That’s right. At the end of the semester, she will be heading down to Santiago, the capitol of Chile. Not only will she be living in Chile for the duration of her stay, she will be teaching English as a second language to business professionals in need of a better understanding of English.

Moses is received her degree in music business and songwriting at Middle Tennessee State University. She decided to come to here because her family lived near the area, and Western was the only school around that offered a master’s program that emphasized on teaching English to speakers of other languages.

“Right now I’m doing a project and using my background in music and my expertise in that,” Moses said. “I’m going to create a curriculum and a program that uses music to teach English.”

The top language in Chile is Spanish, but Moses doesn’t know how to speak it. For most people it would be a hard task to communicate with someone while having no common language to use, but she has done it before.

“I’ve already been doing it,” Moses said. “I taught ESL (English as Second Language) for a college in Savannah, Ga., so I’ve had experience and that’s what I’ve been doing. It’s a lot of non-verbal communication in the beginning. But what I’m finding from my research is that before you try to learn another language you should listen to it for a long time and learn the rhythms of their language before you try to speak it. So I’m going to incorporate music.”

None of this opportunity will be done through the school. Moses has done everything herself, from finding the teaching job to finding out where she is going to stay. Absolutely none of her living plans were set up for her, so she felt like she kind of had to take a gamble.

“They said ‘We’ll figure it out when you get here,’” Moses said. “So I thought I should try and do some research to find people through Facebook and social networking, but that didn’t work. So I went on Craigslist and found this girl who lives in Santiago. She speaks really broken English, so we’ve been Skyping and using Google Translate. Now we’ve already become really good friends without even knowing how to speak each other’s languages. She’ll be picking me up at the airport, so I guess I’m pretty trusting.”

Moses is planning on coming back to the states knowing how to speak Spanish, and speak it well. She is hoping that being surrounding by Spanish speakers will be enough influence to get a piece of their culture to bring back.

Now that the fight is over, the work was already begun. My number one goal as the new top dog is to be a true voice for the students. I want to reach those students that don’t know or understand the many things going on at Western. From the events, to the politics, to the funding, to the exciting opportunities that students don’t often hear about, I want to cover everything that involves this campus.

If I could have every student just browse our front page or even take a quick look at our photos, even if only for a second, then I know I am doing my job. Readership is the biggest issue that any publication faces in today’s society. Why should people take time out of their day and actually read stories in the first place? Once a journalist can answer this question and provide content that is interesting, relevant and readable, he or she has found the true meaning of journalism. I wish to make all of our stories meaningful and appealing to the public while still keeping a since of pride and integrity at Missouri Western. It’s important for the public to know that the Griffon News is a composition of students researching, reporting and investigating all necessary elements worthy of attention. We are not drama starters, gossipers or whiners that report things just to stir up some conflict. Though some journalists are like this, which is quite pathetic, we are not. We are students that work for our campus and write and report stories for our campus.

In response to that, we are not a pr campaign either. We do not simply run stories that are more in depth press releases with no angle nor since of objectivity. That is just plain, boring journalism. The Griffon News is created to be the campus’s outlet of information. What students and staff don’t outright say, we find a way to say. The policies and procedures that are too complex for students to make concrete sense of, we break it down for them. Those elephants in the room that everybody knows are there but nobody wants to acknowledge, we uncover them. That is what we do here.

Being a senior that is entering my fourth year on newspaper, I have learned a lot about what a newspaper is supposed to be. Behind all the good and bad press, the stories, quotes, sources and photos lays a blank page that must be filled each week with content to ultimately better our campus. What I want to do is make the newspaper even better. I will do this by making our content great in every aspect and angle. From all perspectives, this upcoming newspaper will be so interesting and appealing that you can’t keep your hands off of it. It will be more then something you want to read. It will be something your friends, family, professors, peers and faculty all want to read. Because if nobody wants to read it, what’s the point of having it?

This is Western Appeal, Missouri Western’s very first collegiate a capella group. A cappella is singing without instruments.

Freshman Mary Beth Rosenauer came up with the idea for Western to have their own a cappella group when she was looking over YouTube videos last summer. What influenced her was University of Oregon’s a cappella group On the Rocks sing a Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance.” She thought, “Hey, we could do this.”

“The cool thing about the a cappella groups is they’re really big on other campuses, and so to start one up would be really neat,” Rosenauer said. “It’s something other schools our size, like Northwest (Missouri State), don’t have one, so one up on them is always nice.”

Founded in November of 2011, Rosenauer came up with Western Appeal to be the name for the group because they put their own twist, or appeal, on different songs. So far the group has 12 members, including freshman Jacob Mills who plays Seymour Krelborn in Western’s production of “Little Shop of Horrors.”

Rosenauer wants at least 16 members in the group, and it’s open for anyone to join; any student with any sort of major can be a part of the group.

In the past couple of semesters, Western Appeal has sang Christmas songs at Light Up Western and the Caroling Fundraiser at East Hills Mall for The Salvation Army, as well as sang songs like “Lean on Me,” “Black Bird” and student director junior Derek Thompson’s arrangement of “Eye of the Tiger” at the Western Activities Council Talent Show and in Blum Union. To hear Western Appeal’s songs, search “Western Appeal” on YouTube and choose from the first four choices.

So far, students, like Thompson, have had a lot of fun with the group.

“The thing I enjoy most is having the freedom to create music that we really enjoy with a group of close friends,” Thompson said.

The most recent place Western Appeal sang was the Grace Evangelical Church in St. Joseph for the Area A Cappella Voices of America competition on April 14. While Western Appeal is co-ed, it competed against all men’s and women’s groups.

After an audience vote, Western Appeal took home the first place trophy.

“It was a good experience, and it gave us hope that we could go to other competitions and stuff because when you’re new, it’s hard,” Rosenauer said.

As of now, the group is done practicing for the semester. However, Rosenauer said the students will hopefully get to work on more over the summer.

“This is kind of a test run, like a guinea pig, so hopefully next semester we’ll have a full-wide campus auditions and try and be a real group.”

“We are starting this dangerous habit of playing well in game one and not being able to score in game two,” coach Jen Bagley said. “Those are some of the things we are talking about how to fix going into the conference tournament.”

Pitcher Jackie Bishop allowed just six hits and two runs as she improved her record to 22-2 on the season as the Griffons got the 3-2 win in game one.

“UCO has firepower, and I thought Jackie did a great job,” Bagley said. “Kat Steponovich who has caught every game for Jackie did great job calling the game behind the plate.”

Blair Stalder went 2-for-4 including two crucial RBIs in the fifth inning to put the Griffons in the lead.

Game two didn’t go as well as the first one as Western was blanked 5-0, unable to produce runs with Annalee Rubio on the mound.

“Rubio has pitched only allowing a couple runs and we haven’t been able to score runs,” Bagley said. “It’s more symptomatic of game two than it is that we have a different mentality with Bishop or Rubio on the mound.”

“We had a game plan, we executed it and we felt great,” Bagley said. “The problem was we felt great and we didn’t maintain that intensity in the second game.”

Despite an extremely successful season, Bagley believes there are some adjustments to be made in order to ensure the Griffons’ post-season success.

“Some adjustments we are going to have to make involve how we are handling our time off in between games,” Bagley said. “There’s a saying that the patterns that you are in that get you to the end of the year aren’t the same as the things that you have to do to do well once you get to the postseason.”

The Griffons are matched up with their rival, Northwest Missouri State, in the first round of the MIAA Tournament April 26 in Overland Park, Kan.

“We are excited going into the conference tournament and we feel really good about our chances against our conference opponents.” Bagley said. “We know we have to do and what it takes to do it so we aren’t in desperation mode, we just have to do it.”

“Our guys did a great job of improving the intensity and improving the production so from that standpoint it’s been good,” coach Buzz Verduzco said.

Things started out great for the Griffons as pitcher Brandon Simmons allowed no runs, eight hits, and struck out eight in nine complete innings on the mound in game one.  Western won the game 5-0 which included a homer and two runs batted in from Michael Schulze.  Simmons improved his record to 9-2 on the season.

The second game was a low-scoring affair where the Griffons got their only score off an unearned run and fell 2-1 as pitcher Matt Bergin took the loss in relief.  Truman was able to get a string of three hits off Bergin in the fifth inning and that was all that it needed to seal up the victory.  The loss snapped a seven-game winning streak for Western, its longest of the season.

“I challenge the team that you can’t always count on those pitchers being perfect all the time,” Verduzco said. “You can only win when you score.  The more we can keep the excitement in the dugout because our offense is staying aggressive, the better chance we have to keep winning.”

Western bounced back with an offensive explosion in the third game of the series.  With the game tied 1-to-1 in the fourth inning, the Griffons were able to score eight runs on six hits.  Shawn Egge hit a three-run shot in the inning and Western lead 9-1 after four.

Western went on to win 11-1 as pitcher Nik Jurado improved his record to 7-0 on the season by pitching six innings and only giving up three hits and one earned run.

“Our starting pitching has been great most of the year, but right now we are in a position where relief pitching is really struggling.” Verduzco said.

It looked as if the Griffons would escape with a 3-1 series victory after taking a three-run lead into the bottom of the ninth of game four, but it wasn’t meant to be. Reliever Jake Jones took the loss after allowing four runs on four hits in the bottom of the last inning.

“He couldn’t find the strike zone,” Verduzco said. “Games like that you really can’t let slip away so from the relief standpoint that’s something we really have to fix and improve.  Whatever we have to do we have to improve that is what we are going to do.”

Nate Ramler finished out the series by going 3-for-4 with three runs batted in while Tony Loeffler went 2-for-3 with a run scored and Spencer Shockley went 3-for-5 with two runs scored.

Western returns to its home field to play Southern Baptist at the Spring Sports Complex on Friday and Saturday.

“His leadership ability is the biggest thing we will miss,” Coach Buzz Verduzco said. “Trying to get the new catcher for next year to do what he does is going to be the biggest task. Not just his catching ability but his leadership ability.”

Loeffler has done a very good job of managing the pitching staff, something that Verduzco hasn’t always had in past years.

“He’s been with us two years, and his background in baseball and his approach to the game with his way of being able to positively handle the pitching staff, especially the upperclassmen,” Verduzco said. “He knows when to push the buttons at the right time, he knows how to back off, he knows how to encourage, and he knows how to call a game.”

“Managing this pitching staff is pretty easy because everybody on the staff is smart, has a lot of knowledge for the game, and knows what they are doing out there,” Loeffler said. “I just go with what they do best and tell them what I think and if they like it they do it.”

Loeffler has went through some early struggles at the plate and is batting .235 on the season with 14 runs batted in, but remained an extremely valuable part of the pitching staff’s success.

“Sometimes with baseball you go through streaks and slumps, and I was struggling pretty bad at the beginning,” Loeffler said. “I was just trying to help the team win any way that I can. I’m feeling a little better at the plate and seeing the ball well now, and hopefully I can keep it going through the end of the year,”

Loeffler wasn’t alone in struggling out of the gate and the rest of the Griffons had trouble getting the bats going as well. Recently the team as a whole has been hitting the ball much better and, in Loeffler’s case, Verduzco has an idea of why.

“Tony always says he’s a warm weather player and, sure enough, it’s here and, sure enough, he has been a big part of the offensive surge for the last few weeks,” Verduzco said.

Loeffler will celebrate his senior day along with seven other seniors including pitcher Nik Jurado, who he has been the catcher for in high school, junior college and during his Western career.

“It always helps when you have some familiarity with the guys on the mound,” Verduzco said. “Nik wouldn’t want anybody else to catch him.”

Both players made the journey from California to Missouri to play their last two years of college baseball. Loeffler doesn’t quite know what to make of the whole senior day experience.

“It hasn’t really sunk in yet because I haven’t really put a lot of thought into it,” Loeffler said. “I’m sure when we get out there on Saturday it’s going to feel a lot more real.”

Loeffler has his focus set on extending his career for a few more games with the Griffons making a post-season run.

“It’s going to be a success either way, but I want to go as far as possible in the playoffs,” Loeffler said. “I personally think a success would be going to the regional and winning.”

“They have been our two work horses,” Coach Buzz Verduzco said. “Having them on the mound you just kind of know you will get a solid outing, you are always going to be in the game.”

Simmons has a record of 9-2 on the season with a 1.51 earned run average and 53 strikeouts. He was an honorable mention All-MIAA pitcher for the last two seasons for Western and is just a junior.

“I have really grown to like my fastball this year,” Simmons said. “I got it up to about 88 miles per hour, and I’ve been working hard on getting a good slider to go with it.”

Simmons credits the solid defense behind him for allowing him to focus solely on his pitches and location without having to worry about errors being made.

“Brandon is our number one guy, and he sets the tone for the weekend,” Jurado said. “We basically are the same pitchers with the same kind of stuff. He goes out there and shoves and it gives me confidence that I can do the same thing. I think he sets the tone for the whole pitching staff.”

Jurado boasts a unblemished 7-0 record with a 1.96 earned run average and has also struck out 53 batters on the season. He was an honorable mention All-MIAA pitcher last season and has improved his numbers this year.

“I don’t really think I have changed anything from last year, I’m just maybe a little more consistent with every single pitch,” Jurado said.

What makes the Griffons’ two lead pitchers success this season even more impressive is that they continued to give Western an opportunity to win early in the season when they weren’t getting much run support from the hitters.

“They always gave us a chance to really win and kept us in it,” Verduzco said. “The next thing you know we get a late-inning base hit and a late-inning run and win. That’s how a lot of those victories at home happened.”

The tide has turned and now the hitters are producing runs at a much higher rate than they were during the struggles, but the approach is still the same from the pitching staff.

“We knew the bats were going to come around sooner or later,” Jurado said. “We just have a goal to keep every game at five runs or less. Do that and our offense will eventually come around like it has been. They have been amazing the last couple of weeks.”

The Griffons feel good about their post-season chances with the pair of dominant pitchers on the mound, a luxury that not many teams have.

“Having Nik and Brandon is like having two aces going every week,” catcher Tony Loeffler said. “Most teams only have one top guy and we have two of them, so every time they step on the mound we have a really good chance at winning the game.”

Verduzco says that their success hasn’t necessarily come from having overpowering pitches, but from buying into the Western system and doing the little things right.

“Number one, they are competitors and they understand what we do here as a staff and buy into our philosophies,” Verduzco said. “They are exceptional at holding runners and maybe that is what sets them apart from the rest of the staff.”

According to traditional chapter guidelines, being in the program is the highest recognition a business student from any country can achieve. When accepted into the fraternity, you become a lifelong member and a lot of networking opportunities down the road become available.

Dean of Craig School of Business Phillip S. Nitse feels that being in the fraternity opens up a lot of doors in the future for the programs members. He feels that the program is unique because it’s always good to be recognized for an achievement that you have accomplished.

“This chapter is rather small,” Nitse said, “but we will like to find ways to bring more recognition to the students for the great job that they have done here at Western. They deserve it.”

Nitse stated that this organization is open to all business majors and that even though the fraternity is based primarily on business; this program is similar to any other fraternity in the world.

Assistant professor of the business department Beverly Payne is a member of the fraternity as well, and she feels that when students graduate and enter the working world, being in this fraternity is an additional item to the resume that shows distinction.

“The Beta Gamma Sigma program opens doors for people,” Payne said. “This is an additional recognition that not too many people have, and I think it shows someone’s potential because in order to achieve this accomplishment, you have to be serious from the beginning.”

Payne said that the program is significant simply because it is accredited. Being accredited was the reason why they are able to honor students for their hard work.

From 2011-2012, 12 graduates have been recognized for their achievement of making the Top Ten Percent list for the fraternity. The graduates include Matthew Bergin, Kimberly Brown, Luke Crowther, Bryson Herbert, Amanda Keeling, Jacob Kerns, Michael McCullough, Taylor McEchern, Haley Siela, Sarah Shorter, Joshua Steltenpohl and Zachary Taul.

Amanda Keeling will be graduating this spring, and she will be inducted into the Beta Gamma Sigma program April 26. Keeling stated that she was unfamiliar with the organization at first but after gaining more information about the fraternity, she decided that this was something that she wanted to be a part of.

“Being recognized for this means a lot to me because I care so much about the school and business,” Keeling said. “Being able to say I am apart of Beta Gamma Sigma is a huge benefit because it sets me apart in the business world.”

The night also included award celebrations where organizations around the campus were awarded for the work they have accomplished at Western.

The night’s main goal was to honor students on campus for not only their hard work, but also for the dedication and effort that they put in for their organizations. Individual awards were given to students and staff, which included most outstanding senator, lifetime achievement award and adviser of the year.

Scott personally wanted to thank everyone for showing him support for this event. He stated that he will work diligently each day to better Western. The event showed him that people actually did support him and he was very appreciative for that.

“I felt that the atmosphere was phenomenal tonight,” Scott said. “I am very excited about this opportunity because I have so many ideas that I want to show the senate here on campus. I want to be the advocate for students. I am a vocal type of guy and I think that I am the best person to represent the issues of students.”

Food and drinks was served to everyone in attendance of the event. The ceremony was a formal event, so all students and staff were dressed to impress with the women wearing dresses and skirts and the men wearing slacks and ties.

Student Jayson Reading, who attended the event, said he was rather surprised at how big the attendance was. Reading majors in music, and wanted to attend to show support to the new president of SGA. Though it was his first time attending an event like this one, he said that it would not be his last.

“It’s always good to see people get awarded for their work and their accomplishments,” Reading said. “I just feel that both Jacob Scott and Lauren Upton are perfect for the job. I am behind them 100 percent.”

President Vartabedian was in attendance to inaugurate both Scott and Upton in their new positions. Afterwards, both gave their speeches and received a standing ovation when they were done.

Former President Alison Norris handed down her position to Scott after completing her term. Scott was her Vice President when she was elected and she is very comfortable with leaving the position to Scott. Norris stated that ever since she has known Scott, he has been one of the hardest workers that she has ever met.

“Me and Jacob have always been like partners,” Norris said. “I always had to make the big decisions, but I would always ask for his input because I included him in everything. I don’t think he will have any problems taking over for me.”

Norris stated that what makes Scott so special is the fact that he is so passionate about the students at Western. Scott has always wanted to put the students first because he believes that is his first priority.

Senior history and sociology major Gary Weidemann is going to study Punjabi in India thanks to a scholarship he received from the Critical Language Scholarship Program by applying through their website. His scholarship is funded by the Department of State and Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs rather than the study abroad office. Weidemann said he got selected in Missouri by the state department to go.

“I wasn’t in an Ivy League school or living on the East Coast; maybe if other students see that it is not impossible to go, they will be encouraged or inspired to apply for it,” Weidemann said.

Weidemann said he was surprised he got the scholarship. He applied previously for Turkey and didn’t get it prior to picking India when he applied again this year.

Weidemann chose India because he wants to try and learn a new language. Of the 13 different locations, he was limited to the places for beginners. It also did not hurt that he is really interested in that region. He even took two classes on a religion of the region, Sikhism.

“Punjabi straddles the Pakistan border,” Weidemann said. “A lot of interesting things have been happening there for the past twenty years.”

Weidermann also hopes other students received the same opportunity that he did.

“Hopefully I’m not the only Missouri Western student who gets this,” Weidemann said. ”It’s a great opportunity, a whole summer but, basically paid for: Not a lot of opportunities like that out there.”

Weidemann said expenses are fully funded: which covers classes, books, travel expenses and airfare.

“Really cool thing they provide housing and food,” Weidemann said.

While in India he will be staying with a host family in the city of Chandigarh. He will be there during India’s monsoon season.

Weidemann said this is not his first time out of the country, but it is the first chance he has to study abroad. Weidemann said he was inspired by Dr. Phil Mullins, professor of philosophy.

“He told me to be an educated person, you should learn another language,” Weidemann said.

Junior Anna Steely, one of Weidemann’s former residents when he was a resident assistant, said that she was very proud of Weidemann’s fantastic opportunity.

“He was a great RA when I had him, and I’m very excited for him,” Steely said. “He has this amazing chance to go to India and learn Punjabi.”

Assistant professor of political science Edwin Taylor stated that the opportunity to study abroad is something very beneficial and encourages all students to follow in Weidemann’s footsteps.

“Studying abroad is a fantastic opportunity, one that every student should try to figure out how to include in their academic experience,” Taylor said. ”I think most people think ‘Oh I can never afford to do it; it’s too expensive,’ and they short change themselves from a wonderful opportunity, to just go experience something completely different and be out of their comfort zone for a while.”

They laugh at an unheard joke and high five. They continue to chat animatedly until the pianist strikes the first key. Once the music starts, Mills and Breckenridge slip effortlessly into character and remain there, falling in love with each other, until the song is over.

The Western students play Seymour and Audrey, respectively. Mills and Breckenridge did not know each other very well before rehearsals started, but that quickly changed. Now, days before opening night, the actors joke like old friends and praise each other constantly. Both use the word awesome to describe the other.

Director Dallas Henry agrees with this assessment.

“I think people will be blown away by their performances,” he said.  “There’s a lot of goosebumps in the show.”

Henry went on to say that this will be the best show during his time at Western, citing the talent of the lead actors and the rest of the cast and crew.

The casting process for this show was long, and Henry is very satisfied with the results.

“We pulled them and tugged them in every direction to see that we got what we wanted, and the people that I cast deserve to be cast,” he said. “They earned it, and they just fought for it harder. “

No one was more surprised to be cast than freshman Mills.

“I went into the audition thinking that I probably wasn’t going to get anything,” he said. “I would still have done stage crew or something; I still wanted to be part of the production. I never expected to be anything more than that.”

Mills definitely got more than he expected, and has been intimidated from the beginning to work with such an experienced group of actors.

“I feel like I’m constantly trying to live up to what other people are doing,” he said. “I almost overdo things in my head sometimes so I feel like I’m at the level that the other people are at.”

Breckenridge and Henry both think that Mills is accomplishing far more than he gives himself credit for. Breckenridge, a 21-year-old junior, said that she hardly notices that Mills is so much younger than her.

“I guess I don’t think of us being a different age because he’s so professional when we’re working and stuff,” she said. “He’s a pretty advanced singer, so I don’t ever feel like anyone is ever having to slow down because of him. He’s always on top of things. He’s just doing a really great job; it’s really impressive.”

Henry was just as complimentary when discussing his male lead.

“With Jacob, you just fall in love with him right away,” he said. “You just pull for him like a superhero.”

Morgan is just as likeable as Jacob, Henry said. Henry had only ever seen one live production of “Little Shop” before, and he did not like the Audrey.

”If you don’t like the Audrey that much than the show’s just kind of done,” he said. “With Morgan, you fall in love with her right away, I think. I’ve always enjoyed Morgan’s work, like I saw last year in ‘Phantom.’”

Morgan’s character in “Phantom” is quite different from her character in “Little Shop,” however. In “Phantom,” Breckenridge could let her classically-trained voice shine. Henry said that it was important to this production that she find the balance between that beautiful voice and the more nasally voice of Audrey.

Breckenridge said it was hard to balance her voice and her character’s.

“I think it’s hard to find that middle ground, especially when you’re singing, because whenever you’re singing you don’t want to let your character voice distort the notes, but you don’t want your real voice to come out because you don’t want to break character,” Breckenridge said. “When I’m going up to a higher range, it’s difficult to stay on pitch while still maintaining that character voice.”

Both Breckenridge and Mills are undoubtedly talented singers, so Henry has told them to focus on other parts of the performances.

“For them, it’s getting the blocking down,” Henry said. “Singing comes first for them, so I’ve told them to put that behind and really focus on acting and the characters.”

Breckenridge has, coincidentally, had to get into character as Audrey once before. She played the same character in a high school production of “Little Shop.” Henry wasn’t aware of this until recently, and said that it did not influence his casting. He told Breckenridge that she needed to take everything she had done before and throw it out the window.

Breckenridge sees a lot of differences between this production and the past one.

“This is definitely more of a show for college students than high school students; there are a few mature issues that I think students in college can relate to like relationships and wanting to be successful and not really knowing how to do that.”

“The theme for our spring parallels what our program has been, just a gradual improvement,” coach Jerry Partridge said. “There’s not any spot on our team or any group or individual that didn’t improve.”

The game didn’t offer any live hitting by the defense. That might not be the format that the fans want to see, but coach Partridge is glad that the Griffons made it though the camp without suffering any serious injuries.

“Certainly we have a a team with enough experience that we don’t need to prove anything in the spring,” coach Partridge said. “Michael Hill doesn’t need to be tackled until August 30. I just think you don’t want to lose players at practice.”

Even if the defense was allowed to tackle running back Hill, it’s not clear if they would’ve been able to.  Hill broke off a 50-yard run that led to a touchdown and a 40-yard run in for the score.

Hill will be a major part of the Griffons’ plan on offense again this season after rushing for 1384 yards with a 4.9 yards-per-carry average and scoring eight touchdowns on the ground. He showed his versatility out of the backfield by gaining 257 receiving yards including four touchdown catches.

Dual-threat quarterback Travis Partridge will look to build on a successful first season as a starter and has plenty of weapons to work with on the outside as well as tight end Reggie Jordan.

“I think it’s going to be exciting to watch Reggie play,” Partridge said. “I think he’s an all-conference caliber tight-end that you are going to see utilized more often this season.”

Cornerback Jeremy Weston intercepted Partridge in the scrimmage and makes up part of a talented secondary along with Ben Jackson and safety Shane Simpson.

“I don’t know if there’s a better combo of corners in the league, and we are really excited about all those guys on the back end,” defensive coordinator Regi Trotter said.

The defensive line includes pass rushers Ben Pister, Austin Baska and David Bass, who combined for 29 sacks last season.

“It’s good any time you can put pressure on the other team’s quarterback,” Trotter said. “When that 19-, 20- or 21-year-old young man has to think about getting hit, and he’s not used to it.”

The Griffons return most of the starters on both sides of the ball from a 9-3 team that hosted a home playoff game last season.

“We are very deep right now, and this is probably the deepest team I’ve been around since I’ve been back here,” Trotter said. “We’ve had a lot of good football players in the past, but as many good players as we have on the team right now is definitely an advantage.”

The Griffons were beaten badly by eventual national champion Pittsburg State in their first game last season, and coach Partridge has his focus on avoiding a similar start in the fall against Central Missouri.

“We have to be ready, and it’s going to be difficult,” coach Partridge said. “They are interested in throwing about 60 percent of the time, and we hope that trend continues because that’s what we are preparing for.”

Another reason the Griffons must win coming out of the gate is because of the strength of schedule at the end of the season. The last four games will be against Pitt State, Emporia State, Washburn and Northwest Missouri State.

“The schedule closes with a fury, so we have to be ready from the start,” coach Partridge said. “It’s good to have this kind of football team back. It’s good to have that kind of confidence and knowledge of what to expect out of a team more so than last year.”

“Basketball is second only to God and my family in my life,” Mells said. “It’s the only thing I am really passionate about outside of those two things. I love playing and whatever is going on in my head whenever I step on the court is gone, all I can think about is ball.”

With his father coaching the team, Mells started running the point at the age of five. He still carries the same values today that his father instilled in him back then.

“He always told me if you are going to do something then try to be great at it,” Mells said. “Just be as good as you can be, and I really just took that to heart.”

Unlike most 18-year-old freshmen, Mells doesn’t hesitate when asked what he wants to do with his life and the direction he wants it to go. He plans to use his time at Western as a vehicle to a professional career.

“I want to play as long as I can at the highest level that I can,” Mells said. “Whether that’s professionally in the NBA or oversees or wherever, I just want to keep playing.”

