K-State Collegian (Sept. 07, 2016)

Š 2016 collegian media group

T H E I N D E P E N D E N T V O I C E F O R K A N S A S S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

Striking Against Strikes Page 3: Students protest Landon Lecture speaker Wes Bush

kstatecollegian.com

vol. 122, issue 11

wednesday, september 7 , 2 0 1 6

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ON THE COVER

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Anna Spexarth | THE COLLEGIAN

The Manhattan Alliance for Peace and Justice line the lawn outside McCain on Tuesday. The group was protesting the use of drones as military weapons, which was a topic at the Landon Lecture that evening.

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wednesday, september 7, 2016

Aerospace CEO discusses robotics at Landon Lecture EMILY PORTER

THE COLLEGIAN

W

es Bush, CEO of Northrop Grumman, spoke Tuesday night for the 172nd Landon Lecture in McCain Auditorium.

The topic of the evening was robotics, though Bush does not refer to his company’s technology as robotics. Throughout the lecture, he spoke of autonomous systems. The difference, he stressed, between robots and autonomous systems is the ability to perform tasks without humans, like driverless cars.

“People look at the idea of a driverless car and think, ‘That’s not too tough,’” Bush said. “But they must prioritize risk, evaluate harm and act in an instant, at least as good as a human driver.”

According to Bush, human drivers experience 6 million auto accidents a year, including 35,000 deaths. Thirty-five percent of those are caused by human error.

Bush is an “engineer by

Nick Horvath | THE COLLEGIAN

The Landon Lecture Series hosted Wes Bush on Tuesday at McCain Auditorium. He specializes in autonomic technologies and the development of artificial intelligence software. training and profession,” and spoke at Kansas State in the College of Engineering three years ago. He mentioned not

only how impressed he is with the amount of purple there is on campus, but also the importance of universities to tech-

nology, referring to them as “innovation ecosystems.”

“Universities are a core part of enabling technology,

Anti-drone protests strike Landon Lecture JASON TIDD

THE COLLEGIAN

Behind the yellow police tape lining sections of the lawn outside McCain Auditorium, protesters took a stand.

A group of police officers approached two more protesters who were handing out leaflets at the entrance to McCain.

These two protesters were asked to move away from the entrance. After adding 10 more feet between them and the door, the protestors continued distributing their leaflets along the sidewalk, and the police let them be.

“We had a little bit of friction at the entrance,” John Exdell, co-founder of the Manhattan Alliance for Peace and Justice and emeritus faculty in philosophy, said.

He said the police told him

the leaflets could only be handed out in the taped off zones. But Exdell said he politely told them no.

“We compromised and moved a little further away from the building,” Exdell said. “They were happy; we were happy.”

Tuesday’s Landon Lecture speaker was Wes Bush, CEO of Northrop Grumman, an aerospace and defense technology company. It manufactures the X-47B, an unmanned combat air vehicle. MAPJ protested the use of drones as military weapons.

The Westboro Baptist Church also protested outside McCain.

DRONE CASUALTIES

Disseminating information on the use of drones as military weapons was the purpose of the protest, Will Chernoff, a MAPJ board member and graduate stu-

dent in sociology, said.

“What we’re trying to do is bring a little balance of information to what’s going on tonight, because right now it’s all coming from one specific side,” Chernoff said. “We just want to make sure that the information that is also a part of this discussion isn’t neglected from their side of things.”

According to the MAPJ leaflet, 90 percent of people killed in U.S. drone strikes are unintended targets.

“The causalities of (using drones as military weapons) are unacceptable,” Chernoff said.

“The number of innocent people allowed to be killed because of this effort is too many.”

Those civilian casualties can cause more people to take up arms against the U.S., Exdell said.

“We’re really focused here on the use of drones as military

weapons that kill a lot of innocent people and create a lot of enemies for the country,” Exdell said. “(The civilian casualties from drone strikes) creates a hatred of the United States and fuels a whole culture of animosity.”

