March 7, 2018 by The Wichitan and Wai Kun

March 7, 2018 | Midwestern State University | thewichitan.com | Your Campus. Your News. | Vol. 82 No. 22

Imagine Graduation

pg. 6

Seniors attend the one-stop shop for graduation in the Clark Student Center.

Screen captures from a video posted to YouTube on March 6.

SGA Meeting

#complicitmsu

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Students learn about the renovations planned for Moffett Library.

Strike Urinetown

pg. 8

‘Urinetown’ has commenced and cast members are now tasked with taking down the sets.

Student affairs schedules forum regarding campus harassment, assaults TYLER MANNING EDITOR

he Office of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management sent out a campuswide email March 6 inviting students and faculty to an open forum regarding campus safety scheduled for March 19. Although most campus officials failed to respond Tuesday evening, the forum seems to be in response to various media circulating expressing concern about sexual harassment and assault on campus. James Johnston, provost and vice president of academic affairs, said, “A Postmaster [email] went out today inviting a public conversation, a town hall conversation. We feel like we have our policies and procedures in place, so if those are failing us in some way we would hope that concerned students –if it’s student-driven or student-lead– would be willing to have a conversation about how we make that better.” Flyers were spread around campus last week on Feb. 28 raising awareness to cases of sexual harassment and assault and claimed

administrators were complicit in these acts. Andrea Button, associate professor of sociology, said students in her classes brought up the fliers for discussion. “I teach two Global and Social Problems classes over in Bolin and both had mentioned something to me,” Button said. She also said the students were not surprised by the topic of sexual assault on campus. “This impression that students have that this is a problem on campus definitely was resonating,” Button said. “So at least from that standpoint, from a student’s perspective, this is not an inaccurate thing.” In addition, the minutes of the January Faculty Senate reported faculty satisfaction survey findings, including some comments concerning sexual harassment and gender discrimination in the workplace. “Having been a faculty member at several different institutions, I can say that it is not surprising to have that type of feedback,” Button said. “Most institutions do have a problem with some form of sexual misconduct or harassment against women, so that is not an

uncommon thing to see.” Johnston said if students do have any concerns with these issues on campus, there are resources present for them to utilize. “If it is student related, they can always talk to faculty members, staff. We are familiar with the reporting mechanisms, certainly. Matt Park is our Title IX coordinator. If you’re not sure, obviously the police department is always available,” Johnston said. “There are a number of counseling, faculty and support staff that I would encourage them to talk to. If you’re not sure, ask.” After the flyer was posted on campus, Wichitan staff members attempted to contact those responsible for the flyers by Twitter, @ complicitmsu. An unidentified person responded via direct message on Thursday, March 1 at 12:05 p.m. “Feel free to use any of the Information on this page, but as of now, we are not conducting interviews with the Wichitan. Thank you.” Additional attempts to reach the individuals responsible have gone unreturned.

2 | March 7, 2018 |

My first year as a resident assistant

STAF F E DI T O R I A L

Graduation should stay off campus

OUR VIEW: We believe the graduation ceremony should not be held on campus, rather stay at Kay Yeager Coliseum.

ames Johnston, provost and vice president for academic affairs, has brought up the idea of bringing the graduation ceremony to campus in D. L. Ligon Coliseum and to split the ceremony into two days. We feel there will be a negative impact on the amount of space provided for the graduation. During graduation now, the graduates and faculty are able to prepare for the event in the Multi-Purpose Event Center, right beside Kay Yeager Coliseum. The space to get the graduates ready is crucial, making sure they are in the right order can make or break the swiftness of graduation. There will also be less room in D. L. Ligon Coliseum for spectators. Kay Yeager Coliseum can hold almost twice as much as D. L. Ligon Coliseum. We do not think it would be right to force the graduates to limit the number of guests they can have at this event. Graduation should stay at off campus until we have the means to hold every guest (or at least most of them) of the graduates and the appropriate amount of space to corral the graduates.

