Vol82issue17

M THE MANEATER

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Vol. 82, Issue 17

january 27, 2016

Student Government

MSA Operations Committee seeks presidential ouster Three resolutions seek outcomes from nullifying election to appointing runners-up.

EMILY GALLION Staff Writer

JESSI DODGE | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

Vigil attendees light candles during a moment of silence to celebrate the life of the late Chris Parsons, a senior nursing student and Sigma Alpha Epsilon member recognized for his involvement in refounding the fraternity at MU.

Memorial

SAE gathers to remember brother, founder Chris Parsons Parsons, a senior nursing student at MU, died Jan. 17.

ALLYSON SHERWIN Staff Writer A procession of mourners walked in silence to the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house, where they gathered to pay their respects to senior nursing student Chris Parsons, who died Sunday, Jan. 17.

Over 100 people congregated in the small SAE living room to celebrate the life of the 22-year-old, who was described as loving and hilarious by his fraternity brothers who held the memorial service in his honor.

White candles were passed around to those who were in attendance including SAE brothers, sorority sisters, brothers from other fraternities on campus and friends. Parson’s funeral was held on Friday in Ellisville, Missouri, not far from St. Louis, where he was born.

Parsons greatly impacted MU when he dedicated his efforts in 2012 to refound the SAE fraternity on campus.

“They went into the unknown, coming together and trying to establish a colony in a Mizzou Greek system

that is very established,” a fraternity brother said. “To come together and to have the bravery to do that is amazing.”

Parsons was also devoted to his work as a nursing student, which he did passionately and tirelessly, his fraternity brothers said.

“I remember the night he got accepted into the nursing program,” another fraternity brother said at the vigil. “A lot of guys in the house, we remember Chris was just ecstatic and he was walking around up stairs, he was ripping his shirt off and he was telling everybody that he was the man. And frankly, there was nobody better that night than Chris Parsons. The nursing program really was what he wanted to do with the rest of his life.”

Parsons furthered his involvement within the program and charities, along with his efforts to continue strengthening SAE. “He was a fighter, he had been through so much in his life, and there’s nobody in this room who could go through as much as Chris had,” SAE alum Eric Kessler said.

Kessler had a close friendship with Parsons, who helped him join the SAE brotherhood and was later his

VIGIL | Page4

An MSA committee drafted three resolutions at around 1 a.m. Wednesday that would block President-elect Haden Gomez and Vice Presidentelect Chris Hanner from taking office.

The pieces of legislation from the Missouri Students Association Operations Committee came after screenshots surfaced indicating Gomez and Hanner knew about campaign misconduct.

The first resolution would nullify the entry of the Gomez/Hanner slate in the presidential election and appoint runners-up Syed Ejaz and Heather Parrie in their place. The second would nullify the election as a whole. The third would also nullify the election, but allow for 72 hours for Senate to determine their next steps.

Senate will discuss the resolutions in the next full Senate at 6 p.m. Wednesday in Leadership Auditorium.

The decision came after former Gomez/ Hanner campaign manager Natalie Edelstein gave screenshots of conversations within the Gomez/Hanner campaign staff ’s group message on the GroupMe application. Gomez, Hanner and co-campaign manager Josh Boehm were members of the GroupMe. The screenshots showed conversations between the campaign staff regarding mass texts Edelstein planned to send and the campaign’s use of Pocket Points. Edelstein gave the screenshots to Senate Speaker Kevin Carr, who shared them with The Maneater.

MSA | Page 4

JORDAN KODNER | PHOTO EDITOR

The MSA Operations committee meets Jan. 26 in a Student Center conference room.

Foley speaks of Click’s tenure status Assistant professor Melissa Click’s job is currently safe, interim Chancellor Hank Foley said at a press conference Tuesday, which was held in light of the third-degree assault charge against Click.

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MU artists honored in undergraduate showcase

page 9

Stock watch for Missouri men’s basketball

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THE MANEATER | ETC. | JANUARY 27, 2016

NEWS

MU, city and state news for students

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ADMINISTRATION

Foley addresses Click’s tenure status Foley said there is no chance of Click’s termination before the tenure issue is decided.

TESS VRBIN Staff Writer Assistant professor Melissa Click’s job is currently safe, interim Chancellor Hank Foley said at a press conference Tuesday, which was held in light of the third-degree assault charge against Click. Her potential to receive tenure at MU is less certain.

“Because of the gravity of the matter, I considered it important to speak to you and to all Missourians today,” Foley said. “Assault requires adjudication by a court of law, and now it’s in the hands of the legal system, as is appropriate.”

Foley opened the conference with a personal apology on behalf of the university to student reporters Tim Tai and Mark Schierbecker, whom Click tried to remove from the Concerned Student 1950 campsite Nov. 9, 2015.

“Trust has been lost already. We can’t lose more trust. We have to build trust.

We have to rebuild trust in leadership,” Foley said at the press conference.

The university will be watching to see the outcome of the case, he said.

Meanwhile, officials will continue to address the question of whether Click will receive tenure. The tenure process at MU begins in early September and ends in late spring or early summer of the following year.

This means Click had already begun applying for tenure when the incident occurred in November.

“For those of you who are calling for hasty action, I say this: we have good, strong processes in place, and we’ll follow them to their completion and logical outcome,” Foley said. “When we deviate from such timehonored traditions at the university, as some have called for, we tend to make mistakes, and it often leads to turmoil.”

Click’s bid for tenure is almost completed but awaits approval from Provost Garnett Stokes and Foley. If Click does not receive tenure, she will have one year to leave MU and find another job, Foley said. If she does receive it, she will have it by Aug. 1, Stokes said.

Foley said it is vital to avoid making “capricious decisions” in this matter.

“Trust has been lost already,” he said. “We can’t lose more trust. We have to build trust.

We have to rebuild trust in leadership.”

He also said it is important to decide how much weight Click’s behavior has in the tenure debate.

“In most cases, the decision (to grant tenure) is made on the base of scholarship, teaching and service,” Foley said. “There (usually) isn’t an extra, added layer of this kind.”

Foley said he has asked Stokes and Michael O’Brien, dean of the College of Arts and Science, to determine whether Click should continue to teach while the charges are being resolved.

“Dr. Click is frankly aggrieved by this whole situation,” Foley said. “She feels very bad about it, from what I understand. I think she

BRIEF

Faculty Council proposes examining UM System The proposal calls for an examination of the relationship of MU and the UM System.

CLAIRE MITZEL Staff Writer Faculty Council focused on a proposed resolution to examine the relationship between MU and the UM System during its first meeting of the year on Jan. 21.

Art Jago, management professor and Student Affairs Committee chairman, presented the proposal to the council.

“In the 53-year history of the University of Missouri System, this is the only time both the presidency of the system and the chancellorship of MU have been vacant at the same time,” Jago said. “We should view this as an opportunity to reassess the relationship between the system and our campus.”

The proposal suggests an examination of the organizational structure of the

UM System, the relationship between MU and the UM System and a possible consolidation of the offices of the UM System president and MU chancellor.

Jago said this would be an opportunity to examine the role the UM System plays across all four campuses and determine what value the system provides the four schools.

According to the proposal, if value can be identified, then the UM System should consider expanding to include other public Missouri schools such as Missouri State and Truman State to better serve the taxpayers. The proposal also stated, however, that it may be more academically efficient to disband the UM System due to differences between the four campuses.

The proposal cited other universities that are not part of a system as well as schools that are part of a system but have one individual who is both chancellor of the flagship school and president of the university system.

The proposed resolution will be voted on at the Feb. 11 meeting.

JESSI DODGE | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

Interim Chancellor Hank Foley discussed matters of assistant professor Melissa Click’s employment and tenure application status Monday in Jesse Hall.

had a moment of heated anger that day, and I doubt very much that she would do anything like that again.”

Click is working from home for the duration of this week, and they are still deciding if she will be teaching again next week. Foley said her presence could be distracting.

“There is the risk that (Click’s classroom) could become an awkward, odd learning environment (if she teaches this week),” he said.

Foley said this is Click’s first offense since she started working at this university in 2003.

He called her a “model citizen in other ways.”

Foley and associate law professor Ben Trachtenberg announced Jan. 20 that they assembled a committee of legal and constitutional scholars, MU Police Department representatives, other MU administrators, students and staff to examine

click | Page 8

BRIEF

Missouri legislators seek to bring changes to campuses One bill would allow permit holders to have concealed carry firearms on college campuses.

BRYANNA LEACH AND LILY CUSACK of The Maneater Staff There are numerous bills currently being drafted and debated in the Missouri House of Representatives and Senate that have the power to change various policies and procedures at MU. Here’s a closer look at a handful of them.

HB 1637 — Any student in the state of Missouri graduating after August 2019 will be required to pass a three-credit-hour course on free speech under this bill. Appropriate coursework would include studying the nation’s First Amendment, Section 8 of the Missouri Constitution and history of speech suppression around

the world.

SB 767 — This proposed bill, also known as the “Curriculum Transparency Act,” would require the university to post course information on its public website. The information that would need to be included on the website consists of: the syllabus, the reading list, attendance requirements, opportunities for extra credit and a general description of assignments and projects.

The state government has estimated that the supplementary funds required to implement this bill could exceed $100,000. In the fiscal notes of this bill, MU stated that course materials and syllabi are a faculty member’s own intellectual property, and they should maintain autonomy in deciding whether this information is circulated publicly.

SB 766 — This bill states that the state auditor must audit the UM System

Bill | Page 8

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THE MANEATER | NEWS | JANUARY 27, 2016

VIGIL Continued from page 1

roommate.

“Every single night when he would come home, after school before he gets to studying, we

would always go out onto the porch and have really long talks together,” Kessler said.

Pa r s o n s ’ i n fe c t i o u s personality was described by brothers who shared anecdotes.

Mourners who stood holding their candles laughed, remembering his fun-loving

nature.

“I remember the first time that I had ever met with Chris,” Kessler said. “It was at The Shack at the Student Center, and he thought he was so good at pool, but he wasn’t and I smoked him. That was my first memory with Chris. For those of

you who know Chris, you knew that he was the most sarcastic man in the entire world.”

The 20-minute memorial concluded with a joint prayer.

“I’ve never met a person who had anything bad to say about the guy,” a fraternity brother said. “He was amazing and

without a doubt, without him, a lot of us wouldn’t be standing here today in this house, with everyone here that’s out to support him and his wonderful life. Chris was a great fraternity brother, brother, son and friend to all of us.”

Screenshots shed light on Gomez/Hanner infractions Continued from page 1 If the screenshots had come to light during the election, the mass texts and a payment to Pocket Points would have constituted major infractions and removed Gomez and Hanner from the election, per the Board of Elections Commissioners handbook.

“If they contact Jeremy and find out we paid then we’re fucked is all I’m saying,” Edelstein wrote in the GroupMe. The extended debate in committee centered around how to remove Gomez and Hanner from office. Senators disagreed on whether they could appoint the second place Ejaz/Parrie slate in their place or if current MSA President Payton Head and Vice President Brenda Smith-Lezama would remain in office. Gomez and Hanner are scheduled to be inaugurated Jan. 30.

Senate Speaker Kevin Carr said in an interview following the committee meeting that it would not be feasible to have a run-off election if Gomez and Hanner were removed because the election dates are stipulated in the MSA constitution.

“If we pass a resolution tonight and wanted to have another election, we would have to actually change the constitution to move the general election, which is way too burdensome,” he said.

