The Rambler Vol.103 No.5

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THE VOICE OF TEXAS WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS SINCE 1917

The Rambler

WEDnESDAY April 24, 2019 Vol. 103 • No. 5 www.therambler.org

Halls retire together after 25 years HANNAH ONDeR

hlonder@txwes.edu

After teaching together at Texas Wesleyan for more than 25 years, the Halls are moving on to their next chapter: retirement.

Dr. John Hall, professor of psychology, came to Texas Wesleyan from Houston in 1990 with his wife Kit Hall, professor of art, who joined him at the university in 1994 as a part-time instructor and a full-time instructor by 1995. They’ve been married more than 50 years.

“We’ve done a whole bunch of stuff together for a long time, so it’s (retiring together) not that scary. It might be scary to some couples, but we’re OK with it,” John said.

Kit agreed with him that retiring

beside their house.

“We’ve had some friends say ‘Ya’ll are doing this at the same time?’

‘Yeah, we’ve done everything else at the same time, why not?’” she said.

“I do think it will be fine because we do like each other on top of love each other we like each other, so I don’t anticipate that this (retiring together) will be a problem.”

While at Wesleyan, the Halls have made some fun memories and connections, such as dealing with a potentially R-rated giant sculpture positioned to face the president’s Photo by Kit Hall office, students dressed in Speedos Kit Hall (left) and Dr. John Hall (right) painted metallic gold and posing as pose togehter for a selfie. statues for an awards day, witnessing and participating in harmless pranks together wouldn’t be an issue because  HALLS. page 3 they’d still have their own spaces

CAMPUS

E-cirgarettes are most popular with people18-24. Pg. 4 Theater Wesleyan opens R-rated musical.

Pg. 6

SPORTS Rams’ third annual Blue & Gold game nears.

Pg. 7 Hearthstone team places top 10 nationally.

Pg. 8

Wesleyan will welcome its final athletic training majors in summer and fall 2019

Graphics contributed by Dr. Pam Rast The top graphic shows the number of athletic training majors that have graduated since 2008-2009. The bottom graphic shows the retention rates for the university and athletic training.

HANNAH LATHeN hrlathen@txwes.edu

Texas Wesleyan will start phasing out its athletic training program and will welcome its last class of students in the summer and fall of 2019.

The program is coming to an end because the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE) has decided to only certify athletic trainers with master’s degrees rather than a bachelor’s degree, according to an email from Wesleyan Provost Allen Henderson.

“The NATA Board of Directors and the Commissioners of the CAATE, with the full support of the Board of Certification and the NATA Research & Education Foundation,” Henderson wrote, “agreed to establish the professional degree in athletic training at the master’s level.”

CAATE announced the change in standards for athletic trainers during the 2016-2017 school year, Henderson wrote.

“CAATE will allow Texas Wesleyan’s athletic training program to teach out all current students and those admitted for Fall 2019 over the next four years,” he wrote.

Dr. Pam Rast, program director of Athletic Training Education, said this is something CAATE has been working on for around five years.

Athletic training is a professional program

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much like physical therapy or occupational therapy and it is hard for students to complete a program as rigorous as that while trying to complete GEC courses at the same time, Rast said.

“My reaction to the direction that athletic training is going as an entry level master’s degree is something that is really a long time overdue,” Rast said.

Rast was the first full-time athletic trainer hired at Texas Wesleyan in 1994 and she was a part of getting the AT program started, she said. The role of an athletic trainer is so important because they are the ones who first respond to an athlete’s injury.

“Athletic trainers are on the sidelines, watching their patients,” Rast said. “Even if an athlete is not injured, they are our patients.

If that patient gets injured the athletic trainer is the very first person there to provide care.

Sometimes it is lifesaving kind of care for that athlete.”

Rast said she worked on getting the master’s program started but was told by the school that Wesleyan will not go forward with it.

“For me individually, it is kind of like a kick in the gut because I was brought here to start the program,” she said.

Henderson wrote that Wesleyan decided not to move forward with a master’s program because “firm data and an in-depth market and financial analysis clearly showed that from a demand, cost and competition

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standpoint, Texas Wesleyan would not be able to successfully support and sustain an athletic training master’s program.”

“The decision to not offer a master’s program in athletic training is in no way a reflection of our current athletic training program,” Henderson wrote. “Our athletic training students and faculty are extremely talented and have a history of excellence.”

Rast said she feels like she is trying to fight the fight again to explain why athletic training is such an important program to have on

campus.

“I have been told that, ‘Oh in a couple of years we may want to do the master’s degree,’” Rast said. “The reality is once you are an accredited program, it is all the same whether you are an undergraduate or graduate program. It is all accredited.”

When the last group of students coming in apply for the clinical program in 2020, the school will have to apply for a voluntary

 TRAinERS. page 3

Junior paralegal studies major Kirsten Trudo is a transfer student that was looking to get involved on campus.

“I joined (Tau Sigma) because I wanted to be part of something that promoted continued educational excellence and to meet other people who were as passionate as I was about education,” Trudo...

