May 26, 2023

WICHITAN GRADUATES SAY GOODBYE

Abigail Jones, design editor Mass communication graduate

The best thing about college is that it's a time to try out everything you want to try. No, I don't mean drugs. I mean futures. You can be a biologist for a semester or a historian for another. I chose to be a journalist, a photographer, a designer, a linguist, an actor, a political scientist and a whole bunch of other things. I have the Wichitan to thank for helping me figure out what I want to be for longer than a semester - a graphic designer. During my journey toward my new future, I made friendships and connections that I hope last forever. I had some wins that give me pride for my hard work. I went through hardships that have taught me more than I'll need to succeed in life. I'm leaving a department that has my whole heart and soul. Though saying goodbye to the mass comm. edit bays, news room and most of all the people, is sad, I have them to thank for how far I've come. Thank you everyone for the love, the inside jokes, the late nights and everything else that I wouldn't have had if it weren't for MSU.

Colin Stevenson, photography editor Mass communication graduate

This is it, huh? Four long years at the Wichitan have come and gone, yet it feels like I walked into the office for the first time just yesterday. At the same time, I leave with so much learned and many, many cherished memories. My journey here parallels my college career; I thought I knew everything and got quickly proven wrong. I had to learn about AP, photojournalistic codes of ethics and how to properly manage hundreds of photos without wasting too much time (that last one was very difficult). As I grew, I went up the ranks, from photographer, to chief photographer, all the way to photography editor. I worked alongside and under so many people on that journey, and I am grateful for the feedback and help they gave me. Along the way, I went on trips, covered events I could never have imagined and stayed up countless nights making sure the paper was ready to go. I won’t deny there were some bad moments, but I still loved my job, and I wouldn’t trade my hours for anything. Thank you, everyone.

Esmeralda Carlos, issue staff Marketing graduate

Although I have only been a part of the Wichitan for a semester I have gained so much experience and met some amazing people. I wasn’t sure what to expect going in because I had never done anything like this before but all of the members answered any questions I had and made me feel welcomed. I’m so grateful for their support and trust through this semester and I wish I could have joined sooner!

Coming to the Wichitan was always a highlight of my week. I’ve enjoyed spending time with everyone during production nights and at the game night! I’m going to miss the friendships made but I’m excited to see what the future holds for the other graduating seniors and The Wichitan. More than anything I'll miss beating Cecil in our nerf battles and chess games…

Editor’s note: Esmy never defeated Cecil in a game of chess

Editor-in-Chief: Cecil Witherspoon

Managing Editor: Anne Akpabio

Design Editor: Abigail Jones & Emily Copeland

Photography Editor: Colin Stevenson

Copyright ©2022.

First copy free. Additional copies $1.00 each.

The Wichitan is a member of the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association and the Associated Collegiate Press. The Wichitan reserves the right to edit any material submitted for publication.

Vol. 87 |

No. 14

Midwestern State University

Fain Fine Arts Bldg., Room D201

3410 Taft Blvd. | Wichita Falls, Texas 76308

(940) 397-4704

wichitan@msutexas.edu | thewichitan.com

@wichitanonline

Spanish Editor: Lizbeth Jaimes

Business Manager: Tiffany Haggard

Social Media Manager: Rebekah Gardner

Section Editor: Joey Arthur

Issue Staff: Juliana Abril, Esmeralda Carlos, Emily Copeland, Juan Manosalva

Advisor: Jonathon Quam

Opinions expressed in The Wichitan do not necessarily reflect those of the students, staff, faculty, administration or Board of Regents of Midwestern State University.

The Wichitan welcomes letters of opinion from students, faculty and staff submitted by the Friday before intended publication. Letters should be brief (250 words or fewer) and without abusive language or personal attacks. Letters must be typed and signed by the writer and include an email address, telephone number and address.

