08-24-18 by Kansas State Collegian

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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

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vol. 124, issue 3

friday, august 24, 2 0 1 8

As preachers call students whores, questions on freedom of speech arise

RAFAEL GARCIA KAYLIE MCLAUGHLIN GREG WOODS THE COLLEGIAN

It’s a cool, wet Thursday afternoon during the first week of the semester, and Jed Smock, 75, is an oddball amid the stream of students in K-State’s Bosco Plaza. Looking right out of a barbershop quartet with in a neat blue blazer, bowtie and boater hat, Smock — infamous across the country as Brother Jed — carries a stool with him, sits it and himself down squarely in the center of the plaza, and proceeds to call the students whores. Smock and his wife, “Sister” Cindy Smock, are no strangers to college campuses. Together, they head Campus Ministry USA, an evangelical organization based out of Indiana that targets campuses across the nation, but particularly in the Midwest. “We just come out here and start speaking out against sins. Especially the sexual issues, and the drunkenness, and the extensive use of mind-altering drugs — the sins that are prevalent on college campuses.” Mr. Smock said. Smock and his wife said they don’t shy away from taking a confrontational approach toward their work, although they said they’ve never initiated any violent confrontation. Last August, Mrs. Smock suffered a broken ankle after she said she was assaulted by a student when the couple was preaching at Illinois State University. “We are confrontational, we do ex-

Olivia Bergmeier | THE COLLEGIAN

Jeb Smock sits in front of a jeering crowd of students as he preaches and condemns students. Smock and his organization, Campus Ministry USA, are infamous across the United States for their charged rhetoric and confrontational ministry. pect a reaction,” Mr. Smock said. In recent years, public universities across the country have grappled with how to handle the confrontations and outrage that result when incendiary speech —protected under freedom of speech laws — ignite tensions on campus. At campuses nationally, students have protested and succeeded in keeping controversial speakers from coming to their campuses, including University of California, Berkeley, where students caused $100,000 worth of damage during riots over alt-right personality Milo Yiannopoulos’s planned speech at the school in January. University administrators canceled the event just two hours

Hundreds of freshmen shop for clubs at semesterly activity fair

before he was set to speak, out of concern for the public’s safety. In July, the University of Kansas removed a flag art exhibit from a flagpole outside a campus building after it received intense condemnation from government officials, including Secretary of State Kris Kobach and Gov. Jeff Colyer, then the two candidates in the Republican primary governor ballot. “While we want to foster difficult dialogue, we cannot allow that dialogue to put our people or property in harm’s way,” KU Chancellor Douglas Girod said at the time. At K-State, the university has come under fire for upholding freedom of

speech ideals, even when such speech conflicts with the university’s stated Principles of Community. Last September, white nationalist posters appeared overnight on campus in what would turn into a series of similar events that pushed the boundaries of free speech, including a KKK reference on social media and an obscene chant at sporting events. In those cases, the university took action or issued statements to handle the ensuing outrage, but stopped short of taking any formal disciplinary action against students or groups. The year prior to those events, the K-State general counsel sent out a newsletter outlining the role of freedom of speech on college campuses. It read: “The courts point out that offensive speech and unpopular viewpoints are what need legal protection the most, because that is the type of expression people are most likely to ask the government to shut down or that the government itself might want to shut down. Free speech protections are in place under the law for good reason.” Pat Bosco, dean of students, said events like these are “troubling” but a great chance for the university to educate students. “We’ve got to be stronger than just words,” Bosco said. “We have a chance to educate, that’s the whole idea of the First Amendment, for us to be able to have this kind of dialogue.”

see page 5, “SPEECH”

Here’s how to get your football and basketball pass this year

NEWS

Think it’s been a damp first week? You’re not alone by Faith Leatherman It’s been a very wet start to the school year with Manhattan receiving 3.97 inches of rainfall since the start of the semester Monday. But is this rainfall anything out of the ordinary? Audra Hennecke, a meteorologist at the Topeka bureau of the National Weather Service, says it’s not uncommon to get large amounts of rain like this week’s in a short amount of time. “Throughout the year, we have been pretty dry,” Hennecke said. “This year isn’t much different from other dry years we have had in the area of rainfall. Usually we will have a few days or a week out of a dry year where we get a large amount of rain in a short amount of time, so this isn’t abnormal for us.” Drainage, rather than amount of rain, has been more of an issue for the area, Hennecke said, with localized flooding due to poor drainage. Reagan Smith, freshman in open option, said the weather has made getting around and driving harder. For others, like Moe Bisheh, graduate student in engineering, the rain has had a dampening effect on his motivation to get to campus outside of classes. Despite the recent rains, much of the area, including Manhattan, remains in a severe drought. “We still need several more inches of rain to help us out of this drought,” Hennecke said. For the weekend’s forecast, see page 2.

