Dragon's Tale - Winter 2016 Issue by HutchCC Dragon's Tale Magazine

All Jazzed Up

Badinage and vocal jazz groups perform

Ice Rescue

Fire Science program

Teaching Future Teachers

HCC KNEA Club

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MEET THE STAFF

Taryn Gillespie

Karen Ibarra

Brittany Inskeep

Angela Lingg

Kailey Lohrman

Evan Newlin

Kayla Penner

Loribeth Reynolds

Morgan Scheibler

Samantha Talley

Sterling

Wichita

Hutchinson

Winfield

Hutchinson

Salina

On the cover: HCC Concert Choral and members of Badinage perform during the Holiday Cheer concert at Stringer Fine Arts Center.

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Goddard

Hutchinson

The Dragonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tale is published three times a year by the Magazine Production class of Hutchinson Community College, 1300 North Plum, Hutchinson, KS 67501. When compiled, the three issues serve as an overview of the activities and the people of HCC during the school year.

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32 2 Teaching Future Teachers

28 Spark!

Club Highlight Kayla Penner

29 What’s Happening

KNEA club helps students prepare for future career Angela Lingg

Events Calendar Morgan Scheibler

4 All Jazzed Up Jazz performs on campus Loribeth Reynolds

18 Dragons on the Job

6 Between Classes

How do HCC students pay the bills? Evan Newlin

Students occupy time during on-campus breaks Staff

20 Student Diet

8 Keeping up with Keast Endowment director Kayla Penner

12 Beyond the Walls Judging teams compete across the country Staff

16 Creativity on Campus Students find creative outlets through writing Samantha Talley

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Where students eat Staff

22 Women Who Weld Description Brittany Inskeep

24 What’s the Big Diehl?

30 Dragon Dolls What does it take to be a competitive dancer? Staff

32 Dragon Spirit! Blue Dragon Cheerleading Squad Staff

34 Basketball Women’s & men’s basketball teams Staff

38 Advertisements

Staff

HCC staff member takes on campus responsibilities Kailey Lohrman

26 Ice Rescue Fire science program teaches more than fire Taryn Gillespie Dragon’s Tale

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photos&story

Angela Lingg

KNEA equips students to be effective teachers and to help the community.

Madison Pollock, Winfield, practices her dance moves for a KNEA activity. KNEA members did volunteer activities around the community.

eaching is more than a job. It’s a mission, a service, and a passion. The students involved in Hutchinson Community College’s KNEA club realize how important it is to start cultivating their skills to be well-rounded teachers in the future. The Kansas National Education Association is part of the National Education Association and is for both students and professionals. KNEA gives students experience in the real world, teaches them how to stay politically involved, and helps them see the future that they are going to be a part of. Rachel Santine, speech instructor, is the KNEA sponsor. She wanted to be a part of equipping the next generation of teachers. “We give them professional training tools and we build connections,” Santine said. “They also get loads of information on political agendas that might impact their future work environment.” KNEA members have written their represen-

tatives about issues that will affect them as future teachers. They are learning how to be involved and how to make themselves heard. KNEA President Karrie McNutt, Winfield, said that KNEA has taught her a lot about being politically involved in education. “Stay involved in the political side of education because KNEA is really about teachers’ chance to make a difference,” McNutt said. “It’s about networking.” While KNEA really tries to keep students involved in politics, it also provides students with skills to become better teachers. “I feel like I’m going to be better prepared when I do go into teaching because I’ve learned about certain techniques that can help me get a head start into the field,” Matt Willis, KNEA vice president from Newton, said. KNEA helps give students a feel for what the real world of teaching will be like. “We give students experience beyond the

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KNEA President Karrie McNutt, Winfield, and Vice President, Matt Willis, Newton, discuss upcoming club activities. KNEA prepared students for a career in teaching.

USA Teachers Statistics

76% Female 24% Male

Average salary for public school teachers in 2011-2012 $56,383 56% have a Master’s Degree or higher

Statistics from

classroom,” Santine said. KNEA isn’t just for teachers, all students are welcome to join. While the club does participate in some teacher-focused activities like lesson planning, they are also very active in the community especially doing activities with children. “You don’t have to be an education major to join,” Willis said. “If you’re just interested in community service and working with kids it would be a great club to join.” Santine wants the students involved in KNEA to learn how to deal with the constant changes occurring in the workforce today. “Teachers have to learn how to ‘roll with it’ and still appear confident,” Santine said. “Our members learn that in a variety of settings. We want what is best for the students and we want to be the best at our jobs.” KNEA will also help students in the future when they enter the field as a professional. “Most hiring schools prefer people who were

http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=28

active in the student program over those who were not,” Santine said. “Some professionals think it is amazing what students are doing - voluntarily! Many are surprised to see how much the next generation of educators care, not only for their own futures, but for the futures of the students they will be working with years from now.” KNEA is about making a difference both now and in the future. The students are staying politically involved in education. They are also already out in the community making a difference while they themselves are still the students. According to Willis, KNEA is helping him achieve his dream - helping children achieve their dreams.

Pollock practices her part for a KNEA activity. The KNEA students learned how to stay active in the teaching environment.

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KNEA

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Amanda Mefford, Lyons

Lauren Mason, Hutchinson

Jacob Shadoin, Haven

photos&story

Badinage works hard when it comes to entertaining. Loribeth Reynolds

In between two heavy, sound proof doors,

Badinage has performed at Carnagie Hall 7 times.

“Truly everyone here has amazing talent.” -Neal Allsup

HCC has won awards from the University of North Texas for overall Jazz vocal group.

the voices of the Hutchinson Community College Jazz Choir, Badinage, sounds like a chorus of true talent. Neal Allsup, director of choral activities, couldn’t be more proud of this group of vocalists. “These guys are the best kept secret in Hutchinson, you can quote me on that! Don’t give me Adele, give me this group,” Allsup said. The students who participate in the choir don’t listen to only Jazz music, they listen to a range of tunes, making it apparent that first and foremost these students are music lovers. In the past, Badinage has performed more than just straightforward Jazz music too. They have sung pop and rock songs, but put a Jazz twist on them. “You may think that these students are a onetrick pony, but everyone here brings something very important to the table. Each student is well-listened,” Allsup said. “They listen to music

ranging from alternative to punk-rock. You see, when they are well-listened, they bring so much more to the table.” Ian Williams, Pretty Prairie, explained why he likes singing with this group. “I like coming here and making good music,” Williams said. “I will probably never make as good a sound with anyone as I make with this group here.” During a normal class, the group practices everything from oohh’s and aahh’s, stops and go’s, to turns and trills. “Badinage is the top vocal jazz group at HCC. These students have maturity and integrity,” Allsup said. “I think about everyone here has came to rehearsals not feeling well. I can fix the voice stuff, but if they don’t have integrity by now, I cannot fix that. In fact, this group has had 19 years of unmissed rehearsals.” Bethany Blanton, Hutchinson, started singing at the age of three, and is a Soprano II for

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Badinage. She said students could benefit by attending the performances. “I think students would most definitely learn something new if they came,” Blanton said. The group constantly prepares for the next performance. At the end of November while the group was still getting ready for the Christmas program, there was talk among them about coming back to school after the winter break and getting straight to work on their Martin Luther King Day performance. “We have been as busy as a beavers in a petrified forest, trying to memorize for all of our upcoming events,” Allsup said. With all of the events around campus, Amanda Mefford, Lyons, sings with Badinage as an Alto II, and would love to see students in the audience. “I think students should come to the shows to support local music,” Mefford said. “It would also be cool to see new faces in the crowd.”

