The Rambler Vol.101 No.8

WEDNESDAY Sept. 6, 2017 Vol. 101 • No. 8

www.therambler.org

OPINION

What if a protest occurs at Wesleyan?

Wesleyan needs more guidelines concerning protests on campus.

NEWS Graphic by Shaydi Paramore

After 75 years, football returns to Wesleyan.

Students, staff and faculty are excited about Wesleyan’s first home game and the season.

CAMPUS

Wesleyan students are concerned about the issues.

With the events occuring in Charlottesville, Barcelona and many more, safety is a huge concern to students.

A&E

Wesleyan alumnus showcase skills in art gallery.

The Bernice Coulter Templeton Art Studio will host free gallery events this year.

SPORTS

Trainers inform Wesleyan faculty about concussions.

A new fact sheet highlights the symptons of concussion, and how to get the student help.

ONLINE

Home game includes 911 tribute.

Each home game this season will have a different theme.

Wesleyan prepares for football Hannah Onder

hlonder@txwes.edu

Dr. Cary Adkinson and Dr. Eddy Lynton are pumped for Saturday.

“We’re going (to the first football game) together and we’re trying to get a bunch of people to go with us,” said Adkinson, an associate professor of criminal justice.“I’m a huge football fan and I’ve never been at a university that really had football.

As a sports fan and as a faculty member both I’m super excited about getting to see some live football action.”

Texas Wesleyan plays its first home football game in 75 years on Saturday at Fort Worth’s Farrington Field against Millsaps College. Game time is 2 p.m.

Adkinson and Lynton, an assistant professor of criminal justice and sociology, are excited to have some of those football players in their classes as well.

“I think the players really appreciate you taking time out of your day to come, cheer them on and support them,” Lynton said. “I’ve seen where that translates in the classroom. They have less absences, they try harder in class, and they will have that interaction with you. It really translates well in the classroom and I like that.”

Lynton is also excited for the opportunity that football games will bring to the faculty.

“Dr.Adkinson is one of my closest friends, but it’s really hard for us to get out and do stuff,” Lynton said. “These football games are opportunities for us faculty and staff to actually get to know each other in ways previously we might not have.

I mean this is a four-hour game.”

Faculty members aren’t the only ones excited for football’s return to Wesleyan; students are as well.

“I’m super excited about it, because football is just so fun to watch and I think it gets the school pumped up,” said Tahlor Stefek, a freshman biochemistry major. “I feel like it’s the same as high school football, but bigger and better.”

Graphic by Hannah Onder Texas Wesleyan joins the Central States Football League for its return season.

 FOOTBALL. page 3

New diversity commitee on campus Hannah Lathen

hrlathen@txwes.edu

As part of the Campus Diversity & Inclusion Strategic Plan, a multicultural committee has formed to organize and develop multicultural celebrations and endorse inclusivity in the Texas Wesleyan community.

Angela Dampeer, associate vice president of Human Resources, led the creation of the strategic plan developed by the university’s Diversity and Inclusion Council, which includes having this committee, she said, to address the various aspects of diversity, including Wesleyan’s cultural climate.

According to the plan, emphasis will be placed on Hispanic Heritage Month, Native American Heritage Month, Black History Month, Women’s History Month, Asian American

History Month, Asian Pacific Island History Month, LGBT History Month, Disability Awareness Month and Veteran’s Awareness Month.

“The goal of the committee is to

students wanted represented, we as an institution would help and support that programming to happen,” she said.

Several members of the multicul-

“The goal of the committee is to bring awareness to various culture groups through programming,” -Angela Dampeer bring awareness to various culture groups through programming,” Dampeer said.

The committee’s kick-off meeting was held Aug. 31.

Dampeer said there is opportunity to expand celebrations.

“If there were other cultures that

tural committee will organize celebrations for each month, said Christi Tallent, human resources coordinator.

“For instance, Hispanic Heritage Month is coming up for September, so we have a chair over this month who will coordinate an event to fo-

cus on and emphasize Hispanic heritage,” Tallent said. “That will look different each month depending on what the committee decides to do.”

Students are strongly encouraged to participate in the committee, Dampeer said.

“We want our students to be cochairs of the committee, so ideally we would like to have a faculty or staff member and a student chair one of the months we have in this particular plan,” she said.

Dampeer said she hopes this committee will show students that their diverse backgrounds and values are appreciated at Wesleyan.

“We live in a metropolitan city, in a culturally diverse community, so we would be remiss as a university not to put an emphasis on inclusiv-

 MULTICULTURAL. page 3

2 | Wednesday | September 6, 2017

Opinion

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How will Wesleyan prepare for protests?

EDITORIAL

Protests marches have become normal, not only in America but around the world.

