Student-formed club stands against blocked parking lot on UNA campus

Volume 80 No. 24March 15, 2012 www.FlorAla.net Student newspaper of the University of North Alabama

A LOOK INSIDE

SGA candidates debate and share their ideas with the

student body.

See page 2

@UNAFlorAla

@FlorAlaSports

Frustrated with blocked parking spaces in the lot near the communications building, David Mc-CrCC eary aaandn Jimmie Holden joined together with otototto heheheheheh rrrrr UNUUUUUU A studdddene ts to take a stand againinninststt ttthehehe isissusuueeee e by fffffororororormimimimmmm ngngngn an alliancee ccc lala led the Ribbon CuuCutttterers sss ClCC ubb...

ThThe e grrrrgrououououoouuououp,p wwwwwhich bbbbbbbbegegegegan establishing a repu-tatatitionon fforor iitststsssele f in late FeFeFeeeeFeebbbbrbbbbrbbruary, made a splash inn ththe e UNUNA A cococommmmmmmmmmunununuunititiiti y y yy whenn sssssstut dents started using gggggsososoossocicialal mmededdiaaia aaaas ss aaaa fofofofoformrmrmrm oooofffff f prprprprprprototototottttoteseesesesttt t agagagagggggaiaiaiaiainsnsnssnsnsnsnssttttt tt t papapappapaapapap rkrkrkrkrkrkrkrkinninininininininnnggggg g g g g loooootsts bbeieiingngn bbbloll cckckckedddde ooooff oon nn a cacacacac mpmpmpmmmmpmmpppppusuuuuusu wwitithhh h allrrereadadddyyy lililililiillililiililillllllll mimimimimmmmmimimimimitetetetetttetteteteddddddddddd pppapapapppapapppppppp rkkkkrkrkrkrkrkkkkkkkkkinninninniiiniiii g gggg gg avaavvaiaiaiiilllalal bbbib litytytytyyyttytyyyyyyyyy..

ThThhThThThTThThThThThTThThhThThThhheeeeeeeeeee e RiRiRibbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbboooononnnnooononnnonn CCCCututttteteeeerssr Clululuuubbb b mmmmoovevevevvvvveemememmememementntnnnnnntn hhhhhhhhhhhhhhasassassaassaaaaaa ssssssssssssssiniinininiininnininiinninininnncecccccccccccccc gagagaaaagagaaaagaaagaagagaaaiininiinininnnininnnnnninninnnnnni ededededddeedededdededeeddedeeddedededdeed aaaaaaaaaaa sssssssigigiigigii nininnnnininninininnininnnniniifi fi fifififififififififififificccacaacaaccaccacacaccaacacaantntntntntnntntntnntnttttntt ffffffffoooloololoo lololoowiwingngngnggg aaaaaaaaaaaaaandndndnndndndndndndnd iiiiiiiiiiiiincncncncncnncnnnncncncncnncrrrererererererererererereasasasaasasasasasaasasaaaaaa dededdeddedddededdded iiiiiiiiiiiiin n n nnnpapapappp ttrtttrtrtrrtrtr iiiiiiiicicicciipiiiiipiipipippp ttatatatatiooiionn n atattt ttttttttttttttttttthehehehehhehehehhheheh u iiiiiiiniiveveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeersrsrrrsrsrsrsrsrsrsr itiiitiiiiiiiii y,y,y, HHHHHHololoollolololoololllooo ddedededededededededddddennnnnnnn ssasasssasaaaaaaaaaaaidididddddddiddiddidididdddddddddi .....

““A“A“A“A“A“AAA llllllllllll tototot oooffff pepepeepeoopopopopopopopopoopplelelelelelellelelele ddddddddddddoonononnoonnonnon’tt’’t’t’tttt wwwwwwwananananantt ttt tottto sssssssspppppeppeepeepepepeakaakkkkkkakakakkkkakakaakkakkakkak uuuuuuppppppppppp,ppp,p,p ”” hehehehehehehe said. “But even n ifififififiifi wwwwweee e ararararre eee e totototototaatatatallllllllllyyyy y wrwrwrwwronononononong g gg gg ororo dddddononononon’t’t’t’tt hahhahhhahahahahaveveveveevevee aaaaaa lllllllototototototot oooooooofffffff f inininininininfofooofofoofofoformrmrmrmatatatattioioioioion,n,n,n, jjust bebb inini gg ababablele tto o spsppeae k kkupup sspapapaarkrkrkkss sosos memememeththini g inn ttryryini gg to fifi nd a a cocompmproro--mise.”

