FRIDAY, MARCH 16, 2018 | THEFRANKLINNEWS.COM
COST-VALUE
CULTURE TUITION FALLS BELOW MOST PEER INSTITUTIONS, BUT BATTLES WITH NATIONWIDE PRESSURE PG. 8
COMMUNITY RESPONDS TO SHOOTINGS PG. 4
$
STUDENT LOANS UNDER TRUMP PG. 10
NEWS
“THE Q:
What’s your favorite movie?
// OUR TEAM
“ WHO MAKES THE FRANKLIN? Executive editor Ashley Shuler ashley.shuler@franklincollege.edu
Brandon Barger Reporter “‘The Mighty Ducks.’”
Taylor Brown Reporter “‘The Wizard of Oz.’”
Claire Castillo Photographer “‘Footloose.’”
Quinn Fitzgerald Lead reporter “‘A Knight’s Tale.’”
Opinion editor Christina Ramey christina.ramey@franklincollege.edu News editor Shelby Mullis shelby.mullis@franklincollege.edu Sports editor Erica Irish erica.irish@franklincollege.edu
Nicole Hernandez Web editor “‘If I Stay.’”
Chaz Hill Columnist “‘Star Wars: A New Hope.’”
Erica Irish Sports editor “‘Kill Bill.’”
Jada Jones Reporter “‘Just Go With It.’”
Copy chief Leigh Durphey leigh.durphey@franklincollege.edu Photo editor Zoie Richey zoie.richey@franklincollege.edu Web editor Nicole Hernandez nicole.hernandez@franklincollege.edu
Emily Ketterer Reporter, photographer “‘Newsies.’”
Thomas Maxwell Photographer “‘Up.’”
Jessie McClain Reporter “‘Mr. Right.’”
Shelby Mullis News editor “‘Marley and Me.’”
Advertising manager Matt Thomas matthew.thomas@franklincollege.edu Publisher John Krull jkrull@franklincollege.edu Adviser Ryan Gunterman rgunterman@franklincollege.edu
Adam Price Photographer “‘Smoke Signals.’”
Christina Ramey Opinion editor “‘The Great Gatsby.’”
Matt Thomas Advertising manager “‘To Save a Life.’”
Bryan Wells Photographer “‘Deadpool.’”
GETTING IT RIGHT // MARCH 2 ISSUE • On page 5, Provost and Dean of the College Lori Schroeder’s name was misspelled. • On pages 8 and 9, Erica Irish wrote and photographed “Weighing the Standards,” and Leigh Durphey designed it. • On page 13, freshmen Sam Gutierrez and Danny Goggans averaged a combined 50 minutes and 20 points per game.
The Franklin aims for accuracy and clarity in all articles. We take errors seriously and regret any mistakes. If you find an error, please send an email to thefranklin@franklincollege.edu. Submit letters to the editor to thefranklin@franklincollege.edu.
SENIOR REQUIREMENTS VARY AMONG DEPARTMENTS Division chairs share facets of final projects before graduation SHELBY TAYS | STORY shelby.tays@franklincollege.edu
Each year, hundreds of Franklin College seniors are tasked with a large-scale project related to their major before receiving their diploma on graduation day. The assignments vary for each department, all the way from projects to comprehension exams. For foreign language and multimedia journalism majors, projects can take months to complete. Foreign language majors include students majoring in either French or Spanish. Their final assignments are similar but have minor differences. French majors must complete a yearlong independent research project over a topic of their choice related to French culture, said Dan Alsop, Spanish professor and foreign language division chair. Students will put the research they gathered into a paper and presentation—both in French. The presentations are open to the public. Spanish majors must further a paper they wrote in a previous advanced Spanish class. The paper is due in early March. Students must then make two oral presentations using only Spanish. One presentation is on campus, while the other is an off-campus presentation at the Butler University Undergraduate Research Conference April 13. Alsop said the project is valuable for students to write and present in the language they have immersed themselves in for the last four years because it is a form of discipline. He said it also allows the students to learn how to express themselves efficiently in another language before graduating. “We feel as if students should be able to get up and express themselves in the language well enough to get across different forms of information,” Alsop said.
&
OUT ABOUT:
3/16 NERDOLOGY TRIVIA Prove your knowledge in Nerdology, an interactive pop-culture trivia competition. The game, sponsored by the Student Entertainment Board, begins at 6 p.m. in the Branigin Room and is free to all students.
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INBRIEF
COLLEGE WELCOMES HARRY JAMES ORCHESTRA There are four Spanish majors and three French majors graduating in May. The multimedia journalism department challenges students in a similar way with a semester-long project that implements all the skills they learned in their related courses. Students must present a current, newsworthy topic they want to report on to a group of faculty members. After the topic is approved, students will research and gather information, then compile the information into a 1,000-word article. They are also required to produce a news package, design graphics to accompany the story, create a website to publish the project and develop an audio feature or a photo slideshow. Students must present all components of the project to a group of faculty members for a critique. Following the critique, they have two weeks to make any changes before submitting the final product. “The industry is expecting you to walk out the door and have the skill sets to handle whatever they throw at you,” said Joel Cramer, multimedia journalism division chair. “We are trying to help the students pull together everything they have learned.” After revisions are made, the projects are made available to TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students. The projects can be shared on the site for readers and news partners across the state. “So theoretically, students’ work could show up on any of our partner institutions’ websites across the state,” Cramer said. There are currently eight students planning to graduate in May with a degree in multimedia journalism.
3/16 – 3/17 ‘ANATOMY OF A MURDER’ The Historic Artcraft Theatre will take a dark turn in its showing of “Anatomy of a Murder,” a 1959 courtroom drama about a murder trial. The film will show today and tomorrow at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $4.25 for students and $5.25 for adults.
