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March 5, 2020 | Vol. 94, No. 21

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Tornadoes impact Murray State community Gage Johnson Editor-in-Chief gjohnson17@murraystate.edu

Photo courtesy of Lauren Campbell Multiple tornadoes tore through the Nashville area on Tuesday, March 3, leaving debris scattered.

All eyes have been on central Tennessee this week after multiple tornadoes including an EF3 tore through the Music City, and that includes many from Murray State.

At approximately 1 a.m. on Tuesday, March 3, a tornado touched down north of downtown Nashville, Tennessee, and continued east, taking the lives of at least 24 people. At press time, 18 people were still missing in Putnam County.

Murray State alumna Lauren Campbell, an account executive at NewsChannel 5 in Nashville, said when they interrupted “The Bachelor” to announce severe weather would be coming in the middle of the night, she never expected how devastating the damage would be.

Campbell slept through the night despite the tornado touching down just a quarter mile from her apartment. With nearly no debris around her complex, she had no idea just how severe the storm had been until she headed to the gym the next morning.

“I knew something had happened, but I just didn’t know how bad yet,” Campbell said. “I got on the interstate and noticed at 6 a.m. it was already backed up, which was odd, and I noticed there were trees everywhere and I was sitting in traffic on my phone and thought ‘wow, this is really bad.’”

Noticing just how bad everything was and knowing her coworkers had been working all night at the television station,

she traveled to Germantown to get coffee where she was met with even more destruction, as buildings were leveled and water was spewing from fire hydrants.

“I went down Main Street and you just immediately could tell it was just catastrophic,” Campbell said. “It wasn’t just a normal tornado. Everything was destroyed.

I hate to compare it to this, but it felt like what you hear about at ground zero and how it all happened. Everything is flat, all the power lines were down, it was eerily quiet and there were no lights and people walking around everywhere.”

Campbell said the look on people’s faces was incredibly sad.

“People had obviously been put out of their apartments and were walking around with their animals on their phones and they just had this look on their face, like a blank stare,” Campbell said. “Nobody really knew what to do.”

Brian Bourke, associate professor of postsecondary education, was in Nashville for the Student Affairs Conference when the tornado hit. Similar to Campbell, Bourke said the weather was completely unexpected.

Bourke said the weather was beautiful before he returned to his hotel on Monday night, and it wasn’t until around 12:45 a.m. on Tuesday, March 3, when he was awakened by tornado sirens.

“It was a very eerie feeling to hear sirens in the middle of a city while I was in a tall

,

see TORNADO page 2

Racers aim for third straight OVC Championship Gage Johnson Editor-in-Chief gjohnson17@murraystate.edu With March Madness quickly approaching, Murray State men’s basketball will look to be the first team to punch its ticket to the Big Dance when it competes in the OVC Tournament this week.

The Racers are coming off wins against EKU and Austin Peay, which led to them claiming a share of their third straight regular season OVC Championship.

Head Coach Matt McMahon was excited for his team’s work to pay off, but said they still have their best basketball ahead of them. “[I was] thrilled with the way the weekend went,” McMahon said. “I thought our guys really delivered when they had to.

[There’s] still plenty of area for improvement. [I] loved our defensive effort and intensity there. Offensively [we] still want to try and execute better [and] clean up some of the turnovers.”

News Sports Opinion Features

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While they clearly had a solid week en route to claiming another regular season title, McMahon still feels as though they could improve on the offensive glass and cut down some unforced turnovers.

“Each game was different, but [in] both games we need to cut down some of the turnovers,” McMahon said. “I think Saturday night against Austin Peay we got hurt on the offensive glass some. Their frontcourt Abaev especially had six offensive rebounds, Terry Taylor had three and their seven-footer off the bench had two himself, so we’ve got to clean that up some I think, especially going into tournament play where rebounding is so important.”

McMahon said while his team does have some deficiencies, they will spend a lot of time building on their strengths in the days leading up to their first game of the tournament.

One of those strengths was Murray State’s disruptiveness on the defensive end

see MBB page 10

How the coronavirus continues to affect campus

NEWS

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Gage Johnson/The News Senior forward Anthony Smith celebrates after making a layup and getting fouled.

Hawthorne shines in first season

SPORTS

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Minimum wage is the new living wage

OPINION

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Murray Shakespeare Festival celebrates 20th anniversary

FEATURES page 14

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News

March 5, 2020

Mask shortage and program cancellations How the coronavirus continues to affect campus

Sarah Mead Staff Writer smead@murraystate.edu Because of the rising concerns about the coronavirus, the University administration and Chief Medical Officer Robert Hughes released an update to explain the University’s prevention efforts.

As of Tuesday, March 3, all international travel to and from campus has been suspended until April 30. This suspension includes the London program during spring break and the semester abroad in Japan. However, the University is still reviewing all international travel plans that involve students, faculty and staff.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advised universities to cancel upcoming foreign exchange programs and ask current program participants to return to their home countries.

The number of reported cases of the coronavirus has increased over 90,000.

A little over 3,000 of the reported cases have resulted in deaths, but approximately 51,000 cases have recovered.

Currently, there are no known cases of COVID-19 on campus or in the state of Kentucky.

Kyle Morrison, pharmacy technician at Walmart in Murray said he’s noticed that some products are selling faster than usual.

“People are stocking up on cold medicine and canned goods just in case something does happen where they can’t leave their house,” Morrison said.

Nationwide there has been a shortage of masks, and Murray is no exception.

“Face masks have been a real issue,” Morrison said. “They are back-ordered from our supplier, so we are not even able to get them in at this point. A lot

of people have been going to the paint department and using masks from back there as well. The whole store is sold out at this point.”

Though people are buying face masks in mass quantities, experts say face masks do not protect a person from contracting the virus. According to the CDC, face masks do not protect healthy people from respiratory diseases. Rather, face masks should be used by individuals with coronavirus symptoms to prevent the spread of the disease to others and health care providers.

Those who do have symptoms of respiratory illness should remain at home to further reduce the spread of the virus.

Individuals with a fever, cough and shortness of breath should stay at home and away from campus.

“Students, faculty and staff who have symptoms of acute respiratory illnesses are recommended to stay home and not come to work or class until you are free of fever, [which is] 100.4 F or 37.8 C or greater, signs of a fever and any other symptoms for at least 24 hours,” Hughes said. “Notify your direct supervisor or the appropriate faculty member and stay home if you are sick or need to take care of a sick family member.”

According to the CDC, the best preventative measures for the coronavirus and similar respiratory diseases are to avoid contact with people who are sick and to disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces. One should also wash his or her hands as often as possible.

“Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom, before eating and after blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing,” according to the CDC’s coronavirus prevention webpage. “If soap

Photo courtesy of Lauren Campbell At least 25 fatalities were reported because of the severe weather.

Daniella Tebib/The News Local pharmacies experience a mask shortage because of the coronavirus outbreak.

and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60 percent alcohol. Always wash hands with soap and water if [your] hands are visibly dirty.”

Students, faculty and staff who have recently traveled or been exposed to someone at risk of contracting the virus should contact Murray State’s Health Services.

The Health Services clinic is located in Wells Hall and is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. to 4

p.m. The clinic can be reached at (270) 809-3809.

“We are fortunate at Murray State and in Murray and Calloway County to live in an area where we care deeply for one another’s safety and well-being,” Hughes said. “We will be posting regular updates about the Coronavirus as it pertains to the campus community on the MSU website at murraystate.edu/healthupdate.

Should there be a need for more urgent news, we will contact you.”

TORNADO From Page 1

building,” Bourke said. “ The siren sounded two more times. On the third time, an Omni staff member came over the speakers connected to the fire alarm system and instructed all guests to enter the stairwells, going down as far as we could. I was staying on the ninth floor and got down between the second and third.”

After ten minutes, Bourke said he was able to return to his room, but the people around him had no idea a tornado actually touched down.

“It wasn’t until I got back to my room and opened the Facebook app and saw the Mark Yourself Safe message pop up that I realized something had actually happened,” Bourke said.

“The downtown tornado hit about a mile and a half from the Music City Center and Omni, so I had no sense of any aftermath.”

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee declared a state of emergency following the twisters that ravaged the Volunteer State.

