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Students voice concerns about travel and immigration ban Morgan Matzen

Morgan.Matzen@coyotes.usd.edu

President Trump’s recent executive order barring travel and immigration from several Middle Eastern countries has caused concern and fear for many international students, and criticism from some faculty members.

One critic of the new order is political science professor Tim Schorn, who gave a speech on the topic to

the Vermillion Rotary Club on Jan. 31.

“People who had been granted the legal right to come into the United States were SCHORN prevented from doing so,” Schorn said. “None of the countries that were on the list could be pointed at as being primary producers of ter-

rorism in the United States. Because of how the policy was rolled out, it is a question of how this could have any positive impact on our desire to control or eliminate ISIS.” Schorn was critical of Trump’s language in the order and the idea that the ban was targeting Muslims, he said.

“It will probably create international belief that says we’re engaged in a religious war,” Schorn said.

“Some of the language used by the

Trump administration says that we’re essentially targeting Muslims.

That really isn’t the direction we should want to go as a country.”

One common worry among students was traveling home after the semester and returning for the fall.

Computer science graduate student Suneel Bandarupalli came all the way from India to study at USD. “I want to travel home, but can I in this situation?” he asked. “Those are my doubts.”

In response to some students’ fear, the Center for Diversity and Community hosted a campus forum Feb. 2 on the ban and how it will impact students.

Lamont Sellers, associate vice president for diversity, said the event was helpful to those who participated.

“This event helped answer some lingering questions students had See BAN, Page A6

Chance Mullinix I The Volante

As part of the planned $30 million, in renovations for the Dome, bleachers in the student section would be replaced by permanent seating that would improve comfort and capacity.

$30 million Dome renovations in planning stage Chance Mullinix

Chance.Mullinix@coyotes.usd.edu

U

SD administrators are planning renovations to the DakotaDome that would improve student seating, athletic locker rooms and other building adjustments.

The DakotaDome has seen three renovations in its 38 years.

In 2001, a steel roof replaced the air-supported dome to address roof collapses. Locker and training rooms were addressed in 2007, along with replacing the Dome floor. Five years ago, new turf was installed to help improve the field.

Athletic Director David Herbster said USD is beginning to plan a new set of renovations.

“We developed at least a program concept,” Herbster said.

“We asked ourselves, ‘What are we going to do to the west side of the dome?’”

Much of the planned renovations are a consequence of the

completion of the Sanford Coyote Sports Center (SCSC), which is connected to the Dome, said Herbster.

Brand new space at the SCSC have replaced some of the cramped offices, equipment and courts of the Dome.

“We don’t need those courts any more,” Herbster said. “Then we moved the weight room out of there, too. So we’re looking at repurposing that space. By doing that we could then put locker rooms, meeting rooms and classrooms on that west side.”

After the athletic department decided what renovations they wanted to do, engineers and architects told them what was feasible, based on the capabilities of the Dome.

“You get an idea of what it would take structurally, mechanically and we can get an idea for the cost,” Herbster said.

“The cost is only a ballpark figure, but at least we have an idea and now we’re in the silent phase of fundraising. It’s going to be all privately raised dollars – it has to be.”

After raising the funds for the estimated cost of the project, Herbster said USD would take the proposal to the Board of Regents.

“If it were to be approved, it would move on to the state legislature where the Senate and House Appropriations Committee would approve, then the entire legislature would vote on it,” he said. “Then USD would fine-tune the cost, ‘What do we really need and what does it cost to get there?’”

Before the SCSC was built, Herbster said a structural engineer came in to evaluate the Dome.

“We had to do it, because we were basically punching big holes in the side of the Dome,” he said. “The engineer said the Dome was structurally sound and should be standing for another 40 years.”

Herbster noted that while plans are subject to change, the renovations would be conducted in four phases.

The first phase would include building locker rooms on the

Chance Mullinix I The Volante

USD athletic director David Herbster said administrators are

planning a four-phase remodeling process of the DakotaDome.

Phase one, which involves seating and locker rooms, could cost $30 million. west side of the dome, underneath student seating. Currently in that location are many storage rooms and run-down basketball courts. Meeting rooms for sport teams would be built, along with offices for coaches and staff.

Chairs would replace the bleachers in the student section and capacity would be improved. Construction of a mezzanine similar to the one on the east side of the dome would include bathrooms and concesSee DOME, Page A6

Potential repeal of Affordable Care Act prompts class discussions Cheyenne Alexis

Cheyenne.Alexis@coyotes.usd.edu

With talk of the Affordable Care Act possibly being replaced by the current administration, conversation surrounding the future of U.S. healthcare is occurring more frequently within some health administration courses.

The ACA, informally referred to as Obamacare, is the U.S. healthcare reform law that provides more readily available health insurance for Americans.

Though there’s been talk since the passing of the ACA in 2010 to have it repealed, the Trump Administration is pushing for a repeal as soon as possible. And with a Republican-controlled Congress, the possibility of repealing the Act is now quite real.

For some, the move to repeal the ACA isn’t exactly surprising.

“I actually expected it,” said assistant professor of health service administration Carole

Mason Dockter I The Volante

Health services administration professor Carole South-Winter lectures a class on Monday. SouthWinter said one way or another, students in her field will be employed, regardless of the fate of the Affordable Care Act. South-Winter. “It’s going to be quite a process; things are moving quickly (these first weeks) of the Trump Administration.”

Health service administration major Kate Liveringhouse said her biggest concern with the potential repeal of ACA is

the clause that allows young adults to stay on their parents’ healthcare plans until they turn 26.

“Personally, I didn’t know of any of the implications as much as I did job-wise, just because I didn’t know what it was going to be like when I was off of my parents’ (insurance),” Liveringhouse said. “The only thing that would impact us significantly would be if, for some reason, they took away being covered under your parents.”

Cole Hensley, a senior premed bio major, said repealing the ACA has the potential to affect college students greatly.

“Definitely looking if the ACA is repealed, one thing that has definitely concerned me is I’m going to graduate school at some point, and because of that, an income isn’t necessarily applicable,” he said. “... It’s our generation who may have been somewhat of the downfall of the ACA because a lot of times, it’s easier for us to accept the fee without taking insurance. But still we weren’t able to accept the problem with the See HEALTH, Page A3

News CREATING A COUNTRY NARRATIVE

A2 Wednesday, February 8, 2017

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Ally Krupinsky I The Volante

USD held its first story circle on Feb. 2 in the Center for Diversity and Community. As part of a national movement by the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, story circles are being held all over the country to create a People’s State of the Union. Lead by Amber Hansen (center), event organizer and interim professor in the art department, six people attended the story circle to contribute to the national project.

City of Vermillion Police Blotter Highlights >> Jan. 29 - Feb. 4

3 Jan. 29 A business on E. Cherry Street reported a damaged window to officers.

The damage appeared to have been done by a pellet gun.

Jan. 29 While on patrol, officers discovered a vehicle on E. Clark Street with a window damaged by a pellet gun.

Jan. 29 Officers responded to a report of a damaged vehicle on N. Pine Street. A rear window was broken out of the car.

All three broken window incidents remain under investigation.

3

shattered windows

Feb. 1 Officers conducted alcohol compliance checks on six businesses.

Three of the businesses failed the compliance checks.

Citations were issued to the employees who provided the alcohol to the underage informants.

Feb. 2 A caller reported an underage woman drinking in a local bar. Officers went to the bar and contacted the woman, who provided fake identification.

The woman was arrested for false impersonation and minor consumption of alcohol.

2

failed alcohol compliance checks

Feb. 2 A caller reported a man chasing another man with a gun in a neighboring house.

Responding officers found the men in question, who were teenagers chasing one another with pellet guns.

Feb. 2 Officers responded to a domestic dispute. A fight had broken out between a boyfriend and girlfriend as their relationship ended.

The boyfriend was arrested for simple assault.

Feb. 3 A caller reported that a man had entered a convenience store, asked for

false impersonations

Feb. 3 An officer arrested a man for criminal trespassing. During the arrest, the officer found a bag of marijuana in his possession.

The man was charged with possession of marijuana.

something and then stole a six-pack of beer and fled the store.

The crime was recorded on video and the suspect identified. Charges were filed with the State’s Attorney.

Feb. 3 Caller reported she had fallen and needed help getting up.

An officer responded and helped the woman get on her feet.

Feb. 4 An officer found three people helping a fourth walk down the sidewalk.

All four were underage and drunk.

The group was cited for underage drinking.

Feb. 3 A business reported that a man fled the store after presenting a fake identification.

Officers were unable to locate the suspect.

Feb. 4 VPD officers assisted UPD officers with a marijuana consumption investigation.

Feb. 4 Caller reported her neighbor was extremely upset and crying, and running into walls.

Officers reached the woman, who was awake but unresponsive. They arranged medical care for the woman.

Feb. 4 A caller requested assistance with a neighbor who had pounded on his wall in the early morning hours.

Officers spoke with both parties and arranged for the two to meet and resolve any hard feelings.

SGA gives 87 percent of GAF to athletics Chance Mullinix

Chance.Mullinix@coyotes.usd.edu

The Student Government Association passed Senate Resolution 20 Tuesday Night, which allocates 87 percent of new funds raised by the GAF to the athletic department.

The controversial resolution needed a majority vote of 13 in favor and received 15. Nine senators voted against the resolution.

SGA added rules to discussion to keep the night short, but senators didn’t adjourn until 9 p.m. Students could only talk once and senators could only speak for thirty seconds.

Student discussion lasted more than an hour, with students on both sides giving their perspectives.

“Athletics was last on the list when (SGA) was deciding where funds would be allocated to,” said USD swimmer Bryce Fehringer.

“Instead of thinking of 87 percent going to one organization, think of it going to different smaller parts in athletics.”