2 | Wednesday | April 24, 2019

Opinion

THE RAMBLER therambler.org

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Stop signs are needed on campus

THE STAFF Editor-In-Chief: Hannah Onder IMG Director: Hope Allison Rambler TV Director: LaTerra Wair Print/Web Content Producers: Hannah Onder, Hannah Lathen, Tina Huynh, LaTerra Wair, Hope Allison, Ashton Willis, David Cason, Jacinda Chan and Elizabeth Lloyd Advisers: Dr. David Ferman, Dr. Ngozi Akinro Faculty Liaison: Dr. Kay Colley Publisher: Frederick Slabach Editorial Staff: Hannah Onder, Hannah Lathen, Hope Allison, Tina Huynh, Jacinda Chan, Ashton Willis, and LaTerra Wair Member of the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association, Associated Collegiate Press, Student Press Law Center, College Media Advisers and College Broadcasters, Inc.

CONTACT US THE RAMBLER • 1201 Wesleyan St. Fort Worth, TX 76105 Office: (817) 531-7552 Email: twurambler@yahoo.com Advertising Inquiries: (817) 531-6525 Online: therambler.org Facebook: facebook.com/thetwurambler Twitter: @TheRamblerTWU Instagram: @theramblertwu

Photo by Jacinda Chan Stop signs are needed at the intersection of Wesleyan and Collard streets, where heavy foot traffic occurs. An accident is waiting to happen.

EDITORIAL C

rosswalks are designed for pedestrians to cross the road safely while speed limit signs help communicate the acceptable driving speed on the road. They’re especially important in school zones and on university campuses.

Yet the two Texas Wesleyan streets with the most vehicle and foot traffic, Wesleyan and Collard, are missing both a crosswalk and speed limit sign. This is an accident waiting to happen.

The intersection in front of the Oneal-Sells Administration Building at Wesleyan Street and Avenue D are being crossed by students, faculty and university visitors every

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LETTER POLICY Letters to the Editor: THE RAMBLER, a biweekly publication, welcomes all letters. All submissions must have a full printed name, phone number and signature. While every consideration is made to publish letters, publication is limited by time and space.

The editors reserve the right to edit all submissions for space, grammar, clarity and style. Letters to the editor may be subject to response from editors and students on the opinion page.

single day to reach buildings all over the campus.

Students and faculty are constantly having to yield to vehicles driving at approximately 30-40 mph down Wesleyan Street. Although the intersection at Wesleyan Street and Avenue D has crosswalk lines, it’s hard to notice the crosswalk until the vehicles are too close and the pedestrians are already crossing.

The crosswalk is a good attempt on integrating pedestrian safety, but this isn’t a solution for people driving down the street too fast to see it.

The intersection at Collard Street and Avenue E is another intersection on campus that’s high in pedestrian traffic. Since there is a student parking lot on Avenue E, Collard Street is being walked across by students all day.

Nick Davis, junior political science major “I did a presentation today for my public policy class taught

by Dr. Payne. I was looking at the public policy of abortion in Texas.”

Students who park their vehicles in the parking lot on Avenue E cross Collard Street to get to classes all across campus. But there are no pedestrian crosswalk lines or sign; there is also no speed limit sign on Collard Street.

One solution for the safety of Wesleyan students, faculty and visitors is that the campus should install speed limit signs on both Wesleyan Street and Collard Street. This is to ensure all vehicles driving through understand the street is being crossed by people throughout the day, so drivers need to yield to pedestrians.

Another solution for helping with the noticeability of the crosswalk on Wesleyan Street and Avenue D intersection is adding a flashing LED pedestrian crosswalk sign that could catch a driver’s attention and be

more effective.

If both the dormitory gates have flashing LED stop signs at each exit, why aren’t the two busiest intersections on campus without effective safety measures for pedestrians?

Contacting the Fort Worth Transportation and Public Works service at 817-392-1234 to report these potential issues could assist in the process of remedying these safety issues. The office is open 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Friday and 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.

Although no pedestrian safety accidents have happened on campus yet, adding crosswalk lines and speed limit signs and improving pedestrian crosswalk signs with safety measures such as a flashing LED sign would help improve the safety of students and faculty on campus.

What did you do during UCD?

Karen Duarte-Escobar, junior business major “I presented for the Enactus organization as part of the business school. I talked about how students can get envolved with the organization.”

Kaylia Brown, sophmore masscommunications major “I’m a member of Alpha Xi. We set up a pie throwing table.

If you answer two of three questions right you get to pie a Alpha Xi.”

Students strive for community involvment

RAMBLER Contribution Please send all news briefs to twurambler@yahoo.com. Submissions due by noon Friday to see brief in the following week’s issue.

OPINIONS Opinions expressed in THE RAMBLER are those of the individual authors only and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Texas Wesleyan community as a whole.

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thetwurambler

Photo by Dylan Lofton-Ledet Alyssa Hutchinson, Hannah Lathen, Valerie Romos, and Tristeza Ordex-Ramirez protest in Fort Worth.

educate Latinx c om mu n it i e s on the electoral process.

Hannah Lathen Through this Content Producer I have become hrlathen@txwes.edu a member of United Fort Worth, which is a coalition ocal elections are here in Fort that seeks unity on local issues. And Worth and it is a great re- I am now a member of the ICE Out minder to encourage citizens and of Tarrant campaign. students to start having an active Also, I am always present at any role in being a voice for their com- local marches or protests taking munity. place against values I don’t believe I was born and raised in Fort are right for Fort Worth. I might Worth, and making sure I am in- even be caught at a parade in Dallas volved and informed on the deci- from time to time. sions being made here is incredibly I also try to attend different important to me. neighborhood events happening I am the communications coordi- around Tarrant County to support nator for a non-profit organization, local business and hear the stories El Voto Es Latino, which works to from people in different parts of the mobilize the Latinx vote as well as city.

