Supply of shots cut in half after possible contamination Charles Trevathan, 68, dies from apparent heart attack Department of Journalism and Mass Communication Abilene Christian University Serving the ACU community since 1912 Learning from Lightfoot: Radio station looks for pledges: ByLORI BREDEMEYER ByJONATHAN SMITH ByJENNA LUCADO ByBRIAN SCHMIDT ByJACI SCHNEIDER See TREVATHAN Page 4 See DEBATES Page 7 Trevathan See FILMFEST Page 7 See FLYING Page 7 See FLU Page 4 M ANAGING E DITOR
OPTIMIST THE Department of Journalism and Mass Communication Abilene Christian University Serving the ACU community since 1912 WEDNESDAY October 13, 2004 Vol. 93, No. 16 1 section, 8 pages www.acuoptimist.com Comeback Cats: The football team over- came a 10-point deficit to win Saturday at Shotwell. Page 8 Radio station looks for pledges: KACU, the university’s National Public Radio station, hopes to collect $30,000 in listener donations by Oct. 20. Page 3 Learning from Lightfoot: Through the past 46 years, Dr. Neil Lightfoot has been a constant for ACU. Page 5 By JENNA LUCADO STUDENT REPORTER Michael Breeden can bang the bass drum and then crash a cymbal—all with the click of a mouse. “I am trying to use drum sounds to create the perfect gun noise for my movie,” Breeden said from behind a 20- inch Macintosh computer screen. Breeden, sophomore elec- tronic media major from Memphis, Tenn., is one of 86 students participating in the new FilmFest, a film festival that includes a film and expo- sition competition open to students and faculty. In addition to the festival, a workshop was offered to edu- cate students on creating and using Apple software to make a film. Students had to submit film proposals by Sept. 8 and will turn in the final product by Friday. “It’s crunch time,” Breeden said. As one of the lab assistants, Breeden spends an average of 10 hours a week in the new computer lab — locat- ed in the Industrial Tech- nology building—created solely for the use of FilmFest participants. Local Apple representa- tives have loaned 10 new computers until Thursday, agreeing to help Doug Darby, ACU’s multimedia coordina- tor and an instructor for visual media, and his vision for FilmFest. Darby said he hopes FilmFest can be an event that might give students a chance to express their cre- ative ideas and other messages through film and advanced technology. “The mode of how we com- municate is changing,” Darby said. "Students coming in to ACU are accustomed to using a technological means of com- munication as a way of learn- Students finish films for fest Deadline for filming, editing finished product is Wednesday See FILMFEST Page 7 By BRIAN SCHMIDT STUDENT REPORTER The Flying Cats gymnastics club is hanging around, having fun and learning new skills while it waits to be called on to perform for various local groups and events. The club, which officially began 53 years ago, does not participate in competitions. Instead, members simply have fun and learn gymnastics while offering their performance services to the community. “We allow members to learn and practice skills, as well as putting together performances, which we present at local ele- mentary schools, Boys and Girls Clubs, as well as during halftime of ACU basketball games,” said faculty sponsor Ben Zickefoose, associate pro- fessor of exercise science and health. John Sanderson, Flying Cats captain and senior Bible major from Keller, said he sees the club as a way for students to “have fun, giving them an opportunity to do their thing.” The club performs three to six times a semester for certain groups, Zickefoose said, in- cluding a monthly Super Stunt Thursday. This is a time when club members put together a small performance for friends and family to show off their skills. The club is open to anyone interested. In fact, Zickefoose said, the majority of incoming members have no experience at Flying Cats soar through shows Campus gymnastics club entertains local groups with skills See FLYING Page 7 BRIAN SCHMIDT/Chief Photographer Flying Cats captain John Sanderson, senior Bible major from Keller, performs a back flip off the trampoline in the clubs’ prac- tice room in Gibson Health and P.E. Center on Tuesday. Flying Cats is the university’s gymnastics club that performs in events for various community groups. It practices for about an hour every Tuesday and Thursday. EMILY CHASTAIN/Staff Photographer Kurt Boyland waits at the table in the Campus Center Thursday where students could enter to win prizes for voting on their favorite Wellness Week booths. Wellness Week began October 4 with a blood drive in the Living Room and concluded Friday with Unstress Day. For more on Wellness Week, see Page 4. By JACI SCHNEIDER OPINION EDITOR President George W. Bush and Sen. John Kerry, D.-Mass., debated each other twice last week over various issues and policies, leading up to the election on Nov. 2. Two ACU clubs met to watch the debates togeth- er. The College Democrats met with the College Republicans on Sept. 30 in the University Park Apartments Clubhouse to watch first of the four televised debates. “About 30 people came I think,” said Amy Perez, sophomore education major and chair of the College Democrats. “All the chairs and couches were full, and peo- ple were sitting on the floor.” The Democrats organized the evening and offered free pizza to lure students to come. Although not as many people attend- ed the second presidential debate or the Campus partisan clubs meet for debates College Republicans, Democrats struggle with group numbers See DEBATES Page 7 By LORI BREDEMEYER MANAGING EDITOR The possible contamination of about 48 million doses of the flu vaccine in a British manufacturing plant has cut the supply of flu shots in the United States in half. Vaccine clinics across the country were can- celed, including one at ACU on Friday, and the Centers for Disease Control and Pre- vention issued a list of recommended qual- ifications for those who should receive the shot. Dr. Tony Rector, medical director for clinical services, said although two planned clinics have been canceled on campus, he still hopes to have a small supply of the shots to administer to those who meet the CDC’s criteria. “It is not 100 percent confirmed, and that ambiguity probably reflects the unsuredness that everybody’s facing right now,” he said. “This really blindsided the health-care industry here.” Flu vaccine shortages cancel clinic Supply of shots cut in half after possible contamination See FLU Page 4 ‘ACU has lost a true friend’ Trevathan By JONATHAN SMITH EDITOR IN CHIEF Dr. Charles Trevathan, instructor of sociology and social work and associ- ate general counsel for the university, died Tuesday evening after suffering an apparent heart attack. He was 68. Trevathan collapsed while in the office of the Department of Sociology and Social Work and was taken by ambulance to Hendrick Medical Center where he died after 5 p.m. At press time, funeral arrangements were pending through the Elliott-Hamil Funeral Home Trevathan came to the university in 1987 after practicing law in Kentucky for 26 years to serve as associate gen- eral counsel with Dr. Gaston Welborn, vice president and general counsel. “I have lost one of my closest friends and colleagues for over 17 years,” Welborn told the Office of Media Relations. “While Charles did not graduate from ACU, he bled pur- ple and white. His greatest love at ACU was his students.” Trevathan began working more closely with students in 1991 when he became vice president of the Student Service Office, now Campus Life, in addition to associate general counsel. Trevathan moved into the class- room in 1997 after resigning his role as vice president. He joined the Department of Sociology to begin teaching —a role that at the time he called “a dream for this stage of my life.” Charles Trevathan, 68, dies from apparent heart attack See TREVATHAN Page 4
Transcript
OPTIMISTTHE
Department of Journalism and Mass Communication Abilene Christian University Serving the ACU community since 1912
WEDNESDAYOctober 13, 2004
Vol. 93, No. 161 section, 8 pages
www.acuoptimist.com
Comeback Cats:The football team over-came a 10-point deficit towin Saturday at Shotwell.
Page 8
Radio station looks for pledges:KACU, the university’s National Public Radiostation, hopes to collect $30,000 in listenerdonations by Oct. 20.
Page 3
Learning from Lightfoot:Through the past 46 years,Dr. Neil Lightfoot has beena constant for ACU.
Page 5
By JENNA LUCADOSTUDENT REPORTER
Michael Breeden can bangthe bass drum and then crasha cymbal—all with the click ofa mouse.
“I am trying to use drumsounds to create the perfectgun noise for my movie,”Breeden said from behind a20- inch Macintosh computerscreen.
Breeden, sophomore elec-tronic media major fromMemphis, Tenn., is one of 86students participating in thenew FilmFest, a film festivalthat includes a film and expo-
sition competition open tostudents and faculty.
In addition to the festival, aworkshop was offered to edu-cate students on creating andusing Apple software to makea film. Students had to submitfilm proposals bySept. 8 and will turnin the final productby Friday.
“It’s crunch time,”Breeden said.
As one of the labassistants, Breeden spends anaverage of 10 hours a week inthe new computer lab—locat-ed in the Industrial Tech-nology building—createdsolely for the use of FilmFestparticipants.
Local Apple representa-tives have loaned 10 new
computers until Thursday,agreeing to help Doug Darby,ACU’s multimedia coordina-tor and an instructor forvisual media, and his visionfor FilmFest.
Darby said he hopesFilmFest can be anevent that might givestudents a chance toexpress their cre-ative ideas and othermessages throughfilm and advanced
technology.“The mode of how we com-
municate is changing,” Darbysaid. "Students coming in toACU are accustomed to usinga technological means of com-munication as a way of learn-
Students finish films for festDeadline for filming,
editing finished product is Wednesday
See FILMFEST Page 7
By BRIAN SCHMIDTSTUDENT REPORTER
The Flying Cats gymnasticsclub is hanging around, havingfun and learning new skillswhile it waits to be called on toperform for various localgroups and events.
