According to figures obtained from Don Willis, assistant dean for student services, the overall budget for the spring concert this year was $65,000. The bulk of the cost for the concert was for procuring the talent, which was budgeted around $45,000. These figures are budgeted amounts and do not reflect actual dollars spent.

Some of the other associated costs for the concert: production, $12,500; hospitality, $2,500; and advertising, $5,000.

“I am confident that when we get all the bills paid, we will have come in under budget,” Willis said.

The official attendance of 783 for this years spring concert pales when compared to the Blake Shelton and the Puddle of Mudd/Saliva concerts from the previous two years.

With some of the obstacles regarding the concert, Western should be thankful that WAC was able to schedule a viable replacement so quickly.
During the SGA meeting held Monday, April 11 a resolution was passed removing the requirement to cycle through the genres of country, rock and hip-hop/R&B.

Jordan Carney, the president for residence council, believed that passing the legislation would alleviate scheduling restrictions made by having to stay within a particular genre.

“I think that being able to go with whatever is best for our money and whoever is available is better than being restricted to a certain genre,” Carney said.

Next year the total cost may be down based on the fact that SGA President-elect Alison Norris is requiring that the spring concert be held on campus.
Norris says that she felt a need to address this to prevent being bound by a genre in the event something happens in the future with scheduling a performer.

“I felt like too, that it just puts us in a box where it limits us to three genres,” Norris said. “Really, it doesn’t make us diverse with only three genres, when there’s lots of different types of music. So, I just felt we should pick the best artist for the amount of money we have, and I also like the option of allowing students voting to find out what the popular vote is.”

Senator Jacqueline Waters was in defense of keeping the concert rotation to maintain a diverse music offering by ensuring a different type of music every year. Waters said that J. Cole had performed in Columbia, Mo. at the University of Missouri.

“The only reason why a lot of people didn’t go to this J. Cole concert was because they were at Mizzou when J. Cole was there,” Waters said.

Name: K.C. Ramsell

Sport: Women’s Soccer

Year: Freshman

Position: Forward

Stats this week: Shots on goal — 2; Total shots — 2; Goals — 1

Ramsell scored her fifth goal in five games last Saturday and almost added another in the second half of her first home game played at Western. Though the Griffons lost (2-1) and have a record of 2-3, Ramsell is currently 11th in the nation in goals scored per game.

He stated that this is what Missouri Western needs throughout his presentation Monday at the Griffon Indoor Sports Complex.

McClain, one of four candidates for the Athletic Director job currently available at Western, said he wants to be a part of the Griffons and loves the division in which Western participates.

“Things that happen at Division II programs are a little bit different,” McClain said. “I’ve proven that programs I’ve been involved in have been successful. I think from a learning curve standpoint, I walk the walk.”

McClain was a Division II athlete at Delta State, where he is currently the AD. He said that D-II is entertaining just like Division I, but that the atmosphere is great because you can be a student athlete, as well as have the experience of being a part of the student body.

“Student-athletes have a unique opportunity to not only play high level, highly competitive, very entertaining college athletics, but to also be a better student.”

The Delta graduate said the key to recruiting as well as maintaining a great program is to have athletes that graduate. McClain stands behind his words, as the graduation rate at Delta has risen from 50 to 69 percent while he has been in charge. He says if Western can hold a steady 60 percent graduation rate, everybody will benefit.

“That’s a pretty lofty goal, but it can be done,” said McClain, who also stated it helps with recruiting when talking to parents. “[Recruitment] is the key to reaching that goal of 60 percent and reaching the goal of quality programs.”

Western is attractive to McClain because he likes the facilities, the campus and St. Joseph. McClain said Western is in great shape to move forward and build on success.

A former professional athlete, McClain was an All American baseball player at Delta. He said that if anybody asked about his legacy, Delta would be thankful for what he accomplished while there, as a student and a director.

“I would hope that people would say that we were successful,” McClain said. “That we won on the field and on the court. That our student athletes were treated fairly. That they were given resources they needed, the opportunity to be successful and that we graduated our student athletes.”

But overall, McClain said his student athletes were given an opportunity to succeed in sports and in the classroom because the budget was very well balanced.

“We are facing pretty difficult times, but it didn’t sacrifice what we provided for our student athletes, fans and our lives.”

Western was up by three at halftime but let the lead squander away as they lost 41-20.

“They had big conversion plays [in the second half],” Partridge said. “We did wear down a little bit. Some of Washburn’s technique wore us down.”

The Griffons showed how well they could adapt on the road against a top-10 team, even when things weren’t exactly going their way.

Western had three turnovers in the first half, but still held a tight lead, 13-10.

“We played pretty good in the first half,” Partridge said, though he admitted Western still had problems. ”We did a lot of mindless things.”

Travis Partridge impressed the coach as well. Partridge was making his first road start of his collegiate career.

“One of the brighter spots of the football game was how he played.”

Travis kept his composure throughout the game. Even though he has faced skeptical criticism, Partridge showed he can play against an MIAA opponent on the road.

“In the first half we came out playing,” Partridge said. “We just didn’t get it done. There was not one thing I know that we could have done.”

In the second half, Western (2-2) fell behind after two big touchdown drives by Washburn (4-0). The Ichabods came out primed. They scored on a five play, 57 yard drive and then on an 11 play, 60 yard drive to tire out Western’s defense and keep Travis Partridge and company off the field.

“We were really not a smart football team tonight,” Jerry Partridge said.

Travis didn’t connect with his receivers for much of the third quarter. The Griffons went three-and-out, and then Partridge gave Washburn its biggest break of the game.

The Ichabods, up by four midway through the third, backed their pass coverage up. Playing off of wide receiver Tarrell Downing, Partridge sailed the pass too high, and Ichabods cornerback Devon Connors snatched the ball out of the air. The pass put Washburn in great field position to set up the next touchdown. Eventually, it would add a field goal to up the lead to two scores.

Partridge didn’t let the crowd, nor the 14-point predicament Western had in the fourth, affect his play. He stayed tough and drove the Griffons from their own 30-yard-line down to the seven. From there, he zipped a pass through Washburn’s defenders coverage to Tyron Crockum for the score. This put the Griffons down by a touchdown with 9:17 left in the ballgame.

Western’s defense couldn’t hold up against pre-season All American quarterback Dane Simoneau and his prolific offense.

“We just gave up some big plays in the second half,” cornerback Ben Jackson said. “We just didn’t play [Missouri Western] football.”

Jackson wasn’t on the field when the Griffons were down by seven late in the fourth. Instead, Marcus Thompson stepped in at right cornerback, but couldn’t handle the receivers he was put up against.

He was flagged for pass interference, which moved Washburn inside the 30-yard-line. And a few plays later, the Ichabods ended Western’s hope at a victory.

“They got a couple big runs,” Jackson said. “Passing wise, maybe we gave up a little bit over the top, but that’s on the secondary. We’ll come back harder.”

Washburn faked a run on third-and-goal from its three-yard-line, and delivered a strike towards Thompson’s side as wide receiver Ronnell Garner caught a pass in the back of the end zone. With 6:47 left on the clock, Washburn again found itself up by two scores.

“They made some great plays, and they’re a really good football team,” Jerry Partridge said.

Western gave up just eight yards on the ground in the first half, but in the third quarter alone had 207 total yards. Western had just four yards passing in the quarter.

The loss hurts the Griffons, not just because they find themselves at 2-2, but also because they have to go on the road again next week to battle Missouri Southern in Joplin, Mo.

Western was without starting defensive end Ben Pister, who was suspended for disciplinary reasons. He will return for the Griffons next week, and they need him. Western did record two sacks on the day, but the pass rush wasn’t there, and it was noticeable in the second half. Jerry Partridge compared Washburn’s offense to Pittsburg State’s, as the misdirection plays in the second half hurt the Griffons.

With only two wins in four games, the Griffons find themselves in a must-win mode as they look to make it back to the playoffs. Last season, they fell to rival Northwest Missouri State in the first round, though the Griffons did make it in with three losses.

Downing had three receptions for 61 yards. Adam Clausen caught an 11-yard-touchdown to put Western up 13-10 towards the end of the second half.

Simoneau shook off a bad first-half performance to end up with 360 yards through the air. Another pre-season All American, defensive end David Bass, recorded a sack in this third straight game. The game was broadcast on national television (CBS Sports Network).

All Photos by: Jason Brown

Erick Parker has modeled in two shows prior to the "BSU Urban Chic," as one was in Kansas City and the other in Oklahoma. His major is pre-dentistry. He hopes to one day work in Milan as a print model.

Though Erick Parker is a pre-dentistry major, he also thinks of himself as a fashion major as he already has two prestigious shows under his belt.

“I like modeling a lot,” Parker said. “I take it pretty seriously.”

Parker, who is a first-year Missouri Western student, studies fashion shows to get better.

“I’ll look at a video of a fashion show (like Dolce & Gabbana and Versace) and take notes, then I’ll try and apply it to me,” Parker said.

Parker has been involved in two other shows, one in Kansas City and the other in Oklahoma. This will be his first show for Western.

“I hope the show goes well and everybody enjoys it.”

Name: Michael Hill

Sport: Football

Year: Junior

Position: Running Back

Stats this week: Rushes — 19; Yards — 91; Touchdowns — 2

Hill opened up this year as the true starting running back for the Griffons, and has done a solid job so far. Against Langston, Hill rushed for a score and added another, this time as a receiver, in the third quarter.

“I’m overall happy with how everything turned out and I think we are getting closer to playing competitive with the top 25 teams every time we get on the court,” said Coach Cory Frederick.

Senior Tahler Johnston was named to the All-Tournament team for her outstanding play during the tournament.  She tallied 43 kills and 31 digs during the weekend.

“We are kind of our worst enemy right now,” Johnston said. “Nobody is outplaying us or beating us we are beating ourselves. We are making errors and we can change that and get better.”

Chadron State was the Griffons first opponent of the weekend.  Western swept all three games, winning 25-17, 25-23 and 25-23.  Freshman Shelby Corkill led the team with 13 kills in the first match.

The Griffons faced off against 5th ranked Nebraska-Kearny Lopers in their second match of the tournament.  Western was outplayed by the home team and lost the match 3-0 25-10, 25-17, 25-14.  Western was led by Johnston with nine kills, while Stephanie Hattey had 18 assists and 11 digs.

On Sunday the Griffons started the day by defeating Black Hills State 3-0 by game scores of 25-14, 25-13, 25-9. Alexandra Behnke led the Griffons with 12 kills.

“I think we played pretty well for the beginning of the season,” said freshman Sarah Faubel. “Our team has really good chemistry for being such a young team.”

The second match of Sunday featured the Griffons facing off against the 10th ranked Wayne State and was defeated 3-0 with scores of 25-17, 25-19, 25-15. Johnston led the Griffons with 14 kills on the match.

Western will play its first home game of the season on Saturday, Sept. 17 against MIAA Conference opponent Fort Hays State at 4 p.m.

Over the next several weeks, Western will welcome those finalists to present their vision of Western Athletics, and make their claim as the right person to lead it into the future.

President Robert Vartabedian said that the search for the new AD has gone extremely well, and he has been really impressed with the quality of the candidates. Even those who didn’t make the cut received a stamp of approval.

“The first cut was twelve,” Vartabedian said. “I thought the pool was so deep that I thought any one of those twelve could be a very good AD.”

Vartabedian said that the committee just kept at trying to find the absolute best possible candidates and they have settled on the four coming to campus.

Don Kaverman, Harris-Stowe University — Kaverman is a former Atheltics Director at Missouri Western for four years [1995-1999]. After leaving Western, Kaverman took over as Athletic Director for Division I Southeast Missouri State before accepting director’s position at Harris-Stowe. Redhawks Women’s basketball made the NCAA tournament in 2005 and 2006.

He has also worked in the National Football League as a conditioning coordinator and assistant athletic trainer for the Detroit Lions.

Kaverman has a bachelor’s degree  in business administration and a master’s in physical education from Michigan State University. His presentation is Friday, Sept. 23 in Spratt Hall, Room 205.

Jeremy McClain, Delta State University — McClain has been at Delta since 2007, and while there he has increased the graduate of student-athletes close to 20 percent.

The football program placed second in the Division II National Championship in 2010. Besides running the athletics program, he also performed as an All-American pitcher for the baseball team while he attended Delta. He would eventually be drafted by the Boston Red Sox in 1999.

McClain has a bachelor’s degree in business administration. His presentation is Monday, Sept. 26 at 2 p.m. in the KCP&L Lecture Hall in the Griffon Indoor Sports Complex.

Kurt McGuffin, Colorado University — McGuffin is the Asstistant Athletics Director at Colorado, which he has held for the past two years.

He has been involved in Big XII sports for the past decade, previously working with Kansas State. McGuffin has been influential on basketball, as he was the director of men’s basketball operations at Eastern Washington University, a student assistant at Kansas State and also was involved with the women’s basketball program while they steadily had a top 10 ranking.

McGuffin graduated from Wichita State with a Master of Science in education in 1999. His presentation is Thursday, Sept. 15 in the KCP&L Lecture Hall in the GISC.

Mark Alnutt, Missouri University — Currently at Missouri, Alnutt is the senior associate athletic director for administration. Alnutt has committed plenty of time to sports overall, including football and golf.

He helps plan trips that the Tigers must take during post-season play. As a Tiger, he played football at Missouri from 1992-1995 before graduating. This past year, at Missouri, Alnutt received the Barbara S. Uehling Award, an award given out to an administrator who shows leaderships and improved working conditions to the Missouri staff.

He has bachelor’s degree in sociology and a master’s in public administration. His presentation is Thursday, Sept. 29 at 2 p.m. in the KCP&L Lecture Hall in the GISC.

Western said goodbye to former Athletics Director Dave Williams when it was decided that Williams’ contract would not be renewed.

Western President Robert Vartabedian has been monitoring the process to hire a new AD, and says that the search is going well. Vartabedian said that they had received 82 applications for the position and have narrowed the field to eight semi-finalists. “Unless there are unforeseen complications, at our current rate we should be able to announce our new AD before the end of September,” Vartabedian said.

Following the news that Western would be looking for a new AD, the women’s soccer coach Jeff Hansen resigned to take a head coaching position at Cabondale High School in Illinois to be closer to family, he told the St. Joseph News-Press.

Missouri Western interim athletic director Dan Nicoson said that the biggest obstacle surrounding Hansen’s resignation was the timing of it. “When we heard we had only three weeks until the players were to report, we honestly didn’t know what we could accomplish in three weeks time,” Nicoson said.

Nicoson said they received over 70 applications for the position and was pleased to hire Chad Edwards as the new women’s soccer coach. “We were very fortunate to get a candidate that is highly qualified, and we would consider under any circumstances.”

Head Women’s Soccer Coach Chad Edwards is currently commuting to St. Joseph as he still resides in Overland Park. Edwards says that he feels right at home at Western.

“I’ve been overwhelmed with the attention that has been given to me and the women’s soccer team,” Edwards said. “Everyone has been so fantastic; I feel like I’ve been here forever, and feel like I’ve known these people for a long, long time.”

Edwards is not setting his expectations low for the upcoming season.

“To win the conference championship is the goal each and every year,” Edwards said. “I really want to win that MIAA championship.”

All of these complications occurring as the NFL lockout kept passing all of the supposed “deadlines” being thrown out by many in sports media. Obviously, the lockout meant more to Western as the Chiefs training camp coming to St. Joseph began to look less and less likely as time passed on. Of course, in the eleventh hour a deal was signed and the Chiefs arrived on campus in late July.

Nicoson said that he spoke to the Chief’s president and he was very pleased and surprised with how prepared Western was for the Chief’s arrival. “I took that as a compliment,” Nicoson said.

The Western athletics department weathered quite a storm this summer but may be stronger for it as only time will tell.

The event kicked off last Friday night with a very intimate networking social. The networking social was a new event this year added to the summit.

The purpose of adding the social Friday night was give students an opportunity to mingle with potential employers. There were drinks, appetizers, a raffle and a DJ all present.

Matthew Gregg, student employment coordinator, was in attendance at Friday’s networking social. Gregg said he really enjoyed the relaxed environment the event had.

“I think we should do this on a quarterly basis,” Gregg said. “This is a chance for students to socialize and meet local employers.”

Although Friday’s event didn’t draw a huge crowd those in attendance appeared to be having a wonderful time.

The Global Women’s Summit picked back up on Saturday at 9 a.m. Many students from other local universities were in attendance. Some came from Northwest, Saint Mary’s and UMKC.

The purpose of the summit on Saturday was to support growth and knowledge in both men and women. It’s focused on the spiritual, emotional and physical aspects of being a woman.

Kiesha Caldwell works in the Center for Multicultural Education and helped put this event together. Caldwell says she has attended the event for the last two years and believes it to be very educational and important.

“This conference is aimed at helping expand the minds of women and men,” Caldwell said. “I hope a lot students can attend this conference because this experience will help them in the long run.”

The conference on Saturday was originally scheduled to cost $5 for students and $10 for non students but the SGA allocated money for the event to make it free to everyone.

Many guest motivational guest speakers were invited to give students some insight to life experience. The workshops were designed to engage and enlighten those in attendance.