Almost all of the group agrees they do a lot of practice on their own time as well as in class, which shows how committed these students are to their choir. Lauren Mason, Hutchinson, said she practices at home before a performance to make her feel more at ease. “I always try to warm up before a show,” Mason said. “It also helps knowing that I have the whole group here to back me up, and that makes me less anxious.” Allsup encourages and cares for his students, telling them how talented they are every chance he gets. He addressed the group as they left for winter break. “You live in rare air with the talent you have. Keep in mind not everyone is as lucky to have such tremendous talent,” Allsup said. “Don’t waste it. Be safe.” These students work hard around the clock, to lend their voices to create a mosaic of sound for the community to enjoy.

Practicing for their upcoming performance, Holiday Cheer, members of Badinage work on their harmonies with “The 12 Days of Christmas.” The group practiced inside a sound-insulated classroom.

During a the Holiday Cheer performance, the HCC Concert Choral and members of Badinage, sing many holiday tunes for the audience to enjoy. The performance was held at Stringer Fine Arts Center.

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How do you spend your time between class?

35% 12% 12% 41% Studying

Napping

Snacking

Other

Where do you go between classes?

30% 22% 11% 4% 16% 17% Dorms

Library

Errands

Eat

Work

Other

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Between Classes

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Students find ways to spend the 10-30 minute break.

3. 1. L evi

Holcom, Culver; Airial Van Nover, Wichita; and Miranda Wolke, Sedgwick, talk over a homework assignment Wolke was working on.

2. Nijaron

Brown, Atlanta, Ga., shoots the que ball as opponent Kendell Harrison, New Orleans, La., cheers for a win for himself. There are also ping-pong tables available for students to use in the student union.

3. I an Rosas, Hutchinson, watches a video on his tablet during his free time between classes. Many students take advantage of the couches to talk to friends, watch movies, do homework, or even take a nap.

photos&design T a r y n G i l l e s p i e story B r i t t a n y I n s k e e p

ommunity college years are spent finding a career path or completing a general education degree to transfer on to a four-year institution. Even with the freedom and fun that comes with life after high school, students still must knuckle down and get the work done. How much free time do students really have after going to class, fitting in a work schedule, as well as eating, sleeping, and socializing? A Stanford University study shows that during this time of a student’s life, they should be getting well over eight hours of sleep per night. According to a recent student survey under half, only 49.8% of students at Hutchinson Community College are getting around seven to eight hours of sleep per night with 44.9% of students getting only five to six hours of sleep. A student’s work ethic and general will to get out of bed in the mornings is greatly compromised by lack of sleep. This causes students such as Alexandra Brown, Hutchinson, to use up any free time they have relaxing. “I spend a lot of my free time watching Gossip Girl on Netflix, napping, playing with my dog, or doing homework as a last resort,” Brown said. Although most would love to spend their time this way, some of the schedules these students navigate each day are hard to compromise such as that of Madison Fisher, Hutchinson. “I usually get like six hours of sleep because of practice at 6 a.m. Afterwards I have classes straight through but if I do have free time I use it to get or make lunch,” Fisher said. Fisher isn’t the only student with a busy week. Stephani Gilpatrick, Vallejo, Calif., includes not only the necessities of work and school, but adds another factor - commuting. Gilpatrick lives in an apartment in Wichita with her boyfriend and works as a nurse in the area. “When the semester started I had class after class, I had four classes and American Lit was my last class, 1:10-2:50, and then I would go straight home, so I didn’t have any real breaks in between so it was a full day,” Gilpatrick said. Gilpatrick had an early-ending class causing her to have an hour gap in her day during the last half of the semester that allowed her time to catch up on school work or read in the library over the excess time. “Most of the time I’ll work on homework or read or whatnot, just get caught up. Especially if I have a presentation due, I can just look stuff over,” Gilpatrick said. Time between classes does vary depending on the day of the week. According to 46.1% of students, they only have about 10-15 minutes between classes. If classes are in the middle of the day, that doesn’t leave much time for lunch or for some, getting caught up on reading assignments before their next class. However, there are 33.9% of students that have 45+ minutes between some classes. What are these students doing with their extra time?

Continued on page 39 Dragon’s Tale

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Keeping

up with

KEAST

W hether working at an event or helping stu-

dents in the Endowment office, Cindy Keast strives to achieve success for students, staff, and the community.

photos&story

Kayla Penner

t every college, students need someone who will guide them to the right path in their careers as well as in their lives. Cindy Keast, Endowment Director at Hutchinson Community College, works with students to allow them to achieve success at the college level and provides financial help through scholarships Being a former Blue Dragon herself, Keast knows that college is important to students and getting the best education is a key factor in future careers. She has been working at HCC for

almost 21 years and said the growth she’s seen at the college is outstanding. Originally from South Hutchinson, Keast went to Nickerson High School and then to HCC in 1977 to pursue a major in fashion merchandizing. “When I went to HCC back in 77’, I majored in fashion merchandizing. What I wanted to do after that was to move to Dallas, Texas, and work in the fashion industry there, but I eventually met my husband and ultimately decided to stay here in Kansas,” said Keast. She began working at a department store in Hutchinson that would help shape the career she has today. “Since I was into fashion, I worked at a department store here in Hutch called Pegues. Pegues

was similar to a Dillard’s. They had a women’s section, men’s section, children’s section, home section, and so on,” Keast said. “I was a buyer for the store. It was a really nice store to work at and I worked there for almost 20 years. Eventually Pegues got sold out so I began looking for job opportunities. I started looking through the newspaper to see if there were any jobs available there. I saw a job opening at HCC and my friends told me to apply for it, and so I did and I’m still working here today. Pegues helped me get where I am today. What’s nice is that some of the people I worked with there are alumnus themselves and so I still have relationships with some of my former employees.” HCC is an important college to Keast. She wants to make sure every student receives some

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Cindy Keast

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Keast accepts an award from Central Prairie Co-Op. The award was a scholarship given to the Ag Diesel Mechanics Program. Photo by Hutchinson Community College

the years. What I want to do is help students if they need assistance trying to get scholarships because scholarships help with the financial cost tremendously.” To be eligible for scholarships, students need to log into their DragonZone account and submit an application before the middle of February. The scholarship committee then reviews the applications and matches students up using different criteria. Keast said that students can receive scholarships in whatever field they are pursuing. Corbin Strobel, Admissions Director, works with Keast to sort through scholarship applications. Just like Keast, Strobel wants success for students and his goal is to make sure they know all the resources they have at HCC. “Cindy and I look through all the scholarship applications and pick what scholarships are

We’re truly a Blue Dragon family.” -Cindy Keast

kind of scholarship or financial help so that they can achieve success. “The endowment office strives to help students in any way receive financial assistance I wish I could give scholarships to every student because I think every student deserves some kind of financial help,” Keast said. “We’ve seen an increasing growth in the endowment through

Cindy Keast sits at her desk in the Endowment office. Keast is the Endowment Director and Alumni Coordinator for HCC. Photo by Kayla Penner

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Keast and Strobel read through scholarships for the next fall semester. They look through every scholarship received and pick what scholarships fit each student. Photo by Kayla Penner Keast gives an award to a student during the 2015 Whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges. Students were awarded for their leadership skills among the community Photo by Hutchinson Community College