PHOTO BY TIFFANY HAGGARD | THE WICHITAN Mass communication graduate Colin Stevenson intends to continue pursuing photography and videography in both journalism and fine art, 2023.

PHOTO COURTESY OF ABIGAIL JONES

Mass communication graduate Abigail Jones intends to travel as she pursues her career, 2023.

PHOTO COURTESY OF ESMERALDA CARLOS Marketing graduate Esmeralda Carlos, while appreciating their time at the Wichitan, looks forward to what's next, 2023.

MUSTANGS' GRADUATION DAY

After their years of hard work, 701 MSU Texas students walked the stage today to receive their diplomas. Family and friends gathered at Kay Yeager Coliseum to cele- brate the success of the graduates.

DATE May 13, 2023

LOCATION Kay Yeager Coliseum

SPEAKER Gabriella Pettijohn, President, MSU Student Government Association

FACULTY AWARD RECIPIENT Kirsten Lodge, professor of English

DEGREES Master’s | 110 Bachelor’s | 591

QUOTES FROM THE DAY

“My advice for the students is just to take everything you've learned, all of your life experiences, move forward, make the best of every situation that you have, and learn from everything you've done. Do the best and make a difference in the world.” |

Randy Case, Assistant Professor, Respiratory Care

“I am really pleased to see all these students crossing the stage today such big accomplishments for all of them it's a great time to be out and start looking at the future, so I wish them the best.” |

Dr. Jonathan D. Price, Professor, Geological Science

“I first congratulate them best of luck for their future hopefully they will be successful in their future careers and be good human beings. That's my main suggestion to them and otherwise, best of luck to them.” |

Kashif Mahmud, Assistant Professor, Geosciences

“They have been given the best education they could get, for the graduate students wish them the best, the journey has just started they can always go out and do more good things like the join the

program and become professors like us, we need new ones to come forward. For the undergrad students this is not the end of the world, they should also consider going for more academic qualifications, we want more career-oriented students, they should consider joining the graduate program.” |

Andrew B. Katumwehe, Assistant Professor, Geosciences

“Advice I guess would be that anything is possible, right, now that you have this degree.That's the key to the next door that's going to open up the future. For our area, we have all these professional societies. I would tell them, or plead with them, to take an active role in all these professional societies because they'll make a difference in the next generation.” |

Dr. Jeff Killion, Dean, Gunn College of Health Sciences and Human Services

“My advice to graduates is to take a breath enjoy life for a few days get out in the workforce and to take their hearts with them we really need a lot of grace in this world right now and especially for our Health Sciences people to remember that they are so needed and so wanted and their kindness and their hearts are what

our patients need and they've gotten the best education they could have possibly gotten.” |

Beth Leigh Veale, Chair, Radiologic Sciences

“I would tell them they need to be involved in their professional societies go to face to face meetings for their continuing education read the journals make sure they stay updated with everything that they know in the field.” |

Lynette K. Watts, Associate Professor, Radiologic Sciences

“The biggest piece of advice I would say is probably never say never because there's no way you can know what's going to happen in the future. And always keep all of your possibilities open. Never close the door, you never know who the next person you look at is going to be somebody maybe your boss or maybe your coworker.” |

Rodney Fisher, Associate Professor, Radiologic Sciences

“The world is theirs. You have your education, you have the opportunity to continue your education, you have the opportunity to work and you  have the ability to impact the world. So use what you've

learned here and use your growth that you've had here and go out and change the world.” |

Dr. Keith Lamb, Interim President

“Being the first person in my family to first get a bachelor degree and then a master’s is probably the most exciting part of today. My favorite memory of MSU is definitely every interaction with the people in the Computer Science department and the support group that it created for me. I love MSU and although I’m sad to be leaving some of my friends, I am very excited for the next stage of my life.” |

