THE DAILY ATHENAEUM
“Little good is accomplished without controversy, and no civic evil is ever defeated without publicity.”
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Tuesday February 14, 2013
Volume 125, Issue 97
Alumni Assoc seeks WVU ‘luv’ tales By Carlee Lammers City Editor
Love is in the air – and the library, the PRT, the Mountainlair, Milan Puskar Stadium and even political science class. The West Virginia University Alumni Association is collecting WVU love stories during the month of February to share with the WVU community.
“People truly do value the memories and the experiences that they’ve had here,” said Tara Curtis, Director of Communications for the WVU Alumni Association. “We’re asking people to share their stories of how they met at WVU or through the University.” Through the use of the Alumni Association’s Facebook, Twitter and electronic newsletter, Cur-
tis said the project has received an overwhelming response of various Mountaineer romances. Curtis said stories have been shared through the Alumni Association’s Facebook and Twitter pages, blog and Storify. “What’s nice is that it’s a mix of stories. It’s a mix of those people who met their freshman year, some met senior year,
some didn’t meet until after graduation,” she said. “So we put the call out and got some really wonderful stories of how people met, the challenges they’ve been through, how they’ve stayed united and still love the Mountaineers and this University.” The WVU Alumni Association currently has 2,500 members listed as couples. “That’s not even looking
ASHES TO ASHES
at every single alumnus,” Curtis said. “It’s neat, because I think college and coming to school is such a unique experience in itself. Then there are these wonderful stories to tell, and so many people, – they have kids, and now they have kids that are thinking about coming to WVU.” Curtis said as social media becomes increasingly prevalent in the lives of
da staff
Katie Flowers/THE DAILY ATHENAEUM
Members of the Christian faith celebrate beginning of Lent with Ash Wednesday By Carlee Lammers & Alyssa Pluchino DA staff
Sunday’s palms are Wednesday’s ashes. Wednesday marked Ash Wednesday for many Christians in the Morgantown community. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the season of Lent. “Basically, Lent is a 40-day fast before Easter. It’s one of the two most important seasons in the Christian year,” said Jane Donovan, a religious studies professor at West Virginia University. “It’s a foreshadowing of Jesus’ death, but it’s also a reminder to keep humans humble.” Donovan said it is common for members of several denominations of the Christian faith to celebrate the event by attending a service in which they receive ashes on their foreheads. Traditionally, she said, the ashes from Ash Wednesday are created by burning the palm branches churchgoers wave on Palm Sunday. Palm Sunday is a celebration of Jesus’ entrance into the city of Jerusalem one week before his crucifixion. “After Palm Sunday is over, the palms are collected, and they are burned. That’s what
see lent on PAGE 2
staff writer
A group of West Virginia University students will travel to Charleston for the opportunity to have their voices heard. WVU students from the Counseling Psychology doctoral program will attend a lobby day at the state legislature Feb. 27. Their goal is to encourage lawmakers to alter the West Virginia licensure law so only doctoral-level practitioners would be considered psychologists. In all 49 other states in the
By Shelby Toompas Staff writer
Katie Flowers/THE DAILY ATHENAEUM
Bill and Welma Pierce leave from an Ash Wednesday service in Downtown Morgantown.
country, a doctoral degree is the minimum criterion for an individual to hold the title of psychologist. In West Virginia, however, only a masters degree is required. Rachel Spero, a doctoral student in counseling psychology, said the extra 7-9 years of training a doctoral student receives allow for a much better quality of care. “Masters students only receive the basics of training,” she said. If West Virginia does not follow the practice of every other state in the nation, it could cost the state millions
of dollars under the coming federal healthcare changes. Spero said if the law does change, services would not be limited, nor will there be a loss of jobs. “We are simply protecting the role of psychologists,” she said. “Psychologists in West Virginia are not given an accurate reputation, and we are trying to protect our identity.” As of 2012, approximately 15 of West Virginia’s 55 counties had only masters-level psychologists, according to state board figures. Another 11 counties did not have licensed psychologists. Additionally, with its most
recent grading of states in 2009, The National Alliance on Mental Illness gave West Virginia an “F” in most categories. With the new healthcare bill, Spero said some people, such as the elderly and veteran populations, could end up vulnerable and without care. Should the law be changed, however, she said better and more specialized care would be able to be provided to these people. The lobbying group will also be meeting with
see action on PAGE 2
48° / 36°
AFTER THE SHOW
CHECK OUR SPORTS BLOG
INSIDE
Two parties await Umphrey’s McGee following tomorrow’s show. A&E PAGE 12
Get the latest on Mountaineer sports in our WVU Sports Insider Blog at http://blogs.thedaonline.com/sports/.