McMcCrCreaearyry ssaiaid d mamanyny sstudents have taken the initiatiive to drive through the yellow caution tape when offi cials have reserved parking sspaces on campus for what can sometimes be hours during high-traffi c periods of the daay.y

UNA studuuu ent Elizabbeth BeBell, whwhwhoo takes class-es in the commmunications building, said d she e has totot ccommummuteeee frorom MaMadiison n to campus fi ve dayys s a weeweweekekk aaaandnn tttheheee bbbbblockcc eded pparrrkingngngng lots afaffect herer abil-

itity y toto make it to class on time.“I“IIIIIIIIt’s just hard for me because somme ofof mmy y

prrofofofofofofofofofofo eeeeesee sors have a strict policy that if you u ara e evenenenennnn fi ve minutes late for class, yoy u get cooununtted dabbseseeeeeees nt or you get docked points on your gradade,e,””she sssas id. “A“AAndnd when thhat lot is blocked offf,f aallll theee ppppapppaparkrkini g arararound tthe communication building gis takakakakakakakeeen and fororr me, it’s hard because I have to drddddddd ivvvvvveeeeeeeee ssos far anddd usually have to leave 30 minutes eeeeeeaeaaee rrlrlrlrlrlrlrlyyyyyyyy juj st to make it through morning traffi c and I nnneeenen edededdddddeeeedde ttoo bebebe aablble e toto fifinnd d a a papaparkrkrkiiini g space when I gettotoooto ssssssssschhc ooooll anand d onon tthohhosese dddayayays,ss, III cccananan’ttt.”.

AAAAAAAsAAAA sistant professososoor rrr ofof ppppububublilil c c rerererelalall titionono ss DrDDr. BeBeeB thhhhhthh GGGarfrerick saidddd iiit’t’t’sssss dididididididdisscscsscsccsccs ououuuououououououo rarararrarrragigigingngngngngng fffororororro hhheerer tttoo oseee e e eeeee stsstststtssssssstts udududdudududeneneene tstststst ssstrugglglllgg eeee tttotoototottt mmmmakakakake e e ititititititititiittitti ttttoooo o clclclc asasasa s s s oooonon ttttimimmmme e easasasassssasasassasa aaaaaaaaaaaa rrrrrreeeesesesseeeeeeesululululuuuluuluuuuuuluululuuuuuluuuu tt tt t t ofofofofofoofofof pppppppppppararrraraaraaa ttt t ofoffff ttttthhehehehheeehheeeee ppppararararrrkikikikik ngngngng llloototoootoootooot bbbbbbbbeieieiieieieieieie nngngngngnngngg bbbbbbbbbbbblolllololockkckckckkckkkkededededededeed offfffffffffffffff fffff fffffff fffff fooofofoofoforrr r rrrr otootototooototooo hehehhhhhehehehhehehheheheheheheheheehhheheeeerrrrrrrrrrr rrrrrr eevevevevevevvevvvevevvvvvevvvveeeeeveveeveevvvveneneenenenenenennneneeeneeneennne tstssttssttstt ..