Michelle Saunders, a St. Joseph resident, was attending her first Global Women’s Summit Saturday. Saunders said she really didn’t know what to expect but was impressed with the set up.

“Missouri Western must have worked very hard on making this event possible,” Saunders said. “I am having a good time and meeting a lot of great people; I will definitely be coming back next year.”

Last Monday night was the last meeting of the 38^th session of SGA senate. History will record the members of the 38^th session as the first to put the campus-wide smoking ban on a ballot to get student’s input. Key members of the group going out of power and coming in agree that the issue is dead.

“I’m not going to do anything with the smoking ban,” SGA President-elect Alison Norris said. “I feel we already have the student’s answer.” She does support enforcing the present rules imposed on those who smoke on campus in order to address non-smoker’s complaints. The goal of SGA now seems to be to facilitate cooperation between those who smoke and those that do not want to be around the second hand smoke by enforcing the current rules.

Those rules include smoke free zones encompassing a 30-foot radius of all doorways and building ventilation intake vents. Smoking students readily point out that one of the problems with this policy is the location of the outdoor ashtrays. Most are located within the 30-foot boundary. Using the ashtrays places smokers within the 30-foot boundary and create complaints from non-smoking students who need to walk through those doorways.

On the other hand, the areas close to doorways are the ones that are littered with cigarette butts. Campus maintenance employees have placed ashtrays and butt cans next to the doorways to save money on labor to pick up the mess left by inconsiderate smokers. SGA President, Dillon Harp agrees that the future is better served with enforcement of current regulations concerning smoking on campus.

“We need better signage on campus explaining the rules and helping smokers understand where the areas are that permit smoking,” Harp said. “We have heard the student’s voice.” He also agreed with some of the issues mentioned in recent opinion articles printed in The Griffon News. He stated that he knows of no efforts to bring the issue back to the ballot box.

The SGA Director of Student Relations, Kelsey Corzine has a slightly different opinion. “I think the smoking ban would have been a good policy for Western’s students, but I’m glad the student’s voices were heard,” Corzine said. She feels that complaints will subside if smokers would just follow the rules.

But those rules don’t address the littering problem of those unsightly butts around campus at nearly every doorway. The litter issue alone could encourage administration to ban smoking on campus. Maintaining the appearance of campus grounds under the current budget constraints could force the issue. It may come down to a mandatory smoking ban if smokers don’t clean up their act.

Too often I here students talking about how much money they will make once they graduate and get a job.  I always ask them, “Don’t you want a job that makes you happy; even if it doesn’t pay that great?”

I usually get the same response from them stating that if they earn a lot of money working, than that will translate into happiness.

Students I encounter never seem to take into consideration that they may never have time to spend any of their money.  They may end up working all the time.

I have friends who have graduated college and got great jobs.  Usually the first things they do are run out and buy stuff like a new house or fancy car.  The funny thing is that the only time they get to see their house is to sleep in it after work and the only time they get to drive their car is to work.

According to the Untied States Department of Labor the average American retires at age 62.  So if you graduate at age 24, then you will have to work 5 days a week for the next 38 years before you retire.  Although if you keep the same employment than you’re more likely to retire after 30 years of service. However, 30 years is a long time, especially at the same job.

I encourage all students at Missouri Western to look deep inside themselves and decide what makes them happy.  Do you really want to wake up everyday to a job you can’t stand regardless of the pay?  We spend to much of our lives at work not to enjoy it.

It took me six long years at a great paying job with plenty of room for advancement to realize I hated what I was doing everyday.  I was miserable to the point it seriously affected my health. I was pulling in some serious cash but every morning I dreaded going to work.

At the age of 24 I decided I wanted to attend college and try to get a job that would make me happy.  I am 29 now and going to graduate in spring 2012.  The degree I am seeking will not make me a rich man by any means but I guarantee you I will wake up with a smile everyday, ready for work.  To me that is more important to any amount of money.

No matter how much money a person makes they can’t take it with them when they die.  So remember, you only get one chance at life so you better make sure you enjoy the ride.

The reason it takes a two-thirds vote is because it would remove a privilege (notice that I did not say it was a right) that some students enjoy. It should require that type of majority to remove anyone’s privileges. Don’t believe those statistics that non-smokers push about second hand smoke. If you do a little research, you will find that the information comes from studies in a laboratory.

They are not conclusions based on individuals, just machines that smoked cigarettes backwards without the filter, and guess what? Those fumes are toxic. It’s the same as the smoke from almost anything that burns.  Usually animals in a brush fire and people in a house fire die of smoke inhalation long before their bodies burn.

And don’t think for a minute that the SGA or administration is concerned about your health. If they were they would be more concerned about the number one health problem on campus. What’s that? Sexually transmitted diseases. If you think I’m wrong, just ask the Esry Student Health Services workers. Ask them if you are more likely to die with a sexually transmitted disease from sexual exposure on campus or dying of second hand smoke exposure on campus. If smokers would obey the rules and administration would enforce the rules, then there would be no second hand smoke exposure to anyone but smokers.

I wonder how far students would go to ban sex on campus. Sex is a choice and a God-given privilege. I’ll bet that two-thirds vote seems right to everyone about now.  Enforcement may be tough, though. It is the same with smoking or anything you like to do. I prefer food that is bad for me, soda over water, and my recliner to my treadmill. Some choices I make are bad for me. It is my privilege to make that choice. Students can still buy food that is bad for them, purchase soda in every hallway, and there are far more chairs and couches on campus than exercise equipment.

What really bugs me is that the losers in this case claim that they will try again until it passes. That isn’t right. Why can’t SGA simply tell administration and themselves that they tried and there just weren’t enough votes to change the policy? For some reason government today on all levels uses this type of one-sided tactics.

If a school tax levy doesn’t pass they simply put it back on the ballot and spend more tax dollars campaigning for it until it passes. It is sort of expected that the smoke-banning people will continue to try to get this thing passed but after it passes there will be no more voting.  The opposition to the smoking ban doesn’t get a second chance. The thing will just become law if it passes. Why can’t the NO vote be final?

The career director candidates for Missouri Western presented their case to for employment last week in front of the search committee and those in attendance.

On Monday, Feb. 28, Wester invited Kim Caponi to campus and gave her an opportunity present some ideas and state her case, as to why she’s the best person for the director of Career Services.
The position has remained vacant since last October, when previous Director Linda Garlinger decided to retire.

Caponi started off by introducing her presentation with some visual aids, she brought Playdough and talked about how the moldable substance represented students and their potential.

“When you’re starting out in your education–and even before you reach the university level–this is you,” Caponi said holding the Playdough. Caponi said that it’s easier to work with the dough when it’s soft and that’s where she said that Career Services fits in by trying to work with students, directing them to an educational path that fits them.

On Wednesday, March 2, it was his chance to persuade the search committee his way.

Donnell Turner makes his case in front of the Missouri Western search committee for the new career services director. Jason Brown | Staff photographer

Kim Caponi speaks her piece to those attending Monday's presentation. Dave Hon | Editor-in-chief

Turner’s presentation was focused mainly on how he would handle the job as career director, focusing on students and how their future is going to be impacted from college.

“Helping students tap into both their strengths and their passion will make them successful,” Turner said.

Turner spoke about the challenge it takes for students to not only make it through college, but to find a job afterwards and be able to do that job at their best. He believes he is the right man for the job because of his past experiences as well as his passion for this opportunity, passion that is undoubtedly needed in the real world.

“I would do what I do for free because I love what I do so much,” Turner said. “Having your own passion or own calling is very important.”

Strategies are very important for students, Turner said. He also stated that they need to approach these by talking to an advisor and he would help a student out by telling them his own strategies for being successful out of college.

Student involvement and mentoring were major components of Turner’s personal guide to success in college.

Turner’s third strategy he spoke about was to have students get internships and externships. “Be able to network,” Turner said. “These are essential. Students can gain a competitive advantage by having resumes.”

Caponi said that while networking in the traditional sense is still very important, social networking is becoming important as well.

“It doesn’t replace the personal networking,” Caponi said. “But, it can be a place to start.” Caponi then recounted a story of how she helped a student using LinkedIn to secure a job in the town he wanted to live, after he had been offered a six-figure salary in another market.

Both candidates said globalization is changing the way that students need to approach education, and that study abroad learning will only make them more marketable.

Turner ended his presentation by taking a few questions from the crowd. Taye Triggs, assistant dean of student development, asked him what he how he would approach a non-traditional student.

“(I would) help lead them with skills they’ve had in the past, researching them,” Turner said. “The reality is, we never really stop learning.

Student Coordinator Matthew Gregg weighed in on the candidates for the position.

“I think both of the candidates we have coming to campus are very strong candidates,” Gregg said. “We wouldn’t have brought them to campus if they weren’t.”

Gregg said that they really tried to select candidates that reflect what the students want, and believes that both candidates have those qualities.

“The Spring Sports Complex was difficult to build,” MWSU Sports Director Dave Williams said. “The original plan was to have a baseball field a year ago.”

The possibility of Western getting the Chief’s training camp held up the process. The placement of the new indoor sports center to house the Chiefs meant that the softball field that was there would be in the way.

After the announcement that the Chiefs were coming, the Spring Sports Complex became a two-field proposal to accommodate the replacement softball field. The placement of those fields depended on getting the Chief’s training camp. The complex was financed in part by the capital collected to bring the training camp to Western. Most of the money came from the Max Experience funds directly from students.

“The long term plan is for the addition of two tennis courts and a second practice softball field,” Williams said.

There are many benefits to having our own fields on campus. There is the obvious anticipated attendance jump because students will have closer and better access to the games, but there are other benefits.

“Now we get to set the priorities,” Williams said, as he tells of the relationship between the city and the university. “We were always a priority (to use the city fields) but we were not the only priority.”

Williams also explained that students no longer need to leave practice 15 minutes early to get to the next class half way across town. Western paid for the use of Phil Welch Stadium when they played there last season and had to sometimes setup or maintain the field for the high school team that was next to play.

“Now our guys can focus on playing the game and less time will be spent on maintaining the field,” Williams said.

Baseball coach, Buzz Verduzco and the team can now view themselves as having their own field.

“That is a definite psychological plus and there will hopefully be more students at the games,” Verduzco said.

The choice to go with artificial turf on the baseball infield versus a total natural field was to save the cost of field maintenance.

“The only difference to the game is the infield hops,” Verduzco said. He also points out that the practices lately have been on the artificial turf on the outdoor and indoor football fields which are artificial turf. “We are ready for the changes,” Verduzco said.

The softball field is all natural with dirt infield which is the norm for softball. Pitcher, Carla Anderson says that her team is very anxious to play on the new field. She hasn’t seen it yet and says she can’t wait. The weather window the guys took advantage of to practice on their new field allowed construction of netting on the softball field so the softball team didn’t get to practice on their field.

“Last year we played across town at the fields by the casino. I know we lost some of our fans by being off campus,” Anderson said. “We hope to get them back.”

Gov. Jay Nixon has proposed cutting the budget for higher education for the second year in a row. This time, the proposal will reduce the state allocation by seven percent. Western Board of Governors may need to consider not only raising student tuition to meet the consumer price index, as allowed by SB 389, but may need to seek a higher increase to offset lost state appropriations.

In 2007, when Gov. Blunt signed this bill things were different. The economy was in better shape and some universities were raising their tuition nearly every year. The state legislature put an end to the out-of–control, rising cost of higher education by passing SB389.

The bill only allows tuition increases if the university’s tuition is below the state average and then allows only a raise that matches the consumer price index increase for the year. The problem is no one considered the possibility of the state cutting the appropriations to universities. After two years of cuts Western, along with other universities, has felt the squeeze from both ends and their budgets are in trouble.

The proof is the shrinking reserve bank account that Western has been living on during the past two years. When the bill was passed Western enjoyed $7.8 million in cash reserves. Since then the account has been drained to $4.7 million. The Board of Governors requires that four to six percent of the operating budget must be kept in reserves. “Considering our operating budget we need to keep a reserve of $2 million to meet the board’s requirement,” Vice President of Financial Planning and Administration Mel Klinkner said. “We have about two years before hitting the bottom of our minimum reserve limit.”

Several members of the administration team from Western went to Jefferson City to lay the groundwork for possible tuition increase approval and what President Robert Vartabedian has labeled “Equity”. Director of External Relations Beth Wheeler and Mel Klinkner accompanied the president on his visit to Jefferson City as they met with 12 legislators. Vartabedian also testified to the Missouri House Committee on Appropriations. “We went to tell Missouri Western’s Story,” Wheeler said.

The “equity” issue is two- fold according to Vartabedian. He recently wrote a column for the Griffon News which revealed that Western is the fastest growing state university in Missouri. Klinkner points out that we should not be too quick to give the credit to the Chief’s training camp.

“The growth began before the training camp. We are looking forward to more growth from that in the future.” Klinkner said. “We are growing because of our students, staff and the quality of education that we offer.”

The second “equity” issue is the fact, also pointed out by the president’s column, that “Western currently receives the lowest state appropriations on a per-student basis of any other public university in Missouri.”

“There is a group in Jefferson City made up of members of The Board of Higher Education that is looking at and working on the issue of equity,” Wheeler said. “They have met once to set up the committee.” Wheeler believes that they may come up with a new formula to address these issues.

“I hate doing it (raising tuition),” Klinkner said. As it stands now, Western is holding down the price of tuition. We are $584 per school year under the average for Missouri. Meanwhile the administration is enduring state appropriation cuts, continued growth in student population and rising mandatory cost such as utilities, retirement, maintenance and insurance. Western has added five buildings since SB 389 was passed and student population has increased 18 percent in the last three years.

“We are producing what the legislators want with our staffing numbers at 1999 levels. Our people are very efficient,” Klinkner said.
Senate bill 389 was first applied in fiscal year 2009. It affected higher education in some less dramatic ways. For example, the bill requires that the Joint Committee on Education meet a minimum of twice per year. It introduced the Missouri Teaching Fellows Program to assist teachers by paying limited amounts of their student loans if they agree to teach in non-accredited school districts. It also made institutions of higher education do some housekeeping type items. “We don’t have any problems complying with the bill, it’s just the tuition formula that doesn’t work,” Wheeler said. Klinkner agrees. He points out that the bill’s designers never took into account a zero increase of appropriations for 2010 and $2.7 million in cuts for 2011 and 2012 collectively, considering the seven percent proposed cut for 2012. Klinkner and Wheeler both said that Gary Nodler, the chief proponent and sponsor of the bill, stated that the bill was never designed to work with decreases in state appropriations.

Some universities’ students have elected to pay additional fees to help close the gap. Presently students at Missouri Southern State University and Northwest Missouri State University pay an additional $300 or more per year in voluntary fees. These fees do not affect SB 389’s formulas and is another income stream for those universities.

“I don’t like the idea of hidden fees,” Klinkner said. “I get calls from parents often who expected to pay the tuition and are surprised when they get their bill with all of the fees included.”

Vartabedian says he could live with these types of student elected fees if the student body votes to pay more tuition voluntarily to keep the quality of education at Western high.
“We have already proposed the idea of these types of fees to the Student Government Association,” Vartabedian said. “We are looking for their input.”The bill allows for a waiver that can be issued to allow universities to exceed the tuition increase limit. “We are going for the waiver.” Vartabedian said.

A new regulation, proposed by the Health and Human Services, ensures students the right to have insurance if they are enrolled in college, even if they become sick or are in an accident. Under the new rule, insurance companies cannot deny coverage for students under the age of 19 because of a pre-existing condition and they cannot drop coverage because a student gets sick.

Director of Center for Consumer Information Steve Larsen suggests this rule is needed because students stress over many things already. By taking away the panic of losing insurance, students now have less to worry about.

“Too many college students weren’t worried about finding a job, they were also worrying about finding health insurance,” Larsen said.
This rule can also save money. Larsen believes families making $65,000 a year will save close to $6,000. Students can also stay on their parent’s plans until they are 26 years old.

Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Young Invincible Aaron Smith agrees with Larsen.”Profits on these plans can be 20 percent or higher,” Smith said. He also said that the old regulation was an unfair practice because students could be released without getting any help. Under the new regulations, students will no longer have to worry about being released without some type of aid in finding replacement insurance.

“In a random survey of nine colleges and universities around the country, we found that eight currently have some exclusion clause where students suffering from a pre-existing condition,” Smith said. “These exclusions put the binding on those who need insurance the most.”
Steven Bloom, of the American council on education, says that they are the umbrella organizing the insurances and education together, though he knows that finding the solution is not over.

“I am a little concerned that insurers may use these regulations as a pretext to inappropriately raise premiums,” Bloom said. “Increases to some schools for insurance plans.”
Nonetheless, now students should be able to get the insurance they need to help them throughout college. Larson said this is their time now that they can finally afford to buy it all.

“For many students, this is their only opportunity,” Larson said.

Kallie Schoonover would hit a three with 48 seconds remaining to bring Western within five.
After two Northwest free throws and a Bell layup that made it an 87-80 ballgame, Nolke would lose the handle on a pass from Bell on the next possession and the Bearcats would hit their free throws to ice the game.
Koch, Bell and Schoonover followed Nolke’s 24-point effort by scoring 13, 13 and 11 respectively.

