NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 32 St. JOSEPH, MO Vol 95 | Issue 22 griffonnews.com April 18, 2013 MOWO Confessions gets students to spill their guts Matt Hunt | News Editor [email protected]MOWO Confessions makes the “burn book” from Mean Girls look childish. A new Facebook fan page has been created for students to express their needs, both physical and emotional. The group has received much at- tention since it was created on March 1, 2013. The page has asked Western students to send their crazy, funny stories or a confession they would like to see posted on their page. Both students and faculty have expressed their views towards the page. Minerva Torres, advisor for the Non- traditional Assosication, said the page, “may be a good way for people to vent or get stuff off their chest so to speak. On the other hand, if there’s not a good moderator, it could get pretty negative.” She has ex- pressed that several individu- als on campus have asked her opinion on the page as a fac- ulty member on campus. “I was asked if I had seen it multiple times ‘till I finally pulled it up. Honestly, not my thing,” Torres said. MOWO Confessions has reached over 800 members on Facebook alone, but they also have a Twitter and Tumblr page as well. Students have reached out and voiced their opinions on the page. Fresh- man Allie Mayes said that many students have mixed feelings about MOWO Con- fessions. “I agree some of them are funny, but I feel like it is go- ing too far and people may get hurt by this page,” Mayes said. “In a way it reminds me of Gossip Girl, where people would send in gossip or con- fessions.” She said the group has or- ganized a large base which she feels at first wasn’t harm- ful, but the more people keep “confessing,” the more hurt and angry people will be- come. SEE MOWO PAGE 2 Recent Posts Recent Posts Western student loan default rates triple 2006 6% 2009 19% STUDENT LOAN DEFAULT RATE (The percentage of students that aren’t paying back their loans) Andy Garrison | Opinions Editor [email protected]SEE LOANS PAGE 2 The most recent available data shows Missouri West- ern students’ loan default rate triple in just four years. This problem is not one unique to Western, default rates all over the country are climbing. However, the folks at financial aid here on campus are instituting a lot of new programs to keep students up-to-date on their loans and out of collections. The default rates on loans come out every three years so the 2013 release is still a draft and not public. The most recent trend though show that between 2006 and 2009 the rate here went from only 6 percent to 19.9 per- cent. Default rates are so impor- tant to our campus because high numbers can lead to federal cuts. Marilyn Baker, director of financial aid, ex- plains. “We take our default rates seriously,” Baker said. “Be- cause it can jeopardize our federal funding if our de- fault rate continues to rise.” And while the most recent rates are unavailable, it was hinted that the rates are still trending upwards for this past three year period. Financial aid isn’t taking it on the chin. They have put into place some progressive programs to help students when it comes time for re- payment. “One [program] that we are focusing on right now and encouraging students to check into is called Income Based Repayment Plan,” she said. “Say that student who borrowed $57,000 can’t afford to make that $600.00 payment, then this income based repayment plan is a great option for them to check into.” This program will help out a lot of students who are worried about having to knock out their loans in such big payments. One MWSU senior, who is graduating with about $57,000 in loans, is worried about just that. Rochelle Whitman explains her doubts about her salary being able to keep up with her payments at first. “Probably not in the be- ginning,” she said. “I’d say probably not for the first five years because you have to start on the bottom; no, I don’t think so, I hope it pays off in the end.” The financial aid depart- ment also encourages stu- dents to return for help if needed even after they graduate; Baker explains. “Hopefully more and more [graduates return for help],” she said. “We defi- nitely want them to under- stand that option is there because the student loan repayment process is con- fusing.” Financial aid can help for- mer students navigate the process for the best possible results and have people in place to do so. “We definitely want them to know that we do have people on staff who un- derstand those repayment plans; have worked with the servicers,” Baker said. “People who are willing to do three-way calls with the servicers with the student, to be there with them.” Student loans are backed by the government and so they are not going to go away in a bankruptcy. Asso- ciate Director Cindy Spotts- Conrad explains the impor- tance of keeping aware of what we owe. “The most important thing for students to know is don’t ignore it,” she said. “These loans are serious, you are owing money to the government; this debt is serious debt because, if you read the news stories, they are garnishing social secu- rity when people retire.” In the income based pro- gram, sometimes, depend- ing on income and house- hold size, 5 FACTS ABOUT STUDENT LOANS 1) 66 percent of 2012-13 pending bachelor’s degree graduates borrowed loan funds. 2) 49 percent borrowed more than $25,000. 19 percent borrowed more than $40,000. 3) Missouri Western fi- nancial aid department attempted 365 individual calls to delinquent borrow- ers in the last six months. 4) An average of 1,800 e- mails are sent each month from the financial aid de- partment (21,600 e-mail annually). 5) An average of 800 delin- quency letters are mailed each month (9600 letters annually). - Dr. Marilyn Baker Director of Financial Aid SGA passes SOS reallocation act unanimously Katelyn Canon | Managing Editor [email protected]The Student Government Association unanimously passed the reallocation of Student Success Act funds. During the last senate meeting, April 15, SGA Presi- dent Jacob Scott presented a finalized proposal to sena- tors that will reallocate funds from the five areas originally outlined to 10 different areas. The areas outlined in the passed proposal are Baker Fitness Center ($180,000), Esry Health Center (90,000), Student Life ($45,000), In- ternational Student Ser- vices ($26,250), the Theater and Music Departments ($7,500 each), Blum Union ($262,500), Campus Parking ($108,750), Disability Servic- es ($7,500) and Career Devel- opment ($750,000). While presenting the pro- posal to senators Scott said the passage of the realloca- tion would allow students to see changes and “improve the things we want to see im- proved on campus.” “I think this is a great step forward for student govern- ment and the student body,” Scott said. Both senators and students in the gallery questioned the proposal; however, senators chose to vote on the proposal rather than table it. “If you didn’t pass it to- night there would be no opportunity to pass it this year,” Scott said. Although senate passed the proposal for the fiscal year of 2014, SGA President- Elect Katy Sisco could choose to again reallocate the 2015 funds. Campus gets crazy at concert See more photos on page 4 Sammy Adams gets the crowd hyped at the 2013 WAC Annual Spring Concert held Friday, April 12 at the Civic Arena. Gilbert Imbiri | Asst. Photo Editor free for students black and white attire blum 218 and 219 10p.m.-2a.m. finger food dj WAC to host annual formal April 26 Although many remem- ber their high school prom as the night they will never forget, students have the chance to relive that moment by attend- ing the WAC formal on April 26. The formal is free and for students who want to take a night off from school or studying to attend a fun night of dancing. The night will be filled with food, music, making memories and fun. Students will also get the chance step out of their normal attire and show up in an elegant dress or suit at this event. This year’s theme for the formal is Black and White Affair and the formal is ex- pected to have around 100 to 300 students at- tending. The dance will be held in Blum 218 and 219 starting at 10 p.m. and ending at 2 a.m. Finger foods, dessert and a DJ will be pro- vided all night. Amber Frank, Western student, feels that the WAC formal will not only be exciting but stress-free as well. “I think it will be a lot like a high school prom and I expect to have a lot of fun dancing with my friends,” Frank said. Krista Hague | Staff Writer [email protected]SEE FORMAL PAGE 2 Joe Snapp | Graphics Editor Joe Snapp | Graphics Editor Two students get engaged, defying the government’s stance on same-sex marriage. Page 4 Western is criticized for another tuition increase. Page 6 Spencer Shockley breaks long-standing doubles record in less than three years. Page 8
Transcript
NON-PROFIT ORG.U.S. POSTAGE
PA I DPERMIT NO. 32St. JOSEPH, MO
Vol 95 | Issue 22 griffonnews.com April 18, 2013
MOWO Confessions gets students to spill their guts
MOWO Confessions makes the “burn book” from Mean Girls look childish.
A new Facebook fan page has been created for students to express their needs, both physical and emotional. The group has received much at-tention since it was created on March 1, 2013. The page has asked Western students to send their crazy, funny stories or a confession they would like to see posted on their page.
Both students and faculty have expressed their views towards the page. Minerva Torres, advisor for the Non-traditional Assosication, said the page, “may be a good way for people to vent or get stuff off their chest so to speak. On the other hand, if there’s not a good moderator, it could get pretty negative.” She has ex-pressed that several individu-als on campus have asked her opinion on the page as a fac-ulty member on campus.
“I was asked if I had seen it multiple times ‘till I finally pulled it up. Honestly, not my thing,” Torres said.
MOWO Confessions has reached over 800 members on Facebook alone, but they also have a Twitter and Tumblr page as well. Students have reached out and voiced their opinions on the page. Fresh-man Allie Mayes said that many students have mixed feelings about MOWO Con-fessions.
