The Sunflower v. 127 i. 25 (March 23, 2023)

DECADE OF STUDENT FEES

Recommended budget from student fees committee, to be approved by SGA

Student Fees Commission recommends organization funding decreases while student fees increase remains

BY TRINITY RAMM Sports@thesunflower.com

When the Student Fees Commission reconvened on Tuesday, they made it clear that they were looking to slim down the 2.9% increase to student fees.

Commissioner Gregory VanDyke Jr., Speaker of the Student Senate, emphasized that he was looking for places to cut student fees this time around.

“I did not vote in agreement with the 2.9(%) change last time we were in commission,” VanDyke said. “I still think, with students on my mind, that that number can be slightly decreased.”

The 2.9% increase was originally approved by the commission at their first meeting on March 7.

The commission called for a second meeting to correct mistakes made in allocations as well as revisit previous recommendations.

The commission didn’t address two items at their first meeting: a 5% ($174,515) increase in compensation for workers in the Rhatigan Student Center and a $5,000 request for The Sunflower Equipment Reserve.

Both items were approved with little to no deliberation.

The committee also voted to decrease the healthcare compensation from $94,765 to $89,469, which they linked to the 5% increase.

Commission members were given the opportunity to readdress any other line items and readjust the commission’s recommendation.

VanDyke looked to the Student Government Association Office Expenditures to cut the commission’s recommendation from $671,052 to $650,000. Last year, their budget stood at $605,052.

GREGORY VANDYKE JR.

Student Fees Commissioner

Commissioner Devin Moore, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences representative, expressed a similar goal to VanDyke in trying to cut down the overall amount of student fees.

He moved to cut The Sunflower’s recommended funding to $135,000, which would’ve been below what the publication received last year.

“I’m looking for line items to subtly decrease to change the actual Student Fees charge,” Moore said. “As I’m looking at it, The Sunflower has at least a reserve of $58,500. While unfortunate, I think this change is necessary to combat the change in Student Fees.”

Of the $58,582 in The Sunflower’s reserves, $45,000 of it was put towards facility renovations, which was listed in the reserve section of the Sunflower’s request.

Commission members pointed out that this would give the publication over $10,000 less than last year, after which Moore encouraged his fellow members to fail the motion.

Commissioner Jordan Webb then moved to decrease The Sunflower’s original allocation from $155,000 to $148,000; The Sunflower initially requested $160,000. The motion passed with six yeses, one no and four abstentions.

Varsity Esports, which had $70,000 cut from their initial request of $150,000 had their Student Support Services Budget recommendation cut even further, going from $80,000 to $50,000.

VanDyke pointed out that the number of

students that participate in Esports doesn’t justify the amount of student fees that would be going towards their program.

“I believe they are funded by two other divisions here on this campus,” VanDyke said. “Unfortunately, I would recommend that they seek more money from these divisions or seek more outside ad partnerships.”

Esports director Travis Yang was present at these deliberations and answered questions about the Varsity Esports and Esports Educational Opportunity Fund budgets during recesses from commission chair Jacob Brand and Webb.

The proposed budget for SEAL was also decreased from the initial recommendation.

SEAL’s funding moved from $1,081,955 to $1,071,955.

At the initial meeting, the SGA Scholarship fund was given $500 more than they requested. Commission Esther Belotsi said there was no justification to give the fund more than asked for and proposed that their recommendation move from $35,000 to $34,500. Belotsi’s motion passed.

“I just want to even out all of the increases we’ve made so far,” Belotsi said.

After all readjustments, the student fees increase remained at 2.9%.

Three committee members missed this meeting: Emanuyel Brown, College of Applied Studies commissioner, Tanatswa Mafume, College of Engineering commissioner, and Jaquelinne Villa, graduate school representative. Additionally, Webb had to leave early.

The proposed budget must go through the Student Senate before it can be adopted. It will be given a first read on March 29, but no action will be taken until April 5 or 12 at the latest.

If the budget is failed by SGA, the commission will reconvene for a third time.

Oral Roberts coach tapped as next men’s head basketball coach

was relieved of his duties.

