UNIVERSITY PRESS
The Newspaper of Lamar University
Vol. 95, No. 11 November 15, 2018
SPRING BREAK ON AN ISLAND Business College to offer Costa Rice study abroad program Vy Nguyen UP staff writer
Study Abroad will offer a business program to Costa Rica and Panama, March 8-15. The program will offer upper-level, joint undergraduate and graduate classes including special topics in management and global enrichment. “We’re there, in Costa Rica and Panama, to experience business as it’s done in another part of the world, and that it means not just being immersed in the business world but also into the culture aspect of that country,” Enrique Venta, professor of marketing and management, said. “The students will understand that the American way of doing things is not the only way, and the fact that in the rest of the world, people still behave in moral fashions, they actually get to know the people they’re doing business with before they’re ready to make a deal.”
During spring break, students will explore business practices and international trade in two Central American countries. Their first stop, Costa Rica, is a center for ecotourism and agricultural and manufacturing exports. The students will visit volcanoes, a tropical waterfall, a coffee plantation and coordinate visits with local businesses. Venta said that students are able to fully immerse themselves in the program because they will be staying with a host family who, in most cases, speaks little English. “During the day, the group gets together as a whole and travels to do different things,” he said. “The activities in Costa Rica are focused on the elements of industry there, like ecotourism.” Venta said that next year’s program activities have similar structure to past ones. “In the past, we’ve visited things like national waterfalls
Courtesy photo
Lamar business students spent their 2016 spring break in Costa Rica and Panama. and how the Costa Rican government is using them to develop tourism,” he said. “We also visit mountain tops, retreats, resort areas and things of that sort, in the ecotourism world.” There are also interesting activities that might appeal to coffee lovers and history buffs.
“Coffee is one of the largest exports from Costa Rica and is world renowned, so we visit coffee plantations,” Venta said. “We also do some cultural visits to the ruins of the native Central Americans.” After staying in Costa Rica for four days, the students will fly to Panama, the intersection
for Atlantic and Pacific trade. In Panama, they will receive a lecture and get a chance to meet the CEO of the Panama Canal Authority, Jorge Quijano, witness container ships go through the Miraflores locks, coordinate business visits with multinaSee COSTA RICA, page 2
LU construction projects may affect traffic, parking
Three construction projects will begin this week on campus that will affect traffic and parking. The Median Crossing Project on Jim Gilligan Way, in front of the Wayne A. Reaud Building, will affect pedestrian and vehicle traffic during construction. The new post office reno-
vation project will close a portion of parking lot D-6 for construction safety fencing and allow construction access from the back of the Carl Parker Building. Only construction vehicles will be allowed to park in the fence enclosure for this project. Library canopy structural
repairs will begin within the next two weeks, pending weather. Construction work will be performed on a small section of the concrete canopy located directly in front of Gray Library. For more information, contact the office of planning and construction at 880-7085.
UP photos by Noah Dawlearn and Cade Smith
A construction worker, left, starts renovations on the new post office which will be located on the first floor of the Carl Parker building, Tuesday. Workers begin making repairs to the canopy structure in front of Gray Library, above, Tuesday afternoon in the rain.
Conference addresses women in STEM Tiana Johnson UP contributor
The Women in STEM conference hosted by the Student Affiliates of the American Chemical Society was organized to address the need to encourage more women to enter science, technology, engineering and math fields. The conference was held Nov. 8 in the Setzer Student Center Ballroom A. The conference included several speakers who related their personal and professional experiences to help attendees become better acquainted with pursuing STEM careers and the challenges they might face. Pollie Holtham, chemistry assistant and division manager for Sabine River Authority Environmental Services, who earned her bachelor’s in chemistry from Lamar in 1995, said being able gain real-world expe-
UP photo by Noah Dawlearn
Pollie Holtham, assistant division manager of the Sabine River Authority, talks during the Women in STEM conference in the Setzer Student Center Ballroom A, Nov 8. rience as a student was key to her success. “I had many interests in high school, but always knew that I
www.facebook.com/UPLamar
wanted to be involved in the science field as a career,” she said. “I was also able to participate in the entry summer research pro-
gram sponsored by the Welsh Foundation, it was very exciting to work on a project without a defining outcome.