Several students disagreed with Fehringer and those who shared his views.

“It’s not fair and it’s not a deal for USD students,” said

The Volante

COYOTE History 1918 Chance Mullinix I The Volante

SGA approved Senate Resolution 20 on Tuesday, giving 87 percent of the recent GAF increase to the athletic department. Students on both sides of the issue argued for more than an hour before the vote took place.

Brady Carroll, a student in attendance. “Student comes first, so support the students, not just the athletes.”

Some students disagreed that only athletics would benefit from the money.

USD swimmer Berkley Nowlan said athletes help bring recognition to the university, and that in turn helps other departments.

“I want people to realize that us student-athletes

represent the Coyote family everywhere we go,” Nowlan said. “It brings support, the funding that we need. This 87 percent goes a long way.

In the long run, this money will help fund the fine arts.”

Nathan Stockfleth, another student at Tuesday night’s meeting, argued that athletics gets much more support from donations than other organizations.

“I don’t know of any other

academic department that has something quite like a booster club, per se, that (the athletic department) draws money from,” he said.

“I guarantee you if asked 100 students at random if this was a good idea, a majority is probably going to say no.”

Other Items SGA also passed Resolution 21, which supports equal pay for equal work in

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the Summit League. Referees at women’s basketball games get paid less than referees at men’s basketball games.

Resolution 22 was also passed, which gives new water fountains to buildings around campus. Buildings affected include the Warren M. Lee Center for Fine Arts, Patterson Hall and North Complex.

The Volante disclaims all liability for any damage suffered as the result of any

advertisement in this newspaper. The Volante reserves the right to refuse any advertising.

Chance Mullinix news assistant

With the Great War raging on, registration of Germans not naturalized was required. Germans were to be photographed, fingerprinted and questioned about familial ties to the Kaiser.

1984 Yankton’s Sacred Heart Hospital issued a warning about paper tattoos called “Blue Star” laced with LSD. The warning was directed towards parents, as the tattoos were colorful and some featured Disney characters.

Ryne Myers opinion editor Cheyenne Alexis verve editor Devin Martin verve presentation editor Morgan Matzen verve assistant Dustin VanHunnik sports editor Clay Conover sports presentation editor Taylor Kidd visual assistant

Wednesday, February 8, 2017 A3 News Curbside Recycling program sees 34 percent increase in tons The Volante I volanteonline.com

By Mason Dockter

Mason.Dockter@coyotes.usd.edu

Vermillion’s Curbside Recycling program had a good year in 2016, processing a total of 34 percent more tons of recyclables since the beginning of the program in 2010.

Bob Iverson, Vermillion’s solid waste director, said the recycling program saw 360,000 pounds of total recyclables in 2016, compared to 268,000 pounds in 2011. For the most part, he said people have gotten more and more accustomed to the program, which has resulted in them recycling more.

Vermillion residents, whether they use the recycling service or not, pay $3.50 per month to support the recycling program.

“Not everybody uses it, even though they’re charged (for) it,” Iverson said.

“Everybody pays for it.”

Junior biology major Katie Leonard takes advantage of this program. She said she believes that it’s fairly convenient.

“All we have to do is set our stuff outside, and then they come and take it for us, so it’s pretty nice,” Leonard said.

Leonard said she became a regular recycler last summer, even though she didn’t come from a recycling background.

“I didn’t really think of it before I came to college, because my family didn’t really do it, but I’m a bio major, and I know a lot of sustainability people as well,” Leonard said. “And they just kind of showed me that kind of stuff.”

There are 2,450 house-

holds in Vermillion currently using the service. The program picks up recycling from about 660 of those customers on a weekly basis.

The recycled materials, Iverson said, are shipped to Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Missouri and Ohio for a variety of end purposes. Recycled plastic often becomes carpeting, while cardboard is re-processed into new cardboard and glass is made into bottles and fiberglass insulation.

Iverson said Vermillion residents have generally been enthusiastic supporters of the recycling program.

“The people of Vermillion are good recyclers,” Iverson said.

Vermillion city manager John Prescott said the city’s curbside recycling seems to do better and better every year.

“Each year we’ve had it, we’ve pretty much seen an increase in volume that’s collected,” Prescott said.

That may be due, in part, to the fact that residents like being able to recycle – the groundwork for Vermillion’s curbside recycling was laid by community members who wanted a recycling program.

“It was driven by community interest in having curbside recycling,” Prescott said.

The system used by Curbside Recycling involves two bins, one for waste paper and another for cans and bottles. The simplicity of this was intentional so residents don’t have to do as much sorting.

“I think we’ve set up a program that’s fairly easy for

Taylor Kidd I The Volante

Vermillion’s Curbside Recycling program saw 34 percent more total weight recycled in 2016 versus the start of the program six years ago. residents to participate in,” Prescott said.

Prescott said the city is happy with curbside recycling, though he added there is always room for improvement.

“We’re very pleased with it,” Prescott said. “Obviously, we’d like to see more product, I mean there’s obviously some households that aren’t participating, there’s materials that we see going to the landfill that could have been recycled. We’d like to

Mason Dockter I The Volante

see increased participation,

Paper recycled by Vermillion’s Curbside Recycling program goes on to be

but we’re happy with the

re-processed into new paper, as does cardboard. Recycled plastic may become carpeting, while glass becomes bottles or fiberglass insulation.

participation by the public.”

Museum declared owner of disputed Elvis guitar Mason Dockter

Mason.Dockter@coyotes.usd.edu

Mason Dockter I The Volante

The National Music Museum recently won a legal battle over ownership over a guitar that was played and damaged by Elvis Presley and given away to a fan.

The damage is visible in the bottom right hand portion of the guitar body.

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After several years of being passed around and fought over, one of Elvis Presleys’ guitars has been declared the property of the National Music Museum, fair and square.

Elvis threw the Martin D-35 guitar off stage during a concert in St.Petersburg, Fla. in February of 1977. It ended up in the hands of an audience member, Kathy Waldorp, who was given the damaged guitar by the King, said Arian Sheets, curator of stringed instruments at the National Music Museum.

“He (Elvis) decided to do a kind of cute thing, and offer it to a member of the audience as a gift, and so that’s how it survived,” Sheets said. “And that’s part of how we can document it as an authentic guitar, because there are pictures in the media from the time, showing the instrument, showing the damage, so it’s really easily verifiable.”

Seven months after giving away the damaged guitar, Elvis was dead. The guitar, however, lived on, and made its way through Kathy

HEALTH From Page A1

young individuals when we’re kind of healthier in our life.”

South-Winter said she talks about the repeal process a lot in her courses.

“The day after the election, I went to my classes and there were (mixed reactions) but I think for the most part they were concerned about their future as health administrators,” she said. “I told the class that it doesn’t matter what you feel about this politically, because it did take eight years to put ACA into place, and it’s going to take at least that long to unravel this and put something else in place.”

Because her students are going into health administration, South-Winter said this appeal will be good for them.

“It’s great job security for them regardless of your

Waldorp into the hands of collectors – and in 2013, into the possession of the National Music Museum in Vermillion, becoming the sole Elvis-related instrument in the museum’s collection.

Not long after the Museum acquired the guitar, however, a man came forward to claim that the guitar was rightfully his.

“It was just a short time after the guitar was here, that an individual from Memphis appeared and made a competing claim of having owned the instrument,” said Cleveland Johnson, director of the National Music Museum.

The man was Larry Moss, who claimed that some years before, he had paid Robert Johnson for part ownership of the guitar. Moss said in court that Johnson, who donated the guitar to the museum as part of a package deal involving another guitar the museum paid for, had no right to give the guitar away.

“We saw the writing on the wall that individual, who claimed to own the guitar, would probably sue

personal opinion of it,” she said. “Our work, it’s good for us, whether you like the policy you’re enforcing or not. It’s good for this field.”

South-Winter said not many students are aware of existing healthcare policies, even ones that affect them.

“I don’t think that my students know that they’re on their parents’ health insurance. Unless they’re in my class, I don’t think they know that it was a part of the ACA,” she said.

“To them, they were 10 years old – who’s paying attention to health care when they’re 10 years old?

They’re not understanding that this can be pulled out from underneath them.”

Hensley said that, while the ACA has its flaws, it’s still “one of the biggest pieces of legislation that’s ever been passed on healthcare reform in the past few decades.”

“My overall view on it is that it’s kind of status

for the guitar to be returned to him,” Johnson said. “We preemptively filed ourselves against him, to assert our ownership – and that gave us a little more control over the process.”

Ultimately, the case made its way to a federal court in Sioux Falls. Several associates of the National Music Museum, including Sheets, were required to give depositions during the trial.

Judge Karen Schreier eventually decided that Moss’ claim to ownership of the guitar was debatable.

Sheets said she was glad the guitar would be securely in the museum’s possession for the foreseeable future.

“Obviously I feel tremendous relief, because it really is a very evocative instrument,” Sheets said.

This guitar is special, Johnson said, because unlike many other instruments with dubious connections to famous people, there’s no doubt that the guitar was played by Elvis.

“The reason the Elvis (guitar) was so important to us was because it did have a real part, and play a real quo with what we’ve done in the past,” he said. “It’s the nature of our politics; we’re a bipartisan politics system where there’s always a winner and a loser. No matter who you support, when the winner is in charge, they’re going to want to put in their own legislation. We have a cobbled mess that doesn’t necessarily function the way we want it to.”

True healthcare reform, South-Winter said, might only happen as a result of education reform.

“Healthcare is one of the most complicated businesses there is. It’s confusing to the general public, and I believe that’s purposeful,” she said. “We always talk about changing our healthcare system, and we can’t change our healthcare systems until we change our educational system. We need educational reform and healthcare reform.”

Liveringhouse said the

part in his performing life,” Johnson said.

