The Murray State News

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The Murray State News TheNews.org

October 20, 2016

Bevin set to release funds Alicia Steele

Beshear told The Murray State News he is proud that asteele5@murraystate.edu the work of his office will provide nearly $1 million to Franklin Circuit Court Murray State. Judge Thomas D. Wingate “Murray State plays such signed an order, agreed to by a vital role in educating our Gov. Matt Bevin and Attornext generation of leaders,” ney General Andy Beshear, Beshear said. “It’s my hope that says Bevin has three that every state college and days to release and disburse university impacted by the the funds withheld from governor’s illegal cuts will Kentucky’s pubuse the lic universities’ funds to infinal quarter vest in stubudget last fiscal dents and year. faculty.” Since the He said order was filed he looks on Monday, the forward funds should be to seeing released today. how Mur According to ray State the order, “The will benefit Supreme Court from these has issued a funds being bindi ng d eci- invested on - Andy Beshear, attorney general sion deciding all campus. issues on this matter. That University officials had no opinion became final on Occomment as to how the funds tober 13, 2016.” would be used once returned As such, Oct. 13 was the to Murray State or when the deadline for Bevin to apmoney would be returned. peal the Kentucky Supreme However, Adrienne King, Court’s decision that ruled vice president of Univerin favor of Beshear and no sity Advancement, said she appeal was filed. will notify The Murray State Last month, the Kentucky News “as soon as the funds Supreme Court ruled that have been received.” Bevin did not have the au Multiple attempts to conthority to cut the budget of tact Bevin and his press state universities because secretary Amanda Stamper there was no budget shortwent unanswered and there fall in the final quarter of the is no mention of the order on fiscal year. his social media or website. Assistant News Editor

It’s my hope that every state college and university impacted by the governor’s illegal cuts will use the funds to invest in students and faculty.

Vol. 91, No. 8

GROUNDED KY AIR Kentucky residents soon to see the full effect of the REAL ID Act of 2005

Matthew Parks Staff writer mparks6@murraystate.edu On Oct. 12, the U.S. De-

partment of Homeland Security denied Kentucky’s request for a one-year extension to the federal REAL ID Act. According to the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC), this could potentially force all Kentucky residents to obtain a passport for domestic air travel if Kentucky is not in compliance with the REAL ID Act by January 2018. In January 2017, this would also affect Kentucky residents’ ability to use driver’s licenses to enter military bases like Fort Campbell, nuclear power plants and other designated federal government facilities. The legislation was set by the 9/11 Commission in order to “set standards for the issuance of sources of identification, such as driver’s licenses,” according to

the Department of Homeland Security’s website. The website also says that approximately 90 percent of those in the U.S. who have driver’s licenses are either in compliance with the law or their state has received an extension allowing the continued use of their identification as before. “It’s disappointing that the federal government is basically turning a blind eye to recent progress we’ve made in improving our systems,” said John-Mark Hack, commissioner of the Department of Vehicle Regulation in a press release from the KYTC. Kentucky’s main area of non-compliance lies in its highly decentralized method of identification issuance, according to KYTC. Drivers in Kentucky are able to obtain a license from 144 dif-

ferent Circuit Court Clerk office locations. The press release also stated in order for Kentucky to be in compliance with the REAL ID Act, each of those locations would have to undergo costly security upgrades. The General Assembly proposed a law earlier this year that would have brought Kentucky into compliance with federal regulations, but Gov. Matt Bevin vetoed it because he said he believed the assembly was rushed, according to the release from the KYTC. The Department of Homeland Security’s website states that Kentucky has until the federal mandated deadline of Jan. 22, 2018 to come into compliance. At that time, state residents will be subject to stricter travel policies.

“All Kentuckians should be aware that the immediate impact of this decision will not be felt by the vast majority of Kentuckians,” Hack said in the KYTC press release. “We can still use our driver’s licenses to visit the Social Security offices, Veteran’s Affairs (VA) facilities, federal courthouses and to apply for federal benefits like Medicare.” According to the press release, KYTC plans to host a series of public forums throughout December in order to discuss the implications of this issue and means of solving the statewide dilemma. For a full list of accepted travel documents, Kentucky residents can visit the Transportation Security Administration website at www.tsa. gov/travel/security-screening/identification.