BY TRINITY RAMM Sports@thesunflower.com

Former Oral Roberts men’s basketball head coach Paul Mills will become the 27th head men’s basketball coach at Wichita State, as announced by Wichita State Athletics on March 22. Mills and athletic director Kevin Saal will officially announce

MILLS

Mills as head coach at a ceremony on March 23 at 3:30 p.m. in Charles Koch Arena. The event is free to attend. Mills led Oral Roberts to two NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournaments. The Golden Eagles made a Cinderella run in 2021 to the Sweet Sixteen as a No. 15 seed, taking down No. 2 Ohio State and No. 7 Florida.

During the 2022-23 campaign, Oral Roberts went 30-5 overall and 18-0 in Summit League play. They were the No. 12 seed in the East

Region and lost in the first round to No. 5 Duke.

In his six seasons at Oral Roberts, Mills went 106-83 overall.

Before he came to Oral Roberts in 2017, Mills spent 14 years on Scott Drew’s coaching staff at Baylor as an assistant.

Wichita State used Parker Executive Search, the same search firm that hired Saal last summer, to help fill the position for a $60,000 fee. Mills was hired 11 days after former head coach Isaac Brown

In an email from the athletic department, Saal thanked Brown for his “contribution to Wichita State Men’s Basketball.”

Wichita State still has to pay Brown the remaining $4 million of his contract, meaning he would receive $108,000 every month until April 2026 if not hired at another school.

This is in addition to the $5,478,846 that the athletic department still owes former athletic director Darren Boatright, former baseball head coach Eric Wedge and former men’s head basketball coach Gregg Marshall.

Brown has been with the program since 2014 when he was hired as an assistant coach under Marshall.

In November 2020, Brown was named interim head coach after Marshall resigned and was signed to a five-year deal in February 2021.

I still think, with students on my mind, that number can be slightly decreased.

Compensation goals lead to pay increases at Wichita State

BY MIA HENNEN news@thesunflower.com

After $6 million in salary increases for 1,053 faculty and staff this fiscal year, the university is looking to provide another bump for eligible faculty and staff this summer, for about 1,700 employees.

These raises come after years of planning between Human Resources and university administration to solidify and grow a market-based compensation system that helps determine pay.

Vicki Whisenhant, HR executive director, broke down the relatively new market-based compensation structure for The Sunflower.

“It's a complicated subject,” Whisenhant said. “(Despite) having 30 years of HR experience, it’s still something I constantly ask the experts about.”

In a market-based approach to salary, individuals would get paid similarly to what others in their field would make. Whisenhant said this approach to compensation allows the university to compete for top faculty.

“As the talent pool … gets smaller and smaller, this is going to become even more important for us to get to the point where we are offering more competitive wages,” she said.

According to Whisenhant, Wichita State is at 86.4% of the median market pay, meaning the university lags behind what other universities pay their faculty.

“Our overall goal is to get to the median so that we're not leading or lagging the market,” she said.

Background

Wichita State began transitioning to a market-based compensation program in the fall of 2019 and launched the program at the start of the current fiscal year (FY23).

Whisenhant said that the market-based approach was adopted to ensure the university had equitable pay practices. Before the program, Whisenhant said that a set philosophy or methodology was not in place.

“It wasn't consistent,”

BY COURTNEY BROWN browncourtney2002@gmail.com

When a fellow female scientist told Moriah Beck to “act more like a man” to fit into their male-dominated field, she refused to take the advice to heart.

“[She was] telling me to be able to converse and network with people, you need to know about baseball and … feign interest in this,” Beck said. “I was like, ‘No, not gonna do that. Sorry.’”

Beck, a biochemistry professor, spoke on a panel focused on women in STEM careers on March 20. It was the last event of the eighth annual Diverse Women’s Summit, hosted by the Department of Women’s, Ethnicity and Intersectional Studies.

Panelists shared their experiences as women in science, technology, engineering and math fields.

MISSION

WHAT’D YOU MISS OVER SPRING BREAK?

BY MIA HENNEN news@thesunflower.com

New facility to come to Wichita State

Whisenhant said. "There wasn't the real science behind it.”

The new program coincided with the beginning of the five-year Diversity, Equity and Inclusion plan.

"One of the key cornerstones of that plan was equity,” Whisenhant said. “And that’s where pay comes in, making sure we have pay equity across all the campus.”

Now, HR utilizes purchased salary market data from multiple sources to determine pay for employees.