“I agree some of them are funny, but I feel like it is go-ing too far and people may get hurt by this page,” Mayes said. “In a way it reminds me of Gossip Girl, where people would send in gossip or con-fessions.”
She said the group has or-ganized a large base which she feels at first wasn’t harm-ful, but the more people keep “confessing,” the more hurt and angry people will be-come.
SEE MOWO PAGE 2
Recent Posts Recent Posts
Western student loan default rates triple
20066%
200919%
STUDENT LOAN DEFAULT RATE(The percentage of students that aren’t paying back their loans)
The most recent available data shows Missouri West-
ern students’ loan default rate triple in just four years.
This problem is not one unique to Western, default rates all over the country are climbing. However, the folks at financial aid here on campus are instituting a lot of new programs to keep students up-to-date on their loans and out of collections.
The default rates on loans come out every three years so the 2013 release is still a draft and not public. The most recent trend though show that between 2006 and 2009 the rate here went from only 6 percent to 19.9 per-cent.
Default rates are so impor-tant to our campus because high numbers can lead to federal cuts. Marilyn Baker, director of financial aid, ex-plains.
“We take our default rates seriously,” Baker said. “Be-cause it can jeopardize our federal funding if our de-fault rate continues to rise.”
And while the most recent rates are unavailable, it was hinted that the rates are still trending upwards for this past three year period.
Financial aid isn’t taking it on the chin. They have put into place some progressive programs to help students when it comes time for re-payment.
“One [program] that we are focusing on right now and encouraging students to check into is called Income Based Repayment Plan,” she said. “Say that student who borrowed $57,000 can’t afford to make that $600.00 payment, then this income based repayment plan is a great option for them to check into.”
This program will help out a lot of students who are worried about having to knock out their loans in such big payments. One MWSU senior, who is graduating with about $57,000 in loans, is worried about just that. Rochelle Whitman explains her doubts about her salary being able to keep up with her payments at first.
“Probably not in the be-ginning,” she said. “I’d say probably not for the first five years because you have to start on the bottom; no, I don’t think so, I hope it pays off in the end.”
The financial aid depart-ment also encourages stu-dents to return for help if needed even after they graduate; Baker explains.
“Hopefully more and more [graduates return for help],” she said. “We defi-nitely want them to under-stand that option is there because the student loan
repayment process is con-fusing.”
Financial aid can help for-mer students navigate the process for the best possible results and have people in place to do so.
“We definitely want them to know that we do have people on staff who un-derstand those repayment plans; have worked with the servicers,” Baker said. “People who are willing to do three-way calls with the servicers with the student, to be there with them.”
Student loans are backed by the government and so they are not going to go away in a bankruptcy. Asso-ciate Director Cindy Spotts-Conrad explains the impor-tance of keeping aware of what we owe.
“The most important thing for students to know is don’t ignore it,” she said. “These loans are serious, you are owing money to the government; this debt is serious debt because, if you read the news stories, they are garnishing social secu-rity when people retire.”
In the income based pro-gram, sometimes, depend-ing on income and house-hold size,
5 FACTS ABOUT STUDENT LOANS 1) 66 percent of 2012-13 pending bachelor’s degree graduates borrowed loan funds.
2) 49 percent borrowed more than $25,000. 19 percent borrowed more than $40,000.
3) Missouri Western fi-nancial aid department attempted 365 individual calls to delinquent borrow-ers in the last six months.
4) An average of 1,800 e-mails are sent each month from the financial aid de-partment (21,600 e-mail annually).
5) An average of 800 delin-quency letters are mailed each month (9600 letters annually).
The Student Government Association unanimously passed the reallocation of Student Success Act funds.
During the last senate meeting, April 15, SGA Presi-dent Jacob Scott presented a finalized proposal to sena-tors that will reallocate funds from the five areas originally outlined to 10 different areas.
The areas outlined in the passed proposal are Baker Fitness Center ($180,000),
Esry Health Center (90,000), Student Life ($45,000), In-ternational Student Ser-
vices ($26,250), the Theater and Music Departments ($7,500 each), Blum Union ($262,500), Campus Parking ($108,750), Disability Servic-es ($7,500) and Career Devel-opment ($750,000).
While presenting the pro-posal to senators Scott said the passage of the realloca-tion would allow students to see changes and “improve the things we want to see im-proved on campus.”
“I think this is a great step forward for student govern-ment and the student body,”
Scott said. Both senators and students
in the gallery questioned the proposal; however, senators chose to vote on the proposal rather than table it.
“If you didn’t pass it to-night there would be no opportunity to pass it this year,” Scott said.
Although senate passed the proposal for the fiscal year of 2014, SGA President-Elect Katy Sisco could choose to again reallocate the 2015 funds.
Campus gets crazy at concert See more photos on page 4
Sammy Adams gets the crowd hyped at the 2013 WAC Annual Spring Concert held Friday, April 12 at the Civic Arena. Gilbert Imbiri | Asst. Photo Editor
free for students
black and white attire
blum 218 and 219
10p.m.-2a.m.finger food
dj
WAC to host annual formal April 26
Although many remem-ber their high school prom as the night they will never forget, students have the chance to relive that moment by attend-ing the WAC formal on April 26.
The formal is free and for students who want to take a night off from school or studying to attend a fun night of dancing. The night will be filled with food, music, making memories and fun. Students will also get the chance step out of their normal attire and show up in an elegant dress or suit at this event.
This year’s theme for the formal is
Black and White Affair and the formal is ex-pected to have around 100 to 300 students at-tending.
The dance will be held in Blum 218 and 219 starting at 10 p.m. and ending at 2 a.m. Finger foods, dessert and a DJ will be pro-vided all night.
Amber Frank, Western student, feels that the WAC formal will not only be exciting but stress-free as well.
“I think it will be a lot like a high school prom and I expect to have a lot of fun dancing with my friends,”
I need a copy editor to look over my manu-script before I send it off to the printer.
The manuscript is 235 pages. Experience is preferred, and experience with tabletop role-playing games will get you to the top of the pile. If interested, send a summary of your skills, experience and your asking
French Program of Folk Songs Features Dr. Louis Imperiale, will Feature Dave
ScottDr. Louis Imperiale will
present a selection of best-loved French songs accom-panying himself on the ac-cordion at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 18, in the Little The-atre of the Hearnes Learning Center at Missouri Western State University.
Audience members will be able to sing along to many of France’s “bien-aimées” selec-tions such as “Aux Champs-Elysées,” “Milord,” “Frou-Frou” and “C’est si bon.” The program is designed for all ages, for music lovers and karaoke enthusiasts or for anyone who loves music and sing-alongs.
A recognized internation-al animator, Dr. Mohamed Ghazala, will present a lec-ture that is free and open to the public at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 17 at Mis-souri Western State Univer-sity. The presentation is part of his three-day visit today through Wednesday, which will include lectures in sev-eral art classes.
Dr. Ghazala is an assistant animation professor at Minia University in Egypt. He has lectured at several interna-tional fine arts and film in-stitutes, and has served as a judge for numerous inter-national animation festivals. Contact Geo Sipp for more info at [email protected].
MOWOCONTINUED FROM FRONT
“I can’t really judge people for sending their informa-tion to the page, but at the same time, you never know how what you say might af-fect how someone else feels,” Mayes said.
Other students, such as ju-nior Jonathan Mullock, have seen a status which included his name. He said the page was a great idea in the begin-ning, but it becomes some-thing much more personal when you’re the person in the post.
“People started to go too far with what they said about each other,” Mullock said. “I think it’s kind of sad how many people at MoWo will say horrible things about people behind their backs.”
Senior Jordan Carney be-lieves the group has shed a negative light on the Univer-sity and it could damage the reputation that Western has.
“Even submissions are
anonymous, names are still used in the posts, which are often immature and poorly thought out,” Carney said. “Anyone can like the page, and those who view it will not have a positive impres-sion of our students.”
Mary Beth Rosenauer, sophomore and former SGA candidate, has been men-tioned on the page several times and believes it was time to express how she felt. She has been mentioned both in a negative and positive manner.
“All I can say is it’s highly unprofessional and gives Missouri Western an imma-ture image compared to oth-er universities,” Rosenauer said. “Feels like high school again.”
The group continues to reach new members daily and the status is updated on an hourly basis most of the time.
“This is going to be a vir-tual burn book, like a col-lege version of Mean Girls,” Rosenauer said.
Facebook page draws campus attention
a payment of $0.00 is ac-cepted as an actual payment and keeps the account in good standing as long as the student is in the program.
“The more we can get peo-ple to understand that, re-ally, keeping your account in good standing does not nec-essarily require payment,” she said. “And that is just so important because we care about our students, we don’t want to see anyone out there who is financially devastated by a stu-dent loan.”
