Coming to America - UMKC WordPress (info.umkc.edu)

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www.unews.com
March 22, 2010
Vol. 77, Issue 26
INSIDE
HOW TO: FLY page 13
VOLUNTEER page 6
REPO MEN page 8
Coming to America
Alexia Stout-Lang
News Editor
E
ach day in countries around the
world, people long to come to
America.
The reasons for dreaming of
this country are as varied as those
who dream. The desire for freedom from oppression, a better life for themselves and their families
or even to be near loved ones could be part of the
motivation that drives masses of people to the
United States.
Despite difficulty in obtaining citizenship
or any kind of barriers put up between borders,
Stephanie Marquez, professor of Spanish at
UMKC, said people will continue to come to
America legally and illegally.
“They could put up one wall or they can put up
25 walls, but whenever you have people who are
Photo courtesy GOOGLE IMAGES
A wall is constructed between America and Mexico.
starving and dying of malnutrition and poverty see
how green the grass is on the other side, they will
dig tunnels (More tunnels. They already exist.)
under all 25 of them,” Marquez said. “No matter
how many walls we put up or how strengthened
our Border Patrol is, it’s never going to stop illegal
immigration.”
Reasons for immigrating
With a large number of immigrants settling in
America both legally and illegally, immigration
has become a hot-button topic in the United States.
Marquez, like many other faculty, students and
staff at UMKC, has some personal experience and
academic knowledge of the immigration process
in America.
While taking college courses in Mexico, Marquez met the man who would later become her
husband.
He went through all of the legal processes to
visit the United States, become a permanent resident and finally a citizen. But knowing how difficult it is to go through that process and the number
of people who are not able to go through it, it does
not surprise her cases of illegal immigration are
so prominent.
“The stigma attached to immigration is that
people just want to just cross that fence, swim
through the water, climb the whatever and stay
here, set up shop and be a criminal here,” Marquez said. “But to be very honest, do people usually stay? Yeah. Because they see how greener the
grass is on this side.”
Dr. Stephen Dilks, professor of English originally from England who has had permanent residency in America since 1997, said, despite being
married to an American, he struggled to determine if he would become an American citizen
because of the impact it would have on his mother.
“I have nothing against America,” Dilks
said. “In fact, I love many contributions to life
and culture made in the name of America. For
me, being married to an American for 17 years
and having an American Ph. D., there are no ad-
Protests regarding immigration laws happen around the country.
ministrative roadblocks.”
Immigration roadblocks
For most, legally immigrating is not as simple
as it was for Dilks and Marquez.
Marquez said one of the biggest misconceptions is that roadblocks pop up once a person applies for citizenship.
“The hard part is getting the green card [permanent residency],” she said.
While Dilks noted the process of gaining permanent residency and citizenship is not easy, he
said he recognizes it has been easier for him than
for others.
“I spent many hours in lines at the INS in
Newark, N.J., and would sometimes have to argue
my case,” he said. “My own situation was always
much better than others in the line, those who
knew little English because they had just arrived
from Russia or Senegal or Laos.”
Dollars and cents
Dilks said he has paid around $1,000 total for
residency and citizenship.
Marquez said she and her husband paid close to
$2,000, even though they did their own paperwork
instead of hiring an attorney.
“An attorney might charge between $1,200 and
$3,000 to do it for you,” Marquez said. “So, knowing what you are doing is a good thing. It can save
you a lot of money.”
One thing Marquez said is important to re-
I
See IMMIGRATION page 7
Making UMKC accessible to all
Alexia Stout-Lang
News Editor
A hilly landscape, steep
stairs, slow elevators and construction zones can make getting around campus tough for
many of us.
But these features place a
heavier toll on students with
disabilities.
Lorie Sparks, a senior
in Liberal Arts, gets around
campus in a wheelchair with
the assistance of her Labrador,
Bailey. Sparks said she has the
most trouble maneuvering the
sidewalks and streets on campus.
“Uphill and downhill,” she
said. “Some of the students
don’t really stop and say, ‘Can
I help you?’ So, it’s tough.”
She said University Center, Grant Hall and Miller
Nichols Library are the hardest places for her to go.
“I have a tough time going
to the library to get books and
things,” Sparks said. “I had a
Political Science class last fall
I had to get a book for, it was
so tough to get in there. I had
to talk to the teacher so we
could make accommodations.
It’s not really safe for anyone
in a wheelchair to go there.”
“Uphill and downhill.
Some of the students
don’t really stop and
say, ‘Can I help you?’
So, it’s tough.”
LORIE SPARKS
Senior, Liberal Arts
In an effort to make her
days easier, Sparks puts a lot
of thought into her course
schedule each semester.
“It is easy to get around
in buildings if I pick the right
class,” she said. “I try to pick
classes in the same building
because it takes a while to
switch classrooms.”
She also chooses classes
that are on the same day as
much as possible. That way
she can just spend a couple
long days on campus instead
of multiple short days.
Sparks said UMKC has
been accommodating to her
needs as a student.
Because she is also deaf,
Sparks is provided with sign
language interpreters during
classes, notetakers and test
taking services.
Scott Laurent, with Student Disability Services, is
responsible for ensuring students with disabilities have
equal access to the learning
environment at UMKC. His
office serves 200-225 students each year.
“The kinds of services
a student receives depends
upon their disability and any
barriers that the disability creates,” Laurent said. “Typical
accommodations can include
extended time on exams, a
peer notetaker, sign language
interpreters, books in electronic format for people with
vision impairments, etc.”
Laurent said continual
improvements in technology
allow his department to provide better and more effective
services.
“When I started working
with students almost 12 years
ago, we had someone read
their textbooks onto cassette
tape for students to listen to
who had a visual impairment,” he said. “Today, we
are able to scan and convert
the books into digital text and
they can have their computers
read to them. There are more
improvements in this area that
are on the horizon that we
hope to implement when the
technology matures.”
Photo ALEXIA STOUT-LANG
Maneuvering around UMKC can be difficult for some students with disabilities.
Building handicap accessibility
Most of the buildings on
the UMKC campus are handicap accessible, Laurent said.
Exceptions include Epperson House and the second floor of the building
I
See ACCESS page 20
2
News
March 22, 2010
Violence in Mexico
impacts spring break plans
Alexia Stout-Lang
Assistant News Editor
Photo courtesy NATHAN LANG
The increasing crime rate in Mexico is making travel dangerous for tourists.
home was constructed with hand tools.
Bryan Kidney, finance director for
the city of Shawnee, Kan., who was
also on the trip, said the biggest regret
was not being able to give the family
in Ciudad Juarez a home.
“They are going to have to wait
even longer to have a home of their
own,” Kidney said. “I feel badly for
them. There are so many families in
Mexico in the same situation.”
All members of the group said they
were not prepared for the culture shock
they experienced in Puerto Piñasco.
“We were also told a man was
shot just outside the camp
where we were going to be
staying. It was the result of a
party getting out of hand, but
the mission camp was being
evacuated for safety.”
GERMAN PORTILLO
Team leader and praise and worship
leader at Kaw Prairie Community Church,
Lenexa, Kan.
While one side of the city is a beach
resort, the area where they were working was poverty stricken.
“Most homes had dirt floors – some
people did not even have homes,” Wendy Trueblood said. “They lived in cars,
in structures constructed out of straps.
Water was not readily available and
there was no electricity in the homes.”
U.S. government travel warnings
The Department of State has issued
a travel warning until April 12 for U.S.
citizens traveling to Mexico.
Specific areas of concern include
the states of Durango, Coahuila and
Chihuahua.
Dependents of U.S. government
personnel from U.S. consulates in the
Northern Mexican border cities of Tijuana, Nogales, Ciudad Juarez, Nuevo
Laredo, Monterrey and Matamoros
have been authorized to evacuate.
“While millions of U.S. citizens
safely visit Mexico each year (including tens of thousands who cross the
land border daily for study, tourism or
business and nearly one million U.S.
citizens who live in Mexico), violence
in the country has increased,” according to a statement from the Department of State. “It is imperative that
U.S. citizens understand the risks in
Mexico, how best to avoid dangerous
situations and who to contact if victimized.”
Officials are advising tourists to
avoid traveling at night, visit only legitimate business and tourist areas
during daylight hours and avoid areas
where prostitution and drug dealing
might occur.
Waits at the border entering and
exiting Mexico have been shorter
than usual. Prior to entering Mexico,
the U.S. Border Patrol will ask questions about destination, the amount of
money a group is carrying and more to
ensure the safety of U.S. citizens.
For those with plans to visit Mexico over spring break, go to http://
travel.state.gov/travel/cis_ pa_ tw/
spring_break_mexico/spring_break_
mexico_2812.html and read the information provided prior to departure.
For more information about the
situation in Mexico, visit http://
travel.state.gov/travel/cis_ pa_tw/tw/
tw_4755.html.
alang@unews.com
The 13 members of the
UMKC Mock Trial team
competed at the Opening
Round Championship Tournament (ORCT) in St. Louis,
Mo., beating out 25 teams for
first place, including Washington University, University of Iowa and Rhode College, March 11-13.
One of the two UMKC
teams, both coached by Jessica Bernard, a partner at Kansas City law firm Ensz and
Jester, placed first at the tournament, with the first ever undefeated record (8-0). The team earned a bid to
the National Championship
Tournament in Memphis,
Tenn., April 16-18, going
against Harvard, University
of Chicago, Northwestern,
Georgetown and others. The second team, consisting almost entirely of
first year competitors, won
more than half their ballots. While all teams were
permitted to compete at the
Regional Competition (February in Topeka, Kan.), not
all teams earned the right to
compete at the ORCT. Both UMKC teams earned
bids to the ORCT after their
Regional Competition performances.
The team advancing to the
final level of nationals, also
took first place at the Regional Competition. In addition to the win,
four UMKC students received individual recognition for their portrayal of
witnesses and attorneys during the competition. Senior and second-year
competitor Irene Downs received recognition as a witness and attorney. Junior, U-News Publication Board member and
third-year competitor Jennifer Kaminsky received recognition as an attorney.
Jacquelyn Hoer mann,
ju n ior and second-yea r
competitor, and Brit Cook,
sophomore and first-year
competitor, received recog-
nition as top witnesses. The program is consistently winning ballots
against teams with third and
fou r t h -ye a r c omp et it or s ,
while the UMKC program
consists almost entirely of
first-year competitors.
Although the team has a
few second-year competitors and one third-year competitor, the team members
are very young. UMKC
is
the
only
Missouri program that
has earned a bid to the National Championship Tournament, even though a number of Missouri schools,
including University of Missouri – Columbia, Saint Louis University, Washington
University, Columbia College, Creighton, Avila, Truman State and Central Missouri, compete in mock trial
programs. In a field of more than
60 teams, UMKC took first
place at the University of
Kansas Invitational in November and placed fourth
at the National Invitational
at Loras College tournament
in January. The program was awarded
the “Spirit of AMTA” award,
signifying the team’s professionalism and commitment
to fair play. Students of other mock
trial programs voted for the
recipient of the award. Try-outs for the 2010-11
team will be held in the fall. “It’s a t rai n i ng
ground for f uture lawyers, where each team has
three attorneys and three witnesses who present a case on
the prosecution and defense
sides against other teams,
and a judge presides over
everything and decides a
verdict,” program member
and U-News staff writer
Teresa Sheffield said. “It’s
also a big deal that we just
went undefeated at ORCT,
because that kind of record
rarely happens and no one
expected UMKC to even get
out of ORCT.”
nbomgardner@unews.com
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March 22, 2010
The road to graduate school
UMKC takes Mock Trial
championship
Nikki Bomgardner
News Editor
Recent violence across Mexico has
impacted spring break and mission
trips to the country.
Last week, news agencies reported
the shooting of two American citizens in Cuidad Juarez, Chihuahua, in
northern Mexico. In the western state
of Guerrero, at least 25 people were
killed in a series of violent acts March
13. In addition, the bodies of 14 people
were found in various parts of the resort city of Acapulco.
Last week, while most schools in
Kansas were on spring break, a group
of 16 Kansas City Metro residents left
March 13 bound for Ciudad Juarez
to build a house for a family in need.
(The reporter accompanied the group
on the trip.)
“We received news while on a rest
stop in Oklahoma about the shootings,” said German Portillo, team
leader and praise and worship leader
at Kaw Prairie Community Church,
in Lenexa, Kan. “We were also told
a man was shot just outside the camp
where we were going to be staying. It
was the result of a party getting out of
hand, but the mission camp was being
evacuated for safety.”
Mexican authorities report that
more than 2,600 people were killed in
Ciudad Juarez in 2009. Additionally,
the city of 1.3 million people experienced more than 16,000 car thefts and
1,900 carjackings in 2009.
The Kansas City group members
consulted with a group of 18 residents
from Wichita, Kan., they were planning to work with in Mexico and decided an alternate plan must be made.
“We had five kids under the age of
18 in the whole group so it was a tough
decision,” Portillo said. “I am thankful
their parents were all there with them.”
The groups were rerouted to Puerto
Piñasco, across from Baja California,
which added an extra day to the trip,
giving them two days to build the
home.
After driving through a snow storm
in New Mexico that claimed the lives
of four teenagers traveling with another group, the four vans filled with
32 people arrived in Puerto Piñasco
Monday night.
“We knew we had a job to do and
it was not going to be easy,” Portillo
said. “We put up the house in record
time. I know a lot of other groups
never made it to their destinations and
many people in Mexico suffered this
week.”
The location where the home was
built did not have electricity. So, the
www.unews.com
3
Melissa Oribhabor
A graduate degree can give job applicants an advantage over others.
Culture Editor
Recently, many people who
have been laid off from their jobs
have gone back to school to either
get or complete a bachelor’s or
master’s degree.
With the number of people entering the workforce with college
degrees on the rise, it is becoming
more important to have more than
just a bachelor’s degree.
Although many are choosing to
go to graduate school, the process
is not simple and, if not done right,
can severely delay a student’s educational goals, giving an advantage to those who got it right the
first time.
Requirements to get into graduate school vary between universities and programs, but there
are overall guidelines potential
students should follow to ensure
they are accepted and successful
in their chosen program.
