The student voice of Midwestern State University
The Wichitan page 4 Red Dirt Rebels
Up-and-comers Whiskey Myers played unique brand of Texas Music at Crazy Horse Saloon
page 5 Super Surprise Cardinals unexpectedly reach Super Bowl LXIII to battle Steelers for first-ever Super Bowl title
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 28, 2009
Rogers makes plans for a greener campus Brittany Norman Editor in Chief
MSU will soon be a greener place if Dr. Jesse Rogers’ hopes come to fruition. The university president has been discussing recycling and sustainability efforts as a jumping-off point to making Midwestern more eco-friendly. Last fall, Rogers put these goals in writing when he signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment. The first undertaking will be
the development of an effective recycling program. Currently, Midwestern recycles some paper and aluminum through the State Hospital. “(Wichita Falls) is discussing setting up recycling systems so that we can take certain plastics to the transfer station,” Rogers said. “We will get into recycling on campus.” This will mean investing in a means to pick up and transport recyclables, as well as containers. “We want to be a leader in sustainability,” Rogers said.
Last summer, Rogers and other university administrators met at South Oregon University, a school that has been designated by that state as a sustainable campus. “Every pen they gave us was made from recycled paper,” Rogers said. “Their cafeteria is operated by a company that serves foods grown locally and organically without hormones or fertilizer.” At the moment, Rogers’ plans for MSU are more focused on getting an effective recycling program in place. However, he
said he would like to see the campus use products from more small farms to reduce MSU’s carbon emissions. “Transportation of food has become a major carbon footprint,” Rogers said. “We use a tremendous amount of petroleum for transportation.” Rogers has other concerns as well. “I have another issue and it is really in conflict with a problem we have right now on campus,” Rogers said. He was talking about parking. “We have a beautiful cam-
pus,” he said, “but there is very little green space.” He said he would like for students to have more natural areas to take advantage of and less concrete, but he said he understands the need for convenient parking as well. Environmental issues are not just a campus problem, he noted. Rogers said he believes everyone is going to have to make sacrifices and come together to find any real solution. “The major problem we have in solving (environmental issues) is a lack of education about
the economics, politics and the science of sustainability,” Rogers said. “They seem in conflict, and we’ve got to make rational decisions.” As far as alternative energy sources and greener lifestyles, Rogers believes that the first step is to spend money on research. “The environment will become good business and create jobs,” he said. A former chemistry professor, Rogers said MSU is a good place to start educating people See GREEN page 3
Photo Courtesy A student reads on the steps at the Abbey in Pontlevoy, France.
Abroad studies flourish despite economy woes Jamie Monroe Entertainment Editor
Jenny Oliver For the Wichitan
Jeff Johnson plans to dedicate his life to helping people in South America. He’s off to a good start. Johnson left Wichita Falls Dec. 31, 2007. He spent New Year’s Eve in an airport in Lima, Peru, unsure of what was ahead of him. Right now, the 2007 sociology major is in Bolivia, South America. “I’ve decided to dedicate myself to missions in the summer of 2005 when I went on a short-term mission trip to Sri Lanka to help out with the tsunami that occurred there Dec. 2004,” he said. Johnson, 23, had a few years of Spanish under his belt from high school and two years at MSU. He decided to put it to good use. “I really didn’t have a preference for countries other than in South America. Peru is where our team is based so I started there and then got transferred to our Bolivian mountain team.” Now he is in the town of Sucre, population 250,000. He uses the city as a base camp in between trips. Johnson is not alone in this journey. Accompanying him is Javier, a Peruvian guide. They live in Sucre with two others, an American named Graham and a Colombian named Efraín. “Our routine depends on where we are,” Johnson said. “In Sucre, we study the language we will need in the communities as often as we can and meet at the church at least three times
a week. In the communities, we work from sunrise to sunset with the men in the communities in their fields, trying to build relationships with them.” He also shares stories from the Bible with them when he can so they can learn about Jesus” One of the greatest challenges was learning another language called Quechua, he said. Johnson gave some background on the language. The Incas used it when the Spanish arrived more than 500 years ago. It is still used in the villages far away from the cities. “It is nothing like Spanish or English so it’s been very challenging,” he said. While in Bolivia, the fear of disease is See BOLIVIA page 3
Despite increasing costs both on and off campus, enrollment and interest in Midwestern State University study abroad programs in France and London have increased this year, according to the international student office. Dr. Larry Williams, director of the International Education program, said that the current economy has had no negative impact on student interest. “We have record numbers for our semester abroad programs,” he said, adding that the dollar has gained against both the British pound and the Euro, and that students’ money would go further this year than in previous semesters. Williams said students and parents are looking at the overall experience of studying abroad as an investment, rather than in terms of costs. “There is this illusion that college consists of only direct costs,” he said. “What we overlook is that all the money we spend in college is a collegerelated cost.” Tuition and fees for the France program are $7,400, and tuition and fees for the London program are $5,500. The international student office estimates that students in France will spend $12,500 total, including airfare and travel expenses. Students studying in London are estimated to spend $7,000 or more. MSU students studying abroad receive a scholarship from the university to help offset the difference in tuition. The scholarship money comes from student fees. The amount awarded var-
ies each year, but it is usually about $1,000 per student. Williams said that students set on studying abroad have been inventive in finding ways to cover the cost. Along with scholarships, financial aid and student loans, Williams said that more and more students are asking parents, family, and friends for trip money in lieu of birthday or Christmas presents. He also said that students have funded trips through their own initiative and saving money from part- or full-time jobs. “Students can save a lot more money than they think,” Williams said. Alyssa Inman, a junior English major, attended the Spring Abbey program in 2008. Inman said she spent about $15,000 for her semester in France and funded her trip mostly through student loans. Inman said that she had expected to come home and have money left over, but that wasn’t the case. “Fifteen thousand seems like a lot, but it’s really not,” said Inman, stressing the importance of planning in traveling abroad. “Budget. Know where you want to go, and budget for it,” she said. “And be careful about dollars to Euros. It’s easy to get mixed up.” Jordan Jacob, a senior art major who attended the London program last summer, said she also spent more than she intended. “Oh, it was way more expensive than I expected,” said Jacob, who was able to study abroad through saving and a gift from her grandmother. “Everything was priced like things are in dolSee INTERNATIONAL page 3