“We don’t have control over it so we feel like why should we get the technical,” Phelps said.
After Northwest missed both free throws, the Griffons got off to a promising start with two Adrian Thomas three point shots giving them a 6-0 lead. Northwest was able to bounce back quickly and take advantage of an additional Griffons technical foul on coach Tom Smith, taking a 21-18 lead after the free throws.
Smith said he picked up the technical because he felt that Northwest was being allowed to push the Griffons around in the lane and his team was called for a foul when they tried to do the same.
“That was fine; I got my money’s worth on that one.” Smith said.
Northwest was able to take a 33-32 halftime lead after Jake Reinders nailed a half-court buzzer beater.
The second half started much like the first, with a team shooting technical free throws, except this time it was the Griffons shooting. A technical foul was issued to Northwest forward Arunas Simanavicius at the end of the first frame.
Western guard Jonathan Phelps took over the game, netting all 18 of his points in the second half. The Griffons leading scorer in the first half with 13 points, P’Allen Stinnett, was poked in the eye and forced to miss a large chunk of the second half.
Phelps was able to hit a layup to tie the game at 67 with only a minute remaining but was unable to hit a three point shot to go up by one and win the game with 5.2 seconds remaining on the clock.
Smith said he didn’t mind the three point shot selection by Phelps to try and win the game but it was the shot selection and turnovers on the previous couple of possessions that cost the Griffons the game. “When we were up four with the ball is what hurt us the most,” Smith said. “We needed to drive that one to the basket and get fouled and not settle for the three and I thought we settled for the three.”
The Griffons were outscored 12-4 in the final four minutes of the game.
P’Allen Stinnett was the Griffons’ leading scorer with 21 followed by Jonathan Phelps who added 18 points. These two were the only Western players to hit double figures in scoring and combined for over half of the teams points.
T.J. Johnson led the team in rebounding, grabbing seven boards. The Griffons were out rebounded 38 to 28.  Smith said that they needed much more on the glass to win the game.
Northwest guard DeShaun Cooper led all scorers with 31 points, including some clutch free throws to put the game on ice for the Bearcats. Smith said that he was the major difference maker in the game.

“I think he see’s our team and puts on the superman costume,” Smith said. ”We stopped everybody else, but Copper hurt us.”
Smith said that he did not think that this loss would prevent Western from getting a berth in the MIAA conference tournament in Kansas City due to the way things will play out in the league. “We need three wins probably; I think that 10 wins will get you to the tournament.” Smith said.
Western has five remaining regular season games, with three of them being played at the MWSU field house where the Griffons are 6-4 on the season.

Here’s something I’ve been wondering about for a long time. Why isn’t black history included with American History?

-Robby Malone

Dear Robby,

That’s a hard question to answer.  Though in most history classes slavery, segregation, Dr. King and other African Americans are included, I still feel that more African American history should be acknowledged. I wonder how many elementary school students know who W.E.B Dubois, Booker T. Washington and Langston Hughes are.

I don’t worry about black history one day escaping the minds of today’s culture. Instead, I fear that black history will be forgotten by the next generation. I fear this for not only black history, but for the Holocaust, women’s rights, Hispanic suffering and many other  important aspects of early history. American history is so full of numerous things that’s hard to include all of its factors. Who is to say what’s important and what’s not?

The only thing we can do as Americans is educate ourselves and our children. It’s our job as Americans to not let the work of our ancestors be deemed as unimportant. If it wasn’t for them, none of us would be here.

So, we on the Griffon News really appreciate our special maintenance team that works hard to clear out all of this snow for us. Their major contributions have ultimately made it easier on Western to attend our classes for Thursday and Friday.

According to the St. Joseph News Press, St. Joseph received 7.5 inches of snow this past week, with all three days having air temperatures colder than zero and less than minus-20 wind chill. On Wednesday, the weather forecast said every single school in the state of Missouri was closed.  Satellite images showed that this was the worst storm to hit the country in decades, as it affected 30 states. Even schools in Arizona were shut down due to an inch of snow. When these conditions occur, the only people we have to count on are our maintenance team and the amount of snow plows they receive. They are the ones that determine how our storm recovery days will be managed.

In our opinion, they did a spectacular job this week. The road circulating our campus was extremely clear. Though Faron road was closed on Wednesday, it reopened just in time for class, despite the dangerous hills leading into campus. All of the residence hall parking lots were cleared off, leaving just a little snow in between the parked cars. The majority of the icy sidewalks had salt placed carefully, so that neither students nor professors would fall walking to class. The Missouri Western maintenance crew went above and beyond to make life a little easier for our students.

The first day of spring this year occurs on March 20. It is predicted that we should have at least two more snow days this semester. With all the weather’s chaos and commotion, there is nothing we do can but have faith that our crew will see us through the days and be the true calming after the storm.

“The union is the heart beat of the campus,” Dillon Harp, SGA president said. “This event is to raise awareness of what the union has to offer.”

The event will include many activities. Students will be able to enjoy video games like Dance Central and Guitar Hero. A station will be set up for students to personalize their own cookies. Fun Services from Kansas City is sponsoring a Boogie Heads booth.  

According to the Fun Services website, Boogie Heads uses green screen technology to place the participant’s head on the body of a professional dancer. Boogie Heads will allow the students to pick from a selection of 40 songs and over 100 video possibilities.

“Heart Your Union” will be a large event, with a variety of activities.

“There will be so many things going on at this event,” Kathy Kelly, SGA administrative coordinator said. “Barnes and Noble will be having Student Appreciation Day, and the PT students will be giving free massages. There will be lots of fun as well as educational things for students to do.”

As part of the Valentine’s Day celebration, the ESRY Health Center will be giving free AIDS test to students. Students have reacted positively to this service’s availability. 

“I think that it’s a great way for students to get tested without being embarrassed by going to a clinic. That way it’s more of a social event and less of a doctor’s appointment,” sophomore Morgan Breckenridge said.

Various student organizations and services will have booths at the event.

“The “Heart Your Union” event will showcase the union and make students aware of the resources that are available for them, like the Center for Student Engagement and Center for Multicultural Education,” Harp said.

Gov. Jay Nixon said, “My Budget in 2012 also includes millions of dollars for Missouri’s most successful college scholarship programs.”

Gov. Nixon did not specify how much would go to what program and if the -scholarships are going to be worth more if they are just going to have the funds to grant more scholarships.

“We have got no information on the governor’s statement yet,” Marilyn Baker, director of financial aid, said.

The Scholarship programs the governor was referring to are Bright Flight, Access Missouri and the A+ Scholarship. These programs are all offered here at Missouri Western.  Western students also get state aid from Marguerite Ross Barnett Memorial Scholarship and Missouri Returning Heroes’ Education Act Scholarship. Director of Admissions Howard McCauley said,“We feel very strongly about our scholarship program we feel we have a scholarship program we can compete with.”

Governor Nixon took $50 million out of the Access Missouri scholarship budget for the 2010-2011 school years. The Missouri Higher education Authority or MOHELA put $30 million back into Access Missouri so students were not hit as hard.

In 2008-2009 4,746 Missouri western Students received $4,489,371 in state scholarships and grants in 210-2011. 5,197 Missouri Western students received $3,068,769 in state scholarships and grants. In 2008-2009 school years the students received $355 more dollars in State aid. The Financial Aid department is waiting to find out if MOHELA is going to donate the same funds as they did last year.

“We will not have a dollar figure for state aid until maybe the middle of the summer.” Baker explained that the process to determine state aid,”  Baker said. “April 1 the state gets all the FASFA information and they house all the data then they determine the amount the student is going to get based on the number of applicants.”  

The A+ program only affects people getting a two-year degree. “For the two-year programs we are still eligible for the A+ program,” McCauley said.  

The A+ program is currently in legislation. “The A+ is really hard to predict for next year the changes are still in the legislative process so we don’t know the effect that will have on Missouri Western students,” Baker said.

A: I am program assistant for the multicultural organization at Missouri Western.

Q: How long have you been at Missouri Western?

A: Three years. I’m a junior.

Q: What attracted you to this line of work?

A: I used to go in there for fun, but as I began talk with Tay and as Tay took me under her wing, she showed me some of my practices weren’t right and just because you are black or a person of color that doesn’t automatically make you diverse. Just because you’re a minority doesn’t mean you can treat other minorities like crap. Just because you have been given a part of the oppression, that doesn’t mean you can oppress others.

Q: Which black leader would you say is your role model?

A: As of right now it would have to say Tay. I’m not just saying that because she’s in the multicultural program. It’s because she sets an example of a person with leadership.

Q: In What way do you think black leaders have had the most impact on society?

A: As of right now I feel as if society doesn’t acknowledge black leaders. Martin Luther King embraced our culture and now seems to go unrecognized. People now say, “Oh, Martin Luther King, oh sweet we get a day off school” instead of, “Oh, Martin Luther King, he gave his life for us,” or “Oh, Martin Luther King, he did service us, why don’t I do a day of service.” I think myself, Tay Triggs and few others are living proof.

Q: In the last ten years, how do you think black leaders have affected America?

A: It depends on who is around you. It might be your teacher who inspires you. You might be inspired by musicians, celebrities, or even rappers. It may be Michelle Obama and Barack. Most people are inspired by who they know or people who are glorified by the media.

Q: How has the election of the first black president affected your life?

A: I can’t say it’s affected my life, but I do remember the day. I was working at USA 800 and most of the black people were really happy, but some of the white people were upset. When I got back to school there was this huge party for Barack being elected. It seemed you were either angry by the results or happy. There was no on in the middle. I remember seeing these two girls crying and I was like, “Why are you crying?” I mean, I didn’t cry when Bush got elected. So I couldn’t imagine how it was that bad, but then again it goes out to society for the first black president – lots of people where having parties. Why are you going to have a party to celebrate?  Celebrating his election means being like him and achieving his greatness.

Q: What does it take to be a black leader in America?

A: I think you have to be strong willed, have the upper hand, have to accept diversity and be diverse. You have to look at the bigger picture. You can’t just think about your conscience because you have to think about everything.  If you only think about your conscience than you’re racist or biased. There seems to be more put on to the African American’s plate than there is on the counterpart because majority rules. You can’t say black-this black-that, you have to think about everything and how the world affects everyone. You have to have an education no matter what. You can’t stop at just a Bachelor’s Degree. I don’t even have mine yet, so I’m not in the playing field yet. You really need to be open-minded and face diversity.

Q: What do you hope students/people in general learn from Black History Month?

A: We are in college – there’s not much more to learn. So I hope in elementary and middle school English you got all that you could. I hope students will reflect on what this month means to the race and what it means not just to the race, but to everybody. I don’t think we necessarily need a whole month and I’m not saying we need a year, but you should embrace yourself every day. No matter if you’re black, white, patrician – any race or ethnicity.

Q: What do you feel is the most important aspect of multicultural studies?

A: You learn to embrace and accept everybody. You don’t have to agree with it, but you need to respect it. I’m Christian and I know an Atheist. It scared me at first, but she explained it to me. She told me she doesn’t believe in the devil or God. I thought, “Atheist meant devil – worshiper and, oh my goodness, I am afraid.” No, it’s not like that. She just believes that there is no higher power. Now that I wasn’t so afraid, I didn’t distance myself from her. I learned what it meant. It’s important to accept everybody who isn’t like you and to embrace everybody.

Q: How important do you think it is for students to be familiar with various cultures, including their own?

A: Very important, because while in college you may lose yourself. If you know who are you are, you feel more comfortable when a person tries to look down on you or shun you because of your race. If you are comfortable with yourself, then it doesn’t matter because you can promote yourself. Black students, we need to embrace ourselves, not just for the month of February, but every day of the year. It’s important for you so you can be comfortable with yourself and you can make people around you be comfortable as well.

Q: What do you believe is/was the biggest impact black leaders have had on society?

A: I could say it was Martin Luther King and his nonviolence and love, but we don’t love one another. I could say it was Malcolm X and his separation movement, but if we separate ourselves we will be in a pull to play against our counterpart. I could say segregation, but we have choices now. Now if you went to my grandfather, it’d be a different answer, but the way we act and can come together is normal for my generation. The biggest thing for my generation is 9-11 and it didn’t directly impact a certain race because it impacted us all. We need something to wake us up and make us focus on what we are doing. We need to appreciate what all these black leaders have done for us. There is nothing that has scared us enough to get our acts together. We take too many things for granted. I can’t say the Obama election has done anything. We need something to wake us up for the future.

Q: What do you hope from students to learn from your organization?

A: This February, we will have two different programs. I will be running one and my vice president will be running the other. My part is giving students a voice. They can complain about the police or showing their ID in the computer lab now, but they never do anything. I will be giving them a voice and teaching them how to voice their opinions in a professional way. I’m trying to show them how to change things for the better. We are trying to get a fire lit under the black students’ butts.

Q: What does Black History Month mean to you?

A: It means to embrace yourself every day and not just for one month.

Q: What impact do you believe culture has on the way people live/interact?

A: On MTV there is this new show called Skins. I now don’t want my future children to ever watch it. I’m a college student – I shouldn’t be watching an orgy on TV, so there is no way a high school or middle school kids should be watching this. What are they going to learn from it? They are going to learn that popping pills, drinking alcohol, going to a house party and have a big sex orgy is okay to do. Culturally we are lacking, lacking, lacking. I don’t understand it. We have a choice today and we take it for granted. We expect people to cater for us. I’m an only child and everyone thinks I get everything I want, but no I don’t. I work for it. We need to culturally get it together.

Four school administrators from the Kansas City area who have high rankings in their school districts stressed the importance of education. The group consisted of Dr. Chris Blackburn, Doug Flowers, Dr. Rob Gardner and Rob Winter.

Blackburn, the superintendent in Lathrop, Mo., was the first to present information to the audience about things that her school district does to help a child learn better. One of these is having a four-day school week – they are the only district in Missouri that does this. This might seem to be an extra day of fun for the students, but this is actually an extra day for them to study. The teachers have more time to help children on certain things.

Blackburn also claims that attendance went up and everyone involved is for this new way of learning. She said that parents are seeing results and are happy about the situation.

Teaching children was the main topic and was the pinnacle of everything all of the speakers said. One of the speakers made clear how great of an impact teachers can have on a child by saying the teacher has a great responsibility to help children. Flowers made a strong statement that would get everyone’s attention.

“Children are going home to homes that might not have any parents in the home, so we have to take on the role as parents,” Flowers said.

Flowers said that self-image is also big if you want to be a teacher. He said that there are certain things that you have to be willing to give up in that field, one of which is a somewhat free social life.

“You will always be Mr. and Mrs. so-and-so to the kids, so it is important to be careful and do the right things,” Flowers said.

Gardner said that the best teachers are the ones that are willing to go the extra mile. Ways to do this are through coaching, tutoring and after school programs. This is what he says separates teachers who are looking for a job. Helping the less fortunate is an eye opener according to Gardner, and he gave some input on past experiences from teachers.

“The teachers actually drove to the apartment complexes and set up study periods for underprivileged kids,” Gardner said.

The speakers possessed the same mindset, because teachers who are willing to do whatever it takes get hired first, according to Flowers.

“We want to hire quality people first and foremost,” Flowers said. “You only get one first impression.”

Education is a difficult field to go into right now due to the economy. Many people apply for a position and don’t know if hundreds are applying for the same one. Wilkinson is a senior who graduates this semester. She is very aware of how tough and competitive it is to be a teacher. One of the ways she prepares for the challenge is by being active at events and doing things off campus. She wanted to get the word out on this event and its importance to the other students who are interested in education.

“This is something we like to do annually and in this time of economic crisis,” Wilkinson said. ”I felt this was the best year to have this event.”

The Department of Communication Studies Theater and Video presented the seventh annual Griffon International Film Festival, Feb. 1-4.

This year’s film festival featured 38 short films selected by students out of the many entries received from around the world. There also was a Missouri Western Student Showcase that gave current students at Western a chance to show their best video work.

Foreign films are a great way to fully appreciate and understand the world in which you live. Learning about different language and culture gives you perspectives that you may never have known otherwise. Understanding these differences is vital in a world where nations and peoples are dependent on another to supply goods and services. Being in touch with the economical, political, professional and social realities of other cultures show us how to cooperate, communicate, negotiate and compromise.

Professor of Spanish, Dr. Eduardo Castilla, recognizes the importance of this understanding.

“We trade many products and goods with other nations and we also depend on the importation of goods,” Castilla said.

“We are a global community.”

While all these films had different messages from around the world dealing with real life scenarios and situations, they allowed us to step inside the mind and context of that other culture.
Foreign films are unique stories that are entertaining and educational. They are not the type of films you would see at the local theater, but they are certainly a must see.

“I love the film festival because it’s a great way for students to see things that they might not otherwise see because these films don’t necessarily run in main stream theaters,” said Susie Hennessy, professor of French here at Western.

The festival showcased the work of Western students that many found to be very interesting. Western has many talented students who put a lot of hard work into producing and filming their own original work.
Mallory Edson and Jeanna Ross showed their film Noir, A spoof on the gumshoe, the dame and film noir lighting. They both worked hard on quality and putting their project together.

“I know it was chosen as a selection because of the quality. We filmed it for a class cinematography project and really put a lot of effort into making it look good,” Edson said.