Carr said Gomez and Hanner absolutely needed to be removed from office.

“With the evidence that Natalie Edelstein has come forward with, we cannot ignore

this,” he said. “If we ignore it, we are letting a person of poor moral character lead us.”

The decision to submit legislation comes in the wake of a controversial election season. The resignations of UM System President Tim Wolfe and Chancellor R. Bowen Loftin prompted the BEC to extend the election period by one week to a Nov. 18 end date.

On Nov. 18, MSA voted to delay the election announcement by 24 hours to give the BEC “an ample amount of time to make sure that they consider” to rule on infractions filed against the Ejaz/Parrie and Gomez/Hanner slates.

Alex Higginbotham, chairman of the Campus and Community Relations Committee, also presented a petition to impeach BEC Chairwoman Emma Henderson for her job performance during the election.

Higginbotham and other senators were dissatisfied with Henderson for several reasons, including her delay in writing the BEC Handbook and her handling of major infractions by the aforementioned slates.

Henderson charged both of the slates a fine of $300 instead of requiring they cease campaigning for the remainder of the election, which was the punishment stipulated in the handbook.

On Dec. 2, the Operations Committee voted not to pursue impeachment proceedings against Henderson.

At the time, discussion centered on whether the Gomez/Hanner slate had

JORDAN KODNER | PHOTO EDITOR

Chris Hanner listens to the questioning of his cabinet during their confirmation Jan. 26 in the Student Center.

For more coverage on MSA, visit our website.

TheManeater.com

JORDAN KODNER | PHOTO EDITOR

Haden Gomez speaks about one of his cabinet members before he gets questioned for confirmation on Jan. 26 in the Student Center.

committed an infraction significant enough to result in their dismissal from the race.

On Nov. 18, they were charged with one major violation for sending out a mass notification over the application Pocket Points, which violated the handbook’s mass email policy.

Henderson said there was no way to know how much the notification influenced student votes.

Since their election, many students have come forward with concerns about Gomez’s character and ability to lead.

Jordan McFarland, third-place presidential candidate, said he had “never met somebody with so little character.”

“What’s happened to Natalie

and Riley is indicative of really what Haden Gomez is — not who he is,” McFarland said.

“What he is, is a ruthless cutthroat, arrogant, ambitious man who will sacrifice anything for what he sees fit. And what he sees fit is not what the student body deserves.”

Riley de Leon, who was fired from Gomez’s executive cabinet, also spoke out against the president-elect.

“In the past several month I have spent hours aimlessly supporting, and coercing my friends to support, a president-elect who allows his personal agenda to cloud his administrative ‘decisions,’” de Leon said in a Facebook post Dec. 11.

Both Gomez and Hanner declined to comment on the GroupMe message. However, early Wednesday morning, Gomez released a statement.

“During the election cycle, Chris and I can say with the utmost certainty we did everything we knew by the bylaws, including our teaming up with pocket points (sic),” he said in the statement. “The Board of Elections still issued us a major infraction for our actions and we dealt with that accordingly. Our campaign team faced challenges not ever seen by MSA and we handled them in the way we thought to be most appropriate and most beneficial to the success of our mission.”

THE MANEATER | NEWS | JANUARY 27, 2016

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THE MANEATER | NEWS | JANUARY 27, 2016

MANEATER FILE PHOTO.

Senior selected for scholars program Senior Anurag Chandran will head to Beijing for a year to pursue a master’s degree.

THOMAS OIDE Staff Writer Four years ago, Anurag Chandran came to MU from Dubai. He left his family and everything he knew behind in the United Arab Emirates and started a new life in Columbia. During his first few weeks as a freshman, Chandran was homesick: He barely left his room and Skyped with his parents as much as he could. Chandran, now a senior, has flourished in his new environment.

After he graduates in May, he will head to Beijing as one of 111 other college students from across the country as part of the inaugural class of the Schwarzman Scholars Program.

The program, comparable to the prestigious Rhodes Scholars program, received more than 3,000 applicants.

Participants will spend one year attending Tsinghua University in Beijing to pursue a master’s degree in business, international studies or public policy.

The goal of the program is to “prepare future leaders for the geopolitical landscape of the 21st century,” according to a news release.

“Being placed in a group of such phenomenal future leaders of the world means that I get the opportunity to shape the course of the area I’m interested in,” Chandran said. “I’m honestly just honored and excited for the opportunity.”

To apply for the program, Chandran

had to write three essays and submit a destroyed, trampled on,” Chandran said. short video introduction. Chandran’s “That feeling of it could be my family, essays and video introduction earned it could be my brothers and sisters, it him a spot with the final 300 applicants, could be my friends, really drove that which entailed flying to New York and anxiety about the future. interviewing in front of a panel.

“But just being angry about something His acceptance to the program was no doesn’t bring about change. You have to surprise to one of his political science contribute if you want to make that professors, Marvin Overby. difference.” “(Anurag) is not just happy to be at But Chandran would not have found Mizzou and in his classes, he is eager to his passion for international security be there,” Overby said in an email. “In an and counterterrorism without his age when I've come to expect a certain experience at MU. He came to MU affected world weariness in students, intending to major in journalism. But his attitude is what he heard in some refreshing. He has of the introductor y IN AN AGE thrown himself into journalism classes made his education, truly him realize what he was WHEN I’VE capitalizing on every really passionate about.

COME TO EXPECT A opportunity Mizzou “The first thing they offers, and making CERTAIN AFFECTED tell you in J-School is that the most of his have to be unbiased,” WORLD WEARINESS you education here.”

Chandran said. “What I IN STUDENTS, Chandran, who realized throughout my will graduate with time in the journalism HIS ATTITUDE IS bachelor’s degrees school was that I have REFRESHING.” in political science really strong viewpoints and economics, and opinions and a desire is specifically to be in the forefront of MARVIN OVERBY i n te re s te d in politics. I wanted to be MU political science international things that I would have professor security and policy otherwise reported about.” making.

W hen But Chandran also grew Chandran heads to Beijing this summer, outside of the classroom, taking in as he hopes to study how China can play a many experiences as he could in the role in creating peace between Southern U.S. He has no family in the U.S. and as Asia and the Middle East. a family-oriented person, things were Chandran said his interest in peace difficult at the beginning, he said. But and counterterrorism comes from his things began to change over time. upbringing in the Middle East.

“MU welcomed me with open arms,” “It’s my region that’s being affected: Chandran said. “Looking back, I would The people that I know, the culture that say that I’m shocked by how easily I I know, the history that I know is being was able to call Mizzou my home and

“

that’s because of everyone over here and the school providing the opportunity for everyone to become a part of the family. I think that has contributed to my personal growth and just my ability to confidently grab opportunities and move forward.”

Taking advantage of opportunity is something Chandran will continue to do as he heads to China. He has never been to the country before.

“I’m starting to plan what I want to do,” Chandran said. “I want to go to every province, which will be a massive task. I really want to go see and learn because I think there’s so much to be learned from interacting with people and understanding the region in ways that media and stereotypes cannot accurately present.”

But Chandran will also take advantage of the academic experiences he will have at Tsinghua University, which is ranked as the second-best university in China

by U.S. News and World Report. He hopes to continue building his expertise in policy-making during his time there.

As for his future beyond the program, Chandran is not exactly sure. He knows he wants to work in public policy and acquire a doctorate after getting his master’s degree. He does not know whether he will return to the U.S. “I’m willing to take that shift (in culture) if my job or my passion takes me to a location that I’ve never been to,” Chandran said. “Maybe in the next five years the security threat won’t be in the regions that it is in right now. I just want to bring that policy expertise to the regions that need it and try to make a difference.”

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THE MANEATER | NEWS | JANUARY 27, 2016

What’s new with campus renovations RASHI GUPTA Reporter For the last few years, MU has seen a lot of construction around campus, including new halls being built and old ones being renovated. Here’s an update on the university’s current projects.

Lafferre Hall Many of these renovations have been long overdue, especially in Lafferre Hall, which has a rating of 91 percent on the Facilities Needs Index. This means that almost all the facilities in Lafferre have needed updating for quite some time. After Gov. Jay Nixon issued MU a grant, the renovations were able to start.

Karlan Seville, spokeswoman for the vice chancellor of campus operations, said the 1935 and 1944 additions of the building are being renovated and 13 office spaces will be converted into five larger class spaces.

Seville said the renovations will add more advanced technology and classrooms. Before the renovations, there were complaints of water leakage from pipes; buckets would be strewn across the hallway after thunderstorms.

JORDAN KODNER | PHOTO EDITOR

Construction continues at Swallow Hall on the Francis Quadrangle Tuesday.

The renovations will fix these pipes and add 20,000 square feet of research space as well.

Seville said there were no setbacks and that the renovations will be finished by December 2016.

making it more usable for today’s technology and education.

Seville said the building’s interior has been completely demolished, but the original exterior walls have been kept.

This historic building has been trickier to renovate because it is on the Francis Quadrangle, which has high pedestrian traffic, Seville said. But she said there have been

Swallow Hall Swallow Hall, which was first built in 1893, will be renovated to have a more modern interior,

no setbacks in the renovations and the building is set to open by the time classes start in the fall. Swallow Hall will house the departments of art history, anthropology and archeology, as well as a new 100-seat lecture hall.

Jones, Lathrop, Laws halls The Dobbs Group of residence halls is being torn down and

replaced with five smaller buildings as part of the Dobbs Replacement Project. The three halls do not meet MU’s current five-story maximum residence hall style. This is a two-phase plan and the structures will gain 270 more beds and a new dining facility.

Currently, Pavilion at Dobbs is still open to students, and Jones was demolished in spring 2015.

The first residence hall will open fall 2016, and the second hall will open fall 2017, along with a new dining facility.

The last three buildings, which will replace Laws and Lathrop, are set to open sometime in 2021. The completion date is not set in stone because phase two is still in the process of being submitted and approved by the UM System Board of Curators.

Future Renovations Seville said renovations in Stewart Hall are soon to be underway. It is still in the project planning phase.

“We are not sure what direction the renovation will take,” Seville said. “It is still too early to make any specific comments.”

MU hopes to fight application decline with new strategies CLAIRE MITZEL

prospective students; this can include sending current students to their hometown or having them talk to prospective students of the same major, Basi said. Additionally, current students are calling prospective students to answer questions they might have.

“Parents and students don’t necessarily want to hear from college recruiters — they want to hear from someone on campus,” Basi said.

Freshman applications to MU have decreased by 941 compared to this time last year, according to the memo authored

by Barbara Rupp, interim vice provost for enrollment management, and Director of Admissions Chuck May. MU has received 18,377 applications so far, compared to 19,318 last year.

Basi said the drop in applications has not come as a surprise.

“We’ve actually anticipated this decline for several years,” Basi said.

Staff Writer After a decline in applications for the 2016-17 school year among prospective students, MU is working to increase enrollment numbers with a number of new strategies.

MU is planning an increase of yield activities this spring to help boost enrollment deposits, according to a Jan. 4 memo from the Office of the Vice Provost for Enrollment Management. MU spokesman Christian Basi said such activities include having a presence at college fairs at high schools and sending out new mailings and emails.

“For the first time, our college recruiters are bringing faculty and current students with them to give (prospective students) an idea of what it’s like to be on campus,” Basi said.

The idea is to establish a personal connection between current students and

A National Decline

Applications to MU have decreased this year from undergraduates, graduate students and transfer students. Here’s the breakdown by state. Numbers represent the change in applications from the same time the year before.

