Wednesday, September 18, 2013 Print Edition

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Get a glimpse of Virginia Tech’s 377-acre sustainability center in Catawba see page 3

Wednesday, September 18, 2013 An

independent, student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903 www.collegiatetimes.com

COLLEGIATETIMES 110th year, issue 17 News, page 4

Lifestyles, page 3

Opinions, page 5

Sports, page 8

Study Break, page 6

Bricks and stones:

the facade of Virginia Tech BY KYLE BARGER | news staff writer PHOTOS BY TREVOR WHITE / SPPS

Ever since the first building used it in 1899, Hokie Stone has been a defining feature of Tech’s campus. But where does it come from?

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bench made of Hokie Stone sits in Northern Virginia as a memorial to the April 16 shooting victims. Football players touch a slab of Hokie Stone before running out of the tunnel in Lane Stadium on gameday. One of the walls in the regional landmark Hotel Roanoke, is built from Hokie Stone. The bookstore sells it, the buildings are lined with it, and Virginia Tech tradition is permeated with it. Hokie Stone is as ubiquitous on the Tech campus as Hokie pride. There aren’t many college campuses where a piece of stone mined 10 minutes away is a valuable collectors item, but that’s the point. Tech’s campus is not like the rest. “The Hokie stone combined with the architectural style,” is what Carla Cox, a retired director of university relations says makes the campus unique.

Hokie Stone is the nickname given to the rock that is primarily mined just down the road in the university-owned quarry near Highland Park. Over 80 percent of the stone comes from that quarry while the rest is transported from another at Luster’s Gate, which is also within 15 minutes of Tech’s campus. All spirited names aside, Hokie Stone is also known as limestone — a type of rock common along the Appalachian Mountains that was formed when this region of North America was under water. Dead organisms and other minerals were deposited along the bottom of the ocean floor, where they were buried and turned into limestone rock. As the Appalachians formed, the rock was pushed up to its current position. see STONE / page nine

College of Business moves Organizers prepare for MBA program to NOVA TEDxVirginiaTech SENAYT ALEMU news staff writer

The Pamplin College of Business has made a major shift in the MBA program that will hopefully make it more marketable and competitive. The full-time Master of Business Administration (MBA) program on the Blacksburg campus will cease to exist, and the resources that were in Blacksburg will go toward advancing the evening program at Northern Virginia campus in Falls Church, Va. Associate Dean of the Graduate Programs Stephen Skripak has been in support of this change for many years now, and has finally got the backing he needed to allow the shift to come to fruition. “It’s been under consideration for quite a while but this is the first time we’ve seen support for the idea all the way to the top,” Skripak

NEWS

said. “Dean Sumichrast was supportive of this idea and took it to the provost, and got support from the higher ups as well.” According to Skripak, there has been a decline in students pursuing full-time MBA programs in the United States, and while Tech has had a flat rate of students entering the program, he’s noticed that an influx of students were from the Northern Virginia area. “We want to be able to draw from the huge numbers of people in the D.C. and Northern Virginia area,” he said. “Actually, the biggest concentration of Hokie alumni live in Northern Virginia, so it’s a good opportunity to market our program to people who already know the value of our product.” There are four MBA programs that Tech offers: the Executive MBA in Arlington, the Professional MBA in Roanoke and Richmond, the full-

time MBA in Blacksburg and the evening MBA in Falls Church. The first two will remain as they are, but the resources for both the full time and evening MBA will be combined to make the evening MBA program stronger. Parvi Ghandforoush, the MBA and Information Technology Programs Managing Director explained the reason for this decision and how it benefits the students. “The program has been successful over the years in recruiting highly qualified students to Virginia Tech and is highly ranked nationally,” Ghandforoush said. “The shift in resources will enable the program to increase its enrollments and to better serve the needs of the professionals in the Northern Virginia market.”

OPINIONS

Wish there was free public Wi-Fi in downtown Blacksburg? See when this might become a reality.

see MBA / page four

see page 5

news editor

With TEDxVirginiaTech 2013 event moving closer, several changes are in place from last year. Narrowed down from over 100 nominations, the selection committee has finalized 16 different speakers, ranging from students and faculty to community members. The event will take place on campus Nov. 9 during the debut week of the completed Center for the Arts. Following with the tradition of TED events, the Tech event will feature a wide range of speakers, all touching on the theme “Beyond Boundaries.” “The exciting thing for us is that we are one of the earlier activities in the week that will be opening up the Center for the Arts,” said Adam Soccolich, an organizer of the event. “They’re excited to have us for the brand and the energy we bring.” Though the new building will hold

SPORTS Read why one columnist thinks the strides made with the Title IX Legislature isn’t doing what it intended for athletes.

see page 4

CAMERON AUSTIN

over 1,200 people in its new performance hall, the TEDxVirginiaTech event will only be open to 500 people, with organizers expecting a quick sell out. Soccolich cites the importance of growth, not numbers behind the decision to keep the event intimate in the large hall. “It’s about growing,” he said. “We don’t want to jump from 100 to 1,200 just because we can.” Last year, 12 viewing parties were sponsored from places as close as dorm room common rooms on campus to areas as far as New Zealand. This year, viewing parties hope to continue to help spread the TEDxVirginiaTech speeches farther than the confines of the venue. Tickets go on sale in early October, and will be available on a first come, first serve basis. They can be purchased through the Center for the Arts ticketing system. Tickets will be $10 for students and $20 for faculty and community members.

ONLINE Men’s soccer beat High Point University last night 5-2 at Thompson Field. See how they pulled it off.

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Wednesday, September 18, 2013 Print Edition by Collegiate Times - Issuu