According to the MAPJ leaflet, citing the New York Times, the CIA counts all military-aged males in a strike zone as militants, which causes underestimates of civilian casualties.

in the advancement and integration of information,” Bush said.

The technology, in Bush’s eyes, is already in full swing, as universities help.

“In terms of cognitive autonomy, that genie is well out of the bottle and cannot be ignored,” Bush said.

After 35 minutes, the lecture went into a question-and-answer session, where students could ask Bush anything relating to the lecture or the field. Nine students asked the Massachusetts Institute of Technology graduate about topics ranging from animals and technology to problems at the Pentagon and how his company is working on fending off potential hackers.

Drew Ewing, senior in industrial engineering, attended this as his first lecture and said he was happy with this opportunity, as he was “intrigued about autonomous systems.”

“I think the Landon Lectures are really good opportunities to see the world at large,” Ewing said. “I realized there are more ethical understanding

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FREE SPEECH

The yellow police tape did not designate a specific “free speech zone.” Rather, it designates a reserved area for protesters, giving them a safe location to protest, Tom Harley, an officer with the K-State Police Department, said. see page

4, “PROTEST”

than taken into account, and they really define industry.”

Ewing came out of McCain learning that the technology in place now is “further than I thought.” Other students, including Emily Muckelbauer, sophomore in marketing, said they felt the lecture taught them about the industry.

“I came for a class extra credit opportunity and I felt like I learned a lot about the different technologies,” Muckelbauer said.

She was not surprised when she walked up to the event and saw two groups protesting the event, including the Manhattan Alliance for Peace and Justice and the Westboro Baptist Church. (See article below for more.)

The Landon Lecture series began in 1966 by former K-State President James McCain. The series is named after former Kansas Gov. Alfred Landon. Six former U.S. presidents, the president of Costa Rica, journalists, authors and politicians have spoken at these events over the past 50 years.

relive the moment with The Collegian & Royal Purple reprints photos.collegianmedia.com

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wednesday, september 7, 2016

College of Education leads the way for military initiatives KAITLYN ALANIS THE COLLEGIAN

F

aculty with direct ties to veterans and those who serve in the military are committed to making a difference in the lives of both veterans and military-affiliated students who attend Kansas State.

“We want you to know this is not just a knee-jerk reaction to the suicides of both Jake and Justin,” Kelly Briggs, college of education adviser and K-State Military Initiatives task force member, said. “While the timing may seem right, we want people to know these initiatives are here to stay and we’re passionate to see them through.”

Both Jacob Horton and Justin Brickey were veterans and students at K-State who committed suicide within the past year. According to Briggs, the College of Education’s initiatives started in 2013, but as post-traumatic stress disorder has become more prevalent, other colleges and entities on campus are working to join forces with the College of Education.

“Almost anything that is being done in the area of mental health initiatives is going to be seen as a knee-jerk reaction,” Justin Manford, Veterans Student Organization president and senior in economics, said.

“But (VSO) just wants to make sure the university understands the different issues those who served in the military may come across and how to protect our students.”

Briggs said that in particular, the colleges of Engineering and Business, Counseling Services and Student Affairs have increased their military initiatives.

Educating the Educators, one of the college’s initiatives, allows for the college to train education students on how to teach and interact with military children they will encounter when they become teachers.

“Our students should have the best preparation possible on how to recognize the signs,” Sandra Avalos, college of education adviser and K-State Military Initiatives task force

member, said. Avalos said other initiatives run by the College of Education include working with K-State’s Human Capital Services to train new faculty on how to teach those who served their country, school counseling and connecting veterans and military-connected students with the resources they may need while at K-State through a resources fair.

“The College of Education did a great job hosting an event where staff got to meet our military students,” Manford said. “VSO officers went and encouraged our members to attend and let the staff know both what they’re doing right and what needs to be changed.”