The Harry James Orchestra, directed by trumpet player Fred Radke, will perform a live concert April 9 in the Spurlock Center gymnasium. Harry James, a former trumpet player, organized the Harry James Orchestra in 1939. The band is known for its hits such as “I’ve Heard That Song Before” and “Ciribiribin.” The band helped launch the careers of many well-known musicians, including Frank Sinatra. James died in 1983. Radke has led the band since. President Thomas Minar announced the event March 8. He said the concert is made possible by the support of trustees Dan Thomasson and Christi Fields and her husband, Jack Borgerding. Doors open at 6:15 p.m. and the event will begin at 7 p.m. Refreshments will be available for purchase at the concession stand. The concert is free and open to the public. To reserve tickets, visit tinyurl.com/ fcharryjames. THEATRE DEPARTMENT PERFORMS PLAY ABOUT FAMILY, MISUNDERSTANDINGS In its first production of the semester, the Franklin College Theatre Department is performing Alan Ayckbourn’s “Round and Round the Garden” tonight through March 17 at 8 p.m. and March 18 at 2 p.m. All performances of “Round and Round the Garden” will be in the Theatre Margot in the Johnson Center for Fine Arts. Franklin College students, faculty and staff are admitted free with a Franklin College ID. General admission is $12 or $8 for non-Franklin College students and seniors.
3/17 BLARNEY BASH Head to Georgia Street in downtown Indianapolis to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day during the fifth annual Blarney Bash. The event features live music, green beer and a variety of food. The event runs from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Attendees must be 21 years old or older.
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(From left to right) Biology professor Sam Rhodes, assistant professor of fine arts-theatre Nick Crisafulli and Spanish professor Sara Colburn-Alsop lead a walkout in downtown Franklin to protest mass shootings and arming teachers. THOMAS MAXWELL | PHOTO
STUDENT, PROFESSOR PARTNER FOR WALKOUT MARCH National School Walkout honors shooting victims, calls for stricter gun laws QUINN FITZGERALD | STORY elizabeth.fitzgerald@franklincollege.edu
Franklin College students, faculty and staff joined millions across the country to urge Congress to pass stricter gun control laws earlier this week. Students, teachers, administrators and allies throughout the nation participated in the #ENOUGH National School Walkout Wednesday, exactly one month after a gunman entered a Florida high school and opened fire, killing 17 people and injuring 14 others. Spanish professor Sara Colburn-Alsop organized a 17-minute sister march in conjunction with the national walkout Wednesday at 10 a.m. Each minute represents each victim gunned down at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. “It’s important for people to see the visibility,” Colburn-Alsop said. “This has to stop. If we’re serious, if we’re truly a democracy, it should be based on the people. Not the [National Rifle Association], and not money.” Colburn-Alsop had never planned a peaceful protest before and sought help from senior Zayne Judd to spread the word. Judd participated in the Women’s March in 2017 and was aware of the National School Walkout on April 20, 2017 to remember the 19th anniversary of the Columbine High School shooting. Judd said the Parkland shooting means 17
different families have their lineages changed forever. “I couldn’t imagine saying ‘see you later’ to one of my brothers when they went to school, and they never come back,” Judd said. “School isn’t supposed to be a place where that happens.”
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It’s easy to verbally advocate for any cause, but that only goes so far. SENIOR ALEXIS BULLOCK
The group marched from the Benjamin Franklin statue at the intersection of Monroe Street and Branigin Boulevard to the Johnson County Courthouse and back Wednesday. Several colleges and universities throughout the nation said they will not penalize prospective students who participate in peaceful protests, including Indiana University and Ball State University. Franklin College has not issued a statement on the matter, but Dean of Students Ellis Hall said current students will not be punished for participating in any of the
protests because it is not a violation of college policy. He recommended that students inform their professors of their absence. “If a student chooses to go, that’s their prerogative,” he said. “If a student chooses to miss, then that would an absence from class that would be addressed by a faculty member’s attendance policy for his or her class.” While Judd’s class schedule allowed them enough time to take part in the event, Judd informed their professor they might be late to class because of their involvement with the protest. Even if they had class at 10 a.m., Judd said they still would have taken the absence in order to spread the word. On March 24, a similar peaceful protest, March for Our Lives, will take place in Washington D.C. Sister marches will be held in other cities around the world, including Indianapolis. Colburn-Alsop said she and her family will participate. Senior Alexis Bullock participated in the Wednesday’s walkout and planned on attending March for Our Lives but decided to sit it out for personal safety. Bullock said she participates in protests to create awareness and to demand action from legislators on a variety of issues. “It’s easy to verbally advocate for any cause,” Bullock said. “But that only goes so far.”
