Rat race
Unstoppable
pg. 7
All four remaining candidates in 2012 GOP election are fighting for the nomination and the chance to face off against President Obama. Who will win?
pg. 9
The men’s basketball team secure backto-back victories against Cameron University.
wichitan
ht e Wednesday
January 25, 2012
Enrollment drops 368 for spring Spring enrollment at MSU has fallen to its lowest number in at least five years. CHRIS COLLINS EDITOR IN CHIEF
Spring enrollment is tentatively being reported at 5,723 students by administrators, a drop of 368 from last spring’s record-setting number of 6,091. The drop in enrollment will cost MSU roughly $500,000 in revenue, said Dr. Keith Lamb, vice president of student affairs and enrollment management. This is the steepest drop in spring enrollment in at least five years, he said. Final enrollment numbers will be reported on the 20th class day, or Feb. 8, so although the 5,723 number isn’t final,
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String Theory
it’s pretty close, Lamb said. “That’s about what we expected, frankly,” Lamb said. Administrators anticipated the enrollment shortfall for the spring when they saw numbers were down last fall. This means the “base” was down, Lamb said. The struggling economy and higher admission standards also contributed to the drop, he said. “We need to take a hard look at what we do as far as keeping and retaining students.” Lamb said getting students to enroll at MSU isn’t as important as keeping the students we have here. “I think we can do better at keeping students and helping them graduate,” he said. “We will take a look at that.” Last semester Lamb’s job title changed
SPRING pg. 5
Two men arrested for computer thefts CHRIS COLLINS EDITOR IN CHIEF
Two men who are not students at MSU were charged with burglary of a building Jan. 12 after two computers were reported stolen from an office in Clark Student Center. Dylan Prouty, 19, and Christopher Tais, 21, of the metroplex, were arrested in Bolin by MSU police who observed them trying to conceal the computers under their jackets at about 7:30 a.m. According to MSU Chief of Police Dan Williams, each computer cost approximately $1,500. Authorities said Prouty and Tais had called a cab to take them back to the Ft. Worth area. When the cab arrived,
the two gave the driver a different name than they had given when they called. Williams said this made the driver suspicious. He told the men he would need the cash up front for the cab ride. Prouty and Tais did not produce the cash. The taxi driver called the Wichita Falls dispatcher citing strange behavior on campus. The men had given a fake name to the cab driver, Williams said. When questioned by officers, Tais gave them a fake name as well. Both were arrested shortly after. Both men are still jailed at Wichita Falls County Jail. Prouty is being held on a $20,000 bond. Tais is being held on $21,500 bond, one charge of failure to identify along with the burglary.
Video goes viral when student asks Tebow out BRITTNEY COTTIGHAM MANAGING EDITOR
Sophomore Brittany Salvesen says every now and then she has to do something crazy. On January 4 she did something that some may call wacky. She asked Tim Tebow to be her date to her Sigma Phi Lamda spring formal. Instead of sending the Denver Broncos quarterback a fan letter, Salvesen flicked on a webcam and posted, “Tim Tebow, Phi Lamb Formal?’ on YouTube. Three weeks later, the charming 48-second date proposal video has close to 90,000 views. “I just thought it would be fun,” Salvesen says. “Why not? I really admire Tim’s faith in himself and his faith in Christ.” Salvesen sees the devoutly Christian NFL star as the perfect date, mostly, be-
cause of their shared Christian faith. “I am not ashamed of my faith and obviously he isn’t either,” Salvesen says. “I grew up in a pastor family home also and I love doing missionary work in other countries and he does that as well. He is like a gentleman and I think he would respect me so I really think he would have respect for herself also.” According to Salvesen, her sorority sisters are just as excited as she is and are hoping for a response from Tebow. Her pastor father even further encouraged her to do the video. “I asked my dad first and he said go for it,” Salvesen says. “I think my parents kind of expected me not to do it, but I also think they thought I would do it.” No phone calls from Tebow so far, but
TEBOW pg. 3
Photo by HANNAH HOFMANN
Textile artist crafts massive installations with cascades of color BRITTNEY COTTINGHAM MANAGING EDITOR
Mixed media and installation artist Gabriel Dawe has art on a string. Dawe’s “Plexus no. 12” installation opened Friday at The Juanita and Ralph Harvey School of Visual Arts. It simply takes wood, string, a bit of imagination and lots of patience to create these installations of Dawe’s work to come to life. His artwork uses massive ribbons that dazzle with color to portray a sense of wonder. Dawe said he hopes this translates to students. “People are usually transported into this spontaneous childhood reaction (when they see the artwork),” Dawe said. “It’s really satisfying. I think these installations are a way to bring more joy into the world. That is one of the
key aspects of the installations.” The former graphic designer was born and raised in Mexico City and his Central American roots have greatly influenced his mesmerizing, largescale, three-dimensional artwork. “I grew up in a house where my parents collected fine handcrafts,” Dawe said. “They tended to be really colorful, rich colors and I think that’s one of the things that really influenced me.” But it was the old-fashioned Mexican gender roles that almost kept Dawe from pursuing his passion in art. “Growing up in Mexico City, there is a lot of macho culture,” Dawe said. “As a boy you aren’t supposed to do certain things and girls should stay in the kitchen. That really marked me. Now I try and challenge the idea of gender roles.” At a young age, he was fascinated with embroidery. This is still where a part of his current works stem from. “As a child I wasn’t allowed to (do embroidery) because it was a girl’s thing,” Dawe said. “So I started to do embroidery as an adult to challenge those traditional gender roles that
limit us.” In 1994, Dawe experienced life outside of Mexico on his own when he studied abroad in Nottingham, UK. It wasn’t until his late 20s when he moved to Canada that Dawe said he became an artist. “I had a desire to explore and live abroad,” Dawe said. “Being on my own, in a different country, I had the freedom to question what I was doing and the pursue what I really wanted to do.” After gaining dual citizenship, Dawe relocated to Texas where he gained an MFA in arts and technology at the University of Texas at Dallas. Dawe’s installation are exhibited around the world from Houston to Toronto to Barcelona. The artist admits to having some obsessive traits, saying they can be frustrating at times. “I was drawn (to art) because of the process,” Dawe said. “It is very slow and painstakingly obsessive in a way.” “Plexus no. 12” takes fiber art to the next level and will run until Feb. 3.