1
2014 n 1,228,462 contact hours registered
h t 2 C
s s la
y a d
k c a
b s ce
n u o
b
2016
What is it? n On the 12th class day, KC tallies and sends in the number of enrolled students and contact hours to determine how the school will be funded. The numbers listed here are not officially recognized by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, but are presented to give the KC community an idea of our enrollment numbers for the Fall 2016 semester, according to Dr. Staci Martin, vice president of institutional research.
2015 n 1,147,944 contact hours registered
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n 1,172,288 contact hours registered as of press time.
Friday, September 16, 2016
KC WELCOMES NEW FINANCIAL AID DIRECTOR
Vol. 80 No. 3 Serving Kilgore College since 1936
Trustees finalize strategic plan,taxes MEAGHAN MORTON Executive Editor
Kayla Terrazas / THE FLARE
New Financial Aid Director, Dr. Reginald Brazzle prepares for the new semester in the financial aid department.
Making KC a better machine DAJAH THOMPSON Staff Writer Sitting in his office, day in and out, staying late when needed to make sure KC is set for the drop of the 2016 student financial aid which is estimated to release on Sept. 26, and to answer any needed questions by the student body and staff is the job of the financial aid director. KC introduced Dr. Reginald Brazzle, the new financial aid director, on Monday, Aug. 29, to the campus. Brazzle comes to Kilgore with 30 years of experience and several years using the recently purchased college software, Jenzabar-Ex/Power Phase. Brazzle is excited to get out and meet the student body, long with all KC faculty and staff. He is a pastor in Longview with his Doctorate Degree as a licensed pastoral counselor. “Being a pastor makes me a people person,” Brazzle said. “It gives me patience while understanding the needs of every student because every student is different
in their own way.” Brazzle has worked at several community colleges and four-year colleges such as Tyler Junior College and Parker University in Dallas for three years. “A few improvements I will strive to make as the financial aid director is the information that students receive, informing students on cut-off dates, process and procedures, and timelines for communication,” Brazzle said. “The main purpose of my job is to become the vehicle for students to know all that is going on, on-campus.” Annette Morgan, the recently retired financial aid director, is pleased the transition went so smoothly. “It’s nice to know that Dr. Brazzle has the same goals and mindset. He will take it to another level, making challenges known and solved,” she said. “It’s nice to know that I am leaving Kilgore after 27 years of service with someone who knows exactly what he is doing. He is just like me in all aspects. We even finish each other’s
sentences.” Brazzle currently resides in Longview and said he enjoys watching all sports, especially the Dallas Cowboys. One of his major goals is to help every student graduate with a career or the opportunity to transfer to another college. He plans to help advance the program here on campus by looking at what is already happening and figuring out ways to improve the process by seeing what the main needs are for the student body. He discovered the open financial aid director position here on campus by pure accident, but is glad to be here. “God put me here for a reason” Brazzle said. Now that he has taken off full force, he has a few things up his sleeve for improving the campus program. “The goal is to make a good machine better, add to the greatness that is already here, and see what will work best for KC,” Brazzle said. “One of my strengths is following rules, and doing things the right way, not cutting corners.”
Seats were filled in anticipation for the September board meeting that would finalize this year’s tax rate and the new strategic plan. To start off the Action Item agenda, the tax rate for tax year 2016 (FY2017 budget) was approved. There was no raise from the previous year, keeping the rate at 0.175 per hundred dollars of property value. At last month’s board meeting, Dr. Brenda Kays’ strategic plan was introduced to promote KC’s priority of achieving student success. Trustees unanimously approved the new president’s directive. “The 2016 - 2019 Strategic Plan reflects the voices of our KC Board of Trustees, faculty, staff, students and the communities we serve,” Kays said. The plan is broken down into “subgoals” in order to make each goal more realistically reachable for KC. Each sub-goal is an explanation and plan to make sure each point of the plan can be accomplished. “Our objectives, priorities and goals build upon one another to create the appropriate steps to accomplish our mission and vision and live our values,” Kays said. The plan is split into four priorities: • Improve student learning and success; • Enhance college resources to adequately support student learning and success; • Provide students with safe, wellmaintained and accessible environments that foster student achievement and engagement; • Provide instructional programming that enables students to achieve marketable credentials that provide a living wage by focusing and aligning workforce curriculum with service area standards and needs. Some of the sub-goals helping accomplish these four main priorities are improving the ease of connecting with KC, upgrading technology infrastructure and connectivity to provide tools to enhance student learning, improve campus safety and security and increase educational opportunities for students in short-term programs and courses. According to Kays, statistics will be taken in order to answer the question: Are we achieving the goal? In presentations, Dr. Staci Martin introduced a plan with a timeline to make See BOARD, Page 3
Cheyanne Huntsman / THE FLARE
Lead actors, Sera Allen (left), as Annie Sullivan, teaches Madison Gable, as Helen Keller, how to sign and understand the word “water.” The story of the legendary teacher and her student from the early 1900s will be portrayed in “The Miracle Worker,” set to take the stage Oct. 6 by the KC Theatre Department. For more information, and the complete cast list, see p. 2.