www.lamaruniversitypress.com
“It was a great experience in developing my skills for problem solving and working with a research team.” Holtham said in her junior year of the chemistry program she was made aware of an opportunity to work as a student intern at the Texaco Research and Development Center in Port Arthur. “I was lucky enough to be one of the students that was accepted,” she said. “I was so enthusiastic, I really wanted to get some experience in the work force. I will always be so grateful for that opportunity.” Renuka Polimera, quality control lab supervisor at Total Petrochemicals and Refining, said it is easy to lose focus because science can be difficult to pursue, but the effort is worth it. “Students who study science, See STEM, page 2
www.twitter.com/UPLamar
INSIDE
Thursday, November 15, 2018 University Press Page 2
COSTA RICA
“Life is not just a series of calculations and a sum total of statistics, it’s about experience, it’s about participation — it is something more complex and more interesting than what is obvious.” —Daniel Libeskind
from page 1
tional companies and search for wildlife in a national park. Venta said that activities in Costa Rica are more countrywide since they’re not based in the major cities. “Whereas in Panama City, we’re there to study, in some sense, international finance,” he said. “We visit banks, financial institutions, and of course, the most important thing Panama is known for, the Panama Canal.” Students will be taking a special tour of the canal, unlike any tourists, Venta said. “The director of the Panama Canal Authority, Jorge Quijano, is a graduate of the College of Engineering from Lamar University,” Venta said. “So, you can imagine that when we request assistance from his office, he is very happy to provide that assistance. “It’s not just a superficial tour of the Canal, but rather an in-depth tour where we talk to marketing and operations people and how, particularly now, the second canal is affecting global trade.” Venta said Panama is an
STEM
QUOTE OF THE DAY
interesting experience, and it’s a different type of experience compared to Costa Rica. He said Panama City, as one of Central America’s largest cities, is a much more urban experience. Gevorg Sargsyan, professor of finance, who will lead the program, said his goal for the trip is that the students learn how the local communities in Costa Rica benefit from tourism, the financial and cash flow of tourism, and see the financial aspects of Panama. “We want the students to observe the businesses, understand their practices, ask questions, and get information on projects,” he said. “My idea is to give the students, projects to show some touristic destinations that model, how tourists bring the money to that local community and how it affects local economy development.” Dan French, dean of the College of Business, said that Costa Rica and Panama have many benefits that are relevant not only to Lamar because of its geographic area, proximity and natural cultural ties, but to
the students as well. “There are many opportunities for our students, both, to potentially be working in Latin America or also, in Texas, where we have a lot of demands for Spanish-speaking or Hispanic-cultural business representatives, sales people and supervisors,” he said. French said he wants the students to absorb as much as they can from dealing with local businesses in transactions to currency exchanges. “We mix educational experiences along with cultural experiences,” he said. “Networking give students experiences that they can have domestically.” Venta said he wishes that every students in the College of Business could experience study abroad programs because of its many benefits. “They have to be much more self-reliant, and they can’t think ‘American’ all the time,” he said. “They have to be flexible in how they handle situations, so that provides them with the experience and maturity that
they didn’t have. “In addition, the ability to interact with other cultures, which they would have to do everywhere they work, not just because they have to compete globally, but because they have to be with people from all over the world that happen to work in the same places that they work at.” Sargsyan said that study abroad opens up people’s minds to different cultural environments. “In my past experiences, when we came back from study abroad trips, the students told me that it was ‘the best time of their lives’ and it changed their ways of thinking,” he said. “When they go outside of America and get experiences by meeting with business people, they will gain global enrichment from a business-cultural perspective that will open their eyes to what’s going on in the world.” For more information about the program, contact Sargsyan at 880-8702 or email gsargsyan@lamar.edu.
CALENDAR
Nov. 15
Effective Ways to Help
International Students Succeed
Landes Auditorium 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Nov. 15
REDtalks presents:
Criticial Thinking in the Era of Fake News
Sixth floor, Gray Library 4 p.m. to 4:45 p.m.
Nov. 16
An Afternoon of Poetry with Sara Henning 107 Maes
12:40 p.m. to 1:35 p.m.
Nov. 16
Interfaith Panel:
Knowledge Across Religions
Landes Auditorium 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
from page 1
it is very rare they do not get a job — there is so much demand for science,” Polimera said. “The field has job security, higher income, self-confidence and equanimity to women, and bridges the ethnic and gender gaps. “Science is the same everywhere, though measurements may change, so you will have international job security. Science also enables the next generation for innovators, it plays a key role in the growth of economy, and is important for globalization.” Carmen Neagu is a technical product specialist in
NOTICE
The University Press can be read online at www.lamaruniversitypress.com. Advertising rates can be found on the site, along with practically all information that a person might be looking for.
Fourier transform infrared technology ABB, holds a bachelor’s in chemical engineering and a master’s in organic chemistry. She said attitude and mindset have a lot to do toward being successful in STEM occupations. Neagu emphasized that women need to be assertive to be successful in a traditionally male-dominated field. She said she makes no apologies for the benefits women bring to the field. “As women we are more qualified because our brains work amazingly,” she said. “We can do so many things at
the same time. You’re beautiful. There is nobody like you. Have the courage to chase your goals because if you don’t do it, nobody will. Nobody is going to say, ‘Hey, I knew you were smart come work for my company.’ “You have to prove that you’re serious about this. You have to prove that you’re really smart. Nobody can empower you, you have to do that. You have to be better than you were today, when you wake up tomorrow.” Caitlyn Clark, SAACS secretary, said it is important that young women like her-
self see successful women for motivation and inspiration. “It’s very sad to me that only 6.6 percent of women are actually in the STEM field, and right now the United States itself is actually falling behind in our technology advancement,” she said. “I think it’s super important that we are able to teach young women in this field that they can do something and that they can be successful at that — and that’s what I got from today.” For more information, contact 880-8267 or visit lamar.edu/events
Nov. 16
Lamar Piano Festival Faculty Recital
featuring Duo Korusa Rothwell Recital Hall 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Nov. 16-18
Fall and Recovery
Dance Performance University Theatre
Nov. 16 and 17 — 7:30 p.m. Nov. 18 — 2 p.m.