Manford said the best way to explain VSO is to compare it to a lobbyist group.

“There are many organizations and faculty-led initiatives on campus, but the problem is most were not military students themselves,” Manford said. “Our goal is to represent the students in these organizations and bring them together as a resource for our students.”

Manford said he and the VSO are working to ensure the staff on campus who are trained to handle alcoholism, anxiety, depression and sexual identity crises are also trained to help veterans who just got out of the military.

“It’s a life-changing event for a veteran to transition into college,” Manford said. “And they risk facing the same issues a traditional college student does, except you have to remember they also may have just seen one of their friend’s shot in the service.”

Briggs said the College of Education is working to make sure staff are trained to handle these situations.

“A lot of it is just making sure our staff is aware that they will have military students,” Briggs said. “It’s all about teaching them the signs of PTSD and how to react.”

Briggs noted two of her veteran students have committed suicide, and that those who are in a situation similar to her will always wonder if there is something else they could have done to help.

PROTEST | Fliers

intended merely to add another voice

continued from page

Anna Spexarth | THE COLLEGIAN

Kelly Briggs and Sandra Avalos, academic advisers, stand in front of the Military Initiatives advertising poster in Bluemont Hall.

“Nobody should have to feel like there was something else they could have done had they recognized the signs,” Avalos said. “But you will always think about what you could have done differently had you recognized it sooner.”

According to the College of Education’s website, veterans and military-connected students will face many unique challenges while at K-State. To help students with PTSD, programs are needed as resources to ensure the success of these students.

This cause, as well as both having husbands who have served in the military, encourages Briggs and Avalos to be active members of K-State’s new military initiatives task force.

“The task force is made up of people who have a direct connection to those in the service,” Avalos said.

“We all have a connection one way or another, and that is what makes

this issue so prevalent today.”

Briggs said the task force is working on military initiatives including, but not limited to, an optional statement for professors to put on their syllabi about military resources, a Wildcat Warm-Up for military students, and a veteran and military-affiliated student CAT community.

“Our goal is to not create added, extra programs, but instead to add an extra flare to programs K-State already offers,” Briggs said.

“We know (these programs) can offer really great resources to military students as well.”

Avalos and Briggs both said they are looking forward to bringing undergraduate students into the initiative, as they will know more than anyone else what programs could work for them.

“VSO is here for our students, we want them to feel comfortable coming to us,” Manford said.

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The protesters are not forced to remain within the yellow tape, Harley said. The Westboro Baptist Church actually requested the designated area.

In fact, Harley said he was unaware of any free speech zones on campus.

“All of campus is a free speech zone,” Ellen Welti, one of the protesters and graduate student in biology, said. “You can actually have a protest without getting a permit.”

In the incident at the McCain entrance, the protesters were moved from the entrance to prevent a funnel from forming, Harley said.

“It gives people a chance, if they don’t want to stand there and listen to it, they don’t have to be bombarded by anything they don’t want to hear,” Harley said.

Harley said the police want to both protect the attendees of the lecture as well as the freedom of speech of the protesters.

“We want to protect everyone’s freedom of speech, but then (have) for people, who don’t want to listen and participate in that, the option to walk away safely without any conflict,” Harley said.

Chernoff said it is important to be allowed to express personal beliefs at a public university.

“It’s not just something we believe is our rights, it’s our constitutional right,” Chernoff said.

And the protesters did not think their rights were infringed.

“I want to be clear, we’re not in significant opposition to (the police),” Barbara Krehbiel Gehring, a MAPJ board member and professor of social work, said. “They’ve been very respectful to us, and they have no problem with us handing out the information or the fliers.”

The protesters said their interactions with the police were respectful.

“They were just concerned about us being too aggressive, and we told them we were going to be polite and friendly,” Chernoff said. “We’re not going to badger anyone.”

Those who handed out leaflets stood along the sidewalks and conversed with passersby, but did not yell.