‘Miracle Worker’ shows real-life story CAM WILLIAMS Staff Writer
Tiffany Johnson / THE FLARE
Madison Gable acts out one of Helen’s many tantrums while James, played by Ian Kirkpatrick, looks on.
The cast and crew have been named for KC’s performance of The Miracle Worker. The Miracle Worker is the real-life story of Helen Keller and the teacher, Annie Sullivan, who helped her overcome many obstacles in her disabilities. “I’m really excited,” said Micah Goodding, theatre instructor. “Auditions are never really easy. The decision process is never easy, because you know that students have a lot invested in it, and there’s always going to be disappointment, but there’s also going to be a lot of excitement too.” Madison Gable is taking the role of Helen Keller with a degree of gravity. “It’s a tremendous responsibility, and all I desire is to do her story justice. I’m approaching the role carefully; authenticity is my primary focus.,” she said. “She was so physical; I even
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The first day of Autumn approaches on Thursday, Sept. 22. Instead of the Pumpkin Spice Latte, try the Chile Mocha Latte. n
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busted my knee-caps during the audition, because her character was so wild before she learned language and discipline. Not many people know that Helen went to Harvard, and my goal is to show that side of her. She was bright and intelligent; I want so badly for the audience to see that.” The Miracle Worker premieres 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 6, in Van Cliburn Auditorium. Tickets will be $10 for adults, $7 for students, and $5 for KC students with a student ID. Tickets can be purchased online at www.kilgore.edu/ drama or by phone at 903-983-8126. For more information e-mail the KC Theatre Box Office at boxoffice@kilgore.edu. Production Staff: Director, Micah Goodding; Assistant Director/Dramaturg, Kaitlin de Graffenried; Technical Director/Light and Set Designer, Michael Atkins; Stage Manager, Hannah Sanders; Assistant Stage Manager/Properties, Colton
Askew; Sound Designer, Ryan Gillem. Crew: Lighting Technician, Hannah Thomas Garner; Projection Technician, Roxanne Smith; Sound Technician, Jacob Johnson; Box Office Manager/Wardrobe Crew, Amber Driver; Make-Up/Wardrobe Head, Janay Peloquin; Usher, Publicist, Jacob Hughes; Wardrobe Crew/Usher, Hannah Stone. Cast: Doctor and Other Roles, Thomas B Thornburg; Kate, Tristin Sechrist; Keller, Judah Armour; Helen, Madison Gable; Martha and Other Roles, Alissa McClain; Percy, Jedo Helpenstill; Aunt Ev, Stephanie Barajas; James, Ian Kirkpatrick; Anagnos and Other Roles, Jess Vinton; Annie Sullivan, Sera Allen; Viney, Travis Noriega; Blind Child and Other Roles, Nikki Newman; Blind Child and Other Roles, Michael Rojas; Jimmie and Other Roles, Raymond Robinson.
