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The Newspaper of Lamar University Vol. 91, No. 19
Thursday, March 26, 2015
‘A community of inclusion’ UNIVERSITY’S FIRST DIVERSITY CONFERENCE SET FOR APRIL 18 KRISTEN STUCK UP MANAGING EDITOR @kristenstuck Lamar University will hold its first diversity and inclusion conference, April 18 from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the Setzer Student Center. “The students were really receptive to the idea of the members of the (Multicultural Student Advisory Council) of Lamar hosting a diversity conference,” Vernice Monroe, special assistant to the president for university multicultural enhancement, said. “We are inviting the
other Lamar campuses. We’re excited about it, and we hope that we have great attendance at the conference.” The conference, “Constructing a World of Inclusion,” will be free and open to all Lamar University, Lamar Institute of Technology, Lamar State College-Orange, and Lamar State College-Port Arthur registered students, faculty and staff. “Dr. Derek Greenfield will be joining us as the keynote speaker and facilitator of the conference,” Monroe said. “We did a search of speakers and he has been very helpful. Cynthia (Parra) contacted him and then we worked with him — he gave us some ideas because he has done this all over the world. He has been on numerous campuses doing this, as well as working for corporations and businesses in leading diversity and inclusion, and team building. We are very,
Education names Spina as new dean
very fortunate to have him. Just from talking to him on the phone — and Dr. Greenfield helping us think this through and what we could do, and bouncing off ideas — we knew he would be the person.” Along with the keynote speaker, there will also be workshops on diversity topics presented by faculty members. “All of it will be interactive, where students can give their input and can ask questions,” Monroe said. “The facilitator and the afternoon workshop presenters will create a climate where students can feel free to ask questions. They came up with some clever topics for the afternoon workshops that help students understand diversity, even within a group. When we bring that kind of awareness, people stop the narrow stereotyping of individuals, and then I think they feel comfortable to join in, to interact, and to
even ask questions of individuals.” Cynthia Parra, assistant director of student development and leadership, said that when students get to interact in
See DIVERSITY, page 8
‘FAIR’ INSPECTIONS FIRE, POLICE PUT SAFETY FIRST AT ANNUAL EVENT
President Kenneth Evans has named Robert Spina as dean of Lamar University’s College of Education and Human Development. Spina, who has more than 25 years of combined teaching, research and service, will succeed Bill Holmes, who has been serving as interim dean since August 2014, and Hollis Lowery-Moore, who served as dean, 2004-2014. Spina will assume his duties on July 1. Spina, who holds a Ph.D. in health, physical and recreation education from the University of Pittsburgh, is currently associate dean of undergraduate education and college assessment at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va. He has served more than 10 years as a department chair and two years as an associate
BROOKE STINEBRICKNER UP CONTRIBUTOR
See EDUCATION, page 2
Palaki appointed engineering dean After an exhaustive national search, President Kenneth Evans has named Srinivas Palanki as Lamar University’s next dean of the College of Engineering. Palanki will succeed Victor Zaloom, who has been serving as interim dean since August 2013, and longtime dean Jack Hopper who served 1999-2013. Palanki will assume his duties on July 1, 2015. Palanki, who holds a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the University of Michigan, is chair of the department of chemical and biomolecular engineering, University of South Alabama in Mobile, Alabama, where he has been on faculty since 2007. He earned a bachelor’s in technology from Indian Institute of Technology, See ENGINEERING, page 2
the conference, it makes it more impactful.
UP Photo Brooke Stinebrickner
Each spring, Southeast Texans look forward to the South Texas State Fair, anticipating everything from different types of foods to thrilling rides. However, how many of us question the safety of that food or those rides? Fortunately, there is a team of people working behind the scenes to keep visitors safe. Before the first ticket or corn dog is sold, police officers and fire inspectors inspect the booths and rides. This year’s fair, hosted by the Young Men’s Business League, opens at 6 p.m. today at Ford Park, but Beaumont’s Fire and Police Departments have been checking the facilities since the beginning of the week. “We are looking at the fire safety part of it,” Beaumont Fire/Rescue Captain Brad Penisson said. “We have had some situations over the years where we had some fires in the food booths. We want to try to prevent that from happening. “When we are looking for food booths we are looking to make sure that they have a fire extinguisher that has been properly inspected,” he said. “We are looking at the cooking equipment to make sure it is installed properly and that there are no combustibles next to it. If they have a fixed extinguishing system like a hood, we want to make sure that it is all operational.” Penisson said that usually the fire department does not inspect the booths inside the exhibit hall unless they are serving food. He also said it is their responsibility to check the vehicles and boats that are showcased at the fair. “What we do on the vehicles, is that we check the gas caps to make sure they are secured and they have less than a quarter of a tank in the vehicle — so we check those kinds of things,” he said. A typical inspection for each booth only takes a few minutes unless the vendor fails the inspection. “If it is a piece of equipment that they failed then they will have to have it repaired — nine times out of
Workers assemble the ferris wheel for the South Texas State Fair at Ford Park, Monday. The fair opens today and runs through April 5.
See FAIR, page 4
Lamar students experience Clinton Global Initiative KARA TIMBERLAKE UP CONTRIBUTOR
Courtesy Image
President Clinton with Lamar senior Kristeen Reynolds
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Eight Lamar University students participated in the 2015 Clinton Global Initiative University, where more than 1,000 student leaders gathered to address global issues with innovative solutions. The eighth annual CGI U meeting took place March 6-8 at the University of Miami, and included workshops, seminars and other events facilitated by former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chelsea Clinton, as well as other speakers. “Lamar students who attended the event were fueled with excite-
ment at the possibility of networking with students from 80 countries and turning their ideas into action,” David Mulcahy, director of the LU Small Business Development Center, said. Each student or student team was required to develop and submit commitments to action in CGI U’s five focus areas: education, environment and climate change, peace and human rights, poverty alleviation and public health. Lamar students Mohammad Nurul Azam, electrical engineering; Joshua Barnes, mechanical engineering; Charles Bray and Dougal MacGregor, communications; Macy Fletcher and Kirstie Thibodeaux, social work; Kristeen
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Reynolds, accounting; and Joshua Wilson, computer science attended the meeting. Reynolds said CGI U was awe inspiring. “Spending a weekend with 1,000 individuals from diverse locations who are committed to positively changing the world is motivational,” she said. “Meeting the entire Clinton family was an honor. Knowing that the 42nd President of the United States believes in me and what I can accomplish is beyond encouraging.” Wilson, who plans to become a computer game developer, said MacGregor encouraged him and Bray to submit an application. “Our project aims on revolu-
tionizing education by implementing new learning environments that utilize interactive media and technology, such as video games,” Wilson said. “All the people I talked with at CGI U had amazing projects, and I even talked with a few who had similar interests, such as one guy who was using gamification for science experiments. We all shared information about our projects, and were able to bounce ideas around and get us thinking about things we might not have thought about previously.” Wilson said he was inspired by hearing different perspectives from around the world and seeing others See CLINTON, page 4
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