January 31, 2017

POP CULTURE COMES TO LIFE AT VETTE CITY

THE STORY BEHIND PANCAKE THOMAS

SPORTS, PAGE B6

LIFE, PAGE B1 TTUESDAY, UESDAY, JANUARY JANUARY 331,1, 22017 017 > W WESTERN ESTERN KKENTUCKY ENTUCKY UUNIVERSITY NIVERSITY > VVOLUME OLUME 992, 2, IISSUE SSUE 2299

Board of Regents name WKU’s 10th president

BY HERALD STAFF HERALD.NEWS@WKU.EDU After an unanimous vote by the Board of Regents Friday, Tim Caboni will become the university’s 10th president effective on July 1.

“The journey home sometimes is a very long one, but I tell you what, it is good to be back in Bowling Green, Kentucky,” Caboni said, who graduated from WKU with a master’s degree in 1994.

Caboni’s term will begin July 1, of this year and will extend for an initial

period of four years according to his employment contract.

Caboni’s base salary will be $400,000 per year and will increase by the average percentage salary increase granted to WKU faculty. A performance-based bonus not exceeding 10 percent of the base salary may

be granted annually at the discretion of the Board. Caboni will receive the same maximum benefits as current WKU faculty or administrators.

Board of Regents Chair Freddie Higdon introduced Caboni at the press conference Friday afternoon

SEE CABONI PAGE A2

Extreme Vetting

BY NICOLE ARES HERALD.NEWS@WKU.EDU

T

he past two years in the United States have been filled with emotion, fear and disillusionment for Iranian student Elnaz Jalali.

Her long-term dreams of pursuing a doctorate degree and becoming a research scientist are now masked by an uncertainty of how the temporary immigration ban will affect her life in the U.S. “When I came over here, I thought the only thing I had to focus on was my studies,” Jalali said.

“But now, my studies are the least of my worries.”

On Friday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that temporarily suspended immigration for 90 days from seven predominantly Muslim countries including: Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen.

“We don’t want them here,” Trump said of Islamist terrorists during a signing ceremony at the Pentagon. “We want to ensure that we are not admitting into our country the very threats our soldiers are fighting overseas. We only want to admit those into our country who will support our country, and love deeply our people.”

Jalali, 27, is a native of Tehran, Iran -- one of the seven countries affected by the executive order.

Tehran is the capital of Iran with a current population of approximately 8.154 million. To put that

SEE BAN PAGE A3

Elnaz Jalali is in her final semester studying for a masters in chemistry, but she hopes to pursue a doctorate degree post graduation.

PHOTO BY: BROOK JOYNER & ALYSE YOUNG/HERALD

Board approves president, coach contract Attorney

The presidential search committee votes for candidate Tim Caboni as the 10th president of WKU Friday Jan. at the Board of Regents quarterly meeting. JACK ATKERSON/HERALD

BY JAMIE WILLIAMS HERALD.NEWS@WKU.EDU The Board of Regents unanimously approved Tim Caboni as the 10th president of WKU and approved Mike Sanford’s head coach contract on Friday.

Caboni was announced as the preferred candidate for the presidency on Jan. 18 and spent last week participating in forums with students, faculty and staff on campus.

“Above all, we knew that the 10th president would also have to have a track record signifying a passion for student success and academic excel-

lence,” Regent Phillip Bale said.

Caboni took to Twitter to celebrate his appointment, tweeting, “Humbled to have been named the 10th president of @wku. We will work together as a university community to inspire, elevate and transform.”

The board also voted to approve the contract for football head coach Mike Sanford. The contract will be in effect for at least four years, with Sanford’s base salary set at $800,000.

Sanford will be eligible to receive bonuses depending on the football team’s success.

Some regents expressed concern over the salary amount, saying WKU is judged based on what it pays cer-

tain people, while others agrued athletics play a large role in publicizing the university.

“We lose some of our best people because of our inability to be competitive in the marketplace,” Faculty Regent Barbara Burch said. “And send a message that our faculty and our staff are valued in ways that that becomes a priority.”

“I don’t envision us moving off of that number by very much,” Director of Athletics Todd Stewart said. “I think that’s a fair and healthy number.”

If Sanford chooses to terminate the contract before March 1, 2018, he will be obligated to pay $1.5 million to the university. Sanford’s termination fee decreases each year until after March 1, 2020, when the fee becomes $600,000.

Chief Facilities Officer Bryan Russell gave the board a construction update for several on-campus projects including the new science facility and parking structure. Russell said Ogden College Hall will house 36 labs and a 300-seat auditorium.

Parking Structure 3 will have 679 parking spaces, adding a net gain of 608 spaces.

Russell also announced a planned renovation to the College Heights Foundation building.

The board approved three new certificates and degrees proposed last meeting: an Education Specialist degree in Gifted Education and Talent Development and graduate certificates in both Advanced Behavioral Management and College and

SEE REGENTS PAGE A2

General rules WKU violates records law

BY EMMA AUSTIN HERALD.NEWS@WKU.EDU WKU has violated the Kentucky Open Records Act by denying requests from the College Heights Herald and the Kentucky Kernel, the student newspaper at the University of Kentucky, according to a decision by the Kentucky attorney general.

A Kernel reporter sent a request to WKU last year on Oct. 18 “to obtain all investigative records for all Title IX investigations into sexual misconduct allegations levied against university employees in the past five years.” The Herald followed suit and made a similar request on Nov. 1.

WKU denied both requests, citing the Kentucky Revised Statutes exceptions to the Open Records Act which allow a public agency to withhold certain records. WKU conducted 20 Title IX investigations over the past five years; nine of whom were faculty and 11 staff members.

According to Andrea Anderson, assistant general counsel for WKU,

SEE VIOLATION PAGE A2

A2

CABONI

Continued from front after thanking the presidential search committee for the work and time they put into the process.

“We believe Dr. Caboni has the energy, the passion, the intellect and the skill to build on the progress that has been achieved over the last 20 years, and we are confident that he can lead WKU through the challenges we face as an institution,” Higdon said.

Higdon listed Caboni’s credentials, which include “an impressive 23-year career in higher education with a mix of experience as a faculty member, assistant dean and researcher, as well as a wealth of experience and expertise in external relations and fundraising.”

Caboni has served as the vice chancellor for public affairs at the University of Kansas since 2011. He has also served as the associate dean of the Peabody College of Education and Human Development at Vanderbilt University from 2005 to 2011.

His education includes a bachelor’s degree in speech communication and rhetoric from Louisiana State University, a master’s degree in corporate and organizational communication from WKU and a Ph.D. in Higher Education Leadership and Policy from Vanderbilt University.

The Board of Regents selected Ca-

REGENTS

Continued from FRONT ioral Management and College and Career Readiness.

The board also approved a motion to rename the Honors College at WKU to The Dixie and Peter Mahurin Honors College. The Mahurins are both alumni of WKU and were WKU’s Philanthropists of the Year in 2011.

The board voted to table the first reading of changes to its bylaws, including a change to make the board chairperson the only member with the authority to speak for the board.

VIOLATION Continued from FRONT

in a response to the records requests, six of the 20 investigations resulted in a finding of a WKU policy violation.

Both records request denials were appealed in November; WKU maintained each of the six employees in question resigned or retired from their respective positions prior to any final action by WKU, which “did not result in the adoption of the preliminary records as the basis for final action at WKU, and therefore those

JANUARY 31, 2017 boni as preferred candidate for the position before making its final decision at the quarterly meeting Friday.

Caboni is the only candidate who was made public during the process.

After being announced as the preferred candidate, Caboni visited campus, meeting with university groups and speaking at forums with students, faculty and staff.

“I’ve said several times in multiple settings that great universities do three things,” Caboni said. “They inspire innovation, they transform lives and they enhance and expand and elevate communities.”

During his week on campus, Caboni spoke often of the transparency he plans to bring to his new position.

One commitment he made is to have “presidential office hours” to give students a chance to meet with him to ask questions or voice concerns.

“I’ve always had an open-door policy, and I look forward to continuing that,” Caboni said.

At his press conference, Caboni spoke about how the university should handle budget issues.

“Budgets are value statements; what we fund is what’s important,” Caboni said. “At the same time, when we have reductions, we can’t do them across the board because that’s not strategic.”