One of the most crucial things
is timing, said Terrence Grus, director of Graduate Admissions
and Records at the University of
Missouri-Columbia.
“Start preparing early,” Grus
said. “I would say early in the junior year or the third year of college in the undergrad program.
Start finding out what the admission timeline and admission requirements are for the program.
There’s number of things they
might have to do in terms of starting standardized tests like the
GRE [Graduate Record Examinations] or the GMAT [Graduate
Management Admission Test].
Once they get into their senior
year, it starts moving real fast.”
These and similar tests are required for entry into most graduate programs. It is important to
find out which test is required for
the desired program.
Some business schools, such
as the Bloch School of Business
and Administration, require the
GMAT for admittance.
Some business schools will accept the GRE, but students will be
ineligible for assistantships.
Study material for these tests
are available through the campus
bookstore and most other major
booksellers.
There are also classes offered
through Kaplan and The Princeton
Review that can be extremely beneficial.
Prices range from $1,049 to
$1,700.
“Start preparing early.
I would say early in the
junior year or the third year
of college in the undergrad
program.”
TERRENCE GRUS
Director of Graduate Admissions and
Records at the University of MissouriColumbia
International students are required to take the TOEFL (Test of
English as a Foreign Language) or
IELTS (International English Language Testing System) in addition
to the other required standardized
tests.
All of these admission tests
come with costs to take them. The
GRE is $140 and the GMAT is
$250.
Letters of recommendation are
also very important.
Not all programs require letters of recommendation, but it is
always good to have at least three
letters from professors and/or employers who can speak to an applicant’s strengths as a student and
worker.
These can become imperative
even if a program doesn’t require
any. If the admissions board is on
the fence about an application, it
might be that final push necessary
for admission.
Most graduate schools require
a general application to the graduate school, and possibly a second
application to the program.
These applications, like the
undergraduate applications, have
a fee. This application process
should be done first and accurately.
Official transcripts are required for admission anywhere
and there is usually a $5-$20 fee
to request an official transcript,
depending on the school.
A transcript is needed from all
institutions where classes were
taken. Undergraduate grades are
important and it’s not too late to
get grades up.
The closer to graduation, the
harder it is to move a GPA. But having high marks junior and senior
year shows growth as a student.
Visit the specific Web site of
the desired program early on to
know exactly what needs to be
done to meet the department’s
needs.
Sometimes even when everything is completed and submitted
by the deadline, the applicant pool
is too good and qualified students
don’t get in. But there is hope.
“We’ve had people, for instance, who have applied to our
journalism school who have applied for multiple years and maybe
they didn’t get in the first time
they applied, they maybe got in
the second time they applied,”
Grus said.
The rejection letter can actually
hold good insight into why a student was rejected and reading the
letter can help for reapplication.
moribhabor@unews.com
Show-Me think-tank wants ‘Obamanomics’ to reform
Kip Ryan
Staff Writer
The Show-Me Institute, a Libertarian think-tank in St. Louis, sponsored Harvard professor Jeffrey
Miron’s lecture on “Obamanomics,”
last Tuesday at the Plaza Library.
“Obamanomics” is a critique
of President Barack Obama’s economic policy specifically centered
on spending.
Libertarians agree tax cuts are
more effective for economic stimulus.
Miron prefaced his presentation
by acknowledging the Obama administration took control during an
unstable economic period.
He doesn’t believe the economy
was as bad as politicians let on or
that the administration’s response
will provide a long-term solution.
According to economist John
Maynard Keynes, when an economy is in a recession, the government
has two options.
One choice is to increase the
purchasing of items through spending and the other is to cut taxes and
allow people to spend their money.
“Both options assume that if
people have extra income, they will
spend some of it,” Miron said. “In
the strict Keynesian logic, it actually
doesn’t matter which way you go.”
Miron said if spending is the answer, it must be done efficiently and
effectively.
Politicians are unable to execute
this because they are too concerned
with getting re-elected.
“We should always be looking at the cost-benefit analysis,”
Miron said. “We should recognize that even if some [spending]
is good, it doesn’t mean that more
is always better. Before we undertook all this extra spending, we
should have demanded convincing
evidence that all the money spent
was going to pass a cost-benefit
analysis.”
“We have missed the chance
to engage in growing the pie
as opposed to dividing it.”
JEFFREY MIRON
Harvard professor
He said the Obama administration never provided any evidence
that proved all the initial spending would be good, simply because
more government spending on these
things is always good.
Another problem, he said, is it
takes time to analyze the results of
this spending.
“We have to choose good projects in a crisis,” Miron said. “Because in a crisis you have to move
fast and that’s incredibly antithetical to doing it well.”
He referenced the administration’s handling of the housing crisis,
the auto and banking bailouts and
other issues as irrationally-quick
decision making.
“We have missed the chance to
engage in growing the pie as opposed to dividing it,” he said. “We
are on a path to spend way more
than we are receiving in tax revenues.”
He believes the United States
has to either cut everything except
Medicare and Medicaid or raise taxes, which would have an asphyxiating effect on the economy.
“President Obama had a chance
to really fix it,” Miron said. “If anyone could have gotten re-elected after telling people that they wouldn’t
receive their benefits until closer to
age 75 as opposed to 65, President
Obama could have.”
He said the politically gridlocked
environment in Washington is good
for Libertarians who he encouraged
to vote for non-incumbents.
He thinks the Obama administration forced to compromise may
prove to be similar to the last six
years of the Clinton administration
that, although not perfect, were certainly profitable.
“In a great world, you would
have some libertarian benevolent
dictator who would just repeal everything since the ’90s,” Miron
said. “The 1790s.”
kryan@unews.com
4
News
March 22, 2010
www.unews.com
Day in the life: A career counselor
Melissa Cowan
Staff Writer
Tr e a s u r e s a r c h i v e d f o r d i s c o v e r y
For Annette Haynes, manager of Career Services and Educational Placement, every day for
the past 38 years has been different.
“It’s a vibrant place,” she said. “We have some
of the greatest students here on campus.”
After receiving her degree in Elementary Education, Haynes realized the field was “not for her.”
But she wanted to stay involved with education, so
she came to UMKC.
She started here as a stenographer, “like a …
secretary,” then switched to academic advisor for
the Bloch School of Business and Administration.
She stayed in that position for 16 years before
becoming a career counselor.
She’s been with Career Services for 20 years.
She smiled while talking about her time here.
“It’s been a good ride,” Haynes said. “I’ve been
in two really great places.”
And there is no typical day for Haynes.
“Some days, I’ll go without seeing any students,” she said. “Other days, I can see 10-12 students in an afternoon.”
It also depends on the time of year, she said.
One of Haynes’ responsibilities is working with
accounting students.
Their recruitment is done in the fall so she sees
a lot of them during that time.
Another title Haynes has is liaison for the
School of Education. She just finished helping with
Teacher Recruitment Day.
Students mostly come to Haynes for help with
job searching and résumé critiques, which can be
sent via e-mail.
“We really use technology a great deal,” Haynes
said. “Any question you have … any service, you
can go to the Web site and at least get some generic
information.”
In addition, Haynes contacts businesses to speak
on campus. She gives presentations and mock interviews for classes as well.
“This is an important service because students
go to college so they can get jobs,” Haynes said.
“Especially in this economy, they’re not only competing with students from UMKC but students from
all over, as well as alumni and community people.”
Former
governor talks
marijuana
Nikki Bomgardner
Photo MELISSA COWAN
Annette Haynes, manager of Career Services and Educational Placement.
UMKC students are the first priority for Career Services, Haynes said, but they also help people from the community, if they have time.
“Sometimes it gets stressful. … It’s really hard
in this economy convincing people they’ll get a
job,” Haynes said. “But I just love it here. Why
would I leave?”
Haynes and the other eight career counselors
are available in the Bloch School and Flarsheim and
Johnson halls for a few hours on Tuesdays, Wednes-
days and Thursdays, available by walk-in only.
“We try to bring ourselves on campus,” Haynes
said. “Just to make it more convenient for the students to pop in and see us when they want to.”
Their main offices, open Monday-Friday from
8 a.m. to 5 p.m., are in the Career Services Center,
4825 Troost on the second floor.
For more information, visit http://career.umkc.
edu. To make an appointment, call 816-235-1636.
mcowan@unews.com
ELVIS PRESLEY’S FIRST RECORD by ALEXIA STOUT-LANG
Photo courtesy LABUDDE SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
In a room stacked floor to
ceiling with records from some
of the best musicians of the 20th
Century, Elvis Presley fans will
find quite the treat.
The King’s very first record lives in the Marr Sound
Archives at Miller Nichols Library.
Featuring
“That’s
All
Right” and “Blue Moon of
Kentucky,” it was recorded in
Memphis, Tenn., under the Sun
Records Company label.
When Presley was first trying to get a start in the music
business, he struggled. Nothing
came of his first recording session at Sun Records.
Determined to give music
another shot, he returned to the
studio in 1954 to record two
more songs, “Casual Love Affair” and “I’ll Never Stand in
Your Way.”
Founder of Sun Records
Sam Phillips did not give Pre-
sley many words of encouragement, but he did take his number and address.
Presley did not hear back
from Phillips until Peer Music
of Nashville sent Sun Records
a demo of “Without You” and
Phillips decided to let Presley
have a shot at recording it.
While Presley could not
seem to master the song, he
was given the opportunity to
try some different songs. His
ability to sing those songs convinced Phillips he had some
talent.
That was Presley’s ticket to
his future in the music industry.
Those interested in listening to Presley’s first album
can contact the Marr Sound
Archives, located on the lower
level of the library.
For more information about
the sound collection, visit
http://library.umkc.edu/marr.
alang@unews.com
Former governor of New
Mexico, Republican Gary Johnson, was at the UMKC School of
Law student lounge delivering a
message to a group of students
and faculty Tuesday.
“Congress will pass laws
regarding anything and everything,” Johnson said. “This is our
America, take it back.”
Johnson occupied the governor’s seat in New Mexico for two
terms. He proudly vetoed 750
bills during that time and he was
only overridden twice.
However, Johnson did not begin as a politician.
He was an entrepreneur, starting his own construction business that turned in to a 1,000 person operation.
But he said politics was something he had always wanted to do.
He was told he was a nice guy
but had no chance of winning. He
won his first campaign and was
re-elected four years later.
Johnson was at UMKC to
promote his Web site of which
he is honorary chairman, www.
ouramericainitiative.com.
He began the evening with
a little background on himself
and the goals he hopes to accomplish with his Web site. He then
opened the floor for questions.
The audience, consisting
mostly of men of all ages, had a
variety of issues to discuss.
But one continuously came to
the floor: Legalizing marijuana
and the difficulties associated
with medical marijuana.
He said just as many Democrats as Republicans are standing
in the way of legalizing marijuana and only 14 states have passed
laws in support of medical marijuana.
“I’ve smoked pot and drank,
marijuana is better,” Johnson
said. “Why not legalize [marijuana] with laws similar to those of
drinking laws? The only problem
with smoking marijuana is an
overindulgence in potato chips.”
He also talked about his experiences in office.
“It was A-Z, 24/7, blood-boiling work,” he said.
Johnson’s last term ended in
January 2003 and he thought he
was done. However, staying active in politics was important to
him.
He briefly spoke on the subject of health care in America.
Johnson said America’s financial
problems are Medicaid, Medicare and social security.
“We are broke,” Johnson said.
“We have to start slashing there,
we simply can’t afford it.”
Johnson said he would consider running for president of the
United States.
Johnson can be reached at
info@ouramericainitiative.com.
5
News
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Dancer at heart lives dream
Alexia Stout-Lang
News Editor
Many little girls dream of
dancing when they grow up.
That dream recently came true
for Lorie Sparks, a senior in Liberal Arts.
She discovered a wheelchair
ballroom dance program in October at a dance studio in Westport.
“It’s called Groovability,”
Sparks said through her interpreter.
In addition to getting around
in a wheelchair with the help of a
Labrador named Bailey, Sparks is
deaf.
But that hasn’t kept her from
reaching for her dreams.
LORIE SPARKS
Senior, Liberal Arts
University
News
!
Get
into
it
Family trends
impact politics
Evan Helmuth
“It’s called Groovability.”
She said she has wanted to
dance “for four or five years – or
forever, you know. Hard to tell
when it began. And I will want to
until I die.”
Her favorite dance moves are
swinging and the Waltz because
they are smooth.
She is able to spin in circles
by holding onto a partner’s hand
and putting her other hand on her
wheelchair to control movement.
“It’s difficult to learn, but I am
really enjoying it,” Sparks said.
Sparks transferred to UMKC
three semesters ago from Johnson
County Community College.
“Here at UMKC has been a
good experience for me,” she
said. “I get along with all the
students. I have trouble with the
outside of campus. Uphill and
downhill.”
Aside from her upcoming graduation, Sparks is looking forward
to participating in a dance compe-
March 22, 2010
People with disabilities are given an opportunity to dance with “Groovability.”
tition.
She is just waiting for her dance
teacher to tell her when.
“I am really excited about dancing in a competition,” she said.
alang@unews.com
Staff Writer
UMKC Law professor June
Carbone spoke last Wednesday
about the correlation between
family and politics.
The event, hosted by the Women’s Center and the Women’s and
Gender Studies program, was
focused mainly on the book Carbone recently co-authored with
Naomi Cahn, titled “Red Families
v. Blue Families.”
Carbone said the idea for the
book was hatched in 2004 during
the presidential campaign.
“Our original idea was to look
at the age at which families were
started because we were interested in this torrent of rhetoric in the
campaign focused on ‘family values’ and what that might mean,”
Carbone said.
Carbone and Cahn found what
they called strong correlations
indicating the country was being
split politically according to how
its families were organized.
“You basically have two different family systems emerging in
different parts of the country and
those are correlating better than
almost anything else to political
behavior,” Carbone said.
The “Red” family represents
the traditional way of going about
making a family.
It involves getting married at
a young age and having children
soon thereafter.
Carbone pointed out this was
made possible in the past by an
ample supply of well-paying bluecollar jobs for people with no more
than a high school education.