Lee also said the families across the state that are suffering from this tragedy need help and prayers.

“I’ve spent the day touring and visiting with victims and walking through neighborhoods and the devastation is heartbreaking,” Lee said. “It ’s heartbreaking, it ’s incredible [and] our prayers are greatly needed for families

out there who are dealing with a sudden tragic event that has occurred in our state.”

During this tragic time, those around the country and the community are doing what they can.

Restaurants and businesses across Nashville are also providing citizens with free food and services, and multiple movers and storage units are being made available to citizens for free as well.

Airbnb, through its Open Homes program, is allowing those who have been displaced or are helping with relief efforts the ability to book free accomodations between March 3 and March 24.

Lee said counties from across the state are going to do what they can to help as well.

“The good news is that the response has been great,” Lee said. “There are counties from across the state that are sending resources. Generators [are] coming, palettes of water [are] coming, highway patrolman [are] being dispatched to places where they’re needed [and] shelters are being put up all across the state to make sure that people have a place to stay tonight who have lost their homes.”

President Donald Trump is set to visit Nashville on Friday, March 6.

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March 5, 2020

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Delayed Reports

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Students concerned with the lack of transparency over bedbugs Paige Bold and Gage Johnson/The News

Levi Brandenburg Contributing Writer lbrandenburg1@murraystate.edu

Vacuum frequently

Issac Ash Contributing Writer bash2@murraystate.edu Six rooms in Regents College were treated for bedbugs during the fall semester, but the cases weren’t reported until last month in the Facilities Management system and students living on campus weren’t informed.

The Murray State News filed an open records request on Feb. 18 per the Open Records Act for maintenance reports and records filed from Jan. 1 to Feb. 18 for every residential college. The records showed six requests for bedbug treatments made in Regents on Feb. 6.

However, Shawn Touney, director of communication, said the reports were actually from October 2019, but were not entered into the system until Feb. 6.

“Internal documents within Facilities Management’s work management system in order to track the work for invoicing purposes were entered in February,” Touney said.

Touney said Facilities Management receives reports of bedbugs in the residential colleges periodically.

“When a report is received, a certified pest control operator on staff will investigate to confirm if bedbugs are present,” Touney said. “If the presence of bedbugs is confirmed, an outside vendor is scheduled to come perform the treatment…

Our staff will respond usually the day of, or the morning following receiving the complaint.”

Residents living in the rooms with bedbugs were asked to leave for a few hours while Servall Pest Control treated the rooms.

“Due to the process that is used for treating bedbugs and the decreasing number of pest management professionals on our staff, we have chosen to use an outside pest control contractor that is more experienced in this type of work to handle treatment,” Touney said.

Despite the reports of bedbugs in Regents, a campus-wide warning was not issued.

Minimize clutter Keep all clothes and bedding off the floor

BEDBUG PREVENTION Do your laundry often, especially bedding

If you suspect your room has bedbugs, contact Housing as soon as possible.

“While many campuses and other facilities contend with the bedbug issue, we have been fortunate that bedbugs have not been widespread on our campus,” Touney said. “Therefore, we haven’t seen the need to issue a campus-wide warning.”

Mason Williams, junior from Paducah, Kentucky, said he was unaware of the situation and the reports.

“It would have been useful to help us to keep an eye out for them, especially those in Regents, but also those in the other residential colleges,” Williams said.

Other students agree with Williams, especially those who have recently been to Regents.

“You would think that they would at least send an email out,” said April Keel, sophomore from Cadiz, Kentucky. “I have friends who live in Regents and I would have liked to know to keep an eye out.”

Touney said if bedbugs are found, it should not automatically be assumed that a room or the residents are “dirty.”

“Often bedbugs are picked up during travel, staying at hotels or other residences,” Touney said.

Chad Parks, manager of Servall Pest Control, said bedbugs can be spread by infested individuals’ clothing or already infested furniture.

“We most commonly find that they were spread by people bringing in used furniture or by infested clothing after a stay at a particularly suspicious hotel,” Parks said. “Many of the people who are infected simply don’t know it until it’s spread further or they make the situation worse by trying to contain it themselves or not recognizing it for what it is.”

Many products to combat bedbugs can be purchased online, but Parks advises calling a professional.

Brooklyn Burnett/The News

“Many of the solutions online simply don’t work and are simply taking time that could be used to better prevent that infestation from spreading further,” Parks said.

While bedbugs are unlikely to affect students after being treated, Parks provided some tips on how to prevent bedbug infestations in the future.

“Try to limit guests in your home and when you return from a vacation, immediately wash and dry your clothes,” Parks said. “Bedbugs have trouble surviving high heats like that from a dryer and the soap and water can help to dislodge them if they are hiding in clothing. Don’t take in used furniture and always check the furniture and beds of where you stay when away from home.”

Touney said students should report bedbug infestations to Housing immediately so the infested room can be checked by Facilities Management and treated if necessary.

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March 5, 2020

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7:46AM

Sexual misconduct was reported in the College Courts on Feb. 3. Prosecution was declined.

10:15PM

Regents name Todd as provost, approve master housing plan

The Board of Regents discussed a variety of topics including naming a new provost and approving an updated housing master plan on Friday, Feb. 28, at the quarterly meeting.

out-of-state students and a 39 percent increase admittance from first-time transfers.

Bachelor of general studies

Tim Todd, former dean of the Arthur J. Bauernfeind College of Business, was appointed provost and vice president of academic affairs after the board unanimously approved the recommendation

by President Bob Jackson.

Todd received support from several deans who submitted a letter to appoint him to Jackson. Student Regent Trey Book also presented a resolution created by the Student Government Association supporting Todd’s appointment.

Provost Tim Todd and Shauna Mullins, director of Center for Academic Success, introduced a degree track for junior and senior students who are close to having enough credits to graduate, but have not yet declared a major.

Mullins said the new program is meant to be for a small population of students who need a backup plan after changing their major several times without finding the right fit. Newly enrolled students will not be able to declare it as their major when they enroll at Murray State.

The University already has an integrated studies degree which is aimed toward older students who come in with some experience in the workforce.

The general studies program will be aimed toward traditional students at junior or senior status.

Housing master plan

Custodial and grounds services update

The Board of Regents unanimously approved an updated Housing master plan which consists of a variety of possible scenarios using the current state authorization of $66 million for public-private partnership projects.

The areas of development that are currently being looked at include the College Courts, north housing complex, Regents College and White College.

Among the different scenarios of development, one includes replacing the College Courts apartments with two residential halls. The second scenario involves creating a signature walkway from the residential side of campus to the CFSB Center and the third version would remove and replace Hart College and Springer College with new residential halls. The final scenario discussed would replace Winslow Dining Hall with a new dining center.

Following the discussion at the meeting, the next step for the University is to issue a request for qualifications. Interested firms will have until March 20 to respond and the University hopes to recommend a firm to the board at the June meeting.

The University signed a contract with SSC to outsource custodial and grounds services. The last day Murray State will provide custodial and grounds services on the main campus is April 10, and SSC will begin to provide custodial and grounds services on April 13.

Provost appointment

Fall recruitment efforts

The board recapped the numbers from Admitted Student Weekend which showed 939 students in attendance, an increase from approximately 700 students in 2019. Not only was there an increase for Admitted Student Weekend, but the University also saw several increases in first-time freshman numbers including a 17.7 percent increase in applications, a 5.6 percent increase in admittance, a 10.9 percent increase admittance from an 18-county area, a 9.1 percent increase admittance from

Property acquisitions The board also unanimously approved property acquisitions of 40.5 acres of farmland known as the Cavitt Farm, located at the northeast intersection of North Pleasant Grove and Ollie Hale roads. The board voted to acquire this land for the Hutson School of Agriculture.

2:54PM

Name changes During the meeting, several name changes were approved as well.

The Department of Organizational Communication will now be called the Department of Organizational Communication and Leadership.

Carr Health will be renamed John W. Carr Hall. The building was originally named after John Carr, Murray State’s first president, but his name was never put on the facility. The board also found the name change appropriate because the building hosts more than health-related courses.

The Board of Regents and Finance Committee will hold a special meeting on April 24 to discuss and approve actions regarding pensions, approve tuition and fees for submission to the Council on Postsecondary Education and to discuss the budget for 2020-21.