On a day-to-day basis, more groups and organizations are rising together to express their needs and wants. Whether it’s women’s rights, the removal of Confederate statues or the need for diversity in America, many organizations have taken their marches to the streets and to college campuses.

With the violence at the recent march in Charlottesville, Va., Wesleyan students are concerned about the possibility of marches occurring near or on the campus. According to washingtonpost.org, neo-Nazis and white supremacists marched through the University of Virginia campus the night before the rally that included the death of Heather Heyer. The next day, some students spoke to reporters about how distraught they felt when they woke up.

“On Friday night, I was locked in a church full of people, who were singing loudly to overpower the hate-filled chants of altright protesters carrying torches right outside the chapel door,” said politics and African-American studies major Aryn Frazier, according to the Post.

Multiple public universities have had protests and riots similar to the Charlottesville rally this year. The University of California, Berkeley is a prime example. In February, on-campus riots ended with fists fights and fires, according to cnn.com. On Aug. 27, more than a dozen protesters were arrested when confrontations occurred during a “Rally Against Hate” to protest an anti-Marxist gathering.

What if similar protests happened at Texas Wesleyan?

Wesleyan students are more protected from the possibility of riots than students at other campuses. Because Wesleyan is a private university, our administration has the right to tell any group or organization to relocate their marches or events off campus.

Wesleyan has begun to pave a way to make sure students are safe by creating a scheduled series of times when students, faculty and staff can talk about, among other things, the issues that

Photo courtesy of pixabay.com With the violence at the recent march in Charlottesville, Wesleyan students are concerned about protests on campuses.

are arising via the protests. Members of Student Affairs are giving members of the Wesleyan community the chance to speak up and be informed.

But policies need to be put in place to pave a way if protests similar to the ones at Virginia or Berkeley arise on campus.

If a student organization, such as the Black Student Association or the Gay-Straight Alliance, wants to march across campus or stage a peaceful protest, it’s necessary for Wesleyan to put policies in place to protect this freedom.

These could include policies that focus on the ability to protest; there could also be tips on how to stage a peaceful protest, or a way for the campus to inform students if a protest is hap-

pening so they can decide whether or not to participate.

For example, the University of Chicago web site includes information on campus protests, including noise levels, advance arrangements, occupying buildings, and banners and signs, according to studentmanual.uchicago.edu. The university also has a dean on call to assist the protesters and make sure students are informed about the protests.

Not only should policies be in a place on how to stage a peaceful protests, but if a group known for controversial and possibly violent protests, such as white supremacists, stages a protest, students also need to be informed about how they can protect themselves.

Slabach addresses Charlottesville in open letter Dear Members of the Texas Wesleyan Community,

Welcome to the start of a new academic year. We always look forward to the increased activity when students return in the fall and our campus becomes a lively living and learning community.

As everyone returns to campus, I want to affirm the values and commitment we share as members of an academic community.

A little more than a week ago, on the campus of the University of Virginia and in the town of Charlottesville, an angry racist and anti-Semitic mob marched with hate in their hearts in an attempt to incite fear in ours.

Constructive Conversation

In response to this tragedy, I invite you to become a part of a constructive conversation about our values, beliefs, thoughts and experiences in an open and meaningful way. The Division of Student Affairs is preparing a series of Coffee & Conversation sessions during the next few weeks and a community forum on the subject that will be held in early September. College is a time when ideas are appropriately challenged in a supportive way to promote critical thought and analysis of new inforPhoto courtsey of pixabay.com. mation. That is the essence of our mission. We will provide you Protests concerning race and Confederate monuments have erupted throughout the United States this year. with more information about these activities in a few days.

Confirmation of Texas Wesleyan’s Values At Texas Wesleyan University, our core mission is “to develop as academic and administrative buildings and athletic facilities.

I want to assure you that at Texas Wesleyan University, our students to their full potential as individuals and as members Finally, we are reviewing our policies regarding the use of open values of honor and commitment to education shape the way of the world community.” We are focused on our dedication to flames on university owned or controlled property. we live and think. We learn from one another. We recognize developing critical thinking and analytical reasoning skills in A Prayer our diversity is our strength. Our respect for our brothers and all of our students. It is our mission to reject the closed-minded As we work together to challenge the hate we see around us, sisters is our promise and frames all we stand for. hatefulness that comes from a failure to utilize these skills.

I offer a prayer from my religious tradition: Racism and hatred have no place here.

In every act confirming our values as an institution and as a Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so We share in the sorrow of the families and loved ones who community, we denounce the demonstrated values of hatred move every human heart, that barriers which divide us may lost a precious life. We pray for the physical healing of the many and violence. crumble, suspicions disappear and hatreds cease; that our diviwho were injured and the emotional healing of all who were Safety sions being healed, we may live in justice and peace. subjected to this vile act of domestic terrorism.