friday, august 24, 2018

The Collegian welcomes your letters. We reserve the right to edit submitted letters for length and style. A letter intended for publication should be no longer than 400 words and must be relevant to the student body of K-State. It must include the author’s first and last name, year in school and major. If you are a graduate of K-State, the letter should include your year(s) of graduation and must include the city and state where you live. For a letter to be considered, it must include a phone number where you can be contacted. The number will not be published. Letters can be sent to letters@ kstatecollegian.com or submitted through an online form at kstatecollegian.com. Letters may be rejected if they contain abusive content, lack timeliness, contain vulgarity, profanity or falsehood, promote personal and commercial announcements, repeat comments of letters printed in other issues or contain attachments. The Collegian does not publish open letters, third-party letters or letters that have been sent to other publications or people.

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EDITORIAL BOARD Rafael Garcia Editor-in-chief

Dené Dryden Managing editor Rachel Hogan Deputy managing editor Kyle Hampel Community co-editor Olivia Rogers Community co-editor

Friday

Kaylie McLaughlin News editor

Molly Hackett Assistant sports editor

Leah Zimmerli Assistant news editor

Monica Diaz Social media editor

Katelin Woods Culture editor Macy Davis Assistant culture editor Jarrett Whitson Sports Editor

CORRECTIONS In the article “The MHK Dictionary: Your guide to K-State’s local vocabulary” on page 9 of the Aug. 20 issue of the Collegian, under the entry for “Manhattan Hill,” the location of Bluemont Hill was incorrectly stated. Bluemont Hill is accessible off Bluemont Scenic Drive, then off Ehlers Road. The Collegian regrets the error. If you see something that should be corrected or clarified, call editor-in-chief Rafael Garcia at 785-370-6356 or email news@kstatecollegian.com.

Karaline Schreiner Assistant Olivia Bergmeier Photography editor Logan Wassall Multimedia editor Gabby Farris Design chief

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The Collegian, a student newspaper at Kansas State University, is published by Collegian Media Group. It is published Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays during the school year and on Wednesdays during the summer. Periodical postage is paid at Manhattan, KS. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to 828 Mid-Campus Drive South, Kedzie 103, Manhattan, KS 66506-7167. First copy free, additional copies 25 cents. [USPS 291 020] © Collegian Media Group, 2018

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friday, august 24, 2018

Ag Summit 2018 encourages student involvement in the future of farming BAILEY BRITTON THE COLLEGIAN

The Kansas Agricultural Growth Summit drives the discussion on change in agriculture while opening doors for students’ careers. Farmers, growers and agribusiness members gathered at Kansas State for the third annual Kansas Agricultural Growth Summit to join discussions on the advancement of agriculture. The summit began Wednesday with a dinner and social at K-State’s Stanley Stout Center and continued Thursday with breakout seminars and addresses from Gov. Jeff Colyer, Lieutenant Gov. Tracey Mann and Secretary of State Kris Kobach. Each year, the summit looks at 19 sector-specific growth plans and what may be relevant, shifts in the industry and different priorities for these sectors, said Mary Soukup, assistant secretary of the Kansas Department of Agriculture. “There is the opportunity to add more outcomes or change them,” Soukup said. “Sometimes is may be something like passing legislation. Others are more long term processes.” A significant factor that brought the Ag Summit to Manhattan was the ability to be near students, Soukup said. Soukup said there were many

students at the event working or learning, including members of the National Future Farmers of America Organization, or FFA, and interns in the Kansas Department of Agriculture. “I definitely think that coming to K-State and being near a lot of students to connect with them is a top priority in all that we do,” she said. “There are a lot of really great opportunities to connect with industry leaders from across the state.” Katie Lybarger, sophomore in animal science and industry and Department of Agriculture intern, said the summit was also a networking opportunity. “This is also a unique opportunity to network and look into a career,” Lybarger said. “Bringing people from all over the state to Manhattan is very beneficial.” Elizabeth Meyer, junior in agricultural education and FFA member, attended a sector break out on specialty crops, seeking an opportunity for growth. “I’m passionate about keeping up to date with how agriculture is changing,” Meyer said. “There are constantly new changes and we need to come up with new solutions. Even if I am not directly related to the issues, for example specialty crops, since I am a producer and a consumer of those products, it does effect me.” “It is very much that there are