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Cindy Keast

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best for each individual student, Strobel said. I personality and her dedication to her job. “I have a lot of fun at my job. Cindy is fantastic care about our students greatly and want them to know all the resources they have so they can to work with. She has a great personality and receive benefits like scholarships and financial really does care for our school,” Tammy Barron, aid,” Strobel said. “College isn’t cheap, so help- Endowment Secretary, said. With her job, Keast has gained much support ing students with the cost is something I’m from her staff and family. Her experience at the passionate about.” Together, Keast and Strobel look at over 1,000 college wouldn’t be the same without the encouragement she has received through the years. scholarship applications each year. “I couldn’t ask for a better spouse that’s behind As well as being the Endowment Director, Keast is also the coordinator for the Alumni me and even helps me at my job. Sometimes he’ll Association. She works with the alumnus to help me clean up after events. Both my boys gain relationships with them and see the path have been huge supporters. They’re both former HCC students themselves and they had a great HCC has taken them in their lives. “First off, the Alumni Association, it’s a sepa- experience here,” Keast said. “When it comes to the faculty, the faculty at this college rate board from the Endowment. are truly amazing. Everyone here With the Alumni’s I focus works together and makes this on keeping in touch with college great. We’re truly them and foster relaa Blue Dragon family.” tionships with them. The staff is HCC has made We also like to give outstanding and a huge impact on them recognition Keast’s life. The staff, on the HCC webgetting to know students, and comsite for their role students is something munity have made in the Alumni I love.” her experience as Association. Their Endowment Director donations help sig-Cindy Keast a pleasure. nificantly with the “I love HCC. I think students at HCC,” everyone should attend Keast said. “Students this college. We have many that are enrolled part time opportunities for students to get or need childcare services need involved in clubs, organizations, and financial help as well as students who are full time. The Alumni Association focuses classes for their future job field. This college on those two groups to try to help them with is a great place to receive education. The staff is outstanding and getting to know students is their college experience.” Ashley Herrod, Howard, has worked as a something I love,” Keast said. “I want students student assistant with Keast for almost two years to feel like they’re at home. I want to be there and has had a wonderful experience working for them when they need help or simply want to have someone to chat with. I couldn’t ask for in her office “Cindy is just an awesome person. She is a better college.” Whether she puts on a welcoming face or a so nice to everyone and makes me feel excited familiar face for new students or a familiar face to coming into work everyday,” Herrod said. Everyone that works with Keast enjoys her alumni, Keast has made a huge impact at HCC.

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What do you love about Cindy? “Cindy is such an

awesome person. She’s so nice to be around.”

Katie Ellegood, Hutchinson

“Being able to get to know Cindy has been incredible. She’s a special person.”

Kirsten Showalter, Haven

“I love Cindy so much. She makes everyone feel good.” Megan Bartley, Partridge

“I ’ve been able to get to know Cindy from the Presidential Leadership Program.

I ’ve liked getting to know her from that.”

Cordell Neely, Topeka

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B Brock Lucas, Inman, along with other team members examines a blade of grass held by Agricultural Instructor and Crops Judging Team Coach, Steve Shears. The team works on identifing different crops .

The livestock judging teams from Hutchinson Community College and Kansas State University assess a cow being shown by Jonah Biensch, Saskatchewan, Canada, during practice at the Kansas State Fairgrounds. Biensch took part in the National Western Stock Show with the HCC livestock judging team in January.

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Judging Teams

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BeYOnD ThE

s L L a W

HCC’s agriculture judging teams take classes outdoors to perfect their skills story

Angela Lingg photos&design

Loribeth Reynolds Being on a judging team means students don’t get the luxury of staying in a classroom or a gym to prepare for their competitions. They have to develop their skills by climbing into the pens with animals, getting down in the dirt, and handling many different plants and seeds. Hutchinson Community College has three judging teams: the livestock judging team, soils judging team, and crops judging team. Each of the teams practice and compete throughout the year as they prepare for local and national competitions. The livestock judging team is coached by Agriculture Instructor, Ben Williams, and consists of 17 students. According to Williams, the members of his judging team come from as far away as Georgia, Delaware, and Canada. “I had never seen any sheep or goats or hogs down here,” Jonah Biensch, Saskatchewan,

Canada, said. “I knew what they were, but when I came down here I got to learn about them. I like the learning aspect of judging. It’s a great opportunity not a lot of Canadians get to have.” Livestock judging consists of two parts. First, the students have to judge twelve classes of livestock. There are four head of a certain species in each class, so 48 animals total. The livestock consists of beef, sheep, swine, and in some contests, goats and horses. The students rank each of the four animals from best to worse, with number one being the best. According to Williams, the livestock are judged based on how useful and functional they will be in the real world. “If we’re looking at breeding cattle, they have to be structured well,” Williams said. “A lot of our cattle have to survive in an open range area. They have to be able to move and travel. Our goal, especially on the breeding side, is to have these animals live a long productive life.” The animals are also judged based on certain characteristics that make them more valuable in

the livestock market. “We judge them on the market fundamentals and being correct in terms of their composition,” Williams said. “Not too much fat, but not too lean. “We look for certain kind of character. If we are looking at females, we want them to be feminine and look like females. If we’re judging bulls we want them to be masculine and muscular.” After the students rank their animals, they have to appear before a panel of officials and explain why they judged the animals the way they did. They have to give their set of reasons on eight of the classes they judged and each set must be done in two minutes or less. “That’s part of the challenge to these students, to come into someone they don’t know and try to defend why they placed this market barrow first and this market barrow fourth,” Williams said. The officials have the animals ranked correctly, so if the students’ ranking is correct then they will score more points.” Not only do the students’ scorecards need to be as correct as possible, the students are also judged on how well and how convincingly they present their reasons. “They have to be well spoken, they have to communicate well, it’s like a mini speech,” Williams said. “They have no notes, it’s all off of memory.” Each class that is judged and each set of reasons is worth so many points. After the points are added up for all the students, they receive their team score. Williams estimates that they spend close to 40 hours a week practicing as they travel in vans to different farms around Hutchinson judging animals and rehearsing their reasons. Williams recruits pretty heavily for his judging team. He looks for students who have livestock background, who are intelligent, able to learn quickly, coachable, and who are committed. “The thing which sometimes becomes the most important, is how coachable and how hard working they are,” Williams said. “Coach-ability and work ethic end up being something that is hard to teach, they either have it or they don’t.” The soils judging team is coached by

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The Hutchinson Community College Crops Judging team studies a row of Arum Palaestinum or “Black Calla,” a plant that is native to Israel. In traditional medicine the plant is said to have curative properties.

Agriculture Instructor Steve Sears. They work and learn all year for one competition in April that takes place in Minnesota. At a soils competition, the contestants judge four soil pits. Each competitor has a scorecard for the four different soil pits being judged. They have to identify the layers of soil, the color, the texture, the productivity, the drainage, and more. The individual scores are added up for the team score. The members can win individual awards based on their performance as well. Of the three judging teams, the crops judging team is the most well-known across the country. Also coached by Steve Sears, the team has won the two-year college national crops judging championship 14 out of the last 15 years. In

2007, HCC hosted the tournament and was unable to compete. In crops judging, the students have to judge four different categories. The first is Identification. Students have to identify about 150 different plants and seeds. The second is Ag Math, which involves agronomic problems like seeding rates, amount of pesticide per acre, and cattle rations. The third is the Lab Practical where students have to identify crop insects, crop disease, crop machinery, and anything agronomy related. The last category is the Agronomic Test which includes a crops science field test. The crop students attend four classes related to crops judging, one each semester. The students have two hours of formal practice a

week, as well as a lot of memorization that they do on their own. With the tremendous success Sears has had, he has developed a good reputation for his team. “I used to have to recruit for these judging teams, but now they come looking for us.” Sears’ winning philosophy is simple. “If they’ll give me thirty minutes a day, we can be a national championship team,” Sears said. While the judging teams do focus on competing, they are preparing students for their careers in the future. The three HCC judging teams take their lessons and skills out into the real world as they judge livestock, evaluate soils, and identify crops.