THE FLARE FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2016
The high temperature for next week will be 95 degrees. KC students should try to remain hydrated during these hot days. n
1925
American Blues singer, B.B. King was born on this day in 1925. The artist would have been 91 years old today. Check out the song “The Thrill is Gone.” n
Check theflareonline.com for a full calendar activities, or go to twitter.com/theflareonline for live updates
Dystopian society: Book Club topic
FACE IN THE CROWD
KAITLIN MITCHELL Staff Writer “One Second After” by William R. Forstchen will be the topic of a book discussion at 2 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 22, and noon Friday, Sept. 23, in the Hill Room of the Randolph C. Watson Library. The first four students to contact Susan Wilson about joining, as well as attend the first meeting, will receive a free copy of the book. The story takes place in a dystopian society caused by an electromagnetic pulse being dropped over the United States. The attack forces the main character, Retired Colonel John Matherson, to learn how to survive and function in a world without electronics, basic necessities, medicine, or an established government. “It’s a great book. I’ve read it twice and am now starting it a third time,” said Susan Wilson, Public Services Librarian. “It really makes you realize how dependent we are on electricity and how hard it would be to live without it.” The book is available for purchase on Amazon or at local book stores, all for under $10. It may also be ordered through interlibrary loan. In order to receive a copy of the book or to learn more about the book club, contact Wilson by phone at 903-983-8239 or by emailing swilson@ kilgore.edu.
Scholarships available through Phi Theta Kappa YOSEF IBITAYO Staff Writer Elijah Banks & Timothy Stuckey / THE FLARE
Chelseay Hopson Marvel or DC? I choose DC because of Batman, ultimately. What do you like to do? I like to play video games and read. I recently got an Xbox, so as far as console games go, I like Destiny. I play with my boyfriend and our friends. What is your favorite video game? Ark Age. It’s an MMO RPG and that is my ultimate favorite. I started playing it and just fell in love. Literally for five weeks straight I would wake up around 2 p.m. and play until 6 a.m. Who is your favorite DC villian? The Joker. Not to be cliché or anything, but definitely the Joker. I like all of them collectively, but my favorite is probably Heath Ledger. What superhero/villian would you want to be? I used to really like Poison Ivy, but I also really like Harley Quinn and Catwoman. Plus Catwoman has a whip and she’s like all things sexy. She is like the definition of sexy and she wears black which is my favorite color. So I would go with Catwoman because she is all
Hometown: Kilgore Classification: Sophomore things sexy and wears black. If you had to choose one superhero to be real, who would you pick? Probably Wolverine because unlike Batman, he can’t die. No one really knows how old he really is and he could literally just keep on living. What would you wish to see DC do in the next Batman movie? Actually have a decent ending. I’m sorry, but Batman vs Superman was a horrible movie. What was your favorite X-Men movie? Wolverine Origins. So in high school I was in a youth group, but not through a church, and the lady was giving everyone nicknames and I was Mystique. I also like Nightcrawler in X-men. Out of all the superhero movies, which would you consider the best one? Civil War.
In the wake of a new school year, students may be scrambling to pay for their next year of higher education. There’s help on the way, in the form of the Fall Common Application and Jack Kent Cooke scholarships. “The Fall Common [Application] Scholarship is like putting in for 20 different lotteries and only having to pay one time,” said Michele Daniels, Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) adviser. “You fill out an application, get it all set out, and you are eligible for multiple opportunities for scholarships.” PTK is offering the Fall Common Application Scholarship, a transfer scholarship enveloping several separate, smaller scholarships, to both members and non-members starting Thursday, Sept. 15 of this year. The scholarship is available to all students until the first of Dec. The scholarships available for KC students on the PTK website have set high standards for getting their awards. Thus, they must be grasped by those who are willing and able to take the narrow road. For more information on the scholarships listed in this article, students may visit Phi Theta Kappa’s website at: www.ptk.org/scholarships.
NEWS
THE FLARE FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2016
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BSM hosts humanitarian craft parties to fill shoeboxes CAM WILLIAMS Staff Writer
A box of toys sits in the Baptist Student Ministry waiting to be shipped to Operation Christmas Child.