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Daniella Tebib News Editor dtebib@murraystate.edu

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The Board of Regents its the quarterly meeting in Pogue Library on Friday, Feb. 28.

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Gage Johnson/The News

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Theft was reported in H.C. Franklin College after laundry was stolen. No criminal complaint was received.

Criminal mischief was reported in Oakley Applied Science after graffiti was found on the outside of the building. The investigation is still open.

Criminal mischief was reported in Springer College after decorations were damaged.

The investigation is still open.

6:00PM

An unknown individual entered an office in the Curris Center and used a credit card found in the room to make an unlawful transaction.

6:15PM

Possession of marijuana was reported in Regents College. Subject was referred for administrative action.

11:53PM

Underage drinking and public intoxication were reported on North 16th Street and in Alexander Hall. Subject was arrested.

3:04PM

A parked vehicle was struck by a vehicle that left the scene. The investigation is still open.

9:35PM

Theft was reported at the Wellness Center after contents from a wallet were stolen. The investigation is still open.

8:48PM

Assault was reported in the College Courts after unwanted physical contact between two people occurred resulting in no visible injuries. Prosecution was declined.

Police Beat is compiled with material from the Murray State Crime and Fire Log. Not all dispatched calls are listed.

Colton Colglazier/The News

March 5, 2020

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Addison Watson/The News SGA representatives pose for a ‘Shoes Up’ photo at the capital in Frankfort, Kentucky.

Students rally for higher education Addison Watson Staff Writer awatson25@murraystate.edu Eleven members of Murray State’s Student Government Association joined other Kentucky college students in the state capital to lobby for the importance of higher education.

While newly-elected Democrat Gov. Andy Beshear is pushing his “education first” budget proposal with much of his focus on higher education, it is up to the Republican-controlled legislature to determine if his budget will pass in the General Assembly.

Members from Murray State’s SGA met with several different legislators to advocate the needs of Murray State specifically, but also to urge legislatures not to cut from university funding.

According to Murray State’s Capital Project Requests, the No. 1 priority of the University is deferred maintenance and asset preservation.

The Council on Postsecondary Education has approved a 2:1 request for nearly $37 million that will be directed toward the preservation, maintenance and modernization of aging historic buildings, updating electrical grids and energy efficiency.

The University’s general fund appropriates $24.5 million toward these projects while the University will debt an additional $12.3 million from CPE’s asset preservation fee.

The Board of Student Body Presidents proposed a resolution prior to the rally regarding the CPE’s budget proposal. The board is comprised of student body presidents from Centre College, Eastern Kentucky University, Kentucky State University, Morehead State University, Murray State University, Northern Kentucky University, University of Kentucky, University of Louisville, Western Kentucky University and two student representatives from the Kentucky Community and Technical College System.

The presidents hope their resolution to support CPE’s 2020-22 budget proposal will encourage the General Assembly to provide $400 million for asset preservation to safeguard historic infrastructures of Kentucky higher education campuses.

Beshear said in his recent visit to the University in his current budget proposal a performance funding model would not be in play because every university should be in a position where they can compete.

The Board of Student Body Presidents irrevocably believes a performance-based funding model should be implemented.

“It is not enough that the General Assembly fund the performance-based model, but it is

economically and morally imperative that this be supported and financed,” according to the resolution.

The board’s resolution also requests that the General Assembly should increase its contribution to the performance funding model by seven percent to get all Kentucky public institutions to an equilibrium.

Given a performance funding model, SGA members lobbied for a permanent two percent stop-loss of base appropriation for the University.

Without a permanent two percent stoploss, 100 percent of the University’s general fund appropriation is at risk. The University’s base appropriation amount is $44.5 million, making up 28 percent of the total revenue stream.

According to the resolution, if a 2 percent stop-loss provision is not implemented institutions could be in a worse position than before.

Trey Book, student regent and SGA president; Hannah Daab, senator for the Bauernfeind College of Business from New Athens, Illinois; and Jackson Hogg, freshman senator from Henderson, Kentucky, met with Rep. Suzanne Miles, R-District 7, about some of the challenges that Murray State faces.

“From my perspective, [Miles] was very on board with funding higher education and she understands our needs,” Book said. “She was very realistic about it.”

Miles voiced her concerns about the current budget proposal by Beshear and said it would be up to legislators in the General Assembly to figure out how to best balance the budget.

Rep. Walker Thomas, R-District 8, spoke to SGA members and said he was in constant communication with President Bob Jackson.

Book said it was a very personal talk where Thomas discussed the relationship between the University and himself.

Book and other SGA members thought the event was very successful and rallies benefit students attending public universities.

“Any day that we can get in front of legislators and speak to them about higher education is a good day,” Book said.

Having attended nearly a dozen rallies for higher education, Jeanie Morgan, adviser to SGA, said she thinks any time students are able to have their voices heard by legislators, they should take the opportunity to do so.

“It was very important that our students got to go and meet with legislators,” Morgan said.

“They told their stories but I think also the legislators talked to them about their experiences in college and [it] was very good that interaction happened.”

Addison Watson/The News Students Trey Book, Jackson Hogg and Hannah Daab speak with Rep. Suzanne Miles.

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March 5, 2020

Jillian Rush/The News Trey Book, current Student Government Association president, and Warren Norman, current Student Government Association vice president of administration, vie for presidency.

SGA candidates go head-to-head in debate

Emily Shepherd Contributing Writer eshepherd2@murraystate.edu Candidates for Student Government Association debated issues including the process of the campus going green, mental health issues and strengthening relationships on a divided campus.

On Monday, March 2, SGA candidates answered questions from two moderators and the crowd. Some answers have been slightly edited for clarity.

Warren Norman and current SGA President Trey Book are running for president. Molly Logsdon and Georgia Moore are running for executive vice president.

Amy Krazl is running unopposed for vice president of administration. Hannah Daab is running unopposed for vice president of finance.

Students can vote online on MyGate from Monday, March 9, at 12:01 a.m. through Tuesday, March 10, at 11:59 p.m.

Presidential candidates: Trey Book and Warren Norman How do you balance your time between academics and extracurriculars?

Book: That’s hard to do but most days, everything I do to balance my time I put in my calendar, my phone and the room calendar in my office. If it’s not on my calendar it doesn’t get done. I also make lists and priorities of what needs to be done in the day as well, week to week… I don’t answer or open emails or text messages unless I have the time to respond right there, so that way it helps remind me to respond.

Norman: Keep a strict calendar and a good checklist, and really just try to manage my time as best as I can. I do try to get my homework done just like everyone else.

After all, I’m still a student.

How do you plan on building credibility with other Board of Regents members?

Norman: I’d like to build strong relationships with the other board members; that starts from the first day. Try to go in and make a good impression…and with

professionalism try to be as transparent from the student perspective.

Book: [I will] continue those relationships since I currently serve on the board. I have very good working relationships with all of the board members. Some of them convinced me to run again, especially the fellow Staff Regent Dr. Melony Shemberger. They’ve been huge assets to me, talking with me, giving me advice.

How do you plan on promoting diversity on campus?

Book: That’s something I’ve worked on a lot this past year… One partnership I’m excited for is the partnership with the International Student Organization. We’ve had a lot of meetings with them continuing onto next year. How do we help bridge that gap and get more involvement, ‘cause they do a lot of good events, a lot of fun events, but a big thing that’s lacking is communication that American students can attend as well - by creating an American buddy association. We already have something along those lines but it’s for ESL, the English Speaking Language Program, but branching out and making that available for all international students, just continuing that I build on the current relationships I’ve built over this past year.

Norman: [I’m] trying to build on the hospitality that we offer here at MSU is one of the things that we use the ISO, trying to help the laptop bank with that shortage.

I’d like to build that up a little more; I’ve seen that as a bit of a problem. I’d like to see more international students, student organizations, student council, things of that nature be able to group together with us to do events whether that’s doing collaborative events on campus like the water balloon fight.

As chair of the senate, how will you remain fair to all members?

Norman: Looking at student involvement, over this past year and looking into next year we have really good involvement. A lot of our members are members of other committees on campus, committees for senate chairs, but there is a lot of room for growth. I’ve been meeting with a lot of other groups, current and past senators, I went to the dean’s meeting, a college heads’

meeting into RCA, RCCs as well. The position of a senator, what that really means and the benefits and how to better market and brand that. We’re working with all these different groups so we can better our position altogether.