“It's data that we purchase that's compiled by these professional organizations that we use to do the market part of the analysis,” Whisenhant said.

Whisenhant noted the distinction between HR and university leaders when it comes to compensation. While HR focuses more on compiling and providing recommendations, university leaders are in charge of making the final decision.

“We don't make all the decisions,” she said. “Anything with budget … those (decisions) are made by our provisional leaders of the university with (HR’s) recommendations that come from stakeholders.”

Goals for pay, then and now

After planning and mapping out different job categories, the university “started” the market-based program last year, when it first did an analysis of pay across the board.

With this analysis came a few goals:

Beck said negative comments usually come from male colleagues. One assumed it would be easier for her to receive a grant as a woman.

“I know he was just trying to be nice, but it hurt,” Beck said. “Then I get that grant. The reverse also happens: ‘Oh, she got it because she’s a woman.’”

Laila Cure, an assistant professor in the industrial and manufacturing engineering department, didn’t initially face the same challenges. Originally from Colombia, Cure said industrial engineers there are mostly women.

“I didn’t grow up in engineering with that feeling that we’re less or anything,” Cure said. “Now (in America) you start helping women every day and then getting invited to a lot of events … because they’re not that many of us.”

To combat misogyny, Catherine Searle said she

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-Determining if any inequities existed on the basis of race, ethnicity or gender (none were found)

-Analyzing equity based on similar positions

-Studying the market

“We do that in order to ensure that we're moving the needle forward,” Whisenhant said.

The goals last year did not account for faculty awards and achievements, like professor incentive reviews. The professor incentive review program allows tenured professors that have been at WSU for six years to undergo a voluntary review to receive some kind of pay bump.

“That was not one of the pain variables that we looked at last year,” Whisenhant said at a Budget Advisory Committee meeting last month. “It wasn't a part of the analysis, so it's created some issues with not having that in place.”

Additionally, last summer, the university’s remedial pay increases to those who were lagging behind others in their field only applied to select individuals and, for the most part, didn’t include employees with more experience.

“We knew that employees with more years of service received little or no pay adjustments last year,” Whisenhant said.

Randy Sessions, tech consultant for the WSUPD and Staff Senate senator, said that since the university has begun adjusting the pay process, longevity hasn’t been addressed enough.

ensures her conferences have gender parity. The professor of mathematics also created a website that lists women in geometry.

“I got really tired of listening to my male co-organizers say there are no women to invite,” Searle said.

The panelists also encouraged students to seek out mentors and a support system. Beck said she appreciated that a former mentor recognized his own gaps in knowledge and directed her to reach out to another mentor.

“He had me write a letter to a professor at Harvard,” Beck said. “It just sounded absolutely crazy to me as an undergrad in Eastern Kentucky University, but the guy wrote me back.”

Searle also agreed on the importance of connections. She organizes a female-identifying workshop to foster networking.

“There's this idea of wanting to go off into the wilderness,”

“It needs to be transparent with stuff like that, rather than say, ‘well, everything's gonna get a raise,’” Sessions said. “There's a lot of people that have been here 20 plus years, (and) there's no recognition given for that. It used to be that there was recognition for that.”

Whisenhant presented budget and compensation goals for this summer, the start of fiscal year ‘24, to the Faculty Senate, where some pointed out issues with the current process.

“The idea of market-based compensation was to look at where all of the faculty are comprehensively and bring them up to the market,” Chase Billingham, at-large senator, said. “Now, we're already in year two, and the goal seems to be to help out the people that got left behind in year one, and then do across the board.

Billingham said that acrossthe-board pay increases are the “opposite of market-based compensation.”

Whisenhant said the goal is to get more consistency, as the university is in year two of the program.

In light of the non-merit-based raises last summer, HR plans to examine pay for those with one or more professor incentive reviews, alongside providing an all-across pay increase next summer.

Who’s part of the program?

Many employed at or through the university are not part of a market-based program.

Primarily, it includes benefit-eligible employees, like full-time faculty and staff. For example, adjuncts or lecturers would be excluded from this approach.

Additionally, some who work for entities on campus, like the Rhatigan Student Center would not be included because the RSC is a separate entity from the university.