Caboni said he promises to have a discussion together with the WKU

COLLEGE HEIGHTS HERALD

“It is my privilege to serve, it is my privilege to be home; it is my privilege to be a Hilltopper,” Tim Caboni said during a press conference on Friday in Augenstein Alumni Center. Caboni was announced to be the University’s 10th president on Friday. EVAN BOGGS/HERALD

community about what’s important when budget cuts arise. However, he added this kind of thinking is a scarcity mentality.

“It doesn’t have to be that way,” Caboni said. “If we recruit more students, if we retain more students, if we graduate more students, we’re going to have more resources, and the conversation is not going to be about where we make reductions. The conversation is going to be about where do we redeploy this excess. And that’s

the conversation I really want to have as an institution.”

Caboni said he plans to keep the new Gordon Ford School of Business Building a priority as he begins in his new position. He also mentioned the need to refresh and rebuild residence halls to attract prospective students.

The bylaws also include several changes to the board’s committees and the creation of a new Enrollment Committee.

“I don’t know that we’ve had enough time, in my opinion, to think about this because these bylaws are the governance of this board,” Regent John Ridley said while advocating against a first reading.

Ridley was concerned the changes to the bylaws — specifically making the chairman the sole voice of the board — would give the chair too much power over the organization.

“We’re not talking about how we’re doing business now,” Ridley contin-

ued. “When you change bylaws you’re talking about how we’re going to do business in four years, five years, after a lot of our terms are gone.”

The board plans to call a special meeting in the near future in order to have a first reading of the bylaw changes.

Finally, the Director of Student Financial Assistance Cindy Burnette delivered a presentation over student loan numbers during the 201516 year. Burnette said during 201516, 18,675 WKU students received around $200 million in loans, scholarships, grants and student employment in order to pay for college. She

also reported 29.7 percent of WKU undergraduates without a bachelor’s degree (12,573 students) fall under the poverty line.

Burnette said during 2015-16, WKU undergraduate debt amounted to around $28,000 per student — a figure which has doubled from around $14,000 in 2006-07.

The second quarterly Board of Regents meeting will take place April 28.

records did not lose their preliminary status and therefore need not be disclosed.”

WKU also argued releasing the records would violate the personal privacy of students involved. On Nov. 29, the Attorney General’s office requested copies of the records involved from WKU, which WKU denied.

The office then requested redacted copies of the records withheld “but only to protect the names and personal identifiers of students.”

WKU responded that “merely redacting student names and personal

identifiers of students would not be sufficient to protect the identity of student reporting parties or witnesses who should be afforded privacy under both federal and state law.”

The attorney general’s office also ruled on Monday that Kentucky State University violated the open records law by failing to turn over investigations into sexual misconduct allegations against university employees, according to WDRB. KSU refused to provide records also citing the privacy of the victims and did not allow the attorney gener-

“Those are two things that we’ll to work on right out of the gate,” he said. “There are going to be a heck of a lot more.”

Reporter Jamie Williams can be reached at 270-745-6011 and jamie. williams539@topper.wku.edu

al’s office to look at the records.

The attorney general issued an opinion that WKU must make “immediate provision” for the student reporters who filed the requests to “inspect and copy the disputed records with the exception of names and personal identifiers of the complainant and witnesses.” WKU may appeal this decision to the Warren County Circuit Court.

Reporter Emma Austin can be reached at 270-745-0655 and emma. austin177@topper.wku.edu

JANUARY 31,2017

COLLEGE HEIGHTS HERALD A3 WKU celebrates Chinese New Year: year of rooster

President Gary Ransdell offers a one-hundred-dollar check to student Lin Weipeng, during the chinese new year celebration on Saturday at the Confucius Institute. EVAN BOGGS/HERALD

BY TYGER WILLIAMS HERALD.NEWS@WKU.EDU Bright red and gold decorations covered the walls and doors of the newly built Confucius Institute Saturday afternoon, colorfully representing good luck and good fortune.

With traditional red lanterns, music, karaoke, paper cut outs, banners and scrolls with new year’s greetings and messages of good fortune, the celebration of the Chinese New Year had begun.

The reason behind the decorations and music comes from the story of The Chinese New Years. Inter-

BAN

Continued from A1 number in perspective, New York City currently has a population of approximately 8.273 million people.

After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from a university in Iran, Jalali came to WKU to be a part of the master’s program in Chemistry. Two days prior to the ban, she was accepted into the Medicinal, Bioorganic and Computational Chemistry PhD program at the University of Kentucky.

But last Friday, while Jalali was attending a laboratory class at the top of the Hill, everything changed.

When Jalali heard the news that a temporary immigration ban had been placed on her country, she was stunned with overwhelming emotion and tears filled her eyes.

“They don’t think about the people who are living over here, who are citizens, who have a green card, but have family in Iran,” she said. “We cannot cut the relationship between the families. Right now, I do not know what I am going to do.”

Family has always been a major part of Jalali’s life. After two years apart, she was looking forward to being reunited with her parents during graduation in May. But with the temporary ban, these plans are slowly dwindling.

On Jan. 17, Jalali’s parents traveled to an American Embassy in Dubai, Saudi Arabia, almost 2,000 miles away from their home, to interview for a “Visitor Visa.”

“Most administrative processing is resolved within 60 days of the visa interview. When administrative processing is required, the timing will vary based on individual circumstances of each case,” according to the Virtual Embassy of the United States website.

With the WKU Graduate School Commencement Ceremony occurring on May 12, Jalali’s family felt applying for visas four months prior to traveling would be more than enough time to get them processed.

“Right now, after this 90 day ban, I’m sure they cannot get the VISA and come for my graduation,” Jalali said.

“It really hurts because they have spent this much money for me and they’ve been away from their daughter for a long time. They just wanted to be here for my graduation; that’s all.”

While Jalali has enjoyed her time

national students and teachers at the celebration spoke of a story taking place in the mountains of a monster known as Nian who attacks a village, making all the villagers hide in fear of the beast. They were told the beast is scared by the color red and loud noises, so everyone in the village hung red decorations and made loud noises from music and fireworks.

Nian never returned, thus starting the annual celebration of Chinese New Year.

The year of the fire rooster started off 2017 on Jan. 28, the first day of the Chinese lunar calendar.

Director of the Confucius Institute, Wei-Ping Pan, organized the studying at WKU, she is disheartened this is the way her master’s education has to end.

“I’m not even going to attend the graduation ceremony if they don’t come,” she said.

Jalali is one of 22 international students studying at WKU from the seven temporarily banned countries, according to university officials.

“Our international students are important members of the University family,” said President Gary Ransdell in a release. “We are working to fully understand all the variables in play, but it is important that our international students feel safe and know that they are welcome here. We will work to ensure that each of them stays on track to graduate.”

With this temporary immigration ban, WKU has recommended these students do not travel outside of the country at this time.

“Over here everything is changing,” Jalali said. “The rules, the policies, everything is changing. So I think the immigrants feel so insecure over here.”

The insecurity Jalali is feeling has led her to look outside of the U.S. for another PhD program. She has already started the process of applying to Canadian programs in pursuit of becoming a research scientist.

“After five years staying in the U.S., investing my money, my time, my energy and my knowledge over here, if I wake up one day and someone says: ‘what you did over here is done and you should go back home,’ what do I do after that? What is going to be my future? I feel so terrified about it,” she said.

Jalali initially came to the U.S. because of the numerous research opportunities in her field of chemistry. She felt it would aid her pursuit of researching for medicinal cure to cancer -- something near and dear to her heart.

“I would love to put my life towards research and at least, improve whatever is going on,” she said. “At least, I can do that. I might not be able to find the cure for cancer, but at least I can try for it.”

Becoming a research scientist is an opportunity not widely offered to Jalali in Iran. “I didn’t have any future in Iran in my major. There is no opportunity for people who want to do research.”

But now Jalali must decide to return to Iran and risk not being re-granted another student visa, to

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celebration for the new year at the newly built Confucius Institute. Pan has been at WKU since 1986, working as a professor and as assistant to the president.

“Our mission is to promote the Chinese language and do what is best for our students,” Pan said. “Chinese New Year number one is for reunion for family. We are one family. The second one is we appreciate the food.

We invite everyone from host family and teachers to appreciate them for taking care of our kids.”

Confucius Institute Managing Director Terrill Martin brought attention to the 43 teachers from the 22 counties in appreciation for the work they’ve done to start off the new year.