Book: By trying to hear everyone’s voice and whenever I say that I want a personal relationship with each and every member of the senate because that personal connection kind of binds us to each other. It also lets us know that we trust each other.

You could probably ask anyone in the CSI office, I spend more time there than anyone else just because I do try and leave my door open as much as possible and try to hear from students as much as I can.

What made you decide to run for this position?

Book: So what made me re-run for this position, this is the honest to God truth, is as a regent I was sitting on the stage for graduation in December and fall watching some of my best friends graduate…

You couldn’t only see the emotions, you could feel them too. That made me think no matter how stressful this job is, everything we’re doing is for a purpose and that purpose I saw on that day. I’ve loved working for students [and] with students. This position has made me change my career path altogether. I really want to go into student affairs and work with students after graduation. I plan to stay here after graduation. That’s why I want to run again and work for the University.

Norman: I’m really just trying to get together with everyone. That’s really what made me run. I want to show the student aspect from all over campus, not only to the BOR but trying to branch out and show that international student orgs and anyone on campus we’re all coming from the same place.

What do you see as one of the top issues facing students and how do you plan to alleviate those issues?

Norman: Some top issues of course are gonna be the mental health aspect on campus, trying to support the initiatives like Racers Empower. The other one is the financial burden college makes on all of us. I really want to work toward keeping

tuition rates and everything the same in my time as president. And lastly the stress of being a student, that’s a lot for everyone to handle. I’ll make sure that we’re bringing events to campus that are gonna help alleviate some of that and calm down on campus a little.

Book: We have a lot of events in planning already done for next semester.

L ooking ahead, we have a meeting this Wednesday about it in regards to it. [Warren] mentioned a financial issue that...I hear from students, that they wish school was more affordable, but it ’s really hard when you look at the whole picture of why tuition is increasing. It’s the pension system. It’s all these things going on at the state level.

Continuing to advocate for higher education at the state level is actually what we’re doing tomorrow for the rally. And then student engagement involvement, figuring out how to better engage our students.

What is your favorite thing about Murray State?

Book: My favorite tradition at Murray State is the shoe tree. My goal is to graduate and to meet my wife here... but looking at our brand as a university “ We are Racers.,” we are a community, we are a fellowship, we are a friendship, “We are Racers.” It speaks to that part of campus [and] not only links current students, it links alumni to campus still. It shows that alumni have that; this campus is still a part of their home, still part of their family. It helps us build that strong sense of community that we have on campus already.

That’s the reason that a lot of people attend Murray.

Norman: Definitely when I got Homecoming King this past year. I’m very proud of that. That tradition is one of the most exciting things to me just because Homecoming is better than Chr istmas… the whole process of Homecoming and getting to watch a football game 20 yards away from the field. That’s something that you won’t find on any other school or any other campus.

Visit TheNews.org to read more from the debate.

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Speaker highlights internship at army base Presley Woodrum Contributing Writer pwoodrum@murraystate.edu A public affairs officer from Fort Knox recently spent two days on campus talking about internship opportunities for students.

Cadet Command Deputy PAO Richard Patterson spoke to several journalism and mass communications classes on Feb. 27 and 28, encouraging students to apply for a highly competitive internship program.

Patterson, who spent 25 years as a public affairs officer for the U.S. Army, recently retired and now serves as the direct super visor for the internship program.

His role as deputy PAO during the summer is to update families around the country on the cadets enrolled in an advanced ROTC camp. Patterson said he needs a team of 30 flexible interns to help.

The internship runs from May 18 to August 18. It is open to sophomores, juniors and seniors with experience in journalism and mass communications.

“The internship gave me an opportunity to grow personally and professionally,” said Amy Turner, senior and returning intern. “I gained confidence in my skills and learned a ton.”

Interns will work in two- to three-member teams five days a week.

The teams will include broadcast journalists, photojournalists, writers and social media managers. These teams will be given assignments and can additionally complete stories of their choosing.

“It was great to learn from other journalism students and professionals,” Turner said. “All of our work got published daily. One of my stories even made it to the National Army website on the homepage.”

At the end of the summer, each student will have around 70 professionally published and reviewed pieces. The stories can be found on WordPress blogs,

Calling all

Landlords

Jillian Rush/The News Richard Patterson speaks to students about an internship opportunity at Fort Knox.

social media sites, YouTube videos or local papers that pick up the story.

Housing on base is provided at no cost to the interns. While it is an unpaid internship opportunity, students are reimbursed for travel to and from home and Fort Knox and receive a daily stipend for meals.

Patterson said each day is different for the interns. One day they may cover a 12-mile march and the next day they might cover a cadet graduation.

“There is no typical day,” Patterson said.

Interns will be alongside the cadets to tell their experience in various weather conditions and hours of the day. Some teams will even cover field training exercises overnight.

“The ability to get out in the field and get real journalist experience in a fastpaced environment was amazing,” said Megan Reynolds, senior from Rineyville, Kentucky. “Cadet Command just threw us in, it was like trial by fire.”

Students interested in gaining an experience few get can find more information on how to apply at www.futurearmyofficers.army.mil/pao-internship. The deadline for applications is April 5.

Summer Instructors and Residence Staff Needed Upward Bound Math and Science at Murray State University is hiring for Summer 2020.

Seeking Murray State community members to work as staff members during our Summer 2020 Residential Program, May 26 – July 3

Positions Needed:

Science Instruction Block Coding Instruction (including robotics and drone programming, 3D printing) Elective Instruction (which may include a variety of areas like art, videography with social media, 3D printing, theater, e-sports) Residential Advisors 21 and older preferred but not required Residence Hall Security (nights only, Sunday - Thursday) Upward Bound Math and Science serves income-eligible, first-generation high school students with strong interests in STEM education and careers.

For application or more information: email Amy Cox at acox9@murraystate.edu stop by 252 Blackburn Science or call 270.809.5429

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Sports

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March 5, 2020

Hawthorne shines in first season Josh Embry Sports Editor jembry3@murraystate.edu

Fresh off being named a member of the 2019-20 OVC Women’s Basketball All-Newcomer Team, junior forward Laci Hawthorne has proven to be a dominating force on the glass and in the paint for Murray State women’s basketball in her first season in the navy and gold.

Hawthorne, who is from Fort Worth, Texas, said she was born into a family of athletes. Her mother played basketball at Northwestern State University and her father played football.

“I have been playing basketball pretty much my whole life,” Hawthorne said. “I started playing organized basketball when I was like 7. My whole family plays basketball so I guess you can say we just passed it down.”

Hawthorne went to Boswell High School and was a multi-sport athlete in track, volleyball and basketball. However, she excelled on the court above all else.

As a junior, Hawthorne led her team to a state championship and was named MVP of the game. She was a McDonald’s All-American nominee her senior year, a First Team All-District member three years in a row and was the recipient of the Carl Lewis Leadership Award.

Coming out of high school, Hawthorne moved roughly 270 miles south from Fort Worth to San Antonio, Texas, to play for the University of the Incarnate Word, a private Catholic university with roughly 11,000 students.

During her single year there, Hawthorne played only 43 minutes total, across 11 games and averaged 0.6 ppg and 1.4 rpg.

Hawthorne transferred from Incarnate Word to New Mexico Junior College her sophomore year. As a Thunderbird, her numbers increased as she averaged 9.8 ppg and 5.4 rpg while helping New Mexico become the No. 1 team in the nation.

She also played a key role in getting the Thunderbirds to the national championship game. Her impressive play led her to being named a 2018-19 All-WJCAC team honorable mention.

Hawthorne’s success at New Mexico led to coaches from Division I schools being interested in her. One coach that seemed particularly interested was Murray State’s Head Coach Rechelle Turner.

Prior to meeting Turner, Hawthorne said she knew practically nothing about Murray State but had heard of it when Racer alumnus Cameron Payne was drafted in the NBA in 2015.

“Well I had heard about [Murray State] because I know who Cameron Payne is and I remembered him from the [NBA] draft,” Hawthorne said. “But I did not know where Murray State was [and] I did not really know anything about it.”

Hawthorne said she fell in love with the University immediately and quickly committed after visiting campus.