Those with questions about market-based compensation can email hr.servicecenter@wichita. edu or visit wichita.edu/services/ humanresources.

Wichita State announced plans to build a National Forensic Laboratory last week.

The $75 million laboratory will process shell casings — a case that surrounds a gun bullet — to help law enforcement agencies solve gun-related crimes across the U.S. Steven Dettelbach, director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and Sen. Jerry Moran visited the university to announce the plans.

According to Dettelbach and Moran, the laboratory will complement the Gun Crime Intelligence Center of Excellence as well as the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network Correlation and Training Center; both centers were announced last summer.

According to a WSU news release, the lab will lead to the addition of 100 jobs for students and full-time staff.

Construction on the laboratory is expected to start in several months. WSU Tech president testifies at U.S. Senate hearing

Sheree Utash, WSU Tech president and VP of workforce development at WSU, testified before the U.S. Senate last week to highlight the importance of aviation training. The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation brought various stakeholders together to discuss opportunities for improvement, increased representation and more.

Many speakers noted the importance of working to recruit students into aviation before college, as well as the gap between male and female aviation professionals.

To hear more about what was discussed at the hearing, visit commerce.senate.gov/2023/3/ strengthening-the-aviationwork force.

Searle said. “The reality of science is done collaboratively.”

When asked for advice for women entering the industry, the panelists recommended not taking rejection personally and

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

remaining determined. “If you know what you want to do, then nobody gets to tell you that you don’t get to do it,” Searle said.

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EDITORIAL Jaycie Nelson: 316-978-6906 editor@thesunflower.com

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FACULTY

CORRECTIONS

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Illustration by Wren Johnson / The Sunflower

Laila Cure, an assistant professor in the industrial and manufacturing engineering department, talks about being a women in STEM. |

Photo by Brianna Cook / The Sunflower

Baseball splits shortened series with Creighton

BY TRINITY RAMM sports@thesunflower.com

Due to freezing temperatures in the Omaha area, Creighton made an abrupt trip to Wichita for a brief two-game series against the baseball team on March 18 and 19.

Game 1

The Shockers and the Bluejays took their first matchup on Saturday to 14 innings. Creighton was able to put this one away, 13-6 after scoring eight runs in the top of the fourteenth.

Wichita State’s pitching staff was exceedingly active this game. The team went through ten pitchers that threw a combined 20 strikeouts.

A bunt from junior Seth Stroh allowed sophomore Peyton Tolle to score the Shockers’ first run of the game in the bottom of the second inning. This was Stroh’s only hit of the afternoon in two at-bats.

Creighton then went on an unanswered scoring run throughout the fifth, sixth and seventh innings. Wichita State was down 4-1 entering the eighth inning.

In the eighth inning, the Shocks were able to put together a run of their own. A Tolle single to right field allowed both Jayden Gustafson and Brock Rodden to score and a single from Mauricio Millan brought Garrett Pennington home to tie the game 4-4.

After one run from each team in the ninth, the score was tied 5-5 at the end of regulation. Both teams did not score until the fourteenth inning when Creighton scored their eight runs off pitchers Carter Rost and Nate Adler.

Game 2 Wichita State came back on Sunday to run-rule Creighton in seven innings with a score of 12-2. This is just their third run-rule of the season.

Tolle was the star of this one, playing his dual role of pitcher and batter. On the mound, he had a career-high 12 strikeouts and his record moves to a perfect 4-0. At the plate, Tolle recorded three hits and was responsible for three of the Shockers’ runs.

After Tolle, four players, Rodden, Pennington, Millan and Chuck Ingram, recorded two hits. All but one of the Shockers’ batting lineup registered at least one hit.

Creighton’s two runs came in top of the first inning when Tyler Lozano hit a single home run to left field and Sterling Hayes hit a double that allowed Ben North to score. Baseball will take a short road trip to Tulsa on March 21 to play Oral Roberts for the second time this season. The Golden Eagles beat the Shockers in their March 7 matchup 6-5. The game will be broadcast on the Oral Roberts University Sports Network.

Softball goes 3-1 at Shocker Invitational

BY TRINITY RAMM sports@thesunflower.com

After weather required a schedule change that moved all Saturday games to Sunday, the softball team played March 17 and 19 in the Shocker Invitational.