Sheets said many people find the Elvis guitar extraordinary because of its relation to the King – which gives it a personal connection.

“For a lot of people, thinking of somebody that they know, a celebrity, somebody whose music they’ve listened to, and then seeing an instrument that was actually held and played by that person helps them create a connection with the objects, and they can say, ‘Oh, my Gosh, Elvis played this, Elvis used it,’” Sheets said.

Despite all the frustrations the guitar’s disputed ownership has caused, Johnson said in the end, it was all worth it.

“We feel it was worth the expense, and certainly worth, a couple or three years of headaches, of working through the legal process to defend the guitar,” Johnson said. “Because, ultimately it stays here at the university, and I think we should all be proud that it’s here.”

ACA was good in theory, but executed incorrectly.

“I think we talk about it in class a lot, like the intentions of it were always very good, but sometimes the way they kind of went about it wasn’t necessarily agreeable among all people,” she said.

Hensley said students should take healthcare into their own hands and be engaged in the caring for themselves.

“One of the biggest things I’ve seen is, a lot of times we do a lot of reactive care instead of proactive care. A lot of times, we’ll let our symptoms go untreated for so long,” he said. “Educate yourself on the facts, educate yourself on what’s actually going on and don’t just take the status quo. Research it because that’s kind of what got us into this in the first place.”

Opinion

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2017

THE VOLANTE

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Diversity leads to excellence in college

VOLANTE EDITORIAL

MIKI KENNERLY is a sophomore majoring in media & journalism

File Photo I The Volante

Fuding for all buildings on campus should be equal in priority.

Updated facilities result in better education This university has some amazing buildings, including the Sanford Coyote Sports Center, Muenster University Center and Beacom School of Business.

There’s also the Sanford School of Medicine – it’s a gorgeous structure that adorns USD’s campus. Across the street from it is Julian Hall, which looks, well, less gorgeous.

Julian Hall is home to the departments of addiction studies, nursing and social work.

There are a few other spots around campus that stick out as lessthan-appealing as well.

Old Main, campus’ pride, was rebuilt after the 1893 fire and again renovated from 1993

to 1997, according to USD’s website. While it’s beautiful on the outside, the inside is cramped, which could prove to be a safety hazard if something – like another fire – happens.

The Akeley-Lawrence Science Center could also use some work. From unreliable heating and cooling systems to the lingering smell of gas, it’s clear the building could use some improvements.

While USD’s long and rich history is important to the overall feel of campus, there should be more consistency regarding renovations among buildings.

According to a 2015 Volante story, Julian Hall, which was built in 1950, is set to be torn down

in 2019. The article also states that a facilities management storage building is consistently ranked the “most seriously inadequate” by the South Dakota Board of Regents.

If it would only cost roughly $750,000 to demolish Julian Hall, why is that not a priority?

Understandably, it’s harder to fundraise for tearing down a building than to improve one. But compared to the potential $30 million renovations being planned for the DakotaDome (see Page A1), a mere $750,000 seems more than doable.

While the need to renovate athletic offices is understandable, there are many other faculty

members on campus whose offices haven’t had updates in quite some time.

Though students would certainly enjoy new seating in the Dome, would that amenity outweigh the benefits of updated classrooms and faculty spaces?

With better facilities comes better learning. It’s difficult to concentrate in the face of stifling heat, creaky stairs and limited elbow room.

The university should make fundraising for projects across campus equal in priority to projects related to athletics.

Valentine’s Day is a bogus holiday RYNE MYERS is a first-year majoring in media & journalism

The average Midwesterner will spend $119 on Valentine’s Day, according to USA Today.

Valentine’s Day is one day a year when significant others feel obligated to get and go out. If it’s an obligation – it means nothing.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s nice that they took the time to get flowers and whatnot, but why on Feb. 14 instead of a random day in April?

It’s a kinder gesture to do something spontaneous, and trust me, I’m going to remember that more than Valentine’s Day. Valentine was a priest who married young lovers against the Emperor’s wishes. Because of this, he was killed. So we celebrate a bogus “holiday” based on a guy who married young people.

Not only that, but there was the St. Valentine’s Day

Massacre in which seven men were shot to death in a mob-related murder.

So congratulations, we’re actually celebrating eight deaths by giving folks flowers.

I’ve always brushed this holiday off. Don’t get me wrong here, it’s nice that someone likes you enough to do something, but why just one day a year? It makes no sense.

My friend Justin calls Valentine’s Day “unattached drifter Christmas.”

But I just think it’s absolutely silly that this

The Volante THE STUDENTS’ VOICE SINCE 1887

EDITORIAL BOARD Ally Krupinsky, editor-in-chief

Cheyenne Alexis, verve editor

Rachel Newville, managing editor

Dustin VanHunnik, sports editor

Ryne Myers, opinion editor

CONTACT US The Volante welcomes letters to the editor in regards to campus, local, state and national issues. Letters will be edited for clarity and length and will be printed as space allows. Please limit letters to 300 words or fewer. The Volante reserves the right to hold letters for publication in a later issue.

Submissions must include the author’s name, address, telephone number, year in school and major or job title. Letters must be exclusively for The Volante.

We will not publish anonymous letters.

Send letters to: Letters, The Volante Al Neuharth Media Center 555 Dakota St. Vermillion, S.D. 57069 Fax to: 605.677.5105 E-mail to: Volante@coyotes.usd.edu Via our Web site: VolanteOnline.com The deadline for letters is 5 p.m. the Friday prior to publication.

Letters must be typed and fewer than 300 words.

country celebrates the people we love by giving them flowers and things like that.

This life is too short to be celebrating the people we love once a year (twice counting anniversaries).

We should be celebrating our partners every day, regardless of the societal trends.

Myers is a member of College Democrats, Coyote Crazies and CRU.

OVERHEARDS Here you’ll find the weirdest, funniest and stupidest things we’ve heard during the week. Context is for suckers.

“Finish your Twinkie!”

The benefits of having a diverse amount of students attend a college are astronomical, and USD is striving to include students of all backgrounds, religions and sexualities.

One particular reason I love attending USD is because of its commitment to promoting and devoting time to diversity and inclusiveness. The school recognizes that diversity will only enhance a student’s learning environment.

Additionally, USD has a strategic plan for diversity that will play out in years to come.

Their plan is composed of three distinct goals. Goal one is that USD will commit to a systematic, intentional, comprehensive and holistic approach to diversity and inclusive excellence. Faculty and staff will undergo leadership training that will allow them to excel in inclusive excellence.

Goal two is to integrate diversity and inclusive excellence into all areas of university life. The third goal is for USD to become a regional leader in initiatives and outreach for inclusive excellence and diversity.

“Diversity and inclusiveness, hallmarks of a twenty-first century institution of higher education, are essential elements of the University of South Dakota’s future,” the university states in its Diversity and Inclusiveness Statement.

Some may be confused about why diversity is necessary, and why the university has such a strong stance on it, but it’s important to remember that colleges help bring people from everywhere together. USD students can all identify as one – we are all Coyotes.

For some, college is their first opportunity to see people who are different from them.

I have several friends who have told me they can count those of different races who attended their high school on their fingers.

“

Coming to college is a beautiful change, and diversity is a huge part of that.

When we learn from others, we learn things we may have never considered before.

Talking with those who are different from us can help us get out of our own “bubble.”

It is necessary to surround ourselves with those who are different from us.

Diversity in college prepares students to be successful in their future endeavors.

Because of the steadily increasing diversity in our country, students must be prepared in their future jobs to be sensitive to others of different backgrounds, and to be familiar with their culture so it’s easier to relate to their coworkers.

By around 2020, “More than half of the nation’s children are expected to be part of a minority race or ethnic group,” according to an NPR article.

Diversity will increase students’ ability to think creatively.

In future careers, it will be mutually advantageous to both students and their coworkers if they’re able to voice their opinions using not only their views, but the worldviews of others.

Coming to college is a beautiful change, and diversity is a huge part of that.

In The Know & In The Dark IN THE KNOW: It’s Alpha Phi’s “Go Red Week.”

IN THE DARK: Every day is red here at USD.

— Sanford Coyote Sports Center

“Twerk, twerk, twerk, twerk.”

— Al Neuharth Media Center

“My life is a party.”

— Al Neuharth Media Center

“If the 50’s was a building, it would be Patterson.”

— Volante Newsroom

IN THE K NOW: The DakotaDome is nearing its 38th birthday.

IN THE DARK: Proposed renovations for the building could cost about $30 million.

IN THE K NOW: The MUC is having a ‘90’s party on Feb. 9.

IN THE DARK: We’re going to start talking about the “good ‘ole days.”

IN THE K NOW: T-Pain will be performing in the DakotaDome this Saturday.

IN THE DARK: UPD will likely have their hands full.

The Volante I volanteonline.com

Opinion

Wednesday, February 8, 2017 A5

Guest column: Why GAF increase was right to pass NATHANIEL STEINLICHT is SGA’s president While some would like you to believe that a General Activity Fee (GAF) increase shouldn’t happen, they make that claim without stating the consequences of an increase not passing.

Not increasing the GAF would result in student organizations receiving less money, the College of Fine Arts would receive no money to enrich the campus through visiting artists and music programs and the Center for Diversity and Community (CDC) would have its programing budget decreased by almost $7,000.

Not increasing the GAF will hurt USD. Before I tell you more about the allocation your Student Government Association senators are currently discussing, let me explain to you what GAF is.

GAF is a per-credit fee all students taking a physical class at USD pay.

The money generated from the fee is used in a variety of ways to benefit the entire student body, from financing the Wellness Center to funding organizations like the SGA and services such as the Center for Diversity and Community.

It also funds a small portion, approximately 15 percent, of the athletics department’s budget, most of which goes to improving the quality of the games for students. It’s not used for scholarships or classroom renovations.

