October 11, 2018

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Indiana Statesman For ISU students. About ISU students. By ISU students.

Thursday, Oct. 11, 2018

Indiana Statesman

@ISUstatesman

isustatesman

Volume 124, Issue 18

Homecoming Sycamore Snyc with a twist Chelsea Chapman Reporter

Sycamore Sync is a night during Homecoming where student organizations across Indiana State University’s campus come to perform a show that they have prepared. In the past, Sycamore Sync has been a lip-syncing competition where students are given a theme to follow. This year, the students planning the event decided to switch up the rules a bit – no lip-syncing! Paige Beamon, a senior studying general studies, was in charge of planning the event, and has been in the process of planning since all semester. “The end of last semester is when I got the position,” said Beamon. “Right when school started is when we started doing everything. I was part of the competition in the past with my sorority, Zeta Tau Alpha. I always wanted to be a part of Sycamore Sync, so I went up to HMSU floor 5 and said I wanted an interview.” Beamon and her team, for whom she expresses great gratitude, did a lot of planning that led to the success of the event. They even altered some of the staple rules in the competition this year. “We had to create the rules and we had to create the theme,” said Beamon. “The theme is kind of broad. Sycamore Nation is the overall Homecoming theme; we are doing past, present, and future. [The teams] had to do past songs, a present songs, and a future, kind of like a remix, so they could make their own theme out of it. We had to assign

them a dance move. They had to incorporate a past dance move and a present dance move that I assigned each group. There’s no lip-syncing. When I did it, I looked so goofy lip-syncing, so I just wanted to focus in on dancing. That’s why we added the dance moves.” Fourteen groups choreographed and spent hours rehearsing for this event. “We have the Towers, RHA, State DM, AOP, and fraternities and sororities,” said Beamon. “The [fraternities and sororities] are all paired throughout homecoming, like AOP and Sig Ep are paired together so they have to do their dances and floats together.” Aramatta Davisson, a freshman studying music education, participated with her residence hall in the competition. “I’m participating with Tower Powers,” said Davisson. “They sent out an email and had flyers everywhere. I love dance a lot so this gave me the opportunity to get back into dance without having to add extra classes I don’t need.” Davisson loved the variety in her show. “Our show starts with a decades type of deal,” said Davisson, “and then it transitions into different types of dance, like we have burlesque, we have some more popular dances, we’ve got a whole puppet thing going on, and we even have the mannequin challenge. Kodi Mink is in charge of our group. He has two helpers who have helped us put the show together. We’ve been working about a month, it’s not a whole lot of time to put everything together, but we make do. We rehearse one to two hours

Danielle Guy | Indiana Statesman

Members of the State Dance Marathon and Alpha Phi Omega sync team huddle on stage during their performance on October 9, 2018.

five nights a week.” Davisson reaped many benefits from participating in this event. “I really enjoy [sync]. Overall, it’s been a great experience. I’ve gotten to know some people in the towers I didn’t know before. I got to get closer with some of the people in my building and my RAs and I got to learn some new dances.” Julie Schubert, a junior studying secondary English education, performed with her sorority, Delta Gamma and Sigma Alpha Epsilon. “The theme this year is Sycamore Nation,” said Schubert, “and we have worked to create a show that embodies the good times we’ve had at Indiana State.

Missing Saudi journalist recalled by Terre Haute resident

My favorite part of Sync has been getting to know members from other organizations. The SAEs we’ve worked with are really funny guys with a lot of energy and drive. I love the thrill of being on a stage and in front of crowd. There’s nothing better than representing an organization that means so much to me.” Schubert was excited to see what all of the organizations had to bring to the stage. “I can’t wait to see all of them,” said Schubert. “They’re all so unique and entertaining. It’s one of my favorite nights of the year because we all get the opportunity to come together and put on performances that people will remember for years. I recommend that everyone get

Homecoming: Past, present and future

Sue Loughlin

Alyssa Bosse

The Tribune-Star (TNS)

Reporter

Jamal Khashoggi, a prominent Saudi journalist who disappeared last week after a visit to his country’s consulate in Turkey, graduated from Indiana State University in 1983, the university confirmed Tuesday. Khashoggi, a 59-year-old journalist and contributor to The Washington Post, is missing and feared dead. Turkish authorities believe he was slain inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, something Saudi officials deny, according to international press reports. “Indiana State University officials thoughts are with the family and colleagues of missing journalist and alumnus Jamal Khashoggi during this difficult time,” the university said in a statement Tuesday. “Khashoggi was an undergraduate student at Indiana State, 1977-1982, and was conferred a degree in business administration on May 7, 1983.” Someone who knew Khashoggi is Terre Haute resident Omar Sarooq. They both resided at what was then called ISU’s Married Student Housing and both also attended the Islamic Center of Terre Haute. “We used to have a lot of political discussions about the Mideast,” Sarooq said. Their discussions took place during the time of the Iranian revolution that produced the overthrow of the Shah of Iran. That was also around the time of the Iran hostage crisis, when 52 American diplomats and citizens were held hostage for 444 days, from November 1979 to January 1981, at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran. “When he and I had discussions about Iran, and what took place in Iran in 1979, we could disagree, agreeably,” said Sarooq, who uses his Islamic name. Sarooq hopes the news that Khashoggi has been killed is not true, but everything indicates otherwise. “It’s tragic,” he said. Khashoggi was not a radical Islamist, Sarooq said. He knew him as “a sincere, practicing Muslim ... he prayed and fasted.” From what Sarooq has read, Khashoggi “didn’t agree with some of the Saudi government’s policies. He wanted them to do better. ... He didn’t call for the government to be overthrown.” Khashoggi opposed the Saudi war in Yemen as well as the crackdown on any kind of dissent. “That was not worth taking his life or putting him in prison,” Sarooq said. “The Saudi government is so oppressive. They can’t stand any dissent, from what I’ve gathered. He loved his country and he wanted to live in his country. He simply wanted to make his country better” and more progressive. He described Khashoggi as “an open-minded kind of guy” who traveled the world.