The club, which officiallybegan 53 years ago, does notparticipate in competitions.Instead, members simply havefun and learn gymnastics whileoffering their performanceservices to the community.
“We allow members to learnand practice skills, as well asputting together performances,which we present at local ele-mentary schools, Boys andGirls Clubs, as well as duringhalftime of ACU basketballgames,” said faculty sponsorBen Zickefoose, associate pro-fessor of exercise science andhealth.
John Sanderson, Flying Catscaptain and senior Bible majorfrom Keller, said he sees theclub as a way for students to“have fun, giving them anopportunity to do their thing.”
The club performs three tosix times a semester for certaingroups, Zickefoose said, in-cluding a monthly Super StuntThursday. This is a time whenclub members put together asmall performance for friendsand family to show off theirskills.
The club is open to anyoneinterested. In fact, Zickefoosesaid, the majority of incomingmembers have no experience at
FlyingCats soarthroughshows
Campus gymnasticsclub entertains localgroups with skills
See FLYING Page 7
BRIAN SCHMIDT/Chief Photographer
Flying Cats captain John Sanderson, senior Bible major from Keller, performs a back flip off the trampoline in the clubs’ prac-tice room in Gibson Health and P.E. Center on Tuesday. Flying Cats is the university’s gymnastics club that performs in eventsfor various community groups. It practices for about an hour every Tuesday and Thursday.
EMILY CHASTAIN/Staff Photographer
Kurt Boyland waits at the table in the Campus Center Thursday where students could enter to win prizesfor voting on their favorite Wellness Week booths. Wellness Week began October 4 with a blood drive inthe Living Room and concluded Friday with Unstress Day. For more on Wellness Week, see Page 4.
By JACI SCHNEIDEROPINION EDITOR
President George W. Bush and Sen. JohnKerry, D.-Mass., debated each other twicelast week over various issues and policies,leading up to the election on Nov. 2. TwoACU clubs met to watch the debates togeth-er.
The College Democrats met with theCollege Republicans on Sept. 30 in theUniversity Park Apartments Clubhouse towatch first of the four televised debates.
“About 30 people came I think,” saidAmy Perez, sophomore education majorand chair of the College Democrats. “Allthe chairs and couches were full, and peo-ple were sitting on the floor.”
The Democrats organized the eveningand offered free pizza to lure students tocome. Although not as many people attend-ed the second presidential debate or the
Campuspartisanclubs meetfor debatesCollege Republicans, Democratsstruggle with group numbers
See DEBATES Page 7
By LORI BREDEMEYERMANAGING EDITOR
The possible contamination of about 48million doses of the flu vaccine in a Britishmanufacturing plant has cut the supply offlu shots in the United States in half.Vaccine clinics across the country were can-celed, including one at ACU on Friday, andthe Centers for Disease Control and Pre-vention issued a list of recommended qual-ifications for those who should receive theshot.
Dr. Tony Rector, medical director forclinical services, said although two plannedclinics have been canceled on campus, hestill hopes to have a small supply of theshots to administer to those who meet theCDC’s criteria.
“It is not 100 percent confirmed, andthat ambiguity probably reflects theunsuredness that everybody’s facing rightnow,” he said. “This really blindsided thehealth-care industry here.”
Flu vaccineshortagescancel clinic
Supply of shots cut in half after possible contamination
See FLU Page 4
‘ACU has lost a true friend’
Trevathan
By JONATHAN SMITHEDITOR IN CHIEF
Dr. Charles Trevathan, instructor ofsociology and social work and associ-ate general counsel for the university,died Tuesday evening after sufferingan apparent heart attack. He was 68.
Trevathan collapsed while in theoffice of the Department of Sociologyand Social Work and was taken byambulance to Hendrick Medical
Center where he died after 5 p.m. Atpress time, funeral arrangements werepending through the Elliott-HamilFuneral Home
Trevathan came to the university in1987 after practicing law in Kentuckyfor 26 years to serve as associate gen-eral counsel with Dr. Gaston Welborn,vice president and general counsel.
“I have lost one of my closestfriends and colleagues for over 17years,” Welborn told the Office ofMedia Relations. “While Charles didnot graduate from ACU, he bled pur-ple and white. His greatest love at
ACU was his students.”Trevathan began working more
closely with students in 1991 when hebecame vice president of the StudentService Office, now Campus Life, inaddition to associate general counsel.
Trevathan moved into the class-room in 1997 after resigning his roleas vice president. He joined theDepartment of Sociology to beginteaching—a role that at the time hecalled “a dream for this stage of mylife.”
Charles Trevathan, 68, diesfrom apparent heart attack
See TREVATHAN Page 4
Calendar Events
16 Saturday
14 Thursday
15 Friday
17 Sunday
Wednesday, October 13, 2004
CAMPUS
19 Tuesday
13Wednesday
The Optimist maintains thiscalendar for the ACU communityto keep track of local social, aca-demic and service opportunities.
Groups may send ann-ouncements directly to [email protected] or to the Page2 Editor, ACU Box 27892, Abilene,TX 79699.
To ensure that an item willappear on time, the announce-ment should be sent at least 10days before. The Optimist mayedit items for space and style.
Corrections and clarifica-tions of published news articleswill be printed in this space in atimely manner.
ChapelCheck-UpCredited Chapels to date: 36
35Credited Chapels remaining:
About This Page
Volunteer Opportunities
18 Monday
SA Live, 11:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.,Campus Center tables.
Service Saturday sign-ups, 11:30a.m.-2 p.m., Campus Center ticketwindows.
FilmFest tickets, 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m.,Campus Center ticket windows.
International Students AssociationChai Cafe, 9-11 p.m., Bean Sprout.
&Guest Artist Recital: Steven Framil,8 p.m., Recital Hall.
SA Live, 11:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.,Campus Center tables.
FilmFest tickets, 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m.,Campus Center ticket windows.
Social Club Officers Meeting, 5-6:30p.m., Living Room.
Tickets for FilmFest are avail-able for purchase from 10:30 a.m.-1p.m. Online ticket purchases will beavailable soon as well.
The Shinnery Review, ACU’sstudent-produced literary maga-zine, is now accepting submissionsfor the 2005 edition. For more infor-mation, go to www.acu.edu/shin-nery.
Pepperdine School of Lawwill be interviewing prospectivelaw school students on campusNov. 2-3. Ken Starr, dean ofPepperdine School of Law, will beinterviewing prospective studentsfor the Pepperdine program.Students interested in meeting Starrcan contact Mel Hailey at Ext. 2095or by e-mail at [email protected] set up an appointment.
A special prayer program in
Fort Worth is being conducted forstudents interested in praying forGod’s work in Africa. Students fromACU, Harding University and othercampuses will assemble in FortWorth for an all-night prayer pro-gram. For more information, go towww.jabulaniafrica.org. A van willbe going from ACU. Interested stu-dents can contact Dan McVey at Ext.3756 or by e-mail [email protected] for moreinformation.
The Spiritual Life Core is pro-viding the opportunity to beinvolved in a small-group study forone hour per week. The groups willbe going through the book Not EvenA Hint by Joshua Harris. Studentswishing to participate in a smallgroup with other students can e-mail [email protected].
SA Live, 11:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.,Campus Center tables.
FilmFest tickets, 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m.,Campus Center ticket windows.
Service Saturday sign-ups, 11:30a.m.-2 p.m., Campus Center ticketwindows.
Free movie night, 6:30 p.m. and 9p.m., Cullen Auditorium.
Westgate Church of Christ LadiesLuncheon, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., HiltonRoom.
Morris Hall tea, 2-4 p.m., HiltonRoom.
Communities in Schoolsneeds volunteers at OrtizElementary School to serve as men-tors, tutors or lunch buddies. Help isneeded Mondays through Fridaysanytime from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Forinformation, contact the Volunteerand Service-Learning Center.
Volunteers are needed tohelp with after-school activities for6th-8th grade students. Activitiesinclude helping with after schoolsnacks and possibly homeworkMondays through Thursdays from3:30-4:30 p.m. Contact theVolunteer and Service-LearningCenter for more information.
KGNZ radio needs male vol-unteers beginning at 9 a.m.Thursday, Oct. 21 to unload and setup for the Caedmon’s Call concertthat night. Volunteers will receivefree tickets to the concert.Interested students can contactDoug Harris at KGNZ at 673-3045.
The Noah Project needs vol-unteers to answer hotline calls andattend to shelter needs. For moreinformation, contact the Volunteer
and Service-Learning Center. The Service Action Lead-
ership Team is trying to create adatabase that will send e-mails tokeep students informed of opportu-nities for service. To create the data-base, the center needs student par-ticipation. Students can visit theVolunteer and Service-LearningCenter to fill out a volunteer regis-tration form. By filling out the form,students are not committing to anyservice project, but they will receivee-mails that will enhance theirawareness community needs.
City Light Ministries needsvolunteers to tutor elementaryschool students and to play gamesor read to them on Mondays from3:30-5 p.m. Contact the Volunteerand Service-Learning Center forinformation.
Covenant Place of Abilene,an assisted-living facility, needssomeone to tutor one of the resi-dents who wants to learn to readand write. For information, contactthe Volunteer and Service-LearningCenter.
FilmFest tickets, 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m.,Campus Center ticket windows.
SA Live, 11:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.,Campus Center tables.