Students decide where the money goes.

The money is allocated by a committee of four students, two faculty members, and the Dean of Students. No action is taken without a majority of the students

present. The committee holds hearings for all requests for funds and allocates the money to the programs based on those requests.

Once the committee has allocated all the money, it’s sent to SGA for approval.

SGA then discusses the nearly $8 million allocation and votes on a recommendation to send to President James Abbott, who considers the allocation recommendation with primary concern for the welfare of USD’s students.

Students have their voices heard at every step of the process.

Now, where is the money going?

The College of Fine Arts asked for funds for visiting artists and to cover the rising cost of music, travel and instrument repair. Although these requests weren’t funded completely, the amount given is enough to cover four visiting artists next year and the inflation’s effect on the fine art’s budget.

SGA also asked for increased funds from the GAF to increase funding to student organizations and to also promote new sustainability and campus safety initiatives it has taken up.

Finally, you may have heard that much of the GAF goes to athletics, but only one third of GAF revenues go to athletics.

Even more importantly, while athletics requested more funds for next year, the GAF Committee cut $50,000 from their request, most of which would have gone to enhancing coaches’ salaries.

These and all of the other requests have been carefully considered by the GAF committee to produce the recommendation SGA is currently discussing.

It’s a compromise that gets everyone what they need, and everyone at USD will be better off if it’s approved.

Submitted Photo I The Volante

The Refugee-Student sponsorship program at Bishop’s University in Sherbrooke, Quebec, sets an example of prioritizing the rights and safety of refugees.

Candidly Canada: Support Syrian refugees ALLIE KNOFCYNSKI is a junior majoring in media & journalism

Although many students find their “home away from home” at college, many people don’t have any home to call their own.

This trend is increasing tremendously with the ongoing Syrian crisis, as crowds of people leave their homelands to wherever they can.

While many countries have welcomed and encouraged Syrian refugees into their borders, other countries have been less than welcoming. According to CNN, Trump’s executive order bars citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the United States for the next 90 days and suspends the admission of all refugees for 120 days.

U.S. District Judge James Robart from Washington has ruled against the travel ban. This decision has led to legal battles across the country, with the Muslim ban still gravely looming. Although President Trump is still firm on his stance, the final outcome is unknown.

On a more peaceful end, the Canadian government under Prime

Minister Justin Trudeau has shown understanding for those in need. He took to Twitter, just as another world leader is notoriously known for doing, to ensure that all refugees that America might reject are more than welcome in Canada, as reported

by Canadian news outlet iPolitics.

Outside the realm of government, each North American country contains a population of people unafraid to stand up for their beliefs.

This global crisis should be no different, and the best place to start is in education. College campuses, Canadian or American, can play crucial roles in how the general public views refugees.

At Bishop’s University, a Refugee-Student sponsorship project receives a small dollar amount from students’ compulsory fees to help refugees study and live on campus. As the group’s website states, protecting refugees is both a responsibility and a privilege.

Refugees are forced to leave their home countries because of serious human rights abuses. They have a well-founded fear of persecution and therefore cannot return to their countries. They didn’t make that choice for themselves.

In countries created on a foundation of diversity

and immigration, offering these people a safe place to live makes sense.

Bishop’s isn’t the only campus offering services to house refugees. Even American universities like Guilford College in Greensboro, North Carolina, have begun a campaign titled “Every Campus a Refuge” in an effort to call every campus to house, mentor and support a Syrian family in transition.

Professor Diya Abdo told the Washington Post that college campuses, with their housing, cafeterias, health clinics and plethora of other social, academic and human resources, are natural conduits for refugees into their new life.

Additionally, since many Syrian refugees are young adults, their opportunities to further their education take a back seat to the crisis at hand. The Institute of International Education states that more than 100,000 Syrian refugees are university-qualified students.

A lack of quality education and hope for future social mobility for young refugees is a risk factor in terms of security and stability, since a young generation without hopes for social mobility and employment is at risk of exclusion and radicalization.

Access to education is a basic human right,

and higher education is a means of achieving stability, work and making a living.

The funding required to support Syrian refugees is limited compared to its growing demand.

Universities must make the crisis a priority when considering their budgets and fees for students. The Syrian cause is one of global proportions.

If every North American campus supported just one Syrian refugee, the impact would be astounding.

Every country with a higher education fortunate enough to do so bears some of the burden of supporting refugees. The need will continue to rise if key countries ignore it.

Human rights matter.

The place to begin teaching that is the classroom.

If you’re a USD student traveling abroad and would like to contribute to The Volante, please contact us at volante@usd.edu.

Executive orders come at expensive price DEREK CHANCELLOR is a master’s student obtaining an MPA

USD students should be grateful for MUC food.

File Photo I The Volante

The good stuff: Grateful for MUC food JORDAN SMITH is a sophomore majoring in political science

Plenty of people like to rag on the food in the MUC. I personally think it’s consistently fine. Still, there’s always at least something available, and I think we should all resolve to focusing on the good parts of a meal as much as we can.

Maybe I just feel this way because I’ve been in a sentimental mood recently. Last week I watched my grandfather’s funeral, and that got me thinking about the many magical memories I shared with him.

Like many South Dakota families, a large portion of these memories included food, almost exclusively in oversize quantities. In my stroll down memory lane, I came to a realization.

Almost every meal I can remember with him, he said it was the “best (insert foodstuff here)” he had ever had.

Whether it was a cup of Folgers he brewed at home, some boxed lasagna at a church supper or even lutafisk, at least some

“

But for the time being, maybe we need to take a bite of that garlic bread stick, and think it’s the best we ever had.

component was the best he ever had.

Obviously none of that was health food.

I’d actually say he had something of a vendetta against healthy eating.

Most of the food we eat here isn’t that healthy, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to ruin us in the short term. He took pride in not eating any of that “hippy garbage,” and he made it to 85 with multiple bouts of cancer.

So maybe a student’s qualm isn’t with the health side of food, and nourishment isn’t all that big a deal to someone who’s accustomed to Ramon and easy Macand-Cheese. It should be, but maybe they’re more concerned with the quality

of taste. Fair enough. But remember, anyone reading this column is most likely a college student. And that means my audience is likely of certain financial means.

A good portion of us are already in debt, and that amount is only growing.

We need to feel some gratitude that we have food to put in our mouths.

By no means should we not advocate for better food, especially on the axis of nutrition.

But for the time being, maybe we need to take a bite of that garlic bread stick, and think it’s the best we ever had.

Smith is a member of College Democrats and the Political Science League.

Few today understand that America is actually not a democracy but, instead, a constitutional republic, based on the idea of representative democracy at its inception. The system our founders established truly is the best of both worlds – a perfect compromise between a direct democracy and a political dictatorship.

Our country’s founders wanted to avoid the results of a majority winning in every instance throughout history.

Often, the majority of a population agrees upon a particular set of beliefs.

This doesn’t necessarily mean this particular set of beliefs is the smartest or most accurately necessary, by any means. In fact, it’s often the actions and beliefs of the noble few that catalyze the prevailing of logic. History has proven this time and again.

Further, our founders’ deepest, most personally relatable fear at the time of our new government’s formation was an eventual regression toward a dictatorship. From our Founding Fathers’ perspectives, the wrath of a tyrant was epitomized in the form of King George.

This was to be avoided at all costs with the creation of a new nation and its rules for government.

The concept of a separation of powers dictates that the legislative branch makes the laws

of this country, the executive branch implements these laws and the judicial branch oversees them.

Within the first few days of his presidency, however, Donald Trump has been making laws at record pace. In fact, President Trump is on pace to issue more executive orders than nearly every U.S. president before him.

But is such action constitutional?

Executive orders derive from Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution, more colloquially known as the “Necessary and Proper” clause. According to the Tenth Amendment Center, a national think tank that advocates for the study and exploration of state and individual sovereignty issues, “It has been a precedent for a president to issue executive orders that he deems to be necessary and proper.”

It’s reserved within the role of the Supreme Court to decide whether or not an executive action is constitutional.

Further, this decision is based not on the amount of executive action, but on the type of action taken. In other words, it would matter more what specifically targeted issuance is ordered than how many different issuances were ordered.

President Obama issued a considerable amount of executive orders during his presidency, but the powers of the executive have been consistently expanding since Washington, most evidently during FDR’s administration.

Obama was definitely no exception to executive action, but neither is Trump.

Over the past few weeks, I have personally witnessed many advocates of Trump’s presidency laud the president’s various decreed executive actions and call out former Obama advocates as hypocrites for dissenting. All the while, the powers of the executive, a single individual in an office, are being expanded exponentially.

The fact of the matter is, executive orders, no matter what ideological direction, come with the expensive price of established precedent.

Hypocrisy, in this instance, is a two-way street.

It can be argued that many of President Trump’s executive actions are necessary, and proper – as was the case for many of President Obama’s – but at what cost? The loss of our system of separation of powers and a devolution of our republic toward a dictatorship, that’s what.

I just hope for our system of checks and balances to swoop in and salvage the accumulation of damage that has been done to our foundationally established separation of powers.

For the sake of our great republic, I desperately hope it so.

Chancellor is a member of College Republicans.

A6 Wednesday, February 8, 2017

News

The Volante I volanteonline.com

New Vermillion pool to be named by residents Mason Dockter

Mason.Dockter@coyotes.usd.edu

To thank the community for their support of the new swimming pool complex in Prentis Park, the city has decided to give naming rights to the people in the form of a contest.

James Goblirsch, director of Vermillion’s Parks and Recreation department, said the citizens of Vermillion deserve a chance to make their mark on the facility.

“Our thought was, since the people voted on it, and it’s going to be the peoples’ pool, let’s give them an opportunity to have a chance to name it,” Goblirsch said.