President Gary Ransdell also made an appearance at the New Year’s celebration to recognize the teachers.

“There are a lot of things that these teachers are bringing that are valued, not only to the young people that are teaching in elementary, middle schools and high schools across this region of Kentucky,” Ransdell said.

“But what it will mean to many of those school systems, to the partnering with the 22 school districts.”

Chinese New Year is traditionally celebrated for 15 days to follow the lunar calendar. The days count down to the first full moon after the Spring Festival and for the new year. The last day is known as the Lantern Festival.

“Chinese New Year is the most important festival for us and all the family members will get together and eat dumplings with a big feast,” said

Hui-Hui Xu, Chinese language and culture teacher at Alvaton Elementary. “Every single day is a different activity and has special meaning to us.”

When the new year comes around, families look forward to seeing relatives. Kids take a month off school and adults take a few weeks off work to prepare for visiting family and friends by getting food, cleaning the house and setting up decorations.

Traditionally, kids receive a red envelope from relatives or friends as a Chinese New Year gift to bring good luck and happiness. At WKU’s celebration, students and teachers entered a raffle to receive prizes during Ransdell’s visit, including a red envelope containing money.

On Sunday, the Chinese Student and Scholar Association celebrated Chinese New Year at the Honors College and International Center.

“We want to promote the interaction between student and faculty in the Chinese community to have stronger bond, to feel more comfortable, to promote the Chinese culture and for people who are interested,” Rui Zhang, faculty adviser and organic chemistry professor, said.

Each year is represented by a different zodiac animal. This year celebrates the year of the rooster, the 10th out of the 12 zodiac animals.

“It is a good sign,” Zhang said.

“When the year of the rooster comes, it brings good luck.”

stay in the U.S. and risk not seeing her family for upwards of five years or to give up her spot in the PhD program at UK and pursue a degree in Canada.

This choice has been weighing on Jalali’s mind for days.

“I’m sure if I go back to Iran I am not going to be happy there because I cannot do what I want or study what I want,” she said. “Of course I want to stay somewhere that has freedom.

The most important difference is the freedom.”

Jalali said she feels since she is from Iran, she is associated with many “misconceptions” about her country and its government.

“Because I have an Iranian passport, I have to deal with everything that is going on right now between the two governments,” she said.

While she is from a predominantly Muslim nation, Jalali is not religious.

“I was born in Iran so I had to be Muslim, but I believe in no religion.

I am not religious at all,” she said.

“Even my people are tired of terror-

ism, of everything.”

Although Trump signed the executive order temporarily banning immigrants from her nation, Jalali does not place blame solely on him.

“It’s not just about Trump, it’s about what the people want, the people who voted for him,” she said. “He was a very honest candidate. He said I’m going to build a wall, ban the refugees to come and in just one week -- he did.”

Jalali thinks, moving forward, people should try to educate themselves about the history of Arab nations, the war in Syria and try to understand the countries, rather than knowing only what they see in the news.

“Sometimes you should put yourself in someone else’s position, their situation and see if it was happening to you,” she said. “How would you feel?”

Reporter Tyger Williams can be reached at (270)745-0655.

Reporter Nicole Ares can be reached at 270-745-2655 and nicole.ares@ wku.edu.

WKUHERALD.COM CARTOON

OPINION

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SYNTHESIS

COMMENTARY

Attacks on refugee rights attack universal human rights A soliloquy

BY ANDREW HENDERSON HERALD.OPINION@WKU.EDU

T

hese next four years will allow me to discover the perfect balance between heart-wrenching despair and righteous, boiling anger.

Unfortunately, I have yet to strike that balance which is why President Donald Trump’s recent Executive Order barring refugees and citizens of seven predominantly Muslim countries caught me off guard. This really should not have been the case. He’s been saying there was going to be a ban of some kind like this since the campaign.

The executive order suspends the entry of refugees into the United States for 120 days, stops the admission of refugees from Syria indefinitely and bars entry for 90 days into the U.S. for people who are citizens of Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen, according to the New York Times.

It also implemented a religious test for refugees from Muslim states, ordering “Christians and others from minority religions be granted priority over Muslims.”

All of this may be subject to change as the details surrounding the executive order are being legally challenged by the American Civil Liberties Union and others.

Since then, there have been protests at John F. Kennedy International Airport, confusion, the bans affects green card holders and a slew of stories of people who are being denied entry into the U.S. The rights of refugees and the rights of those people who are stateless are issues of human rights. This ban is an assault on human rights, it is an assault on a specific religious group and does little to actually contribute to this ideal of protecting national security which is what this ban is being placed under the guise of.

Hanna Ardent, German political theorist and author of “Origins of Totalitarianism,” writes about the subjection of refugees to human rights abuses. In her book, she writes about her observations of deprivations of life, liberty, equality before the law and freedom of opinion for stateless people.

“Only in the last stage of a rather lengthy process is their right to live threatened; only if they remain perfectly “superfluous,” if nobody can be found to “claim” them, may their lives be in danger,” Ardent writes.

Article 14 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights makes very clear the rights

of refugees: the right to seek asylum from persecution.

For the moment, the U.S. is still a member of the U.N. Although, U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley signaled on Friday that under the Trump administration, the U.S. will “take names” of American allies “that don’t have our back,” according to Politico.

I can’t help but think of another person who also took names of those at the U.N., but for vastly different reasons. Raphael Lemkin, a Polish-Jewish jurist, could often be found “haunting the drafty halls” of the U.N. Lemkin escaped the grips of the Holocaust, leaving Europe after the German army invaded Poland.

His family, unfortunately, met a different fate.

Lemkin is credited with coining the term “genocide,” which prior to his definition was a crime without a name, as described in Samantha Power’s book “A Problem From Hell.”

Power is Haley’s predecessor as U.N. Ambassador.

Lemkin worked tirelessly for years to get his definition of genocide adopted by the United Nations General Assembly, which it eventually was.

Power describes Lemkin as a man who would hunt down anyone with a pulse, U.N. official, politician, journalist, to get them to listen about genocide and about his work to define this crime and the power it would have to codify genocide within the law.

“He was always there like a shadow, a presence, floating through the halls and constantly pulling scraps of paper out of his pockets,” Kathleen Teltsch, a reporter with the New York Times, as quoted in “A Problem from Hell.”

Lemkin took names for the betterment of humanity. Now we take names as veiled threats to allies.

The U.S. has turned its backs on refugees, on men, women and children fleeing a genocide in Syria, on immigrants wishing for a new start. If you were to read Power’s book you’d know this is not the first or last time the U.S. has turned our backs on those fleeing genocide.

Cambodia, Iraq, Bosnia, Rwanda, Srebrenica, Kosovo. History tells us there were multiple times the U.S. could have intervened to stop genocide, but didn’t. Our reasons have varied from political to economic and often just out of a lack of hope we could do anything.

If anything, this ban solidifies what has often been the policy for the U.S. in terms of genocide and providing asylum for refugees and that’s what should make it so infuriating. Not

that Trump is doing it now, but that we have always done it.

But perhaps all of this is a bit too broad for us to really consider here at WKU and in Bowling Green as I’ve been writing from a larger human rights perspective.

Per the university, WKU has identified 22 students and three faculty members affected by the executive order. But at this time the university is not aware of any “WKU students or faculty members who are currently overseas or being prevented from re-entering the country.”

“My request to our campus community is that we remain focused on ensuring that our campus is a safe and welcoming place to all of our students, regardless of their nationality,” President Gary Ransdell said in an email to faculty and staff. “I would also ask that you be especially sensitive to those directly impacted by this order. We will work to ensure that they are able to continue on a successful path to graduation.”

A public statement is not enough for students whose livelihoods may be at stake, whose rights are in jeopardy. Yes, I applaud WKU for any statement, but, again using Power’s book as an example, public statements are too tepid and lacking in actual change.

What does it mean for WKU to be a safe and welcoming place for students when the most we ever do to combat racial tension, for instance, is to host panels and think tanks?

Where’s the action, the demonstrations, the protest? And what if the ban goes farther? Will WKU comply with the law regardless of the human rights violations?

Furthermore, WBKO reported that the 40 Syrian refugees which were supposed to be coming to Bowling Green no longer are. Their lives will now be a mystery to us entirely.

WKU and Bowling Green should not remain silent in the face of this ban. Is this university not a community for international students, or is our tagline of international reach only shallow enough to mean reaching into pocketbooks?