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Showing a cow, Jonah Biensch, Saskatchewan, Canada, holds the ropes to lead the cow around the showing area. Students take notes on a notepad and then fill out a score card to rank the cattle. Livestock Judging Coach and Agricultural Instructor, Ben Williams, shows a cow to his team. When students assessed a cow they looked for an assortment of features such as: muscle mass, attractiveness and weight.

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Creat

photos&story

Samantha Talley

ivity

Campus

n O

Finding an outlet, students expand their writing skills.

The Tulgey Wood, creative writing class, and creative writing club…what do all of them have in common? Each one provides a creative outlet for students on campus through writing. The real creativity begins when looking at each club individually. “The Tulgey Wood is Hutchinson Community College’s student literary magazine, showcasing the talents of student poets, writers, photographers, and artists, printed at the end of the second semester,” Dan Pohl, English instructor, said. The process includes sorting through the student submissions and deciding what gets published. “We choose the best that which we receive, in terms of complete idea structure, easily readable/ seeable, etc.,” Melinda Dome, student editor of the Tulgey Wood from Marion, said. “However, there have been times where there have been so few entries we take what we can get.” Pohl said publication receives between fortyfive to sixty student works each year for the 48-page publication. Dome said she believes entries can come from all HCC campuses, not just the main campus. According to Pohl, submitting work establishes credentials for writers and it also builds up the confidence a person has with their work. Students have opportunities to be creative in other ways, not just in the literary magazine. The creative writing club on campus helps promote Tulgey Wood by word of mouth. Melissa Stanton, English instructor, said it’s a group of writers on campus that join for support and broadening their horizons on how to write. She sponsored the group because of her personal experience as a college student. She remembers being a shy young woman who loved Sitting in Shears Technology Center, Melinda Dome, Marion, works on the submissions she received so far for the Tulgey Wood. Dome served as the student editor for the publication her sophomore year.

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Creative Writing

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y e g l d u T oo W

How to be creative on campus in

y: s lge a Tu ound ” n ” s et “g “g Or as i d un ” so just. ” “j “ d? e d nclu r d in be i iting o ate by: e o r t C 73 n, nt wr 9 Wa your k to ns. sse er, 1 a r G l o o t hn ai g ber uent ind. Em art w @dra o R G 15 .edu nH es am Steve D10 tchcc J D M hu and

writing fiction and how she hoped an adult would notice her and read her work. “We socialize in club meetings, eat things, and do a little business. Recently we have also run workshops. Students bring their writing to share, and we comment on it in a positive, productive way,” Stanton said. “We try to support and help each other, but in a fun, informal way.” Their focus is directly on writing and creativity, but not in a classroom setting. Along with the club, the creative writing class overlaps with students’ interest in the subject.

Creative Writing Club The club has been meeting regularly in PSU 011

Crea Writ tive Clasing s

The time spent g on sharin oes g stories a nd poem s that each person has writt en

Creative writ ing club mee ts twice a month

“The Creative Writing class spends about five weeks of the semester exploring the writing of poetry, primarily free verse, about five weeks exploring writing short fiction, with the remainder of the semester reserved for students to work on creative writing projects of their choosing,” Bill Sheldon, English instructor, said. Sheldon planned the curriculum for the new course and the fall class was almost at full capacity for the new semester with 13 of 14 seats filled. Sheldon also taught a poetry writing class on campus for students interested in another outlet.

C writin reative g only allows 14 stu d semesents a ter.

Cla 1:1 sses Tue 0-2 hel sda :40 d fr o ya nd p.m. m Thu on rsd ay

Thr e clas e diffe the s: Poe rent s ect res try pro t of th , Fairy ions o f e ti ject m Tales the s of the e is sp , and ir c e n t hoo sing on .

“I was really responding to a group of great students who wanted a follow-up to the intro class,” Sheldon said. “It was their prompting which pushed me along.” Being creative is more than just a painting or performance, creativity can be expressed through words. These groups around campus provide another outlet for students with an opportunity to explore different styles, expand their skills, and publish their work.

Melinda Stanton, English Instructor, and Robert S. Botkin, Wichita, sit and discus a project he is working on. Botkin, aflactuating writer, joined the Creative Writing Club.

Thinking about joining

Creative Writing Club or

Creative Writing Class? Email Melissa Stanton stantonm@hutchcc.edu

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Dragons on the Job photos&story

Evan Newlin Callie Peters, Salina South, has worked for Target for just over four years. In her time at target she has become part of the team responsible for setting up holiday displays throughout the store, according to special guidelines given by Target. Peters has led teams consisting of people younger, older, and just all around different from her. “In all technicality, I am a member of the Plan-o team, which is presentation. We take old product displays down, put new product displays up. When Christmas is over we put up valentines day products,” said Peters. This position on the Plan-o allowed Peters to work with a team, she worked with managers and what she refers to as a leadership team two years after starting with Target. “I got cross-trained, which is Target’s big thing. They cross train as many people as possible, so that if something happens and they need someone to cover a spot, they have someone to cover that spot because so many people are cross-trained. That was one of the few places I hadn’t been cross-trained, and I kind of got stuck there. They said “well, you’re going to stay here.” I never really knew what I was doing until I got to work though. I would show up and they said “Oh this person called in, you’re going to go do this,” even though the schedule said I’m going

to be doing this. That [the plan-o team] was the first consistency I ever had in the job, I was always all over the place,” said Peters. When Peters is in Hutchinson for school, she works part time at Rib Crib as a server. Leaving a leadership position within one company, and coming to a bottom of the food chain position in a different company presented some challenges. “It’s really hard [at Rib Crib], because even though I may not feel like I’m coming off as bossy

“If you can work with people then the transition’s really not that hard.” - Callie Peters to someone, I am. It just depends, I might look at someone and say, you should do this, and I might come off to them as being bossy but I’m not. It’s one of those things I’m used to, with my leadership experience I’m used to delegating. I’m not bossing you around and telling you to do it because I don’t want to do it, but if I’m busy I’m not afraid to say hey, so and so go do this because you’re just standing here. If that makes me mean, or cruel, or lazy for not doing it because

I’m busy or whatever, it doesn’t really matter. I’m not trying to boss someone around, I’m just trying to run as a team. It’s really hard to transfer down and not be able to say, change your attitude, you need to have a better working attitude, it’s hard to not correct someone when they’re having a day that they should be corrected, but that’s not my job at Rib Crib. So, it is what it is,” said Peters. Serving customers and preparing a store for a seasonal display have inherently different job descriptions, but Peters noted that they do overlap to a degree. “It does differ, but it doesn’t. You’re still pleasing people, you’re just doing it in a different way. At Target I make sure someone has a positive shopping experience, at rib crib i make sure someone has a perfect eating experience. It differs because I’m doing two totally different things, but in the grand scheme of things I’m just pleasing people. So it’s really not that different if you have good people skills. I’m used to it. Its a job working with people, if you can work with people then the transition’s really not that hard,” said Peters. Not only is there a difference in responsibilities between Target and Rib Crib, there’s a difference between Peters and the people she’s working with. Whether it’s other servers at Rib Crib, older employees that work for her or new

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Student Jobs

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Punch in. Some students choose manual labor, food service, retail, even the occasional desk job. Regardless of the description, the common goal here is to pay for an education. How and where do different HCC students spend their hours on the clock trying to make ends meet? Punch out. Becky Fallon, Buhler, hangs up a poster in Lockman Hall advertising an HCC employee soup luncheon during a shift working for the Endowment office.