Mells feels like he is right where he is supposed to be and is happy with his decision to choose to play at Western for coach Tom Smith. It wasn’t easy for Mells to get a scholarship offer to play college basketball because of his 5-10, 165 pound frame and because of his location.

Mells hails from Des Moines, Iowa, which is not known as a hot bed for major basketball talent. Harrison Barnes, who will be a top-5 pick in June’s NBA Draft, was that guy who garnered all of the attention in Iowa. Outside of Barnes, most players from the area are often overlooked by the power houses.

“I went to a really small school and there was always doubts about whether I was going to be tall enough or strong enough to play at this level or any other level,” Mells said. “It was really hard, but Coach Smith had a lot of confidence in me.”

As a senior in high school, Mells was part of a team that won 18 straight games and beat three of the top-ranked teams in the state playoffs. He averaged 20.5 points per game, 7.1 assists per game, 3.8 steals per game and 5.0 rebounds per game while leading his team to a district championship. He once lit up 45 points in a game on the road.

“Being a small guard, my game is being able to get around people and get shots for myself and my teammates so being quick and being fast is a huge part of my game,” Mells said.

Rarely do freshman step in and contribute at a four-year school right away, but Mells was given his opportunity with Western struggling to accumulate wins and having injury problems.  He showed no fear of the moment and stepped into the starting lineup; his impact was felt immediately on the offense end.  Mells started the last nine games of the season and dropped 17 points against Washburn.

“Coach Smith gave me a lot of confidence. He told me that he thought I was ready and that he thought I deserved some more minutes and he was going to give them to me and see how I responded,” said Mells.

Mells credits some of the success of his transition to college basketball to unselfish upperclassmen Deionta Mitchell and James Harris, who play the same point guard position.

“The older guys, just being point guards, were definitely really encouraging,” Mells said. “They would pick me up; they would also instruct me on how to do it the right way. It meant a lot that guys you would consider your brothers would really have your back like that.”

Western finished the season at a disappointing 9-17 overall and 4-16 in MIAA conference play and struggled down the stretch of the season, failing to make the conference tournament.  Mells will do everything in his power to ensure that next season isn’t a repeat performance.

“This has been the worst year of my life as far as basketball has gone,” Mells said. “I can’t really blame anybody but the 14 of us in uniform. This was our season and we made it what it was, and now it’s a new team, a new year, and we have to make it what we want it to be.”

Mells has learned that playing in the MIAA conference is every bit as tough as Coach Smith claimed it would be.

“I don’t know if DII basketball, especially this league, gets the respect it deserves,” Mells said. “There are a lot of great players in this league.”

It’s the off-season right now, but Mells knows what he needs to improve on and add to his game in order to turn his team into a winner next season.

“I have to work a lot on my physical strength,” Mells said. “To help me get in the lane and find open guys so I don’t get stripped so much. That’s the next step. Coach Smith and I were talking a couple times and he said I need to become more of a true point guard especially when I keep playing this game longer because you don’t see a lot of 5-10 guards averaging 20 points per game.”

This summer, Mells will be fine tuning his skills in the Capitol City League in Des Moines against Iowa State players and other college ballers that play in the Iowa area.

Mells’ goal is to spend four years turning Western into a winner and earn All-American status while continuing to prove that he can play the game that he loves at a high level.

“Hopefully at the end of this four years, we have some banners hanging up.” Mells said. “I want them to say: ‘This kid from Western, he could really go.’”

Let me say one thing about this: shut up.

This rivalry? It’s bullshit. It doesn’t exist. Any more talking about it is just fuel to a fire that isn’t even flammable.

The biggest example of this so-called “rivalry” was the casting of “Little Shop of Horrors.” A lot of Theatre majors were irritated by the fact that there were so many Music majors casted in the show.

First of all: there are 5 Theatre students in the show and 4 Music students. We have the majority.

Second of all, it’s a musical. There is singing. So the performers who are trained in vocals are going to have some advantage.

And lastly: you’re going to be bitter towards a production because you didn’t get a part? How professional of you.

This is how the real world works. You do not always get a part. You move on.

One of my professors, and somewhat of a role model to me, once told me (in a nutshell) that you just have to forget about your audition. If you get the part: great! If not: who’s next? And when someone asks you how your audition went, you say, “What audition?”

Let me tell you a personal story.

I’m an actor. I love being an actor. And a year ago, I had no roles to my plate. When I would tell fellow students or my professors that I was here to learn acting, they would be in surprise. They didn’t take me seriously.

I was bitter about this.

You know what I did? For the next audition, I studied my ass off and put together the most intense and exhausting audition I could possibly do. I had something to prove. I wanted everyone to know who I was and what I was capable of. I auditioned with a purpose.

This was my Romeo & Juliet audition. If you didn’t see the production, I got one of the most desired parts in the show. And I had close friends who were jealous of me. Mad at me, even. I still worked my ass off to get it right and I did. This whole experience changed my life. It didn’t just make me a better actor, but a better person.

Not getting a role should motivate you. Inspire you to be better, but in a healthy way. Not in a destructive way.

These words I use may not please you. These words might blow like a pipe bomb. In fact: I hope they do. This needs to be heard.

We need to realize that it doesn’t matter what our major is. We are all here to put on an amazing production. Hating each other will not accomplish that. Hating each other will accomplish nothing.

Johnson plans to study social and cultural anthropology. This area of study is not offered at very many universities; Johnson said UCL’s program is one of the biggest in the world, and absolutely the biggest in the U.K. The university’s academics is not the only reason Johnson chose to study there, however.

“One of my bucket list items has always been to study in the U.K., so I thought that going there for a grad degree would be a really neat experience,” Johnson said. “I’ve had a traveler’s heart for as long as I can remember.”

Anthropology is the study of people and human behaviors, and the program at UCL will allow Johnson to focus on a more specific area of this incredibly broad field.

Johnson said that she plans to focus on the democratization and development of third-world countries. She will add a research emphasis to her degree so she can someday possibly be an analyst for the U.S. state department, the UN or a non-governmental organization.

“They have libraries like nobody’s business where I can do extensive research,” she said.

To give an idea of how prestigious UCL is as a university, their collaborative university partner is Yale. And just as American Ivy League schools are expensive, so are esteemed British schools. Johnson has applied for scholarships but is willing to live on loans to make her dream of studying abroad come true.

“This university is just incredibly prestigious. It’s currently ranked No. 7 in the U.K., so I’m just thankful that I got in. I’m not really worried about getting any scholarships,” she said.

While in London, Johnson plans to work to support herself, in addition to asking for some financial support from her father.

“He’s very excited for me to go to London, and I know how to play the Daddy card,” she said.

Johnson is no stranger to working on campus, and she wishes to explore that option at UCL. She has worked as an English 100 writing workshop leader, a CAS writing tutor and a Student Success student academic mentor during her time at Western. She has also served as Parliamentarian for SGA’s senate and founder and president of University Democrat. She plans to be just as involved on the UCL campus.

Johnson said that she’d like to tutor, do secretarial work for departments or participate in an assistanceship program.

“I’d like to make around 50 pounds a week for going-out purposes,” Johnson said.

Johnson recognizes that London has a reputation for being a “party” city, and she plans to take advantage of that.

“There is a bit of a party scene there. You know, that’s the stigma of going to London and partying,” she said. “It’s not the same idea of partying here; after you get off work or it’s late in the evening, you go out with your ‘mates’ and you have a few drinks. That’s just kind of standard. It’s very much part of the culture.”

Johnson has lived in London before, albeit briefly. She spent six weeks studying in London in the summer of 2011.

“I fell in love with the city; it’s the best city in the world,” she said.

Johnson cites several pieces of evidence for this claim, including the city’s safety. She says that the most dangerous thing a student has to worry about is pickpocketers.

The cleanliness of the city really separates it from American cities, Johnson said.

“It’s so amazingly clean. Of course, I was out this late, so I would know, but at 3 a.m. every night they have hundreds of street cleaners that come out and clean up all the trash every day. You know, people have a lot more respect for the city there.”

UCL is spread all over this clean city, while the main building is located directly behind the British Museum in central London. Johnson plans to live on campus, but residence halls in the U.K. are a bit different than in America. She will have her own bedroom and bathroom, but will share a fully-furnished kitchen with a whole wing of residents and a living area with the whole building.

Johnson lived in a similar dorm during her summer experience in London, so she knows approximately what to expect. She is looking forward to having her own bathroom this time around. A communal, co-ed restroom was an issue she had to face last summer.

“It was seriously two-toilet stalls and three-shower stalls that were separated by a curtain, and there were times that I was showering next to some guy with just a curtain separating us. I got used to that, but I feel like, having my own bathroom, I’ll be able to transition a little better,” Johnson said.

Johnson has lived on campus during her time at Western, so she has plenty of experience with dorm life. She knows that this experience will be different, however.

“Europeans have a different idea of space, so it’ll be a lot smaller,” Johnson said. “I will probably have problems with it at first.”

Johnson has an enormous wardrobe, which is easily evidenced by anyone that has seen her around campus. She is always clad in a layered, colorful outfit and several accessories. She credits two walk-in closets and multiple dressers and bins to this stylish wardrobe.

“I’m going to have to condense significantly,” she said. “I just have to realize that my wardrobe can’t be as colorful as I want it to be. And, oh my gosh, shoes. I don’t even want to think about shoes.”

Johnson plans to ship some of her belongings, like bedding and coats, to the U.K. before her departure.

“I am six months away from leaving, and I’m already making lists,” she said.

Style is important to Johnson, and it is very important to the average Londoner as well.

“Suit is standard. I think I saw one person in sweatpants the entire time I was in London,” she said. “Even the hobos are well-dressed. Even they are in some sort of suit.”

Johnson credits this stylishness to a difference in the culture and also a difference in manners.

“British people are so much more polite, it’s not even funny.”

When first in London, Johnson tested the stereotype of polite Britons by purposefully bumping into several people on the street.”

“It was very obvious that I did something rude, but they’re like ‘So sorry, love.’ When I was in a pub, I did that to two gentlemen, and they offered to buy me drinks! ‘Oh, so sorry, love. Can I get you a drink?’”

Johnson said that this polite nature is surely linked the much more communal British culture.

“You walk in to the pubs there, and the goal is to go meet new people. It’s not like closed-off booths; tables are pushed together. You’re going to meet new people every time you go out.”

While Johnson’s knowledge of British culture comes partially from her personal experiences in London, she also credits the Harry Potter series as starting her fascination with the country. The fact that the studios where the movie adaptations were filmed are to open soon is absolutely an additional reason that Johnson is excited for her experience abroad.

“They have Severus Snape’s robes on display! I will need to see this!” she said.

Johnson does seem to love all facets of British culture, but she will miss some things about life in America. Number one? Mexican food.

“There was one (restaurant) called La Mexicana; I’m pretty sure it was run by Russians. I ordered a tequila sunrise, and I’m pretty sure it was vodka,” she said.

There is a Chipotle in London where she can get her burrito fix: she discovered a hole-in-the-wall franchise location last summer.

“I GPS-ed it and turned like 20 Londoners on to Chipotle.”

Johnson will also miss some personal milestones like friends’ weddings while overseas. Most importantly, her mother will turn 50.

“I’ll miss her fiftieth birthday, which I’m really sad about. I’ve been planning this party for like three years,” she said.

Johnson said that the opportunities that she’s gaining by going to London definitely outweighs the personal events she’ll miss while gone.

“I’ve never been away from home for longer than that six weeks I studied abroad, so I’m really interested to test myself and see what kind of person I grow in to.”

I have attended most of the spring concerts at our University and all I have to say is that this year’s performance was probably the best. The difference between our concert and Northwest is that theirs was 100% better.

I have heard from so many Mo West students just passing in the halls that they wish the Westerns Activities Council would work harder to try and negotiate for better performers to come to MoWest.

I am one of those students who prefer country, but can’t stand rap. So last year’s concert to me was a waste of time. We all have different likes and dislikes and I understand we cannot be pleased all the time, but bigger names would be a huge improvement.  However, I realize that there are students who feel differently and WAC should take a different approach by perhaps taking a student survey, campus vote, ect to ask the students what kind of music they prefer and who they would like to see come to campus.

I know this seems difficult because some students want performers such as Justin Bieber or Lady Gaga which reaches way beyond the WAC’s budget for the Spring Concert, yet I think through negotiations with record companies and performers we could find someone that all the students would enjoy. The students want something better for our main performances, as well as the opening acts.

I think the reason our spring concerts number of attendance in the past has been low, is because they decide to choose a country signer one year, and the next either a rap or pop singer. If we look at this year’s concert the numbers were great, but we still didn’t get the majority of the student body to agree. It seems to me that most of the students I speak to like pop artists and the reason I believe they do is because everyone seems to have heard of one of their songs or of that particular artist.

This message is to the Westerns Activities Council, and the student body of Missouri Western. If you want to see a better performer next year, like the amazing performance that Northwest had then let’s all get involved. Who knows, by this time next year we may see our numbers in attendance sky rocket.

During a three week period students are able to meet with their academic advisers to decide on classes and internship opportunities for the next semester. Western students seem to be in agreement over their love-hate relationships with advisers.

Mary Mayse, a nursing major said she doesn’t believe students should be assigned an adviser, and that any adviser can help a student.

“When I try to speak with my adviser, she is never there,” Mayse said. “I sent her an email because I misunderstood when we could sign up for classes. Then she sends me a nasty email back, and all I wanted was my PIN to enroll in classes.”

Students believe that there should be an option for advising. Rachel Billings, undeclared major, believes advisers tell you things that will help, but if you’re an undeclared major, they don’t know where to send you.

“I think there should be an option. We are adults, and we don’t need to be led around like children,” Billings said. “If we want advice, then we can go contact them, but I fully believe it should be up to us.”

Dr. Christopher Bond, Assistant Professor of Communication Studies, disagrees with making advising optional, stating that there are things that pop up which students might not know about like GPA requirements, internships or classes that might not be offered next semester.

“Missouri Western is changing the advising system in spring 2012,” Bond said. “It’s a usable online feature for both students and faculty. It will be easier for both the student and faculty member to work together.”

Advisement for some students seems to be a hassle, but for others it’s a way for them to speak one on one with a faculty member to decide on a path toward graduation.

Jennifer Loftin, a biochemistry and molecular biology major, said that she really likes her adviser. She said he has been very helpful and is definitely knowledgeable about when classes are offered, what classes she should take and when she should take them.

“I also like that I can go to him for advice on what electives to take and what would benefit me the most,” Loftin said.

Dr. Mei Zhang, associate professor of Communication Studies, said that if a student comes into her office with a plan, she will review it. She encourages her students to come in with a tentative course schedule. If they do not, she still advises them.

“I spend at least half an hour with a student on advising during each session,” Zhang said. “I double check the requirements they need for the degree.”

Students already have a hard time making it through school, but if you include taking care of a child along with that, it can be even more difficult for some students. Although it can be a challenge, there are child care services around the St. Joseph area and on the Missouri Western campus.

Y’s Kids World at Western is a child care service that is offered to students.  There are about 26 children ages 2 through 6 that can attend this service.  The children have to be potty-trained and have all of their shots.  The service is open all week long for students to bring in their children while they’re in class.  Heather James, one of the caretakers for the children, explained what Y’s Kids World has to offer students.

“We offer a facility discount to all students, and mostly all the children here are around the same age so they can relate to each other and are familiar with their peers,” James said.

While some students receive help from day cares, some, like Ashton Justiniano, prefer to receive help from their own families because the cost of  a day care can be expensive. According to the Baby Center LLC, the average cost of child care centers are about $4,000-$7,000 a year. Sophomore Justiniano prefers a family member to take care of her 10-month-old little girl while she is in class.

She also expressed how it can be difficult, but also how she stays positive about being a mother and a student.

“I struggle with time to study and to do homework, because my daughter’s needs have to come before mine sometimes,” Justiniano said. “I have to remind myself that me finishing school is better for her future and to not only provide for her, but to set a good example about education and how important it is.”

Some of the difficulties that students have while raising children while attending school includes lack of sleep, stress, downfall of grades, anxiety, expenses and many more difficulties.  Despite the disadvantages, there are some students that still think positively even though it’s tough balancing the two.

Sophomore Natassja Hanttula has not only one, but two children to take care of while going to school.

“With kids, balance is the key; however, when your child says ‘let’s play,’ but you are doing homework, it can be tough,” Hanttula said. “Sometimes you have to put down the books and play a game of peek-a-boo.”

Jordan Shurvington

This is the Missouri Western switchboard, crafted during the Cold War and in service here longer than most Western students have been alive.

Each tear off of the nearby page-a-day calendar signals the switchboard is getting closer to its end. The campus switchboard’s days are numbered.

Fortunately, Western is planning to replace its aging 23-year-old telephone switchboard.

“If our aging switchboard goes out and fails, we won’t have any way to replace it since replacement parts are no longer available,” Carolyn Long, telephone services coordinator, said.

The university switchboard receives thousands of calls from people off campus and is used to manually route calls to their proper extension on campus. Anyone who has ever called the main phone number, 816-271-4200, was routed through the switchboard.

Stacy Temple, a freshman accounting and business finance double major, is one of the part-time student switchboard operators. She is one of those students born after the switchboard began servicing Western.

While Temple is at the console, a call comes in and the switchboard rings in a unique tone not made by today’s phones. Through a long series of deliberate steps, she answers the call, flips through the book, locates the extension and then delicately keys each number using the noisy spring-loaded keys as though any one of her touches could signal the end of the road for the board.

Besides replacement parts being hard to come by, the outdated system adds time that callers must wait before they are transferred. Long said flipping from the phone, to searching the book and then back to the phone again adds time.

“We got to have it as we don’t have a choice on it,” Long said, knowing that if the current switchboard quits, the incoming calls to the switchboard will not be routed through.

Long expects its replacement to be a computer-based system from T-Metrics, who she described as a leader in switchboards. She plans to travel on April 16 to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to learn the pros and cons of their T-Metrics board. Long hopes that their experience with it will help her better manage the changeover for Western.

Being computer based, the T-Metrics switchboard will do away with the large paper book currently used by the operator as the phone extensions will be available to them at the click of a mouse. Long said not only will the system be more environmentally friendly, since the book won’t have to be printed frequently, but callers will also benefit from the quicker transfer times.

She said the new system will also allow for a computer-generated voice answering system. However, that feature is not likely to be used, so callers will still reach a live operator from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. After-hours callers will not notice any difference as calls will still be forwarded to voicemail as they are now.

The feature most likely be used is call recording, something the current system does not allow.

Long was quick to note that the recording will only occur on incoming calls and will cease once the call is transferred to an extension. She also said every call won’t be recorded, but feels that having some calls recorded can help during misunderstandings or when operators face difficult callers.

However, Long said there is a drawback to a T-Metrics switchboard. It won’t let operators forward calls when someone is unexpectedly out of the building — for example, in the case of an illness.

Temple likes the few quick keys it offers, which allow her to quickly route calls to frequently used extensions, though she looks forward to the increased speed that a new system will bring.

“Financial aid, admissions and the registrar’s office are my big three,” she said, as those departments get the majority of calls to the campus and each has its own quick key.

According to the T-Metrics customer feedback site, Mike Hansen, telephone administrator at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln said, “Since the installation in March 2006, we have discovered that the system is an extremely versatile system. It is a great solution for both large and small call centers.”

Hansen feels there hasn’t been a situation yet that they haven’t been able to address with the system or that T-Metrics hasn’t been interested in helping them find a solution for.

Long said knowing that the current switchboard is on its last leg, Western budgeted $1,500 for its replacement.

Since having her travel and conference budget cut due to cost reductions, Long said it is harder to network with other telephone administrators to see what they are doing to replace their older systems. She plans to use her brief visit to UNL as an information-gathering session and to make sure the T-Metrics system is the best fit for Western. She knows this new switchboard will be expected to last a long time.

As long as the current aging switchboard keeps ringing and letting operators transfer the calls it receives, it will continue to serve dutifully just as it has every day of its life since 1989. Only time will tell if it will give out first, or wait for its replacement’s debut before it retires.

Paul Dickman

“Playing in a worship service you can always tell when people are enjoying the music,” Blumer said. “Compliments start trickling in, and of course those people are friends and family who love you. But when I started doing shows outside at bars and stuff, compliments started coming in from people I didn’t really know. I thought ‘well let’s take this to the next level.’”

The next level for Blumer is a promotion tour from radio station to radio station across 12 Midwest states for the duration of this summer. For the moment, he is still in St. Joseph and will be playing at the Buffalo Bar on April 14, which is also the release date of his first big album.

Blumer is a self-taught guitarist who started at the age of just 12, inspired by his musically talented family. Now 25, he hasn’t shown a single sign of slowing down. The ’05 Benton High School graduate did enroll at Missouri Western in the fall of ’05, but realized that school wasn’t his calling. Playing music was his dream and on the road was where he wanted to be.

“Dreams are only dreams if you let them be,” is what his father, Tim Blumer, once told him. Blumer never forgot what his father said, and continues to live day to day by it. He is willing to do what it takes to play on the road for as long as he can.

“My expectations and my goals are similar,” Blumer said. “My number one goal is to have thousands of people singing my words, whether it’s a different artist singing my song or me singing my song.”

Longtime friend and acting manager for Blumer, Tanner Ferguson, sees nothing but success in Blumer’s future.

“Aaron will make it, and people will know his songs,” Ferguson said. “His passion and love for music, combined with his talent is like nothing I’ve ever seen before. The guy is driven.”

Each and every one of the songs on his new album was written by him, played by him and sang by him. Blumer started out liking to play the blues, but has since developed into more of a pop/country artist. His sound is most often compared the sound of Keith Urban. Blumer can bring a very connecting energy to his audience, even though he has brought it on a little too much in the past.

“One time we were playing on this dark stage outside, and I said ‘anyone is more than welcome to come up and dance,’ and we had a monitor on the floor, and this real big guy runs up to the stage to dance and trips over the monitor and falls face first into the drum set,” Blumer said. “He didn’t spill his beer though.”

Blumer still doesn’t shy away from opportunities for the crowd to get involved in his music, even if it isn’t their favorite kind.

“If you don’t like country music, give it a shot,” Blumer said. “Because most people after they hear it like it. Every time they show up it turns out they say, ‘Well I hate country music, but I like your stuff.’”

Even if you don’t like country music, give Blumer a try. You can check out his music on his website aaronblumer.com. If you’d like to see him play live at the Buffalo Bar, reserve your spot fast. Ferguson believes that the people who haven’t heard him play, have no idea what they’re in for.

“It will be like the most insane show ever,” Ferguson said. “If you aren’t going around telling everybody how stoked you are for Saturday, you have no fucking idea what we’re capable of.”

Audrey 2 grows by the minute in the play "Little Shop of Horrors." Photo by Jason Brown.

In fact, he probably has one of the deepest voices in the theater department. When director of upcoming play “Little Shop of Horrors” Dallas Henry was looking to cast different characters, the script called for a deep-voiced person to play Wino #1 (a drunk).

Catron more than likely came to mind.

Expecting the role, Catron accepted Wino #1. Little did Catron know the script also called for the same person playing Wino #1 to be the puppeteer of the famous maneating plant, Audrey II.

“Fate got to you on that one (Audrey II’s role),” Jeff Jones, voice of Audrey II, said.

“Yeah fate…and puberty,” Catron joked.

Four unique plant props will be joining the “Little Shop of Horrors” cast Thursday night in which director Dallas Henry acquired from New York City through Musical Theatre International.

“The plant is the show,” Henry said.

While Jacob Mills, playing Seymour Krelborn, takes hold of teenage Audrey II during a musical act, Catron will mainly be controlling Audrey II in its earliest and last stage.

Henry said Catron needed to understand the meaning of comedic timing as he and Mills will each bring the plant to life by nipping it at other characters and snapping for blood. Henry said Catron has mastered this factor, which is one of the reasons why he cast him as the commander of Audrey II.

“Steve has timing — that’s what I need as a plant,” Henry said.

Henry also saw Catron’s dedication through Catron’s dismissal of a partner. The recommendation for working the mature six-foot-long Audrey II creature is two puppeteers or at least someone who is 6 feet 4 inches.

Catron is not 6 feet 4 inches tall, yet the former Scrooge didn’t let his height hold him back. Henry said Catron was adamant about doing the entire thing by himself. As of now, he has been working really hard during rehearsals.

Unfortunately, Audrey II has not been available for all the rehearsals. So far, Catron has only been working with the plant for about two weeks. Instead of sitting back, Catron decided to join rehearsals with his own homemade “plant.”

For the first two weeks, Catron was using a sock puppet until the plant came in. Catron’s “Audrey II-partner-in-crime,” Jones, enjoyed seeing Catron’s face when Henry debuted the beastly costume that takes at least three people to push on and off the stage.

“His hand was not even close to what this thing is actually going to be — it was really kind of laughable because once we saw it, we said ‘Wow Steve, you have in no way prepared yourself for this,’” Jones said.

Catron, unlike the cast, was not tickled by his future costume.

“They were all laughing — I was dying on the inside,” Catron said.

Catron could almost be literally “dying on the inside” as a synonym for the costume is a sweat box; the interior is covered in fur.

The one and only word Catron could say about the plant was “hot.” Let’s not forget that there are lights constantly shining down on the stage, therefore “cooking” Catron. He does not and will not wear a shirt when he is inside Audrey II; when he is finally allowed to exit the plant, Catron is tomato red.

While enduring the heat has been his main challenge, having the strength to open and close Audrey II’s mouth has not been easy either.

“It’s all of my muscle, or lack thereof; it’s me using whatever strength I can manage,” Catron joked.

During Act I, there is a long song where Audrey II moves a lot, which is why Henry created a break during the song to allow Catron to switch arms.

Catron can’t do his job by himself; that’s where Jones comes in. Because Jones is the voice, these actors have had to work together to make sure they are in sync. Henry said Catron has had to know the lines, laughs and sighs down to a tee, and Jones can’t add anything, no improvisation is allowed. Catron also has to remember even how Jones says and sings the lines.

“Everybody watches plant to see if it’s synced up, so it’s very important, and (Catron and Jones) realize that,” Henry said.

They have to take cues off of each other, Catron on stage, Jones off stage watching a monitor with a microphone; Catron can be a little bitter about this fact.

“So while (Jones) is in his own little quiet room eating Cheetos and having fun by himself, I’m on stage sweating my butt off in a plant,” Catron jokes.

Jones has given Catron a lot of kudos, telling him he’s been doing a good job and that he’s impressed. And Catron isn’t the only one receiving props. Henry has also talked Jones up, saying he never knew Jones could sing.

Both sides of Jones’ family sing, so Jones grew up around it. He’s never taken singing lessons; Jones had to develop his singing voice into Audrey II’s singing voice, which he says has been an interesting process.

Jones is ready to get the show on the road. And to debut his singing voice for his mom, who has never heard him sing before.

“We’ve practiced so much and so hard, I’m just ready to do it in front of an audience.”

When you’re in college, it feels like nothing can touch you. Sadly, that isn’t the case. As a student, you’re a target of many different problems. But one of the biggest problems doesn’t come from a bottle or a book — it comes from your back pocket.

Identity theft is a problem that not a lot of students really think of, but it’s an issue that is becoming more and more aimed at college students. In 2010, more than 250,000 people fell victim to identity theft. Of those victims, 32 percent of them were below 30 years old — the age range of most college students.