“K-State does have rules about not harassing people,” Krehbiel Gehring said. “And that’s not just about protests, that’s just in general.”

The protesters said they did not have any intentions of harassing people or preventing them from entering the lecture.

“We’re not trying to block access to the lecture — that’s not our intended purpose,” Krehbiel Gehring said.

“We’re not against having the lecture, we just want another voice,” Welti added.

“We just want to disseminate the information about drones,” Krehbiel Gehring continued. “That’s our primary goal, is to put out this information — to be another voice.”

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wednesday, september 7, 2016

Poor first half killed K-State’s chances against Stanford SCOTT POPP

THE COLLEGIAN

The old saying goes “it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.” But on Friday night, the great finish wasn’t enough to make up for Kansas States’ poor start.

During head coach Bill Snyder’s meeting with the media Tuesday, he said the first 15 minutes of Friday night’s game against Stanford played a big role in the loss.

“I thought we played well, but we did not start well,” Snyder said. “At the end of the day, it was all the first 15 minutes of the ballgame. In the last 35 minutes of the game, we held them to 77 yards or something like that. It was an accumulation

of not getting started well and giving up scores on the first three possessions.”

Besides two long touchdown runs, the Wildcats held Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey down as well.

The defense allowed only 70 yards in the second half, most of it coming on the 41-yard touchdown run in the final minutes that sealed the game.

A year ago the Cardinal averaged 435.5 yards and 37.8 points a game. The Wildcats held them to just 272 and 26.

“We just did not start well,” Snyder said. “We gave up a lot of things. We gave up first downs, second downs and third downs. That was a big part of it. We finished excellent, I thought.”

Despite the poor first

Parker Robb | THE COLLEGIAN

Senior defensive end Jordan Willis waves as he is introduced as a 2016 team captain prior to the annual Purple-White Spring Game on April 23 in Bill Snyder Family Stadium.

15 minutes, the defense was given plenty of credit for its finish during Tuesday’s conference.

Veteran defenders senior Dante Barnett was pleased

with the Wildcats’ defensive effort.

“I think it shows how good of a defense we can be if we don’t give up some of the big plays we did give up,”

Barnett said. “They got their yardage but we also gave up two or three plays that cost us; if you take away those plays they don’t get close to that.”

It was not all defensive talk on Tuesday, though. Snyder was asked about the offensive line’s struggles against the smash-mouth Cardinal defense.

The largely inexperienced offensive line allowed eight sacks on Friday, including a safety.

“So many of them have never been on the field before and have that youth factor to them,” Snyder said. “I thought they did well in that respect. I think the negative things were that when we were going to throw it and they knew we were going to throw it, we had some difficulties in our pass protection.

There were certain things that they did that created some problems that we have to get better at.”

The Wildcats will have two weeks to get better on the offensive line and many other areas as they prepare for their next opponent, Florida Atlantic. The Owls lost their season opener to Southern Illinois, 38-30. That game will kick off at 1:30 p.m. on Sept. 17 at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.

Big 12 defensive power rankings: Week 2 this season, although Iowa State might struggle.

2. ELIJAH LEE, JUNIOR LB, KANSAS STATE

AVERY OSEN

THE COLLEGIAN

Only one week has been played, but that doesn’t mean we can’t rank the best players on the defensive side of the ball.

1. REGGAN NORTHRUP, SOPHOMORE LB, IOWA STATE

Despite a 25-20 loss this past weekend to Northern Iowa, my standout defensive player in the first week is Northrup. He had 13 total tackles, seven of those solo, and he also recorded a sack.

I expect big things from him

In a game where the offense was lacking, Lee and the rest of the Wildcat defense kept them in the game.

Lee had 12 tackles in the 1326 loss at Stanford on Friday night. Lee will be a crucial part of the K-State defense this season.