“Immediately when I came, I loved the campus and the coaches were super cool and I just felt that vibe like ‘this is where I needed to be,’ so I literally committed the next week,” Hawthorne said.

Some people questioned Hawthorne’s choice of school but she said the feeling she felt while at Murray was unmatched anywhere else.

see

Hawthorne, page 12

Gage Johnson/TheNews Junior forward Laci Hawthorne surverys the floor in the post.

Sports

March 5, 2020

Siegel spent 40 years at NPR as a reporter, News Director and host of All Things Considered To celebrate the WKMS 50th Anniversary, ask Robert your questions on how journalism has changed over the decades

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10

MBB From Page 1 of the floor. The Racers only allowed EKU and Austin Peay to have a combined 10 assists, but forced 31 turnovers, including 18 steals. The Colonels and Governors also shot a combined 8-for37 from deep.

Offensively the Racers will look to build on a prolific two-game shooting stretch in which they shot 67% from two and 43% from beyond the arc.

McMahon feels as though team leadership has been a big part of their recent success on the hardwood and he thinks that will continue going into tournament play.

Senior forward Anthony Smith and senior guard Jaiveon Eaves have played in big leadership roles throughout the season and it was very evident in the Racers’ final game of the season.

Smith helped hold Austin Peay junior guard Terry Taylor to nine points while going for 17 points on 7-for-10 shooting and grabbing 11 rebounds in his final game at the CFSB Center.

“It was a complete performance offensively,” McMahon said. “He was very good scoring the ball in the post [and] defensively [he gave] tremendous effort.

Probably in my time here—and this is

Sports something that would never show up in the box score—it was the best individual game of screening by a player that I’ve seen. We scored double digit points off screens and they were all legal. He just got our guys wide open looks possession after possession.”

Meanwhile, Eaves poured in 14 points on 4-for-8 shooting and 4-for-6 shooting from the free throw line against the Governors.

After shedding almost 30 pounds at the beginning of the season, Eaves has worked his way to shooting 48.2% from the field and averaging 12.7 ppg in OVC play, something that makes him an AllOVC caliber player in McMahon’s eyes. “ Jaiveon Eaves has played at an all-conference level,” McMahon said.

“He’s averaging 13 [points] a game, he’s shooting 48 percent from the floor, he’s fourth in the league at 43 percent from behind the arc [and] he’s been great defensively. He’s had an awesome senior year in the league for sure.”

Sophomore forward KJ Williams also had a very productive week, averaging 17.5 ppg, 12.5 rpg and shooting 57.1% from the field and 50% from three against EKU and Austin Peay.

“That was a dominant weekend for him,” McMahon said. “He was just dominant at both ends of the floor. [He had] almost 18 points a game and almost 13 rebounds a game, [shot] over 50% from the floor [and] defensively

was terrific. He guarded Terry Taylor the majority of the game when he was on the court [and] he had six steals in the two games. It’s not like we were playing six or seven-win teams. We were playing for the Championship and for him to come out against two of the best four teams in our league and deliver that way speaks to the type of player he’s capable of being on a consistent nightly basis.”

Despite his efforts, W illiams was not named OVC Player of the Week, an award that has eluded every Racer, alongside Freshman of the Week and Newcomer of the Week.

McMahon says the team doesn’t relish in winning individual awards, but says he feels as though the players should be getting them when they put forth the appropriate performances. He thinks sophomore guard Tevin Brown and Williams have both had weeks where they should’ve earned awards.

“I would like for our players to get the recognition they deserve,” McMahon said. “I’ve said it all along: I think the strength of our team has been just that, it’s been our team. We’ve got a great collection of talented players at every position [and] I think when you look back from the first week of December to now we’ve gotten better as the season’s gone along and we’ve made improvements on both ends of the court.”

Nonetheless, Murray State earned the No. 2 seed and a double-bye, meaning

March 5, 2020 they could take on either EIU, Jacksonville State or Austin Peay when they play in the OVC Semifinals.

McMahon said the teams within their side of the bracket are all very talented and the Racers will need to prepare for each potential opponent going into their game.

“We have a loaded field on our side of the bracket,” McMahon said. “We’ll prepare for every team that we could potentially play. Some of the teams on our side are fresher than others. We just played Austin Peay [and] we played Eastern Illinois twice in the last month or so and then Jacksonville State we haven’t played in almost two months, so we have a lot to do on that scouting report.”

vs.

Matchup: Murray State vs. TBD Tipoff: Friday, March 6 @ 9 p.m.

TV/Radio: ESPNU/ Froggy 103.7

Photo courtesy of the Ohio Valley Conference

March 5, 2020

Sports

11

Lindsey Carroll and Abby Shoulders Sophomores continue athletic careers together as Racers Nick Kendall Staff Writer nkendall1@murraystate.edu

Photo courtesy of Racer Athletics Sophomore second baseman Lindsey Carroll waits for the pitch.

The bond that is created with a teammate can make it feel like you’ve known them your whole life, and for sophomores Lindsey Carroll and Abby Shoulders, that’s the case.

Carroll and Shoulders have been playing softball together since they were 9 years old. Shoulders remembers every team they’ve played for since they were little.

“Both of our dads were coaches when we were 9,” Shoulders said. “We started with the Paducah Lady Storm, the Kentucky Storm and then the Southern Force. We finished our travel days with the Force.”

Carroll was offered a scholarship to Murray State first. When she accepted, she knew she had to convince Shoulders to join her to keep their streak alive.

“I was like, ‘Abby, you gotta go,’” Carroll said. “‘You gotta choose Murray, like, please please please so we continue to play together.’ Then she did, so that was super exciting.”

T h e Pa d u c a h , K e n t u c k y, n a t i v e s played high school softball at McCracken County High School. They were on the team that won 59 consecutive games before finally losing to Ballard Memorial High School in the regional tournament in 2018.

Shoulders knows she and Carroll can definitely keep that winning culture from the past and translate it to the collegiate level.

“I would say the theme throughout our travel ball games and in high school has been, like, we’re just gonna get gritty and find a way to win no matter what,”

Shoulders said. “In travel ball we won four nationals in a row and then in high school we won a state tournament and we got second in a state tournament. We just find a way to win no matter what we have to do.”

The duo’s bond has gotten even stronger since they ’ve swapped positions.

Now Carroll is mostly an infielder and Shoulders spends most of her play time in the outfield.

“I’d only played one season of second base until I got here,” Carroll said. “It’s kind of funny because we’ve kind of been all over the place really.”

Shoulders sees the flip as a learning experience for both of them because they can always help each other out.

“It’s kind of cool though because we know what roles we have played,” Shoulders said. “I know where she’s supposed to be all the time because I played second for so long, so I know she’s going to be there.”

Even without playing each other’s old positions, Shoulders believes she and Carroll can always talk to one another about anything going on around the field.

“I just know where Lindsey’s gonna be on the field and I know where her head’s at,” Shoulders said. “We think the same way, softball-wise. I can ask her a question and she knows exactly what kind of answer I’m looking for and exactly what I’m talking about. The flow and the connection we have is pretty cool.”

Carroll, Shoulders and the rest of the Murray State softball team will head back into action starting at noon on Friday, March 6, to take on Missouri State University, beginning the OSU Mizuno Classic in Stillwater, Oklahoma.

Photo courtesy of Racer Athletics Sophomore left fielder Abby Shoulders does the “Shoes Up” sign to Murray State’s dugout while on base.

12

HAWTHORNE From Page 8 “I actually took a visit to a school in California a couple of days before I came and visited here,” Hawthorne said. “A lot of people were asking me, ‘You chose this place over California?’ and I was like, ‘Yeah, I just felt that vibe here.’”

Soon after committing in April 2019, Hawthorne made the roughly 900-mile trek from San Antonio to Murray to start her junior season as a Murray State Racer.

When first arriving at Murray State, Hawthorne said the transition from the junior college level back to the Division I level was not difficult.

“It was not that hard of a transition just because I have already played Division I basketball before,” Hawthorne said. “At New Mexico, we were No. 1 in the nation so we were playing really good teams all the time. Those girls went off to play at big schools so I mean the competition was very intense.”

One thing that was a transition for Hawthorne, however, was playing at a different position than she had played previously.

