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Slam poet Neil Hilborn visits Truman
Columnist Korbin Keller discusses benefits of test banks
Sports Truman volleyball claims GLVC title
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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2016
EXCELLENCE SINCE 1909
THE UNIVERSITY’S STUDENT-PRODUCED NEWSPAPER
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Woman shot in leg during weekend altercation By Kayla Perkins
Staff Writer
Photo by Austin Dellamano/TMN Kirksville firefighters arrived on the scene of the fire at the Kirksville Arts Center right after receiving a call at 8:15 p.m. No one was hurt in the fire, but many quilts on display were damaged.
Kirksville Arts Center erupts into flames By Nicolas Telep Staff Writer
As soon as the Kirksville Arts Center started to burn Friday night, the Kirksville Fire Department was on the scene at McPherson and Franklin streets near The Square. Kirksville first responders were soon joined by fire departments and emergency response teams from surrounding areas at what John Cook, Kirksville Fire Department Deputy Chief and battalion chief, characterized as an abnormally large fire. After an unsuccessful initial attack, firefighters contained the fire, the cause of which has yet to be determined. The building was housing an exhibit of quilts at the time, many of which were badly damaged. Cook said a Kirksville police officer responded immediately to the scene after a call came in from a passerby at about 8:15 p.m. Upon seeing and confirming heavy smoke and flames, the Battalion Chief called for a “general arm,” a call to all KFD personnel. Cook said KFD firefighters were the primary responders and were aided by Rural Adair County, Novinger and La Plata fire departments, as well as Kirksville Police and Public Works. The firefighters initially attempted an offensive attack on the fire from the
interior of the building, having seen mostly smoke and little flame on the outside. After running into heavy fire in a stairwell near the second floor, responders withdrew from the building and prepared for a defensive attack. Cook said the rest of the response went smoothly, and responders focused on protecting surrounding buildings. The building attached to the Art Center on the north side suffered only minor smoke and water damage as a result, and responders were able to remove a number of records from that building. “The outcome was about as good as we could hope,” Cook said. “We’re fortunate that it really went pretty well and there wasn’t more damage than there was. I would call this a once or twice a decade fire. We have fifteen to twenty what we call ‘working fires’ every year, and this is significantly bigger than the average fire that we respond to.” State investigators joined Kirksville Police and Fire Tuesday in an investigation to determine the cause and depth of damage of the fire. Cook also said flames reappeared a number of times during the next few days. He said this is normal, and these flames are caused by pockets of fire that still exist in void spaces created by dam-
age to the building. The Kirksville Arts Association posted on Facebook Saturday after the fire and again on Tuesday with updates. In these posts, the Art Association apologized for the destruction of or damage done to the quilts that were on display during the fire. While there was damage to quilts, the Arts Association said the mosaic tile mural on the front of the building appeared to have survived, and the mural would be displayed again. “In the near future the Kirksville Arts Association will begin planning for how we move forward. We are committed to serving the Kirksville area with a community arts program. The programs we are involved with in the community such as Invitation to the Arts at Ray Miller Elementary will continue,” read the post from Saturday. Tuesday’s post added, “We continue to be positive and look forward to an exciting future.” Temporary offices for the Arts Association will be located at Suite 101 of 1902 South Baltimore St. A quarterly newsletter will be published soon. The Arts Association encourages people to keep up-todate by checking its Facebook page, “Kirksville Arts.”
Early in the morning Saturday, a call reporting unlawful use of a firearm was made and police officers were sent to investigate. At around 12:30 a.m., a woman was shot in the leg on the 2100 block of South High St. Officers were sent to respond when a call came in of a woman screaming and possible shots fired. Upon arriving at the scene, officers discovered a woman had been shot in the leg. Lieutenant Mark Wellman said the woman was identified as 18-year-old Cheyenne Durham. Lieutenant Mark Wellman,who was the Scene Commander at the time the call was made, said medical responders transported Durham to the hospital while some officers cleared the scene and others searched for the perpetrator, who had fled the scene. Wellman said this assault happened at a time when the police force was short on manpower. At the time of the call there was a major structure fire officers were responding to and there were personnel responding to a drunk driving incident which occurred when the driver struck a support vehicle. Mutual aid from Highway Patrol, the Sherriff’s Department and Truman State University Department of Public Safety were called to assist with all the situations handled by KPD Friday night going into the early mornings of Saturday, Wellman said. Wellman said the community has expressed more concern over violence recently. “I think our community is very concerned because we’ve had some incidents recently that have been pretty severe,” Wellman said. “We’ve had a homicide, we’ve had an individual who’s been stabbed, we’ve had, I believe, a couple of shootings. It’s something that really has the community concerned.” Although KPD has a suspect, Wellman could not disclose the name. Officers from DPS assisted the KPD on the call Saturday morning. DPS officers secured the perimeter while KPD officers went in and searched homes and handled the call, said DPS director Sarah Holzmeier. Holzmeier said DPS is fortunate to work so closely with the KPD, especially because lately the call load for the KPD has gone up, so they have had to call DPS officers more frequently this year. She said despite the fact that calls for assistance from the KPD have gone up, incidents involving minors in possession and narcotics on campus have gone down.
Kirksville mourns Welte family deaths By Kira Hintz
Two recent deaths in the community have helped Kirksville citizens start an open conversation about mental health and family dynamics. The two deaths — including Danny Welte Jr.’s Nov. 13 suicide and the shooting death of his mother, Echo Welte, three days later by husband Danny Welte — have impacted the community as members try to process and heal alongside the Welte family. Mark Wellman, Kirksville Police Department lieutenant, said the Kirksville community has been stunned by the Weltes’ deaths. Many people’s reactions, Wellman said, including his own, came down to the astonishment of, “Why did this happen?” Wellman said there has been a tremendous outpouring of concern toward the Welte family from the Kirksville community and several members of the general public have come to him and asked him what happened. Wellman said the KPD, in the early hours of the investigation, made men-
tal health professionals available to the Welte family for counseling and grief. Despite conducting several death investigations throughout his career and always maintaining a professional demeanor, Wellman said there are times when it can be tough to not be emotionally affected by an investigation. That emotional side effect, Wellman said, is one of the things police officers sign on to deal with when they get the job. Wellman said he’s never known of anybody within the police department to ever react unprofessionally or to lose their composure. Wellman said the best way the public can help to try and prevent crimes and deaths is to contact the KPD if they know of anything potentially harmful — especially if it involves a family dynamic. The KPD, Wellman said, takes their cases seriously, particularly if the situation is domestic in nature. Wellman said if the situation involves domestic violence, the KPD will put whatever resources it can into the situation and try to have a successful outcome. In addition, Wellman said there is a Victims Support Services agency in town that can be of service to families and individuals. James Hughes, Kirksville Chief of Po-
VOLUME 108
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Staff Writer
Editor’s Note: This piece is part one of two in a series about families and mental health in Kirksville.