3. KAMARI COTTONMOYA, JUNIOR DB, IOWA STATE

Another player from Ames, Iowa, makes the top 10 as Cotton-Moya provided 11 tackles in the loss to the Panthers on Saturday. The Iowa State defense is going to be good this year, and it will keep them in a lot of games in the Big 12.

4. WILL JOHNSON, JUNIOR DB, OKLAHOMA

It was a tough weekend on the defensive end for the

Sooners as Houston torched them in a 33-23 loss on Saturday. Johnson, however, had 10 tackles for Oklahoma, with seven solo tackles.

Johnson and the Sooners will need to step up as their schedule gets even tougher when they take on Ohio State in a few weeks.

5. TRAVIN HOWARD, JUNIOR LB, TCU The Horned Frogs defense gave up 41 points to South Dakota State this weekend, but Howard was key in the win. Howard had 10 tackles for TCU and will play a major role for the Horned Frogs this year.

6. TAYLOR YOUNG, JUNIOR LB, BAYLOR

Young had only six tackles in a 55-7 win over Northwestern State, but three and a half of those came for a loss. The Baylor defense was not really tested in this one, but once the Big 12 slate begins, it will be a grind and interesting to see how they stack up.

7. BAZIE BATES IV, SENIOR S, KANSAS

I mean Kansas won a game so that means someone has to crack the top 10.

Bates had an interception in the win over Rhode Island and had two pass deflections.

Bates will need to step up for Kansas to have a decent season, but only time will tell if the Jayhawks can beat a legitimate opponent.

8. JORDAN WILLIS, SENIOR DE, KANSAS STATE

Willis forced a big fumble this past Friday in the loss to Stanford. Along with that, he had five tackles, with three of those being solo ones. Lee and Willis will be leaders for the Wildcats this season and will face Florida Atlantic Sept. 17 for the Wildcats’ home opener.

9. ANTONIO CRAWFORD, SENIOR CB, WEST VIRGINIA

It was a good opening

Cassandra Nguyen | THE COLLEGIAN

Then-sophomore linebacker Elijah Lee claps during the football game against Iowa State on Nov. 21, 2015, in Bill Snyder Family Stadium. weekend win for the Mountaineers as they beat Missouri 26-11. Crawford was a key part in the win as he had eight tackles, all of them solo.

Crawford also had a pass deflection in the winning effort.

10. CHRIS NELSON, SOPHOMORE DT, TEXAS

The Longhorns have to get some love after a 50-47 win over Notre Dame on Sunday. Nelson had eight tackles in the win for the Longhorns. Texas is being seen as a dark horse now in the Big 12, and Nelson will play a big role on the defensive end for the Longhorns to be successful this season.

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wednesday, september 7, 2016

Friendliness, loyalty trademarks of K-State family MAYARA GARAY KOSTIANOVSKY THE COLLEGIAN

In the fall of 2013, I realized purple is not only a color and family is not always blood-related.

Being a part of the Manhattan community means being a part of the Kansas State family. It’s an intangible thing, a feeling that all Wildcats know and hold on to, not only during their four-year paths through this amazing experience but for the rest of their lives.

Aaron Florian, junior in civil engineering, said being part of the K-State family means being able to approach anyone and having a friendly encounter.

“K-State family is being able to go up to literally anybody, saying hi to them and

know that you’re going to be welcomed and have a good conversation in return,” Florian said. “No one is going to blow you off.”

Not only on campus, but the whole town gets purple every game day, start of the semester or any just weekday for that matter. Everywhere you look, you will see strangers smiling to each other or people finding out things they have in common.

When coming from another city or even country, fear probably gets to you when it’s time to leave for college. Feeling comfortable in a place where you know no one is sometimes hard.

Tuesday Frasier, senior in anthropology, said coming to a place where she felt welcomed made the transition easier for her, however.

“I guess for me (K-State

sticking together for whatever comes.

“I just love the feeling of all of us coming together and just being there for one another through thick and thin,” Blandin said.