Does Bowling Green not pride itself on our vibrant immigrant and refugee community? Or is the International Festival simply an appropriation of this culture for profit? Where is the protest and disgust from our city officials on this matter?

Words are nice and comforting but resistance and civil disobedience and bold action are also crucial. It’s time we move past this university’s days of public statements to public action.

for the ‘forgotten people’

BY DAVID HORMELL HERALD.OPINION@WKU.EDU There’s been a lot of talk both during the campaign and now about President Donald Trump’s “forgotten people.” The irony of blue-collar America electing a billionaire who stiffs his own workers is irrelevant.

What is relevant, however, is that there are forgotten people out there – immigrants, who want to experience the American Dream. Everyone is entitled to their chance at the American Dream, and equality of opportunity is as American as apple pie. Any sort of ban on immigration is decidedly un-American and represents a great moral decay.

“New Colossus”, a sonnet written

by Emma Lazarus rests at the Statue of Liberty. Near the latter half, it reads: “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore.” Turning the tired and poor away isn’t a partisan issue. These are human lives hanging in the balance.

Genocide isn’t pleasant to think about. It rarely makes its way into daily discourse or casual conversations. But we’re not living up to our shiny American idealism if we look the other way and pretend that all is well in the world.

Stand in solidarity with immigrants and refugees because everyone is entitled to their chance at the American Dream, regardless of race, color or creed.

The Forgotten People Don’t forget about the forgotten taking safety on a Saturday afternoon from Syrian shells and the stench of death staining the air. Don’t forget about the tired, poor, and huddled masses yearning to breathe free, free of poison gas and free to believe whatever they wish. Wishing for a different reality than the one they currently know, wishing it all away at once.

That maybe, it was all a bad dream, a subconscious glitch, and maybe one day everything will be okay.

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JANUARY 31, 2017

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1. What is the villain Goldfinger's first name? (a) Julius (b) Gareth (c) Auric 2. In Goldeneye, how did Bond's parents die? (a) Scuba diving accident (b) Climbing accident (c) Avalanche 3. What was the name of the cassette Blofelt used to control the satellite in Diamonds Are Forever? (a) World's Greatest Marches (b) Greatest Polkas (c) World's Greatest Operas 4. In Octopussy, James disguises himself as what animal? (a) Shark (b) Stingray (c) Crocodile 5. What was the code name of the female agent in The Spy Who Loved Me? (a) Triple X (b) Boris F (c) Tatyana Z 6. Who disappears in the movie Dr No? (a) Felix Leiter (b) John Strangeways (c) Major Boothroid 7. In Skyfall, believing Bond is dead, M writes his obituary. What rank does she list? (a) Agent (b) Captain (c) Commander 8. What did the drug lord and his gang use as a front for their drug lab in License to Kill? (a) A pub (b) A casino (c) A fake charity 9. In Moonraker, what famous landmark was purchased by Hugo Drax? (a) Eiffel Tower (b) Big Ben (c) London Bridge 10. What is Bond's wife's name in On Her Majesty's Secret Service? (a) Sharon (b) Tracy (c) Nikki

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WKUHERALD.COM

JANUARY 31, 2017 > WESTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY

PHOTO

Spectators head upstairs to the balcony seating to watch the 22nd annual Prism concert on Friday at Van Meter Hall.

The WKU Jazz band performs alongside with choir during the 22nd annual Prism concert on Friday at Van Meter Hall. EVAN

The Spectrum EVAN MATTINGLY/ HERALD

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MATTINGLY/HERALD

Of music

s the audience filled Van Meter Hall on Friday night, the 22nd annual PRISM concert was nothing short of spectacular. Demonstrating a wide variety of music, enhanced lighting, and choreo graphed transfers, students performed flawlessly in the fastpaced environment. Performances from the WKU Jazz Band, Steel Drum Band, Red Shirts, Guitar Ensemble, Wind Ensemble, and the Treble Makers roused the crowd and left many in suspense.

Unlike any concert, PRISM prides itself on being unique therefore the aisles between the audience were filled by the WKU Marching Band, as they played

“Stand Up and Cheer.” The genres vary from classical to pop-culture jams.

“I like it when the marching band comes out, it makes me excited to come here,” said Ashley Rowland, a freshman at Warren Central High School.

In between each performance, amusing musical puns fill the speakers, leaving no room for wandering attention spans. The WKU music department shows just what they are capable of in a short amount of time and with PRISM, they expose the true level of creativity and skill. Once you see it, you will end up wanting more.

-Evan Mattingly

Gary Schallert conducts the Wind Ensemble during the 22nd annual Prism concert on Friday at Van Meter Hall.

EVAN MATTINGLY/HERALD

Paul Hondorp directs the WKU Chorale group during their performance at Prism on Friday at Van Meter Hall. KATHERINE ZIESIG/HERALD

The WKU marching band performs for the audience during the annual Prism concert on Friday at Van Meter Hall. The marching band surprised the audience by playing in the aisles of the auditorium. KATHERINE

ZIESIG/HERALD

JANUARY 31, 2017 > WESTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY

LIFE dressed to impress WKUHERALD.COM

Tim Brewer, 45, of Louisville, as Darth Revan from Star Wars.

Dustin Burkhart, 33, and Sasha Mullins, 26, of New Albany, Ind., dressed as “Frankglamorstein” and “Lady Glamorstein”.

Shane Roberson, 27, of Bowling Green, as a Mandalorian from Star Wars.

Stephen Logsdon, 32, of Munfordville, Ky., as Obi-Wan Kenobi from Star Wars.

Kaitlyn Head, 23, of Glasgow, as Rey from Star Wars.

Mary Stephens, 50, of Hebron, as Jyn Erso from Star Wars.

Heather Stephens, 23, of Hebron, as Harley Quinn from Suicide Squad.

Kim Stephens, 26, of Hebron, as “Shaak Ti” from Star Wars.

Daphney Sproles, Scott Proles, and Sydney Sprees of Oolitic, Ind., with their self-built R2-D2 from Star Wars.

Sal Lizard, 61, of Bowling Green, as “Vampire Santa”.

Kierston Whalen, 18, of Bowling Green, as “Maddam Red” from Kuroshitsuji.

Kat Tyler, 17, of Bowling Green as “Alois Trancy” from Kuroshitsuji.

PHOTOS BY SKYLER BALLARD/HERALD

Corvette Museum hosts First-Annual pop culture event

BY ELISABETH MOORE HEARLD.FEATURES@WKU.EDU Pop music blared from the National Corvette Museum as Disney Princesses and Star Wars Clone Troopers gathered around for the same cause.

Intermingled with people sporting everyday clothing, cosplayers and regular attendees lined up early on Jan. 28 to enter the first annual Vette City Con. Located directly across from the Corvette Gift Shop, a large room was filled to the brim with vendors, celebrities and a projector showing films such as “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” and “Texas Chainsaw Massacre.” Despite the crowded nature of the showroom, convention-goers

seemed to easily make their way to any celebrity or vendor that interested them.

The Vette City Con was created by two agents at a booking agency based out of Bowling Green called NahPro Entertainment and was scheduled for Jan. 28 and 29. Chad Sheppard, a senior agent, and Michael Etherton, a southeast agent, said they have been working on the Vette City Con for almost six months.

“To give you a little back story, me and my business partner both like comics and Comic-Con-style events,” Sheppard said. “We both are fans of those events and we have been all over the country and even into Canada to see some and we just wanted to do some ourselves to test the market and to see what kind of response we would get in Bowling

Green.”

Sheppard and Etherton chose the National Corvette Museum for their convention because of its popularity.

Due to it’s location off of the highway and the recognizable name that the Corvette Museum has throughout Bowling Green, Sheppard said it seemed to be the best spot to hold their first convention.

“The Corvette Museum has bent over backwards to help us with everything that we have asked,” Etherton said. “They have been nothing but a pleasure to work with and I can’t thank those guys enough for allowing us to do this.”

Throughout the convention, there was a total of 52 various vendors and celebrities that attended.

This included actors and stuntmen like Deep Roy and John Dugan, to

more localized groups like the Western Kentucky Ghostbusters and the Southern Kentucky Technical Community College.

Celebrities were stationed toward the back of the vendor hall where attendees could get autographs and photos. The rest of the floor was shared by vendors selling their wares, models showing off their cosplay outfits and local groups trying to gain more traction. One group that was located near the front was the Vette City Roller Derby team.