Friday vs. Northern Colorado

Wichita State won their tournament opener against Northern Colorado 6-1 on March 17.

Pitcher Alison Cooper gets the win after pitching four innings and allowing four hits and one run. This brings her record to 7-2.

Freshman Alex Aguilar pitched the last three innings and allowed no hits and struck out five batters.

On offense, Addison Barnard broke the school record for most home runs all-time in the first inning when she hit a two-run shot to right field that allowed her and Sydney McKinney to score. Barnard was previously tied at 58 with Madison Perrigan, who set

the record in 2021. McKinney and Lainee Brown both recorded two hits. McKinney had 1 RBI and Brown scored twice, one off a Krystin Nelson single and the other from a single in the bottom of the fourth from McKinney.

Friday vs. Minnesota

The Shockers split their double header on March 17 with a 5-2 loss to Minnesota under second-year head coach Piper Ritter.

Lauren Howell started on the mound for the Shockers and allowed four hits and four runs in three innings. Cooper came in for the final four innings and allowed one run on six hits.

Four Shockers registered a hit in this one. Zoe Jones had two hits in four at-bats.

Wichita State’s two runs came in the second and fifth innings. For the first, Nelson grounded out to second base and Taylor Sedlacek ran home. For the second run,

Sedlacek was at bat this time and hit to left field which allowed Lauren Lucas to score.

Sunday vs. Northern Colorado

After a day-long break, Wichita State run-ruled Northern Colorado 10-1 in six innings in their first of two games on Sunday.

The Shockers put up four home runs throughout the game: a single from Lauren Mills in the first, a double from Sami Hood in the fourth and two two-run shots from Barnard in the fourth and sixth innings.

Nelson tied her career high by going 3-3 at the plate.

Aguilar pitched all six innings and recorded two strikeouts while allowing three hits and one run.

Sunday vs. South Dakota State

For their tournament finale, the Shockers beat South Dakota State 4-3 in their lone game

against the Jackrabbits.

Howell earned the win on the mound in an inning of relief for Cooper. In the seventh inning, Cooper allowed three runs, six hits and three walks before Howell stepped in.

The team went into the seventh inning down 3-1 to South Dakota State. They put together a scoring run that started with a single from Jones that allowed Barnard to score.

The last two runs came from a Mills single that brought Lucas home and a single from Sedlacek that allowed Jones to score.

Softball will play a midweek matchup at home and end their long homestand against Kansas on March 21.

They will then travel to Orlando March 24-26 to open up conference play against the University of Central Florida.

Four men’s basketball players head to transfer portal

BY TRINITY RAMM sports@thesunflower.com

After losing eight players to the transfer portal last spring, four Wichita State men’s basketball players have entered the portal since it opened on March 13.

The players who entered so far are starting sophomore center Kenny Pohto, sophomores Shammah Scott and Melvion Flanagan, and starting junior guard Jaykwon Walton

For men’s and women’s basketball this season, players can enter the transfer portal anytime from March 13 - May 11 and can withdraw their names at any time.

Pohto entered his name the day the portal opened. Pohto averaged 8.7 points and 5.7 rebounds this past season in 30 starts and 31 games played. The Stockholm, Sweden, native played three seasons down the road at Sunrise Christian Academy before committing to Wichita State.

Scott and Flanigan both entered their names on March 14.

Coming off of a National Junior College Athletic

Association national title at Northwest Florida State College last season, Scott transferred to Wichita State and mainly played off the bench this season. He started four games for the Shockers and averaged 11.8 points over the 2022-23 campaign.

Flanagan came to Wichita State as a walk-on this past season from Mississippi State Gulf Coast College. He gave the Shockers valuable minutes off the bench and helped the team win a close game at South Florida with a season-high 16 points in January.

“I want to thank Wichita State coaches and staff for believing in me and giving me the opportunity to play basketball for the university as a walk-on,” Flanagan said in an Instagram post. “I’m super eager and excited to see what God has in store for me next.”

Walton, the Shockers’ leading scorer, entered his name on March 16. He came into Wichita State as the No. 6 junior college recruit in the country. The Columbus, Georgia, native averaged 13.9 points per game.

Shocker girls run out of the dugout and cheer as 3 more of their teammates cross home plate. Shockers set a lead above Arkansas with score being 8-1 after only the first inning.

