Indiana Statesman For ISU students. About ISU students. By ISU students.
Volume 123, Issue 52
Monday, Feb. 8, 2016
indianastatesman.com
ISU movement organizes ‘Float to Flint’ water drive Tyler Davis Reporter
Cases of plastic water bottles stacked halfway to the ceiling reflect sunlight from the adjacent window, in which the sun bears its golden face. Water jugs by the gallon sit on top of an oak table next to which a record of donations lay flat. Amounts of such contributions are written out next to the scribbled names of those supporting the cause. The “Float to Flint Water Drive” is currently accepting water by the case or gallon until Friday. Donations may be brought to the Charles E. Brown African American Cultural Center located at 301 N. Eighth St. right across from the Hulman Center. Offerings will go to help thousands of Flint, Michigan, residents who have been living under a state of emergency since Jan. 5 due to city drinking water that proved to be toxic. Lead has found its way into the water source due to corroding pipes, and has subsequently affected the public. A declaration of emergency enacted by Michigan Governor Rick Snyder stated
the contamination “has either caused or threatened to cause elevated blood lead levels, especially in the population of children and pregnant women, and is causing a potential immediate threat to public health.” Questions are being raised about the sudden change in quality of drinking water, and according to CNN the city of Flint stopped pumping from Lake Huron in favor of the Flint River, “a notorious tributary that runs through town known to locals for its filth.” The movement known as #FREEISU, which stands for “Facilitating the Release of Equity and Excellence at Indiana State University,” has created an avenue through which the community can take part in the contribution efforts going towards the cause. Valerie Craig, assistant director of the cultural center, coordinates with MAPS (mentoring program) students. Craig explained that graduate student Amber Wilson, “was livid” and “couldn’t believe something like this could happen in America.” Wilson took it upon herself to make
something happen, building the concept into fruition by proposing the idea to the student body who “immediately said yes.” With the additional support of the African American Cultural Center and Craig, the water drive was up and running in a flash. Although at first donations were slow to come in, they are now flowing steadily. The next task, finding a specific area to send the water in Flint, was not at all simple. School districts are no longer accepting donations due to being at “full capacity;” however, schools alone cannot provide enough assistance needed to service the community. Catholic Charities then became the ideal destination for the water since they do not have stipulations on how much water an individual can accept and also have strong relations with the Flint community. It will sure be a daunting task for Flint to recover from such an ordeal, one not different from the long road to recovery of those who experienced Hurricane Katrina almost a decade ago. “I felt helpless watching Katrina,” Craig
President’s Concert honors outstanding soloists
Cicara Moore | Indiana Statesman
Students donate water at the table in the HMSU.
said. “We actually took a faction of kids from ISU and went down, and there was still devastation almost two years later.”
University Daily Kansan editors sue KU Chancellor over funding cut Ian Cummings
The Kansas City Star (TNS)
Tre Redeemar | Indiana Statesman
Above: Nikolas Pine, pianist and senior music performance major, plays a selection of Beethoven’s Sonata in E major, op. 109. Below: Laura Fultz Sprouls, mezzo-soprano and sophomore music education major, performs Franz Schubert’s “Der Tod und das Madchen,” accompanied by Sharilyn Spicknall on piano. The recital took place Sunday afternoon in the Landini Center for the Performing and Fine Arts’ Recital Hall. The event was a part of the Student Recital Series.
Tre Redeemar | Indiana Statesman
The editor-in-chief of the University Daily Kansan has sued University of Kansas Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little, claiming the student newspaper’s funding was cut because of its coverage. Gray-Little and Tammara Durham, vice provost for student affairs, were named in the suit filed Friday in federal court. The suit says a $45,000 annual reduction in student fees for the newspaper was retaliation for an editorial criticizing the Student Senate. Kansan editor Vicky Diaz-Camacho and former editor Katie Kutsko brought the suit, alleging that student government leaders, in a series of February meetings on Kansan funding, complained about a May 2014 editorial before voting to cut the newspaper’s funding. A Student Senate committee member allegedly said the funding cut was a chance for the Kansan to “fix their content.” In later meetings, a Student Senate member allegedly said the newspaper “bit the hand that fed” it and the staff “got what you deserved,” according to the suit. The Kansan is funded by student activity fees and the sale of advertising. The Student Press Law Center, a Washington, D.C., nonprofit that gives legal advice to student publications, told KU officials the funding cuts were unconstitutional. KU officials could not immediately be reached for comment Friday night. The lawsuit seeks an injunction against the administrators to stop the funding cut, plus attorneys’ fees and “nominal” damages. ©2016 The Kansas City Star (Kansas City, Mo.). Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Bestselling author, alumna, to return to ISU for presentation Carey Ford
Editor-in-Chief
An Indiana State University alumna who writes under the pen name Lexi Ryan will return to Terre Haute this week. Ryan is a self-published romance au-
thor who will give a presentation and reading Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. in the Vigo County Public Library, which is located south of campus at Seventh and Poplar Streets. In the presentation, Ryan will discuss her book “Unbreak Me” and her success
in the self-publishing industry. Ryan is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, and her most recent novel, “Holding Her Close,” was released Jan. 19 of this year. In addition to the presentation Tuesday night, Ryan will give a reading of her
February 8
work on ISU’s campus Monday, Jan. 15, at 3:30 p.m. in the Heritage Ballroom. Both events are presented by the College of Arts and Sciences, the Center for Community Engagement and the Creative Writing Committee, and both are free and open to the public.
Sarah VOWELL Best-Selling Author, Journalist, and Culture Historian
Come hear Sarah Vowell’s personal and humorous thoughts on the American story! Page designed by Hannah Boyd