“FFFFFFrorooorooor mmm mmmmmmmm aaaaa aaaaaaa a aaaa prprprprprrprprprrprprrprrofofofofofoofofofoofofofofooooooofofoooooooooo eseseseseseseseseeeeeeeeseee sssososossosossosososor’rrrrrrrr sssss sss ss ss ststtststststststttsttststananaannaannaaaaaa dpdpdpdpdpdpdpdpdpddpdpooiiooioiiiioiioiiioioioioinntntnnnnntnnnnnnn ,,,,,, thththhthththththiisisisisssisisis hhhhhhhhhhhhhaaarrraraaaraaa msmssss thththhhthhthhhthhhthtttheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee ssststudddddddddddddududdduudududddu eeeeenennenenenneneeeeeeneennntstststststststststsssstststsssts,,,, eeeeseseeeseesseeeesssppepepepepeep ciiallllyll thhhhohh se wwwwwwwititititititithhhhhhh h prprprprprprprrofofofofofofofesesesesesessesessososososoososorsrsrssrs

hhhhhhwhhwhwhwhhwhhhho o hhhhhahahahahahhavevevevevevvevevvee ttttararaaraararrarrrrarrardidididididididiidddiddidd nnnnennnnennnn ssss ppolicies,” she said. “I’m mad ononononon beeeehhhehehhee aaaaalallaaa fffff fffff ofofooofffoffooofofoofofofofofofofoofo ttttttttttthehehhehhhhehehhehh sstudentnts who are being lall ttte forclcllclaassaaaa seeeees.s ”””””””””

UUNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNUNAAAAAAAAA popopopollllillll ce Chief Bob Pastula’s departmentwooooowowoorkrkr sss s inini conjunction with University Events to blbllbblbbblloococoocoooocccoococococoo kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk k ofoofofofoffofffffffff f pappppppppp rking in that lot for both on and off-campus groups that reserve space in the GUC forevents.

The pap rking lot by the commmuunicatitiononss bubuilild-d-ing is sometimes blocked off for meeeetitingngss ththatat laast up to an hoh ur and otherr timmess fforor eeveventnts s thhthatatawow n’t t ococcucur unntil late aaftf ererrnnnonoonon oor r eaearlrly y y evevenene inininng.g.g

photo by KAYLA SLOAN I Staff Photographer

SGA lacking in senator participationUNA’s Student Government

Association senate currently has 17 fi lled senator seats, but, accord-ing to the organization’s code of laws, it could support up to 40, said SGA senator and junior geography and political science major Jordan Brasher.

Brasher is currently the unop-posed candidate for next year’s vice president of senate position.

Though the senate could tech-nically have 40 senators—based on the number of students at UNA and the rule that each senator represents 240 students—the cap has been set at 30 until the 2015 reapportion-ment, said Vice President of Sen-ate and junior professional biology major Emily McCann.

With 13 seats empty, senate has run into some issues, Brasher said.

“The problem is if you have 17 senators on the roster but only 14 are there, it narrows the num-ber of people who can voice their

opinions or pass legislation,” she said. “We need two-thirds of sen-ate total to pass expenditures; not two-thirds of the people present.”

McCann said retention prob-lems have made it a constant battle to fi ll senate seats.

“It might be because we ask a lot of them,” she said. “We have a weekly meeting, and it’s not a fun meeting. It’s serious, and we ask them to write legislation. A lot of students just aren’t up to that.”

Brasher said she has noticed re-tention problems too.

“We’ll have a lot of people at the (SGA) retreat, but a lot of them just don’t stick with it,” she said. “It’s a lot of work when you fi rst come in. We start asking people to write bills right away. With about six or seven who are constantly putting out legislation, they need a break.”

The time commitment is likely an issue to some potential appli-cants, McCann said.

“I think it’s tough sometimes for college students to be involved,” she said. “It can be hard to balance

Greek life, school and family. They just choose other things.”

Director of Student Engage-ment and adviser to SGA Tammy Jacques said some students might be deterred from senate member-ship by the lack of instant gratifi -cation.

“I don’t think a lot of students realize how important the senate side is,” she said. “It’s very busi-ness focused, and it can be hard to see results as quickly as with (the University Program Council),

photo by MALISA MCCLURE I Chief Photographer

William Nash, Michael Nelson and Jeremy Patton participate in the Student Government Association senate meeting March 8.

Andrew Almon has emerged as one of the top players on the baseball team.

See page 10

Course at University of Pennsylvania offers students active par-

ticipation in the life of monasticism.