Number 21, Krystin Nelson, catches a grounded ball to pass to first baseman. Nelson was credited with 1 assist in the defense against Arkansas. | Photos by Kristy Mace / The Sunflower

Lauren Lucas (#28) sets up to bat in the beginning of the 1st inning. Lucas hit a home run through center field with two on base.

Junior Jaykwon Walton pushes to the basket during the ACC tournament game against Tulane on March 10 at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth. Walton made a total of 13 points.

Senior Kenny Pohto defends the opponent Tulane during the Quarterfinals of the ACC tournament on March 10 at the Dickies Arena in Fort Worth. Pohto had 9 rebounds against Tulane. | Photos by Madeline Bell / The Sunflower

STREET

SPEAK

‘The Dark Side of the Moon’ holds timeless themes

Tyler Guthrie teguthrie@shockers. wichita.edu COLUMN

March 1 was the fiftieth anniversary of Pink Floyd’s album, “The Dark Side of the Moon,” the fourth best-selling album of all time. People are drawn to this album because it presents a unique array of musical versatility and juggles different themes. Its themes are in tune with the harsh realities of the world which only adults can really understand.

BETHANY

HOLLINGSWORTH

Junior Social Work

“I think that can be pretty divisive. I don’t know if I fully support that because it just feels like it could provide a lot of room for conflict and not super fair.”

A college girl’s guide to New York City

Danielle Wagner suzwagner65@gmail.com

New York City might be the most terrifying yet exciting place I have ever visited. A couple of weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to take a trip to NYC with the help of WSU’s Elliott School of Communication.

Arriving

Upon arrival at LaGuardia airport it didn’t feel all that different. It was one in the morning and all I wanted to do was sleep in my bed.

AYRTON MARROQUIN

Junior Criminal Justice

“I don’t really like it. I feel like it’s the campuses own way of subtly trying to get students to adopt an ideology. As a college, we should try to be as neutral as possible and let students choose their own politics.”

When I took that first step outside into the Queens air I knew that this was going to be amazing. Don’t get me wrong I was still nervous and scared out of my mind that someone would mug me, but in that fraction of a second it didn’t matter.

This is where the first experience with New York City drivers came into play. As someone with serious road rage in Wichita, I was going crazy in the city.

Even at such an ungodly time the horns never ceased to honk. People were swerving in and out of lanes, no blinkers. They were constantly slamming on their brakes and narrowly hitting each other.

The first stop for us was the 9/11 memorial. Getting to stand in that spot with so much history was really intense. It’s an emotional place to be and if you can handle it I would 100 percent suggest visiting.

Statue of Liberty

On a split decision we bought tickets and boarded a ferry to the Statue of Liberty — pictures don’t do it justice.

Being on Liberty Island standing in her shadow puts into perspective

BRYCE CROSS

Sophomore

Electrical Engineering

“I feel indifferent, to be honest, the names of buildings don’t really mean much to me. It’s just a place to go to class, so I don’t think about it too much.”

BRIANNA TEERINK Junior Communication

Sciences and Disorders

“I guess in the spirit of wanting to be welcoming to all people in all walks of life, I think maybe we should stay away from that. What would be a good idea would maybe be naming the building after someone who was influential to this campus.”

just how powerful she is.

Also inside the museum, there are full size replicas of some parts of her. A specific one that got pointed out in our groups was the model of her feet. The amount of her “dogs are out” jokes we made should probably be a crime. Wall Street

After the quick ride back to land we started walking around. We found ourselves on Wall Street at the New York Stock Exchange.

I’m not sure that the others thought it was that cool, but I think Wall Street history is crazy to research. No, I don’t just enjoy it because of Leonardo Dicaprio (Margot Robbie is cool too).

Subway

Here’s the part of the story where the first impression of the subway comes into play. It’s about what you expect it to be: dirty, smelly and crowded.

Luckily I became a master of the subway and got us around easily enough. We only went the wrong way once and ended up in Brooklyn on our way to Coney Island. I want to point out that it was not my fault but that’s when my perfectionist came out and I took over navigation.

That night was a bit of an adventure as we made our way to Time Square. It’s a weird part of town with a lot of people and weird things going on. In all honesty I don’t think I’d suggest stopping to see it.