Carbone said “Blue” families
tend to report more use of contraception, fewer instances of
non-marital pregnancy and lower
divorce rates than “Red” families
do.
The trend identified by Carbone and Cahn was for younger
people to get advanced degrees
and establish themselves politically first before getting married
and starting families well into
their 30s.
She said this has to do with
financial and emotional stability
that increases with age and education.
Conversely, the tendency of
“Red” families toward divorce
can probably be attributed to a
decline in the social pressures that
used to surround marriages, Carbone said.
“You no longer have a situation
in which everyone in the community expects you to get married
once you get pregnant and stay
married once you get married,”
Carbone said.
Carbone’s research indicates
that “Blue” families often vote for
Democrats.
She was even able to predict
Virginia, Colorado and North
Carolina would vote for Obama
in 2008, because, “those places
experienced huge drops in nonmarital pregnancy rates” which
indicated a demographic shift in
their populations.
“Blue” families tend also to
live almost exclusively in urban
areas and are much more likely
than “Red” families to move away
from the state where they were
born or raised.
ehelmuth@unews.com
6
News
March 22, 2010
www.unews.com
Paying it forward - Kansas City style
LAYOUT BY HILARY HEDGES
March 12
Harvesters reaches 300,000 people each year.
YouthFriends is a tutoring and mentoring program that partners with Kansas City Metro schools.
Volunteers can be a YouthFriend to
one student or an entire classroom and
are only required to spend one hour a
week with the children.
Pam Kotelov Glickman, program
coordinator, said the program has more
than 800 volunteers.
“We really run the gambit,” she said.
“It really benefits the kids to have a caring adult other than at their home.”
Volunteers range from retirees people, people who come from work on a
lunch break and college students.
“College students bring so much
energy and enthusiasm to the schools,”
Glickman said. “It’s a small weekly
commitment and many of our students
come at lunchtime. We do our best to
place college students close to campus.”
Some of the projects volunteers do
with the students include reading, making flashcards, doing spelling work,
researching projects with the upper
grades, drawing, discussing the books
they read to help their reading comprehension and participating in after-school
activities like dance or basketball.
Glickman said she tries to ensure the
volunteers do things that interest them.
“We really do our best to make it
meaningful for the volunteers,” she
said. “It’s beneficial to the school and
the child, but we want to make it meaningful for the adult, too.”
The program is designed to provide
children with a positive adult influence
in their lives.
“The goal is for children to academically achieve more, and for them to have
a friend,” Glickman said. “We really
hope more people can get involved with
YouthFriends and we want the community to see what good is going on in the
schools. It’s just one hour a week.”
sen, Harvester’s spokesperson. “If
we had to replace volunteers, we’d
need 52 full-time staff members.”
Volunteers are mostly needed
to sort and repackage donated food
and to pack “Back Snacks,” backpacks full of food for low-income
children who get free or discounted
lunches at school.
“I think it’s a wonderful volunteer opportunity for anybody,”
Feldhausen said. “It’s one thing you
can do to directly help somebody
else. Our volunteers understand
they have done something very
hands-on to make sure to feed our
community.”
YouthFriends
Photo courtesy YOUTHFRIENDS
YouthFriends has over 800 volunteers.
Photo courtesy YOUTHFRIENDS
Volunteers range from professionals, retirees and college students.
Big Brothers
Big Sisters
Big Brothers Big Sisters is a nonprofit organization that matches
one-parent households with adult
volunteers who spend a couple hours
a week mentoring and spending time
with a child.
More than 1,000 people volunteer with this organization in Kansas
City. Volunteers must be 21 or older.
But marketing director Kristie
Hutchison said a lot of college students volunteer.
“For college students, it’s good to
get involved whenever maybe they
don’t have the stress of a full-time
job and are in a situation where they
want to help and connect with kids,”
she said. “It’s a great organization to
be involved in. Most of them say they
get as much out of it as the kids.”
Kids who are matched up with
a Big are 75 percent more likely to
graduate from college, have more
self-esteem and are less likely to do
drugs and alcohol.
“It’s very beneficial to the kids,”
Hutchison said.
9:27 p.m. Larceny –
A student left property in her
locker in Durwood Soccer Stadium and returned to find it
missing.
March 14
3:02 a.m. Disturbance –
A call regarding loud music at
54th and Charlotte streets was
unfounded.
March 15
12:28 p.m. Violation of University Rules and Regulations –
A student at the Administrative
Center was found to be in possession of a fake parking pass.
March 16
8:28 a.m. Car Fire –
A vehicle parked in the HSC
Parking Structure caught fire
and damaged other vehicles and
the parking structure.
7:22 p.m. Disturbance –
A domestic dispute in the
School of Medicine parking lot
briefly mentioned
resulted in a party being arrested for outstanding warrants.
March 17
10:12 a.m. Vehicular –
Two cars backing out of parking spaces in the HSC Parking
Structure struck each other.
1:20 p.m. Burglary –
A student returned to her office in the Medical School and
discovered money missing from
her desk.
3:56 p.m. Violation of University Rules and Regulations –
Several non-residents were
caught with alcohol in Oak
Place Apartments.
March 18
4:52 a.m. Illness –
A student was passed out and
intoxicated in the lobby of Oak
Place Apartments.
10:03 a.m. Fraud –
An authorized user of a university debit card made unauthorized transactions.
10 p.m. Larceny –
A student returned to her vehicle in the School of Education
parking lot to find the license
plate missing.
2009 YTD 2010 YTD
4
14
0
0
1
1
26
20
0
0
3
1
1
0
2
1
* MOTOR VEHICLE THEFTS AND BURGLARIES INCLUDE ATTEMPTS
Operation Breakthrough
Operation Breakthrough reaches out to families that live near Troost Avenue.
Operation Breakthrough is a community outreach center that gives a wide variety of services to
low-income families with children.
Services include a food pantry, clothes closet,
before and after-school child care, a head start program, a dental and health clinic and even help filing
taxes. They currently serve nearly 800 children.
College students can help with any of these activities, but the most popular ones are the Pre-K and
mentoring programs.
Jessica Mickey-McDowell, Operation Breakthrough coordinator, said the program is beneficial
to students.
“They’re getting to see another culture and group
of people that they would not otherwise interact with
and it betters the community,” she said. “When they
serve, they’re also becoming role models for the
students. Our students need positive role models in
their lives, and they’re role models because they care
about education.”
SIFE Financial Corner
Vaughn English, a Communication Studies major, asked, “How do
I avoid paying finance charges on
a credit card or bank account after
they have already been incurred?”
The easiest way to avoid paying
finance charges on an account is to
not incur them in the first place. But
things happen in life, payments are
overlooked, credit limits are exceeded
or bank accounts are not balanced and
checks bounce.
The best thing to do is to contact the
lender right away if you have a problem
and simply ask them to help you out.
There is a chance that if you are a
good customer with a history of ontime payments, the lender will forgive
you and credit the charges to your account.
But you must remember lenders
generate a substantial amount of revenue each year in fees so you must be
very careful to avoid them in the first
place.
by NIKKI BOMGARDNER
by ALEXIA STOUT-LANG
Campus Crimes as of March 19
CRIMES
BURGLARY*
ROBBERY
MOTOR VEHICLE THEFT*
LARCENY
AGGRAVATED ASSAULT
COMMON ASSAULT
FORCIBLE SEX OFFENSES
DRUG LAW VIOLATIONS
March 22, 2010
Delia P., a Spanish major,
asked, “What is the value of a dollar, today?”
Because of the constantly fluctuating currency value, it is hard to
give you an exact value. By the time
you read this, it will have changed a
hundred times or more.
But at the end of the business day
on March 11, one U.S. dollar had the
same value as 0.73225 Euros, 12.591
Mexican Pesos or 84.2775 Pakistan
Rupee.
This should give you a general
idea of what your dollar is worth in
other parts of the world. Many Web
sites can give you an instant look at
the current exchange rates.
One useful site is www.bloom
berg.com/markets/currencies/fxc.
html.
Please e-mail your financial
questions to UMKCSIFE@yahoo.
com.
Unlimited Use Bus Pass Program vote results
Voting days for UMKC students were March 9-10.
The fee for Associated Students of the University of Missouri (ASUM) and the Unlimited Use Bus
Pass Program were on the ballot.
The Unlimited Use Bus Pass Program, according to the ballot, is “an effort to continue to be environmentally conscious, provide an alternative to
purchasing parking passes and provide safe transportation throughout the KC Metro …”
UMKC would impose a $28 annual fee to all
students for this program starting fall 2010.
The current cost of UMKC parking pass is $212
per year.
The ASUM student fee is 15 cents/hour capped
at 10 hours ($1.50 per semester).
The vote was to decide whether or not to keep
the fee. According to the UMKC Web site, ASUM
is “an organization that represents and advocates
the interests and welfare of Missouri students before the General Assembly, the Board of Curators,
the governor and other executive agencies. ASUM
sponsors a variety of programs on campus throughout the year to increase student awareness and involvement in the legislative process.”
Results are as follows:
ASUM Fee:
Yes: 296
No: 179 Undecided: 86
Transportation Fee:
Yes: 276
No: 276 Undecided: 9
Total Number of Voters: 561
Campus
7:13 a.m. Disturbance –
A woman at the Dental School
began yelling and screaming
when she was told she could not
have a cigarette.
Harvesters
Harvesters is a food bank that
serves a 26-county area and feeds
300,000 people every year by distributing food to local organizations such as food pantries, soup
kitchens and low-income day care
centers.
Almost half the people Harvesters feeds are either children or seniors.
Harvesters has a strong network
of volunteers, with more than 3,300
people volunteering each month totaling nearly 108,000 hours a year.
“We could not do what we do
without our very loyal and dedicated volunteers,” said Ellen Feldhau-
News
www.unews.com
Police Blotter
STORIES BY TERESA SHEFFIELD
7
$500 Friends of the Library Scholarship
The UMKC 2010 Annual Friends of the Library
Scholarship in the amount of $500 is available to
any degree-seeking student.
Students must submit a 500-1,000 word original writing piece titled “I am UMKC Libraries” to
fol@umkc.edu by April 12.
The winner will be announced May 12 at Miller
Nichols Library during the UMKC Friends of the
Library’s Annual celebration.
Payout will be administered for fall 2010 tuition
and fees.
Students with a 3.0 or higher GPA will be given
preference.
For more information, call 816-235-5828, e-mail
fol@umkc.edu or visit http://friends.library.umkc.
edu.
Author speaks at the Annual Black Women Leaders Conference
Sapphire, author of “Push,” is the 2010 keynote
speaker at the Annual Black Women’s Leaders
Conference.
The book “Push” was adapted to a screenplay for
the movie “Precious,” which recently won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, Mo’Nique.
“Precious” is the first to ever win both Sundance
and Toronto Film Festivals Audience Awards.
One goal of the conference is “to provide an opportunity for women to share local, regional and
IMMIGRATION from page 1
member is that $1,200 is not the same to
us as it is to someone in a Latin American country.
“We can say, ‘Well, we can save
up for a few months and maybe we
would be able to pay it.’ But if somebody is coming straight from Mexico,
the daily minimum wage is 46.17 pesos
a day which is between $3.80 and $5
a day,” Marquez said. “We are looking at somebody who potentially has
a monthly income of $100 and a yearly
income of $1,200.”
Why illegally?
Many people have many different
opinions about why illegal immigration
is so prominent.
Dilks said he does not think the
expense or the difficulty in the immigration process is what spurs people to
come to America illegally.
“I think people come for various
reasons and then stay because they fall
into a life that works,” he said. “There
have been seasonal migrations over the
Southern border for thousands of years. I
think building fences and administrative
controls creates illegality. Without such
solid borders, people would move about
just as freely as they have done in Europe
since border controls were eliminated.”
Marquez, however, does think these
factors come into play.
“I hate to be so unrealistic about
this, but if we were to line up 50 people
trying to come over illegally and ask
them if they tried to come over the right
way first, a number of them would say,
national perspectives on the current challenges and
issues of politics, education, diversity and equity,
spirituality, leadership, health, family, personal finance and community.”
The free conference for faculty, staff and students will be April 29.
Registration is required, space is limited and
will be granted on a first come, first served basis.
Deadline to register is April 23.
For additional information, www.umkc.edu/bwl.
‘Yes, I tried but I did not fulfill the requirement,’” Marquez said.
Simply getting visitors’ visas for a
family to visit Walt Disney World can
be a struggle, Marquez said.
“That’s the biggest roadblock, in my
opinion, that the economic situation in
Latin American countries and the requirements the U.S. government puts
on them causing them to even forget
about immigrating to the United States
let alone work and eat and sleep here,”
she said.
Marquez was clear she does not support illegal immigration.
“Do I agree with illegal immigration?” she said. “From a moral standpoint, no, because it’s breaking the law.
I try not to do things that break the law.
But, from a personal side, I realize why
people do it. So, my point of view since
illegal immigration is not going to stop,
we might as well try to do something
because we have millions of people
who are here undocumented.”
She said she can understand the
point of view of some activist groups.
“Hey, you and I have a social security number and they [the government]
know everything we do,” she said.
“They know when we use our credit
card to pay, they know where we live.
All those tens of millions of people undocumented are ‘unofficial’ and so we
don’t know who’s here. We don’t know
where they are, we don’t know what
they do, we don’t know if their kids are
in school, we don’t know if they are not,
we don’t know anything.”
While she does pity the children
who are brought to the country illegally
against their wills, she has a firm stance
about the troublemakers.
“If they have committed crime here
when they came here undocumented,
part of me says, ‘Ah you know what,
you broke the law to get here and now
you broke the law once you got here.
Maybe this is not the best place for you.’
But somebody who broke the law once
to get here, but has been a good, upstanding citizen, do I think there should
be some sort of punishment? Yes, maybe a hefty fine or something like that.”
Children who are brought here by
their parents face many challenges.
Only 10 states, with one more possibly passing legislation soon, allow
illegal youth to go to school past 12th
grade. Kansas is one state that will allow undocumented students to attend
college.
However, after graduation, they
can’t legally get jobs nor can they apply for citizenship while in the United
States.