“I feel like this year has been just a big learning experience for me because I have had to play in positions that I haven’t really played in before,” Hawthorne said. “Here I am kind of more of a post [player], [but] back at my other schools I could play [the] 3-4. Here I [play the] 4-5. Sometimes I would be on the wing but here I am just like pick-and-roll which is okay. Just whatever the team needs me to do.”

Hawthorne said since she has changed positions this season, she knows what

Sports aspects she needs to improve on throughout the season to continue to improve and help the team. “[Playing a different position] has just taught me to know that I need to work on…ball handling for sure, my [outside] shooting, definitely defense and rebounding can always improve,” Hawthorne said.

While some can attest that Hawthorne needs to improve her ball handling, outside shooting and defense, one would be hardpressed to find anyone who would say she needs more help learning how to rebound.

Hawthorne is a monster on the glass, as she is the second leading rebounder in the OVC with 9.3 rpg on the season and 10.7 rpg in conference play. She also leads the OVC in offensive rpg in both the season and in conference play (3.3 rpg and 3.7 rpg, respectively).

Hawthorne’s killer mentality to get every rebound coupled with a secret technique she uses proves fruitful for her collection of the boards.

“Every ball that comes off the rim, I got to go get it,” Hawthorne said. “I guess that is my mentality but I don’t know, it just happens. There is a little technique that I use but I can’t really say what it is.”

As well as being dominant on the glass, Hawthorne has been a solid and efficient inside scorer for the Racers. On the season, she is shooting 54.5% from the field and is averaging 10.2 ppg on the season.

In her last 12 games, Hawthorne has averaged 12.8 ppg along with 11.8 rpg.

Against SIUE on Feb. 22, Hawthorne had her best game as a Racer, earning 20 points, a career-high 17 rebounds, two assists and two steals.

Hawthorne’s stellar season has led to her racking up 10 OVC Women’s Basketball

Newcomer of the Week awards this season, the most of any OVC player on the season.

Hawthorne, who is the oldest upperclassman to play regular minutes, has made an effort this season to step up as a leader for a team that has no seniors.

“This year I have been trying to focus on being more of a leader but the whole vocal aspect of it, I think that comes natural to me,” Hawthorne said. “I am just a very vocal person anyways so that part came pretty easy but it is just [through] my playing [that] I need to be more of a leader.”

Turner said Hawthorne’s development as a leader throughout the season has been especially important for the team’s chemistry and success during the season.

“She just continues to be outstanding,” Turner said. “Just her work and her effort and her attitude and her leadership out there on the floor has been huge. For her to go out in this situation and her knowing that I am leaning on her now more than ever and being able to perform says a lot about who she is.”

Although Murray State has had success, they have had to overcome one setback after another. Hawthorne said they are able to overcome their adversity because the players have great chemistry with each other.

“Actually, I feel like our team chemistry is really good,” Hawthorne said. “We are finally starting to gel together a lot more and I think it shows on the court as well. I feel like when we talk to each other, we can tell each other things and we are not going to get mad or take it personal because we understand we just want each other to be better.”

With injuries to two of Murray State’s starters, the Racers are going to Evansville, Indiana, to take on No. 1 ranked UT Martin

March 5, 2020

Photo courtesy of Racer Athletics Hawthorne drives to basket against APSU.

depleted and lacking depth. Hawthorne’s impressive play will need to carry over to tournament time for the Racers to have a chance of advancing past the first round.

Hawthorne’s goals before ending her Racer career are to leave a legacy at Murray State and to bring home an OVC championship.

“Of course the big goal is to win the OVC Championship and I just want to leave my mark here at Murray State,” Hawthorne said. “I know that I have only been here for a year and I got one more year but I just want to leave a legacy here.”

Hawthorne’s goal to win an OVC championship and leave a lasting legacy at Murray State will be obtained if she is able to lead the Racers, either this year or in the 2020-21 season, to win an OVC Championship for the first time since 2008.

Racers place second in OVC indoor championship Jon Dunning Staff Writer jdunning1@murraystate.edu

Murray State track and field placed second in the 2020 OVC Indoor Championship on Wednesday, Feb. 26, and Thursday, Feb. 27, in Birmingham, Alabama, falling one point short of first behind Austin Peay.

For Murray State Head Coach Adam Kiesler, one word sums up the feeling of losing by one point.

“Disappointed,” Kiesler said. “It’s something that we will definitely think about, but we don’t have much time to be mad about it. We got to move forward and try to reach our goals for outdoor.”

The Racers still experienced success during the two-day event, starting on day one with sophomore Ashlyn Oren taking the OVC Indoor High Jump title.

Oren is the first Racer since Jenille Kelly in 1989 to win the high jump title.

Oren took the event with a 1.69m jump. Redshirt junior Jessikha Ribeiro took fourth in the event and freshman Meghan Fletcher placed fifth.

Expanding on Murray State’s success for the day, sophomore Rachel Hagans took the bronze medal in long jump with 5.71m, and Oren jumped 5.52m.

In weight throw, senior Jewel Wagner finished seventh with 16.68m, earning the Racers another two points.

Murray State finished fifth in the distance medley with a time of 12:17.43.

As the scored events concluded for the day, the Racers stood in second place, trailing Southeast Missouri by 13 points.

Six Racers qualified for finals in track preliminary events. Senior Norma Abdur-Rafia qualified for both the 200-meter and 400-meter, junior Kenia Seals

qualified for the 60-meter and 200, senior D’Myia Thornton qualified for the 400 and redshirt sophomore Jumyia Denning qualified for the 60.

Sophomore Dontavia Howard was the only Racer to qualify for the 60-meter hurdles, and senior Hilary McAdam qualified for the 800-meter.

On day two, Murray State continued to rack up medals.

Sophomore Brooke Misukonis earned a silver medal in pole vault, setting a school record with 3.89m. Freshman Jenna Pauly placed sixth in the event and sophomore Shannon Riley took seventh.

For Kiesler, Misukonis’ record- setting performance was no surprise.

“She was ready,” Kiesler said. “She’s somebody that does very well in championship settings. The crazy thing is that you can’t sit here and say it was unexpected because we thought there were bits and pieces throughout the year that she could’ve put it together and she did at the right time.”

In the 200, Abdur-Rafi took the silver medal with a time of 24.39.

Thornton took bronze in the 400 with a time of 55.96, and Abdur-Rafi finished fourth.

In the 60, Howard earned a bronze medal with a time of 8.89. Seals and Denning finished sixth and seventh, respectively.

Wagner threw a season-best distance in shot put with 13.14m, taking a bronze medal. Senior Destiny Carey also competed in the event, placing sixth.

McAdam took fourth in the 800, Ribeiro and Oren finished fourth and fifth in the pentathlon and junior Antoinetta Avant placed sixth in triple jump.

In the final event on day two, the Racers finished second in the 4×400 relay,

Photo courtesy of Racer Athletics Junior Jessikha Ribeiro and sophmore Ashlyn Oren run in the 800.

falling just half a second behind Austin Peay.

Even though Murray State did not achieve its goal of placing first in the event, Kiesler knows his team put forth a great effort.

“I think we went out there and we put forth a good effort overall,” Kiesler said.

“Last year we were happy to get second, this year we were upset to get second. But

then when you do look back at each individual event you say we broke a school record in the vault, we won the high jump, kids [have] two lifetime bests in the 400, lifetime best here, lifetime best there. Overall, if you go event by event, it doesn’t seem as bad in the overall outcome by losing to one point. Individually, I think we stepped up and they did good things.”

Opinion

March 5, 2020

13

Minimum wage is the new living wage The staff editorial is the majority opinion of The Murray State News Editorial Board.

As the minimum-wage-earning community grows and diversifies, it also takes on a new banner: the living wage.

A living wage, as defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, is “a wage sufficient to provide the necessities and essential to an acceptable standard of living.”

This begs the question, “what is an acceptable standard of living?”

So let’s explore that idea.

In all technicality, the minimum wage and the living wage are two separate things; the minimum wage is a wage set by the federal government that can be raised by state governments (if they choose), but never lowered. The living wage is subjective, debated by politicians, economists, members of society and the likes.

The living wage’s subjectivity is controversial, and many believe saying the living wage is subjective is to say the lives of certain wage earners are subjective and therefore lacking worth.