It is possible to bypass the student loan office and go straight to the ser-vicer, but to navi-gate the system and make sure students get the best infor-mation and services they should go to financial aid before calling. Spotts-Con-rad explains why.
“The federal ser-vices should of-fer similar service plans but, if they don’t, that doesn’t mean the student doesn’t have the right to that” she said. “So that’s why we want to make it very clear to our students that those
exist; if they say I need to re-pay on an income based or a pay as you earn then that ser-vicer would need to respond. That’s the law.”
Baker also warns that stu-dents shouldn’t accept their entire loan if they don’t re-ally need it.
“Hoping that they put more thought into the pro-cess of accepting the student loans,” she said. “Instead of just click, click, click hit ac-cept, okay, I’m done and I get a refund of $3,000 and go out and spend it how-ever they spend it.”
Students encouraged to not select full loan amountsLOANSCONTINUED FROM FRONT
Dancing is not the only thing that the event will con-sist of. A photo booth will be available for students who wish to take silly pictures with friends and dates.
Since the semester is com-ing to an end, this formal event will allow students to relax, laugh, enjoy a night with friends and also meet new people and make new memories.
Isaiah Collier, assistant dean of Student Develop-ment, feels students who come out to this event will have fun.
“Students will get the chance to meet new people they wouldn’t normally meet in their residential halls,” Collier said. “It also gives them the opportunity to get out of their rooms and have a great time dancing.”
Ashlyn Powers, western student, believes the formal will be a nice event to enjoy with friends.
“I think the dance will be fun and it will also give students the chance to dress up and have a great time,” Powers said.
FORMALCONTINUED FROM FRONT
Dance themed as “Black and White” classic affair
“We take our default rates seriously because it can jeopardize our federal funding if our default rate continues to rise.”
- Marilyn Baker Director of
Financial Aid
Going to the WAC Formal? Tweet about it and mention
@GriffonNewsCom for a free prize!
International Animator Visits
Missouri Western
American Story Missouri Western students
will travel to Colorado to perform American Story on May 10th at The Famous Performing Arts Center in Trinidad, Colorado, home of the Southern Colorado Rep-ertory Company. The event will take place on Sunday, April 21st at 1:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. at the Kemper Re-cital Hall.
Tuesday, April 23• Tuesday,April23:Spielberg’s
“Lincoln”:OntheSetat6:00p.m.PotterHallTheatre
Sunday, April 21• Tuesday,April23:‘BlackHoles’
PlanetariumShowat7:00p.m.AgensteinHall147
NEWSApril 18, 2013The Griffon News
Page 3
SGA President-elect Ka-tie Sisco has selected the directors for her adminis-tration.
Sisco, who will be elect-ed this Friday at the SGA banquet, has selected her Directors of Student Rela-tions, Communications and Finances. She has tak-en it upon herself to bring both new and old faces to those offices in the Student Government.
“I’m really excited about the new directors,” Sisco said, “I’m feeling pretty positive on the selections I’ve made.”
She has selected Mike Hollander as her new di-rector of Finance. Hol-lander is unknown to SGA and has no prior experi-ence, which is what Sisco was looking for in the po-sition. She said that eight individuals applied for the position, but believes Hol-lander brought something fresh to the office.
“He has the experience in finance,” Sisco said. “He’s an accounting and finance double major and I felt that is what I needed, and I wanted a fresh face.”
The directors of Student Affairs and Communica-tions will have familiar faces, which Sisco wanted. She chose Monterio See-wood, senator of SGA, as her new director of Stu-dent Relations. She said he had a great interview and believed his ties with stu-dents would be beneficial for the position.
“I think he’s a great me-diator for SGA and other organizations,” Sisco said.
Seewood sees this as a golden opportunity to get
students and organizations involved. As the new di-rector of Student Relations he wants to work with Stu-dent Affairs to restructure the PLC. He said he’s spo-ken to Shana Meyers, vice president of Student Af-fairs, and they are heading into the process of restrict-ing the PLC.
“A lot of the problems we’ve had this year has steamed towards commu-nication,” Seewood said, “I know that’s a big issue on Katie’s list and I want students and organizations to know they can come to me.”
Ashley Stegall, direc-tor of Communications, will be returning to her position after having 10 applicants apply for her position. Sisco said Stegall has the overall experience for the office of director of Communications, and she knows the ins and outs of SGA.
“Honestly, Dillon and I didn’t want to train some-one new to come into the position,” Sisco said. “Ev-eryone knows that Dillon and I are new to SGA, so bringing someone in who has experience is just bet-ter.”
Stegall said she is excited to return to SGA next year. After serving under SGA President Jacob Scott, she said that her experience would be beneficial for Sis-co’s agenda for next year.
“I really enjoy doing this position,” Stegall said. “I think the most important thing is listening to the students, and we’ve done a good job doing that this semester and we want to continue that.”
Sisco will be inaugurat-ed on Friday, April 19 at the SGA Awards Banquet.
The much awaited MWSU senior art exhibit arrived at Western to showcase senior students’ artwork. The show has been divided into two exhibits featuring animation, graphic design and studio art work.
The first ran April 3-11 with artists that included Tabitha Berry, Linda Church, Jakob Ehlert, Sydney Ever-all, Sarah Gordon, Shelby Hughes, Robbie Johnson, Dalton Liu, Hadley Munger, Kate Pantle, Matthew Rob-ertson, Joe Snapp, Kelli Strat-ton, Jeremy Todd, Sawyer Vertin, and Amber Wilcox.
Rebecca Foley, assistant professor of Art, said that the show gives the artists an opportunity to showcase the department’s diversity. Yearly, an outside curator is selected to view, select and judge the works by students. This year the curator for the first exhibit was Blair Schul-man, art writer and editor of Cupcakes in Regalia, regular contributor to Ceramics: Art and Perception, Juxtapoz, and also co-host of Art Speak Radio on KKFI (90.1 FM).
Senior Tabitha Berry, BFA Studio Art, Photography, was selected by Schulman as a winner of the Juror’s Choice Award. Her larger-than-life portrait of ‘Context of a Man’ had a large impact on the curator. The unique portrait was made by Berry creating a packaging tape negative.
“I was truly shocked,” Berry said, “I feel very privi-leged that my piece was se-lected and it was a true plea-
sure meeting and discussing my work with the curator.”
Berry also said that the students have worked very hard and it is rewarding to be able to share their work and experience the support of their family, friends, and community.
“I find exhilaration in com-bining various methods and techniques within my pho-tography, both digitally and in the darkroom,” Berry said, “my mind is always moving forward with ‘what if’ con-cepts.”
Schulman said that he per-ceived the theme through-out this first show to be one of conflict, patriotism and propaganda due to the im-pression the news media has made on students who have grown up saturated with a 24 hour/7 day a week depiction of war.
Robbie Johnson, BFA Stu-dio Art, Ceramics displayed a ceramic red tank and ce-
ramic and wood A-1 bomb. Jeremy Todd, BFA Graphic Design, displayed several different art medium’s in-cluding an artist book titled, ‘Perfection’, that begins with haphazard type and ends ty-pographically perfect. Both are examples of the conflict shown in the exhibit.
“Many of my peers in the Art Department are very knowledgeable and produce exceptional work,” Blair said, “I wish the public could see so much more of it.”
The second half of the Senior Show will also fea-ture animation, graphic de-sign and studio art work by Amanda Bettis, Kat Furlong, Ellie Green, Dustin Johnson, Eboni Lacey, Trevor Lund, Gregory Norris, Deb Potter, Teresa Rodewald, Andrew Setter, Laura Sharp, Emily Stojevich-Swenson, Fran Tex-eira, Jane Travis, and Mark Wascher, Jr. This exhibit will run April 17-25 in the Potter
Gallery. The curator will be announced prior to the sec-ond exhibit.
“By having an outside cu-rator it provides a unique op-portunity for the students,” Foley said, “ it provides a professional opportunity as well as a showcase for them.”
The exhibit is free and open to the public. The gal-lery hours are from 8:30am – 4:30pm Monday through Fri-day. An opening reception for the second exhibit will be held Wednesday, April 17 from 4-7pm.
Foley said that Potter Gal-lery hosts a variety of ex-hibits all year and is open to students every day free of charge.
“It is a place any student can come to get away,” Foley said, ”it’s a nice resource on campus.”
For more information con-tact Rebecca Foley, Assistant Professor of Art, [email protected].
“This 5K run really hit home for our chapter,” Alex Atkinson, Phi Delta Theta member, said.
