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Death of USD student announced Volante Staff
Volante@coyotes.usd.edu
A USD student passed away Saturday. First-year Kennedy Tomsha, a biology major from Tulare, SD, was involved in a car accident while traveling home over the weekend, according to an email sent to students Saturday afternoon. “Her father wanted everyone to know how much Kennedy loved her family and USD,” the email said. Counseling will be available for students on Sunday in the Beede/Mickelson basement at 7 p.m. The following resources are available to students: USD Counseling Center (605) 677-5777 Office of the VP and Dean of Students (605) 677-5331 University Police Department (605) 677-5342
Dogs train with Yankton prison inmates Kara Tesch
Kara.Tesch@coyotes.usd.edu
Some four-legged “inmates” have been serving time at a Yankton prison. Four dogs from Heartland Humane Society in Yankton previously lived in the Federal Prison Camp (FPC) in Yankton as part of the Federal Inmate Dog Obedience (FIDO) program. The FIDO program, which began in January 2017, places dogs from Heartland in the FPC to live there full-time for an eight-week period. “They spend roughly 22 hours next to their handlers,” said Kerry Hacecky, executive director at Heartland. “Besides meals, these inmates are always with these dogs. Even in their sleeping quarters.” Dogs live with their handlers in a designated housing unit. They’re assigned two to three inmate handlers that care for the dogs 24 hours a day. Handlers document their dog’s daily activities: their feeding, training and downtime schedules. They’re also responsible for monitoring and recording their furry companion’s weight, behavior, health and hygiene, as well as any medication regime a dog may have. After an inmate dog handler completes a 4,000-hour animal trainer apprenticeship, they’ll receive a certificate through the South Dakota Department of Labor. “It is very common to see the dog handlers and their dogs socializing with other inmates,” said Eric Henning, public information officer of the FPC, in an email. “Inmates report that the presence and companionship of the dogs helps alleviate some of the stress associated with the separation between them and their families.” Since the program began, 10 dogs have been successfully trained by the inmates and placed for adoption through Heartland. The program focuses on unruly dogs the staff at Heartland have a hard time handling. “Most of our dogs stay here less than 21 days, and these dogs that we’re using in the program are dogs that would have been here six to 12 months before we found a family willing to take those challenges on,” Hacecky said. Janette Kaddatz, animal specialist and adoption staff at Heartland, said the training makes the dogs more adoptable, fixes behavior issues and teaches them basic manners. See DOGS, Page A3
Leah Dusterhoft I The Volante
Male students challenge gender stereotypes in chosen majors Kara Tesch
Kara.Tesch@coyotes.usd.edu
For years, gender roles have impacted what jobs men and women pursue. The Volante talked with three male students who’ve entered majors that are primarily pursued by women or often stereotypically thought of as feminine.
Nursing
According to the United States Census Bureau, only nine percent of nurses in the U.S. in 2011 were male. A lifeguarding class showed junior Steven Howell the benefits of working in a medical field, he said. When it came time to decide his major, nursing presented itself as a career with great potential, he said. “I just like making people feel good,” he said. “I’m just a people-pleaser.” Howell made the move from the Chicago suburbs to USD so he could participate
“
things are going to come into the ER.”
We’re living in a progressive world where gender boundaries are being torn down left and right. Eldon Warner, music performance major
in swimming and major in the nursing program. He believes gender shouldn’t matter as long as people are compassionate, have patient-centered care and possess critical thinking skills. “It’s a field where you have to kind of open up and you have to be sensitive to other people,” he said. Regan Luken, a nursing faculty advisor, said it’s important to have diversity in the field of nursing in order to provide better care to a diverse popu-
lation. “The times are changing, and so we’re seeing more and more men in nursing nationwide,” Luken said. Howell said his biggest challenge has nothing to do with gender – it’s balancing 20 hours of swimming practice a week and his heavy workload in the nursing program. After graduation, Howell said he hopes to move back home and get a job working in an ER unit. “I like the fast pace,” Howell said. “All kinds of different
Musical theater
Fifth-year senior Braeden Garrett has been involved in theater since he was three years old. Garrett is a musical theater major and dance minor. He said it makes him happy to be involved in something that’s sometimes perceived as abnormal for men. “A lot of guys tend to think that theater is not masculine,” Garrett said. “That’s why you see less men in theater at a younger age, because people get made fun of.” Theater chair Raimondo Genna said if everyone followed gender stereotypes, a lot of talented men and women wouldn’t have contributed to theater. “The important thing is to kind of move away from jobs that are for men or for See GENDER, Page A6
New organization founded to represent Nepalese culture Devin Martin
Devin.Martin@coyotes.usd.edu
The Nepalese Student Association (NSA) was formed earlier this semester to celebrate events and create a welcoming environment to the increasing numbers of Nepalese students at USD. Chandra Karki, NSA’s president and a senior chemistry major, planned Dashain, the group’s first event on campus. He traveled to Miami in late September to learn about how his brother-in-law operates NSA at his university, Florida Atlantic Coast (FAC).
Events
There are more than 25 Nepalese students at USD, Karki said. “There are very few Nepalese (students) in the spring of 2016 and then this fall a lot of Nepalese came,” Karki said. “We were planning to create one organization that represents Nepalese culture as well as South Asian culture.” The first event NSA organized was the Dashain fes-
tival on Sept. 30. Dashain is the longest festival in the Nepalese calendar – it lasts 15 days. Karki said about 50 people attended the event. “What we do in Dashain is we eat a lot of goat meats and we make rice red color and we put it on our forehead,” Karki said. “We also put some sort of green grass in our ears.” Karki said the cultural significance of the red rice (Tika) and yellow-green grass ( Jamara) provides “splashes of color (and) are an integral part of the festival.” Those colors are meant as a blessing, he said. “Without this splotch of red on everyone’s foreheads, Dashain would be, to say the least, quite bland,” Karki said.
Community
Karki said he wants to help international students. “When some new student from Nepal comes here, it will play a big role in their life. I feel very good if I can See CULTURE, Page A6
Submitted Photo I The Volante
A member of the Nepalese community delivers Tika to the forehead of a participant of the Dashain festival.