A family is not a family if they are not able to lean on each other through bad times and root for each other when there are many reasons to smile.

K-State shows us everyday that even when you feel alone or misunderstood, there will always be someone there for you.

George Walker | THE COLLEGIAN

Fans hold a “Family” flag over themselves at the beginning of the game against Texas Tech on Oct. 4, 2014. family) means coming together,” Frasier said. “I’m not from Kansas, so the transition into college was very hard for me and thankfully, through all of my friends and some people

I didn’t even know, it became easier.”

The place is nothing without the people. K-State would not be what it is and it would not be as enchanting as it is if

the people were not as friendly, kind and welcoming as they all are.

Kelly Blandin, senior in social sciences, said she believes being part of this family means

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of The Collegian.

Mayara Garay Kostianovsky is a senior in mass communications. Please send comments to opinion@ kstatecollegian.com.

Proposed noise ordinance changes impractical, not enforceable

KELSEY KENDALL THE COLLEGIAN

Imagine that grumpy old man you might see on television shouting, “Stop that racket!” and shaking his fist at the slightest sound from his neighbors. Manhattan City Commission is that grumpy old man and Aggieville is the neighbor.

The City Commission

work session meeting on Aug. 30 spent quite a bit of time discussing possible changes to the current noise ordinance for all of Manhattan, which gives officers responding to a noise complaint the power to determine if the noise level is reasonable.

Naturally, concerns about how to apply the discussed changes to Aggieville and the downtown areas came up.

“If it’s too loud at the edge of Aggieville, then everyone has to turn it down,” Commissioner Karen McCulloh said at the meeting.

“That’s what we’re saying ... it’s not like it’s just one bar that’s too loud.”

The proposed changes would limit the decibel level in most areas of Manhattan

to between 60-70 decibels.

To be clear, this means 60-70 decibels standing some distance away, not in the middle of it. In order to actually keep track of the decibel level, responding police officers would need expensive, ultra-sensitive decibel readers, according to Riley County Police Department Captain Josh Kyle.

Kyle even agrees adding a decibel limit to the ordinance would not be a successful enforcement method, but maybe would be a guideline for prosecution should a certain house or venue have multiple complaints against them.

When factoring in ambient noises, though, how is an officer supposed to get an accurate reading of an

area? Anything like wind or cars driving by can affect the decibel level the reader would pick up on.

The decibel limit would just be too hard to determine and officers would have to resort to the current method of dealing with noise complaints and use their own judgment.

During the meeting, the decibel limit was compared to the speed limit. If a driver is going 1 mph over the speed limit, that person would be technically breaking the law but most likely wouldn’t be given a ticket until they’re going 10 mph over the speed limit. City commissioners seem to think the same concept would apply to the decibel level.

There’s a big difference, though. Cars have speedom-

eters to tell drivers how fast they’re going. How many people just have a decibel reader lying around? People throwing parties or Aggieville bar owners wouldn’t be able to tell if they were breaking the law until a cop showed up with a ticket.

All the proposed changes will do is make life more difficult for RCPD. People know when they’re being too loud, and if they don’t, RCPD is more than capable of reminding them.

Many of the noise complaints are about Aggieville.

If you live close enough to Aggieville, you should expect to be able to hear at least a little bit from that area. It’s an entertainment district.

There aren’t quiet hours.

The only change that

wasn’t discussed really during the meeting that should have been was eliminating the jail time of up to six months for extreme offenders. No one should ever have to go to jail for cranking up their favorite jams. If it’s really that bad, go ahead and fine them, but attempting to limit the decibel level of people trying to have a good time is just absurd and impractical.

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of The Collegian.

Kelsey Kendall is a junior in mass communications. Please send comments to opinion@kstatecollegian.com.