-2

-3 5

1 -6

1

8

-10

-51

-30

-15 -465

11

-90

-10

-38

1

-24

-15

-25

-37

-52

2

-6

-5

-5

-3 -20 -7 2 -3

-22

-52 -13

-5 -13

18

0

-35

-17

-1 8

-1

-26

-14

-27

2 -23

5

-8 Source: Office of the Vice Provost for Enrollment Management Taylor Blatchford // Graphic Designer

0-25 percent decrease 26-50 percent decrease 51+ percent decrease

0-25 percent increase 26-50 percent increase 51+ percent increase

Overall, Basi said enrollment is up, but this year’s freshman class was smaller than last year’s. The 2015-16 freshman class has 6,191 students, and the 2014-15 freshman class had 6,515 students.

Basi said there are a few reasons for the decline in applications. Eighteen years ago, there were fewer children being born than in past years, which is leading to fewer high school graduates. There has also been a declining number of high school students from feeder states such as Illinois and Kansas.

Last semester’s events also had an impact, Basi said, though there is no data to prove it.

“We would be remiss in not saying this fall had an impact,” Basi said. “We’re being really open and answering any questions parents and students might have (about campus climate).”

The decrease comes entirely from nonresidents, according to the memo. Illinois applications make up for half of the decrease, with 432 fewer applicants, while applications from Texas have increased by 38. Resident applications have increased 21 compared to this time last year.

MU has had an increase in applications from 12 states this admissions cycle according to the January application statistics report.

The other 38 states have experienced either a decrease or equal number of applications compared to last year.

There has also been a 16 percent decrease in enrollment deposits.

“Deposits are down 383, which is a significant decrease, though at this time of year we are typically only sitting on about one-third of our deposits,” the memo reads.

“They will start to come in greater volume once students receive information about orientation and about residential life, which will occur near the end of this month.”

Of the 383 fewer deposits, 79 come from black students. 137 come from residents and 249 come from nonresidents. 184 of the 249 nonresident deposit decrease comes from Illinois.

Basi said it is difficult to anticipate the

ramifications of decreased enrollment until the enrollment total is finalized. He said MU won’t officially know the enrollment numbers until the first day of the fall semester, but they will be monitoring the numbers closely until then. The impact will depend on a variety of factors, such as which majors experience a decrease in enrollment.

There has also been a decrease among transfer, international and minority applications.

Transfer applications have dropped by 94 and international applications have decreased by six. Black applications have decreased by 78 from last year and Hispanic applications have decreased by one. Applications from high-ability students, which is determined by an ACT score of 30 or higher, have decreased by 235.

There has been a 19 percent decrease in graduate applications, with 354 fewer applications compared to last year.

Terrence Grus, director of graduate admissions and student services, said that because graduate programs do not have a deposit like the undergraduate program does, it is difficult to predict what the enrollment numbers will look like.

“We really don’t know what a class is going to look like until the census date, which is 20 days into school,” Grus said. “We don’t know how many of our internationals are going to be able to get visas and actually get here and how many students who said they are coming are going to come.”

Grus said that while they have no way of knowing the exact reasons for graduate applications declining, there is a trend.

“Historically, graduate enrollment has followed the economy,” Grus said. “When the economy is doing very well, people tend not to enroll in graduate programs. They tend not to continue their education and vice versa. When the economy is doing really poorly, if you look at our numbers from 2008 to 2009 when the economy crashed, graduate enrollment really started spiking.”

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THE MANEATER | NEWS | JANUARY 27, 2016

Nixon increases Thompson Center funding ANNA SUTTERER Reporter M U ’s Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders could serve more families in the 2017 fiscal year with a $5 million appropriation proposed

by Gov. Jay Nixon. These funds are part of an additional $131 million in state and federal funding for the Department of Mental Health’s Division of Developmental Disabilities.

The Thompson Center will search for a new building to expand its research, training and diagnosis and treatment practices.

Spokeswoman Adrienne Cornwall said the center will be glad to perform more diagnoses and provide families with more support and programs with the funding.

“When families are awaiting a diagnostic appointment or services, it can be a difficult time,” Cornwall said. “So being able to help more families and help them faster is what it’s really all about. I think

that’s what the governor had in mind, is that more families will get services and see an improvement in their children’s development by coming to see our providers.”

In his State of the State address Jan. 20, Nixon spoke of the origins of his passion for mental health.

“My mom taught kids with developmental disabilities,” Nixon said in the address. “She worked hard at a job she loved, cared deeply for others and always stood up for what she knew was right … She passed away before I became a state senator. But I am still trying to live up to her expectations and ideals.”

The proposed $5 million will go toward both acquiring a property sensible for training, research and offices and outfitting the space with equipment.

Transferring the center’s training and research functions to a new building will potentially allow an additional 2,000 clinical visits to the current location per year, Cornwall

said. In 2015, the Thompson Center provided 9,392 visits to 2,082 distinct patients. Their clients include primarily kids under 18 years old, but also some adults seeking support throughout their lives.

At the new facility, the center hopes to expand its large group training capabilities, vetting 28 new care providers per year over the next five years.

The trainees include interns from a diverse array of health disciplines who will be taught how to use diagnostic tools and perform best practices.

Cornwall said the Thompson Center is one of few centers in the country that excels in all three primary areas of autism care: training, treatment and research. The Thompson Center research core collaborates with medical disciplines but also with engineering, computer science and genetics to stay innovative in the field.

Beyond research and treatment clinics, the center has robust training programs not only for future providers but for families, health professionals,

teachers and the business community. It facilitated more than 8,000 instances of online and in-person professional and parent trainings in 2015, Cornwall said.

The center’s strength is recognized locally, regionally, nationally and internationally.

Clients come from counties as far as five to six hours away.

Executive Director Stephen Kanne is an independent trainer of the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule II. He and the training staff are sought by school districts regionally and at centers internationally.

“We are very grateful for Gov. Nixon’s ongoing support for the Thompson Center,” said Thompson Center pediatrician Dr. Kristin Sohl. “And we are grateful to the state of Missouri for providing resources to be on the cutting edge of autism care and for providing best practices.”

The Thompson Center’s accolades are part of a larger story where Missouri, and Columbia specifically, have fixed themselves as front-

runners in autism awareness and care.

Organizations like the world-class developmental medical care and the many research teams streaming from MU make Columbia an inclusive community that rallies around individuals with all sorts of disabilities, Cornwall said.

The Thompson Center does its part in facilitating awareness by training in Columbia Public Schools and teaching businesses about autism through their Autism Friendly Business programs.

“I think Columbia just has such great care and a lot of organizations in the community to support people with disabilities, so it makes it a great place for families to thrive,” Cornwall said.

The governor’s proposed budget, by Missouri law, will be reviewed and approved by the legislature by May. Nixon doesn’t expect much friction on the mental health issues, according to Columbia Missourian coverage.

in the future, as the incident was unexpected. This process will take a few months, he said.

Foley declined to comment on the appropriateness of the charges against Click, saying the prosecutor was the right person to ask.

Foley’s final statement was that there is no chance of Click’s termination before the

tenure issue is decided.

Click will plead not guilty to the assault charge and will be in municipal court for a hearing Tuesday, according to ABC 17 News. Foley said administration will follow the case’s progress through the courts.

Missouri lawmakers offered their takes on the situation Monday as well.

"I'm a former prosecutor and there are multiple ways that you can establish third-degree assault, and there are two of them that I can watch that video and show it's established in there," state Sen. Kurt Schaefer (R-Columbia) told ABC 17 News.

Schaefer and state Rep. Caleb Jones (R-Columbia), two of

the Republican legislators who petitioned for Click’s removal in December, told ABC 17 News they were disappointed that MU did not deal with the situation sooner. “ W he ne ve r s ome one doesn't educate students safely, they don't need to be on the University of Missouri's campus,” Jones said.

Foley says professor Click’s job is safe in press conference Continued from page 3 the events of Nov. 9 and decide if further action is necessary.

The committee will deliver recommendations on how to regulate public spaces and protect free speech.

The committee will prepare the university for any similar situations that might come up

Conceal and carry on campus among bills proposed Continued from page 3 at least once each year. As of now, higher education public institutions may be audited as often as the auditor deems necessary. According to the Internal Audit Department of the UM System, the internal audit department can “provide independent appraisal of the University’s financial, operational and control activities.”

Reviewing the university’s fiscal records helps university officials ensure that everything is running smoothly under the established policies of the university and the government, according to the Internal Audit Department. Under this bill, the auditor would not have to give advance notice or they would act under the request of the governor. According to the bill’s fiscal notes, the estimated cost for the university during the first fiscal year of 2017 after the bill is implemented would be $469,781, with a dramatic increase every year thereafter.

SB 583 — This bill implements an instructional waiver review board for the UM System. It states that no regular faculty member, or full-time faculty that has been granted tenure or is on a tenure path, should be assigned fewer than 12 credit hours or 180 student credit hours (the number of credit hours for the course multiplied by the number of students enrolled).

If a faculty member does not meet these requirements, they must submit an anonymous instructional waiver to the review board. The board will be composed of nine members that meet twice each year.

SB 586 — This bill would allow concealed carry firearms to be carried on college campuses by permit holders.

Under current law, permit holders can only carry their weapons with the consent of the institution or a school official. The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Bob Dixon, R-Springfield, said he has received positive feedback so far from faculty, staff and security officers.

“They don't want to be sitting ducks should a madman attempt a campus massacre in our state,” Dixon said. “So the questions are: ‘If they’re attacked, should an individual of legal age who is trained and permitted to carry a concealed weapon have different Constitutional rights to defend themselves depending on what side of the street they’re on? When it comes to selfpreservation, does pursuing a degree in higher education mean a person must give up their Constitutional rights?’

The answer to both is a resounding no!”

HB 1559 — One year after Lloyd Gaines won a Supreme Court case granting him acceptance into the MU School of Law, and shortly after his disappearance, Lucile Bluford applied to the School of Journalism as a graduate student in 1939. She was accepted, but when her race was revealed she was blocked from enrolling. After attempting to sue the university several times, the Supreme Court ruled

in Bluford’s favor in 1941. The School of Journalism closed the graduate program in response, saying that operations could not function with so many students and faculty serving in the war.

Bluford went on to work at the Kansas City Call for 70 years and exposed civil rights issues.

This act calls for July 1 to be recognized as Lucile Bluford Day in Missouri.

SB 626 — If this bill passes, it will require universities to prepare annual campus security and awareness reports in regard to sexual consent.

The reports would explain what affirmative sexual consent is.

The act defines affirmative consent as a temporary “active, unambiguous and voluntary agreement” to engage in sexual activity.

SB 627 — Sen. Jamilah Nasheed, D- St. Louis, sponsored this bill because of a personal connection to suicide; her mother killed herself at age 25. If passed, this would require universities to have a policy

on advising students and staff on available suicide prevention programs.

“We want people who feel like they just can’t live another day to just pick up the phone and have someone they can talk to and convince them that life is worth living,” Nasheed said. “This is about giving individuals the opportunity to live another day.”

HB 1743 — This bill states “any college athlete on scholarship who refuses to play for a reason unrelated to health shall have his or her scholarship revoked.” Furthermore, the university must fine any coach that supports or encourages their players to strike or refuse to play a scheduled game. The bill was withdrawn on Dec. 16.