BOARD: ‘Are we achieving the goal?’ sure KC will pass an upcoming SACSCOC reaffirmation of accreditation, “Kilgore College is grouped into what is commonly known in accreditation circles as the “Class of 2019,” Kays said. “This designation means that a formal decision from the SACSCOC Board regarding KC’s ability to maintain its status as an accredited institution will be issued in June of 2019.” Though the committee will not visit the school on-site until Sept.-Nov. 2018, the school plans to prepare ahead of time to make sure all is well. The final reaffirmation meeting to decide on the legitimacy of KC will be held in June 2019. Also, a representative for the KC Foundation Board was voted upon by the Board of Trustees. The Board voted in member Cecelia Sanders. For the KC Board of Trustees, Sanders represents the South zone, including, Overton, Leverett’s Chapel and West Rusk County Consolidated independent school districts. Marketing was introduced as the program spotlight at the meeting. Manny Almanza and Trey Hattaway highlighted KC’s success in advertising and reaching the students as much as possible through various social
media outlets including Pandora, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Linkedin, Flickr and instagram. “That is where our students are at,” Almanza said. Both men like to use the Top of Mind Awareness or “TOMA” approach when it comes to marketing to students. Almanza can be seen in various videos on Instagram and Facebook reaching out to students about activities on campus. The student spotlight of September was Ke’Asha Oliver, member of the KC Lady Rangers basketball team. Oliver was mentioned as being a team player. An example of teamwork was when one of Oliver’s teammates forgot her uniform and she gave up hers so the other woman could play. Employee spotlight was awarded to Jane Lewis, a recently employed KC faculty member. Lewis came to KC with a skill set compatible with Jenzabar and ready to work. “Not everyone can do this kind of tedious work,” Dr. Martin said. “It helps people to use data when making decisions.” The next board meeting will be held sometime in October.
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The Baptist Student Ministry is looking for crafty people to attend a weekly party to make gifts for children overseas. As part of Operation Christmas Child, BSM hopes to top its last year number of sending more than 300 shoeboxes. The international goal this year is to reach another 12 million children. Every box is filled with school supplies, hygiene items, fun toys and notes of encouragement. They are delivered to children in need around the world to demonstrate God’s love in a tangible way. The BSM is making gifts such as jump ropes out of grocery bags and duct tape, and airplanes out of clothes pins. The group is led by KC alumnus Maria Zapata from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Thursday at the BSM on Nolen Street.
Zapata was part of a student group that delivered boxes to the Philippines this summer. She came back with a heart for the children and has traveled throughout the area encouraging church congregations to get involved. “Seeing the kids and how excited they got over these gifts made me want to do so much more when I got home,” Zapata said. “They are so appreciative of anything we can give them.” BSM director Jaymi Blankenship added, “For a child who is receiving [a gift], it can mean everything just because somebody put some time into creating something for them.” More than 500,000 volunteers worldwide, with more than 150,000 of those in the United States, are involved in collecting, shipping and distributing shoebox gifts. For more information, visit www. samaritanspurse.org.
Longview Too AMBUCS
10th Annual Mud Volleyball Tournament Saturday, Sept. 24, at Lear Park, located at 100 H.G. Mosley Parkway behind the Longview Splash Pad. Grab family and friends to have some fun while raising money for Amtrykes and wheelchair ramps for East Texas kids and veterans. If you don’t have a team, register as an individual to be added to a team. The first through fourth-place teams are eligible for cash prizes!
Registration is $175 per team. For more info, go to longviewmudvolleyball.com or call 903.753.3329
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THE FLARE FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2016
SPORTS
Rangers look to take a home win Football team looks to reclaim Wrangler victory ELIJAH BANKS Sports Editor KC will open conference play against the Cisco College Wranglers. This will be the 21st time the teams have met since 1997. KC leads the contests 17-3, The Wranglers come into this meeting 0-3, averaging 8.7 points per game. In last year’s meeting, the 1-8 Wranglers shocked KC on Hall of Fame night with 20-12 upset. The Rangers held on to win their next two games, eventually becoming conference champions. The Rangers came home from Saturday’s road trip with a 3516 victory against the Arkansas Baptist College Buffaloes. KC is now has a 1-0 overall record. The Rangers were stingy on defense, only allowing the Buffaloes to gain 22 rushing yards and 188 total offense of yards. Along with a strong outing from the defense, KC’s running back, Tyreik Gray, Houston freshman, opened some eyes by racking up 94 yards on the ground and 116 reception yards. Gray gained most of his rushing yards from a 91-yard touchdown run. He finished the game with 210 yards and two touchdowns. The Rangers dominated the first half and got on the board early and often. On their first drive, the Rangers went on an eight-play, 65yard drive, capped off by a 3-yard touchdown run by quarterback Josh
Richard Nguyen / THE FLARE
Quarterback Josh Bolfing, Montgomery sophomore, hands the ball off to tailback Marquis Broussard. Bolfling, Montgomery sophomore. KC’s Matthew McClellan returned a fumble 23 yards to the Buffaloes 3-yard line. After two plays, the Ranger offense would punch it in with a 2-yard touchdown run from D’onta Allen. Following two more touchdown drives, the Buffaloes got on the board with 2:20 left in the second quarter. ABC’S Stedman
FALL SOFTBALL ACTION RIGHT: Kaitlyn Stebelton, Crosby freshman, slides into third for a safe call. FAR RIGHT: Brianna Davis Sugarland sophomore attempts the out at first. Photographs by Tiffany Johnson / THE FLARE
Lanigan hooked up with Kevin Crayton for a 69-yard touchdown. The Rangers led at half-time, 28-7. The second half did not go as smoothly for the Rangers offense. After going on a three-play, 80yard, touchdown drive that ended with a 3-yard touchdown run from Chandler Eiland, the Rangers did not get on the scoreboard again.