Phi Delta Theta will end the school year with a 5K run on Western’s campus. The proceeds will benefit the victims of Lou Gehrig’s dis-ease and their local Phi Delta chapter. Atkinson said the event is very beneficial for students and members of the community to attend.
The event will take place on April 27, 2013 at 11:00a.m., and the group advises those who plan to participate to check in from 10:00 to 10:45 a.m. before the event begins. The run will begin at the Mis-souri Western State Univer-sity in the Looney Complex.
The prices for registration are $16 for college and high school students, and for oth-ers, the price is $26 to be able to participate in the event.
“This is really something we wanted to bring forth to ALS for the victims, families and the community to show how much Missouri West-ern wants to give back to the community,” Atkinson said.
The members of Phi Delta Theta expect a turn out of around 150 people from Mis-souri Western students as well as members of the St. Joseph Community. Jacob Dowell, member of Phi Delta Theta, said the event prof-its would go 50 percent for Lateral Sclerosis Association to benefit the victims of Lou Gehrig’s disease. He said the chapter will cover t-shirts and all other costs.
The other 50 percent of the gross proceeds will go to our local Phi Delta Theta chapter, which will be used for their philanthropy and fundraising events in the future. He believes the
event will bring in more stu-dents since it’s on campus this year.
“5Ks are a pretty big thing around here,” Dowell said. “We’ve had a lot of people come up and talk to us about getting involved on campus for this walk.”
Ethan Kelly, president of Phi Delta Theta, said it’s very im-portant to get people from the commu-nity out and involved in events like this one. He said Greek o r g a n i z a -tions can al-ways throw an event to-gether and bring other Greek orga-nizations to-gether, but to get a whole community involved in s o m e t h i n g like this is a
big step for them.“I’m hoping to get a lot of
people on campus to come,” Kelley said. “We are trying to get other organizations involved and having it on campus is a central location for this event.”
If businesses would rather donate products, the group would appreciate it.
Actor Stan Rippey is com-ing to Missouri Western in order to relate his experienc-es working on the set of the Academy Award-winning film, “Lincoln.”
The historical drama was directed by Steven Spielberg and received much attention last year for its narrative as well as Daniel Day-Lewis’s por-trayal of Abraham Lincoln, as he lived out the final four months of his life struggling to pass the amend-ment that would abolish slavery. It was nominated for seven Golden Globe awards and twelve Academy Awards, includ-ing Best Picture. It won Best Produc-tion Design and Best Actor (Daniel Day-Lewis).
Stan Rippey is an actor who worked on the set of “Lincoln,” and he hopes to relate his experiences working on the Academy Award-winning movie.
R.J. Jackson, the-atre and film ma-jor, is excited for the opportunity to hear from an ac-tor who was able to work on such a successful movie.
“It’s always ex-citing when you can meet people who are doing what you eventu-ally want to do,”
Jackson said.Alex Luke, Western stu-
dent, agrees that students in the film and theatre depart-ments can learn a lot from Rippey.
“In a movie of that caliber, I think Rippey will have a lot of knowledge to offer stu-dents who are hoping to be successful in that business,” Luke said.
Rippey also plans to share information on the Civil War as well as the struggles that people had to endure in that time, making this event rel-evant to film and history stu-dents alike.
“Having a unique cine-matic experience while being historically accurate would certainly be challenging,” Luke said. “On one hand,
you want to make sure that you get the facts right, but you also have to make sure that it’s an enjoyable mov-ie for the audience, and I think Rippey will be able to offer a lot of insight into this balancing act.”
Students are ex-cited that someone who was able to work with Spiel-berg is coming to Missouri Western to share his experi-ences.
“As an actor, he has to research his part as well as the details surround-ing those people in the film,” Brandon Grieshaber, a stu-dent at Missouri Western, said. “The fact that he was able to work with a legend like Steven Spielberg, who has made many of the classic films that we see today, is impres-sive.”
Rippey will share his knowl-edge of film and history on April 23 at 6 p.m. in Potter Hall. The event is free and open to the public.
Astimesareclearlychang-ingandtheSupremeCourt’srulingofgaymarriagenears,we hear the story of the re-lationship ofMiranda ElderandTaylaMessa. ElderandMessa,whofirstmet in 2009 and were en-gaged onAugust 10 of lastyear, are one of Western'sseveral gay couples eagerlyawaitingthenation'sverdictoftheDOMAActputintoef-fectby formerpresidentBillClinton. “We’rebothinsupportofitobviously,” Elder said, “butit’s justawaitandseewhathappenskindofthing.” Thecouplesaysthatthereis nothing they as individu-alscanreallydotohelpfur-therthecauseofrecognizinggay marriage but wait andhope that soon more stateswill see why gay marriageshouldnolongerbeillegal.
When asked whether shethought it was just a mat-ter of time before the entirecountryrecognizesgaymar-
riage,Messasaid,“Ithinkso.Youcanclearlyseefromhowpeopleweren’tasinsupportofitbeforeandnowit’sstart-ingtoincreasealot.” Insupportofherargumentthatthebanongaymarriageis coming to an end,Messawent on to explain that “as
the younger generationskeepgettingelected intoof-fice, peoplewill start realiz-ingitneedstochange.”
Recentpollsshowthatthesupport for gaymarriage isup,evensinceasearlyasthispastDecember.Itseemsthatthe more the governmentandmediaaddressthetopic,themorepeopleareswayedto thesideof lifting thebanongaymarriage.
For Messa and Elder, itwas not easy dealing withthe opinions of their fam-ilywhentheyfirsttoldthemtheywere engaged,moreofa testament to the fact thatthoughthetidesareturning,this country still has a longwaytogo. “Itwasprettytoughatfirstwith my parents,” Messasaid."Mydadisahugecon-servative but the first timewe talked about it, he said‘Idon’tcare.I’llloveyounomatterwhat.” Thoughittookhermotherlongertocomearoundtotheideaofherdaughtermarry-inganotherwoman, she tooeventually moved towardsthe side of accepting gaymarriage,asnowmorethanhalfofthecountryhas. Messa isa studenthereatWestern studying biologywhileElder stayshomeandawaits Messa’s graduation,when she toowill return toschool.
The couple says theywanttobegraduatedbeforethey’remarried,sotheyhavenot decided on what yearthey will get married, buttheydohaveadateinmind. “Wedoknowthedaybutthat’skindofanerdything,”Messasaid.“It’sApril22be-causeofDr.Who.We’rehugeDr. Who fans and Dr. Whogetsmarriedonthesamedayandthat’swhentimestops.” Althoughmostofthestatesinourcountrydonotrecog-
nize gay marriage yet, thatdoesn’t stop partners likeMessa andElder frommak-ingplansforthemselvesandbeingtogether.Oncemarriedthey plan to adopt childrenand move from Missourito, by then, a recognizingstate. Although the gov-ernmentmaybestandinginthewayrightnow,thishap-py couple knows that loveknows no bounds and nocourtrulingorpoliticiancankeepthemapart.
Miranda Elder and Tayla Messa pose for their engagement pictures. Xan Kellogg | Photo Contributor
Tenth annual spring concert hits Western
Menbers of Alpha Sigma Alpha and SGA pose with 3OH!3 at the meet and greet session at the concert. From left to right: Morgan Lindgren, Sarah Bennett, Shelby DeMott, Shannon Starr and Lauren Upton. Gilbert Imbri | Asst. Photo Editor
XV, and Western student Daniel Cole who is XV’s drummer, snap a picture backstage after their performance as opening act for the spring concert.