This bill comes after over 30 MU football players boycotted their positions on the team this past fall until UM System President Tim Wolfe resigned.

The athletes stated that their coaches fully supported them.

MOVE

The key to your entertainment

EMILY NEVILS | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

Senior and fine arts major Jessie Hicks displays her work in distinctly different ways depending on the location.

Her project is made mostly of craft materials and dollar store purchases, and it looks at intersections of the Cloud, a form of online data storage, and the art world.

JESSIE DODGE | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

Visitors enjoy the displays by MU undergraduate students as a part of the first annual Undergraduate Visual Art & Design Showcase.

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EMILY NEVILS | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

Imani Chambers, a textile and apparel management senior, created a very personal garment that can also be used as a tapestry.

EMILY NEVILS | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

Kathleen Kowalsky, a textile and apparel management senior, created burlap dress sculpted into waves inspired by the Italian Renaissance.

MU artists honored in undergraduate showcase The presentations showed off the range of artists and designers at MU. ANNA MAPLES Reporter This week, for the first time ever, undergraduate artists and designers at MU are competing in the Undergraduate Visual Art & Design Showcase for thousands of dollars in prize money to help fund their careers.

The event will be open until Friday in Jesse Hall and is intended to become an annual occurrence.

Respected fish netting artist Janet Echelman, whose work has been featured at events such as the Vancouver Olympics and in cities across the globe, gave the keynote address. She spoke about her artwork, both domestic and abroad, as well as the impact that public art can have on congested cities.

“Public art can bring people together across all kinds of divides, because if art can give us an authentic human experience in the public realm, we want to speak about it,” Echelman says in an email.

Students were nominated by their professors in the School of Journalism and the College of Arts and Sciences to participate and compete for a total of $10,000 in prize money for professional development to “enhance their educational and professional experiences in the area of visual art & design appropriate to their career plans,” according to the event’s website.

Most of the pieces were done as school

projects, ranging across various mediums.

The showcase featured photography, sculpture, architecture, advertising campaigns, clothing and costume design, lighting design, video and paintings.

Here’s a look at a few artists who are featured this week:

Kathleen Kowalsky Senior Kathleen Kowalsky, a textile and apparel management student, created a burlap dress sculpted into waves, inspired by the Italian Renaissance.

“I realized that a lot of the inspiration came from nature, and it came from things that are raw and things that are very rugged and edgy,” Kowalsky says.

“Environmentalism is really important to me, and so this piece kind of reflects that. But it also brings a lot of inspiration from the historical statues and things like that and brings it into a more modern day piece, so I guess it’s kind of a whole conjumble of things.”

Kowalsky is also a cofounder of Truman’s Closet, which provides free professional clothing for MU students and faculty to borrow, in order to expand opportunities and reuse clothing.

Andrew Nikonowicz Fine arts student and fifth-year senior Andrew Nikonowicz assembled his presentation from a larger project on display in New York, “This World and Others Like It.” The work is a combination of photography and computer generated images that comments on the connected yet separate worlds of technology and reality.

“The sequence as a whole is sort of an attempt to make the suggestion that all of these realities are acceptable realities, and they are exceptionally more intertwined than people are willing to admit,” Nikonowicz says.

He emphasizes the generational difference regarding experience with technology.

“I was born after the Internet was invented, and so these relationships that I have with technology have always existed,” Nikonowicz says. “My relationship with technology and with the real world have always been parallel.”

Imani Chambers Inspired by a textiles class called “Creativity,” Imani Chambers, a senior textile and apparel management student, created a very personal garment that can also be used as a tapestry.

“I took a bunch of pictures from old photo albums and then scanned them into a computer,” Chambers says. “Using Photoshop and Illustrator, I manipulated them and created my own print.”

Chambers says the piece of clothing is meant to reflect the times of love and family in life during this period of incessant turmoil.

“I’m very nervous to open up a new chapter of my life, and a lot of times when I get nervous I like to get that comfort from people who know and love me,” Chambers says.

Jessie Hicks Senior and fine arts major Jessie Hicks displays her work in distinctly different ways depending on the location.

“I’m an installation artist, so all of my work is arranged within a space and is site specific,” Hicks says. “I work with layering a lot within spaces.”

Her project is made mostly of craft materials and dollar store purchases, and it looks at intersections of online data storage and the art world.

“I explore the sublime of fast-moving goods and where that might intersect with the sublime of digital spaces,” Hicks says.

The most frustrating part of creating the piece came not from complicated artistic questions or ideas, but rather in the form of a lost tool during production.

“Somebody took my hammer!” Hicks says. “I brought my own hammer from home, and then somebody took it.”

Goals of the event While the designers and artists are competing for funding prizes, another goal of the showcase is to provide students with the opportunity to discuss their work in a scholarly setting, according to the event’s website.

Echelman was enthusiastic about the opportunities offered by the success and continuation of the Undergraduate Visual Art & Design Showcase.

“Your educators and administrators are doing exactly what I would recommend in terms of creating these prizes to encourage professional excellence, and providing mentors to help students reach high levels of professionalism in their work,” Echelman says.

Anyone can go check out the wide range of art and design work for free in Jesse Hall until Jan. 29.

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THE MANEATER | MOVE | JANUARY 27, 2016

JESSI DODGE | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

JESSI DODGE | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

Ben Bergstrom created and runs Mountain Stream Recording Studio from the comfort of his own home, the second floor apartment of his parents’ barn. As an up-and-coming producer, as well as an MU junior studying saxophone performance, Bergstrom records genres from classical to rock.

“His background in music is really a huge part of why I think he’s going to find a lot of success doing this,” says Wade Schoengarth, Bergstrom’s longtime friend and member of the band Kid Felon.

Working with both Lindervox Sound and Pete Szkolka Music Studio have helped shape Bergstrom’s production experience.

Junior runs unique recording studio TAYLOR YSTEBOE Senior Staff Writer This is one section of a five-part series on recording studios around Columbia. Read more at bit.ly/maneater-ontherecord Some days, the attic of the red barn will be filled with the sounds of a saxophone quartet. On other days, the attic will have grinding rock ringing corner to corner.

This attic is home to Mountain Stream Music, the brainchild of Ben Bergstrom, an MU junior studying saxophone performance.

Bergstrom opened Mountain Stream about a year ago in the attic of a barn on his parents’ property. He named the studio after what his last name means in Swedish.

“Berg” is mountain, and “Strom” is stream.

After walking through the tall barn doors and traversing the dusty first floor, Bergstrom’s home and studio is just up a flight of stairs. The scent of the wooden floors, walls and rafters is distinct, sweet. His kitchen is in one corner; the control room is in the other. Beside the control room is Bergstrom’s bedroom.

From the rafters hang Christmas lights, and a bookshelf holds both classics such as “Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley and technical manuals such as “Modern Recording Techniques.”

The Columbia native, who played in his high school’s jazz bands, says he has planned to be a music major for a long time. Bergstrom’s interest in recording grew when he talked to his high school

saxophone teacher, who graduated from Berklee College of Music, about production.

His interest fully materialized when he competed in a Battle of the Bands-esque competition sponsored by Columbia Public Schools. His band, Table for Five, won, and they played at the Blue Note and recorded with Pete Szkolka Music Studio.

“I decided I was going to get into recording, and there’s a lot of options to go to school for recording, but they’re often really expensive schools,” Bergstrom says.

“I kind of just decided I was going to swing for the fences and just try to teach myself a little bit.”

Bergstrom bought recording software in high school and did an internship with Szkolka in the summer in between high school and college. Working with Szkolka helped Bergstrom figure out how a studio operates.

Bergstrom has also worked with Rob Boullion since March at LinderVox Sound.

“He has widened his experiences and application of different approaches to recording and mixing,” Boullion says.

Boullion also says Bergstrom has learned more about room and hall recording procedures and techniques, and that his editing skills have improved as well.

Bergstrom’s previous studio experiences have given him the confidence to buy the right equipment for his own studio. Because audio equipment is pricey, Bergstrom needed to be wise with his limited budget and purchase gear that would still be functional a decade from now. It’s taken three years for Bergstrom to acquire all his equipment.

JESSI DODGE | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

A musician himself, Bergstrom is a saxophone major at MU. His studio produces a combination of jazz and classical music, with rock recordings and full scores for pierrot ensembles.

JESSI DODGE | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

Tucked in a corner next to Bergstrom’s bedroom, the studio sits overlooking the driveway and away from the remainder of the house. Named to represent the Swedish roots of his name, Bergstrom breaks down to “Berg” as mountain and “Strom” as stream, thereby creating Mountain Stream.

Bergstrom can go from recording fine art pieces for the university to recording rock bands.

“I’m getting whatever they throw at me, which is fun, definitely fun,” Bergstrom says.

He says he doesn’t prefer recording one genre or the other because he faces unique challenges and perks with both.

“In some ways, classical recording is more straightforward,” Bergstrom says. “In classical recording, they just want it to sound as real as possible. Exactly as the ensemble played it. So it’s more simple because you listen to the real sound and you try to get a clear recording into the system. You do a little bit to make it sound better, but you’re not altering anybody’s sounds.”

In classical recording, Bergstrom doesn’t have to use all of his resources to add effects or to edit the sound. Rock recording is a different story.

“Rock people are going to be like, ‘I need more distortion on that’ or something and then pitch corection,’” Bergstrom says.

“But then again, the rock stuff is shorter, so that’s always makes things a little bit more simple.”

Recording rock bands is a little easier because they often multi-track, Bergstrom says. When bands multi-track, the players plug in their instruments into amps and the sound travels directly into Bergstrom’s system. With orchestras, the mics will catch various instruments so Bergstrom has to work to subtract certain sounds.

Kid Felon has recorded three tracks at Mountain Stream and says the experience is well worth it. The “groove rock” band features singer and rhythm

guitarist Mason Raithel, lead guitarist Alex Thornton, bassist Wade Schoengarth and drummer Gabriel Banks. The band says they definitely plan on returning.

The band says Bergstrom gives them flexibility in how they record by utilizing his direct input unit. That way, the entire band is able to play together instead of tracking each one individually.

“It was pretty sweet that we were able to record playing all together, and we wanted that sound of everyone feeding off of each other and still very much like a performance,” Schoengarth says.

Before Kid Felon, though, Thornton and Schoengarth knew Bergstrom in high school, and the two recorded at Mountain Stream before it had materialized.

Thornton says that it has been interesting to watch Bergstrom’s growth.

Banks says that he admires not only the equipment but also how persistent and patient Ben is as well as the environment, which Banks describes as coming straight out of “MTV Unplugged.”

The band also sees how Bergstrom’s own musicianship comes into play with his studio.

“That’s kind of the cool thing about working with a musician recording your album,” Schoengarth says. “He’s an incredible jazz saxophone player, so there’s very few people who are owning studios who can look at structure and melody and things like that like Ben can. … I know that Ben has more than enough input to be able to shape whatever you’re trying to get out of it. His background in music is really a huge part of why I think he’s going to find a lot of success doing this.”

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THE MANEATER | MOVE | JANUARY 27, 2016

Spring premieres incredible TV dramas Keep up with the best spring premieres with our recaps and predictions.

KATHERINE ROSSO MOVE Editor Warning: This article contains spoilers.

Our favorite shows are all coming back from winter hiatus, so here are some recaps to catch you up for the spring premieres.