ISSUE 11
lice, said significant crimes can be difficult, but the community and KPD can always rely on each other for support. “[The Welte case] is just a good reminder that we’re all in this together and let’s learn from it, see what we can do different in the future, and to just reinforce that hey, we’re all in this together,” Hughes said. “[The police] are here to help everybody else keep their community safe because they can’t do it full time. We can do it full time. They can’t. You [could be a] student. You may be working. You can’t go out and patrol the streets. That’s what you hire us for. We’re actually doing it on your behalf, so help us help you.” Hughes said there has always been mental health training within the KPD, and the current training program for police officers is called “Crisis Intervention Team Concept.” The program, Hughes said, started in Memphis, Tennessee, and has become a nationwide effort. The KPD is the first entity in this part of Missouri, Hughes said, to be recognized as having a formal CIT program. Hughes said the KPD wants more of its officers to be trained in CIT because of the increase of mental health related incidents and calls that the police
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have seen rise significantly in the last five years. Kirksville is a relatively safe community, Hughes said, but, like anywhere, there’s nothing at the city limits that keeps bad people from coming inside. Hughes said there’s not actually a community out there that can afford enough police officers to have a statistically significant impact on crimes by themselves and, if they did, it would be oppressive. Hughes said he doesn’t like having more than two police officers out at a time and nobody wants a cop on every street corner, so civilians’ eyes and ears are invaluable in helping information advance to the police. Hughes said people assume that once the person involved in the case is caught, then the case is done, but he said it’s a lot more complicated than what most people think. The KPD is only two weeks into the Welte case, Hughes said, and only 24 or 25 reports have been written with the KPD probably not being finished with the case until after the court process finishes.
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2
THURSDAY, December 8, 2016
Holiday Lights brighten Kirk Memorial building
CITY COUNCIL IN BRIEF
The City Council approved a resolution to enter an agreement with the Northeast Missouri Solid Waste Management District for the purchase of totes for glass, and establishing the mayor and city manager as authorized representatives for the City of Kirksville. The City Council approved an ordinance amending the 2016 budget for the City of Kirksville to account for year-end adjustments. The City Council approved a first read of an ordinance for adopting the 2017 fiscal year budget for the City of Kirksville. The City Council approved the reappointment of Cole Woodcox and Carol Kellum to the Kirksville Historical Preservation Commission.
Photo by Hannah Conner/TMN Top: Truman students gathered in front of the Kirk Memorial Building Tuesday for a Holiday Lights celebration hosted by SAB. Right: Students sip hot chocolate at the memorial in chilly weather, admiring the lights strung on and around the Kirk Memorial. This event is part of SAB’s annual lineup of entertainment. Bottom: Students at Holiday Lights gathered to listen to music. A variety of Truman musical groups and musicians performed for the crowd throughout the evening. With less than a week of classes left, this event is one of the last SAB events scheduled for the semester. Photo by Hannah Conner/TMN
STUDENT SENATE IN BRIEF
The Senate passed a resolution to amend the standing rules of Student Government. The Senate passed a resolution in support of creating a permanent international flag display by May 2017. The Senate read a senior resolution in recognition of senior Christian Forrester. The Senate read a senior resolution in recognition of senior Alyssa Aunspaugh. Senior Christian Forrester resigned as treasurer. Junior Benjamin Terrell resigned as voting senator Senior Alyssa Aunspaugh resigned as associate senator. Junior Henrio Thelemaque signed as voting senator.
re-
Senior Christopher Hornsey resigned as associate senator. Junior Elisabeth Condon resigned as associate senator. Sophomore Chester Pelsang resigned as appropriations committee chair.
Photo by Hannah Conner/TMN
Sophomore Chester Pelsang was appointed to treasurer.
CRIME REPORTS DPS & KPD
Serving the University community since 1909
Staff 12/4 Domestic disturbance reported at 12/3 Harassment reported at the 0 block the 500 block of E. Illinois St. of Devlin Place. Editor-in-Chief Austin Hornbostel Managing Editor Johanna Burns News Editor (Text) Rachel Fechter News Editor (Multimedia) Aerin Johnson Lifestyle Editor (Text) Courtney Kauffman Lifestyle Editor (Multimedia) Brently Snead Sports Editor (Text) Rachel Steinhoff Sports Editor (Multimedia) Seth Wolfmeyer Opinions Editor Will Chaney Copy Chief Megan Robison Assistant Copy Chief Molly Thal Design Chief Samantha Nielson Staff Writers Emily Merkle, Clayton Berry, Stephanie Hulett, Brooke Bailey, Curt Wichmer, Caroline Kiser, Chris Burk, Lesley Reno, Lindell Sconce, Mercy Tee, Kayla Perkins, Nicolas Telep, Kira Hintz, Spencer Foust, Morgan Alexander, Jeremy Jacob Cartoonist Anna Kintree, August Davis Copy Editors Julianna Foster, Megan Gibbons, Trevor Hamblin, Katie Puryear, Ian Madden, Bethany Spitzmiller Designers Clarissa Todd, Lawrence Hu Photo Editor Lindsay St. John Photographers Athena Geldbach, Damian Soane, Austin Dellamano, Hannah Conner, Hudson Taylor Distribution Manager Emily Merkle Distribution Representatives Andy Jones, Johnathan Self Adviser Don Krause
12/4 Robbery reported at the 700 block of E. Randolph St.
12/3 Sex offense reported at the 1600 block of S. Baltimore St.
12/4 Domestic disturbance reported at 12/3 Theft reported at the 200 block of the 400 block of N. Mulanix St. E. Illinois St. 12/4 Theft reported at the 1300 block of Cottage Grove Ave.
12/3 Harassment reported at the 1500 block of S. Baltimore St.
12/3 Domestic disturbance reported at 12/3 Shoplifting reported at the 2200 the 700 block of N. Green St. block of N. Baltimore St. 12/3 Hit and run reported at the 500 12/3 Unlawful weapon discharge block of N. Baltimore St. reported at the 2100 block of S. High St.
Mark your calendar Finals Scream
Student art exhibits
The Center for Student Involvement will host its 57th annual Finals Scream event in the SUB Hub Dec. 11. There will be free massages, a free pancake dinner, and various stress relief activities.
Student art is displayed an exhibit in Gallery 104. The show includes sculptures and photography pieces from 11 students. The Gallery also has works by featured artists through January.
9-11 p.m. Dec. 11 Student Union Building Hub
11 a.m. to 5 p.m. December through January Gallery 104
3
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2016
Our View As Winter Break approaches, the Truman State University community started its holiday season celebrations — or at least as much celebration as finals allow. But because we live in a country where the dominant religion is Christianity, our cultural practices risk alienating those who celebrate holidays other than Christmas. We, the Truman Media Network Editorial Board, believe members of the Truman community should be mindful of religious differences and work toward an inclusive environment for everyone. We have made much progress on this front, but the struggle has not yet vanished. You might have seen Christmas trees, “winter shrubs,” around campus, the Nativity scene in Ryle’s dining hall or the light display on The Quad. These decorations are undoubtedly related to the Christian holiday Christmas, even when secularized. Non-Christians who see these symbols are reminded constantly that they are not in the majority — for some, this can cause a lot of distress. We, the Truman Media Network Editorial Board, believe holiday campus decorations should either be balanced with non-Christian symbols, or that there shouldn’t be any holiday symbols favoring one religion. We prefer celebrating more religions, as at least an educational opportunity and reflection of our diversity. Much can be gained by talking to someone from another religion about their holidays and beliefs. Many religions have fundamentally different views of the world, which leads to fundamentally different types of celebrations. Gift giving, fasting, prayer, meditation, light displays and paint throwing serve distinct purposes in different religions. Learning about other cultures makes students into more informed, well-rounded and open-minded citizens. At the individual level, people should be aware of others’ religions in their daily interactions. If saying “Merry Christmas!” is offensive to someone, the cliche “Happy Holidays!” works just as well. Most inclusion issues can be resolved by remembering not to assume that everyone is religiously the same. At the University level, our leadership should reconsider its current public display of religious Christmas-related decorations, or expand its celebrations into non-Christian holidays. Many religions don’t even celebrate major holidays during December. Truman’s International Club celebrates the Hindu holiday “Holi” in April, and its inclusivity could be emulated during other major non-Christian holidays. The end of the semester should be an enjoyable time for everyone, regardless of which holidays they celebrate.
