The Volante
THE STUDENTS’ VOICE SINCE 1887
Women in leadership: Political involvement at USD
W E D N E S D AY, O C T O B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 8
VOLANTEONLINE.COM
PREPARING FOR WINTER
INSIDE THE OPERATIONS OF THE MAINTENANCE CREW
Rachel Newville
Rachel.Newville@coyotes.usd.edu
This is the first part of an ongoing series about female leaders in South Dakota. A record number of women are running in midterm elections across the country, and according to a Pew Research Center study, the majority of Americans say having more women leaders in politics and business would improve everyone’s quality of life. However, despite this positivity around women running for office, Pew Research Center reports that America is skeptical women will get these chances and that women are more cautious when it comes to running for office or applying for promotions. From running for Student Government Association (SGA) president to running to be South Dakota’s first female governor, women do have a presence in South Dakotan politics. Organizations like Ready to Run South Dakota and Leaders Engaged and Determined (LEAD) South Dakota help women across the state become politically active. See WOMEN, Page A6
Peyton Beyers I The Volante
A mouse was spotted on the fourth floor of Mickelson hall, which has since been removed.
Pests found in North Complex Lexi Kerzman
Lexi Kerzman@coyotes.usd.edu
While sharing a room and living in the tight quarters in the dorms, students are encouraged by University Housing to keep their rooms clean to prevent unwanted pests in the resident halls. However, earlier this semester, Mickelson hall had a mouse running through the fourth floor, which has since been removed from the hall. It is unknown how the mouse got into the building, but Jaden Braaten, a first-year media and journalism major, said she believes it could have gotten in through the air conditioning or the construction area in North Complex. Braaten said she and her friends encountered the mouse a few times and the mouse drastically changed the atmosphere of the floor. “It really made me question how clean the dorms really are and if housing was doing the most they could to prevent other rodents or if it was something they just sweep under the rug,” Braaten said. “It really made people angry and we were walking on eggshells and were very
Temiloluwa Adeyemi I The Volante
Above: Craig Franken, director of operations and maintence, explains how steam is dispensed to buildings on campus. Below: Dean Clodfelter, boiler technician, tests water quality. fall, when it starts to get Temiloluwa Adeyemi cool, we have to fill all of Temiloluwa.Adeyemi@coyotes.usd.edu these (tanks) with reverse The maintenance crew osmosis water which is is crucial for preparing the expensive to make and campus for the cold winter is actually made in (the season, which includes Davidson building),” supplying heat to USD’s Franken said. buildings, including hot This system gets rid of water, to residence halls. harmful chemicals from the Craig Franken, direc- water and removes odors tor of operations and from the tank before it is maintenance, said the diffused into steam pipes heating process and work and transported to campus of the maintenance crew buildings, Franken said. that contributes to the “All of our chemicals are supply of heat during used in small amounts, we winter time, as well as the use them to keep everychange from cooling to thing in balance so that heating, takes place in the the water does not grow administration major, said thing is that once the heat Davidson building, located anything and the pipes do the heat control system is is switched on, the air the main problem in North conditioning is switched in between the library and not chew up,” he said. Belbas Center. Franken said this Complex since students are off, but I am still able to He also said the central process is entirely done by not able to control the heat reduce the temperature if it boiler heating plant, the maintenance crew and levels in their rooms. gets too hot.” “The classrooms are located in Davidson, heats completing the operation Aware of the complaints, up 98 percent of the build- without the use of contrac- good, but it gets hard in Franken said the warmth ings on campus, exclud- tors is easy to maintain and the rooms. In the winter experienced in buildings when it’s really hot, we was because the switch ing just the DakotaDome cost-effective. and the Sanford School of “We have our own cannot turn it off and I feel to heat occurs before a Medicine. plants, we make all of our students should be able to sudden change in weather, Franken said the process reverse osmosis water to do that,” Gelaw said. “I feel making it hard for an begins first with shutting fill all the tanks...that way like we (students) should immediate back change to down the air conditioning it is the most cost-effective be able to control our own air-conditioning. and starting the boiling and safest route for the heat. The (heating) system “At this time of the year, process, after which the boilers and all the pieces of works well, but not how it is either too hot or too buildings are supplied with equipment we use,” students would like it to cold and most of the time, function.” heat. Franken said. it is too warm because Thodah Hovor, junior “We’ve got about 10,000 The steam lines, which feet boiler pipes that we come out of Davidson, get medical laboratory science we’ve started the boilers,” have to heat up, and once directed to all the buildings major and a resident in he clarified. Franken said it is Burgess residence hall, heated up, has to be kept on campus. difficult to pick the perfect warm, otherwise the pipes “We try and conserve said she is satisfied with shut off and bad things as much water as we can the amount of heat in the time to switch from air conditioning to heat. happen,” he said. since water is a precious dorms. “There is a lot more “First of all, I like the The maintenance team resource,” he said. heat, and in my opinion when it comes to heating uses the reverse osmosis is doing and cooling in this place,” water system to ensure that Dealing with student maintenance good, because it gets really he said. “It is a constant the hot air diffused into the complaints buildings is clean and safe. Dasashe Gelaw, a cold and the heat is on fight every year to try to “What happens is, in the senior health service for use,” Hovor said. “The pick the perfect time.”
See PESTS, Page A3
ROTC cadets win Task Force Ranger Challenge Kelli Susemihl
Kelli.Susemihl@coyotes.usd.edu
Submitted Photo I The Volante
Eleven cadets from USD ROTC took first place at the Task Force Ranger Challenge at Camp Ripley, MN.
Cadets from USD’s ROTC team won first place in the annual Task Force Ranger Challenge at Camp Ripley, MN on Oct. 20, marking a historic achievement for the program. Dan Sundberg, chair of the military science department, said the last time USD’s program won the Task Force Ranger Challenge competition was in 1990. “This is a yearly competition that’s meant to test their strength, knowledge, endurance, teamwork,” he said. “We compete in this every year. Last year we came in dead last, and then the last time I think that we won was 1990.” Because of their first-place finish at Camp Ripley, the team will compete in the Brigade Ranger Challenge in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri this weekend. The team consisted of nine cadets and two alternates. USD’s team competed against other ROTC cadets from 7 other schools: the University of North Dakota, North Dakota State University, South Dakota State University, South Dakota School of
Mines and Technology, Mankato State University, University of Minnesota Twin Cities and St. John’s University. Tanner Smith, a junior social work major and captain of the team, said the two-day competition consisted of many different physically and mentally intensive events, including a physical fitness test, a written test and marksmanship competition on the first day. “The second morning, we woke up and we competed in a 10K ruck march. After that, we had an inspection and then we were handed a map and grid coordinates, we were supposed to go find certain points throughout the base,” Smith said. “We went through a hand grenade course, a one-rope bridge course… and then we had weapons assembly, so we had a variety of weapons we had to take apart and reassemble, which was timed.. we had a mystery event which was how far you could throw a medicine ball behind your head.” Smith said the team began preparing in September by practicing the types of events they would encounter in the actual competition. See ROTC, Page A3