Channell Barbour, associate director of Campus Life, discusses issues involving campus diversity during a Spring Town Hall Meeting on April 3.

IU Southeast student leaders gathered along with other faculty and staff members for a Spring Diversity Town Hall meeting on April 3.

The purpose of the meeting was to target and approach the results from the diversity survey taken last semester, as well as if there were significant changes and how the can be addressed.

Issues such as sexual harassment, discrimination and social media were brought up. Students shared their personal experiences and thoughts while others came up with different suggestions on how to prevent such issues.

Brianne Miles, business senior and student leader for Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, said he thought the discussion did not go anywhere.

“More time is needed to clear these issues,” Miles said. “I agree with the language in the [Student Involvement Center] and how students need to respect one another by not using derogatory words.”

However, Seuth Chaleunphonh, dean of students and director of Campus Life said he believed the meeting went well.

“For the most part, students have responded positively to [the meeting],” Chaleunphonh said.

Chaleunphonh said, since these meetings are open to all students, this leaves an open forum for any student who has issues related to diversity, admissions or residence to speak at the meeting and with the coordinators.

“We have to learn how to not judge people just from what we physically see, and I think this issue affects us in every aspect of our lives,” Chaleunphonh said.

Games were also played to break the ice, and some brought up topics of how to feel comfortable in class as a different race, age and style.

There were also suggestions made from both students and faculty on how to have a diverse mind.

Due to the fact that IU Southeast is a diverse school, student leaders and faculty discussed how everyone has a different mentality and background based on how they were raised.

Channell Barbour, associate director of Campus Life, said these issues need to be approached in classes, such as First-Year Seminar, in order to get freshmen prepared for the college life or Senior Seminar classes to help prepare students for a career and the workforce.

Barbour said it is hard to get students interested because diversity is such a sensitive topic, but it is something that needs to be done as soon as possible.

“It’s a start for us but we need more,” Barbour said. “I hope honest to goodness we don’t ever get to the point where a tragedy occurs before we decide to become proactive.”

By MONIQUE CAPTAN

Staff

mcaptan@ius.edu

Joseph Mattingly, junior outfielder, makes contact with the ball, sending a ground ball into the field. Mattingly scored one run in the game against Oakland City University. Despite the Grenadiers being down 7-0 until the bottom of the sixth inning, they managed to score runs late in the game. The Grenadiers epic comeback was not enough to win the game with a final score of 10-9 on April 2.

The IUS baseball team was narrowly defeated by the Mighty Oaks of Oakland City University, with a final score of 10-9 on April 2.

“I think they just showed up here because they had to,” Ben Reel, IUS baseball head coach, said. “They didn’t show up to win.”

However, the Grenadiers put up a strong fight before the end of the game.

The score was 10-6 at the bottom of the ninth, and the Grenadiers were at bat.

The Grenadiers quickly scored a run, but the Mighty Oaks got two outs. The score was 10-7, and the bases were loaded.

“Oh my goodness, they might actually win,” Rhea Coulter, grandmother of one of the Grenadier players, said during the game.

The batter hit a grounder, allowing two Grenadier players to score runs, making the score 10-9.

During the last play in the game, there was a runner on third. The batter hit the pitch, but Oakland City University coordinated efficiently to get him out, thus ending the game.

Reel said he was not pleased with his players’ performance.

“They have no killer instinct,” Reel said.

Reel said he believes the Grenadiers underestimated the Mighty Oaks.

“They think that [the Mighty Oaks] will just give us the win because they’re on the road,” Reel said. “It’s been this way the entire season. I love these guys, and they have really improved, but there’s no sense of urgency. They’re not coming out here to win.”

Reel said he had given the politically correct answer regarding his team’s performance.

Junior Wes Walden, starting pitcher, pitched the first five innings when the Grenadiers matched up against Oakland City University on April 2.

The Grenadiers suffered greatly during the first half of the game. During the first inning, the score was 0-0.

However, the Mighty Oaks scored two runs at the top of the second inning.

Reel was visibly upset when Oakland City scored their first run at the top of the second inning, and he talked to his pitcher after the play.

The Grenadiers threw a high number of ball pitches and had a very low number of strikeouts.

The Grenadiers also hit the Mighty Oaks’s batters with the ball several times during the game.

“A lot of players got hit,” Coulter said. “[The Grenadiers] also had problems getting their players on bases.”

The Grenadiers were able to keep the Mighty Oaks players from stealing many bases throughout the game.

The Mighty Oaks performed well at defending their bases from the Grenadiers.