L

Photo by Hannah Lathen Hannah Lathen poses with campaign material.

In my 20-plus years of living here, I have developed a love for the people in Fort Worth, and even if I am part of the conversation, I want to make sure they are, too.

Millennials are great at voicing their opinions and showing opposition to people in power. These sentiments are seen all over social media, but I would like to encourage others to take that passion and use it.

Find out what local groups that support your issues are established here in Fort Worth. Become a part of your neighborhood association and tell them what your concerns are. If you can’t find a group that is standing up for you, create your own group and become an organizer.

A great step in becoming more involved in your community is to start participating in local elections.

Many people make a point to go

vote during elections with a president on the ballot but often forget about the people who are serving them in their own neighborhood.

City council members serve different areas of Fort Worth and make decisions on which communities get money and which streets get fixed. They also have control over local taxes and tackling major issues such as human trafficking and gentrification.

Not only that, but knowing who your mayor is and what he or she represents says a lot about the city you live in.

Make sure the people you want to get elected, get elected. Voting matters in all elections, so do not go another year without participating.

To find out who is running for city council where you live in Fort Worth, visit fortworthtexas.gov.

Early voting is April 22-30 and Election Day is May 4.

Wednesday | April 24, 2019|3

News

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Trainers

continued from page 1

Photo contributed by Dr. Pam Rast The athletic trainiers pose for a group photo.

withdrawal of accreditation, Rast said, which brought tears to her eyes.

“You work so hard to get it to then voluntarily say, we are going to give it up,” Rast said. “But the reality is, once we do that, if they come along in two years and they say, ‘Well, we have decided that we want to have a master’s degree of athletic training,’ well, we are no longer accredited.”

Senior athletic training major Kaitlyn Baugh said she is grandfathered in so she will not have to receive a master’s degree.

“I could but I don’t want to because personally I am ready to be done with school. I am going to hopefully pass my BOC test in June,” Baugh said. “I either want to work in a college setting like here or do contracting work.”

Baugh said she does not understand why Wesleyan would not want to have a master’s program for athletic training.

“I do not agree with it because I am also an athlete,” said Baugh, who is a member of the women’s soccer team at Wesleyan. “From the athlete’s point of view, I see how much the students actually help the head AT, who is head of that sport in general.”

Baugh said she believes that the school would be able to bring in enough students for a master’s program, despite what the school says.

“There are 42 of us in the program right now,” she said. “We seem to bring in a decent amount, but they don’t seem to think we do.”

Baugh said whenever she goes to get treatment in the athletic training room, it is usually a student who helps her.

“If they don’t have the students, which is going to happen, when they don’t have students

there any more, you are going to be waiting there 20 or 30 minutes to get your treatments done so you can practice,” she said. “It is not the best situation.”

Rast said that especially with the addition of wrestling to the school, Wesleyan will need to hire more trainers.

“We have 42 students in the athletic training program right now and of course those numbers will dwindle as time goes on because we will be teaching them out,” Rast said. “As that happens, I hate to say it, but it will be less and less help for our athletic trainers who work with our athletic programs.”

Wesleyan President Frederick Slabach said that the end of the athletic training program and the appropriate care for student athletes in terms of athletic trainers are two different issues.

“With respect to the academic program, I want to make sure that everybody understands, all of our current students, our wonderful athletic training students, are going to be able to complete their athletic training bachelor’s degree here at Texas Wesleyan and then sit for

their licensure exams,” he said.

As far as athletic trainers go, Slabach said Wesleyan has full-time athletic trainers and the students who are in the athletic training program that are aiding them will continue to do that until the end of the program in 2023.

“After that time, we will provide the appropriate services to our student athletes,” Slabach said. “We will continue to do so and if we feel the need to hire additional resources for our student athletes we will do so.”

Henderson wrote that the school is incredibly proud of its athletic trainers, athletic training students and athletic training faculty.

“Our athletic training students and faculty are extremely talented and have a history of excellence,” he wrote. “Their work is life-saving and we applaud them for their contributions to the field and to athletes across North Texas – especially our athletes at Texas Wesleyan.

We are dedicated to seeing our current athletic training students through our highquality program and supporting them as they work toward graduation and passing their certification exam.”

find a way to persevere and change their lives through academia.

“I’ve been involved in this for a long time,” he said. “It’ll be hard to list all the lessons. I guess career-wise the biggest lesson I’ve learned and I’ve learned it several times over is be mindful of what you say because it can have an impact on you and you don’t know when and you don’t know where.”

The Halls have each left their own legacies around campus, Kit in the arts and John in psychology. They also spent some time in humanities.

“I’ve been thinking about fun things, the shenanigans some of the students did that were fun, the art majors and really how much I enjoyed getting to know some of the students,” Kit said. “I also think about the fight for the visual arts that continues, and I hope it never stops. I hope somebody sticks around and fights.

“I think probably the legacy would be with the few students I had special contact and relationships with. They kind of come back and we talk and have good conversations.

That’s probably what it’s all about anyway.”

Kit also established the Bernice Coulter Templeton Art Studio, but said she doesn’t know who is replacing her yet. John played a part in creating different programs as well, and was heavily involved in an interdisciplinary program called AEGIS for a couple years.