Personalities can change and adjust over time
Trevor Hamblin Have you ever considered the most convenient murder methods? Hopefully your answer is “no,” but my friends and I talk about it a lot. Partly because we are all fans of murder mysteries and partly because I have a morbid sense of humor. And while my personality has a lot to do with these conversations, part of it is also because these conversations — and the non-sequiturs they start with — have become a habit, one that has directly shaped what my friends think of when they think of me. A lot of times, I say things to get a rise out of my friends. These will be comments about death or black magic or other extreme and taboo — at least, near-taboo
— topics, which I use to see how they react. Strong reactions are often humorous to me and to other friends who also enjoy getting a rise out of people. But it wasn’t until recently that these morbid comments of mine actually became part of my personality. After all, they started merely as playful asides — just something for a moment before moving on. But now, my friends have come to actively expect these comments from me and introduce me to people as if it’s just part of who I am. I’m not sure how I want to take that. Or, more specifically, I’m not sure if I want that to be something that continues to be part of me. Sometimes it’s fine, but I’m not always in the mood to go on morbid tangents. I wrap around back to them because it’s expected of me. Which isn’t to say it’s my friends’ fault, but rather I’ve fallen victim to a very common part of self-discovery. Recurring habits, especially those that get positive attention, are very likely to be absorbed into our active persona around those people — that is, the type of personality and actions we put on around different groups of people. Now, putting up a persona isn’t a bad thing — we put up personas all the time around different people and situations. For example, you don’t act the same with your friends as you do with your parents or your boss. Even if you’re friends with your parents or your boss, it’s still a different dynamic and a relationship with different needs.
The problem, then, is that readjusting any habits away from your persona is very difficult and will be met with resistance, albeit not consciously, from those around you. For all intents and purposes, you’ll be attempting to change something that’s become part of your being to that person or group of people. Understandably, they might be hesitant to support the choice. Which doesn’t mean it’s impossible, just that you should be very sure about what habits to make or break before trying to change your trajectory. While I might still be morose about things, I’m not sure how much toning down I can do before it gets weird, but I guess we’ll find out. Or maybe I wanted to be less apologetic and, instead, more assertive and confident. That might take a bit more of an active push to achieve, but is no less an admirable goal. Just one that’s very lengthy to achieve. I guess what I’m trying to say is, the parts of our personalities are not always some part of our intrinsic nature, and we are not unchangeable. It’s not like there’s some stone tablet in a mountaintop in Tibet that has your personality carved into it. Making changes to the things we don’t like about ourselves isn’t easy, but it’s also not impossible, and the knowledge of that alone can be enough to start change. Trevor Hamblin is a junior
English and communication major from Moberly, Mo.
Test banks encourage academic success
Korbin Keller The fear of the unknown — it surrounds us, grasps us and chokes the light out of us. It is simply human nature to fear what we do not understand, and when it comes to some of our upper-level courses, fear can get worse. I’ve gone into many a class not knowing what to expect — what is the proper way to take notes? What is important to remember and what can I brush over? What will exams, assignments and papers be like? I, for one, have stared blank-faced at a syllabus or rubric, facing the abyss of confusing assignments or instructions, struggling to figure out what it is I am supposed to do. Sometimes, asking for clarification from professors just leads to more confusion. Too often I feel like Jim Halpert from the stellar TV show “The Office” — when his boss asked him to prepare a “rundown” of his clients, Jim is left staring into the camera asking, “What is a rundown?” When he asked his boss what
he wanted the rundown “to look like,” the reply was to make it “a basic rundown.” Such a situation correlates to the classroom — “I want you to write an analysis paper.” “Well professor, what should this paper look like?” “Just a standard analysis paper” “…” Such a catch-22 often leaves me lost and confused, staring at a blank word document pulled up before me, not knowing where to start. Thankfully, the odds are we are not the first to be confused by a particular professor’s assignments. There are those who have taken the course before us and have done the same assignments that we could be struggling with today. And, in time, we will be the students who have overcome these classes. However, wouldn’t it be so much easier if we could learn from those who have completed these courses? Wouldn’t it be easier if assignments, papers, quizzes, exams and study guides were saved from one generation of students to the next? I certainly think so. I have started making it a practice to ask upperclassmen in my major if they still have any of their old study guides or papers — not because I aim to plagiarize, but because I want to see what the proper format is. Thanks to the magic that is cloud sharing, entire folders of information can easily be passed down from one student to the next, the knowledge builds on itself and soon students could have an entire semester’s worth of information just a few clicks away. Additionally,
tests and quizzes, if returned to students, can be scanned and uploaded as well. In essence, we are investing in a knowledge bank, where students can collectively succeed. Some might call this a form of cheating, but I believe it’s the furthest from. So long as students still create original work, this bank will only serve to show students how to be successful in a particular course. And if a professor happens to use the exact same test from year to year, then that is only a boon to students. It’s not as if the student stole a current copy of an exam, but rather is able to see what information they are expected to know and to study for it. Some students might be hesitant to pass on this information — to do all of the work only to have others benefit from it, but the sharing of assignments is not a detriment to anyone, and as a community of students, we should do everything we can do to help each other. Already, some fraternities and sororities contain such “test banks” of assignments. For non-Greek students, it would be beneficial for underclassmen to ask upperclassmen for help. I know the Political Science Student Association has students always willing to help one another, and major-specific organizations would be well-suited to designing these banks. We should all be willing to invest our knowledge, even if it means only future students will benefit. As students, we owe it to one another to help prepare for the future and to bank for success.
Korbin Keller is a junior political science major from O’Fallon, Mo.
EDITORIAL POLICY: The Index is published Thursdays during the academic year by students at Truman State University, Kirksville, MO 63501. The production offices are located in Barnett Hall. We can be reached by phone at 660-785-4449. The Index is a designated public forum, and content of the Index is the responsibility of the Index staff. The editor-in-chief consults with the staff and adviser but ultimately is responsible for all decisions. Opinions of Index columnists are not necessarily representative of the opinions of the staff or the newspaper. Our View editorials represent the view of the Editorial Board through a majority vote. The Editorial Board consists of the editor-in-chief, managing editor and opinions editor. The Index reserves the right to edit submitted material because of space limitations, repetitive subject matter, libelous content or any other reason the editor-in-chief deems appropriate. Submitted material includes advertisements and letters to the editor.
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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2016
Photo by Kira Hintz/TMN A mock Berlin Wall was put up on the quad on Nov. 28. College Republicans raised the wall for National Freedom Week and offered students passing by spray paint to write messages on the wall.
Photo by Kira Hintz/TMN On the afternoon of Nov. 30 students knocked down a mock Berlin Wall. Knocking down the wall was supposed to be symbolic of the abolishing of communism in Germany and the start of capitalism, something the College Republicans wanted to celebrate.