Katherine Wist | THE COLLEGIAN

During the 2018 Kansas Ag Summit, Kansas Secretary of Agriculture Jackie McClaskey gave the closing remarks. The conference focused on Agricultural Growth in the state, by collaboration between farmers, ranchers and agribusinesses in the state. so many diverse backgrounds that makes this an excellent opportunity,” Meyer said. “We can all learn from each other.”

Soukup said the unique thing about the summit is that everyone is brought together under one roof. “Whether you are a beef pro-

Feds say marketplace will expose bad colleges, but states find it's not so easy TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE WASHINGTON_ Education Secretary Betsy DeVos plans to help students pick a college and a major by publishing more information about how much they might earn and owe after graduation. But, as experience from nearly two dozen states illustrates, the plan will be challenging to implement, and it's unclear whether teenagers and other prospective college students will use the new information to make decisions. The consumer information

push is related to the Education Department's decision to scrap the Obama-era gainful employment rule, which cut off funding for career-focused colleges if they saddled students with too much debt. The rule was aimed largely at for-profit colleges; the department announced in January 2017, just before President Donald Trump's inauguration, that such schools made up 98 percent of the 800 or so schools out of compliance with the regulation. Now, instead of regulating such institutions, the Education

Department hopes a marketplace approach will help all students make informed decisions about where to enroll--possibly by requiring colleges to post earnings and debt data on their websites, and also by revamping the College Scorecard, a federal website built to help students compare colleges. The department has announced it will add earnings data by major or program of study, and it's possible other changes will be made as well. DeVos has been criticized for her top deputies' connec-

tions with for-profit colleges and her holdings in the for-profit college industry. But the decision to publish more information is far less controversial than the fight over regulating the industry. Many experts who research college outcomes cheered the Education Department's decision to include data by major or program, because the subject students choose has a big impact on their earnings.

see page 8, “DEVOS”

ducer or a vegetable grower, it doesn’t matter,” Soukup said. “We have a place for you here. We have a place for everyone.”

friday, august 24, 2018

No library? No problem: A guide to resources across campus KATELIN WOODS THE COLLEGIAN

Centralized study zones and printing stations in Hale Library are out of the picture following the May 22 fire. That means finding a space to get work done can be difficult. So the Kansas State library has been ravaged by fire damage that screams “costs and damages.” What now? If you ponder your greatest thoughts best with the aroma of coffee beans filtering in the air, you may feel right at home at Arrow Coffee Co., Bluestem Bistro, Radina’s and Sparrow Specialty Coffee. Jilian Daniel, freshman in elementary education, said Arrow is her favorite coffee nook in Manhattan. “I love Arrow because the environment, how it is set up and the smell,” Daniel said. If you don’t function best with a heavy flow of traffic in your study

zone, but still want your cup of joe, the Radina’s locations on campus are best avoided during normal class hours. Grabbing a table is as near impossible as studying there when you have an attention span of a sugared-up toddler. Stick to the drive-by coffee runs and seek study shelter somewhere else. Off-campus coffee shops typically are pretty quiet up until around 3 p.m. The roar of undergrads pilling in after class climaxes from 3 to 6 p.m. The amount of sleep-deprived students filling the tables tends to dwindle as the night continues. However, this loose statistic is not accurate pertaining to finals week. All rules do not apply during that dreaded time frame. Options outside of hipster havens for your studying necessities are far from limited. Madison Beauchamp, senior in animal science and industry, said she prefers to study outdoors in areas like the quad.