Campus Life Directors’ meeting, 8-9:45 a.m., Living Room.
FilmFest Tickets, 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m.,Campus Center ticket windows.
SA Live, 11:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.,Campus Center tables.
International Student AssociationCulture Show Tickets, 11 a.m.-3p.m., Campus Center ticket win-dows.
Homecoming tickets, 11 a.m.-3p.m., Campus Center ticket win-dows.
BY APRIL WARDPAGE 2 EDITOR
A detailed report of allcriminal activity on and nearthe ACU campus is nowavailable to students in the2003 annual Crime andSecurity Report released re-cently. The report, in accor-dance with the Clery Act,was filed by ACU Chief ofPolice Jimmy Ellison.
“The Clery Act requiresall universities to report sev-eral categories of crime,”Ellison said. “To make iteven more thorough, theClery Act then requires that Itake all of the information oncrimes and discipline mat-ters and break that down bythe location they occur.”
The report covers exten-sive areas of crime like bur-glary, aggravat-ed assault,motor vehicletheft, arson andsexual assaults.In addition tothese, viola-tions resultingin internal uni-versity disci-pline throughthe office ofJudicial Affairsare also report-ed. These often includeweapons, drug, and liquorlaw violations.
Ellison said the onlynotable increase in crimewas the number of burglarieson campus in 2003 from theprevious year.
“We had the rash of bur-glaries of dorm rooms lastJanuary in Mabee Hall andthe burglary spree last Marchin the JMC Center thataffected the total numbersreported,” Ellison said.
Unfortunately, Ellisonsaid, the Clery Act requirescrimes to be reported with-out allowing space to reportsuccesses. In manyinstances, the suspects havebeen apprehended and pun-ished.
“We apprehended twosubjects in the Mabee Hallburglaries and two suspectsin the JMC burglaries,” hesaid. “The vast majority ofthe stolen property from allof those cases was recov-ered.”
When measured againstcrime rates at other collegesand universities, Ellison saidACU compares very wellwith schools both in stateand across the country. Heattributes this to the overallcharacter of the student bodyand the importance the uni-
versity places on campussecurity.
“While no campus istotally immune to crime,ACU has fairly low num-bers,” he said. “The universi-ty places on staff and funds aprofessional campus policedepartment that serves thecampus 24 hours a day, sevendays a week.”
While numbers are down,Ellison said the ACU policedepartment works to lowerthem further by encouragingstudents to protect them-selves. The departmentspecifically focuses on low-ering the number of sexualassault cases that he saidalmost always come fromdate or acquaintance situa-tions rather than strangerattacks
“We seem to averageabout one or two sexualassaults that get reported tous each year,” he said. “In myopinion, that is one or two
too many. This isone reason weencourage stu-dents to only beinvolved inhealthy datingrelationships andbe prepared tolook for warningsigns in their rela-tionships.”
Ellison said stu-dents can feel rea-sonably safe at
ACU compared to other uni-versities, but encourages stu-dents to read the report to beaware of crime and safety intheir area. Students canaccess the report by going towww.acu.edu/crimestats orcan follow the link from theACU Police web site atwww.acu.edu/acupolice.
“Everyone wants to beaware and informed of suchimportant things like crimeand safety,” he said.“Knowing what is going onaround us is the first step inbeing aware and active.”
Copies of the report canalso be obtained at the ACUPolice Department adminis-trative offices during regularbusiness hours.
Ellison said it is impor-tant for students to protectthemselves and preventcrime by being informed andvigilant.
“Stay aware, stay in-formed and report suspiciousactivity before it turns intonext year’s statistics,” hesaid. “Never get lulled intothinking that ‘it can’t happenhere,’ or ‘it can’t happen tome.’”
KACU’s annual fall pledgedrive begins Thursday andends Oct. 20. Listeners, num-bering up to 12,000 a week,can call the station 24 hours aday during the pledge drive todonate money or can donatemoney through the KACUWeb site.
“We try to raise about$30,000 from pledges, saidTerri Peterson, assistantdevelopment director forKACU. “We hope to raisemore than $30,000 this time.”
Peterson said donations areimportant to KACU becausethe pledge drives provide 60percent of the radio station’s
funds. ACU and Federal Grants
each supply the other 40 per-cent of funds with 20 percenteach, which is not enoughmoney to pay for public syn-dication, student hosts andequipment. KACU has to paypublic radio fees to NationalPublic Radio and PublicRadio International for dis-tributing KACU’s programs.
As a public radio station,the ACU-based station doesnot run commercials for fund-ing.
“This market is just barelymaintainable,” said MarlaFlippin, senior broadcastjournalism major fromLeague City. “We’re doing bet-ter than we’ve ever done.”
Around 200 JMC studentswill answer phones duringthe drive, and nearly 100guests and student announc-ers will have two to five
minute spots three to fourtimes an hour during thepledge drive to talk aboutwhy they like KACU. Flippinsaid one of her jobs as a hostfor community guests is tohelp them feel comfortableand relaxed while on air.Other student announcerswill be broadcasting live fromvarious locations such as JavaCity and the Art Walk, whichFlippin said is “good publici-ty for the radio station, [and]good for announcer-listenerrelationship.”
Besides giving the studentsa chance to get out into theAbilene community, Flippinalso said that listeners hearthe announcer’s voices andfind it refreshing to put a faceto a voice.
KACU will broadcast livefrom Art Walk this Thursdayin front of United Way from7-9 p.m. and Java City
Thursday, Friday, Monday andTuesday from 7-9 p.m.
Each year, donors receive acoffee cup for a donation of$35. This year’s theme of,“KACU- The Custom Blend,”and the coffee bean logo willbe on the cup. KACU offerslisteners several options forhow listeners can donatemoney in increments of $35,$60, $120 or $240. Whendonors give at least $60 theyreceive a thermos, for $120they receive the coffee mugand a 12 oz. bag of coffeenamed the KACU CustomBlend by Java City, the distrib-utor, and for $240, donorsreceive all three gifts.
KACU also offers the dol-lar-a-day pledge plan of $365.The donor receives all threegifts and 15 public serviceannouncements in their namefor the non-profit organiza-tion of their choice.
In return for the customblend provided by Java City,KACU has provided freeunderwriting for the companywhere the announcer willacknowledge Java City as theprogram’s sponsor, as well asmentioning it frequentlywhile broadcasting live fromthe coffee house.
Stan Chapman, a regulardonor and owner of Chapmanand Son’s bookbinding servicesaid, “I think public radio isreally important to supportbecause it gives us an alterna-tive to all the commercialradio out there.” Chapman,who said he donates to KACUand will be a guest Monday atJava City, said he believespublic radio is less biasedsince its purpose is not tomake money, thus KACU ismore likely to offer uniqueprogramming.
Planning for “KACU-The
Custom Blend” pledge drivestarted last spring after DanielBarcroft drew the logo andthey decided a theme. Twomonths ago, letters were sentto past donors notifying themof the upcoming pledge driveand giving them the opportu-nity to donate money early.
KACU started air spotsread by nonprofit organiza-tions such as the Red Cross,Classical Chorus and theNoah Project for the driveabout a month ago, givingthem free exposure andKACU outside support.
Pledge drive informationcan be found onhttp://www.kacu.org/pledge.html and donors can pledgeover the phone by calling Ext.2441.
Wednesday, October 13, 2004 Page 3CAMPUS NEWS
KACU pledge drive raises money for public radio
BRIAN SCHMIDT/Chief Photographer
Physical Resource workers Philip Stringer (left), senior accounting major from Grand Seline, and DreeRyen, senior industrial technology major from Trinidad and Tabago, clean the GATA Fountain Tuesday.
Mount St. Helens erupted24 years ago in a devastatingdisplay of fire and rock. OnSept. 29, the great volcanobegan rumbling again.
Mount St. Helens, locatedin southern Washington,began issuing steam thou-sands of feet into the air, rais-ing questions about the possi-bility of another eruption.
The reports of most scien-tists say that while theremight be another eruption,the chance of it matching the1980 disaster is highlyunlikely.
Derek Straker, freshmanfinance major from Van-couver, WA, said he’s not con-cerned.
“In 1980, we saw abouttwo inches of ash on theground, but this won’t evenbe like last time,” Strakersaid.
The 110,000 acre area sur-
rounding the mountain wasdeclared a national monu-ment in 1982, so the area isn’tas accessible to campers as itonce was.
When the volcano eruptedearly on a Sunday morning 24years ago, the emission didn’toccur in the traditional way,with the primary eruptionissuing from the crater intothe air. Instead, one wholeside of the mountain explod-ed, sending mass amounts ofgas and debris laterally intothe surrounding forests.
Dr. Merlin Mann, associateprofessor of journalism andmass communication, grewup about 150 miles south ofMount St. Helens.
Mann said that initially,some steam rose out of themountain and everyone wasevacuated. The problem was,it didn’t blow.
“Warnings rang hollowafter 60 days,” Mann said.
Some people went beyondthe warning signs and ret-urned to the area. Once itblew, 57 people were killed.
Returning to the site,Mann said it’s an amazingexperience.
“It’s unlike anything elseyou’ll ever see,” Mann said.“It’s like a moonscape.”
Most of the devastationwas left untouched, allowingnature to take its naturalcourse.