The best part about ABC’s “Quantico” is the diverse cast (Priyanka Chopra, anyone?), the fascinating storylines and, of course, the steamy romantic scenes. The show, which returns March 6, is led by strong, beautiful women that completely kick ass. The last episode before the winter hiatus left us with Charlie Price (J. Mallory McCree) hurt, tons of Caleb and Shelby (Graham Rodgers and Johanna Braddy) drama, Elias (Rick Cosnett) admitting that he framed Alex Parrish (Chopra) for the Grand Central Station bombing, and the third bomb being detonated inside the command center. In a word: what? In an action-packed final episode, “Quantico” left us dying for more. The promo for the show’s premiere features emotional flashbacks and scenes from the new episodes, promising “answers to the biggest mystery on television.” While I do think we’ll find out a little more about Elias’ motives and maybe see some action between Chopra’s Alex and Jake McLaughlin’s Ryan Booth, there’s

no way “Quantico” will give us all the answers. Of course, that’s what keeps us wanting more.

With an award-winning cast, “How To Get Away With Murder” is a dark and gripping drama that you cannot miss.

In the last episode, we saw Wes Gibbins (Alfred Enoch) shoot Annalise Keating (Viola Davis), leaving her to die on the carpet inside the Hapstalls’ house. After being shot in the stomach, Annalise whispers “Christophe,” accompanied by a flashback that showed Annalise with Wes as a child, suggesting that Annalise could be Wes’ super-secret mother. In an interview with ET Online, Davis promised that viewers would find out answers by episode 10. I don’t think a show has ever left me gasping in surprise in quite the same way as “How To Get Away With Murder,” so I can’t wait to see my theories proved wrong again when the season returns Feb. 11.

“Blindspot” is a show I didn’t think I would like, but I ended up being fascinated. Jane (Jaimie Alexander) finding her incredible talents throughout the series is an interesting twist that leaves us as surprised as she is. In the gripping half-season finale, Patterson (Ashley Johnson) searches for David’s (Joe Dinicol) killer in a mystery that turns out to be a coup by toplevel Russian sleeper agents sent to report U.S. surveillance. Carter (Michael Gaston) is still corrupt as ever, forcing Zapata (Audrey Esparza) to resign and kidnap Jane after she leaves her bodyguards to share a romantic moment with Kurt (Sullivan Stapleton). After waterboarding Jane, a man comes in and shoots Carter, stopping him from

COURTESY OF ROTTEN TOMATOES

“How To Get Away With Murder”

drilling into Jane’s eyes (gross, I know).

He shows her a video of herself saying that all of the secrets and her memory loss are completely her doing. It’s Jane’s plan, but why? This is the question that’ll be answered when the show premieres Feb. 19, and I can’t wait to see what happens next.

Although it’s not coming off winter hiatus, Netflix’s incredible White House drama “House of Cards” premieres March 4. Considering I’ve been waiting to see season four since season three premiered in February of last year (and I binged the whole thing in a matter of days), I feel like this slowsearing David Fincher drama definitely needs to be on this list. Kevin Spacey’s portrayal of President Frank Underwood

is absolutely terrifying. When he breaks the fourth wall and addresses the audience, his stellar performance becomes even better. The last season left us with Frank seeming to lose the re-election, threatened even more by a looming divorce from his wife Claire (Robin Wright). Without the censorship of a regular television station, “House of Cards” features racy, dark and completely unforgiving storylines that can reach their full potential. Even though a presidential show could easily become boring, “House of Cards” is so enthralling we’ll all be dying for season five in no time.

Let us know your favorite shows on winter hiatus and tell us about your theories on Twitter @MOVEManeater!

MOvies

Review: Murder and mauling on the American frontier STEPHANIE HAMANN Garnering 12 Oscar nominations and winning three Golden Globes, Alejandro González Iñárritu’s “The Revenant” is one of this year’s many acclaimed films.

Following Leonardo DiCaprio’s Hugh Glass after a near-fatal bear mauling on the American frontier, “The Revenant” documents Glass’ quest to live and avenge the violence of fur trapper Tom Hardy’s John Fitzgerald.

A story rife with death, the film features conflicts of every sort — Glass and the other frontiersmen face a merciless terrain and climate, the men and Native Americans live in fear of each other, and Glass must overcome the new limitations

of his injured body.

The men traverse rivers, mountains and forests, but the vast landscape never detracts from the sense of intimacy developed from the start. When Native Americans attacked Glass’ campsite, the first of many struggles in the story, I felt close to the frenzy, like maybe I too needed to watch out for the flying arrows.

This closeness makes Glass’ journey all the more engrossing, because we feel like we are with him rather than watching him from afar.

DiCaprio’s performance does not merely imply Glass’ pain but immerses us in it. He rarely speaks, but dialogue would do little justice for his character’s suffering. His movements, from difficulty breathing to an inability to walk, make him vulnerable. Still, Glass’ resolve

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Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio) struggles to stay warm during a vicious winter.

persists, and he pursues Fitzgerald under all circumstances. DiCaprio’s Oscar nomination for Best Actor is nothing if not deserved. Having won the Golden Globe for best actor in a motion picture, drama, an Oscar win seems likely.

Glass often reminisces about his Native American wife killed during a past attack, and as a result, we better understand the losses he has endured. He loves his son Hawk (Forrest Goodluck) and seeks to provide safety for him even though comfort is impossible.

Fitzgerald serves as the film’s antagonist, a danger to both Glass and Hawk. After Glass is mauled, his team carries him on a stretcher until they reach steep, rocky ground and must cross without him. Fitzgerald, Hawk and Jim Bridger (Will Poulter) agree to stay with Glass while the others keep travelling and in exchange are promised money by their leader, Captain Andrew Henry, played by Domhnall Gleeson.

Ideally, for Fitzgerald, Glass would die so that he and Bridger could head back to their comrades. In one scene, he approaches Glass, lying awake but motionless from his injuries, and tells him he would be more than willing to kill him, claiming doing so would benefit his son, allowing them to move on without him toward safer territory. Glass, defenseless, cannot speak. Fitzgerald, in a move indicative of his hostility, tells Glass to blink if he wants to be killed, and he watches his face, waiting until Glass cannot resist. This is one example of Fitzgerald’s lack of humanity, a character trait Hardy embodies throughout the film.

Despite enduring violence in his past,

including being scalped, Fitzgerald is a straightforward enemy undeserving of sympathy. Hardy’s Fitzgerald has no regrets, no guilt and no doubts.

Meanwhile, Bridger, having reluctantly left Glass at Fitzgerald’s orders, cannot make peace with their action, his regret visible as he and Fitzgerald set out for the trading post.

In addition to Hardy and DiCaprio, the film’s other cast members make “The Revenant” the enthralling story that it is. Gleeson’s performance as the captain exudes the determination of a leader who wants safety for his men and, later, justice for Glass. Arthur RedCloud plays Hikuc, a loyal man Glass meets who provides companionship him and helps him survive. RedCloud’s performance gives the movie much-needed friendship and camaraderie.

“The Revenant,” however unforgiving, takes full advantage of its setting. Sure, blood is everywhere, like in the river when men get shot or seeping into snow, but frequent shots of the surrounding wilderness add an element of beauty that withstands gore. The mountains captivate, and the snowy landscape, though serene from the safety of our theater seats, adds yet another hardship to Glass’ growing list of things he must conquer.

The movie’s title sums it up in simple terms; a revenant is person who, after death or a prolonged absence, has returned.

Glass’ fight against the wilderness and human nature makes this film tenacious, bloody and beautiful all at once.

MOVE gives “The Revenant” four out of five stars.

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THE MANEATER | MOVE | JANUARY 27, 2016

Eight for eight with ‘The Hateful Eight’ Tarantino’s eighth film is explosive and confident in all the right places.

DANIEL FLOOD Reporter Quentin Tarantino’s newest movie “The Hateful Eight” brings the writer and director back to the same playing field as his second film, “Reservoir Dogs.” His film is broiled in an intensity that erupts from the dialogue of eight deceptively crafted characters.

In nearly three hours, Tarantino blindfolds his audience and tells them to walk toward the edge of a cliff.

Unsure about each step, we never know when “The Hateful Eight” is going to end. But it’s that thrill of everything leading up to the edge that is the real experience of the film, not the inevitable fall into action.

Through chance encounters, meticulous planning or some universal irony, eight strangers find themselves stuck in a lodge together during a western blizzard. There’s Major Warren

(Samuel L. Jackson) of the Civil War, the new town sheriff Chris Mannix (Walton Goggins), a bounty hunter named John “The Hangman” Ruth (Kurt Russell) and his prisoner, the notorious Daisy Domergue (Jennifer Jason Leigh). Ruth’s looking to collect the $10,000-bounty on Domergue’s head, but he picked up the other two on his way to town. They arrive at Minnie’s Haberdashery, a stagecoach stop, that’s already been settled by a Confederate general (Bruce Dern), the town hangman (Tim Roth), a former cowboyturned-farmhand (Michael Madsen) and a Mexican named Bob (Demián Bichir).

Even if you’re unfamiliar with Tarantino, the cast of characters should be enough indication of conflict to come.

Each character is quick to develop opinions of one another, due either to reputation or prejudice, and the objective audience is left mostly in the dark with no clear cut hero to follow. Between soldiers, criminals and peacekeepers, each of the haberdashery’s guests is a killer.

Either for their country, the

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Samuel L. Jackson plays Major Warren in “The Hateful Eight.”

law or for the hell of it, these characters aren’t too different and are quick to develop itchy trigger fingers. This may be Tarantino’s most in-depth script yet, as deeper interpretation replaces explosive and overthe-top violence. It at least seems that way for the film’s first two acts, but tensions do turn the sophisticated setup into an eventual bloodbath.

Although there are only eight characters (plus a stagecoach

driver played by James Park), they are soon dropping like flies in a brutal manner.

There’s a lower body count than something like “Kill Bill,” but characters are shot and gored in a much more callous way.

It’s a good move in direction since it keeps the film grounded in demented intimacy, despite jokes here and there.

Each actor makes their character their own and feels just right for the part; there’s

no surprise there. As far as the cinematography goes, I may have been a bit underwhelmed with what ends up being a film in mostly a single setting.

But a lone cabin in the West has rarely felt this alive, and Tarantino’s film leaves a lasting impact on the viewer. There’s no way this film buff could leave his audience unsatisfied.

MOVE gives “The Hateful Eight” four out of five stars.

‘Man Seeking Woman’ is original and familiar all at once Yes, FXX’s absurd comedy has penis monsters and destination weddings in hell, but it’s also got the DNA of observational sitcoms in its blood.

JACK HOWLAND Columnist In an early episode of FXX’s absurdist sitcom “Man Seeking Woman,” our newly single protagonist Josh Greenberg (Jay Baruchel) contemplates the phrasing of a text to a woman he met a day earlier on the train. This, in the lawless world of the sketch-like show, manifests itself as a high-stakes feud between friends, family and important-looking men in dark gray military uniforms.

His apartment is gone, replaced with what looks like the war room from “Dr. Strangelove,” and from all sides he hears frantic suggestions on what smart, funny, off-the-cuff thing he should say to ensure a first date. The scene rings true for anyone who has ever proofread a text message once or twice or three times over before sending it away; that self-inflicted struggle to come up with something clever feels like people shouting inside your head.

After everyone has said

their piece, Josh processes the information and settles on something simple: “Hi Laura, it’s Josh from the train. Great meeting you. Want to get dinner this Friday?” The radio silence of panic that follows — a news station runs the headline, “Still No Response from Laura...The World is Standing By” — is ridiculous yet grounded in the kind of observational humor that has defined sitcoms from “Seinfeld” to “Modern Family.”