“I was chair of this (psychology) department for a long time,” he said. “I hired Dr. (Marilyn) Pugh, for example. I don’t know if that’s a legacy or what, but I think a lot of things that

have happened here got started under my time with my contribution. Very few people know this, but if it’s of value, the counseling program, the master’s of counseling started in this department and began with me from a conversation between me and Dr. Kurt Patrick.”

Pugh, associate professor of psychology, wrote that she was glad to have meet the Halls more than 20 years ago.

“I have loved John and Kit Hall for 25 years,” Pugh wrote in email. “I have learned a great deal about being a college professor from both of them, and I have very much enjoyed their friendship. Their many talents and sheer brilliance have added immeasurably to the Wesleyan experience for me and for literally thousands of students.”

One of those students is junior mass communication major Amanda Roach, who meet John in the fall 2017 in a general psychology class and Kit in the fall of 2018 for an interview for a mass communication class.

“I’ve taken classes with both of them,” Roach said. “Dr. Hall’s just a really engaging professor who teaches a lot through stories which made me really remember a lot of what he taught in class. Then Mrs. Hall’s really fun, and she’s just very knowledgeable about art. She’s kind of fun with just the way she’ll act in class, and with her she doesn’t really put a lot of stress on us.”

Roach says she’ll miss them and wishes them a good retirement, but she doesn’t see them completely walking away from teaching.

“I think they’re still going to find ways to teach people about art and horses and psychology

and everything,” Roach said. “They both seem like natural teaching kind of people.”

In their retirement, the Halls plan to work on their own projects, travel, and spend more time with their family and animals.

“I have a studio on our property, so I plan on cleaning that out, organizing that and getting back into my own art,” Kit said. “Over the last couple of years, I’ve had mostly school stuff that I’ve been taking care of and this gallery has taken a lot of time and effort, so I’m looking forward to only looking at my own calendar, listening to my own messages and painting.

Those are things I really look forward to.”

While they aren’t positive about what direction life will take them, John said he’s going to try to live the most interesting life he can in this next chapter.

“I don’t think I’m ever going to get bored and there’s always keeping up with the property and that’s a full-time job right there,” John said.

He said he most likely will miss being on a university campus since he can still keep up with his colleagues in retirement.

“I’ve always loved universities since I was a little kid,” he said. “I got to go on the UT campus when my dad was in graduate school.

I think there’s just something about them.”

He said his time at Wesleyan has been important to him despite the ups and downs over the last 28 years.

“Whatever it’s been I’ll never regret coming here and doing it,” John said. “Coming to Wesleyan gave me lots of opportunities.”

Halls

continued from page 1 like Wesleyan President Harold Jeffcoat’s portrait getting a temporary mustache, chilling on the roof of Dan Waggoner Hall, and assisting in staff resignations.

“Those were fun times,” Kit said. “This is the way things used to be, and nowadays it’s not so much fun as it used to be, so I do miss that part. I miss that a lot, and I think the students miss it, too. Students need to get out and cut loose every once in a while. “(Exploration and pushing boundaries) that’s what it’s all about. We’ve all done it. You talk to any professor here, everybody’s pushed boundaries in their time. If not, they’ve missed something they should have experienced.”

John also misses the fun of the old days.

“When I got here in 1990 Wesleyan people that were already here always referred to it as a family and like most families it can be dysfunctional, but I don’t know that I ever liked the family metaphor, but people were closer,” he said. “I think we did as much education, but there was a little more social. I have a lot of fond memories from that.”

The Halls have both learned many lessons over their years in academia. Kit said her most important one was knowing when to fight.

“You don’t have to battle everything, but you do battle for what’s important,” she said. “It’s OK to accept that not everything is going to be perfect, but you’re trying.”

Kit said she learned how to be a fighter in academics from John. He mentioned several lessons. He jokingly said that if there’s a way to mess something up someone will find it.

But he is sincere when he says that people will

Photo by Elizabeth Lloyd

campus events

April 24 - May 11

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday April 24

-Denim Day 2019 -Beyond Yes or No @ 9 a.m.

-MTRACK at Abilene Christian University -WTRACK at Abilene Christian University -SB vs. Langston University @ 2 p.m., 4 p.m. (away) -TT vs. ITTF

April 28

April 29

April 30

May 1

Thursday April 25 -Intellectual Disability Awareness 2nd annual Art Gallery @ 12:15 p.m.

-Counseling Open House @ 5 p.m.

-Theatre presents “Avenue Q” @ 7:30 p.m.

-‘We’re Pro-Gun: Change our Minds’ Tabling Event @ 12 p.m.

-Tailgate with the Xi’s @ 12:15 p.m.

-Psi Chi & SVO: Hail and Farewell @ 12 p.m.

-GSA: Does being different exempt me from having faith? @ 6 p.m.

-TT vs. ITTF

May 2 -SB vs. Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament (TBD)

-Theatre presents “Ave-Math 0300 Finals Review nue: Q” @ 2 p.m.

Secession @ 1 p.m.

-Football FrenXi @ 2 p.m.

-Relax with a mask @ 7 p.m.

-TT vs. ITTF -MGOLF vs. Sooner Athletic Conference

May 5

May 6

May 7

-Last Day to make 100% payment for May 2019 -BB vs. Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament

-BB vs. Sooner Athletic Confer- -Official Last Day of Class for Spring 2019 ence Tournament

May 8

May 9

-Dead Day -Finals for Wednesday classes -Payments due for Summer Secession I -Psi Chi: PAT Canine Counselors @ 1:30 p.m.