I believe people world-round would agree that each individual person on the planet is at least worth living, so why would they be counted out of a living wage?

First, let’s talk about the earners of the minimum wage so we know what demographic we’re talking about.

Most people earning the federal minimum wage or below are young. They range from 16 to 25 years old. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2018, 81.9 million over the age of 16 worked for hourly wages, making up 58.5 percent of all wage and salary earners. Of those workers, about 434,000 earned the federal minimum wage, and 1.3 million earned below the minimum wage.

The demographic of minimum wage earners will be hashed out further in a later

article in this series, so for now, let’s leave it at numbers.

Those 1.7 million wage earners make up 2.1 percent of all hourly paid workers.

Realistically speaking, 2.1 percent doesn’t sound like a lot, does it? But 1.7 million people does.

While 29 states have minimum wages above the federal minimum, that still leaves almost half of the nation’s minimum wage earners sitting at $7.25 per hour. Certain cities in those 29 states have begun experimenting with wages more than double that of the federal minimum, but others remain around fifty cents to $1 more than the federal minimum.

Now let’s look at the federal minimum wage as a sort of “worst case scenario.”

According to the federal poverty guidelines, a two-person household with an annual income below $16,910 is by definition living in poverty. One of the people in that two-person household would have to earn at least $8.13 per hour to keep the household above the poverty line.

Working at $8.13 per hour for 40 hours a week would leave you sitting at exactly $16,910.40, but that only works if you ignore the taxes taken out of each paycheck. So, truly, your counterpart should also be working at least a federal-minimum-wage-earning job.

But, what if your counterpart is medically disabled or impaired? Perhaps you care for an elderly family member who cannot work, or you are a single parent whose counterpart is your child. Maybe you yourself are a college student and cannot physically work a full-time job because you have class and other responsibilities to take care of (it’s almost like this is a college-student-run paper). Everything is situational

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and must be taken as such.

Arguments can be made about children and the elderly living with their nowgrown children being labeled as dependents on their taxes, and many of the elderly earning social security. Supporters of a low minimum wage also argue that many medically disabled people can earn disability and unemployment funds.

And these arguments bring us back to my original question: what qualifies as an acceptable standard of living? And if the the arguments in my previous paragraph stand, are those really acceptable standards?

It’s also important to consider that while $16,910 is the poverty line, that doesn’t mean people making $1,000 or even $5,000 more are living a life of luxu-

ry, let alone earning enough to get by.

In 2004, Amy Glasmeier, professor of economic geography and regional planning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, developed the Living Wage Calculator. All you have to do is enter the county and state in which you live, and the calculator will give you a chart based on your household to show you your living wage.

In Calloway County, Kentucky, an adult living in a one-person household would need to earn $10.32 per hour in a 40-hour work week to earn a living wage.

I think I speak for quite a few people when I ask this next question.

What’s it like to earn a living wage?

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14

March 5, 2020

AOPi spreads positivity on campus Ciara Benham Staff Writer cbenham@murraystate.edu A sorority brought sunshine to Murray State with its newest project dedicated to spreading positivity.

Alpha Omicron Pi began its AOPositivity Project this month, encouraging students to leave and take sticky notes with inspirational messages in Waterfield Library.

The project, which lasted until Wednesday, March 4, was headed by AOPi’s new vice president of communications, Katie Rose. After her election before Winter Break, Rose began searching for ways to represent the sorority’s letters on campus.

Inspired by the work of another chapter, Rose brought the AOPositivity Project to Murray State to shine a light on what AOPi’s sisterhood means.

“This project is important for AOPi because it demonstrates how even though our letters symbolize a sisterhood full of powerful women, those letters also symbolize a group of women who care for others and want to see others who are not in AOPi succeed,” Rose said.

The project was set up on two posters in Waterfield Library, one labeled “Take What You Need” and the other labeled “Give What You

Can.” The idea behind these posters is you take a positive message you need for the day, like “you will pass this class,” and then you leave a positive note for someone else, like “you will overcome your obstacles.”

Rose said a project like this was essential for students because of the climate of a college campus.

“College is a tough and stressful time for a lot of young adults,” Rose said. “We are all just trying to figure out who we are and what we want our future to look like. A note with a positive message can go a long way.”

Among the many positive reactions to the project, Rose said her favorite was from a fellow sister.

“An Alpha Omicron Pi member shared our message on Facebook and stated that she loved being part of a group of girls who are so beautiful and selfless,” Rose said. “Her post was probably my favorite because it demonstrated how many girls there are in AOPi who have giving hearts.”

This project proved to be very successful with new notes being added and taken every day. Rose was thrilled with the outcome of the AOPositivity Project and said it personally impacted her.

“This project showed me in a million ways how blessed I am,” Rose said. “I am so lucky to call this group of girls my sisters and have a group of women who are so supportive.”

Cady Stribling/The News AOPi put positive messages across Waterfield Library window.

Murray Shakespeare Festival celebrates 20th anniversary Grant Dillard Staff Writer gdillard@murraystate.edu Dionte Berry Contributing Writer dberry11@murraystate.edu For its 20th anniversary, the Murray Shakespeare Festival has incorporated Shakespeare and students in a mix of fun activities. Murray Shakespeare Festival took fruition in 2001 and has been a success since.

The first event of the festival was the Flash Mob on Tuesday, March 3. At the event, students shouted Shakespearean insults at student actors, participated in Hamlet Skull Hot Potato and Poison Pool Noodle sword fights.

Shannon Eaton, junior English/literature major, dressed as Ophelia from “Hamlet” and received the brunt of some insults.

“I have read a lot of Shakespeare, so it was really interesting to see what the audience could come up with,” Eaton said.

Gabby Sullivan, junior creative writing major, dressed as Juliet from “Romeo and Juliet” and had insults yelled at her as well.

“I can say that I have never before been called an ill-born foot-licker,” Sullivan said. “A Shakespearean insult has the right amount of creativity that it could be the most disgusting thing you ever heard, but it just ends up being funny.”

On Tuesday, March 3, Michael Bordieri and Esther Malm from the psychology department hosted a discussion panel that incorporated grief and “Hamlet.”

“Grief is a major theme in Shakespeare’s works,” Bordieri said. “It can be difficult to talk about intense experiences such as grief as a community, and our hope is that this event will allow us to come together and give words to an experience that is often suffered in silence.”

One of the final events of the Murray Shakespeare Festival was a public lecture presented by professor Barbara Cobb. Her lecture, “Who Sees Ophelia Drown?” was a multimedia discussion on the descrip-

tion of Ophelia’s death in “Hamlet” and its influence in art and cinema.

“In the last act of ‘Hamlet,’ it is suggested that Ophelia’s death is the result of suicide,” Cobb said. “The play gives us a way to address suicide and the reasons why we should strive to stay alive.”

Cobb said Shakespeare’s plays are engaging and a segway to delve into important issues that are universal to humans.

Cobb also said she is excited that the 20th anniversary of the Murray Shakespeare Festival has brought in so many people to experience Shakespeare.

“We have brought more than 20,000 regional students to Murray State’s campus for a quality arts experience, and many of these students are alumni and current Racers today,” Cobb said. “We are so glad to have Kentucky Shakespeare with us for the first time this year.”

Kentucky Shakespeare, a touring theater group based in Louisville, Kentucky, has made the 20th anniversary special by bringing “Hamlet” to campus. This is the company’s first tour at Murray State.

Amy Attaway, associate artistic director, has directed many plays for Kentucky Shakespeare over the past four seasons.

She said it’s a delight to take a 400 year old play and make it relevant and meaningful to today’s audience. To do this, Attaway takes it from the beginning.

“We start with the first folio text and try to dig into what Shakespeare might have meant and what those same words can mean for contemporary artists and audiences,” Attaway said. “It’s my job as the director to decide how we’re going to tell the story.”

Matt Street, member of Kentucky Shakespeare, is playing Hamlet. This is his first tour with the company, and Street said playing the main character is terrifying.

“It’s impossible, when you’re starting, to not be apprehensive and in your head about every Hamlet you’ve ever seen,” Street said. “But once you move past that, you start to feel the energy of this historic role, and it really takes you places.”

Dionte Berry/The News Students Shannon Eaton and Gabby Sullivan sword fight with pool noodles.