“I really like studying outside in the quad area, or I study on one of the benches outside my next class,” Beauchamp said. The weather won’t always comply to your study wishes, so it’s important to have a back up plan. Another resource is the Manhattan Public Library on Poyntz Avenue. It may not have an Einstein’s Bros. Bagels shop attached to it, but it’ll do. Registering for a library card is free and can be done online or in person with a photo I.D. and proof of address. Whatever you do, avoid studying in your bed. Emilee Clemons, sophomore in fine arts, said this is a sure way to get nothing done. “I never do homework in bed, because every time I’d do homework in bed, I’d just procrastinate until the next day,” Clemons said. So now that you have a variety of places to procrastinate your

homework at, where do you print? Hale Library has relocated some of their resources to the second floor of the K-State Student Union, which includes a small collection of computers and printers. One floor below this is six desktops with a printer next to the Cats’ Den. Printing is also available in the Dickens Hall 1 lab, the Justin Hall lobby, Seaton Hall 1 lab, Weigel Library in Regnier Hall 81, the Math/ Physics Library in Cardwell Hall 105 and the Cat’s Pause Lounge in the Union. WIth an ample supply of study and printing resources, hopefully you won’t be saying “what the Hale?” Katelin Woods THE COLLEGIAN

The Great Room, once a quiet location for students to study, is now vacant and has scalloping lining the walls.

Activities carnival shows off variety of opportunities for students PETER LOGANBILL THE COLLEGIAN

Cullen Moore and his girlfriend Carolyn Clark had a pretty clear idea of what they were looking for when they stepped into the Activities Carnival in the K-State Student Union Thursday night. But as the two looked around, they saw a variety of opportunities before them from the over 200 clubs and organizations represented, including academic clubs, honoraries, leadership opportunities and sports clubs. “I’m looking to join a fraternity,” Moore, freshman in architectural engineering, said. “Mainly just to get involved with more people so I’m not spending all my time in my

dorm.” While Clark, freshman in marketing, has already involved herself with a house, she wanted to find other ways to plug herself in. “I wanted to join a business club,” Clark said. “I’m already in a sorority, so I didn’t want to spread myself too thin, but I definitely wanted to get more involved.” One club that had a prominent presence was the Star Wars club; members walked around with large signs that said, “Ask me about the Star Wars club.” Star Wars club outreach manager Garrett Kuhn, senior in management information systems, said the signs had a significant impact on their outreach. “Last year, we basically just sat there at the table,” Kuhn said. “We

had a bunch of decorations and we just gave out flyers. Last year we got a good number of people, but this year we’ve gotten, I think we’ve gotten 50 people tonight. Our big thing [is] the picket signs.”

see page 5, “ACTIVITIES” Peter Loganbill THE COLLEGIAN

A member of the Star Wars club speaks with students at the activities carnival. The carnival represented over 200 clubs, including academic clubs, honoraries, leadership opportunities and sports clubs.

friday, august 24, 2018

SPEECH continued from page

SPARKING TENSION

While the Smocks and Myrna Bennett, a member of their ministry, said they never outright target any particular students who walk by, they do issue broad condemnations of students who have sex before marriage, calling that “whoredom.” “It’s biblical terminology,” Mr. Smock said. “If you’re

having sex outside of marriage, you’re a whore.” “We don’t point people out and call them names, but we do point out the sin on campus, and we say — there’s fornicators, there’s potheads, there’s porn freaks. We call out these sins, but we don’t personally call out anyone,” Mrs. Smock said. Vern Wirka, professor of journalism and mass communications, said the trio’s expression is protected under the Supreme Court’s ruling in Snyder v. Phelps.

Wirka said since K-State is a public university, the regulation of the content in any message is strictly prohibited. In the absence of vehement personal attacks, expression such as Campus Ministry USA’s is protected. Bosco had the same understanding of the law. “[Mr. Smock] knows the principles of the constitution; this is not his first rodeo,” Bosco said. “Sometimes he goes up to the line without crossing. It’s what the First Amendment is all about, and that’s the freedom of

speech.” Mr. Smock said he doesn’t consider his preaching or insults to be fighting words. “No, they’re truth,” Mr. Smock said. “I mean, if I come up and call some guy’s wife a whore, I suppose those could be fighting words, but if you’re married, you’re not committing whoredom if you’re having sex. It’s just sex outside of marriage.” Mr. Smock has been a campus mainstay since he first started preaching in 1972. He said K-State is a regular stop on his itinerary, and he tries to come to campus annually or at least every couple of years — often enough that students occasionally recognize him. He says K-State officials have never really put any restrictions on how he’s gone about his preaching, except for one minor incident in the early 1980s. In that incident, he said he was stopped by a campus policeman. Mr. Smock complained to the dean of students, who informed both Smock and the policeman that Smock was protected under freedom of speech

laws. “He introduced me to the police chief at the time, and we haven’t had any issues since,” Mr. Smock said. “I think there’s a lot more Christians here than at the University of Kansas. We like to come to this campus,” Mrs. Smock said.