As the weather slowly got colder, the Grenadiers’ prospects grew bleaker, and the Mighty Oaks continued scoring runs while the Grenadiers were unable to score at all.

By the top of the sixth inning, the Oakland City University team was leading, 7-0.

However, at the bottom of the sixth inning, the Grenadiers began to close the gap.  The Grenadiers managed to keep the bases full throughout the sixth inning.

The Mighty Oaks began to throw a lot of balls, leading to two walks which later resulted in two runs for IU Southeast. The Grenadiers also scored another two runs, making the score 7-4.

However, Oakland City came back with a vengeance during the top of the seventh inning, scoring two runs.

At the bottom of the seventh inning, the Grenadiers pushed back with equal force, scoring two points, as well.

However, the Mighty Oaks scored their last run of the game during the top of eighth inning, making the score 10-6.

The Grenadiers also lost their previous game to the Mighty Oaks when they played them on April 1 at Oakland City University and lost, 8-3.

“It has been a hit-and-miss season,” Roberta Craig, mother of Kyle Craig, freshman pitcher, said.

Kyle Craig’s father, John Craig, commented on the difficulty of the game.

“They have been playing some tough games,” John Craig said. “They have had some difficulties and have had some stiff competition.”

The Grenadiers’ current record is 17-17.

By BRADLEY COOPER

Staff

bradcoop@ius.edu

Mark Cole, visiting ceramics artist, demonstrates making ceramics on a Potter’s Wheel for students at IU Southeast.

Mark Cole, visiting ceramics artist, introduced himself to a studio filled with students using a narrative approach.

Born on July 4 in Detroit, Cole, the youngest of three boys, realized his passion for fishing and art at a young age.

“Nature has been something that has fascinated me for years,” Cole said.

When he began evaluating where to attend college, Cole chose Northern Michigan University because the school had a brand-new ceramics studio, and Cole would still be able to spend time outdoors.

Martin Zender, who built the ceramics studio, was on his way out due to retirement, and Sam Chung, another potter, replaced Zender.

Cole joked that Chung would use porcelain from a bag, something he was not used to.

“He ended up teaching us that ceramics could have more perimeter,” Cole said. “He has a control over porcelain that was something that I still envy today.”

Cole graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Ceramics in 2000.

After graduating college, he moved back to Detroit to live with his brother because he had no idea what to do with his future.

John Glick, a potter with a studio, allowed Cole to be his right-hand person and his assistant. After this experience, Cole realized he never wanted to be a potter.

“It’s not for me,” Cole said. “I think he lives a lifestyle that I just learned that I wouldn’t thrive in.”

However, after his apprenticeship, Cole decided to move to Thailand where he could work at a pottery place called Umdang Ceramics in a little village, called Dan Kwian.

The individuals in the village all work together to make the pots that get exported to various countries. Cole said it is not a one-person job.

“The whole village works together,” Cole said.

Cole also looked for places where he could continue working with clay.

He joined AmeriCorps to help troubled students at the McCarthey Alternative Education Center in Crescent City, Calif.

“Once you start setting things on fire, these kids are all of a sudden yours,” Cole said. “You have them. They are intrigued.”

Students decorated the center and set up murals outside of the school.

Following his AmeriCorps volunteerism, Cole decided to join the clay business for two years in Helena, Mont., where he drove a forklift around and packaged clay that would be shipped to schools.

Cole applied to only one graduate school — The University of Nebraska Lincoln, — and was not accepted.

With his rejection letter, Cole was invited to attend the school as a special student, who worked in a studio. He took one class and was critiqued by three faculty members, which would eventually become his references.

“I thought, ‘Well, it sounds like a really good idea,’” Cole said.

The next year, Cole applied to five graduate schools and was accepted into three of them. He chose Ohio University for graduate school because the instructors and the students in the program received the same funding for their tuition.

“Ohio University accepts three people into the program each year, and everyone gets the same funding,” Cole said.

While in graduate school, Cole applied for a program, called International Workshop for the Ceramic Arts at Tokoname, in Japan.

At Tokoname, Cole said he worked in a studio and had an opportunity to not only create his ceramics but also experience the culture firsthand.

In his last year of graduate school, Cole focused on his thesis exhibition called “Elaboratous, which is a combination of three words — apparatus, elaborate and amoretto.

Cole’s exhibit focuses on the interaction between people.

His objects were set up inside the gallery that served food in order to keep people inside the gallery. This way, people would be able to look, use and appreciate his ceramics.

Cole has a special technique he uses when he paints his ceramics.