I assure you that the safety, security and health of our stuBest, This is a reminder that words have meaning and hate has dents, faculty and staff are of utmost importance to this uniFrederick G. Slabach consequences. versity. Our security service is fully engaged in detecting any President Silence has consequences as well. If we remain silent, we give signs of disturbances on campus. We are monitoring social meTexas Wesleyan University license to the haters - the racists, neo-Nazis, white supremacists dia to attempt to detect any direct action involving our campus and white nationalists, as well as the domestic terrorists who or official university activities. We are reviewing our policies This letter was sent out by email to faculty, staff and students are inspired by them. involving permits for the use of outdoor common areas as well on Aug.23.

“We are not afraid to follow the truth... wherever it may lead.”

— Thomas Jefferson Print/Web Content Producers:Shaydi Paramore, Sachiko Jayaratne, Karan Muns, Hannah Lathen, Hannah Onder, Grace Fisher, Tina Huynh

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Editorial Staff: Hannah Onder, Shaydi Paramore, Hannah Lathen

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Channel 25

Rams up Thumbs up to the first football game in 75 years.

Thumbs up to an increase in TxWes Food Pantry volunteers.

Thumbs up to RamClub volunteers being able to recieve free football tickets.

Thumbs up to Mortar Board winning mulitple awards.

Rams down Thumbs down to students packed in dorms.

Thumbs down to limited Ram Route destinations.

Thumbs down to increase in students, which means less parking.

Thumbs down to Hurricane Harvey bringing damaging rains and winds.

Wednesday | September 6, 2017|3

News

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FOOTBALL

continued from page 1 Senior music major Julian Rodriguez is also excited about football, but he had some concerns at first.

“Now that it’s here I’m excited, but when it first was announced I didn’t know how to feel about it, only because there were other sports teams that could use the extra help to become better,” Rodriguez said. “We didn’t know how successful football would be, when other teams on campus could have used that attention, but now that it’s here I am excited for where it can go.”

Lynton said football has gone beyond his expectations so far from when he initially heard it was coming back to Wesleyan.

“I just assumed it was going to be a football team and they would be on the same level as all the other existing athletic teams,” Lynton said. “I had not anticipated the excitement that this was going to generate not just on campus but in the community and the media.”

With all that attention and excitement on campus, Adkinson says, people have begun to develop the expectation that the team will win several games this season.

“Seeing the championship banners unfurl and the trophies (will be the most exciting thing about football at Wesleyan),” Adkinson said.“I’m kind of half joking on that because there’s always that expectation for new programs to be successful and success means winning to most people. At the same time, I also believe there’s something to be said for the success of competition and just having a team that gives student athletes, who might not have had an opportunity to play beyond

their high school years, an opportunity to be able to play for us to continue their careers.”

Adkinson and Rodriguez both believe having the football team has increased school spirit.

“I feel the school as a whole is definitely spirited,” Rodriguez said.“I just feel like there’s a lot more spirit on the faculty andstaff ’s side then there is on the students’. I hope that as the year progresses and as the team starts to play and hopefully win that will change.”

Adkinson also believes it’s important to continue to keep spirits up even if the football team isn’t championship level right out the gate.

“I think spirit’s high but I think that’s also something that we have to be very mindful and intentional about continuing,” Adkinson said. “I think it’s really important, since there’s not already a strong established culture of football on campus for the faculty and staff, students and administrators to be creating a really positive culture, so we don’t fall prey to some of the problems you see at other universities.”

Adkinson also says it’s important for faculty to be understanding of the challenges student-athletes face, such as losing games.

“I think faculty would be well served to try to understand where student athletes are coming from (when they lose) and maybe give them a pat on the back and use it as teachable moments,” Adkinson said. “Sometimes it’s not whether you win or lose but that you compete and that you gave it your all so that you’re proud of the effort your team put in and the camaraderie that you get out of

Photo by Shaydi Paramore Wesleyan will face Millsaps College and host a special Tribute to First Responders.

that. If it doesn’t show up in the win column there may be other life lessons to learn.”

Rodriguez believes that the first home football game may turn into a victory for the Rams.

“I think that because there’s so much pride here at Wesleyan it’s going to be a really great turnout of Wesleyan attendance there, so I have a strong feeling that they’ll do well,” Rodriguez said. “I have to be at that game because the choir has to be at that game so I guess I’ll see firsthand how they’ll do.”

Texas Wesleyan football tickets can be purchased online at ramsports.net/ticketsorwith

MULTICULTURAL continued from page 1

-ty here,” she said. “This is an exciting time for the campus.”