CORRECTIONS In a previous version of the story titled “Sunwatcher Building 8 becaoming third learning center,” lifelong learning centers were referred to as community learning centers. The Wichitan regrets this error.

have two cousins that are resident assistants at different universities and they have always encouraged me to think about applying for the position. When the application opened up to be an RA in the spring semester of 2017, I jumped on the opportunity. After going through the selection process and anxiously waiting for my letter from housing to arrive, I Courtney finally received the notification that I got the Gore position. I was so excited yet terrified all at the same time. I was excited to experience the RA life, but I was also terrified because I didn’t know what to expect going into this position. The first month of being an RA really allowed me to get out of my shell and grow genuine relationships with my residents. We all went to different university events and building events, and we were able to build a positive community within our hall. Throughout the semester, I was able to go get lunch, walk around campus, go to different events and much more with

my residents to grow a better relationship with them. Being an RA has helped me grow personal relationships with amazing and diverse people that I never would have met outside this job. After gaining experience as an RA from my first semester, I was excited to start the next semester. I knew what to expect this time and was able to plan some programs that I did not get the chance to do the previous semester. We have done several different activities like doing different do-it-yourself projects, getting together for game nights and food and even driving an hour away to go hiking. Becoming a RA has allowed me to get out of my comfort zone and experience new things throughout the year of having this position. It has been something that I really enjoy doing and it has allowed me to do things that I never would have gotten the chance to do if I decided not to apply for this job a year ago. If you ever had considerations about this job, I would highly recommend applying. Courtney Gore is an education junior.

Looking to solve water problem

n 2014, our quaint town of Wichita Falls was just the second city in Texas to utilize Direct Potable Reuse – reintroducing wastewater into our local water treatment facility. This action was taken in the hopes of providing an answer to a severe drought we were experiencing at that time. The rumors in hallways and dorm-rooms Jalen that we were drinking “poo-water” were disMavero heartening. However, further news from more educated sources on the matter (faculty) shared that waste-water was thoroughly run through a treatment facility, making it completely okay for reuse. Having no choice due to the severe drought conditions, we took our professors word and drank the recycled “poo-water” and carried on with our studying – grumbles set aside. Surviving past the drought period and coming into a better state of awareness into my environmental science curriculum, I came to better appreciate the decision to recycle waste-water, and how necessary it was in that harsh drought period. Along with meeting other passionate environmental science majors in the Environmental Science Organization forced me to stop looking at the issue from the side of a complaining citizen and more from a problem-solver’s standpoint. After long informative discussions with these other environmental science majors, we began trying to come up with new ways to answer the water shortage problem if we were to

wichitan

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Vol. 82 | No. 22

Midwestern State University Fain Fine Arts Bldg., Room D201 3410 Taft Blvd. Wichita Falls, Texas 76308 (940) 397-4704 wichitan@mwsu.edu thewichitan.com @wichitanonline

ever face it again. Amongst the typical water conservation tips advised for citizens, we repeatedly found ourselves returning to the idea of adopting rain barrels in our roof-gutter systems to fully maximize rain water whenever our prayers for rain do happen to get answered. In theory, we believed this method a better alternative to having a majority of our precipitation lost to storm drainage systems. By collecting water with rain barrels and slowly releasing the collected water through drip irrigators, storm water would ultimately be able to percolate into an aquifer as groundwater which we could later tap into for other purposes. We theorized that if the idea caught on and enough buildings adopted the gutter-barrel-drip system, a more efficient capture and utilization of rain water would be beneficial in solving the diminishing water table problem, while hopefully building a solid pillow to fall back on if we ever were to face drought conditions again. More research on the idea to conserve water needs to be carried out to see if benefits from implementation would outweigh costs and if the community of Wichita Falls would be on board for such a project. Having enough clean, available, drinking water in our local freshwater systems to keep everyone happy and hydrated now, and in the future, should be a collective concern. Jalen Mavero is an environmental science senior.

EDITOR: Tyler Manning MANAGING EDITOR: Cortney Wood VISUALS EDITOR: Justin Marquart PHOTO EDITOR: Francisco Martinez ISSUE STAFF: Courtney Gore, Jalen Mavero, Brian Lang, Tasia Floissac, Britnni Vilandre, Andrea Pedon, Jeromy Stacey

PHOTOGRAPHERS: Rachel Johnson, Harlie David

ADVISER: Bradley Wilson

Copyright ©2018t. 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. 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 a email address, telephone number and address.

| March 7, 2018 | 3 U P C O M I N G E V E NT S Imagine Graduation

March 7 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. | CSC Comanche Suites | For students needing help getting prepared for graduation come to the Imagine Graduation event.