And while it’s becoming increasingly easy for a thief to steal your identity, it hasn’t gotten any easier to fix the problem. Attorney Justin Underwood deals with this type of situation on a regular basis.

“Once it happens to you, trying to convince the credit bureau that it’s not you is a monumental task,” Underwood said. “It could take years.”

College students are also more susceptible to a thing known as “friendly fraud,” a type of fraud committed by someone closely related to the victim — such as a roommate, friend or classmate.

In order to prevent identity theft, there are a few pretty simple steps you can take:

Don’t share all of your info on social networking sites. If you’ve been on a social network site for more than five years, you’re twice as likely to become a victim of identity theft. Also, make sure your privacy settings are pretty tight. If your info is open to everyone, it makes it a lot easier to steal.

Go paperless. It’s harder to steal an account number if there aren’t any documents hanging out in the trash can. Most debit accounts have the option for paperless statements. Not only will it keep your information from ending up in a trash can, it’ll keep your clutter down, too.

Shred all documents. If you opt not to go paperless, invest in a paper shredder or a nice pair of scissors. Any document you receive related to your account should take a nice trip through the shredder. It’s a lot harder to steal information from confetti.

Don’t give out your PIN number. That’s just asking for trouble. Keep it secret.

Keep the security system on your computer up to date. Private Wi-Fi networks are fairly easy to hack into. Public ones? Well, to a moderately trained hacker, it’s pretty much a cake walk. Mike Prusinski of the company LifeLock, which works to provide protection from identity theft, works with this problem every day.

“Don’t naturally assume that you’re on a secure web,” Prusinski said.

Be careful what you sign up for. There’s a chance you could be walking straight into a scam. One young woman, Kim, from Tennessee, wrote to “The Early Show” on CBS to detail her account with this problem. Kim said:

“My third day at college, I applied for several credit cards on campus. Five years later, I found out that all my personal information was posted on a Web site. I had cars bought in my name and credit accounts across the country. A college student who ran one of the credit card booths was responsible for posting my information. Even though I now have a new Social Security number, I constantly have to monitor my credit reports. I have had to explain all of this to employers who run background checks on me. Those free T-shirts wound up costing me $150,000!”

Above all else, just be aware of what you’re doing with your own information. When asked one thing he would tell college students about using their personal information, Prusinski only had one thing to say.

“We want them to make good choices. Don’t be reckless.”

Kelsey Guthery

“All of the characters in it are definitely characters,” Minx said. “You have plays where people aren’t necessarily characters, they’re just people. In this show, pretty much everyone has a character; there isn’t really a normal person role.”

Director Dallas Henry said Minx has unique descriptions for his characters like “the Jewish man/Billy Crystal/old NBC exec” and “the cowboy/the old hick that just got off of a horse and is really sore.”

Minx is a music education major with an emphasis in vocals who is participating in his fifth play at Missouri Western. Counting high school, Minx has been in over 20 plays, with one of them already being “Little Shop of Horrors.”

Minx originally went into auditions to be the dentist and had no idea that he would be leaving as the dentist — and eight other people. As you’d probably imagine, changing into so many characters from one scene to the next is not easy. Usually to feel more comfortable, Minx walks around as each role talking to people as that character before he goes on stage. Some parts aren’t always as smooth of a transition as Minx would like, such as a scene where he plays multiple characters during a song.

“The fastest changes are the three people in that one song where I have around 20 seconds to change,” Minx said.

Henry foresaw the potential that Minx could be for this play.

“Kyle is one of the hardest working student I’ve ever had,” Henry said. ”He comes in with something new every day, takes the notes, works them, works them, works them, and you just look forward to that student every time.”

For Minx, attention to detail proved to be the biggest help in developing so many different characters. With Minx having a lot of prior involvement in vocals, Henry was able to focus less on the singing and more on the little details of acting. After noticing the detail in his own roles, he noticed similar details in Bryn Terfel, an opera singer that he’s always looked up to.

“I’ve seen him in a bunch of different roles,” Minx said. “I never noticed until Dallas started directing me so specifically in acting how much little tiny things can make a character. As I watch more of Bryn, I really see those tiny things that make the character. But you’d never know it and I think that’s what makes a really great actor.”

For the students who don’t know much about “Little Shop of Horrors,” Minx believes it could be even more enjoyable.

“They’re in for a treat,” Minx said. “I watched the movie and it was fun, getting to know the show is fun. But I think its way more fun to come in not knowing what’s going to happen. It’s a very fun, creepy musical that I think is right up the alley for a lot of people our age.”

Little Shop of Horrors is going on in Potter Hall. Times are as follows: April 19 – 7:30 pm April 20 – 7:30 pm April 21 – 3:00 & 7:30 pm April 22 – 3:00 pm April 27 – 7:30 pm April 28 – 3:00 pm April 29 – 3:00 pm. Photo by Jason Brown.

Morgan Breckenridge held her own as Audrey, blending her beautiful voice with the nasally voice of her character well. She found a good balance between the comedy in the role and the serious theme of abuse. She absolutely made the audience laugh, but she also brought some real gravity to the role. You felt for her and fell in love with her right alongside Seymour.

When Jacob Mills came on stage as Seymour, the audience could not have been expecting such a powerful voice to come from such a young man. But Mills does have that powerful voice, and he completely takes over the stage every time he opens his mouth. Seymour and Audrey’s signature duet, “Suddenly Seymour,” will absolutely give you goosebumps. Mills is so likeable that you root for his character from the start, which is so important for an underdog story like “Little Shop.” And you will definitely want to see this kid’s tango: just wait for it towards the end of Act I.

In a show chock full of scene-stealers, Kyle Minx takes the cake. He played, by my count, eight different characters. All of them had different voices, mannerisms and personalities. By far the most developed and interesting of these would be the dentist: Orin Scrivello, D.D.S. Minx takes this character from hilarious to downright scary in a second, and his gyrating is not to be missed. Audience members tonight got to see Minx commanding President Vartabedian to say “AH.” That alone was worth the ticket price.

All three of the Doo Wop Girls were outstanding and great fun to watch. The standout Doo Wop, however, is Rachel Cox as Crystal. Her voice is so powerful that it elicited mid-song whoops and applause in only the second song of the show.

Jeff Jones and Steve Catron, as the voice and body of Audrey II, respectively, worked together seamlessly. Jones’ voice was perfect for Audrey II; he showed off his vocal range and allowed his acting skills to really show the menace of the plant. Catron wasn’t visible to the audience until curtain call, and his sweaty appearance then only showed the crowd just how hard he’d been working to entertain them. Catron was doing a job intended for two men inside that plant, and he did an outstanding job. During the entire two-hour show, I only saw one moment where voice and body were not in sync; that is a true accomplishment, especially when considering that Catron and Jones could not see each other and had to perfectly coordinate all performance cues ahead of time, with no room for improvisation.

Everyone on the St. Joe community should go see this show. It is 100 percent worth the time and money. The only complaint I have about the show, actually, is all the issues of the Griffon News that lay crumpled across the stage. I guess I should be glad that they were keeping all those winos warm—better than sitting in the racks all by themselves.

In “Melancholia,” writer/director Lars Von Trier puts together an original sci-fi story that focuses more on its characters, rather than any piece of action or epidemic.

His downfall is that he may have been too focused on the meaning of the film to appropriately direct the piece.

The film revolves around two sisters, Justine and Claire (Kirsten Dunst and Charlotte Gainsbourg), who are struggling with happiness in their lives. Their struggles are also highlighted by a mysterious planet called “Melancholia” that has been hiding behind the Sun for thousands of years and is now approaching Earth at a rapid pace, endangering their existence.

While the whole apocalyptic “Deep Impact” storyline has been done before, Trier’s “Melancholia” is able to provide a new take on the story. It revolves more around the characters, rather than the event itself. The event plays more as an interruption to the story, which is actually quite intriguing.

The film opens with an 8-minute (very) slow-motion sequence that projects several people living through the final moments of Melancholia’s collision with Earth. So this sets up what the fate of all the characters is going to be, you are just along for the ride to see what their final moments on Earth are like.

Justine is the protagonist of the film and half of the film takes place at her wedding. She goes through with her marriage but feels trapped in the relationship.

This leads to one of the most interesting sex scenes ever put on film. Justine is scared when the time comes to consummate her love with her husband on the wedding night, so she leaves the room momentarily and runs across a golf course. She runs into a random wedding guest, pins him on the green and takes advantage of him. Most of this is all one, very wide shot.

The acting in “Melancholia” is rather superb, especially on the side of Dunst. You really feel the desperation in her character during the beginning and the revolt in her character near the end of the film. Kiefer Sutherland, who plays Claire’s husband, is also magnificent in his role. He is able to come off as an intelligent scientist, a loving father and an intimidating authority all at once.

The directing in the film suffered. Lier had a clear passion for the message of the film and dedication to science fiction, but made some odd choices that killed the pacing of the film early on.

The decision to go with a more documentary style of filmmaking was not effective. There were several gorgeous images through out the film, such as an amazingly elegant twilight scene of Justine lying nude above a waterfall, but those shots didn’t match with the normal handheld style of the piece.

On that same issue, the cinematography was gorgeous but struggled with mechanics. There were a handful of beautiful shots in the piece, but the film was going in and out of focus way too often. It worked at times as a style choice, but came off as unprofessional at other moments. The film would of benefitted from a more traditional style of shooting.

The film was a pleasure to watch because of its story, acting and stunning imagery, though it suffered from inconsistent cinematography and lacked quality directing. The film would of benefited from a director like Darren Aronofsky (“Black Swan”) or Paul Thomas Anderson (“There Will Be Blood”) who deal with very artistic subjects but strive with their ability to tell stories clearly and pace story well.

With better direction and a more consistent cinematography, this could of been a cinema masterpiece; unfortunately, it trips up just before the finish line.

“Melancholia” is a quality film, but is not for everyone.

If you have the patience for an artistic film with dark characters, pick up this DVD.

Seniors Blair Stalder (left) and Leah Steele (right) talk after their last game at Griffon Spring Sports Complex. Photo by Jason Brown.

Stalder went 4-for-6 with two doubles and two RBIs.  Steele was walked twice, but took advantage of her third at-bat by blasting a two-run homer to left center in game two.

Steele finished the day with two hits and two RBIs.

“It felt really good, especially on senior day, because I kind of struggled before and then hitting the home run kind of made my day,” Steele said.  “The walks had me getting frustrated. My parents and grandparents were excited.”

In their two years as the starting right side of the infield, second baseman Stalder and first baseman Steele have been a part of 76 wins and only 21 losses.  Coach Jen Bagley knows that the pair won’t easily be replaced.

“Every year, seniors go out and you think ‘How am I going to replace those kids?’ And this year is no different,” Bagley said.  “It’s always a bittersweet thing. You are sad to see them go, yet you are so proud of what they have accomplished while they were here, and you feel good about the experiences that they have had,  and in the end that’s what it’s all about.”

Steele came to Missouri Western out of high school and has been with the program for four years.  She has been an unsung hero that has always found her way into the lineup and showed improvement every season.

“Leah has improved not only from a physical standpoint, but from a maturity standpoint,” Bagley said.  “Her work ethic has always been good and her attitude has always been great, but physically she is at a point now where she can produce to what her potential is and it’s exciting.”

Steele is batting .329 with 39 hits, 24 RBIs and three home runs in her senior season. The Kansas City native was nominated for Student Athlete of the Year for the softball team. The award will be announced Monday at the St. Joseph News-Press 13th Annual Student Banquet.

“I have improved every single year, my stats and everything have gone up,” Steele said. “You kind of learn and get to know the teams and get the hang of stuff.  I’m ready to be done with school, but school comes a lot easier as you go on.”

Stalder spent two years at Garden City Community College before she came to Western and became an immediate starter.

“Blair came in and made her impact right away,” Bagley said.  “There’s nothing that she does that is flashy, but she is probably one of the most heady players that we have had.”

Stalder is batting .338 with 45 hits and only six strikeouts in her senior season, and is very methodical with every at-bat.

“I just feel like she is capable of getting a hit when she wants to,” Bagley said.  “Early on we weren’t looking at her to be starting in the lineup last year, but after putting her in situations where she had to perform and produce, she just never gets out.

“She gets the bat on the ball, and she’s smart with her at-bats,” Bagley said. “She purposely falls off pitches that she doesn’t want.  Her hand-eye coordination is ridiculous.”

It’s clear that Stalder enjoys her time out on the field while remaining fiercely competitive.

“There is probably not a single player on our team that enjoys being out on the field more than Blair,” Bagley said. “She literally has a smile on her face in the batters box during games.”

“I put a lot of pressure on myself,” Stalder said.  “I want to be hitting .400 even though that’s way above average. My main goal is just to get on base every time.”

Even more than all the wins and great moments on the field, the two seniors will remember the fun times and long road trips with their teammates and friends the most.

“‘I’ll miss being part of the team, having people there all the time, constantly being with your friends, all the fun memories and the fun times and bus rides.” Steele said.

“I haven’t quite figured out how I’m going to cope with not playing yet,” Stalder said.

Recently, the student government of this campus passed a bill that will cost full time students an extra $150.00 per year to attend college. According to the SGA president, there was not enough time to have a student vote, so the SGA felt the need to promise our money. Bear in mind, this is in addition to the tuition, and both Federal and State taxes we pay to go to this university.

So, this letter is a call to action. Because Jacob Scott and the SGA feel that there is a “clear need for additional revenue”, I want to see them put their money where their mouth is. The

SGA needs to take a fifty percent budget cut. This would lower the SGA fee for a full time student from $50 to $25. Thus, there would be a net increase of $50 for a full time student, rather than $75. This cut would ease the pain of every single student when paying tuition.

Keep in mind, there is not an office or program on campus that has not had a budget cut, or a spending freeze of some nature, yet the SGA continues to operate with the same money from their inflated fee.

Any SGA office holder, or like minded individual, that feels the need to do the right thing can contact me at choltz@missouriwestern.edu. We can work together to make this happen; to help the school, and the students.

Cass Holtz
And Also
Janell Stone
Sterling Fichter
Clay Rains
Logan Burgess
Jarred Edwards
Sarah Roller
Aaron Adrian
Derek Hawkins

Let us be clear here with all the legislation passed over the last 10 years, smoking in public is a privilege not a right, and as a smoker I understand this. MWSU campus belongs to those who founded it and turned it into a thriving educational institution, and therefore have the right to implement any policy they so choose on their property. We are fortunate to have the opportunity to attend this University and as Mr. Cross said, “Those who don’t like Western the way it is should go to some other school,” good luck on finding an affordable institution that is not a tobacco free campus.

The administration is very good about allowing students to set policy and govern. Yet, in this fiscal drought, they have the ability to cut costs on health insurance, and that helps keep the programs that contribute to our success and the tuition at an affordable rate. At the same time how can anyone with an ounce of common sense, look around at all the cigarette butts littering the grounds at almost every entrance on campus, and believe we have the right to enjoy the privilege of doing so.

Speaking of Mr. Cross, I have to believe the Griffon News to be truly desperate for writers to allow him a voice of any kind, and about all I can honestly say about his inappropriate language and repugnant terminology is, it is not worthy to use for wiping my, well you get the picture.

Clifford Petersen

This gives the Griffons the No. 2 seed in the MIAA tournament which starts Thursday, April 26 and lasts three days long.

As of now, the Griffons will see Missouri Southern (4-8) or Central Missouri (6-10) in the first round, and then meet either Fort Hays State (10-6) or Pittsburg State (8-6) in the semifinals. But that might not be the case, because nine out of the 11 teams in the conference still have games to be played.

The only two that have finished up play — Missouri Western and Emporia State — are the top two seeds. The Hornets finished league play at 20-0, the first time a team ran the table in the conference. No. 1 seed Emporia gave the Griffons their only two losses in the conference, 5-2 and 5-4 back in March. The two are heavy favorites  to meet back up for the conference title on Saturday, April 28.

But Western can take a break from the conference and focus on a bigger goal now — the regionals. Before the MIAA tournament starts, Western looks to take a leap in the regional rankings this weekends as it heads to Oklahoma to play Northeastern State and Central Oklahoma.

Western, currently the No. 5 seed, can make a huge move in the rankings if it defeats Central Oklahoma, who is the No. 2. The two schools meet Sunday at noon.

The Bronchos have two girls that can blast homers any time they step to the plate in Nathalie Timmermans, who has 19 homers this season, and Kacie Edwards has 14.

Western starter Jackie Bishop is No. 5 in the nation with a .77 ERA, so the battle between one of the nation’s best aces and hitters will meet this weekend.

In the South Central Region, Angelo State (34-7), who swept the Bronchos (33-3) in the first two games of the season, are No. 1 and Emporia is No. 3. Abilene Christian (25-10) holds a slim lead over Western for the No. 4 spot.

If the Griffons pull out the split or the sweep over Central Oklahoma and then win the MIAA tournament the following week, they may snatch a top-two seed in the region. The top two teams host the regionals at their home, and the highest seed remaining after the first weekend hosts the Super Regional the following week.

Western’s highest push toward a national championship was in 2009, when the Griffons made it to the finals of the Super Regional, but fell short to Southeastern Oklahoma State.

Brandon Simmons improved his record to 8-2 on the season by only giving up four hits and zero earned runs in game one of the series.  The Griffons won 12-1 as Simmons pitched all seven innings.

Grant Fink hit a two-run homer in the game and produced three RBI’s, while Kyle Peterson and Michael Schulze batted in two runners each.  The Griffons scored eight runs in the first three innings, while the Gorillas’ only run came off of a throwing error in the second inning.

The hot bats continued as the Griffons took the second game 15-1.  Nik Jurado only allowed two hits and zero earned runs in five innings to improve his record to a perfect 6-0 on the season.

Fink, Nate Ramler and  Egge all hit homers while Michael Schulze went 4-for-5 with a triple.  Fink produced five runs batted in while Egge had four.  Kyle Peterson batted in three runners and came up with three hits in the game.

Ethan Ward took the mound in game three and, despite giving up five earned runs, still earned the victory to improve to 5-2 on the season whiles striking out six batters.  Western won game three 13-5 in what was the closest game of the series.

Schulze and Egge went yard and each batted in three runners while hitting 3-for-4.  Western hit seven doubles and two triples to go along with the two home runs.

The fourth game was no different than the first three. It ended with Western getting the blowout win.  The Griffons’ offensive explosion yielded 17 hits and 11 RBIs in the final game of the series as Western took the game 17-6.

Fink, Egge, Jimmy Smelcer and Bubba Dotson all hit homers while Peterson ran out another triple.  Oliver Kady improved his record to 2-1 on the season by giving up four earned runs in six innings and striking out eight batters.

Western had 71 hits that amounted to 57 runs scored over the weekend.

The Griffons will try to keep the hot bats going this weekend against Truman State in a four-game series which starts at 4 p.m., Friday, in Kirksville.

Sport: Baseball

Year: Junior

Position: Third Baseman

Stats this week: Hits — 13; RBIs — 11; Doubles — 5; HRs — 4;

Fink helped the Griffons go 6-0 this week with a sweep over Emporia State and Pittsburg State. The junior nailed four homers and secured 11 RBIs as the Griffons moved to No. 2 in the conference. Fink, a transfer from Mount Hood Community College, is second on the team with a .349 batting average.

Vice President of WAC Lauren Dillon wants to have a free event were students can step out of their normal attire and throw own a nice dress or suit to have a good time in. The night will be filled with music, food and fun.

“We want to have something that reminds you of your high school prom,” Dillon said. “It’s a chance to get dressed up, take pictures and to overall enjoy your friends.”

This formal is expected to have over 100 students attending. In past years this event was usually canceled because of bad advertising which eventually led to a poor turnout.

Members of the WAC program feel confident about this year’s turnout and feel that the event is perfect for students who want to get out in a stress-free environment that will consist of laughter and fun.

Though the event will be on a Thursday, WAC member Lindsey Ebert thinks that the event will still have good turn out. She feels that with the semester coming to an end, more students are looking for events that will allow them to relax and keep a clear mind.

“This is my first time planning this event,” Ebert said. “But I just want people to have a good time. You don’t normally get to dress up in college because everybody wants to wear sweats. This gives them a chance to show up and look good.”

Dancing is not the only thing that the event will consist of. Kelsey Percht is another member of WAC and thinks that there will be a couple of activities around the room that will allow students to gain new memories with possibly new found friends.

“We are going to have a photo booth there were you can take random and silly photos of yourself in,” Percht said. “We are also going to do prom pictures for the students, which will give the event a more formal approach.”

Finger foods and a DJ will be provided all night, and the formal will not end until midnight. The dance will be held in the Fulkerson center.

Lauren Dillon encourages everyone to come out, dress up and forget about classes for the night. It’s a new year with new members helping to plan this event which means that the formal should be a success, Dillon said.

“We didn’t have it last year,” Dillon said. “But we are going to try it again this year to see how well it does. We have new people and new ideas. It should be a good time.”

Their “Season of Classics,” has now arrived at the grand finale: “Little Shop of Horrors”

Dallas Henry, assistant professor and director of the show, seems to be up to the task of wowing audiences and raising the bar even higher.

“With this show, the whole concept has been to be larger-than-life,” Henry said. “It has to take over the audience and take control.”

With this larger-than-life set, Henry wants the audience to really feel like they are in New York during the 1960s.

The first couple rows of seats are going to be taken out for the set to engulf the audience, and the band is going to be playing on a scaffolding, being a part of the New York scene, making the show more lively and energetic. There will also be trash surrounding the sets for the streets of Skid Row.

Even if you’ve seen the show before, there will be a few differences from this production.

“I’ve added some extra dance numbers,” Henry said. “With Mushnik, I’ve added a tango, which is not in there, which is fun and exciting.”

Probably the biggest and most iconic part of the show is the plant, Audrey II.

Henry was very insistent on getting the perfect plant to use in the show.

“If the plant isn’t very good, then you don’t have a production” he added.

The plant had to be ordered and shipped all the way from New York. Standing at 6-foot, the plant also costs quite a hefty amount.

“Little Shop is done all the time…and I don’t know how because it’s very expensive to produce. And most of that is the plant,” Henry said.

Morgan Breckenridge, who plays Audrey in the production, shares a love for the show and the ride she has went on for being a part of it.

“Little Shop has been exhausting, rewarding, and a lot of fun,” Breckenridge said. “I feel like I’ve really grown. Especially as an actor.”

Being more of a vocal performer, the entire rehearsal process has taught Breckenridge and all of the other music majors in the show a lot.

“The music majors are doing great musically but we’re working on the acting side,” Henry added, “ and with acting (students), we’ll work on the musical side.”

With it being Breckenridge’s first time being directed by Henry, it’s evident that the cast of the show enjoys working with him.

“He motivates us. He takes it seriously so it makes us take it seriously,” Breckenridge added.

“Little Shop of Horrors” opens at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 19 in Potter Hall Theatre and runs through the 29, with 3 p.m. matinees on April 21, 22, 28, and 29. Tickets are $14 for adults, $10 for faculty and $8 for all students. All tickets can be picked up at the box office or online at mwsutix.com.

With the 1986 film having such a large cult-following, Henry insists that you see this theatrical version. Saying that it does relish in the campy, B-movie style that the film held but still has new elements brought to the table.

“It’s different than the movie. The ending is different.”

“Our students and our community were loving the concert,” Isaiah Collier, director of student life, said. “I really feel like the community came out to support as well as our students. I think they really enjoyed it.”

The big crowd was good news to WAC, as they spent $60,000 to bring Evans in.

Perhaps the big crowd occurred due to Evans being from Missouri, coming straight out of Boonville. Her opening act, Shooting Blanks, also come from Missouri as they are from the Kansas City area.

The fact that both are from Missouri and are country artists is a huge thing, SGA President Alison Norris explained.

“People in the community, as well as campus, really like country,” she said.

As Shooting Blanks first appeared on Civic Arena’s bright, multi-colored platform, fans of all ages immediately rushed to the front and packed in under the circular stage before the first word was even sung. After five songs and a short intermission, Evan’s band broke the crowd’s silence with a musical opening. Just seconds later, fans began screaming and waving as Evans strutted on the stage and began singing away.  Though she is not one of the most known country artists, Evan’s fans were definitely in the house as they waved their hands and swayed their lighters to almost every song she sang.

“I wouldn’t say she’s a top artist, but she’s definitely popular,” student and concert attendee Sydney Everall said. “She’s obviously a great performer, or I wouldn’t have come.”

According to WAC, T-shirt and CD sales also went well. The members had to keep refilling stock as they continued selling more and more throughout the night. After the opening act, members of Shooting Blanks stood out by the T-shirt table, signed autographs and took pictures with the fans.

In addition to the crowd of almost 1,900, the night almost tripled last year’s concert, which included rap artist J. Cole, with Jeremiah as the opening act. WAC members also said that numerous people from little towns throughout Missouri drove at least 100 miles to see the show.

WAC Vice President Lauren Dillon said that overall she was very happy with the attendance and the show, as the concert went smoothly from start to end. Dillon said the high attendance numbers proves that perhaps Western does favor a little country twang.

“People say they don’t listen to country, yet those concerts have been our best ones,” Dillon said.

The Journalist of the Year judges praised Hon for his determination and his passion for writing stories that make a difference in his community, traits that Missouri Western professor Dr. Robert Bergland also extolled in his nomination letter.

“I’m very happy for Dave,” said Bergland, who is on sabbatical this semester but will return in the fall to advise the newspaper. “He has worked incredibly hard in his three years at Missouri Western as both a writer and editor. While his journalistic goals have been altruistic—to improve the newspaper and the campus—it’s nice to see him receive such great recognition for his work. Missouri is a state known for its journalism and journalism schools, so being named as the best college journalist in the state is an incredible honor.”

Graphic design major Brooke Carter also fared very well at the convention, winning 10 individual and shared awards. She swept the top three places in the editorial cartoon category and won the information graphic and advertising categories. She also shared the top honors with other staff members in the section front page design category (with Hon), sports page category (with Thomas Huitt-Johnson and Jason Brown) and feature page category (with Christian Mengel, Jesse Bilderback, Blair Stalder and Brown).

Brown was another multiple award winner, picking up an honorable mention in feature photography to go along with the awards he shared with Carter. Managing editor Caitlin Cress received two individual awards, a second place in entertainment review writing and a third place in feature writing.

“The 22 awards ties the best performance ever for the Griffon News,” said Bergland, who was tabbed as MCMA Adviser of the Year. “I’m pleased that these students did so well, but am proud of all of the students who have contributed in the past year to improve The Griffon News.”

The Griffon Yearbook also won numerous awards, including second place in the main category, theme development. Individual awards went to Jeff Meyer (first and third in sports photography and second place in feature photography), Robin Patti (third place in feature writing), Lauren Hicks (third place in personality sketch) and Raphaelle Drew (honorable mention in Portrait). Drew and Heather Heater teamed up in two entries to take first and second in sports design.

The conference, which drew 150 participants from over 20 Missouri colleges and universities was held in Spratt and Potter Halls. The conference featured workshops, critiques and sessions by journalism teachers and journalists throughout the state, including several from the St. Joseph News-Press. Rob Curley, the new media editor of the Las Vegas Sun and a former vice-president of new media for The Washington Post/Newsweek, was the keynote speaker at the awards banquet, which was held in Fulkerson Center.

President Robert Vartabedian said that Grimes will provide administrative oversight for student success and advising; health and wellness and counseling; diversity, inclusion and student life; residential life and the Student Government Association.

