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The Etownian
www.etownian.com
Vol. 115. Issue 07
Thursday, November 1, 2018
Olympic medalist, ambassador to speak in Leffler Lecture by Meghan Kenney Staff Writer
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ednesday, Nov. 7, 2018, Elizabethtown College will host its annual Leffler Lecture in Leffler Chapel and Performance Center. The Leffler Lecture was created by Linda, ’67, and Patrick Castagna, in honor of Linda's parents. There is an endowed Leffler Memorial Lecture Fund which aids the College in presenting speakers of national or international relevance who create an educational experience annually for students, which promotes conversation in classes as well as promoting learning. The lecturer this year is Ibtihaj Muhammad, who is known as a sabre fencer, ambassador, fashion designer and author. She has a dual degree in International Relations and African Studies from Duke University. Muhammad is an American sabre fencer who won an Olympic medal in the 2016 Olympics and is a Senior World medalist and World Champion. She competed in the Summer Olympics in August of 2016 as the first American woman to compete in a hijab and the first Muslim woman to win an Olympic medal for the United States. She is an ambassador with the U.S. Department of State’s Empowering Women and Girls through Sports initiative, and she works closely with Athletes for Impact and the Special Olympics. She is also the founder of Louella, which is a clothing company that tries to bring affordable and modest clothing to the U.S. She was the inspiration for the first Hijabi Barbie, which was released in 2017. Her memoir is titled “Proud: My Fight for an Unlikely American Dream.” As part of her time at Etown, she will be hosting a fashion show where Etown students will be modelling some of the clothes from her clothing line. The show will be emceed by senior Quinten Yonkers. He said Etown is doing the fashion show to not only show the line but to show that modest fashion is still current and worn by current people. He learned about the culture in high school and
actually got a chance to visit the Middle East and was able to have a first-hand experience in the culture. He is glad that Etown students will be exposed to this culture. Sophomore Austin Hall-Bumbray is helping to organize the fashion show. She said the Leffler Lecture will bring light to why people wear certain clothes and the thought behind it. Hall-Bumbray is participating in the show because she is interested in learning about a new culture that she has never really explored before. Hall-Bumbray is inspired by how Muhammad helps those who want to dress modestly find clothes that they can be comfortable in. Yon ke r s s ai d t h at e s p e c i a l l y w it h a l l of t h e misconceptions about the Muslim culture that are prominent in today's society, it can be helpful to spread information, especially in areas like Etown, where it is not a prominent culture. “It doesn’t really matter what you identify as, everyone is a person," Yonkers said. "Not enough people know about different cultures outside of their own.” Sophomore staff photographer Emma Pile is one of the models participating in the show. “I want there to be a better understanding of diversity whether that be race, religion, etc," Pile said. "I feel like the world needs to be more informed on diversity.” Pile and Yonkers both work for the Office of Inte r nat i ona l Stu d e nt s and S chol ars ( OI S S ) as International Leadership Assistants. Through her work with that office, Pile hopes to do her part to increase awareness of other cultures on-campus and around the surrounding community. Tickets for the lecture are free but sold out as of Oct. 30, 2018, so any student who still wants tickets will be placed on a wait list. If you want to get on the wait list, please email lecturetickets@etown.edu or call (717)361-4757. If you have tickets that you are unable to use, return them to Caroline Lalvani in 302A in Alpha Hall or contact her at (717)361-1246. The fashion show will be in the KAV Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2018 from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The Leffler Lecture will be in Leffler Chapel Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2018, beginning at 7:30 p.m.
Photo courtesy of USA Fencing
Olympic medalist, sabre fencer, ambassador and fashion designer Ibtihaj Muhammad will be speaking as the 2018 Leffler Lecturer in the annual lecture Nov.7.
Scene on Campus: Into the Streets service New academic programs add spring courses by Melissa Spencer News Editor
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Etown needed to cut back on expenses as a result, and t heir ef for ts were commended. The Board also announced plans for a 2.5 percent faculty salary increase to go into effect Jan. 1, 2019. H o w e v e r, e v e n i f e n r o l l m e n t rates were less than projected, the r e t e nt i o n r at e s f o r t h e f a l l 2 0 1 8 semester exceeded exp ectation, so t he hig her retent ion comp ens ate d for the reduced enrollment numbers. The revenue, as a result, was about the same due to the two offsetting each other.
his upcoming spring semester, many of the academic curricula currently and newly added to Elizabethtown College’s list of degree programs will offer new courses for current students to choose from in the class selection period for the spring. These new programs are encompassing not only the new major and minor programs being offered on campus, but also the addition of interdisciplinary courses and integrated learning geared toward students pursuing interdisciplinary career paths. At the beginning of the fall 2018 semester, seven new major programs, along with their corresponding courses, were added to the College’s list of academic curricula. These seven majors included biomedical engineering, chemistry laboratory sciences, civil engineering, criminal justice, data sciences, finance, financial economics, graphic design and marketing. The addition of the seven new majors brings the College to offering a total of more than 50 majors and 100 minors and concentrations. The seven new major concentrations have added additional courses to their respective departments, presenting current students with the options to choose from more courses related to their fields of study. However, in addition to the major courses, over four interdisciplinary courses have been added to the College’s academic curriculum as well. These courses, combining disciplines like ecology, creative writing, art, literature and modern physics, provide current students
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Photo courtesy of the Center for Community and Civic Engagement
The 25th Annual Into the Streets day of community engagement introduced students to various community service opportunities and provided a hands-on learning experience for the students involved.Throughout Saturday, Oct. 27, participating students could be seen working on dozens of service projects that mostly benefitted the local and surrounding communities.
Trustees discuss clear communication with students by Elizabeth Gipe Asst. News Editor
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he B oard of Tr ustees' business meeting held Saturday, Oct. 27 was shorter than usual due to the need for an extended executive session. The executive session was focused primarily on the presidential search and transition, with a representative from the firm Witt/ Kieffer slated to speak with the Board. As such, Saturday’s business meeting briefly mentioned a few key topics
from committees before the B oard ultimately moved into executive session. During the discussion of finances, trustees spoke of how E l i z a b e t ht ow n C o l l e g e i s m ov i n g t ow a rd s g re at e r f i n a n c i a l h e a l t h . The College has been praised by outside organizations brought in to survey Etown’s finances for being cost-effective despite reduced enrollment. Since reduced enrollment means reduced revenue for the College, especially because Etown is an institution dependent on tuition dollars, lower enrollment yields take away from Etown’s available resources.