INSIDE
The BLVD welcomes new bar
PAGE 2
Sexual assaults, a cultural issue
PAGE 4
Women’s basketball on a roll
PAGE 6
Interview with Warm Bodies stars PAGE 5
FRIDAY
JANUARY 25, 2013 FRIDAY High 66, Low 47 SATURDAY High 59, Low 56
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Alum helps at-risk Dallas students shine as “All Stars” eric sheffield Video Editor esheffield@smu.edu
CHRISTOPHER SAUL/The Daily Campus
President R. Gerald Turner joins student body president Alex Mace, students and faculty in the Unity Walk in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
SMU commemorates MLK with Unity Walk Erica Penunuri Staff Writer epenunuri@smu.edu President R. Gerald Turner and the SMU community commemorated Martin Luther King Jr. at the Unity Walk in the Hughes Trigg Student Center Commons Wednesday at noon. “As we do our march we can celebrate how much has gone forward in these 150 years and look forward to all its to be,” SMU President R. Gerald Turner said. Approximately 60 people gathered in Hughes-Trigg to join the Unity Walk. They then made their way to the south exit of HughesTrigg and proceeded to the Boulevard until they reached Meadows Museum while singing freedom songs. The Unity Walk is the “highlight of Martin Luther King Jr. Dream Week,” according to Creston Lynch, Director of Multicultural Student Affairs and planner of the event. “We work with various departments and we come together to celebrate the life and
Levingston attended the event, and said her favorite freedom song is “I Will Trust in My Lord.” “I came because I think it’s important to remember and honor the memory of Dr. King and to try to keep that alive,” Levingston said. She is also a member of the Voices of Inspiration Gossip Choir which helped her lead songs in the march. The march was open to the public and everyone was handed out a flyer with the lyrics of three freedom songs: “We Shall Overcome,” “Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn me ‘Round,” and “This Little Light of Mine.” “I think its important that we do this walk to make sure that today’s generation understands what it took to enjoy the freedoms we have today,” Beth Wilson, J.D. SMU Associate Vice President and Executive Assistant to the President, said. When asked before the march if she was ready to CHRISTOPHER SAUL/The Daily Campus sing, Wilson replied, “I am President Turner speaks in the Hughes Trigg Student Center Wednesday. ready to lend my voice!”
legacy of Dr. King and we are doing out best to see that vision on our campus,” Lynch said. The vision was present when the crowd strolled down the SMU Boulevard singing freedoms songs. This included Vice President of Student Affairs Lori White who wore tennis shoes with her
professional attire to make the walk a bit more “comfortable.” “I march today because I want to remember those who made sacrifices and made it possible to be where we are today. I march today because I know we still have work to do,” White said. SMU junior Brittany
Every 26 seconds, a student in the U.S. drops out of high school, according to recent CNN reports. That’s 7000 students a day. Almost 50,000 kids a week. Over 2.5 million a year. In Dallas County alone, more than 100,000 children between the ages of five and 13 are without adult supervision at home after school. “It’s this lack of attention to what students are doing after school,” Betsy Orton said. “That causes these alarming statistics.” A 2003 SMU alumna, Betsy Orton, helped launch the North Texas chapter of After-School All-Stars, a nonprofit program dedicated to keeping middle school-aged kids in school and out of trouble. “I realized from SMU, and from my professors there,” she said on the subject of her career, “that nonprofit was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.” Orton was a Corporate communication and public affairs, now known as communications studies, major at SMU with a focus on nonprofit organizations. After Betsy graduated from SMU, she got her first job working for the American Red Cross in marketing. She was working at the foundation during Hurricane Katrina and served more than a thousand New Orleans refugees who lost their homes in the storm. “It’s an experience that I will never forget,” Orton said. “And one I never want to forget.” After leaving the Red Cross, Betsy moved on to the Texas Tree Foundation, and was eventually recruited by the After School AllStars, or ASAS, program. Now, as the Executive Director of ASAS, Orton has the responsibility of overseeing 354 fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth graders at KIPP TRUTH Academy in South Dallas. The middle school students spend an hour and a half each school participating in after school
activities. These activities include art classes, dance classes, theatre classes, martial arts, basketball and more. “It’s so exciting for the kids,” Orton said. “They’re getting an opportunity that they’d never have otherwise.” Ninety six percent of students at KIPP TRUTH accept either free or reduced cost lunches. Orton said that statistics show a majority of the families who send their children to KIPP make less than $20,000 a year. “What we aim to do is providing a dance class for a little girl who knew she could dance, but had never thought she’d have the chance to join a group,” Orton said. “Things like that.” Next fall, ASAS hopes to team up with more DISD middle schools in South Dallas to help combat the high dropout rates and low test scores. “We would love to work with all of the schools in the area, but we just don’t have the capital to do that,” Orton said. “So we have to settle helping the few we can.” The reason that After-School All-Stars focuses on middle schools is because the eighth to ninth grade jump is the most susceptible time for a student to drop out of school. “Elementary schools and high schools have all sorts of programs to help at-risk kids,” Orton said. “But middle schools just seem to fall through the cracks.” The program also provides events for the students. On Friday, Jan. 25, the All-Star Classic Basketball Tournament will take place at Duncanville Field House. Over one hundred students are expected to participate in the free competition. ASAS believes the tournament, sponsored by Fox Sports Southwest and MetroPCS, is a chance for students to gain recognition that they may never have had before. “Every kid should have a medal hanging in their room that they can be proud of,” Orton said. To some of the kids, the program might mean shooting hoops for an
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academics
Cox, Simmons to offer new Masters program in Sports Management JULIE FANCHER Assignments Desk Editor jfancher@smu.edu The ever-growing market of jobs for students interested in both sports and business has led to SMU ‘s development of a new masters program. The Cox School of Business and the Simmons School of Education and Human Development have teamed up this semester to provide a new master’s degree for SMU students. The Master of Science in Sports Management degree is a one-year program that is designed for students “who have
a passion for the business of sport and aspire to hold senior management positions in the billion-dollar sports industry.” This new masters program follows up to the Simmons School of Education and Human Development undergraduate major applied physiology and sports management, which began in fall of 2009. The courses which will be held in the evenings and on Saturdays and will be taught by professionals who have worked in sports media, broadcasting, marketing and on professional sports teams. The curriculum also includes a one summer internship.
Dallas is the fifth largest sports market in the United States, with teams such as the Dallas Cowboys, Dallas Mavericks, Texas Rangers, Dallas Stars and FC Dallas. This new course is now accepting applications for the class of August 2013. It will accept 25 students who have graduated with an undergraduate degree. An information session will be held Monday Jan. 28 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. in the Collins Center classroom 100. Faculty and staff new to the program will be on hand to answer questions for any prospective and interested students.
Attend the information session Monday, Jan. 28 6:30-8:30 p.m. Collins Center Room 100 Now accepting applications for Fall 2013
Courtesy of After-School All-Stars
2003 SMU Alum Betsy Orton helped launch After-School All-Stars.