“She brings a wealth of experience in all five of the areas,” Vartabedian said.

Grimes said something that was important to the President was that students really have a voice at the cabinet level and were able to answer questions they might have about how different programs or changes in policy might affect students. Grimes said she appreciates the opportunity to be the voice for the students and make sure they are heard, adding that the President is very proud of his students.

“He was the one that created the Vice President’s position,” Grimes said. “He’s very dedicated to make sure they have a voice. That would be my main goal: to carry the message from students to the cabinet.”

Vartabedian said that Grimes has very good people skills. He also said that we are very lucky to have her in this leadership role.

“I have long admired her willingness to be part of almost everything we do on campus,” Vartabedian said.

Cindy Heider, Associate Provost and Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, said Grimes brings a wealth of knowledge. She said that Judy is all about student groups, from international students to general education, and her background in foreign languages and global travel is a wonderful resource for providing leadership to students.

“Her strengths are her degree,” Heider said. “Her personal experiences and her passion for students are a wonderful asset.”

One aspect that seems to give Grimes an edge is that she knows Western very well. Heider said that Grimes knows the faculty and has worked with about everyone on campus.

“I work really closely with Dr. Daffron,” Grimes said. “We’ve worked together for the 16 years that I’ve been there. We have a very strong relationship with academic affairs and will continue that.”

“Judy knows Western, and Western knows Judy,” Heider said. “I believe the fact that she knows Western, knows the resources, and knows the people will help benefit the University.”

Grimes stated that she loves Missouri Western and has achieved a lot in the time she has been here.

“Whatever I can do to ensure the success of the students and university, I will continue to do,” Grimes said.

This degree is like any other said Cindy Heider, Associate Provost and Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs. She said the real strengths of this program are that it recruits back individuals who might have left the university for some reason.

“We believe there are about 1,300 individuals out there,” Heider said. “They have credits, but have not yet finished a degree; we want to help these individuals.”

The bachelor in General Studies is not designed for freshmen to declare. It is intended for two main groups. Brian Cronk, associate provost and dean of the graduate school, said the bachelors in General Studies degree was designed as a completion degree. One group is students with a large number of hours who need to change their major for some reason. The other group is people in the community who are not currently enrolled but are very close to a degree.

“Overall this is a very positive thing for certain kinds of students,” Cronk said.

Students of Western who decide to major in General Studies could be at an advantage, as a majority of professors and chairs of departments believe it’s a great degree to bring to campus.

David Tushaus, professor of legal studies and department chair, said that bringing this degree to Western makes it possible for students who have a lot of college credits to try and make the most of their situation by getting back on the right track.  He said with this degree students who were unable to finish a particular degree are now able too.

“I see no reason why having this degree at Western is a bad thing,” Tushaus said. “If anything it makes students more marketable.”

Students who decide to major in this degree may wonder if this degree could lead to a career after graduation. Cronk believes the answer is yes.

“It is not a professional studies type degree. It is a liberal arts degree in the purest sense of that degree,” Cronk said. “This is a degree about education not technical training.”

The aspects behind bringing the program to Western seem positive, but a few professors still see concerns towards a bachelors in General Studies.

Dr. Michael Charlton, assistant professor of english, said the main disadvantage is the curriculum, which was heavily discussed.

“Something brought up in my department was that a general studies degree doesn’t necessarily prepare students for any specific career path,” Charlton said. “It might not be as helpful if you’re seeking a specific career goal.”

Cronk also commented and believes that this degree is not career-oriented.

If everything goes according to plan, Western will see this bachelor’s degree put into effect by the fall 2012 semester. The coordinating board of higher education will determine the decision this June.

Sport: Softball

Year: Sophomore

Position: Pitcher

Stats this week: Strikeouts — 30; Innings Pitched — 14; Runs Allowed — 0

Bishop provided three wins this past weekend, and shut out Pittsburg State and Missouri Southern in the process. The sophomore improved to 19-2 on the season, throwing 193 strikeouts and an ERA of .80. The steady pitcher has helped the Griffons to a 34-7 record, 16-2 in the MIAA and ranked No. 15 in the nation.

Five of the Griffon golfers were placed in the top-10, including No. 3 Natalie Bird, who finished with a score of 161.

Western finished with a team score of 662, just 15 behind top-place Northwest Missouri State, who score a 647. Placing behind the Griffons was host Avila (722), William Jewell (728) and Peru State (765).

The successful outing by the Griffons put them in prime position to capture the MIAA Golf Championships, which start Monday, Apr. 16 in Smithville, Mo.

In the ten invites the team has been in this year, they have placed No. 1 in two of them — which include the Bearcat Fall Classic and the Rockhurst Early Bird Tournament.

Bird, who was named MIAA Athlete of the Week back in March, has a team-high seven top-10 finishes this season, and averages a score of 83. Western averages a team score of 337.

As for the men, Tyler Gast averages just under 77. Four Griffons average underneath a solid 80-score.

The men struggled at the Washburn Invite, placing No. 12. They too will be at the Golf Championships too, which will be played at
Paradise Pointe Golf Course.

The senior singled to left field to give the Griffons a needed runner on base. Catcher Kat Steponovich doubled on the next at-bat, running Steele in for the score, putting the Griffons down just one run. Two batters later, Steponovich found herself at third base, but Missouri Western faced two outs.

Junior transfer Kendall Sorensen stepped up to plate to face the pressure of the game-tying hit. She singled.

Steponovich scored on the single to left field and Western tied the game up at two runs to send the game into extra innings Friday night at Pittsburg, Kan. It took the Griffons over six innings to finally put runs on the board, but after they did, they secured the victory.

“It’s like every inning that went by, I kept looking at the score, looking at the inning, looking at the score, looking at the inning and it just seemed like we couldn’t get our wheels turning in the same direction,” coach Jen Bagley said. “To then end up in the seventh inning in a position to tie the ball game and then to be able to win it in the eight, that was an exciting win although that’ not the kind of excitement that you like to have, just because it makes for a really uncomfortable seven innings.”

In the top of the eighth, Michelle Stevenson singled to shortstop to provide a spark off the bench for the Griffons. Stevenson, who normally pinch runs for the Black and Gold, had a rare opportunity at bat, but took advantage of it.

The sophomore moved to second base off of a sacrifice bunt by Maegan Roemmich. After Taylor Anding grounded out, senior Leah Steele again provided a hit for the Griffons, as her single t right field drew in Stevenson, giving her the game-leading RBI.

Jackie Bishop cleaned up in the bottom of the eighth the same way she cleaned up the bottom of the seventh — three up, three down — all strikes to give the Griffons the two-game sweep of the previously conference-undefeated Gorillas 3-2. The Griffons won the first game 5-0.

Bishop relieved pitcher Emily Moe who replaced starter Annalee Rubio in the dog fight against the Gorillas.

“To be able to come from behind like that and get the win,” Bagley said, “and then end up getting the sweep, that was pretty exciting and that felt good getting on the bus.”

Friday night was just one of two glamorous victories the team had over the weekend.

Saturday night, after two rain delays and an hour long wait after two innings, the Griffons downed Missouri Southern 11-0 in just five innings. But Western wasn’t finished yet.

In game two, neither team could deliver much in the lately-tested contest. With a game start time at roughly 8 p.m. due to the weather, neither the Griffons nor the Lions could draw in any runs.

At the top of the seventh, Southern made a mistake on defense that cost the Lions the game.

After both Anding and Steele were out, Steponovich was walked, putting the lone body on first base. Third baseman Sarah Elliott was hit by a pitch shortly after, advancing Steponovich to second.

Freshman Bre Flecshner advanced to first on a fielder’s choice, but during the play the second baseman muffed the throw, resulting in an error that put Elliott on second and allowed Steponovich to move to third and keeping the inning alive.

Just like the night before, Sorensen stepped up to plate to help the Griffons. After over 10 pitches and a full-count, the pitcher threw a fast ball to the outside, and Sorensen didn’t flinch, as the center fielder was walked, moving all the runners one base and scoring Steponovich. Western won 1-0 to complete four wins in two days.

“I don’t want them to get to the point where they think they cant turn it on whenever and then turn it off whenever, because that inconistancy’s going to end up biting you,” Bagley said.

That was all Western needed to move to second place in the MIAA with a 16-2 record. The Griffons take on Lincoln Saturday at Griffon Springs Sports Complex and futrue MIAAer Lindenwood Sunday in a pair of double headers to end the home slate of the Griffons softball season.

A lot of softball is still on the schedule, however, as the Griffons play a pair of doubleheader the following weekend in Oklahoma before playing in the MIAA tournament Apr. 26-28 in Kansas City. After that, the Griffons should make a likely appearance in the post-season for the sixth time in the past eight seasons.

Bagley’s decision didn’t affect the team. She said by going with zero captains, it was a way to have the girls motivated individually, and that the girls would benefit from it in the end. It may have paid off.

Missouri Western, currently ranked No. 17 in the nation, has a record of 34-7 and 16-2 in the MIAA.

The Griffons have the lowest ERA in the conference and are hitting second in the MIAA with a team batting average of .313. The top hitter on the team was one of the leaders the Griffons had at the beginning of the season that Bagley had to inform she would no longer be a captain.

Even without the title, however, junior Maegan Roemmich is showing the team how to handle adversity. Roemmich has a .377 and is tied with the team-high in home runs.

Roemmich, who blasted just two homers her first two seasons on campus, is leading the team by example with her attitude and work ethic.

Along with a group of sluggers that are hitting over .300, Bagley saw Roemmich as a girl who could replace a star hitting-tandem Western lost in graduating Brittany Douglas and Toni Dance last season.

Not only has the education major done that, but she counters her offense with her defensive plays she has made this season. Roemmich, who started her first two seasons as the Griffons third baseman, made the switch to outfield this year.

Bagley needed a body in the right field and knew the determination Roemmich has shown in two seasons would help the transition.

“I got move to the outfield this year and it’s been a lot of fun,” Roemmich said. “It’s working out a little better for me.”

Bagley said Roemmich handles pressure really well, making the switch an easy one for the team.

“[Right field] is where she is meant to be,” Bagley said. “I saw her being able to do a better job in the outfield.”

Roemmich hasn’t disappointed. She has only one error, back on opening weekend. Going from the infield to a position she had never played before would seem tough, but the Des Moines, Iowa native has thrived, replacing Douglas in the outfield and helping the Griffons to a possible championship.

“She has fit the role in covering the territory that [Douglas] did last year,” Bagley said. “You know when the ball goes out to right field that Roem’s going to be able to handle it.”

Second baseman Blair Stalder said she agrees when it comes to Roemmich’s capabilities.

Along with Roemmich, Stalder has started all 41 games.

“I’ve never had so much confidence in an outfielder,” Stalder said. “As an infielder, it can be scary going back on a fly ball because of a risk of collision, but I know she has my back.”

Tuesday night, with the Griffons battling Drury, both teams were in a pitching war. The score marked 0-0 in the bottom of the second. Roemmich stepped up to bat for the first time and blasted a solo home run to take the 1-0 lead. That was all Western needed, as it defeated Drury 1-0 in game one. Moments like that show the value the 5-foot-4 outfielder has on her team.

“I just go out there and not analyzing every single thing anymore,” Roemmich said. “I just go out there and see the ball and try to hit it.”

“We seem to have a little trouble in game two of the double header typically,” Coach Buzz Verduzco said. “That’s been our deal for most of the year, which is tough because you leave the park not feeling real good and you have to pick it up next time.”

Brandon Simmons and Nik Jurado earned wins.  Simmons pitched a complete game and improved his record to 7-2 on the season while striking out six batters and allowing only one run as the Griffons won 2-0.  Jurado gave up five earned runs on nine hits and needed some help from the offense to get the win, but the Griffons won 7-5.  Jurado improved his record to 5-0 on the season.

“Two guys that have been lights out for us is Nik Jurado and Brandon Simmons,” Verduzco said. “They really give us a chance to win on the road.  If you can split on the road, people say it’s a victory.”

The two games that Western lost were lopsided on the scoreboard.  In game two of Friday’s doubleheader, Western was defeated 9-1 after Northwest scored five runs in the second inning and five more in the seventh.  In the second game on Saturday, the Griffons were outscored 11-1 and took the run rule in the eighth inning.

“The most difficult thing for us so far is to try and get our offense going,” Verduzco said. “We have been taking a lot of the pitches we should be hitting and swinging at a lot of the ones we shouldn’t be. We just have to be able to turn that around.”

Western’s lone offensive outburst of the weekend came in the first game on Saturday.  The Griffons scored seven runs off of 12 hits.  Grant Fink was 2-for-2 with two RBI’s and Nate Ramler went 3-for-4 with three RBI’s.  Tony Loeffler went 1-for-2 with the hit being a home run.

“We just didn’t play with any energy,” Verduzco said. “You can’t do that against your rival.  It was a battle, at the beginning of the series we knew it was going to be a battle.”

Despite the fact that the Griffons were able to split on the road, Verduzco has warned his team about the pitfalls of relying on solid pitching and not being able to produce runs at a high rate.

“I told the team that offensively we are playing with fire right now,” Verduzco said. “After a while you have to start putting up the numbers offensively or we aren’t going to have a chance to win close games as the year goes on and the pitching gets tired.”

Nate Ramler started the scoring in the third inning of game one with a two run homerun that scored Spencer Shockley, who singled to left center earlier in the inning.  The hit was Ramler’s sixth homerun of the season.  The score stayed 2-0 for the next five innings.

A double by Jimmy Smelcer in the top of the sixth inning scored Grant Fink and then Kyle Peterson hit a sacrifice fly that scored Ramler to make the score 4-0.   Ethan Ward shut down the Hornets offense through the first six innings, allowing only three hits and no runs.

Just when it looked like Western had the win sealed up, Emporia finally got to Ward in the bottom of the seventh inning, scoring four runs off of a series of singles to tie the game and send it into extra innings.

In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shawn Egge pinch hit for Peterson and hit a single that scored pinch runner Jack Bond.  Egge’s RBI and only at bat of the game was the game-winner as it put the Griffons on top 5-4.

Jake Jones gave up a couple of hits in the bottom of the eighth inning, but fought through it to pick up his sixth save of the season.

The Griffons got on the board in the first inning of game two as a Shockley single scored Grant Fink.  Emporia responded with two runs in the second inning to make the score 2-1.

In the top of the third inning, Michael Schulze singled up the middle and Bubba Dotson singled after him to put runner on first and second.  Fink was hit by a pitch to load the bases up with one out.  A wild pitch scored Schulze and a Shockley fielder’s choice RBI scored Dotson to make the score 3-2 Western.

Oliver Kady shut down the Hornets offense in the bottom of the third and the Griffons got a big burst of offense from Egge in the top of the fourth.  Egge hit a three-run homerun that scored Tony Loeffler and  Smelcer.  The Griffons led 6-2 after the blast and it was all they needed to win as Emporia wasn’t able to produce anymore runs for the rest of the game.

Kady got his first victory of the season, pitching five innings and only giving up four hits.  Matt Bergin pitched two innings in relief and struck out three batters.

Egge had two hits and four RBI’s on the day including his first home run of the season and a game-winning single.  The Griffons are now only one game behind Emporia, who sits in second place in the MIAA standings.

Western will return to action in a four-game series against Pittsburg State in Pittsburg, Kansas on Saturday and Sunday.  The Griffons won’t play in St. Joseph until April 27th as their next eight games are on the road.

Just a few days ago, Student Life Director Isaiah Collier received an email from MTV producer Ryan McCray explaining that he was searching for college-aged students dealing with certain hardships and felt that a Missouri Western student might be his answer for a different spin on the show. From there the two developed a tryout session for Missouri Western students to showcase their hardships for a short camera spotlight.

“He looked at some of the hardships we are facing now with the budget constraints and thought that for students here, it would be great opportunity for them to reach for the stars and achieve their goals,” Collier said about why McCray choose Missouri Western.

From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. an MTV producer will be conducting a five-minute interview for any student wanting to try out for the show. After all the interviews, the producers will take all the shot footage from Western and numerous other schools back to New York where they will review and decide which student to choose.

“He’ll be simply asking questions and holding the camera at the same time,” Collier said. “It’s that bare bones. Afterwards, he take it back to MTV to see if there’s any kind of meat or story there.”

According to Collier, there is no guarantee that they will select a Western student, but it is a possibility as McCray is really trying to focus on this region. The only stipulation is that the student must be in the age range of 18 to 26.

Student Louis Erby, who has already signed up for an interview, said that this try out could be his one chance to fulfill his dream of becoming a professional artist. As soon as he saw the email, Erby jumped to the opportunity.

“I just took off running to go get the paper,” Erby said. “I didn’t even ask questions. If the opportunity presents itself, I’m the first to come running. It would be a nice, cool first step to start off like that. I’m not doing rapping; I’m doing acting. I want to have a role in the first theater production in the fall.”

Student Jessica Criss, who recently heard of the tryouts, feels that the show coming to Western is a great thing for both students and the university.

“We never get opportunities that larger universities do, and the casting call being here is great exposure to the university,” Criss said.

If students are interested they can go to the Center for Student Engagement and pick up an application. The application must be returned at the time of their interview. Students can also select their interview time by signing their name at the preferred time in the CSE. Interviews will begin right at 11 a.m. April 25 in Blum 212.

“I feel like we have some talented students that can definitely shine,” Collier said. “I think students will get a big kick out of MTV being on campus.”

“This year we are very fortunate that the board of governors allowed us not to raise the prices,” Mark Stier, director of residential life, said. “If you would check around other college campuses you would see that they have all raised their prices some how.”

The slight increase, however, involves a 4.5 percent increase to students planning to live the super singles. According to the 2012-2013 housing proposal, the increase, which is $122, will be used toward renovating the suites, the outdoor community basketball and volleyball courts and introducing the Greek village.  Renovation plans include painting the exterior sidewalks, balconies and stairwells and the interior floors as well as providing larger bedrooms and additional furniture.

“We have put this area, being the oldest, on a renovation plan for the summer,” Stier said. “Starting with Juda, which is the also the area for the Greek village, all the metal work you see here will be striped down and be painted black. All the concrete will be patched and sealed. The doors and air conditioning units will be painted gold.”

The renovation plans will start with Juda this summer followed by Logan the following summer and Beshears for the summer of 2014.

In addition the cost consistency, Stier said that more students are living on campus since Griffon Hall was completed in August of last year. Due to Griffon Hall being built, capacity availability has increased by almost 300 beds with no waiting list for students. With this new edition, the occupancy rate for both the fall and spring semesters have remained consistent with 92 percent occupancy rate within the residence halls.

“Based on my experience this is probably one of the highest numbers you’ll find for a state institution,” Stier said regarding the percent. “If we would not have had Griffon Hall this year, we would have been 16 percent over capacity. I think more students are living on campus especially with Griffon on line now because Griffon Hall provides a lot of the amenities that they would find off-campus.”

Board rates will see a 4.5 percent increase as well for students with certain meal plans. Any student not having a declining flex dollar balance will see a roughly $60 increase in the board rate.

Though some board rates and room rates will see the increase, Western has greatly improved the residence halls, which makes the slight increase very worthwhile, according to Dean of Student Affairs Judy Grimes.

“I think it’s wonderful that we are able to keep costs low for students,” Grimes said. “They’ve done an amazing job particularly this year in housing to increase retention rates. They’ve quadrupled the programing in housing. This year in housing we have for the first time seen higher retention rates and higher GPAs from our housing residents. This hasn’t happened in five or six years.”

Juda Hall resident and former Griffon Hall resident Lucy Hall said that although the price will not increase much for next year, the price of living on campus is still fairly high.

“If you live off campus, there’s places that you can live for $300 or $400 a month,” Hall said. “If you multiply that for the months we stay on campus, that would only be $1200. But to live in Griffon is double that. Plus you’ve forced to buy a meal plan even if you don’t want to. It’s too expensive.”

A lack of understanding was the reason some thought the CME was in danger of being cut. Norris feels that the situation was a misunderstanding and constantly stressed the fact that the CME program will always be here at Western.

“It’s not being cut at all,” Norris said. “CME is already paid for by SGA, and administration verbally gave a promise to students that CME was not in consideration of being cut. Students were worried about the situation, but I am sure that SGA will always pay for the program. It’s in our constitution to do so.”

Louis Erby, president of the Black Student Union, was one of the students that became worried about the fate of the CME program. Erby feels that the situation was not addressed well to him by SGA, which only led him to assume that the program would eventually be cut from students.

“We had a lot of speculations and a lot of questions because it was not explained well to us,” Erby said. “I believe in telling the truth from the jump so there won’t be any type of misconceptions. It was just a lack of communication.”

20 percent of the SGA budget goes to funding for programs like CME. The money is divided up into areas in student affairs and, according to the SGA constitution, that money will go strictly to student programming that will benefit all students.

CME Director Tay Triggs feels the program is something that everyone with different backgrounds and cultures should participate in.

“Our main priority is to do diversity programming on campus,” Triggs said. “We don’t just do things that relates to race. We also have programs for disabilities and sexual orientation.”

Neither SGA nor student affairs has any plans of dismissing or replacing CME, and Norris feels that SGA will have their word in the situation if in the future someone does try to cut the program.

“We know that this program is important to a lot of our students,” Norris said. “So by our constitution stand point, we cannot cut CME.”

Setter, who is a printmaking major but insists he is the only illustration major, made an account on freelance.com and started applying for jobs all over the place. Finally one stuck.

Price, who has her own production company in California, hired Setter to create a comic book of her novel “Lia Scott Price’s Serial Killer and Vampire Guardian Angels ™” in January 2012. The storyline is about a disillusioned guardian angel that becomes a serial killer by persuading people to commit suicide. Setter explained it to be a mix between the movies “Legion” and “30 Days of Night.”

Price is also known for her movies “Normal, California” and ”Dominion,” in which actor Rainn Wilson appears.

Price said Setter was the first to reply to her job offering, so she gave him a phone interview as well as had him send her some of his work.

“When I saw [Andrew’s] portfolio, it exceeded my expectations because of the care and detail that actually went into it,” Price said. “I showed it to other comic book artists I know in California, and they were impressed.”

After Price hired Setter, he decided he needed a partner. Setter turned to his close friend of three years, Hammontree, who is one of the best graphic design majors that will graduate from Western, Setter said. Price said taking on Hammontree added a whole new level.

“It’s outside of the box; it’s out of the norm,” Hammontree said. “I’m having fun with it now because I’m not just doing corporate logos or cut and dry boring stuff. It’s fun to dabble in different areas in art.”

While Setter is about the illustration, Hammontree is more of a “colorist.”

Here is the process: Setter renders the illustration in pencil and inks it; Hammontree helps ink it, too. Then they digitize it by scanning it in at high resolution, add color through digital painting and Photoshop, and then add the text. Next they save it under the right format, send it to Price and then wait for her critique.

One of Price’s biggest demands is reliability, and she said she’s never had to worry with Setter and Hammontree. They call and text her all the time for updates, which they did before she ever had to ask.

“I’ve never worked with anybody who was so on the ball,” Price said.

The senior art students also think very highly of Price, saying she’s very professional, open and has given Setter a lot of leeway to how he wants to illustrate the characters.

“She’s definitely not one of those dick-ish bosses,” Setter said. “She’s a genuinely caring boss that actually cares about you, so that’s really awesome.”

Setter and Hammontree’s ultimate goal in life is to work for themselves, which is why they want to start their own creative studio business in Kansas City. They want to hire students from Western and give them the opportunities they were not given before Price’s. They said Price has given them a lot of good advice, and this job will be a good kickstart.

“It’s just a stepping stone to hopefully more people will like the work, and we’ll get noticed more because that’s what you have to do in the art world,” Setter said. “It’s like a cascading effect—when one person sees your work, more people will see your work, and this [job] will help out immensely, I think.”

Neither Setter nor Hammontree have done anything like this before; this is their first real job. Setter and Hammontree could go from students to perhaps well-known artists, all thanks to freelance.com, which is why they encourage other students to sign up for a freelance.com account.

As for now, the current comic book should be published sometime in April. There are teasers on Facebook, and it has gotten attention from CNN. To see more, click www.horrorsociety.com/2012/02/14/exclusive-sneak-peek-of-upcoming-web-comic-by-lia-scott-price/.

“I am just amazed at how fast [Andrew] has worked, amazed at the passion he puts into it,” Price said. “He really got into the characters and was so into the whole story, which to me is very important because I know he understands the goal and vision.”

Price said they are welcome to be her official artists, and would like to have them illustrate her other two books into graphic novels, which should be finished in October.

Setter and Hammontree look forward to hopefully getting to be a part of the San Diego Comic-Con and Horror-Con. Price knows the seats next to her won’t be empty.

“They will definitely be in the booths with me when we get to that point.”

Students of Missouri Western have around 90 degrees to choose from, Dr. Cindy Heider, Interim Assistant Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs, said. Students will hopefully see changes within a few departments during the fall semester of 2012. The departments of communication studies, computer science, math and physics and engineering technology are three that have changes planned.

Heider said, based on the undergraduate curriculum report from last year, there were a couple of different proposals created for departments to create new classes, combine courses and remove courses. When a department plans on making a huge change to the program it must be submitted to the coordinating board of higher education. Heider said the internal undergraduate committee will refine it, make changes that are appropriate, and then forward it to faculty senate. Once there it is then sent to the Governess Advisory council.

“We submitted the proposal to the Missouri Department of Higher Education by January 31,” Heider said. “They only decide four times a year, so they will decide by April 6 or 7 to determine whether MoWest will be allowed to make changes.”

The theater and video program in communications studies have plans to change the name to Theatre & Cinema, which will create major changes.

“They have to do a pretty thorough revision of their curriculum,” Heider said. “As a result they will have redone almost every single class in that department, and since it was switched from a B.A. to B.S., students will need to have a foreign language as well.”

George Yang, Chair of engineering technology, said that the department is adding a new option in the current manufacturing technology bachelor’s degree. He said the current program has its own program, and one option.

“What we are going to do is add another option to the current program,” Yang said. “The option is called Technical Graphic Design, and it will be an exciting major.”

Yang said the department isn’t dealing with graphics, or focusing on the design because the art department has a program that deals with that. He said they are more focused on the technical graphics.

Dr. Michael Ottinger, Chair of computer science, math and physics said their department plans on combining two existing programs. He said they have very few computer science majors and quite a few students in the Computer Information System program. However, those students in both degrees will ultimately end up with the same jobs.

“It’s reasonable to take the CIS program and combine it with Computer Science which makes it more robust,” Ottinger said. “In essence we are taking one program and another program with two options, and taking one option and moving it over to the other program.”

Departments are working hard to get the changes implemented this fall, but Western is looking to the future with general studies. Heider said Western plans on bringing in a consultant within the next year to help our faculty to determine how we can make sure our general studies, humanities, social sciences, mathematics and others are as current as possible.

“They are providing the foundation for the major course work,” Heider said. “I applaud our faculty for reviewing this, because it’s a big process to look at every general studies course and make sure it’s relevant.”

Heider also stated that it’s what Western needs to be teaching to keep current. This is the projection they are looking at for 2013.

This was Kristina Bradley’s main reason why people should see “The Vagina Monologues.”

“The Vagina Monologues” are stories of real women with real experiences being passed on from community to community across the world while supporting the V-Day cause. V-Day is a global activist movement to end violence against women and does so through creative events like “The Vagina Monologues,” according to vday.org.

Bradley, aside from being a residence hall director, is the director of this year’s Vagina Monologues. This is her third year participating in the program and her first at Western; her previous two were at the University of Missouri.