“You can see pieces of rockthat have been driven intotrees and huge trees toppledlike matchsticks,” Mann said.“There’s a house filled withsix feet of deposits.”
Mann agrees that if the vol-cano were to erupt again, itwon’t cause the same prob-lems.
“The side of the mountainthat blew isn’t there any-more,” he said, “so it wouldn’thave the same devastatingeffect, even if it erupted withthe same power.”
The eruption destroyedmuch of the surrounding areaand it will likely be yearsbefore it recovers.
“Some trees have alreadyreturned, but there’s no pris-tine lake where people vaca-tion,” Mann said.
JMC students volunteerto work pledge drive to maintain station
By DEE TRAVISARTS EDITOR
Once a month, downtownAbilene comes to life as variousmuseums, stores and restau-rants open their doors to par-ticipate in ArtWalk, downtownAbilene’s major artistic eventthat takes place every secondThursday of the month.
This Thursday, the themefor ArtWalk is “ARTober” andwill take place from 5-8:30p.m.
“It’s a fall theme, althoughthere’s not any fall artwork,”said Brady Nichols, gallerymanager for the Center forContemporary Arts.
Nichols said the biggestevent will be the ErinshireGardens Folk Festival, wherevarious folk musicians will ser-enade ArtWalkers across thedowntown area.
The Center for Contemp-orary Arts will offer threeexhibits, including “7 Trains ofThought,” featuring works by
seven artists who are in someway connected to Texas Tech’sart school. Another exhibit iscalled “Multi-layered,” mean-ing some of the paintingsappear to have depth whileothers have actual elementscoming off the canvas.
Ruth Jackson, an artistwhose work is featured in the“Multi-Layered” exhibit, is anACU graduate and formerteacher in the ACUDepartment of Art and Design.
The National Center forChildren’s Illustrated Literaturewill feature the work of Stanand Jan Berenstain, creators ofthe Berenstain Bears series. Theexhibit includes interactive ele-ments along with drawingsfrom the series.
The Paramount Theatre willshow Super Size Me, an award-winning documentary aboutobesity in America, at 7:30p.m., and the Grace Museumwill have a free art activity forArtWalkers.
Abilene City Hall will show-case the Summer PhotographyExhibit, featuring over 100photographs from the city ofAbilene Recreation Division’ssummer art program.
Five different restaurantsand coffee houses will be open,some of which will be have livemusic or art exhibits.
Also, the 2004 ShinneryReview, a collection of poemsand short stories by ACU stu-dents, will be on sale at variouslocations.
ArtWalk was conceived in1993 and had several purposesinitially, said Richard Metzger,executive director of theCenter for Contemporary Arts.
“We wanted to help revital-ize downtown and makeAbilene a better city, but wealso wanted to give artists aplace to display their work,” hesaid.
Metzger said that ArtWalkattendance has grown tobetween 1,200 and 1,700 peo-ple on average.
Overall, he said thatArtWalk has been extremelybeneficial to Abilene.
“It’s been tremendous forthe city,” Metzger said.“ArtWalk in Abilene hasbecome a model for the entirestate of Texas.”
Scientists wait, wonderif great volcano willdevastate once again
Downtown Abilene conducts monthlycelebration of arts
Page 4 Wednesday, October 13, 2004CAMPUS NEWS/FROM THE FRONT PAGE
Rector said students withasthma, chronic heart condi-tions or other serious medicalproblems will be given priori-ty on campus to receive thevaccine. He said the medicalclinic usually administersabout 500-800 shots eachyear, and he is looking at otheroptions to help prevent anoutbreak.
A nasal spray, FluMist, wasapproved last year by the Foodand Drug Administration forhealthy people ages 5 to 49,and Rector said he will proba-bly know within three weekswhether it will be available oncampus. FluMist is a vaccinethat protects against the flulike the shot does.
Also, the medical clinic haspreviously offered two med-ications that will probably beavailable this year: one to helpreduce the chance of contract-ing the virus after contact withan infected person, and anoth-er to help lessen the severity ofthe illness once a person hassuffered initial symptoms.
Rector said although fewerpeople will receive the shot,he doesn’t anticipate a moresevere flu season.
“I don’t think it’s going tobe any more than in yearspast,” he said, “but part of thathas been based on the aggres-siveness of the flu strain itself.That is a matter of good guess-work by the experts world-wide, and they’re not predict-ing anything particularly ag-gressive this year as far as thestrain of the virus.
“That is good news, so[there is] hope if you get it, itmay not be as severe as somein the past.”
Rector said if students arenot able to obtain the vaccinefrom the campus medical clin-ic, they can call the Abilene-Taylor County Public HealthDistrict, which will conduct avaccination clinic on Friday atthe Civic Center from 7 a.m.to 7 p.m.
To avoid contracting thevirus, the CDC recommendsavoiding close contact withothers, staying home whenyou’re sick, covering yourmouth and nose when youcough or sneeze, washingyour hands and avoidingtouching your eyes, nose ormouth.
Angela Estes, director ofnursing at the campus medicalclinic, said in an e-mail that
these steps will help prevent arash of on-campus cases of theflu.
“We need to keep in mindthat not getting the vaccinedoes not mean that we have toget the flu,” Estes said. “Thechoices that we make to stayhealthy and to practice goodhygiene will in part determinethe incidence of the disease inour community and on ourcampus.”
Flu: Other optionscould be available Continued from Page 1
SUSAN SPIVEYSTUDENT REPORTER
ACU’s eighth annual Well-ness Week, which focused onimproving students’ awarenessof health issues, concludedFriday.
Wellness Week, sponsoredby the University CounselingCenter, medical clinic, CampusActivity Board, ACT and thePeer Health Education Pro-gram, featured four days ofactivities highlighting differentaspects of wellness.
“It’s a whole week empha-sizing mind, body and spirit,”said Steve Rowlands, directorof the University CounselingCenter.
Rowlandssaid by Oct-ober many stu-dents arestruggling withacademic andpersonal prob-lems, all ofwhich affecthealth.
“The honeymoon’s wornoff,” Rowlands said. “WellnessWeek is to help students dealwith the stress of the semester.”
This year’s Wellness Weektheme, “Passion for Life,”encouraged students to em-brace life mentally, physicallyand spiritually, Rowlands said.He said the theme’s wordingwas a nod to Mel Gibson’s filmThe Passion of the Christ.
Each day had a relatedtheme. Tuesday focused onspiritual health with “Re-ignit-ing the Passion.” Activitiesopened with a Chapel presen-tation about “Filling the God-Shaped Hole” by Phil Ware,
minister at Westover HillsChurch of Christ in Austin.After Chapel, Ware hosted abrown bag luncheon and spokeabout “Re-igniting the Passion:Journey With God.”
“We really feel that spiritualissues are important to mentaland physical health,”Rowlands said.
Tuesday through Thursdayin the Campus Center, thecounseling center and studentsin the Concepts of Health andFitness classes presentedbooths emphasizing each day’stheme.
All students in Concepts ofHealth and Fitness were as-signed these presentations, andthe best ones were chosen to bedisplayed in the Campus Cen-ter, said Elizabeth Russell,freshman undeclared majorfrom College Station.
Russell, along with RandyRoyce, freshman music educa-tion major from Bedford, andNathan Driskell, freshman mu-sic education major from Aus-tin, used their booth to providea way for students to connectwith their friends, Russell said.
“We had people write en-couragement notes to theirfriends and stick them on ourboard,” Russell said. “Thentheir friends could come byand get them. It’s a good way tobuild people up.”
Wednesday’s theme was“Discovering Wholeness, Hopeand Peace,” and the counselingcenter offered screenings fordepression, anxiety and stressin the Campus Center.
Rowlands said he expectstwo to 12 students to seekcounseling for these problems
as a result of the WellnessWeek screenings.
Thursday focused on physi-cal health with “Developing aPassionate Lifestyle,” and themedical clinic offered informa-tion about healthy habits andnutrition in the Campus Cen-ter, Rowlands said.
Students who visitedenough booths were eligible toenter a drawing for prizes, likea $50 Wal-Mart gift certificateor a full-body massage fromClass-E-Touch.
“Unstress Day” was plannedfor Friday with a dunking tank,rock wall, Twister and obstaclecourse outside Moody Coli-seum to emphasize the themeof “Enjoying the Journey,”according to the WellnessWeek Web site. However, Row-lands said it was canceledbecause of last week’s rain.
A flu vaccine clinic plannedfor Friday was also canceledbecause of a flu vaccine short-age, according to the Web site.
Despite the weather,Friday’s activities concludedwith the Wildcat Walk, a one-mile walk around campus.Students, faculty and staff metin the mall area, and the first50 students to sign up wereawarded a step meter,Rowlands said.
Wildcat Walk participantswere encouraged to bring oldT-shirts and exchange them fornew ones, according to theWeb site. The old T-shirts weregoing to be donated to HealingHands International.
“He will be missed tremen-dously,” said Dr. Colleen Dur-rington, dean of the College ofArts and Sciences. “He felt soblessed to teach, and we’rethankful for every one of thestudents he blessed.”
Trevathan was selected asthe university’s Teacher of theYear in 2001 and continued toserve as associate generalcounsel. In March, Trevathansuffered his first heart attackand had four stints put in hisheart—a procedure that kepthim out of the classroom foronly a week.