The scene works as a sortof thesis statement for the strikingly bizarre yet oddly familiar series.

The half-hour show, created

by Simon Rich and produced

by Lorne Michaels, gambles it all on the hope that people will invest in a narrative that can shift into parody at the drop of a hat. It mostly works; though the show’s premise of a hapless white dude looking for love in New York City is by no means original, it’s the metaphoric treatment of everyday millennial phenomena that sets it apart.

When I watched the pilot episode over a year ago, I thought it was almost a little too clever. It begins with him getting dumped by his girlfriend, Maggie (Maya Erskine), only to walk away with an ominous storm cloud looming above his head. Later in the episode he gets set up on a date with a three-foot green troll in a pink dress. Maggie starts dating an undead, aging Hitler. I remember thinking to

myself, condescendingly, “Oh, OK, yep, I see what you did there.”

But the observations get more straight-up bizarre from then on out — see the Japanese Penis Monster in “Sizzurp” for reference — and I began to realign my expectations for a sometimes uneven but mostly entertaining parody disguised as a sitcom. Nichols, who has written for both the “The New Yorker” and “Saturday Night Live,” has created something that feels like a short story and a spoof all at once. In its second season premiere, he continued to build on what made the first run special as well as shed more light on supporting players. It opens with Josh’s best friend, Mike (the loud and brash Eric André), getting the news that Josh has a girlfriend from two solemn military men.

On the one hand, it’s a spot-on riff of war movies like “Forrest Gump” or “Saving Private Ryan,” but it’s also a method of showing us a typical sitcom storyline in a different light. The rest of the wild episode manages to parody killer-in-the-cabin horror movies, as well as heavy dramas about absentee fathers (while Josh was away, Mike raised their daughter who he says was created because “we both jizzed in the same toilet and then it was struck by lightning”).

OK, so “Man Seeking Woman” may not be something like “Parks and Recreation” or “Black-ish,” where you get big

character arcs and emotional revelations, and the lukewarm ratings may indicate that’s not what everyone wants. But in the seemingly endless landscape of television — a time when a sitcom can be just about anything — I think there’s a place for FXX’s ridiculous little comedy. The second season, three episodes in, has given viewers plenty of reason to be hopeful for the show going forward, establishing new

relationships and further exploring Mike, his sister, Liz (Britt Lower), and his parents.

Once I got past the startling strangeness of it, I started to realize “Man Seeking Woman” actually makes a lot of the jokes and references other sitcoms half-heartedly commit to. It’s inventive by going all the way, accepting the audience knows it’s a work of fiction and not holding back.

OPINION

A PLACE FOR FREE EXPRESSION We want to hear your voice.

Submit letters to the editor at: www.themaneater.com/letter-to-the-editor

13

the kaleidoscope view

BET Awards should have value KENNEDY JONES

“They’re supposed to be a support function, but somehow they are dictating academics … so what value is (the) system supposed to “They’re supposed to be a play?” support function, but — Faculty Council member Jung somehow they are dictating Ha-Brookshire on MU’s academics relationship with … the so UM what Systemvalue (story on page 3). is (the) system supposed to play?” originally thought this was — “I Faculty Council member Jung Ha-Brookshire on MU’s going to be a lot more relationship with the UM System formal, but this is something (story on page 3).

else. This is a lot more personal and I feel like he’ll “I originally thoughtthe this was actually remember faces going to he’s be a discussing lot more of those formal, is something with, sobut I’mthis excited to meet else.

This is a lot more him.” personal and I feel like he’ll — Freshman Noah Chidoub on actually remember the faces interim Chancellor Hank Foley of those discussing (storyhe’s on page 3). with, so I’m excited to meet him.”

“For those of you who are — Freshman Noah Chidoub on callinginterim for hasty action, I say Chancellor Hank Foley this: We have good, (story on page 3). strong processes in place, and we’ll follow them to their “For those of you who are completion and logical calling for hasty action, I say outcome.” this: We have good, strong — interim Chancellor Hank and we’ll processes in place, Foley on assistant professor follow them to their Melissa Click (story on page 3). completion and logical outcome.”

For the second year in a row, the Oscars have an all-white nomination pool for their best acting awards. As a result, Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, along with director Spike Lee, have all said they will not attend the award ceremony.

Some stars, like actress Stacey Dash, disagree with their actions. Dash believes if black entertainers did away with events such as the BET Awards, they wouldn't have the problem of an all-white nomination pool at the Oscars and other similar events.

Dash's comments reminded me of a day back in high school biology. Mrs. Williams, my freshman year biology teacher, was explaining the importance of Black History Month. Married to a

— Chancellor Hank “Iinterim regret the language and Foley on assistant professor strategies I used, and Melissa Click (story on page 3).

sincerely apologize to the MU campus, community, and journalists at large, for my “I regret the and behavior, andlanguage also for the strategies I used, andshifted way my actions have sincerely away apologize attention from to thethe MU campus, community, students’ campaign for and journalists at large, for my justice.” behavior, and also for the — Melissa Click in her official way my actions havehershifted apology regarding actions attention away from (story on page 3). the students’ campaign for justice.”

M — Melissa Click in her official apology regarding her actions (story on page 3).

Nicole Newman // GRAPHICS ASSISTANT

Nicole Newman // GRAPHICS ASSISTANT

black man and the mother of two black children, Mrs. Williams was the closest thing we had to a black teacher.

As such, she was the teacher in charge of the Black Student Union, a role she was very passionate about. A white classmate raised her hand during Mrs. Williams’ explanation and said, "I don't understand why there is a Black History Month. There's all these days for other races; there's also Mexican Appreciation Day and Cinco de Mayo.

Where's White Appreciation Month?"

See, people honestly believe that black people shouldn't have shows like the BET Awards or the Soul Train Awards. There are actually people who believe that television stations like BET and Centric shouldn't exist.

People who believe magazines like Ebony and Jet shouldn't exist. Stacey Dash believes if we were to just get rid of the BET Awards tomorrow, the Oscars would all of the sudden start

to nominate black actors. I'll tell her and those that agree with her that she is wrong.

Why do these all-black entities exist? These publications and award shows exist because black people were not originally recognized for their achievements in pre-existing publications and award shows. These entities were created to give blacks the recognition they deserve, because we already know that predominantly white institutions like the Oscars won't recognize us themselves. The fact that the Oscars have nominated only white actors in the best acting categories for two years isn't surprising. They have had the same problem since the beginning of their creation and it still hasn't been fixed. The reason the BET Awards exist is because shit like this has happened since the creation of these award shows and will continue to happen.

letter to the editor

Professor: Melissa Click should stay Sympathy is nice. Empathy is nicer. But they are both inadequate for real change.

They are feel-good emotions for the suppliers, but they change nothing for those in need of real tangible support. I know we think very highly of ourselves when we sympathize or empathize with those who are struggling. The truth is that neither sympathy nor empathy require more than a sad shake of the head, an earnest shrug of the shoulders, a deep sigh, and maybe a few dollars in a basket. Bottom line, expending sympathy or empathy costs us very little.

We do the “good deed,” we pat ourselves on the back and we return to our normal lives.

The “good deed” rarely changes anything substantial.

It is when we advance from sympathy (that deep moving of the spirit) to empathy (putting ourselves in the shoes of others), and arrive at meaningful action that we can truly change the course of people’s lives. Our 2016 Martin Luther King Day speaker, civil rights activist Diane Nash, would call that “agapic energy.” On Jan. 20, she spoke at our annual MLK celebration and described agapic energy as the kind of force that emerges from a love of people to drive the kind of action that moved mountains in the 1960s.

Since last week I have been thinking a lot about this in the light of the student activism on our Mizzou campus last fall.

It was agapic energy that caused our black students and their allies to raise awareness about the racial climate on campus and beyond. It was agapic energy that moved a group of faculty, staff and community members to support these students. We wrote letters, signed statements, provided food and provisions, and tried to surround them with love and support. And it was agapic energy that caused my colleague Melissa Click to spend time at the campsite supporting the students. Nobody asked us to do it. Something moved deep in our spirits, moved us from sympathy to empathy to action.

I have always thought that when we get to a stage where 21st century racism is condemned with as much vehemence

by white people as by people of color, we will have crossed an important threshold.

I know it is more difficult for people who do not experience blackness every day to understand that existence. This is why we black folks have spent time and energy explaining what that experience feels like.

That is why our student activists pushed hard last year. That is why Melissa’s actions should be examined with this threshold in mind.

Most of the reports on Melissa Click at the campsite have misrepresented her because they have omitted the context that put her in that place, at that time. None of the reports have captured her journey from sympathy to empathy to action. I did not know Melissa prior to November 2015. But she was one of few faculty and staff that spent time at the campsite. If you did not spend time there, you would not understand the deep resolve in the heart of that vibrant student movement to drive for change; you would not comprehend the tensions, uncertainties, emotions, and deep exhaustion in the midst of long dark and sometimes freezing nights.

On that fateful Monday morning, I was not at the campsite or I may have been standing right next to Melissa, trying to protect our students who had reached a fragile state, having spent weeks carrying a heavy load for the rest of us. There were indeed other faculty and staff there. She was part of a group of supporters who were not there simply to observe a spectacle.

She had invested too much agapic energy.

She understood that our students needed a moment to themselves to regroup, to take a breath, to compose themselves. Melissa has apologized for her spontaneous actions that morning, and many of us understood what happened because we knew the full context. Most of the reports of Melissa’s actions that day do not paint a complete or accurate picture. It is as if the larger movement has been eclipsed by that moment. While the media and others rush to judge her on her momentary interaction with two students, they ignore the corollary reality that she was also acting in support

of a larger group of students and their mission.

In the final scene of John Singleton’s “Boyz n the Hood,” Ice Cube’s character Doughboy watches grimly as the television newscaster reports on shootings and police action in Compton. He wonders where the help will come from and then concludes, “Either they don't know, don't show, or don't care about what’s going on.” This has too often been the posture of our mainstream society towards people of color. It appears to me that Melissa Click did show up because she did care about what was happening. She stood up for our students; I wish more of us would stand up for her now.

So I stand firmly with Melissa Click. I may be biased because as a proud Mizzou faculty member, I hope that we all stand up for our students, that we all care enough to build classrooms and a research campus where all our students feel equal and safe. I may be biased because as a mother of three black teenagers who could have needed tangible support in that camp that day, I would hope that there would be faculty and staff like Melissa Click who do more than sympathize and empathize from far away. I would hope that they would feel that agapic energy, that force that is born of love and the push for social justice.

Thanks to our students, things are shifting. Many faculty and staff are moving beyond sympathy and empathy to adopt actions in their curriculum, in their programming, all with a unified purpose of achieving a better environment where diversity, inclusion and equity are true pillars of this land-grant campus. I am proud to be a member of a growing multiracial collective of faculty and staff that are determined to work together to help our campus adjust to the charge from our students to become a better space for us all, where social justice is more than just a nice aspiration.

Stephanie Shonekan Associate Professor, Ethnomusicology and Black Studies

14

THE MANEATER | OPINION | JANUARY 27, 2016

the big-eyed believer

How to explore your mind with meditation HUNTER BASSLER The human race has always been one to seek new frontiers. From the sea to space, we have always loved to explore and discover. However, there has been another seemingly endless frontier that has always perplexed us: the mind.