Callie Peters, Salina, takes an order from Erin Hornbaker, Macksville, at Rib Crib.Peters worked at Target during school breaks.

members at Target, some don’t know that she has the experience she does. One challenge is communicating effectively. “Everyone’s a person. If you talk to them like they’re not a person they’re not going to respond to you. It’s really hard sometimes, to tell someone how to do their job if they aren’t specifically wanting to be told,” Peters said. Other opportunities available to college students looking for employment are on campus jobs and work study jobs. Becky Fallon, Buhler, is a work study student for Cindy Keast in HCC’s Endowment Office.

Continued on page 41

Peters inputs an order for a table during her afternoon shift at Rib Crib in Hutchinson.Peters worked at Rib Crib while in Hutchinson for school.

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The

STUDENT cafeteria Hours Monday - Friday Breakfast: 7:00 am - 9:00 am Lunch: 11:00 am - 1:00 pm Snack Bar: 12:45 pm - 2:00 pm Dinner (Mon - Thurs): 5:00 pm - 6:30 pm Dinner (Friday): 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm Saturday and Sunday Brunch: 11:00 am - 12:30 pm Dinner: 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm

Diet What do you drink most often throughout the day?

BEVERAGES

Pop/Soda 13%

Andrea Schale, Sedgwick fills her plate during taco day for lunch in the HCC cafeteria. The food at the cafe is custom-tailored for a unique dining experience for the students.

Water 77% Fruit Juice 1% Sports Drink 4% Tea 5%

Dragonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tale

Student Diet

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story

Kayla Penner photos

Karen Ibarra page design

Staff

rom vending machines, cafeterias, restaurants, and home cooked meals, students love food. Food is a big thing in our society and makes an impact on our diets. When it comes to college students, we sometimes have different kinds of diets. Some may eat at home or eat at a cafeteria. Wherever students eat, we can all say that food can make a At Hutchinson Community College, there are several areas students can dine at. The cafeteria, the grill in the downstairs union, vending machines, and their dorms. Some students prefer the cafeteria. The cafeteria has many food options and has a lot of seating for students to dine with friends. “I usually eat at the cafeteria. It has many

food options and I like the environment”, said of the students at HCC eat on campus, some Aaron Avelar, Goodland. students dine at home or at restaurants. If it’s not the cafeteria, students also enjoy “I eat at home usually. It’s cheap and I can eating meals at their dorms. Some students have make whatever I want, Megan Storie, Indepenmicrowaves and other appliances to allow them dence, MO said. I do eat at some fast food places to cook at their dorms, instead of having to go sometimes, but usually, I just cook food myself.” somewhere to eat. Whether it’s on or off campus, the students at “If I’m not eating at the cafeteria, then I’m HCC enjoy food. Everyone’s diets are different. usually eating macaroni and cheese and watch- Food is important to our college students and ing Netflix in my dorm room,” makes an impact in their daily lives. m o s t o ft e n o n a t a e Sydney Herrington said. tigh ou tb oy d Even though many ud ch ge i h t W

Cereal 20%

PB & J Sandwich 30%

TV Dinners 9% Canned soup 9%

Ramen noodles 32%

Lewis Schenk, Canberra, Australia eats lunch in the cafeteria. Great Western Dining provides dining services for Hutchinson Community College.

Isaac Hotmar, Newton goes through the cooks line and fills his plate with taco ingredients. Lunch is served every weekday from 11am -1pm in the cafeteria located in the Parker Student Union.

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1) 1) Gabriella Sloan, Hutchinson, stick welds in the shop. The process was chosen due to itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s suitability for common metals. Photo provided by Sloan

2) Sloan tig-welded during class. The process was more difficult because both hands were required. Photo provided by Sloan 3) Sherryann Rouse, Scott City, takes a break from welding. Sherryann took an evening class that lasted from 6-9 p.m. 4) Examples of welding work from past HCC students. The display showed that welding was also art based.

OMEN WHO WELD

The ever-growing world of welding is becoming more and more inclusive to women.

Dragonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tale

Women in Welding

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2/4/16 2:06 PM

photos&story

Brittany Inskeep There are minorities in any field of work, whether these are in reference to ethnicity, age, or gender, they are all there. The most prominent one in the welding program at Hutchinson Community College is gender. During the 2015-16 school year, HCC only had two female students enrolled in the program: Gabriella Sloan, Hutchinson, and Sherryann Rouse, Scott City. “In the time I have been teaching, I have never had more than two women in the program,” Greg Siepert, welding technology instructor, said. Janet Hamilton, Department 2 Co-Chair, claimed that there has never been very many women in the program, some years even none. However, as the worlds ideologies become more forward-looking perhaps the number of women involved with welding will expand. “I think it will be more progressive now that there’s actually some [women] going through the program now. There was a walk through yesterday and there were two or three that were looking into it, so I think it will progress,” Rouse said. Acceptance amongst the community is the first step into a more diverse group of individuals in the technical fields. “I think that we will see a growth of women getting into the profession as the face of welding changes more and more and the acceptance of it being a career for anyone,” Siepert said. Although welding is not for everybody, as seen by the numbers, it just takes getting the right information to the right people. “You just have to find the right girl that wants to be a part of it, I mean, it takes a special kind,” Sloan said. Rouse said that if a person doesn’t mind getting dirty, or wearing the required uniforms, then that person and welding will get along just fine. “In some ways, unfortunately, I do think the mentality is a huge barrier to women entering this profession. I don’t think it’s because they are not accepted in the work place as much as women are not encouraged to become welders from when they are kids,” Siepert said.

Looking at the industry, it is a man’s world. Sloan shared that although she was nervous at the start of the semester, she jumped in head first and fit in just as well as any other person entering the program. She said they’re like one big family now. “Almost everyday we all go to lunch together, we all just get along good, but it wasn’t what I expected when I first started, but I really enjoy it,” said Sloan. Although there are no real conflicts between

7.8% of welders in the U.S. are

women

Women earn 78 cents per dollar to men on average The median wage for welders is

$15.51 per hour

Indoor welding provides easier access into the workforce for

women

Stats from arczone.com and weldersuniverse.com

men and women in the program at HCC, these things are still occurring out in working field. Hamilton mentioned that women in the program must be pretty “tough skinned” to be able to get along and not get discouraged with their work. Being the only woman in a field of work can be very difficult, but with the right mindset, it can give a person the incentive to succeed.

Sloan recounted a time where they did a bend test in class and everyone but one student failed on the first try, but she was the first to pass on the second attempt. “I love being out here and being able to lay down a weld just as good as the other guys,” Sloan said. Rouse started her welding degree 25 years after graduating from high school. As a nontraditional student, she said it made for a difficult transition. “My first semester, one of my teachers gave me an A and I asked him why he was lying because I’m not an A student and he said that it was the determination and everyday I showed up even though most people would have quit by now,” Rouse said. Rouse’s success at HCC can be credited to her passion for welding, but the help of an advisor that was willing to be more than accommodating in the search of Rouse’s place at HCC also played a big role. “My advisor was very helpful because one day just out of the blue I was like ‘OK, well I’m not working anymore so what am I going to do?’ So I just enrolled and Janet Hamilton, my advisor, is just wonderful, and the minute she found out that I wanted to be in the welding industry she was more than happy to help me succeed,” said Rouse. Although one might assume it would be hard for a woman to find work in a job that is predominantly made up of men, Sloan and Rouse were both said that some employers specifically seek out woman welders. “Women have certain traits that men don’t, you know, like attention to detail, the steady hands, the drive,” said Rouse. The world of welding is evolving every single day becoming more and more inclusive to women. “Nowadays it doesn’t matter if you’re a man or a woman, it’s a job,” Rouse said. “If you can do the job and do it proficiently. I truly believe that if you don’t like to do something, there’s no reason to do it. You need to find a career that you’re interested in that keeps your attention, that you wouldn’t mind going to everyday.”