The Vette City Roller Derby team is a group of women that do competitive roller derby. As a local team, they were asked to set up a booth at the convention to sell shirts, memorabilia and to spread the word about their team.

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COLLEGE HEIGHTS HERALD

VETTE CITY

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Polson, a skater for the Vette City Roller Derby. “We try to do as many things as we can in the public with as many different groups as possible because every time we go somewhere, there are people that still don’t know that we are here. We have gotten so many followers on Facebook and Instagram just because of this. It has been great for networking.”

Outside of visiting the vendors and celebrities, a cosplay contest was created for the first day of the convention. Led by the Bride of Frankenstein as the hostess, cosplayers had the chance to strut their costumes for prizes that would be given out by the three judges.

Once the cosplay contest began, there were a total of 25 contestants that ranged from various Star Wars characters to an over-sized Count Chocula, the mascot for a popular

chocolate cereal. The contest was separated into two categories: children and adults. Each contestant could win honorable mention, the celebrity pick chosen by the Bride of Frankenstein, second runner-up, first runner-up or first place in their respective category.

In the children category of the contest, the first runner-up was a female version of Grell Sutcliff, a character from the anime Black Butler.

The winner of this category was Left Shark from the famous Katy Perry Super Bowl halftime show. Both winners were given gift cards and free swag from a few of the vendors attending the convention.

In the adult category, the second runner-up was the man dressed as Count Chocula, who created his nearly seven-foot costume by hand.

The first runner-ups were two girls who did a Game of Thrones cosplay together, one dressed as Daenerys

Targaryen and the other dressed as Cersei Lannister, who each handsewn their dresses for the cosplay.

The winner for the adult category was a woman dressed as Shaak Ti, a Jedi from Star Wars. This cosplay included a hand-made headdress made out of clay and latex, a personalized belt that was hand-carved and a dress that was hand-sewn.

The honorable mentions for the overall competition were Rey and Obi-Wan Kenobi from Star Wars and a post-apocalyptic Batman and Catwoman couple. The celebrity pick was Ursula, who made her costume completely by hand, which included tentacles and the necklace used to take Ariel’s voice in “The Little Mermaid.”

“I want everybody to be able to come to this convention,” Etherton said. “I want to have a little something for everybody. If they want to come out and cosplay, then we wish

them all the best and may they win the contest.”

Looking into the future, Sheppard and Etherton said they would like to host more conventions. The Vette City Con was created as a test convention to see if Bowling Green has the market for future conventions in this area.

“When people do this type of convention, in the first several years, you do lose some,” Sheppard said. “You have to build it up. We went into this knowing that we would probably lose some money and we were okay with that. But we hope to get a good reception so we can keep doing them and build this up to do something huge in the future.”

Reporter Elisabeth Moore can be reached at 270-745-6288 and elisabeth.moore938@topper.wku.edu.

Follow her on Twitter at @emoore938.

WKU professor bares his bones in new book

BY ANDREW CRITCHELOW HERALD.FEATURES@WKU.EDU

Readers will have the opportunity to visit the bone yard in a new book written by a WKU professor. The book, titled “The Skeleton Revealed: An Illustrated Tour of the Vertebrates,” was written by Steve Huskey, associate professor of biology.

The book compiles almost 200 photographs taken by Huskey of vertebrate skeletons he has rebuilt over the years.

“Everybody finds bones intriguing,” Huskey said. “So, once I spent 20 years building skeletons, it was a no-brainer to put it into something that a lot of people would potentially appreciate.”

The 360-page book, published by John Hopkins University Press, features descriptions written by Huskey of each of the animal skeletons featured. Vertebrate skeletons featured in the book include piranha, barracuda, rattlesnake, guinea pig, owl, cobra and many more.

“Steve Huskey feeds our fascination with the vast diversity of animals through beautiful photographs of skeletons he meticulously prepared,” George V. Lauder, Harvard biology professor, wrote in an editorial review of the book. “Accompanied by informative and up-to-date descriptions of the animals and their lives, this book reveals the remarkable evolutionary variety in animal body plans.”

Huskey received his bachelor’s degree from Western Michigan Uni-

versity, his doctorate from Florida Tech and his post-doctorate degree at the University of California, Davis.

Over the years, Huskey specialized in functional morphology: the study of the structure of organisms and their relationship to the function of their various parts.

“It’s really the underlying tenant of animal performance,” Huskey said. “How is an animal capable of doing whatever it is: running, flying, digging, jumping, burrowing, swimming? Functional morphology provides the answers for how those things are possible.”

Huskey, who began teaching at WKU in 2013, teaches several Biology courses including Introductory Biology, Marine Biology and Animal Form and Function. Huskey said his interest in Biology spawned from participating in outdoor activities such as camping and fishing at a young age.

“I had an interest in the outdoors,” Huskey said. “It just became a passion rather than just a hobby.”

Many of the skeletons Huskey has rebuilt over the years are on display at various venues across the country including the Miami Museum of Science and Planetarium, the Harvard Museum of Natural History and the California Academy of Sciences.

Huskey teaches the process of rebuilding animal skeletons in his Animal Form and Function class. Quinn Rockrohr, a former student and lab assistant in Huskey’s classes, said Huskey’s approach to teaching is ideal for learning functional morphology.

“His honesty and frank approach to teaching is refreshing, especially if you don’t like fluff,” Rockrohr said.

“Functional morphology is absolutely best dealt with in this manner; beating around the bush will get you nowhere.”

In addition to his book, Huskey’s work has also been featured in scientific journals, magazines and lab manuals. Due to the decades of preparation that went into rebuilding the skeletons compiled in The Skeleton Revealed, Huskey said that it may be some time before he publishes another book of its caliber.

“It’d be cool to eventually have enough to do a volume two,” Huskey said. “But we’re talking another two decades from now.”

Now in his fourth year of teaching at WKU, Huskey said that he has taught a variety of students in his teaching career.

“It’s a relatively diverse population as far as interests go,” Huskey said.

“We have a large cohort of students with pre-professional interests like med school, but there’s also a large cohort of students who really want to get their hands dirty in the lab and get involved in research. So, I’ve involved a lot of students in those skeletal processes and I’m sure they’ll appreciate the book as well.”

Rockrohr said though Huskey’s book will interest those fascinated by functional morphology, it also has an appeal that extends beyond biologists.

“There is so much to be learned from structures of creatures past and present, and Dr. Huskey’s book

“I’ve been piecing together skeleton models for around twenty years now and people have become very fascinated with them,” said Steve Huskey an associate professor of biology. Huskey recently published a book on skeletons of different species. EVAN BOGGS/HERALD

does a brilliant job highlighting the beauty in the practical,” Rockrohr said. “I think that would strike a chord with anyone looking to find answers about life, the universe and everything.

Reporter Andrew Critchelow can be reached at 270-745-6288 and andrew. critchelow121@topper.wku.edu.

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JANUARY 31, 2017

COLLEGE HEIGHTS HERALD

WKU History Professor Receives local Humanitarian Award

BY DANIELLE CHAVIS HERALD.FEATURES@WKU.EDU WKU history professor John Hardin was awarded a community Humanitarian Service Award by the local Martin Luther King Jr. Planning Committee on Jan. 16.

Hardin was awarded for his diligence and major contribution to the Kentucky African American Encyclopedia, the first encyclopedia of its kind in the state.

Completed in 2015, The Kentucky African American Encyclopedia is comprised of almost 600 pages and includes contributions from 150 authors. Work on the encyclopedia started in 2009, with Hardin and Karen Cotton McDaniel, former director of libraries at Kentucky State University in Frankfort, sharing editing duties.

The idea for the Kentucky African American Encyclopedia originated in 2003, when Hardin worked as assistant dean in the WKU Potter College.

“I wanted to continue my research as historian on Kentucky African Americans,” Hardin said.

Previously, Hardin had two published books and was working on other projects.

Hardin and his colleagues, Gerald L. Smith and Karen

Cotton McDaniel, collectively developed the idea for the Kentucky African American Encyclopedia.

“The University Press of Kentucky said make a proposal, so that we can do something unique,” Hardin said.

In the state of Kentucky, several encyclopedias already existed. Two of which were the Kentucky Encyclopedia and the Louisville Encyclopedia.