More students forced out Restaurants coming to Murray of Residential Colleges Emily Williams

Contributing writer

ewilliams15@murraystate.edu

Abby Siegel || News Editor asiegel@murraystate.edu

Flooding caused by an activated sprinkler Sunday required female residents on the seventh floor of White Residential College to relocate while the floor was being cleaned and damage was assessed. According to crime logs provided to The Murray State News from Public Safety and Emergency Management, at 3:44 p.m. the Central Heating and Cooling Plant reported a sprinkler alarm activation with no threat of fire. Public Safety, the Murray Fire Department, on-call housing staff, Central Plant and the state fire marshall’s office were notified. The crime log stated that the sprinkler activation was caused by a clothes hanger on the sprinkler head. “Due to the volume of water that was disbursed, univer-

McKenna Dosier/The News

A broken sprinkler which caused the flooding of White Residential Colleges. sity staff decided that the best course of action was to temporarily place impacted residents from the seventh floor of White residential hall into alternate on-campus residential housing at Old Franklin residential

Greeks tag team cancer treatment WHAT’S

INSIDE

hall,” said Shawn Touney, director of communication. Rachel Barnett, freshman from Adairville, Kentucky, and seventh-floor resident of

Murray will welcome both an Arby’s and a Rally’s in the near future, joining the many other fast food restaurant chains in the city. Aaron Dail, president of the Murray-Calloway County Chamber of Commerce, said no official opening dates are set, but he estimates the grand opening of these restaurants in spring 2017. The dates, however, depend on construction schedules that are dictated by weather conditions. “We’re hoping for a mild and dry winter,” Dail said. “That will help with construction.” Dail said Murray and Calloway County as a whole, are on the radar for different retailers. “I know Arby’s and Rally’s are just another notch on the belt, but when we get the Panera’s of the world and

see FAST FOOD, 2A

see FLOODING, 2A Lindsey Coleman Staff writer

lcoleman7@murraystate.edu

The Murray State chapters of Alpha Gamma Delta and Alpha Omicron Pi have teamed up to raise money for their sisters with cancer by selling bracelets. Grace Ritchie, junior from Bardstown, Kentucky and member of AOPi, was diagnosed with stage one Hodgkin’s Lymphoma on April 29. Alex Arnett, freshman from Murray and member of Alpha Gam, was diagnosed with stage four Hodgkin’s Lymphoma on Sept. 14. Rachel Ross, senior from Murray and member of Alpha Gam, said different

Greek letters don’t matter when you’re trying to support sisters who are going through such a life-altering time. “When we found out that Alex was diagnosed, honestly I immediately thought of how crazy it was that AOPi had somebody diagnosed with the same disease, so when Alex was diagnosed, it was important to not forget Ritchie was fighting this too,” Ross said. In the Curris Center on Oct. 12 and 13, Alpha Gam and AOPi sold rubber bracelets for a minimum donation of $3, Ross said. “The bracelets are a reminder for us,” Ross said. “They’re a way to band together to show everybody

Chalice Kieth/The News

that it’s not just ‘support Alex,’ it’s not just ‘support Grace,’ it’s ‘support two women that are fighting the same disease.’” Emily Cook, sophomore from Lexington, Kentucky, is a member of Alpha Gam and Arnett’s sorority big sister. “We just all want to be that support system for her, and give her the support and love she needs,” Cook said. The bracelet campaign isn’t the only way AOPi has supported Ritchie. Rachel Solomon, junior from Benton, Kentucky and member of AOPi, was the coordinator of a powderpuff football tournament on Sept. 13 to raise money for Ritchie. “We all just kind of felt like we needed to do some-

thing to get other people involved, because so many people want to help any way they can,” Solomon said, “When you find out that another Greek person has gotten diagnosed with something, they want to help.” She said that by collecting entry fees for the tournament, selling T-shirts, selling baked goods and collecting donations, they raised more than $3,700. She said they even got to Facetime Ritchie during the event. “We did this event just so other people could come, show their support and help out in any way. It was a community event, not just for

see GREEK, 2A

HANDS-ON LEARNING

OUR VIEW

RACER ROUNDUP

ZUMBA-PINK

Grant brings learning to life, page 3

REAL ID Act is a real mess for Kentucky, page 4

Murray hosts 41st annual college rodeo, page 7

Pink zumbathon hosted for breast cancer research, page 9


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