See page 7

JUMP cultivates cultural awareness with “Nothing But

Noodles.”

See page 7

Page 2 Thursday, March 15, 2012 • The Flor-AlaNewsNews Briefs

News Briefs are compiled by News Editor Josh Skaggs. Email jskaggs@una.edu to have your event featured in this section.

THE RESULTS ARE INTHE RESULTS ARE IN

Log on to www.florala.net for the results of the recent SGA elections.

Candidates debate, share ideas with students

SGA presidential candidates Will Riley and William Nash went head-to-head in a presidential debate hosted by The Flor-Ala newspaper March 8 in Stevens Hall audi-torium.

There were more than 100 students and faculty members in attendance, and the crowd was engaged during the debate.

The candidates were asked what their stance is on the D-I decision and how they plan to work with the student population during this time of transition.

Riley responded fi rst, speaking in favor of the decision. He said the student voice was heard during the decision-making pro-cess, but there are other factors that have to be considered. Riley also encouraged stu-dents to look at the decision from a long-term perspective.

“It can be a rocky road if we don’t com-ply and work with the board of trustees during this move,” Riley said. “But we’re going to receive several thousand dollars for the university and athletics if we move to D-I.”

Nash said the decision was made solely based on athletics. Fees might have been easier for students to handle and the com-

munity would have had more preparation for the move if the university had waited to make the decision, he said.

Both candidates also agreed that the current parking situation is less than satis-factory, and their efforts would both largely include longer shuttle bus routes to pick up more students from off-campus locations.

Riley and Nash were asked how they would improve the campus food service program Sodexo.

“A lot of students complain about Sodexo, but they don’t ever say exactly what’s wrong,” Riley said. “We should not complain about Sodexo, but we should complain to Sodexo.”

Nash said Sodexo has shown an effort to improve its services since it has been op-erating at UNA.

“They’ve shown a real commitment to bettering themselves and the community,”

Nash said.Both candidates shared their ideas for

making SGA more accessible to students.Nash wants to follow in the footsteps

of what SGA is currently doing, as well as improve the Ideas to Actions program. He wants SGA members to spend more time talking to students and fi nding out what their concerns are.

Riley said he will make sure there are consistent biweekly updates for students. He also believes that, instead of continu-ing to recruit people for SGA, the people in SGA need to start recruiting fans of SGA.

Disability services awareness—part of Nash’s platform—was the next topic of dis-cussion at the debate. Riley said the univer-sity needs to seek out more students with or close to disabilities for input and guidance, as well as add more handicapped-accessi-ble parking spots on campus.

Nash highlighted specifi c areas on cam-pus that need improvement for those with disabilities, including a lack of railing on campus, the chairlift in Bibb Graves Hall and the paperwork process students with disabilities have to go through at the start of each semester.

“We need less bureaucracy and more

”A lot of students complain about Sodexo, but they donʼt ever

say exactly whatʼs wrong.” -Will Riley

NASH RILEY

pho

tos

by

KA

YLA

SLO

AN

I St

aff

Pho

tog

rap

her

Career Planning plans to host meal etiquette classes

Th e Offi ce of Career Planning and Development will host its spring dining etiquette classes March 20 at 5 p.m. and March 21 at 11:30 a.m. in the GUC ban-quet halls.

Th e classes are set to off er learning op-portunities for professional and formal dining in a practical setting.

Registration for the event is $15 and will be accepted in cash or by check in GUC 202. Th e deadline to register is Th ursday, March 15.

For more information, contact the Of-fi ce of Career Planning and Development at 256-765-4277.

UNA student to kick-start new campaign, release music video

Dillon Hodges will host his kickstarter campaign and release his new music video March 20 from 5 to 8 p.m. at ColdWater Books in Tuscumbia.

A kickstarter campaign is designed to help fund an artistic work, such as a mu-sical album. For each contribution made toward Hodges’ campaign, donors will re-ceive a gift based on how much is donated.

Th e event will also include musical art-ists Lee Taylor and the Bluebirds.

Aft er the performances, Hodges will premiere his new music video “Bullet for a Broken Heart.”