“It’s another way to get the citizens involved and have a part ownership in it.”

The contest is being conducted through a website, and paper submissions can be submitted at the Vermillion’s city hall and public library.

“We’re going to narrow it down to four names that are appropriate, and then we’re going to

Mason Dockter I The Volante

The city of Vermillion is asking residents to name the new city pool. Construction of the pool will take another three to four months. put that back out and do a final four vote for a week, where people then can vote on the final four names that have been selected,” Goblirsch said.

Goblirsch said the city

has already received around 40 to 50 name submissions online, as well as about a dozen paper entries.

“We know we’re probably going to get a few

off-color ones, or inappropriate names in there, and we’re going to look at them and disregard them,” Goblirsch said.

The other rule is that the pool won’t be named

SGA hopefuls are gathering signatures as elections approach Rachel Newville

Rachel.Newville@coyotes.usd.edu

Student Government Association elections are fast approaching, with less than a month until voting opens.

Leading up until Feb. 28, students will see more and more SGA senators and hopeful senators petitioning and campaigning to get seats.

According to the SGA website, the organization serves as a bridge between the students and the South Dakota Board of Regents, among other purposes.

“SGA is responsible for allocating money to student organizations each year to provide cultural, recreational, educational and social opportunities outside of the classroom,” the website adds.

There are currently 25 senators serving the student body.

Epiphany Knedler, a fine arts representative since March 2016 and a former Volante staffer, said her experience being elected to represent a college was fairly straightforward.

“As a college senator, I first had to declare my candidacy with a petition,” she said. “I had to get a certain number of signatures based on the population of the school I was representing – for the fine arts it was around 30.”

There are strict rules governing how SGA hopefuls may conduct their campaigns. Knedler said she was able to successfully orchestrate her campaign within the confines of SGA rules.

“As a senator we are not allowed to spend money on

BAN

From Page A1 and helped hear from some experts in the field,” he said.

One of those experts was Henry Evans, an immigration attorney based in Sioux Falls who has been practicing law since 1996. His best advice for students and all those concerned was to stay in the U.S. “As long as [non-citizens] stay in the U.S., there will be no impact at all,” Evans said. “Stay here and don’t obtain any criminal convictions. Study hard and enjoy college.”

Roma Trivedi, a sophomore finance major from Kenya, said she was worried for her peers.

“There are changes in current visas, how are they going to affect internation-

our campaign, so I could only campaign by word of mouth,” Knedler said. “This was fairly easy since I know many students in each of the departments in the college. Since it is a small college, there is only one spot for representation. Halfway through the campaign my only opponent dropped out so I ran unopposed. I was successful and began my term in March.”

Depending on the college, students running for a senate seat have to get a designated number of signatures from people in their respective college and return the petitions to the SGA office by 5 p.m. on Feb. 14.

Once the petitions are turned in, the candidate is put on the ballot. Voting on myUSDportal opens Feb. 28 and ends March 1 at 5 p.m.

First-year business major Dane La Fleur said while he wasn’t overly familiar with SGA, he realizes the organization’s importance on campus.

“Yeah, I think it’s important, because they fund all the groups on campus,” he said.

Sophomore psychology major Leah Pechacek and fellow sophomore Kinesiology major Katie Eining weren’t exactly sure what SGA’s purpose was.

“Right now I personally don’t care and don’t really know what they do,” Pechacek said.

“I’ve seen stuff on the tables, but just never taken the time to learn what they do,” Eining said in agreement.

Knedler said she thinks al students? It just concerns me what will happen to students,” she said. “They are here to study, get an education and go back.”

Miyuraj Harishchandra, a biology Ph.D. student from Sri Lanka, said he’s concerned for his family back home. He decided that he was going to wait longer than expected to return home from the U.S., for fear that the ban might spread to Sri Lanka, and that he might not be able to make it back in or out.

“I was planning to go back home in the summer, but I have changed my plans because I don’t want any hassle when I come back,” he said.

“If I return, then I would have to wait. I think I will wait three years now. I have grandmas who are waiting for me to be there. Time passes and I don’t want them to die when I go.”

Fawwad Hussain, a computer science graduate stu-

Taylor Kidd I The Volante

Petitions of SGA senator hopefuls will be turned

in to the SGA office on Feb. 14. Voting opens Feb. 28. not enough students are informed about the SGA election process.

“I think there is definitely more to be done to educate students in electing senators,” she said. “I was aware of the process because I had an interest in government, but many students do not know how students are elected or when they can vote. I believe this past election saw a voter turnout in the teens, which is very low.

The rules set forward by

SGA itself may be a stumbling block for students who would like to be involved but find the process daunting, Knedler said.

“I think more could be done if the regulations were to be changed, for example being able to do anything besides word of mouth,” she said. “Otherwise, administration should be aware of how the process works so they can continue to educate students as there is constant student turnover.”

after any living or deceased person. Goblirsch said the thought behind this policy is that people often want to name facilities in honor of someone who has recently died, without considering whether or not it actually makes sense to use the person’s name.

“We didn’t want to go that route,” Goblirsch said. “The city kind of stays away from that.”

Other than not naming the pool after any person and not accepting any obscene suggestions, Goblirsch said there are few parameters for what names may be accepted.

“We’re just looking for a fun name for the pool,” Goblirsch said.

The winner of the contest may get more than the glory of naming rights – Goblirsch said that whoever comes up with the name, as long as they’re not anonymous, will be offered a free season pass.

The pool itself, which is set to cost approximately $5.3 million dollars, is faced with three

DOME From Page A1

sion stands.

Other improvements would include modernizing mechanical and electrical systems and improving the lighting and sound system in the Dome.

Additionally, the practice fields north of the Dome would be replaced with a turf surface, which would make the field more manageable and could be played on later in the fall and sooner in the spring.

The second phase would involve completion of the mezzanine behind the student section. The third phase would be to add upper seating and to remodel the outside of the Dome, including the HVAC systems and the lighting in the outside fields.

If there are no hiccups in the approval process and funding, Herbster says renovations would begin in 2018 after the football season.

Junior Dennis Carlson said he’s receptive to the planned renovations.

“I think having all the needed facilities in one place will help teams plan and perform for games,” he said. “The new seats would definitely be more comfortable for students to cheer on the Coyotes.”

Junior Gawain Williams is a track and field athlete and wondered about the impact on track and field events.

“It would make the Dome look much more professional,” he said.

“In the current stadium, they have to roll away the (football field) so fans can see some of the

Morgan Matzen I The Volante

A crowd of USD students, faculty and community members gathered for a

forum hosted by the CDC on Trump’s executive order banning travel from several Middle Eastern countries.

dent from Pakistan, was critical of the ban and said he wanted to understand the changes that would be put into place, either permanently or temporarily. “[The ban] is very inhuman,” he said. “The people

that are coming for higher education do not want to be banned and having all these issues with immigration. There should be some change in the policy so that students can attend universities wherever they want

to go so they have some basic rights.”

Schorn saw a similar lack of compassion with Trump’s ban. He noted that the U.S. does not allow refugees to enter at this time. “[The ban] makes us look

to four more months of construction before opening to the public, Goblirsch said.

Elijah Bonde, tourism and marketing coordinator for the Vermillion Chamber and Development Company (VCDC), said people in town are enthusiastic about being able to be part of the pool planning process.

“I think people are definitely excited about the opportunity to be able to engage with the new pool concept, and with the park,” Bonde said.

The joy of having a brand-new pool itself, however, may be what people are most thrilled about.

“It’s one of those things the community is really looking forward to,” Bonde said. “I think the community is really excited for that, especially a lot of the kids in town.”

Entries for the contest were due Feb. 6. The voting on the final four will begin next week.

events. I want to know if the renovations would impact that.”

Williams said he likes the plan to add a mezzanine.

“Right now, students have to go underneath the stands to buy food or drinks,” he said. “I don’t like having to go to the floor to use the restroom or get a bite to eat.”

In an email, Herbster stated the renovations are still in the conceptual stage.

“We have not taken anything forward to the Board of Regents for approval and won’t until we have enough financial commitment from donors to do so,” he said.

USD President James Abbott said completion of phase one would cost $30 million. In contrast, the SCSC cost $66 million to complete, according to USD’s website.

“We want to replace the bleachers with permanent seats and put in a new locker room for the football team,” Abbott said. “We couldn’t replace the seats and do the locker room after, they would have to be at the same time.”

Abbott says he’s primarily focused on fundraising and not so much the planning of the renovations. He thinks the new seats will make students happy.

“The students will certainly be a lot more comfortable,” he said.

“They’re not going to shake and wave. The seats will be good for the students and the locker room will be great for recruitment.” really selfish and unconcerned about humanitarian catastrophes like the civil war in Syria,” Schorn said. “The United States does significantly less than a lot of other industrialized countries and it is really based in selfishness and fear.”

Sellers clarified that although South Dakota doesn’t have any defined sanctuary cities, which are places that will not enforce immigration laws, USD will continue to uphold its policy of inclusive excellence.

“We will continue to embody inclusive excellence and be welcoming to students,” Sellers said. “We will continue to assist in any ways that we can and supporting our students that come from all over the world. We just don’t know what the future holds, but we will continue to be welcoming to all.”

Verve

Wednesday, February 8, 2017

THE VOLANTE

VOLANTEONLINE.COM/VERVE

Cheyenne Alexis I The Volante

Members of the African Student Association and the Union of African American Students gather in the MUC pit to kick off the celebration of Black History Month, which will have events throughout February.

USD Black History Month events to emphasize education, inclusiveness Cheyenne Alexis

Cheyenne.Alexis@coyotes.usd.edu

The “road of hope” is the theme for USD’s 2017 Black History Month events. A number of organizations have helped with planning, including the Union of African American Students, the USD Student Activities and other volunteers in the Center for Diversity and Community.