Street said he will always return to the role to perfect it even after the tour ends.

He prepares for the role by connecting with the character and learning to use Shakespeare’s poetry in the most effective way. Street said his tourmates assist with this process.

“To come into a rehearsal room full of talented, professional people has taught me so much about my work ethic, preparation and how to truly build a show from the ground up,” Street said.

Neill Robertson, another member of the acting company, plays Polonius, a comedic relief character in the tragic play.

Robertson said this aspect makes playing Polonius fun, yet he recognizes the layers to his character.

“His family is dwindling and he could be left all alone,” Robertson said. “Everything he has held dear seems to be slipping through his fingers. He is funny, but like any well-written character, his stakes are very high.”

Professor William Jones has led the Murray Shakespeare Festival for the past six years.

“I am one of the two Shakespear-

eans here on campus,” Jones said. “I love [Shakespeare] for the language, the characters that can still relate to people today, the beautiful plots, the moving tragedies and the funny comedies.”

Jones has been collaborating with Kentucky Shakespeare for over a year to bring the company to campus. Jones said Kentucky Shakespeare has never been this far west before and they were pleased to visit the new territory.

“Kentucky Shakespeare has a great reputation as a relatively young and energetic company, and that attracted our attention,” Jones said.

Despite its tricky language, Jones thinks people can understand and truly enjoy Shakespeare.

“I think most people are afraid of Shakespeare because they think that they won’t understand it,” Jones said.

“If they come and see a show I think they will understand much more than they think they will and the actors add a whole other dimension to the show.”

Kentucky Shakespeare will perform “Hamlet” on Thursday, March 5, at 10 a.m and 7 p.m. and on Friday, March 6, at 7 p.m. in Lovett Auditorium.

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Cady Stribling/The News Students Kaley Holland, Sheri Raulerson and Heavyn Taylor enjoy Pet Therapy.

Pet therapy helps students destress Cady Stribling Features Editor cstribling1@murraystate.edu As midterms close in, students alleviated their stress with the emotional support of therapy dogs during Pet Therapy.

The Humane Society of Calloway County brought their furry friends to campus on Tuesday, March 3, where students couldn’t resist giving a quick belly rub while walking to and from class.

Eileen Mason, who has been doing pet therapy for the past five years, showed off tricks that the dogs learned.

“Everybody always enjoys seeing us come,” Mason said. “We get a lot of comments that this is the best thing that’s happened to [students] all day.”

Mason said many of the dogs have remained at the Humane Society for a long time as therapy dogs.

Terry Derting has been with the humane society for 25 years. She said the benefits of allowing students to socialize with the animals are endless.

“There’s a lot of published data that shows how [animals] help reduce stress, and obviously students are stressed in this environment,” Derting said. “It’s a

positive experience for students.”

She said students might be missing their own pets, and seeing other pets can help with that even if for a short amount of time.

“It gives them a chance to interact with a dog where they might not otherwise be able to,” Derting said. “It’s a stress reliever and it’s fun.”

During her time with the Humane Society, Derting has realized the prominent need that remains in the humane society community.

“There are so many needs for this community,” Derting said. “The Humane So-

ciety is all supported by donations, and there is no state funding.”

The Humane Society of Calloway County is a nonprofit and non-sheltered organization, meaning the animals live in foster homes with volunteers. Derting said she urges students to help in any way they can.

“Support your local Humane Society,” Derting said. “There are lots of ways students can be involved; some are interns, some just volunteer hours at the shelter.

If they enjoy companion animals, then the shelter and Humane Society are a good way to get engaged.”

Diversity Ball celebrates students’ cultures Shrijana Tuladhar Contributing Writer stuladhar@murraystate.edu Cady Stribling Features Editor cstribling1@murraystate.edu In a celebration of cultures, students of all backgrounds danced and dined the night away at the fourth annual Diversity Ball. The event provides a place for the University community to gather for a night of fun music, good food and great people.

Held in the the Murray Room of the CFSB Center, students were able to meet many new people and win gift card prizes.

Cultural exchange ambassadors Raaj Jadhwani and Fatima Tarhab, both from Pakistan, wore their national dress at the ball. Jadhwani’s traditional attire represents his province from Pakistan, the design being about 5,000 years old.

Martha Briones, sophomore from Island, Kentucky, is part of the Office of Multicultural Initiatives and assisted in planning the Diversity Ball. She believes culturally immersive events like the Diversity Ball bring people together.

“It gives an opportunity to meet other students from diverse backgrounds,” Briones said. “I met two exchange students from Moscow and learned a bit about

their experience at MSU.” S.G. Carthell, executive director of OMI, said the idea of a Diversity Ball came from his past interactions with international students as an undergraduate and when he worked for Florida and Ohio institutions.

The idea became a reality at Murray State.

“We started four years ago here in Murray State and thought it would be a good idea to have a nice event where people can dress up, come have a good time and share different cultures,” Carthell said.

The Diversity Ball is a way to provide these types of opportunities for students.

“The diversity ball was designed to help bring all the cultures together, and since it started, it gets better and better each year,” Carthell said.

Carthell said it’s important for students who come to college to meet people from different backgrounds, build relationships with them and gain knowledge about each other’s cultures through events like the Diversity Ball.

“I’m from Muncie, Indiana,” Carthell said. “You may never get to Muncie, Indiana, but you may get to Muncie through me.”

Carthell said he was pleased to see the number of people show up at the ball this year. Last year, many students were unable to attend the ball because of the weather.

Shrijana Tuladhar/The News S.G. Carthell, executive director of OMI, and student Abdullah Alhazmi attend the Diversity Ball.

At the Diversity Ball, a DJ played a wide variety of music while students danced with glow-in-the-dark bangles, glasses and bunny ears. Second year master’s student Ifeoluwa Akindele said the food was provided by Sodexo with a generous donation from Shogun, and all the expenses were covered by OMI. Akindele has been part of the planning and coordinating team for the event since 2017. In the future, she hopes the ball will expand to include cultural performances

and presentations.

Abdullah Alhazmi, senior and officer of ISO from Saudi Arabia, said the campus is improving its diversity, but that international groups are still separated.

“Events like these give an opportunity to break such separation between the different groups on campus,” Alhazmi said.

The Diversity Ball was sponsored by the OMI, the International Student Organization and Student Leadership and Inclusive Excellence.

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International Student Spotlight

Student from Tokyo shares favorite campus experiences Shrijana Tuladhar Contributing Writer stuladhar@murraystate.edu Cady Stribling Features Editor cstribling1@murraystate.edu One of the best experiences a college student can have is studying abroad and connecting with others from all over the world.

Murray State is a hub for international students to do just this. With students from 46 different countries, international students are an essential component to the Racer community.

Minae Ishijima, sophomore graphic communications media major, came to rural Kentucky from Tokyo, Japan.

After arriving in the United States at 16 years old, she spent a year with a host family in Camden, Tennessee. When it was time to decide which university to attend, she chose Murray State because she wanted to live as close to her host family as possible.

“I consider Murray my home,” Ishijima said. “Home is where I come back to and where the people I care about are.”

Jokingly, Ishijima said it was also a necessity to move to a university with plenty of sweet tea.

Ishijima’s favorite place on campus is the Waterfield Library.

“I love to hang out at the library,” Ishijima said. “Every time I walk in, I always find my friends, and it’s somewhere we can all sit on the couch, get together and talk.”

Ishijima wasted no time in engaging with campus life and activities by becoming the International Student Organization secretary. As secretary, she helps the office plan and execute events with other ISO committee members and officers.

“One time [the office] did not have enough students participating in any events and were at a loss as to what to do,” Ishijima said. “I love Disney movies, so I suggested to the officers that we should all go see the new Frozen movie. That was a very successful event.”

Currently, Ishijima is preparing Multicultural Night, an international food competition in Winslow Dining Hall on March 11. For this annual event, students from the same country form a team to cook international dishes for a panel of judges.

Ishijima makes it a priority to help other international students adjust to the Racer life. One of her favorite parts about studying abroad is making friends with new students and showing them around campus.

“I love my friends, and even though they leave Murray, the memories I make with them will always be here,” Ishijima said.

Photo courtesy of Minae Ishijima International Student Minae Ishijima came to the United States from Tokyo.