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What’s the big

DIEHL? Getting to the bottom line about Ryan Diehl.

photos&story

Kailey Lohrman Taking on all of his required tasks and more, Ryan Diehl is one of the many members of the Hutchinson Community College family. Diehl was hired in 2007 as an English instructor. Although his official title has changed over the years, he still teaches Honors Success Seminar/ College Orientation, Honors Directed Studies, and the Honors Introduction to Cultural Studies: Fairytales course. In his current position, Diehl wears a diverse variety of badges across campus. He serves as the Honors Program Coordinator, Honors Student council advisor, and is the Curriculum/Program Improvement Coordinator. Regionally, he is an archivist for the great Honors Council, which is the regional honors group for honors programs in Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, and Missouri. On campus, in the academic affairs office, Diehl collaborates with department chairs and academic affairs personnel on curriculum, faculty development, and investment. “My aim is to motivate my students to become these people who are experiencing life to the fullest, realizing their attitude towards a situation is extremely important, appreciating the beauty around them, continuing to be curious about everything, and being great citizens who do what they can to better both their community and the world,” Diehl said. Overall his teaching philosophy has greatly impacted HCC students. “Ryan is one of the most inspirational people I have ever met. Through his ability to foster critical thinking, creativeness, and leadership skills, he helps create well-rounded students that will succeed in far more than just the classroom,” Zach Martin, Manhattan, said. His success on campus has also been proven by the HCC Dragon Educator of the Year award he received in 2011 and 2012. Diehl shows his support in the community through his board membership within the Hutchinson Community Foundation and chair position in the Hutchinson Community Foundation Fund for the Hutchinson Grant Committee. In addition to being a board member/secretary for the

Using his choice mode of transportation, Ryan Diehl rides across campus. Diehl became a member of the community’s Vitality Team to provide more awareness of the city’s bikeability.

Working through pre-finals studying, Diehl assists a few students and their questions in the Honors lounge. Previously stating, Ryan is eccstatic this year about the consecutive use of the lounge by the honors students.

Dragon’s Tale

Ryan Diehl

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2/4/16 2:46 PM

Determined and dedicated to the future of those around him, Diehl guides his students through the steps to success.

Downtown Hutchinson Revitalization Partnership he is also a co-chair for Kids Voting Reno County and a Vitality Team member. The vitality team is a community group that works for the walkability and bikeability association. Academically, Diehl holds a Bachelor of Arts in English and History and a Master of Arts in English from Emporia State University. He received a Masters in Arts (Cultural Studies) from the University of Melbourne, Australia, and he’s currently working on his Ph.D. in Educational Studies - Educational Leadership and Higher Education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Within his career development at Emporia he also served as a graduate teaching assistant, writing consultant, and interim media relations coordinator. In addition to the students, fellow aspiring staff and community members, Diehl credits his mother, who was actually a HCC graduate, for the motivating influence she has had in his life. “She’s great, she sacrificed her hopes and dreams in her life to raise her kids,” Diehl said. “But growing up it was rough. I never knew it because she made ends meet. Since then I take her some place every summer on a trip some place to see and experience the world.” One of the reasons he wanted to go to Australia was in fact because he knew his mother would travel to see him. Diehl also finds motivation simply through his own personality. Accord-

ing to the Myers Briggs personality assessment he is an INFP (Introvert Intuitive Feeler Perceiver). “I really look toward harmony which gets into really trying to make the work a better place,” Diehl said. “As cliché as that sounds it’s really my goal to try to make society better. I wasn’t always like that either it’s become more a process of learning.” Overall, it’s not only about what he’s done but what he loves to do for others. Diehl has shown throughout his work, the true authenticity to create a better world. “I’m really blessed that I try to think of another job I would want to do, and not just here at HCC, but Phi Alpha Theta Pi Gamma Mu even outside of education Phi Eta Sigma Sigma Tau Delta and I can’t think of any. The community of great faculty, Phi Kappa Phi staff, and students makes HCC an amazing place to work and be. Without a doubt, I love the people the HCC Dragon Educator of the Year - 2011 most,” Diehl said. HCC Dragon Educator of the Year - 2012

ORGANIZATIONS ACHIEVEMENTS

Rot ary Ambassadorial Scholar to Melbourne, Australia Em poria State University Homecoming King

024-025 Diehl.indd 25

2/4/16 2:46 PM

HCC Fire Science program hosts annual ice rescue class page design&story

Tar yn Gillespie

utchinson Community College is known for having one of the state’s top Fire Science programs. With many students enrolled in the program this year, they show a positive area of study for many students. Every year, an ice rescue class is offered as an elective option within the program. Ice Rescue Operations, an intermediate class, teaches future firefighters the side skills and how to help a technician in the situation of a rescue. The more advanced class, Ice Rescue Technician, teaches students how to complete a rescue and practice getting in and out of the water. These electives are some of the most popular, with each class filling the maximum 16 student slots every year. Instructor Craig Smith has taught this course for 15 years. In Smith’s first year at HCC in 2001, he was in contact with Dive Rescue International. “We have a contract with an organization called Dive Rescue International, and I achieved that with them a number of years ago after I started teaching here in 2001,” Smith said. “I went out to their headquarters

Jacob Hardiman, Hanston, plays the first rescue victim as he is pulled to safety during the ice rescue demonstration.The students had to use makeshift boards in place of ice this year due to the lack of actual ice. Photo provided by Stacy Bain

in Colorado and took their field trainer certification class to become a certified ice rescue instructor. At that time I sat down and talked to their vice president of operations and he agreed to enter into a contract with the college between Dive Rescue International and HCC, allowing us to offer their certification.” The chance to offer a certificate for the class is an honor not many receive. “The thing that is interesting about it is that last year I was talking to a lady who is in charge of the recertification for field instructors,” Smith said. “She said we were still the only non-public service agency that can issue their certificates.” Dive Rescue International has been around since the 1970’s. They developed a number of different diving courses that are offered to public service agency’s and military. The main goal for the fire science instructors is to see the students succeed in the future. “The most important thing we do is making sure these guys are as well prepared for the real world as we can,” Bobby White, fire science coordinator, said. “We want our training to match up as closely with the real world as we can make it.” The Ice Rescue class annually prepares its students for a winter rescue.

Dragon’s Tale

Ice Rescue

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2/5/16 8:44 AM

Ice rescue floatation boards -

Gloves - being rubberized and insulated they

used to provide the victim

protect the rescuers hands from the

something to hold on to

cold water and to keep the suit air-

during the rescue.

tight and water proof.

20% of winter exposure

related deaths occur in the home with cause of lack of electricity.

Boots -

2/3 of breakthrough ice incidents happen to boys ages 7-12

rubberized

Nick Ferguson, Ottawa

External ankle weights added to keep feet hanging down

and molded

against the inherent

to the suitâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

flotation of the suit

shell to make

so they can float

the suit water

vertically in the water.

tight.

http://graphs.net/death-ice.html

Aaron Krehbiel, Pretty Prairie; Jacob Ice, Hutchinson; Wyatt Beat, Kingman; and Brandon Peterson, Hutchinson, complete an ice rescue drill using the boat. The ice rescue class was only offered at the beginning of the spring semester. Photo provided by Stacy Bain

026-027 Fire-Ice Rescue.indd 27

2/5/16 8:44 AM

photos&story

What is Spark?

Kayla Penner

SPARK is a Christian club on campus that reaches to students with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The club offers worship with singing, games, gospel lessons, and Lifegroups. Lifegroups are small groups that come together, discuss the lessons we learn at Spark, and analyze Biblical scripture that students can take into their daily lives. Spark is a great club for anyone who is curious about faith or simply want more faith into their lives. SPARK meets weekly

when: Thursdays time: 7pm where: Nunemaker Room

Kirsten Showalter, Haven, sings in the SPARK Worship Band during a Worship Night. SPARK meets every Thursday at 7pm.