Important Dates: -May 14: Last Day of Finals -May 16: Spring Grad Toast @ 5:30 p.m.

-May 17: Robing @ 11 a.m.

-May 17: Hooding @ 6 p.m.

-May 18: Graduation @ 10 a.m.

-May 18: Residence Halls close

Friday April 26

-3rd Annual TXWES Ram Football Golf Tournament @ 12 p.m.

-Leadership Workshop @ 1 p.m.

-Alumni Reunion Dinner @ 6 p.m.

-Theatre presents “Avenue Q” @ 7:30 p.m.

-WTEN & MTEN vs. NAIA -SB vs. Southwestern Christian University @ 2 p.m., 4 p.m. (home) -BB vs. Southwestern Assemblies of God University @ 2 p.m. (home) -TT vs. ITTF

May 3 -Student Veteran Organization: Spicy Noodle Fundraiser @ 12 p.m.

-Psi Chi Banquet @ 4 p.m.

- SB vs. Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament (TBD) -BB vs. Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament

May 10

Saturday April 27

-Reunion Brunch honoring Alpha Chi & Golden Shears @ 11 a.m.

-Blue and Gold Football Scrimmage @ 1 p.m. (home) -Wesleyan Wine Walk @ 4:30 p.m.

-Theatre performs “Avenue Q” @ 7:30 p.m.

-Afterglow Party @ 9:30 p.m.

-MTEN & WTEN vs. NAIA -SB vs. Southwestern Assemblies of God University @ 12 p.m., 2 p.m. (home) -BB vs. Southwestern Assemblies of God University @ 1 p..m., 3 p.m. (home)

May 4

-Master Therapist Series: Dr. Steve Harris @ 9 a.m.

-SB vs. Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament (TBD) -BB vs. Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament

May 11

4 |Wednesday April 24, 2019

CAMPUS

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Puff, Puff, Pass

E-cigarettes have become neccesary school supplies for students

By Jacinda Chan & Ashton Willis jwchan@txwes.edu, anwillis@txwes.edu

E

lectronic cigarettes such as vapes or vape pens have become every young adult’s favorite accessory in recent years.

But it wasn’t until the most recent device, the Juul, was introduced, that the term “Juuling” was created.

Texas Wesleyan University student Maggie Brasher said she started vaping because of her friends.

“I had some friends from high school who did it, and then I would hit theirs every now and then,” said Brasher, a senior exercise science major. “I guess you could say I got addicted to the motion and then about a year later I bought my own.”

Brasher said that she has used multiple devices since she started vaping.

“I’ve had three different types of vaping devices: a Juul, Njoy, and a Prince Stick,” she said.

“The Juul has been my favorite by far.”

Brasher said the Juul is different than some of the other e-cigarette devices that she has tried before.

“The Juul is just so crisp, it has a nice hit, and I just really enjoy the flavor,” she said. “At first it was really inexpensive but then when the

Sophomore accounting major Madalyn Fee said she uses vaping as a way to cope with stress from sch

FDA cracked down I switched devices because it’s a lot cheaper and still gets the job done.”

Brasher said that vaping, or Juuling, is definitely something that comes with a price to pay.

“The Juul is definitely addictive and the nicotine in general is really addictive,” she said.

“Juul has become such a franchise name for younger kids who can’t buy it. They (the kids) think it helps them fit in, but I would warn them to be careful.”

E-cigarettes like the vape and the Juul are popular trends not only among high school students but college students as well. Young adults between the ages of 18 and 24 are the highest age bracket that use e-cigarettes and do so at an increasing rate, according to www. truthinitiative.org.

The 2018 National Youth Tobacco Survey study hypothesizes that the reason for the alarming increase in young adults’ use of ecigarettes is the sleek USB flash drive look of the Juul, according to fda.gov.

Brasher said this is not something that she plans on doing for the rest of her life.

“I don’t want to do it for the rest of my life and cigarettes are a no go for me,” she said.

“Hopefully one day in the near future I plan to quit.”

Brasher said her best advice to someone who wants to start vaping is not to.

“I would recommend to people who want to try it don’t because once you get started it’s hard to stop,” she said.

E-cigarettes have been around for a while

One in five high school students vape, according to consumer.healthday.com. Vaping grew from 220,000 high school students to more than three million between 2011 and 2018.

The three Wesleyan students interviewed

“It’s a big stress reliever whenever I’m studying for a test or I’m dealing with a hard situation or work gets really crazy. I vape to relieve the stress; it just calms me down.”

-Madalyn Fee and different generations of products have been created. The one we’re most familiar with nowadays is the Juul. But before the Juul, the vape was the most popular.

The vape doesn’t resemble a USB flash drive, like the Juul; it’s larger. Unlike the Juul, the vape has more intricate parts that must be replaced.

about vaping said that most students start their e-cigarette journey in high school out of curiosity and the influence of their surroundings, but force of habit, using the cigarettes as a distraction mechanism and the stress of college all further their addiction.

Wesleyan student Madalyn Fee is a sophomore accounting major who started vaping

Wednesday April 24, 2019| 5 TheRambler.org | For news throughout the day.

Photos by Ashton Willis hool and work and spends $75-$150 each month. The brand of vape juice she uses is VGOD.

during her senior year of high school when she was 17.