College Republican’s model Berlin Wall causes controversy on campus By Kira Hintz Staff Writer
To celebrate “Freedom Week,” Truman State University’s College Republicans hosted a mock Berlin Wall event on The Quad Nov. 28-30 with students being able to participate by leaving graffiti messages on the wall then knocking it down with hammers. Junior Ben Terrell, College Republicans chairman, said the idea for the Wall and “Freedom Week” came from an organization called the Young America’s Foundation, which works with conservative organizations on campuses across the country. Terrell said the College Republicans planned this event for at least a month. The graffiti messages left on the Wall were meant to be representative of the graffiti put on the Berlin Wall, Terrell said. Terrell said the Wall was supposed to represent the fight between capitalism and communism that occurred in Germany during the Cold War. Terell said the tearing down of the wall symbolized capitalism taking its first steps. “Once the Wall came down, East Berlin started to embrace some of the capitalism of West Berlin, Terrell said. “People who were starving there were able to get food and such like that. So we’re celebrating the stretches of capitalism.” Terrell said some people expressed concerns about the Wall, especially in regard to its meaning. Terrell said some people associated the Wall with Donald Trump’s Wall or as a symbol of Fidel Castro’s death. Terrell said the Wall has nothing to do with Trump or Castro and was a project idea within the College Republicans organization before Trump’s primary win or Castro’s death. Terrell said he doesn’t like that the Wall and Castro’s death were so close in timing because he doesn’t support Castro’s actions. The event wasn’t cancelled, Terrell said, because everything had already been paid for and was ready to set up. The Wall has received a combination of positive and negative messages, but Terrell said the writing on the wall isn’t just a platform to demonstrate freedom of speech. “It’s not freedom of speech or anything like that because, you know, if we wanted to we could say, ‘We bought this. You can only put up what we allow,” Terrell said.
“But people were coming so quickly, so there wasn’t a lot we could do about it. Plus, there’s something to be said for you gaining more out of it if you’re able to say exactly what you think, as opposed to what you’re allowed to, [especially] for the sake of discussion as well.” Junior Dana Megargle said she saw the Wall and was initially confused about the project. Megargle said she assumed the Wall had to do with Trump because of Trump’s wall rhetoric, as well as his status as the president elect of the United States. After talking to Terrell and finding out the Wall wasn’t related to Trump, Megargle said she still thought the Wall’s presence was poorly timed. Megargle said the easy association with Trump, the anxiety and fear among people post-election and Castro’s death only added layers of confusion to passersby. Megargle said she also disagreed with the meaning behind the Wall. “I find it, at least, very hypocritical for an organization that represents the Republican political party to be celebrating the tearing down of one Wall while simultaneously supporting or at least condoning the ideological building of another,” Megargle said. “They [College Republicans] were celebrating tearing it down as a symbol of capitalism winning over communism and that they were equating freedom to capitalism, and I think that the Berlin Wall is much more complex than that.” Megargle said the Berlin Wall could have been represented better through displaying pictures of the art that stands on the east side gallery of the Wall. Megargle said the art of the Wall better shows the freedom and complexity within the Berlin Wall’s history and its people. Freshman Kjja Underwood said she also saw the Wall between classes and didn’t understand the purpose of the event. Underwood said she initially thought the Wall had something to do with Trump because of how tense the election season had been. Better publicity and an explanation of the event, Underwood said, could’ve been a more beneficial way to communicate the Wall’s purpose to students and leave an impact on them.
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SLAM POET PERFORMANCE spotlights
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MENTAL HEALTH
BY JESSICA SHULTZ Staff Writer
Mental health continued as a topic of discussion last week when slam poet Neil Hilborn and student poets performed during the Student Activities Board’s TruSlam event. Neil Hilborn is a College National Poetry Slam champion and was a member of the 2011 Macalester Poetry Slam team, which ranked first in the nation at the 2011 College National Poetry Slam, according to buttonpoetry.com. Hilborn is also the co-founder of a Macalester literary magazine, Thistle, and participates in college and high school writing workshops with students, according to buttonpoetry.com. During the show, Hilborn performed poems from his book, “Our Numbered Days,” as well as unpublished content. Hilborn discussed the process of writing and how he handles his mental illnesses in between performances as well. In a poem entitled “Joey,” Hilborn told the story of his friend who didn’t have access to medical aid because of financial issues. Hilborn said he, personally was lucky his parents took an active role in his well-being. Hilborn had a psychiatrist to talk to and help him with his bipolar depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms so he could thrive to the best of his ability, he said. In between performances, Hilborn told stories from his life and how he has lived with his mental illnesses throughout the year. Hilborn also said how thankful he is to be able to have the career he does performing for students, as it gives him the opportunity to interact with others and possibly help students stuggling with mental illnesses of their own. Members of TruSlam performed pieces, including TruSlam Vice President senior Luis Ortiz, who said he
Photo by Courtney Kauffman/ TMN
“To ask someone for help doesn’t make you weak. Instead, it means that you are human.” — Senior Luis Ortiz, TruSlam Vice President
Photo by Courtney Kauffman/ TMN also struggles with depression. Oritz said he creates his poetry from his own experiences with depression. Ortiz said he performed a poem titled “A Search for Happiness,” which was named because he said he is on a journey to find happiness after his friend’s death. Ortiz said he prepared this poem because he wanted to express his raw feelings and emotions in a healthy way. Ortiz said he based the content of his poem on his feelings at the moment he found out about his best friend’s death. Ortiz said poetry is an outlet to help him cope with depression, something he’s struggled with since he was young. Ortiz said initially he did not want to admit he had this issue that he needed to deal with. Ortiz said his message is for people to accept their symptoms, regardless of the struggles they might be facing. He said his intent was to encourage his audience to talk to someone they trust. “To ask someone for help doesn’t make you weak,” Ortiz said. “Instead, it means that you are human.” Ortiz said he hopes his work reaches people, even if only one audience member identifies with what he is saying. Also, he said he hopes anyone struggling with mental health issues will recognize it and seek help. TruSlam President senior Kate Hawkins said using poetry as a coping skill and speaking at poetry events has helped her in her struggle with anxiety and depression. “As far as mental health goes, as someone who has experienced anxiety and suffered from depression, poetry has pushed me to feel and to cry and get out there and share with other people and I always met support in return,” Hawkins said. Anyone wishing to speak to a professional about mental issues can contact University Counseling Services at 660-785-4014. Hilborn also encouraged anyone interested in sharing their own stories to follow him on social media platforms.