UPC to host campusevent for cancerawareness

Th e University Program Council will host a kickoff party for Relay for Life April 10 from 6 to 9 p.m. in the Memorial Am-phitheatre.

All proceeds from the event will go directly to the American Cancer Society. Both luminaries and team member regis-tration cost $1.

For more information, contact Jori Chatman at jechatman@una.edu.

HAVE AN EVENT?

Page 3Thursday, March 15, 2012 • The Flor-Ala NewsMAKING AN IMPACT

The Florence area felt a community im-pact as it welcomed visitors to the George Lindsey UNA Film Festival at the begin-ning of March.

The festival, running in its 15th year, featured approximately 40 fi lmmakers and screenwriters as well as 10 special guests, such as actors Michael Rooker and Ernest Borgnine.

“This event brings recognition to UNA from across the country; (it) brings fi lm-makers and others to the area who might never have come to Florence otherwise, and events such as these certainly contribute to the quality of life in the area,” said Libby Jordan, director of cultural tourism for Flor-ence/Lauderdale Tourism.

Despite bearing the school’s name, the festival is more than just a UNA event.

“At least half of the stuff takes place off campus,” said Jason Flynn, co-director of the festival and assistant professor of fi lm and digital media production. “It’s as much a community event as a campus one.”

Flynn said an economic impact made by the festival would probably be diffi cult to calculate, but the impact on Florence’s reputation was clear.

“Word of mouth is a huge thing,” he said. “I heard people referencing local stores to their friends and saying, ‘This is great. Have you seen this?’”

This year’s festival was one of the best in recent years for attendance from both the fi lmmakers and the audience, Flynn said.

“We give out 11 major awards,” he said. “Of those 11, we had eight of the winning fi lmmakers or screenwriters in attendance.

And two of the three others had planned to attend but couldn’t.”

Co-director and instructor of English Dr. Cynthia Burkhead said the fi lm brings in people regionally as well.

“A lot of people who have friends in this state came in to see the fi lms,” she said. “We have large numbers of people from middle Alabama and lower Tennessee every year.”

Flynn also emphasized the appealing difference between going to the movies and going to a fi lm festival: having the fi lmmak-ers present.

“One of the benefi ts of our festival is that we’re smaller,” he said. “There’s no curtain between the guests and the fi lmmakers.”

As for the festival in years to come, growth and recognition are the goals, Flynn said.

“There’s always room to grow our audi-ence,” he said.

Every semester, UNA offers the Colle-giate Assessment of Academic Profi ciency (CAAP) to determine the skills learned in the general education classes taught during the fi rst two years of college.

This information helps the university in areas such as accreditation, along with individual degree programs. It is a require-ment for all UNA students to take it before they can graduate.

The CAAP will cover one of fi ve sub-jects each semester, which may be science, reading, writing skills, math or critical thinking. Many students taking the CAAP are uncertain as to how it measures them, including senior Jessica Randall.

“I don’t think that it measures each stu-dent accurately since we are given only one section to take,” she said.

Students should register to take the CAAP when they have between 44 and 70 hours, usually somewhere around their sec-ond semester as a sophomore or as a rising junior. It is only required for fi rst-degree candidates, as students returning for a sec-ond degree are not required to take it.

“The test is geared to test people on core courses; it is a basic skills test and not an exit exam,” said Kenda Rusevlyan, the testing coordinator in the Center for Aca-demic Advising and Retention Services. “This is why it’s best to take the CAAP be-fore you are a senior. At that point you are two years away from those courses.”

Students can register for the CAAP the same as they would any course. It is listed

under CAP 299 in the schedule of classes and is offered on four different dates in February and September. When register-ing, students can choose the test day that will best work with their schedule.

“If you sign up for the CAAP and some-thing comes up, we will gladly offer anoth-er testing time,” Rusevlyan said. “We are very fl exible.”

While the CAAP is not a test that has to be studied for, taking it between sopho-more and junior years is also less stressful than waiting, Rusevlyan said.

“If you put this off, it’s just one more thing that will be added to an already packed senior year,” she said.