The kick off event began Feb. 1 in the Muenster University Center, with various mini exhibits featuring artwork and posters of historical black figures that showcased the many faces of African American culture.

Following that hour-long event was a presentation by visiting assistant professor Travis Letellier of the economics of “The Wizard of Oz.” Finally, the ending of the kick off event was the 1978 movie “The Wiz” starring actors such as Diana Ross and Michael Jackson.

Another event includes open mic night on Feb. 8, which Mar-

cus Destin, president of the Union of African American Students, said he’s most excited for. The event will be held in the CDC this year. “(It’s) an open opportunity for anyone to come and express themselves in any way, shape or form, whether that be painting, you just want to vocally express yourself, you just want to vent on a microphone, you can come and do that,” Destin said. “We just want to bring in a crowd and just get that space and that opportunity for people to come express themselves.”

There will also be a Bingo celebration Feb. 21 in the MUC and an event in March that explores the fine arts in black culture with various speakers and performers.

Destin said the entire month of January was a busy time setting up for February’s events, but he had quite a bit of help from people in the CDC. “It is a team thing,” he said. “We have the beautiful people who are always in the CDC, they help us,

they give us ideas. It’s just a family thing. I think that’s the best way to explain it.”

Intercultural program coordinator for student services Lena Tran helped organize the events for Black History Month. She said though Black History Month is celebrated in February, it doesn’t stop on the last day of the month.

“There’s a lot of history to be learned,” Tran said. “The message is that the celebration of Black History Month is that we are here and we value diversity and inclusive excellence practices and it doesn’t mean that you have to identify with a certain community in order to put on an event. I’m looking forward to a great month, but also the rest of the year.”

Destin said the Union of African American Students hopes to showcase the month as open events for everyone to join in.

“One of the things that has to be put in the air is that the Union of African American Students is

not just for African American students,” he said. “It’s not about being a group just for us. It’s about educating others as well as educating ourselves, as well, on the different cultures and heritages we have in our group. That way, if we’re educated, we’re no longer ignorant and we can go ahead and spread that awareness, spread the love, spread the joy and just be inclusive to everybody.”

Ti’Esha Jones, secretary of the Union of African American Students, said one of the biggest challenges was planning events that would attract an audience.

“Sure, it might tailor to the people in the group, but we’re already in the group. We want to reach out to students outside of our organization,” Jones said. “You have to tailor events so everyone’s having fun.”

Posters and collages of important black figures in history were set up in the MUC at the Black History Month kick-off event Feb. 1.

Destin said Black History Month is a time to educate people.

“I think it goes back to, when you think of the word ‘ignorant,’ you think of it as an insult. Most do. Ignorance is just not knowing,” Destin said. “I think it’s important to educate the people and it’s important to let them know what’s going on. We have to not only educate everybody else, but we have to let ourselves know the importance of being black and strong and independent and proud of our people instead of quiet when you think of cities like Vermillion.”

Jones said she’s most proud during Black History Month.

“Inclusive excellence is great, I’m all for it, but the first thing I think of when I think of Black History Month is black excellence,” she said. “Just in general, I feel like often black people are talked about in a See MONTH, Page B2

Love is in the air for USD couples Cheyenne Alexis

Cheyenne.Alexis@coyotes.usd.edu

From students to faculty, USD couples are spending this Valentine’s Day in love. Balance, having common interests and communicating are important values to the couples featured below.

Lexi Beesley & Tommy Tran

Sophomore Lexi Beesley and junior Tommy Tran met when they were around 12. The couple didn’t start talking until they were in their early college years, however.

“The summer before my freshman year, I knew he was going (to USD) and he was one of the only people I personally knew that was going to be here,” Beesley said. “So, we started talking through school.”

The couple has been dating for around a year and seven months. Beesley said she initiated the relationship.

“After I saw Tommy at his parent’s (nail) salon, I was really interested in him,” she said. “We had grown up, we were practically adults at the time.”

Beesley and Tran said they like doing “geeky” things together, like “binge-watching Youtube videos,” playing video games, playing with their dog Luna, doing wedding videography and traveling together.

Tran said his favorite thing about Beesley is her independence and self-drive.

“She’s super self-motivated,” he said. “I think she makes the relationship more comfortable to be in.”

Beesley said her favorite thing about Tran is his optimism.

“Tommy is so positive sometimes it almost grosses me out,” she said. “Tommy never really gets negative or pessimistic at all. He’s always wanting to go the next step or challenge himself two times harder.”

A fond memory they share is during one of their first dates before they were an official couple they sat at a Taco Bell, talking

Morgan Matzen I The Volante

McGuire plays guitar and a cassette recorder to show his music style

Student musician to release debut album soon Morgan Matzen

Morgan.Matzen@coyotes.usd.edu

Cheyenne Alexis I The Volante

Three USD couples say communication, good balance and common

interests are important in maintaining healthy relationships. for hours.

“Then we just ended up sitting in her car and talked for a lot longer, too,” Tran said.

Beesley said the best way to remain in a healthy relationship is communication and being free of social media influence.

“If you have to debate whether or not to tell your significant other something for whatever reason... then you’re not in a rela-

tionship for the right reasons,” she said. “Spending real time together is important.”

Honesty and appreciating the little moments are the most imperative things in their relationship, Tran said.

“That’s what makes our relationship so strong,” Tran said. “We can literally sit down with each other, have a face-to-face converSee LOVE, Page B2

Lemmons guitarist, Blue Velvette band member, former sushi chef, first-year music major, Sioux Falls native, Beach Boys fan. These are just a few ways to describe Nic McGuire.

McGuire is working on their (preferred pronoun) own album under the name Pretty Boy. The name of their album hasn’t been released yet.

McGuire records all the tracks for the record in their dorm room in North Complex.

“I wrote a lot of music by myself and I always had a hard

time trying to find a way to get a group together, so I said, ‘Screw that, I’m just going to do it all by myself,’” McGuire said. “The album is coming out soon.”

Pretty Boy’s sound is created entirely by McGuire and their layering of guitar, bass, vocals, keys and sampling. They record on four-track cassette recorders.

“I use this crappy four-track cassette recorder and then when I’ve used all four tracks, I take the crappy cassette and I record onto the other four-track,” McGuire said.

See MUSIC, Page B2

Verve

B2 Wednesday, February 8, 2017

The Volante I volanteonline.com

MUSIC From Page B1

Lauren Soulek I The Volante

The Imagination Library offers donations to their website or by attending the event.

Third annual ‘Dolly Disco’ held to support child literacy Lauren Soulek

Lauren.Soulek@coyotes.usd.edu

The third annual Dolly Disco was filled with roller skating, Dolly Parton music and big, blonde wigs.

Held on Feb. 4, the event’s goal was to support childrens’ literacy through the United Way of Vermillion’s Imagination Library.

Imagination Library is a program started by Dolly Parton. According to the Imagination Library website, the singer started the program in 1995. In 2000, she announced the program would be available to any community willing to partner with her to support it locally.

It started in Tennessee and eventually expanded to the rest of the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, said Kelsey Collier-Wise, executive director of the United Way of Vermillion.

The Imagination Library is a program that gives free books to kids who are five years old and younger in Vermillion, Collier-Wise said.

“The DollyWood Foundation are the ones that actually figure out the books,

LOVE From Page B1

sation and not go stale. We’re not focusing on anything else except the other person and just trying to enjoy ourselves.”

Dana Southerland & Kris Knisely

Assistant French professor Kris Knisely and school of education adviser Dana Southerland met in Paris, France, when Knisely was teaching there in the summer and Southerland was on a trip. The couple is getting married in May after being together for three years.

“It feels like we’re married already,” Southerland said.

The couple said they love to cook, eat and travel.

They share a lot of the same things, but have “healthy differences,” Knisely said.

“I’m the type of person who likes to be alone, but she’s the only person who

pick books that are age appropriate and then they ship the books from Tennessee,” Collier-Wise said. “Each area can fund it and do the recruitment of the students.”

Clay County’s program was started in 2005. There are 286 children currently enrolled in the Imagination Library through the United Way of Vermillion.

Dolly Disco is an event that Collier-Wise and Bekki Enquist-Schroeder, event organizer and owner of the Spa at Wynie Mae’s, came up with to raise money for Vermillion’s Imagination Library.

This year, Collier-Wise said they were also able to raise more than $1,000 through donations accepted on the United Way of Vermillion’s Facebook page before the event took place. They raise money for the Imagination Library through Dolly Disco and through workplace campaigns.

Enquist-Schroeder said children’s literacy is important for several reasons.

“If you can’t read, it sets you back,” Enquist-Schroeder said. “You have to be able to read everything, text mesI’d rather spend time with than spending time alone,” Knisely said.

Southerland said she likes how much they have in common.

“Everyone jokes that we’re the same person,” Southerland said.

The couple remained in contact after spending time in Paris and then being apart for awhile.

“I went on this trip with a totally different mindset.

I was like, ‘All right, this is going to be the summer, the year for me. I’m not trying to see anyone, not trying to meet anyone, I’m just trying to be alone,’” Knisely said.

“Then I met her and I was like, ‘Oh, man. That’s out of the water.’”

When coming to work at USD together, Southerland said she “needed a change,” and Knisely liked USD. They said they like working together as educators.

“It’s nice that we are so close to work,” Southerland said. “It’s nice to be able to

sages, stop signs, to get a job, to run a school.”

Enquist-Schroeder also gives free haircuts to children that come in to the Spa at Wynie Mae’s and read her a story.

Collier-Wise said she likes what the Imagination Library stands for.

“The thing I like about the Imagination Library, is that the only requirement is that the child is between 0 and 5 and lives in our coverage area,” Collier-Wise said.