“ACU has lost a true friend
and a popular teacher andmentor,” said Dr. Royce Money,president of the university,who was out of the state butspoke with Media Relations.“He will be missed by theentire ACU family and alumniworldwide.”
Students, faculty and staffwill be able to sign a book orwrite notes to the family all dayWednesday in the Admin-istration Building Room 109.
Trevathan is survived by hiswife, Phyllis, who worked inthe university’s Career Servicesuntil she retired in May, andthree daughters , Carol Turner,Julie Bowie and Karen Treva-than Gunn.
—Lori Bredemeyer contributedto this report.
Trevathan: Book available to signContinued from Page 1
“We really feel that spiritual issues are importantto mental and physical health.”
Steve Rowlands, director of the University Counseling Center
Rowlands
“He felt so blessed to teach, and we’re thankful for every one of the students he blessed.”
Dr. Colleen Durrington, chair of the College of Arts and Sciences
FOCUSWEDNESDAYOctober 13, 2004 Page 5OPTIMIST
When Dr. Neil Lightfoot arrivedin 1958, Abilene ChristianCollege had two chapels but
only one dean. Don Morris was the presi-dent, and classes met on Saturdays.
Today, Abilene Christian Universityhas multiple deans but only one chapel.Don Morris is the name of a building, notthe president, and no classes meet in theDon Morris Center on Saturdays.
In 46 years, many things havechanged, but one has not — Dr. NeilLightfoot is still teaching Bible.
In 2003, even that almost changed. InJuly of that year, Ollie Lightfoot, Dr.Lightfoot’s wife of more than 52 years,died of pancreatic cancer.
“It was absolutely devastating,”Lightfoot said. “She did everything forme.”
After more than 40 years of teaching,he considered retiring. Lightfoot says onething pulled him through—the word ofGod.
“That’s the only thing that keeps megoing.”
He dealt with his wife’s illness thesame way he had dealt with other prob-lems, by relying on God.
“I absolutely don’t know how peoplewho aren’t Christians go through what Iwent through with the loss of Ollie,”Lightfoot said.
“I believe the word of God changespeople’s lives.”
With this conviction, Lightfoot esti-mates he has taught roughly 14,000 stu-dents at ACU about the Bible. Dr. RoyceMoney, president of ACU, and Dr. JackReese, dean of the College of BiblicalStudies, are two of Lightfoot’s most recog-
nized pupils.Money had Lightfoot for numerous
courses, including second year Greek. Hesaid Lightfoot was very passionate aboutteaching and went about it in a memo-rable manner.
“He had a unique teaching style,”Money said. “I would call it simple butprofound.”
Simple would not describe the illumi-nated manuscript given to Lightfoot by aformer student. The book of artwork withdecorative text and intricate designs,proudly displayed on Lightfoot’s livingroom coffee table, presents scripture inGreek and portraits of biblical figures in aunique, ornate fashion. It is one of manymemories he keeps from those he hastaught.
“I have numerous letters from formerstudents; they’ve said ‘Dr. Lightfoot youmay not know this but I was in your classand that course turned my life around,’”Lightfoot said. “But it’s not me—it’s theword of God.”
One of Lightfoot’s favorite scripturesin the book illustrates his feelings, and it’sone he enjoys reading aloud.
“For the word of God is energetic andsharper than any two-edged sword,” hereads from the Greek text. “That’sHebrews 4:1-2.”
Money recalls Lightfoot’s affinity forscripture from when he was in the class-room.
“He is somebody that believes in thepower of the word of God about as muchas anyone I’ve ever met,” Money said. “Hebelieves, and lives it. He teaches it.”
Lightfoot’s family members say hisfaith and appreciation for the word, alongwith the faith of his wife, shone througheven stronger with the onset of Ollie’s ill-ness.
“When Mother got sick, no matterwho came to visit, whoever it was, theyalways had a prayer,” Donna Thompson,Lightfoot’s daughter, said as she foughtback tears. “It was just such a naturalthing.”
Lightfoot and his wife moved in withanother one of their daughters, MichelleMcElroy, in Dallas for seven months dur-ing Ollie’s illness so Ollie could receivetreatment at nearby PresbyterianHospital. Those seven months offeredMcElroy an opportunity to see her
father’s faith in the most difficult of timesand presented Lightfoot with anotheravenue by which to share the word ofGod.
At the time, McElroy and her familywere attending a new congregationnamed Crossview Church of Christ, andLightfoot wanted to help the church getstarted.
“He preached nearly every Sundaywhile they were here, and Mom eventried to be there too,” McElroy said.
For many years, Lightfoot had been afull-time preacher. But when the opportu-nity to teach at a university came along,he jumped at it.
“With teaching, you can teach theBible every day, not just weekly,”Lightfoot said.
Besides teaching and preaching,Lightfoot has excelled in writing as well.He has published many books, includingthree editions of How We Got The Bible,which now has sold more than one mil-lion copies. Near the conclusion of thewriting of the third edition in Decemberof 2002, Ollie became ill. In January sheasked to whom he would dedicate thebook.
“She had never asked me. All the vari-ous books I had done, she had neverasked me that,” Lightfoot said. “I imagineshe was wondering whether she wouldlive that long.”
She did live long enough to see thebook and the dedication page with hername on it.
“I’d done a book on parables that I’ddedicated to my daughters; the Hebrewsbook I’d dedicated to people who hadbeen great servants of Christ. But the HowWe Got The Bible book was the first bookI ever did, and it’s always been dedicatedto her,” Lightfoot said. “I just put ‘ForOllie.’”
While Lightfoot dedicated his books tohis wife, his life has always been dedicat-ed to Christ. He said the importance ofGod’s word in people’s lives has been cen-tral to his life and ministry.
“I know in my own life how it’schanged me, how it’s changed others,how it greatly blessed our marriage andhow it’s blessed our children,” Lightfootsaid.
Money said Lightfoot’s message on theimportance of scripture was clear in his
teaching. “He’s one of the early spiritual role
models I had,” Money said. “He showedme how to be a minister of the word anda scholar at the same time.”
For more than 40 years, Lightfoot hasspent his time imparting his reverence forscripture to students by way of the courseentitled the Gospel of John. Ollie wasfond of his work on the gospel. At herrequest, Lightfoot has written books onthe subject; Ollie even took the class.Lightfoot said she enjoyed the class but,just like the other students, had to workvery hard and spent many hours on the40 questions Lightfoot assigned eachsemester.
“I wasvery gladwhen thecourse was o-ver; I couldfinally eat a-gain,” Light-foot said.
“I spendmore timep r e p a r i n gfor my class-es than any-thing else,”L i g h t f o o tsaid. “I gotnew booksyesterday on the Gospel of John.”
Even when Lightfoot eventuallyretires, he will still look for ways to con-vey the message of Christ to students.
“If I do decide to retire in the next yearor two, I will continue to teach,”Lightfoot said. “I feel that students needthese text Bible courses, and I’ll do thatprobably without any salary from the uni-versity.”
After all these years, some things neverchange.
“I’ll just teach.”
Lightfootholds onto faith
Through the changes and the years,
Dr. Neil Lightfoot holds a picture of hiswife, Ollie, who died in July 2003.
STORY BY WARREN GRAY • PHOTO ILLUSTRATIONS BY EMILY CHASTAIN
Dr. Neil Lightfoot has been teaching in the Department of Bible, Missions and Ministry since 1958.
Dr. Neil Lightfoot glances at the Gospel of John. He hastaught a class on the chapter for more than 40 years.
I went home last weekend,and as I sat in my living roomwatching baseball with myfather, mainly Jose Lima’s shut-
out of the Card-inals, I realizedhow much I en-joy baseball.We talked a-bout our fav-orite baseballmovies whilehe explained tome some of therules and strat-egies of thegame.
I don’t know anything aboutthe sport really, except that theplayers hit the ball and then runaround the bases trying to get tohome. OK, I know a little morethan that, but I think the beautyof the sport isthat you don’thave to be a die-hard fan andknow tons ofstatistics to en-joy it.
My first ma-jor league base-ball game ex-perience was inMay at CamdenYards inBaltimore wherethe Orioles played the Yankees.Every time Derek Jeter or AlexRodriguez went on the field thecrowd booed. A sudden showerdelayed the game, which endedup lasting five hours, and westill had an hour bus ride to gethome. It was fabulous.
My second baseball gamecame in August when I saw theRangers play the Devil Rays. Iwasn’t prepared for the fire-works and the theme musicfrom The Natural (my dad’sfavorite baseball movie) whenthey had a homerun, and Icouldn’t help feeling like anexcited kid when I heard thatmusic and the crowd eruptingwith cheers.
When I watched fireworks atCrutcher Scott Field this Fourthof July while Ray Charles’America the Beautiful played, I
felt I should be playing baseball,like in The Sandlot.
Growing up in Texas, somuch emphasis is placed onfootball you would think that itwas America’s pastime. Somemay consider it so, but I wouldbeg to differ. Maybe the fastpace and barbaric nature of thesport reflects the change in oursociety over the past century,which is why it could be con-sidered the new pastime ofchoice.