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FACILITIES ADDRESSES CAMPUS MAINTENANCE ISSUES Patz, Knight explain what goes into responding to work orders in residence halls EMILY KETTERER | STORY emily.ketterer@franklincollege.edu
From cold showers to leaking bathroom ceilings, Franklin College residents have reported several maintenance problems this school year. The facilities staff receives about 300 work orders each month on top of its regular routine tasks such as cleaning, building mechanical system checks and mowing and sidewalk treatment, said Tom Patz, assistant vice president of facilities. “Work orders are prioritized when they are accepted,” Patz said. “Priorities can range depending on the issue from high to low. Most work orders are completed within 48 hours unless parts need to be ordered and then we would complete when the parts arrive.” Patz emphasized that communication is key when students are reporting problems. Several residents of the Dietz Center complained about a lack of hot water for over a month in February; however, Patz said no work order had been submitted for the issue until the first week of March. Patz said the Dietz Center currently runs on a new large capacity water heater, installed in November, which differs from the water heater the center previously had. “Large capacity commercial water heaters sometimes do have a lead time to obtain,” Patz said. “Facilities did not receive any work orders or communication that there were
ALL ABOUT H A M I LT O N
any other issues until [a few weeks] ago, and when we did receive a concern about water temperatures, we adjusted the set points immediately.” Director of Residence Life Jacob Knight said he is not directly involved with every work order submitted to facilities, and he was not aware of the hot water issue in the Dietz Center. “It might have been one of those where everybody assumes someone else had submitted a work order, and no one had actually submitted a work order,” Knight said. “Facilities would much rather receive five work orders from people than no work orders because then they get bashed for something that was never reported to them.” Earlier this year, a bathroom in the basement of Elsey Hall was closed several times due to water “raining” from the ceiling, said sophomore and Elsey resident Viktoria Rock. “The facilities department responded to a series of leaks in the drain line,” Patz said on the issue. “A substantial portion was replaced including a drain trap and approximately six feet of drain line.” Knight said some problems take longer to fix and require multiple visits if the cause of the issue is unknown. “There’s times where we’ve had facilities come in and do a repair, but then, maybe they misidentified the source of the issue,”
Knight said. “They fixed something, but the bigger issue continues on.” Junior Danielle Nuckols has been working in the facilities office for three years. Her job allows her to see the behind-the-scenes tasks that take place—something students often don’t see. Nuckols works in the office about two hours a day answering phones and submitting and assigning the work orders that arrive. She said she sees one to three work orders, if any, come in each day she is clocked in. She said she understands some repairs take a little longer, but not everything can be fixed directly through facilities. “I know with the washer and dryers, if those are broken, we actually have to call another company,” Nuckols said. “So then we have to wait for that company to come, and the same thing with the elevators. We have contractors that aren’t just through facilities and maintenance workers.” As far as future large-scale repairs to the residence halls go, Patz said capital improvement projects are planned over the summer as budgets allow. Right now, the current plans involve the campus high-voltage infrastructure, masonry work at Johnson-Dietz and Custer Theatre HVAC replacement.
The Hamilton Library has served Franklin College students since 1965, and there are several components that make the library a necessary resource for students. Director of Library Services Denise Shorey said the library is a “suite of services, resources and programs.” MATTHEW BROWN | DATA
THE HAMILTON LIBRARY HAS...
106,000 BOOKS
SHELBY MULLIS | GRAPHIC
2,217 BOOKS CIRCULATED DURING 2016-2017
260,000
TWO LIBRARIANS
E-BOOKS ONLINE
ACADEMIC YEAR
4,300 DVDS 1,000 VHS TAPES
POTTER PAINTS A PIECE FOR THE INDIANAPOLIS 500, WELCOMING RACE FANS TO THE EVENT. HE WILL BE PAID $2,000 BY THE INDIANAPOLIS ARTS COUNCIL FOR HIS WORK.
ART FINDING PURPOSE THROUGH
5 1 - y e a r- o l d h a s p a s s i o n f o r a r t , e d u c a t i o n Greg Potter is the jack-of-all-trades. From a 25-year military career to a lifetime of painting, Potter has proved there’s nothing he can’t do. And to top off his ventures, the 51-year-old is now pursuing an education in art history at Franklin College. After graduating high school in 1985, Potter looked all over Morgan County, which is about 12 miles west of Franklin, for jobs. “In rural Morgan County, there’s just not much for a kid that can’t commute to Indianapolis,” he said. That’s when Potter came face-to-face with a decision that would change his life. Knowing the military would pay for his college tuition, Potter dove right in. “I thought, ‘Well, you know what? I’m just going to have to go into the Army for a couple of years. They’re supposed to pay for this college thing,’” Potter said. “So I did. I enlisted for four years.” Those four years couldn’t stop Potter from doing what he loved most—painting. “During that time, I did paint,” he said. “In 2000, I was recruited out of active duty with a fat bonus to go full-time National Guard. So I went, and I started painting more.” What was initially supposed to be a four-year military career—just long enough to have his college education paid for—snowballed into 25 years. With retirement nearing, Potter had plans to find a job outside of the military. However, obstacles redirected him to continue with his passion for art. Potter said he thinks the stigma associated with post-traumatic stress disorder
in veterans was the cause of several rejections. “Once I retired in 2012, and I had four tours in the Middle East at this point, nobody would hire us. Nobody hires vets,” Potter said. “I applied for jobs. Painting was there, but it wasn’t consuming my life, like it is now. So I just took up painting because nobody would hire.” Potter’s wife, Franklin College history professor Lourdes Hurtado, played a large role in the success of Potter’s artwork.
Do something good while you’re here. GREG POTTER
“She started signing me up for all these art shows and galleries,” he said. “It just started growing. She had me paint an animal series once. We’ve done Penrod [an annual art show outside the Indianapolis Museum of Art].” Potter’s art has been showcased in a number of exhibits and articles, including the Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library literary journal and The University of Michigan Cancer Center, where nearly 10,000 people will view the work in just one month. His choice of art comes from a different perspective. While some artists are drawing and painting political or landscape themes, Potter said his painting is
something that can bring more laughter into the world. “These animals that I paint, they’re out of place in society,” Potter said. “I got one of a panda in a cornfield, like in Indiana, with a barn behind it, in a Hawaiian shirt and a camera.” Another painting shows six penguins standing around a barn that says, “Rock City”—a reference to the well-known “See Rock City” slogan painted on barns throughout the Midwest. But there’s something about Potter’s paintings, specifically in the University of Michigan Cancer Center, that stand out to people. “I got calls and emails,” Potter said. “I didn’t know a Facebook inbox could get full. A lot of the people that wrote were cancer patients. They wrote how they felt out of place, too. It says it all right there.” Potter is on a lifelong pursuit of education, and knows he still has a lot to learn. Since enrolling as a student in 2015, Potter has completed all the college’s art history courses, Painting 1 through Painting 4, a photojournalism course and fine art photography. Potter’s next big project is a “Welcome Race Fans” painting for the Indianapolis 500. Potter was among five artists selected from more than 100 applicants to paint. The Indianapolis Arts Council will pay $2,000 for the rights to make copies of the painting and display it throughout downtown Indianapolis. “Maybe everything is for a reason,” he says. “It’s just giving a damn. Do something good while you’re here.”