“As far as the children who are
brought over here, I think there should
be a change tomorrow making it legal
that they can live and work and eat
and sleep here because it was not their
decision to come here,” Marquez said.
“Very honestly, things are not slowing
down. Nobody has the right answer but
I think the first step is making sure the
children who are brought here don’t
suffer. To be quite honest, if that were
the only thing to change, that would be
a huge step.”
alang@unews.com
8
March 22, 2010
Culture
www.unews.com
Stop in and see ‘Bus Stop’
Culture
www.unews.com
Photo courtesy DON IPOCK FOR THE KANSAS CITY REP. THEATRE
Kate Lawler
T
Staff Writer
he Kansas City Repertory
Theatre, in a series of Kansas City playwright’s works,
is presenting William Inge’s
“Bus Stop” at Spencer The-
Photo courtesy DON IPOCK FOR THE KANSAS CITY REP. THEATRE
Adria Vitlar and Jedadiah Schultz.
ater.
“Bus Stop” has been continuously performed throughout the country since its
creation in 1955 and was even made into a
movie staring Marilyn Monroe.
Set during a blizzard in March at a Kansas bus stop diner in 1955 (fitting for 2010’s
Friday night storm), were a few townspeople
and a few stranded travelers on one morning
bus from Kansas City to Denver.
Three acts of their new connections and
past problems make up this classic comedy.
The cast of characters included Waitresses Elma (Blair Baker) and Gracie (Cheryl
Weaver), Sheriff Will (Jim Gall), Kansas
City performer Cherie (Adria Vitlar), drunken professor Dr. Lyman (Mark Robbins), bus
driver Carl (David Fritts), cowboy wrangler
Bo (Jedadiah Schultz) and faithful friend
Virgil (Gary Neal Johnson).
However, the story is a little hard to explain. Basically there are three love connections, a sheriff and a sidekick.
Love connection one: Gracie, who owns
the diner, and Carl. They had chemistry that
was spot on and was good comic relief.
Love connection two: Cherie and Bo.
Bo is kidnapping Cherie and taking her to
his ranch in Montana to be his wife. Cherie
doesn’t want to go and their incessant fighting brought energy to the stage.
Love connection three: Elma, a high
school student, and Dr. Lyman, a professor
with a creepy lust for young girls. Yes, it was
weird, but their performances were hysterical – especially the drunken “Romeo and Juliet” recitation.
On the technical side, sometimes I am
weary of plays that have no set changes –
maybe because of my childhood of being
dragged to shows such as “Menopause the
Musical.” But, in this case, the set kept my
interest with surprising new areas and interesting lighting.
As for the ending, initially I was left disappointed. Everything seemed to wrap up in
a nice neat package.
However, as a whole, “Bus Stop” is a
must see classic comedy and this version is
well executed.
The show closes on April 3, so make sure
to pick up some tickets before time runs out.
klawler@unews.com
Staff Writer
Guest lecturer and Native American poet Ray
Young Bear visited Rockhurst University’s Mabee
Theater last Thursday as the final guest poet for
the 26th season of the Midwest Poet Series.
Robert Stewart, director of the Midwest Poet
Series, described Young Bear’s poetry as having
an important impact on contemporary poetry.
“We have an extraordinary opportunity to hear
not only one of the most important poets in the
country, but one of the best poets period,” Stewart
said. “… His poems retain a heightening formal
style of Meskwaki oratory. He performs his song
poems or word poems often times with his drums
and contemporary imagery. They have a dragging
power that seems to be utterly mesmerizing in his
poems.”
Young Bear has served as a visiting lecturer
to a number of different institutions, including
Photo KATE LAWLER
Native American Poet Ray Young Bear.
Jude Law and Forest Whitaker make
repossessing organs look fun and profitable.
In a futuristic, somewhat sci-fi
world, Law and Whitaker take the audience on a thrill ride in the world of organ repossession.
The bloody gore and fast, gun-slinging scenes are over-shadowed by the
heart-warming story, literally. Even the
most fabulous of “chick-flick” lovers
can appreciate this film.
Best friends, Law and Whitaker are
the “repo men.” They’re jobs are torepossess high-priced, electronic, replacement organs for those unfortunate human beings who have fallen behind on
their payments.
The “Union,” the organization behind manufacturing and distributing the
organs are bloodthirsty, money-grub-
routine repossession leaves Law in a
predicament no one saw coming.
The story line is very believable
and can make one wonder about the
future of health care, in more ways
than one.
Directed by Miguel Sapochnik, the
film is jam-packed full of action, love,
comedy, irony and an amazing story.
The screenwriters easily pull the audience along through the story with a
few interesting twists along the way. It’s
not until the end that you start questioning your own “reality.”
I am not a fan of sci-fi, I absolutely loathe it and I definitely do not like
bloody movies.
I would recommend this film to anyone, except for kids, obviously.
Take your date or your best friend.
You won’t be disappointed.
A
Eastern Washington University and has written
four novels. He has also taught at the University of
Iowa and instructed for the Meskwaki Settlement
School.
The lecture began with some of Young Bear’s
newest work, still in draft form.
“These are brand new poems and the first
time they are read through – scary,” Young
Bear said. “Some of the things that I discuss
in these are my sons and the presence of the
psychic and paranormal phenomenon that is
prevalent in most Native American societies,
especially those [who] have maintained their
culture, the language, religion, history and so
forth.”
Young Bear plans to incorporate more psychic
and paranormal themes in future work based off
his experiences and gifts.
“I was hired by a private investigator in Santa
Fe and the Santa Fe police department,” Young
Bear said. “One day a detective knocked on my door
and said ‘Ray Young Bear your dream is extraordinary,’ but we never did find the little boy missing.”
Many of his performances incorporate song.
He described his interest in song as deriving from
his grandmother and Meskwaki culture.
“I became enamored with the vocalizing the
singing from very early on,” Young Bear said.
“My grandmother was in the Native American
post – the men would sing and the women would
harmonize. I found it fascinating. I would emulate the singing and my grandmother would encourage me. She would say, ‘my sons, encourage
your nephew, because one of these days he is going to go places.’”
Attendee and Rockhurst University student
Robin Sonthimer enjoyed her experience at the final guest lecture.
“The poems were fantastic, but what he said in
between the poems was also really interesting,”
Sonthimer said. “The history of the songs, the history of his culture and his travels as a poet were
fascinating.”
The reading was recorded for a later broadcast
on the weekly nationally broadcasted radio show,
New Letters on the Air.
klawler@unews.com
Teresa Sheffield
Staff Writer
“Rigoletto,” at the Kansas City
Lyric Opera, is a tragedy that will put
a smile on your face, only because it’s
so good.
It’s good for two reasons: Richard
Paul Fink and Mary Dunleavy.
Written by Giuseppe Verdi,
“Rigoletto” is the story of an Italian
court jester named Rigoletto (played
by Fink) who is hated by most courtiers due to his merciless and fiery
tongue.
“Rigoletto” is a bitter, tired,
hunchbacked old man, except when it
comes to his beautiful daughter Gilda
(played by Dunleavy). Rigoletto has
done his best to shield her from the
world, only permitting her to leave
the house to go to church.
One person in particular despises
Rigoletto, an old man named Count
Monterone, who places a curse on
both The Duke of Mantua (played by
David Pomeroy) for seducing and sullying his daughter, and Rigoletto for
laughing about it.
The Duke is a rampant playboy
who has conquered hundreds of
women and incidentally sets his eyes
on virtuous Gilda without knowing
she’s Rigoletto’s daughter.
Unbeknownst to Rigoletto or the
Duke, the men from the court who
hate Rigoletto decide to kidnap Gilda
(who they think is Rigoletto’s mistress) and have the Duke rape her to
get back at Rigoletto for mocking everyone.
Tragedy follows tragedy for the
rest of the opera as the Count’s curse
on Rigoletto unfolds.
Fink was absolutely stunning
as Rigoletto. He carried the heavy
weight of a title role like it was noth-
ing – like he inspired Verdi to write
the opera. His booming, rich baritone
voice filled the very crevices of the
theater, and his acting was supreme.
His emotion was raw and real, and
tears streamed down his face as the
only pure and virtuous thing in his
life was battered and stripped from
him. Goosebumps rippled through
the audience every time he opened
his mouth in the second act.
Dunleavy was the perfect Gilda,
genuinely sweet and innocent without
being unbearably sugary and contrived. Plus, she has a set of pipes on
her.
If possible, that girl would have
sung the hump right off of Rigoletto. She maneuvered through the
virtuoso Verdi score, including the
treacherous “Caro nome,” with ease
and comfort in her beautiful soprano
voice.
Pomeroy did a good job as the
Duke. He sang the famous aria, “La
donna é mobile,” wonderfully and
made you hate him as the philandering, two-faced player he was.
One of the staging aspects of the
show that is usually overlooked is
lighting. There was none of that in
“Rigoletto,” the lighting added so
much to the atmosphere. It’s amazing
what a huge impact a different color
light bulb can make, and the lighting
designers did a great job of capturing
the mood of the action onstage.
“Rigoletto” is a wonderful story
with one of the best opera scores you
will ever hear.
What made this production not
just another night at the opera were
the magnificent performances of Fink
and Dunleavy, who made it a tragedy
you can be happy about.
tsheffield@unews.com
by CHRISTIAN ROSE
by NIKKI BOMGARDNER
bing destroyers of life, ironically.
The company gives the recipients a
96-day grace period before they send
the repo men out to collect on their $600
thousand insurer of life, the electronic
organ.
If you pay, you keep your life. But
most of the recipients find it nearly impossible to keep up with the payments
and turn to lives in the slums dependent
on drugs.
Unfortunately, the repossession leaves
most of the recipients dead, unless, of
course, they are fortunate to have a good,
second, functional kidney.
Whitaker is a bachelor who has nothing to lose and Law plays a married man
with a son.
A concerned spouse, Law’s wife
gives the ultimate ultimatum. Leave the
dangerous, highly profitable job killing
people or lose your family.
But an accident involving his “last”
Rigoletto,
a clown that will
make you cry
Kansas City bites
movie review
‘Repo Men’
March 22, 2010
Ray Young Bear
Kate Lawler
Blair Baker and Adria Vitlar.
9
Raglan Road Irish Pub
Whitaker and Law as “repo men.”
Unless you grew up under a rock and without the benefit of having a complete breakfast
consisting of Lucky Charms and a Pop-Tart, you
most likely know March 17 is St. Patrick’s Day.
Having relegated myself to Logic and Reasoning homework in lieu of celebrating the joys of
green beer, rainbows and shamrocks on the actual
day, I opted to partake in festivities the day after.
Nothing says “Irish” quite like a good Irish
pub and one of my favorites is actually in the
Power and Light District.
Raglan Road Irish Pub, located at 170 East
14th Street, sits as a cornerstone in the corporate structured nighttime megaplex.
No, you will not step into an authentic atmosphere full of leprechauns and river dancing
red heads, but you will enjoy some great food
surrounded by one of the friendliest wait staffs
in town.
The formidable bar stretches the length of
the pub and was actually constructed in Ireland
and reassembled here. It adds yet another touch
of visual flavor to the ambience of the establishment.
Although not exclusively traditional, the
food is a contemporary twist without losing
the primary focus.
It is hearty and comforting without being
pretentious. A little pricey, but you will not
leave hungry … or thirsty. The bar boasts an
enormous selection of beers – there are 17 on
tap that get shuffled around periodically, depending on the season.
My favorite drink of choice is the Magner’s
Cider, which is a very traditional beverage
made from fermented apples. It is a little sweet,
a little tangy and, after two, gives my southern
twang a little Gaelic sound.
I went with one of my friends who had never had the pleasure of actually eating there. I
suggested the fish and chips.
I know this may sound simple and boring,
but trust me, it is far from it.
Traditionally, fish and chips are served
wrapped in newspaper and locals cover it with
peas.
At Raglan Road, it is presented in a coneshaped, stainless steel cage and wrapped in
stark-white parchment paper with a shot of
spiced pureed peas. It is flakey and flavorful
and while it may not change your luck, it will
change your mind about fish and chips.
I ordered the Shepherd’s Pie. It is pleasing
both aesthetically and to the palette. With its
heavy blend of beef and lamb simmered in
wine au jus and topped with mashed potatoes,
it is definitely not my grandmother’s version. It
is better (sorry Grams).
There are only two Raglan Roads in the
country. The other is in Orlando, Fla., and
opened in 2005.
There is an Irish saying that if you’re lucky
enough to be born Irish, you’re lucky enough.
And for all the rest of us not born Irish, because
of Raglan Road, we can definitely eat like it.
A
crose@unews.com
Photo CHRISTIAN ROSE
Ragland Road may not be an authentic Irish pub, but
it sure feels like it.
10
Culture
March 22, 2010
www.unews.com
Student Artist: Courtney Stazzone
Mark Linville
Staff Writer
Being active in a sorority and
a full-time student at UMKC can
be rather time consuming. But for
Courtney Stazzone, it is just another
day.
“I look at the world from a different perspective,” Stazzone said.
“I want others to experience my
thoughts and feelings so I draw,
paint and photograph the world in
the way I see it to share my feelings and thoughts. Besides being
a way to share and express myself
it is something I find relaxing and
enjoyable.”
Stazzone is a multi-media artist.
She uses her work as a form of expression, to tell the world who she is.
“Art is an inspiration for me,”
Stazzone said. “Because the things
I draw, paint and photograph are
things that catch me as ‘inspirational’ and I find different feelings and
ideas among my art work. A lot of
my art work is heartfelt and it shows
my true colors.”
When dealing with stress, many
students usually find something and
take a load off. Some may go see a
movie, others may go have fun at a
ball game, but Stazzone uses her art
to relieve stress.
“It sometimes helps me move
along in life when I am ready to give
up,” she said. “It helps me relax when
life is stressing me out. It makes me
look at the world and life in a different view.”
Stazzone is a sophomore studying education. She is also a former
architecture student. She never had
time for her art, with all her class
work and projects. So her art is
something she does on the side.