Penalties, a blocked kick, and missed field goals made sure of that. While the Rangers were still able to drive down the field and get plenty of yards, they didn’t find the end zone again this game. Late in the 3rd, ABC’s Lanigan found Jacoby Dix in the back of the end zone to make the score 35-14. The Buffaloes’ last two points came
from an intentional grounding penalty in the Rangers end zone. KC’s two quarterbacks, Josh Bolfing and Chandler Eiland, combined for 21-32 for 352 yards in the air. The Rangers picked up 202 rushing yards on the ground, and had 554 yards of total offense. —Kendall Hurtt contributed to this article.
OPINION
THE FLARE FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2016
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KC’s weekend life, all washed up K
C has had an emphasis in excellence since 1935. It says this in blue letters at the top of the home screen at Kilgore. edu, underneath the blue man. In many areas, the school proves this to be true and students are able to enjoy themselves in many classes, activities and athletic events during the week. However, when the weekend comes around, residential students are bored and searching for activities, even reaching out to the Kilgore App and writing posts saying “there is nothing to do on the weekend” or “I am so bored.” If more activities were added during the weekend, students will be drawn here from other places, residential life would be boosted. With more activities, the happy students will be happier and word will be spread about KC. The more positive publicity KC receives, the more students will be inclined to attend the school. There will be an increase in enrollment and the college could earn more money to go toward improving the lives of students, faculty and the community. Another benefit of weekend activities will be an increase in resident
safety. Many nights students go out to nearby dance clubs. If there were more weekend activities, students would not become restless, and stay on campus, bringing more spirit to the campus and keeping KC students safe. Eventually, all of these activities could bring money to KC. The more students enjoy their time at school, the more time they will actually spend on campus and use KC resources. This would bring more traffic to local businesses, more spirit to the campus and many more benefits. A problem should not be addressed without a possible solution. One suggestion could be, a movie night hosted in Mike Miller Plaza. A large projection on a white sheet of a great movie would be ideal for many students. Other students with a flair for Harry Potter could get together and create quidditch teams. There are endless possibilities as long as people will attend. There could even be an adopt-adog-for-a-day event to help shelter dogs and advertise adoption. So here is the challenge, KC: Create more weekend activities for students to enjoy, and we will be rolling in dough, and happiness. Photo by Sierra Wiseman / THE FLARE
YOUR VIEW How do extra-curricular activities add to the college experience?
Photo by Kianna Rose / THE FLARE
Photo by Elizabeth Lumpkin / THE FLARE
Photo by Kianna Rose / THE FLARE
Photo by Kianna Rose / THE FLARE
“You get to meet new people.”
“You get the feeling of having a purpose.”
“Being in Tae Kwon Do teaches me to stay collected at all times.”
“It adds to the experience and gives you a chance to meet new people.”