Dampeer said this committee will be beneficial for everyone in the community.

“I think it will allow students to appreciate that their cultures and other cultures are being celebrated and shared and it brings about more learning and awareness for any student, not just an international student,” she said.

In part because of the events last month in Charlottesville, Va., Tallent said, the committee is even more essential than before.

“Like Angela has said many times, we don’t want to be reactive if anything were to happen so we are being proactive with all of this,” she said.

Trezjon Cothran, senior liberal arts major and Black Student Association president, said he feels this committee will open people’s minds and make the various cultural groups on cam-

pus feel more welcomed.

“For those who may feel a certain way about people from certain backgrounds, this is a way for them to not necessarily express that,” he said.

“They are going to learn that this person may not be what I see on TV or what I have been taught by my peers.”

Junior marketing major and international student Finn Le said that, considering the large number of international students on campus having a multicultural committee is necessary.

“I appreciate culture because it is what makes us diverse,” said Le, who is from Vietnam.

Graphic courtesy of Angela Dampeer The bar graph compares diversity at Wesleyan to other universities.

cash at the gate.General admission tickets cost $10, faculty and staff tickets cost $5, and tickets for kids 12 and under are $5. Parking is located in the East lot and is free of charge.Tailgating is allowed in the parking lot on the eastside as long as it is off the grass and doesn’t block the flow of traffic, according to ramsports.net.The Ram Zone, sponsored by 92.1 Hank FM, will start at noon on game days. Alcohol and open flames are not allowed on the premises and coolers, backpacks, oversized bags, and outside food are not permitted in the stadium.

4 |Wednesday September 6, 2017

Campus

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Wesleyan responds to Charlottesville tragedy Shaydi Paramore ssparamore@txwes.edu

As the days go by, the Wesleyan community is becoming more aware of the alarming tragedies occurring throughout the world and our country.

Riots in Charlottesville, Va., terrorist attacks in Barcelona and Hurricane Harvey in Houston are a few of the many tragedies in 2017.

But members of the Wesleyan community continue to be hopeful.

On Aug. 23, Texas Wesleyan President Frederick Slabach emailed the staff, faculty and students about the horrors our country has begun to face.

“As everyone returns to campus, I want to affirm the values and commitment we share as members of an academic community,” Slabach wrote. “A little more than a week ago, on the campus of the University of Virginia and in the town of Charlottesville, an angry racist and anti-Semitic mob marched with hate in their hearts in an attempt to incite fear in ours.”

Slabach wrote that even with everything happening in the world, students have no need to worry or be afraid at Wesleyan.

“Our security service is fully engaged in detecting any signs of disturbances on campus,” Slabach wrote. “We are monitoring social media to attempt to detect any direct action involving our campus or official university activities. We are reviewing our policies involving permits for the use of outdoor common areas as well as academic and administrative buildings and athletic facilities. Finally, we are reviewing our policies regarding the use of open flames on university owned or controlled property. Racism and hatred have no place here.”

Slabach wrote that as a community, Wesleyan would continue to strengthen the diversity and respect we have for one another.

“We share in the sorrow of the families and loved ones who lost a precious life,” Slabach wrote. “We pray for the physical healing of the many who were injured and the emotional healing of all who were subjected to this vile act of domestic terrorism.This is a reminder that words have meaning and hate

has consequences. Silence has consequences as well. If we remain silent, we give license to the haters - the racists, neo-Nazis, white supremacists and white nationalists, as well as the domestic terrorists who are inspired by them.”

Senior liberal arts major and Black Student Association President Trezjon Cothran believes the tragedies occurring are based on the power, fear and hatred flourishing in America.

“In my opinion, the events that have been happening around the world are based on fear of change,” Cothran wrote. “It seems as if on the outside, everyone would like to see a difference and see racism come to an end, but based on personal observations, many are also afraid of the possibility of becoming inferior to others.”

Cothran continued by discussing how the need to maintain a sense of power can make people want to strike fear into others.

“Because of this fear, certain individuals will do the unthinkable to maintain their power, or at least their belief of having a certain amount of power over others,” Cothran wrote. “In order for things to change for the better, we must learn to stop being fearful of one another. We must learn to not focus on being better than one another. And ultimately, we must learn to accept individuals for who they are without making assumptions based on one’s background.”

By creating multiple campaigns that give students, staff and faculty the ability to discuss the tragedies, Wesleyan hopes to continue to strengthen the diversity of the community, said Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students Dennis Hall wrote in an email.

“One’s time in college should provide space and opportunity to have open and honest conversations and discussions on world events, impacts to communities and individuals, and one’s response to those challenges,” Hall wrote in an email.