Top Left: Guest performer Neil Hilborn performs during the TruSlam event. Hilborn read material from his book, “Our Numbered Days,” and new material still in the works. Top Right: TruSlam President senior Kate Hawkins performs to open the show. Hawkins peformed two of her own pieces discussing issues in her life. Bottom: Students gather in the Student Union Building Hub to listen to Neil Hilborn and the Photo by Courtney Kauffman/ TMN TruSlam members perform. VOLUME 108
ISSUE 11
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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2016
Campus responds Throwback Thursday: to election results Library hours changes BY COURTNEY KAUFFMAN
Lifestyle Text Editor index.featureseditor@gmail.com
Although the election concluded a month ago, the shock waves from the results are still resounding across the nation and on Truman State University’s campus. The 2016 national election results left many feeling unsettled because of the controversy surrounding the candidates and their policies, which prompted Truman to respond to students differently than how previous election results have prompted. Institutional Compliance Officer Jamie Ball said she sent out an email containing resources available to students on campus after the election results because she thought the reactions from the students were more than disappointment. “The reaction I saw was also was one of tremendous anxiety and fear associated with what the election results would mean for things like immigration status,” Ball said. Ball said she thinks if anyone feels at risk, it’s helpful to remind them they have an option of reporting those kinds of things, reaching out as a community for support and to be mindful of those resources. Ball said she doesn’t think there’s a specific approach undertaken as a response to the election, but Truman is fortunate because there have not been reports of serious incidents where people feel threatened. She said she checked with the Department of Public Safety and the Kirksville Police Department to ensure everything that should be on her radar was, and they said they hadn’t had reports of anybody saying they felt they were targeted or any harassment or assault related to the election. In terms of developing specific programs as an ongoing effort, Ball said she didn’t think that was going to be necessary, but the timing was good because Truman is at the point where it’s trying to implement some of the strategies of the Inclusive Excellence Strategic Plan. “I think the results of the election — the campaign itself and the results of the election — call on us as educated people to really think about the dynamics of our populous,” Ball said. “If there is a silver lining to all the difficulty and controversy that people have experienced over the last 18 months it’s that we get to look more clearly [and] get out of our little bubbles.” Ball said she thinks Truman students are pretty tough on the whole. She said she thinks everyone copes differently with these kinds of stressors, but the community has weathered these issues well. Ball said she also thinks it’s interesting to think about how the community of higher education is a particularly different place in these kinds of moments. “It’s very interesting as an administrator to think of this work and the controversy that it does seem to engender, things like safe spaces and people seeking academic accommodations,” Ball said. “There’s definitely a balance to be struck, but I would hope that leaders within individual colleges and universities would be trusted to make decisions to strike that balance and identify what their students need and to do those things that respond effectively to their students needs.”
Photo by Rachel Fechter/ TMN
Junior Ian Pratt speaks out against Trump at Students for a Democratic Society’s Dump Trump Rally during November.
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College Republican With finals coming and the library extending its hours on a trial basis chair senior Benjamin Terto enable students to study more, it seems appropriate to cover how rell said his organization the hours have been extended during the past. According to an article does not currently have in the March 25, 1964 issue, G.W. Hartje, former director of Pickler any events planned to reMemorial Library, made a decision to change the hours for students. spond to events by other The article read, “Due to the increase in student usage of the library organizations, but would and increased desire to use it during this period, Mr. Hartje director, not be opposed to orgachanged the hours for the reading, periodical, and reserve rooms to nizing forums to discuss remain open on [weekdays].” issues in the future if a The increase in hours allowed students to work through dinner hours. need arose. Can you imagine not being allowed to use the library from 5-6:30 p.m. Terrell said he thinks because it was closed so students could eat? Even with the changes in the role students play in hours, at the time the latest the library was ever open was 10 p.m. elections is very imporDuring a time when most students are stressing about finals, we are tant. He says during the thankful the library has extended its time throughout the years and look Obama/Romney race, it forward to the trial period results. was the youth vote that changed the election to be in favor of Obama, demonstrating the change they are on different social issues that some people may feel capable of affecting. will be affected under a Trump presidency while “First, they changed an election,” Terrell said. “Imag- also recruiting members to join. ine if they were to start pitching in on campaigns [or] Last, Sullivan said the Community Outreach comworking with county officials and county problems — mittee is working with people outside of the Truman they could be a real force to be reckoned with.” and Kirksville community to organize events as well. Terrell said the College Republicans participated in For example, she said they are working with Truman events during the campaign on a local level, such as alumnus Brendan O’Brien to create a call to reform the helping to staff events, walking in parades to support electoral system. their candidates and demonstrating how students can “I know a lot of people are upset that, even though be involved in elections. He said they expected Adair Trump didn’t win the popular vote, through the electorCounty to vote Republican because they knew Adair al college system he was able to be elected president,” County was conservative, but they remained cautiously Sullivan said. “Some people believe that the electoral optimistic for local Republican wins during the election. college is important for democracy and some people beTerrell said his organization believes Truman’s cam- lieve it’s antiquated and needs to be reformed, so we’ll pus is handling the election results well, even though be working on that and just educating ourselves and many were disappointed with the results. others on that reform under Brendan’s guidance.” “Of course, a small portion of campus is handling Sullivan said she thinks the administration at Truthis extremely well — we did have those Trump man could do more to address the issues being dissupporters — but then I would say another small cussed in the future. She said she hopes the adminportion of campus is handling this with less grace istration will promote discussion of issues without and dignity,” Terrell said. “They’re protesting, but it’s saying they have to be completely civil because, peaceful protests.” though it’s important to be civil, sometimes to spare Terrell said he disagrees with the destructive actions other people’s feelings we get stuck in what’s called those across the country who took the election results respectability politics — where the focus is more on extremely poorly are taking, including rioting. He said being polite and respectful than on getting to core he thinks causing physical damage to someone’s prop- problems of issues. erty or person is awful, especially to do it in response to democracy taking place in America. But Terrell said he wanted to bring attention to the “The way I see it, I think people are good things going on in light of the election which hungry for something different.” have been overshadowed. — Alumnus Brendan O’Brien “When we had an overwhelming Republican win here [in Adair County], as well as on a federal level, these people said, ‘Congratulations. We’re here to O’Brien said he was a member of Alpha Phi Omega work with you — let’s make sure we work to make and reached out to Truman organizations that might this country a better place,’” Terrell said. “As soon have an interest in getting conversations going and conas the election was over, it stopped being a parti- necting people in the community. san issue and it became making America a better O’Brien said while he attended Truman, he wasn’t place to live, so that really warmed my heart. I know very involved in politics, but he felt there were a lot of all these awful things are happening, but there’s so people who sat out during election time and didn’t want much good in the world — that’s what we like to to get into more conflict-oriented conversations. He said focus on.” he’s realizing how important those conversations are and Senior Trista Sullivan, Students for a Democratic that they don’t have to be a divider between people. Society member — a multi-tendency, inclusive orga“I realized that during the election season and after it, nization — said she thinks there was a very mixed especially, there are a lot of people that just feel like they response to the election results. haven’t been heard by their elected officials and the pro“Of course, it was really shocking at first for a lot cess doesn’t reflect the candidates and policies that we of us to see Donald Trump be elected,” Sullivan said. would actually want as people in the country,” O’Brien “A lot of people in general are really happy, and a lot said. “So I think there are a lot of different conversations of people are really excited, and a lot of people are about, ‘Where do we go from here?’ but they’ve been really hurt and confused and fearful.” pretty informal or divided. I was hoping by adding some Sullivan said she thinks the fear stems from peo- structure to it that it could move forward more, getting ple who have already felt marginalized or as if their people on the same page.” voices aren’t equally heard or regarded in our society. O’Brien said his future plans include being involved Sullivan said her organization arranged a “Dump in civic engagement and getting conversations started. Trump” rally during November as a chance for peo- He said he thinks people spend so much time following ple to speak to each other and create a space of sup- campaigns, certain candidates and their policies that port for one another. She said during the rally stu- they don’t get involved on an individual citizen level, so dents who supported Trump also counter protested, he thinks organizing conversations and getting people but it was an important display of students using talking who wouldn’t really find themselves in the same their right to free speech. space will help resolve that issue. “I think overall [the rally] was very productive, O’Brien said his goal was to get organized conversaand regardless of which side you’re from, I think tions happening once a week in different communities it’s important to recognize that the freedom of with people he knew across the country to talk about elecspeech and the freedom to assemble is important to tion reform and how to move forward. He said he hopes to exercise,” Sullivan said. not have conversations so driven by politicians. If people Sullivan said the Students for a Democratic So- are interested, he said there’s a Facebook group called “Cociety have created new committees in an effort to alition of the People” where information about discussions respond to the implications of the election results. going on in Kirksville or different areas will be posted. First, she said they have added a committee whose “The way I see it, I think people are hungry for job is to keep up to date with Trump’s policies, his something different, and there’s so much information nominees for Supreme Court and his Cabinet. She and so much misinformation, skepticism [and] cynicism said the goal is to research those policies and people out there that a lot of people are left thinking, ‘I don’t so they know the facts and don’t get caught in a want any part of this’ or ‘I can’t realistically process all cycle of judging decisions and people without know- that’s going on,’ so we tune out,” O’Brien said. “But I ing the truth. think most people do want to be involved in what’s going The Education and Recruitment committee was on in their lives and [want to] really hear from other also added, Sullivan said, and will be hosting events people and their perspectives.”