Parker Student Union

Students sing along to worship song during SPARK worship night. SPARK host Worship Nights every Thursday.

SPARK members participate in a game during a SPARK meeting. SPARK offers games, singing, and Biblical lessons.

Dragonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tale

Club Highlight

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Calendar

Hutchinson Community College

(Don’t miss out)

February

12th:

Night of Improv 7:30 pm 9:30 pm Gallery Theater

16th:

March

th 7 : Current Student

Downtown Hutchinson

th 20 : Mine 5K

Pick a time & bring a helmet and a lamp. $55 entry fee. Strataca Salt Mine 8:00 am – 12:00 pm

24th: Career Connections

10:30am – 3:30pm Sports Arena

Dillon Lecture Series

8:00 am - 9:00 am See your advisor!

David Garibaldi (Performance Painter) 10:30 Sports Arena

14th:

NJCAA Tournament th 15 : 8:00 am - 9:00 am th 16 : Sports Arena

th 14 :

th 17 : Third Thursday

5:00 - 9:00 PM Downtown Hutchinson

18th: NJCAA Tournament 19th: 8am - 9am Sports Arena

21st: nd 22 : SPRING BREAK rd 23 : Have fun and be Safe 24th:

Third Thursday

5:00 pm - 9:00 pm Downtown Hutchinson

Dr. Beck Weathers (Mount Everest Disaster Survivor) 10:30 Sports Arena

4th:

Enrollment

Dillon Lecture Series

th 18 : Third Thursday 5:00 pm - 9:00 pm

April

18th: 19th: 20th:

SkillsUSA Contest

May 2nd:

3rd: 4th: 5th: 6th:

FINALS WEEK Study hard, good luck!

Graduation 7:00 pm Sports Arena

th 25 :

College Closed

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DRAGON

DANCE

DOLLS

story E v a n N e w l i n design T i a r a B r o w n

It’s never easy to follow in the footsteps of a legendary coach. Bonnie Neville ran the Hutchinson Community College dance program for nearly forty years, building the team from scratch. Three years ago, Manda Holmes, dance coach/ cheer sponsor, started working at HCC as an assistant coach. She has since taken on the role of head coach for both Dragon Dolls dance team and the cheerleading squad. “Bonnie had the vision and she followed through with it for decades. Everywhere we go, we’ll post videos on our social media and people, people we don’t even know will say, Oh, I remember when I was a Dragon Doll! And they’re in their forties and fifties, that’s cool,” said Holmes. “It’s like a sisterhood, its history.” Forty years has certainly changed the dance world, in terms of the techniqes and styles, as well as what is expected from the individuals and teams as a whole, explained Holmes. “It used to be this really cute halftime thing

030-031 Dragon Dolls.indd 30

and now dance has evolved into all these different forms and types. There’s contemporary, jazz, hip-hop, there’s pom, all this stuff. Not only that, but style and expectation is so much different, expectation is way higher. It’s not just about showing up and putting on a good show, it’s about technique,” said Holmes. “Especially now, a lot of schools you’re either on it and you’re good, or you’re not. And there’s plenty of other

It’s like a sisterhood, it’s history. -Manda Holmes schools these dancers can go to, so it’s like come on, let’s do this, let’s throw a hat in this.” Not only have the expectations changed as far as technique goes, the dancers are also held to a different standard.

2/5/16 10:10 AM

1 “Oh, you can’t be shy. You need to be outgoing. You don’t have to be a public speaker, but you have to have this little sense of adventure in you to where you’re not embarrassed to get out there and possibly fall, possibly mess up, or possibly do really awesome,” Holmes said. Sydney Morris, Hutchinson, is a member of the Dragon Dolls dance team, as well as HCC student government. “They’re nice, they’re high, but I think that’s a good thing to have. As a team, there’s always those little girls that look up to you, so you want to have a good reputation, reputation’s a big thing if you’re representing your school,” Morris said about Holmes’ team standards. In terms of the dancers’ skills, Holmes has an approach that seems to acommodate even the least experienced dancers. “It’s not ‘if you’re this tall and weigh this much we want you.’ If I can see some ability in you, if I see that we can work with you, we’ll teach you,” Holmes said. “One of my girls, she does track, we brought her on at semester and she’s never been a dancer. But she’s been a competitve

3 cheerleader her whole life. But, she’s an amazing dancer, she’s athletic, she has musicality, she knows how to move her body and understands it. So let’s teach her, here’s how to do this leap, here’s how to do this turn.” Morris’ dad also owns a gymnastics gym that she works at outside of school. “It’s hard because, I go to school, and my dad owns a gymnastics gym and so I work there, and I’m in student government so on certain days I go from here to student government, or student government to here, it’s just hard to balance the work and stuff,” said Morris. “But I like to do it, so it makes it easy.”

1 Shannon Galliher, Anastasia Vieyra, and Patience Westby, all from Hutchinson, perform at the fall homecoming assembly. Photo by Loribeth Reynolds.

2 Maria

Matinez, Hutchinson; Mariah Allmon, McPherson; and Westby, perform during a halftime performance at a home basketball game. Photo by Kadesha Brown.

Westby, Galliher, and Sydney Morris, Hutchinson, perform on the sidelines at a home basketball game against Garden City Community College. Photo by Loribeth Reynolds

Dragon’s Tale

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Dragon page design

Karen Ibarra story

Angela Lingg Cheerleading may look like a lot of bows, smiles, and lipstick, but the cheer team at Hutchinson Community College puts in many hours of grueling practices and they walk away with lots of bumps and bruises. Manda Holmes is the new head coach for HCC’s large coed team consisting of 13 yell leaders and 10 cheerleaders. She works throughout the year recruiting her athletes from local competitions and high schools. When it comes to recruiting women, she needs a few specific types. First are the athletes on top of the pyramids. “They’re little, tiny, and short,” Holmes said. “I call them my little bits. Not only do they need to be little, they need to be athletic.” Her next set of girls are the mids. They also get thrown high in the air, but they need the strength to support the top girls in a pyramid. “She’s my stronger bigger girl, who can catch another girl lying up on her standing on a guy,” Holmes said. Last of all, Holmes needs a few really solid tumblers. “Most of the time the really great tumblers are not flyers, they’re not mids, they are just really good tumblers,” Holmes said. However, on a cheer team, women generally need to be able to fill two or more roles. According to Holmes, all of the girls need to be strong, athletic, and flexible. While size is of course a big factor in the cheer