Dakota Wilson, Master of Science in Computer Science

“The most exciting part of graduating today was getting to finish my degree and gaining this new sense of accomplishment. Getting to meet new people, forming lifelong friendships and creating a community was my favorite part of my journey here at MSU. To all the undergrads and graduates still working to get their degrees I leave this piece of advice to you, be confident and determined in your abilities and do not let bad grades or academic stress stop you from getting your degree because trust

me it is worth it.” |

Nadilia Gilbert, Master of Business Administration

“My favorite part of today is seeing all the happy faces and just being able to graduate today. The most exciting part of my college journey was all the people I met and finally being done. Now that I’m done, I plan on hitting up the industry and try to get a job for a big tech company.” |

D’Angelo Brown, Master of Science in Computer Science

"I feel amazing. I feel satisfied, I feel completed, I feel proud more than anything. I would say experience things for yourself. There are some things that people may say are difficult or they’re hard, but for you it just comes easy. So just take everything with a grain of salt and do your best.” |

Ebany Hanna, Bachelor of Radiologic Technology

“I have a family away from home. I found brothers for life out here, family members for life. Yeah, just completely family for me. And also I can do anything, I can do anything I set my mind to, nothing’s too big for me.” |

Jace Johnson, Bachelor of Sports Leisure Studies

PHOTO BY CECIL WITHERSPOON | THE WICHITAN Pre-medical graduate Andrea Repici waves to his famly as he proceeds out of Kay Yeager after graduating, May 13.

PHOTO BY TIFFANY HAGGARD | THE WICHITAN Mass communication graduate Gerrant Guiste holds his diploma holder out to his family in celebration, May 13.

PINTURA AL AIRE LIBRE

El museo de arte de MSU Texas desarrolló un taller de pintura al aire libre en honor al día de la madre, el pasado jueves 11 de mayo, fomentando la unión familiar, la creatividad y la pasión por el arte.

El evento consistía en pintar un fragmento del paisaje al rededor del lago Sikes. Cada participante podía escoger la vista que deseara plasmar, por lo que a lo largo del lago se podían ver varias personas y familias pintando con acuarelas distintas perspectivas de un mismo lago, logrando así una gran diversidad en pinturas y escenarios.

Estos talleres se llevan a cabo habitualmente cada jueves y cada sábado, sin embargo, esta era una fecha especial, pues se realizó en ámbito de celebrar el día de la madre. Como menciona Sarah Griego, Education Coordinator, los grupos de los jueves suelen ser más pequeños

pero esta vez hubo aproximadamente 15 personas, siendo este uno de los más grandes que han tenido entre semana.

“Es un buen número de personas para ser jueves. Tuvimos una gran variedad de edades, siendo los más jóvenes de 7 años, mientras que los mayores rondaban sobre los 60. Siempre tenemos una variedad de edades y esto es muy bueno para este tipo de talleres,” dijo Griego.

Así mismo, Christopher Astudillo exalumno de MSU mencionó que el evento estaba siendo bastante exitoso, muy apto para el ambiente familiar y aquellos que no son artistas.

“Lo estoy disfrutando mucho. Realmente nos hace esforzar para pintar porque no somos artistas en lo absoluto, pero este evento me ha ayudado a ser más creativo y también es una posibilidad de aprender más cosas sobre el arte y cualquier cosa sobre el museo,” dijo Astudillo.

De la misma manera Astudillo resaltó el trabajo de MSU en promocionar esta clase de eventos, pues no solo beneficia a

sus estudiantes, al profesorado y personal en general, sino también al museo.

“Me gusta que MSU juega un papel muy importante en la creación de este evento pues le da al museo más oportunidades para realizar estos talleres y relacionarse con la comunidad no solo de la universidad sino de la ciudad misma,” dijo Astudillo.

Adicionalmente, Sarah Griego mencionó que próximamente habrá una exposición de arte que se hará en conjunto con MSU y la red regional de museos, donde una vez al año se exponen varias de las obras producidas en distintos talleres del año por lo que esperan tener el apoyo de la comunidad educativa para que asistan a este gran evento. Esta exhibición se llevará a cabo desde el 2 de Junio hasta el 27 de Agosto en el Museum of North Texas History en el centro de Wichita Falls.