Members of Student Affairs are working together to create Coffee & Conversations, a series of scheduled times students, staff and faculty can have to engage in meaningful conversations; The Student Voice, an online mailbox where students can express their views and opinions anonymously; and a Student Forum on Currents Events on Sept. 11 in Lou’s Place, which will

be a moderated town-hall style event for students, Hall wrote.

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|5

Campus

Hate groups are on the rise in America

6 |Wednesday | September 6, 2017

Arts&Entertainment

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Wesleyan unveils new local art exhibit Hannah Lathen

hrlathen@txwes.edu

Texas Wesleyan students now only have to cross the street to experience art in the four exhibitions on display in the Bernice Coulter Templeton Art Studio gallery over the fall and spring semesters.

The gallery’s first exhibition, Dual, which runs through Oct. 4, features the husband and wife duo of sculptor Angel Fernandez and painter Winter Rusiloski. Fernandez, a Texas Wesleyan alumnus, lost both of his parents to cancer, his father just this year, which art professor Kit Hall said is reflected in his recent work.

“If you look at these pieces of sculpture in that manner, you can begin to see almost scientifically, cells and mutations of cells that might be reflective of the mutation of cancer cells,” Hall said. “That is a little bit of a diversion from what he usually does, so this is I think kind of a new thing.”

Dr. Mark Hanshaw, dean of School of Arts & Letters, said he is an acquaintance of Fernandez.

“Because of that personal relationship, being truthful, I am very excited for him and for us in being able to bring his work and some of his wife’s work onto our campus,” Hanshaw said.

Rusiloski’s work is influenced by landscapes, Hall said, and incorporates memories and feelings from her travels.

“You see some reference to some realism,” Hall said. “It is all very expressionistic and an emotional reaction to landscape as opposed to a literal translation of it.”

The couple has one collaborative piece in the show, titled “Dual”.

“She, being the painter of the two, had an old canvas of one of her paintings and took it off the stretcher and allowed him to cut it up and make a pattern out of it,” Hall said. “Then he added some spikes, which is kind of a trademark of his at this point in time.”

Michael Wolfe, senior mass communication major, viewed the gallery and said he found the couple’s work beautiful and refreshing.

“It gave me a first taste of local art,” Wolfe said.

Jamus Hernandez, junior business administration and finance major, wrote in an email that this is the first exhibit he has ever visited.

“It definitely peaked my interest because the paintings were very good and done in an abstract way that made your mind wander and think of all the possibilities the paintings could be,” Hernandez wrote.

A reception for Fernandez and Rusiloski’s work will be held 2-4 p.m. on Sept. 16.

The next show in the gallery is Animus featuring Juan Cruz and his friend Genevieve Armstrong, and curated by Thomas Motley.

The show runs Oct. 16-Dec. 5, with a reception 2-4 p.m. on Oct. 21.

“They are kind of young artists who are beginning their career in art,” Hall said. “One of them is an MFA student up at North Texas and his name is Juan Cruz and his friend is Genevieve Armstrong.”

Armstrong is interpreting through her portraits, Hall said, what is like to be a woman in her late 20s.

Hall said Cruz’s portraits feature victims of a group of university students who were murdered on a trip to Mexico by a drug cartel around five years ago.

Photos by Hannah Lathen The first exhibtion, Dual, is displayed in the Bernice Coulter Templeton Art Studio’s gallery.

“It is more of cultural interpretation of portraiture where hers is more of an internal interpretation of it,” Hall said. “That should be very interesting.”

This first exhibition of the spring 2018 semester is Fluid Dialog featuring Motley and Liz Trosper. The exhibition runs Jan. 16-March 1 with a reception 2-4 p.m. on Feb. 3.

Motley and Trosper are established artists, Hall said, who have been having an artistic conversation over the past few years where they send each other pictures of their work and the other responds.

“They have had this silent conversation going on for a while, so they are going to present that conversation in the artwork,” Hall said.

The last exhibition of year will feature artwork from students, faculty and staff March

3-May 8 in what Hall said will be a celebration of art with a reception to be announced later.

“It is the Art Bash and it is something that I hope will become a tradition at Wesleyan,” Hall said.

Getting people to view and appreciate art, Hall said, is one of the main goals of the gallery this semester.

“It has been a long time since we have had the opportunity as a faculty as well as students,” she said. “The enjoyment of the visual arts has kind of evolved out of us and I am hoping that this will bring it back in some way.”

The Bernice Coulter Templeton Art Studio gallery is in located at 1415 E. Vaughan St. and is open 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Mon.-Thur. Admission to the gallery is free. For more information about the exhibits, go to txwes.edu/art-gallery.

