SINGLE COPY PAID FOR BY STUDENT PUBLICATION FEE
THE UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL ARKANSAS’ STUDENT NEWSPAPER
WEDNESDAY
MARCH 27, 2019 Volume 113 — Issue 22
ucanews.live TODAY’S FORECAST CONWAY
The Echo
Campus Life:
SWAP fundraiser: Money raised for sensory room awareness
4 page 3
Entertainment:
Sports:
Netflix Original: Madeleine McCann case revisited in docuseries 4 page 7
Men’s Basketball: Bears take home win in first conference round 4 page 5
TRAINING TO EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED Colleges combat drug
Sunny
66/45
abuse, raise awareness
by Lauren McCabe
THE NEWSDESK
News Editor
FROM THE ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
I N T E R N AT I O N A L ISIS threat eradicated from country of Syria The Syrian Democratic Forces, a coalition backed by the United States and others, said March 23 that ISIS’ final stronghold in Syria, known since 2014 as the group’s caliphate, has been defeated. The final battle took place in the small Syrian town of Baghouz, where the most experienced ISIS fighters remained. The last assault on the area was initiated in early February, but this final battle was delayed to allow civilians time to escape the town.
N AT I O N A L Barr composes letter summarizing report Attorney General William Barr released a four-page letter to Congress summarizing special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s report on the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election released March 22. The investigation explored Russian efforts to influence the result of the presidential election and “does not conclude that the president committed a crime.”
Florida sees increase in survivor suicides Officers in Coral Springs, Florida responded March 23 to the apparent suicide of a former Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School student in Parkland, who was a minor. He had previously survived when 17 of his classmates were killed in a mass shooting Feb. 14, 2018. Ryan Petty, the father of Parkland shooting victim Alaina Petty, said the student was a 16-year-old boy. One weekend prior, Parkland survivor and recent graduate Sydney Aiello, 19, took her own life. Aiello was said to be battling PTSD and struggling with survivor’s guilt after one of her best friends, Meadow Pollack, died in the shooting.
S TAT E
Three dead in wreck
On the morning of March 22, wrecks along Interstate 40 between Little Rock and Memphis killed at least three people. The collision involved two commercial trucks, and was followed by a multi-vehicle wreck hours later. The identities have not been released.
WHAT’S AHEAD
IN OUR NEXT ISSUE Spring break volunteers recap their experiences.
photo by Taylor Sone
UCA Army ROTC cadets prepare for a military exercise at the rec fields on the southern end of campus March 14. The exercise pitted a group of cadets against an unknown enemy to simulate an engagement scenario.
Parking lot signs increase in attempt to reduce safety hazards, confusion by Lisa Sullins Staff Writer
Many students and faculty may have noticed the increasing number of parking lot signs around campus. While some may think that this is a step toward increasing parking opportunities around campus, Physical Plant director Larry Lawrence said this is not the case. “The signs are there to identify parking lots both for visitors to help recall where they parked and as well for University Police so that, as an example, if a person’s car won’t start, they can call University Police and identify exactly what parking lot they are in, and lastly, as a safety concern,” Lawrence said. Campus police were involved in discussions and decisions related to parking lot signs. Cpl. Michael Hopper with UCAPD confirmed Lawrence’s statement. “When someone has car problems, we can get to them faster,” Hopper said. “And especially if there is an emergency, we will know
exactly where to go.” Lawrence also referred to the signs as a way that people can identify where they are on campus. “Many people may be directionally challenged or unfamiliar with landmarks or buildings and the signs in the parking lots should help,” Lawrence said. In Lawrence’s opinion, it helps people remember where they are parked. It’s very similar to Walmart’s row signs that remind people where they parked. “The signing of parking lots has been discussed for many years and deemed a good idea,” Lawrence said. “We finally received funding to make it happen.” Lawrence said numbering the parking lots did not require board approval, but it was approved by the administration. “Any decision of great expense or magnitude at a university is decided at an upper administration level such as vice president, president or board,” Lawrence said.