The test consists of 32 to 36 questions and start to fi nish takes about 40 min-

Festival brings patrons, business to Shoals area

photo by MICHAEL REDDING I Student Photgrapher

Actor Mark Boone Jr. accepts the jury award for best actor at the 2012 George Lindsey UNA Film Festival. The festival brings fi lm-makers from all over the world to UNA and the Shoals.

CAAP determines university standing on national scale

Certifications give students more training

Students seeking additional certifi ca-tions after graduation may wish to wait. Additional training could make students in certain fi elds more marketable, but it may be unnecessary for others until they actu-ally fi nd a job.

Paulette Alexander, department chair and professor of the computer science and information systems department, said she believes that additional training for her students can help them fi nd jobs.

Additional certifi cations can set some-one apart when applying for a job, Alexan-der said. Certifi cation programs, like proj-ect management, are faster than earning a full master’s of business administration and usually offer some overlap. Students can also become certifi ed in focused pro-grams like Java or Oracle.

Specifi c programs within a given fi eld can make a student more marketable as a potential employee, but most degree pro-grams try to teach students all of the skills they need without seeking additional cer-tifi cation.

Laketa Johnson, a senior in the social work program at UNA, believes her class-es are adequately preparing her for a job in her fi eld.

“We are qualifi ed as general practitio-ners and can work everywhere,” Johnson said. “The training that you get in the so-cial work program at UNA prepares you for what you will encounter in the fi eld. We get enough specialized training in our classes already.”

Johnson said she may consider adding to her credentials later, but it will be after she fi nds a job and knows where she will be working.

UNA’s Continuing Studies and Out-reach Program focuses on professional development as well as certifi cations in several areas.

Some programs are for personal en-richment, said Shelia Sisson, a program coordinator with continuing studies. Classes offered include song writing, dance, yoga and art. Other programs, like the pharmacy technician and paralegal certifi cates, involve multiple classes and prepare students to pursue a new career or look for a better job.

“We cater to nontraditional students,” said Wanda Dixon, a program coordinator with continuing studies. “They’re look-ing for the means to better their marketing skills for a better job.”

Another benefi t of the program is that it is less time-intensive than a full degree, said Meghan Fike, a program coordinator with continuing studies. Some students work part time while trying to complete certifi cates.

Students taking classes with Continu-ing Studies cannot draw fi nancial aid for the classes, making it diffi cult for current students and recent graduates to pay. Some programs, like the UNA Leadership Cer-tifi cate, are designed to be as cost-effi cient as possible. Other programs are approved under the Alabama Workforce Investment Act for partial fi nancial aid.

“I think that students who gradu-ate—not just in computing fi elds but in all walks of life—need to recognize the importance of continuing to learn in their chosen fi elds,” Alexander said.

With election season in full swing, I have seen it all: ads for candidates that really should have just saved their money on the advertising and bought something worth-while, and a host of other things.

The candidates for many races, including United States president all the way down to local races, have sparked my attention.

To begin with, I think the younger voting genera-tion (which most college students belong to) needs to wake up and vote for the younger, fresher candidates.

Not only do the young candidates have fresher and more innovative ideas, they are in the know about what is going on in this day and age.

Here locally, we are losing an older mayor (who has done a pretty good job), and currently the candidates seem to be older. This is a college town, and personally I think it should be led by a younger person.

Obviously, the older politician types have a monopoly on the government because a few weeks ago when I was at Higher Education Day in Montgomery, the bulk of

the politicians were old, and I mean really old.

In Alabama, we have had a tough few years with budget cuts to higher education, a racist immigration law, and many lawmakers who have sat around and done nothing to fix the current condition of our state.

We desperately need a younger genera-tion of lawmakers and leaders to lead this country, state and city into the future.

I am tired of seeing old-grandpa types lead this country into the ground. It is time that lawmakers stop taking kickbacks and worry about being reelected and lead this country; it’s what they were elected for to begin with.

Watching these old, tired men and women complain about each other reminds me of sitting on my grandparents’ porch as they yell at the Fox News pundits. The lawmakers that constantly complain and are unable to get work done have got to stop.