Full of memories to reflect on, decisions to ponder and thoughts to investigate, our minds are one of the greatest frontiers to explore. Through schools of study like psychology and philosophy, we can come close to understanding this amazing frontier. However, one of the best ways for an individual to understand their own mind is by meditating.

Meditation is a centuries-old practice originating in Hindu tradition and later part of Taoist and Buddhist traditions. As time passed, many of the world’s largest religions adopted the practice. Even though you don’t rise off the ground or become telepathic while meditating, people everywhere believe it is an essential part of spiritual development.

Meditation has been a practice of mine for about a year and a half now. This was about the same time in which I had started to explore the gigantic world of

religion. When my studies led me to Buddhism and then to meditation, I was in awe. Around this time, I was someone who was quick to anger, anxious about my life and the future, and not in touch with my emotions. When I came in contact with meditation and learned what it had done for people, I immediately started practicing.

Meditation is hard — I won’t sugar coat it. In a world in which we can never be bored, an exercise that requires you to sit still, be calm and indulge in silence is definitely not part of everyday norms. Another reason it is not popular is due to people not knowing the real physical and mental benefits meditation can yield. According to the Mayo Clinic, meditation not only helps with our emotional well-being, but can also help manage symptoms of conditions such as high blood pressure, depression, heart disease and cancer.

There are a multitude of ways to meditate, but the one I’ve found most effective is mindful meditation.

Although many think of meditation as a task in which you clear your mind of all thoughts, mindful meditation involves the opposite. But this process is easier said than done.

The most important part of this process is setting.

You are going to need to find an area which is relatively

quiet and where you will not be disturbed. You will only need this space for about 8 minutes. This is the best time span for beginners as it is not too short or agonizingly long. You are going to need to sit in a comfortable position, set a timer for 8 minutes and close your eyes.

Begin by mentally checking the body as it relaxes by feeling if any part feels tense or in pain. If there happen to be any, adjust your position so these parts can loosen. After this, all you need to do is focus on the breath. You don’t need to change how long you inhale or exhale, you need only turn your focus to it. If any thoughts arise and turn your attention away from the breath, that is okay. Notice the thought, let it go, and return to the breath. Keep doing this each time your attention is diverted until the timer goes off.

Congratulations, you just meditated.

As I stated before, meditation is hard. Do not be discouraged if you didn’t exactly get it after your first try. As with every other hard thing in life, it takes practice and patience. As you do it more and more, you can increase the time of each session or increase the number of sessions as you see fit. So stay calm, stay focused and enjoy the inner peace that you acquire from meditation. Namaste.

politics

Politics, both local and national, should matter to students TESS VRBIN

The American political sphere never stops spinning, and within less than a month of 2016 beginning, it has already turned out a great deal of drama.

So far, there have been several Republican and Democrat primary debates, a controversy regarding Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s citizenship, four Americans freed from Iranian captivity, President Barack Obama’s final State of the Union address and an endorsement of GOP frontrunner Donald Trump by the nonsensical but nonetheless popular Sarah Palin.

The 2016 presidential election is over 10 months away, and it’s already making me nervous.

About five months ago, I arrived on MU’s campus with little to no interest in anything political. However, after last semester’s protests, administrative upheaval, First Amendment controversy and chaotic Missouri Students Association election, I realized that I need to care about politics for my own good. We all do. It’s difficult to believe otherwise when you consider our country.

We live in a country in which women still do not receive wages equal to men. We live in a country in which numerous mass shootings over several years still

haven’t led to stricter gun laws. We live in a country in which people stereotype Muslims as terrorists but are much more hesitant to use the term when white so-called Christians, such as Planned Parenthood shooting suspect Robert Lewis Dear, commit acts of terror. We live in a country in which people who questioned the citizenship of an American-born black president do not question that of a Canadian-born white presidential candidate, even though he only renounced his Canadian citizenship a year and a half ago. We live in a country in which a billionaire businessman with no political background can decide to run for president and can continue to gain in the polls even as he spews hateful and untrue things.

Troubles like these aren’t just a national phenomenon, either. Look at our school.

We attend a university in which a hunger strike and the multiple instances of discrimination that caused it weren’t widely known to the American public until our football team went on strike, putting money and entertainment on the line. We attend a university in which it took those two strikes for the administration to realize it wasn’t taking the discrimination seriously enough. We attend a university in which the student body elected a white MSA president with a history of questionable Twitter use and a Title IX investigation behind him, soon after calling for the resignation of

a black MSA president who, in the midst of chaos and confusion, helped spread a false rumor about the Ku Klux Klan on campus.

I might be an opinion columnist, but these lists aren’t opinions. They are facts, and I love MU enough to point out what’s wrong with it. Here’s one more item on that list: only 20.3 percent of undergraduates voted in the 2015 MSA election, and only 28.3 percent voted for or against the library fee. These numbers don’t bode well for future elections at MU and beyond.

In less than two months, the Missouri primaries will be upon us, and most MU students, including me, will be able to vote for the first time in a presidential election. Some people might still be indifferent to politics, as I once was. But even those who do care should keep this at the front of their minds: Whoever is elected president in November will still be president when the current MU student body has graduated college and entered the job market. If that fact doesn’t chill you more than mid-Missouri’s recent weather, I don’t know what does.

I also don’t know everything about politics, having only a semester’s worth of interest behind me. But I’m willing to learn about and discuss them, especially with 2016 shaping up to be a historical, dramatic and possibly quite messy election year.

SPORTS

THE BEST SOURCE FOR MU SPORTS

15

JORDAN KODNER | PHOTO EDITOR

Forward Kevin Puryear (24) blocks the shot of Maryland-Eastern Shore guard Ryan Andino (0) during the basketball game on Nov. 15 at Mizzou Arena.

basketball

Puryear basketball’s most consistent player Coach Kim Anderson called the freshmen “a core group of our program.” And the core of the group is Kevin Puryear.

ALEC LEWIS Sports Editor There came a time when Vicki Puryear wasn’t sure Missouri was the right fit for her son. The school had yet to make an

offer, Kim Anderson had just been hired and Kevin Puryear had other official visits scheduled.

Still, though, Kevin remained adamant that the school he’d grown to love since watching No. 4 Missouri beat No. 6 Baylor on the back of 14 threepointers in 2012 was the one for him.

And sure enough, while attending a volleyball game during his senior year of high school, the Puryear family met with Anderson, and “the rest is history,” Vicki said.

It’s funny Vicki mentioned history, too, because as Missouri basketball

spokesman Patrick Crawford pointed out last week, Kevin became the sixthfastest player in school history to score 200 points.

That’s the impact the 6-foot-7, crafty left-hander has had on Mizzou thus far in his career. He leads the team in scoring, averaging 11.5 per game — good enough for fourth-best among freshman in the Southeastern Conference. Not to mention he also leads the Tigers in rebounds averaging 4.7 per game. This is a player that 247sports.com ranked 347th in his class — lower than the combined rankings freshman guards KJ

Walton and Terrence Phillips — yet the production doesn’t surprise Vicki in the slightest.

“I knew coming in that his goal was never to start for MU, but his goal was to come in and make an impact — which I thought was really mature of him,” she said. “So when it came to the first game and I saw that he was starting, that kind of shocked me and that kind of scared me at the same time because it’s a lot for a freshman to come in and do well in the

5-2 SEC) on Wednesday and then return to Columbia for a two-game home stand where they will face Mississippi State (8-10, 1-5 SEC) on Saturday and Ole Miss (12-7, 2-5 SEC) on Feb. 3.

started a single game this season, the sophomore guard has been one of Missouri’s most explosive players on the court. Isabell had been steadily gaining minutes throughout the season, but he did not see action against A&M. The Tigers missed his presence, especially when it came to turnovers. Missouri finished the game with a dismal 15 turnovers, 11 of which came from Mizzou’s guard play. Isabell is averaging 1.39 turnovers per game and has only given the ball away four times in Missouri’s last five games.

Expect Isabell to play a more significant role against Kentucky as Missouri will need to cut down its turnover margin to stand a chance against the 2015 SEC Champions.

guard is in the midst of one such cold streak. Since entering SEC play, VanLeer is only 3-17 from beyond the arc and has seen his 3-point percentage drop to 31.7 percent.

Missouri needs VanLeer to start producing from behind the line, as without him, the Tigers have struggled to keep pace when teams start to heat up from the floor.

Road play: It has been ugly for Missouri on the road. The Tigers have not won a single game in neutral or hostile sites (0-8) and are being outscored by an average of 15 points on the road. Mizzou has not won an away or neutral game since they played Chaminade University in Maui, Hawaii, on Nov. 26, 2014. The 74-60 victory is coach Kim Anderson’s only win away from Mizzou Arena during his tenure.

With half of their remaining games on the road, the Tigers need Anderson to find some inspiration on their travels.

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This week’s stock watch for Missouri men’s basketball Kevin Puryear has been turning in quality performances while Mizzou continues to struggle on the road.

TYLER KRAFT Staff Writer The Missouri Tigers (8-11, 1-5 SEC) men’s basketball team is in the midst of its longest losing streak of the season, and there does not appear to be an end in sight.

On Saturday, Mizzou traveled to College Station in an attempt to upset the No. 10 Texas A&M Aggies. While the team hung around for the first half, they succumbed to lengthy runs in the second half and eventually fell 66-53.

Up next: the Tigers will travel to Rupp Arena to take on No. 23 Kentucky (15-4,

Stock Up Kevin Puryear: Arguably the most consistent performer for the Tigers this season, the freshman forward has done nothing but impress in his inaugural season. Puryear scored 11 points against A&M, eight of which came in the second half. He is leading the team in scoring with 11.4 points per game and has also scored in double digits in 13 of Missouri’s 19 games. Puryear also leads the team in rebounding, averaging 4.7 boards per game.

For Missouri to get back on track, Puryear will need to continue pouring in high quality performances from his post position. When Puryear scores at least 10 points, the Tigers are 7-6.

Tramaine Isabell: Despite not having

Stock Down Cullen VanLeer: All players go through cold streaks, especially those who make a living launching shots from behind the 3-point line. The freshman

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THE MANEATER | SPORTS | JANUARY 27, 2016

KATHERINE KNOTT | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Redshirt freshman Tim Miklus avoids getting pinned by Cornell’s Gabe Dean. Miklus lost 18-1 in what coach Brian Smith described as a heroic effort. A pin would’ve put the match out of reach for the No. 4 Missouri Tigers. Instead, the team won 18-17 on Jan. 10.

Mizzou wrestling becomes a family sport Coach Brian Smith: “You need a partner who is going to push you to not only become a better wrestler but a better person as a whole.”

CHASE LYNN Staff Writer Several of the Missouri wrestlers have come in pairs to coach Brian Smith.

On the roster, there are currently three pairs of brothers, including Phyllip and Nick DeLoach, a set of twins who wrestle at 157 and 165 pounds.

“I couldn’t imagine wrestling on a team without (Phyllip),” Nick said. “There was a slim chance we could be wrestling for different schools in college. But we’ve done so much together so the idea of separating didn’t last long.”

Since he began coaching at MU in 1998, Smith has

coached over 15 sets of siblings including Ben and Max Askren, who combined for three NCAA individual national titles. Only five wrestlers in history of Missouri wrestling have won individual national titles, all of them coached by Smith.

“Wrestling is a family sport,” Smith said. “You need a partner who is going to push you to not only become a better wrestler but a better person as a whole.