Lucero Hernandez Henderson sophomore
Ana L. Arrago Kilgore sophomore
Dale Garcia Gilmer freshman
Cody Downing Longview freshman
Think before dismissing another’s problems M
y family seems to have a motto: “Ignore it until it goes away.” This especially applies to: emotions and mental health. Today, however, I am choosing to stop ignoring “it” because it will never go away. September is Suicide Prevention/Awareness month, and I feel it’s now time to share my story. Many people believe suicide is a mortal sin against God; or at the least, the coward’s way out of dealing with your problems. I believed that once too, until I got to high school. I entered my freshman year at 14 the way a great many freshmen enter — arrogant, excited and nervous. After two weeks, I had been kicked out of basketball and track, given up band and realized I was no budding artist. It seemed like my entire life was falling apart, but that was OK because I still had my family and friends. A week after being kicked out of basketball my parents found out, which unleashed a slew of issues. The coach told them I was lazy and didn’t want to do the workouts, but failed to mention that I had been passing out. My parents worked their magic (against my wishes) and I was back in basketball. However, when I passed out at the next practice, I found one of my role models who I had looked up to since second grade, yelling at me and using phrases like “worthless,” “never going to amount to anything,” “would you like fries with that?” “lazy,” and “quitter” for what felt like an eternity. By the time that I got home, she had already called my parents and told them I just
The Flare
wouldn’t follow directions and all I wanted to do was lay around and she didn’t want people like that on her team. I was grounded before I had a chance to tell my side and part of my punishment was that I was going to be back in shape Leah Bryce doing the workouts that I Managing had “attempted to quit” by Editor the end of the semester. It only took two days of working out with my father, the ex-coach, and my mother, the registered nurse, for them to realize that, while their daughter may be lazy, I was not faking this ailment. So I am new in high school and am constantly being shuffled from doctor-todoctor. The negative attention drove me, like most teenagers, to rebel. I didn’t find my rebellion at the bottom of a bottle or in the midst of a cloud of smoke, but where it would hurt my academically minded family the most — my grades. Due to my choice, I was grounded for nine months, with no friends, no sports, no music, no books (unless they were for school), and absolutely nothing except the thoughts going on inside my head. Every three weeks when the report card or progress report came out, my parents stared down at their “smartest daughter’s” grades and saw things like an 11 in AP English, or a 32 in World Geography. I got the same speech my role-model coach fed me that afternoon — but instead of it being from just some coach, it was from my
parents. Needless to say I was depressed. I had always been told that depressed people were weak. And selfish. Or maybe if they believed more in Jesus and stopped being such a sinner they wouldn’t be so depressed. The thought of ridding my parents of such a disappointment crossed my mind almost nightly as I cried myself to sleep. I never tried to act on it until the day I turned 15. I had gone through being grounded over the Christmas holidays, but nothing had prepared me for February 9, 2011. As the third daughter, my birthday is not the easiest holiday for my family to remember. That year, it landed on the day the 4th Six Weeks report cards came out and I was almost failing every class. There was no cake or presents that day, but rather a lecture that chilled me to the bones and made me feel like the last person on Earth who ever deserved to live. My mother drove me home, telling me I would never go to college. I was destined for failure. My laziness and lack of effort would land me on the streets — penniless. For thirty minutes I listened to the most devastating news about me, and every worse nightmare that I had cried myself to sleep over, exiting my mother’s mouth. As we pulled into the driveway I was told “get out,” and the moment I closed that door, the car sped away with the pedal down to the floor. I cried as I walked into my empty house. As I laid on my bed, the only thought that ran through my head was that I was a burden to everyone I had ever met and that everyone would be better off with me dead. When
VOL. 81, NO. 3 n Friday, September 16, 2016 Copyright 2016, The Flare. All rights reserved.