A PUBLIC FORUM

On the first day of the Smocks’ stop at K-State, a crowd of students grew, shrunk and shifted in closer to Smock as the day progressed. Some students would occasionally confront the preacher, while others sat back on the steps of the plaza to watch the “entertainment.” The Smocks and Bennett cycled turns in front of the audience, and students in the audience likewise took turns engaging with the preachers. Jamison Bourgeois, freshman in open option, stood feet away from the center of the circle, confessing his sins. He said he appreciates the dissent and the debate in such a public space

Olivia Bergmeier | THE COLLEGIAN

Myrna Bennett, a preacher with Campus Ministry USA, argues against Jamison Bourgeois, freshman in open option. Bennett joined Campus Ministry USA leaders Jed and Cindy Smock in preaching what they called their confrontational ministry, calling students whores and potheads, among other insults.

ACTIVITIES continued from page

Students walking around could grab candy, cups and snacks, something the organizations used to welcome students and get their attention. A long line wound around the second floor as students waited to grab a free water bottle featuring fruit infusion, one of many incentives that were handed out at the event. “We know that students like free stuff,” Kelli Farris, executive director for the center for student involvement, said. “Doesn’t matter what year in school you are, you like free things. A lot of the student organizations are

handing out free things.” While Cooper Mumford, freshman in architecture planning and design, pursued his usual interests of running and student ministry, another club caught his eye. “One thing that did peak my interest is the skydiving club,” Mumford said. “It’s not really a normal thing I do, but that sounded fun.” Although many of the organizations on campus were represented at the carnival, about 300 of the 500 were not. While some only reach out to a certain group of people and thus do not try to be at the event, the rest were not able to come do to the size of the building. As a result, the

clubs and organizations have to register on a first come first serve basis. In spite of this, many different types of opportunities were represented. “Activities carnival is really cool because you get a very broad spectrum of all those organizations,” Farris said. Once they had decided to leave the event, Moore and Clark had both found and talked to organizations they may want to join, noting the kindness and sincerity of who they spoke to. “Everyone’s really inviting,” Moore said. “If they’re interested in you, they’ll just approach you.”

612 Poyntz Ave. 785-776-8821 www.fumcmanhattan.com

as Bosco Plaza. In fact, Bourgeois said he wishes more public debates of the sort could come to pass. “People learn from this,” Bourgeois said, before returning to the debate. Bosco said rather than hurting the university’s reputation, policies respecting free speech only strengthen the university, and it gives students the chance to think critically. “I think there is awkwardness and uncomfortableness in exchanging ideas that are different,” Bosco said. “We are so wrapped up in language these days, it’s extremely difficult to have a dialogue without offending somebody.” Whether it be for entertainment, honest conversation or some divine inspiration, Mrs. Smock said wherever they go, the crowd follows. “It’s the anointing of the Holy Ghost,” Mrs. Smock said. “We’re full of the Holy Spirit. We don’t force anyone to stop, but the Holy Spirit draws them to hear the word.”

friday, august 24, 2018

Students weigh in on K-State football’s chances, record this season CODY FRIESEN

THE COLLEGIAN

The 2018 football season is right around the corner, with the first game being just 10 days away. Last year, the football team took a 7-5 record to the Cactus Bowl, where they defeated UCLA. How will they shape up this season? Here’s what students and some alumni had to say. Many students had similar predictions for K-State’s regular season record. Two students predicted 7-5 records for the Wildcats, while two more think they will finish the regular season at 8-4.