Hopefully you didn’t miss the opportunity to see this film put together by Edson and Ross and all the other Western student’s projects, but you have one more chance to see films made by Western students along with the last set of wonderful foreign films.

Tomorrow, Feb. 4, is the last screening at 7 p.m. in the Hearnes Center, room 102, featuring 8 short films. Two of those films are by Western students Kallie Hartigan and Jake Southard.
Hartigan’s Hypnosis Theme and Southard’s The Clincher will premier.
Admission is free and open to the public.

Triggs began work at the University as the coordinator for what was then called Minority Student Achievement. In the next five years, Triggs would become Assistant Dean for Student Development. As Assistant Dean, she supervised the Center for Student Engagement, International Student Services and Career Development. In 2010, Triggs became director of the CME and she is still challenging students today.

Q: What first attracted you to this line of work?

A: I’ve always loved working in diversity affairs. In college, I was a resident assistant. Part of our requirements were to research, plan and implement our own programs. So I got really into doing presentations and researching, and I landed a grad assistantship in the multicultural affairs office. That was my introduction to the whole idea of diversity affairs.

Q: What do you feel is the most important aspect of multicultural studies?

A: The engagement part. If you can’t get people to the programs and workshops, you can’t really provide them with the opportunity to truly challenge themselves, and grow and learn.

Q: How important do you think it is that students be well versed in all cultures, including their own?

A: I think it’s important that they start with their own. Most people haven’t a clue who they are from a cultural/historical aspect. They don’t know where their families come from, but they really want to know. I think it’s really important to build some pride and then get to know other people.

Q: What impact do you believe culture has on the way people interact with each other?

A: I think it has a huge impact, especially on a college campus. You’re all in such close proximity to each other; there’s no running and hiding. Sometimes you get one chance to show a person who you are and you don’t, excuse the pun, want to show the wrong colors. People also have a really hard time stepping outside their box and not caring what people think of them. What I would really love college students to learn is that it’s OK to lose some privilege with your clique by sitting with new and different people because you’re the one who’ll win out in the long term. Be a leader now.

Q: You mentioned being a leader. Which historical black leader would you say was your role model?

A: One of the people who had a huge effect on my life was James Baldwin. When I talk about having courage and stepping out, he is one of the people I try to model myself after. He was black and homosexual, and left the United States because of how we viewed homosexuals in this country, especially of color. He moved to Europe because there he was a writer, a prolific writer, and that was all people cared about. That’s how he wanted to be seen, not judged by his actions or how he chose to live his life.

Another of course would be Dr. Martin Luther King. I don’t think, even today, I’d be able to do the things he did. He put his life on the line daily.

Q: Would you say, then, that they influence what you’re trying to teach students about branching out and not judging people?

A: Yes, because it’s like two sides of a coin. Those are two things I communicate the most. It’s not just a box. You have to step out of your entire comfort zone to really affect change.

Q: What do you think it would take to be a black leader in today’s society?

A: Heart. No matter how much talent you have, you’re still fighting an uphill battle. You have to want to lead. You have to have passion for it because that’s what keeps you in it. For me, it’s my students. I love to see how talking to me affects their lives.

Q: Do you think it’s harder now to be a leader in our society?

A: I don’t think it’s necessarily harder to lead. It’s harder for people to be led. Back when Dr. King was alive, people were searching for a leader with a new voice and new ideas. Now it’s just a different generation, and their wants and needs are different. People want instant gratification, but life is not an instant scratch-off ticket.

Q: What does Black History Month mean to you?

A: There’s so many celebratory months – Black History, Gay Pride, Native American – and we try our best here as one office to pull it all together. So to me all these months are just a time set aside to reflect and become aware. But you should celebrate contributions of African Americans everyday. You should celebrate everyone everyday. The fact that we have these months set aside is an indication that we still have work to do.

Western came out of the gates ready to send a message to the third ranked team in the region. The two had met earlier in the regular season on the same field and Northwest easily won 42-0.

The Griffons’ Terrell Downing received the opening kickoff and returned it 28 yards to set the offense up for their first drive of the playoffs. After two running plays and an incomplete pass, the Griffons were forced to punt and to put their defense out on the field against one of the most powerful offenses in Division II football.

Northwest moved the ball on their first possession, but after a couple of penalties, the Bearcats were forced to punt.

Western’s offense took to the field again and had the same result as it looked as if the Bearcat defense would have a repeat of their Oct. 2^nd shut out of Western.

After another punt, the defense went back to work against the Bearcat offense and shut them down again.

Some people believe that the third time is the charm, and for Drew Newhart and the rest of the offense, it was.

Newhart caught a break on that same drive when Northwest linebacker Bill Baudler dropped a, would be, interception and gave the Griffons new life. They proceeded to drive 80 yards down the field and would score on a seven yard touchdown pass from Newhart to Adam Clausen to give them a 7-0 lead just 48 seconds into the second quarter.

The defense would hold the Bearcats again on the next possession and Newhart would throw another touchdown pass to Andrew Mead to give the Griffons a 14-0 lead midway through the second quarter.

Brad Beckwith would add a field goal from 28 yards out to put the Griffons up 17-0. Beckwith would attempt a 56 yard field goal with four seconds left in the half but would come up short and the Griffons would go into halftime with a 17-0 lead.

In the half, the Griffons earned 234 yards of total offense to the Bearcats’ 50 yards as Drew Newhart finished the first half with 162 yards passing, completing 10 of 18 passes.

The second half, however, did not start the way the Griffons wanted.

Northwest received the opening kickoff and then would stall on their first possession and would be forced to punt.

However, the Bearcats would fake the punt and snap it to tight end Josh Baker as he would run 46 yards for a touchdown and cut the lead to 17-7.

This proved to be a huge momentum shift in the game as the Bearcats would get the ball back from the Griffons and score another touchdown to cut the lead to three.

“That punt fake really changed everything in the second half,” head coach Jerry Partridge said.

Western’s offense would not give in though. Newhart would connect with Mead on a long third down conversion and then capped off the drive with a 39 yard touchdown pass to Downing to make the lead 24-14 with a little over two minutes to play in the third quarter.

The fourth quarter would be all Northwest as they outscored Western 14-0 in the frame. The Bearcats got a 28-24 lead and the Western defense held Northwest to give their offense one last chance to go for their first playoff win in school history.

“Going into that last drive, we were very confident because we had a two minute drill a couple weeks ago against UNO and we were successful and scored then,” Newhart said.

This two minute drill would not be the same however. Western had the ball on a second and five and were looking as if they would pull of this win. However, Newhart was sacked to make it third and 18 and eventually, the Griffons turned the ball over on downs and the Bearcats were able to run out the clock to continue their season next weekend against Texas A&M Kingsville.

“We did what we needed to do on third down in the first half,” linebacker Deondre Williams said. “In the second half, though, we just couldn’t seem to get off the field on third downs.”

Northwest finished the game 10-17 on third down conversions, going 10-10 in the second half.

“We just didn’t make plays when we needed to in the second half and they were able to and that was the difference in the game,” wide receiver Andrew Mead said.

For 12 seniors, including Mead, Newhart and Williams, this was their last game in a Griffon uniform, but they didn’t go out without a fight.

“We didn’t come up here to earn a moral victory,” Partridge said. “I hate it for these seniors that we couldn’t get the job done and that they have to live with this moral victory.”

Robin Carnahan-D.

Small businesses are our nation’s jobs and innovation engine, and Robin Carnahan will fight to support them by cutting red tape, simplifying the tax code, and making sure they have the resources they need to thrive. Since over 60 percent of new jobs are created by small businesses, more help for small firms and start-ups means more jobs and security for Missouri families.
Higher education is another important key to job creation, so we must do more to give every boy and girl who wants to go to college the ability to access that dream. In Missouri, students and families are struggling more than ever to afford skyrocketing tuition costs. Carnahan believes that no qualified student should be denied a college education just because they cannot afford it.
No graduate should be forced to carry an unsustainable debt load upon graduation.

Roy Barnes-R.

Roy says we need to empower students and their families so that they can make education decisions that allow them to flourish and succeed. When we do spend federal dollars, we must demand results.
With the federal government’s limited role, Roy will continue to work to encourage policies that emphasize improvement in our schools and fight for greater local control so our children can be successful in life.
Roy Blunt believes the way to real prosperity is to count on free people to make their own decisions – what to buy, how much to save, when to borrow or lend, and how much. In the present crisis, for example, if we want more consumer spending and job creation, then let’s reduce people’s taxes. He wants the President to have a line item veto, so the President can find wasteful projects and stop them.

State senatorial candidates

Martin T. Rucker-D.

It is essential for every Missourian to have the opportunity for a quality education. As a State Representative I have voted to fully fund our K-12 education system every year. We must do more to ensure access to technology and excellent teachers in classrooms. Higher education is also key to success in the workplace and competing in our global economy. I’m proud to have sponsored tax credits to make higher education more affordable.
We need an increased focus helping Missourians find jobs. As a Representative I have fought tirelessly to support legislation that creates and protects Missouri jobs and helps to create and grow small business, from cracking down on businesses that hire illegal immigrants to supporting tax credits and low interest loans for small businesses.

Rob Schaaf-R..

Since I have been in office, we have increased funding for education and created a new foundation funding formula to make sure that schools have the resources they need to give our children a quality education. As your state senator, I’ll make sure we continue to make education a priority in Missouri and work to ensure that our education dollars are spent wisely and that our teachers receive the training and resources necessary to give our children the best possible education.
Since I first took office in the Missouri House, we have turned state budget deficits into budget surpluses without raising taxes. I’ll work to keep taxes low so you can keep more of your own money, and make sure that the tax dollars you send to Jeff City are spent wisely and that our state government doesn’t spend money we don’t have.

The new owners of the old Bottom’s Up Bar & Grill are dropping the “& Grill” from their name. What they’ll no longer offer in the way of foods will be compensated for with bands, DJs, karaoke, and more.

Having sat dormant at 2007 Saint Joseph Avenue for some time, the building was purchased this past May by co-owners Seth, Bruce and Christy Hall, and Susie Dannar.

Dannar has plenty of experience working in restaurants and bars, and has managed a club before.

“It’s a hard line of work and you put in a lot of hours, but we have a great team here, so I’m really looking forward to finally running my own place,” Dannar said.

Dannar said each owner brings some area of expertise to the venture. Since they’re both musicians in the band Borderline, brothers Bruce and Seth Hall have the live music area covered—something they have especially big plans for.

“There’s so many artists and musicians, and people who are patrons of that in this town, and I really want to accommodate them,” Bruce Hall said.

Bruce Hall said he realizes there are many students in the performing arts at Western, and he looks forward to booking their talent as well.

In addition to featuring comedians in the future, Seth Hall said they’d like to add some large-screen televisions and serve as a sports bar.

“If they’d ever happen to get it on, we’d really like to feature and promote Griffon sports, because this is the town we’re in and we would love to do that,” Seth Hall said.

Other plans include college nights for over-21 Western students. Bruce’s wife Christy said they want to be community-minded by hosting special events for military and police, and by helping the less fortunate.

“One idea we’re talking about is having a different charity every month, like having people bring in food or clothing, since shelters have been packed,” Christy Hall said.

The Bottoms Up gang has done the renovation work themselves with a lot of much-appreciated help from friends like Jennifer Showalter, Jimmy Feiden and Aaron Craig.

Craig just happens to have recently attended Western as a business major and ROTC member.

“I’m still in the service, but changing duties a bit, so I’ll be deploying to Japan in a couple of weeks for training,” Craig said. “So in the meantime, I’ve spent quite a bit of time helping out with electrical work and whatever else needs done.”

Depending on how work progresses, the grand opening is planned for the next weekend or two. Updates, plus word on future events and other information, can be found at www.facebook.com

Several prospective nursing students attended the nursing open house in which the students displayed their knowledge on the department’s practice patients including the newest and most expensive Otto.

Otto, the latest tool in the nursing department’s tool belt, is a mannequin that is able to replicate real life patient situations. According to the brochure, Otto is able to run 60 different preprogrammed, simulated clinical experiences with 30 different preprogrammed patient profiles.

The newest HPS also comes with programs so that the proctor is able to write their own clinical situations and manipulate preexisting programs even while the simulation is running.

Otto is also able to perform a variety of bodily functions such as seizing, blinking, and even responding to meds, said Roger Voelkel, RN, Assistant Professor.
Voelkel said that while Otto is the newest he is not the only HPS in the nursing department. The department has a wide variety of simulators including an intensive care patient, an infant, and a woman named Noelle who is capable of giving birth.

Breanna Allison practices nursing procedures on Otto, the nursing departments new human patient simulator. Photo | Robin Gaan

The cost of these tools is well warranted with all that they are able to accomplish.

“Applied learning is a hallmark of Missouri Western,” O’Connor said. “Not only do they teach valuable skills to the students but it also instills them with confidence.”

With these HPS, students are able to see how their actions affect the patient without any harm coming to a real person.

Suzanne Von Behren, a senior nursing student agrees with O’Connor.

“It’s more real (than the others) and gives you feedback just like a real patient would,” she said.

Von Behren was in charge of showcasing Otto at the open house running a simulation where the mannequin simulated breathing problems. Von Behren was able to get Otto’s oxygen level to a healthy and normal level prompting the HPS to thank her claiming he was feeling much better.

On Saturday, Feb. 13, Missouri Western will be celebrating this movement in the Potter Hall Theater by holding its fourth Annual Jazz Festival. The festival will highlight eight middle school and high school bands during this day long event. This is a competition free event, although the performances will be critiqued.

Bob Long, director of jazz studies and coordinator of woodwinds, feels that this is a better approach to education and improvement than a competition.

‘’The festival’s main focus is jazz education,’’ Long said. ‘’It’s a way for students and jazz programs to receive constructive criticism on ways to improve. It brings people on campus and exposes what we have to offer here.”

The schools featured are: Benton High School, Central High School, Harrisonville High School, Park Hill High School, Smith-Cotton High School, Tina-Avalon Middle School and Winnetonka High School. The event will come to a close at 5 p.m. with a performance by Western’s own Jazz lab band. Missouri Western Sophomore Wesley Enyeart, who will be performing at the festival and has been playing for ten years, expresses his hopes for the event.

“I hope to do well and show that not only is jazz a complicated music style but it can also be fun and expressive,” Enyeart said. “I think Missouri Western choose to be in it because it is a bettering experience. The more you play, the better you get.”

Make sure to stop by and support these local musical education programs as they learn, mature and gain experience all while playing some enjoyable swingin’ music.

The Griffons didn’t let up during the second half. Widrig scored one more goal to put Western up 2-0, and junior Jessica Martin sealed the victory with one more goal to finish the game 3-0.

Western’s tough defense was a big factor in the victory.

“We defended really well,” head coach Jeff Hansen said. “I think Washburn had the ability to score goals and, so to shut out that team is pretty impressive. There are other teams in the conference that haven’t done it.”

Junior Mary Ohm agreed that the Griffon’s ability to pressure the Lady Blues helped them come out with the win.

“We came out firing right away and we put a lot of high pressure on them,” Ohm said. “I think they were a little panicky with the ball, so our high pressure allowed us to get some chances, and when we did get those chances, we were able to finish all of them.”

Finishing has been a challenge for the Griffons all year, and the fact that the team was able to capitalize on the opportunities given to them was a big step in the right direction.

“When we had chances to score, we took care of them,” Martin said. “We made the best of them, and we actually put the ball in the back of the net.”

Missouri Western had lost their home opener to Emporia State just two days before playing Washburn. According to Hansen, the ability of the team to bounce back from that tough loss was one of the most pleasing aspects of the weekend.

“It was good to see them respond that way,” Hansen said. “I think it tells us a lot about deep inside what kind of team we are. We can be that team that fights back from bad losses to win a game. So for them to play with confidence like they did on Saturday was great. We know that when we do things well we can be a great team.”

According to Martin, it felt great for the Griffons to be able to upset the Lady Blues on their home turf.
“It felt really good to win a home game, and it felt really good to beat a team that people don’t expect us to beat,” Martin said.

Missouri Western now improves to 1-3 in the MIAA and 3-5 overall. The Griffons play their next home game Thursday, Sept. 24 against the rival Northwest Bearcats. After already playing the Bearcats on their field once and losing, Missouri Western is looking for revenge.

“We have some changes that we’ve put together not specifically for Northwest but just that I think have made us a better team in the past week,” Hansen said. “So we’ll have that. We’re playing on the turf at home now so that helps.”

Ohm agreed and hopes that the Griffons can get even.

“Hopefully, since we lost last time, we’ll be more fired up to play them and want some revenge,” Ohm said.

Photo | Matthew Fowler

Do you wash your hands every time you sneeze, use a keyboard, touch a doorknob or shake hands? Do you say no to sharing a drink or snack with someone, even a friend? Most people say no to one or more of these actions. However, the problem lies in not completing these very things on an every day basis.

For students, it’s hard to stop every time we come in contact with germs. Blake Thorne, a sophomore at Missouri Western, admits that while he does try to exercise good hygiene, he could easily do more to protect himself against germs.

“I could wash my hands more but that would require leaving class,” Thorne said.
Many students admit that it’s just inconvenient to practice a lot of the good hygiene rules while also going through a busy day of college.
It is important to wash hands with hot water and lather them thoroughly with soap. Slowly count to thirty to completely clean hands of germs.