Classroom Etiquette: Bridging the Generations

March 7 from 2 to 3 p.m. | Moffett Library Media 212A | During this class we will be exploring the differing behaviors and values between students and professors. By communicating effectively and cultivating positive relationships with professors, it can save time studying, increase probability of receiving a higher grade, and aid in future career connections.

Graduate School Open House I, Tonya movie photo by NEON

‘I, Tonya’: the price of perfection A fter the commencement of the Winter Olympics, Hollywood reflects on one of the biggest Olympic scandals in history: Tonya Harding. Craig Gillespie’s dark comedy “I, Tonya” is a passionate look at the tumultuous life of its controversial heroine. Tonya Harding was, at one point, the Brian best figure skater in the world. She was the Lang first American to land the notoriously difficult triple-axle and a two-time Olympian. However, all of this is overshadowed by the controversy of Nancy Kerrigan. Kerrigan, another Olympic skater, was clubbed with a baton by a man associated with Harding. While accounts differ about the incident, Harding was barred from the U.S. Figure Skating Association; essentially prohibiting her from ever skating again. “I, Tonya” is packed with acting powerhouses Margot Robbie, Allison Janney and Sebastian Stan, starring as Tonya, her mother, Lavona and Jeff, her ex-husband. None of these characters are really likable, but their performances are amazing. Robbie shines in her role, showing the resilience of Harding against abuse. She manages to show every range of emotions, from the jubilant moment she landed the triple-axle, to numbness after the world turned on her. Janney, who’s already taken home a Golden Globe for the role, plays one of the worst mothers in film history. She transforms into a foul-mouthed, tough as nails, monster, complete with a parrot on her shoulder. You love to hate her.

Besides the acting, the cinematography is superb. The camerawork for the skating sequences are jaw-dropping, and the editing of the more technical skating moves is perfect; 90’s culture abounds, complete with bright windbreakers, bangs, and barrettes. While meant to be a comedy, this film feels more like a tragedy. Tonya suffers constant physical and emotional abuse from her mother and husband, class-bias from the skating community and pure hatred from her nation. While played for laughs at the beginning, the abuse quickly takes a somber turn. You constantly question whether you should be laughing or feeling sorry for Tonya. The style of the movie is unique in its pastiche of voiceovers, recreated interviews and breaking the fourth wall. It drives home the point that all of the key players are telling a different story, each one putting the teller in the best light. However, the movie clearly sides with Tonya. It left me feeling sorry for her, but also angry at the injustice done to her. “I, Tonya” implicates its audience as abusers since America also turned against her. I believe that “I, Tonya” received one of the biggest snubs for Best Picture this awards season. It tells a sincere story, while still managing to pull off a dark comedy based on a historical event. There is something to be said for an accomplishment of this level. Although this movie is unashamedly foul-mouthed and takes several liberties with the facts, it tells a fascinating story as it tries to sort out the myths and facts, leaving a definite message to its audience. Rating: 8/10

March 7 at 5:30 p.m. | Moffett Library Leisure Reading Area | Graduate School Open House for future graduate students. It is open to anyone with questions about the Graduate School. All majors/ programs will have a member of their faculty/staff present.

Continuing Education March 8 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. | Sikes Lake Center | Come out and make your own burlap cross door/fence hanger. All supplies are included. $25.

Reel to Real Film Series #4

March 8 from 7 to 9 p.m. | Legacy Hall Multipurpose Room | The Reel to Real Series introduces and engages MSU

students in a variety of topics focused on culturally relevant themes. A guest panel offers thoughtful commentary on each film and engages the audiences in deeper dialogue and reflection.

Red River Reading Series

March 9 at 4 p.m. | Legacy Hall Multipurpose Room | All events are free and open to the public, and refreshments will be served.

Guest Recital

March 9 at 7:30 p.m. | Akin Auditorium | Come out and see trombonist Anthony Williams.

Faculty Forum Series

March 20 at 7 p.m. | Legacy Hall Multipurpose Room | Kevin Clark, assistant professor of radiologic sciences presents Forensic Age Estimation Using the Medial Clavicular Epiphysis: A Study Review.