Hardin suggested, “we would like to work on something called a Black Encyclopedia for Kentuckians.” “[The University Press of Kentucky] said ‘is it possible?’

‘Is there enough material?’”

Hardin said.

Hardin’s response to this question was simple.

“Yes,” Hardin said. “And the other two people said yes.”

Once the proposal was submitted and reviewed, the hard work of collecting and archiving the data began. For 12 years, the Kentucky African American Encyclopedia transformed from an idea to an immense contribution to Kentucky history.

Ryan Dearbone, member of the Martin Luther King Jr. Planning Committee, explained the importance of Hardin’s work.

“Anybody who wants to know about the African American experience in Kentucky

After publishing two books, working with the African American Museum and the Kentucky African American Encyclopedia, and being a member of Phi Beta Sigma, it is without a doubt that Professor John Hardin has earned the Humanitarian Award. “I have received many awards, but this one is by far the most heartwarming of all,” Hardin said. MEGAN STRASSWEG/HERALD now has the ability because of that book,” Dearbone said.

Dearbone said Hardin’s contributions within the community have been significant.

“Dr. Hardin has made a career and lifetime of humanitarian work,” Dearbone said.

“He has written several books about African American life in Kentucky.”

Hardin has also worked in organizations such as Phi

Beta Sigma, the NAACP and the African American Museum in Bowling Green. The committee recognized Hardin because of his diligence and service to the public through education and history.

Dearborn said Hardin’s community involvement, enrichment of higher education and dynamic knowledge of African American history all earned him his recognition.

“The humanitarian award for us symbolizes anybody who has been working in this community to better the community, whether it’s through education, community service, civil rights or their daily lives,” Dearbone said.

Reporter Danielle Chavis can be reached at 270-745-6288 and danielle.chavis191@topper.wku.edu

WKU online programs recognized in annual ranking

BY ANDREW CRITCHELOW

HERALD.FEATURES@WKU.EDU When it comes to distance learning, WKU offers some of the best online programs in the country, according to a new ranking by the U.S. News and World Report. In the media company’s annual ranking of the best online degree programs, WKU was ranked as one of the top schools in the country in five different areas.

“It’s very rewarding to see all the hard work and commitment of so many faculty and departments across campus culminate in a national ranking,” Cindy Troutman, Program Manager at WKU Online said. “We consider it an honor to be recognized among the top schools in the country, and will continue to strive to work together to make online learning a great experience for all involved.”

WKU was ranked fifth in the country in the Best Online Bachelor Degree Programs category, 15th in the Best Online Criminal Justice Graduate Pro-

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grams category, 21st in the Best Online Nursing Degree category, 35th in the Best Online Graduate Education Programs category and 61st in the Best Online MBA Programs category.

The U.S. News and World Report calculated these ranking based on categories including faculty credentials and training, student services and technology, student engagement and peer reputation.

Beth Laves, Associate Vice President of Division of Extended Learning and Outreach, said she largely credits the success of WKU’s online programs to those who have made them possible over the years.

“From my perspective, WKU online programs stand out because of the outstanding faculty who develop and teach these programs,” Laves said.

“Their passion and interaction with students in these programs help students connect to our university and to the content.”

WKU’s online programs include several departments including the Academic Technology and the IT Help

Located on South Campus in room C234!

Come visit the Alice Rowe Learning Assistance Center (LAC)!

¸ɛ ǘ̲Ɣˀ ȇȌȇǘǺƳǐɯ Ƴʖ͞ •Math 055, 096, 109, 116 •English 055, 100, 200 •Chemistry 109 •Excel/ Word/ Power Point •Blackboard •TopNet •Email

WKU’s 2016-2017 Cultural Enhancement Series presents Space Archeologist, National Geographic Fellow, Professor of Anthropology at UAB, and 2016 TED Prize winner

Wednesday, February 15, 2017 Van Meter Hall, 7:30 pm CST Free Admission / Open to campus and community Seating is limited and on a first-come, first-served basis

Desk, Library Services, WKU Online, Distance Learning, the Online Writing Center and Academic Advising. Offering its first online courses in 1998, WKU now offers 90 online degrees and certificates.

“The majority of today’s students can benefit from a more flexible schedule,” Troutman said. “Most students work either part-time or full-time. Online classes allow increased flexibility for students of traditional-age who have increased responsibility, while online degree programs benefit adult learners who work full-time and have other obligations.”

According to a 2015 survey by Babson Survey Research Group, 5.8 million students in the U.S. took online courses in the fall of 2014. At the time, that number added up to over one-quarter of the total college student population in the country. At WKU, there were 7,400 students taking at least one online course in the fall of 2016, with about 2,400 of those students taking only online courses.

“Without the flexibility of online

wku.edu/go/ces / Follow @wkuces on Facebook and Twitter Contact cultural.enhancement@wku.edu or call 270-745-4375

learning, going back to school may not be an option for some,” Troutman said.

“It’s important for students to be reasonably comfortable with technology and have a willingness to ask for help, if needed.”

In addition to the recognition from U.S. News and World Report, WKU’s online program has also been ranked 1st in CollegeChoice.net’s “50 Best Online Colleges for 2016-2017” list, 17th in the 2016 “Best for Vets 4-Year College” list by the Military Times Edge magazine and 14th in the “Top 30 Best Online Master’s in Criminal Justice Degrees 2017” list by The Best Master’s Degrees.

Despite these recognitions, Troutman said her main focus is helping students succeed in learning online.

“Our belief is that we should first and foremost focus on our students, any recognition that comes as a result of that is a nice bonus,” Troutman said.

Reporter Andrew Critchelow can be reached at 270-745-6288 and andrew. critchelow121@topper.wku.edu.

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270-780-2536 or 270-745-0480

Monday-Thursday: 7:45 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Friday 7:45 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Select Saturdays: 1/28, 2/4, 2/11, 2/18, 2/25, 3/25, 4/1, 4/8, 4/22, 4/29 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

JANUARY 31, 2017

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COLLEGE HEIGHTS HERALD

Lamp, Taylor impress at Reese’s Senior Bowl

BY JOHN REECER

HERALD.SPORTS@WKU.EDU Former WKU football greats Forrest Lamp and Taywan Taylor took part in the annual Reese’s Senior Bowl on Saturday afternoon.

The all-star game is an exhibition which showcases the top NFL Draft prospects from a pool of standout collegiate players whose eligibility has already expired.

Lamp and Taylor used this opportunity to impress a number of NFL scouts who were in attendance – and they made the most of their chance.

Going into the week of practices leading to the game, the former WKU offensive tackle Lamp was considered one of the top overall prospects in the entire event.

“This Hilltopper has won scouts over with his strength and mobility,” NFL.com draft analyst Chad Reuter said of Lamp before the game. “Don’t be surprised if he excels when kicked inside to guard as well as when he’s lined up at his usual left tackle spot in Mobile. Several teams in the back half of the first round will covet his abilities.”

Reuter had Lamp ranked as the second overall prospect in the entire event with only tight end O.J. Howard from the University of Alabama graded above him.

Despite not being able to play in the exhibition due to a high ankle sprain Lamp suffered earlier in the week, the Venice, Florida, native still managed to get some valuable practice time against some of the best prospects in the nation.

Taylor on the other hand managed to participate in the game and record one reception for 14 yards. He helped the South to a 16-15 victory.

Like Lamp, Taylor is considered a valuable commodity by several NFL scouts.

According to Turron Davenport of USA Today, Taylor was whisked away by officials from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Oakland Raiders for meeting time during the week leading up to the bowl game.

“Taylor may be flying under the radar for some due to coming from a smaller program, but there’s nothing little about his frame, skill set or production,” Luke Easterling of USA Today said. “His performance against Alabama should put to rest any questions about his ability to hang with top competition.”

Lamp is also reaping the benefits from WKU’s matchup with the Crimson Tide on Sept. 10, 2016. His performance against one of the best defenses in all of college football helped his name move into the first round of several mock drafts.

WKU wide receiver Taywan Taylor (2) tries escape a tackle by Marshall University safety Kendall Gant (14) during the Hilltoppers’ 60-6 win over Marshall on Nov. 26th, 2016 at Joan C. Edwards Stadium in Huntington, WV. EVAN BOGGS/HERALD “NFL scouts received a glimpse of Lamp against elite competition when Western Kentucky faced non-conference opponents LSU [2015] and Alabama [2016],” Dane Brugler of cbssports.com said. “And Lamp passed with flying colors, more than holding his own against future high draft picks like Jonathan Allen and Tim Williams of the Crimson Tide.”