It’s kind of scary to be there at night even if you’re with a group.

In the more one on one meetings with alumni we got an inside into what living in New York is like. Fast paced and expensive is about what you’ll be getting yourself into.

One of my favorite places we

got to see was the New York Public Library. It had a small museum with really interesting pieces. Like the original Winnie the Pooh stuffed animals and Charles Dickens’ desk.

Overall Experience

To wrap up the NYC experience we ventured to the upper side of Manhattan. As a Gossip Girl fan, the Upper East side was like heaven to me.

Central Park was nice to see, but when the trees are dead and there’s no green it’s kind of underwhelming. I would suggest not visiting in the winter.

As far as the Natural History Museum goes, it’s something you should see at least once in your life.I specifically enjoyed seeing the exhibits from “Night at the Museum.” The Easter Island head was my favorite part. If you’ve seen the movie you’ll understand why I made sure to have gum with me.

If you’re a Beatles fan, Strawberry Fields was a beautiful spot. Not necessarily by means of looks, but the vibe there is amazing.

The John Lennon Memorial is just so simple that it has an impact on you. While we were there, street singers were playing his music and it was emotional.

The last, and my personal favorite place we saw was the Metropolitan Museum of Art. More specifically the Met steps. It’s a more intimate part of the upper east side. It was one of the few places in the city where I genuinely felt comfortable. Definitely worth a visit.

To sum it up NYC is only half of what I expected, while it is a little sketchy it’s also amazing at the same time.

Mystery movie experience amplifies easy-going comedy ‘Paint’

Trinity Ramm

sports@thesunflower.com

COLUMN

For the past few months, Regal has offered $5 tickets once a month for upcoming releases on Mondays but there’s a catch – you have no idea what movie it will be.

After hearing about this through Regal promotions and the Regal Unlimited subreddit, I decided to take a chance on a Monday at 7 p.m.

The mystery element of this watch lowered my expectations, and I would recommend going to a mystery movie if you find yourself

watching the same things over and over again.

This month’s mystery movie was “Paint.” Owen Wilson stars as Carl Narge, a Bob Ross parody, as he copes with the fact that time has moved on from him and his lulling PBS painting show.

The cast as a whole worked well together and added to the small town feel of Vermont’s largest city, Burlington. Wilson in particular seems to be having fun becoming his own version of Ross.

I enjoy any kind of media that exists outside of linear time. (Where are my Series of Unfortunate Events people at?)

“Paint” puts itself sometime in

the present but between the general laid-back vibe of denim-heavy and mountainous Vermont. The underfunded and outdated setting of the PBS-Burlington station places the story in some hazy in-between.

It was a fun watch that doesn’t take itself seriously. All of the comedic pieces fall into place even if all the jokes don’t individually land.

“Paint” is one of those movies that I think more fondly of the further away I am from the first viewing.

“Paint” comes to theaters again on April 6 and will get its wide release on April 7. After its theatrical release, it will stream on AMC+.

The album opens with a minute intro called “Speak to Me.” This intro takes sounds from different songs in the album and overlays them, such as clocks and metronomes, a heartbeat, people rambling, psychotic laughing and distressed screaming. This creates a crazy-sounding and unique intro, which is the perfect way to describe the album as a whole.

“Speak to Me” transitions into “Breathe (In the Air),” which relaxes the listener just right after the insanity from the previous track. It also outlays the universal principle that all we have in our lives are the people we meet and love and the things we possess. This is a theme we must always remind ourselves of when we want something too out there or a different kind of life. It’s a message that most adults struggle to accept as they live their lives.

“On the Run” is an instrumental song with sounds of a man running, an intercom in an airport and a plane crashing with a synthesizer in the background. The track emotes the fear of traveling, but on a deeper level, exemplifies how fear and anxiety take hold of and makes you feel as if you are always “on the run.”

“Time” discusses how life is consistently moving and how we grow older and change and not even realize it sometimes. When we do realize it, it scares us like a bunch of clocks going off at once (this is how the song begins).

“Money” transitions into “Us and Them” with people discussing how they are in the right. “Us and Them” subtly discusses the conflict within war and takes on a bluesier tone, given that the true reality of this song is the most difficult to muster.