Academic Council

March 21 at 2 p.m. | Dillard Priddy Conference Room | The Academic Council meets the third Wednesday of each month. The campus community is invited to attend.

Moffett Library Workshop

March 21 from 2 to 3 p.m. | Moffett Library Media 212A | Moffett Library will present “Don’t be a cheater – avoiding plagiarism in writing research.” Lower grades, flunking a class, or university expulsion are all possible consequences of plagiarism. Learn techniques to avoid plagiarism, a serious error in writing those first papers.

CRIME LOG Assault

March 3 at 5:03 p.m. | Legacy Hall | Victim was assaulted with hands and feet in his dorm room.

Theft

March 3 at 11:03 a.m. | Clark Student Center | Dispatched to take a theft report.

Drugs: Possession or Delivery of Drug Paraphernalia

March 1 at 9:03 p.m. | Parking Lot #19

| Upon investigation of a suspicious vehicle, suspect was found to be in possession of a baggie carrying .2 grams of marijuana. The baggie had been used to store a useable amount of marijuana.

Credit or Debit card Abuse Feb. 28 at 7:02 p.m. | Legacy Hall | Report of a student’s credit card being used for unauthorized purchases.

4 | March 7, 2018 |

Annual EURECA forum scheduled for April 28 TASIA FLOISSAC REPORTER

hirty-two research projects from all campus colleges will be up for review when the Enhancing Undergraduate Research Endeavors and Creative Activities holds its forum on April 26. EURECA scholars presented preliminary draft posters of their research endeavors in two 45 minute rounds of, “Posters on the Go,” in the Clark Student Center atrium on Feb. 27. “As the research project advances, the updates will be posted and they will present their research at the forum. Everybody is very well-informed on the project. I mean they wouldn’t be here if they didn’t have a passion or interest in their project,” said Julie Scales, undergraduate research secretary. ‘Posters on the Go,’ a precursor to the EURECA forum, was postponed last week, after campus closed for two days due to icy weather conditions. Scales said the event went well despite a few challenges. “There were work and class conflicts that occurred, but we certainly don’t hold that against the students because we had to reschedule. This was the only day to get that space because the atrium use is very popular so we made the best of it,” she said. Since its establishment in 2013, Scales said students have gained a lot of insight from their experience with EURECA. “EURECA has provided a platform for undergraduate students to expand their knowledge and showcase projects they are passionate about that could make a difference,” Scales said.

PHOTO BY RACHEL JOHNSON | THE WICHITAN

Mireya Gonzalez, social work sophomore, presents with her group about Perceptions of Sexual Assault amount on college students during the EURECA Forum on Thursday Nov. 16, 2017. Students began working with their faculty mentors on the first day of the semester in preparation for the forum. Scales said the research projects and forum provide great opportunities for networking and can open many doors. “If students are passionate about their projects and they share that information with their classmates, then professors share information with their classes. They’re connecting with students like you and me who get to learn something. I don’t know anything about E.coli but there was a whole poster about it, and so it’s things like that,” said Scales.

OF WICHITA FALLS Boys & Girls Clubs of Wichita Falls is hiring for youth program positions. Must be available to work Monday to Friday 3pm to 8pm. Completion of some college or experience equivalent is required. Criminal History background conducted. Apply 6th and Broad Offices. Contact Carlos Martinez at 322-2012. Internship/ Work Scholarship opportunities available. Commitment to work 75 hours during a semester- 6 hours weekly fall/spring and 16 hours weekly during a summer semester. A Scholarship Award of $650 per semester. Application deadline for fall is September 1 and for spring is January 10th Contact Carlos Martinez at 322.2012.