PARTLY CLOUDY
News: 1, 2 Opinion: 4 A&E: 12 Sports: 3, 6 Campus Calendar: 5 Puzzles: 5 Classifieds: 6-7
With this year’s Student Government Association election just around the corner, the organization is excited to announce the arrival of its new website. The new “Rock the Vote” website launched Feb. 6 and was designed by SGA Web Developer and Creative Director, Cory Dobson. “It’s a new website just like it’s a new election – we’re starting fresh,” Dobson said. The goal of the new site is to increase voter turnout and to spread the word about the SGA election. Last year, less than 10 percent of the student body voted. Dobson and SGA members hope the new site can inform students about SGA’s responsibilities and achievements on campus. They also wanted to reshape the image of the election campaigns. “We thought: ‘What can we do to change the tone of the election – to shake it up?’” said Allison Rollins, SGA election co-chair. She said the site is designed to reach students
who don’t habitually vote. “That’s what we looking for. We’re working as we go – it’s all about engaging,” she said. The website will also host debate recaps, a blog of election coverage and polling results. “It will be a central hub for people to visit so they don’t have to go everywhere for information,” said Josh Harrison, SGA Elections co-chair. The website is run by Dobson, Rollins, Harrison, SGA Vice President Jarred Zuccari and SGA President Zach Redding. Although former members of his ticket and his sister Sara Zuccari are potential candidates in this year’s election, Zuccari said he and Redding mutually agreed to separate themselves from the election. “Zach and I both said we’re not endorsing anybody – no candidates,” Zuccari said. “We want this to be fair – 100 percent.” Zuccari said his goal is to enrich student involvement in this year’s election, and he predicts this year’s voting turnout to be one of the highest.
see site on PAGE 2
Qdoba to host romantic Valentine’s Day deal
Psych students seek legislative action By Kaity Wilson
see love on PAGE 2
SGA election site goes live by bryan bumgardner & megan calderado
Freshman chemical engineering student Gabriel Okoi participates in an Ash Wednesday service.
alumni, it has become easier to interact and reminisce with them. “We’re in such a different place now that it’s so much easier to engage with alumni than it ever has been before,” she said. “A lot of these people, I’ve never met before, but I’ve maintained and developed relationships purely through
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ON THE INSIDE The West Virginia women’s basketball team was unable to hold off No. 24 Oklahoma State at the Coliseum, dropping the decision 64-54. SPORTS PAGE 3
Qdoba Mexican Grill on Patteson Drive is promoting a Valentine’s Day special today to spice up the love in the Morgantown area. Qdoba provides a fast causual Mexican dining experience where the freshest ingredients are used to make each meal unique. Today, guests can receive a buy-one, get-one entree if they kiss the person they came with at the register. Two entrees must be ordered within a single transaction in order to receive the offer. Marketing intern Katherine Herbst said the buy one get one for a kiss promotion has been going on nationally for three years now, but this is the first time Morgantown’s restaurant is participating in the offer. “With this promotion, a girlfriend could kiss her boyfriend, a mom could kiss her kid’s cheek or strangers may even have a mo-
mentary love connection,” Herbst said. “Our franchise has also added an extra gift, in which the first 100 guests through the door will receive a red rose.” Once customers get up to the register to place their order, they must then kiss someone to receive one of their two entrees free, and the person at the register at the time will be responsible for keeping track of who has kissed and who hasn’t. Herbst said once the employee sees the kiss and enters the promo code into the computer, the computer keeps track of how many guests participate in the event. Josh Young, a senior visual journalism student, said he has participated in this event at another Qdoba previously and is excited to be able to participate again in Morgantown. “I think it’s a good idea, because it gets people out of their comfort zones and
see qdoba on PAGE 2
A LOSING EFFORT The West Virginia men’s basketball team saw its three-game winning streak snapped after falling to Baylor 80-60. SPORTS PAGE 3
Check ‘em out on pages 8 – 11 in today’s issue!