Tuesday
Ladies lose
A different type of education
Basketball falls to UVU
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November 13, 2012
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www.utahstatesman.com
UtahStatesman The
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Senator speaks to ASUSU BY ADDISON HALL staff writer
MODELS WALK THE RUNWAY one last time for the judges during the international fashion show on Monday afternoon. SAMANTHA BEHL PHOTO
Diversity meets fashion Runway show celebrates students from more than 20 cultures
BY CRYSTAL RUPP staff writer
An international fashion show started this year’s Diversity Week. USU stu-� dents modeled costumes from countries such as China, Somalia, Taiwan, Mexico and Cambodia. Maribeth Evensen-�Hengge, international student advi-� sor, said there are about 87 countries represented at USU, so the show was just a small sampling. Evensen-�Hengge asked stu-� dents to keep an open mind during the fashion show. “The fashion doesn’t make a person, but the student that
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utahstatesman.com can make the fashion,� she said. She said the costumes shown were what she called “fusion fashion.� “The students are taking traditional elements and fus-� ing them with Western fash-� ion,� she said. The fashion show was
judged by a panel who will ferent countries,� she said. preside over the Mr. and Raje Juri, a graduate stu-� Ms. International Show this dent majoring in manage-� Friday. Angie Vatista, the ment information systems, International Student Council represented India by wearing vice president, said the a colorful dress called a sal-� fashion show is part of the war. Juri said the colors aren’t Mr. and Ms. International the important part of the cos-� Contest, so the judges weren’t tume. there just to observe. “It’s not about the color, “They were judging the it’s about the design of the contestants based on the out-� dress,� she said. “We mix fit, their personality, every-� and match the colors, which thing,� she said. makes it look really good.� Vatista said the Juri said she chose her International Student outfit because it is extremely Council puts on the fashion typical in India. show every year to teach stu-� “We generally wear it in all dents about diversity. parts of India,� she said. “You “We want to teach people about the culture of the dif-� See SHOW, Page 2
Senator Stephen Urquhart, the chair of the Higher Education Appropriations Subcommittee in Utah, spoke to members of ASUSU on Thursday. In the meeting, he spoke about what students could do to reduce tuition costs and highlighted two controversial topics: online courses and differential tuition. “Tuition rates have just been increasing phenomenally across the nation and it’s just not sustainable,� Urquhart said. “We’re at a point where we can’t keep doing what we’re doing.� Christian Orr, student advocate vice president, said distance educa-� tion and online courses at USU could hurt the quality of a college degree. He was concerned that the people who earned a bachelor’s degree online may not have had the same depth as a person who earned it in class. “It’s scary to think that somebody can hop onto a computer and Google all of these things and put in all the right answers,� Orr said. “Does that mean they’re going to get the same education that we do? Does that make the quality of our degree less?� Urquhart said online education is necessary because it helps students who can’t regularly make use of advancements in technology. “I always ask, ‘Is online education a good thing or a bad thing?’ and you can’t answer that question,� Urquhart said. “We can either really screw it up or we can get it right.� Orr said the only class he took online was bad because the website moderator only accepted assignments and not communications from his students. Orr said this made it hard to know what the professor expected of the class.
See TUITION, Page 3
USU pledges support to military members BY LIS STEWART staff writer
Utah State University became the first uni-� versity to formally pledge support to military service members and their families when it signed a community covenant with the mili-� tary Nov. 3 during halftime of the USU-�Texas State football game. The agreement has many possibilities for USU and service members around the state, according to Brian Higginbotham, USU Family Life Extension specialist. Higginbotham moved the effort forward with the extension to have USU sign the com-� munity covenant. “Typically it’s municipalities that enter into community covenants,� Higginbotham said. “Utah State got involved because our outreach mission began as a land grant uni-� versity is being mindful and serving every-� one in our state. So, we look at our populus as a community.� Higginbotham said service members and
their families around the state can benefit from the resources already in place through USU’s extensions, such as family strengthen-� ing classes at Hill Air Force Base and 4-�H programs for children of military families. The extension will provide live video broadcasts of the annual community forces meeting when representatives of the commu-� nities that signed covenants meet every year, according to Capt. Earl Simmons of the Utah National Guard. “We’re really excited for that,� Simmons said. “That meeting in the past has been held in Salt Lake County and it’s been harder for some to reach it. We can now get those in Blanding, St. George, Box Elder and make it more accessible.� Simmons said though the extensions, attendees of this meeting will be able to interact at the meetings or view a recording of it later. “What we’re trying to do is educate com-� munity leaders on the challenges veterans have and help them help make life easier for
veterans,� Simmons said. As part of the community covenant, each municipality — as well as the university — appoints a person to be the military liaison. Simmons said it can be challenging for a veteran to gain access to programs they are entitled to, whether it be educational or health services, and having that person there can help. Simmons said nearly all the communi-� ties in Cache Valley have signed a com-� munity covenant. Smithfield, Mendon and Richmond recently signed one. Higginbotham said cities find different ways to show support to military members and their families, such as utility abatement. “There’s a million different ways that com-� munities show their support,� Higginbotham said. Simmons said other universities have also expressed interest. It is likely Weber State University, Dixie State University and Utah Valley University will sign community covenants in the near future, he said. The
University of Utah has also expressed inter-� est. “Utah State is definitely leading the way or is the example for signing a community covenant,� Simmons said. Maj. Matthew Badell, military science department head at USU, said the support the university offers to the ROTC on campus is unmatched. “Anything that we try to do with the ROTC on campus, we’ve been accepted and even sometimes helped,� Badell said. “Sometimes it’s just allowing us to do things. That kind of support goes a long way.� Badell said the ROTC had a big weekend with Veteran’s Day this last week. Activities included a 24-�hour tribute to prisoners of war on the Quad, a veterans memorial in the TSC and a concert on Veteran’s Day by the American Festival Chorus. – la.stewart@aggiemail.usu.edu