OPINION
3 UNIVERSITY PRESS Thursday, November 15, 2018
FINDING A CAREER PATH
I’m in my senior year of college, and I just realized what I want to do with my life. Go figure. I’ve spent the last three years of my life feeling like I knew exactly what I wanted to do. When people asked me what I wanted to be or where I hoped my journalism career would take me, I always had the same answer — a sports writer. I grew up surrounded by sports my whole life. I played basketball along with two of my brothers in middle school and high school. I spent a brief point in time on a soccer field, and even ran cross country and track for two years. I loved the feel of lacing up my sneakers and putting on a fresh jersey to stand beside my teammates. I cherished the feel of my feet hitting a dirt path as I struggled to regain my breath. Some of my best memories came from sit-
Commentary
Cassandra Jenkins UP editor
ting in the stands of a football game screaming and cheering with my friends and family. So, it seemed to make the most sense to make it a career. I wouldn’t have to deal too much with politics or worry about how I was going to approach the mom of a kid who just died in a car wreck. I didn’t want to be that kind of journalist. I wanted to write about things that make people happy, not sad or angry at the world. I decided that sports meant so much to me and that I was always happy when I was in a sports setting, and so began my journey to be a sports writer — and a female one at that. That decision, I always felt, was set in stone — until recently. I slowly started to ask myself do I know enough about sports to be successful? Could I spit out facts and statistics about the last Super Bowl? Or tell you the last time the Browns had a decent quarterback? Honestly, probably not. Sure, I don’t live under a rock. I know who Baker Mayfield is. I have favorite sports teams and have recently fallen in love with watching baseball. You can catch me sporting an Astros jersey or screaming at the TV when the Texans miss an easy touchdown, but I couldn’t cite you the entire team roster. Does that make me a bad candidate for a sports journalism position? No, it doesn’t and here is why. I always thought that to be a
UPeditorial
School’s not over yet The fall semester may be winding down, but there are still plenty of activities happening on campus to get involved in. Between sports, panels and student gatherings, there are plenty of opportunities to meet new people and experience new things before 2018 comes to a close. The LU football team has their last game of the regular season against rival McNeese at 6 p.m. in Lake Charles, La. After their win against Houston Baptist, Saturday, the Cardinals secured a winning season — but a win against McNeese would be the cherry on top. The men’s basketball team has games Saturday and Monday, against Prairie View A&M and Arlington Baptist, respectively. Both are home games and a perfect way to maintain school spirit. The women’s basketball team has a game, Tuesday, against LeTourneau University at the Montagne Center. The Lady Cardinals are currently 2-0 and nothing is more encouraging than the support of fellow classmates. But sports aren’t the only events happening. For those interested in fine arts, the faculty of the music department is hosting a piano festival, tomorrow and Saturday, with two recitals and a masterclass. For more information, visit lamar.edu/music. The department of theatre and dance is hosting the “Fall and Recovery” dance performance — an excellent opportunity to see what other students on campus are working on. For more information, check the calendar on page two. There are still plenty of opportunities to get involved this semester — whether it’s through supporting colleagues in the stands at a game or watching the performances they’ve worked all year on — find out what being a part of the Cardinal community is like.
Editor..........................................Cassandra Jenkins Managing Editor...............................Olivia Malick Photo Editor......................................Noah Dawlearn Staff ............ Cade Smith, Sierra Kondos, Vy Nguyen, ......................Abigail Pennington, Rachel Hellums, ...........................Eleanor Skelton, Jocelyn Morales, ...........................Morgan Collier, Claire Robertson, ..........................Tiana Johnson, Scarlett Blanchard Business Manager ............................Eloisa Lopez Advertising Assistant ..................................An Vo Advisors Andy Coughlan and Stephan Malick Member of Texas Intercollegiate Press Association
successful sports journalist was to be a dictionary of knowledge and stats about every major sport. But, then I remembered why I loved sports so much, because of the way it made me, and people all over the world, feel. It wasn’t about just reading an article in the newspaper or catching highlights on the TV at night to stay informed, it was about community and family and having something to root for. Sports can put you in a state of mind that there is nothing but that game and that moment being surrounded by strangers, but for a second, they felt like family. I don’t love the Astros because they are World Series Champs, I love them because they have the best personality on a sports team that I have ever seen. I don’t root for the Texans because they have great stats, because, let’s face it, they could be doing better. I root for them because my community does, because they have players who care about their community and they have a true passion for the game. I cheered with the Rockets when they made it to the playoffs last year and wept when they lost because, man, that game was heartbreaking. But, afterwards, I couldn’t tell you how many points James Harden had because I was so focused on the game and the feeling of being surrounded by true sports fans. I guess what I’m trying to say,
is that it’s OK to not be an expert in your career field, because as long you love it and have a passion for it, the rest will come. I may never become a walking dictionary throwing out stats left and right, but I do know that I am
headed down the right path in life and that path will one day land me the job of my dreams and courtside seats to the Rockets game, or a sideline pass to the Super Bowl. At least, a girl can dream.
UP illustration by Scarlett Blanchard
Navigating Germany, US People all over the world dream of studying abroad for at least one semester. Being able to learn more about other cultures, improving or developing language skills, or just experiencing a whole new life in a different surrounding is attractive for many students. I am one of the lucky ones who is able to live that dream. But is it really a dream? I’m a tennis student from Germany. This is my second year studying in the U.S. The idea of coming here to study developed when I was 16 years old. It has always been clear to me that I want to study abroad and improve my English skills, but at the same time I wanted to keep playing tennis on a high level. So, when some of my tennis friends told me about their idea to get an athletic scholarship in America, I was totally amazed by it. It’s not like I didn’t want to study in Germany, but the university experience there compared to the U.S. differs in many aspects. For example, the number of classes students take, university life, student activities and so on. In Germany, there are no classifications, like freshman, sophomore, junior and senior. Students simply identify themselves in saying
Commentary
Amelie Vossagaetter UP contributor
Letters Policy
in which semester they are in. The general degree plan also varies in many points — there are no general classes in Germany, just classes related to your major. You wouldn’t take any history classes unless you are majoring in it. In Germany, you have more classes than in the U.S. At Lamar, students usually take five classes per semester, but in Germany, they take around seven to nine classes per semester. So, getting a bachelor’s degree usually takes three years instead of four. During the semester, students in Germany have no chance to collect credits. Usually, every class has one final exam at the end of the semester. It is also not common that professors take attendance, so you do not get credit for that. Basically, it’s up to the student if they go to class and study for their final. The whole college experience is completely different compared to the U.S. because there is no living on campus. If you want to live close to the university, you have to take care of it by searching for apartments in that area. Also, there aren’t many opportunities to eat on campus — the dining hall usually just opens for lunch. Most importantly for me, there are no sports teams. That means for foreign people, the only way to get into the university is by having an impressive academic history. As you can see, studying in Germany just consists of studying. But, the universities cost nothing for the citizens, unless you want to go to a private university. So, I decided to start studying in the U.S. by getting an athletic scholarship. My goal was to be able to practice tennis on a high level and also to get the full American college experience, like in the movies. Well, as I am here right now, I can tell it is not like the movies, but what is ever the same in movies and real life? Not a single thing. Being under an athletic scholarship here is quite tough. Waking up
Individuals who wish to speak out on issues should send a letter fewer than 400 words in length to Letters to the Editor, P.O. Box 10055, Beaumont, TX 77710, or drop letters off at our office in 202 Carl Parker Building. The writer’s name, address, telephone number and ID number must accompany each letter. Letters received without this information cannot be printed. Letters may be edited for length, grammar, style and possible libel. Opinions expressed in letters are not necessarily those of the UP student management. Letters by the same writer on the same subject will not be published. Poetry and religious debates will not be published.