Gilbert Imbri | Asst. Photo Editor
Nathaniel Motte (above) and Sean Foreman (below), the two members of 3OH!3, headlined the 10th annual WAC Spring Concert. Their new album, “Omens,” which features the singles “Back to Life” and “You’re Gonna Love This” will be released on June 18. Gilbert Imbri | Asst. Photo Editor
Sammy Adams (above and below), who opened for 3OH!3, performed his two most popular singles “All Night Longer” and “Only One” for an electric crowd at the Civic Arena in downtown St. Joseph on April 12. Giilbert Imbri | Asst. Photo Editor
Elder and Messa met in 2009 and have been happy together ever since. Xan Kellogg | Photo Contributor
Netflix vs. Hulu Plus: Battle of the online streaming preferences Netflix and Hulu Plus
are the two biggest videostreaming servicesout thererightnow.Netflix is bascially an on-
line service that allows youto watch movies and tele-vision shows on your elec-tronic devices. You can usea computer,Xbox360,Play-Station3,laptop,orinsomecases,evenyourtelevision.ThegreatthingaboutNetf-
lixisthattherearethousandsof movies to choose fromthatyoucanwatchinstantly.Netflixhasawiderangeanddiverse selection that youcanchoosefromtostream.“I like Netflix better be-
consoles and on Blu-Rayplayers,” Western studentAlexSaxensaid.One of the biggest cons
about Netflix is you haveto be patient, they do nothave all the current seasonsof televisions shows avail-able when you want them.They’re always a seasonbehind with the televisionshows.Ontopofthat,notallmov-
ies that are on Netflix areavailabletostreaminstantly.With newer films, you gen-erally have to have themshippedtoyouviamailandreturnthemwhenyou’refin-ishedwatchingthem.Hulufocusesmoreontele-
visionshowsandhasalargeselectionoftelevisionshowstowatchinstantly.New episodes can be
watched on Hulu the day
aftertheyair.Hulureallyex-celsathavingabigselectionoftelevisionshowstowatch.Hulu has roughly twice
as many television showsas Netflix does. Hulu alsohas current seasons, so theyarefarmoreuptodatewiththeircontent.Student Zack Price said
itwas really hard to choosebut he feels thatNetflixhasalittlebitmoretooffer,eventhough he uses and enjoysbothservices.A big difference between
thetwoisthatHuluPlushasa very limited selection ofmoviestochoosefrom.Also,Hulu doesn’t have asmanyexclusivemovies and docu-mentariesasNetflixdoes.Hulu does have a lot of
originalshowsthough,froma web series to a collectionof older films or animated
shorts.Similarities between the
two are that they both offera free month trial and thencost $7.99 amonth after thefreemonthendsStephen Johnson says he
likes bothNetflix andHuluPlus. He says that NetflixhasgoodmoviesbutHuluisliketelevisionforcollegestu-dentsbecauseyoucanwatchshowsthatjustairedthedaybeforeandthatgivesyoutheopportunity to catch up onwhatyoumissed.Netflix seems to getmore
attention from students oncampus because althoughHulu Plus has way moretelevsion shows to choosefrom, students go afterwatchingmoviesratherthanjusttelevisionshows.
When it comes to a nightout at the movies, Saint Jo-seph citizens have very fewplaces to go. They can goto Hollywood 10 Theaterwhere they’ll get to see thenewestfilmforaheftypriceortheycangotoPlaza8The-ater, where they can finallyseethatmovietheynevergotaroundtoseeingwhenitwasfirst released or relive someold school movie memoriesfromtheirpastsontheweek-ends. Joshua Hall, who hasbeenPlaza8’sgeneralman-ager for the past two years,isreadyforpeopletoseethistheatreforthegemthatitre-allyisandalwayshasbeen. “In5years,Iwanttoownthe Plaza outright and holdaceremonyforthatnameaswe remodel the bathroomsand put a nice set of colorcoordinated paints all overthe place,” Hall said. “Andthen when everyone drivespastthatspotonthemiddle
of the Belt, they’ll see ‘TheTheater’andthey’llseeteen-agers hanging out. They’llsee college age folk gettinga night out they can afford,they’ll see families sharinginamyriadofmagicalexpe-riences together, they’ll seeadults and children alike.They’ll see lights shiningin the night, every singlenight.” Luckily forHall, therearepeople in Saint Joseph thatsharehisdream.ForWesternalumni Jes Baltezor, Plaza8will alwaysholda specialplaceinherheart. “Plaza 8 has always beennostalgic for me becauseit was the place that I sawsomeofmyfirstfilmsonthebig screen,” Baltezor said.“One of my first memoriesisgoingwithmydadtoseeBeautyandtheBeast,soev-erytimeIthoughtofmyfirstrelationshipwithcinema,thePlaza8wasalwaystheframeofreference.” ItisthisloveofcinemathatHall hopes to bring back toPlaza8withthedirectionhe
wants to take the theater in.Heknowsthat it’sanuphillbattle, but he’s not shyingawayfromtheelbowgreaserequired to return Plaza 8to its original glory. To getthroughcollege,Hallrananarcade.Thenhehelpedfixupa local dinner theatre. Anditwas inacts like these thatHallfoundwhathewaspas-sionate about.After college,hespentalotoftimechasingafterdreamsthathethoughthe ought to have, based onhisdegree,insteadofdreams
thatheactuallyhad. “DouglasAdams wrote ‘Imay not have gonewhere Iintendedtogo,butI thinkIhaveendedupwhereIneed-edtobe.’WhydoIlovemyjob? Very few people get asecond chance atfirst loves,it’snomore ‘runninganar-cade’ than it is ‘running atheater,’” Hall said. “I’m acurator, a historian, a partyhost, the keeper of preciousthings and a scientist thatunderstands the magic ofmoments when time stops.
Ideal intheintangiblesandnothing’s better than send-ing everyone home happywith something that lastslongerthanphysicalthings.” The theater has become asort of home for Hall, whohas a plethora of ideas tofreshen it up andmake themovie-going experience atPlaza 8 more enjoyable. Hewants to fix up the conces-sion area in the back of thetheatre, an area that hasn’tbeen utilized since the 90s.Hewants toputanall-you-can-play retro arcade intoone of the pre-existing the-aters and rip out the seatsinanotherto installcouchesand a DVD projector so hecanrunsportingeventsandtelevision shows there. Ontheweekends,Hallisalreadyshowing classics like “TheRockyHorrorPictureShow,”“E.T.,” and “The Goonies.”And the locals can’t getenough of these decade-oldfavorites. “With the economy thewayitis,itisnicetobeabletogoseeamovieonthebig
screenandnothavetopayaridiculousamount,”Baltezorsaid.“Andwhentheyshowcultclassicslike“RockyHor-ror”or“Nightof theLivingDead,”thereseemstobeanunspoken sense of commu-nitythatyounormallydon’tseeinmovietheaters.” For Plaza 8, the future isbright, and Hall will see toit that the hope of restoringand preserving the theatercomes into fruition. He hasmade this theater his lifeworkandit’saworkhecanbe proud of. It’s amazingwhatcanhappenwithalittlemoviemagic. “I’m excited for the fu-ture because the moderntimes have seen three busi-ness models always thrive,churches,barsandtheaters,”Hall said. “People want togather,peoplewanttoshare.These things won’t change,even in the face of Netflixandonlineinteraction.Therewill always be amarket forspectaclebecausespectacleisoneofthebestpartsoflife.”
Only three months intobusiness and thenewGold-en Corral, situated on theBelt Highway next to EastHillsMall,ishometooneofthe largest and busiest buf-fetsinSt.Joe. GoldenCorralfiredup itscookers January 18 of thisyear toafloodofcustomersand business barely seemsto have sloweddown since.Beforetheopeningoftheres-taurant, the nearest GoldenCorralwasinKansasCity,adrive much too far and ex-pensive for the broke andstruggling college studentsthatmostofusare.
Nowthatwehaveonerightin our own neighborhoodthough,wecanallgetatasteof what they have to offer.When it first came to town,it was reported that somenights, therewasat least anhourwait.Anhourwait foryour typical sit down res-taurant is one thing, but fora “seat yourself” buffet tohave the line stretching outthe door all night just goestoshowthatwhat’sinsideisworththewait. Now that the people ofSt. Joe have gotten used toit being here, business hasslowed to a more normalpace and has finally givenstragglers likemeandsomeothersachancetogoinandsee what the hype was allabout.Withpricesneverex-
ceeding$10.00,unlessthere’sa special such as the primeribthatwasservedoverEas-terweekend,thecostseemedfair enough.When I turnedthe corner though, and sawa buffet thatwaspracticallythelengthoftheentirebuild-ing,IfeltalmostasifIshouldpaymore…almost. I sat my drink down andwalked to the mammoth-sizedbuffetwhere theyhadanassortmentoffoodready,from chicken and prime ribto shrimp and crab, alongwith a separate part of thebuffet dedicated solely todesserts. It was here that Iwas forced to make one ofthehardestdecisionsof2013. After three trips, I begantowonderifIwouldeverbephysically capable of stand-
ingup from the chair to re-turn to campus. Eventually,after a very satisfyingmeal,Iwasabletomusterthewilltogetupand leave,butnotbeforetheveryaccommodat-ingwaiterswereassuredthatweenjoyedourmeal.GoldenCorral isopenMon-
day thru Friday from 10:30to9:30and7:30to9:30ontheweekends.Ifeelobligatedtowarnyou that there isgoodnewsandbadnewswhenitcomestooneofSt.Joe’snew-est establishments though.The good news is you canmakeasmanytripsuptothe
buffet as yourheart desires.Thebadnewsisitisbiologi-callyimpossibletotryevery-thingyouwanttoduringonemeal. If you think you canthough,Iwishyougoodluckandadeliciousmeal.