Unlike most young adults, Fee didn’t transition to the Juul and instead stayed with the vape.

“It’s the way the Juuls hit compared to the vape,” said Fee. “Juuls don’t have the same effect as a vape for me because I’ve become so reliant on a way a vape feels and hits that when I hit a Juul it’s not enough.”

Fee has become so reliant on her vape that she uses the device all throughout her day.

“Unless I’m in class or I’m around certain people like my parents or my boss,” she said.

Like most young adults, Fee started vaping because her friends were vaping.

“Now I vape because I have to,” she said. “It’s a big stress reliever whenever I’m studying for a test or I’m dealing with a hard situation or work gets really crazy. I vape to relieve the stress; it just calms me down.”

Fee spent about $140 on her vape and spends $75-$150 a month buying juice refills and replacing the parts for her vape.

“I probably buy two bottles of juice every month so that’s about $30 each, so that’s $60 on juice and sometimes more,” she said.

Wesleyan student-athlete Emily Hunt said she started vaping/Juuling because of her

roommates.

“They all peer pressured me, and then I went and bought one,” said Hunt, a sophomore history major.

Hunt said that the amount of money she spends on her Juul is definitely a problem.

“On average I spend $30 a month on Juul, and that’s why this is my last pack of pods,” she said.

Hunt said that nicotine is definitely addictive, but it also depends on the person.

“Nicotine is addictive for some people, but not for me,” she said. “I went the whole Christmas break without it. I didn’t miss it so I definitely could go without it.”

Hunt said she thinks that a lot of student athletes do it because it’s a mechanism to help them de-stress.

“I like to do it on the golf course, and I do it a lot when I do homework,” she said. “I think that it kind of relaxes you and chills you out.”

Hunt said that there is kind of a difference between vaping and Juuling.

“Juul pods have more nicotine, but less smoke and that’s why I like it more than the traditional vape,” she said. “I think if you vape it’s more for social purposes, but if you Juul it’s just because you want to.”

Campus

6 |Wednesday | April 24, 2019

Arts&Entertainment

TheRambler.org | For news throughout the day.

R-rated musical pops up at Wesleyan

Art courtesy of Jacob Sanchez “Avenue Q” is an R-rated Tony Award-winning musical that will play from April 25 to 28 in the Thad Smotherman Theatre.

Elena Maldonado ecmaldonado@txwes.edu

Theatre Wesleyan is getting ready to close the 2018-2019 season with “Avenue Q,” a puppet-filled musical.

The show will be presented in the Thad Smotherman Theatre from April 25 to April 28.

Jeff Whitty’s play is a comedy-filled musical that adults will find relatable. It involves humans and puppets trying to figure out life together while they break out singing.

Kristian Thomas, a sophomore theatre major, will be bringing the character of Trekkie Monster to life.

“Trekkie Monster is a very interesting guy,” he wrote in an email. “He is very sarcastic and an easy-going character who loves to have a good time. Something that’ll make him really relatable to the audience is his confidence. He knows how everyone thinks of him but he doesn’t care and he lives his life the way he pleases.”

Thomas wrote that he had to learn a few techniques in order to do Trekkie Monster’s loud, raspy voice.

“In the beginning of the process it was very difficult to handle his voice,” Thomas wrote. “I had to learn how to sing and speak without damaging my voice as well as being loud and clear enough to be heard by the audience. Once I found something that worked for me it got progressively easier to handle Trekkie’s voice.”

Thomas wrote that learning puppetry has

been both a difficult and an amazing experience.

“It’s not easy, not one bit,” he wrote. “Especially the way Trekkie is made. However, it’s still an amazing experience and learning opportunity. We all have put in a ton of work to get these puppets to look and feel like real people. It’s going to be a super fun performance.”

In order to be better prepared on how to work with puppets, the cast members attended a puppetry workshop lead by Rick Lyon, an original “Avenue Q” cast member.

Jacob Sanchez, the business manager of the Theatre Department, is the assistant director and choreographer of the musical.

He coordinated the visit to Lyon’s workshop.

Sanchez wrote in an email that the workshop was a learning experience for the cast, faculty and staff members that were present.

“I have been familiar with Rick’s work for a long time and being able to help in getting him here for our production of ‘Avenue Q’ was very rewarding,” he wrote. “He has been involved in the show since it was in development as a TV series, then as it became a theatre piece. He had a lot backstage stories and intel on how the musical came to be. It was a taxing weekend, but well worth it.”

Sanchez wrote that the workshop consisted of three four-hour sessions; students learned puppetry for onstage performance.

The students are putting to practice what they learned in the workshop.

“One of the main things we took away as

a group was the importance of the puppets’ focus,” he wrote. “Because the actors will perform with the puppets parallel to them, there is no way they can see what or who the physical puppet is looking at. We have been working in rehearsal to make sure that aspect is as tight and accurate as possible, because it enhances the believability of the puppets’ performance and their interactions with other human or puppet characters on stage.”

Alastair Sigala Ramirez, a senior theatre major, is designing original puppets for the musical; he participated in Lyon’s workshop.

“The whole experience of being able to talk with and see Rick Lyons work was amazing,” he wrote in an email. “He was so helpful in how the puppets should be used along with upkeep of them. It was also so reassuring to find out that we had similar methods of design.”

Ramirez, who will be designing 11 puppets, wrote that for inspiration, he looked at TV productions that used puppets.