“For some of those kids, it’s probably one of 100 books that they have, but for some of them it might be the only books they have.”

Collier-Wise said people can help the Imagination Library by donating on their website or by coming to the annual Dolly Disco.

“We really want to get the word out too,” Collier-Wise said.

People who have kids in the age limit, or know anyone who does, can sign up through their website or at the Vermillion Public Library.

Some of the sound influence is attributed to the Beach Boys, especially Brian Wilson. Wilson was known for his harmonies and his unusual yet innovative pop compositions.

“What really draws me into the Beach Boys is that Brian Wilson was a literal genius,” McGuire said.

“They are well-known for making happy music, which is profound because they’ve written some of the saddest songs I’ve ever heard. Their versatility makes them very interesting.”

McGuire said other influences for their album are Miniature Tigers, Bobby Vinton, 70’s soul and Rick Schair.

“Schair releases a lot of music really consistently by himself, and every time he releases something, it sounds nothing like whatever it was he had come up with a month or two before,” they said. “I think seeing how an artist can experiment within the confines of pop music is interesting.”

McGuire also said Alan Palomo of Neon Indian is a

MONTH From Page B1

negative connotation. Some often say we’re lazy... physically we haven’t been documented as the most attractive race. I feel like I love myself more in this month than any other month of the year. It’s a time of self acceptance.”

Black History Month at USD, Tran said, is imperative because the topics discussed, such as race, can be challenging.

“To put on program-

“

You cherish the quality time you spend together.

Dana Southerland, school of education advisor

talk about work and collaborate on ideas.”

Southerland and Knisely said their favorite memories together are spending time cooking, traveling and sharing little moments.

Knisely said separating work from their relationship is important at times.

“Being clear when it’s work time and when it’s home time and not let those blend into each other,” Knisely said. “That’s one of the great things about our relationship. Selfishly for me, Dana is so good about separating work and life.”

Southerland said balance

PEOPLE OF THE PACK

is key for a healthy relationship.

“You cherish the quality time you spend together,” Southerland said. “Authenticity, transparency and being honest with ourselves and being with someone just makes us so much stronger.”

Maria Brady Grant MacDonald

&

Sophomore Maria Brady said long distance relationships can be strong with the right person.

She and her boyfriend, Grant MacDonald, have been dating for about a year. MacDonald is from

significant influence.

“When (Palomo) first started making music, he didn’t know how to write music so he thought of it (as though) he were writing a screenplay,” they said. “I try to do that as often as I can because I think it results in an interesting writing style, just approaching music as something other than music and seeing how it turns out.”

McGuire came to USD because of its music department, they said.

“USD has been really good because of the practice rooms,” they said. “It gives me the chance to work on a whole piano. It’s a pretty mellow environment. My guitar lessons have probably had some influence on my playing with Pretty Boy.” The name “Pretty Boy” relates to Nic McGuire’s personality, in a way. They noted that it was in part for their dog, but also relates to McGuire’s identity as genderqueer.

“It’s from this comic called “Pretty Boy,” and it’s about this gay kid that gets beat up because he’s really effeminate,” they said. “I kind of sympathize with that, being an effeminate person.”

McGuire often finds that their gender ebbs and flows from day to day, they said.

“It’s hard to explain,” they said. “Some days I feel male, sometimes I feel female, sometimes I feel neither or in between. I don’t think I’m strictly male or female. I wouldn’t say I’m strictly both or anything.”

McGuire has found the gender-inclusive housing in Olson Hall to be an accepting community.

“I’ve had a pretty positive experience,” McGuire said. “There’s a lot of good people, so it makes it a comfortable living environment for a queer person. Most queer people I encounter are usually pretty nice people and they want to know about you.”

Growing up in Sioux Falls also proved influential for McGuire and their music, they said.

“Now that we have Total Drag and Icon Lounge, we’re really starting to see the music scene again,” McGuire said. “Aside from the music scene, the visual art scene is also really good.

There’s a lot of creativity in Sioux Falls. You kind of have to look for it, but once you find it, it’s a really warm, welcoming environment.”

ming for the entire community that may not have been exposed or understand is a strategic opportunity,” Tran said. “How can you educate, celebrate and also support? I look at it like this is an opportunity to create change and this is the perfect place to do it. The people who are involved in planning Black History Month 2017 are the people that are in it for the right reasons and I couldn’t be more proud.”

Destin said hosting the events, especially open mic night, will give non-black

people a new perspective on why Black History Month is important.

“It’s more than just George Washington Carver, Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr.,” Destin said. “I think we’re one of the most resilient races there are. It’s our month. We want to educate you, reach out and we want to let you know this is what we’ve been through, you can do it, too. I hope we’re not the only ones celebrating.”

Perth, Australia, Brady from Omaha, Nebraska.

Brady and MacDonald met at USD during a welcome event last year.

“Someone from my floor was leading Grant around, using him as an intro to the conversation,” Brady said.

“Instead of asking him about why he was here and what he was studying. I asked him whether or not Grizzly bears were better than panda bears. That carried on a conversation of absolute ridiculousness.”

Brady said she’s “wholeheartedly in love” with MacDonald.

“I realized that within a couple weeks of knowing him, and that absolutely terrified me,” she said. “In high school, I was always focused on academics and getting to college. My plan for college was to do the same thing.

After spending that first semester with him, there’s no way that I want to spend my life without him. Even if that means changing up my

Check out these Valentine’s Day events!

BANANAGRAMS

Viviana Akot Year: First-year

The anthropology department will be selling Bananagram valentines on Feb. 10.

Cost: $2-5 The valentines will be delivered on Feb. 14 by someone dressed in a gorilla suit.

Major: Nursing CARICATURES

A professional caricature artist will be in the MUC pit lounge on Feb. 14.

Morgan Matzen: Where are you from?

Viviana Akot: I am from South Sudan, Africa.

MM: What brought you here?

VA: My parents wanted a better life for me and my siblings, so that’s why they brought us to the United States. They wanted us to have an education, because back in my country there wasn’t a strong educational system.

MM: When did you come here?

VA: I came here back in 2005, so it’s been 11 to

“My parents wanted a better life for me and my siblings, so that’s why they brought us to the United States.”

12 years now, I think? We moved around a lot. I first landed in Nebraska, and then from there I went to Michigan, then Columbus, Ohio and then here. I moved to Sioux Falls and went to Washington High School there junior and senior year.

MM: Do you remember anything of South Sudan?

VA: I came here when I

plan a little bit.”

MacDonald is back in Australia, but Brady said he visited her over Christmas break. She also spent three months visiting him in Perth last summer. Besides that, the couple regularly Skypes to keep in touch.

Brady said a quality she admires is MacDonald’s care for others.

“Even if he encounters a difficulty with another person, he’s more focused on their well-being than his own,” she said.

Brady said communication is essential to keep their long distance relationship healthy.

“The ability to still get to hear his voice, to communicate with him daily is more than I could ask for,” she said. “Distance is definitely not for the faint of heart, but it’s a worth enough challenge if it’s with the right person... any amount of distance is difficult. But if it’s with the right person, it doesn’t seem as daunting.”

was seven, so I do remember back home. But, it was kind of dark history back there, because there was war and civil violence going on. So as a child, it wasn’t really that happy memory.

MM: Would you ever want to go back?

VA: I have not gone back there for 12 years so I really do want to go back.

Cost: Free Earn Paw Points by getting your caricature.

FUR-EVER YOURS CUPCAKES

The Heartland Humane Society in Yankton is selling cupcakes to benefit the shelter.

Cost: $25 for six cupcakes Cupcakes to be delivered Feb. 14.

❤ ❤ ❤

Sports

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2017

THE VOLANTE

VOLANTEONLINE.COM/SPORTS

@VOLANTESPORTS

Coyote women lose to rival SDSU Dustin VanHunnik

Dustin.VanHunnik@coyotes.usd.edu

The Coyotes (19-5, 8-3 Summit) traveled to Brookings on Saturday to take on rival South Dakota State (18-5, 9-2 Summit) inside Frost Arena.

After falling behind early, the Coyotes seemed unable to mount any sort of comeback throughout the rest of the game.

The Jackrabbits defense held strong and the Coyotes were held to as low as 26.7 percent shooting in the third quarter.

Freshman guard Ciara Duffy lead the scoring for the Coyotes with just 11 points, while sophomore guard Allison Arens was held to just six points.

However, Arens surpassed 500 career points with her first bucket on the day.

On the other side of the ball, the Jackrabbits had four players in double digits, including senior center Clarissa Ober having a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds.

Ober did not play in the previous matchup due to an injury sustained on Dec. 21, but proved to be a problem for the Coyotes this time around as the former Summit Defensive Player of the Year not only lead both teams in scoring and rebounding, but also had three steals and a block on the defensive side.

The Coyotes 3-point shooting was shut down by the Jackrabbits, who have the No. 1 3-point defense in the Summit League, by only allowing them

Dustin VanHunnik I The Volante

Players jump for the ball at the tip off of the game against SDSU Feb. 4 in Brookings. to shoot 2-10 in the game.

Along with the low shooting percentages, the Coyotes were also forced into 17 turnovers and were out-rebounded 37-29.

Sophomore guard Jaycee

Bradley said the Jackrabbits defensive presence was a big game changer.

“They really took us out of what we wanted to do today,” Bradley said. “Their pressure

was something that we tried to adjust to at times, but definitely broke us as well.”

Coyote head coach Dawn Plitzuweit said the inability to consistently make a stop and then score on the other end of the court was a big factor in the game.

“We try to find ways to build some continuity offensively and we just never really got there tonight,” Plitzuweit said. “To their credit, they hung in there and tried to battle back all game and didn’t give up.”