“Brain Damage” discusses the insanity in life and how all the darkness we face in our lives can be overwhelming and can turn us crazy. “Brain Damage” correlates directly with the final track, “Eclipse.” “Eclipse” talks of how everything is done under how we perceive it, but how we perceive it can be clouded by the darkness life has to offer.

Considering how much of a slap in the face the real world has to offer when people finish high school, get their first jobs, undergo their career or go into the military, “The Dark Side of the Moon” shows how rough life can be. Although, understanding these dire realities is crucial to understanding the world.

“HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT BUILDINGS ON CAMPUS THAT ARE NAMED AFTER POLITICIANS?”

Illustration by Wren Johnson / The Sunflower

BORN AND RAISED

Brands and chains founded in Wichita spread worldwide

HILAND DAIRY

Starting back in 1882, Nicholas Steffen started selling ice cream at his bakery and restaurant. Ice cream was originally only sold on Saturdays and holidays, but popularity grew. Steffen changed the name from Steffen’s Bakery and Restaurant to Bon Ton Bakery and Restaurant in 1885. By 1990, Steffen’s company was shipping more than 20,000 gallons of ice cream to Wichita communities. Steffen’s company constructed a milk processing plant in 1931, which is still in use today.

Steffen’s products were purchased by Hiland in 1991, with the family name on the Hiland label until 1993. Hiland Dairy currently produces dairy products from milk to cottage cheese, with Hiland Wichita producing more than 1,350,000 gallons of product a month.

FAST FOOD FAST FACTS

HILAND DAIRY - Nicholas Steffen, founder, was the first American to ship ice cream commercially and used wire handles for easy transportation

WHITE CASTLE

PIZZA HUT

- Hiland currently distrubtes from Nebraska to Texas

- Known for being the first American fast food chain

- No longer has a Wichita location

- Closest location is Columbia, MO

- Named #1 pizza chain in the world (by sales and number of locations) by 1971, only 13 years after opening

- First national chain to offer pizza delivery by 1994

First chain to offer stuffed crust in 1995, pioneered by food scientist Patty Scheibmeir

- First pizza company to deliver to space in 2001

- One of the fastest growing American franchises (ranked #8)

FREDDY’S

Madalyn Schrag’s 2022 piece “Nature vs Nurture.” ShiftSpace’s current exhibition, “Elemental Bodies,” had an opening reception on March 3. Students and faculty attended the student-run gallery opening. | Photos by Maleah Evans / The Sunflower

WHITE CASTLE

Upton Sinclair’s 1906 book

“The Jungle” highlighted the poor conditions of the meat packing industry, leading many consumers to be skeptical. In 1921, Walter Anderson, who had been selling burgers out of a car since 1916, partnered with E. W. Ingram to challenge this skepticism and create White Castle.

White Castle incorporated white and stainless steel designs to create a theme of cleanliness. By 1931, , White Castle had expanded to include more than 100 restaurants in 11 states. Wichita’s last White Castle closed in 1938.

PIZZA HUT

In 1958, a mother gave brothers Dan and Frank Carney $600 (worth a bit more than $6,000 today) to start a pizza place. It was named Pizza Hut because the original location (which can be found as the Pizza Hut Museum on campus) was shaped like a hut and their sign only had room for eight letters.

Sixty-five years later, the name has stuck, even as sign limitations have lessened. The Pizza Hut location in Aggieville, a district in Manhattan, KS, was the first to offer delivery. Pizza Hut now has more than 16,000 locations in more than 100 countries and has made many milestones in the food industry.

FREDDY’S

Brothers Bill and Randy Simon founded Freddy’s in 2002 alongside their friend, Scott Redler. The brothers named the franchise after their father. Freddy Simon himself grew up on a farm in Colwich, about 15 minutes out from where the first Freddy’s restaurant opened on 21st Street. Freddy joined the military after high school, where he was dispatched in the Pacific Rim during WWII. He was awarded a Purple Heart for injuries and a Bronze Star for valor.

After serving, Freddy returned to Kansas and raised six kids with his wife, Norma Jean. He believed himself to be “the luckiest man in the world.” The franchise values Freddy Simon’s hard-work and family values while maintaining a 1940s and ‘50s aesthetic.

Illustration by Sascha Harvey / The Sunflower