Campus health officials are working to make our lives more germ-free. Passing out free hand sanitizers to all students is just one of the steps they’ve taken this year to help influence students to take care of themselves and prevent diseases.

Besides using hand sanitizer after touching keyboards and door knobs, there are plenty of ways to prevent diseases and germs in your life. For example, steer clear of touching public toilet stools and make sure to wash your hands thoroughly even if you’ve used hand sanitizer numerous times.

Another easy way to fend off the flu during flu season is to eat as healthy as possible and drink enough water. Making sure your body obtains plenty of vitamins and minerals will help it fend off germs naturally and keep you energetic. Josh Holaday, Missouri Western senior, said your diet has a lot to do with warding of sickness.

“Taking vitamin C helps your immune system and helps to prevent illness,” Holaday said.

Other than preventing germs in your own life, there are ways you can work to stop spreading more germs. This year, teachers are working harder with students to help them make up work so that students can stay home when they’re sick. Cough in your sleeve, carry your own tissues with you so you always have them handy and don’t share food with others even if you don’t feel sick at the moment.

Kari Teschner, a nursing student at Missouri Western, shared some of the knowledge she’s acquired in nursing classes so far.

“I know everybody does it, but after learning how many bacteria are spread when you share food and drinks with your friend, I definitely won’t do it anymore.” Teschner said. “I’ve always been somewhat of a germ freak, but now that we’re learning more in class about MRSA (staph infection) and the swine flu, I’ve become even stricter about taking care of myself and trying to stay away from these two things.”

The flu season has spread so much it feels like there’s never a time when we are not in the middle of a flu season scare. But we can easily protect ourselves from obtaining germs and decrease the risk of spreading more germs and diseases to others.

Lonnie Johnson, director of facilities, feels that the progress of the project is moving along satisfactorily.

The Dilley family enjoys an afternoon fishing at The Everyday Pond near the back entrance of Missouri Western. The pond’s fountain was added as part of the beautification process headed by President Robert Vartabedian and funded by private donations. Photo: Matt Fowler

While beauty does have its price, Western was able to set up these projects on a fair budget.

“All of this came in on our best bid,” Johnson said. “We got two three-horse power pumps and one five-horse power pump, all for under $15 grand. We spent three grand on wiring and conduits.”

To save on costs, staffing of such a project is very limited.

“We are doing it all with our own mechanical guys,” Johnson said. “We have one plumber, one electrician, and three HVAC guys and their supervisor. The installation went very smoothly. Our mechanical folks are pretty sharp. They get to the job and git’r dun!”

So it might be assumed that if the fountains came under such a good price they are just normal, every day, fountains. Johnson could dispel those thoughts.

“We are using interchangeable fountain heads so we can alternate the pattern, height and size of the fountains,” Johnson said. “Dr. Vartabedian has put great emphasis on the beautification of the campus.”

So why all the effort put forward to primping up the place? University President, Robert Vartabedian explains that it is a matter of spending donated money put in place for such projects.

“First of all, we are using primarily external money for these efforts,” Vartabedian said. “Specifically, we received two donations from an alum designated for the new entrance sign at Faraon and McCarthy. We really could not use this money for anything else.”

“Similarly, we received a substantial donation from a corporate benefactor for other beautification efforts–essentially for general signage but also for additional evergreens and pond fountains–as the money holds out. Finally, the new piece of outdoor art by professor James Estes that is about to be unveiled was graciously donated by Estes,” Vartabedian said. “So, you see that nearly all of the expenses associated with our beautification efforts have been covered by external, donated money that was given for that specific purpose.”

With Western facing different financial problems, a question raised is if focusing on such “skin deep” projects will really be effective in such finically important times as now?

“I believe there are various reasons to take pride in the look of our campus and to move forward accordingly,” Vartabedian said. “Of course, all of this should be done within reason–particularly in tough financial times. I think that the benefits of enhancing the look of our campus are numerous. Enrollment management experts tell us that the ‘look of the campus’ is one of the three leading factors influencing a student’s decision to go to a given university–along with financial circumstances, and general reputation.”

The idea is that the students and staff will also benefit from the new found beauty.

“Also, I believe that our students, faculty and staff deserve an attractive educational, working environment,” Vartabedian said. “ In the various groups that I have talked to….they seem to appreciate this as long as it does not get out of hand or sacrifice other important educational needs. As noted, I believe that our beautification efforts so far have not been done at the expense of other improvements.”

It is really a question of effective management of open space. No longer does Western have to be seen as the school out in the sticks.

“Finally, as a relatively new university (since 2005), I think that it is in our best interest (community image and otherwise) to look the part,” Vartabedian said. “Given the amount of space we have (740 acres)–the beautiful green spaces here, and the curvature of the landscape–we have the potential here to have an extremely attractive campus. If it is supported by the university community, I just want to take advantage of that potential. Few universities that I have seen have the kind of potential that we have here at Missouri Western.”

The true question is: are the students aware of the changes being made around them? Jennifer Kohler, former SGA vice-president, states the answer is a definitive yes.
“It’s kind of hard to see it now, but the campus is really coming along with its renovations,” Kohler said. “It’s hard to look past the piles of dirt and machinery, but once Remington Hall and the Chiefs training camp facilities are finished, we’re going to have a top-quality campus with really unique features. It’s something that young and perspective students should look forward to.”

Dante Lammoglia, senior, is inclined to agree.

“Well I’m really excited for the campus beautification,” Lammoglia said. “I’ll be honest, when I was little, being ‘stuck’ at Missouri Western was a joke. It was insulting. But now… I can’t describe how proud I am to be a Griffon!”

Nontraditional student Annie Allen is a little frustrated by this.

“I would like a shuttle (to get to class),” Allen said.

Allen tends to park near Murphy and Eder, and she has noticed an abundance of people who park in this area as well.

“I wonder if we just congregate to this area more,” Allen said.

Student Dawn Pokora, who also has most of her classes in Murphy and Eder, said it is hard to find a convenient parking spot even at 8:30 a.m., because the lots are so crowded.

“It seems like it’s a little worse this year than it was last year,” Pokora said.

Pokora does not remember these lots being so crowded around 8:00 a.m. last year.

Jacob Lutes, a junior, thinks there are other reasons for the lack of convenient parking spaces.

“It’s all the damn motorcyclists and scooters,” Lutes said.

He believes that more than one motorcycle should be grouped together in one spot, and that motorcycles should not take up the closer parking spots.

Lutes believes that the construction has affected parking as well.

“It seems like the barricades are a little bit of a hassle,” Lutes said.

He provided a simple solution for students who are constantly late to class, as he has started to do this.
“Come to class early to figure out what classes get out before yours,” Lutes said.

He happens to live along Faraon, so he has the convenience of timing it just right so that he knows when classes are getting out and parking spots will be available.

Dean of Student Affairs Judy Grimes, on the other hand, has not recently confronted any issues with student parking.

“People always complain about parking, but I haven’t heard any unusual complaints,” Grimes said.

Dr. Todd Eckdahl, science professor and Dr. Jeff Poet, a math professor, co-wrote the article.
The pair worked closely with students, 24 students total, to do research for the GEP on DNA sequencing data. Dr Poet talked about the article,

“It’s about work Dr. Eckdahl and I did with students,” Poet said. “We were looking at strings of DNA information. It’s allowed the students to do the research and getting hands on experience.”

The GED gets the research, and the students get the experience. Poet went on to say that a class is offered the spring, as it’s only offered every other year, and that students from all backgrounds are welcome.
“Students from computer science, math, genetics or even with just an interest in the class are welcome,” Poet said.

It’s a great way to learn hands on and do research that’s actually important. Both professors actually take the whole applied learning idea seriously and hope more students get involved.

“We’re an applied learning campus, and more students should get involved,” Dr. Eckdahl said.

This was Dr. Poet’s first time to be published in the magazine and he was excited about it. It’s apparently rather hard to get into such a prestige magazine, so when you’re one of the few who get in, it’s a big deal.
The GEP is doing their part to help out students by providing the research for the students to gain experience.

“The projects typically come from Washing University, through the GEP,” Poet said.

He continued to say that Sally Eldin is the head of GEP and is doing current research on the DNA sequencing of fruit flies. 

This is a great opportunity for students, especially science and math students, to get experience in the field. Dr Eckdahl said that usually the only way to get such experience is by interning in a lab all summer long. By providing the classes at MWSU, it provides not only credits for the student, but a way to get the experience desired that eventually looks good on a resume. Poet and Eckdahl both insist that any student interested, even without a science or math background, to look into the class.

It’s a sort of once in a life-time experience to do something important. The next class is due spring 2009 and is sure to provide more research projects for students to enjoy. For further information about the classes, for any and all who are interested, please contact either Dr. Poet or Dr. Eckdahl about the classes.

The class itself would actually be worth while and would easily cover a science credit. Hey, real world experience instead of boring book reading and memorization. It would definitely beat the norm, and it would actually be fun. After all, there’s nothing to lose when it comes to learning.

Aside from the group of protestors standing outside with signs, people did not seem disappointed after Biden’s intense and inspirational speech.

When the intro music started, audience members gradually clapped along, eventually yelling, “Go, Joe!”

During the high points of his speech, people rose from their seats to clap and cheer with escalating enthusiasm.

Erika Baker, a freshman at Northwest Missouri State University, has watched Biden’s speeches on television, but never in person.

“I really, really enjoyed it,” Baker said. “I think that Joe Biden is a great speaker.”

This was the first time Baker has been to a political rally.

“I thought it was a whole new experience to be that close; I was right on the aisle – two rows back,” Baker said. “I shook his hand and everything afterwards, so it was exciting.”

Nathan Bowman, also a student at Northwest, was amazed by Biden’s tone.

“My basic thoughts were that Senator Biden did a terrific job getting people going,” Bowman said. “You could tell he was very passionate.”

Bowman believes Biden really projected towards the climax of his speech.

Heather Fields, a Western student, actually got a picture taken with Obama’s vice presidential candidate.

“I was more excited than I expected to be,” Fields said.

Janie Bland, who traveled from Spickard, MO, has been campaigning for Barack Obama, and thoroughly enjoyed the speech as well.

“That was a wonderful speech and he really spoke to the middle class people,” Bland said.

The opinion of Western student Andrew Trautmon, who is a Republican, differed slightly. He is not a huge fan of Obama or McCain.

“I went in with an independent mind,” Trautmon said. “Really, I’m not leaning with either one.”

Trautmon was not as impressed with Biden’s speech as others were.

“I was a little bit upset with Biden… the first part of his speech seemed like an attack against McCain,” Trautmon said.

If you sneezed at the event featuring Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Joe Biden, a dozen well-trained eyes sharply focused on you. Biden was well protected when he delivered his campaign speech to a crowd of approximately 1,200 people on Oct. 9, in the M.O. Looney Complex. Security was in full force as local law enforcement officers teamed up with Secret Service agents to ensure the safety of the senator and everyone in attendance.

Such security is necessary—and standard—at all public events that feature a presidential or vice presidential candidate, especially this election year. This is an historic election with Barack Obama being the first black candidate for the office of U.S. President.

Secret Service officers were visible near Biden and around the complex, while others were invisible as they mixed in with the crowd.

Around 20 SJPD officers, including the Special Response Team (SRT), four commissioned MWSU police officers and 11 Police Academy cadets were on the team along with an undisclosed number of Secret Service agents. Also on the team was a German shepherd that sniffed purses and backpacks as they entered the building. A metal detecting wand was in use at the entrance as well.

Biden’s entourage while in St. Joseph included one unidentified officer from the SJPD and an unidentified local highway patrol officer.

According to Capt. Jeff Wilson the SJPD and the secret service worked together for a week before the event.

“The Secret Service gave us ample notice to prepare,” Wilson said.

“They notified us last week and invited us to a planning meeting.”

With the number of officers needed, some worked on their day off. SJPD officer Scott Vanover didn’t mind working.

“It’s my day off,” Vanover said. ” I’m working for overtime.”

The event offered a good opportunity for Police Academy cadets to see national security agents at work. Cadet Chase Pollard believed in the need for security and the need for the event.

“It’s essential for Americans to speak their minds,” Pollard said. “It’s important for both sides to be heard.”

Despite the fact that Biden was late, the entire event occurred with no security incidents. When the crowd was clearing after the conclusion, one of the officers, who would not give his name, said the day “went very well.”

Southwest is one of the best teams in the MIAA and the Griffons handed them their second loss of the season. Sophomore Mary Ohm scored the lone goal in the game. Head coach Jeff Hansen was impressed with the play of his Griffons.

“It was a good win,” Hansen said. “We got a goal early and we were able to hold on for the victory.”

The Griffons won the game despite getting out shot 25 to four. This was the third shutout of the season for the Griffons. Senior and team leader Michelle Polk believed matching intensity with the Bearcats was the key.

“Southwest is a very competitive and physical team and I feel we came out and matched that with them,” Polk said.

The Griffons are currently in the middle of a five game road trip. They are currently 1-1 on the road trip, defeating Southwest and falling to the highly ranked Central Missouri Jennies 5-1. Against the Jennies the Griffons were down 4-0 at the half and battled to a 1-1 tie in the second half.

The Griffons will travel this week to face the Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks on Oct. 16, and they will also travel to face the Truman State Bulldogs on Oct. 18. Both teams are ranked in the top 25, with Mavericks being number 20 and the Bulldogs being number nine. Coach Hansen knew that this road trip would be a test for the Griffons.

“This is an incredibly tough part of our schedule,” Hansen said. “By the end of the trip we will have played four ranked opponents.”

The Griffons fell to the Mavericks in the MIAA opener by the score of 1-0. Polk feels the team is ready to compete with the top ranked opponent.

“We are excited to play UNO, with them being one of the best teams in our conference it will be a great test for our team,” Polk said.

The Griffons will be tested against the two ranked opponents; both teams are in the running for an MIAA conference championship. Coach Hansen knows they will be tested in these two contests.

“They are going to be tough road games; those teams are ranked high for a reason,” Hansen said.

The season is winding down for the Griffons, as they only have six games remaining on their schedule. Their last home game will be Nov. 8, at Spratt Stadium.

Women’s head soccer coach Jeff Hansen has been with the program since its second year and he reflects on what makes Polk such an asset to the team.

“What she’s good at is kind of the model character traits that this program needs right now,” Hansen said.

Fellow senior Lindsay Wiese, who has been with the program for two years, has witnessed Michelle mature.

“I think it’s awesome that she stuck through the program through all the ups and downs,” Wiese said. “She has the talent to have transferred to a school with an established team; but she fought through it. She has helped build the team to where it is today, and is a good role model for what the program has the potential to be in the future.”

As last season’s point leader and current co-captain of the young team, Polk has been an example of dedication and commitment to the program.

Polk epitomizes Missouri Western’s athletic department motto “Graduating Champions” by balancing her extracurricular activities with other responsibilities.

Coach Hansen joined the program in its second year, and according to Polk his addition to the team was a breath of fresh air.

“I’ve told the team if they’re feeling down on themselves or want to know the history of the program, she can tell some horror stories,” Hansen said. “She’s been through a lot.”

Polk is now leading the team she helped get off the ground, serving as this season’s co-captain with senior Wiese.

Polk describes the complementary nature of their relationship, noting that it’s their differences which contribute to their success, on and off the field.

“I’m kind of the good cop and she can be the bad cop; I play forward, she plays midfield,” Polk said.

Like a perfectly synchronized unit, her co-captain echoed the sentiment.

“Michelle is the ‘nicer’ captain between the two of us,” Wiese said, “I don’t deal with a lot of petty stuff or excuses and she is more of a pushover in that department. So if there is ever dirty work, she delegates it to me; and if there is clean work, I delegate it to her.”

For Polk the difference between being a player and a captain is primarily that the players on the team have higher expectations of their captains because they look up to them to provide leadership and positive examples. Polk easily identifies her weakness.

“I’m not big on practice, and I’ve always been more of a gamer,” Polk said.

Being a member of the soccer team has shaped Polk’s college experience as much as her participation has helped to shape the program. As an incoming freshman, Polk reflected on the advantage she had by being on the team.

In contrast to other freshmen, she was already armed with team support to fall back on. Having that sense of team community was a major part of what made Western feel like home.

“We’re more like a family, more so this year than in others,” Polk said. “Some of the girls I’m going to be friends with for the rest of my life.”

Polk is not a native midwesterner, originally hailing from Peoria, Arizona. She had always felt confident that a change of scenery was in order for her college years.

Missouri Western had not been her first choice after visiting and considering several other colleges, but Polk reconsidered her decision when former head women’s soccer coach Chip Wiggins asked her to visit the university that she would come to call home.

Coming to Missouri Western was not a decision that Polk took lightly when she committed to attending the university four years ago. Polk recalls how persuasive Wiggins was in recruiting her. However, despite Wiggins’ insistence, Polk still had reservations.

“Somebody told me that, next to getting married, that this was the most important decision I’d ever make, and it kind of is,” Polk said. “It decides who I’ll make friends with, where I’ll live, and probably still who I’ll marry.”