nearly every morning at 5:30 to go to work outs, having classes after, and then having tennis practice again in the afternoon can be very stressful. With a schedule like this six days a week, you finally know how to appreciate your free time and your time of not being sore. The fall semester in tennis is thought of as preparation time for the season, which starts in spring. In fall, we practice a lot and compete in four tournaments to get some match experience before the season starts. In spring, we travel nearly every weekend to different schools in Texas and Louisiana. This is a really intense semester because the focus just lays on studying and playing tennis. When coming here, I had to adjust my lifestyle to this whole new environment. In Germany, I never lived on my own and in a way, was never alone. I always had my family close to me. Here, I have my friends, but they are on a completely other level than family. For me, getting homesick is part of the decision of studying abroad. Being able to Facetime with my family on a regular basis helps. One of the most difficult things to adjust to is living in the dorms and managing my money. Doing laundry by myself and figuring out how to manage the amount of money I get from my parents every month were all new situations for me. In my second year, I can say that being here made me into another person, meaning my views on certain things have changed. I learned a lot about myself and what I expect from life. Still, like everyone else who is in the stage from turning from a teenager to an adult, I am still not sure about major aspects of my life and need to figure them out. One statement I can make with certainty is that studying abroad was one of the best decisions in my life, considering the good and the bad experiences. The opinions that appear in editorials are the official views of the University Press student management as determined by the UP Student Editorial Board. Opinions expressed elsewhere on this page are the views of the writers only and are not necessarily those of the University Press student management. Student opinions are not necessarily those of the university administration. ©University Press 2018
Page 4
Thursday, November 15, 2018 • UNIVERSITY PRESS
ENERGY FOR THE FUTURE ExxonMobil plans robust investment in research Rachel Hellums UP contributor
We’ve all heard the term, “Go green,” especially when it comes to the environment and renewable energy sources. But what exactly does this mean to the average person? Why should we care? The price of oil and cost of electricity is something many people think about on a monthly basis. Those costs are directly related to the market, but also the physical resources managed by companies and governments. ExxonMobil has developed a plan to address some of these issues on a local and international scale and is planning for the shift in energy demand until 2040. This is called “Outlook for Energy: A View to 2040.” This outlook is part of an annual plan the company uses to forecast market forces, but to also strategically address issues from a company perspective. The Exxon corporate mission recognizes an ongoing, significant energy transition is underway, and these many factors will shape the world’s energy future. These include governmental policies and industry practices that seek to promote prosperity while also addressing the risks of climate change. The world’s economic middle-class population stands to expand from three billion to five billion by 2030, according to the Brooking’s Institution. For ExxonMobil, this means a greater demand for improving living standards, greater use of energy whether used for transportation, electricity or industrial purposes. “The rising middle class means billions of people with longer, healthier and better lives, which will also lead to greater travel, additional cars on the road and increased commercial activity,” Ashley Ale-
mayehu, public and government affairs manager at ExxonMobil, said. About one billion people still lack access to electricity and about half the global population live in countries where average electricity demand per person is less than the average kitchen appliance. “Rising living standards for expanding populations worldwide mean a dependence on reliable modern energy,” Alemayehu said, “Combined, they are expected to help drive up global energy demand by about 25 percent by the year 2040. That is roughly equivalent to adding another North America and Latin America to the world’s current energy demand.” One of the initiatives that ExxonMobil is implementing is lower emissions output. Providing reliable, affordable energy to support growth and living standards and making sure to do so in ways that reduce the impact on the environment, including the risks of climate change is a dual challenge ExxonMobil is pursuing,
Alemayehu said. “Currently, oil and coal are the biggest contributors to the global energy mix, with a substantial share from natural gas,” she said. As of 2016, oil is the most used form of energy, followed by coal, which produces the most harmful emissions. By 2040, it is projected that oil will still be in high demand, but the need for coal will have substantially decreased due to the world shifting toward sources of energy with lower emissions according to the Outlook. However, ExxonMobil’s outlook is not just about lower carbon emissions. It’s also about climate change overall, and what ExxonMobil is doing to address scientific and marketplace concerns. Climate change has been a controversial topic of debate and discussion both in terms of its economic and political impact. One item of contention was the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement. ExxonMobil, an international company, has its own plan to address the concerns included in the Paris
Agreement through the 2°C Pathway. Since 1992, when nations around the world established the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, there has been an international effort to understand and address the risks of climate change. After more than two decades of international effort, in December 2015, nations convened in Paris and drafted an agreement that, for the first time, signaled that both developed and developing nations will strive to undertake action on climate change and report on related progress. The Paris Agreement “aims to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change.by holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels,” stated in the UNFCC “The global energy supply will continue to diversify over the next two-and-a-half decades,” Alemayehu said. “Society’s push for lower-emission energy sources will drive sub-
stantial increases in renewables such as wind and solar. By 2040, nuclear and all renewables will approach 25 percent of global energy supplies.” Alemayehu said that energy efficiency gains will help CO2 emissions decline by 45 percent by 2040. For example, she said, that will include using more efficient equipment used in energy production and the entry of more energy efficient items into the consumer marketplace, like hybrid vehicles. A long-term goal for the company is to continue to invest and expand its research and development to advance technology. Meeting energy demand safely, reliably and affordably — while also minimizing risks and environmental impacts — will require expanded trade and investment, Alemayehu said. “The world faces a dual energy challenge: how to supply growing energy needs around the globe, while at the same time, addressing the risks of climate change. We’re committed to doing our part.” she said. “As a company, we know the future of energy requires innovation and advanced technology,” she said. “And it will require practical and robust solutions to meet the wide-ranging needs of for stakeholders. “We hope to broaden that understanding among individuals, businesses and governments. Energy matters to everyone, and we all play a role in shaping its future.” For additional information about Exxon’s “2018 Outlook for Energy: A View to 2040,” visit https://corporate. exxonmobil.com/en/energy/energyoutlook, or check out the company’s “Perspectives” blog at https://energyfactor.exxon mobil.com. This story was produced in partnership with ExxonMobil.