Recent K-State alum, Sam Lee, predicts that the Wildcats will post a 7-5 record saying that “this team is just average in the Big 12.” Ryley Leseberg, a senior in finance, also predicts a 7-5 record. “I don’t trust the play calling at any time,” Leseberg said. “The offense was pretty predictable last year and if teams prep for the run-pass option, the Cats are going to get shut down pretty quick. The loss of Byron Pringle and D.J. Reed is going to hurt our special teams. The Wildcats lost some of their top receivers, so it may hurt the offense’s ability to air it out.” “The Mississippi State

game is going to be a toss-up and a really competitive game, but K-State can beat Texas for sure,” Leseberg said. As far as the Sept. 8 matchup against Mississippi State, Mitchell said, “I don’t fear Mississippi State.” Jacob Mitchell predicts an 8-4 record this season. He predicts losses to West Virginia, Oklahoma State, Oklahoma and TCU. Like Mitchell, senior Kyle Johnson predicts an 8-4 regular season record for the Wildcats. “The biggest games that K-State must win are games versus West Virginia, Texas, and TCU,” Johnson said. “All of these opponents defeated

K-State last season and two of those three matchups will be on the road.” Johnson said he is excited to see how the offensive strategy will look with new offensive coordinator Andre Coleman and co-offensive coordinator/quarterback coach Collin Klein. “The defensive line is pretty young and a wildcard as far a production this season, but the offensive line looks very strong,” Johnson said. The season will kick-off on Sept.1 at 6:10 p.m. when the Wildcats take on the University of South Dakota at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.

File Photo by Meg Shearer | THE COLLEGIAN

Sophomore wide receiver Byron Pringle carries the ball during the game between K-State and Central Arkansas in Bill Snyder Family Stadium on Sept. 2, 2017.

Skip the Athletics pass line this year. You’ll use your phone instead MOLLY HACKETT

students are unable or forget to screenshot their ticket, the email version will also work for entering the facilities. Kansas State students Students who do not have won't need an actual pass to smartphones will not be alget into football and basketball lowed to print out their mobile games this year. Instead, they tickets to get into the games. will only need their phones. If they need assistance they In order to enter games, should contact the ticket office all students will be required to at 1-800-221-CATS or email show their student ID and their tickets@kstatesports.com mobile ticket at Bill Snyder K-State Ticketing Services Family Stadium and Bramlage says this adjustment will make it easier for students to keep track of their tickets, make entering games easier and help reduce the use of paper for passes. At football games, students can still enter and exit the game as many times as they would like until the fourth quarter, as long as they scan out before re-entering the game. After leaving Bramlage Coliseum, you Meg Shearer | THE COLLEGIAN will not be alK-State students partake in the Wabash Cannonball tradition lowed to re-enter during the K-State football game against Baylor in Bill Snyder Famthe facilities. ily Stadium on Sept. In an interTHE COLLEGIAN

Coliseum. Students will receive an emailed copy of their ticket the Thursday before all home football games. For basketball games, students will receive their tickets 48 hours prior to game day. K-State Athletics advises that students screenshot the barcode on the second page of the PDF ticket before game day in order to make entering a more streamlined process. If

view with K-State Athletics, athletics director Gene Taylor said that this adjustment is meant to better cater toward students. “Like most of us now, but I think even more so for our students, they live on their phone,” Taylor said. “For them to feel like they have to print out a ticket or pick up a ticket, it just limits their interest of whether they want to come. We think it will be a much easier option for them to come, show their phone and walk in and not have to either pick up a ticket or print a ticket out. To go with the ease of having mobile tickets, they will also come with higher security. Each ticket has a unique barcode, allowing one scan per entry. If a ticket is duplicated, altered or sold, Athletics will refuse admittance into the game and possibly revoke the season pass, said Kenny Lannou, senior associate athletics director for communications and public relations for K-State Athletics. If students have any issues with receiving their tickets, they are encouraged to check their junk mail first, and not hesitate to contact K-State Ticketing Services for more help at 1-800-221-CATS or tickets@ kstatesports.com.

Religion Directory

St. Isidore’s Catholic Student Center Saturday Vigil Mass Saturday 5 p.m.