Melissa Rose, biology junior, is doing her research project on the effect of pH on the cell surface hydrophobicity of the fungal pathogen, Candida Albicans. The organism causes a wide array of infections, including yeast infections in women, oral candidiasis (thrush in babies) and can also enter into the blood system and become systemic. “The project I’m doing this semester is actually a continuation of a couple of different projects I’ve done. It’s an important fungal organism that a lot of people don’t know about. I’m hoping to at some point get a better understanding of the actually workings of the cell components,” Rose said. Rose said she is looking forward to presenting her research at the forum in April, as it will help with her future aspirations. “What I want to do after I do my research here [is] go on to my PhD, and so if I can at some point apply what I’m learning from this into that, then I think that would be great. When I finish the pH stuff, I’m going to write a paper and I plan to submit it and get it published,” she said. The university funds the program annually which exceed more than $200,000 per academic year. Students receive scholarships up to $800 and up to $500 expense funds for their projects. Out of 51 research applications from all of the colleges on campus, 46 were funded. “Everyone that has a research project submitted a proposal and the proposal was reviewed and scored by a panel of faculty peers. The scholarships are based off of the timeline and how much time they invest in their project, and that’s all lined out in their proposal,” Scales said.

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Honors students give presentations at symposium TYLER MANNING EDITOR

o give honors students an opportunity to present research in front of their peers and to give them practice for the regional honors conference, the Honors Program hosted the 12th Annual Honors Program Symposium on March 3 in Dillard Room 189. Juliana Lehman-Felts, assistant director of the honors program, said, “Originally, the symposium began as a platform — it was before we had an undergraduate research program — and honors students wanted a way to present their research in front of their peers. The symposium was created 12 years ago — this is the 12th year it’s been running — as a way for them to do that.” Around 40 students, faculty and the like gathered in Dillard Room 189 to hear 10 students from various majors on campus present for about 15 minutes on topics of their choice. The student committee officers were responsible for most of the production of the symposium, which included introducing the speakers, generating the abstracts, creating the programs, inviting the faculty speakers and voting on the topic the faculty speakers discussed. Of the students who presented, Grace Tsichlis, English freshman, discussed the gender gap in the field of science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine. “I wanted to know if there is evidence to support a gender gap in science and math, I guess all STEMM fields basically. A lot of my friends are pre-med, nursing or pharmacy majors so that just made me more interested to research that,” Tscichlis said. According to Tsichlis, a lot of her research supported the gender gap in the field; however, said the women who have succeeded despite those adversities gives her a little optimism. “The other research and the women that have succeeded makes me think that there are better things coming,” Tsichlis said. Anthony Enem, computer science, presented on the technology behind online currencies, also referred to as “cryptocurrencies,” Blockchain. “Originally, I was thinking about this project for a computer science seminar class. What inspired me to pick this topic was that, toward the end of last year, there was a bunch of news surrounding Bitcoin and its value skyrocketing. But then, between December

of last year and a month or two ago, the value just dropped. It was almost at $19,000 for one Bitcoin and now it’s $10,000,” Enem said. “It was the first time I was hearing about Bitcoin and how it was evolving so I was interested in what exactly makes it work and how it works exactly so that’s why I picked it as my project.” Enem said he has been researching this topic for around three months and said it has taught him a couple things about the technology. “I learned a couple of things actually: the main technology behind it, which was Blockchain (which is the talk I presented on), I also learned exactly how it worked,” Enem said. “Some people just think it is a pyramid scheme that is not actually real, but then there are some people who know it’s real, but still use it for scams and stuff like that. So it was interesting to see how different people think different things about this one thing.” After the students presented, there was an hour-long panel discussion about the topic of community involvement. The three faculty speakers on the panel were Robert Forrester, Dillard distinguished professor of finance, Jeremy Duff, associate professor of political science, and Catherine Prose, professor of the Juanita and Ralph Harvey School of Visual Arts. In response to the topic of community involvement, Duff talked about Robert Putnam’s book “Bowling Alone” and how less people are involved in their communities than they were in the past. He then said that Putnam in his book blames television for this decline in social capital. To get more involved in your community, Forrester said the best place to start getting involved in the community is with introspection. “A great place to start is seeing your hobbies and doing your own assessment of yourself and see where you are, then it will kind of come to you the projects you are able to do,” Forrester said. According to Prose, a good way to start community involvement is for people to change the community in the ways they want to see the community changed. “The set of values that you grew up with are really important too. Look to your family and what things are true and important to you. And look around your community. The famous phrase [says], ‘Be the change you want to see.’ Look around and see what things need to change,” Prose said.

PHOTO BY FRANCISCO MARTINEZ | THE WICHITAN

Claudio Rodriguez, complex coordinator, is excited at the sight of a cinnamon roll during the Late Night Breakfast at Sundance community kitchen on March 6.

