE SUNFLOWER The train conductor of the Delta Mu Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity poses during the Shock the Yard Step Show Saturday at Charles Koch Arena. The Delta Mu chapter won first place for their step routine, retaining their 2018 crown.

SPORTS

6 | MONDAY, APRIL 19, 2019

AUSTIN SHAW/THE SUNFLOWER

The Wichita State baseball team warms up before their game against Memphis last Wednesday at Eck Stadium.

BRIAN HAYES/SUNFLOWER FILE PHOTO

Baylor forward Jo Lual-Acuil Jr. scores on former Wichita State guard Landry Shamet during a December 2017 matchup at the Ferrel Center, in Waco, Texas.

Shamet’s rookie season was full of positives

BY MARSHALL SUNNER

Landry Shamet left Wichita State with two seasons of eligibility remaining. His rookie season, which came to a close in the first round of the NBA Playoffs on Friday, proved his decision to go pro was a good one.

Shamet came on the scene when the Philadelphia 76ers surprisingly selected him with the 26th pick in the first round of the NBA Draft. Hardly any draft boards had Shamet predicted to go anywhere before the 40th pick in the draft.

His impact in Philadelphia was almost immediate. In January, he shattered the franchise’s rookie record for 3-pointers in a game with eight makes. He scored 29 points that night.

His career with the 76ers was short-lived. Philadelphia sent Shamet to the Los Angeles Clippers in a business move that led to the acquisition of established stars Tobias Harris and Boban Marjanovic — pieces that could help equip Joel Embiid to reach the Eastern Conference Finals.

Swiftly, Shamet solidified his presence with the Clippers. In his

first game with the organization, he helped execute a 28-point comeback with 13 fourth-quarter points against the Boston Celtics.

In March, he broke the Clippers’ franchise rookie record for 3-pointers made in a game with seven. Even more impressively, he knocked in six of them in the first quarter.

His presence helped Los Angeles overcome playoff doubts. The Clippers rallied into the eight spot in the Western Conference, and drew a firstround playoff series with the Golden State Warriors.

Shamet helped cap off the biggest comeback in NBA playoff history with a game-clinching 3-pointer. The Clippers were down 31 points in the third quarter.

It’s easy to forget that Shamet was not a projected first-rounder.

That’s often hidden by his rookie class-leading 3-point percentage (42.2 percent). It’s likely that on June 24, Shamet will have his name called for one of the NBA’s All-Rookie teams.

— Evan Pflugradt contributed to this report.

Former Shocker golfer lands Newman head coaching position

BY EVAN PFLUGRADT

Newman University has named Taryn Torgerson as the next head coach of its women’s golf team.

Torgerson is a four-year veteran of the Wichita State golf team. Her crowning achievement came at the close of her college career when she won the 2018 American Athletic Conference individual title.

She led the Shockers to two individual conference championships in the Missouri Valley.

www.thesunflower.com

SELENA FAVELA/THE SUNFLOWER

Former Wichita State golfer Taryn Torgerson golfs in the MVC Preview in October 2017.

Baseball’s reported attendance a far cry from actual attendance numbers

BY THE NUMBERS

BY EVAN PFLUGRADT

SCANS PAID

Wichita State hasn’t sold out Eck Stadium in years.

In 24 home games this season, WSU has filled just 5% of Eck Stadium’s 8,153-person capacity.

Information obtained by The Sunflower this week indicates ticket scan numbers, which would reflect real attendance, represent just 26% of WSU’s reported attendance numbers this season.

WSU says it uses paid attendance numbers in the attendance reports it sends to the NCAA and what is included in box scores.

Russell Wilkins, director for ticket operations, said this week that this practice is standard among NCAA schools.

“That’s 100% accurate,” Wilkins said of the attendence metric, “I don’t know anybody that goes off their scan numbers.”

Actual attendance this season averages just 412 per game, which strikes a contrast with the 1,606 (19% capacity) reported average attendance. If not for a season-best 1,021 attendance for the WSUOklahoma State game earlier this month, ticket scan averages would hover around 385.

229 118 593 894 118 1021

CREIGHTON (DOUBLE-HEADER) MARCH 1 1367 ORAL ROBERTS MARCH 12 1294 KANSAS MARCH 20 2146 KANSAS STATE MARCH 27 2346 BETHUNE-COOKMAN MARCH 29 2917 OKLAHOMA STATE APRIL 10 2216

412

AVERAGE 2018-2019 SEASON (24 GAMES) 1606

Of the 24 home games so far this season, the largest discrepancy comes from WSU’s March 29 game against Bethune-Cookman, where reported attendance was 2,917 and actual ticket scans were 118.

“Some of these scan numbers are abysmal in comparison to what’s paid for,” Wilkins said.

WSU recorded its worst attendance numbers in three seasons in its home-opener versus Creighton on March 1. For fear of inclement weather, WSU pushed Saturday’s game into a double-header on Friday. Attendance numbers for the double-header were counted as one. Paid attendance was 1,367 and actual attendance was 229. Twice this season, WSU has hit a season-low of 118 in fans in attendence.

Previous seasons would indicate a similar spread between the two factors. Based on ticket scan averages, WSU has averaged no more than 689 fans per game in a season — which would fill just 8% of the stadium’s capacity — in the last three seasons. This year’s 412-person average would fill just 5% of the stadium’s capacity.

Paid attendance numbers are bolstered mostly by season ticket sales. This year, WSU reports 1,081 baseball season ticket holders.

Attendance rate is down, Wilkins said, and it’s catching the eye of many in his department.

Wilkins identified weather as a leading factor to the lagging scan numbers. Televised games were also considered a factor, he said.