Sunday Mass 9:30 a.m., 11 a.m., 4:00 p.m., and 5:30pm

Daily Mass Tuesday-Thursday 9:10 p.m. Friday 12:10 p.m. Chaplains: Fr. Gale Hammerschmidt Fr. Ryan McCandless 711 Denison 539-7496

Worship Service at 8:30 & 11:30 a.m. Adult and Children Bible Hour Classes

Offered at 10:00 a.m. 785.776.0424 www.gracebchurch.org 2901 Dickens Ave. (2 blks. E. of Seth Child)

friday, august 24, 2018

OPINION: There's a monopoly on textbooks in Manhattan KYLE HAMPEL

THE COLLEGIAN

If there is one thing Manhattan sorely lacks, it’s book stores. Granted, there are several places to buy novels and children’s books in town — Claflin Books, Books-A-Million in the mall, The Dusty Bookshelf (one of these days). My problem is more specific, though. Are there any places in Manhattan that sell textbooks besides the Kansas State Campus Store in the Student Union? I can’t think of a single one. I’m no economist, but K-State’s book store has a serious lack of competition, and all the telltale signs of industrial stagnation are there. The store is entirely too small for the approximately

20,000 students enrolled this semester, the service is impersonal and consumer unfriendly and the prices are downright exploitative (although that’s more of a national problem). And yet, the book store persists with no reason to improve. Students have no other options unless they want to buy online and hope their book arrives in the mail before they get an assignment that requires it. The K-State Campus Store reminds me of a company town. For those not aware, company towns are residential areas where practically all stores and housing are owned by one company that is also the main employer of the town’s residents. The United States has seen plenty of company towns throughout its history. If a labor company wants to establish a monopoly and exploit its work-

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ers, particularly immigrant workers in the late 1800s, a company town is the way to go. Every dollar the residents earn is spent at company stores to funnel their paychecks back into the wallets of their bosses. The K-State Campus Store was obviously not built to exploit students — this is a public institution, after all — but the fact that I can even draw comparisons to the monopolies of the industrial revolution is concerning. Sure, there are many K-State students who live off-campus and are employed by independent institutions. Most of us at least know someone like that. But thousands of students live in the university’s resident halls — particularly freshmen — and are employed by the university in the dining halls, the athletic complexes and otherwise.

And where do these students who live and work at K-State buy their textbooks in Manhattan? From K-State, of course. If I could wave a magic wand and bring Varney’s back from the dead, I would. Varney’s was a store in Aggieville that sold textbooks, art supplies and more for over 126 years before closing in 2016. Some of the students reading this probably don’t even know it existed, and that’s a huge loss. Now that Varney’s is gone, the K-State Campus Store will continue to exist as a cramped, lifeless, soul-crushing store that every student dreads visiting. After all, why should they improve? They bought every property on the board, and now they’ve won the game of Monopoly. Maybe the students will have better luck next time.

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Textbooks often take large amounts of students budget. Students are encouraged to find alternative ways to save money when purchasing textbooks. Kyle Hampel is a community editor for the Collegian and a senior in English. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author

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friday, august 24, 2018

Drawing on Kansas background, poet leads students workshops MACY DAVIS

THE COLLEGIAN

“Poets are the most powerful people in the universe,” Mary Pinard, Poet and professor of English at Babson College, said during her reading in the Ekdhal room of Regnier Hall on Wednesday. Pinard’s poems are centered on the Flint Hills; she is connected to the area because her late husband was born in Kansas, and she’s also served as the poet in residence at the Volland Store in Alma, KS. That connection to the prairie came in handy as Pinard led workshops for students in landscape architecture and English on campus this week. On Tuesday, as part of Design Day in the landscape architecture and regional & community planning department, Pinard focused on ekphrastic poetry, or poetry that has an emphasis on attention to detail and vividness. Design Day was a “really glorious experience” according to Pinard. Students started out by writing haikus, then Pinard chal-

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But adding more information doesn't solve two fundamental challenges: how to make sure government scorecards share accurate, meaningful information, and how to make sure students use it. Almost half of states have already published tools that break down what students typically earn after completing a particular program. Minnesota and Washington go a step further, and track which industries graduates end up working in. In surveys, college students often rank getting a job, learning about a career and making more money as their top reasons for continuing their education. Yet it's hard to say whether federal or state websites are reaching students who might want the data.

lenged them to flip the first and last lines. Lorn Clement, associate professor of landscape architecture and regional and community planning, said even the simple process of flipping lines of poetry applies to design. “Sometimes you move yourself to the other side of the table and look at it from the opposite side and making sure it reads both ways...you gain new insight,” Clement said. Pinard’s time in architecture ended with groups of students taking different walking paths across campus and stopping to write or sketch at different locations based upon prompts she’d provided. Pinard’s first workshop experience was followed up with an on campus reading of her work. Many of Pinard’s poems prominently featured the prairie, as well as her own sense of loss. Pinard said being connected to the prairie means being connected to loss. Her poems, “Widow Seeing Widow Skimmer Dragonflies in the Flint Hills, Kansas” and “Letter with Ruptures” both explored that connection.