Residents assistant serve late-night breakfast

sophomore finance, was one of the organizers of the event and said the event was o give students a break from their organized at the beginning of the school studies and enjoy a late-night break- year. “We wanted to do a late-night breakfast, the Sundance resident assistants hosted Late Night Breakfast in the fast because everyone loves food, everySundance community kitchen, in which one loves breakfast. The whole event actually cost less than $80,” they handed out cinnaTorres said. mon rolls, pigs in a blanThe only complaint kets and fruit on March 6. that students voiced was The room was filled with the absence of pancakes. conversations and laughTorres said, “The only ter as the approximately 35 thing that I would change students enjoyed the food. is to have pancakes next Michelle Lopez, exertime. We didn’t have pancise physiology senior, cakes this time because said, “It’s free food and I reit would be more time to ally needed a study break. make.” I saw a lot of people here Other students shared and it was really fun to just Torres’ sentiment and also kind of relax and hang out JOSE TORRES said they wished there people I knew.” FINANCE SOPHOMORE were pancakes. Maritza Ferritz, junior Ashley Valdez, junior biology pre-physical therapy major, said that her favorite part was psychology major, said, “I wish they had pancakes. I would definitely come to the fruit. “I go to all of the events that I hear something like this again.” The event provided students from all about because of the free food,” Ferritz of the dorms a chance to relax, socialize said. Music was playing as students waited and eat breakfast for dinner. Lopez said, “I think the late night in line to fill their plates with delicious breakfast theme was a good idea and had breakfast treats. Sundance 2nd floor RA Jose Torres, a really good turnout.” BRIAN LANG REPORTER

“We wanted to do a latenight breakfast because everyone loves food, everyone loves breakfast.”

6 | March 7, 2018 | HOUSING OF F I C E R E L OC AT I ON

PHOTO BY RACHEL JOHNSON | THE WICHITAN

Angela Dees, kinesiology senior, purchases a cap and gown at Imagine Graduation in Clark Student Center Comanche Suite on March 6.

Imagine graduation helps to leave seniors stress free BRITTNI VILANDRE REPORTER

ith spring graduation right around the corner, seniors gathered in the Clark Student Center Comanche Suite on March 6 to attend the one stop shop for all graduating seniors, Imagine Graduation. Imagine Graduation coordinator, Kayla Brixey said she feels this semesters Imagine Graduation went better than last semester. The event will be hosted again on March 7 and Brixey hope more seniors attend. “We’ve had a really good turn out so far, like very long lines of people,” Brixey said. “We’re expecting about 600 students and last time we had about 300 show up, but this time I’m thinking we’re going to be closer to our expecting number, if not more.” With a few new aspects to the event, Brixey said she tried not to make too many differences from last semester’s event seeing as that’s what has worked for coordinators in the past. “We just added a few different things,” Brixey said. “We put some games in here, a photo booth. Not a whole lot of differences because how it’s set up it works for us. We just wanted to make it a little bit more interactive for the students this semester.” Sociology senior, Emily McDonald said she was happy with the event and embraced the perks of coming later in the

day. “I’m so happy I came late, because there’s no line,” McDonald said. “I think they’ve done a good job.” The best stand at Imagine Graduation in McDonald’s opinion was for cap and gowns and said she feels positive for what’s to come. McDonald said, “It’s the mark of graduation, all the other stuff they’re just trying to get me to buy things, but I feel good. I feel positive. I have an internship lined up afterwards, so I’m happy having some of that stress I had in the Fall, is gone now that I have my chickens put in a row.” Stephanie Sullivan, assistant director for career management, encourages students to check out what the career management center table has to offer when they attend the event. “At the career management center students can stop by here and have a professional headshot made for LinkedIn or other professional activities that they may need a photo for,” Sullivan said. “They are also able to learn about our services such as resume critique, mock interview, cover letter critique and our job search system called handshake.” With a few changes from last semesters career management table at Imagine Graduation, Sullivan said she hopes to draw seniors in with a few new perks. Read more online at thewichitan.com.

PHOTO BY FRANCISCO MARTINEZ | THE WICHITAN

Rachael Miyahara, BAAS junior, sits at the main desk in the new housing office formally known as Sunwatcher Clubhouse on March 5.