He looks for patterns that are found in nature and then replicates the patterns on his own work.

Dallas Wooten, ceramics freshman, was among the individuals present at the two-day event.

“I really like his outlook on things, as far as he approaches his pots and why,” Wooten said. “I do a lot of the same things.”

Connie Goodwin, fine arts senior, said she enjoyed ceramics with Brian Harper, assistant professor of fine arts, and, after seeing his post on Facebook about the event, she decided to attend.

“I really liked the way he was going with the patterns from nature,” Goodwin said. “I mainly do painting, and I could see myself pulling that in later on.”

By ANA-MARIJA DRINOVAC

Staff

adrinova@umail.iu.edu

Eight IUS students won this year, placing first and second in four of the five undergraduate categories, which included fiction, non-fiction, poetry, academic and international writing.

Leigh Ann Meyer, director of the Writing Center, said she was excited about this year’s competition.

“It’s exciting that we could represent our school like that,” Meyer said. “We won first and second in every category we could have won.”

Winners included:

•    Jonathan Carson, senior, with two first place awards in fiction and academic writing
•    Madison Cyr, senior, with first place in non-fiction
•    Karyl Anne Geary, senior, with second place in non-fiction
•    Stacy D. Lintz, senior, with two second place awards in poetry and academic writing
•    Thomas Ogles, senior, with second place in fiction
•    Melanie Smith, senior, with first place in poetry

The competition has been held every spring for more than 20 years and is made up of seven institutes of higher education, including Bellarmine University, Spalding University and the University of Louisville.

Judges of the competition were made up of four authors and poets from all over the United States.

James Leary, professor of English at the University of Louisville, was the presenter, as well as the academic writing judge.

While the deadline for the competition was the end of January, this year was the first year students could submit electronically or in person to the Writing Center.

The first place winners were awarded $200, and writers are also able to place the awards in their graduate school applications.

“Winning awards like this is a big deal in the community,” Meyer said.

For Smith, it was her first time winning a creative writing award as well as the Metroversity Writing Competition. Smith said her poem entry “Raw” was inspired by the poetry and writings of Patti Smith.

“The meaning of the poem is to define beauty for yourself instead of letting society do it for you,” Smith said.

Smith has also won other awards in other writing contests at IUS for her work.

Meyer said she is excited about the Writing Program at IU Southeast.

“IUS did great work assisting the students who want to be writers,” Meyer said.

Students in the Metroversity Program can also take classes at metroversity campuses, which will count toward their degree.

By BRITTANY ELMORE

Staff

blelmore@ius.edu

Bennett said she is already fully focused on carrying out her new role.

“I am very grateful for the privilege of representing Indiana University Southeast and to serve as the 50th President of the SGA,” Bennett said. “Now that the inauguration has occurred, my vice president, Mary Mour, and I are ready to embark on our new journey and begin working on behalf of all the student body.”

Bennett also took a moment to thank those who helped her secure her seat as SGA president.

“We would like to thank everyone for all of their support along the way and we look forward to working with the administration, the SGA and students to make this a very productive, educational and exciting year,” Bennett said.

In a light-hearted moment, Drew Appel, criminal justice junior and SGA technology officer, offered his congratulations to Bennett and Mour.

“I congratulate our newly elected officials, and Mr. Kornberg – don’t let the door hit you on the way out,” Appel said during the April 5 SGA meeting.

Josh Kornberg, communications senior and the outgoing SGA president, reflected on his term as SGA president after handing the position over to Bennett.

“I feel we have a lot to be proud of after this past year,” Kornberg said. “We’ve really come together and worked well as a student government, so I’m really proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish.”

Kornberg’s post-SGA plans include graduation in May and completing a master’s degree in public affairs at Tennessee State University.

Matt Owen, political science junior and SGA senate chair, and Shanda-Lyn Webb, special education freshman and SGA treasurer, were also honored at the Campus Commitment to Student Learning Ceremony. Owen was presented with the award for “Best SGA Member” for the 2010-2011 academic year while Webb earned the “Best SGA Senator” award. Both awards were determined by a vote of their fellow SGA members.

Owen will be stepping down from the SGA next year as he dedicates more time to his position as a city councilman of Jeffersonville. Webb was re-elected to the SGA Senate during the March elections.

Shortly after the Campus Commitment to Student Learning Ceremony, the SGA combined their celebrations with more serious SGA business at the April 5 SGA meeting, where Kornberg issued his last president’s report.

He informed the SGA that the push to approve the Faculty Provided Course Description policy was losing momentum in the Faculty Senate.