“Finest piano in Fort Worth” arrives home Hannah Onder hlonder@txwes.edu

Dr. Ilka Araujo walked past security, behind the stage, and up to the Steinway piano.

As her fingers glided across the keys, she knew this was the instrument she had been searching for.

Araujo, an associate professor of music history and piano, had taken her students to watch the 2017 Van Cliburn International Piano competition in Fort Worth’s Bass Hall last May and June.

The 30 Cliburn pianists got to pick from three pianos, and one began to stand out.

“On the third day, I just completely fell in love with the (Steinway) piano,” Araujo said.

“When you go to a concert and love the sound that’s one player, that’s the player, but then when you hear many people and the sound is great and beautiful for all of them you know it’s something to do with the instrument as well.

I just thought it would be great if we had that instrument and I approached the people from the Steinway.”

At first, everyone who heard that Araujo wanted to bring the Steinway to Wesleyan though the idea was a joke. But she got the information she needed and began the difficult process of getting the piano to campus.

Araujo's dream Steinway, which cost $174,000, arrived at Wesleyan this August.

The Department of Music plans to host several concerts featuring Cliburn pianists to display the new instrument, including a benefit concert on Dec. 1 featuring Vadym Kholodenko, who won the 2013 Cliburn while playing a Steinway.

Araujo and Dr. Jerome Bierschenk, department chair and director of choral activities, said the department had been searching for a new piano for years.

“We’ve had a couple of very good instruments donated, but we’ve really been needing a really, really good instrument for a while,” Bierschenk said. “I believe this is the first brand new instrument that we’ve had on campus in recent history. These instruments that are donated are really good pianos, don’t misunderstand, but to have a brand-new instrument on campus, it’s the first time in a long, long time, if ever, that’s happened. We’ve really been needing one because like everything else things age, they don’t work as well as they used to, and the upkeep is rather time-consuming and sometimes expensive.”

The Steinway was built in Hamburg, Germany. Araujo said that Wesleyan's piano, like all pianos, has a distinct sound and personality, which is why she decided to take a chance and try to acquire it.

“When I heard the piano and I played the piano, I knew it was going to be very difficult to find a very high-quality piano of the same kind, even if they’re made by the same people, so it had to be that piano,” Araujo said. “We’ve never had a brand-new instrument to use so I thought that was very important to get, because the lack of one limited the students’

Photo by Tina Huynh Dr. Ilka Araujo performs on the new Steinway piano, which was featured in the 2017 Van Cliburn International Piano competition.

development. The new instrument would respond to everything they wanted to do and beyond. We just had to make sure that we had the right instrument that would be able to give them the experience and the style for music.”

Araujo gave junior piano major Alicia Smith the first opportunity to play the Steinway when it arrived on campus. Smith said she was honored to be the first student to sit down at the instrument; she played a piece she was working on by German composer Moritz Moszkowski.

“On the Steinway, it’s like the ultimate combination: it’s not too light, it’s not too heavy, it’s just perfect and your fingers just kind of glide along,” Smith said. “The keys go down at just the right speed. It’s quite an amazing piano.”

Smith worked to complete her piece within a month and was happy with the turnout when she performed it at Martin Hall in August.

“For the actual performance it was a surprisingly great turnout,” Smith said. “It was supposed to be like a played-down thing and then there was like faculty, the president and his staff, multimedia and some students, so it was great. It was a nice mixture of everybody.”

With the introduction of what Bierschenk calls "the finest piano in Fort Worth at this time," the department hopes to draw more varied crowds and performers to its concerts.

“We would like to bring more people to Wesleyan that would come for a great performance going on, not necessarily just because they are friends with the performers,” Araujo

said. “If we call a great artist to come here and we have the instrument for an artist to come here, we are able to bring everybody that is going to Bass Hall, for instance, here for our concerts because they are coming to listen to that performer, not just their cousin playing.

"This way it will expose our campus to people who probably never came here before, because they never had any business related to us before."

Araujo said this will also help Wesleyan with recruiting.

“By bringing in a different crowd to Wesleyan it benefits the whole campus because you can recruit more students," she said. "Those people coming to the concert will not necessarily be music majors. As a result, it benefits other departments because they learn more about the campus and they learn more about what we have to offer.”

The Steinway will also benefit the department’s students in several ways.

“Every single student in this department needs the piano,” Araujo said. “They always need a piano collaboration, so they are already benefiting from that. Having a good and important instrument will also help us acquire more students that are serious. We’ve been growing the department and we hope that this exponential growth will continue. Not just the growth itself in numbers, but also with higherlevel students. The students we got this year, both transfer and freshmen, are of a very high

level and we’re very proud of that.”