In the end what swayed Polk were the rolling hills of North West Missouri, the friendly campus atmosphere and an immediate bond with the girls on the team

“It was something I wasn’t used to and I was out of my element, but that’s what I’d always wanted,” Polk said, “Western seemed like a good fit.”

The closure of this season is a fitting end to Polk’s lustrous career.

“We donated a lot of cans and we plan to have fun with this event,” Saving said. There was a huge turn out at this event. It was originally supposed to be held in the parking lot of Blum Union, but rain forced it inside in front of the cafeteria.

Gene Ryals is treasurer for the homecoming committee and was very impressed with how many people got involved.

“This has turned out to be bigger then last year, and is always getting bigger,” Ryals said. Senior Kali Conrad attended this event with her sisters in Sigma Sigma Sigma and was more into the idea of what it was all about.

“We wanted to donate a lot of food and after all it is for a good cause,” Conrad said. Donate they will certainly do. The lobby of Blum was full of canned goods, clothes, packaged items like noodles and many other things to be donated to the needy.

Then, later that night at 8 p.m. HC held Yell Like hell in Spratt room 101. All the different organizations got together and performed different skits. They did things like the Jeopardy show with George Bush, The Hornet, and Max the Griffon. They also performed a remix of different songs, adding homecoming themes to them. They also announced the homecoming king and queen candidates. All together there are ten candidates that will prove to be some stiff competition. There was a good turn out at this event as well; that only goes to show that word is spreading about the fun things H.C .sponsors.
On Oct. 14, the very next night at 7 p.m. In the Kemper Recital Hall, H.C. sponsored another event: They held the variety show. This was one event that shouldn’t have been missed. Although there was not a big gathering for this event, it would have proved to be a big one with better advertising and promoting. This was one of the HC’s first time deals. There were three groups that participated. There was a singer and guitar player that thrilled the crowd and some dancers that performed. The gathering was not as big as expected. Skye Callaway is homecoming tri-chair and explained.

“This is the first time we held this event and even though we didn’t have many contestants ,we expect it to grow by getting the word out,” Callaway said. The participation points go out to the over all H.C. points and are added to the organization that has participated in these events.

One has played already on Sept. 27, the next appears Nov. 8, and the last will show on Feb. 21. The reviews for the first concert were great and the symphony is hoping to gain more attention along with more attendance.

Roger Swafford, Western’s Public Relations director, comes in at this point, helping to show the symphony off.

“They asked us to promote [the symphony], and one thing we did this year was work with Regular Joe, an alternative newspaper,” Swafford said. “They’re really good about promoting the arts and culture. We’re working on getting a van or a bus for students interested in going.”

The rides to the symphony have not come about, but it’s still in the works.

Matt Gilmour, our very own music professor, works very closely with the symphony. He told of how the symphony works with the students.

“They do use some of our students as performers, and there is an opportunity for students to audition,” Gilmour said.

The process of finding a new conductor has been a two-year deal, according to Gilmour, one that has been a national search for just the right person. According to Gilmour, they not only have to be good conductors, but also the symphony should react beautifully with them.

Gilmour has been on the board for Saint Joseph Symphony several times and has helped with the process of finding a conductor.

Derrick Hinds, the director of the symphony, always tries to make sure the music students come to the shows to see what it’s like to be on stage.

“We always try to provide tickets to the music department, and half-price for other students,” Hinds said.

The symphony also wants to make sure that the students know their way about when it comes to playing.

“We occasionally have our people come out to MWSU and teach. In fact, our conductors are usually a member of the faculty,” Hinds said.

Hinds also mentioned that there will be a concert on Dec. 20, which will be their Christmas show.

Persons interested in further information about tickets can go to either Student Services or to the symphony’s website at stjosephsymphony.org. Ticket prices begin at $10.

For those interested in going to the symphony, it will be held at the Missouri Theatre in downtown Saint Joseph. Who knows? If enough students wish to go, maybe the whole “bus/van ride” idea will go somewhere!

“Since they started at Missouri Western they now go to six or seven different schools,” Andrews said. “We were the lead. It’s extremely unusual. This is the Western District Court of Appeals. Missouri has two – the eastern and the western. I understand since we started this, the eastern district, which we don’t have anything to do with, in the St. Louis area began doing the same thing modeled after what we started here.”

There were approximately 500 students and individuals from the community present. Andrews feels the court coming to Western is not only educational for those seeking degrees in the field but for all students.

“This is a way for students not in our classes to see how the process works.” Andrews said. “No matter what they are going to do, they might have a case that ultimately ends in appellate court. Most people don’t get to see the appellate court. It’s not private but people just don’t go to see it.”

The courts precedings were held as normal. After each of the four cases were heard, the three judges took open mic questions from students. It afforded students the opportunity to address their questions and concerns. One member of the audience asked the Judges if they had any advice for those interested in the field.

“Work and sweat,” Judge Holliger said.

Student Jacely Alcantara said she feels her knowledge of court preceding has expanded .

“Seeing the interactions of professionals in the field is something that is very valuable to students interested in moving on through the legal field,” Alcantara said. “It’s good to see them and see what their arguments are and how they do their trials and the evidence they pull out.”

Student Rebecca Weddle feels seeing a court in action has made what she learned in the classroom more real.

“I’ve never seen a trial in action,” Weddle said. “It’s really almost humbling to see an appellate court and watching attorneys and seeing their arguments. I have the background since going to school, so it’s nice to be able to apply it.”

On Oct. 17, Robert A. Vartabedian will be officially installed as the new president of Missouri Western. The installation ceremony will be held in the M.O. Looney Complex at 1:30 p.m. and is free and open to the public. This event is considered the centerpiece of a series of events that have been planned for this momentous occasion. Said events include a student town hall meeting with the President in the Nelle Blum Student Union on Oct.16, at 4:00 p.m.; an 11:30 a.m. luncheon for delegates from regional and non-regional universities alike on Oct. 17; and a post-ceremony reception with refreshments.
Dan Nicoson, vice president for university advancement, is the chairman of the inauguration steering committee that has been working closely with faculty, staff and the administration in planning the inauguration. He considers the timing of the inauguration to be of particular significance for Missouri Western.

“I think the major significance is [that] it’s just another demonstration of Western’s maturity as an academic institution,” Nicoson said. “It’s kind of exciting to see it happening…this is just more evidence that we’re at that point.”

One of Nicoson’s tasks was to send out invitations to universities across the country, as well as the community, students, staff, faculty, and the St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce.
“We sent…over a thousand invitations to other institutions to send a delegate, which is also part of the tradition,” Nicoson said. “We have several universities [that] are sending people to march in the processional as their delegate at this inauguration. We also invited a student delegation, an alumni delegation, primarily from the list of past winners of the distinguished alumni award, to march in the processional…”

According to Roger Swafford, the director of the public relations and marketing department, 90 universities from around the United States have sent their congratulations and a total of 57 universities will be represented by a delegate in full academic regalia as of Oct. 6.

Swafford is quick to credit not only the committee, but also nearly every department on campus that has been intricately involved in the planning of the inauguration ceremony.

“It’s been amazing, all of these people coming together and doing a…year-long project in three months,” Swafford said. “The cohesion of seeing people come together to get this launched is amazing and very impressive.”

One of the more specific aspects of the inaugural ceremony is the Inaugural Ball, which is being held at the St. Joseph Country Club starting with a reception at 6:00 p.m., followed by dinner at 7:00 p.m.; music and a dance will also take place.

“…The other events are early day events and they [the committee] thought, ‘well we need to have some kind of evening event,’” Vartabedian said. “Our folks in the Advancement Office have a flair for entertaining well and in an interesting way; they thought it would be a great way to cap off the day of events. I think they thought anything else would seem anti-climatic.”

While the event is sure to be entertaining, the $75 per person price tag sounds anything but pleasant in such faltering economic times. Such concerns are not at all lost on administration.

“The ball itself is planned to be self-supporting and use no institutional funds of any kind to support it,” Nicoson said. “In order for it to be self-supportive, the admission charge has to be at approximately that level.”

Vartabedian is particularly sympathetic on the subject.

“That was something that I was aware of and talked to people about in terms of is this the right thing to do,” Vartabedian said. “…Their feeling was the expenses were considerable and we’re a state-funded institution; we can only go so far and not charge for these kinds of events. I share…the concerns of others, but we’d hoped that we’d offer something for everyone if they didn’t want to spend that kind of money or [couldn’t] afford to spend that kind of money.”

Nevertheless, any issues over the formality of the Presidential Inauguration ceremony are easily overshadowed by the long-term effects such as historical event in Missouri Western’s rich history can have on the university and the community.

“I would hope that because of its academic nature and because of the interest expressed by faculty members in having one, that it will be a source of new pride,” Nicoson said. “I would hope this is just one more reason for us to be proud of our institution and show that it is maturing and becoming a reputable, very high-quality university.”

Vartabedian echoes these statements; having spent more than 20 years in teaching and administrative roles at distinguished universities such as: Wichita State University, West Texas A&M University and Eastern New Mexico University. He sees his time at Missouri Western as the best of his career and the ceremony as a milestone for both himself and the university.

“It’s the capstone [of] a long career for me and it’s a meaningful time in the University’s history as well,” Vartabedian said.

It’s obvious to anyone who has been part of Missouri Western for the past few years that there have been changes for the better. Whether it’s gaining the status of a university or the continued growth of the student body, this institution has earned its reputation and this inauguration ceremony is not only another feather in Western’s top hat but a symbol of its astonishing prosperity that should make students, staff, faculty, administration, and the community of St. Joseph all proud of Missouri Western State University.

For more information on the Presidential Inauguration please visit http://www.missouriwestern.edu/inauguration/. For more information on Vartabedian, please visit Western’s library in the Hearnes Center where a display of his career is available.

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Biden Closing Remarks 

Slideshow of the event

Slideshow of Speakers

Biden, who is fresh off his debate with the Republican vice president candidate Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin, will speak to a crowd of 500 at the Looney Complex’s reserve gym at 9 a.m on the topics of the economy and health care. He will then head to Liberty and Jefferson City on a tour to help Missouri go into the Democratic column on the Nov. 4 election.

Missouri is still one of the closest battleground states with polls showing the race is a virtual dead heat right now. The head of the Buchanan county Democratic Party, Bill Caldwell, said that the tour is what is needed to put the Obama ticket on top in Missouri.

“Pundits are saying that McCain can’t win the national election without carrying Missouri,” Caldwell said. “Biden has the charisma and knowledge related to the campaign and it will be apparent who has the edge after Thursday.”

This is the first visit from a national candidate to Saint Joseph since 2004 when incumbent Vice President Dick Cheney addressed supporters at the Civic Arena. The incident was marred by protests but campus officials are not expecting the same problems. Beth Wheeler, director of external relations, said that the Secret Service is working with local officials to ensure the campus will still run smoothly.

“Public safety officers will be at their [Secret Service] disposal,” Wheeler said. “The Looney complex and J lot will be closed and classes in the building will be moved or cancelled at the teacher’s discretion for Wednesday and Thursday. We are excited for this excellent opportunity and to put this feather in our cap and we will do everything that we can to make this go smoothly.”

Wheeler also said that the Obama handlers were here last week and that a major factor in their choice of going on campus was the Convocation speaker series which recently hosted political pundits James Carville and Mary Matalin.

“They were impressed with our repertoire of speakers,” Wheeler said. “This goes to show that what we actively do on campus helps future endeavors and events come here. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and we will do our best to shine.”

The Obama campaign is also using this opportunity to bring its message of change to thousands of young voters in the midland empire. The Press secretary for the Missouri Obama campaign, Justin Hamilton, reiterated the purpose for the speaking tour during the waning days of the campaign.

“Obama thinks that the young voters are changing the electorate,” Hamilton said. “Our message of change speaks to everyone, young and old, but the young voters have an imperative need to understand that their voice is heard and their issues are being addressed.”

Hamilton also did not rule out the possibility of Obama coming to campus.

“Obama still has plans for Missouri,” Hamilton said. “He does not have concrete speaking dates yet for Saint Joseph, but he is still open to the opportunity.”

The McCain-Palin campaign has also been offered the opportunity to speak on campus but has yet to respond to the invitation.

Each year’s Convocation allows for a special dinner the night before that allows patrons to meet the guest speaker.

The married political pundits, James Carville and Mary Matalin, spoke to a capacity crowd at the Fulkerson Center Monday night for the 15th annual Dan Boulware Convocation on Critical Issues dinner that helps fund each year’s speaker. The dinner, which was the fastest selling in Western’s history, sold out in a matter of days and had a nearly 200 person waiting list. According to Dan Nicoson, vice president of university advancement, this can be attributed to the impact it has on the surrounding area.

“I am convinced that this Convocation, series in its fourteen years, now fifteenth year, has brought more national experts for our community to be exposed to than any other event,” Nicoson said. “This just isn’t a university event, it is a community event.”

Carville and Matalin addressed the crowd during dinner and spoke on several issues, including the market panic that had occurred earlier that day. Even though the couple takes residence in separate political camps

their message was the same.

“We are American,” Carville said. “Married, young, old, Republican, Democrat. We are all Americans and we can work through our differences.”

Matalin also reiterated that it was our duty to be involved politically, to understand the events that are happening now, and to believe in the country.

“There’s so much that we [the public] don’t know what’s happening,” Matalin said. “We didn’t know about Georgia coming, we didn’t know about people flipping on energy with the moratorium on offshore drilling being lifted last week. That sometimes we think that people are going to go into a panic. I don’t think we will. I have faith in our country.”

The dinner also helped spotlight the community businesses and donors who helped fund the Convocation.

“The foundation is very proud of this event,” Nicoson said. “Having said that, it still would not be possible without our thirty-one corporate sponsors. This dinner also is a way to thank them.”

The waiting list for housing was, at one point, up to 90 students, the classrooms are crowded and hallways are becoming almost claustrophobic… This can only mean one thing: Western is experiencing a record number of enrollment for the fall semester of 2008.

A total of 5,470 undergraduates are currently enrolled at Western this semester, which sets a record for the fourth fall term in a row.

Institutional Research Analyst Judy Fields explained why and when enrollment is apt to increase.

“When employment goes down, our enrollment tends to go up,” Fields said. “We have to adjust classes about every year to accommodate [the students].”

Jeanne Daffron, associate vice president of academic and student affairs, said that faculty and administration had monitored enrollment all summer.

“We try to always kind of look forward to it, so it doesn’t catch us off guard,” Daffron said. “We did add seats and courses and sections.”

The number of full-time students is 3,825, which is a 5.5 percent increase from last year.

A total of 63,032 credit hours – a 4% increase from last fall as well as a record – are being taken by the undergraduates.

The headcount for first-time full-time freshmen is 949.

Western has 1,606 full-time males and 2,219 full-time females this semester, meaning 662 males and 983 females are enrolled as part-time students.

The number of graduate students has grown as well. The number has increased to 65 students from 41 since last fall, which was the first year graduate programs were offered at Western. This amounts to a 59% increase.
Among all the positive outcomes of a university with high enrollment numbers, Daffron said the money issue is one of them.

“Of course that’s one source of revenue for us,” Daffron said.

Though, she modified the fact that Western is not just in the money-making business; it is important, for our region, to have well-educated citizens ready to go out in the job market.

“It’s important for the economic development for our region,” Daffron said. “We’ve called ourselves an emerging University.”

 

With more than 86 percent of the desired goal already accounted for, Western’s Foundation  launched the $15 million Achieving Greatness Capital Campaign Tuesday Sept. 16 with an invite-only performance by award-winning artist Deana Carter.

Achieving Greatness is a five-year capital campaign to raise $15 million to aid Western with long-term projects.  From the desired goal amount, $7.5 million will be used for construction and renovation purposes, $5.5 million will open and maintain the Steven L. Craig School of Business, $1 million will be an endowment to expand support for student scholarships and the final $1 million will be put toward emerging needs.

Dan Nicoson, vice president for university advancement, said, “This is Western’s largest capital campaign ever, and we are hopeful that alumni and members of the community will see it as an investment in the future of the university and the community, and that they will support it as generously as they can.”

 

The event at the Missouri Theater in downtown St. Joseph celebrated Western’s campaign with the announcement of two large contributions: a $1 million pledge from an anonymous Western graduate and a $250,000 pledge from the Leah Spratt Charitable Trust.  Guests of the event enjoyed food and an hour-long performance by Carter free of charge.

“I couldn’t be happier with the event,” President Robert Vartabedian said. “We were very fortunate to have such a high level of entertainment.”

Vartabedian, Nicoson and former President James Scanlon appeared on stage with Carter and announced the two recent gifts to over 400 members of the community.

Jeanne Daffron, associate vice president for academic and student affairs, said, “We have a lot of support in this region and it’s nice to see all of that positive presence.”

Last October Wes and Patsy Remington pledged $5 million to the campaign to be used with the construction of a new building named in their honor as well as renovations for Agenstein Hall.  In May, Steven Craig pledged $5.5 million, the largest single contribution in Western history, to establish the Steven L. Craig School of Business.  

These contributions along with $150,000 gift from the W.T. Kemper Foundation and $100,000 gifts from the Beavers Foundation, the Goppert Foundation, the Thanksgiving Fund and others have accounted for  $13 million of the campaign’s goal.