2016 Sweepstakes Winner in Texas Intercollegiate Press Association and Texas Community College Journalism Association Spring 2016 Gold Crown, Columbia Scholastic Press Association • 2016 First Place, Texas Associated Press Managing Editors
EXECUTIVE EDITOR MANAGING EDITOR SPORTS EDITOR ADVISER Meaghan Morton Leah Bryce Elijah Banks Rachel Stallard
PHOTOGRAPHY ADVISER O. Rufus Lovett
people are depressed they aren’t thinking about themselves, but everyone else around them and how much their life hinders the lives of those they love. The day of my 15th birthday I spent alone in my house crying, and looking for my father’s gun so I could take away my parent’s disappointment and give them their lives back. Luckily my father had moved his guns to clean them and I couldn’t find them. I later found out my mother called the high school counselor almost weekly in tears because she was worried that I was depressed or on drugs. Every teacher I had was concerned about me — and even teachers with whom I didn’t have a class. When you are depressed and suicidal you look at the ground everywhere you go, but you miss all the people that move things out of the way so you don’t fall into a trash can. All I could hear or see was the negative that surrounded my every conversation. I never saw what people were doing to help. It took over two years for me realize I had been suffering from depression my freshman year. It took another year to get out of that mindset. If you think someone is depressed, do not use phrases like “Get over it,” “It’s all in your head,” or “Think about those poor kids who have it worse than you.” Depressed people are already aware of these things. In fact, they’ve already said much worse to themselves. Tell someone who can help them, or find a way to help them yourself, but get past the ignorance of “ignore it until it goes away,” and accept that this is a real issue that is never going to go away.
STAFF WRITERS Kendall Hurtt, Yosef Ibitayo, Angela McFarland, Kaitlin Mitchell, Richard Nguyen, Allison Taliaferro, Kayla Terrazas, Da’JahThompson, Gaberiel Wade, Cam Williams and Yasmine Wilson PHOTOGRAPHERS Tiffany Johnson, Tina Marie Reed, Cheyanne Huntsman, Elizabeth Lumpkin, Sam Rodriguez, Diana Castillo Baylor Roberson and Richard Nguyen
LETTERS
DISCLAIMER
THE FLARE welcomes any letter to the editor and encourages all readers to use this as a sounding board to express thoughts and opinions on current campus-related topics. We also welcome news or feature ideas. Due to space limitations, letters should be as concise as possible and may still be edited for space. Letters must be signed and include an address and telephone number so that we can verify their authenticity. Letters should be delivered to the newsroom in Communications-Automotive Building, Room 125, mailed to The Flare, 1100 Broadway, Kilgore TX 75662 or emailed to: kc_flare@yahoo.com
THE FLARE is the student newspaper of Kilgore College and is published every Friday by the journalism department, except during examination periods and vacations. First copy is free, subsequent copies are available for 50 cents. THE FLARE is a member of the Texas Community College Journalism Association and the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association. All people holding editorial staff positions are Kilgore College journalism students. Comments and views expressed in THE FLARE reflect the thoughts of the individual writers, and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs or opinions of other students, staff members, faculty members, administrative officers or the Board of Trustees.
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THE FLARE FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2016
F E AT U R E
KCPD CRACKS DOWN ON DRUG POLICY
Urine Trouble KC students, others face mixed marijuana messages LEAH BRYCE Managing Editor
A
dim lamp light adds a low glow to the otherwise black room, a young college student huddles close to the light with his head bent over a pile of books, eyes squinting through exhaustion from a day of classes and hours of homework. Knowing the weekend lies ahead he finishes his work early, and slowly lean back to snatch a small bag from a hiding spot. Halfway through the act of opening the bag he hears a loud bang on the door followed by two low barks, one from a dog, the other from a gruff voice demanding the dorm room be opened immediately. Earlier this week a school wide email was sent out detailing KC’s drug and alcohol policy. This annual email is sent out by the administration to forewarn students and faculty of the strict dry campus regulations. “Our violations can be just forgetfulness, like someone who has been out for the weekend and they have a cooler in the back of their car that still has beer in it,” said Dr. Mike Jenkins, vice president of student development. “However some of it is more serious, like individuals who bring illegal narcotics on campus knowingly.” Accidental incidents caused by forgetfulness are no exception to the disciplinary action that the administration will enforce. On the first offense, if the student is underage they will be reported to the authorities and placed on disciplinary probation. However, if the student is of age, then they will be placed on disciplinary probation without being reported to the authorities. “When we do the actual drug testing, the students don’t see it coming,” Jenkins said. “The athletic trainer or coach will get them from practice and put them straight in the vehicle that takes them to the testing center so they really don’t have a chance to do whatever you have to do.” Due to this method, athletes and other students who undergo drug testing have no time to use items such as synthetic urine, detox liquids or other methods of system removal. Each instance of drug offense progresses in discipline rapidly. After a repeated offense the student will be dismissed from school. “What is surprising to me is that on an