The cheer team works hard on practice, to bring it on game day. world, it is very important to Holmes that all of her girls stay healthy, but she also wants to make sure her girls are not concerned with being too skinny or too big. “I need very healthy, very muscular, very strong girls,” Holmes said. “Size is a factor when you’re being tossed in the air. However, I don’t make them step on a scale.” The size for a yell leader is not quite as specific, but according to Holmes, in the world of cheer, guys are hard to come by. Holmes looks for strong guys, and generally a good place to look is the wrestling arena. “Number one wrestlers make amazing yell leaders. Right now I have two state-known wrestlers. All coaches know wrestlers are the ones to recruit,” Holmes said. “After that is football. You’re basing pyramids, and a pyramid can hold three to four girls on top of that. That’s a lot on top of the pressure.” The yell leader’s main job is to always protect the cheerleader. That means they get beat up the most. “The guys are ones that take the hit,” said Holmes. “They’re the ones that are saving the girls. My guys get donkey kicked in the face coming from twelve feet down. My guys just get beat up.” The HCC cheer team was busy last fall with as many as seven practices a week and many games. In the month of Nov., they cheered at 22 games. On top of that, they are now getting ready for their Region VI cheer competition on March 6. One of the most impressive stunt couples

includes Andrew Brown, Scott City, and Lindsey Lampe, Mulvane. Lampe has been cheering since fourth grade and Brown has been a yell leader since his freshman year of high school. Holmes paired these two together at the beginning of the season because their height complimented each other. “I have really long legs and he’s tall, so we just worked together well,” said Lampe. “He’s my game day partner.” Since they are on the taller side of the cheer scale, when Brown tosses Lampe, she flies high, and she loves it. Brown also really appreciates his partner’s courage and talent. “She’s a good flyer and she doesn’t bail on me, so I don’t get kicked every time,” Brown said. A popular stunt for the cheer teams is the basket. The stunt includes three guys working together to launch a girl really high in the air. If they do not time it right, the girl can shoot off ten feet in any direction. “They’re fun, the crowd loves them, and if you’re a cheer leader, you love and hate them,” said Holmes “They’re terrifying.” Brown has some experience with the basket toss. He holds the back spot and if a basket toss goes wrong, he must catch the girl at all cost. “The back spot is the worse place to be,” said Holmes. “Your job is the head. You catch her and protect the head. If they don’t get rotated, feet come, and you just get beat up so bad by these little 90-pounders.” For Brown, all the team’s hard work pays of on game day. “[You get] kind of a rush just being in front of a crowd, and throwing stunts, and cheering on our school team,” Brown said. That’s what cheer is all about: working through the grueling practices to support the Blue Dragons out on the field or court on game day.

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Spirit!! 1

1. D estiny Allen, Salina, and Lindsay Lampe, Mulvane, signal to the crowd along the sidelines of a home basketball game in the Sports Arena. A three-point sign represented the shot that was made on court.

2. Andrew Brown, Scott City, throws Lampe high in the air for a stunt.

The

pair executed a toss toe touch.

3. L ondon Foulk, Hutchinson, and Jay Brown II, Salina, cheer during the fall homecoming assembly performance. The team completed a chair which is the stunt at the end of the fight song.

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Sophomore Moataz Aly, Alexandria, Egypt, jumps high in the air for a shot. Aly was the tallest player for the Blue Dragons at 6’9”. Photo by Loribeth Reynolds

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BLUE DRAGON BASKETBALL

Sophomore Akbar Hoffman, Newark, N.J., drives the ball in for a point. Hoffman scored 23 points helping HCC defeat Garden City Community College. Photo by Loribeth Reynolds Bashir Ahmed, Bronx, N.Y., jumps up for a basket. HCC had 21 wins and 3 loses going into early February. Photo by Loribeth Reynolds

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Number five, Inja Butina, Zagreb, Croatia, is a freshman point gaurd. Burtina had a 12 point average per game. Photo provided by HCC Sports Information

Blue Dragon Basketball 2015-2016 Results

Oct. 30 Labette W, 83-44 Oct. 31 North Lake College W, 73-68 Nov. 6 Hesston College W, 102-85 Nov. 7 NEO W, 82-68 Nov. 10 Brown Mackie College W, 83-62 W, 102-88 Nov. 13 Lamar W, 89-61 Nov. 14 On-Point Prep W, 90-75 Nov. 20 Western Texas College Nov. 21 Brown Mackie College W, 80-74 W, 82-53 Nov. 25 Trinidad State W, 93-72 Nov. 26 Frank Phillips College W, 90-77 Nov. 30 Neosho County Dec. 2 Coffeyville W, 82-77 Dec. 5 Allen W, 86-77 Dec. 12 Independence W, 66-58 Jan. 2 Pratt W, 75-72 Jan. 6 Cowley College L, 113-111 (3OT) Jan. 9 Butler L, 78-77 Jan. 13 Dodge City L, 85-79 Jan. 16 Colby W, 96-69 Jan. 20 Seward County W, 96-91 Jan. 23 Cloud County W, 70-60 Jan. 30 Barton W, 72-64 Feb. 1 Garden City W, 83-64 Dodge City W, 83-69 Feb. 3 Feb. 6 Colby W, 94-62 8:00 p.m. Feb. 10 at Seward County Feb. 13 Cloud County 7:30 p.m. Feb. 20 Barton 7:30 p.m. Feb. 22 at Garden City 7:30 p.m. Feb. 25 Region VI Tournament TBA Mar. 5-7 Region VI Tournament Sports Arena Mar. 14-19 NJCAA Tournament Results as of Feb. 6

Lakin Preisner, Americus, drives the ball down the court. HCC beat the Seward County Saints with a score of 66-62. Photo provided by HCC Sports Information

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Lady Dragon Basketball • 2015-2016 Results Oct. 30

North Central Missouri

W, 85-49

Jan. 9

Butler

W, 59-44

Oct. 31

Tabor College JV

W, 80-49

Jan. 13

Dodge City

W, 90-48

Nov. 6

NEO

W, 65-61

Jan. 16

Colby

W, 95-54

Nov. 7

Labette

W, 121-38

Jan. 20

Seward County

W, 66-62

Nov. 13

Murray State

W, 72-67

Jan. 23

Cloud County

W, 62-51

Nov. 14

Central Methodist JV

W, 97-19

Jan. 30

Barton

W, 78-56

Nov. 20

Frank Phillips College

W, 78-53

Feb. 1

Garden City

W, 77-70

Nov. 21

Fort Carson Military Base

W, 95-63

Feb. 3

Dodge City

W, 69-53

Nov. 25

Friends University JV

W, 102-53

Feb. 6

Colby

W, 88-53

Nov. 30

Neosho County

W, 82-64

Feb. 10

at Seward County

6:00 p.m.

Dec. 2

Coffeyville

L, 62-58

Feb. 13

Cloud County

5:30 p.m.

Dec. 5

Allen

W, 81-44

Feb. 20

Barton

5:30 p.m.

Dec. 9

Southwestern College JV

W, 91-29

Feb. 22

at Garden City

5:30 p.m.

Dec. 12

Independence

W, 76-62

Feb. 25

Region VI Tournament

Jan. 2

Pratt

W, 73-52

Jan. 6

Cowley College

W, 94-90

TBA

Results as of Feb. 6

Kirea Rogers, Wichita, has the highest average points per game at 15.4. The HCC women had 20 wins and one loss in early February. Photo provided by HCC Sports Information

Butina dribbles the ball won the court. The HCC women’s basketball team was number one the Jayhawk Conference. Photo by Loribeth Reynolds

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The Time Between Class Continued from page 7 Tanner Sneed, Nickerson, had back-to-back classes on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. His Tuesday and Thursday schedule left him with an hour or more between some classes. “Most of the time I’m either in Admissions because I’m an Ambassador so I just hang out there, and the other half of the time, my mom is Dana Sneed, she’s a secretary here, and I’m usually studying in there,” Sneed said. Working through school can really take a toll on the amount of free time a student has available for out-of-class work. The student survey found that 17.1% of students used their free time to go straight to their place of employment. Sneed said that during the day if he is not at school or home, he is

working. Cole Peterman, a member of the cheerleading squad from Hutchinson, also has 6 a.m. practices and then goes to class. Afterwards, he goes straight to work at Trinity Treasures and most nights follows that shift up with a big slice of his time working at Ken’s Pizza in the evenings. Peterman said that he gets around 3-5 hours of sleep depending on the night. “I spend my free time between work and school watching old movies while cuddling with my sugar glider, Jewl,” Peterman said. At the end of the day, no matter what a student’s schedule looks like, most know there is always a bit of time that could be used more wisely. College is an experience where students learn how to manage the time between school, work, and fun.

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