In addition to large foundations and private donors, 78 percent of Western’s employees made pledges to the campaign that totaled more than $200,000.

“It’s wonderful to have such a high percentage of participation. For our own people to donate so heavily to this cause is very generous,” Daffron said.

Current students have also showed interest in contributing to the campaign.

“It would be great if students would be a part of the campaign as well,” Nicoson said. “Current students are the beneficiaries of past contributions and we hope they will help establish a great tradition of supporting those that follow.”

Nicoson said he knows current students are not likely to make large contributions, but any amount that allows them to be listed as donors would be appreciated.  

“Once they become alumni we hope they will join the tradition in the future,” Nicoson said. 

Nicoson also said some student organizations have indicated they might like to host fundraising projects to help contribute to the campaign.

Donors for this campaign are allowed to pay their pledges over five or more years.  Nicoson said it is likely that a new broad-based capital campaign would begin prior to 2013 though other focused campaigns can be arranged for specific needs before then.

The previous campaign, the Our Promise Campaign, began in 1999 and the pledges ended in 2004. The goal was $4.5 million, and Western exceeded that goal, Nicoson said.

At an invite only reception at the Missouri Theater Sept. 16, President Robert Vartabedian, former President James Scanlon and Vice President for University Advancement Dan Nicoson stood on stage and announced two large contributions to the Achieving Greatness campaign.  The two gifts were made known four days apart after the event had been planned.

“We were very surprised,” Vartabedian said. Vartabedian was made aware of the $1 million gift four days before the kick-off event while the Spratt gift was announced the afternoon just before.

“This campaign will do very positive things for current students and future students in years to come,” Vartabedian said. “We are all about transforming the lives of students.”

Associate Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs Jeanne Daffron attended the campaign event.

“I think [this campaign] brings new opportunities for us to do things that will move Western forward,” Daffron said.

The pledges will support the renovation and expansion of Western’s math and science facilitates including the construction of Remington Hall named in honor of Wes and Patsy Remington’s $5.5 million pledge to the campaign last October.  

“These contributions say a lot about other people and other organizations and businesses and their confidence and appreciation of our outcomes…the students and their achievements,” Daffron said.

Though the donor of the $1 million pledge wishes to remain anonymous, the gift is specified to be used to create an endowment to support activities in Remington and Agenstein halls after the expansion and renovations are complete. 

“The exact use of this annual endowment income may vary from year to year and the University will have to determine each year how the funds can best be used in support of science and mathematics,” Nicoson said.

The Leah Spratt Charitable Trust was named in honor of a 1921 St. Joseph Junior College graduate.  Joyce Rochambeau and Rene Rochambeau-McCrary are the trustees who made the $250,000 pledge administered by US Bank Wealth Management. 

The $1 million gift was the third seven-figure pledge in the campaign and the reported fourth largest gift in Western’s history.  

 

Sophomore quarterback, Drew Newhart, came out with guns ablazing as Western jumped out to a two touchdown lead. Western’s defense held the Bearcats on fourth down on their very first offensive drive, deep into Griffon territory. Newhart and the Western offense sustained a solid drive concluded by a 15 yard scramble into the promise land as Newhart waltzed in for a touchdown, after the Bearcats turned the ball over on downs. Then the Bearcats would score a touchdown with 10 seconds left in the first quarter bringing them within a touchdown of the Griffons.

“Bearcats, you have a problem”, in the form of a 6’0 180 lb junior wide receiver by the name of Cedric ‘the jet’ Houston. The Bearcats would quickly tie the ball game up at the start of the 2nd quarter with a great kickoff return concluded with a one yard touch down plunge. Then, the gun slinger Newhart would connect with an 82 yard strike to the speedy Houston for a touchdown, to pull the Griffons ahead 21-14. With a short field to work with, the Bearcats would take full advantage and punch it in for another touchdown. However, the extra point would not be so easy this time as the Griffons special teams would block the point after attempt, leaving the Griffons with a one point lead entering the halfway point.

“We are not surprised one bit by the play of Cedric Houston. The guy has a very unique and amazing talent,” Andrew Mead enthusiastically stated.

Houston is quickly catching the eye of many, especially his quarterback, as they hooked up for two touchdowns and well over 100 yards receiving.

“He is fast and has great hands,” Newhart proclaimed.

The second half was not so kind to Coach Jerry Partridge and his Griffons as they would watch their lead slowly dwindle. Late in the fourth quarter, the Bearcats would show why they have been the power house of the MIAA with two key interceptions. The Bearcats would capitalize on the Griffon turnovers to catapult them to a very much needed victory. The final score of 42-35 would see the Bearcats victorious yet another time, bringing the all time record to 18-10 in favor of Northwest.

After a loss of this magnitude, it makes one wonder if the Griffons haven’t backed themselves into a corner early in this young season. The positive outlook to a 1-2 start is that indeed it is still very early in the season. It won’t get any easier for the Griffonsas they welcome the Pittsburg State Gorillas to Spratt Stadium, Sept. 20, at 6:00 p.m.

“It’s one of those years anybody can beat anybody in the conference,” said head coach Jerry Partridge. “It’s one of those years, you have to have blinders on.”

Besides blinders, the Griffons are going need some “four and outs” from their defense. In three games this season, they have given up 116 points combined to their opponents, and are currently ranked last in the MIAA in total defense, giving up 428.7 yards per game this season. With 301.7 of those 428.7 yards coming through the air. Senior defensive back Jarrett Morris hopes he and his comrades can up the Griffons defense starting this weekend against their heated rivals, the Gorillas.

“We just need to make plays. We need to make stops on defense that’s really what we need to do, taking the ball away is always good but we got to get off the field sometimes we got to make a stop,” Morris said. “Every game is a must win game but being 1-2 and 0-1 in the conference, this is definitely a must win game. We can’t fall another game behind, so we need to win this one.”

This is easier said than done when you’re facing a team like Pittsburg State. The Gorillas are 3-0 and 1-0 in MIAA play this year. Senior quarterback, Mark Smith, has thrown for 510 yards and 6 touchdowns. Smith has also ran for 198 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Coach Partridge knows how dangerous Smith can be.

“Pittsburg State is always a great offensive team” Partridge said. “Mark Smith is a great athlete, he runs the ball well.”

The Griffons also have a great athlete on their offense. Cedric Houston, who Gorilla fan should remember fairly well. Houston scored on a screen pass late in the third quarter of last years game between the two schools. Houston has gotten off to a fiery start, catching 17 balls for 389 yards and 4 touchdowns, and a virtuoso performance against Minnesota-Duluth, which included a Devin Hester like 80-yard kick off return.

There is a lot on the line for both teams in this game. Western doesn’t want to fall to a 1-3 record, and the Gorillas sure don’t want to suffer another loss at the hands of their bitter rivals. One thing is for sure, September 20, 2008, both teams will come to Spratt Stadium with a must win mind set.

Upon his completion of his Ph. D he was hired at Oakton Community College in Des Plains, Illinois, outside of Chicago. He was employed there from 1991 until 2008.

This semester Wang begins his position at Western as chairman of the computer science, math, and physics department.

He feels he has been given a warm welcome to Missouri.

“The faculty is very enthusiastic, collegial, and professional,” Wang said. “It’s a nice environment and people are very supportive.”

Wang said one of his goals as chairman is to encourage scholarship and teaching excellence.

“We want to continue our scholarship in addition to high quality teaching,” Wang said. “We want to continue our scholarship to do research. Research can enhance our academic environment and can enrich our teaching contents and provide more opportunity for our students. We want to promote undergraduate research so it’s in line with our philosophy. I think applied learning is a good concept.”

Wang said he would like the fields studied in his department to cover a range of projects. Some of the research projects include computer science, math education, statistics and actuarial sciences. There are also opportunities for research coming to light in abstract algebra, differential equations, analysis and physics. This provides the student not only the chance to gain real-world experience in their field but to take leadership roles in projects.

“Students can participate in undergraduate research projects so it gives students a taste of what math research is,” Wang said.

In addition to research projects, Wang would like to see the degree programs Western offers expand.

“We would like to think about statistics and some other contributions in math areas such as analysis or maybe abstract algebra,” Wang said. “We have an interest in developing graduate programs that may be specialized in teaching developmental math.”

As an established mathematician Wang has published more than 20 papers in functional differential equations and in mathematics teaching. He reviewed textbooks for Prentice Hall, McGraw Hill and John Wiley and Sons. He is a reviewer for Mathematical Reviews and a referee for publications such as the Journal of Mathematical Analysis and Applications, Journal of the Franklin Institute, Computers and Mathematics with Applications, Applied Mathematics Letter, Electronic Journal of Qualitative Theory of Differential Equations, and The AMATYC Review.

Tim Miller, associate professor of mathematics, said Wang has made a good impression on faculty.

“He’s doing a great job,” Miller said. “He’s very approachable and friendly. He is a good colleague. He came to visit in the middle of the summer and had good discussions with the faculty. He has good ideas for teaching so students are going to benefit from him being here.”

Kevin Anderson, associate professor of mathematics, said he looks forward to working with Wang.

“Dr. Wang is bringing some fresh ideas on teaching and research to Missouri Western,” Anderson said. “I’m looking forward to working with him and collaborating with him on research.”

The library has a whole list of services available. Director of the Library Julia Schneider explains many of those services and the importance of the library.
“We feel like the library goes hand in hand with the classroom,” Schneider said. “We’re here to support the learning and teaching in the classroom through various services.”
The library is not only a place to read and check out books, as some students incorrectly perceive. Schneider thinks the library is a great place to go because of its versatility.
“The library is also a comfortable place to study, work on group projects, meet with friends, use the computer lab, or get a cup of coffee,” Schneider said.
Western student Brandie Elder thinks the library is a service students should utilize.
“The library is a place to go when you need help and it has all the resources you need,” Elder said.

Center for
Academic Support

Another service provided on campus is the Center for Academic Support, also called CAS. CAS offers free tutoring for any student who needs help in a class. The main areas of tutoring are math, writing, reading and study skills, but there are also tutors for other courses, where students may require help. Corla Dawson, Acting Director and Writing Coordinator of CAS, wants to help students become successful in the classroom.
“Ultimately our goal is to help students become independent learners,” Dawson said. “We want students to eventually come to the point where they can do it on their own.”

Fitness Center

Though academics are the main focus of college, student’s health can also be a factor in athletic and academic performance. Another service available on campus is the fitness center. The center has a full range of workout equipment for workouts from cardio to weight training. Fitness center coordinator Amy Foley thinks working out is a necessity to obtain good health.
“Working out benefits your health and you will live longer,” Foley said. “Exercise and taking care of your body keeps your weight under control. Using the fitness center is free, so why not take advantage of the service.”
Student Shandalyn Jackson also enjoys the benefits of the center.
“Your health is important and working out helps prevent health issues. It is also a great stress reliever,” Jackson said.

Counseling Services

College students can become stressed from classes, work, or just trying to balance everything at once. Western offers counseling services that can help students with stress or any other issues they may deal with. Director of Counseling/Asst Dean of Students Dave Brown noted that one in five students attend counseling sometime in their academic career.

“College is a very stressful place and it’s important to have services to support students,” Brown said.
There are also other services provided on campus like the swimming pool, trap range, walking trail, disability services, and a testing center, which provides testing for students needing special accommodations. All of these services are free. All students’ need is their student Ids. The doors of all the services are open, so take a step in and get the most out of college.

According to Linda Garlinger, the director of the MWSU career development office, about 95 percent of the students here work in the area.

“The perception is, that students and graduates can’t get jobs in the local community,” Garlinger said. “We are going to dispel that myth because it’s just not true. Last year alone we advertised over 1400 job opportunities for our students and graduates.”

There are many new programs on campus to help students land that most needed job. There is a new policy concerning the work study program on campus that is designed to increase the number of positions on campus and therefore increase on campus student employment.

Unlike the previous semesters, when 25 percent of the student’s paycheck came from the operating budget of the department, the paychecks now come, 100 percent, from the federal work study program’s monies.
Departments don’t get a complete free ride however.  They are responsible for the paychecks after the federal money runs out. Details are still being worked out on just how the departments may get advance warning when the funds begin to get low.

With the new “Hire a Griffon” campaign, the career development office is informing local employers of ways that their office can advertise a job opening for free on the MWSU web site and that hiring a griffon makes sense for their business.

Matthew Gregg, the new coordinator of career development, explained the purpose of this.

“This part of our office’s campaign is to benefit employers by educating them about the benefits of hiring our students and the benefits of using our campus,” Gregg said. “It was also developed to assist our graduates in finding careers locally.”

Garlinger elaborated on  what this will do for potential employers.

“We can accommodate the needs of potential employers such as resume books and space to facilitate on campus interviews,” Garlinger said.

One of the things that compound the perception that our students are not being employed locally is the notion that all of our students come from the immediate area.

After graduation it seems that most leave for jobs outside the local area.

“This is not the University of St. Joseph, it is a regional state university,” Garlinger said.

Her office holds statistics showing about 25 percent of incoming freshmen come from the St. Joseph, Missouri School District. Garlinger says that even if a percentage of incoming freshmen from outside the local school district wish to stay here after graduation, most graduates would rather return to their home area to start their careers.

So, if they come from St. Louis, Chicago, Springfield or wherever they are most likely to return.
This gives a false perception that our graduates cannot find a career here.

“In actuality,” Garlinger said, “we are just spreading the wealth.”

Seventy-eight percent of Western graduates stay in the state of Missouri according to Garlinger’s data.

“That shows how well we serve the community and state. When you use state money from the community and give back well trained and educated people, that says a lot about what this university has to offer,” Garlinger said.

All in all, about one third of the graduates of MWSU find careers in the local five county area around St. Joseph.  That is a higher percentage than the percentage of freshmen coming from St. Joseph each year. The top two areas of success are nursing and education.

Gregg started a new series of three workshops called “Hire Learning,” which started Monday, Sept. 16, in the student union.

The workshops are designed to help those students who are still looking for employment in the area get the jobs they seek.

The workshop activities include a guest speaker during the second week and a panel discussion of local employers on the third week.

For more information about the workshop, students can contact the office of career development (816) 271-4205 or e-mail Matthew Gregg at matthewgregg@missouriwestern.edu.

Gregg has been networking lately with his contacts of potential employers to locate job openings in the area that students can fill.

“I have been working with the St. Joseph Area Chamber of Commerce for years,” Gregg said. “They are a great source for businesses and employees to get together.”

The once congested hallways and lounge area of the union, formerly teeming with students, barely resemble the area today.

Greg Nikes, the manager of the bookstore on the first floor of the union, has noticed a big change in the union.

“You can tell the difference,” Nikes said. “It’s a lot quieter…for better or worse.”

The lack of noise and congestion is the result of an extensive construction and renovation process that is currently taking place within the union.

Aspects of this plan include the construction of a student information desk on the first floor, a re-design of the school cafeteria doors and windows, the creation of a side opening to the staircase and the construction of a new office for Student Development on the second floor.

The process first sprung out in the spring of 2008 when the Administration decided to implement an overhaul on the way the space is used.

Harold C. Callaway III, president of the student government association, explained that the construction was designed in order to make better use of the union.

“What we did is try to break the union up into sections,” Callaway said. “[We’re] taking out the leisure furniture [and] putting that in the food court where it could be accessible to students; we tried to replace it with some other stuff that would make it more of a study-type atmosphere and also break it up with an informational desk.”

The purpose of the information desk is to help give students, primarily first-year students, a more direct way in which they can get help finding their way around the university and accessing information that would otherwise be difficult to obtain.

Callaway stated that other avenues could be explored in the future.

“There [are] some other ideas that are being thrown around,” Callaway said. “We’re just working on a plan right now for that.”

Kathy Kelly, the administrative coordinator for student development, feels that this renovation will make the building more accessible and efficient not only to students and faculty but to anyone else who comes into the union.

“We would like to be able to answer all questions and not send people to several different offices to get questions answered,” Kelly said. “I believe [this process] will keep a positive environment in the union.”
Lonnie Johnson, the director of facilities for the physical plant, is overseeing the construction/renovation of the union.

He currently estimates that the downstairs construction will cost $40,000 and the upstairs construction will fall somewhere in the area of $28,000 to $30,000, making for an estimated grand total of $68,000 to $70,000.

The re-design of the school cafeteria doors and windows in the union is intended to clear the lounge area as much as possible.

Construction is currently underway in the hallway between the food court and the cafeteria, where the tile floor is being replaced with carpeting and the cafeteria doors are to be moved around the corner.
Duane Bruce, associate dean of student development, explained what is being done in those areas and why.

“The cafeteria doors are being moved from here to around the corner right down the hallway,” Bruce said. “The hallway is being carpeted. We’re doing that because we want to move the traffic from the cafeteria out of the reception. “

Bruce is also involved with the construction of a new office for student development, which started in June. Bruce feels that the current office, located at the back of the union, lacked accessibility for students.

“I didn’t feel like the…office belonged in the back of the union,” Bruce said. “I feel like it belonged in a place where students would have access to it. Obviously, visibility for this office is going to change dramatically.”

Other changes that have been made or are being made include the reconfiguration of the second floor into a study lounge, the addition of artwork in the area, more greenery in the building, and painting of the school colors in the hallways.

