@acuoptimist The Optimist @acuoptimist
OPTIMIST
ALLEN WARD Former Murray State AD takes over as new athletics director
A student publication of Abilene Christian University since 1912
Volume CVIII, Issue I
Monday August 28, 2017
Campus News A new Vice President of Student Life brings spiritual, physical and relational goals to campus, and new electronic scooters take over ACU and surrounding areas......................................Page 1-2
M
F
Opinion
Sports This summer brought change to Athletics including a new head baseball coach, a new athletics director , a previously-MLB baseball scout turned assistant coach...................Page 7-8
T W R
Meet the Editorial Board including who we are, our passions and our advice to incoming students, and read tweets about Wildcat Week and other Abilene news...............................Page 6
Photo by LAUREN FRANCO | EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Jesse McCartney performed Saturday night at Abilene City Limits to close out Wildcat Week. Armors, a California-based band opened for McCartney on the front lawn of campus. CAMPUS NEWS
McDowell joins Student Life LAUREN FRANCO EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Former Lipscomb senior vice president for student life Scott McDowell has taken over as the new vice president of student life, succeeding Dr. Chris Riley, assistant provost for institutional research and SACSCOC liaison. McDowell served at Lipscomb for 20 years after obtaining a bachelor’s degree in Bible from Freed-Hardeman University, a master’s in religion from Lipscomb and a doctorate in higher education leadership from Azusa Pacific University.
Kevin Campbell, senior vice president of operations, said McDowell the university formed a search committee including Bart Herridge, Jill Fortson, Liz Brown, Joel Swedlund, Dina Counts, Rachel Slaymaker and himself. The search committee posted a job opening and advertised to attract people to the position. There were a few applicants alongside recommendations from faculty and staff at the university.
Campbell said McDowell stood out from other applicants because of his passion, deep commitment to spiritual formation and his background at Lipscomb, which is culturally similar to ACU and also is affiliated with Churches of Christ. “He knows the world of student life inside and out,” Campbell said. “We knew it would not be a big adjustment for him from a cultural perspective. They’ve done a really good job balancing the needs of students with the desires for the institution.” McDowell said his re-
lationship with President Phil Schubert started when Schubert was the CFO of the university and asked questions pertaining to block tuition. “I’ve been heavily influenced by some key mentors, and I would say its all about the relationships,” McDowell said. “Having genuine, deep relationships with students and being able to speak into their lives in formative years, its really magnificent. Being in the student life area, you get to be around the best students in the whole university because Continued on Page 2
CAMPUS NEWS
Bird scooters land with SGA contract ALYSSA HIGH STAFF REPORTER
As scooters zoom around campus people find themselves reaching their meetings, classes, and dorms much faster than before and it is all because of the Birds. Birds are dockless scooters that you can pick up and leave anywhere, anytime except Jacob’s Dream or inside buildings. Ideally, Birds should be left near bike racks or alongside a building away from entryways and walkways.
The idea to bring Birds to the ACU community came from Ty Kelley, senior and student executive president of the Student Government Association when he attended a conference in Washington D.C. this summer alongside other executives and vice presidents. While there, the presidents got into a discussion about the popular D.C. transportation: Birds. The discussion inspired Kelley to use these scooters to service the ACU students. Continued on Page 2
CAMPUS NEWS
Engineering lab takes NEXT step in development ALLAYNA FORD MANAGING EDITOR
The Department of Engineering and Physics launched its Nuclear Energy eXperimental Testing Lab, known as the NEXT Lab, began over the summer, and is now moving into phase two of the project. The lab will advance research into Liquid Fueled Salt Reactors and educate students on nuclear power. Dr. Rusty Towell, professor of physics and director of the NEXT Lab, said the lab goes beyond research and allows students to participate in a real project focused on improving living standards on a global scale through the creation of a clean energy source,
water purification and cancer-fighting isotopes. “Students get a chance to take what they learn in a classroom and apply it to a real problem, and they are not just learning how to demonstrate something people have discovered hundreds of years ago,” Towell said. “We are saying, ‘These are new problems that people haven’t solved, but help us solve them.’” Phase two of the project is comprised of testing various salts and figuring out how to build a prototype loop that can heat the salts, measure pressure and withstand corrosion. Over the summer, physics graduate Reuben Byrd participated in building a barometer to measure the
pressure inside of the loop. “It was a really great opportunity to work closely with true experts in the field,” Byrd said. “NEXT is really cool, because it’s on campus and is more of a collaborative environment than some of the other labs I’ve worked in.” The program was not limited to only students from the Department of Engineering and Physics. Students majoring in graphic design and computer science designed the NEXT Lab website and logo. Additionally, accounting students played a role in budgeting the money donated to the program. “In any research, it’s never just engineers or just physicists; it’s always
a collaboration. And getting to work with a small group that also has that is really cool,” Byrd said. “The chemistry people are working out what salt mixtures we need to have different detective points and getting what temperatures we need and the viscosity – lots of things that I wouldn’t know about – but it was really cool to see their work and to be somewhat involved in it.” The department this month landed $300,000 in support from the Development Corporation of Abilene, a city-funded group. The DCOA was formed to enhance economic development in the city of Abilene and donated to the project because
acuoptimist.com
of the high value research jobs that will be created from the project and to show support for the positive global impact the molten salt reactors can have, Towell said. More than $4
million has been donated to the lab. “It’s amazing that all of these people see the value of this long-range vision of blessing the world,” Towell said.
Photo by ALLAYNA FORD | MANAGING EDITOR Part of the NEXT Lab in Bennett Gymnasium, run by Dr. Rusty Towell