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wednesday, september 7, 2016

Marketing students value professor Dawn Deeter’s connectedness AUTUMN MOCK THE COLLEGIAN

Marketing professor Dawn Deeter was originally brought to Kansas State six years ago to start up the sales program within the College of Business. On top of being a marketing professor, Deeter was also named

the JJ Vanier Distinguished Chair of Relational Selling and Marketing, as well as the director of the National Strategic Selling Institute. “(NSSI) is a program designed to give students the skills they need to succeed out in the business world, specifically in respect to careers in sales,” Deeter said.

Deeter described the organization she started as an umbrella, where the curriculum for students to earn a sales certificate can be paired with any major in the university and can prove helpful within every industry.

While the curriculum itself can be useful, Nick Ramsey, senior in finance, said it’s Deeter’s

ability to connect with students that puts her and her program over the top.

“She’s been able to show us the ropes and show us what the real world is going to be like,” Ramsey said.

By being involved in NSSI, students have the opportunity to take advantage of sales competitions and professional

development workshops put on by corporate business partners.

In addition, NSSI students can join a number of clubs within the program, including Pi Sigma Epsilon, a sales and marketing fraternity, and the K-State Sales team.

Ramsey and Dan Burger, senior in entrepreneurship, are both actively involved in

the K-State Sales team, which Deeter directs, along with NSSI. “She’s almost an adviser for all of her students,” Burger said. “We all call her mom on the sales team, she facilitates everything for us, which is great. see page

8, “PROF”

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wednesday, september 7, 2016

PROF | Deeter drives top sales program continued from page

7

Beyond being a point of reference for academics, Burger said Deeter possesses an open door policy regarding both career and personal matters.

Whether Burger had questions about figuring out which companies would be a better fit for him or about unrelated issues, he said he never felt a hesitation to go to her.

“She’s very relationship-oriented,” Ramsey said.

“She wants to help you be the best person you can be and also get the job that you want.”

Before becoming involved at K-State, Deeter said she started off as a shoe buyer after receiving her undergraduate degree from Morehead State University in clothing and textiles. In the first few years after receiving her degree, she bought shoes for department stores in Florida.

“I did that for 10 years and

enjoyed it while I did it, but at some point I always thought I wanted to teach, so I decided to go back in and get my MBA,” Deeter said.

She then ended up at the University of South Florida to get her doctorate and picked sales as her area of focus in the marketing department.

“I worked with so many sales people over the years that it made a lot of sense for me to go into the sales route,” Deeter said.

She then received a job at K-State, which provided her with the opportunity to start her own sales program.

“It is a program that was almost nonexistent here and now it’s one of the top in the country all because of (Deeter),” Burger said. “She does a great job of taking something from the ground up and investing in it, people can see the enthusiasm she has about the sales program when they’re around her.”

Through her sales program, Deeter said she prides herself on the 100 percent job placement rate within the program.

“We’re very protective of that so we work very hard to make sure our students get placed in the kind of job they want,” Deeter said.

Ramsey said both the students and Deeter want to make sure the 100 percent rate can be continued, and that is portrayed through Deeter’s connectedness with her students.

“She is very adamant on getting kids where they want to go,” Burger said. “And after kids see the success that has happened in the past with her they are all glued to that because they know she knows what she’s doing.”

Behind Deeter’s academic persona, Burger said there is a goofy and nerdy side to her that all of her students love.

“It doesn’t meet the eye at

Payton Heinze | THE COLLEGIAN

Dawn Deeter, marketing professor, has been named the JJ Vanier Distinguished Chair of Relational Selling and Marketing, as well as the director of the National Strategic Selling Institute. first, but once you get to know Dr. Deeter, she’s a huge fan of Star Wars,” Burger said. “She literally has the Star Wars theme song as her ringtone.”

From her successful sales

program to her open relationship with her students, Deeter said she is very appreciative of what K-State’s community has to offer.

“It really is like a fami-

ly, and I’ve never met a nicer group of people,” Deeter said.

“The students are great; they work hard, they’re competitive, they’re well-mannered. It is just a pleasure to work here.”

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