“I like taking pictures of things
out of the ordinary and even things
that people see every day but never
realize or notice how interesting it
may be because it is so common for
us in our everyday life,” she said. “In
my pictures, they give viewers a different outlook on things we seem to
over look.”
mlinville@unews.com
Photos courtesy COURTNEY STAZZONE
March 22, 2010
Jumpstart with the Berenstain Bears
Melissa Oribhabor
Courtney Stazzone
Culture
www.unews.com
11
Culture Editor
Characters from the beloved children’s book series “The Berenstain
Bears” were at the Kansas City LibraryPlaza Branch Saturday for an event held
by Jumpstart Kansas City.
An annual event, each year different storybook characters are chosen to
meet with children for pictures and fun.
There were many activities available
for families that came to participate in
the event titled “Reading Rocks.”
“We have a lot of free, fun activities
going on, things such as bookmaking,
each child gets an individual free book,
we have face panting, some Dr. Suess
stuff called oobleck, it’s like cornstarch
and water, it’s really cool,” said Travette Winters, Jumpstart member and
third year Chemistry and Spanish major at UMKC.
Usually between 200 and 300 kids
show up for these events and meet with
the characters to participate in crafts
and giveaways.
“It’s good for the community,” Winters said. “The kids get to do things and
it’s free, and it gives parents a chance
to hang out and do cool stuff with their
kids, not just come to the library and
read.”
This year, it was again successful.
“When the bears came … some of [the
kids] were jumping up and down and
some of them were really scared,” Winters said.
Jumpstart helps build leadership in
children and members work at different
preschools and partner with a child.
“Our motto is ‘Working toward the
day when every child enters school prepared to learn,’” Winters said.
Usually in urban areas, Jumpstart
has been an important presence in Kansas City.
But those with young kids who
missed out this time will have more opportunities in the future to participate.
“We have two major events every
year,” said Sarah Reape, associate site
manager for Jumpstart and UMKC
graduate student studying Public Administration. “One is in March and one
is in October. October is ‘Read for the
Record’ and that’s a national campaign
that we participate in here locally and
we have an event here at the Plaza Library, but overall the national campaign
is to raise the importance of early literacy.”
To find out about more activities
with Jumpstart, visit www.jstart.org.
Photo courtesy SONDRA ORIBHABOR
Jumpstart gave Kansas City kids an opportunity to meet the Berenstain Bears.
12
March 22, 2010
Off the Shelf
Culture
by MARK LINVILLE
‘The Side-Yard
Superhero’
Photo courtesy SMITH PUBLICITY
Jones had Cerebral Palsy. The disability left him unable to do many of the things
other kids his age did.
So, Jones played every day in the side yard
of his family’s home. That is where Niece and
Jones established their everlasting friendship.
Their friendship proved strong due to the
fact that Jones could not walk or speak. To
Niece, Jones’ disability made their friendship even stronger.
Niece uses his story to show us that anyone can find happiness, no matter what conditions we may face.
Glint is ready to
shine in KC
Melissa Oribhabor
American culture is full of those classic stories that warm the heart and send you
time-traveling back to your childhood.
We all miss the fun times we had when we
were growing up. And some would give up
anything to go back to when they were a kid.
In the novel by Dr. Rick D. Niece, president of the University of the Ozarks in Arkansas, “The Side-Yard Superhero,” he does
just that.
“The Side-Yard Superhero” is a narrative
tale of Niece’s beloved childhood.
In the story, he reminisces about everything from the time he and his family moved
to Degraff, Ohio, until he grows to be a man.
One key role in most people’s childhood
is that one special friendship, also known as
the “best friend.”
Niece had many friends in Degraff because of his paper route.
But one person who was special to him
was Max Bernard Jones or “Bernie Jones.”
“Niece uses his story to
show us that anyone can
find happiness, no matter
what obstacles we may
face.”
www.unews.com
“The Side-Yard Superhero” revisits Dr. Rick D.
Niece’s childhood.
By writing this novel, Niece shows us
how to reclaim our past through memories
and to hold on to them as if they were our
most prized possessions.
Now, if you are like me and you miss
your childhood, then this book is for you.
“The Side-Yard Superhero” is a short read.
Just fewer than 200 pages should allow you
to read it in just one afternoon or a weekend.
However, the language of the novel is unfortunately a little slow at times. The first
couple of chapters are a good place for you
familiarize yourself with Niece’s writing
style.
So go pick up your copy of “The Side-Yard
Superhero” today and reminisce with Niece.
mlinville@unews.com
Culture Editor
Coming to Kansas City next week is a
band that may be hard to define, but is definitely easy to enjoy.
Glint, with members who hail from New
York, Brazil and Israel, has a sound that is
uniquely theirs and they are bringing that
intrigue to Missouri.
Jase Blankfort, lead singer and guitarist
for Glint, explained their sound.
“We [use] any means necessary to convey the feeling of a song and, however that
might occur, that’s where we fall,” Blankfort
said. “There are certain aspects that kind of
thread the music together ... it kind of changes so often.”
His personal influences are David Bowie and David Burns. The music this band
makes is not classified as electronic rock,
but does have a few traces that would appeal
to fans of that genre.
Blankfort has haunting vocal skills that
are impressive and a range that is unique,
allowing for mainstream appeal with an underground feel.
But as skilled as they are, the band as a
whole is relatively new.
“A friend of mine from high school and I
were playing together with some friends and
we kind of decided to pursue it more adamantly,” Blankfort said. “We hooked up with
a drummer we met in New York City, Mateus
Tebaldi, we continued to play … we started
making records together and playing with
other people. It wasn’t until this last year that,
just by chance, we kinda fell upon the line up
of this band. This group of people really kind
of defines what Glint is, in essence.”
The name the band chose is also original,
but perfect for their music.
“It was kind of years later, after listening
to the music that was being made, the name
started to almost in a way define itself later
on,” Blankfort said. “… It just kind of stuck
with us.”
The intellectual feel of the music is present, which is not surprising since samples/
synths player, Phil Kuperberg, attended Columbia University and keyboards/synths player Alon Leventon comes from the University
of California – Berkeley’s music school.
As for Blankfort, “This is my college,
I’m abroad right now.”
They are currently signed to Rely Records, which is an independent label in New
York. But being signed is not end-all, be-all
for this dynamic group.
“The goal is to continue to playing shows
we want to be playing and making the music we want to be making,” he said. “I guess
just maintain that and just maintain what we
believe in is the only goal we can ask for at
this point.”
Glint will be performing at 9 p.m. March
23 at The Riot Room.
“Expect something that is accessible to
anyone, something that is real and organic,”
Blankfort said about their live show. “It’s not
contrived, we just make music that we believe in, you can expect to experience that in
the live show.”
For more information about Glint, visit
www.myspace.com/glintonline.
Photo courtesy BIG HASSLE PUBLICITY
Glint will be performing at 9 a.m., March 23 at The
Riot Room.
Culture
www.unews.com
dating 101
by CHRISTIAN ROSE
Jell-O shots
and jungle rules
Thursday I made Jell-O shots in preparation for a wild weekend safari to all the hottest nightclubs in Kansas City accompanied
by my bestie Kyle. According to him, fun is
actually spelled J-E-L-L-O and mixed with
vodka.
Having never attempted such complex
culinary endeavors, I made my way to the
World Wide Web to search for the premier
recipe. This led me, of course, to foreign
sites soliciting unconventional sexual fetishes featuring the beloved icon Bill Cosby who
loves pudding a little too much … allegedly.
Frustrated and more than a little disturbed, I finally stumbled across a “how to”
version on YouTube.
In small plastic condiment cups, I poured
my lollipop flavored libation and waited for
our adventure to begin the following night.
Entering the dark, rhythmic wilderness
Friday evening, Kyle and I bumped into
someone I have had the most enormous
crush on since we first met. This person has
a reputation for leaving bodies curled into
fetal positions with their hearts scattered and
torn into tiny, still-beating bits while mumbling, “Why me?”
A combination of good lighting and a
few jiggly Jell-O shots made me less cautious about ending up in one of the broken
bundles supposedly left in the wake of my
crush. So ever the self-sacrificing dictator, I
made Kyle go over and test the waters.
This brings me to a couple of rules I find
relevant when out in the wilderness of the
Kansas City club scene.
First rule in the Law of the Jungle is travel in packs.
Secondly, and most importantly, better
him than me.
Because the first rule of Law of the Jungle is especially relevant among singles, it is
essential to form near co-dependent relationships and always travel in packs when you
go out.
Once separated from the herd, it is usu-
ally the one who strays who ends up eaten.
While I love and appreciate Kyle as my
second-in-command, the latter rule is applicable in this situation and I figured what was
the worst that could happen? Mixed drinks
might get tossed or some sort of public humiliation. Both are entirely survivable given
enough time and counseling.
After sufficient time had passed and Kyle
had not shown any visible signs of distress, I
felt the situation safe and favorable to make
my way over to the herd.
Especially important to observe in the
singles native habitat, namely a night club, is
to avoid sudden movements, walk with confidence and never show fear.
After making eye contact and avoiding a smile, which can be confused as a
sign of aggression especially if you smile at
someone else’s mate, I slowly finished my
cocktail and purposefully glided across the
now packed room to Kyle, my crush and the
group of hyenas that seemed to cackle and
croon louder as I approached.
Introducing yourself to a new group of
lemmings at the local watering hole is easy if
you initially offer some sort of small token.
Generally, a fruity shot is sufficient.
By evening’s end, my safari proved successful as the new pride had adopted Kyle
and me as one of their own and a date had
been planned between myself and their pack
leader.
With dawn and last call quickly approaching, the nighttime sounds of the
jungle started to subside, leaving those not
observant to the jungle’s rules still restlessly
looking for their kill along the sidewalk in
the harsh lighting of overhead streetlamps.
Thankfully, for me and my most devoted, it
is not us.
“Every day in Africa a gazelle wakes up/
It knows it must run faster than the fastest
lion or it will be killed/Every morning a lion
wakes up/It knows that it must outrun the
slowest gazelle or it will starve to death/It
doesn’t matter whether you are a lion or a
gazelle/When the sun comes up, you better
be running.” - Abe Gubegna
crose@unews.com
XTattoo26
Word Count: 155
Headline: Tattoo by: Self
Nikki Bomgardner
Asst News Editor
Become
a fan
of
U-News
on
Facebook
13
Tattoo of the week:
lins, Colo., with Miller, she got her
second tattoo, a cluster of stars. Miller
drew the
stars forRachael
her.
UMKC
Junior,
Rodriguez
UMKC junior Rachael Rodriguez
Rodriguez
thought
the starsa“were
diddid
something
not
many
do,
she
gave
herself
her
first
tattoo,
smiley
something not many do – she gave really neat and interesting.”
face,
using
inkaand
a face,
sterilized
safety pin.
herself
her India
first tattoo,
smiley
usRodriguez,
an Urban
Planning
and
Sheing
and
anink
accomplice,
friend
and UMKC
student
Shannon
Miller
India
and a sterilized
safety pin.
Design
major,
said neither hurt and
(not the
gymnast)
inked
it
when
they
were
18.
She and an accomplice, friend and does not regret them, but the stars need
“It’sUMKC
smallstudent
and cute,”
“I don’t regret it; most people
ShannonRodriguez
Miller (not thesaid.
a little touch up because they are startdon’t
even notice
it because
it 18.
is so small,
I really like it.”
gymnast),
inked it when
they were
ing to fade.
A year“It’s
later,
while
Ft. Collins,
Colo.,
Miller,
small
and visiting
cute,” Rodriguez
“I would with
like another
one,she
but Igot
have
hersaid.
second
tattoo,
a Most
cluster
of don’t
stars. no
Miller
drew
the stars
for
her.
“I don’t
regret it.
people
idea what
or where,”
Rodriguez
said.
Rodriguez
thought,
stars]
reallyare
neat
interesting.”
even notice
it because“[the
it is so
small.were
I “There
justand
so many
options and
really like it.”
Rodriguez,
an Urban Planning and Design
said neither hurt
places to major,
get a tattoo.”
A year
whilethem,
visitingbut
Ft. the
Col-stars need touched
nor does
shelater
regret
up a little
Nikki Bomgardner
because they are starting to fade.
“I would like another one but I have no idea what or where,”
Rodriguez said. “There are just so many options and places to get a
tattoo.”
Photos NIKKI BOMGARDNER
March 22, 2010
How to: Fly without getting naked
Nikki Bomgardner
On my recent trip from Kansas City to Chicago, I noticed a few changes in how people fly.
Ninety-nine percent of the time I fly somewhere (and I travel frequently) no matter what
airline, airport or time of day, I get the shake
’em up, shake ’em down, head-to-toe “female”
version of the terrorist check.
I don’t know how it always happens to me,
but I’m the one always chosen randomly.
Since seeing the movie “Up in the Air” with
George Clooney, I’m seeing many parallels from
what the movie depicts to real life traveling.
Like Clooney, I have mastered the shoe removal, laptop placement, belt, watch, cell phone
and loose change dismemberment within seconds.
The general public is catching on, finally.
However, the presence of the new “naked”
scanning machines is raising some eyebrows.
I can’t tell you how to avoid those humiliating
standing coffins, but I can give you a few things
to keep in mind to get through that darn line faster.
Wear slip-on shoes. Your sexiest, strapheavy high heels or best Jordan’s are not the
most ideal for airport traveling. You need to be
able to get in and out quickly. I would even contemplate wearing slippers.
Leave all your bling at home. Or pack it in your
checked luggage. No one wants to stand behind you
watching while you de-accessorize yourself. Plus,
you’ll probably still forget a piece here or there and
possibly in the most embarrassing of places.
See a stroller within 20 feet? Get as far
away as possible! Strollers mean way too many
bags, screaming kids, frazzled parents and a big
headache for anyone within earshot.
Leave as much as possible at the ticket counter. Although I’m a female and I need to travel with
everything, I’ve learned less is more. Well, less on
me, more in the suitcase. It’s also less opportunity
for one of those TSA guys to look you up and down
secretly wishing he was the one about to frisk you.