“It was a really powerful experience for me when I was an undergrad, and I wanted to bring that [experience] here to Western,” Bradley said.

Year in and year out people’s first impression seems to be laughs at the audition signs. It’s a common thing for people to find humor in the “vagina” part of the title. “The Vagina Monologues” are about as blunt and straight forward as anything, but sure doesn’t stand for anything funny.

Nicole Gardner, a public relations volunteer, understands why the title is what it is.

“No one is going to come or understand if it’s not straight up called what it is,” Gardner said. “They are personal stories from women about everything from rape to loving their own vaginas. It’s what it means to be a woman and the struggles that we go through.”

Just because these monologues are stories of women being told by women, doesn’t mean women are the only audience being targeted. Men can learn just as much, if not more, just by listening to these stories.

“It’s not necessarily a feminist thing, it’s more about women in your life and this is what they go through, and you need to pay attention because it’s important to them,” Gardner said.

Danielle Wagner, one of the “Monologue” performers, finds it important that men attend and hear what is being said.

“It’s good for men to get a perspective from the women and take on a new perspective of feminism,” Wagner said.

This year’s “Monologues” will be performed by approximately 20 individuals who strongly support the messages that each story brings. The monologues are open performances and are free for the audience. They will be collecting donations from willing audience members who would like to help prevent violence against women. It will be held at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, April 11 in Kemper Recital Hall.

SGA Vice President of WAC Lauren Dillon said she was very happy at this year’s mix of models and fashions. The show included nine males and 10 females, a few models from last year, models that were hand picked by designers and a lot of brand new models trying the show out for the first time.

“I really like doing these fashion shows when we have a big diverse group,” Dillon said. “We interact with these people and you make friends that you would have possibly never met before.”

The show featured student designers Robyn Patti and Noel Collier as well as numerous St. Joseph fashion stores such as Buckle and Charming Charlie. WAC decided to also try to top last year’s show by bringing in a professional musical performance and different lighting. Dr. Seahorse, an electronic and pop duo, served as DJs, hosts and a musical act between the different looks. Another new addition to the show was a formal section that included tuxes from Tip Top Tux and formal floor-length gowns from Shannon Renee’s Formal Wear and Accessories.

Dillon said that all the new additions were small things to make the show more unique and keep the students coming back. Dillon, who has been a part of fashion show’s production for three years, said that though the show is time consuming, seeing everything on that final night makes it worthwhile.

“We went a little bit bigger this year,” Dillon said. “Every year that I’ve done (the show) we’ve steadily increased. It’s so fun to see everyone get dressed and seeing how everything comes together. It might not necessarily be how it was in my mind, but then it sometimes comes together better just on its own. ”

Last year, the show held over 250 people in attendance and 200 people the year before. This year the show held over 150 people, yet the smaller crowd was greatly amused by the designs and the Dr. Seahorse duo. The crowd gave a standing appauslse when the lead singer, Trevor, did Michael Jackson’s “Man in the mirror.” Students mouths dropped open from the first word that came out of his mouth.

“He sounded just like Michael,” audience member Cambreana Byrd said. “I thought it was really him for a second.”

Student Designer Robyn Patti, who had five pieces in the show, felt that being the audience is often surprised to see students making and creating clothes rather

“I think a lot of people don’t expect to see students creating outfits and making pieces,” Patti said. “They come to the show and expect to see only retail clothing. With the student designers they get that extra wow factor.”

Third year returning model Lindsey Stubbs said her favorite part of this year’s show was the “Rags to Riches” thrift store challenge. Each of the models were given a set dollar amount to spend at the St. Joseph thrift stores.. They were required to pick out their own financial-friendly ensemble in just a short amount of time.

“It was a lot of fun to throw some things together,” Stubbs said. “It gives people the idea that even if they are on a budget they can still feel good about themselves. I was really excited about it.”

Stubbs also included that fashion shows are great ways for students to feel comfortable about themselves, rather being in the show or just attending. Stubbs feels that the show is a way for students to see and showcase fashion diversity.

“I don’t think you have to follow any rules,” Stubbs said.  “As long as you are comfortable in what your wearing and you feel good about yourself, who cares? I feel like your confidence is going to be more attractive to people then necessarily what you’re wearing.”

The show was held in the Fulkerson center on April 3 at 8 p.m. A reception followed the show where students could meet the performers and designers, receive store coupons and get a closer look at the clothing.

Sport: Softball

Year: Junior

Position: Catcher

Stats this week: Hits — 3; RBIs — 6; Home Runs — 1

Lorbert blasted a three-run homer in game two against Fort Hays State to pace the Griffons in an 8-0 (six innings) victory. The junior also connected on a double in game one against the Tigers. Lorbert, who leads the team with four homers this season, currently is one of only three players that has started all 35 games.

One day after the Bearcats received word that Randy Gipson took the job as the women’s basketball coach, the Northeastern Stater declined to follow through, stating he didn’t have the heart to leave Tahlequah, Okla. That says it all — Northwest Missouri State doesn’t have its guy.

But Missouri Western does.

Friday afternoon, Western A.D. Kurt McGuffin announced the Griffons have hired Rob Edmisson to head the women’s basketball program after a dismal 7-20 record. The Bearcats don’t have a coach yet after placing right behind the Griffons with four MIAA wins. Good. That’s what should happen, especially after sitting back and having to hear their Northwest Missourian sports department criticize the Black and Gold, calling the Mineral Water Bowl the Missouri Western Bowl.

Oh, that’s funny. So is seeing their coach, well — not their coach — leave.

Northwest dropped the ball on that one. Why would Gipson not want to be a Bearcat? Is Tahlequah that nice of a place? Is Northeastern that great of a school? Possibly, I’ve only been there three or four times. That doesn’t matter. This isn’t about Gipson. It’s about the Bearcats.

Currently, their softball team has tumbled downwards, their baseball team will finish under .500 it appears and their football team was demolished by Pittsburg State four months ago. I didn’t want to do this. I think Northwest has a great program. Its football team used to be superior to Division II. But not anymore.

Currently, in head-to-head matchups in all sports, Northwest holds a slim 6-5 record this season. But with four games between the baseball team this weekend, and a one-match meeting with the tennis squad on deck, it appears Western will pass the Bearcats.

Edmisson was a hot commodity coming out of Oklahoma City. The guy has over 500 wins in his career and has never had a losing season. Should he continue that trend, Western will benefit greatly.

Also, Western’s softball team is fighting for a regional championship, the football team looks like a national contender and don’t forget Tom Smith and the men’s basketball team, he can turn that program around by next season. He’s been known to do that.

If the Bearcat’s school paper would quit with the nonsense about Western athletics, about the coaches on campus and the teams, then a friendly rivalry isn’t too far away. But maybe now that they have experienced a little troublesome they will quiet down. Or maybe not.

The Bearcats basketball coach, Ben McCollum, was just name Division II National Coach of the Year. That will probably keep them talking for now. But wait, they also lost their last two games of the season — including a first round exit in the NCAA Tournament to Washburn.

With two outs and Bubba Dotson on second base, Verduzco decided to pinch hit Jared Bell, who hadn’t had a hit all season. It paid off.

Bell’s walk off single to center field sent Dotson home to seal a 5-4 victory in game four of Missouri Western’s four-game sweep against Washburn.

“My logic was that [their pitcher] kind of took it to our right handers a little bit,” Verduzco said. “Some of the lefty at bats that I felt were a lot more productive against that kid than some of the right  handers. And we had one guy left and that was Jared Bell.”

Western took a 4-0 lead after five innings, but the Ichadbods scored two runs in the top of the sixth and seventh innings to tie the game at four. With two outs, Bell delivered to give Western the victory and a 19-9 record overall, which includes a 12-6 conference record.

Bell’s walk off came one day after Jimmy Smelcer’s walk off to defeat Washburn 3-2. Western beat Washburn 3-2 in both game one and game two. The Griffons were outhit by the Ichabods in three of the four games this past weekend, and tied game three with six hits.

“One thing I can tell you about Jared, he doesn’t have a hit but he goes to the batters box and he swings,” Verduzco said. ”I’ll give Jared Bell that. He doesn’t get cheated. He’s going to up there and get a good pitch, and he’s going to swing. And so, sure enough, he got a pitch to hit, drove it up the middle and the rest is history.”

Western moves up to No. 3 in the conference, right behind No. 1 Central Missouri (23-5, 18-4 MIAA) and Emporia State (19-8, 15-7). Washburn fell to No. 5 with a .500 MIAA record (9-9) and a 13-12 record overall.

The Griffons head to Maryville to take on Northwest Missouri State this weekend. Although Northwest is currently sitting at No. 9 in the conference, Verduzco said that the team must be prepared because it is a rivalry game, and those are always tough. The Bearcats hold the second most hits in the conference with 303, just 10 behind Emporia.

“It’s going to be knock down, drag out, you’re going to throw records out the window; it don’t mean anything,” Verduzco said.

Pitching has been stronger than in the years past, according to Verduzco. Brandon Simmons holds a 6-2 record while Ethan Ward (4-1) and Nik Jurado (4-0) help provide depth.

Western doesn’t return home until Apr. 28 against Southwest Baptist, following 14 straight road games.

In 22 seasons as a basketball coach, that alone stood out as the 48-year-old was waiting to hear back from several schools about a job. When Western sought out to hire somebody, Edmisson was a man the Griffons envisioned.

They snagged him off the market Thursday night.

Edmisson was hired as the eighth Women’s Basketball coach in Western’s history after being announced at the Griffon’s press conference Friday afternoon, and will take over for Lynn Plett, who was let go after five seasons at the helm.

During the search, Western Athletic Director Kurt McGuffin said a winning coach mattered, as well as a Midwest guy and somebody who could build a program. Edmisson fit that description according to McGuffin.

“When we look for a basketball coach, we look for the right fit: someone to build a program,” McGuffin said. “I kept going back to coach Edmisson. When our job came open, we talked early, and then I kind of went through his background, and I said ‘gosh, we know a lot of the same people.’ And I continued to call them and get their input on coach Edmisson. And I found what I thought we needed here.”

The Director of Athletics spent 28 days searching through a list of over 200 applicants. He narrowed it down quickly, and with help from several people, McGuffin brought in two candidates for a visit. Edmisson made the cut to the final two.

From there, McGuffin made the decision to go with the former Oklahoma City coach, who was fresh off of a NAIA Championship, having just won it nine days prior.

“We’re going to take this program back into even higher status,” Edmisson said. “Ultimately, our final goal is what I experienced nine days ago — a national championship. And that’s where we’re headed.”

Edmisson hoists over 400 wins as a collegiate coach and another 100 in high school. He led Oklahoma City to a 35-1 record with a talented group that had three Division I players.

He took the Stars to seven straight post-season tournaments and topped it off with the 2012 championship. After that performance, he knew it was time to move up.

“This isn’t going to be just Rob Edmisson show up and all of a sudden we win 30 games,” Edmisson said. “It’s going to take the whole community to get going. But what we are going to do is get this back to hanging banners. That’s our goal; that’s our mission. We will get there.”

Edmisson credited McGuffin as a huge factor in why he chose Western. He stated that the new A.D. is the face of the program, and they immediately shared a bond. McGuffin took over as the head of Western athletics in late October.

The Griffons have six available scholarships, and after losing all-time leading scorer Jessica Koch, they need them. Koch, who finished with 1,776 points, is just one of five seniors that the Griffons lose. Returning starters include a trio of seniors in Kallie Schoonover, Alicia Bell and Brittany Griswold, who suffered a stress fracture in her right foot in the final month of the season, ending her junior campaign early.

Plett finished his five-year tenure with a 46-89 record, which included a 33-72 MIAA record. He was fired less than 24 hours after Western lost to Washburn in the first round of the MIAA tournament, as McGuffin pointed to change needing to be made. Edmisson will almost certainly show a roster change if he follows the same path he took at Oklahoma City.

“I don’t know that there’s things we want to get accomplished, but we get 15 opportunities to practice football, and everyday we go out there we want to be as good and as sharp as we can be,” coach Jerry Partridge said.

The Griffons return a plethora of experience on both sides of the ball from last season’s 9-3 playoff team.

“We’ve always had guys coming back; I think our program is built that way where we generally have a lot of guys back,” Partridge said. “At least half our starters are back every year it seems like, but there’s a unique amount this time.”

Western returns senior running back Michael Hill, who was the featured ball carrier last season rushing for 1,384 yards with a 4.8 yards-per carry average and eight touchdowns. Despite his success, Hill treats spring practices like he has a spot to earn.

“There’s always room to get better, and that’s what I try to do every time I go out there,” Hill said. “It doesn’t matter that I started last year, my spot can get taken. We have a lot of good backs.”

The Griffons return junior quarterback Travis Partridge, who now has a full season as a starter under his belt. This is a luxury that coach Partridge didn’t have at this time last season when the spot was vacant.

“Last year was an aberration in that category,” coach Partridge said. “A lot of times we have had kids that have started multiple years in their career, so last year was a weird spring not having a starting quarterback returning.”

Partridge threw for 1,697 yards and 17 touchdowns with 11 interceptions last season and did major damage on the ground, rushing for 731 yards and eight touchdowns.

The offensive line returns seven seniors and, according to coach Partridge, any position is open for competition.

Spring practices are a little different for the heavy hitters on the defensive side of the ball.

“We don’t go real live and physical,” coach Partridge said. “We call it thud which is contact, but we don’t take people to the ground and finish off.”

The defensive line features David Bass and Ben Pister, who combined for 23 sacks last season.

Safety Shane Simpson is back after interception five passes last season, but coach Partridge will be looking to fill the other safety spot that opened up with the graduation of Jack Long.

There’s a competition to see who replaces NFL-bound All-American kicker Greg Zuerlein between Taylor Anderson and John Schmiemeier.

“It’s exciting to get back out here I’ve been ready for it for a long time now,” Hill said. “It’s important for us to get more chemistry, we just have to be more united. Nothing is going to be handed to us because we are all back.”

Author of the bill for a student fee, Sen. Amanda Johnson and Sen. Brian Shewell look over wording of the bill which was approved by SGA April 2. Photo by Jason Brown

The Student Success Act, which spent weeks in committee before being brought to the Senate, implements a $75 fee on full-time students, a $50 fee on part-time students and a $25 fee on summer students.

Student Success Act, Meeting Minutes, Roll Call Vote

Sen. Amanda Johnson presented the Student Success Act, which faced several failed and successful amendments.

Sen. Clifford Peterson offered an amendment to increase the fee to $125 and also add an end to the legislation after three years—also called a sunset clause. Petersen also suggested that the student body be allowed to vote on legislation within one year, giving administration time to adjust if the fee was struck down by the students. Petersen said that the amendments might have passed if they were separate.

“I should have made a motion to unblock them,” Petersen said. “It just went a little fast, and I wasn’t ready.”

Separate or together, Johnson said that she opposed both amendments. Johnson said that increasing the amount of money for the Student Success Act would be “way too complicated.”

“I feel like $75 is a significant amount,” Johnson said. “A lot of students are opposed to even the $75.”

“I don’t ever see a reason why we don’t need the $75 fee,” Johnson said. “If we were to get some of the state appropriations back—we need that money. We want to grow.”

Clifford’s amendments failed, but in a roll call vote, he voted in affirmation of the legislation.

An amendment to increase the number of students that serve on the committee to four and decrease the number of administrators to two failed as well.

The only amendment to pass was one that struck out a single sentence in the legislation that didn’t give the advisory committee the power to increase or decrease the fee. Still, any changes to the legislation must be passed through the student Senate.

After deliberation on the amendments, Sen. Andrea Vaccaro delivered another speech in affirmation, citing Northwest Missouri State’s $500 fee that was passed by their student Senate. She said that, in comparison, the Student Success Act was a reasonable fee.

While questioning Vaccaro, several senators questioned the method of passage for the legislation. Senate will not allow the student body to vote on the legislation.

“Because I think we have the students’ best interest at heart, and we have the voice to tell them,” Vaccarro said.

Johnson also presented legislation for new SGA bylaws to supplement Article XI, the provision in the constitution that could let students vote on the Student Success Act if they secure signatures from 10 percent of the student Body. The bylaw would require students to adhere to the university’s policies regarding petitions and limit students to a thirty-day time frame after the Senate’s passage of a bylaw for any petition they wish to file under Article XI of the SGA Constitution. There were no speeches in negation nor were there any speeches in affirmation following Johnson’s authorship speech. The by-law passed the senate with a majority vote, but a single Senator voted against the bylaw.

In a speech, Johnson said that the bylaw was for clarification purposes.

“We thought it was time to have something updated so students have somewhere to go if they want to push something through like that,” Johnson said.

Barry Hersh, a student potentially seeking to petition the SGA under Article XI, was not opposed to the bylaw.

“There needs to be a timeline or else 20 years down the road someone might try to repeal this,” Hersh said.

He said that before he seeks action under Article XI, he would like to speak with the SGA President Alison Norris.

“The petition is a last resort,” Hersh said. “The university needs the money or else it’s in trouble. 700 signatures is not going to that difficult to pull off.”

The Griffons bounced back and won four straight after losing back-to-back games at Emporia State, their only MIAA losses of the season.

“Bouncing back from Emporia was really important for us from a momentum standpoint,” coach Jen Bagley said. “The loss to Emporia took a lot of wind out of our sail, and it stung for quite a few days but it doesn’t sting as bad anymore. That’s what we needed to do.”

Sophomore Jackie Bishop allowed just three hits and pitched two complete games in her two starts to improve her record to 15-2 on the season.

Along with Annalee Rubio, each delievered a shut-out game this past weekend.

“She continues to be successful for us. Of all the athletes on this team, she is no different and that sting from Emporia really poked the bear,” Bagley said. “How she came out to play today and yesterday is evidence of that and I hope that will continue from here on out.”

Bishop struck out 12 and only allowed one hit in game one against Hays, but Western was still down 1-0 heading into the bottom of the sixth inning. Blair Stalder hit a sacrifice to score Kim Robinson and tie the game. Keri Lorbert then hit a two-run double to give the Griffons the 3-1 victory.

“All of the sudden, you could tell the team was like we cannot lose,” Bagley said. “If we would have lost that, it would have been devastating. When you have momentum on your side that’s pretty powerful, and if we would have lost this game, it would have taken a lot to get it back.”

The Griffons opened up the second game against Hays with four straight hits, including a three-run home run by Lorbert. Western had a 4-0 lead after the first inning.

Rubio pitched a complete game shutout and improved her record to 11-4 on the season while striking out six batters as the Griffons run-ruled the Tigers in the sixth inning and won 8-0.

Bishop took the mound in the first game Saturday against Washburn and struck out six batters while only allowing two hits and pitching her fifth shutout of the season. The Griffons won 8-0 in six innings for the second game in a row.

“I’ve just been trying to go out there and focus on hitting my corners,” Bishop said. “It’s great to have a great team behind me, and I always have them backing me up.”

Western finished with 14 hits in the game including 3-for-3 from Stalder.

The Griffons had an 8-2 lead in the second game of the double-header against Washburn after three innings, but the Lady Blues wouldn’t go away.

Washburn cut the lead to 8-7 in the fourth inning by hitting a grand slam home run and a solo home run. Emily Moe relieved Rubio on the mound, stopped the run, and prevented Washburn from scoring in the final three innings.

The Griffons added an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth inning when Erin Widrig scored on a error and won 9-7. They head to Pittsburg, Kan. Friday to play the Gorillas in a double header before going to Joplin, Mo. Saturday to play another two-game series, this one against Missouri Southern.

Alpha Sigma Alpha and Alpha Phi Alpha are holding a fundraising event Wednesday, April 11 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event will help raise awareness about autism and bring the campus together for a great activity.

Amber Rivera, president of Alpha Sigma Alpha, said that they hope to raise as much money as they can for this cause. She said all the money they receive from donations and students from the event will be donated at the “Walk for Autism,” which will take a place a few days after the event.

Rivera said she believes that autism is understated, and that there’s not a lot of attention focused on it. She said there are two billboards on the Belt highway that say 1 in 100 kids every year are diagnosed with autism.

“That’s a lot of kids each year being diagnosed with autism,” Rivera said. “It’s also low funded, so anything we can do will help toward finding a cure.”

The event that both of the organizations are hosting will receive help from other greek organizations. Amanda Benjamin, member of Alpha Sigma Alpha, said that the TKEs are planning to barbeque, and a member of Phi Delta Theta plans to DJ for the event.

The fundraising event is not part of their philanthropy, Benjamin said. She said the event is in honor of Kathy Kelly, former advisor for Alpha Sigma Alpha, and her nephew Tanner who was diagnosed with autism.

“Kathy Kelly has always been a big supporter of our organization,” Benjamin said. “Also, autism is a big issue for her as well.”

Kelly is very excited about the event. Kelly said that a lot of the members of Alpha Sigma Alpha sort of became big sisters to her nephew Tanner.

“It touches my heart,” Kelly said. “The girls would hang out and drive Tanner places with them.”

DeAndre Diamond, Secretary of Alpha Phi Alpha, said that the two greek organizations planning the event have a bond.

“We hope it’s a big success,” Diamond said.

No one has ever donated to autism at Missouri Western before, Benjamin said. She said that if they can bring this event in to help, it will help the campus overall.

The event is one that will be remembered. Benjamin said the best part of the event is that both Kelly and Isaiah Collier, who are both Alphas (Kelly a member of Alpha Sigma Alpha and Collier a member of Alpha Phi Alpha), will be at the event, and will also have pies thrown at their faces along with other members of the organizations.

Kelly said that she would do anything to help them. She said that they have done so much for her and her family already.

“I would be grateful to have a pie thrown at my face for this cause,” Kelly said.

Alpha Phi Alpha member DeAndre Diamond shakes hands with student Elie Moore after helping him fill out his voting registration card.

President of APA Mark Bush said that the goal of Alpha week this year is to educate people on important issues such as community service, networking and educational improvement. One special goal is to get at least 100 students registered to vote in St. Joseph, Bush said.

“There is a ballot coming out on April 3 here in St. Joe voting on school district employees and things like that, and we would like people to be involved there and also definitely vote for the next president in November. I was looking at the statistics here in St. Joe and only 13 percent of the population voted in the last opportunity we had here to vote. We want to make everyone aware of the need for community service here in St. Joe as we have a very large homeless population.”

This Monday the boys went to Second Harvest to help out the St. Joseph community by serving and preparing food. On Tuesday, they set out a table in Blum right outside of the food court to catch the traffic and register students to vote. On Wednesday, the Alphas held a resume-building, interview etiquette and career-developing workshop with Career Services Director Donnell Turner. They will be hosting a “Rock & Jock” basketball pick-up game at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Commons basketball court. On Friday, the members are hosting an appreciation BBQ at 7 p.m. in the Commons courtyard. The final event is the annual step show, which starts at 7 p.m. Saturday and will include numerous step performances from greeks all over the Midwest, from Oklahoma to Nebraska. Western’s step team “Sounds of Ambition,” who won the competition last year, will also be performing.

“A lot of students here on the campus mention not having a lot of activities to do here on campus,” Bush said. “We are trying to provide that with some of our fun events. We plan to collaborate a lot more with other organizations here on campus to promote unity. We should be having some events later this semester with some of the other organizations here on campus. It’s important for us to work together because of the level of networking. We make connections that can last a lifetime.”

APA member Brandon Griffin, who was the president last semester, said that the members are really trying to focus on things other than fun, social events and want students to really learn and grasp something for the educational events.

“For the first time in awhile he kind of stood away from the social aspect, and we are really trying to tap into the service,” Griffin said. We always get a great turnout at our step show and our party. We really want numbers at our service events.”

Student and member of campus sorority Delta Sigma Theta Jessica Criss said that she is very proud of what the Alphas have been doing with their events and thinks the new members have been doing a great job with promoting and educating.

“I’m excited to see what the new members of Alpha are going to bring to the university,”Criss said. “It’s been a lot of old members for awhile, and I’m really proud of the work these new Alphas have been doing thus far.”

President Vartabedian feels that due to budget cuts, certain teaching jobs that are open have become even harder to fill because of Western not being able to afford the type of salaries that some teachers may deserve.

Some professors even have to fill in other positions that they normally do not teach just to keep things in order.

“We’re doing the best we can,” Vartabedian said. “But unfortunately given the budget crisis, we haven’t been able to fill the positions like we would normally want to.”

Adjunct professor Rosetta Ballew-Jennings recently voiced her opinion about the salaries of adjunct professors and how she feels that her salary is extremely low compared to other teachers on campus.

Vartabedian agreed with Jennings and stated that he wishes that they were able to pay adjunct professors more, but recent cuts from the school have also made that a problem.

“It’s true,” Vartabedian said. “The adjunct faculty members are not compensated what they are worth. They are worth a lot more but it’s just a matter of finances.”

Dean of Craig School of Business Phillip Nitse feels that the budget cuts cause problems to the business program because it keeps them from being able to fill certain positions. It has even become harder to give raises to professors that currently hold positions in the program.

“There are folks that turn us down once they find out what we are paying,” Nitse said. “People that are coming in are starting out at a low salary, and that means we have to compete with a lot schools that are paying more.”

Western has recently parted ways with former Vice President of Student Affairs Dr. Esther Peralez, and her position has not yet been filled.

Dr. Jeanne Daffron is the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, and she feels that until the budget is determined, it will be hard to fill that position. Nothing has been decided yet, and there are still too many unknowns to make any type of decisions at this point.

“It’s really tough right now,” Daffron said. “We are trying hard to adjust to the budget, instead of eliminating other people jobs.”

Daffron stated that she hopes that the budget cuts do not affect professors that have a long history here at Western. She feels that this is something that is happening all over the country. However, she hopes it never has to get to that point here on campus.

“We are truly working hard to keep the budget cuts from having a negative impact on are faculty and staff,” Daffron said. “It is something we worry about because it is important to keep a good staff here. But we are trying very hard to adjust that.”

Dennis Stroughmatt preforms French creole music with his fiddle in Kemper Recital Hall Tuesday night. Photo by Jason Brown. March 21, 2012.

Missouri Western teamed up with the Alliance Francaise of St. Joseph to bring Stroughmatt to Kemper Recital Hall March 20.

There was a fair audience, occupied by both Western students and also several community members that held interest in music and French culture.

Walking into the event, one might have been suspecting a pretentious, artsy, musical performance. One could not be more wrong.

With his swift movements of the bow, Stroughmatt entertained the audience consistently with French Creole music that one could easily hear being played at bars. Every tune that he put out was tremendously danceable.

Stroughmatt was not the type of character you expected to be playing French music. With a long curly ponytail and a very witty sense of humor, he was able to really connect with the audience, telling jokes and explaining the meanings behind all of the pieces that he performed.

A lot of the songs were 20 verses long, but he would perform only two or three of the verses. One of these was a drinking song that he decided to play with the audience, which involved audience participation.

“I see people leaving…” Stroughmatt joked.  “If I see you fall asleep, I will jump off this stage and hit you.”

Stroughmatt — who honed his craft while living in Old Mines, Mo. — has been playing fiddle for 22 years. He received his first fiddle from his grandfather, which originally belonged to his great grandfather.

Stroughmatt stated that he first tried to play during jam session at a house party in his hometown of Albion, Ill.

They kicked him out to play on the porch.

He has also played with his group “Dennis Stroughmatt and Creole Stomp” with big gigs such as playing on Prairie Home Companion.

