Wtyt 3&otun&a Volume 79, Number 7
Waiting for Vacation Since 1920
November 11,1999
Virginia Beach Leadership Conference Longwood to Add BA in Communications MARISSA CLARK Slaffwriter This past weekend found approximately 100 Long wood students and faculty heading to Virginia Beach for the fifteenth Annual Virginia Beach Leader ship Conference. Sponsored by the Office of Student Leadership Programs, the conference featured several motivational spcaaxrs and plenty of develop The entire and run by Conference Coordinator Susan Monahan and members of S.B.A.L. Friday night began with a presentation about Joan of Arc, Longwood's patron saint, by Dr. James Jordan, professor of Anthropology. In his presentation, Jordan discussed Joan of Arc's leadership and dedication to her native Prance. She led in the fight â– annual Bagland in the fifteenth oantury. and helped to drive the invaders out, only to be captured Even while being burnt at the stake, Joan of Arc never let her spirit sag, showing her true dedication to bercaaae. Saturday began bright and early with a cup of coffee and a presentation on leadership by Virginia State Senator Norment of the Williamsburg district
WENDY K1RKPATRICK Opinion Editor Afterwards, students broke into groups and attended BreakOut Sessions, according to their own individual interests. Students were able to attend five different sessions, one per time slot. Presenters included faculty and staff members John Wescott, Skip Begley, J.J. Manley, Damien DuChamp, Ellen Masters, Susan Monahan, Mike Clements, Susan Sullivan, and students Amy Bradley, Kym Bradley, Rob Havey, Nick Mills and Jeronty French. These sessions included topics such as the basics of leadership, communication, time manage ment, team building activities, volunteering in the community, and overcoming discrimination within a group. The presentations used creative activities and audience participation to demonsute qualities of good leaders and improve on leadership skills. After dinner, students gathered together for group presentations, most of which took the form of abort skits. Each group , lead by a member of S.E.A.L. was asked to develop the specified aspect of leadership in a unique way and had to use several props. Many of these skits added much laughter to the room, especially when faced with cross
dressing students wearing tablecloths as dresses and human fountains that sprayed water all over anyone within a two foot radius, and even a 90's version of Mr. Roger's Neighborhood. Sunday morning, after numerous wake up calls as a result of a power failure earlier that morning, students and faculty gathered in the conference room to listen to Tony D' Angcio, a motivational speaker from "a nationally recognized educational firm called EmPower X!. lnc" Using creative methods and a lot of humor to get everyone involved, D'Angelo sent out s message to the students on die power of personal vision. He compared personal vision to the ocean's horizon, seen through the window of the conference room. He said, "Pretend your vision is the horizon. Although it is impossible to reach the horizon, you should always be striving for it because whatever your mind can conceive and your heart can believe, you can achieve." The conference was a huge success. New friendships were made and ties within the Longwood Community were made stronger. Students as well as faculty members gained new insight about how to be leaders in their organizations.
MELISSA GILL
Editor-in-Chief Starting in the fall 2000 semester, Longwood will be offering a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies. Not to be confused with Communication Disorders, this major will specialize in many areas including graphic arts, marketing, advertising public relations, and communications theory. It will also include study in mass media, journalism, and technical writing. The program is designed to meet the needs of employers who have stated that, more and more, they require workers who are highly articulate in all types of communications, including electronic, oral, written, multi-media and graphics; and to meet a growing interest among students. Assessing the demand for this program. Dr. David Cordle, Dean of the Longwood School of Liberal Arts and Sciences, said, "With this degree program, Longwood's School of Liberal Arts and Sciences is responding to a strong demand for training in communication. Job opportunities in areas such as public relations, broadcast media and technical writing are growing rapidly in the Commonwealth and else-
where. As a general communication program with a strong liberal arts foundation, this major will provide graduates with the versatility they need to succeed in a wide variety of settings." Dr. Gene Muto, the Chair of the Communications study program, said,"The purpose of this program is to give the students a cohesive body of knowledge. We want to prepare them for this by giving them experience which will help them to secure a place in the professional world and by giving theoretical and practical applications." There was a campus rumor that suggested that this major was only open to freshmen. But this is certainly not the case. The Communications major is open to all students who are interested in the field. If interested. Dr. Muto suggested that before the fall semester, current students should attempt to work on General Education requirements and take the two requirements to start the major which are English 101 and Speech 101 (offered this spring). For more information on this major, contact Dr. Muto at x2761 or by email at gmutoG longwood.lwc.edu.
Frazer Evacuated MELISSA GILL Editor-in-Chuf On Monday, Frazer Residence Hall had to be evacuated . Apparently, a sprinkler was set eff on the sixth floor and flooded parts of the building. The leakage from this eventually seeped down
to the lower floors causing the evacuation. As a result of this, Frazer residents had to sit outside until the building was cleaned.Since the water contained sulphur, the residents were also left with a strong smell for the remainder of the day.