Bruce hopes that this new design will make the union more inviting and friendly to students and make them want to use the area that was designed for them.

The overall construction was supposed to be completed during the summer, so the students could have these new opportunities available to them in the fall.

However, Callaway explained how a few problems came up and put the project on hold.

“The project was put off for university administration issues that we had to get worked out with contracts…just typical stuff, nothing real big,” Callaway said. “They…are supposed to be done with it before the end of September. We’ll see if that comes to fruition.”

Regardless of these minor issues, the construction and renovation of Blum Union will ultimately serve the better interests of Missouri Western State University.

With a more accessible information center, student development office and more study-oriented lounge areas, these re-designs will make the union a friendly, more inviting place for students to study, be with friends and get help with student-oriented issues in a way they never could have

Due to newly passed illegal immigration legislation in Missouri, there will be an extra step in the loan disbursement process from now on. Students must provide proof of citizenship prior to the disbursement of funds.

“The benefits will truly outweigh the inconvenience for the students, providing them with additional funds that do not have to be repaid,” Kathy Feith, director of student financial aid said. “In a time when money is critical and tuition and fees are overwhelming at times to college students, these funds will provide relief for many students.”

The new law House bill 1549 went into effect August 28 and directly affected the state’s higher education and Missouri Access by revising laws regarding illegal aliens and immigration status verification.
According to Cynthia Spotts-Conrad senior coordinator of the financial aid office, as of Sept. 13 funds had been paid to 1,434 students amounting to $1,642,922 in funds.

However there are still 187 students who have not completed the process that will enable them to collect their financial aid. The pending funds are estimated to be at about $187,000 for the fall term. By state law, the students must provide the required documentation prior to disbursement.

Other than the end of the award year, there is no formal deadline to collect financial aid. Students should be aware that state funds are limited and should complete the process as soon as possible.

“Although there are some requirements implemented by the state, once the requirement is met the student will not have to provide this again, so the inconvenience is short-lived,” Feith said.

Most students became aware of the policy change because of an e-mail in their Groupwise accounts. It stated, “The state of Missouri recently passed legislation requiring ALL recipients of state financial assistance to provide proof of United States Citizenship prior to disbursement of funds.”

Students whose loans have not been applied to their accounts are encouraged by the Financial Aid office to check their e-mail for the notification to verify citizenship.

For Missouri Western this meant requiring all students to present “affirmative proof” prior to disbursement of scholarships or state grants.

Students without Missouri identification or a driver’s license could submit other forms of identification including a birth certificates, US passport, etc.

The verification process can be completed at the Business Office, Student Services or Student Development.
For many students the consequences of the new bill simply means longer lines in the financial aid office as they wait to have their proof of citizenship photo copied for verification. Some students even went so far as to delay the verification process in hopes that lines would lessen as more students completed the process.
Angela Clay, a social work and sociology major tried on three different days to complete verification in order to ensure the award of her funds.

“Have you seen the lines? Just to make a copy. Shouldn’t the FAFSA weed things out?” Clay said.

Despite the fact that all students who receive state aid must first complete a FAFSA, an application process which includes data matches with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

According to the Missouri Department of Education it “Forbids the use of the citizenship match process for any purpose other than determining eligibility for Title IV assistance. The statute specifically asks for documentation that confirms aliens’ lawful presence in the U.S. The majority of students for whom an ISIR is created are not aliens.”

Recipients of the Missouri Access program were among the students affected. Other programs affected include: the Bright Flight Scholarship, A Plus Program, Marguerite Ross Barnett Scholarship, Public Service Survivor Grant, Heroes Act Waiver, Vietnam Veteran’s Survivor Grant, Gear Up Scholarship, and Teacher Education Scholarship.

“This is an exceptional university!”  The chairperson of an accrediting team that recently visited the campus for five days used these words to describe Western.  He could not have said it better.  And as I prepare to “graduate” from Western on June 30, I can think of no better summary description of what soon will be my “alma mater.”

Western is “exceptional.”  Exceptional in the dedication of faculty and staff to students and their learning, both inside and outside the classroom.  Exceptional in the focus on applied learning for students through internships, student-faculty research and community service.  Exceptional in the results generated by students because of this dedication and this focus on applied learning.

In fact, Western is ahead of its time, leading the way for other universities to follow in its emphasis on the application of classroom learning to the world well beyond the classroom, leading the way in producing excellent results for students and the University.

Last year, for example, more than 80 percent of the students graduating from Western had at least one significant applied learning experience prior to graduation.  During the year, more than 2,000 of our 5,300 students were involved in internships, student-faculty research projects or service-learning activities.  Students applied what they learned in the classroom in business and industry, local and state government, human service agencies, schools, hospitals and research laboratories.  Last year alone, students presented the results of their applied learning more than 700 times in local, state, multi-state regional, national and even international competi­tions and conferences.  All of this places Western far above the norm.

In recent years, the results of applied learning for students have likewise been exceptional.  During competitions and conferences, many Western students have received top awards for the quality of their work.  These students come from the arts and humanities, sciences and social sciences and technical and professional studies programs.  Equaling or besting their peers from well-recognized universities across the country, from Harvard to Purdue to Berkeley, Western’s students have clearly demonstrated their quality, the quality of the faculty and staff who work with them, and the quality of Missouri Western State University.  Again, results that distinguish this university.

Students and university employees have also contributed significantly to our region through voluntary public service.  During the past two years, for instance, the people of Western provided more than 130,000 hours of service beyond the campus.  This exceptional level of service merited national recognition for two years in succession, when the Corporation for National and Community Service named the University to President Bush’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, calling Western a “Campus of Character.”
It has been my great privilege to be a part of Western during the past seven years.  My privilege to be one of you.  Thank you for the privilege of serving you.  I will always be proud to call this exceptional university my “alma mater.”
-Dr. James Scanlon

The current system awards increases across the board with cost-of-living adjustments. 

The Faculty Senate Salary Committee has introduced two proposals that could change faculty salary increases.

One proposal that will be studied next year is for a performance-based increase. This proposal intends to give incentive for faculty to perform their best.

James MacGregor, assistant professor of history and faculty senate liaison to the salary committee, is in favor of the change.

“It’s a way of rewarding the faculty who perform really well while at the same time not acting in a detrimental fashion on a faculty member who has had a slow year,” MacGregor said.

Not everyone favors such a change. Mike Cadden, chair of the Department of English, Foreign Language and Journalism, believes Western already has a performance based system in place with the Distinguished Professor Program and the promotion schedule which has generous increases in salary.

The Distinguished Professor Program allows an assistant professor to earn $3,000 more, once they are at rank, if they receive the award. Associate professors can bump their salary by $5,000 and a full professor by $7,000. Full professors may apply for the program every five years.

This is in addition to promotion increases. When promoted to associate professor the increase is $5,000 and $7,000 for promotion to full professor. Cadden believes these are enough of a performance based system.
“I’m less interested in something that’s going to put too many salary decisions in the hands of the chair people. I hope that the chair people are not handed a pile of money and said `Here, distribute this among the faculty however you think is best,” Cadden said.

Another proposal involves increasing the minimum salary at each rank and could be in effect for the next academic year.

The need to meet minimum salaries comes from the Senate approval to raise starting salaries by $10,000 in each rank in order to attract and retain quality faculty. If the administration chooses to follow this recommendation, minimum salaries would increase to $40,000 for an instructor, $46,000 for an assistant professor, $50,000 for an associate professor and $56,000 for a full professor.

Existing faculty would receive a four percent raise to accommodate the cost-of-living, a raise in salary to meet the minimum and equity increases based on years of service.

For example: under the proposal an assistant professor currently making $40,000 after three years of service would see a four percent ($1,600) cost-of-living increase and an additional $4,400 to reach the minimum salary of $46,000, and also a $500 equity adjustment for three years of service.

The equity increase would allow faculty members that have been here awhile to be above the minimum starting salary of new faculty members and increases with number of years of service.

The cost of this proposal to the university, if approved by administration, would be $700,000. James Scanlon, Western’s President, agrees with the need to increase salaries, but cautioned the full amount may not be possible.

“Unfortunately there are limits, with Missouri ranked 47th in the country in per capita funding,” Scanlon said. “These are the fiscal realities we have to work with.”

“The problems we face are not institutional, they are state wide,” Evan Noynaert said at the April 17 Faculty Senate meeting. “Many state schools had big lay offs, we did not.”

The salary for a full professor at Western averages $67,246 with the state average being $74,342. Professors here at Western are fairly close to the state average, but Missouri overall falls below the national average of $84,210. However, Western cannot adopt a salary increase plan from other universities.

“We need a system that works for this faculty,” MacGregor said.

This particular award singles out effective teaching and advising, service to the university, commitment to high standards of excellence and success in playing a role in the success of students.

Dr. Cadden has exemplified all of these traits and more.

“Typically, this award is given to those who have received the Board of Governors’ Distinguished Faculty Award, The Jesse Lee Myers Excellence in Teaching Award and the Dr. James Victor Mehl Outstanding Faculty Scholarship Award,” Cadden said.

Jennie McDonald, executive administrative associate of academic and student affairs, said candidates are chosen from those who have received these awards within the past three years (2005, 2006 and 2007).

Those in charge of the selection process are the Provost (Joseph Bragin), the academic deans and the president of faculty senate.

Only one faculty member from each public and private college or university in Missouri will receive this award  each year.

Last year, it was Journalism professor Ann Thorne who won this award.

She was chosen from the group of Western faculty members who received the awards Cadden has received.
Along with keeping busy chairing the English, Foreign Languages and Journalism department, Cadden teaches children’s and young adult literature, as well as other literature courses and freshman composition.
He received the Dr. James Victor Mehl Outstanding Faculty Scholarship Award due to the successful year in which his research was published, and his growing reputation as a scholar in the field of children’s literature.

The Governors’ Distinguished Professor Award, in which he also received, acknowledged faculty with excellent records in teaching, scholarship/creative activity and professional service.

Cadden has recently written a book on Ursula K. Le Guin, an author first published in the 1960’s who has written novels, poetry, children’s books, essays and short stories – all of the fantasy and science fiction genre. One of her most current publications is a book called “The Lathe of Heaven,” a psychological thriller revolving around a character whose dreams alter reality. It won the Locus Poll Award for best novel in 1972, and was eventually made into two television films. 

Aside from writing about this particular author, Cadden is now editing a collection of essays on children’s literature for the University of Nebraska Press.

He also regularly reviews children’s literature in professional journals.

Carville is a political strategist for the Democratic party.  He has served as campaign manager under former president Bill Clinton in his presidential election win in 1992 along. He has also hosted CNN’s political debate show, Crossfire.  He appears regularly appears as a commentator on several news channels and political talk shows and made guest appearances in several different television shows and movies.

Matalin is a political consultant for the Republican party. She has been involved in the current Bush administration as an assistant to president Bush and a counselor to vice president Cheney. She has also written several books including Letters to My Daughters and also hosted Crossfire. She is currently the head of a conservative publication called Threshold.
Unlike previous convocations, this convocation will be different because there are two speakers instead of one. The format has not officially been announced but former Regent Dan Boulware hopes to have a debate style convocation.
“I think and hope it will involve a back and forth debate that should be quite lively, informative and entertaining,” Boulware said.

Vice President of Institutional Advancement Dan Nicoson said that the convocations does focuses on critical issues and this year it is the upcoming election and having Carville and Matalin is very good.

“It just so happened this year that they were available and it is an election year, so I hope that would be one of the benefits,” Nicoson said.

Professor of government David Steiniche says that this will be useful convocation before the November elections.
“At the same event people will here liberal and conservative views,” said Steiniche. “I think that will be especially more useful for the independent voter and people who have not made up their minds.”

Boulware said that this convocation has stirred a lot of interest in the community and could draw a large crowd.

“The Convocation has always been intended to be a special experience for the students.  I think this could be a terrific Convocation and one they will particularly find of interest. I expect this year’s speakers will draw widespread interest from our region based upon the many comments I have already received. We could very well have a packed house. I really hope the students will take advantage of this opportunity,” Boulware said.

They along with their two daughters, Matalin and Emerson Carville, currently live in Virginia.

The Convocation of Critical Issues provides national speakers to the students of the campus in order for them to learn and help them become better students. Past speakers include Sam Donaldson, Steve Forbes and Bob Woodward.

Mandi Nocita played well in both games as she hit two home runs in the doubleheader. She also drove in three runs in the first game. Then she added a another r.b.i. in the second game.

In the first game the Griffons got of to a fast start as Kori Bowser blasted a home run which led to a big inning for the Griffons. They never looked back in the first contest.

The Jennies tried to mount a comeback, but it wasn’t enough as the Griffons held on for the victory. The first game wasn’t all good for the Griffons, as they allowed four home runs to the Jennies. Jonnelle Berger also received her first save of the season in the contest.

The second game also started with a bang for the Griffons, as Nocita started the game with a lead off home run. The Griffons jumped out to an early 3-0 lead. The game stayed close until the top of the sixth, when the Jennies scored six runs. The Griffons could not mount a come back in the game.

The Griffons record now stands at 16-13 (2-2) in the MIAA. The Griffons are currently sitting at fourth in the conference, but the season has just began.

The Griffons offense has fared well thus far this year. The leaders so far this season have been Shannon Piovar, who leads the Griffons in batting average at .365. Katie Bruce who leads the team in runs batted in with 22 and also in home runs with five.

The Griffons have also done well in pitching so far this season. The leader of the staff has been Allison Jones who leads the team in earned run average at 2.32 and also in wins with eight. Berger has the lone save for the Griffons this season.
The Griffons will be back on the road as they will face conference opponent Emporia State on April 2. Then they will face Nebraska-Omaha on April 4. Before wrapping up the road trip with conference opponent Pittsburg State on April 6.
The Griffons were 1-2 in the UNO Softball Classic at print time.

In addition to the senior leadership, the younger freshman players also played a crucial role for the Griffons this season. Griffon freshman Tierra Ford averaged 10.8 points and 5.9 rebounds per contest. Ford led all MIAA freshmen in rebounds. Lauren Nolke was a three-point threat for the opposition as she shot 38.3-percent (36-of-94), which is fourth in the MIAA and first among MIAA freshman.

This year’s Griffons squad lacked in numbers and with the exception of the three seniors came up short in experience. However, what didn’t lack were intensity and the fire to win games. Head Coach Lynn Plett was pleased overall with this year’s squad.

“I felt that with the lack of numbers we had on the team, the girls did a really good job of doing what the coaches were asking them to do. There was an adjustment and a change in the style of play and philosophy, but I felt pretty good about the effort they made as far as really trying to cooperate and work with some of the things we tried to do this year,” Plett commented.

Senior Yanique Javois also felt good about the season, which recently ended.

“In retrospect, I think it went well. We made it to the conference tournament, something some people thought we couldn’t do, so that was a plus. It wasn’t the greatest season ever, but overall it could have been worse,” Javois said.
The Griffons fought hard to make it into post-season play, having to defeat their last two opponents to get the bid. They beat Northwest at home, in probably the best collective team effort of the season, 69-66. At home, they thrashed Missouri Southern, 70-58, and earned the eighth seed in the MIAA tournament in Kansas City, Mo. In the first round, although they played their hearts out, fell short to Washburn, 78-63.

We bid the seniors farewell and wish them much luck in their future endeavors. Their leadership will be missed, but we know they passed their knowledge on to the younger players and look forward to seeing them in action next season.

     At the end of January, Western will say goodbye to its dean of the Western Institute, Christopher Shove.

Shove will be resigning, as he has been given the great opportunity to serve as vice provost of Alfaisal University, a brand new school of research located in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Dr. Shove said he was contacted by a national search firm, and he gladly accepted the offer, as it was his previous boss who offered him the position.

     “It’s an exciting opportunity for me,” Shove said.

Shove will have the chance to play a part in the modernization of higher education in Saudi Arabia.

   “The university is an American-style university on purpose,” Shove said.

     Shove’s absence will mean that Joseph Bragin, provost and vice president for academic and student affairs, will be filling in for him in the meantime.

Bragin would like to find someone to replace Shove before the end of the spring semester.

  “The best time to start looking is in the fall, so we’re at a disadvantage because we didn’t know he was leaving,” Bragin said.

He thinks Western will ultimately find someone creative enough and effective enough to take Shove’s place and they will keep looking until they do, which shouldn’t take long.

     “He [Shove] has been very effective in the position,” Bragin said. “We’re not about to hire just anybody to fill the position right away.”

In Saudi Arabia, Shove’s new job will be relatively similar to his old one.

  “It will be much broader in scope,” Shove said.

     The University he will be working at is a brand new research University, and because of its novelty, his duties will consist of a little bit of everything.

Shove recently visited the school for the first time in November of 2007, where he got a taste of what his new working life would be like.

     With a science building of two million square feet, Alfaisal University will be the first co-ed university in Saudi Arabia.

   Shove’s journey in participating in the modernization of higher education will begin soon, as he leaves Friday, February 1.

He has made numerous contributions to Western since he started in 2004.

While he has been here, the Western Institute received regional and state recognition for its programs in adult and continuing education.

The ice storm has left many of the trees on campus damaged or destroyed. The ice storm followed a snow storm that happened in last week.

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