“With the shows big focus being on the reality of adulthood and it being inspired off of ‘Sesame Street’ I really looked towards that to base my design off of, along with taking inspiration from other childhood things like Care Bears, The Muppets, and so on,” he wrote.

He wrote that he decided he was going to be designing the puppets for the musical because puppetry is something that sparks his interest.

“When the season was announced I knew

I wanted to do this puppet design because it was something different and I used to love puppets as kid, so when it came to the interview I showed my passion for it and wished for the best,” he wrote. “Designing the puppets I did do on my own, but the actual construction of them could not have been completed without our wonderful mentor Kathy Kreuter, who is an alumni, and my fantastic team.”

Ramirez said he is excited for the audience to see his work come alive on stage.

“It’s so crazy to see them actually put together and as tangible things, so I can’t wait for people to see them in person and I hope they really enjoy them as well as feel some sense of nostalgia from their childhood,” Ramirez wrote.

Sanchez wrote he excited the cast and crew were able to put their own spin on the musical, including the creative puppet designs Ramirez is working on.

“Lyon told us that out of all the schools he has worked at, we were probably only the second to build our own puppets instead of renting or buying from across the country,” Sanchez wrote. “That is no easy task, but again we gave our students the opportunity to design and build puppets and they went full-force with it. It has been an amazing experience so far.”

“Avenue Q” runs April 25-28 at the Thad Smotherman Theatre. Showtimes are 7:30 p.m. each night except for April 28, which is a 2 p.m. matinee. For ticket prices and more information, go to txwes.edu/theatretickets.

‘The Perfect Date’ proves to be disappointing Hope Allison

heallison@txwes.edu

(This Review Contains Spoilers) “The Perfect Date” falls short in bringing Netflix users a new and satisfying romantic comedy.

Brooks Rattigan, played by teen heartthrob Noah Centineo, is struggling to afford his Ivy League ambitions. After a chance encounter as a stand-in date with Celia (Laura Morano), he makes a business out of dating.

With the help of his friend and coworker Murph (Odiseas Georgiadis), Rattigan creates an app that allows people to hire him as a stand-in date. The movie is 90 minutes long and is directed by Chris Nelson; it has the same general feel as a few other of Netflix’s teen romance movies released in the last few years.

Netflix users loved “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before,” which also starred Centineo and came out in August 2018. Since then, “Date” is one of three unsuccessful movies that seem like Netflix is trying to recreate the hype of “Boys,” but continues to fall short.

Maybe Netflix needs to accept defeat and stop trying to thrill girls’ hearts with an attractive actor and focus on the story.

The trailer to “Date” is honestly intriguing. Seeing the cast reminded me of shows I watched as a child. This is because Centineo got his start playing Laura Morano’s love interest in the Disney Channel television series “Austin & Ally” back in 2011. So seeing these two working together again was nostalgic to say the least. However, pretty much everything shown in the trailer of this film happens within the first 30 minutes of the movie. Maybe I am just used to Hollywood-style movie trailers that show the whole story of a movie but once I got to the point in “Date” that all the scenes from the trailer had happened I just felt disappointed.

The beginning of “Date” happens so fast.

Want to Watch?

“The Perfect Date” is a 90-minute Netflix original movie where a guy struggling to afford college starts a business of being a stand-in date for hire.

Months go by in minutes and everything happens with little time to breathe. The first 30 minutes are cluttered and the rest is just boring. As soon as we get out of this hurried beginning, “Date” slows down to an almost unbearable pace. It may very well slow down to an appropriate pace. However, the contrast of how fast things were moving to their ending speed is so great it makes it seem even slower.

Ignoring the significant pacing changes, there is a severe use of stereotypical characters. Georgiadis’ character is the clichéd gay best friend and techie. Then there is Morano’s character, the feministic “not your typical girl” stereotype. Moments before we see her character, we hear her fighting with her mom as she refuses to wear heels to a school dance. She then comes out wearing combat boots and a black leather jacket over what would be a very nice semi-formal dress. Then she attempts to skip the dance by going to a bookstore. These same character traits, and very similar scenes, can be seen in everything from Maddie in the Disney Channel’s “Liv and Maddie” to Mary Elizabeth in “The Perks of Being a Wallflower.” The point is, we have seen this character before and frankly I’m sick of it. There must be another way to display these characters.

Netflix missed the mark with “Date.” It could be redone, as the general story idea isn’t bad; it’s just that the clichéd characters and time frame were inconsistent. Maybe Netflix needs to give young adult romantic comedies a rest and focus on a different genre.

Photo courtesy of IMDb “The Perfect Date” is a Netflix original movie that stars Noah Centineo and Laura Morano.

Wednesday | April 24, 2019

| 7

SPORTS

TheRambler.org | For news throughout the day.

Rams’ annual Blue & Gold game approaching

Photo courtesy of Michelle Arth Redshirt sophomore Justin Arth warms up before a 2018 game.

ASHTON WILLIS anwillis@txwes.edu

T

he Texas Wesleyan football team will be holding the third annual Blue & Gold Spring Game on Saturday.

The Rams have been practicing in the off-season on the field and also by lifting weights. This will be the first game the team has played in since the fall of 2018.

Head coach Joe Prud’homme said that he is looking forward to the upcoming game.

“I’m excited; it’s always great to have the wrap-up game for spring ball,” he said.

Prud’homme said that the team has been focused on the upcoming season since the last game last fall.