Despite neither athlete making a

huge impact in Saturday’s event, both took advantage of the opportunity and managed to show scouts their skills and mental makeup throughout the week. Their efforts did not go unnoticed.

Reporter John Reecer can be reached at 270-427-8230 and john.reecer104@ topper.wku.edu. Follow him on Twitter at @Reece_12_Falcon

WKU’s offense powered by hot three-point shooting

BY TYLER MANSFIELD HERALD.SPORTS@WKU.EDU WKU’s three-point shooting has come alive as of late.

The Hilltoppers (11-11 overall, 5-4 Conference USA) knocked down nine shots from beyond the arc in their 65-62 win over Texas El Paso on Thursday, and followed that showing by nailing 10 on Saturday in their 81-66 cruise past Texas San Antonio.

One of WKU’s top threepoint shooters is junior forward Justin Johnson. After recording just one three-pointer on nine attempts last season, the Hazard native has already hit 17 so far in this year’s campaign, including going 3 for 6

in his team’s victorious homestand. He is currently shooting 46 percent from that territory.

“One thing you’ve seen he’s done this past season – and this is the thing we worked on – he expanded that game [from the] three-point line,” Head Coach Rick Stansbury said of Johnson. “He makes one three-pointer all of last year, correct? And it was a luck shot – is that right? Threw it in at the buzzer.”

When Stansbury was told how many threes Johnson has made thus far, he was quick to compliment his veteran forward.

“My point is … that’s pretty good,” Stansbury added. “It’s probably bad coaching for

not letting him shoot more. I probably need him to shoot more. I feel good about him shooting it.”

While Johnson’s improvement from beyond the arc has been very recognizable, the Toppers’ premier deep-ball shooters are graduate transfer guards Que Johnson and Pancake Thomas.

The two have combined to make 88 three-pointers on the season, and both carry over 30 percent showings on shots around the perimeter.

Que Johnson had some shooting struggles entering Saturday’s contest against UTSA in Diddle Arena, but he put them aside and knocked down big-time shots with

confidence in the victory over the visiting Roadrunners.

“It definitely felt good – especially from last game,” Que Johnson said. “Early I focused on getting to the basket a little more and try and get some easy ones and then focus on my outside shot. It just came to me. It was just a good showing out for me.”

On Thursday’s matchup with UTEP, Thomas came out of the gates firing on all cylinders. He scored 25 points, powered by seven threes, and helped the Toppers spark a new winning-streak. In the post-game press conference, the former Hartford guard was asked when he knew he had his rhythm.

“I would say before the game,” Thomas replied. “I was just getting shots up and a lot of them were going in. I was doing a competition, like best out of 10, and I was getting like eights and nines, so I knew it was on tonight.”

Justin Johnson, already a part of the three-point shooting side of things, stressed the importance of his teammate’s shot-making ability.

“He knocks down shots,” Justin Johnson said. “That’s what you need.”

Reporter Tyler Mansfield can be reached at 270-745 6291 and tyler.wkuherald@gmail. com. Follow him on Twitter at @RealTMansfield.

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JANUARY 31, 2017

PANCAKE

Continued from SPORTS whatever it’s been, I have never had a player that takes care of his body like Pancake,” Stansbury said. “Every day he’s become a guy that gives you everything he’s got every possession. I couldn’t have said that three months ago. I think all that goes hand in hand. His

attitude about things, the way he takes care of his body. He does it all the same way.”

Thomas’ eating habits haven’t been the only thing to improve over the course of the past calendar year. The senior sharpshooter is second on the team in threepoint percentage, knocking down his shots from beyond the arc just under 39 percent

of the time.

He carried the Toppers in Thursday’s win over Texas El Paso, scoring 25 points on 7 of 10 shooting from three-point land.

Justin Johnson, a three-year Topper veteran, compared Thomas to one of the school’s best long-range shooters.

“TJ Price – that’s the first guy that comes to mind for me,” Justin Johnson said.

COLLEGE HEIGHTS HERALD “He knows where I am going to find him on the floor. He knows those spots where I can see him. Pancake does a really good job, the same thing that T.J. did, when you get doubled, he gets to where you can see him. He just gets into an open spot when that double comes.

He reminds me so much of TJ, cause TJ could knock that thing down too.”

Fueled by fish, Thomas as improved his ability to play the minutes he plays, stay in shape only continuing his success, and he has no plans of slowing down.

Reporter Matthew Stewart can be reached at 859-797-3140 and matthew.stewart015@ topper.wku.edu. Follow him on Twitter at @MES_WKU22.

Lady Tops split games in Texas-sized road trip

BY SAM PORTER HERALD.SPORTS@WKU.EDU The WKU women’s basketball team has traveled approximately 3,114 miles in a critical two-game road trip dating back to last Thursday.

The Lady Tops left early on Wednesday to make the 19-hour trip to El Paso, Texas, for a Thursday night game against UTEP, the defending regular season Conference USA champions.

After a 71-54 win over the Miners, the Lady Tops made the 752-mile journey east to San Antonio, Texas, for a showdown with UTSA. Despite 28 points from Kendall Noble, the Lady Tops fell 80-77 in a game which they led for over three quarters.

“We gave up 80 points and we have to learn from that,” Head Coach Michelle-Clark Heard said in a radio interview after the loss. “We have to do better at doing the things we need to do to get stops. At the end of the day, we have to go back and go to work. That’s on me. I’m going to figure it out.”

After falling to the Miners 85-78 a season ago, the Lady Tops sought revenge at the Don Haskins Center, the Miners’ home court. With the game tied at 11 early in the first quarter, sophomore forward Kayla Smith provided a spark off the bench. The Fayetteville, Georgia, native’s three pointer ignited a 14-0 Lady Topper run that gave WKU a 25-11 lead midway through the second quarter. Smith finished the game with nine points and two rebounds.

“Our bench was crucial, especially with Kayla,” Clark-

Heard told the Bowling Green Daily News after the game.

“She made some big plays and some wide-open shots to open up the zone they were playing against us. I was really glad to see some of those shots fall for her.”

WKU continued to pour it on throughout the first half.

With a 27-16 lead. Redshirt senior guard Micah Jones and redshirt sophomore guard Jaycee Coe each hit a three and junior forward Ivy Brown scored six points during a 14-2 run that extended the Lady Tops’ lead to 41-18. During the two runs, redshirt senior guard Kendall Noble tallied six of her game high nine assists and added 13 points in the game as well. The Lady Tops led 41-21 at the half. The Lady Miners cut the lead to 15 late in the third quarter, but thats as close as they got as the Lady Tops cruised to a 71-54 victory.

WKU turned around to face the Roadrunners in a matchup featuring two of the top four teams in C-USA. The Lady Tops began the game similar to how they started against UTEP, building a 21-11 lead after the first quarter.

Once again, Kayla Smith provided a spark for the Lady Tops off the bench, scoring 10 of her 17 points in the second quarter alone as WKU extended its lead to 31-19 midway through the second quarter.

Slowly but surely, the Roadrunners began to dig into the deficit. A 16-7 UTSA run to end the first half made the score 38-35 at the half.

“Kayla came off the bench and is playing incredible,” Clark-Heard said in a radio

Senior guard Ima Akpan (20) drives in toward the basket for a jump shot against junior guard McKenzie Akers (5) on Saturday Jan. 21, 2017 at Diddle Arena. TYGER WILLIAMS/HERALD interview. “But we couldn’t get any stops. I told them in the locker room at the half that we can’t try to outscore people.

One of the situation things that needs to happen is that we have to get stops.”

In the third quarter, Noble caught fire. The defending C-USA Player of the Year set a new school record for points in quarter with 16. Despite Noble’s record quarter, the Lady Tops couldn’t get a stop defensively and allowed the Roadrunners to hang around.

UTSA took its first lead at 60-59 until Noble hit two straight field goals to give the lead back to the Lady Tops going into the fourth quarter. As time wound down, the Lady

Tops continued to struggle defensively as the Roadrunners took an 80-77 lead with 21 seconds left. Noble tried to keep WKU in the game and add on to her already impressive night, but UTSA’s Carlie Heineman got a piece of the ball causing it to fall into the hands of fellow teammate Marie Benson.