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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2016
BOLD lifestyles MEET ANDREA RICHARDS BY COURTNEY KAUFFMAN Lifestyle Text Editor index.featureseditor@gmail.com
Communication disorders instructor Andrea Richards received her Bachelor of Arts in mass communication at Truman State University and her Master’s in education in communication disorders at Northeastern State University in Oklahoma. She is the chapter adviser for Sigma Sigma Sigma sorority, a member of multiple committees, including the Disabilities Studies Minor Committee, the Child Studies Minor Committee and the Truman Week Committee, and is coowner and operations manager of West Winery at Jackson Stables.
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What courses do you teach at Truman? I am on faculty for both our undergraduate and graduate programs in communication disorders, so it’s a mix of courses. I teach the Introduction to Communication Disorders with the freshmen, and I typically teach the Freshmen Week course as well. I also teach graduate courses such as Dysphagia or swallowing disorders and a class on stroke and traumatic brain injury. It’s a wide range that I get to teach. We have a speech and hearing clinic on campus and a few off-site assignments, such as Missouri’s First Steps program that our students participate in to obtain clinical practice. I supervise the student clinicians both on- and off-campus. Therefore, my duties are a nice mix of clinical supervision and classwork. I also teach a facultyled study abroad course for our CMDS students to Mexico each May Interim. What made you interested in the communication disorders field? In a nutshell, I started at Truman after high school and graduated with a degree in mass communications. I still didn’t know what I wanted to be when I grew up, so I did a little bit of research to find a field that would fit my interests in medicine and to help people. After receiving my graduate degree in Oklahoma in speech pathology, I worked
in the medical setting in Tulsa — mostly the intensive care and acute care setting, with patients who had suffered a traumatic brain injury or stroke. After my first son was born, we decided to move back home to North Missouri. I then began working in the Kirksville area, again in the medical field as a speech pathologist, covering a 50-mile radius of rural hospitals and home health contracts, as well as the acute care and rehabilitation units at our local hospital. I also became an independent provider for Missouri’s First Steps program — providing speech therapy services to infants and toddlers ages 0-3. After working about eight years, I was contacted by a Truman professor to see if I was interested in helping with the clinical supervision on campus part-time. Fast forward and I am now a full-time instructor and clinical supervisor at Truman and continue to see clients through the First Steps program. Was the transition between the medical field and teaching difficult? No, because the courses that I teach are more medically based, within the graduate coursework. When I first began teaching, it was refreshing to be able to apply my experience from out in the “real world” to the topics in class — I think the students like that perspective. I miss the medical setting from time to time, but we have clients who receive services at our clinic who have had a brain trauma or a stroke, so I still get to interact and work with them through the students. Teaching also allows me to have a similar vacation break schedule with my children. In the medical setting I worked holidays and weekends. How did you get involved with Jackson Stables? My fiancé and partner, Robert Jackson, D.O., built the stables in 2002, truly wanting a unique stable for his horses. So, on a napkin he drew a design with his architect friend Allen Judy out of Macon. The stable was built by local Amish and others. Quickly, Robert realized it was becoming something a bit nicer than he expected for the horses! It was Robert that always had a dream of a winery or some form of a social gathering place and — also recognizing that there were few event centers in the Kirksville area at the time — we started hosting events in 2005. We then met Chris and Jen West of Macon, and Robert’s dream of a winery was born — to merge the stables with West Winery as an exclusive site to serve West Winery wines on a more consistent and open basis with myself as the operating manager. Chris West is the winemaker for West Winery and he and his wife
Movies for the Holidays
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No holiday season would be complete without “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.” Viewers can’t help but relate to the issues that result from when family visits for the holidays.
“A Charlie Brown Christmas” is a must-see for the holidays. With one of the most iconic Christmas trees, this film demonstrates the true meaning of the holidays — joy and giving.
now have four sites across Missouri that serve as West Winery sites. The main winery in Macon, ours at Jackson Stables, one in Hannibal called Cave Hollow and another in Cottleville near St. Louis called Rack House Winery. We currently open for the season between March and December and are finishing our 11th year. We are open to the public Thursday through Saturday evenings for wine tasting and wine purchase as well as a beer selections. We book the Stables for private events throughout our open season and we book often a year in advance for our spring and fall dates. The events include weddings, receptions, ATSU and Truman group events, formals, proms, various dinners, as well as a monthly house band, Deadwood, a popular monthly Art and Wine night and our dinner theatres in the spring and fall. Are there specific events you enjoy the most? We host a lot of fundraisers ranging from our local YMCA and United Way campaigns to the FLATS Half-Trail Marathon and many philanthropies. I always enjoy hosting and helping the various groups and causes to create a fabulous event. I also enjoy the dinner theatre events with the Kirksville Park and Recreation group every fall and spring. I have a background in music and I love the arts, so I enjoy the events that include live music, artistic expression and theatre. What advice would you have for students? I think for any degree that has internship opportunities to truly seek out the unique opportunities — think bigger, do something that scares you a little bit — challenge yourself. Study abroad, stretch your imagination and never stop learning. And for those that are out there still wondering, “Am I doing what I want to do? What will I do with my degree?” I’d like for them to keep an open mind and to always look at different opportunities to create a job you love. You have to love what you do — life is too short and precious. As a speech therapist, I remember getting that first paycheck and thinking, “Oh wow! I actually get paid too? I truly get to do what I love and get paid for it!” Of course there are moments when you get frustrated and stressed with any job, but you have to take that time to search for what is your passion and create your career for yourself. And then I guess another piece of advice is to be flexible, be willing to continue to learn and grow. I would have never thought I’d coown and run a winery [and] event center let alone teach at a university when I started as a speech therapist. I’m glad I took both of those giant leaps. I just wonder what is next.
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“Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas” stole a place on our list because of the Grinch, the most infamous villain of the holiday season. The heart-warming tale of holiday spirit never fails to make viewers smile.
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Though more recent, “Elf” didn’t waste time becoming a holiday classic. Mixing a message of spreading joy with comedic flair, this film is perfect for upbeat family gatherings.
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Our list would not be complete without the classic holiday film “It’s a Wonderful Life.” A film that has stood the test of time since its release in 1946, it never fails to bring viewers that warm fuzzy feeling of the most wonderful time of the year.