Third time’s (still) the charm As a former (and forever)fanofN*SyncandeverythingJustin Timberlake has everdone in his musical career,Iwas so excited to find outthathewouldbecomingoutwithhisfirststudioalbuminoversevenyearsthisMarch.I was really into his lasttwo albums, “Justified” and“FutureSex/LoveSounds.”“Justified” featuredhits like“Cry Me a River,” “Seno-rita,”and“LikeILoveYou.”“FutureSex/LoveSounds”included Timberlake's mostnotable track, “SexyBack,”as well as “LoveStoned,”and“MyLove.”Hisnewestalbum,titled“The20/20Ex-perience,”reliesonthesameTimberlake staples his fanshave grown to love with afewaddedtwists,likehisfal-settovoice,beatboxing,andperfectharmonizing. The album has already
gaineda tonof fame,basedsolelyonthetwosinglesthathave been released so far.“SuitandTie”and“Mirrors”are both blowing up, eachwonderful for different rea-sons.“SuitandTie”reliesona classic hip-hop beat withmelodious R&B lines float-ing above it. The fact thatJay-Zisfeaturedinitdoesn'thurt. “Mirrors,” the longestsongonthealbumat8min-utes and 5 seconds, kicksoff with an electric guitarmelody that is reminiscentofQueenorindierockbandfun.Oncethatcutsout,Tim-berlake's beat boxing comesinandisareallycrispback-drop throughout the song,evenduring the catchycho-rus. Upon listening to the restofthealbum,IhavetoadmitthatIwasabitdisappointedinsomespots.Notevenmyblind love could hide thefact that thealbumgotabitboring at times. My least
favorite track, “StrawberryBubblegum,” has almost afullminuteofproducerandrecording artist Timbalanddoing a repetitivevoiceoverat the beginning. Lyrically,thealbumisnotverystrong,
especially on “StrawberryBubblegum,”with lines like“Don'teverchangeyourfla-vor'cuzIlovethetaste.” On the plus side, it wasnice to not be bombardedwith tracks where the sub-
jectmatterfocusedonclichémetaphors about a hot girlandadanceclub.Itwasclearthat Timberlake's subjectmatterhasmaturedandthatwasrefreshing,butthelyricscouldusesomework.Luck-ily, themusicality of the al-bumsaves it, because everytrack is unique, with hard-hitting, old school, originalbeats.Iappreciatedthat. I loved the adult soundthat carried through thetracks, some infused withR&Bmelodies,orfunkygui-tar parts, and others glid-ing smoothly in and out ofjazzylicks.Therewereviolinsolos, synthesizer sounds,and classic drumbeats. Thesongs were very long, av-eraging about 6-7 minutes,whichduringmyfirstlisten,I thought would be reallyannoying,but itwasn't.Thelength allowed the musictoshineandit'sbeenalongwhilesinceapopartist'sal-bumhasdonethatthiswell.
Personally, I was not afan of all the Timbalandvoiceovers. Icoulddowith-out him saying “Uh huh”a million times in “TunnelVision.” Iknowthathewasresponsibleforalotoftheal-bum'sbeatsthough,soIcan'tignore the fact thathedidagoodjobthere.Ijustthoughthis seemingly useless pres-ence on a few of the tracksthemselvesgotannoying. Overall, this album isworth buying, in my book.It'sclearthatTimberlakehasgrownintohismusicalpres-ence and this album provesthat.Theremightbeacoupleofdudsongsbutthetrance-feelofsongslike“Don'tHoldthe Wall” paired with thefunky undertones of songslike“ThatGirl”makeupforthat.All in all, this body ofwork is cohesive and clean,soifyou'vegotanhourandten minutes to spare, putyourglasseson.It'stimefora20/20experience.
Timberlake’s seven-year music sabbatical churned out his third solo album with a unique sound that is widely appealing. *Courtesy of Billboard.com
Roger Ebert always saidthatifafilmsucceedsatwhatitpractices,itisagoodfilm,whetheryoulikeitornot. The 2013 remake of “EvilDead” follows that logic,makingitapurelyphenom-enalhorrorfilm. This film is not going tobe for everyone. If you aresqueamish, I suggest youback away from this blood-fest.Havingsaidthat,ifyouare a fan of horror cinema,this will be one of the bestmovie-going experiences inyourlifetime. There are certainly issueswith“EvilDead.”Thereareminor plot-holes, but if youarepayingattentiontothosethingsinafilmlikethis,youareclearlymissingthepoint. “EvilDead”wasobviously
madeouttobeafunexperi-enceatthetheaterandnottobetakenseriously.Itisn’tsomuch a film as it is a “loveletter”tohorrorfans. Thisloveletterisbeautiful-lycraftedbyfirst-timedirec-torFedeAlvarez,whocouldhave easily taken the cheapway out and just translatedthescripttofilmandthrownadozenbuckets of blood atthelens.Instead,heoptedtotaketheaudienceonacom-plete, stroke-inducing, thrillride. In this version of the cultfilm, the story follows agroupoffriendswhogoouttoacabinfortheweekendtotrytoridoneof thegroup’smemberoftheirdrugaddic-tion. In thebasementof thiscabin, they find an ancient“bookofthedead”anduponreadingfromthisbook,theycast a curse upon their re-
covering junkie-friend, ulti-matelyleadingtoademonicpossession. The difficult thing aboutremakesisthatmostlyevery-onealreadyknowsthestoryand it’s really hard to pullanaudienceintoastorythatthey already know the out-cometo.What’sgreataboutthisparticularremakeisthatitisnotdependentuponthetwistsandturnsofthestory. Abouteveryeightminutes,audiencememberswillbegintorealizethatsomethingter-ribleisgoingtohappen.Thisusuallycreatespredictabilitywithin thenarrative, but in-stead,itproducesafeelingofconstantanxietyfortheaudi-ence. Throw away the fact thatthis is probably the mostnerve-racking horror filmthat has been put out inabouttenyears.“EvilDead”
is also extremely well shotandedited. A lot of modern horrorfilmsrelyoncheapandpre-dictable jump-scares. Thereisonlyonejump-scareinthisentire film. This is becausethey didn’t need them tokeep theaudience involved.Alvarez remembered thathorror films are not about“scaring” your audiences,as much as they are about“scarring” your audiencesand making them remem-berwhattheysawandhopethattheydon’tseeitagainintheirnightmares. If you are comfortablewith thehorrormovie envi-ronment, go andwatch thismovie.Itwillstrikeyoulikea drug. You may questionyour life in the proceedingmoments, but you will justbe running back for more,andwanting.
Genre cinema at its finest: Evil Dead RemakeBrian Duskey | Multimedia [email protected]
A demonic possession wreaks havoc in the 2013 remake of the classic 1981 film “Evil Dead.” *Courtesy of Bloody-disgusting.com
Joshua Hall has been Plaza 8’s general manager for over two years. *Submitted photo
Golden Corral is located on the southeast side of the East Hills Mall. Tevin Harris | Photo Editor
OPINIONS April 18, 2013
The Griffon NewsPage 6
The Griffon News is written and published by students of Missouri Western State University during the fall and spring semesters. The first copy of each issue is free; addi-tional copies are 50 cents. Content of this paper is developed independently of the facul-ty and administration, or other campus organizations or offices. Readers are encouraged to submit story ideas, information and advertising to The Griffon News office, Eder 221, 4525 Downs Drive, St. Joseph, Mo. 64507, or by phoning (816) 271-4412 (advertising and news room). You may also e-mail [email protected]. Copy and advertising must be received by noon Friday, the week prior to publication.
Guidelines for letters to the editor:• All letters to the editor must be typed and double spaced. Letters must be no longer
than 350-400 words and guest columns no longer than 500 words. Letters and columns will be edited for style.
• All letters must include signature and identity verification information, such as phone number. The Griffon News reserves the right to edit all letters for length and Associated Press style.
• The Griffon News will not withhold names under any circumstances. Anonymously submitted letters will not be published.
• Views expressed on the opinion pages are not necessarily those of The Griffon News staff or Missouri Western State University.
Raising tuition seems to be the end-all fallback when it comes to deferred maintenance and other financial issues at Western but alternate solu-tions could be right under our noses.
As the editorial from two weeks ago pointed out, the rushed SGA proposal to reallocate the Student Success Act Fee for Esry Health Center alone is around $153,000 too much, indicating a strong probability that there would be a lot more money that could be pulled from that proposed allocation of funds in other areas.
Deferred maintenance, which was one of the administration's key points in justifying the increase, would only require $200,000 in total, which the savings from Esry alone would almost cover.
The critical maintenance is only around $60,000 which could obvious-ly be found if a little bit of ingenuity and scrutiny were applied.
The point here is that just because a tuition hike is possible doesn’t mean that Western needs to immediately take it.