But I will still cling to base-ball as being the true pastime,and one of the main constantsin American life. It’s fathers andchildren playing catch in thespring. It’s families going togames together and ordering $5hot dogs and $4 sodas. Ah, theAmerican way of life. It’s watch-
ing baseball mo-vies like Field ofDreams (my fav-orite) and hav-ing the urge tocall your par-ents. If you don’tcry or at least getchoked up whenKevin Costnerasks his ghost-of-a-dad if hewants to have acatch on the
field he built for him, then youdon’t have a soul.
Last year, I wasted four hoursof my life watching the Yankeesbeat the Red Sox in game 7 ofthe ALCS. Even though I’m nota huge fan, I couldn’t help feel-ing an overwhelming sense ofdefeat, believing that once againsomething is not right with theworld because evil keeps pre-vailing over good. One of myfriends almost went intomourning. And here it is again,another year, and I hope notanother disappointment.
But I’ll keep watching andattending the games, and I hopeI will live in a city with a majorleague team in it. Maybe Boston.
Nineteen months till gradu-ation. I only have one monthto find the right guy, one yearto date and six months to be
engaged beforemy weddingday.
I thought Ifound the“right guy”last week. Isaw an ad inthe classifiedsfor beach wed-dings in SouthPadre and ask-ed my friend ifhe wanted to
go get married. So we skippedthe whole dating thing andstarted planning the weddingright away. I was excited; I’mabout to turn 21, and I wasafraid my time was runningout.
But alas, my engagementonly lasted 2 hours. I spilledwater on the “right guy” so he
said he hated me and broke offthe whole shebang.
I was heartbroken for agood five minutes, certain Iwas doomed to spinsterhoodfor the rest of my life.
But I brushed myself off andchanged my attitude, deter-mined not to let one grumpyguy ruin my chances at happi-ness. After all, I still have twoweeks until my birthday—plenty of time to find that spe-cial someone.
As a child, I used to thinkthat I would like to get marriedat age 23. I don’t know what itis about that age—it justseemed right. But after asemester at ACU, I realizedthat 23 was much too old. Bythe time I turn 23, I’ll be out of
college. What on earth will Ido if I have to graduate with-out a husband? I don’t think Ican make it on my own. Will Ihave to rent my own apart-ment, take care of my own carand kill spiders myself?
But I’ve been thinkingrecently, it might not be so badto live on my own. I can dowhatever I want, live whereverI want and make decisionswithout worrying about anoth-er person—I can be selfish.
After all, in 2003 the aver-age American woman got mar-ried at age 25, according to theU.S. Census Bureau. Maybe Idon’t have to rush out and findthe “right guy” this month.Heck, I don’t even have to findthe “right guy” at ACU. Guys
do exist outside of Abilene,even Christian ones.
You know, I think thatmight be a good plan. Grad-uate, find a job, live some-where cool for a while andthen maybe worry about get-ting married. It might be kindof fun. At least then I don’thave to worry about settlingfor an OK guy at ACU, whenthe “right guy” might be outthere somewhere, waiting untilI turn 30 to find me and marryme.
I’m not opposed to meetingsomeone here at ACU and get-ting married after graduation, Ijust don’t know how realisticthat is.
And I don’t want my heartto be broken every time a two-hour engagement comes crash-ing to an end.
After reading the Fridayedition of the Optimist, I wasastonished to learn about thelack of academic standardsheld by the majority of our stu-dent government representa-tives.
The Students’ Associationvoted down a bill that wouldhave raised the GPA require-ment for SA executive officercandidates to a mediocre 3.0from the present sub-standard2.5. This letter is to all themembers who voted againstthis bill. Do you truly believethat it is right to allow a stu-dent who is barely passing torun for an executive office thatmore than likely will bringdown his/her GPA even more?
As Christians I believe weare called to hold our brothersand sisters accountable and toalways have their best interestsin mind. If we allow for “C”average students to run forexecutive officers, we are ulti-mately allowing them to fail bysacrificing their grades to serveus. We need to serve them byserving their best interests. Tobe a student body executiveofficer you must not only careabout your peers and have theheart and desire to lead us, butyou must also serve as anexample by fulfilling your edu-cational objectives. A “B” aver-age is not exceptional, but it iseasily attainable.
By the way, in the past it
seems the stu-dent body hashad no ideawhat the exec-utive officer candidates’ GPAswere because they have notbeen published. I believe thestudent body has the right tothis information. SA officersreceive a scholarship that paysaround $2,800 a semester. I donot know of any scholarshipson campus that allow a studentto maintain such a low GPA.This is our money. We have aright to know where it goesand to whom.
We set the rules. Currently,all of the executive officermembership exemplifies thehigh academic standards need-
ed. That does not mean thoughthat this assumed standard willnot go unbroken. Please letyour representative on Con-gress know that your standardsare higher than a 2.5 for yourstudent body officers.
Aaron Wilder freshman IMC major
from Colorado Springs,Colo.
YOUR VOICEYOUR VOICE
But after a semester at ACU, I realized that 23 was much too old.
Sources make ACU better campusAt the Optimist
we face a continuousdilemma: The same
events happen everyyear, with the same
groups of people and usual-ly the same outcomes. But everyyear we write stories about theseevents because they’re news, andstudents deserve to hear aboutthem. However, in covering thesestories, reporters have to talk tothe correct sources, and thesesources tend to stay the sameevery year.
By now, some members of thestaff and faculty must be gettingpretty tired of answering the same
questions everyyear. The way theOptimist worksmakes it evenmore irksome forsources. Every semester a newgroup of students begins reportingfor their Basic News class. In thisclass they learn to interview andto write simple news stories.However, throughout the learningprocess, the students are requiredto write articles for the Optimistand interview important sources.
The Optimist would like tothank faculty, staff and studentsfor cooperating with reporters ofall skill levels. We appreciate the
time taken to be interviewed andthe seriousness with which youtreat the topics.
The Optimist has an importantrole on campus; newspapers keepleadership accountable and peo-ple informed. Cooperative sourcesimprove the flow of informationon campus and help journalismstudents learn how to be effectivereporters.
By cooperating with reporters,sources improve the overall quali-
ty of the Op-timist. Whensources taketime to meetwith reporters
in person, the reporters can gainmore insight into the story. He orshe can begin conversations withthe source and obtain interestingand informative quotes. A person-al interview also allows thereporter to find new angles to thestory and can lead the reporter toask more questions that may devi-ate from the original intent.
E-mail interviews, while con-venient, severely limit thereporter. Often a source’s answer
to a question leads to more ques-tions focusing on that topic; manytimes the reporter will shift thewhole direction of an interviewand a story based on the answerto one question. Questions an-swered by e-mail take away thefreedom of the reporter to be flex-ible and find new angles to stories.Typed replies are often incom-plete, boring and lack relevantinformation.
To everyone who has ever beenan Optimist source, thank you forcooperating with novice reporters.Without sources, ACU would nothave a newspaper, and studentswould be less informed.
In Your Words
VIEWSWEDNESDAYPage 6 OPTIMIST October 13, 2004
OPTIMIST Editor in ChiefJonathan Smith
Managing EditorLori Bredemeyer
The Optimist Editorial Board
Opinion EditorJaci Schneider
Copy EditorSarah Carlson
Faculty AdviserDr. Cheryl Bacon
Ad ManagerChristi Stark
Published by the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication,
Abilene Christian University
Editorial and letter policyUnsigned editorials are the opinions
of the Optimist Editorial Board and may notnecessarily reflect the views of the universi-ty or its administration.
Signed columns, cartoons and let-ters are the opinions of their creators andmay not necessarily reflect the viewpoints ofthe Optimist, its Editorial Board or the uni-versity.
The Optimist encourages reader re-sponse through letters to the editor but re-serves the right to limit frequent contributors
or to refuse to print letters containing per-sonal attacks, obscenity, defamation, erro-neous information or invasion of privacy.
Please limit letters to 350 words orfewer. A name and phone number must beincluded for verification purposes. Phonenumbers will not be published.
Cooperative sources improve the flowof information on campus.
The issue:The Optimist printssimilar stories everyyear with similarsources, which canseem irksome to thoseinterviewed.Our view:The Optimist serves apurpose on campus,and cooperativesources help fulfill thatpurpose.The solution:Sources should contin-ue to treat reporterswith seriousness. With-out sources, the news-paper wouldn’t exist.
THE
Nineteen months to find the ‘right guy’
“I’m just studyingand trying tomake it.”
Ty Manningfreshman education majorfrom Corsicana
“I’m stressed.”
Chris Martinsenior Christian ministry majorfrom Abilene
“Well, I only haveone, but I’m justtrying to answeras many reviewquestions as I canand pray to Godthat I do well.”
The Optimist, Oct. 10“Congress votes not tochange executive officerrules” by Jonathan Smith,editor.
Re:
Wednesday, October 13, 2004 Page 7JUMPS
blown a lead to lose the game.Last week against Eastern NewMexico, Angelo led 28-6 with0:57 seconds left in the thirdquarter, when the Rams allowed32 points in the final 15:57 andmanaged to only score 7 more inthe 38-35 loss.
The Wildcat offense strug-gled the entire game under thedirection of red-shirt freshmanBrock Pierce. Pierce was 9 of 21for just 106 yards and his onlyinterception came when heunderthrew receiver JeraleBadon in the end zone.
When the offense couldn’tpunch the ball past the goal line,they turned to Nelson. Nelsondelivered with three field goalsin as many attempts, hittingfrom 24 yards twice in the sec-ond quarter and hit a 29-yardtry in the third.