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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2016
Schenck reflects on final season
BY JOEY SCHENCK Guest Columnist
When I reflect on the past season, I feel it is necessary to start the story at the beginning of the 2015 season. The football team had just completed a good summer program, and we were ready and confident for the upcoming season. “This is our year,” we collectively thought. We were chasing the conference title ever since we entered the conference, ending most seasons second or third. The 2015 season started off in an unimaginable way at 0-3. Wow, that was a reality check. We finished 5-6. You can imagine morale wasn’t very high when what was supposed to be a championship season turned into a nightmare losing-re-
cord one. Faith wavered. Doubt crept into our minds. Maybe we weren’t as good as we’d thought? College football is hard, like every collegiate sport, and there is so much energy put into it. Was it worth the countless hours we spent training and studying our plays and film just to get the results of a 5-6 season? Feeling down about ourselves and searching for guidance, everyone remained quiet in our meeting room. “We are going to get a running start into our winter lifting program,” Head Coach Greg Nesbitt addressed the team. He said, “You guys are going to bust your butts over winter break. You are going to come back here spring semester and we are going to get right into our winter conditioning program as well as continue the lifting one.” Coach vowed to the team that he and the coaching staff were going to get out there and recruit the best players they could find. “Then you guys are going to dominate spring ball and get a full head of steam heading into our summer program where we will have the biggest turnout in Kirksville that we have ever had,” Nesbitt said. Well, we did just that. After dominating winter and spring, we began our summer program. Throughout the bulk of the summer we had 40-50 guys up here in Kirksville, which is the biggest turnout I think we have ever had.
To be a great leader, one must inspire people even when they think all hope is lost. It was evident last summer that Coach did that and reignited the flame within all of us. We worked our tails off last summer. Being forced to suffer physically and mentally with each other helped us bond. By fall camp we were ready to go, but this time with something to prove. Then the freshmen arrived, and we were eager to see if Coach kept the vow he made us. Boy, did he exceed our expectations. Not only was this a good freshman class to support the future of the team, but this was a group of guys ready to carry some weight right now. Now to the beginning of our championship season. After losing the first game to a nationally ranked opponent, we went on a five-game win streak. In conference play, we started with a tough road victory over a good Missouri University of Science and Technology team. A few weeks later we defeated the four-year reigning conference champions, University of Indianapolis. The following week we defeated nationally ranked No. 20 Southwest Baptist University on their turf. Those two games were the milestones of our season. We knew we had taken down the top two teams in back-to-back games, and as long as we didn’t hurt ourselves, our season looked promising. “1-0 this week” was the motto of this squad. If we wanted to make our dreams
a reality, we could not skip ahead and focus on games, or even days, to come. We lived in the moment. Every day we practiced with a purpose, and every day we improved as a team. I cannot express the joy we collectively felt after we won our last game that put us in a position to, at the very least, share a conference title. Our work wasn’t over yet. We knew what the stakes were as we prepared for our final game of the regular season. Win this game and we go to playoffs, but most importantly, we win the conference championship outright and we prove what we set out to prove — we are undoubtedly the best team in the conference. The season ended in an anticlimactic way, with a loss to finish the year. We didn’t get to go to playoffs, and we didn’t win the title outright, but it cannot and will not take away the accolades our team earned. In our hearts, and the hearts of our fans, we are the sole winners of this conference. From being near rock bottom finishing with a losing-record a year ago to winning the first conference championship since any of us were born is amazing. Looking back at all the hard work we have been through for three, four or even five years, I could not be more proud of this team. I have great memories here as a Bulldog, but none will compare to this season. There aren’t enough words to express my deepest love and appreciation that I have for these people. Go ’Dogs!
Alec Morgan last spring, but the idea never took off because of the graduating president’s busy schedule. Hulett said she took the idea of an awards night celebrating members from all of Truman’s athletics departments and presented it to the current SAAC president senior wrestler J.J. Dorrell, and the idea “just took off from there.” Hulett said since the project started, her fellow golf teammate junior Amanda Ressel has helped tremendously, and she said they act as “co-chairs” of a project that now has more than 12 other students trying to make the event happen. Because the project is still in its early stages, Hulett said it will be very important to ensure the event gets enough funding. “We’ve actually had a bit of difficulty,” Hulett said. “We tried to get funding through the [Funds Allotment
Council] and had a lot of interviews but eventually got denied. It’s tough to get funding ordinarily, and they got a $40,000 cut in budget this year. So it’s even more difficult. Later, we applied for grants through Student Government, and that helped a lot.” Senior basketball player Cassidy Clark, who is involved with the SAAC, said she is excited for what the committee can bring to the table and is looking forward to implementing the group’s ideas. When describing what the group envisions the event to look like, Clark said it will be a formal, red — or rather, Truman purple — carpet event, similar to the Espy’s. She said it will also share a few of the same awards, like Male and Female Athlete of the Year, Coach of the Year, Team of the Year and others. Though the grants from Student Government helped significantly, the com-
mittee still needs funding for the awards and plaques that will be given to the coaches and athletes. Freshman Emily Schwend, a member of Truman soccer on the SAAC, said the project’s Advertising and Fundraising sub-committee will take charge to get the needed funding. Schwend said the subcommittee is planning on getting the attention of local businesses to sponsor awards with their donations. She said additional funding can likely come from businesses in the Kirksville community buying advertisements in the event programs and displays around the event itself. Schwend said nothing is set in stone yet. Because the event has not yet received its necessary funding, the committee cannot give an exact date for the event — however, the committee is optimistic that Truman will ultimately be able to host the Dogspy’s award night.
Truman SAAC attempts to start new annual sports awards ceremony called Dogspys BY CURT WICHMER Staff Writer
Every year, ESPN hosts the ESPY Awards, an awards night involving athletes from all sports. The awards include Best Male Athlete, Best Female Athlete, the Courage Award and many others. Though the Espy’s is an annual televised event, a student run committee at Truman State University is trying to bring the spirit of the Espy’s to the Truman campus with an awards ceremony of its own — the Dogspy’s. The Dogspy’s project is currently being led by junior Stephanie Hulett, a member of the Student Athletics Advisory Committee at Truman and an athlete on Truman’s golf team. Hulett said the idea for an Espy’s-esque awards ceremony at Truman was originally created by previous SAAC president alumnus
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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2016
SWIM | A group of Truman swimmers spend extra time in the pool every Thursday night giving lessons to Special Olympic athletes. The Truman athletes someday hope to expand the program to a team-wide effort.
Submitted Photo Senior Evyn Spencer, junior Grace Fodor and Senior Allison Strickler pose with some of their students after a Thursday night workout in the pool. The group typically works with five Special Olympians.
Continued from page 10 Another way they would like to involve these Special Olympic athletes is to have them take part in one of their dual meets. The participants can either swim a race before the meet starts or during intermission. Spencer said she plans on talking to her coaches to implement an event like this one. Strickler said the current ratio of athletes to coaches works extremely well and is most likely something they would like to maintain should the program grow. Even though it is only once a week later in the evening, sometimes a coach might have a test or project they must prepare for, and that leaves wiggle room so not everyone has to be there each week. Strickler said it is not that difficult to balance this event on top of the demands of being a student athlete. The parents also understand that school must come first. “It’s a nice way to end your week,” Strickler said. “It’s really a way to de-stress and even though it’s another time in the pool, it’s completely different from practicing.” Fodor said her favorite part of working with the participants is the friendships she builds. She said she enjoys doing something outside of practicing with her teammates and thinks it’s a great opportunity to give back to the community. “There’s a talent that [student athletes] have, and we are willing to give that talent to individuals in our community, and in return we get to make some great relationships,” Fodor said. “I think that speaks volumes about the type of people that are on this team because they are in the business of helping people.”