The Faculty Provided Course Description policy would strongly encourage all faculty members to submit brief explanations of the content covered in each of their courses.

Those descriptions would be available to students during registration so they can make an informed decision about which classes to register.

“Asking faculty members to do something that they don’t have to do but that we want them to do is a really hard sell,” Kornberg said. “The only thing we’ve really got going for us is that [IU] Bloomington already has this in place.”

Stephon Moore, political science and journalism freshman and SGA press secretary, raised the idea that the Faculty Provided Course Description would benefit professors. Moore said he believed this is because fewer students would drop classes after the start of the semester if they knew what the courses entailed before the class began.

Kornberg said he affirmed this idea.

“[The Faculty Provided Course Description] is an advantage for some professors who are seeking tenure because it hurts their applications if they have high drop rates,” Kornberg said. “Less students would drop if they knew what they were getting into when they registered.”

Jennifer Reichert, international studies sophomore and SGA senator, issued her report on expanding the amount of exercise equipment in the Activities Building.

Reichert reported it is not within the Athletics Department’s current budget to purchase more exercise equipment for the Activities Building, although they are interested in doing so.

The SGA Senate came to the consensus that they are still committed to expanding the amount of equipment available to students despite athletics’ budget constraint and will look for other sources of funding for the expansion outside of the athletics’ budget.

Ryan Malone, psychology sophomore and SGA senator, announced plans for the SGA to go paperless, which will be implemented sometime in the next week. As a result, all SGA agendas will be uploaded to Oncourse, where the SGA members can read them via their computers or smartphones instead of printing them off.

By AMANDA BROWN

Staff

anb4@umail.iu.edu

With Brown being the first full-time fitness and intramural coordinator for IU Southeast, he is able to host competitions among students, faculty and staff, including basketball, flag football, soccer, softball, wiffleball, dodgeball, volleyball, tennis, golf and cornhole.

Born and raised in Arlington, Ky., Brown grew up with his twin brother.

Later, Brown graduated from Western Kentucky University with a Bachelor of Science and Human Services in 2004. He began working at a recreation center in the city of Henderson, Ky., for a year, and IU Southeast became his workplace ever since then.

Brown said he is looking forward to obtaining an administration position in recreation and sports that will provide opportunity for utilization of his professional strengths, organization and communication skills.

“I love working with the students here at IU Southeast,” Brown said. “I enjoy having students participate in the program and seeing them happy, while being active in a school activity apart from academics.”

Brown said he is hoping for an upgrade of the facilities.

“Campus life is growing, so new and more updated facilities will be great,” Brown said.

Denny Williams, assistant athletic director, said he likes working with Brown because he is a dedicated worker.

“Perry has been working here longer than I have, but, from what I have heard, he is great with the intramurals and above and beyond,” Williams said. “Working with intramural and being that he is head director, it requires a lot of long hours, which does not fit everyone’s schedule. He does a great job balancing his personal life with his occupation, especially being here at IUS at 10 p.m. working. He also does a great job with the student’s and student workers and fits in with the students well. He listens to them, and he is wonderful at gathering events.”

IUS students who are granted the privilege to earn from the work study program can work at the Fitness Center for Brown.

“I have roughly 15 staff members, intramurals officials and also fitness workers,” Brown said. “Intramurals officials are trained in all sports. We have sport events on Thursday and Sunday nights. As for fitness workers, they are to sit in the gym, clean the equipment, make sure everything is going well in the gym and let me know if there are any problems with the equipment.”

Jessica Raymond, communications freshman, is a work study student and staff member of the Fitness Center.

“I love working with Perry and as a work study student,” Raymond said. “My schedule is so flexible, and I am able to concentrate on school and work without stressing.”

Raymond said she enjoys working with Brown and sees him as an older brother.

“The best part about working with Perry is he is always in a happy mood,” Raymond said, “so, when we are in a bad mood, he cheers us up. We are like family here — everyone gets along. I also enjoy the fact he can be a great big brother but also a tough boss. He makes sure we are on time, and we stay on track with our work duties.”

Raymond said she has learned a lot from this job, such as leadership skills and also great customer service.

By MONIQUE CAPTAN

Staff

mcaptan@ius.edu

I know impatience is an ugly trait. However, I take comfort in the fact that most of society also seems to lack the virtue that is deemed “morally excellent.” I am not alone.

Each day, the news is filled with stories about people who fell for a “get-rich-quick scheme” and are now living in even more debt with bad credit and a stolen identity to boot.