Avoid liquid of any kind. It may be inconvenient and leave you with a little anxiety to have to
pack all of your personals and check it at the counter, but you will only be delayed further and piss
off the people behind you because you just had to
bring that bottle of water or hand sanitizer with you
through security. They’re going to pitch it right in
front of you. Money in the trash. Just don’t do it.
Years ago, before I became a little travel savvy
and before the liquid restrictions were lifted a little,
I watched as the attitudinal TSA woman dumped
my entire make-up bag of lip gloss, foundation and
face cream in to the trash. About $200, just gone.
As I was almost brought to tears and ready
to strangle her, she looked at me, asked me if I
was getting an attitude and if I would like to be
escorted out of the airport.
A bit extreme in my opinion and, thankfully,
those certain TSA employees have become less
frequent on my trips.
Take my advice when traveling and getting
through security, because I’ve been there, done that.
14
Culture
March 22, 2010
weird news
by NIKKI BOMGARDNER
• St. Patrick’s Day started a little early for one man. Police in Racine,
Wis., said a drunken man in a kilt kicked in the window of a store, went
inside ... and fell asleep.
• Police in Fort Myers, Fla., said Irving Edward Howard did the unexpected after being asked to leave a local nightclub. He took off all his
clothes and ran into the ladies restroom. Police said he then clenched
his fists and ran after a police officer. He was tasered, which can’t be
comfortable when clothed but is probably a lot worse when you’re rolling around naked on the floor in a place called Indigo Room.
• Burger King is opening a restaurant in Miami Beach that will serve
beer along with burgers and fries, the chain’s first U.S. location with
alcohol.
• An Alaska man who hit a Taco Bell manager in the face with a doubledecker taco has been sentenced to one day in jail and one year probation.
• A smoker who died after battling emphysema had his dying wish
granted with the placement of a “Smoking killed me” sign on his hearse
and his grave.
• A newlywed couple spent their wedding night in separate jail cells
after police said the bride tried to run over an old flame of the groom.
• Denis Danny Roberge, a 19-year-old man, will spend the next 60 days
in jail after stealing a beer from a convenience store in Quebec. He stole
the $3.37 beer to celebrate getting out of jail.
• In Toronto, a driver banned from the road after a drunk-driving conviction was nabbed for allegedly speeding on his way to serve his weekend jail sentence.
• “Mullet Place” is the street sign in Green Bay, Wis., stolen the most.
The city said they finally had to start placing the street sign higher off
the ground to make it more difficult to steal. Public Works Manager
Chris Pirlot joked that “the sign thief is probably in the witness protection program and doesn’t want anyone to know where he lives – that or
it’s someone still stuck in the ’80s.”
Courtesy of www.allweirdnews.com, www.abclocal.go.com, www.
weirdnews.about.com
www.unews.com
Top 10 realistic spring
break destinations
Leanna Lippert
Assistant Production Manager
Even though we all want to
take a trip to Cabo or Italy for
spring break, a lot of us can’t afford it.
Listed below are the top 10 realistic spring break destinations.
Because a vacation should be
something that is as far away from
home as financially possible, they
are ranked by how far they are
away from Kansas City.
10. Omaha, Neb.
3 hours 12 minutes, 188 miles
Omaha has many attractions.
Whether it is wineries, wildlife,
parks, historical sites, lakes, art
galleries, shopping or zoos, Omaha is the place to be for spring
break.
Omaha also offers many different restaurants, museums and
the world’s largest indoor rainforest. The city is home to Irish and
microbrew pubs, dance clubs and
live jazz, rock, blues and Indie
rock bands, martini bars and sports
bars.
For more information, visit
www.visitomaha.com.
9. Branson, Mo.
4 hours, 237 miles
Variety is what you’ll get when
you go to Branson. They have
something to cater to every personality.
They have bed and breakfasts, cabins, RV parks and campgrounds, condominiums, houseboats, hotels and motels, resorts,
spas and nightly rentals. And that’s
just where you sleep.
During the day, attractions
like Silver Dollar City, live music shows, golf courses, shopping,
restaurants, biking and horseback
trails will keep you busy.
Branson also has fishing, boating and relaxing on three lakes:
Table Rock Lake, Lake Taneycomo
and Bull Shoals Lake.
www.explorebranson.com.
8. St. Louis, Mo.
With its many attractions like
the Gateway Arch, St. Louis Science Center, St. Louis Art Museum, Missouri Botanical Gardens,
the St. Louis Zoo, Anheuser-Busch
Brewery and many more, St. Louis
is a great idea for spring break.
Between March 28 and April
3, catch a game of professional
hockey team, the St. Louis Blues,
and National League professional
baseball team, the St. Louis Cardinals.
Six Flags St. Louis will officially open their gates for the season April 2. St. Louis offers a city
feel but also historical sites, kidfriendly attractions, entertainment
and a variety of restaurants, clubs
and bars.
www.explorestlouis.com/.
7. Little Rock, Ark.
7 hours, 382 miles
As the capital of Arkansas, Little Rock has many things to offer
for spring break. State parks, golf
courses, camp and RV sites and
lakes and rivers are something to
enjoy during the day as well as the
River Market District in downtown
Little Rock.
Nightlife in the River Market
District offers live music, theater,
concerts and festivals.
www.littlerock.com/.
6. Minneapolis and St. Paul,
Minn.
Nicknamed “Twin Cities” because of the size and geographical
location of Minneapolis (the larger
of the two) and St. Paul (Minnesota’s state capital), the two cities offer a variety of entertainment and
attractions.
Minneapolis, nicknamed the
“City of Lakes,” is home to many
lakes, biking trails, parks, museums and galleries, bars and clubs,
farmer’s markets, many different
restaurants, landmarks and historic
sites and theaters.
Between March 28 and April
3, catch a game of professional
hockey team, the Minnesota Wild,
professional basketball team, the
Minnesota Timberwolves, and
American League professional
baseball team, the Minnesota
Twins.
For more information about Minneapolis, visit www.ci.minneapolis.
mn.us/visitors/in dex.asp.
St. Paul, also known as “The
Most Livable City in America,”
offers Mississippi riverfront trails,
theaters, family fun and kidfriendly attractions like a the Science Museum of Minnesota, Como
Zoo and Conservatory and Como
Town.
St. Paul also offers historical
sites and tours, Summit Brewing
Company and Great Waters Brewing Company, boat cruises, museums, galleries and much more.
For more information about
St. Paul, visit www.visitsaintpaul.
com/visitors/.
5. Memphis, Tenn.
Memphis, known as the “Home
of the Blues, Birthplace of Rock
N’ Roll,” is a great place to visit
for spring break. Memphis is home
to art and architecture museums,
parks, Memphis Botanical Gardens and many historical and musical districts.
The city also offers kidfriendly attractions like the
Memphis Zoo. For those looking for something a bit different,
voodoo shops, fortune-tellers
and palm reading shops are all
around. There is also a variety of
restaurants, shops and different
festivals year-round.
For more information and a list
of events, visit www.memphistrav
el.com/visitors/events/default.aspx.
4. Chicago, Ill.
Chicago is filled with a variety
of tours and attractions, shopping
and museums. Many different restaurants, bars and clubs are also
available for the richest and the
not-so-rich pockets.
They also offer city transportation, more than enough hotels and
great historical theaters. National
League Chicago Cubs and American League Chicago White Sox
will have home games during the
week of March 28 to April 3.
www.choosechicago.com.
3. Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas
9 hours, 551 miles
Because these cities are so
close together, you can’t go to just
one. Dallas offers many attractions like different entertainment
districts, parks, Six Flags, shopping, restaurants, bars and historical tours.
Between the dates of March 28
and April 3, Dallas offers many
sporting events such as their professional hockey team, the Dallas
Stars.
For more information and a full
list of events, visit www.visitdallas.
com/visitors/events/.
Fort Worth, nicknamed the
“City of Cowboys and Culture,”
offers historical tours, shopping,
museums and galleries, clubs, bars
and a variety of restaurants.
www.fortworth.com/.
2. Denver, Colo.
Known as the “Mile High City,”
Denver is home to museums, wineries, breweries and shopping.
The city also offers many outdoor
activities like white water rafting,
horseback riding, Jeep and bike
trips, hiking, railroad trips and
sightseeing.
Nightlife in Denver includes
restaurants from local steak houses
to national chains and the many
brew pubs in the city. Denver also
has many martini lounges, clubs
and laid-back sports bars.
During spring break, try to
catch a game of Denver’s professional hockey team, the Colorado
Avalanche, professional soccer
team, Colorado Rapids, or professional baseball team, the Colorado
Rockies.
www.denver.org.
1. Austin, Texas
12 hours, 738 miles
Nicknamed the “Live Music
Capital of the World,” Austin offers a city feel and more than
enough restaurants, bars and, of
course, live music to make spring
break fun and enjoyable. There
are also historical tours, gorgeous
weather, shopping, hills, lakes, rivers and trails.
www.austintexas.org.
llippert@unews.com
Culture
www.unews.com
15
March 22, 2010
save the date
Compiled by SABRINA OSBORN
Monday, March 22
Reading of ‘The House on Fortune Street’:
Margot Livesy reads from her book, “The
House on Fortune Street” followed by a reception and book signing. The event starts at 7
p.m. in Pierson Auditorium.
Concert: John Mayer’s “Battle Studies” tour
stops tonight at 8 p.m. at the Sprint Center.
Tickets are $36, $46 and $66.
Concert: Rock band Stone Temple Pilots are
in Kansas City tonight, too. The show starts
at 8 p.m. at The Midland by AMC. Tickets are
$49.50.
Tuesday, March 23
Tuesday Tune-Up: Stop in for some relaxation
from 12-12:45 p.m. at the MindBody Connection, University Center, room 161.
Barbie: The documentary film, “Barbie: Love
Her or Leave Her,” produced by the UMKC
Women’s Center is being screened today from
11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Toy and Miniature
Museum. Tickets are $5-$7 and free for UMKC
students, staff and faculty with ID.
César Chávez Lecture: Roberto Lovato, writer with New American Media is the keynote
speaker for the César Chávez Celebration to
commemorate the struggle for humane working conditions. The lecture starts at 6 p.m. in
Pierson Auditorium.
Wednesday, March 24
Lecture: “We Can Now Solve the Oldest Environmental Problem,” a lecture by Dr. Wes
Jackson, president of the Land Institute discusses the problems agriculture and chemical
contamination of our soil and water present.
The free lecture starts at 6 p.m. in Linda Hall
Library’s Main Reading Room.
Concert: The Black Eyed Peas with Ludacris
and LMFAO invade Kansas City for their first
tour since 2006. The concert starts at 7:30 p.m.
at Sprint Center. Tickets are $48.50, $59.50 and
$79.50.
Swinney Splash: Relax in the pool from 8-10
p.m. at Swinney Recreation Center Aquatic
Center.
Thursday, March 25
Know Your Status: Free HIV/STD testing today at 11 a.m. in the MindBody Connection.
Tasty donut muffin
Chelsea Soetaert
Staff Writer
Could there be a better combination of
breakfast food than a donut and a muffin?
Doffin? Muffnut?
Whatever you call them, they’re delicious, easy and you really can’t beat them
for flavor. Stop eating that mushy cereal and
make yourself some donut muffins instead.
Ingredients for muffins:
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons whole milk
1 teaspoon white or apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) unsalted butter,
at room temperature
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 large eggs
Ingredients for topping:
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2-2 cups powdered sugar
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray
a standard-size muffin tin with cooking
spray.
In a medium bowl, combine the flour,
baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg, and whisk them thoroughly. Set aside.
Combine milk and vinegar in a measuring cup, and set aside.
Put the butter in the bowl of a stand
mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or,
alternatively, in a large mixing bowl with
electric beaters nearby), and beat on medium speed for a few seconds, until the butter
is soft and creamy.
With the motor running, add the sugar in
a steady stream. Continue beating, scraping
down the sides of the bowl once or twice,
until the mixture increases in volume and
lightens to pale yellow.
Add the eggs one at a time, beating until they are just combined. With a wooden
spoon, mix 1/4 of the flour mixture into the
butter mixture.
Add 1/3 of the milk mixture. Continue to
add the dry and wet ingredients alternately,
ending with the dry ingredients.
Mix until the dough is smooth and well
combined, but do not over-mix. Divide the
batter between the cups of the muffin tin.
Bake until the muffins are firm to the
touch and a toothpick inserted in the center
comes out clean, about 25-32 minutes.
When the muffins are cool enough to
handle, prepare the topping: melt the butter in the microwave or on the stovetop, and
pour the powdered sugar into a deep bowl.
Using a pastry brush and working one
muffin at a time, lightly brush the entire
outside of the muffin with butter, and then
roll it in the powdered sugar.
Shake off any excess, and place the finished muffins on a rack or serving platter.
Serve.
csoetaert@unews.com
Photo CHELSEA SOETAERT
‘La Americana’: The documentary film follows an undocumented immigrant worker, trying to save her sick daughter, from Bolivia to
New York City and back. The film addresses
the immigration crisis in the United States. It
starts at 7 p.m. in the Plaza Room of the Administrative Center.
Friday, March 26
Make Up Your Own Holiday Day: Have
something you want to celebrate, but there is
no day designated to it? Today is your day! It’s
make up your own holiday day.
Choir and Orchestra Concert: A special performance of Brahms’ “Ein deutsches Requium” by the Conservatory Choirs and Orchestra, led by Joseph Flummerfelt. The concert
starts at 7:30 p.m. at White Recital Hall in
James C. Olson Performing Arts Center.
Study Abroad: If you’re interested in getting
out of Missouri, this just may be your chance.
The International Academic Programs Office
is hosting a Study Abroad Information Session
today at 2 p.m. at 5325 Rockhill Road.
Saturday, March 27
An Evening with Kevin Smith: The actor/
filmmaker/author makes his way to the ShowMe State with stories of movie-making, life
and more. The evening starts at 8 p.m. at The
Midland by AMC, tickets are $29.50-$65.
Imani Winds Concert: The Grammy-nominated ensemble performs tonight at 7:30 p.m.
at White Recital Hall in James C. Olson Performing Arts Center. Tickets start $25 for the
general public, $23 for seniors, $12.50 for students, $5 (limit 2) for UMKC faculty and staff
and free for UMKC students with ID.
