WEDNESDAY April 20, 2005
OPTIMIST THE
Department of Journalism and Mass Communication
Abilene Christian University
Vol. 93, No. 50 1 section, 8 pages www.acuoptimist.com
Serving the ACU community since 1912
Cats welcome Rams:
Students hope for feelings of reservation:
Sliding into second:
The baseball team took three of four games from Angelo State’s new program. Page 8
Nine students wait to hear who was selected after interviewing for an internship at the Crow Indian Reservation in Montana. Page 4
The softball team finished second in the division and earned a playoff berth. Page 8
Study focuses on staff morale Campus will close between Christmas, New Year’s this year By MALLORY SHERWOOD FEATURES EDITOR
Loud cheers and applause were heard when Dr. Royce Money, president of the university, announced the campus would be closed with pay during the break between
Christmas and New Year’s Day for university employees. “Christmas Closure,” as the administration will call it, is one of the many changes to take place during the next three years for faculty and staff because of a campuswide survey conducted last fall by the Quality of Life Task Force. Money addressed more than 300 faculty and staff Thursday afternoon in Hart Auditorium, discussing the recommenda-
tions of the task force he developed at the beginning of the academic school year. The 12-member team of faculty and staff members encompasses all areas of the university, said Mary Reyes-Stracener, administrative assistant to the vice president for finance and member of the task force. Money said he formed the team last fall because he and the university cabinet members felt it was hard to feel plugged
in with the other employees. The committees’ tasks were to assess the current state of employee morale and to provide ideas and suggestions to improve. Their recommendations were submitted to the president and announced at the meeting. Scott Perkins, assistant professor of psychology and task See TASK FORCE Page 5
Money
Police stop credit card soliciting Man offered coupons in return for personal, credit information By TIFFANY WILLIAMS
Perkins
COPY EDITOR
University police officers staved off the risk of identity theft last week when they removed a credit card solicitor from campus. The solicitor gave away free pizza coupons from Pizza Hut on Ambler Avenue for students who filled out a credit card application, which included personal and credit information, said Jimmy Ellison, chief of ACU Police. Ellison said the police received several phone calls from concerned faculty, staff and students about the solicitor, who could not be on campus without a permit from Campus Life. The police located the solicitor in the parking lot near the OnsteadSee SOLICITER Page 5
IJM Awareness Week Jam for Justice 7 p.m. Thursday Hilton Room Snacks and refreshments: 25 cents T-shirts: $5
Other events: Run for Justice 5k run 9 a.m. Saturday Nelson Park Registration: $10, includes a T-shirt.
Information displays in Hilton Room. Book sale in The Campus Store.
About 1,000 prepare for May classes Students participate in ACU for Abilene EMILY CHASTAIN/Staff Photographer
Petty Hunter, left, leads a group of students as they pick up trash on Walnut Street on Saturday morning during ACU for Abilene. About 350 students participated in the annual service day. This year, organizers wanted to focus much of the service on neighborhoods around the university.
Annual service day focuses efforts on areas around university By SARAH CARLSON
ships with the community immediately surrounding ACU, such as the Carver neighborhoods,” Reese said. Because students had visited the neighborhood previously and
in charge of publicity for ACU for Abilene and said the service event went well. She said she was pleased with the way the administration was involved in the event, with Dr. Royce Money praying in
ARTS EDITOR
About 350 students, faculty and administrators participated in the sixth annual ACU for Abilene on Saturday. The service project focused mainly on reaching out to neighborhoods surrounding campus, which students had previously worked on during the last Service Saturday, said Rheannon Reese, senior management marketing major from Austin and cochair of ACU for Abilene. “We’re trying to build relation-
“We’re trying to build relationships with the community immediately surrounding ACU.” Rheannon Reese, ACU for Abilene co-chair
returned as they had promised, they are building credibility up and making contacts for further involvement, she said. Jenna Grime, junior English major from Archbold, Ohio, was
the morning’s devotional, Dr. Dwayne VanRheenen, provost, and his wife, and Dr. Gailyn VanRheenen, professor of missions, walking neighborhoods. “The administration was awe-
some about being involved this year in comparison with other years, which we really appreciated,” Grime said. Aside from working in neighborhoods, other sites people worked at included the Boys and Girls Club of Abilene, the Day Nursery of Abilene, various nursing homes and Special Olympics practice, she said. “The major focus was getting involved in the neighborhoods and starting to meet people around ACU,” Grime said, “and that really opened the doors for everything that’s going to happen next year with Project Abilene.” Reese said the members of the See SERVICE Page 5
Summer registration numbers comparable to past at this point By LAURA STORK STAFF WRITER
Days devoted to studying, early morning classes, late nights and mind-numbing exams soon will be over for most, but not for everyone. Around 988 students are registered for Maymester classes, while 861 students are registered for Summer I and 474 for Summer II. “These are pretty comparable numbers for being this far along in registering,” said Lisa McCarty, assistant director for the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment. “Summer I is down a little, while Summer II is up a little.” See CLASS Page 5
Club plays game for sake of Humanity Gamma Sigma Phi completes 60-hour softball game Sunday By JACI SCHNEIDER OPINION EDITOR
The sun set on a 40-man softball game Thursday night, and when it rose, it shone down on the same men, half playing softball and half attempting sleep in scattered tents and old couches set up along the baseline. Two sunsets, two sunrises, 321 innings and 1,297 runs later, the 60hour game finally came to an end, and with it, the world record for the longest softball
game ever played. The men of Gamma Sigma Phi raised more than $20,000 for Habitat for Humanity by playing softball for 60 hours last weekend. Some might call the undertaking insane, which is why planners dubbed the fundraiser “Insanity for Humanity.” David Sessions, senior Christian ministry major from Issaquah, Wash., announced about 10 hours of the game and stayed at the field for about 58 of the 60 hours. “It’s kind of ridiculous to ask guys to play softball for 60 hours,” Sessions said. “But it’s really worth it and a really, really small price to pay.”
Knowing that the men’s efforts were going toward a house for a needy family made the insanity worth it, Sessions said. He also said that living outside for just three nights made the cause more meaningful and personal for many players. Patrick Vincent, junior finance major from Arlington, played for the winning team — Humanity — which scored 729 runs. “Being able to raise that much money for Habitat for Humanity was a lot of fun,” Vincent said. Vincent said he looks forward to building the home that their fundraiser paid for next fall.
“Half the insanity is done,” he said. Throughout the event, players changed clothes several times, with costumes ranging from Scuba Steve outfits to bike-riding uniforms to sniper suits. The hours from midnight to 7 a.m. were the craziest, Vincent said, when player’s lack of sleep and exhaustion began to take over. Shane Spencer, junior financial management major from White Oak, also said a lot of funny things happened after 1 a.m. “Everything gets a lot funnier at that point,” he said. See GAME Page 5
BRIAN SCHMIDT/Chief Photographer
The men of Gamma Sigma Phi cheer on other members of their club during the last inning of a 321-inning, 60-hour softball game Sunday. The world-record-breaking game raised funds for Habitat for Humanity.