Wednesday, November 29, 2017
sdsucollegian.com
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE UNIVERSITY’S STUDENT-RUN INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1885 SINGLE ISSUE FREE
If walls could talk: exploring history of the Agricultural Heritage Museum MAKENZIE HUBER Editor-in-Chief Artifacts fill meat lockers originally used to store carcasses prepared for sale. Cubicles line the floor of what used to be the meat lab. Exhibits stand on floors once covered with sawdust to show animals. The purpose of the stock judging pavilion has changed within the past 50 years, but pieces of the building, now the Agricultural Heritage Museum, remain the same.
Everything within the museum reveals the history of agriculture in South Dakota — from exhibits to the trolleys in the basement. But the building itself is an artifact, riddled with changes of time and purpose, but reminiscent of its agricultural beginnings. The stock judging pavilion was built in 1918 and expanded in 1925. The building, placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978, was used for classes, Little International and 4H, offices, and the meat lab up until 1972.
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Cubicles now stand in the former meat lab of the stock judging pavilion, which is now the Agricultural Heritage Museum. The building was used for classes, Little International and 4H, offices and the meat lab.
PAC expansion unites performing arts under one roof NICOLE HAMILTON Reporter
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COREY SHELSTA AND COLIN GAALSWYK • The Collegian
(Top) The footings have been poured in the theatre for the stage and orchestra pit. (Left) Several roof trusses have been placed and are visible. (Right)The view from on the stage of the recital hall Sept. 5. You can see the balcony seating being constructed along the north wall of the room.
he musical tone of the Performing Arts Center is evolving to something bigger and better. The PAC is right on schedule in its construction and the newly-formed Performing Arts School is preparing for all the changes an improved PAC will bring. “For the first time in the history of the university, we [theatre, dance and music] will all be under the same roof,” said David Reynolds, Director of the School of Performing Arts. The music, dance and theatre faculty and classrooms are currently housed across campus in Doner Auditorium, Pugsley, Lincoln and the PAC. Reynolds said the creation of the Performing Arts School, and being under the same roof, will improve the programs. “You will see more collaboration,” Reynolds said. “You may see a flautist performing with dancers on a stage. A concert may have advanced lighting. You could see costumes during an orchestra performance. We will see the synergy coming together with people from different backgrounds.” One of the most exciting changes is the addition of a $1.2 million pipe organ to be installed in the new recital hall. The organ’s blower that supplies and pushes the air through the pipes weighs 1,100 pounds. Some of the organ’s 3,500 pipes are more than 20 feet long. “Repertoire we haven’t been able to touch before will now be available to our faculty and students,” Reynolds said. The pipe organ was gifted to the State of South Dakota from the
State of Colorado. The instrument is already on the SDSU campus, waiting to be installed this summer. “[The building] is a game-changer for us,” Reynolds said. “There will be no other place like it in many miles.” The PAC will boast a new 225seat recital hall and 850-seat proscenium theater in addition to the 1,000-seat concert hall and black box theater already present. Corey Shelsta, designer and professor of theatre, said the nature of the building created specialty needs to be met. Both he and Reynolds were on the planning committee. “My role was to make sure the technical, design and artistic needs were being met,” Shelsta said. Special focus was given to the rigging and lighting systems in place, as well as the type of floor on the various stages and which rooms are located near each other. The dressing rooms should be located adjacent to the theatre, for example. Other early planning included what could be done in each space and how the lights, acoustics and placement of vents and sprinklers would affect everything. “The last thing you want is a new building with problems,” Shelsta said. “I had to do a lot of reading and researching.” Another new addition is LED lights for students to use a wider variety of colors in the proscenium theatre. Traditionally, conventional lighting has been used, where each light has a single unit of color that has to be switched out manually. Both types of lights will be placed in the theatre for students to use.
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Association fosters awareness, dialogue for Islamic culture at SDSU IAN LACK Reporter A student organization with diverse religious beliefs meets once a month in Rotunda B to discuss the Islamic religion. According to Hara Mubashir, club president and junior biology and political science major, their mission is to “enhance education in regards to Islam.” “I think that it provides new perspectives and paves a path toward empathy rather than fear,” Mubashir said. “We want to show how diverse Islam is because it
can’t be summed up in one person.” The Muslim Cultural Students’ Association was formed earlier this semester and counts atheist, Christian, Hindu, Jewish and Muslim people among its estimated 30 members. Each meeting, club members discuss beliefs and customs of the Muslim faith and what Mubashir believes are stereotypes about the Islamic faith. The club often features guest speakers and hold potlucks and small group exercises to teach students about the faith and encourage conversation.
The club is open to people outside the student body, but has membership largely consisting of SDSU students. Among those is Breanna Kaufhold, a junior biology and Spanish major. “Some of my friends ask me if I’m Muslim and I’m like ‘no, I’m just supportive,’” said Kaufhold, a practicing Catholic. Kaufhold said two of her very close friends are Muslim, including Mubashir, and she has seen the struggles they have been through going to school in Brookings. “I wouldn’t want to be put
in that situation, so I’m going to support them going through these situations and try to stop it,” Kaufhold said. Mubashir said there are often misconceptions about being Muslim, when cultures of a country or a region become confused with the culture of a religion. She said this is why the word “cultural” appears in the club’s name. The club attempts to dispel these misconceptions “just by being ourselves.” “I don’t think it’s that people are ignorant. The thing about South Dakota is a lot of our stu-
dents just come from rural towns that have never met a Muslim in their life. That was the case with one of my now best friends,” Mubashir said. “The only notions people get are what they see in the media. I think that when people come [to club meetings], they learn about Islam by seeing us.” Fathi Halaweish is a chemistry and biochemistry professor and a practicing Muslim. He has lived in Brookings for 22 years and has served on the Brookings Interfaith Council.
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In the article “‘We don’t feel like a priority:’ SDSU violates 50-year-old contract for ROTC requirements,” of our Nov. 15 issue, eateries from the Student Union were housed in the
CORRECTION: DePuy Military Hall in 2004, not 2001.