Basketball kicks off GLVC play in Kansas City — men start 2-0 while women fall to 0-2 BY CAROLINE KISER Staff Writer
Bulldog men’s and women’s basketball kicked off their play in the GLVC last weekend with a pair of games in Kansas City. The women’s basketball team fell to 4-5 in the season and 0-2 in conference play after losing to Rockhurst University Thursday, 72-67. Saturday, the women journeyed to the other side of Kansas City where they faced William Jewell College and lost another match, 68-63. “We just need to be more consistent throughout the whole game,” sophomore forward Rachel Edmundson said. “It was a good learning experience and definitely two tough losses, but I know my team and I will work even harder to be better.” Against Rockhurst, senior center Cassidy Clark scored 23 points and had 8 rebounds, making it her second 20-point game in the last three games. Junior forward Ashley Hartwig recorded her second double-double of the season with 18 points and 11 rebounds. In the weekend closer at William Jewell, Edmundson led the way for the ‘Dogs with 20 points,
followed by 18 from Hartwig once again. Despite big offensive performances in the post, the Bulldogs struggled from the outside, shooting only 3-18 from the three point line compared to the Cardinals’ 1024 shooting from beyond the arc. The ‘Dogs also recorded 18 turnovers. The women’s basketball team will look to bounce back at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 9, against rival Quincy University in Quincy, Illinois. The Truman men managed to win their games in Kansas City, taking two wins to improve to 7-1 on the season and 2-0 in conference play. The ‘Dogs achieved double-digit victories in each match and bumped their win streak to five straight, beating Rockhurst 72-58 and William Jewell 95-80. Redshirt senior guard Cory Myers had a season high with 19 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals. Redshirt senior guard Dwight Sistrunk, Jr. and redshirt senior forward Conner Erickson had 14 points apiece. Erickson also had 6 assists, 5 rebounds and 3 steals. Against William Jewell, the Bulldogs once again led for all 40 minutes. Five scorers tallied double figures and sophomore guard Nathan Messer had a
career-high 28 points. Messer made 8 of his 14 attempts from the floor including 7 makes in 12 attempts from behind the arc, the most three-pointers made by a Bulldog all season. Erickson had his second double-double with 18 points, 10 rebounds and 3 assists and a block. The other three scorers with at least 10 points were sophomore guard Jake Velky with 15, Sistrunk, Jr. with 11 and senior guard Kyle Kanaskie with 10 off the bench. Senior forward Billy Daniel said the team is off to a good start, but still working things out every day this early in the season. “We’re going to use these two games to improve, and we expect to go on the road and start conference 2-0,” Daniel said. “Improvement is the focus this early in the season, but we are an experienced and confident team that knows how to win in conference games on the road.” The Bulldogs starting 2-0 in conference play is the best start in conference action for the men’s basketball team since the 1994-95 season. The Bulldog men’s basketball team also beat Central Methodist University at Tuesday, Dec. 5, in Pershing Arena by a score of 98-67.
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SPORTS
Cinderella Season 10
@trumanathletics
tmn.truman.edu
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2016
Despite a 3-11 start to the 2016 season, Truman State University volleyball overcame all odds to recently capture its second GLVC title in three years. The conference champion status then earned the Bulldogs a bid into the NCAA tournament where they eventually dropped their first round match to the region’s first-ranked Ferris State University.
Submitted Photo The three seniors of Truman’s 2016 GLVC Champion volleyball team show love to their newest trophy. Bailey O’Drobinak (left), Kayla Bastian (middle) and Lacy Hill (right) leave Truman’s program after winning two conference titles in three years — one in 2014 and one in 2016.
Q+A
WITH TRUMAN VOLLEYBALL’S SENIORS KAYLA BASTIAN AND LACEY HILL
Rachel Steinhoff:
Describe the feeling of winning a second conference title in two years.
Was there ever a point in the season where you doubted what the team was capable of?
What did the team start doing better come conference play?
What kind of advice would you give to teams who take a rocky start?
Kayla Bastian:
“Every game of the conference tournament was so incredible, and winning was very surreal — the whole weekend was surreal. It’s really impossible to describe the feeling of winning ... Given that we had a far from perfect season made it that much more rewarding. Being the underdogs and coming out on top with an amazing group of girls is something we will never forget.”
“I’ll be honest, the start of this season felt like a punch to the stomach. 3-11 is an awful record that makes that voice of doubt tap you on the shoulder. But no, I had no doubt that we would be playing our best ball in the next couple of months. Our girls work extremely hard every day, which makes improvement promising.”
“We focused on our side of the net. We obviously do a lot of scouting, but we knew that every game came down to what we were doing. So really focusing in on what we could control and playing our game made us successful.”
“Never stop working, never get complacent and always stay hungry. Every person on our team did those things and that is why we continued to improve each week. We also relied on each other when things weren’t going well and didn’t let the early losses tear us apart.”
Lacey Hill:
“Winning the conference title twice in my four years here is a very proud feeling. Not many teams get to say they’e even won once, and we have the honor of saying we’ve won twice. We are so blessed.”
“The crazy thing is that we never doubted the potential we had, and we knew we controlled our own fate. Even when things were bad we continued to fight and look for different solutions. In preseason as a team we came up with the theme of TRUST [Trust Reason Us Self Training] and we held on to it all year. We made a decision that we were going to work for a conference title, and we did that every day.”
Our goals were that we would be playing our best ball in November, coincidentally right when the conference tournament was happening. This simply was the time where each girl took ownership in their respective roles and carried it out to the best of their ability. Small or large, we preach that every role on this team has a huge impact on every outcome of a game.”
“A piece of advice I would give to any team that starts off struggling is to have faith in the talent of the team and have faith in the work ethic. Hard work absolutely pays off. The moment you stop believing, that is the moment you have accepted the rocky start as a defining moment of the team. We knew we were better than what our record showed, we just had to stick with it.”
“The business of helping people”— Truman swims with Special Olympians
BY STEPHANIE HULETT Staff Writer
A group of Truman State University swimmers meet once a week to give swim lessons to athletes with disabilities in the Kirksville community. This weekly event is not endorsed by Truman swimming, but it has been growing in the last few years. Senior Evyn Spencer said it started a couple years ago when former swimmer Taylor Birsa had a class project that required experience working with kids who have disabilities. Birsa then turned it into a regular event and when she graduated, she asked Spencer to
continue to work with these Special Olympics athletes. Spencer said she was excited to take part in an impactful program and looks forward to her Thursday nights with the athletes and her teammates who have given their time to help give lessons. The program has five athletes and seven coaches. These coaches include Spencer, seniors Alison Strickler, Grant Gilchrist and Matt Phillips, juniors Grace Fodor and Loriel Hutchinson, and sophomore Shannon Dague. Spencer said the athletes have two meets — the area meet and the state meet. Usually everyone qualifies for the state meet from the area meet.
Evyn Spencer Senior Evyn Spencer took home three first place finishes in the final meet of 2016. Spencer helped lead
ATHLETE
the Bulldogs to a 160-97 victory over Western Illinois University. Spencer swam as part of the winning 200-meter relay and 200 medley relay teams and won an individual event with the 100 freestyle.
VOLUME 108
ISSUE 11
tmn.truman.edu
Kirksville is in region eight with surrounding cities like La Plata, Novinger, and Macon. These meets are usually during the swimmers’ post-season, so Spencer hopes all the coaches will be able to attend these meets. Those involved would love to make this a teamwide effort with a one-day type of camp for kids with and without disabilities to swim and learn about the sport with the Truman swimmers. Spencer said this can be tricky to pull off to fall under NCAA guidelines. She has been speaking with associate athletic director Michael Bazemore and hopes to see a program like this come to Truman in the spring.
of the
WEEK
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