“One of the first gigs we ever played was the Arch in St. Louis. Then it just snowballed from there,” Stroughmatt said.

PRIDE week is from April 16 to April 20. On Monday, April 16, PRIDE will host the event “Only Love photo shoot.” Two booths will be set up, one in Blum and another possibly in Potter. Thursday’s event is “What’s it like to be Gay in America?” and Friday is the National Day of Silence.

PRIDE alliance member Merriam Hayden said the drag show is a very popular event and a lot of people like it.

According to the event coordinator of PRIDE Tyler Rhoad, the drag show is his baby. He said he basically brought the drag show from the ground up. The show is featuring talent such as Dirty Dorthy, Fenix and River Rains. The drag show, which has been an annual event for numerous years, is not just for Missouri Western students. Other guests may pay $3 for entry.

This year’s theme is “Burlesque.” There is going to be a mock cocktail bartender mixing mock drinks and some students dressed up as cocktail waitresses. Doors open at 6 p.m.

The day of the drag show, local organizations can buy or rent a table for the day. A lot of campus organizations show up such as SGA, WAC, BSU and the sororities and fraternities on campus. Rhoad believes it is good publicity for everyone. When people first walk in, the booths are lined up, and it gives everyone a chance to see the groups that support GLBTSQ students.

“The drag show, I think it does help, it does speak to people,” Hayden said. “Even though a lot of people will make fun of it, make fun of us for participating in it there will always be people who need stuff like that to happen.”

Rhoad said that though people often perceive the drag show as just a “gay” event, it really is much more then that.

“A lot of times when people first get there ‘oh it’s a gay thing,’ but it’s not just a gay thing, once you get into the show portion of it, they talk about family values, respecting everybody, excepting everybody’s differences,” Rhoad said.

According to Rhoad, the drag show grabs the most attention entertainment-wise, but the Day of Silence brings a message home to everyone.

For National Day of Silence, t-shirts will be handed out in the commons building and Blum. According to Rhoad, cards that say “I am participating in the National Day of Silence, so please do not call on me because I will not speak,” will be made available for participating students to give to their teachers. Other members in their support will be wearing tape on their mouths.

“I think it is a good cause; I think it is a noble and worthy goal to fight oppression and to do things, fun things, like come together,” Hayden said.

The night of the National Day of Silence, supporters of the day will gather at the clock tower and hear a minister to give an inspirational speech before continuing on to the next part of the evening. From the clock tower, the group will go to the football field where a school band will play “Amazing Grace.” After the song, multi-colored lanterns will be released into the sky. Hayden said she is looking forward to the lanterns being released into the sky.

Ironman, Britt Johnson (left) pedals forward during one of many triathlons he has completed. Submitted photo.

It’s not because he had eaten a rotten banana, or because he found out he was allergic to them that day.

Assistant professor of physical education Britt Johnson couldn’t eat bananas because of the several he devoured while doing the Ironman Triathlon, which consists of a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride and 26.2-mile run, in that order.

“Everybody has their own thing; this happens to be mine,” Johnson said.

In the past, Johnson, who was a runner and swimmer at Albion College in Michigan, has run indoor triathlons, marathons and half Ironmans. However, he had never tried an Ironman Triathlon. Although he’s always wanted to do the race, he didn’t really have the time train for it until he took a teaching job at Missouri Western in the fall of 2009. Johnson was living in Kansas City while his wife was still finishing her tenure in Michigan, so this time away from his family allowed him to train for the race.

“I figured if I’m even going to do it (the Ironman Triathlon), now’s the time.” Johnson said. “I go home to an empty apartment, so I might as well go ride the bike for hours on end.”

Johnson researched several workout plans and decided on one that happened to be around 125 pages long. He summarized it into 10 pages, which totaled to be 36 weeks long.

The first week, he was scheduled to do a 30-minute swim, 50 minutes on the bike and a 35-minute run. Toward the end of his training, it had progressed to where he would have to do 5 hours and 15 minutes on the bike and a 2 hour-45 minute run.

After the weeks of constant training, Johnson felt ready.

Unfortunately on the drive up to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, where the race was held, Johnson said he made the mistake of attaching the bike to the back of his car. After about a mile from where he left, he hit a pothole which caused his bike to hang from the vehicle — and drag against the road. The rim was bent, a tire was popped and everything was out of line; luckily he still had about four days before the race and was able to fix his bike.

Johnson used this experience to prepare for any possible mechanical breakdowns during the race by packing extra tires and tools.

Once he arrived to Coeur d’Alene, he set his packs for the race then waited for the next morning.

The race began at 7 a.m. and would ultimately end at midnight, finished or not. Tagged as number 435, Johnson made his way to the 61-degree lake where the race would start.

“It was very scenic; it was nice to be able to look around, and you were in the middle of nowhere…with 2,200 of your best friends,” Johnson said.

Two rows of participants lined up before the water a quarter of a mile long. Johnson was never worried about not finishing the race; he feared more of mechanical issues and accidental injuries.

“I was the farthest person on the right. Literally nobody was on my right, which made me probably swim an extra 100 yards, but I didn’t care. I didn’t want anybody to kick me in the face, and I didn’t want any of those issues,” Johnson.

Johnson’s nose remained unscathed as he pulled out of the water 83rd.

Then he was on to the 112-mile bike ride.

Throughout the bike section, Johnson had to stay optimistic because his legs were sore — very sore. Johnson said his mentality was all positive thoughts, like “I can do this,” “Hey, that 5 hours wasn’t all that bad” and “I have another 20 miles on the bike left to do.”

“One of the best feelings was when I got five miles of the finish of the bike,” Johnson said. “I thought ‘Yes, I’m going to make it’ and then when I actually handed off the bike, I was like ‘All right I’m done, let’s go run.’ Then I took about three steps and thought, ‘I’ll walk a little bit.’”

Johnson’s “little bit” turned into walking for about half a mile before beginning to take a quicker pace, but he pulled through. On the bright side, it was sunny and 75 degrees out; he was enjoying Lake Coeur d’Alene and people watching.

The running consisted of two laps; when Johnson had two hours and about a mile and half to go, he could see the other participants still on their first lap — or eight miles to go.

“The hardest part of the whole race was when I got to that point and saw all their faces,” Johnson said. “They’re just as tired and trying just as hard as I am, but you’re looking at them saying ‘You have no chance, you’re not going to make it.’

“I almost started crying.”

Although he was feeling empathetic, he had to keep moving.

For the triathlon, it’s tradition for people to line up from a half a mile from the finish line and scream and cheer for the participants. There is also a radio announcer who says each name as they finish, and Johnson worked so hard over the last mile to pay attention to where people were to make sure he was the only one crossing the finish line so he could hear his name.

He was near three people who were going about the same pace, but after about three-fourths of a mile left, he turned on what he had left and went ahead about 200 yards and stayed there.

Unfortunately, he was so tired when he finished that he wasn’t able to hear the announcer exclaim “Britt Johnson, you’re an Ironman!”

By that point, however, Johnson was just happy that he finished and beat his goal of 15 hours by 5 minutes and 42 seconds. He finished 118th in his age group and 738th overall.

He was so exhausted that he couldn’t even lift his very light bag that carried his clothes. He was given free Dominos Pizza and received about a 20-minute massage afterward, compliments of the triathlon committee. Later he needed help getting into the shower.

But Johnson recovered quickly; he said he felt fine the next day.

Since then, he has been able to teach his PED classes about physical activity and nutrition through his experiences. While he is still teaching at Western, he also continues to run, swim and bike when he can.

Although Johnson enjoyed the Ironman Triathlon as a whole, he probably won’t do it again because he is more family-oriented now that they live with him. But he is planning to run an ultra-marathon in November.

“Knowing how difficult the day actually was, if I can do that, what can’t I do?”

Gawatz’s arraignment occurred Friday, March 30. According to the St. Joseph News Press article, Gawatz, who works in Western’s dining services at the food court, allegedly inappropriately touched the child’s genitals and exposed himself to the young victim. The article further stated that he allegedly sodomized the victim between early October 2009 and late February 2012. According to st.joechannel.com, the victim was under the age of 7.

Assistant Food Services Director Kathy Dewalt refused to comment, stating that she had been authorized to speak only to authorities. Dewalt did confirm that she hired Gawatz and that his case is still under investigation.

Aramark Director of Communications Karen Cutler also refused on comment on Aramark hiring policies and procedures.

Student and frequent food court diner Adrian Cossyleom said that Gawatz was very friendly and was very dissappointed to hear about Gawatz’s arrest.

“I know Larry,” Cossyleom said. “I used to talk to him all the time. I would go up to him and have a little chat while checking out. He was friendly all the time.”

Student athlete Charlonda Bozeman, who also frequents the food court often, said that Gawatz was very polite and generally a cheerful guy.

“He was thoughtful and showed he cared about everybody,” Bozeman said. “He was very polite and always had a smile on his face.”

For more information regarding Gawatz’s case, visit http://stjoechannel.com/fulltext/?nxd_id=265912 More information will be covered regarding this case upon the court’s decisions after the arraignment.

You see when I was signing up for classes last year, my advisor told me to take both Art 100 and Music 101 to finish up my 9 credits in Humanities. It sounds like a good thing right, taking two classes the same semester to finish a section in your major, minor form. So that’s what I did, I signed up for the two classes.

I then decided in the middle of the semester to change my major, I went to the department, met with an advisor; she looked over the classes I had taken and told me that I wasted a credit. I had no idea back then that I couldn’t take two courses in the same section.

So im sure you’re asking yourself, why is the ignorant student telling you this story? Well here’s the reason why; don’t make the same mistake I did.

I have discovered over time to look at my major, minor form before going into a meeting with my advisor. They have so many students to advise, which I have to say it’s their job to check over things, and make sure we are headed down the right path towards graduation. However, if you believe that they are trying to advise you in wrong direction, then confront your advisor about it.

I hate the fact that I wasted 3 credits for a class that won’t count towards graduation, but I will say I learned something about Jazz music, and the different types of instruments it takes for musicians to perform in a Jazz band. Except I will never use this in my degree.

So learn from my mistake, and don’t go down the wrong path. If you feel that your advisor is trying to get you to take a class that you don’t need then ask them where it shows in the major, minor form to take this class in order to graduate. I have heard from many people around the campus, and on facebook complaining about their advisors. Well if there’s a problem, then do something about it. Take Action

Mel Klinkner, vice president for financial planning and administration, speaks to students at Monday’s Student Government committee meeting. At least 30 members of the Black Student Union attended to voice their concerns about the fee and gain information. Jason Brown | Photo Editor

Fee Proposal Document: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3

“We wanted to have a fee that would directly affect students,” Norris said. “That they would notice if they didn’t have some of these things.”

Monday night, members of the Black Student Union, led by President Louis Erby, criticized SGA’s strategy in informing and communicating with students.

The largest criticism concerned email notification of SGA’s open forums for students to voice their concerns about the fee.

“Maybe we should have sent out more emails,” Norris said, “but we wanted to use a different tactic because there was smoking ban forums last year which had less turnout.”

Norris referenced that students were notified about those forums via email. A single past email was located in regards to a focus group asking students to contact Student Governor Peter Gregory if they were interested in participating in a focus group. Additionally, on March 21 an email was sent out to all students requesting applicants for SGA positions in the new administration.

With the new tactic, Norris wanted to target campus leaders at the President’s Leadership Committee. Using mouth-to-mouth, Norris’s wanted the leaders of organizations to inform other students about the forum. Erby was one of these student leaders, encouraging at least 30 members of the Black Student Union to attend SGA’s open-forum committee meeting.

“They came and voiced their opinions, and we were grateful for their opinions,” Norris said.

Brenna Nelson-Wilkes believes that SGA could have communicated better with students in regards to the proposed fee.

“If you want us to care about the things that are going on then you need to show us that you care if you want us as students to be responsive to what is going on around us,” Nelson-Wilkes said. “The only thing they advertised was their elections, and we don’t know anything about them.”

Jacob Scott, executive vice president and president-elect, said that communication is always a concern for SGA.

“Communication is always the $60,000 question,” Scott said. “With anything in life, how can we communicate in a society that is so capitalist that is so—trying to convey their own message and time is always of the essence. Can we convey what we want to do?

The main concern that really wasn’t addressed tonight was that students wanted to be communicated about a student fee but they don’t want to be communicated about every little issue of SGA’s. It’s finding that balancing act.”

Criticism wasn’t the only voice at the meeting. The Black Student Union also wanted to ensure that funding for the Center for Multicultural Education was secured since it isn’t included in the Save Our School Student Success Act.

Mel Klinkner, vice president for financial planning and administration, assured that the CME was not even being considered being cut.

Nicholas Brothers also spoke at the forum, attempting to rally students and administration to petition the State Government to increase revenue through taxes.

“Once again, we’re fighting the wrong fight,” Brothers said. “Let’s start yelling instead of whining.”

The fee proposal has accountability for the money worked into the legislation. The legislation calls for the formation of a special committee that will ensure that the funds are being used for what the legislation intends. Scott said that this accountability is unlike anything any other student government in Missouri has passed.

The importance of SAAC is to enhance the total student-athlete experience by promoting opportunity, protecting student-athlete welfare and fostering a positive student athlete image, according to the NCAA. In 1989, SAAC was formed for student athletes to have leadership opportunities by representing their fellow student athletes.

“With being a student athlete it’s really hard for us to get involved in things outside of our sport and our classes,” SAAC leader Kallie Schoonover said. “It gives us a chance to help out the community and represent the student athletes for our university.”

Like our SGA, where there is a panel of students representing the entire student body, in SAAC there is a panel of student athletes being the voice of all student athletes. Instead of having senate members, there are leaders. Leaders are chosen by coaches selecting nominees, and those nominees are voted on other representatives from SAAC.

“The best part about SAAC is being able to relate to and be a voice for student athletes and getting what they want done,” SAAC leader Harrison Cobb said.

SAAC is an organization whose members are only athletes representing our school. Although it is only for athletes, anyone can help accomplish the goals of the organization.

“We’re making the effort to better in the community,” Cobb said. “We’re always looking for ways to improve the campus and game atmosphere. We appreciate people’s help when we’re trying to do those things.”

One way SAAC fosters a positive student athlete image is by participating in community service programs. Some of the programs they have already done this year are their annual “Night out on the Griffs” and “Griffs Giving Gifts.”

Night out on the Griffs is an evening where young kids in the community come out to play games with Western athletes every finals week of the fall semester. Griffs Giving Gifts is held for both Thanksgiving and Christmas to help out the community during the holidays.

An event still to come will be the third annual dodge ball tournament for canned foods April 4 at 7 p.m. in the old gym in Looney. Any student will be able to participate in the tournament. If you would like to get involved, send an email to mwsusaac@yahoo.com to enter in your team. Even if you don’t wish to participate in the games, canned foods or money donations would still greatly help the cause.

The showcase consisted of different digital arts such as electronic music, video, animation and a bizarre use of software that is rarely shown.

Dr. Linda Antas, assistant professor of music, helped put the showcase together and feels that the two recently formed programs are starting to get well established. As they continue to grow, she feels that the work that is being produced has become good enough to present in a concert.

“We want to celebrate the creative works that both faculty and students at the graduate and undergraduate level are producing, using some pretty cutting-edge technology,” Antas said. “It’s a really great mix of things that you will find in the popular music world.”

Both programs are fairly new to not only Western and all of St. Joseph, but also fairly new to the entire country. Antas stated that with these programs being so advanced, it makes the showcase more enjoyable to witness.

The event was free and the turnout came as a surprise to many with more than 90 people showing up to the showcase.

The event consisted of 11 undergraduate and graduate participants and two professors.

Each participant focused on one specific digital art that showed different areas of technology and music mixed into one. A lot of the music and videos were being performed through laptops which helped enhance the quality.

Chris Verstraete is a student at Western that showcased his music that he wanted to share with the audience. Verstraete stated that the purpose of his music was to make people feel uncomfortable, almost like the music that is heard in horror movies.

Verstraete feels that the turnout was great and that the showcases will only get better in the future.

“It was pretty good for the first show,” Verstaete said.” There are some things that went very well. Dealing with technology, a lot of connection and things of that nature have to be just right and I think for the most part they were.”

Sara Verduzcl is a music major at Western and found the showcase very entertaining. Verduzcl stated that it was different considering the fact that most music programs in Potter hall consisted of live orchestras and symphonies.

“I think that the digital arts showcase was very interesting because we got to see a musical performance that is not typically shown here a lot,” Verduzcl said. “I really enjoyed it.”

Sport: Women’s Golf

Year: Junior

Position: None

Stats this week: Score for round one – 83; Score for round two – 87; Final Score — 170; Place — No. 11

Bird helped Missouri Western place No. 4 out of 10 teams in this past week’s Missouri Western Invitational. She led Western’s eight golfers with a final score of 170, which placed her 11th out of more than 50 participants.

Set in the future of North America, the United States is gone. There is only a Capitol and 12 Districts. Because of the Districts’ failing attempts to overthrow the Capitol, each District must select a boy and girl (Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” style) to compete in the Hunger Games — a televised fight to the death.

Only one can win.

The nominees’ ages range from 12-to-18; it’s Primrose Everdeen’s (Willow Shields) first year. When her name is surprisingly called, her sister Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence, “X-Men: First Class”) steps up — sprints up, rather — to volunteer.

Having read the book, it was easy to spot the changes in the movie. It’s 2 hours and 22 minutes, so it’s hard to fit in every little piece of information, I get it; however, there were too many slow parts and long shots of facial expressions that could’ve been cut down in order to make up for the loss of the important details that were either substituted or dismissed that essentially make the story.

For instance, the character Madge was not in the movie at all, and the relationships between the characters were not very strong; they felt rushed throughout the movie.

There were some other smaller parts that were changed that could have easily been avoided, but the movie’s story line was overall along the same lines as the book and portrayed the scenes accurately and in a unique fashion.

As for the acting, job well done. It’s not easy showing an excruciating in-pain emotion when not in pain, and Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson (“RV,” “Journey to the Center of the Earth”) as Peeta Mellark, Katniss’ fellow District partner, did a great job. Lawrence also displayed great versatility as she played the role of a terrified and loving, yet sassy and confident older sister. She was very believable.

As for the other well-known names, like Woody Harrelson (“Zombieland”) as Katniss’ and Peeta’s drunken mentor Haymitch Abernathy and singer Lenny Kravitz as Katniss’ clothes designer Cinna, I had my doubts.

Haymitch is supposed to be the fat sarcastic slob that you love to hate, and Harrelson nailed it. Cinna, on the other hand, is the colorful and feminine role that I wasn’t sure Kravitz was going to be able to play, considering his usual afro, tatted and pierced body and tough attitude. Kravitz was the adorable, caring teddy bear you just want to squeeze.

Oh, and don’t forget the unforgettable Stanley Tucci (“Easy A,” “Burlesque”) as the over-the-top white-toothed grin of the host of the Hunger Games, Caesar Flickman. Tucci’s small parts are perhaps some of the funniest, a close tie with the bickering between Haymitch and other mentor Effie Trinkett (Elizabeth Banks, “The 40-Year-Old Virgin”).

For fair warning, the camera work is very similar to “Cloverfield.” The jittery movements are there to make the audience feel like they are in the movie, but it just leaves an uneasy feeling.

Once again, if you read the book, you’ll probably find the book better; but thankfully for the actors, the movie is still entertaining. If you didn’t read the book, you will more than likely enjoy the movie version, but I encourage you to take the time to read the book because it’s gold.

“We just weren’t really that prepared mentally to play today and that cost us,” coach Buzz Verduzco said.

The Griffons got out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning of game one as Spencer Shockley singled in David Chew and Nate Rambler, but couldn’t get any more runs for the rest of the game.

“When we get runners on we have to come up with big hits that fall in the gaps and we just aren’t really getting it done right now,” Shockley said. “We just got to go to work and practice and figure out ways to score runners.”

Oliver Kadey pitched five solid innings in his first start of the season, giving up five hits and one earned run. Western was up 2-1 heading into the bottom of the seventh inning before a walk, hit and an error gave Emporia the 3-2 lead. The Griffons couldn’t get any offense in the bottom of the seventh and Hornets relief pitcher Brandon Faulkner picked up the save.

Western pitcher Brandon Simmons took the loss and his record fell to 5-2 on the season after the heart-breaking loss.

“We have a chance to win and if you can’t close it out with our best guy on the mound then maybe we don’t deserve to win it,” Verduzco said.

Mason Queen started game two, but was taken out after two innings and replaced by Matt Bergin after giving up a run in the first and struggling in the second.

“I think the tempo was kind of set because we had trouble throwing strikes,” Verduzco said. “We had to make the change and Bergin came in and did a great job.”

Bergin was solid in relief, but the Hornets scored three runs in the fifth inning and it was all they needed as the Griffons were never able to get the bats going.

Michael Schulze scored the Griffons lone run of the game in the first inning. The Griffons came up with seven hits, but weren’t able to advance the runners into scoring position.

“We couldn’t string any hits together,” Verduzco said. “Primarily our record speaks for itself because of what the pitching staff has done. We haven’t been as offensive as we need to be up to this point, so we are going to try to make some moves and give some other kids a chance to play and try to produce some runs where we can.”

Western was on a 10-game winning streak that included a four-game sweep over conference opponent No. 11 ranked Missouri Southern before dropping its last three games.

“When we were winning we had good intensity,” Shockley said. “Here the last couple days our intensity hasn’t been where it needs to be and we have to figure out that too.”

The Griffons will look to get back on the winning track in a four game series against Washburn at the GSSC over the weekend.

“Hopefully we can come back out and play at the top of our game and get where we need to be in the conference so we can make the regional,” Shockley said. “We just have to get back on track.”

Don’t be surprised. SGA has held numerous forums that all students were invited to. Wait, you didn’t get those emails? Well, that’s because there weren’t any.

The act of sending out an email may be one of the easiest things to do on a computer. SGA has the ability to send out emails to all students, as documented by a March 21 email sent out to students asking for applicants for SGA scholarships.

Furthermore, the legislation hasn’t been made publically available online for students to review. Unless you went to the meetings that you weren’t notified about, chances are you don’t know why SGA is proposing this fee.

There’s a certain air of arrogance in senate. The Griffon News has heard comparisons of this fee to federal taxes, where SGA is equating their power to that of the U.S. congress. Additionally, the reason SGA refuses to let students vote on this fee is because they don’t think the students will do the right thing.

These are excuses. A $75 fee is the single most powerful thing SGA has done in years. Their own fee is only $50 per semester for a full time student. As a government official, you can see the appeal to wanting to push this through without the students’ input.

Besides failing to inform, educate and convince students that they believe there is a need for the fee, they have also field to account for all the facts. Next year’s state appropriations are not set in stone. As a matter of fact, legislators are currently working to get the money back to the university’s in their own budget proposal.

SGA’s plan doesn’t have that contingency. Senate could very well pass the fee, then the state legislature and Gov. Nixon could restore funding to the universities, and there would no longer be a need for this fee and students would be paying an extra $75 regardless.

This isn’t about a need for the fee. This isn’t even about Western’s dwindling funding. This is about SGA squelching your voice and your vote. Circumventing the students on such an important issue says that SGA doesn’t care what you have to say or think, that they know what’s best for you and you don’t.

There is hope though. Fortunately, the SGA constitution allows you to take control back. A petition by 10% of the student body (roughly 620 signatures) would force SGA to put the legislation on a ballot. The Griffon News will not take a stance for or against the legislation, but we are taking a stance for your right to be heard.

If the petition is successful, SGA officials claim that there won’t be enough time to set up a special ballot. Make the time. If SGA had planned to let the students vote on the fee from the the beginning, this wouldn’t be an issue.

For more information on the petition, students should contact Barry Hersh (bhersh@missouriwestern.edu). Also, attending the Monday night meeting would force SGA to realize that students want an entire student body vote.

The annual benefit will be held Mar 31 at St. Francis Xavier Church Parish Center and will begin at 5:30 and run about an hour and a half. Seven choirs from the university and community are singing during the event. The benefit involves a spaghetti dinner and music performed by the choirs.

Dr. David Benz, director of choral activities, said the event is “an evening of delicious music.”

Every current choir student from the college should be participating in the event. Songs being performed are mainly pop and jazz music. Each choir performs two songs and has different pieces to sing.

Before the benefit begins, Kathleen Holeman, director of vocal and piano jazz, and Bob Long, director of jazz studies and coordinator of woodwinds, will be performing as the other choirs set up. According to Holeman, in between other choirs setting up she will be performing and singing.

Each guest needs to purchase a $20 ticket to attend. Tickets are available through the university’s music office. The proceeds from ticket sales and donations go towards scholarships for choir students.

Not just the music students are excited for “Pop’s and Pasta” but the directors are eager for the event as well.

“I love it! Holeman said. “This is right up my alley because my focus is jazz and pop. I wholeheartedly get into this event, and of course it is a wonderful benefit for the local scholarship.”

Sophomore music technology major Brent Isom feels that this event should ultimately be a good turnout.

“It’s a good event because it’s one we get to enjoy a lot of what’s going on, along with the people who are actually there,” he said.

“The students like it,” Holeman said.  ”My group does jazz and pop all the time, some of these groups do much more serious literature and I’m sure it’s a welcome change, just to have a variety.”

According to Benz, people give donations and support to their events.

“Often time’s people do give donations; people are very supportive of many things at the university which is great.”

Benz hopes this year is another full house. The center holds roughly 225 guests. He said he always appreciates the people that come out to support the singers and the program.

A tobacco-free proposal was put forth by the chair of the Governmental Relations Communication Committee, Sen. Amanda Johnson. Johnson introduced the proposal, while the proposal’s author Sen. Travis Hart helped with the discussion.

The committee that wrote the proposal was all for updating and amending the document, but wished to keep most of the proposal intact. Senators addressed questions regarding how it would help the school enforce the proposal, how making offenders pay a $25 fee for smoking on campus would be a realistic goal and how the school will enforce students who use other tobacco products in the classroom.

Members of the senate discussed the proposal on the senate floor. One senator wanted to know about past smoking prevention programs and what is currently being done to aid student health.

Johnson said there have been cessation programs in the past and hopes her committee’s proposal encourages other groups to form more programs about smoking awareness.

As senators asked for clarification about the proposal, Johnson said the proposal was the committee’s example of what the smoking proposal might look like.

Johnson said she wanted to create a smoke-free campus, but did not want to specifically state no designated smoking areas.

“We felt that it should be left up to the administration along with residential life,” Johnson said. “Any student can get in their car and smoke.”

Sen. Amber Nold did not agree with the whole policy. She thought the proposal showed favoritism. She did not agree with allowing students to smoke in their car, because not everyone has a car. If students did not own a car they would have to walk off campus to smoke.

SGA members also wanted to know what the main reason for the tobacco resolution was.

“I think there are multiple benefits we can get from this policy,” Hart said. “I think the university can receive insurance benefits from banning smoking. It will improve students’ health, faculty health tremendously because it will reduce the number of cigarettes or tobacco people will use.”

The Student Senate is unable to enact this policy. It has to be passed by board of governors and administration. For the smoking ban proposal to pass, it requires a simple majority in senate.

Another senator wanted to know if SGA would keep hearing about the smoking issue on campus if the proposal did not pass this year. Johnson is graduating this year, but senators may continue to bring up smoking on campus in the future.

Hart created the tobacco-free policy from the policy that the Metropolitan Community College in Kansas City currently uses. The written proposal is two pages long and has an appeal process for students who disagree with a citation. The committee recommends having the policy take effect next year.