What kind of person fits that description better than someone’s sibling? I think it’s just natural for some wrestlers, especially brothers, to stick with the person that has helped them come this far.”

Smith’s connection with wrestling and siblings goes all the way back to when he first started his coaching career at Western High School in Davis, Florida, in 1991. Smith coached his younger brother Terry at Western and would later coach him at Cornell University.

“He hated me when I coached him,” Smith said with a grin on his face. “I was tough on him, but I learned a lot from coaching him.”

Blaise Butler never could imagine wrestling with his brother, Alex, either. Blaise, who wrestles at 174 pounds, wrestled at the University of Virginia before transferring to Missouri for his final season. Alex Butler is currently a freshman and wrestles at 125 pounds.

“We never really talked about it, it just kind of happened the way it did,” Alex Butler said. “I love having my brother on the team. He’s a good role model and positive influence for the team.”

The family ties don’t stop there for the team.

Freshman Keegan McCormick is cousins with AllAmericans Chris, Tyler and Nathan McCormick, who all wrestled for the Tigers under Smith.

Willie and Tim Miklus are the last pair of siblings on the active roster. They are the only siblings in which both brothers competed in a varsity dual this season.

“I personally love it,” Willie said. “We’ve been doing the same thing since kids and it’s nice having someone I can relate to and watch all their hard work pay off.”

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THE MANEATER | SPORTS | JANUARY 27, 2016

Wrestling gets set for duo of matchups The matches will be a chance for Missouri to get back in winning mode as they look ahead to the end of this month and early next month’s national duals and championships.

ANNE ROGERS Staff Writer Missouri’s wrestling team is looking to redeem itself after losing for the first time in almost two years to No. 5 Oklahoma State 23-9 last week when they take the mat against No. 7 ranked Oklahoma at Hearnes Center on Saturday. The afternoon match should be a win for Missouri with a few key matches that could help individual wrestlers on their quest for the national championship.

The match will be a chance for Missouri to get back in winning mode as they look ahead to the end of this month and early next month’s national duals and championships. Here are three

things the team must do to win the dual: Capitalize on the 174-197 weight classes: Missouri’s wrestlers should dominate here. At 174 pounds, senior Blaise Butler had a huge win against OSU’s Kyle Crutchmer during last Friday’s bout and should continue that momentum and score big points for the team. Sophomore Willie Miklus, who has dominated this season despite a loss to OSU’s Nolan Boyd, should get the win as well.

Rounding out the triple threat is senior J’den Cox at 197 pounds, who has a 19-1 record this season and should easily score bonus points if not a fall for the Tigers.

Don’t count out Zach Synon: Wrestling the defending national champion in Oklahoma’s Cody Brewer at 133 pounds might seem like a mighty task for No. 11 Zach Synon, but don’t be so quick to assume the winner of that match. Synon pinned Ohio State’s Johnni Dijulius at home early in December, and he proved that he was a tough wrestler who can come up strong in big matches. With his tall and lanky structure, Synon is able to take control of his opponent, and with his quick

MANEATER FILE PHOTO

Mizzou Tiger 133-pound weight class Zach Synon looks to gain control over Ohio State Buckeye Johnni DiJulius during the meet on Dec. 12 at Hearnes Center.

feet and fast movements, most of his opponents don’t know what hit them.

Gain back momentum: Losing a 37-straight dual win streak has to hurt.

Missouri, however, cannot let this loss define the team’s season. The team needs to gain back the energy it had in December as it works to get to the

national championship in early March.

The key is to not lose the enthusiasm that often disappears when a wrestler is trailing after the first period. If every wrestler can attack right away and use strong control to gain points on their opponents, Missouri can start a new win streak.

Freshman Hannah Schuchts embraces her redshirt year Staff Writer Most Missouri women’s basketball fans know the names of freshmen Sophie Cunningham and Cierra Porter well. After all, they’ve been a dominant duo thus far. But, many may not be as familiar with freshman Hannah Schuchts.

They should be.

Schuchts has been with the team every step of the way — just not on the court.

Earlier this year, Schuchts noticed a nagging pain in her foot, but she continued to practice. Soon, the nagging became more and more apparent, requiring a trip to the doctor.

There, she was diagnosed with a stress fracture, an injury that changed her status from part of the highly recruited rookie trio to a redshirt freshman.

Despite her injury, she comes to practice and travels to the games with her teammates, but she stays away from the action.

Instead, you can find her in the weight room or pool doing extra conditioning to stay in shape and bring her foot back to full health.

Just a few weeks ago, she built up enough strength to return to practice. Although she won’t see any game time this season, she still pushes herself on the court for the benefit of the team.

“This year I’m just trying to be as good as the team is,” Schuchts said. “I obviously have a really fun team to cheer for this season, they put on a good show. I love being there for them, cheering them on, watching the game and any little reminder that I can give them.”

But watching your teammates play the game you love from the sidelines isn’t as easy as it seems. When asked if it was difficult to be on the bench during games, she nodded immediately and replied with an emphasized, “oh yeah.”

Although being a spectator and supporter aren’t her ideal roles, Schuchts and her teammates know this season will set her up for success next year, when her potential will finally be showcased.

“What she does is very quiet but it’s huge at the same time,” Cunningham said. “Her arms are so freaking long that you underestimate it. She’s going to be a huge presence for us down low and on the perimeter.

This year is going to help her grow and help her see what she can do next year for us. I think it’s the best thing for her to do because she’s going to be a huge presence for us next year.”

As a Florida native, an unusual origin for the primarily local team, Schuchts’ college decision was solidified once she met the girls; it was the players that did it for her. They’ve also been a key component to her continued positivity toward her redshirt year.

“It’s hard to redshirt, but she’s really embraced it,” coach Robin Pingeton said. “She’s enjoyed the process. Certainly looking forward to next season, but it’s a pretty close-knit group of young ladies. Fourteen sisters that battle for each other, encourage each other, challenge each other, and she’s very valuable in regards to those kinds of things.”

So to the fans who aren’t familiar with this long-armed forward cheering at the end of the bench on game days, it’s only a matter of time.

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LEXI CHURCHILL

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THE MANEATER | SPORTS | JANUARY 27, 2016

Fouled-out Missouri Tiger freshman Sophie Cunningham high fives sophomore Carrie Sephard, celebrating on the bench during the game against the Florida Gators on Jan. 24.

Women’s basketball

ALL PHOTOS BY ALEXZANDRIA CHURCHILL | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Missouri Tiger freshman Cierra Porter blocks out her opponent as Florida’s Tyshara Fleming shoots a free throw.

Diving for possession of a 50-50 ball, sophomore Bri Porter tries to beat out Florida Gators Dyandria Anderson and Haley Lorenzen on Jan. 24 in Mizzou Arena.

Coach Pingeton talks to the five Missouri Tiger starters, Sophie Cunningham (3), freshman Cierra Porter (21), Sierra Michaelis (24), Jordan Frericks (22), and Lindsay Cunningham (11) before they are announced Jan. 24 against the Florida Gators.

The Missouri Tigers women’s basketball team gets pumped up in the middle of their home court before the tipoff of the game against the Florida Gators on Jan. 24.

CORE

SEC. But with his performance and his impact in the game, it didn’t surprise me because I’ve seen him in action.”

Vicki said she’s a gym rat. She attends the games her son plays at Mizzou Arena, and then she goes home and watches them once more.

That’s what inspired her comment to Kevin prior to the Auburn game Jan. 9 to play with more intensity. After watching Missouri fall to Georgia 77-59 on the road, she went back to watch the year’s first game against Wofford.

“I probably am one of his worst critics,” Vicki said. “I’m a soft place for him to fall but he also knows he’s going to get the straight from me. So when I see him operate beneath his ability or not doing something simple like running the floor quickly, I’m going to let him know.”

It’s that mindset that’s given him the work ethic that his high school coach at Blue Springs South and AAU coach with KC Run GMC point out as to what differentiates the freshman forward.

meant nothing but motivation.

“When he was a freshman, we realized there’s this list and if you’re on this list, you’re really doing something,” Vicki said. “But then, we realized there were times that not all the kids on that list are necessarily great basketball players. That list means nothing; it means nothing. And honestly, it fueled him. It gave him that extra ‘umph’ and work hard to prove someone wrong, whoever that may be. And he did, and it worked out for him.”

It was his work ethic that made that work. Instilled by his parents and influenced by those around him, Kevin has a knack for outworking his competition.

LJ Goolsby, who was Kevin’s AAU coach, attested to this.

“Outside of getting in the gym on his own, which is something he does a great deal of, it’s how hard he works while he’s there,” Goolsby said. “He gives 110 percent, is going to battle and works his tail off in practice and that’s why it’s so great to be around him.”

The Turning Point Jimmy Cain, Kevin’s high school coach, can remember when his sixth man turned the corner in 2012.

Against Fort Osage High School in the sectional tournament of Kevin’s high school freshman year scored 15 points in the third quarter to catapult his team to victory when his team needed it most.

“It was explosive,” Cain said.

“That moment was kind of his breakout moment that put him on everybody’s radar real quick.”

Even with his offers from schools like Nebraska and Oklahoma State by the time he was a senior, he was by no means highly-ranked by any service or recruiting website.

Vicki said that didn’t bother him.

In the realm of recruiting in this day and age, kids long to appear on “top 150 prospects” lists. College coaches can view them, AAU coaches study them and kids can get caught up in them. For Kevin, though, they

in sending her son to Columbia, Missouri.

Having won over a hundred games playing at Blue Springs South and with KC Run GMC, the thought of him heading into an environment of rebuilding is daunting. Thus far, though, it has yet to hinder his passion, his drive or his leadership ability.

On that, Cain shared a story from during Kevin’s senior year.

“I think the best story of his leadership and desire to win was when we started the season last year 20-0 and we lost two of the next four,” Cain said. “A few guys were getting onto (Kevin) because he was constantly on him like a coach, and he was literally was in tears and told the guys, ‘I know that, I know I’m on everybody and overboard, but I feel like we’ve come up short my first three years here, and I don’t want to see that happen again.’

And from that point on, the team was as motivated and as focused as ever.”

At Missouri, it’s been different for Kevin. Although Vicki’s concerns have been apparent, Goolsby believes it’s a source of pride for Kevin on a daily basis.

“Hopefully, from an individual standpoint, he can

Self-Driven

help Missouri get back on a winning track,” Goolsby said.

“I know that’s something that he’d want to do, is to be a guy who's known to help them turn the corner and help them get back to the winning ways. I think that’d be something that Kevin would be very honored to be a part of.”

Ultimately, it’s the pride that Kevin takes in his university that drives him.

“As a parent, you just want your son to be where he’s happy,” Vicki said. “I know that, with all the adversity this team is going through, if Kevin was at a place where he wasn’t happy it would just make it more difficult and I have peace knowing that’s where he we wants to be.”

The Missouri Tigers are 8-11 overall and 1-5 in conference play, something that Kevin shakes his head at in media availabilities week-in and weekout.

Why? Because “he’s an angry loser and a fierce competitor,” Vicki says. “And although he’s dealt with losing, I still don’t think he’s used to it, and I don’t think he ever wants to get used to it.”

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Kevin hates to lose. That’s one of the concerns Vicki had

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In Monday ’s media availability, Anderson called the freshmen class “a core group of our program.” And the core of the group is Kevin Puryear.

Continued from page 15

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THE MANEATER | SPORTS | JANUARY 27, 2016

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