B O WL - A - T HON

PHOTO BY HARLIE DAVID | THE WICHITAN

Kristina Curran, nursing sophomore, sculpts a bowl of her own during the Ceramics Bowl-a-Thon Empty Bowls at Fain Fine Arts building on Saturday, March 3, 2018. “I came today because making bowls is fun.”

| March 7, 2018 | 7

Mortar Board adviser finds time capsule buried in 1987

PHOTO BY FRANCISCO MARTINEZ | THE WICHITAN

Ermira Kasapi, architect, demonstrates the potential look for Moffett Library after the renovations. | Douglas Moss, architect, answers questions by students regarding Moffett Library renovation during the Student Government Association meeting in Dillard on March 6.

ANDREA PEDON REPORTER

or the future members of Mortar Board, a national honor society, the past associates of the organization buried a time capsule behind McCoy Engineering Hall on Sept. 17, 1987. But the current members of the society didn’t even know it was there. Tony Vidmar, faculty adviser for Mortar Board and vice president of university advancement and public affairs, said, “Behind McCoy Engineering Hall there is a plaque that talks about a time capsule [created] in 1987 by the Mortar Board chapter [which is] supposed to be opened 50 years from now in 2037. Our Mortar Board members didn’t even know it was there.” Before Vidmar brought the capsule to her attention, Johna Lindsay, Mortar Board historian and former president, said she was uninformed about the capsule’s existence. “I was unaware of the capsule before he mentioned it to us, but I do think it would be cool to find the Mortar Board inPHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY TONY VIDMAR signia [the members] had Time capsule plaque outside of the back then, such as the McCoy Engineering Building. pins that were awarded at induction and a stole or cord to show how they [the members] were recognized when the time capsule was put together,” Lindsay said. Paytan Stubbs, Mortar Board president, said she believes there is a letter written for the future members. “I’ll assume that inside is probably a letter to the members, hoping they’re continuing to carry on the honor club’s legacy,” said Stubbs. “There are probably pictures as well.” To recognize college seniors for their accomplishments of leadership, services and scholarships, Mortar Board was established in 1918 as the first female national honors society. Lindsay said, “Mortar Board is a National Honor Society that recognizes college seniors on three major areas, Scholarship, Leadership and Service. We try to promote these three areas across campuses nationwide to recognize and encourage leadership, advance a spirit of scholarship and to provide service to others.” Since Mortar Board was first founded, it has accumulated more than 250,000 members, yet Vidmar said students on campus don’t know much about the organization. “Mortar Board isn’t just a nationally recognized organization, it is the earliest female national honors society. Men weren’t even allowed into it until the ’70s,” Vidmar said. Stubbs said after being involved in Mortar Board for two years, it has provided her with an increased confidence to take on leadership roles both in and outside the classroom. “In terms of career development, it has given me the mindset of shared responsibility when in a team,” Stubbs said.

Architects discuss campus renovations to Moffett Library ANDFREA PEDON REPORTER

o discuss the new renovations being done to Moffett Library, Douglas Moss, partner to Holzman Moss Bottino Architecture, administered a presentation during the Student Government Association meeting March 6 in Dillard Room 101. Moss said that the construction will begin in May and will continue for about a year, coming to an end the September of 2019. The interior renovations will include new carpet, paint and furniture equipped with outlets and eleven pod study rooms. Moss said, “We want to best spend the campus’ money by focusing on areas where students are. When you’re inside the pod and if you close the door you will not be able to hear what is going on outside the pod. If you were sitting right outside the pod, you wouldn’t be able to hear what is going on inside.” Renovations will also be done to the two elevators in the library. Moss said one of which doesn’t meet any elevator regulations known to mankind, it doesn’t even reach the third floor. As a result they are installing a new elevator. “We are adding another elevator, that will take you to all three floors, and it will be very conveniently located. It will also meet all of the Americans with Disabilities Act requirements and more than one or two people can be on it,” Moss said. “If you are in a wheelchair, you can get it and turn around to back out. That is definitely an important part of this project.” Due to much of the central space being taken up by furniture and pod rooms, computers and books will be kept to a minimum. However, Moss said he is confident there will still be an adequate number of both. “We been working really hard with the library staff to make sure that we still have the right amount of periodicals, the right amount of reference material and a right amount of the [book] collections. They [the library staff] feels very comfortable it [the renovation] will have no kind of negative impact on the number of books and the