JESSIE MCCLAIN | STORY JORDAN BRODNER | PHOTO LEIGH DURPHEY | DESIGN
a
CHOICE
to
SPEND
Administrators, students and alumni analyze benefits, drawbacks of college’s tuition and fees Franklin College’s tuition peaked to its highest level in the history of the school following an announcement Wednesday. Now, students new and old will have to pay $31,810 in tuition as Grizzlies, according to an email announcement by President Thomas Minar to students, faculty and staff. Last year, tuition broke $30,000 for the first time since the school’s opening in 1834. Minar said, overall, the college does everything it can to prevent raising costs. If a department spends even $1,000 on a program, for example, Minar said he will often have conversations with division chairs to ensure the expense is valuable for students. “We’re vigilant about expense management and assuring that we’re providing
ERICA IRISH | STORY
strong value, and strong value for every dollar we spend,” he said. The college is against setting strict destinations for where tuition dollars go because it can cause unintended consequences like inflation, Minar added. Instead, the administration extends trust to its departments, faculty and staff, with the hope each remembers to work within the college’s means. “Set paths are unsafe because I think they then risk artificially inflating cost,” Minar said. “We look at cost very carefully, and I think that’s an important message. We ask departments and divisions of the college to be really concise about what they’re spending.” Minar said the college focuses on more thematic areas of growth, such as offering competitive salaries to faculty and staff
ZOIE RICHEY | PHOTO ILLUSTRATION
and providing students with the technology they need to enhance their personal and professional lives. On top of internal efforts to manage spending, Minar said the college uses six datasets to compare Franklin College’s cost-value to other groups, including peer institutions and colleges and universities in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference and more. Of the 10 schools listed in the HCAC, for example, Franklin College ranks eighth highest in cost. Among its peer institutions, the college ranks 11th highest out of 15 in cost, according to data compiled by the college’s office of business and finance. Minar said tuition increases exist because the college needs to do what is necessary to stay competitive and offer
LEIGH DURPHEY | DESIGN
9 students a quality education. “It sort of has to, some, just to keep up with what’s going on in the marketplace in terms of cost,” Minar said. “We don’t raise tuition because it makes us happy. We raise tuition because we have a budget to keep. Unless there’s some new cost model identified for higher education, everywhere tuition is going to increase.” Tuition increases across the board are changing the landscape of how students and families talk about affording a college education, said James Vincent-Dunn, the college’s director of financial aid. According to a 2017 Pew Research Center report, American students owed more than $1.3 trillion in student loans, based on data collected between 2016 and June 2017. Vincent-Dunn said loans have always been expected in private universities and college. He said today’s students have the benefit of transparency within families, being capable of holding honest conversations that are more about what they can and cannot afford. “It’s not a new phenomenon or a new attitude,” Vincent-Dunn said. “It’s still there from the standpoint of it’s expected, or it’s known it’s probably going to have to happen, but there’s more of a shift of what can we do to try to minimize it as much as possible.” As an undergraduate student at Manchester University from 2003 to 2008, Vincent-Dunn said students were expected to have “skin in the game” and work to balance
out costs, whether through a federal workstudy program or another type of job. Students in the early stages of their college career face this reality every day. Freshman Monica Robinson said she came to Franklin College because, unlike the outof-state schools she had considered, Franklin provided significant financial aid to offset the costs of her education. Her main career goal is to become an editor at a publishing house. While Franklin College does not offer an editing program, Robinson pointed to money and ongoing conversations with the office of financial aid as the deciding factor. On top of ensuring she can register for class each semester and live on campus, Robinson also pays for her own cell phone, car insurance, vehicle repairs and more. She sustains her income through regular work, often between classes. Four days out of the week, Robinson works at Benjamin’s Coffeehouse in downtown Franklin. In the evenings, she babysits. When she has time, she puts her editing skills to use through her freelance editing service advertised on Upwork, an online platform where users can buy and sell specialty services. Robinson receives thousands of dollars through a Legacy Scholarship, awarded to relatives of Franklin College alumni, as well as an academic scholarship. She still owes the school well over $10,000 this year, which she
pays for through government-funded loans. “It’s harder at a private college, because I feel like not a lot of my peers are working, and a lot of them are getting a lot more help from their parents, which is a little bit of a disconnect,” she said. “Even though it’s a good college, it’s a private college, so I feel like a lot less people have jobs.” Senior Justin Braunsdorf comes from a lower-middle class background. His mother works retail, and his father delivers pizzas, despite his father having a master’s degree in divinity and his mother returning to school to study accounting. In his four years at the college, Braunsdorf said he received consistent financial aid but struggled the most his freshman year. During spring semester his freshman year, Braunsdorf owed just under $3,000—a figure neither he nor his parents could afford at the time. To support himself, he set up an account on GoFundMe, an online fundraising site. Braunsdorf said the college offered him several opportunities to succeed in a career for the money he paid. The English major also approves of his tuition going toward increased faculty salaries. “Having professors around, especially highpaid professors who love their jobs and love what they do, I think having that influence can help make us more professional,” he said. “It’s absolutely worth it.” Alumnus D.J. Campbell, a 2017 graduate, will start paying off his thousands in student loans in one month. The former exercise science major BY THE NUMBERS now lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he is employed by the ProThe following graphic shows tuition and fees of peer institutions to compare with Franklin College's current gram of All-Inclusive Care for the rates. Costs of attendance were totaled using room, board and activity fee data from each institution. Elderly as a physical therapist. He makes around $32,000 each year. COST OF Minimum payments on his TUITION ATTENDANCE student loans start around $400. On top of his monthly $750 rent and $45,750 $58,700 utilities payment, internet, insurance and cell phone costs, Campbell said EARLHAM COLLEGE the loan payments won’t set him $34,744 $49,064 behind but will add pressure and prevent him from saving funds. HANOVER COLLEGE Like Braunsdorf, Campbell said quality faculty experiences are the $31,660 $44,028 greatest asset of Franklin College, but in reference to its overall cost, MANCHESTER UNIVERSITY the college charges too much for a basic education. $29,710 $43,450 “I got an education, a degree,” Campbell said. “That means someANDERSON UNIVERSITY thing. But it was not worth as much $31,810 $41,529 as it cost.”