The committee worked together to summit it to the Senate. Many of the members on the committee want to see the university tobacco free. The members wanted the proposal discussed in Senate; if not passed, the document can go back to the committee for review and later be resubmitted.

The proposal is open to the public. Students and faculty can contact Johnson to get a copy of the proposal.

The Griffons traveled to Emporia, Kan., to take on the Hornets. The two teams, both 8-0 in the conference, squared off in one of the more highly-anticipated games across the nation.

Western, who’s 2-10 at Trussler Sports Complex, looked to not only end that pattern, but move up even further in the NFCA top-25 poll and secure a couple victories over a winning team in the region. The Griffons couldn’t do any of these, despite a lump of hits.

“Although offensively, we were matching up our hits,” coach Jen Bagley said, “the difference being we had singles, and they had doubles and home runs. And so when they’re able to move the runners that many more times than we are that ends up giving them the advantage for sure.”

Western dropped the first game 5-2 in a game that she describes as they “felt out of sync.”

The Griffons found themselves in game two of the day. Still, one bad inning cost Western as it looked to take a win away from Emporia.

Ahead 2-0, Western gave up five runs in the fifth inning — two homers — to the Hornets to put itself in a hole. The Griffons couldn’t dig themselves out, as they were in too deep.

Western scored two runs in the final inning to pull within one, but couldn’t score the game-tying run as senior Blair Stalder was left stranded on third base when short stop Taylor Anding hit a line-drive down the third base and was called out. The Griffons lost 5-4.

“We gave ourselves a chance in the seventh inning by having a big rally,” Bagley said. “Taylor Anding came up and did everything she could do at her at-bat. She hit just a rocket to the left side of third base and the third baseman, still can’t believe she caught the ball, flew out and caught this scorcher.”

Even before that, the Griffons almost won.

Maegan Roemmich nearly belted out a grand slam as the ball hit near the top of the fence with the bases loaded. Because the Griffons didn’t know if the outfielder was going to make a play on the ball, the runners held up knowing that they could be thrown out.

After the ball missed on the home run, it bounced into playing field as the Griffons started to finish the play. Emporia tagged out Erin Widrig at second base, putting Western with runners at first and third, but with two outs. That’s when Anding stepped up to the plate.

Before Western’s two losses against its conference rival, Western defeated both Northwest Missouri State and Truman State four games to zero. The Griffons stand at 25-6 and have back-to-back double headers at home this weekend against Fort Hays State and Washburn.

Jackie Bishop is currently throwing a .138 ERA and Roemmich counters the pitching with a .392 batting average.

The Griffons are 8-2 in the conference, good for second place, but also good for two games behind Emporia. With the regional rankings right around the corner, Western may possibly host a regional a Griffon Spring Sports Complex, even further evidence that this season may end in a very successful way.

Still, the Griffons are dissatisfied at the way the way the two games ended at Emporia, knowing that if a few areas improved, or a few things went their way instead of the Hornets, that they could be in great position to win the conference title.

“We’re very disappointed,” Bagley said. “The first game was disappointing because we just did not do us very well. But then the second game was disappointing because we were so close to making sure we came across with at least a split.”

Less than two months into her freshman year at Missouri Western, her team and coaches know that, too.

Joining a veteran Western squad that is currently ranked in the NFCA top-25 poll, the added pressure of playing with such an experienced group didn’t faze the St. Charles native. She embraced it.

“Honestly, I really didn’t expect I’d play that much,” Fleschner said. “I was just gonna wait back and see how the older juniors go. It feels amazing because I knew I could hit like that. It just took me forever to show it, so I’m glad I finally did.”

The left-fielder quickly adapted to the team. After splitting time as a starter throughout the first 20 games, Fleschner took over the position. She is hitting second on the team with a .383 average.

In one of her first games as a starter, Western took on Missouri-St. Louis. Though the Griffons suffered a 12-11 defeat, Fleschner went 3-for-3 at bat with three RBIs. Performances like that impressed her coach.

“In the fall is the first time I was like ‘oh,’ I guess this little peanut has a little more pop,” Jen Bagley said. “And recruiting her I saw that, but you never know how they adjust to pitching at this level. But her ability to be consistent is what I was questioning.”

Just like that, the outfielder found her swing and could be counted on. She has not only impressed Bagley, but also veteran players that stand before her.

Maegan Roemmich, currently hitting first on the team with a .392 average, said Fleschner is doing really well.

“We didn’t know if she was a slapper or a hitter,” Roemmich said. “But she can hit the ball out there, hits for power and can slap and gets her bunts down.”

Fleschner sits right behind Roemmich and bats second in the lineup behind lead-off hitter Kendall Sorensen. She has started 17 out of the 21 games she has played in. The five-foot-three starter has four doubles and nine RBIs as of now.

Still, Fleschner said she might not even be at Western if it wasn’t for a change she made after her freshman year of high school. She switched hitting stances.

“I switched about my sophomore year of high school,” Fleschner said. “One of my friends I used to play with brought me to her hitting coach and turned me around right away. And then that next summer, I started hitting left.

“I probably don’t even think I’d be playing college if I wasn’t hitting left-handed. Or not even D-II for that.”

The southpaw slugger joins a group of leftys — senior Blair Stalder and junior Kim Robinson — as players that throw right but hit left. Bagley understands the importance of having Fleschner in the lineup because of that.

“In her speed and what’s she able to do at the plate, it gives us another layer of something different in the lineup,” Bagley said. “It gives us another lefty so that’s good.”

Fleschner is now stable having played multiple games as a Griffon — including six at Griffon Spring Sports Complex. Playing at home helped her prove once again that, despite her size, she can hit.

She blasted a homer March 17 against Truman State—the first of her young career.

“It’s one of those deals where, hey lets give her a couple hacks and she kept producing and another game came by and, let’s give her a chance and she produced,” Bagley said. “So then after a while you’re thinking, ‘well why not,’ and she’s been doing great.”

Fleschner gives the Griffons a freshman that has provided a spark for the second year in a row. In 2011, it was pitcher Jackie Bishop that Western would strike gold with. Now, with the defense in good hands, the offense has help.

On a talented upperclassmen group, the freshman is fitting right in. Though she doesn’t make up for the loss of home run sluggers Brittany Douglas (15 homers) and Toni Dance (13) Western saw in 2011, perhaps she’ll help the Griffons secure the MIAA conference title or a regional championship for the first time.

If nothing else, she definitely isn’t thought of as just a slapper anymore.

“Every player had their chance to perform, and I felt like today was a good day for me,” Zuerlein said. “This is for your future and something that you have looked forward to doing your whole life. It’s a little nerve-wracking, but it’s better to be in this situation and have the opportunity that I have instead of not.”

The scouts already know about Zuerlein’s strong leg as he nailed an NCAA record 9-for-9 field goals from 50-plus yards, including two 58-yard field goals. The only variable that remains is how Zuerlein will perform in front of NFL-sized crowds of 60,000-plus compared to MIAA crowds of around 6,000 fans.

“For me as a kicker, I don’t think it matters from Division I to Division II or NAIA for that matter,” Zuerlein said. “Kicking is kicking. The field goal posts are the same, and you aren’t going up against any harder competition. It’s you versus the goal post.”

Zuerlein connected on all but one of his field-goal attempts, missing one from 48 yards. The deepest kick he made was 52 yards, and he didn’t attempt to kick from longer than that. He was very impressive warming up before the show started, nailing no-step and one-step kicks from deep straight through the uprights.

“As a kicking coach, I like to hear the football,” special teams coach Jay White said. “He has the sound, the explosive live foot, that ball explodes off of his leg. It’s up quick, that leg speed where the ball explodes and goes straight up through the uprights is definitely something that he has over a lot of other kickers.”

The workout concluded with Zuerlein practicing kickoffs from the 35-yard-line, where he sent an impressive 12 out of 16 into the back of the end zone. Three of his kickoffs were so high that they got caught in the ceiling and never came down.

“We have a 70 foot ceiling in here, and he’s kicking it up into the rafters; that’s all good stuff,” White said. “I think they were very pleased with him.”

The Vikings special team coordinator watched Zuerlein kick in a one-on-one workout a couple of weeks back and described it as the most impressive kick off workout that he has been a part of, according to White.

Zuerlein is projected by several sources as one of the top two kickers available in the ’12 NFL draft along with Georgia’s Blair Walsh. ESPN NFL draft expert Mel Kiper Jr. projects Zuerlein as the best kicker in the draft. The chances of him getting drafted as a late-round selection are high.

“I don’t know if I will get drafted. If I do great, if not, hopefully I have an opportunity to kick at some point or at least be brought in a show what I can do,” Zuerlein said.

WAC decided to add a few rules this semester to make the game more fair and challenging. Students that live off-campus are not allowed to participate due to an unfair advantage. All players must have their printed registered ID number on them at all times or they could be disqualified. Bands must be worn and visibly seen every day on campus.

“I’m just hoping for a fun, safe game,” Chance Umstattd, HVZ event planner said. “Last year it got a little crazy with the safety, but hopefully this year everyone has fun and keeps safe and that people want to come back next year.”

WAC has officially notified the students that if any unsportsmanlike conduct such as shoving, hitting, bum-rushing, rough housing or anything else of that nature occurs, HVZ monitors will immediately notify the police.  According to the monitors, last year there were quite a few issues that involved rough play.

Though some students were disappointed at the new rules, over 100 eager students filed in line to register. Many of them are hoping for the same fun that they had last year.

“It was extremely fun being chased by massive numbers of zombies,” participant Cody Benowitz said. “I met a lot of new friends, and I had a lot of fun.”

Participant Gabriel Saldana also had fun last year and enjoyed meeting a lot of people that were big into the game just like him. Though Saldana hopes to stay human for a while before a zombie catches him, he admits that playing on the dark side is still fun.

“Being a zombie isn’t too bad,” Saldana said. “Running around campus late at night was very fun.”

Participant Rachel Monson said the suspense in last year’s game was the best part for her. She never knew when she would die and be turned into a zombie.

“I like seeing how serious everybody takes it,” Monson said. “I also like having to run to and from class to not get caught.”

This year the game will include a number of missions that alter the game guidelines to make the attacks more fun. By the end of this week, ultimate zombies will appear. If tagged by an ultimate zombie, the human will be “dead” and their game will end.  Though this year’s participants are fewer then last year’s due to off-campus students not being able to participate, Umstattd thinks the game will still be fun as long as people abide by the rules.

“Just follow the rules and don’t be a jerk about the game,” Umstattd said. “Have fun and play fair.”

Mark Stier, Director of Residence Life, said that all new facilities have issues and with Griffon Hall, there are issues but they are minor. Part of the problem with the residence is the amount of time it takes for maintenance to come and fix problems. Stier said Griffon Hall doesn’t use the same maintenance people as the other halls. Currently the dormitory is under a one year warranty; when major issues develop, maintenance must first contact the original contractors in order to avoid voiding any building or equipment warrantees.

“Our maintenance staff will of course do all the cleaning and minor maintenance issues,” Stier said. “However, larger items need to be evaluated to determine if they are part of the warranty process.”

The issues that seem to concern students deal mostly with hearing thuds when it’s windy, sinks falling apart and holes in the walls that don’t hold electrical outlets. Bridget Janssen, RHA President and Griffon Hall resident, said that she likes Griffon Hall overall, but does see room for improvement. She said one of her concerns was the suites not having microwaves when other halls do.

Stier said that they did a comparison of off-campus facilities and none of them come with microwaves unless they are built in. He said each commons area in the residence halls has microwaves and most students bring microwaves with them.

“We are trying to compete with other off-campus facilities,” Stier said. “Our facilities match or exceed the others.”

Residents of Griffon Hall are concerned with not having Ethernet cables in the rooms. Griffon Hall resident Jenny McCutchan said there is one internet jack in each suite, but it’s not in a place easy to access.

“The Ethernet cable is tucked away in the corner behind the couch,” McCutchan said.

Stier said part of the reason there are not Ethernet cables in the rooms is because Western has a strong wireless connection. He said the university is providing top-quality internet service and that only having one internet jack in the living room was sufficient enough. Stier doesn’t really know how the university plans to address this issue.

Dr. Vartabedian has made it very clear that the residence halls are a major focus for his administration, Stier said. He said the President toured all the residence halls in December to ensure that any concerns regarding the halls were personally voiced to him.

“Issues brought up were immediately addressed by facilities and Residencial Life,” Stier said.

Griffon Hall resident Alaina Rickard said that one problem is a thud that seems to come from the roof.

“When it’s windy outside it sounds like a thunderstorm,” Rickard said. “It sounds like something’s falling from the roof.”

Stier said he hasn’t heard of this problem yet. He said that he is more than willing to check out the problem, and said there might be something up there that may have come loose.

“There is an access panel to the roof that only maintenance has access too,” Stier said. “We can check on that.”

Other students feel that the hall’s noisiness deals mainly with installation problems.

“Sometimes you can hear people stomping,”  resident Devin Negrete said. “It also depends if you have someone living in the complex next to you. I did and I can hear the T.V. If they blared it, I could hear the T.V. straight through the wall.”

Resident Lindsey Jackson noted that she often hear stomps and loud thuds in the halls. She also stated that their kitchen sink was broken as well. However, maintenance fixed the issue three days after they put in their request.

“There is not very good insulation in the walls,” Jackson said. “Even running in the hall you can hear it. It’s like a herd of elephants.It’s just little things that could be fixed.”

Stier said that his crew and the Residence Hall Director for Griffon Hall, Danny Thompson, will not go through Griffon Hall until the end of the school year when students leave. At that time they will be able to go through and document any problems that they see and fix them.

“We will go room to room, bathroom to bathroom,” Stier said. “We will make an inventory of items that must be fixed.”

In regard to numerous complaints and issues invoving Griffon Hall, Thompson refused to comment.

Student AJ Mercer said that he personally feels maintenance problems aren’t getting done at all. He often sees the maintenance workers but noted that he rarely sees them working.

“Well, my room is 85 degrees right now,” Mercer said. “The spigot on the bottom of my kitchen drain fell off, and I had to repair it myself after three days. No one came. It’s been two months since one of my drawers busted and it hasn’t been touched. The carpeting is coming up in half the room. The power flickers. It’s a complete dump. [Maintenance] came by and fixed the island that fell over. That fell over with no reason; just fell over!”

Here are the reasons they have put forward to explain this:

“Because we can.”
Aside from the fact that our parents ceased using “because I say so” as a rationale by the time we were old enough to perform simple reasoning, this justification offers no explanation and is a textbook example of circular reasoning. “SGA will vote on the issue because it can.” Well, students could also vote on the issue. Why? Because they can. In such an important election, why not make sure that all students get the opportunity to determine the outcome? What’s the real reason SGA may circumvent a student vote on student-approved fees?

“Voter turnout is low.”
So an election is not credible if voter turnout is low? First, people have a right not to vote, and if they exercise that right it doesn’t mean we should dismantle our democracy. Second, how would 18 senators voting on an issue concerning 6,000 plus students constitute high turnout? Finally, what was the voter turnout for current SGA executive and senatorial positions? If low turnout constitutes an illegitimate election, what is to be done about members of SGA? I have a funny feeling proponents of this justification may be reasoning themselves right out of their offices…

“We represent the student body.”
But nearly all senators acknowledge that student support for an additional fee is not high and that the fees, if left for the students to decide, may fail. Some have even admitted this is the reason for avoiding a student vote. So how is avoiding a student vote simply because it jeopardizes the hopes of the Administration representing the student body?

“We know what’s best for the students.”
One prominent SGA official said that since SGA senators agreed more fees were needed, they only needed to worry about how best to get those fees. Students’ voices don’t matter even in their own representative body! SGA should personally tell their fellow students this. Let your peers know you think 18 senators are better equipped to speak for the students than the students themselves. I would even suggest a quota of 340 students each since that is the approximate number of voices you would be consolidating into your own.

It is not in a leader to take the easy way out. It may be a challenge to convince the student body to vote in favor of student-approved fees, but that is the responsibility of the SGA officials who support it. I hope and believe that in the coming weeks some members of SGA will step forward and provide true leadership and representation for the students. Whether you are for student fees or against them, we can all rally behind the idea that students’ votes should be counted. Concerned students, it would be great if you join me at SGA meetings, 6pm Monday nights on 2nd floor of Blum. Just showing up and watching may be enough to guarantee you a vote on this critical issue.

Students have stood helpless as class sizes grow with increased enrollment and fewer instructors to cover subjects in a timely fashion to facilitate graduation. The frustration of some students has pushed them toward other campuses to complete their degree.

Timely maintenance of buildings and grounds along with expansion opportunities of the campus have been set aside. The administration has had to cut back on employees in every department. Key, long-term people are not being replaced. Quality student services have been somewhat steady so far but can’t be sustained at the present level.

It is time for students to start paying more. The administration’s hands are tied by Senate Bill 389, which prohibits tuition increases based on increased costs. The application of higher student fees is the only way to keep the quality of Western’s education and experience high.

If administration could have, they would have increased tuition several times in the last decade. They also missed opportunities in the past to increase tuition in accord with senate bill 389, but they opted to keep tuition low. With increasing costs of uncontrollable things such as insurance and utilities Western’s budget is in trouble.

When students are asked to pay an additional fee it should go for student services only. Students will probably go along with the idea and vote to support their own services. Those services are located on the second floor of Blum and include SGA, student engagement, diversity, healthcare, and many other areas of student life.

The Vice President of Financial Planning, Mel Klinkner reported the administration cost for those services other than SGA is about the same as the state’s last budget cut of $1.9 million. To cover the cost of student services students would need to pay an additional $175.00 per semester. If administration increased tuition when they could have students would be paying more of a tuition increase than this.

It makes since to pay for our own services and also have more control over student services. SGA could have control over the budget to cover the second floor of Blum and administration could get back one of the years of state appropriations cuts. The student fees would only freeze the campus budget where it was last year.

We will never have administration this motivated to cooperate with us again. We need to collect the fees and take control of our own services and have a greater voice on campus to hire and fire those who serve us and advise us.

There would be a power struggle to negotiate between administration and the SGA. The students probably wouldn’t get complete control to hire or fire state employees but we could have a greater voice with a vote from the senate of confidence or no confidence of each employee each time the SGA administration changes.

We would be giving the SGA president and senators more power and control over student services. Their budget could go from half a million to nearly $2.5 million overnight. What better way to prepare these leaders of tomorrow? Give them real world problems along with the people and finances to solve them.

How many times do students have to say no by voting down a smoking ban. Please! SGA, stop the insanity. We have voted down the idea of a smoking ban several times and those who think we all voted by mistake, or we didn’t really mean it, think we need to vote again until they get their way.

This was a smoking campus when they got here. If they want to go to a smoke free school then they need to go do that. Stay away from my freedom.

You have to question the intelligence of any student who looks at Missouri Western and sees something they do not like and then they decide to come here to change everyone’s freedoms to suit their behavior. If you don’t like people enjoying a cigarette or cigar between classes outside of the buildings then go to another school.

We smoke here.

We smoked in front of you when you toured the campus with your parents. There are ash trays everywhere outside. You selected this school for what I hope is a good reason that still exist. Cling to that and deal with the smokers.

Maybe your test scores were too low and you couldn’t get into the school of your choice. That is no one’s fault but your own. If you have to go to an open enrollment school then deal with the consequences you caused.

There are problem smokers. They hang around the doors and refuse to smoke in the designated areas. It is a real problem and I have been saying for years that they do so at their own risk. Western’s administration can and will ban smoking if the expense of littering becomes too large of a problem. If smokers would follow the rules, there would be nothing for non-smokers to complain about.

The “smoke banners” also use the tired excuse that they are worried about smokers health and second hand smoke. It is not true. Second hand smoke a few times a week while in college has never been documented as the cause of someones health problem.

If they want a health related cause to champion on this campus then, why not attack the number one health problem here, STDs.

There is a reason the health center hands out free condoms at the front counter. Notice they do not hand out nicotine gum!

The proposed ban is futile. When you get to vote on this issue again please vote to keep our campus free! (again)

Thanks

This is a big improvement from last year, considering the fact the team only won three games total, with two of the three wins coming from conference-opponent Lincoln.

This year’s squad is fairly young, with the majority of the team being freshman and sophomores. Head coach Ron Selkirk feels that a lot of the girls this year are still getting used to playing in on a higher level than normal because of how young they are.

“I think most of these young girls have not played on the level of Division II college tennis,” Selkirk said. “Most of them are learning that it is truly a more stronger and consistent game than what they have found in their high school careers.”

Selkirk stated that he noticed the team was a lot better than he expected at the beginning of the season. The team has won some important close games, and as the competition gets tougher, he is starting to see constant growth from the girls.

This year’s team has not backed down from any of the teams that they have faced this season. Selkirk feels that even with the better teams that they have played, his team is putting in a strong effort each time they suit up to play.

“I do think that they have been overwhelmed sometimes by some of the stronger teams that we have came across,” Selkirk said. “But I also feel that when they walk off the court, they feel like they could have done better. Before you can be competitive in a situation, you have to go out and make it a close game to begin with.”

Selkirk also stated that as the girls grow and gain more experience, the more the team will develop into a strong contender. Experience seems to be what the team is lacking, but the will to win has been shown by all the girls including the freshman.

The team has a lot of players that have stepped up to the challenge, and have shown that they will continue to get better. Alecia Jenkins is the only senior on the team, but has played very well and has continued to show good leadership toward the team in her first year on varsity.

Sophomore Katie Fields has also had a fairly strong season thus far, and Selkirk hopes that her play will continue as the season progresses.

The mental part of the game is something that Selkirk said he has continued to teach to his players. Being able to compete and hustle for an entire match – no matter the score — is what he wants his girls to learn and show when they step on the court.

No. 10 ranked Western continued its dominance in the circle behind 2011 MIAA Freshman of the Year Jackie Bishop, as it completed a two-game sweep against Northwest Missouri State Friday at Griffon Springs Sports Complex, winning 9-0 (five innings) and 8-3.

The Griffons notched 59 home runs in 2011, but lost senior top hitters in Brittany Douglas (15 home runs) and Toni Dance (13). No game proved how powerful Western’s sluggers were than its six-homer game when the two teams matched up last year.

This season, Western powered Northwest again, but instead of belting ball across the fence, its defense gave the Bearcats trouble.

“I did not sleep very well last night because I watched (Northwest) hit against Wayne State’s pitching, and they were just lighting it up all over the place,” Bagley said. “Coming into today, I was really worried about us being able to come and be present defensively and be able to handle the ball in the circle. But we did so that was good.”

Bishop threw nine strikes and gave up one hit in just five innings, as the Griffons collected a 9-0 run-rule win against their rivals.

The sophomore pitched a shutout for the third time and improved her record to 12-1 to help Western (23-4, 6-0 MIAA) keep the Bearcats (11-11, 2-2) off the board.

In 13 starts, Bishop has a 1.05 ERA and 123 strike outs. The starter threw 224 in 2011 — a Western record — and is on pace to take the record down.

“I know I have a really good outfield and infield to back me up,” Bishop said. “So I’m not really ever to worked up out there. I’m just trying to get the job done.”

Friday afternoon, Western’s hitting wasn’t too bad either. Helped by three errors from Northwest in the first game, Western jumped out to a 4-0 lead after two innings.

Keri Lorbert singled to left field, followed by Taylor Anding’s pop to first base. An error at first base saved Anding and advanced Erin Widrig, who was pitch hitting for Lorbert, to third.

Leah Steele hit a sacrifice bunt on the next play, but Northwest catcher Kylie Cantrell was unable to scoop up the grounder and tag Widrig at home plate, scoring Western’s first run.

Katherine Steponovich sent a ball to the right field that scored Anding seconds later, which followed another error by the Bearcats when Steele ran home and Cantrell couldn’t bring in the long throw to home plate.

The Griffons have just 12 home runs halfway through the season, a far stretch from their total in 2011, but give up less than three runs a game.

“We have a good balance,” Bagley said. “I think if we continue to play good defense and we continue to pitch (well), we’ll find ways to score runs.”

Nebraska-Omaha transfer Sarah Elliott scored Steponovich on the next bat, giving the Griffons the 4-0 lead against the Bearcats.

Maegan Roemmich started the Griffons fourth inning with a single to left field, producing a five-run inning to mark the score 9-0. Roemmich finished with four hits on five at-bats and two RBIs.

“It’s a compliment to be ranked tenth, but right now it doesn’t mean anything,” Roemmich said. “We just got to win. I’m just having fun out there.”

In game two Western took advantage of five Bearcat errors to snag a 5-0 lead through four innings.

Northwest crept back into the game after it belted two homers in the fifth, one by Cantrell and another by second baseman Hailee Hendricks off new-comer Annalee Rubio.

However, the junior struck out the next two batters to leave the Bearcats with two runners stranded and keep the Bearcats at bay. Western tacked on three more runs to end the game 8-3 and complete the sweep.

“We’re just playing really solid team ball right now,” Bishop said. “Home runs definitely help, but they don’t always win ball games. Solid hits win ball games, solid defense; and I feel like we’re doing both really well this year so far.”

The officers of the College Republicans have made their picks for President of the United States to go against President Obama this fall. Each officer of the organization has chosen a different candidate and they all seem to dislike a particular candidate as well, but they all agreed that whoever the nominee is they will support.

Travis Hart, College Republican’s president said that his candidate for President is Newt Gingrich. He believes that Newt has a great plan for America which includes lowering gas prices down to $2.50 a gallon, reforming Medicare, and entitlement reforms.

Sterling Flitcher, College Republican’s secretary said he supports Congressman Ron Paul of Texas for President. He also said that overall he wanted to defeat President Obama and would support any candidate.

It seems  that  the economy is not the only issue  these  leaders are worried about. The officers of the College Republicans believe that the rise of gas prices,  Obama care, and social issues seem to be  major factors for them going into the 2012 elections.

Flitcher said it’s not directly President Obama’s fault for the rise in gas prices. He said that Obama had the opportunity to sign the treaty to Key Stone Pipeline, and he refused to do that.

“That was a way in which he could have helped, but he didn’t, Hart said.”

Jacob Scott, College Republican’s vice president said that he isn’t in favor of the Keystone pipeline. He believes that the government has a responsibility to create conditions for Americans to succeed. Scott said President Obama has an obligation, or any President for that matter, if gas prices are too high then make it possible for us to drill.

“What you do is create fairness through standards and regulation’s to allow for drilling, Scott said.” “So the price of gas can go down, stimulate our economy, and improve our country.”

The organization believes that many of the bills that have been passed over this President should be repealed. Hart believes that Obama Care is a major issue but is not the only bill that should be repealed.

“We can’t just stop at Obama care, Hart said.” “We are the party of reforming, and we don’t want to just replace it, but reform it.”

The opposition has a different approach on the republican candidates and party. Kayla Wiedmaier, pride member said that she believes the Republicans are close-minded, power-hungry, greedy people. She said that a main issue is her support for gay marriage and the opposition of the Republicans who don’t support equality of marriage.

“I think that Republicans are so concerned with what the church thinks, Wiedmaier said.”  “Mainly because the Christians lobby and give money to these candidates, and they don’t stop to think about the nation as a whole.”

Angie Briggs, Lawson, Mo., “This is Football” 3rd place in "General Camp Fun."

After taking a brief moment to speak with Director of Athletics Kurt McGuffin, he said he was prepared to hire a lot more security this summer for the Kansas City Chiefs Training Camp at Missouri Western. Why?