“They were basically chipshots … but in a close gameevery point counts so those fieldgoals are something you can’ttake for granted,” Nelson said.
For the sixth straight game,the Wildcats have been out-gained by their opponents in
total offensive yardage. OnSaturday, the Rams out-gainedACU by more than 100 yards(323-197), and if the Wildcatswant to come up with a victorythis Saturday in Canyon, theywill need to put some points onthe board as West Texas A&M iscurrently averaging 35 points agame.
A win Saturday would movethe team to 2-1 in South divi-sion play, and put them over the.500 mark on the season.
ACU will be without its start-ing running back Saturday.Sophomore Mark Gaines brokehis fibula and dislocated hisankle in the second half againstAngelo. The Wildcats will lookto Rashon Myles and CharlesWilliams to fill the void andGaines said that starting full-back Brett Unger may get achance to carry the ball as well.
Myles is currently averaging4.6 yards a carry with 284, whileWilliams has a 3.9 average with136 total yards. Unger has notcarried the ball yet in his four-year career.
Football: West TexasA&M next up for CatsContinued from Page 8
February it’s going to be amaz-ing the condition we’re incompared to where we arenow.”
Puglia said the condition-ing will include weight lifting,running and plenty of 5 a.m.sessions.
“Coach is pretty big on fit-ness,” Puglia said.
Tafazoli said the team ispumped up about getting intobetter shape and said that willbe his main goal during theteam’s break from competi-tion.
“I just want to get as physi-cally fit as I can,” Tafazoli said.
Once the spring rollsaround the Wildcats will lookto defend their conferencechampionships from a yearago. Judging from their recentsuccess, they’re on the righttrack.
“We’re close,” Jones said.“We’re an awfully good team.”
Tennis:Getting fitfor springContinued from Page 8
By BRIAN ROESPORTS WRITER
The Wildcat volleyball teamwill look to take sole posses-sion of first place in the LoneStar Conference South DivisionThursday when they travel toSan Angelo to play AngeloState at 7 p.m. in the JunellCenter.
San Angelo and ACU arecurrently tied for first place inthe LSC South Division witheach team owning a 4-0 confer-ence record.
The Lady Belles improvedtheir record to 17-4 and 4-0 inthe LSC South Division this
season with a three-gamesweep over Tarleton State onSaturday. The Wildcats inflated
their record to18-6 and 4-0 inthe LSC SouthDivision byd i s m i s s i n gTexas A&M-Kingsville 3-0Saturday.
ACU andASU have sev-eral ties, most
notably with Wildcat headcoach Brek Horn. Horn gradu-ated from Angelo StateUniversity in 1996. She a-massed numerous awards dur-ing her tenure at ASU includ-ing academic all-Lone StarConference and the Nathan’sJewelers Award as team MVP in1994 and 1995. Horn also
helped lead ASU to the LSCchampionship in 1992 – thelast time the Lady Bellesadvanced to the post-season.
“It was a little awkwardwhen I first came back herebecause they played in thesame gym that I played in, butnow there’s a new gym,” Hornsaid. “I enjoyed my time at theuniversity and the friendships Imade there. But now the onlything I’m concerned about isbeating them.”
The Lady Belles are the sur-prise team of the LSC South in2004. ASU was picked to finishfourth in the division, whilethe Wildcats were picked tofinish second; one positionbehind West Texas A&M.
Lady Belles head coach
Kathleen Brasfield, whocoached Horn when she playedat ASU, spoke highly of ACUbefore the season.
“Abilene Christian returns astrong group of very athleticplayers who had a tremendousspring season and ... have agreat shot at unseating WestTexas A&M,” Brasfield said.
For now, the Wildcats willfocus on ASU. If ACU winsThursday the team takes solepossession of first place in theLSC South Division.
“ASU is playing well, butthis is a game we should win,”Horn said. “We are workingand we will be prepared onThursday.”
Battle of unbeatens to be fought Thursday night
BRIAN SCHMIDT/Chief Photographer
Sophomore starting strong safety Danieal Manning drags Angelo State sophomore safety Brandon Davisen route to the end zone after a 91-yard kick-off return for a touchdown in Saturday’s 29-25 victory. E-mail Gray at:
ACU ASUFumbles-Lost 0-0 1-1Penalties-Yards 5-49 5-42Possession Time 28:48 31:12Third-Down Conversions 3 of 16 5 of 16Fourth-Down Conversions 1 of 2 0 of 2Red-Zone Conversions 3-4 3-3Sacks By: Number-Yards 1-5 2-19
In light of a more technolog-ical era, Darby said he decidedFilmFest could help encouragemore use of technology in theclassroom.
“Let’s empower people atACU to learn more and teach
more and find new ways ofteaching to capture students’imaginations," Darby said.
He said FilmFest might trig-ger boosting the educationalexperience through film. It willalso present an AcademyAwards-like night of entertain-ment premiering the top 10films.
The awards ceremony will
take place Nov. 12 at theParamount Theatre beginningat 6:30 p.m. Awards will begiven by 10 judges on the basisof three categories: entertain-ment, inspirational and infor-mational.
Students and faculty fromHardin-Simmons and McMurryuniversities as well as theAbilene community are invited
to participate in the event andthe FilmFest symposium, wheresome of the judges can answerquestions and teach about thebenefits of visual media. Thesymposium will take place onNov. 13, and the time and placehave not been verified.
FilmFest: Ceremony to be at ParamountContinued from Page 1
vice presidential debate, thegroup also reserved the club-house Wednesday for the finalpresidential debate.
Casey Bingham, sophomorepolitical science major and chairof the College Republicans, saidhe’s glad the groups are workingto keep students involved in theelection.
“It was fairly civil,” he said.“We didn’t spark any bigdebates.”
Perez said some peoplestayed after the debates to dis-cuss the issues.
“It was all in good humor,”she said. “We gave each otherhugs and everything on the wayout.”
Perez said she hoped thecoming election would drawmore members to the group, butshe’s surprised that membershiphas remained steady at about 25since last year.
“I thought because it waselection year, people would be
more inter-ested,” Perezsaid, “butboth us andthe CollegeRepublicansare lookingfor num-bers.”
The Col-lege Repub-licans have a
steady membership of about 20to 25, Bingham said.
Many of the group’s mem-
bers watched the second presi-dential debate and the vice pres-idential debate at the electionoffice of Rep. RandyNeugebauer, R.-19th District.The group will watch the thirdand final debate on Wednesdayand will also offer free pizza.
“There’s a whole lot at stakein this election,” Bingham said.“Stay involved and informedwith the issues.”
Debates: College parties staying informedContinued from Page 1
the kids cometo the clubwith no expe-rience ingymnastics,”he said, “sowe oftenwork heavilyon style andform.”
Sandersonhas been involved with theFlying Cats for four yearsafter a friend suggested it tohim his freshman year.
“I was told by a friend totake gymnastics with BenZickefoose,” he said, “and I
really enjoyed it and decidedto join.”
Zickefoose has beeninvolved with gymnastics atACU since he arrived on cam-pus in 1951. As a freshman,he and another student taughtgymnastics classes, and he hasbeen strongly involved in theclub and gymnastics on cam-pus since.
The club, which currentlyhas about 20 members, prac-tices twice a week on Tues-days and Thursdays from4:15-5:30 p.m.
Flying: Cats beginwith little experienceContinued from Page 1
The third presi-dential debatewill air at 8p.m. Wednes-day on ABC,CBS and NBC.
By BRIAN ROESPORTS WRITER
ACU continued its strongplay in the Lone StarConference South Divisionlast weekend with a pair ofthree-game sweeps overTarleton State and TexasA&M-Kingsville.
The Wildcats remain atopthe LSC South Division im-proving to 18-6 overall and 4-0 in the conference. ACU isranked No. 4 in the initialNCAA Division II SouthwestRegion poll. The top eightteams at the end of the regularseason will advance to theregional tournament.
This is the first year thateight teams will reach theregional tournament. The last
three years only the top sixteams in the regional wouldadvance to the tournament,with ACU finishing No. 7 allthree seasons.
ACU handled TarletonState Thursday night inStephenville 30-23, 30-26,30-21. Junior middle blockersAshlee Motolaand AmandaSlate led ACUwith 14 killseach. Junior outside hitterMichelle Bernhardt finishedwith 12 kills, junior setterLindsey Martin added 46assists and senior liberoKellen Morrow and freshmanoutside hitter Liz Snoddyeach finished with 10 digs.
The Wildcats bouncedback from a disappointingloss to Lubbock ChristianTuesday and finished theTarleton match with a .299
hitting percentage, six teamblocks and held Tarleton to a.186 hitting percentage.
“We really controlled everyaspect of the game,” said headcoach Brek Horn. “We passedwell, we hit well, and we con-trolled the ball. When we playlike that we are a tough teamto beat.”
After Thursday’s match inS tephenv i l l e ,the team madethe seven-hourtrip to Kings-
ville to play the LadyJavelinas on Saturday. Thedrive to Kingsville is thelongest road trip of the seasonfor the Wildcats.
The team made the most oftheir trip dominating Kings-ville in a 30-18, 30-23, 30-23sweep.