Sunday, March 28
Gypsies, Tramps and Queens: This burlesque
show, emceed by Daisy Bücket, will raise money for HIV/AIDS awareness and AIDSWalk.
The show starts at 7 p.m. at Crosstown Station,
1522 McGee, Kansas City, Mo. Tickets are $10.
‘Grand Canyon Adventure’: See “Grand
Canyon Adventure” a film about a group rafting on the Colorado River as they bring awareness to global water issues. The film shows at
1:45 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. today at Union Station,
City Extreme Screen, 30 Pershing Road, Kansas City, Mo. For more information, call 816460-2020.
sosborn@unews.com
Sports
16
March 22, 2010
www.unews.com
Snow rugby at its finest
sports shorts
by JOHN PFORTMILLLER
Women’s Basketball
The Roos lost, 72-67, to Memphis in
the post-season Women’s Basketball Invitational.
Despite the loss, freshman Kim Nezianya made a career-high 20 points.
The Roos officially closed out their
2009-2010 season with a 16-16 overall
record.
Men’s Tennis
Men’s tennis lost their match against
Northwest Missouri State, 1-6. The team
was playing without three of their top six
players.
The men will play Southwest Baptist
at 1 p.m., March 22, at the Plaza Tennis
Center in Kansas City, Mo.
Women’s Tennis
Photo JOHN PFORTMILLER
The Roos faced off against Wichita in one slippery rugby game.
John Pfortmiller Sports Editor
Ask about the score between
the Kansas City Rogues and Wichita’s rugby squad and you will not
receive a definitive answer.
In all the snow and confusion, the only definite is that
Wichita won – by a lot.
But what is more interesting, or annoying to some, is that
the UMKC team/club/whatever
they are, did not get to play.
“We all wanted to play,” said
David Garcia, vice president
of the squad. “But the crappy
weather screwed it up.”
After the game, which was
barely visible even to the players on the pitch, everyone darted to their cars and homes to
escape the snow.
Wichita brought a full Bside squad to play against the
UMKC players.
In addition to Garcia, Terreil Dixon and Jordan Weibal
were two UMKC students who
played in the Rogues’ game.
All of them, Garcia especially, were disappointed with
the weather.
“The cold really hit the fanbase hard, the weather was so
bad,” Garcia said. “Because
it was cold, no one wanted to
come out, it really sucked.”
“We need to get
structured. I want to
clean all of it up. But it’s
hard.”
DAVID GARCIA
Vice Presidentof the UMKC Rugby
Squad
With warmer weather to promote fan support, the team could
have quite a few good matches.
But with the poor weather and lack of bodies, things
looked pretty dismal.
What is even more confusing
is what the UMKC rugby team is.
Is it a club? Is it a school
sport? Is it just a bunch of guys
who aren’t sure? No one really
seems to be sure at this point.
With confusion between
UMKC athletics and the players,
there is a need for organization.
“We need to get structured,”
Garcia said. “I want to clean all
of it up. But it’s hard.”
jpfortmiller@unews.com
Coach Brown looks to next season
John Pfortmiller
Sports Editor
With the men’s basketball team’s
2009-10 final record at 12-18, many
were disappointed with the performance.
But Head Coach Matt Brown is
looking at the positives and negatives
of the season and how those will affect
the next.
Brown believes with a full squad
returning, the team will be able to
capitalize on their experiences.
“Now that we have the experience of finishing games it will help,”
Brown said. “It’s very exciting that we
have our whole squad returning.”
The return of players like Trey
McKinney-Jones and Jay Couisnard
will only help the Roos with their next
season.
In addition, 15 of their games will
be played at home.
Only 14 away games are scheduled
for next season.
“The guys are excited about playing at home more,” Brown said. “More
home games will help because they
practice at [Swinney Recreation Center] and are more comfortable playing
here.”
However, Brown believes there is
a lot of work to be done, especially in
practice.
Brown hoped the time of day the
team practices could be changed so
the players would have the ability to
focus on studies and be “mentally focused” at practice.
“Another thing that would help is
our free throw percentage,” Brown
said. “Our goal is to be closer to 75
percent.”
In addition to all of the advantages
UMKC could have next season, former
Wichita State guard Reggie Chamberlain will finally be eligible to play for
the Roos in the 2010-11 season.
“Even though the guys were upset
about losing in the Summit League
Championship, we didn’t have any
seniors,” Brown said. “So we have a
second shot.”
jpfortmiller@unews.com
The women’s tennis team finished up
their Las Vegas games, 3-1.
The March 18 match was a 1-4 loss to
Oral Roberts University. The Roos took
it to heart and defeated Southern Utah,
4-2, Western Illinois, 4-0, and Centenary, 5-0.
The women’s next match is against
Saint Louis University, March 23, in St.
Louis, Mo. The time is TBA.
Softball
After losing their March 15 game to
Oklahoma, 17-1, the Roos took a decisive
victory against Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI).
The March 18 game saw the Roos
beat IUPUI, 12-8.
On March 19, the Roos split their
doubleheader with IUPUI. The Roos
took game one, 8-2, but the Jaguars took
game two, 7-2.
The Roos will play Western Illinois,
in a doubleheader, at 3 p.m. and 5 p.m.,
March 26, in Macomb, Ill.
Track and Field
The Summit League released the outdoor track and field preseason favorites
as voted by the league’s head coaches on
March 18.
The UMKC men’s squad was picked to
finished fifth and the women were eighth.
The track team will officially begin
its outdoor season with the Missouri Relays, March 26-27, in Columbia, Mo.
Golf
Photo courtesy UMKC ATHLETICS
Men’s basketball Head Coach Matt Brown.
The men’s team finished fourth out of
16 teams, and the women finished seventh out of 16 teams, in the Jackrabbit
Invitational March 15-16, in Primm, Nev.
Freshmen Korbin Kuehn and Victor
Mikaelsson placed in the top-15 on the
individual leaderboard.
The men’s next competition will be
the Diet Pepsi Shocker Classic, April 5-6
in Wichita, Kan.
Sophomore Chelsea Cadwell’s total of
227 (80-76-71) tied her for fourth lowest
54-hole score in school history. Her final
round’s score also tied her for fourth lowest round in school history.
The women will compete in the
UNCW Lady Seahawk Classic, March
22-23 in Wallace, N.C.
17
Sports
www.unews.com
March 22, 2010
Soccer player earning her legs
Nikki Bomgardner
Freshman soccer player Meagan Shipley likes to cook, speak
Spanish and wake up at 5 a.m.
three days a week. Well, maybe
not the latter.
Recruited as a goalkeeper,
Shipley committed to UMKC soccer in April 2008. One year and
four months later, she attended her
first practice as a field player.
Shipley came to UMKC
from Chippewa High School in
Doylestown, Ohio, where she
played four years of soccer, two
years of basketball and ran track
for two years. She started playing
soccer when she was 4 years old.
“I like the fact that soccer is
one of my biggest stress relievers,”
Shipley said. “Sometimes it can
cause me stress, but at the end of the
day, it is my favorite thing to do.”
Being 800 miles from home
and new in town has not deterred
Shipley.
“Being recognized on campus
and having a big athletic family
are the best parts,” Shipley said.
“It helps if you’re new in town because you [as an athlete] automatically know people.”
The training schedule has been
a big adjustment for Shipley. She
said in the off season they train,
condition and weight lift starting
at 6 a.m. Monday, Wednesday and
Friday. But the women’s team
must work hard to build a fan base.
She said the men’s team is already “well established and coming off some good seasons. They
already have their fan base.”
She thinks the women’s team
needs to build that fan base, since
last year was their first as a team.
Shipley didn’t have any expectations coming to UMKC, but
knew it would be hard.
“It has lived up to every bit of
that expectation,” Shipley said.
She maintains a 4.0 GPA. Her
major is Criminal Justice and minor is Spanish. When she graduates, she would like to be a police
officer and eventually, a member
of the S.W.A.T. team.
“I am the first person in my
Brian Sanders
Photo courtesy UMKC ATHLETICS
Meagan Shipley.
family to become a college athlete,” Shipley said.
The only thing she would
change about her experience at
UMKC is the time of practice.
extra points
by KEVIN BRYCE
This is madness
Once a year, everything stops for sports fans.
We change meetings, swap shifts, postpone events,
cancel dates, fake sick, fake dead, ignore the phone,
eat snacks, drink a cold one, leave the dog outside,
leave the garbage for tomorrow and pencil in those
little brackets. Is it absurd?
No, it’s madness.
Our judgments are made primarily on a little
number beside each team name ranking them from
1 to 16.
The most educated in sports might have a grasp
of the ability of all 16 teams – for most of us it’s
only 5 to 10.
So we judge according to the ranking. But that
little number beside each team is like a beautiful
woman giving you the eye, don’t even go there
man, it’s a bad idea. There’s madness all over it.
Thursday’s start proved that madness once
again. Northern Iowa (ranked 9th) beat UNLV
(ranked 8th), Georgia Tech (ranked 10th) beat
Oklahoma St. (ranked 7th), Washington (ranked
11th) beat Marquette (ranked 6th). And the thrilling Murray State (ranked 13th) matched up against
Vanderbilt (ranked 4th) dropped a buzzer beater to
take the game.
And then there was KU. The devastating, gut
wrenching Saturday game that turned brackets
across the nation on their heads.
As one not from the area, I’m not one of those
kids who grew up watching KU with their dad. I’m
not one of the guys whose parents have season tickets, or who learned to chant “Rock Chalk Jayhawk”
when I was 5.
With that said, I offer this condolence. This is
what the madness is all about. It’s about the possibility of the impossible.
Anything can happen. The young and the new
defeat the old and experienced. Stars arise and veterans fall.
We see half court buzzer-beaters and alleyoops, turned 3-point plays. I’m holding out for the
day UMKC gets a slice of the action. Call me mad,
but I’ll simply respond, “Exactly.”
Sherron Collins will play again, Cole Aldrich
will press on, and I’m excited to see what Xavier
Henry has in store. The madness is found in the
Exhibitions galore
unexpected – the Northern Iowa mother standing
in tears as her boy goes on to the Sweet 16.
So to you, the Jayhawk, with your lowered
head, chin up. Sure there’s next year, but there’s
this year, too.
There are still 15 more games, and anything can
happen. Find joy in the anticipation. How far will
Northern Iowa go? What about the rival K-State?
Now that our brackets are ruined, let’s look to
the underdog. This is what it’s all about. All bets
are off, the cards are down and it is anyone’s game.
The boss is gone; it’s a free for all.
The excitement is now only stronger. It’s not
absurd. It’s not crazy. It’s not ludicrous. It’s joyful,
painstaking and entertaining March madness.
kbryce@unews.com
Staff Writer
Entering the offseason after
one of the more interesting seasons
in UMKC men’s soccer history,
a team can only try and build on
what was previously accomplished.
This week the Roos were invited to play against the Major League
Soccer Kansas City Wizards in two
different exhibition games.
Tuesday night at the home of the
Kansas City Wizards, Community
America Ballpark, the first team
of the professional franchise laced
up their boots (soccer cleats for the
uneducated) and squared off.
The match ended up not being
very competitive as the collegiate
squad lost to the professional side,
7-0.
There was a question on running up the score nearing the end.
On Friday, the second exhibition game was played at the training facility of the Kansas City Wizards.
This time the Kansas City Wizards had their reserves, the Swope
Park Rangers, facing the UMKC
squad.
This was a much more balanced
game than Tuesday’s.
The Swope Park Rangers defeated the Roo’s, 2-0. Wizards
forward, Kei Kamara, scored both
goals.
The Kangaroo’s took the fight
equally to the Wizards and were
able to keep the opposing goalkeeper active in protecting his net.
Despite losing 9-0 on aggregate
this week, competitive opposition
always provides a team with testing themselves in the very best
way.
For a player’s psyche success is
fantastic, but if it is being gained
without facing strong opposition a
bloated head is a dangerous thing.
There is more action on the horizon for the men’s soccer team as
they look to take on the Missouri
State Bears on April 9.
The game will be at Durwood
Soccer Stadium, the first appearance there since the Halloween
game against Oakland.
bsanders@unews.com
Sporting Events
Women’s Golf
Date
3/22-23
3/29-30
Event
UNCW Lady Seahawk Classic
UALR Golf Classic
Women’s Tennis
3/23
3/31
4/1
Saint Louis
Bethune-Cookman
Albany
Men’s Tennis
3/22
3/23
3/26
3/27
3/27
3/30
3/31
4/1
Southwest Baptist
Saint Louis
IPFW
IUPUI
South Dakota State
Jacksonville
Bethune-Cookman
Niagara Softball
3/26
3/26
3/27
3/30
3/30
4/2
4/2
4/3
Western Illinois
Western Illinois
Western Illinois
Kansas
Kansas
South Dakota State
South Dakota State
South Dakota State
3/26-27
3/31-4/4
Missouri Relays
Texas Relays
All Day
St. Louis, Mo.
Orlando, Fla.
Orlando, Fla.
TBA
1 p.m.
TBA
Kansas City, Mo.
St. Louis, Mo.
Indianapolis, Ind.
Indianapolis, Ind.
Indianapolis, Ind.
Jacksonville, Fla.
Orlando, Fla.
Orlando, Fla.
1 p.m.
3:30 p.m.
8 a.m.
8 a.m.
1 p.m.
9 a.m.
2 p.m.
9 a.m.
Macomb, Ill.
Macomb, Ill.
Macomb, Ill.
Lawrence, Kan.
Lawrence, Kan.
Brookings, S.D.
Brookings, S.D.
Brookings, S.D.
3 p.m.
5 p.m.
12 p.m.
4 p.m.
6 p.m.
1 p.m.
3 p.m.
1 p.m.
Omaha, Neb.
10 a.m.
Columbia, Mo.
Austin, Texas
All Day
All Day
Creighton Spring Tournament
Track
Time
All Day
Volleyball
3/27
Place
Wallace, N.C. (River Landing Golf Course)
Hot Springs, Ark.