Peyton Manning may be coming to town.

McGuffin stated that loads of security will be needed if Manning keeps his talents in the Midwest the greatest free agent ever to hit the market, Manning was released by the Indianapolis Colts after missing the year with a neck injury.

The Colts were ready to move on after securing the No. 1 pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, and with talented Quarterbacks Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III coming out, Indianapolis made the move.

Now that the future Hall-of-Famer has hit the market and can sign anywhere he wishes, why would he choose Kansas City? ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Chris Mortensen both reported that 12 teams have reached Manning’s agent about possibly playing for their team. With that in mind, eight of the 12 seemed to be heavy contenders. Here’s the list:

• Arizona Cardinals
• Denver Broncos
• Kansas City Chiefs
• Miami Dolphins
• New York Jets
• San Francisco 49ers
• Seattle Seahawks
• Washington Redskins

When Western students return to campus next week, one of the best QBs in NFL history may be a Chief. He will almost certainly have a home, being that he said he wants to move quickly, and not make this a long-drawn-out process. So now, a break down on why he could/should/will be a Chief; but first, a reason why he won’t be wearing anything but Red and Gold.

Arizona Cardinals — Perhaps the most exciting situation, the Cardinals have talent that Manning would love. With Larry Fitzgerald, Beanie Wells and a decent defense, Manning should take them seriously. Plus, the Cardinals are likely to sign Manning’s buddy Reggie Wayne — but — the team doesn’t have money, and might have to release starting offensive tackle Levi Brown in order to sign Manning. Why would he go there when the O-Line is close to horrendous?

Denver Broncos — This team showed how good its defense was when they won six-straight games on the way to the playoffs. That would definitely help Manning out, and he has already visited Denver, Colo. However, Tebowmania’s there. Already, a poll was released in Denver asking fans who they would want — Manning or Tebow — and rougly 60 percent went with Manning. Really? Tebow vs. Manning, and nearly half the fans want Tebow? Pass.

Miami Dolphins — Manning currently lives in Miami, Fl. Almost all indications are that the Dolphins are the favorites. Miami hired a new coach, Joe Philbin, who came from Green Bay. There, he coached a top-tier Quarterback in Aaron Rodgers, and backup Matt Flynn, who is a free agent. Flynn would most likely go to Miami over Manning, because the coach wants him, and thinks he will be there for 10 years instead of Manning’s short run.

New York Jets — The Jets ended any hope of Manning when they resigned Mark Sanchez to a 3-year deal late Friday night.

San Francisco 49ers — Manning replaced Jim Harbaugh as a Quarterback in 1998. Could the two work out on the same team now? Highly unlikely. Harbaugh has a thick playbook with conservative plays, unlike Manning, who likes to run fast and call his own plays. It doesn’t make sense that those two will hook up. Harbaugh would rather resign Alex Smith and keep his team — that went 13-3 in 2011 — intact.

Seattle Seahawks — Seattle is 1,000 miles away from the closest team in the NFL. Why would Manning want to end his career in the Northwest? Besides, Manning doesn’t want to go the NFC. He will if he has to, but he doesn’t have to go to Seattle. While the Seahwaks do need a QB, lower free agents like Jason Campbell and Kyle Orton might be better suited for them.

Washington Redskins — They just traded up to snag Luck or Griffon III. They play in the NFC East where Mannings brother, Eli, plays. This is a no.

So what about Kansas City? The Chiefs have the most talent out of all eight teams. Injuries affected this team more than any other in 2011. Tight end Tony Moeaki and running back Jamaal Charles are back after season-ending injuries. So is Pro-Bowl safety Eric Berry. The Chiefs also lost starters Matt Cassel and Brandon Siler for the year.

With all that, Kansas City missed out on the playoffs by just a half-game. Those players are all back, save for Cassel, who would only not be back if the Chiefs pick up Manning. Kansas City also has talented offensive players Dwayne Bowe, Steve Breaston and Dexter McCluster along with a top-12 defense. The big message with the Chiefs, they don’t need Manning. Cassel could take this team to the playoffs anyway. But with Manning, this team could make the Super Bowl.

Also, word is that Manning loves barbecue.

Look for Manning to be making a trip to St. Joesph, Mo. in late July. When Western and the Chiefs hooked up over two years ago and decided to do the training camp, each side wanted 10,000 fans a day. McGuffin pointed to Western needing to pay for “that building” when talking about the Griffon Indoor Sports Complex. 10,00o fans a day would do that.

If I’m wrong, it wouldn’t be the first time. I thought Kansas would beat Northern Iowa, Bucknell, Bradley and VCU in the NCAA Tournament.

Josh Yakovitz shows off some of his moves in Blum Union to anyone who wants to watch. Photo by Jason Brown.

His opponent fired back, sporting his moves and ending his turn by pulling his shirt over his head and tossing it on the floor as if to say “Top that.”

Yakovitz walked past his challenger, who thought he had won until Yakovitz jumped on stage only to do a back flip from it.

“That came out of nowhere,” sophomore and long-time friend Alex Merling said of Yakovitz’s performance at the Griffon Edge event. “That brought out a long line of dance offs.”

To view the Griffon Edge dance off, search “dance off at mowo” on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heekEC7Ua00).

Merling also said after the Griffon Edge weekend, another student had heard about Yakovitz and challenged him to a dance off in the parking lot. Yakovitz won.

This dancing machine is a sophomore now, yet he’s been dancing since high school. Merling said he remembers meeting Yakovitz his freshman year of high school and watching him beat seniors in dance offs. He was always known as “that dancing guy.”

Winning dance offs for Yakovitz never discontinued. In fact, he took first place at last semester’s Western Activities Council Talent Show after winging his choreography. He mixed the song he wanted to dance to an hour before, then pondered how he was going to perform to it. He figured out a basic plan for certain parts of the mix, but he overall just wanted to go with the flow and not look technical on stage.

“I don’t really think; I just hear the music,” Yakovitz said. “I just listen to music all day, every day.”

Yes, Yakovitz can often be seen with his headphones in, bobbing his head to some tunes.

Although he’s a big fan of music, dancing didn’t necessarily come natural to him.

Yakovitz said he would spend from two to three hours in his basement learning new moves from YouTube and his influences, like Chris Brown.

“I like watching all different styles because it’s interesting to see what people can do with their bodies,” Yakovitz said. “If I was trying to get one thing right, I did it until I got it right; time wasn’t my main focus.”

Yakovitz’s determination has allowed him to become a versatile dancer. Merling says he can dance to any slow or upbeat song, and that he picks up moves very easily. While he does use various styles of dancing, he enjoys using his hat as a prop.

“I really like the hat tricks,” Yakovitz said. “The hat stays stationary while your whole body’s moving, so it’s pretty cool.”

Yakovitz doesn’t go to school for dancing, however. He came to Missouri Western for the business program, so he is double majoring in marketing and finance. While he’s not exactly sure what he wants to do with his major right now, he knew being in a fraternity would benefit him in the business department.

In turn, he joined Phi Delta Theta. He currently holds the Brotherhood and Intramurals chairs, and he also helps at events.

Being in a fraternity doesn’t keep him away from dancing, though.

In fact, Merling, who is also a member, said when Yakovitz danced, he helped raise a lot of money during the Buy-a-Phi event because a lot of students kept bidding for him.

While Yakovitz is staying focused on school, he still finds time to bust a move.

“Anytime there’s music, he would dance,” Merling said. “It’s fun to watch.”

Despite all of this, there are still some nice and interesting places to go for spring break in Missouri.

Here is a go-to guide for spring break events that are within five hours of St. Joseph.

Branson, Mo., has a number of attractions during the weekends. Several museums and theaters are available for tourists’ entertainment.

Despite being recently hit by a tornado and dealing with a lot of damage through out the town, Branson is still putting on a lot of shows, and their Titanic museum is still operating.

The Titanic tour runs through March 15 from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. and is a rather intriguing event. If you attend the tour, you will actually board onto a ship that also gives you a visual tour of what life what life on the Titanic, including actual diaries of real passengers.

This is just one of many attractions in Branson which is just under five hours away from St. Joseph and can easily occupy an entire break.

In the heart of Missouri is Lake of the Ozarks, a theme park of sorts that surrounds a reservoir. You are probably thinking this sounds boring: just some camping and float-trips, right?

Wrong.

The Ozarks is full of attractions. There are also casinos, caves, laser tag, museums and even wineries for all you classy folks.

You could spend multiple days at the Ozarks, instead of just one.

But if you would just like to stay within the confines of western Missouri, there are plenty of events going down in Kansas City during Spring Break.

During the entire week of Spring Break, “The Importance of Being Earnest” is being performed at The American Heartland Theatre. This would be perfect for a nice night out in Kansas City, seeing a classic comedic play at Heartland. Tickets for the show can be purchased at www.ahtkc.com.

Lastly: a big part of this spring break is that St. Patrick’s Day falls into it. Nearly every restaurant and bar in Kansas City is going to be having their own annual St. Patrick’s Day parties, but let’s not forget about the St. Patrick’s Day Parade at Crown Center, which starts at 1:30 pm on March 17, but it would be a wise choice to get there early.

St. Patrick’s Day will be a great way to end the break, so be sure to have a memorable (but safe) time.

As you can see, there are a few spots right here in Missouri that can still make quite the fun trip. Whether its concerts, casinos, theme parks, or parades, there should still be something you can find to entertain yourself.

Scott and Upton won with 449 votes while Cody Beyers and Kelsey Samenus received 308 votes, totaling 757 total voters.

President Jacob Scott takes on the head position of SGA. Photo by Jason Brown

“I am so excited,” Scott said. “It’s going to be a great honor to serve students for an entire year as SGA president.”

Scott said that Beyers and Samenus were worthy opponents and that they are welcome to be a part of SGA in the future.

“Even though I’m going to be president,” Scott said, “their ideas will live on—their ideas of accountability and leadership and enthusiasm—those ideas will live on in my administration.”

Beyers and Samenus’ campaign scope was broad. On both election nights it was reported that both of them were either going to door to door at the residence halls or making phone calls to Western students. Beyers believes that this strategy helped get voters out.

“It was a really good voter turnout,” Beyers said. “Obviously we didn’t attract the same crowd that Jacob did. The man on the street—people seeing our faces—it was a good approach but Jacob has more connections I suppose.”

Scott admitted that he was never too worried about the election.

“I’d lie to you if I said I wasn’t nervous,” Scott said, “but I know that I have the best supporters that campaigned so hard for me that helped me out so much. I’d just be lost without them.”

Even though he lost the election, Beyers said that he would like to see the budget reconstructed next year.

“I’d like to see more line item things so the students can see where their money is going and why it’s going there,” Beyers said.

Beyers said that he doesn’t know yet if he will apply for a directorship. Scott said that if Beyers or Samenus applies that he would certainly consider them for directorships along with anyone else who applies.

For those of you who have seen the “Paranormal Activity” movies, the style of filming is almost identical. The whole movie was shot for the “home movie” effect. Cameras are set up throughout the entire shuttle, as well as set up all around outside where they landed on the moon. A few handheld cameras were used for point of view shots. To make the movie more realistic, they chose to make the film footage look old and grainy. The movie resembles the footage you see of Richard Nixon when he was in office. I think it would have been a better idea for a drama or a true story astronaut movie, and not a horror.

The part where this movie fails to have the effect that “Paranormal Activity” created is that there are few humans who can relate to this in any way. “Paranormal Activity” scared people because the story was about an average couple in an average house with a video camera. The idea of a home video adds to the realistic feeling the story gives. Because of the amateur home video and average life setting, everyone could easily understand their fear. Creaking doors, sounds from other rooms and little frightening instances have happened to everybody. This was how “Paranormal Activity” was a success.

But how many of us have woken up in the middle of the night because we thought we heard a noise outside our space shuttle while we were parked on the moon? I know I haven’t. How many of us remember how nervous we were on our first space mission? We have no way of becoming emotionally attached to the storyline of “Apollo 18” because none of us know what it’s like to be an astronaut. Not to mention the astronaut lingo used in 1974 isn’t exactly in our everyday vocabulary, so it not only makes the movie unrelatable, but confusing as well. I’m one of those people who jump at everything scary and jarring in horror movies. I never jumped or even felt nervous.

I’m sure a lot of time and effort went into creating cool effects of something unknown scaring the astronauts on the moon. But there could be an army of a million aliens surrounding their shuttle, and it’s still not going to scare me as much as having a door slowly creak open here on earth. I’m not going to the moon anytime soon. Alien horror movies have a tough enough time scaring an audience, but to do it successfully, you need to, at minimum, have it take place on earth so people can halfway relate to it.

Sport: Baseball

Year: Junior

Position: First baseman

Stats this week: HRs — 1; RBIs — 2; Batting Average — .455

Shockley provided two hits and an in the park homer to defeat Central Missouri, the No. 2 team in the nation, 8-3. Shockley provided the home run in the fourth inning, marking the score 4-0 and ending much hope the Mules had at the victory. The junior was five-for-11 at the plate with a .455 batting average.

The Griffons bats came out hot in game one as Nate Ramler hit an RBI single that scored Michael Schulze in the first inning.

In the top of the fourth inning, Bubba Dotson and Grant Fink led off with back-to-back homeruns. Spencer Shockley hit an inside-the-park homerun that put the Griffons on top 4-0 after four innings.

The Griffons added three more runs in the fifth inning as Dotson, Kyle Simpson and Shockley all crossed home plate to put Western up 7-0.

Pitcher Ethan Ward shut the Mules down until the fifth inning, when he gave up three hits and two runs. Central’s attempt at a comeback fell short as Ward improve to 1-1 on the season, striking out four batters and pitching seven innings. Western won game one 8-2.

The Mules bounced back in game two with hot bats, defeating the Griffons 11-0.

Pitcher Brandon Simmons’ record fell to 2-1 on the season as he gave up five runs in five innings. The Griffons offense totaled five this for the game.

In game three, Shockley and Dotson hit doubles in the second inning while Simpson hit a single and the Mules made two errors to put the Griffons up 4-0.

Homeruns by Fink and Ramler increased the lead to 6-0 after the top of the sixth inning. In the bottom of the sixth, Western committed two errors of its own and Central scored seven runs highlighted by a three-run homerun by Jon Cotter. Central led 7-6 after six innings.

Ramler got a single in the seventh to give Western the 8-7 lead, but it wasn’t enough as the Mules got a bases loaded single to win the game 9-8 in the bottom half of the inning.

The Griffons got out to a 1-0 lead in game four, but Central responded with two runs in the bottom of the second to take a 2-1 lead. The Mules never looked back and went on the win the game 7-2.

Western fell to 5-6 overall and 1-3 in MIAA Conference play after facing some very tough early competition.

Prevention Education Specialist Ron Cohen defines Green Dot as a moment or opportunity for somebody to utter the intolerance of violence. According to Cohen, Green Dot is not a club, program or organization, but a moment of standing against a potential threat.

“It’s not a club. It’s not a position. It’s not a person. A lot of people say ‘I was a green dot today.’ You can’t be a green dot, you performed a green dot,” Cohen said.

Green Dot, which just started on campus last semester, is open to anyone interested in standing against violence as long as they understand and have the right knowledge of what it is, Cohen said.

“As far as collaborating with the program, any student, faculty or staff member, anybody can become a part of it,” Cohen said.

Cohen feels that even though Green Dot is a new movement, it has already started turning heads across campus.

“I think we’ve made a really good impact thus far on the campus,” Cohen said. “As we look around we see many students wearing green dot buttons. That’s definitely a start for us. People are feeling empowered by what Green Dot is.”

On Monday, March 5, the programmers held a self-defense course that also served as a violence prevention informational with demonstrations, applications and numerous free things to give away to students and staff. In addition to the self-defense classes that are offered numerous times throughout the year, Green Dot personnel will also host “Green Dot Jeopardy,” “Hug Your Homeboy/Homegirl” and an annual Bystander Intervention Conference all within the month of March. The Bystander Intervention Conference is a free six-hour conference that provides training to become an official green dot generator.

Prevention Education Coordinator Jackie Moser feels that anybody should be knowledgeable when it comes to protecting yourself in today’s society.

“[Knowledge] is important to have anywhere just because of a threat that something can happen,” Moser said. “We live in a society where violence does occur. The more students are aware of their surroundings, the more they’ll be safe in any situation they are in, on campus or off campus.”

Green Dot Generator, Resident Assistant and student Jackie Waters feels that students specifically should consider being trained as green dot personnel due to the fact that it helps save people from hurt, harm and danger. Currently, all of the Resident Assistants have been through the training. In the training, Waters explains, she learned three techniques of how to perform a green dot: direct, delegate and distract.

“Sometimes a lot of us green dots have that direct approach,” Waters said. “We go directly to the situation and we say ‘Hey this is not acceptable. Can you chance this?’ If we don’t feel that we are prompt to take action we delegate it to someone else to say something. For the distraction, we will go up to the person and be like ‘Hey do you have a quarter?’ in the middle of their situation to kind of distract them from the problem. Being an RA, we do run into a lot of those situations in the residence halls.”

Waters provides one stern warning to anybody that is considering getting more involved with Green Dot.

“Take that one person in your life that you honestly love, and write them down on a piece of paper,” Waters said. “Just think if somebody was to rape them, verbally abuse them or get into their minds mentally. Just think of the first thing that comes to your mind when something like that happens. That’s what helped me out in the program on willing to help prevent these different things. All and all, it could be you at the end of the day.”

The next Green Dot Training will be on March 24. Free food and a free T-shirt will be provided. For more information on the green dot program visit www.mwsugreendot.com.

This year, the Lady Blues were the top-seed, and still knocked Missouri Western from the field and its season ended. Western’s season ended at 7-20, but the final game wasn’t the last of the news heard about the team.

Less than 24 hours after the finals buzzer sounded, Athletic Director Kurt McGuffin let go head coach Lynn Plett after a 46-89 record and no tournament wins. The season wrapped up, but next year is already starting, as McGuffin has already instituted a group that will search for a new coach.

Before next season begins, the 2011-12 team did take the floor and did produce seven victories. One of the big stories heading into the year was starting guard Ashleigh Curry’s return to the court. The senior had not played since the 2006-07 team, yet decided to return to school and use her one last season of eligibility to try and help Western win.

“I think I grew a friendship with everybody on the team. This team is different,” Curry said. “I wish everybody the best of luck. I’m not an emotional person, (but) this team is great”

Things were rocky from the beginning, however. Nothing Curry did wrong kept her from playing, but the guard sat all non-conference and the first several games of conference season.

The 26-year-old missed the games due to playing for semi-pro team Livin’ the Dream while she did not attend Western. She also practiced with the 2010-11 team which could have cause problems, so McGuffin wanted to make sure no illegal action happened during that year.

After Curry arrived, star forward Jessica Koch’s magical career had yet another twist — the senior achieved the all-time career point total for the Griffons. With 1,776 points, Koch is and will have the most points for a long time.

“I’ve had such a blast this year,” Koch said. “It wasn’t negative. It was a very positive year. And I love all these girls. Even though we lost (to Washburn), it was a great year for us. And I love Missouri Western.”

Western’s season spiraled down after winning three conference games in a row in early January. The Griffons lost 10 of their next 11 games, and had to defeat Southwest Baptist on the final day to make it to the MIAA Tournament.

They did just that, but after one game into the tournament, the team’s season was over. Plett said despite the wins not happening, the team worked hard.

“They set a work-ethic standard,” Plett said. “My hope is that it carries on.”

Western loses five seniors — Koch, Curry, Abby Stone, Brittany Casady and Alex Noble — but returns scorers Kallie Schoonover, Alicia Bell and Brittany Griswold, who missed final two months of the season with a foot injury.

Whoever McGuffin chooses as the next coach to lead the women’s team will more than likely recruit hard for scorers and post-play, and hope that Western can climb out of the bottom and have a quick turnaround soon.

“The seniors taught us great work ethic,” Schoonver said. “That’s something no one can take away. We gotta come back, from day one, work our butts off to get revenge, not only for ourselves but for the seniors that won’t be here with us.”

Jackie Bishop came into the first game with a record of 8-0 and held the Hawks scoreless in the first three innings including striking out the first four batters.

Quincy’s Ashleigh Roscetti singled two runners home, and an Emma Topps single batted in another in the fourth inning.  Those three runs were all Quincy needed as the Griffons failed to get on the scoreboard.

“Francis pitched really well and the thing that we didn’t do to match that today was make the small adjustments early enough in the ballgame to make a difference,” Coach Jen Bagley said. “That ugly momentum thing played more in that dugout than ours because we just didn’t give ourselves a chance.”

Francis only gave up three hits and struck out nine batters while shutting the Griffons out in the 3-0 Quincy victory. Bishop struck out 10 batters and only gave up four hits, but it wasn’t enough to prevent her from taking her first loss of the season.

“This team is going to be a lot more of a team that hits for average and not home-runs,” Bagley said. “I don’t consider that a problem, but we have to get a couple hits in a row and live on that momentum bug. Today we didn’t have it.”

Annalee Rubio pitched a stong game too. Rubio improved her record to 5-3 on the season after only giving up three hits, striking out five batters and giving up only one earned run.

“If those two pitchers show up and throw the way they did today and we show up on the other side of the ball, then you can’t ask for more,” Bagley said.

With the game on the line and Kendall Sorensen on third, Quincy elected to intentionally walk Keri Lorbert to face Maegan Roemmich, who made them pay for the decision.

“I got excited when I saw that I was going to get the chance to bat,” Roemmich said. “I have a lot of confidence in Keri, but I was ready for my turn.”

Roemmich hit a double to right center that scored Sorensen and broke a 1-1 tie in the bottom of the sixth inning. The Hawks couldn’t answer in the seventh inning and the Griffons pulled out the 2-1 victory.

Quincy is off to a 5-10 start to its season, but has been consistently been good over the years.

“Quincy is a very good team. I scheduled them because they are a good opponent and we need to play good teams,” Bagley said. “I told the team that you got to respect the game and you can’t take anybody lightly. Until you get your 21 outs, anyone beats you if you look to the big picture and don’t pay attention to the small stuff.”

The Griffon bats only totaled six hits off of Francis, who pitched all of both games.

“We just need to hit the ball better ,” Roemmich said. “We went out there thinking too much and guessing at the pitcher instead of being aggressive and swinging the bat.”

Western starts its MIAA conference season against Southwest Baptist in Bolivar, Mo., on March 9.

The Director of Athletics has showed this already in his short term as a Griffon by laying the hammer down on Women’s Basketball coach Lynn Plett.

The former basketball coach had a losing record, and despite the hand he was dealt, it has been five years. In athletics, where winning is all that matters, Missouri Western is trying to prove that. After all, it has to compete against Northwest Missouri State, who is atop the likes of football, tennis and now basketball.

Western’s basketball program was among the top since 1990. The ladies were competing for not only the conference title, but in attendance total.

Plenty of times, the Griffon’s fans saw their team win at home, knocking 3s down and cheering on the Black and Gold. That hasn’t happened the past few years.

Placed in a bad situation, the Griffons thought if anybody could pull them out of a mess, it would be Mr. Plett. He was named the conference coach of the year while at Lewis University, and had the team competitive and in the top-10 while there. He almost won a national title.

Plett is a good man – a great man. And it seems many around the athletics respected him a lot, including McGuffin. Still, that does not mean the man’s job was safe, secured and should have been. The only way he could have stayed on the sidelines was if he won. Less than 10 wins a year was not going to cut it.

Western’s new coach inherits a squad of less talent than Plett inherited years ago. Nobody knows who the coach is going to be, despite who follows McGuffin on Twitter. Ask him and he’ll tell you the same. All that matters is this – pretend you don’t know the new coach – if that coach has a record of 46-89 over the next five seasons, has a national top-10 3-point shooter, a potential conference player of the year candidate and no conference tournament wins – do you keep him or her?

Probably not. So why would Plett have stayed? It’s an ugly situation. Plett is a good coach and could have produced wins here. It wasn’t the worst idea to give the guy five years. But your team reflects the coach, and  it wasn’t looking too high for the team heading in the direction they were heading.

Could Plett have produced a 20-win season and a top-3 MIAA team next season? Yeah, anything is possible. They did almost beat No. 1 Washburn back in January. But can another coach do that as well? Yeah. That’s why McGuffin made his decision.

Lynn Plett was let go by Director of Athletics Kurt McGuffin late Friday evening, one day after Western’s season ended at the hands of top-seed Washburn at the MIAA Tournament. McGuffin, who was hired late October to lead the athletics department, stressed winning was very important to him, and letting Plett go showed how valuable the new AD feels winning is.

“Those decisions are not taken lightly and nor are they easy,” McGuffin said. “But it is a business about, ‘Are we progressing? And what are our ultimate goals?’”

Plett was at the helm for the past five seasons, and posted one winning season (14-13) in 2010. During this year, however, the women’s team faced plenty of hardship, which may have led to the firing.

The Griffons were forced to suspend players Ashleigh Curry and CC Bozeman for two games during the season for team disciplinary reasons.

Curry, who hadn’t played for Western in five years, was set to join this season but had problems securing a spot because she played for semi-pro team Livin’ the Dream during her hiatus. She received a two-game penalty for playing with the squad. The stall put Western in a bit of a funk, but it still climbed out of it during a 3-0 start to the calendar year.

However, shortly after the start of conference play, the Griffons lost starting forward Brittany Griswold for the season with a stress fracture in her foot, and went 2-12 to finish the year.

“Our ultimate goals are competing and wining,” McGuffin said, “providing an academic responsibility to the athletes we recruit; making them involved in the community as well. And at this point I didn’t think we were going to that nature and following those goals.”

Speculation started early into the season that Plett could possibly be the coach to succumb to a new AD. Typically, whenever a director of athletics is turned over to a new power, the man wants his own people to lead the coaching programs.

However, when McGuffin was hired, he pointed to strong coaching as a great part of Western athletics. He talked highly of coaches such as football coach Jerry Partridge, softball coach Jen Bagley and Men’s Basketball coach Tom Smith. All three have winning records at Western.

Plett finished his term 46-89. Still, no coach had dealt the troubles Plett faced when he was hired.

The Tabor College graduate took over a team that was 30-4 the previous season and ranked as high as No. 3 in the country, but the wins were vacated as the 2006-07 team played illegal players and provided over $1,000 of cash payments to players.

The MIAA Champions lost their banner, their tournament trophy and players/coaches. One player that stuck through the turmoil was star forward Jessica Koch.

The now former Griffon basketball player was recruited by Western following the successful season, but never played for the team once thought of as an NCAA national champion.

Instead, she was forced to play five seasons of the least winningest at Western. Koch took the hand she was served, however, and finished her career as the all-time leading scorer with 1,776 points. That was not enough to keep Plett as the women’s basketball coach.

Western has seen a decrease in attendance the past two seasons. In 2006, the Griffons were No. 3 in the nation in attendance. Following that year, Western finished eighth in 2007 and seventh in 2008. In 2009 the Griffons again ranked in the top-10, placing at No. 9. But since then, the attendance has spiraled down, causing McGuffin to think again about hiring a new coach.

“Revenue and budgets are tight,” McGuffin said. “I believe that our women’s basketball program has the capabilities to increase their attendance to help us. Our tradition is strong for women’s basketball here at Missouri Western.”

Before coming to Western, Plett coached at Lewis University, where he was Grand Lakes Valley Conference Head Coach of the Year and NCAA Region Four Coach of the Year. His career record stands at 321-323 overall.