Flare photoillustration by Hailey Pennington / THE FLARE
annual basis we typically have more of an issue with marijuana than with alcohol on campus,” Jenkins said. “I know I’m old, but when I was a student, drinking was what you did. But nowadays, students that are 18 or 19 years old are like, ‘Oh no. I don’t drink
alcohol at all,’ but they see nothing wrong with smoking marijuana.” Although weed is legal in many states, it is still not legal in Texas, therefore KC still strictly prohibits the possession of marijuana and paraphernalia associated
with the drug. The possession of marijuana or any illegal drug, will result in immediate removal from residence halls, or contact of parent or guardian if the student is under 21 years of age. Despite the attempts to vanquish smoking on campus, it seems it will not be happening for some time. Although society is moving to end smoking tobacco, problems have arisen from marijuana. “I think marijuana is more prevalent than alcohol with students because socially our country is sending mixed messages,” Jenkins said. “When you have states legalizing it and other states not, that does send mixed messages. We do have to look at it as we live in Texas and it’s not legal in Texas so we have to follow that law.” “One of the things that does happen biennially is we do an evaluation,” Jenkins said. “Federal law requires us to evaluate alcohol and drug issues on campus, and identify what programs and education services we need to put in place if we see a pattern of violation.” Although the federal law states that the college must evaluate this every two years, but KC’s administration does every November or December with hopes of maintaining a minimum amount of violations, and to provide up-to-date services. KC also provides other measures to maintain a drug, alcohol and firearms free campus. “We do contract out to a local company that brings drug dogs on campus randomly. They go around the residence hall parking lots,” Jenkins said. “If there are complaints from students that think something is going on in one of the dorms then we get the drug dogs to go through there.” Over the past few years the administration has been taking measures to localize and minimize the areas around campus where tobacco smoking is permitted. They have also discussed going completely smoke-free like the University of Texas at Tyler. “The first step was to move everybody at least thirty feet from the doors, and that was in compliance with local city ordinances. The second step was to have designated smoking areas,” Jenkins said. “The third phase would be going completely tobacco free, but for us to take that step there would have to be a ground swell of student support to request it.”
Addressing the pee problem: using synthetic urine O
ver the past couple of years, the usage of synthetic urine to past drug testing has become a trend. “Synthetic urine is known in the drug testing industry for falsifying drug test,” says Justin Kyle, master trainer of drug and alcohol compliance services. As a former athlete I know how this could become an issue in sports. It isn’t a big secret that there are some athletes that use drugs, but majority of them don’t have the chance to get away with it. Now that it is easy to access and legal to sale it opens a door for the irresponsible athletes to continue to do drugs and not get punished for it. A fake urine kit can be bought under $100 and can even be found
in gas stations. If athletes catch hold of this trend, it will take the integrity of the game. Playing sports is a privilege and opportunity that should not be abused or taken for granted yet there are some that are not willing to give up the fast life; the rise of fake urine reason ELIJAH BANKS Sports Editor gives them an even bigger reason not to. The good news is that new lab technologies are able to track samples that have been tampered with. According to “The Weed Blog” new lab test measures the “specific gravity, pH,
creatinine levels, and temperature are determining positive and negative results.” The problem that the drug screeners face is that it is difficult for them to detect when someone is using a high quality synthetic urine sample. Another problem they face is that although some screening places have someone to stand in the room while people pee, it is a violation of privacy for the screeners to watch anyone urinate unless they have permission from the person being tested. Some ways to prevent people getting away with the fake samples are require them to wear robes. Having patients do so makes it harder for them to smuggle fake urine, but the major
way to eliminate these hiccups is to ban the legal use of synthetic urine nationwide. That is what Justin Kyle is aiming for. Kyle is leading a petition to get rid of the use of synthetic urine. “I have personally caught and stopped 45 donors,” said Kyle. “We have gone to unknown territory and this problem is deadly not only to our industry but many other industries,” says Kyle. He needs at least 1,000 signatures to make it illegal, so far he has 100. If you would be interested in supporting the effort you can go to www.mediafire.com and sign the petition. Elijah Banks is a Journalism major from Mesquite.