To end her reading, Pinard read a poem titled “All that is Tilled,” which featured the line, “Then again my heart might be a prairie.” To finish her visit to campus, Pinard led a workshop on Thursday morning for students students studying poetry in the department of English. Pinard’s plan was to lead a workshop en plein air, which would take students outside into nature and challenge them as writers; however, the rain thwarted that plan so students instead positioned themselves in front of windows and doors to examine the outside world, before reconvening in their classroom. Anna Meyer, graduate student in English, said she had “never thought about doing en plein air writing before,” but she wants to continue using in the future to grow as a writer. Pinard had students use their observations to create poems in different forms and gave them prompts to write more poems outside of class based on the experience. “It was an embrace of risk taking,” Pinard said.

Mary Pinard shares a poem from her book, “Portal,” about the passing of her brother during a rowboat accident. She creates pieces centered on loss and love through the usage and symbolism of the prairie.

One study by researchers at the College Board found that after the current version of the College Scorecard was released in 2015, students at affluent public and private high schools sent more applications to colleges where graduates had high earnings. The Scorecard didn't have much effect on students from low-income families--who are more likely to later struggle to pay off their college loans. "They're the least likely students to access the data--the students who need it most," said Michael Itzkowitz, a senior fellow in higher education at Third Way, a left-of-center Washington, D.C., think tank, and a former director of the College Scorecard, which is run by the Education Department. Itzkowitz said that while he supports publishing more information, he's skeptical it'll be enough to hold colleges accountable. The scrapped Obama administration rule revealed that

hundreds of programs were leaving students in poverty. For-profit colleges offer the vast majority of programs that failed to meet the federal standard; students at for-profits are also more likely to default on their loans. Rising tuition prices and student debt loads--Americans now collectively owe some $1.4 trillion--have led policymakers to think about how to collect and publish better information that could guide college choices. In addition to the federal scorecard, 23 states have published tools that students and workers can search for earnings and debt information, according to the latest survey from the National Skills Coalition, a Washington, D.C.-based group that advocates for workforce training. But most tools rely on partial data. State websites, for example, generally match public college and university enrollment records to unemployment insur-

ance information. The data excludes people who work for the federal government, freelancers and independent contractors, however, because those people aren't covered by the unemployment insurance program. And the data usually excludes private for-profit and nonprofit institutions. The federal College Scorecard, meanwhile, matches federal grant and student loan records for all colleges to Social Security wage data. But those enrollment numbers exclude students who paid for college on their own--from students from wealthy families on elite campuses to many students from low and middle-income families who attend low-cost community colleges. The University of Texas System may have the most complete data in the country, thanks to a partnership with the U.S. Census Bureau. It includes earnings data for alumni nationwide

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regardless of whether they relied on financial aid. The tool shows higher earnings for graduates of the flagship University of Texas at Austin than the College Scorecard does, said Stephanie Huie, vice chancellor of strategic initiatives for the system. "People who start out from well-off families have connections, and they tend to be getting better-paying jobs," she said. Sixty-four percent of UT-Austin students receive financial aid, below the national average--86 percent--for fouryear institutions. Adding data by major to the College Scorecard--as DeVos plans to do--will be a gargantuan task involving more than 50,000 degree programs, Itzkowitz said. "This would require new data calculations that have never been done before, and definitely more capacity within the department itself." The Education Department has no plans at this time to hire

any additional personnel, according to its press secretary, Liz Hill. The challenge is heightened because the Education Department cannot collect data on individual students, other than financial aid data. Companion bills that would allow the department to collect more information were proposed in Congress last year by Utah U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch and Michigan U.S. Rep. Paul Mitchell, both Republicans, but they haven't gone anywhere. The data that makes it into government scorecards also tells a complicated story. Higher education associations have concerns about exactly which details make it into these scorecards and how the information is communicated.

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