(Diamante Country Club)
Forum
18
March 22, 2010
www.unews.com
Let’s get ready to rumble
Common Sense
EVAN HELMUTH
T
here are all sorts of
reasons to love the
spring time. I subscribe to all of them.
To start with the
obvious, 60 degrees and sunny feels
like a not-so-small slice of heaven
when one has just endured the long
months of obnoxiously frigid and
snow encumbered drudgery, which
we call Kansas City winters.
The recent euphoria-inducing thaw
saw me break out the t-shirts and nix
the coats in what was a glorious triumph over the misery of winter.
No longer must I worry about
turning into an ice cube on my walk
from the School of Education to
Cockefair Hall or between the Oak
Street Parking Structure and the Biological Sciences Building.
Apart from the merciful reprieve
from the ungodly cold temperatures,
there are quite a few other reasons to
celebrate the spring.
For one thing, March Madness is
upon us.
Like every year, I fully plan to
prove my ignorance of college hoops
by filling out at least one bracket.
Even though my brackets are
usually irredeemably screwed up
within two rounds, the tournament
itself is supremely entertaining and
represents just one more notch in the
belt of awesomeness that belongs to
spring.
Those readers familiar with this
column have no doubt been wondering where the political angle is
hiding.
I certainly don’t mean to disappoint. There is yet another reason
why I revel so much in the spring
time.
“This sport gets played
out in sound bites,
slogans and brilliantly
crafted commercials all
designed to paint a very
specific picture of both
candidates involved.”
Every other year, right around
this time, candidates begin filing to
stand for election to state and federal offices.
For the political nerd (such as
An international
lesson about school
JASON PATTERSON
As students, it is important to share
the knowledge we gain through our life
experiences with others in hope they will
prosper, too.
Each year, the Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) team from the Bloch School
of Business and Public Administration
develop projects to educate members of
the community in the areas of success
skills, market economics, entrepreneurship, financial literacy, business ethics
and environmental sustainability.
For the category of success skills,
seven of the SIFE team members and two
advisors were invited to travel to Nanjing,
China, to lead a series of discussions. As
a member of SIFE, I was lucky enough to
go along on that journey.
These discussions helped give students who were planning to attend school
in America a better understanding of
American culture and what it takes to be
a successful student here.
But before we traveled to China, we
needed to find out exactly what the Chinese students knew and what they could
learn.
So, SIFE conducted interviews with
international students on campus to see
what things the students thought would
have been useful to know before they
came here.
After the research was done, we developed a two-hour presentation that covered the different ethnicities found in the
United States, the different geographical
areas and how the sub-culture varies between them.
The team also discussed the differences in the classroom setting, the greater use of technology for communication
with the professors and other students and
how the interactions between the professors and students are much more casual
with open discussion happening during
the lecture.
Additionally, we discussed the importance of interacting with a variety of
students instead of just with other international students.
While in Nanjing, we presented to
more than 1,600 students – all of whom
indicated they were planning to attend
college in America. According to post
session surveys, on average 70 percent of
the students who attended our lectures indicated they had an increased knowledge
of American culture and felt more comfortable coming to school here.
Because of the efforts of the SIFE
team, UMKC is now recognized as one of
thirteen schools on the approved list for
the Nanjing Ministry of Education. This
will allow UMKC to further its international reach and have an easier time recruiting students from that region to our
school.
This experience was very rewarding
for me. It gave me a better understanding of what students from other countries
encounter when they travel here, plus it
helped me better appreciate the things I
may take for granted in life.
Our team will be heading to the Regional Competition in Chicago next
month and I am sure we will wow the
judges with the impact our project had in
the lives of these students.
jpatterson@unews.com
myself), these match-ups carry with
them a feeling approximating that
of opening day of the Major League
Baseball season for fans.
Quite apart from actual policy
issues and the discussions surrounding them (which I happen to
think are even more fascinating
and intellectually engaging than
the process that selects who will
decide them) is a separate full contact sport we typically refer to as
electoral politics.
This sport gets played out in
sound bites, slogans and brilliantlycrafted commercials all designed to
paint a very specific picture of both
candidates involved.
These contests are often decided by the level of participation of
a relatively small percentage of the
population who are politically attuned and motivated on either side,
as well as by the demographic and
message gurus employed by each
campaign.
When they are close, which is
often in Missouri, these campaigns
make excellent blood sport at least,
if nothing else.
The contests I expect to provide
the most entertainment value this
year are as follows: Round four of
Congressman Emanuel Cleaver vs.
GOP challenger Jacob Turk promises to be much closer than the previous three rounds, given the toxic
atmosphere for Democratic incumbents this fall.
I also suspect the race for United
States senator from Missouri, between Roy Blunt and Catherine Carnahan, will be amusing if not especially useful in providing a candidate
I’d like to send to the Senate.
These are just a few of my favorite things about the spring. Together,
they make this my favorite time of
year.
ehelmuth@unews.com
My small
hometown
NIKKI BOMGARDNER
Spring break came early for me this year.
Last week, I ventured back to the greatest city
in the world, Chicago.
I lived in the windiest city ever for three years
before moving to Kansas City last year to finish
my education at UMKC. Yes, I know, I deliberately chose UMKC over University of Illinois at
Chicago or Chicago State.
I left just after Obama was elected, when the
city was wide-eyed and so full of hope it brings
tears to my eyes just thinking about it. I left before the city lost its bid for the 2016 Olympic
games. And I left just as Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s
life came crashing down around him.
My arrival on St. Patty’s Day, one of the city’s
craziest celebrations, did not ensure my annual
viewing of the river turning green, which was the
weekend before.
I asked a dear friend, “How long does the water stay green?”
He quickly said, “Year round.”
However, Chicago’s finest did not spare me
witnessing the random drunkenness when, all of
a sudden, almost everyone is Irish.
Although I did not take part in the yearly bandwagon-hopping since I’m not Irish, I did take to the
streets for my re-acquaintance with the city.
We ate at the best pizza joint in the world,
Giordano’s. If you’ve never been there, you just
don’t understand.
To walk off all that cheese, we took off down
State Street, one of the best streets for shopping
and panhandling in all of Chicago.
Near the corner of State and Lake streets,
where I’ve stood and watched the news broadcast
from the street so many times before, I could en-
vision this time, my role at the desk just behind
that glass wall at ABC7 News, WLS-TV.
The production is always seamless and lowkey even though there are a number of us streetwalkers staring at the anchors doing their jobs.
The anchors are looking ... mature, if you will. I
can easily picture my fresh, somewhat young face
on the newscast each night, wondering what it will
be like working so late (but not really caring) reporting on the daily shootings on the south side and
continuous corruption in the city’s government.
Later the next day as I’m taking the biggest
risk you could possibly take with your life, riding
in a Chicago taxi cab, we fly at warp speed down
Wacker Drive where I can catch a quick glimpse
of the enormous Chicago Sun-Times building
with the huge letters staring back at me, inviting
me to “work here instead of TV.”
The obvious plus of writing for the newspaper
instead of physically talking to Chicagoland behind
a desk every day is the retention of privacy, in a way.
I would be able to walk down the street without
anyone recognizing me. That sounds rather appealing in this paparazzi-heavy time, constantly feeding
America’s “celebrity” frenzy.
I may be dreaming big. Who knows, I may end
up freelance writing for the Joliet Herald News,
no offense intended, Joliet.
Since it’s not the dead of winter, I have almost forgotten the bitter weather the area can produce and one
of the reasons I was driven away in the first place.
But I have not forgotten the sound of the “L”
train booming overhead while walking through the
theatre district.
I haven’t forgotten the little rush I get when I walk
across the Chicago River, feeling the bridge bounce
beneath my feet wondering if it’s going to spontaneously collapse into the pale green water below.
And I recall the fantasy in my head that Oprah
is going to pull up next to me on the street in her
Bentley, automatically sensing the potential talent
on my face, the confidence in my posture, the big
dreams of a big career in journalism and offer me
a job in her own Chicago staple, Harpo Studios.
And oh yes, offer me a new car.
They say you have to start somewhere. I plan
to start at the top.
19
Forum
www.unews.com
March 22, 2010
Letter to the Editor Word on Campus
In response to ‘High ... and
not on life’ in Issue 25
I need to ask you some important
questions.
I am interested in the source of
the information from for your article “High ... and not on life” by
Jill Schleiden. I am a senior in the
nursing program and I seriously
doubt that the four students who did
heroin are actually in the nursing
program.
Are you completely confident
that these people were not Pre-nursing students who have NOT actually been accepted into the nursing
program (for good reason)? Can you
prove that they were not lying to you
to give you a good story? Where did
your columnist find these nursing
students?
Are you even completely confident that they are UMKC students?
Nursing students take drug tests
for each hospital clinical rotation
plus for any hospital job that we get.
Last year, I believe I took four
drug tests and they were all clean,
as they have always been. I have
never even considered doing any
drugs whatsoever. I have never gotten drunk.
How about you put that in your
article about nurses rather than mak-
Interviewed by NILA HALL
ing us all look like druggies.
This article could make hospitals decide against hiring all of us
UMKC seniors who are applying
against many other nursing students,
even though these accusations about
the nursing students has nothing to
do with me or any of my friends in
the senior class.
Please provide me with proof
of your facts that you can show
with complete confidence that the
people you interviewed were, in
fact, UMKC School of Nursing
students.
If you cannot support your accusatory statements, I believe you need
to issue an apology on the same front
page that you posted this article.
Heather Anderson
Senior
Editor’s Response
All of the results about UMKC
student drug use came from a nonscientific survey of 200 random
UMKC students who were on campus during the past two weeks, as
noted in the first few sentences of
the story.
The survey was a simple questionnaire that asked which of five
drugs the student had used within
his/her lifetime, if any. The drug use
may have been before they entered
our university.
The students were advised not to
write their names on the survey but
to write in their majors if they were
surveyed outside of a class.
The surveys were returned to
the reporter folded and placed into a
folder to assure anonymity.
The private nature of this survey helped encourage students to be
honest about drug use.
None of the students who selfreported as having used heroin and
being nursing students had anything
apparent to gain by lying.
Additionally, the story is written
for UMKC students, so the small
size of the survey sample was assumed apparent in light of the student body size.
This also applies to the number of
nursing students who said they had
used heroin. Most students are presumed aware of the size of the nursing school.
Because the non-scientific nature
of the poll was specified, no claim
was made the results, including
those of self-titled nursing students,
were anything more than unscientific as well.
No accusations were leveled at
nurses or the School of Nursing.
We hope this alleviates some of
your concerns.
What are your plans for spring break?
“I’m going to a technical theater
conference and I’m going to
be the master electrician for ‘A
Midsummer Night’s Dream.’”
“Visiting family in San Diego.
Also doing a performance piece
called ‘Orbit.’”
GREGORY CASPARIAN
Senior
Theater Lighting Design
DAVID EICHENBAUM
Graduate Student
Music Composition
“Work.”
“Just working and maybe going
out of town.”
EMELIE PFAFF
Freshman
Performance French Horn
ALAN PHAM
Junior
Business Finance
“I’ll just be working and relaxing
when I’d normally be in class.”
“Probably pick up more hours
of work and catch up on my
English.”
SARAH WESSEL
Senior
Art History
KAYLEE BLOOM
Junior
Studio Art
What do you think?
Do you think there should be a wall separating
Mexico and America?
A. Yes
B. No
Go to www.unews.com and tell us your answer!
Your answers to last week’s question:
Do you think drug abuse is a problem on campus?
A. Yes
B. No
A. 43%
B. 57%
ACCESS from page 1
Monday’s Puzzle Solved
housing the Center for Academic Development (CAD). The buildings were around
before the passage of the Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA) and are exempted
under the law.
“However, under the ADA, we have to
make the programs and services housed
in those buildings equally accessible to
all students, including students with disabilities,” Laurent said. “So, for example,
if a student who uses a wheelchair needs
to use the services of the Math Resource
Center, which is located on the second
floor of the CAD building, a staff member would arrange to meet with the student
with a disability at another location that is
convenient for the student, such as the library.”
In a situation where a building only has
one elevator and it is out of order, Student
Disability Services will help the student
make up for any missed classes.
“Campus Facilities has done a good job
at working quickly as possible to get the elevator repaired,” Laurent said. “If a student
is unable to get to class because the elevator
is not working, then our office will work
with the student and the professor to ensure
that the student is able to make up the work
missed, get a copy of class notes, etc.”
As a whole, the campus does meet ADA
standards for accessibility, Laurent said.
“There are, from time to time, problems that arise that need to be addressed,”
he said. “In recent years, we have had a lot
of construction on campus that has created
some access issues but those have been
addressed. Probably the most difficult aspect for accessibility for people who use
wheelchairs would be that the campus has
a number of hills that make getting around
difficult, particularly for those in manual
wheelchairs.”
With five people in his department,
Laurent said he is proud of the work they
do.
“I believe that a society is judged by
how it treats its least powerful members,”
he said. “I am proud that I have the opportunity to help people get a college education who would not have been able to attend
college just 50 years ago.”
Hopes for the future
Sparks said her experience at UMKC
has been good.
“I get along with all the students,” she
said.
But, she does have hope for changes in
the future.
Sparks transferred to UMKC from Johnson County Community College (JCCC),
where all of the buildings are connected by
bridges so students do not have to go outside
other than when going to their cars.
While some of the buildings on the
Quad at UMKC are connected, the bridges
are not all on the same floor of the buildings, forcing those in wheelchairs to wait
for the elevator to change floors before
changing buildings via the bridges.
“JCCC was perfect for me because all of
the buildings were connected,” she said. “I
could go meet all of my teachers.”
Because of the challenges she faces trying to get around in a wheelchair when it is
cold, raining or snowing, Sparks would like
to see UMKC move in that direction.
“I would hope that some day in the future, UMKC could make a ramp to make
things easier and I hope one day they will
have a bridge between all the buildings as
well.”
alang@unews.com
Classifieds
Entrepreneurs wanted for 15 yr. old Bio-Science Company expanding in your area.
Earnings potential unlimited, contact information
located at our website, www.MyGenewize.com/MLHull or
contact Michael at 816-795-8162 for interview.
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