“We’ve been evaluating the team and players ever since we hung up the pads after the last season,” he said. “We had a great off-season

in the weight room, refining our schemes, and raising the bar.”

The game is 2 p.m. at Farrington Field. Justin Arth, a redshirt sophomore and business administration major, wrote in a text message that the game is “more like a scrimmage because of the lack of offensive linemen we have.”

Prud’homme said that the spring game will not be as intense as regular-season games but that the work the team has been putting in is crucial.

“The spring game itself won’t be a big factor, but all of the work and preparation leading up to it will lead to more improvement,” he said.

Prud’homme said the game will be a good opportunity to see the players in action.

“There are several positional battles going on,” he said. “It will also be a great opportunity to see how

the players communicate during the scrimmage.”

Arth said that the spring game is a great chance to show everyone how hard the team has been working.

“It’s a great time to showcase to everyone all of our hard work we’ve been putting into this program,” he said.

Arth said that the team has really been putting in work during the off-season and he hopes it shows on the field.

“We’ve had multiple practices, weight lifting sessions, and position meetings throughout the last four or so weeks,” he said. “Each day we are striving to be one percent better than we were the day before. Jermarcus Jones says it best: ‘Progression.’”

Arth said that his main goal is to perform well for all of the fans.

“Personally, I just want to get out on the field and put on a show for all that are coming to watch,” he said. “I’ve put in a lot of work this off-season and it’s time to showcase it.”

Arth said that the goal of the game is for both offense and defense to get some work in and improve.

“Offensively, we just want to go out and make plays and make the defense work to stop us so we all get better,” he said.

Vincent Stephenson, a redshirt senior and business management major, said that the spring game is a really good way to evaluate the team and see the progress.

“Spring games are a good indicator of what is to come next fall,” he said. “It shows off our hard work in practices and workouts as a team during the spring.”

Stephenson said that it is nice to finally get the chance to be back on the field and show everyone the work the players have put in.

“We will have had four weeks of practice, workouts, and film sessions to prepare for the Blue & Gold spring game,” he said. “It will

be fun to finally put on a show.”

Stephenson said that the Blue & Gold game is one of the more relaxed games that they compete in.

“The Blue & Gold game is always a good time,” he said.

Photo courtesy of Little Joe Redshirt senior Vincent Stephenson played in six out of 10 games in 2018.

“Its fun to compete within our own team in a safe and fun matter in front of our fans.”

The Blue & Gold Spring Game is 2 p.m. Saturday at Farrington Field.

Admission is free. For more information, go to ramsports.net.

The Rams will scrimmage Southwestern University on Aug. 24 at Farrington Field. The time of the game is yet to be announced.

8 | Wednesday | April 24, 2019

SPORTS

TheRambler.org | For news throughout the day.

Esports team ends with top 10 finish

Photo by Eugene Friar Parker Anderson (nearest the camera) and the Esports Overwatch team compete during a tournament in Dallas. Wesleyan created the team in 2018.

ELIZABETH LOYD ejlloyd@txwes.edu

R

andy Turner has gotten a chance to face new challenges and meet new people through his job as community manager for theTXWES Esports Program.

Despite the differences between his current job and his projected career path, Turner, a liberal studies major, writes that he has taken every experience in stride.

“This job could not be more different than how I imagine my career path, but because of that I have enjoyed it even more,” he wrote. “It has made me realize that I could like to continue being part of this culture and even after I graduate Photos by Eugene Friar from Wesleyan this May.” Seniors Jacob Chesney (top) and Turner wrote in an email that Zack Lanham (bottom) pose. along with hosting the Extra Life

fundraiser last semester and having several students and staff in the program attend the opening of the largest esports stadium in North America, Esports Stadium Arlington, the TXWES Esports Program will be hosting another fundraiser at the Panda Express on Berry Street on April 24.

Meanwhile, the TXWES Esports Program’s competitive teams are having a great season and the FIFA team is hoping to take home the championship after finishing second in a tournament last season, Eugene Frier, executive director of Esports and Recreation, wrote in a recent email.

The Hearthstone team has also competed and beat some pretty big schools.

“We beat Boise State University, UCLA (University of California

Los Angeles), and University of Utah on route to a top 10 finish nationally this season that qualified us for the varsity championship series,” Frier wrote.

As far as getting out into the community, Frier wrote, earlier this month the Overwatch team competed in a tournament in Deep Ellum in Dallas.

“Sadly we did not advance past the first round, but it was a great experience for our team,” Frier wrote.

Jacob Chesney, senior general business administration major, coach for the Hearthstone team, and coordinator of the TXWES Esports Program and gaming, is excited about getting the program involved with the larger DFW esports community.

“We’ve done a lot of stuff with

Graphic by Ashton Willis The Hearthstone team qualified for the varsity championship series.

organizations outside of campus,” Chesney wrote in an email. “In addition to the high schools we’ve physically visited, we also have worked with the Esports Stadium in Arlington. We are also working with Mavs Gaming and getting more information on partnerships and internships for our students going forward.”

Criminal Justice major and graduating senior Zack Lanham wrote in an email that it has been an honor to be a part of this program.

“My involvement in Esports impacted my last year here by giving me more teammates and a program I had a hand in helping establish,” Lanham wrote. “I get to see something grow and flourish long after I leave. It was an honor getting to plant my roots in something that’s gonna be huge later on.”