Homecoming has evolved from the past to the present and as it continues into the future. There are several commonly known Homecoming events that have changed over the years along with traditions that have left and are being brought back. Homecoming 2018 has brought back the typical homecoming court, but in a more modernized way. Campus Life Associate Director, Kevon Christian shared, “We are modernizing the traditional king and queen to calling it ‘Royal Sycamores.’ It does not matter [your] gender or if you are genderless. They will be at several highlighted events this week. The winners will be announced at the football game on Saturday.” Past events like the Blue Light parade has changed from tiki torches to blue lights because of safety hazards, but also to incorporate more blue for Sycamores. Another changing factor this year is the Blue White parade held on Saturday, which will now have decorated golf carts instead of the traditional trailer bed floats. Tracey Machtan, the associate director of Fraternity and Sorority life said, “With anything some traditions go and fade away and some become more popular. Some traditions come back, which is really exciting.” Homecoming week is the only week out of the year to have some of these events and to get out and have fun. Kevon Christian explained what Homecoming should be known as, “Homecoming, especially for our students is supposed to be a time of fun, a time of energy, a time to connect with some folks who don’t typical opportunity to connect with. Homecoming just gives you that extra connection outside of the classroom.” More than just for current ISU students, Homecoming is

Akin Celiktas | DHA | Abaca Press | TNS

The fiancee of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi and her friend wait outside Saudi Arabia’s consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, on October 3, 2018.

According to Al Jazeera, Khashoggi “is one of the most prominent Saudi and Arab journalists and political commentators of his generation, owing to a career that has spanned nearly 30 years.” Born in Medina in 1958, Khashoggi was once close to the inner circles of the Saudi royal family, where he earned his reputation as a reform advocate. Al Jazeera reported Khashoggi is best known for coverage of the events of Afghanistan, Algeria, Kuwait and the Middle East in the 1990s. He met and interviewed Osama bin Laden several times in the middle of the decade, before the latter went on to become the leader of the al-Qaeda group. According to the Associated Press, Khashoggi’s final break with the Saudi authorities followed the Arab Spring protests that swept through the region in 2011, shaking the power base of traditional leaders and giving rise to Islamists, only to be followed by unprecedented crackdowns on those calling for change. Siding with the opposition in Egypt and Syria, Khashoggi became a vocal critic of his own government’s stance and a defender of moderate Islamists, which Riyadh considered an existential threat. “This was a critical period in Arab history. I had to take a position. The Arab world had waited for this moment of freedom for a thousand years,” Khashoggi told a Turkey-based Syrian opposition television station last month, just days before he disappeared.

involved in any way they can! Whether you’re a performer, prop builder, choreographer, or spectator, it is opportunity unlike any other! These are the moments we’ll look back on after we graduate. Take advantage of them.” Kati Dunham, a senior studying nursing, attended to support one of her friends. “I attended sync tonight because a friend asked me to come and watch her. She was part of RHA and I think she did awesome. Sync was more fun than I thought it would be.” Indiana State University will be hosting another event similar to Sycamore Sync in the spring called Sycamore Remix.

also a time for the community to get together and for Alumni to come back and experience the changes being made from when they attended the university. Christian added, “Homecoming also brings back Alumni and seeing how different campus is from when they first came. Whether it be thirty years ago or just last year, to welcome them back to the family and show them how much we have improved since they left.” Homecoming brings multiple groups of people together for this week of connection and fun. Anyone is welcome to participate in Homecoming events, but a big part of homecoming is the involvement from Fraternities and Sororities. Machtan said, “Homecoming is not just for Fraternities and Sororities, they participate to a large degree and they are really excited and proud to do that. Homecoming is for our students, our alumni, our friends. It’s a time to bring everybody back to campus and be proud to be a Sycamore.” Inter Fraternity council President, Alex Kuhlman, said that homecoming is for everyone and not just any specific group. “Coming from a Sorority, Fraternity stand point it is not just completely barred off to us,” said Kuhlman. “All of campus is welcome to all the events. All student organizations are eligible to partake in any event. I think it’s really cool that it can be open to anyone.” The past, the present and the future Homecomings build on each other. Many events have remained ongoing, but have changed tiny aspects to stay well known and interesting. As for future Homecomings, more traditions will evolve, but some will still remain the same as they are now. The Homecoming festivities of the past have helped make Homecoming what it is today and what it will continue to be in upcoming years.


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