Usual standouts Slate (14kills and a .591 hitting per-centage), Bernhardt (12 killsand 11 digs) and Martin (52
assists) led the Wildcats totheir 18th win of the season.
Freshman outside hitterAbbie Lowry also proved apoint finishing with 13 kills.Horn said the ongoing battlebetween Lowry and sopho-more outside hitter CallieDelabano is healthy for theteam.
“They are having a littlefriendly competition and itcan only make the team bet-ter,” Horn said. “Saturday, weas a coaching staff, felt Abbiewas hitting better in warmups so she played. Whoeverplays better in practice and inthe games will play.”
The Wildcats return toaction Thursday against divi-sion opponent Angelo State ina battle of first place teams.Both teams are 4-0 in the LSCSouth Division.
By KYLE ROBARTSSPORTS EDITOR
Don’t count out the Wildcatswhen No. 11 is on the field.With just over six minutes leftto go in the game, and ACUtrailing 25-15, several studentsand faculty had already trekkedback to their vehicles and head-ed home.
But with the help of DawonGentry, Danieal Manning (No.11) sparked a 14-point come-back, and the Wildcats beat theAngelo State Rams 29-25Saturday.
Having already returned akickoff for a 91-yard touchdown
at the end of the first half,Manning and Gentry went deepto receive a punt with 6:20 togo. Since the Rams wouldn’tkick to Manning, Gentry fieldedthe punt and faked a pitch toManning who passed behind
including three field goals,kicked an extra point to narrowthe Angelo State lead 25-22.
The Wildcat defense forced athree-and-out on the Rams’ensuing drive, but the Wildcat
offense was unable to respondand had the ball just 1:34 beforepunting it back to Angelo.
At 0-6, the Rams tried to runout the clock,but on third-and-one, theAll-AmericanM a n n i n gstripped theball from Ang-elo tailback BillRenfro.
He forcedthe fumble at
the Rams’ 45-yard line, and theball bounced into Manning’shands, who in turn ran it 44yards for a touchdown.
Manning was the nation’sleader among Division II
schools in punt returns goinginto the game, but the Ramswouldn’t kick to him. However,after his two kickoff returns fora total of 119 yards Saturday, hebecame the country’s No. 1kickoff-returner with an averageof 32.8 yards on nine returns.
Angelo couldn’t respond tothe fumble return and droppedits seventh-straight contest thisyear. The win evens both ACU’soverall and Lone Star Con-ference South record to 3-3 and1-1 respectively.
“I think the phrase, ‘snatch-ing a victory from the jaws ofdefeat’ holds true,” head coachGary Gaines said of Saturday’scomeback.
This was the second-straightweek in which the Rams had
SPORTSWEDNESDAYPage 8 OPTIMIST October 13, 2004
BRIAN SCHMIDT/Chief Photographer
Junior linebacker Matt Allen grabs Angelo State tailback Bill Renfro after Danieal Manning strips the ball loose. Manning took the ball 44 yardsfor a touchdown to give the Wildcats the go-ahead touchdown, sealing a 29-25 victory.
BRIAN SCHMIDT/Chief Photographer
Freshman outside hitter Liz Snoddy digs the ball in the 3-0 (30-27, 25-30, 30-18, 27-30, 15-6) win versus Eastern New Mexico on Oct. 2.
14 points in six minutes lift Cats
to even record at 3-3
This week inWildcat sports...
(home events in italics)
Thursday, October 14 VB: at Angelo State, 7 p.m. Saturday, October 16 MCC: at Chile PepperFestival, 10 a.m. WCC: at Chile PepperFestival, 10 a.m. FB: at West Texas A&M, 6p.m. Monday, October 18 G: at Rattler Invitational, 9a.m. Tuesday, October 19 G: at Rattler Invitational, 9a.m. Wednesday, October 20 WCC: at NCAA II nationals,10 a.m. Thursday, October 21 VB: at Eastern NewMexico, 7 p.m.
LSC SouthStandings
FootballTeam Div. Tot.1. Midwestern State 3-0 5-12. E. New Mexico 3-0 4-33. A&M-Kingsville 2-0 5-04. ACU 1-1 3-35. A&M-Commerce 0-3 2-46. W. Texas A&M 0-3 1-57. Angelo State 0-3 0-7
VolleyballTeam Div. Tot.1. Angelo State 4-0 17-42. ACU 4-0 18-63. A&M-Kingsville 1-2 7-144. E. New Mexico 0-2 15-55. West Texas A&M 0-2 15-96. Tarleton State 0-3 13-11
ScoresThursday
VolleyballACU 3, Tarleton State 0
Saturday
VolleyballACU 3, Texas A&M-Kingsville. 0FootballACU 29, Angelo State 25
BriefsSenior cross country stand-
out Bernard Manirakiza wasnamed Lone Star ConferenceMen’s Runner of the Week lastweek, after finishing fourth atthe Oklahoma State UniversityCowboy Jamboree Oct. 2.Manirakiza covered the 8,000-meter course in 24:20, leadingthe team to a third-place finish.
Adeh Mwamba claimed thesame award on the women’sside after her sixth-place finishat the Cowboy Jamboree.Amidst heavy Division I compe-tition, Mwamba ran a season-best time of 17:44 on the 5,000-meter course, leading theWildcats to a 10th-place teamfinish.
Manirakiza and Mwambaare expected to place well indi-vidually at Saturday’s ChilePepper Festival Saturday inFayetteville, Ark.
—Steve Holt, Sports Writer
By WARREN GRAYSPORTS WRITER
The ACU tennis team com-peted in the LSC IndividualChampionships last weekendas they looked to establishthemselves as the top team inthe conference. Thirteenchampionships later, coachHutton Jones said theyemphatically accomplishedthat goal.
“Establish would be anunderstatement,” Jones said.
“We are the dominant team.”Eighteen individual titles
were up for grabs at the LSCtournament, with six flights ofsingles and three flights ofdoubles on both the men’s andwomen’s sides. ACU camehome with 13 of the titles.
The women’s team wasespecially tough as they cap-tured eight of the nine flightsthey competed in withSummer Beesley taking theonly loss in the first flight ofsingles competition. Beesleyteamed up with Rachel Taylorto win in flight one doubles,assuring that no woman went
home empty-handed. Taylor,Ashley Hawk-Caperton, LanaPavlin and Holly Lindloff allfinished with wins in singlesand doubles, while MeaganBrown won her singles flight,and Joy Israel won a title indoubles.
“It’s phenomenal what theydid,” Jones said. “Quite anaccomplishment.”
The men’s team broughthome its share of wins as well.The Wildcats won in the first,third and sixth flights of sin-gles, and the first and thirddoubles flights. FiveWildcats — Artin Tafazoli,Kevin Beedy, Jason Ray, EvanPuglia and George Carstens—
came home with at least onetitle, leaving only ACU’s No. 2player Casper Steenkampwithout a title. Jones admittedthat Steenkamp is goingthrough a rough spot.
“Casper’s kind of struggledthis fall, but it’s not for lack ofeffort,” Jones said. “He’s notthat far off; I’m not worriedabout it.”
Steenkamp’s teammatesagree with Jones’ thoughts onthe subject.
“He’ll be all right comespring,” Tafazoli said.
While Steenkamp mightnot be on track yet, the ACUteam’s presence was definitelyfelt at the tournament.
“We had a good feelingcoming in that we were kindof the powerhouse of the con-ference,” Tafazoli said. “Thatwas confirmed.”
The Wildcats are hopingthat the confidence gained atthe LSC tournament will carryover to the spring season.Until then, the team will focuson conditioning. Jones saidthe fall schedule hasn’t provid-ed the practice time he wouldlike to have.
“We haven’t been able tocondition like I’ve wanted to,”Jones said. “By the time weserve that first ball in
Team takes 13 of 18possible titles
in Wichita Falls
TTennisennis
Cats beat Tarleton,A&M-Kingsville inthree matches each
VVolleyballolleyball
FootballFootball
ACU still perfect in Lone Star SouthSee TENNIS Page 7
By ANDY JEFFREYSTUDENT REPORTER
Fantasy football is onceagain thriving among collegestudents around the country.
Fantasy football leagues givethe average fan the opportunityto act as coach, owner and pres-ident of an NFL team by draft-ing, trading, waiving and sign-ing players. After a team is cre-ated of current NFL players,those players’ performancesthroughout the season deter-mine the overall success of fan-tasy teams.
“It’s a lot of fun competingagainst your friends,” saidRandy Fuller, senior communi-cations major from Fort Worth.“It is much more entertainingnow watching an averageSunday afternoon footballgame.”
Even though many who par-ticipate in these leagues do itsolely for the entertainment,some leagues have cash prizes.
“This is my fifth year to playbut the first time I have playedfor money,” said Ryan New-house, senior managementmajor from Fort Worth.
Newhouse paid $100 to joina league of ACU students withthe opportunity of winning$500 for first place.
“It makes watching a game alot more intense knowing thatyou could win some money ifyour players perform well,”Newhouse said.
The Internet sites that pro-vide fantasy leagues also haveinformation and commentaryfrom experts that can help par-ticipants make decisions toimprove their team.
Newhouse said FantasyFootball can be a lot of fun, butit can also become time con-suming.
“It’s a good thing,” New-house said, “but I probablyspend more time playing than Ishould.”
On-campus leaguesform, players get NFLmanager experience