Former professor remembered through art exhibit organized by daughter by Macy Davis Staff Writer
UCA alumni and former professor Gene Hatfield (19252017) created many striking works of art in his lifetime. Hatfield’s art exhibit is on display from March 4-29 in McCastlain Hall. Hatfield’s paintings include various media types, including oil, acrylic, mixed media and watercolor. His entire collection consists of over 270 art pieces he and people he commissioned made throughout his life. However, only 18 of his personal pieces were displayed in the art exhibit in McCastlain Hall. UCA assistant director of assessment initiatives Mathilda Hatfield — Hatfield’s daughter — picked the 18 pieces featured in the exhibit from the collection that her father passed on to the family. She created this exhibit when she discovered that the French Cultural Service of the French Embassy in Houston held an annual French
Cultures Festival. She applied for her father’s exhibit to be included in the festival, and it was accepted. This was the only exhibit from Arkansas to be featured. A painting in the exhibit, “La Maison,” displays a gorgeous French home with green foliage surrounding it. When Mathilda looks at this painting of her grandparents’ home, she is taken back to all the wonderful memories she had growing up there. Hatfield would often sketch scenes of landscapes or buildings that were significant to him in only 15 minutes. “They were quick sketches to him, but to us [Mathilda and her family] they became the photographs in our memories,” Hatfield said. In all of Hatfield’s paintings, he liked to have a focal point that draws the viewer’s eye further into the scene — some examples from his work include a winding cobblestone street that fades into the distance and a sandy path that follows the shore line
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Lawrence said sometimes he walks a good distance around campus. He embraces his walks as needed exercise. UCA offers shuttles which can greatly reduce the frustrations of finding a parking space during peak occupancy times, Lawrence said. “We do get a few complaints on the parking situation,” Lawrence said. “People need to become familiar with the routes they use and allow for the extra time to arrive to work or classes.” Lawrence also addressed the serious debate about adding another parking lot. “These decisions and discussions are always fluid,” Lawrence said. “Typically, planners look at any given situation and then actions are planned based on decisions that are made. That said, we have added some ground-level spaces over the years whether paved or graveled.” Ground-level parking spaces are more economical than a parking deck.
UCA and 18 other colleges across Arkansas participated in the first annual Substance Abuse Awareness Week March 11-15, which was designed to combat substance abuse among students. The organization and creation of events for the week was in part thanks to the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, which hosted its first Substance Abuse Awareness Week in spring 2018. With successful participation from its student body, U of A reached out to student governments across the state, including UCA’s SGA. “Last semester, the U of A Student Government [ASG] president, Trevor Villines, contacted SGA about participating and [we] said yes,” Sophomore Class Rep. Ashlyn Sander said. “My role in the campaign, including organizing the on-campus events, was organizing a Kickoff Press Conference at the beginning of the week that all of the campuses participating could be a part of.” The campaign, titled Save AR Students, began March 11 at the Association of Arkansas Counties building. The speakers included Gov. Asa Hutchinson, Arkansas Drug director Kirk Lane, Attorney General Kimberly Ashley-Pauley and development director of U of A Little Rock College of Education and Health Professions Christopher Dickie. Other campus activities that took place throughout the week included a presentation March 12 during x-period called Dose of Reality that showed the dangers of prescription opioids, as well as tables set out March 13 and 14 in front of the Student Center with T-shirts and buttons available. Trevor Villines, a U of A student who serves as Save AR Students 2019 event
director, held a discussion with the Arkansas Take Back organization, a prescription pill recovery and destruction program. They discussed how substance abuse is one of the leading problems among college students and has resulted in documented student deaths in Arkansas. “It’s no secret that substance use is drastically affecting the state of Arkansas. It’s concerning that statistics have us toward the top for opioid prescriptions here in our state. It is very concerning seeing this issue affect our college campuses,” Villines said in an interview with the organization. According to the Centers for Disease Control, in 2017, Arkansas had the second highest opioid prescription rate in the country, with more prescriptions written than the actual population of the state. Also, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration, people ages 18-25 have the highest risk for illicit drug use at a rate of 22.7 percent. According to drugabuse.org, 9.9 percent of college students abuse Adderall compared to 6.2 percent of noncollege adults. SGA executive president Joshua Eddinger-Lucero said that college students have a harder time coping with academics and their personal lives, which may lead some to take substances that they think could help them, but actually harm them. “College students may succumb to substance abuse because of the added pressures, stress and expectations that come with balancing life and college,” Eddinger-Lucero said. “It’s extremely hard today, especially for students to try and work through everything that’s going on in their lives. The expectations that
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photo by Macy Davis
UCA senior Cody Scrivner observes the Gene Hatfield exhibit at McCastlain Hall during the month of March. The exclusive exhibit consisted of 18 paintings.
into the back of the painting. “That’s dad’s perspective in almost all of his paintings— to go a little bit further into the scene,” Mathilda said. The paintings in Hatfield’s exhibit were done in a French style. He portrayed beautiful French landscapes along the northern to southern coast of France. He also used a lot of
vivid colors in his artwork. “Hatfield’s use of color is very reminiscent of Cézanne’s [French artist Paul Cézanne] work with separating color from form,” UCA senior and art education major Cody Scrivner said. Hatfield’s work was inspired in part by taking notice of surroundings that
most people would not consider art. Whether it be a simple day at the beach or a house just on the edge of a highway, he wanted to display the beauty of what he saw in his artwork. “Dad liked to show a side
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High schools must teach African-American history
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