The Horizon

Student quits school, comes back ready to collect bet

IUS Horizon • December 2, 2012

Laura Caruso, communication senior, has not had a typical college experience. She has not attended college for four straight years or been ready to graduate, until now. However, she said this long, winding journey through school was not due to a lack of motivation, but rather to a plan for the future Caruso said she first attended IU Southeast straight out of high school in 2005, took a break after 2008 to put her husband, Michael, through classes at Purdue University and returned in 2011. “It’s a big deal to me that I actually got myself back here, and I’m balancing — sometimes horribly — making sure my husband has food and getting good grades,” she said.

Omelet cook gets batty in different states during summer

IUS Horizon • December 2, 2012

Brian Dennis, biology sophomore, said he is known as the guy who cooks the omelets to many IUS students. In fact, Dennis has been working the morning shift in the Food Court all semester, but this is merely a break from his other “batty” job. During summer breaks, Dennis trades his cooking utensils in for tracking devices and nets. His work no longer centers on the needs of students, but on the needs of wild bats. And just as Bruce Wayne’s work as an entrepreneur is merely a side job from being Batman, Dennis’ omelet work is a side job from being his own form of “Batman.”

Student captures small moments with paint

IUS Horizon • November 25, 2012

A woman sitting in her favorite green chair with her very fat brown cat, stare directly at students as they walked down into the lower level of the IUS Library. This painting, called “Ambrose,” was just one of the six paintings featured in the “Artist Among Us Gallery,” on Nov. 9. Most of the paintings featured captured moments in bright, eye-catching colors on huge canvases, such as the woman sitting in her favorite chair.

Farmer’s daughter influenced by life’s travels

IUS Horizon • November 25, 2012

Most students think of two things for the first day of classes: syllabuses and self-introductions. For many, reading the syllabus is the easy part and coming up with something interesting to say is not. For lack of better alternatives, most end up just blurting out that they have a cat or like to watch TV. There are some people, though, whose unique answers seem destined for the task. If still a student, Audrey Deterding, assistant professor of communication studies, would be one of those people. “I’d probably say that I have four sisters because it’s something kind of unique, and it would be something that people remember,” Deterding said.

Registrar runs back to campus culture

IUS Horizon • November 11, 2012

Patrick Fawcett, Registrar, has been working at IU Southeast for six months. He has worked in higher education since 1996. Fawcett said he missed the four-year environment and wanted to be part of a campus culture again, so he left his previous job of nine years with Ivy Tech. When the position became available, he applied for the job at IU Southeast.

Geology adjunct explores through travel

IUS Horizon • November 11, 2012

Like most young adults, Ronald Endris, adjunct professor of geology, went to college right out of high school. He said he did not feel as though college was for him, so he decided to quit attending. However, it did not take long for Endris to realize he had made a mistake. He realized he wanted to go back to school. Endris said quitting college and then re-attending was the biggest turning point in his life. “At the time, I had a wife and two kids,” Endris said. “I saved money to go to school while working for a paint company.”

Student finds focus in music

IUS Horizon • November 5, 2012

When starting college, some students struggle with declaring majors due to the variety of opportunities offered to them and concerns about choosing the right degrees. However, for Benjamin Johnson, music junior, he said he had a rough start when he first came to college and was unable to focus due to having Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. “I was failing my classes,” Johnson said. “I didn’t know what I would do with a music degree.”

Chef adds zest to Food Court

IUS Horizon • November 5, 2012

[Chef 1] Aaron Wilder, sous chef for Dining and Conference Services, helps prepare a sandwich for a customer in the Food Court. Wilder is an IUS alumnus and applied for the position three times over a three-year period before being selected for the position. IU Southeast hired a new chef at the beginning of the year, Aaron Wilder, sous chef for Dining and Conference Services. Wilder graduated from the School of Business with a Bachelor of Science in business management at IU Southeast in 2006. “I learned more from being on the job than in [culinary] school,” Wilder said. “I felt [it] was a waste of money.”

Biology adjunct inspired by lizards, outdoors

IUS Horizon • October 21, 2012

Neil Cornell, adjunct professor of biology, said he admires nature and the outdoors. Cornell’s love for nature started when his father showed him a lizard in a jar. “It was one of my first memories,” Cornell said. “It was the most amazing thing that I had encountered in my early life.”

Non-traditional student values ‘I,’ ‘US’

IUS Horizon • October 14, 2012

The moment Yvonne Bagshaw, general studies senior, walked into the Adult Student Center for the first time, Kim Pelle, coordinator for Non-traditional Student Programs, said she knew Bagshaw was going to be very successful and inspirational. However, Bagshaw said she did not always feel that way. “I hated school,” Bagshaw said. “I dropped out of high school and had no intentions of coming back.”

Student finds fulfillment through fraternity, family values

IUS Horizon • October 14, 2012

Joe Voss, music business junior, is a trumpet and keyboard player, actor, secretary for Pike fraternity and is from a family of 15. Voss said he has played the trumpet for 13 years and the keyboard for three years. “I got interested in music when I was 8 or 9,” Voss said. “My family is really musical. My parents encouraged us all to get an instrument just for stress relief or as a talent to have when we’re older.”

Gamer plays many roles on campus

IUS Horizon • October 7, 2012

Megan Schultz, English junior, who answers mostly to Megz, said she is an amazingly busy individual. She spends about 10 to 15 hours on homework per week, as well as being on campus nearly 30 hours per week. However, Schultz still tries to find time for herself by participating in a particularly unique activity called LARP.