UNIVERSITY PRESS • Thursday, November 15, 2018
Page 5
#REELSQUAD WINS 72-HOUR FILM CONTEST Cassandra Jenkins UP editor
Have you ever watched a horror movie that has kept you on your toes from the opening scene until the ending credits? Now, imagine those emotions, surprises and shocks being rolled into five minutes and one scene. This is exactly what happened during Lamar University’s 72-hour short film challenge. Three teams consisting of students across all departments came together for 72-hours worth of filmmaking and the results ended up with one winner on top — #REELSQUAD. #REELSQUAD consisted of six students who produced “Choose Wisely,” a short film about a routine murder gone wrong. “In the beginning, it starts with a male killer and he sees a woman walk into her house and he follows her,” cinematographer Valarie Flores said. “It’s a classical serial killer movie, where he is going to walk in and kill her. But, when he breaks into her house he finds a notebook while she’s out in the hallway and sees drawings of dead bodies and suddenly he’s like, ‘What did I walk into?’ “The woman is about to walk out and he runs to the garage and starts looking through all the stuff until he finds a paper with a bunch of names on it. His name is at the very bottom and all the names are crossed out but his. So, of course, he freaks out and then he finds a dead body in the garage. Then, he really starts to freak out and while he’s looking at the body, the woman comes in, turns the light on and ends up killing him — it’s a plot twist. He chose the wrong house, but he didn’t know, and the audience didn’t know until the very end.” Flores and director Kaitlin Vu said that the film was a lot
of fun to shoot, but also very difficult because of the time restraints and rules. The film had to follow certain guidelines — all planning, shooting and editing had to be done with 72-hours from the start of the race. The film had to follow within the horror genre, use two additional elements and be shot only on a cellphone. “There were two elements of the film we had to have,” Vu said. “We had to pick out of two buckets where we would see one prop that we had to use in our film. It didn’t have to be a big part, but it had to be in the film. We picked notebook paper and that was the list of names we had in the film. “The second was a quote we had to use from a classic horror movie and we got, ‘I see dead people.’ We incorporated that, it wasn’t a large part but we used it in one line. Of course, we used blood props and a fake knife. We also found props to use like a baseball bat that we found at my uncle and aunt’s house, so we used that as a weapon, too.” Flores said the movie had to be around five minutes long and her team spent a lot of time deciding on the plot before be-
Courtesy photos
Kaitlin Vu, director of ‘Choose Wisely’ spreads fake blood on her victim, top, in preparation for a scene. Valarie Flores, cinemotographer and actor, above, rehearses her scene. ginning production. “We had to figure out a way to put something scary or spooky together in five minutes and have it make sense,” she said. “We were trying to figure out whether there should be a motive for the killer, but ended up deciding not to because then we would have to do a background and that would take up more time. “I kind of thought of the whole stalker thing and I wanted to bring more of a comedy into it, but everyone else was like, ‘No, we don’t want comedy.’ I’m not sure how, but, finally, we just came up with
the whole killer ends up walking into the wrong house thing.” Vu said the first thing they all agreed on was having the main character be a female serial killer. “At first we wanted a female killer, so that was something that we had already decided on,” she said. “At one point we were going to toss in a vampire, but then we decided against it. It actually took about an hour to decide because we kept butting heads. We wanted it to be different than your regular killer film, but everything has been done. So, we decided to do
the classical victim being targeted by a serial killer.” Vu said the hardest obstacle came when all their actors kept cancelling on the film, so they had to use their crewmembers as actors. “Unfortunately, we couldn’t find actual actors in time that said that they would do it,” she said. “So instead we used crewmembers including Valarie as the female killer and Joseph (Brooks) as the male killer. We used one of our other crewmembers as the dead body, but that was basically it.” Flores said it became tricky to be both the cinematographer and a main actor. “I was originally supposed to be (just) the cinematographer, but sometimes I would have to be on camera,” she said. “I had to figure out the angles and tell Kaitlin what I wanted and then go back in front of the camera. It made it a lot harder, but we got it done and we still won.” Both Vu and Flores said they were shocked to find out their team had won the challenge, but were excited nonetheless. “There were some good film makers and competitors in our class,” Vu said. “The other teams were good as well, so it was exciting that we got to win, especially with all the debate on what we were going to do.” “It was weird to see, because when we were on set we had our problems,” Flores added. “Sometimes, there would be little debates on things we didn’t agree on until we got it done. We didn’t really expect to get first place, but it was really exciting. It makes us feel proud that after all that work people appreciated the film and that we tried.” The team consisted of all film majors including Devin Spell as editor, and Jeniah Clarke and Jadon Elliot as extras and personal assistants. To view the winning film visit:https://www.youtube.com /watch?v=ipwrSnyHbME.