Western is only allowed by law to raise tuition up to the level of CPI which is 1.7 percent; however, because we are evaluated at below average in Missouri we were given the opportunity to raise tuition up to 1.98 percent, which they readily did.
A secondary point of contention is the much larger increase for out-of-state students.
In-state students will have an
increase of $3.74 per credit hour. Out-of-state students can expect an increase of $20.
The reason that out-of-state tuition is higher in the first place is because in-state student’s parents have paid into the state’s tax system and that helps to cover some of their tuition expense.
Only our tuition is going up at Western, not the tax rate, so it should be a blanket increase according to the way the system is designed. If the taxes were raised and therefore in-state students families were paying more into the system than that could justify a greater increase.
In the case of the raise in tuition this year, it appears that the rate for out-of-state students is so much high-er simply to get more money from wherever they can.
The claim is that Western is far below average and that makes it okay to do the increase. While we are below the average mark, there are schools that are close to the same size and have tuitions below ours.
We realize that sometimes tuition hikes are going to be necessary, but hikes to simply strive to be aver-age without first examining closely our existing budget to find resources doesn’t sit well.
It would be far better to be known as a college of innovation and effi-ciency than a school of averages.
Due, in part, to a lack of attention to prices from col-leges our text books have become far too overpriced.
Usually when pitching a textbook to a college the publisher fails to mention the price and the colleges never really ask up front. I am all for worrying more about content, but the price still needs to be looked at for the student's sake. There are enough reasons why student loan default rates are on the rise, incredibly pricey books
shouldn't have to be a factor.Another reason that the
prices are kept so high is that the market seems to be working counter intuitively. More and more publishers feel the need to create these books and to compete in the market resulting in fewer and fewer individual sales for any one publisher caus-ing an increase in price to keep themselves profitable. Obviously this is not a pro-ductive competitive market and it is we the students that
are the captive buyers that have to suffer for it.
Another factor in the mar-ket is that the used text book market has done such a mar-velous job of undercutting new books thus thinning the market further. Ever wonder the real reason why they are constantly shoving some-times mandatory new edi-tions down are throats every year? The major reason isn't educational at all, it's good old fashioned greed. If they make a new edition every
year that we have to use, then we can't go and get the previous edition for half the price online and they keep on making that cash.
The problem here is that when compared to really any other books of similar size it becomes clear that to cover production costs for a book that size and compen-sation monies, a book should never be over around fifty bucks and still make profit. The used books are the same price that the new books
should be in the first place.If they would just drop
the price and compete like a market should with the best product and most reasonable price selling the most than I really wouldn't mind so much if they pumped out the new edition every year and I could get it without breaking the bank.
Recently we had a column titled Where's the gold?, I feel I can answer that ques-tion. It's in Blum, just across the hall from the restrooms.
Plan B is now available in vending machines.
At least at the University of Pennsylvania. The health center on campus at Penn now vends the emergen-cy contraceptive for $25. While I understand that the mores and mind set of the Midwest are more conser-vative than that of the East Coast, I think making Plan B more accessible is a social-ly responsible action.
Before some irate reader thinks I’m a complete lib-eral lunatic, hear me out.
Most importantly, I don’t think that Plan B should be the only contraceptive that is readily accessible to the
sexually active population. I worked as a pharmacy tech-nician for a couple years and encountering women who were struggling to pay their birth control co-pays was a daily occurrence. I can even remember turn-ing away customers that couldn’t pay.
Since then, the Affordable Care Act has been imple-mented to a degree, but the coverage provided under the Act is stipulated by the individual’s health care pro-vider. So the problem per-sists.
Why should birth control only be available to a select group of women when an
unplanned pregnancy can set back or derail any wom-an’s career, regardless of her health coverage?
We can’t accept this lack of coverage and preventa-tive health care, especially when it could be readily available.
Let me establish that birth control should always be the first measure in prevent-ing an unplanned pregnan-cy, but Plan B should also be accessible to those who need to use it as a second preventative measure.
Let me clarify. Plan B is not equivalent to a medica-tion abortion. Instead of ter-minating a pregnancy, Plan
B prevents conception and implantation in the uterus. They are two very different procedures.
As a pharmacy tech, I dispensed Plan B, and its generic, multiple times. As nonchalant as a customer tried to be, I always felt that they thought I was judging them. The whole exchange was awkward.
I always felt that I should say something like, “You’re making a responsible deci-sion,” but instead I would just slide the card stock box into a paper pharmacy bag and staple the receipt on top. If I couldn’t reassure a customer, at least I could
ensure a little privacy and discretion on her behalf.
I never minded selling emergency contraceptives to customers and it is still something I think I will defend for the rest of my life. Screwing with some-one’s reproductive rights is wrong. So if dispensing Plan B in vending machines makes it accessible to stu-dents that need emergency contraceptives, I only hope that vending machines also dedicate a row or two to the birth control too.
CAMPUS VOICE
What was your favorite
part of the Spring Concert?
Sharon Rodriguez
Editorial:
Katelyn Gutteridge
Erin Sprenger
Amber Stice
“I like the lighting piece during the con-cert, it is so colorful.”
“3OH!3 encore with ‘Don't Trust Me’."
“Concert was okay. I'm more excited to go to IHOP after the
concert.”
“Hanging out with best friend while enjoying 3OH!3.”
MOWo Maintenance procedure
Downs
Drive
Vending Machine Plan BEmergency contraceptives should
be readily available to students
Strictly “buy” the book
Raising tuition not justified; time to consider alternatives
Joe Snapp | Graphics Editor
w/ Andy Garrison
SPORTSApril 18, 2013
The Griffon NewsPage 7
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Missouri Western Wom-en’s Tennis team fought the elements but couldn’t pull out their final home match of the season. Western lost to the Rockhurst Hawks 6-3 in matchup. With this loss, the Griffons drop to 6-16 over-all (2-9) MIAA and will play their final match of the sea-son on Wednesday in Bald-win City, Kansas vs. Baker University at 2p.m. Western had to fight off cold weather and stiff wind playing at the Noyes Tennis Courts.
The Griffons started the day off slow, not pulling out one win from their matches. Meara Smith and Denise Chiao fell 8-2 in their No. 1 matchup.
In No. 2, Kayla Dysart and Alyssa Dougan lost 8-1 and Ceara Boldridge and Lindsay Beger lost 8-3 in their No. 3 matchup.
In singles, Western pulled
out 2 wins from opponents retiring. In No. 2 matchup up Chiao defeated Vrugteveen 3-6, retired.
“Today, I think we did okay we all stayed in our matches it was just hard ad-justing to the wind and the cold,” Chiao said.
The No. 5 match Beger de-feated Christine Schatz 2-3, retired.
“The wind kind of effected my play at the beginning but I settled down after starting off rocky,” Beger said. “This whole season its hard testing my toes in the water.”
Dougan finished her matchup defeating Abby Kayser 6-4, 6-4 in No. 6 match play.
“I felt like I played pretty good soon as I warmed up,” Dougan said. “Coming in this season being a freshman I just wanted to finish the season playing as hard as I could.”
Dougan’s match lasted an estimated one hour and 20
minutes.Dysart and Boldridge both
lost 6-1, 6-2 while Smith won the first set 6-4 before falling 6-3, 6-3 against Karsyn Betts.
“Today wasn’t I couldn’t get into my groove af-ter warming up with this cold weather,” Dysart said. “Overall this season, I feel like we all improved.”
Jody Goers and Kelly Co-chran didn’t play.
After winning against Lin-coln University 9-0, Western has lost three straight. The women weren’t able to quali-fy for the MIAA tournament.
“I think the girls warmed up after they got going with the cold weather,” Coach Ron Selkirk said. “We need to play better in our doubles matches. I hope they get that Baker match in because it would be nice to finish on a high note if we win. Our players have grown up a lot and we have been close in a lot of our matchups.”
Meara Smith readies for return. Gilbert Imbiri | Asst. Photo Editor
Allysa Dougan returns an offensive hit from the Rockhurst Hawks. Gilbert Imbiri | Asst. Photo Editor
Western finished through the weekend with a sweep against the Lindenwood Li-ons, while the Griffons’ ace pitcher picked up win No. 32 on his career, tying the MIAA record for most wins.
The sweep of the Lions made them the eighth team swept this year by the Grif-fons. Though it was just an-other sweep, one win was especially important to the pitcher who tied the wins re-cord, Brandon Simmons.
Simmons isn’t known to put pressure on himself, in this case, so little pressure was put on himself that he didn’t know what others knew.