FRANKLIN COLLEGE COLLEGE DATA | SOURCE
OPINION
ZOIE RICHEY | PHOTO
EDITORIAL STUDENTS NEED MORE REPAYMENT OPTIONS Government should seek to help relieve student loans Student loans are the bane of a college student’s existence. According to debt.org, a debt resource site, tuition costs at public universities have risen 344 percent since 1980, from $2,119 to $9,410. Tuition costs at private universities have risen 241 percent, from $9,500 to $32,410. Likely because of this jump, the average 2017 graduate has at least $38,000 in student loan debt, according to the same site. Many students rely on student loan repayment plans and forgiveness programs. However, students may soon have less repayment options—as if it wasn’t hard enough to pay back loans. President Trump’s recent budget proposal would end the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program and change federal student loan repayment plans. It would also cut funding for federal work-study in half. Federal work-study provides part-time jobs for students with financial need and allows them to earn money to help pay education expenses. The proposal would affect loans that are taken out starting July 1, 2019. Kate Coffman, vice president and dean of admissions and financial aid, said even if the funding would get cut for federal work-study, the college doesn’t anticipate it impacting the current jobs offered through the program. “The Prosper Act does propose a change to the distribution of federal work-study. It proposes an increase to the limit a student can earn, which is great for the student,” she said. “But it also proposes to shift a great portion of the cost of the program to colleges.” While cutting funding for the federal work-study program might not affect many people, cutting down repayment options and
eliminating forgiveness programs certainly can. People aren’t going to be able to pay back their loans faster if they are given fewer options on how they can pay it back. The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program forgives federal student loan borrowers who have a full-time job and work more than 30 hours a week in a qualifying federal, state or local public service job or non-profit job. The borrower must have also made 120 eligible on-time payments over 10 years. The program started in 2007, and nearly 750,000 borrowers have completed an employee certification form for the program. If you don’t qualify for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, there are currently four other ways to repay your loans. Under the new budget, it would be narrowed down to one repayment plan. Eliminating forgiveness programs and cutting down repayment options feels like a punishment. People go to college to get a better education so that they can get good jobs and have careers. In order to do that,
The Franklin staff believes the number of repayment options for student loans should increase, not decrease. THE FRANKLIN OPINION BOARD
scholarships and loans are needed. Students already end up repaying more then what they borrow because of interest, so why make it harder and make it cost more for students to repay loans? It shouldn’t be that difficult to pay back student loans. Instead of cutting programs and cutting down on repayment options, there should be even more programs created and more repayment options. The government should be helping students figure out ways to pay back their student loan money instead of making it harder.
#FRANKLINVOICES The Franklin’s poll board in the Student Center atrium gives students, faculty, staff and the larger Franklin community a chance to voice their opinion. DO YOU THINK THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD HELP MORE WITH STUDENT LOANS?
92 PEOPLE SAID YES 29 PEOPLE SAID NO
*121 people participated in this poll
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GRADUATING COLLEGE SOON? Tips to help prepare for life after college JOB SEARCH WEBSITES
KIRK BIXLER SAYS...
ADDITIONAL TIPS
LinkedIn.com LinkedIn provides job listings and provides users with an oppurtunity to connect with professionals.
Connect with Career Services. At the career services office, students can talk to Kirk Bixler, assistant dean of students and director of career services, or Jill Novoty, director of professional development and employer relations.
Graduating from college can be scary. You just spent four years living in a dorm, eating not-so-healthy food and going to classes daily. Transitioning from being student to being a successful adult can be hard. Here are some tips from TIME on what to do after college.
Indeed.com On Indeed, you can search thousands of job postings. Glassdoor.com Glassdoor is a job search tool that provides information from employees and employers. Salary.com Salary provides resources for compensation data, software and consulting. The career services website provides several helpful links at franklincollege. edu/student-life/career-services.
Talk to faculty members. “A lot of times, faculty members will have their own network of alumni or people who are in their specific field that are out in the greater community,” Bixler said.
Commit to being a life long learner. Prepare to thrive in the fast-paced world we live in by always be willing to learn new things. Be open to listening to advice from your co-workers, boss and peers.
After graduation, take time to create a plan. “The first move is to really do some selfassessment, take a look at themselves and figure out what they want that first job to be,” Bixler said. “I would look at that first job as kind of test driving careers right out of college.”