Page 6
Thursday, November 15, 2018 • UNIVERSITY PRESS
LVO brings veterans together Cade Smith UP staff writer
The Lamar Veterans Organization is dedicated to helping veteran students have a place where they can learn how to transition from military life to civilian life. “We want to bring them together and provide a family environment that they felt when they were enlisted in the military,” Ramie Dalton, LVO president said. “We want to have a place where veterans can understand each other and bring unity between them.” After two years of being on hiatus, Dalton and LVO vice president, Nicolas DeVillier, were approached by Katt Blackwell Starnes assistant professor of English, to revive the group. “I went to Dr. Starnes in the English department to get her opinion on an essay I was writing about veterans transitioning into college,” DeVillier said. “She knew I was a veteran and asked if I’d be willing to help her restart the organization. I told her I would love to do it. This semester I got to meet Ramie and we really kicked things off and kind of hit the ground running ever since.” Dalton said that the organization wants to help veterans get maximum benefit for their education. “One of the things we are trying to work on is having (workshops) for veterans,” she said.
“We want to bring the VA guys over and give a walkthrough of how to apply for certain education benefits. Whenever I went in I had the Montgomery GI bill — I paid into it for the first 12 months of my service. After that, they offered the post 9/11 GI bill, so I signed up for that and qualified. When I got back, they asked which one to use and I didn’t have any idea and still don’t know if I paid into the right one.” The organization also wants to help dependents who are trying to use their family’s military benefits, Dalton said. “With dependents, one of the girls I work with at the writing lab, her parents have been paying for her college,” she said. “I spoke with her and found out that her dad was a veteran and asked if she was using his GI bill. She said that he had already used it and I told her about the Hazelwood (Act) to help her pay for school.” DeVillier and Dalton said it was difficult transitioning from military life to civilian life. “When you come here to civilian life you have so much freedom to do whatever you want,” DeVillier said. “When you go to a special event in the military, you must wear dress blues, they must be a certain way. You must wear it the way they want you to. There’s rules and regulations that you must follow.” Dalton said she struggled
with wearing civilian clothes. “Another thing that was difficult for me was waking up every day, because I was so used to waking up when they wanted us to,” she said. The organization is affiliated with the Student Veterans of America which offers scholarships and has an honors society, Dalton said. “To be an official member, you must be a veteran to be able to receive those benefits,” she said. “You can’t even be a dependent to qualify, you must be a veteran. Of course, people can come to our monthly socials but as far as our veterans events go, we try to include just veterans.” DeVillier said that the organization is made up of mostly army veterans but welcomes all branches. “We also welcome allies to join us,” he said. “However, we want people to know that they may get offended at some of the things we say and talk about. Something to be mindful of is that some people might not understand things we talk about because they weren’t in the military. It’s like another language.” DeVillier and Dalton said the organization is hosting events to recruit new members. “On Nov. 16, (tomorrow) we will have our monthly social, so we encourage anyone to come to that if they wish. “Something else we are doing is having a cork board
UP photo by Cade Smith
Eric Matthews, LU Veteran Affairs military and service specialist, cooks lunch for the 4th annual Veterans Appreciation Cookout at the Dining Hall Lawn, Wednesday. where members or people with veterans in their family can come up and put a picture on the board,” Dalton said. “We want to recognize those who
have served our country.” For more information email Dalton, rjjohnson2@lamar.edu, or contact DeVillier at ndevillier2@lamar.edu.
REDtalk to discuss overcoming self doubt Claire Robertson UP contributor
Amy Smith, director of faculty development and associate professor of English, will present a REDtalk, “Fear and Loathing in Higher Education,” Nov. 28 at 3 p.m. on the sixth
floor of Gray Library. “We will talk about the role of fear and self-doubt in college, how common those feelings are, and some strategies for working through them,” Smith said. College is a time of transition that is exciting as well as stressful and the end of the semester
can be especially stressful, Smith said. “Our mistakes can start to emerge and feel overwhelming and hard to face,” she said. “It’s important to remember that we all make mistakes and feel regrets, and to think of them as learning experiences.”
Smith will teach techniques to overcome the cycle of anxiety, avoidance and failure, and how to replace those negative feelings with success and confidence. “My goal is for students to find productive ways to work through emotions about the se-
mester, if they have negative emotions about it” she said. “And to learn some productive and healthy ways to move forward.” A Q&A will follow the talk. For more information, visit www.lamar.edu/redtalks.