Plitzuweit also spoke about how they have to focus on the next game and see where it leads them.

“We drew a tough schedule to end the season and now we just have to play great basketball,” said Plitzuweit. “The Summit League is the best it has ever been, ranked at 11 in RPI (Rating Percentage Index), so you are going to see a lot of jumble at the top of the standings and that’s what makes it a lot of fun.”

The Coyotes now fall to second place in the Summit League standings while the Jackrabbits take first place.

The Coyotes finish their three game away stretch on Feb. 9 at Fort Wayne.

Women’s Summit League Standings South Dakota State Conference record: 9-2 Overall record: 18-5 South Dakota Conference record: 8-3 Overall record: 19-5 Western Illinois Conference record: 8-3 Overall record: 18-6 IUPUI Conference record: 7-4 Overall record: 17-7 Oral Roberts Conference record: 5-6 Overall record: 13-11 Omaha Conference record: 4-7 Overall record: 11-13 Denver Conference record: 3-7 Overall record: 6-17 North Dakota State Conference record: 3-7 Overall record: 5-18 Fort Wayne Conference record: 1-9 Overall record: 4-19 source: thesummitleague.org

Summit League attendance rising Cheyenne Alexis

Cheyenne.Alexis@coyotes.usd.edu

With the opening of the Sanford Coyote Sports Center (SCSC) and team improvements during games, USD is gaining an increase in game attendance.

During the Summit League Tournament championships last year, there were 65,533 attendees for men’s and women’s championships, a 5,000 attendee increase from 2015, according to the Summit League website.

This increase coincides with USD being eligible for the tournament starting in 2011, athletic director David Herbster said. Because of USD’s emergence and improvements, Herbster said it created an entire fan base.

“As our programs become better, there’s certainly more interest and a greater following so more will actually attend the event,” he said.

Another reason for an increase of home game attendance is the Women’s National Invitation Tournament, which the women’s basketball team won last year.

Joe Thuente, USD’s director of athletic marketing and promotion, said the WNIT win could’ve played a role in increasing attendance at the SCSC. “The team has been successful this season as well — our men and women are doing very well,” he said. “Certainly, winning the WNIT and having a full DakotaDome for that championship game hasn’t hurt any of our efforts to build that atmosphere.”

Thuente said “building the atmosphere” encourages fans to come to games by creating a fun, engaging environment.

The SCSC is the ideal venue to showcase a large fan base, he added.

“They feel like they’re more involved in the game,” Thuente said. “It’s encouraged fans — it’s louder but it’s also encouraged people to be more participatory.”

Thuente said the overall marketing strategies from last year didn’t change a lot. Technology and building the atmosphere changes, however, did with a new facility.

Because the new arena is centered around volleyball and basketball, Thuente said changes to technology were made.

“The biggest changes are probably on the atmosphere side,” Thuente said. “What can we do with music and video and promotions on the court and use our new ribbon board and all those new ‘toys’ we have in the production room.”

File Photo I The Volante

The crowd cheers during the men’s basketball game against Fort Wayne Jan. 14 at the Sanford Coyote Sports Center. Attendance for games has increased due to many factors such as the WNIT win last year, but other efforts are being made to improve those numbers.

“

The arena is 6,000 seats for a reason. We know the interest in basketball is there. It’s building it up to the point where we are selling out the arena at a regular basis. If we didn’t think we could do it, we wouldn’t build 6,000 seats.

Joe Thuente, director of athletic marketing and promotion

Herbster said the “ability to be interactive” is an important change made for attracting fans to games.

“Music was an issue, sound quality was an issue, just being able to hear the announcer was sometimes an issue (in the Dome),” he said.

Thuente said student attendance this year has “fluctuated,” and ticket sales have been go-

ing up. Though he said he can’t be certain until he goes over the plan when the athletics season is over, the overall marketing plan for student attendance is going “alright.”

Herbster said Coyote fans have been “pretty good” about showing support for the teams.

He said there’s typically a spike during the last few games of the season, especially for men and

women’s basketball when the teams have been successful.

“I think what I’ve heard is that it’s just an enjoyable experience to be here for a game,” he said.

“What I foresee for the (basketball) games we have left... my hope is that there’s not a seat left in the arena to get.”

Herbster said students can be the reason teams do well.

“Their support, their enthu-

siasm, their noise, their involvement in a game can be an incredible asset,” Herbster said. “I know they can do it. The tough part is building that culture.

We’re still trying to understand the traffic patterns.”

Thuente said building the SCSC’s atmosphere is a continual process, and he’s looking forward to increasing Coyote pride and interest.

“The arena is 6,000 seats for a reason,” Thuente said. “We know the interest in basketball is there.

It’s building it up to the point where we are selling out the arena at a regular basis. If we didn’t think we could do it, we wouldn’t build 6,000 seats.”

Herbster said the fans and the teams both contribute to growing attendance.

“Our numbers will continue to increase as the performance of our teams improve,” Herbster said. “It’s no secret that most fans follow a winner. It’s more enjoyable to go to a game where you’re competitive, and I think our teams are extremely competitive.”

Sports

B4 Wednesday, February 8, 2017

The Volante I volanteonline.com

OUTANDABOUT The Volante asked students if they watched the Super Bowl, and why or why not.

Yes, because I obviously wanted to see the commercials and I’m a Patriots fan.

Erin Koonce, first-year

I did ... The reason I watched was one, the commericals, two, the halftime show and three, the game.

File Photo I The Volante

Samantha Petersen, first-year

Freshman quarterback Brevin Kaiser scrambles from the backfield in a practice at the DakotaDome. Kaiser was a part of last year’s recruiting class.

USD football signing class announced Dustin VanHunnik

Dustin.VanHunnik@coyotes.usd.edu

The Coyote football team found depth in all the right places on National Signing Day, when high school athletes across the nation chose their future teams Feb. 1.

Coyote football head coach Bob Nielson announced in a press conference on Feb. 1 in Sioux Falls that the Coyotes signed 24 student-athletes to a National Letter of Intent.

Along with the 24 signees, USD also got an additional seven high school standouts that accepted an offer of admissions to USD and a mid-year transfer, Cody Jennings, from Garden City Community College.

One notable recruit that signed with the Coyotes was defensive lineman Peter Klug. Klug notched 144 tackles including 10 sacks and 20 tackles-forloss in his senior season in high school at Blue Valley North in Kansas. He was graded at 69 out of 100 on ESPN’s Recruiting Nation Grading Scale.

Another notable recruit that signed on was kicker Dominic Long. Long signing with the Coyotes fills a need, as they will be losing All-American senior Miles Bergner.

Going into his second year of coaching, this was Nielson’s first recruiting class. He said there were two priorities he was looking to address.

The first priority Nielson listed was to “get quality at every position that adds to our current roster,” he said during the press conference. This included adding players like Long, who fill a needed a position, and Klug, who adds depth to the amount of people available at a position.

The second priority that was addressed was adding depth in the offensive and defensive lines. This was a large focus as lineman – 11 offensive and seven defensive – make up over half of the recruiting class.

At the end of last season, Neilson emphasized that both the offensive and defensive lines need to be deeper and stronger.

Sophomore quarterback Brian Woodward said the team is very excited

I watched about two minutes of it, right before the halftime show.

“

We were able to sign such a large class because we had a large amount of interest. The commitment our university is making, signified by the new facilities and dome renovations on the horizon, are the kinds of things that get young men excited about the future.

Bob Nielson, head football coach

about the recruiting class.

“I think the coaches did a great job,” Woodward said. “They filled a lot of the needs we had coming into signing day and we are looking forward to having them join us in the summer.”

The Coyotes also maintained their recruiting relationship in the St. Louis and Florida areas.

The Coyotes got three signees from each area this year, continuing their recent success in recruiting in Florida, with five signees coming from there in 2015 and three last year.

In total, the Coyotes signed just three recruits from South Dakota. The Midwest didn’t disappoint, however, with eight signees coming from Iowa, and four coming from Minnesota, Kansas and Illinois.

“It represents the fact that we are highly committed to recruiting regionally,” Nielson said.

At the press conference, Nielson also spoke about what having a large

recruiting class means for the team.

“We were able to sign such a large class because we had a large amount of interest,” he said. “The commitment our university is making, signified by the new facilities and Dome renovations on the horizon, are the kinds of things that get young men excited about the future.”

While the Coyotes managed to get 32 recruits total, they did miss out on several prospects.

Several top players USD missed out on include Anthony Payne (Kansas St.), Brett Kitrell (Ohio) and Austin Schirck (Minnesota).

All three prospects were defensive lineman and rated 78, 73 and 69 on ESPN’s Recruiting Nation Grading Scale, respectively.

USD’s 2017 season kicks off on Sept. 2 against Drake in Des Moines, IA.

Martin Long, first-year

I only watched the halftime show because I’m not a big football fan, but I love Lady Gaga though.

Rachel Bruening, sophomore

I did not. I’m not really into sports.

Alec Janusz, senior

PLAYER OF THE PACK brian woodward Year: Sophomore Major: Sports marketing & media Sport: Football Dustin VanHunnik: Did you watch the Super Bowl? And if so, who were you rooting for?

Brain Woodward: Yes, I did watch, and I was pulling for the Patriots. I’m a big Tom Brady fan.

DV: Do you think he is the best quarterback of all time?

BW: I think it is hard to say he’s not at this point.

The numbers don’t lie.

“I was pulling for the Patriots.

I’m a big Tom Brady fan.”

DV: Do you believe this was the greatest Super Bowl of all time?

BW: I think I would have to say so. The only one that comes close in my mind was when the Patriots beat the Seahawks a few years ago.

DV: Do you think they will win another next year as well?

BW: Well, I can see them playing in the Super Bowl, but I think the Cardinals will beat them 34-27.