Think of your career path as a climbing wall instead of the traditional ladder. Your progress won’t always be a straight climb to the top. Sometimes things go sideways, and you have obstacles that you have to go over. Stay focused and keep pushing forward. CHRISTINA RAMEY | GRAPHIC Columnist Jessica Kaiser contributed to this graphic.
COLLEGE WAITS TOO LONG TO INFORM STUDENTS ON ACTIVE SHOOTER DRILL Students should already know how to respond to violence Toward the end of February, Steve Leonard, director of security and deputy Title IX coordinator, sent a CHRISTINA RAMEY campus-wide email that outlined the college’s active shooter response procedure. Before I received this email, I didn’t even know the college had a policy outlining different responses to an active shooter. The email came as a response to the shooting at a Florida high school where a gunman opened fire, killing 17 people. Students should have been made aware of the policy before the tragedy. Tragedies shouldn’t determine when students learn how to respond to different situations. An issue of this gravity should be well known by everyone on campus in case of an
emergency. In the email, Leonard outlined the “Run, Hide, Fight” method of response that students and faculty should follow if there were ever an active shooter on campus. According to the email, different situations call for people to run for safety, hide from an attacker or, as a last option, stay and fight the attacker. In each case, it’s up to the individual to choose which option is best for the situation they are in. “It is very difficult to predict what may happen in situations like these, so having a plan that gives those effective options is what, I believe, will result in the best possible outcome,” Leonard said. The “Run, Hide, Fight” method of response was chosen because it gives more options for an individual to act quickly in an emergency, Leonard said. There isn’t just one right thing to do in
these types of situations. “It is always a good practice to be aware of your surroundings and for people to think about what they would do if an emergency happens,” Leonard said. “This includes thinking through the ‘Run, Hide, Fight’ plan.” It’s also a good idea to know the layout of the room or area you are in. That can help you to act quickly in the instance of an active shooter. In any case, if you notice someone who looks suspicious, alert campus security at 317-738-8888 or local law enforcement. While it’s good that students know the policy now, we shouldn’t have been left without knowing it for most of the school year. Hopefully next year, the college will tell students sooner. Columnist Jessica Kaiser contributed to this story.
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PROTESTING NEEDED EVEN TODAY Walkouts, other movements help people have their voices heard In December 1773, a group of protesters gathered in the Boston Harbor to reject a shipment from the East India CHRISTINA RAMEY Company. The group boarded the ships and threw 46 tons of tea overboard to protest the Tea Act and the taxes Britain imposed on colonists. These protesters were fed up with a lack of representation, unfair laws and their mistreatment. People protest today for the same reasons. But now protesting has a more negative connotation, and many see it as a bad thing to do. While scrolling through Facebook, I see various posts about how protesting doesn’t accomplish things and how people should do something more proactive than grabbing a sign and yelling their thoughts at a passerby. Even silent protesting has become something that people frown upon. We saw this when Colin Kaepernick, former San Francisco 49ers quarterback, chose not to stand during the national anthem. But protesting isn’t just done on a whim; it’s for the overall good of a cause.
“Protesting is important because the voice of the people needs to be heard, not only by those in power, but by other citizens who should be informed of issues,” freshman Camyrn Phelps said. Protesting gets people talking about issues that Junior Kinsley Castro (left) and seniors Kevin Dooley (middle) and Alexis Bullneed to be talked ock (right) take part on the Take Back the Night march that was held on campus on April 13, 2017. Columnist Christina Ramey believes protesting gives a about. voice to people who may not usually be heard. MAX BOMBER | PHOTO If it weren’t for protesting, some issues would be forgotten about until before. It’s happened with almost every the next tragedy, such as the school shooting shooting that has taken place within the past that happened in Parkland, Florida. The year. protesting and school walkouts that are Protesting is needed. People need to exerhappening are making people continue to cise their First Amendment rights and speak talk about what happened and what changes out against injustices that happen. need to be made. Nothing is going to change if people just Without protesting, talk of Parkland would sit around and wish for it. have died out within a week. It’s happened
SENIOR FAREWELL: CHASE EVERY OPPORTUNITY, TAKE THE LEAP
Editor reflects on time with The Franklin, college experiences It’s hard to believe I’ll be graduating in just a few short months. Looking back at my time at Franklin College, I can see a drasZOEY RICHEY tic change in my life since I first got here. I came in as an extremely shy freshman, only knowing a total of three people on campus. Back then, I would’ve never been brave enough to do many of the things I’m doing now. Many of the experiences I’ve had here at Franklin have sparked from my work as a reporter and photographer for The Franklin and TheStatehouseFile.com. Last spring, I was invited to photograph a rally for President Donald Trump in Louisville, Kentucky for TheStatehouseFile.com.
This past January, I was invited to travel to Washington D.C. to help film a documentary on former United States Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Indiana, for WFYI-FM. Both of these experiences wouldn’t have been possible without the help of the Pulliam School of Journalism. These experiences have allowed me to gain real world experience and have helped shape me into the person I am today. As an incoming freshman, I would’ve never expected someone as shy as me to be able to get these kinds of opportunities. Aside from my journalism work, college has taught me anything is possible if you work hard enough for it. My dream of having my own photography business doesn’t seem so out of reach with the push and constructive criticism I’ve received from my art professors. For a while, photography became some-
thing I only did as a bare minimum. My busy schedule made it difficult to continue it as a hobby. After talking with my photography professor about what I wanted to get out of his class, he pushed me to get back into photography and start pursuing an actual business. That extra bit of encouragement was exactly what I needed to get started. It wasn’t until then that I realized one of the biggest things you can do to achieve your goals is to take the first step. No matter how crazy of a dream you have, no matter how introverted you are, don’t let those things stand in your way. Work hard for what you want, and don’t let negative criticism get to you. Even if something absolutely terrifies you, it all gets better after you make the leap.