7
SPORTS
UNIVERSITY PRESS Thursday, November 15, 2018
CARDS EXTEND WIN STREAK TO FIVE Cassandra Jenkins UP editor
The Lamar University football team extended their winning streak to five games with a 38-9 victory over the Houston Baptist Huskies at Provost Umphrey Stadium, Saturday. The win secured the Cardinals a winning season as they moved to 6-4 overall and 5-3 in Southland Conference play. “It was a win,” head coach Mike Schultz said. “It probably wasn’t pretty at times, but it was a win. I thought our kids did a great job. We’re excited. This is the first time they have won five straight games since 1972 and is only the fifth time in 30 years that they have had a winning season — that’s a big deal. That’s something that we have worked for. We went into the season and the first goal we wanted to catch was to get a winning season, and our kids got that accomplished.” The first Cardinal touchdown came within four minutes of kickoff at the end of a 12-play 81-yard drive that saw LU running-back A.J. Walker rush for two yards to the HBU five-yard line before Kirkland Banks took the ball the rest of the way to be the first with points on the board, 6-0. Kicker Elvin Martinez sailed the ball into the upper right corner of the goal post to boost the score to 7-0. Minutes later, LU junior Garrison Mitchell intercepted a pass by HBU quarterback Bailey Zappe returning the ball for 76 yards to make it all the way to HBU territory before being stopped just shy of the end zone. LU starting quarterback Jordan Hoy completed a quick pass to tight-end Case Robinson for the remaining 16 yards, with a point after, to give Lamar a 14-0 advantage to end the first quarter. Houston Baptist came into the second quarter ready to fight as they held off the Lamar offense for the first 11 minutes to give themselves a chance to score. The touchdown finally came after a long 15play 96-yard drive that led HBU’s Racine David 14 yards into the Cardinal end zone to close the gap to 14-7 with five minutes left in the half. The ball traded hands for the next few minutes as neither team could seem to find the gap, until, a 56-yard punt by HBU kicker Tyler Blanchard put the Car-
UP photo by Abigail Pennington
LU’s Jordan Hoy, 8, runs the ball while dodging defenders during the 38-9 win against Houston Baptist at Provost Umphrey Stadium, Saturday. dinals on their own 2-yard line to start the drive. Backed up against their own end zone, the Cardinals struggled to get out of the bind but ended up being pushed backward for a safety to add two points to the Huskies score, 14-9. The Lamar defense responded on the next play sacking Zappe who fumbled the ball to allow LU’s Chaston Brooks to scoop the ball up and run the 47 yards for a touchdown. Kick attempt was good and both teams headed into the locker room with Lamar up 21-9. “I feel like we were just at a stall as a team and that play really just got our momentum going back again and got our juices flowing — it was a big play,” senior linebacker Chaston Brooks said. “Coach called a blitz. I was blitzing off the edge and all I saw was the ball in the air, so I just took it and made sure I held onto it. Last
year, I dropped a ball so I told myself to just carry it, tuck high and tight and make sure I scored. As soon as I got it, I just said, ‘Tuck it and score, tuck it and score.’” The third quarter was a battle of defense and offense that Lamar finally won in the final three minutes of the quarter when Hoy rushed the ball for 23 yards to the HBU 46-yard line for a first down. A quick throw by Hoy to Robinson on the next play landed the ball into Husky territory to add another six points to the LU score before Martinez hit another kick attempt to lead HBU 28-9 to end the third quarter. The Huskies would attempt to score a few more times in the remainder of the game, but the Lamar defense stayed vigilant holding off the HBU advance. Lamar added another touchdown at the start of the fourth quarter with a Myles
Wanza 22-yard rush at the end of a 3play 50-yard drive, 35-9. LU would score just one more time with a field goal by Martinez to finish the game 38-9. Hoy led the team with 111-yards, two touchdowns and 91-yards rushing. Wanza followed with 89-yards rushing. “I’m very proud of them,” Schultz said. “I’m very happy for the seniors. They’ve been here working their tails off and providing leadership for the program. They deserve to go out in their last home game like they did. We still have one more game against McNeese, an extremely good football team and an extremely good defensive team. We will celebrate this win and then turn our attention towards McNeese.” Lamar will play their final game of the season at McNeese State, Saturday, at 3 p.m. in Lake Charles, La.
Kinard ties career-high 31 in win over Louisiana College Cassandra Jenkins UP editor
UP photo by Abigail Pennington
LU’s Moe Kinard, 23, goes up for a layup during the 94-43 win against Louisiana College at the Montagne Center, Monday.
Senior guard Moe Kinard tied her career-high 31 points in the Lady Cards’ 94-43 win over Louisiana College Wildcats, Monday, in the Montagne Center. “We had a great week of practice,” head coach Robin Harmony said, but the Lady Cardinals got off to a slow start. “We weren’t expecting that. I think our kids just took them lightly. We didn’t have a good scout on them. They had some guards that were really quick and broke our press easily. So, it riled us up a little bit. We just needed to get back to what we do and that’s full court defense and then worry about what we do for our court-on-court.” The Lady Cardinals offense was slow in the first 10 minutes of the game with Miya Crump hitting a three-point shot to be the first with points on the board. But, Louisiana College wasn’t far behind as they tied Lamar moments later with a three-
point shot of their own. LU’s Jadyn Pimentel responded within seconds with another three-point shot, 6-3. Both teams battled it out for the lead for the remainder of the quarter until LU finally pulled away with consecutive shots by senior guard Chastadie Barrs, another three by Crump and a layup by Kinard to pull the score to 17-7. The Wildcats got a chance to score once more before ending the quarter, 22-9. LU didn’t hit their stride in the second quarter until the five-minute mark when Kinard scored a layup followed by a three-point shot by Barrs to up the score to 32-11. The LU defense held off the Wildcat advance allowing them to score only two points in the quarter as they went on an unanswered 27-point run to end the half, 51-11. Louisiana College picked up the pace in the third quarter nearly outscoring Lamar as they matched the Lady Cards point for point but an energized Kinard sank three three pointers, four free throws and
three layups to tie her career high and lead the team to 81-32 to end the third. Lamar slowed their advance in the final quarter only adding 13 points to the score, while Louisiana College only added 11 points to end the game with a LU 94-43 victory. Kinard led the team in points with Crump not far behind with 19 and Pimentel with 17. Barrs tacked on seven more steals to her all-time record and the defense was led by Kinard with nine rebounds, Crump with seven and Umaja Collins with six. “We defend our nest,” Harmony said. “We try to hang our hat on defense and we lock down and played pretty good defense. We got easy transition points and did some big time shots from the perimeter.” The Lady Cardinals hit the road, today, to take on Mississippi State at 7 p.m. in Starkville, Miss., before returning home, Tuesday, to host LeTourneau at 7 p.m. in the Montagne Center.
