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USD Theatre Department presents One-Act, first time since COVID-19 The Department of Theatre has their annual festival of short plays, “Jack,” “Date with Death”, “15 Minutes in a Haunted House” and “Long Ago and Far Away”.
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Coyotes secure third consecutive Summit League Championship The USD Women’s team walks home with another Summit League title after weekend in Sioux Falls.
UAAS BRINGS USD TOGETHER AT THE RUBY BALL
Allison Horkey| The Volante
Associate Dean of Students, John Howe, announces the recipients of the UNITY awards at the fourth annual Ruby Ball. Allison Horkey
Allison.Horkey@coyotes.usd.edu
On March 5, the Muenster University Center (MUC) ballroom was filled with music and people attending the fourth annual Ruby Ball. The Union of African American Students (UAAS) hosted the event with help from Campus Activities Board (CAB) and ticket sales went to raise money for Dakotathon. Ashley Charlie, a senior at USD, is the president of UAAS and said the event is not only a place to have fun, but it is also for a good cause. “This event originally was put on just as a formal type of environment and excuse to dress up, but it became so much more just because we started to collaborate with Dakotathon. And as everybody knows about campus, that’s
one of the biggest (organizations),” Charlie said. “…I feel like the biggest thing honestly, for us, for everybody that’s here, is that they feel like they have involvement in helping the Children’s Hospital.” During the event, the UAAS gave out UNITY awards. Gabi Luevano, USD freshman and the secretary of UAAS, said the awards reflect the values of the organization. “Our (executive) team sat down and we just talked about who we felt embodied those characteristics that we, as the Union of African American Students, try to embody ourselves and just put out into the rest of the campus through our events. We were thinking of people who embody those and immediately these names came to mind and I think it’s really cool. It’s a combination of students and faculty, just
the people, anyone in the community of USD,” Luevano said. Ultimately, Luevano said she hopes people leave the event with a little more of the UAAS values than they came in with. “I hope that they just feel the welcoming energy and that anyone is welcome and just take away, obviously, we awarded our UNITY awards. And that’s something that…we really value, Uniqueness, (Nobility), Integrity, Tenacity and Youthfulness and we just hope that everyone can walk away with a little bit of that. Whether consciously or subconsciously for tonight,” Luevano said. Junior Maddison Sullivan was the recipient of the Uniqueness award. She said she’s grateful for the award and she loves the Ruby Ball because of the energy and people at the event.
Bingo for a cause at Gayville’s Hay Shed
Machaela Freeman
Machaela.Freeman@coyotes.usd.edu
Gayville’s local restaurant The Hay Shed hosted “Bingo for a Cause” on March 5. The town of Gayville and surrounding towns came together despite the weather to play bingo and raise money for the town. Paula Marshall, owner of The Hay Shed and organizer of the event, raised around $600 for a firework show to celebrate Gayville’s 150th anniversary. “It doesn’t matter if you’re eight years old or 80 years old, you can play bingo. It gets people together, it’s quick and easy, it doesn’t take a lot of setup and it’s fun,” Marshall said. Marshall hosts events like this multiple times a year to
raise money for different causes. As the owner of The Hay Shed, she wanted to give back to her community and she said raising money for these causes is what drives her. “Before COVID-19, I would pick out either a group or organization once a month and then would raise money for it throughout the month. During COVID-19, it took kind of a hiatus,” Marshall said. One of the most costeffective ways to raise money was with the bingo games. They can keep 50 percent of the total money for whatever cause they were donating to. The Hay Shed brought in $20 per game, so each game payout was about $10 according to Marshall. “We’ve donated money for the choir to buy a new piano,
to fight against sex trafficking, to raise money for the new ball fields and one month we raised money for a little boy who had cancer. It’s kind of my way of giving back to the community,” Marshall said. Marshall also said The Hay Shed has raised money to help the children in the community and to supply them with books for the new school year. “We raised a little over $400 to buy every child in preschool through fifth grade a book to take home that was their own, gave flashcards, things that the kids at school can really use,” Marshall said. This month’s money will all go towards the annual town celebration during Fourth of July weekend. As this year will be the 150th anniversary of the
“I just love the people. It’s so powerful being in that room. I don’t feel bad vibes at all when I’m in there. I just feel like there’s so many powerful people around me and I can rely on all of them to lift me up and I just feel so safe in the room,” Sullivan said. During the event, two local artists, Kobe Jordan and Marcus Destin, performed for the audience. Charlie said she felt like this event showed how students can enjoy their time as long as they are with people who lift them up. “You know, they say food brings people together. I think with the Ruby Ball and the Union, I feel like it’s the music that brings people together. I feel like especially when you get to college, a lot of people think that you have to drink or participate in a lot of other activities, you know, to kind of fulfill their night,” Charlie said. “I guess that the Ruby Ball
is really proof that you really don’t as long as you’re around good people and your friends…I think that’s the most important thing,” Charlie said. Luevano said the event is an inclusive space for people to enjoy the night. “For people who feel like sometimes they don’t get these special opportunities to just celebrate and just have fun in an inclusive and welcoming environment. It’s important to create a space for everyone to just relax and have some fun,” Luevano said. Charlie said she loves being able to provide this fun and meaningful space to people during the Ruby Ball. “I guess the laughter and just seeing people smile,” Charlie said. “…As cliché as that sounds, I like it because it makes us feel like the night is complete.”