SPORTS
GAMES IN REVIEW BASEBALL vs. DePauw University W, 15-6
MEN’S TENNIS vs. Principia College L, 9-0
Freshman Lexi Blackburn practices at Franklin Community Middle School. She is the first female diver from the college to compete at the NCAA DIII Regionals. ZOIE RICHEY | PHOTO
BLACKBURN COMPETES AT NCAA DIVING CHAMPIONSHIP Diver talks broken records and history in the making BRANDON BARGER | STORY brandon.barger@franklincollege.edu
March, known as Women’s History Month, is a time to reflect on the achievements made by women not only in America, but around the world. At Franklin College, one woman’s history is making waves in the pool. After winning gold at the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference championship and silver at the Liberal Arts Championship, freshman Lexi Blackburn became the first female diver from Franklin College to compete at the NCAA Division III Regional Diving Championship. At the beginning of the season, Blackburn created a list of everything she wanted to accomplish. “I made a goal sheet so that I would go into practice wanting those goals, really striving for something more than just, ‘Ah, I want to win conference,’” she said. As the season continued, she started to check more and more of that list off. As Blackburn’s time rolled into the championship schedule, she and the diving team kept up the pace they had all season. When it was announced that Blackburn had made it into the regional championships, she was not surprised, considering she took home HCAC Diver of the Year award. What did surprise her was the broken record that accompanied her invitation to the championship.
Head coach Andrew Hendricks founded the swimming and diving team in 2008. Having been with the team since its conception, Hendricks verified Blackburn as the first female to compete at that level. For assistant coach Dee Woods, this moment can be summed up with one word. “Pride is the first word that comes to mind,” she said. “I was so proud of Lexi and her accomplishments. It was a joy to see her do what she loves and succeed at it.” For Blackburn’s teammates, it is also a big moment. Her male diving counterpart, junior Will Combs, paralleled her experiences when he made it to the regional championship as the first diver in Franklin College diving’s seven-year history to compete there. “It is really important to understand that our program is growing and really solid,” Combs said. “Having both a male and a female make it to regionals for the first time is a really big deal.” While Blackburn still wants to break more records during her time here at Franklin, she does have some advice for the next generation of female divers. “Diving is about 98 percent mental. So, you have to go in with a really positive attitude, which I learned from Dee [Woods],” she said. “It is really important to have that attitude when doing dives so that you can go in and get it done.”
WOMEN’S TENNIS vs. Principia College W, 7-2 SOFTBALL vs. Kalamazoo College L, 10-9 MEN’S GOLF 2nd of 4 Franklin College Spring Invite
UPCOMING GAMES SOFTBALL 3/16 vs. Capital College MEN’S TENNIS 3/17 vs. Thomas More College
MEN’S TRACK AND FIELD 3/17, Rose-Hulman Early Bird
WOMEN’S TRACK AND FIELD 3/17, Rose-Hulman Early Bird
WOMEN’S TENNIS 3/17 vs. Thomas More College BASEBALL 3/17 vs. Capital College
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IN BRIEF COLLEGE ALUMNUS RECEIVES AWARD FOR LEADERSHIP IN WOMEN’S BASKETBALL The Women’s Basketball Coaches Association and United States Marine Corps named Franklin College alumnus and former basketball student assistant Chad Killinger a national coach of the year March 9. This marks Killinger’s third time receiving a coach of the year award while coaching at Moberly Area Community College in Moberly, Missouri. His team holds a 32-0 season record. They will play at the national level in Lubbock, Texas, starting March 19. “Killinger was selected as the winner by his peers after leading his team to an exceptional season,” said Danielle Donehew, executive director of the WBCA, in a press release. “The WBCA recognizes and applauds his leadership example that can be seen in his student-athletes, institution and community.” Killinger is set to receive the Pat Summit Trophy later this spring in Columbus, Ohio, during the 2018 WBCA Convention and NCAA Women’s Final Four. Sources: Women’s Basketball Coaches Association, Moberly Monitor
CALLOUT FOR INDY’S AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE COMING MARCH 24 The Indianapolis Giants, an Australian football team, is hosting a callout meeting Saturday, March 24 at 12 p.m. at the Indy City Brewing Company, located on Shelby Street in Indianapolis. This Australian version of football, also called “footy,” is described as a blend of several sports, including football, basketball, soccer, rugby and hockey. In a message sent out by the team to Franklin College, representatives said they are seeking area college students as fans and teammates. “The Giants would like to start building club and intramural teams at all of the Indiana colleges to build up future Giants interest and players,” the team said in a statement. The season will run March through October. It includes eight weekend games and a national event hosted by the United States Australian Football League in Racine, Wisconsin. For more information, email the team at mulinaro@yahoo.com. Students can follow the team for general updates on Twitter and Instagram @indygiants.
SPRING SPORTS UPDATE: TEAMS LOOK AHEAD, REFLECT Some Grizzlies see success, others look to improve as season progresses DIONTE COLEMAN | STORY dionte.coleman@franklincollege.edu
It may not feel like spring yet, but the spring athletic season has already begun for some teams. For others, it’s not long before they take off. BASEBALL The baseball team is currently 10-0 after a 15-6 win over DePauw University Tuesday. On March 5, the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference named senior pitcher Christian Sullivan an HCAC Pitcher of the Week for the third time in his career. The baseball team is currently second best in its conference. The Grizzlies will host a double-header against Capital College tomorrow. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. SOFTBALL On the women’s side, the softball team holds a 9-1 record and is playing well across the board, head coach Butch Zike said. “Our pitching has been really good, our hitting has been really good, and we’ve just played very well early in the season,” Zike said. “We haven’t made many mistakes, and the players have achieved as much as what they can.” Focusing on each game is a must, Zike said, with teams from Transylvania University, Defiance College and Hanover College all on the Grizzlies’ tails. “We’re really concerned about every game,” Zike said. “You only get better by concentrating on each and every game. If you overlook someone in softball, you can get beat.”