Almost everyone takes the quick and easy route at some point in life to experience instant results.  Instead of prolonging action for the betterment of the future, individuals are discovering new techniques in making their lives easier and better for the moment.

Living in the moment is great when it comes to appreciating what one has now, but, when one disregards the future and acts impulsively to gain temporary satisfaction, a much larger problem ensues.

Credit Cards and Student Loans

Sure, credit cards can be handy when one is placed in an emergency situation or when one needs a $4 gallon of gas and their change holder is down to the last penny.

However, credit cards have earned their dangerous reputation honestly.

They are temptresses of money one does not actually have. Credit cards have the ability to convince individuals that they have access to “free” money which often leads to irresponsible, rash purchases.

Although credit cards are convenient at the time, the interest rates become overwhelming and minimum monthly payments hardly keep erratic spenders from drowning in debt.

By the way, this debt will impact a person’s future for the rest of his life.

Suddenly, shopping frivolously via credit cards does not seem too appealing when the future has arrived and one is denied a loan for a house because of $50,000 of instant gratification debt from seven years ago.

Credit cards are not the only way people can financially screw up their future by relying on immediate results. I cannot even keep track of the amount of people I know who have taken out an outlandish amount of student loans each year despite not even using the money for educational purposes.

In case my peers did not know, student loans pile up, and, if one happens to take out an unsubsidized loan, the additional interest is ridiculous.

Student loans are not provided as free money to buy shoes or a car, they are provided with the intent that college students will use this money to pay for their education.

I realize graduation could be a while away for some students and the thought of paying the $20,000 or more in student loans back is probably on the back burner, but the day will come when Sallie Mae wants her money back. On the plus side, students do not have to start paying the loans back as long as they stay in college forever and the loans disappear after one dies.

I know I am as impatient as they come, but I would prefer to work full-time and budget my money well while in school instead of relying on loans that will haunt me in the future.

Cheating

The typical IUS student works and attends school simultaneously while pursuing other commitments, as well.

As one may assume, IUS students are busy and may have a difficult time trying to find time to bathe let alone do homework or study.

Some students may feel so overwhelmed by their daily schedules that instead of preparing for an exam or writing a paper, they decide to cheat.

Plagiarism and cheating are serious offenses in the college world. In my eyes, students who cheat or plagiarize are too lazy to try and earn a decent grade honestly.

When individuals cheat, they are only disserving themselves because they refuse to take the time to actually learn the subject.

What is the point of attending college if one does not complete assignments and decides to cheat through each class?

Assuming the cheater does not get caught and he receives an A on the exam, he will more than likely feel great — for the moment.

If his conscious does not eat at him first, he will be angry at himself in the future when he is hired for a position he is not truly qualified for.

A good grade on an exam through cheating may be gratifying initially, but as time goes on and cheating becomes a habitual quick fix, one realizes the fast and false fulfillment is not worth it.

If time to study was not managed or a priority, OK, accept the deserved grade and learn from it instead of taking pointless shortcuts to attempt success.

Plastic Surgery And Fat Burners

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, 284,405 cosmetic surgical procedures were performed on people ages 13 to 19 in 2009, totaling 2 percent of all cosmetic procedures for that year.

In 2010, there were 4,153 breast augmentation procedures performed on women 18 and younger, which represented 1.3 percent of the total number of breast augmentation procedures.

These are extremely unfortunate statistics.

I have known several young women who have opted for plastic surgery, whether it be breast augmentation, liposuction, nose jobs, etc.

I understand when these decisions are made due to health risks or if the person is unable to live their daily life comfortably, but I have never comprehended why anyone under the age of 25 would ever go under the knife strictly based on cosmetic reasons.

For years, people have been opting for liposuction and taking fat burners to shed their unwanted weight instead of healthier alternatives.

These unhealthy options may have faster results, but, in the long run, one may end up gaining the weight back or end up having worse health risks.

Obviously working out and dieting are not fun, and they are definitely hard work, but they are much more reliable and safe when trying to lose weight.

Besides, liposuction and fat burners hardly tone one’s body, therefore, working out is necessary when trying to gain the body one desires.

Final Thoughts

If people were offered two options — $1,000 today or $15,000 in five years — I wonder how many people would select the first amount because it could be the answer to their current desires, despite how much larger the second option is.

Just because something is instant or easy does not mean it is better or more beneficial.

Life is more gratifying when worked for and as the old saying goes, good things come to those who wait.

By COURTNEY MCKINLEY

Sports Editor

comckinl@imail.iu.edu