“Vamos a llevar algunos de los kits que hemos hecho, así como obras de arte y fotos de los eventos y vamos a tener todo eso como una gran exhibición,” dijo Griego.

FOTO CORTESÍA DE SARAH GRIEGO Pinturas miniatura de los alrededores del area fueron hechas durante el evento de pintura al aire libre MFMA’s, Mayo 11.

FOTO POR JUAN MANOSALVA | THE WICHITAN La coordinadora de educación Sarah Griego y el ex-alumno de MSU Christopher Astudillo exponen una pintura hecha en el evento al aire libre, Mayo 11.

Juan Manosalva

FOTO POR JUAN MANOSALVA | THE WICHITAN Jessy King y Sarah Ingalls estudiantes de MSU hacen pinturas miniatura en el evento de pintura al aire libre, Mayo 11.

FOTO POR JUAN MANOSALVA | THE WICHITAN MSU alumni Cassandra Erazo sits and makes a miniature painting at WFMA's outdoor painting event, May 11.

OPEN-AIR PAINTING

The Wichita Falls Museum of Art at MSU Texas hosted an outdoor painting workshop May 11 to celebrate Mother's Day. The main goals of the event were to promote family unity, creativity and a passion for art. The event consisted of painting a fragment of the landscape around Sikes Lake. Each participant could choose the view they wanted to capture, so that around the lake several people and families could be seen. Each painted different perspectives of the same lake with watercolors, thus achieving a great diversity in paintings and settings.

Although this time the event celebrated Mother's Day, usually these outdoor painting workshops are held every Thursday and Saturday. Sarah Griego, education coordinator, said Thursday

groups are usually smaller but this time there were about 15 people, making this one of the largest of the weekday groups so far.

“It's a really good group for Thursday. We had a variety of ages, the youngest 7 years old, while the oldest was around 60. We always have a variety of ages which is really good for this type of workshops” Griego said.

Likewise, former MSU student Christopher Astudillo mentioned that the event was very successful, suitable for the family environment and fun for those who are not artists.

“I am enjoying it a lot. It really gets you out there painting because I'm not an artist at all, but this event has helped me to become more creative and it's also a possibility to learn more things about art, and anything about the museum,” Astudillo said.

In the same way, Astudillo highlighted the work of MSU promoting this kind

of event, since it not only benefits its students, faculty and staff, but also the museum.

“I like that MSU plays a big part and creating this event gives the museum more opportunities to do this workshops and engage with the community not only of the university but of the town itself,” Astudillo said.

Additionally, Sarah Griego mentioned an art exhibition that will be held in conjunction with MSU Texas and the regional museum network, where once a year several of the works produced in different workshops of the year are exhibited.

“We are gonna take some of the kits that we’ve made, some people art work and pictures of the events and we are going to have that as an exhibit,” Griego said.

This exhibition will take place from June 2 to Aug. 27 at the Museum of North Texas History in downtown Wichita Falls.

PHOTO BY JUAN MANOSALVA | THE WICHITAN Rosa Astullido and Abril Astullido, Christopher Astullido's family, help make miniature sceneries, May 11.

PHOTO BY JULIANA ABRIL | THE WICHITAN Orlando Lopez and Myrian Vela sit together after making paintings at the event, May 11.

Juliana Abril

PHOTO COURTESY OF SARAH GRIEGO Paintings are made in a small tin so the lower half can be used as a palette to hold and mix paints, May 11.