“Honestly, I had no idea I was that close to tying the record, until my dad men-tioned it to me,” Simmons said. “It’s crazy for me to think about because I didn’t
ever think that I would have this many wins in college. But I am grateful for my teammates putting so many runs on the board and play-ing lights out defense behind me, it makes the game a lot easier to play for me person-ally. I’m sure in a few years the record will mean a lot to me but for right now the only record that matters to me is our teams record.“
Simmons win wasn’t his best performance, but it got the job done. He pitched six innings and gave up nine hits and four runs. Despite the rough game, the hitters were able to do just enough for the 6-4 win.
Though it was a sweep, none of the games were easy. The Griffons, who have shown they produce num-bers that can run-rule teams, had to earn their runs any-way they could against Lin-denwood, as they won their games 6-4, 5-3 and 5-4.
Western’s coach Buzz Ver-duzco was not sure how the Griffon’s would handle Lin-denwood, being how they were both in different situa-tions going into the series.
“They’re kind of middle of the pack,” Verduzco said. “Anytime you have these types of teams like Linden-wood that are fighting for a spot for post season within the conference, you’re going to get their best effort.”
Though hitting was tough for the Griffons, right fielder Nate Ramler didn’t show any signs of letting up over the weekend. Ramler went two for four Sunday, the first one being a monstrous shot over the left field wall in the sixth inning, and the second one being the game win-ning single to bring in short stop, Michael Schulze, in the ninth.
Ramler finished the series with five hits, five RBI’s and two homers.
Michael Schulze looks to steal second base with a big lead off. Tevin Harris | Photo Editor
Griffons sweep Lions
SPORTS April 18, 2013
The Griffon NewsPage 8
Andy Inman and Chad Hammontree | Design Artist and Graphics Editorr
of the WEEKNate Ramler
ATHLETE
#11 - Out Field
Andy Inman and Chad Hammontree | Design Artist and Graphics Editor
Nate Ramler got seven hits in 15 at bats during the Griffons four-game winning streak. He batted in five runs and crossed the plate three times and hit the game-winning run in with a single in the bottom of the ninth against Lindenwood. Ramler is batting .378 on the season with 45 runs batted in.
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NATE RAMLER
First basemen Spencer Shockley didn’t start his ca-reer at Western, but his bat impacted the all-time record books nonetheless as he be-came the all-time career lead-er in doubles.
It took Shockley less than three seasons to break Ja-vier Martinez’ record of 42 doubles – which stood for 16-years and was accom-plished in four seasons – af-ter transferring from Western Iowa Community College af-ter his freshman season.
“Honestly, I didn’t even know I was close to break-ing it, but its pretty cool that I will have some tradition with the school now and it means a lot,” Shockley said.
Shockley credits his abil-ity to get so many extra-base hits on his lack of ability to knock the ball completely out of the park. “I just can’t get them over the fence, that extra 10 feet kills me so I end up with doubles.”
According to Coach Buzz Verduzco, the reason Shock-ley has been so successful as a hitter starts with the amount of work that he puts
into the game.“He’s got power and the
kid is a worker,” Verduzco said. “He’s always been a
weight room kid and does his work in the offseason and during the season to main-tain his strength. Any time you have that type of work ethic, it’s going to carry over the field.”
Verduzco noted that it’s is an unbelievable feat to break such a long-standing record in the timespan that Shock-ley has been a Griffon.
“It just goes to show what kind of hitter he is and just how tough a hitter he is,” Verduzco said. “He has a superb eye that allows him to go deep into the count.
When he’s on, he’s one of the toughest in the league to get out – he’s that good.”
Shockley has the distinc-tion of knowing what it feels like to win a championship as he transferred into West-ern after his team won the junior college world series at Iowa Western.
“It’s a very similar feeling with the guys we have this year and the guys we had at my JUCO team,” Shockley said. “We’ve got guys that can hit the ball good, we get big hits when we need them so it’s just a good feeling go-ing into the postseason.”
Nothing would make him happier than to win another championship in his final season of college baseball – this time as a Griffon and he has full confidence that his team can accomplish the goal.
“Having a senior year like this is all you can ask for,” Shockley said. “Just putting yourself in good position as a team and making a cham-pionship happen. If we play like we can play and if we get our timely hits and the pitch-ers keep throwing like they do, then good things will happen.”
The best pitching team in the country got a taste of what the best hitting team in the country was like Monday when two of the top 10 teams in the nation squared off at Western’s Spring Sports Complex.
The No. 10 Griffons (31-5) were able to outplay the No. 4 St. Cloud State Huskies (22-4) enough to get the win 5-3.
Western’s coach Buzz Verduzco was happy to see how his players performed against a top competitor in the region.
“I thought it was a really, really good college game,” Verduzco said. “That was their best guy that we faced today and he was every bit of being their best guy.”
The scoring happened early as the Huskies jumped ahead first in the second in-ning with one run, and the Griffons did what they do best in the bottom of the sec-ond as they knocked in four of their five runs.
Western second baseman, Jimmy Smelcer, was the first to score as center fielder, Shawn Egge, drove him in off a single. Egge ended up having two hits, one run, one RBI and was also able to get on base after a hit by pitch that got him in the head.
Egge felt good after getting a couple hits against the best pitching team in the country.
“It feels good to come in and be able to get hits,” Egge said. “I mean, their team ERA was like 1.4 coming into the game. We knew their pitching was going to be good coming into it. So when you’re able to get a couple hits against a team like that it feels real good.”
Egge is hitting .367 on the year so far and has 44 hits and 33 runs.
Western’s outfield had a great day of hitting, as right fielder, Nate Ramler, also had two hits and one run. Ramler was the last Griffon to score as he knocked one deep into the wall and was able to get around for a triple.
Ramler feels a win against a team of that caliber makes it feel even better.
“It’s definitely a booster for the morale of the team,” Ramler said. “It’s good to get a win like that when it’s kind of a slow day for us.”
Ramler was able to score after his triple because of a wild pitch.
Western’s Mason Queen was able to get the win after going four innings and al-lowing four hits and one run. Logan Hollingsworth re-corded his ninth save while not giving up a run or a hit in the ninth inning. Holling-sworth has a 1.5 ERA on the season.
Shockley makes history
Coombs hired as assistant basketball coach under Weiberg
Griffons stun No. 4-ranked team in the nation
Spencer Shockley, at-bat, tries for perfect timing to score a run against Lindenwood University.Tevin Harris | Photo Editor
Banks Born hurls a fastball for the strikeout against one of the top-ranked teams in the country. Tevin Harris | Photo Editor
Softball continues winning seasonWestern Softball won three
out of four games over the weekend, splitting a pair with Truman University and sweeping a doubleheader against Lindenwood to im-prove its season record to 29-11 overall.
Women’s golf finishes strong
Women’s golf finished in second place at the annual Green and Gold Classic with a stroke total of 684. The Griffons were paced by Casi Webb who finished with a total of 168, putting her in eighth place overall in the tournament. Anna Kloeppel scored a 171, which put her in tenth place.
Coach Smith Inducted into Hall of Fame
Former Griffon Men’s Bas-ketball Coach Tom Smith will be inducted along with eight other individuals and three teams as part of the 2013 MIAA Hall of Fame class. The induction ceremo-ny will take place on Thurs-day, June 6th at the MIAA Awards Banquet in Kansas City. Smith is the first in-ductee from MWSU into the MIAA Hall of Fame which was formed in 2010.
Student -Athlete Honors Banquet set for April 29
The 14th annual St. Joseph News-Press Student-Athlete
Honors Banqet will take place Monday, April 29th at 6:30 PM in the Fulkerson Center. Individual and team accomplishments of Western
student athletes will be hon-ored over the last year along with 11 student athlete of the year nominees from their re-spective sports.
Michelle Stevenson finds the ball as she squares up for a hit. Tevin Harris | Photo Editor
Western men’s basketball has completed its staff with the addition of assistant coach Aaron Coombs, who spent two years on new head coach Brett Weiberg’s staff at Northern Oklahoma before spending last season as an assistant at Missouri S&T.
He handled the team’s game day walk-through ses-sions and the defensive strat-egies for game preparation. He was responsible for the team’s strength and condi-tioning program and served as a marketing instructor at Northern Oklahoma.
Prior to his two years in Oklahoma, Coombs spent a year as an assistant coach for the AAU Flight 22 team in Wilmington, N.C., where he handled individual instruc-tion for the post players and handled the defense.
Coombs worked exclusive-ly with the post players at his previous coaching stops and played his collect basketball at UNC Wilmington, where he reached two NCAA Tour-
naments and won the CAA conference championship.
Coombs went on to a pro-fessional career oversees in France and Romania over four seasons. He averaged 14 points and eight rebounds per game during the ‘08-’09 season.
He joins Weiberg and graduate assistant Anthony Medina as the new coaching staff at Missouri Western.