town, Marshall wanted to raise more money for the celebration. “I’m holding our Hometown Hoedown at the same time over the weekend. We’re going to have a band Friday night and a poker run and street dance on Saturday night. During the street dance, we’ll have fireworks to celebrate the Fourth of July and Gayville turning 150 years old,” Marshall said. Marshall said she enjoys getting to raise money for different causes and being the one to lend a hand when needed. “We try to help out as much as we can, so we raise money pretty much anytime Submitted | The Volante that somebody needs help. I Local restaurant host bingo night for community to am more than happy to help raise money for a firework show. out when someone needs it,” Marshall said.
Search for Opportunity Center and Office of Multicultural Affairs directors ongoing Bennett Clary
Bennett.Clary@coyotes.usd.edu
Currently, the Opportunity Center and the Office of Multicultural Affairs do not have directors, but committees are in the process of interviewing potential candidates. John Howe, the chair for the search for the director of the Office of Multicultural Affairs, said the office is for the entire campus, focusing largely on students and will be in the student-centered space in MUC 219. “It will be kind of that gateway position that will help many of our underrepresented student groups kind of make sure that they have established footing in their programming and development. But we’ll also work with other campus partners for broader programs on the
campus as well,” Howe said. Chief of Staff Laura McNaughton said the Opportunity Center will be a space for students to find what they need to be successful. This will help students find tutors and student groups to join. McNaughton said it will be a one-stop shop for all the student services available. She also said the director of the Opportunity Center will be someone who connects with students and connects them with the campus community. “This person will also help with career service development and leadership development. It’s a job where it’s just going to be a lot of connecting all people across campus,” McNaughton said. McNaughton said finalists will be brought to campus and there will be open sessions for students to participate in. She said these jobs are integral to student success and that is why students should have input in
the hiring process. “We need students to find what helps them be successful while they’re here. And these jobs are people that can connect them with other students like themselves, with groups that they’re interested in and just make it a more welcoming place for them while they’re here,” McNaughton said. The committees to hire both directors have students involved, Howe said. Both processes include forums where students can participate and ask questions of the candidates. “Part of that process will be an activity that we want them to lead because the Office of Multicultural Affairs is a co-curricular unit. It’s encouraging learning outside of the classroom. So, part of their visit is to have an activity that’s engaging the students that are in that session and that will follow with a Q&A period for students to ask
questions of the candidate,” Howe said. Howe said the process has been deliberate because they did not want just anybody to be in the position. He said they want the right person to fill these positions. “We’re working with a speed that’s deliberate, but also cautious and careful so that we’re looking for the right candidate to come into both of these roles. That’s really going to be the best person to really move both offices forward, because there is work to do in both areas and they’re going to be on board to do it,” Howe said. Finalists will be brought to campus by the end of March and both positions will be filled by the end of the semester. Students can find more information about the positions at yourfuture.sdbor.edu. President Gestring’s office did not respond to multiple email requests for an interview.