LU volleyball sweeps SLU in season finale Cassandra Jenkins UP editor
Lamar University’s volleyball team finished their season with a victory, sweeping Southeastern Louisiana in three sets, Saturday, in the McDonald Gym. “It was a really great match for the seniors,” head coach Michelle Kuester said. “They got to kind of leave on a good note and leave with a positive reflection on the program. We made a lot of progress throughout the year and I think we’re on the upward climb for a surprising year next year.” Despite LU being the first
with points on the board with a kill by senior Ivette Dim, SLU took the early lead going on a 4point run before the Lady Cardinals caught up to tie the game. The remainder of the set became a battle of tiebreakers as both teams went point-forpoint tying nine times and seeing six lead changes. Tied at 12, Lamar finally got the break they needed after two attack errors by SLU gave LU a two-point lead. The Lady Cardinals never trailed after that and took the first set, 24-19. Again, Southeastern Louisiana put the first five points on the board in the opening of the
second set before Lamar was able to catch up and eventually tie the score at nine with an SLU attack error. After an SLU attack error and bad set, LU found themselves in the lead, 10-9. With back-to-back kills by LU’s Tomar Thomas and Caroline Golden, Lamar jumped their lead to two. SLU struggled to get back in the game but a tough Lamar offense and defense held the Lady Lions to 12 points as they tacked on point after point until LU captured the second set, 25-17. The final set proved to be a little more difficult with six-ties at points one, four, six, nine, 10
and 14 with neither team being able to get the edge until a kill by LU’s Bre’Ala Box gave the Lady Cardinals a one-point advantage to energize her team. LU tacked on five more points holding SLU to only two at 2016. The Lady Lions would only get two more points before Lamar wrapped up the set 2518 and sealed the match 3-0. Tomar Thomas ended the night leading the team with 10 kills. Bre’Ala Box, Abigail Nash and Ivette Dim all finished with 8 kills apiece. “All the seniors played well today,” Kuester said. “They all got floor time which is big, and
I definitely think that they ended on a good note.” LU finished the season 7-20 overall and 4-12 in Southland Conference play. Thomas led the season with 280 kills, with Dim not far behind at 210 kills. Nash ended with 156 and Box had 131. “I’m looking forward to the kids we’ve got coming in,” Kuester said. ‘We’ve got some good recruits coming in and the returning classmen are all really good and we’ve just got a lot of work to put in during the spring. We need to eliminate errors and increase our volleyball IQ.”
Page 8
Thursday, November 15, 2018 • UNIVERSITY PRESS
Cardinal View shows off LU campus Morgan Collier UP contributor
Saturday morning, 315 prospective students and their parents gathered together at the Sheila Umphrey Recreational Sports Center to tour Lamar’s campus and dorms, meet with academic college representatives, learn about financial aid and register for a chance to win a $500 scholarship. “It is a recruitment event for prospective students, that shows them everything on campus in one day,” Karli Noonkester, welcome center coordinator, said. Students were able to pick and choose their itinerary, Noonkester said. “In the years past, we have done it where we keep them on campus all day,” she said. “This year, we did it where they get to pick their schedule and how long they are here — that way they can do what they want to do.” Students were able to choose from walking tours of campus, getting involved at LU, financial aid and scholarships, living at LU, applying to LU and the student success fair. “The student success fair was a huge hit,” Noonkester said. “We had all of the main organizations line up in the main walkway of the Setzer Center and they had representatives from each of the organizations for prospective students to go
ask them questions and talk to them about their organizations.” Each student received a nametag with a number attached to it in order to find their matching number partners, or “nest partners,” Noonkester said. Once they found their partners, each student got a ticket to go into a drawing for a $500 scholarship. “In years past, we’ve had all these students on campus but never pushed them to talk to each other and to meet each other,” she said. “This year we pushed them to mingle and meet other prospective students.” Each person who attended received a T-shirt, and the design can be found at lamar.edu/makinghistory for
an interactive way to learn more about Lamar, Noonkester said. “In the L and the U of the design is a bunch of facts about Lamar University, along with things that have to do with campus,” she said. “On the website, you can scroll over different parts of the design and click on it for it to tell you facts.” Sophomore Bayleigh Smith, welcome center tour guide, has worked six Cardinal Views. “This year’s event is the best one I have been a part of,” she said. Senior Thalia Polanco, welcome center tour guide, said the event made parents want to come to Lamar as well as the students. Attendees were able to turn their nametags in at the box office in exchange for a ticket to
UP photos by Morgan Collier
Prospective LU students check-in at Cardinal View, left, in order to learn more about the school, Saturday, in the Shiela Umphrey Rec Center. Students take a campus tour, above, stopping to check out out the rock wall and fitness center. the football game against Houston Baptist University. For more information on how to get involved with the
welcome center, visit lamar.edu/admissions or the Herman Iles Building in the John Gray Center.
Interfaith panel to discuss religion, Friday ClaireRobertson UP contributor
A Hindu, a Buddhist, a Jew, a Muslim, a Catholic, and a Protestant walk into an auditorium. This is not the start of a bad joke, it’s the makeup of the “Interfaith Panel: Knowledge Across Religions.” The panel, organized by the division of global diversity, inclusion and intercultural affairs and
the office of international student programs and services, will feature clergy members of different faiths to discuss approaches to knowledge and learning, and how religion impacts our daily lives. The panel will be held, Friday, at 4 p.m., in Landes Auditorium in the Galloway Business Building. The panel comprises of Imam Mufti Taha Khan, Rabbi Mathew Michaels, non-denominational
Pastor Josh Jean, Buddhist Bhante Basnagoda Rahula, Roman Catholic Priest Thomas Phelan, and Hindu Scholar K.C.K. Reddy. “Each guest speaker will have seven minutes to shed light on how religious scriptures and teachings examine the topic of knowledge acquisition, its importance, and how it impacts their daily life and people around them,” Mustapha Jourdini, direc-
tor of international student programs, said. “Most of our students (at Lamar) are Christian or have a Christian religious background. This panel presents an opportunity to students, faculty, and staff to learn about six different perspectives on knowledge, and its impact on self and humanity.” Non-religious students have much to gain from this panel as
well, Jourdini said, adding that religion is often blamed for being the root cause of hatred, destruction and division around the world. He said religion can be a source of peace, unity and human prosperity. A Q&A session will follow the discussion, and students are encouraged to bring questions. For more information visit the office of OISPS in Wimberely 117.