The Wichitan’s Song of the Week: "GLIMPSE OF US"

JOEY ARTHUR ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

elcome back to this week’s edition of the Wichitan’s Song of the Week. In celebration of AsianAmerican and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, this week’s pick is “Glimpse of Us” by Japanese-born singer-songwriter Joji. Released June 10, 2022, as the lead single and a teaser and then re-released as the first track of his third studio album “SMITHEREENS,” “Glimpse of Us” is a song about being in love, losing that love and trying to find that same love in the next relationship. In the song, Joji sings about how his current relationship is the best thing but he still feels something lacking. He also sings about his first relationship and how toxic it was but how he misses her because she was the first person he has ever loved. Joji released the official music video for the song June 9, 2022 which featured very destructive, violent and dangerous scenes Joji said represented a very dark time in his life after the end of the aforementioned relationship.

WBorn in Osaka, Japan, George Kusunoki Miller(or Jōji Kusunoki Mirā) most commonly known as Joji is a viral internet sensation and popular singer-songwriter best known for either his internet personality as Filthy Frank and Pink Guy and his virals youtube videos or his two viral songs, “SLOW DANCING IN THE DARK” which went viral on the popular social media app, TikTok and “Glimpse of Us” which earned him several award nominations. Growing up in the city of Kobe, Japan, Joji had an interest in music and at the young age of 18, Joji left Japan to move to the United States to pursue a career in music. While pursuing a degree at the New York Institute of Technology, Joji created the internet personalities "Filthy Frank" and "Pink Guy" as a means to promote his music but the account started to focus on more comedy-based content. In 2017, Joji announced that he would no longer be producing Filthy Frank content due to health reasons and would be shifting to more music-centered content. In 2018, Joji started releasing comic-based music still under the name Pink Guy and then after signing with 88rising, began releasing more serious music under the name "Joji.” Joji’s entire discography has always been heavily influenced by his passion for entertaining people and telling his life experience through song and “Glimpse of Us” is a prime example of his discographic style.

“Glimpse of Us” is my favorite song from the album and my favorite from Joji’s entire discography. In “Glimpse of Us” Joji sings about a time in his life when he was in a toxic relationship that ended. Joji narrates in detail all of the memo-

Smithereens is Joji's third studio album, 2022. Released November 4, 2022, it contained nine songs, including "Glimpse of Us" and debuted at number 1 on Billboard's Alternative Albums chart.

ries he experienced during the relationship. He also tells us how he is currently in a new relationship, a better one but feels that something is missing. He states that his current girlfriend is perfect and she cares about him but he doesn’t want to be in the relationship anymore because he misses his ex. He notes that every time he and his girlfriend are together, he reminisces about the former relationship and he wants to get back with his ex. “Glimpse of Us” is a song about being addicted to toxic love and toxic relationships.

As stated in previous editions of the Song of the Week, lyricism is an important aspect of any song and Joji  understood that when writing “Glimpse of Us.” In “Glimpse of Us,” Joji utilizes storytelling, metaphor and pathos to narrate a troubling and hard time in his life. My favorite lyric in the entire song is:

“Cause sometimes I look in her eyes, and that's where I find a glimpse of us

And I try to fall for her touch, but I'm thinking of the way it was

Said, "I'm fine" and said, "I moved on"

I'm only here passing time in her arms

Hoping I'll find a glimpse of us.”

Life experiences are a recurring theme in Joji’s discography. In “Glimpse of Us,” Joji gives an account of his experience with a relationship that wasn’t perfect but he has convinced himself that it was. He created a song about first loves and love lost. The song is a great listen with a powerful message.

"Joji's entire discography has always been heavily influenced by his passion for entertaining people and telling his life experienced through song and "Glimpse of Us" is a prime example of his discographic style."

JOEY ARTHUR

RATING: 5/5

PHOTO COURTESY OF WARNER RECORDS Joji's hit single, "Glimpse of Us," acts as the lead single for "Smithereens," 2022. It peaked at #8 on the Billboad Hot 100 songs chart, largely in part to it going viral on TikTok.

PHOTO COURTESY OF JOJI

Joji currently is touring across six countries, 2023.

PHOTO COURTESY OF WARNER RECORDS