Bierschenk said the department is responsible for paying for the piano; plans are in the works for several fundraising projects over the next two years.

“We’ve been very fortunate to get support from President Slabach and from the development department with Jim Lewis to help us in fundraising," he said. "It’s going to be a lot of hard work from a lot of people and we’ve already started fundraising and have some good support already.”

December's concert will honor the donors that are helping to pay for the piano.

“We are looking for something around $100,000 from donors and ticket sales, though we’re not expecting much from ticket sales, since we want students to be there, but it will be an opportunity to bring donors and recognize them,” Araujo said. “These donors will probably be the ones that by the end give us the $100,000.”

Kholodenko isn’t the only pianist coming to Wesleyan this semester. Kenneth Broberg, who placed second in this year’s Cliburn competition, will be performing on Nov. 3 at the annual Barr Memorial Concert.

“I’m really excited to see and hear them at Wesleyan,” Smith said. “We don’t have to go to them; they’re coming here. Now that we have this piano, a lot of different pianists are going to want to come over. It’s great.”

Wednesday | September 6, 2017

|7

Sports

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Preventing concussions at Wesleyan Karan Muns kemuns@txwes.edu

The Texas Wesleyan athletic training staff passed out a “Concussion Fact Sheet for Faculty” at a campus-wide faculty meeting the week before classes started.

The return of football to Wesleyan after 75 years brought 125 young men to campus that are at risk for a concussion, and this addition prompted the creation of the fact sheet, said Athletic Training Program Director Pamela Rast. The two-sided card includes phone numbers to report a concussion on one side and concussion signs and symptoms on the other.

Wesleyan’s smaller size is an advantage because at a bigger school the professors don’t know their students as well which makes spotting subtle concussion symptoms almost impossible, Rast said.

“It was something that at Texas Wesleyan we could really do because we are smaller,” Rast said. “We as faculty get to know our students so we know when there is something off with one of our students.”

The main reason for the cards is that many athletes don’t report concussions so they can continue to play, and others don’t realize they have a concussion.

Concussion symptoms may develop over time, Rast said, so the concussion fact sheet gives faculty members information on symptoms they are seeing and how to report the possibility of a concussion.

“Even though we are NAIA,” Rast said, “we have adopted some of the NCAA best practices for concussion management, and also in those practices is not just return-to-play but also return-to-learn. We have two members of our faculty that are familiar with concussion that are return-to-learn case managers.”

When an athlete has a concussion and is out of class for a while or returning to a normal class schedule, one of the return-to-learn case managers will communicate with the athlete and the faculty so everyone is clear on the athlete’s status, Rast said.

“There is a number essentially where if you’re a professor, it’s going to be a direct phone call to the athletic training facility,” Rast said. “We’ve given a list of the athletic trainers that are working with each sport so that a faculty member can call the athletic training facility and talk directly to that athletic trainer that is working with that team.”

Rast said that if the team-specific trainer can’t be reached, then the faculty can call her or Dr. Rob Thiebaud; both are return-to-learn case managers, and they notify the correct trainer.

“Once the athletic training staff is notified that there is suspicion,” Rast said, “then those health care providers will get in touch with the athlete, do some basic testing that would identify whether this individual may have a concussion.”

Testing for a concussion doesn’t require fancy equipment or a trip to the hospital; trainers administer some special diagnostic tests, ImPACT and SCAT 5, to determine if the athlete needs more care, Rast said.

“Those individuals have gone through a baseline test called an ImPACT test,” Rast said.

“What would happen is after an individual has been diagnosed with a concussion, then that baseline test is compared to an additional test several days into their recovery and then again another several days into their recovery.”

The athletic training program aims to get athletes physically well not just so they can compete but also so that they get back in the classroom as quickly and safely as possible, Rast said.

“Our main concern as faculty, obviously, is that our students receive a good education,” Rast said, “and that we put them in a situation where they can be successful academically.

We want to make sure that we’re not stressing their brain too much or stressing their brain too little.”

There is always new research about the brain and concussions being published, and more information has come out in the last five years about how concussions can affect an athlete in the classroom, Athletic Director Steve Trachier said.

“They could have headaches or light sensitivity to the eyes or difficulty concentrating or remembering things,” Trachier said. “It’s important that professors understand that this is a real thing, and that they be able to work with the students and accommodate them when they might be experiencing some of these effects; protecting the athletes is the most important thing.”

Football, men’s soccer and women’s soccer are the most at risk for concussion, Trachier said.

“When you participate in sport,” Trachier said, “there’s always a chance that you fall, hit

Graphic by Shaydi Paramore Faculty and students should look for these signs that a student may have a concussion. Information courtesy of ncaa.org.

your head, whatever, so it’s always been there.”