With the game appearing to be over, Benson traveled with the basketball, giving the ball back to the Lady Tops with just enough time for a catch and shoot.

Coe, arguably the Lady Tops best three-point shooter, got a look at the rim but her shot just rimmed out as UTSA hung on for the 80-77 victory.

The loss dropped WKU to 15-6 (7-2 C-USA) on the season. Their 7-2 conference record places them in a threeway tie with Charlotte and Middle Tennessee State.

WKU is back in action this Thursday at home against Louisiana Tech (10-10, 5-4 C-USA).

“It doesn’t get any easier, not in this conference,” ClarkHeard said. “Credit to UTSA and their players who stepped up. We just have to go back to work and get ready for the next one.”

Reporter Sam Porter can be reached at 270-799-8247 and sam.porter270@gmail.com.

Follow him on Twitter at @ SammyP14.

WKU Track and Field snags five titles in Indiana Relays

BY JEREMY CHISENHALL HERALD.SPORTS@WKU.EDU The WKU Track & Field teams cleaned house at the Indiana University Relays, as they won first place titles in five different events.

WKU won the women’s distance medley, the men’s 60-meter, the men’s 60-meter hurdles, the men’s 200-meter and the men’s long jump. They’ve now recorded 14 first-place finishes this season.

The women’s distance medley title was won by Alexa Brainard, Ariel Terrell, Callie Donaldson and Savannah Ames, as the team recorded a time of 12:37.62.

Julius Morris won the Men’s 60-meter title with a time of 6.85 seconds, and Jonathan Hayden won the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.19 seconds, his first top finish of the year. Olympian Emmanuel Dasor won the men’s

200-meter with a time of 21.26, which was also his first title of the season, and Desmond Mobley won the men’s long jump, reaching a distance of 7.39-meters (24 feet, 3 inches).

WKU dominated the men’s 200-meter, as they took five of the top six spots, with Dasor finishing first, Ventavius Sears finishing second (21.31 seconds), Morris finishing fourth (21.62 seconds), William Bush finishing fifth (21.86 seconds) and Eli Minor finishing sixth (22.19 seconds).

“Indiana provided a great venue for us to compete on a track similar to the one that will be used for the conference championships in a few weeks,” WKU track head coach Erik Jenkins said in a press release. “We were able to really evaluate ourselves against quality competition. We had some good things happen and saw areas where we need to continue to improve in order to be successful.”

Aside from the first-place finishes, WKU had a lot of consistency in other events as well. The men recorded 18 top-eight finishes, and the women recorded 14 top-eight finishes.

This included the women’s 60-meter prelims, where two Toppers finished in the top eight as Peli Alzola finished fifth and Jadzia Beasley finished eighth. Those same two finished in the top eight in the women’s 200-meter, as Beasley and Alzola finished sixth and fourth, respectively.

Sandra Akachukwu also turned in two top-eight finishes herself, as she finished third in the high jump by clearing 1.65 meters (5 feet, 5 inches). She also finished sixth in the long jump, with a distance of 5.51 meters (18 feet, 1 inch).

Jenessa Jackson made significant contributions as well finishing fifth in the shot put with a throw of 14.98 meters (49 feet, 1.75 inches) and sixth in

the weight throw with a throw of 19.09 meters (62 feet, 7.75 inches).

For the men, Dasor posted his second top-eight finish by placing second in the 400-meter with a time of 47.9 seconds. It was the first time that he had participated in the event this season.

On top of Mobley’s long jump title, he also finished fifth in the high jump by clearing 2.04 meters (6 feet, 8.25 inches).

Sammy Kipkirui, who was competing in his first event this season, finished second in the 3,000-meter dash, recording a time of 8:37.62.

Following a week off, WKU will compete in the Music City Challenge on Feb. 10 and 11. It will be the last meet before the conference championships.

Reporter Jeremy Chisenhall can be reached at 859-760-0198 and jeremy. chisenhall921@topper.wku.edu. Follow him on Twitter at @JSChisenhall

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JANUARY 31, 2017 > WESTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY

For senior guard Pancake Thomas, fish is the fuel

BY MATHEW STEWART HERALD.SPORTS@WKU.EDU When people think of college athletes, images of once-in-a-lifetime performances and record-breaking shots often cloud the mind. Rarely, do images of the moments leading up to those moments appear.

What fuels the greats?

For Pancake Thomas, it’s fish.

Athletes such as Thomas must take care of their bodies to be successful when playing a sport at a high level.

Pancake Thomas, a 6 foot 4 senior guard from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, taking care of his body is essential to his success. Thomas is averaging 13.4 points per game playing in Conference USA. After transferring from Hartford to WKU for his final season of eligibility, the guard has made an impression on the Hilltopper community.

“He’s been really, really good,” Head Coach Rick Stansbury said. “He’s going to finish up having a strong last half of the season for us. I believe that.”

The fans and those that follow the Tops know that Thomas plays a lot of minutes. Sometimes he plays all 40 of them.

But the secret to his stamina and ability to perform for the entirety of a game is not something that is widely known. The graduate student takes

SEE BELOW

On his senior night in high school Pancake Thomas jumped up and cut open his arm on the backboard. Since then Thomas went on to play two seasons at the University of New Mexico then transferring to the University of Hartford and playing one season there. Thomas has averaged 13.5 points a game since joining the Hilltoppers earlier this year. SHABAN ATHUMAN/HERALD

care of himself -- much more than most would assume of a collegiate student-athlete.

Many people make resolutions for the new year with aspirations to better themselves. While many fail, Thomas stuck to his plan.

“You know the young man has been so disciplined in what he eats,” Stansbury said. “A lot of people talk about, ‘well I’m gonna go without red meat,’ and that lasts about a month. Well this young man, during the recruiting process says, ‘Coach I gave up all red meat and chickens and all that a year ago.’ And he has literally done that now.”

When Thomas started the New Year, New Me approach in 2016, he had some encouraging factors that played into his decision.

“It just made a year when the New Year came in,” Thomas said of his year-old diet. “It was like the New Year’s resolution New Year/New Me thing. When I first started changing my diet it started from the Bible in Leviticus where they talk about unclean foods.

And then it just carried on.”

The change resulted in Thomas converting into what is called a pescatarian, or as the dictionary describes it, “one whose diet includes fish but no other meat”.

“All the GMO’s [genetically modified organisms] that are in chicken ... [the Bible] was talking about

as far as the spiritual aspect of it and when they slaughter the animals all the stress hormones that are in there in the animals, when you eat it they go in to you,” Thomas said. “You know, blood is super sacred.”

Thomas noticed things change immediately when he changed his eating habits.

“You don’t really get as tired,” he explained. “You know how you eat certain foods and right after you eat it you get tired and you want to go to sleep, that’s not good for you because your body is trying to break it down. That’s why you need to go to sleep; so you can break it down.”

Thomas doesn’t brag about what he is doing. Some of his teammates didn’t even hear it from Thomas first. The team trainer mentioned it to the other guys while taking food orders for the team.

His teammates joke to him about it, as his plate is always different from theirs and always stands out.

“He’s always on the road eating fish, he got his special plate ready for him and stuff,” senior guard Que Johnson said. “Everybody likes steak and chicken, they stick to their meats.”

Sometimes he is tempted when the team is on the road and all the other players are eating the typical steak or chicken dinner.

“They say, ‘oh here he goes, his special plate,’”

Thomas said with a chuckle. “Sometimes it’s tough.

Sometimes that steak looks super-duper good. They are grubbing down, especially the chicken tenders.”

Despite being able to resist the temptations of red meat, Thomas said he still breaks down and has sweets every once in a while.

“I eat candy, I eat cookies. You can catch me eating cookies but that’s about it,” Thomas said.

He misses a lot of places that he used to eat, but still finds ways to eat at his favorites even in Bowling Green.

“I really miss Cheesecake Factory. I used to eat there,” Thomas said. “Wing Stop and Buffalo Wild Wings too. Now I just go to Buffalo Wild Wings just to get the fried pickles, just to step through the door.”

Thomas applies the same amount of care and attention in the way that he practices to get better as he does with his diet.

“He gets up, gets a workout in most days before practice even,” Stansbury said. “He spends time in that training room, in that ice tub. That’s one guy in every way he has gotten a lot better from day one from the standpoint of the ability to defend and how he practices.”

“Probably in my 30 some odd years coaching, or

SEE PANCAKE PAGE B5