The softball team focuses on winning every game to improve, head coach Butch Zike said. BRYAN WELLS | PHOTO
The softball team will also host a double-header against Capital College today starting at 3 p.m. MEN’S GOLF The men’s golf team held its first match of the season March 10 with the Franklin College Spring Invitational in French Lick, Indiana. Both the ‘A’ and ‘B’ squads representing the Grizzlies finished in the top five with ‘A’ finishing second and ‘B’ finishing fourth. Leading the Grizzlies on their outstanding performance was senior Spencer Portish, who tied for second place. The team will participate in the Saints Spring Invitational at Perry Park Golf Resort this weekend in Kentucky. WOMEN’S GOLF The women’s golf team has been practicing in advance of its first face-off with other teams next week. With juniors and seniors leading the way, the women’s golf team is building off its fall season. They will travel to Louisville, Kentucky to compete in the Spalding Invitational tomorrow at Persimmon Ridge Golf Course. TRACK AND FIELD Both track and field teams just completed their indoor seasons and are hoping to improve during the outdoor season. “Expectations are definitely to do better than we did indoor and better than we did last year,” head coach Demetrius Bailey said. At the end of the indoor season, the men’s team finished 7th out of 10 teams. The women finished 10th out of 10 teams. Many of the athletes participate in winter sports or were injured during the indoor season, so they have been conditioning themselves to compete this spring, Bailey said. “We try to get some of our guys who are dealing with some injuries from the indoor season back healthy, so they can compete more competitively,” Bailey said. “Both teams can finish top five.” Both men’s and women’s teams compete this weekend at the Rose-Hulman Early Bird Meet in Terre Haute beginning tomorrow at 12:30 p.m.
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Olivia Paszek launches a pitch as her identical twin sister, Grace Paszek, readies herself for a catch. The sisters started playing softball together on their hometown T-ball team in Franklin, Indiana. SUBMITTED PHOTO | OLIVIA PASZEK
PASZEK SISTERS SHARE ‘CLOSE’ BOND Softball players value competition, mutual support on the field JADA JONES | STORY jada.jones@franklincollege.edu
Twins and seniors Olivia and Grace Paszek started playing softball when they were just six years old. Newcomers on their hometown T-ball team, the Paszeks started learning from each other at a young age. Now Olivia is an award-winning pitcher. Her sister—a mirror image of light-brown, tied-up hair—can later be seen up to bat. For the twins, the game is a practice in careful concentration and competition. “I always try to compete with Olivia because she’s always way more recognized than I am,” Grace said. One example of that recognition, Grace said, is Olivia’s feature on a mural located in Spurlock Center, the campus athletic building. Both twins do have individual accomplishments to their names. The Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference named Olivia a top pitcher. Grace was named one of the Grizzlies’ top defensive players and most versatile performers. Nancy Segal, a professor of psychology at California State University and director of the Twin Studies Center, said identical twins have the same physical attributes when it comes to sports. That explains, in part, the Paszeks’ success as softball players. Segal said it is largely twins’ genetic commonalities that underlie their similar physical
abilities and personality traits. Despite the competition, Grace said she tries to help Olivia out when she is struggling on the mound, and Olivia will try to give Grace hitting tips when she isn’t doing so well up at the plate. They try to talk to each other about how to better their performances on the field, Grace said. She added that Olivia will always pick her up when she is feeling down or having a bad game. “Grace is really positive,” Olivia said. “She is always smiling, and I can always look at her and she just makes my day better.” Joe Paszek, the twins’ father, involved himself in their softball careers from the beginning. Having played baseball himself, it was only natural for him to push his girls into a sport he loved and was familiar with, he said. In 2014, the twins’ senior year at Franklin Community High School, their softball team won sectionals. Joe said their team was picked to finish fifth, but they beat the odds and came out on top. He said winning that sectional game was his favorite softball-related memory with Olivia and Grace. “We ended up winning that sectional, which was totally unexpected,” Joe said. “It was a great thrill.”
Joe often coached his daughters in their early years. He continues to support their athletics at the college level and takes part in the skills he helped promote. “You get to follow your daughters and be able to be a part of their lives beyond the teenage years,” Joe said. Olivia said she appreciated her father’s influence, but added it was also difficult for her and Grace in the moments he pushed them harder than other players. Grace and Olivia’s lifetime of competing softball careers will reach its end after this season when each twin will walk across the graduation stage in May. The Paszeks both major in elementary education and are teaching at Hendricks Elementary in Shelbyville, Indiana, to close out their senior year. Grace said her dream would be to teach at the same school as her sister. “I know the odds of that happening are very slim, but it would be so much fun,” Grace said. Overall, Olivia said her and Grace aren’t like normal twins because of that desire to be together. “A lot of twins aren’t as close. We’re super close, but when we’re apart I always miss her,” Olivia said. “I just always want to be around her.”
LAST LOOK
SARA COLBURN-ALSOP, SPANISH PROFESSOR Colburn-Alsop organized a 17-minute sister march in conjunction with the #ENOUGH National School Walkout Wednesday. “I am doing this for every teacher that has to remain silent and cannot participate,” she said. “I want them to know that I support them.” ZOIE RICHEY | COVER PHOTO THOMAS MAXWELL | BACK PHOTO