The coaches and athletic trainers are continually learning how to best diagnose a concussion, make sure that players don’t reenter a game, and what to do to best treat a concussion, Trachier said.

“Once again, we’re trying to take every precautionary measure we can to make the game safer,” Trachier said.

Tammy Titlow, a senior liberal studies major, came up with the idea for the concussion card as the topic of an English project.

Some of the research she used for her project found that parents would’ve gotten their children care if they had known the symptoms of concussion. She told Rast, a friend of hers,

about her idea; Rast took the idea and ran with it. “[The athletes] come to school here, there isn’t a parent here, their buddy on the football team isn’t going to tell them to go report. So I looked at it as ‘who’s next?’” Titlow said.

Since Wesleyan is a small university, faculty can communicate with most of their students daily and pick up on any behavioral changes, Titlow said.

“So we’re the caring person,” Titlow said, “we’re the one that’s going to reach out to the student and say, ‘Something’s not right. Let’s go get you looked at,’ and so that’s how I approached the whole project.”

8 | Wednesday | September 6, 2017 TheRambler.org | For news throughout the day.

Men’s tennis returning to Wesleyan Karan Muns kemuns@txwes.edu

Men’s tennis is returning to Texas Wesleyan after a 15-year hiatus, and head coach Angel Martinez is optimistic about the season, largely because of the coaching staff.

“With a GREAT Assistant Coach Steve Foster and Student Coach Katy Foster. Both are absolutely incredible assets in moving our program forward,” Martinez wrote in an email.

The coaches see the team as being able to compete from the beginning of the season and in seasons to come, Martinez wrote.

“We as a coaching staff are excited about the future of the men’s (and women’s) program,” Martinez wrote.

The men’s team will compete in the Doc Skogman Invitational, hosted by Texas Lutheran University, Sept. 8-10 in Seguin. The team faces Texas A&M-Texarkana on Oct. 12 at the Arlington Tennis Center.

The team practices Monday through Friday from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. in Arlington with a specific purpose in mind each day, he wrote.

“We have different objectives each day,” Martinez wrote. “Right now, we are focusing on team composition and doubles play. It is imperative that our players understand the philosophy and goals in doubles play. This will only make us stronger in the Spring.”

The team currently has eight players and Martinez wrote that he is pleased with this number.

“This is an excellent number,” he wrote. “Obviously, because it is an even number. That being said, we are already looking to grow this Spring!”

He is optimistic and excited about restarting the program not just for this year but also in years to come.

“We see great things during the upcoming season,” he wrote. “We believe that we have the foundation of a great program.”

The new team of mostly freshmen is a “very cohesive” group of young men, he wrote.

“We have been preaching since day one that the Whole is Stronger than the parts!!,” he wrote. “The players have really bonded in this short time. We believe this will give us an edge in the future!”

Men’s tennis returning is great for campus involvement, Athletic Director Steve Trachier said.

“We’re excited about having it back,” Trach-

Graphic by Karan Muns The team is excited to revitalize men’s tennis and represent Texas Wesleyan for the first time since 2002. Information courtesy of ramsports.net.

ier said. “I know coach Martinez has some really good recruits. I know he is incredibly excited about it.”

Adding sports programs is great for student involvement because it gives something for students to watch and allows the university to have more athletes, Trachier said.

“The university is growing through sport, Trachier said, “and if it is true that we have more student athletes than TCU, which it kind of makes sense that we might, then that is an incredible thing. We want to expand opportunities for students to be involved in something here. Bringing tennis back is one of those opportunities.”

Bringing women’s tennis back to Wesleyan in 2015 was so successful that the Athletic De-

partment decided to bring back men’s tennis as well.

“Right now, we are in what is called an affiliated grouping,” Trachier said, “so in other words there are three conferences that co-op together to have tennis and at some point, in time we’re hoping that the Sooner Athletic Conference will have that critical mass to sponsor tennis as a sport within our conference, much like we are now adding football.”

Freshman Mace Brasher said the team is excited to be restarting the program and is anticipating a successful season.

“It’s very exciting. Being able to be the first men’s tennis team that the school has had. We can look back later in life and remember it forever,” Brasher said.

The men’s and women’s teams practice together but often the men’s team practices man vs man, Brasher said.

“I believe the team will be very competitive this season and I think we have a chance at making it to the regional and possibly the national tournament,” Brasher said.

The eight men on the team hope to represent Wesleyan in a way that makes the university proud, Brasher said. “[We] are excited to represent the school,” Brasher said, “and that [we] are excited to grow as a team and as friends. Being majority freshman we get a chance to construct the team with a positive attitude to set a precedence for the future.”

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