amount of bookshelves required on the campus,” Moss said. Bathroom renovations are also being made to the library starting this summer. “By September, when school starts again, all six restrooms will be completely renovated. New toilets, new stalls, new wall finishes, everything. Then two new unisex toilets on the first floor,” Moss said. A steering committee was created by the university to be in charge of the final renovation designs. Moss said, “The university has created a steering committee. It includes the library staff, some of the staff of the learning center, some of the folks that work in the facility department, it includes the folks that deal with all the money in the campus. They have been apart of every meeting and have been giving us our guidance.” To make sure the money invested keeps it’s worth and to preserve the renovations being made, they have been very careful in the type of materials being selected. “We’ve been really careful in the type of materials being selected, the colors that we are selecting and the durability of things like the carpet and the furniture,” Moss said. Maria Peña, SGA president, said based upon what she had seen in the plan and the powerpoint presented by Moss, there was nothing stating Midwestern State University or MSU Texas. “Since we are moving towards a new branding, we are no longer just MSU, we are MSU Texas. The initiative in moving forward was to create that kind of identity to solidify who Midwestern is,” Peña said. “If you look online and type in Missouri State, Michigan State, a bunch of MSU’s and MWSU’s [show up]. My comment during the meeting was to simply make sure that the architects implement somewhere whether it be Midwestern State University in bold lettering, on a wall, outside, or on the carpet with our insignia.” Peña said the university now has two major marketing logos one for branding and the other for media. “My concern was that they just add that somewhere to separate us from just being a public library or just a regular library in general,” Peña said.

8 | March 7, 2018 |

‘That was our show!’ As part of strike, Ben Ashton directs the UGC sign as other crew lower it from above on Monday, March 5, 2018. Photo by Jeromy Stacy

Seth Angelino helps take down the set of “Urinetown.”

PHOTOS BY JEROMY STACEY AND BRADLEY WILSON | THE WICHITAN

Joey McGinn helps to take down the set of “Urinetown.” Photo by Bradley Wilson

Dean Hart helps to take down the set of “Urinetown.”

Emily Burns helps to take down the set of “Urinetown.” Photo by Bradley Wilson

Despite bad weather, injuries, sickness, ‘Urinetown’ completes run JEROMY STACY REPORTER

hile the final curtain closed on “Urinetown” on March 2, the work just began for the crew to tear down each set piece crafted for the two week run. Weeks worth of work will only take 20 hours to completely dissemble, and to ensure safety and efficiency, the production crew began tearing down the set March 5. “Building takes weeks, and I can’t even really fathom the number of man hours put into something toward the attention to detail for every little thing that goes up from planning out how to build it in the first place to getting the schematics, cutting all of the lumber, painting,” Emily Burns, assistant stage manager and newest shop assistant hire, said. “Strike for this show in particular is probably

going to take 20 man hours. Strike just goes fast. The world has a natural sense to decline, so it’s easier to take things apart then to build them.” Eric Koger, an associate professor of theater, said there is a process to striking the set that first ensures safety and then ensures that the crew can reuse as much material as possible in upcoming shows. The first day of strike, the crew took down most the metal pieces of the set, and day two focused on taking apart walls, public amenity door and removed homasote. The set that took weeks upon weeks to construct is completely torn to shreds within 20 man hours, and according to Burns, tearing apart the pieces she built here her favorite, including the concrete floor set. “I ripped those out myself,” Burns said. “It felt

wonderful. It’s the nature of strike you get everything up and you put all the work into the show, and I think there is something beautiful about that because you put all the work into a thing and then you get to take it apart and it’s a new canvas again.” “We used to strike the whole set in one day, right after the last performance, but we found that it was too dangerous,” Eric Koger, associate professor of theater, said. “The stuff that is in the way needs to be out of the way first, so lighting will be step one. There’s lots of lighting cables and such all around. Then props will need to be removed quickly because they will be just small things that are in the way. If there is any electrical that’s run on the set, that needs to be extracted.” Additional reporting by Cortney Wood. Read more online at thewichitan.com.