Old, washed-up lawmakers who are constantly abusing the system and breaking the system that our forefathers built need to shape up or ship out.

Although Alabama has one of the most educated state legislatures in the nation—with about 81 percent of its legislators pursu-ing college degrees—the state still obviously is lacking legislators with common sense and responsibility.

The United States, State of Alabama

and City of Florence need younger leader-ship badly. For the love of all that is good and holy, please band together and get some younger leadership in our government.

One day, the general public’s inability to get some positive young thinkers into office will come back to haunt everyone.

To contact Josh, call 256-765-4296 or you can follow him on Twitter at @joshs-kaggs.

This column is not to seek out pity. The reason I write this article is to provide an insight to what it is like to have an eating disorder. With the upstart of National Eating Disorder Awareness Week earlier this month, memories of my period of full-blown bulimia flood my mind.

I graduated high school six months early and had a whole year of nothing to do before I started UNA. I spent a lot of my time sitting around the house in stretch pants, watching cartoons and eating the worst foods you could imagine. If it was deep fried, it was demolished with a shot of ranch. I was in a long-term relationship and gave little thought to my appearance.

The moment I realized I had actu-ally gained weight was when I walked into American Eagle and did not walk out with new jeans because I had outgrown the largest

size they carried in the store. It tore me apart and disgusted me. I cried and looked at myself naked in the mirror for hours, trying to figure out what happened.

I started to diet. I gave up all meat but fish Actually, I gave up the majority of everything. I went straight hardcore, giving no thought to “all things in moderation.” I dropped weight like crazy—five pounds here and there—and I continued to dwindle my diet down to nothing but Slimfast and cottage cheese. I was proud of my resolve and willpower.

The first time I made myself throw up was about a month into my diet. My weight loss had slowed, and I was craving macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes, cream cheese icing and McDonald’s. I convinced myself a little slip in my diet wouldn’t hurt, so I consumed everything in my line of view. As I finished my last bite of food, the guilt flooded me. I don’t know what gave me the idea, or why it happened, but I was making my way to the bathroom. I turned on the shower so my father wouldn’t hear me gagging my brains out. When I was finished, the guilt was gone. My stomach was empty, and so were my thoughts.

I continued to stay strict on my diet, but the weight would not come off anymore. I started throwing up after every meal—up to six times a day—even if all I had eaten was some fish and a serving of uncooked broccoli. This con-tinued for four months.

Everyone noticed the skinnier me. I had dropped around 70 pounds in those short months, and I felt amazing. I had developed a habit of looking up the calorie count for every bit of food I ate, and I documented it ritually. I only allowed myself 500 calories on some days. I was able to hide this from my friends by isolating myself, but they obviously noticed my drastic weight change. I would always eat in front of them, and then excuse myself to make my way to the bathroom afterwards. My best friend finally noticed. I would always change the subject when she brought it up.

I cracked when I googled an image of a cheeseburger. It dawned on me when I was staring at that screen how awfully I had been treating my body. I wasn’t concentrating on writing, reading or even playing a fun game … I was looking at pictures of food. The power it had over my mind was like a religion. When I purged, I felt like I was giving up the sin of gluttony and becoming stronger. In actuality, I was destroying my vocal cords, causing dan-gerous crashes in my blood sugar and giving my hormones hell.

The next day I bought the biggest burger I could find and enjoyed every bite. It was a struggle to not make myself vomit, but I did it. I eventually cured myself, both physically and emotionally.

Because I never looked unhealthy (the smallest I had gotten was 125 pounds), no one thought it was damaging or even noticed. To this day, my family never knew. I want to let people know that even though you aren’t wafer thin, it doesn’t mean it isn’t killing you. It is killing your mind, causing unthinkable dam-age to your body and controlling every aspect of your life. It was the loneliest period of my life because I was keeping such a big secret and felt like I was the only one who could ever understand what I was going through. I advise all that are suffering from any kind of disor-dered eating to seek out help—it exists. People may judge you, but your health matters more than someone’s arbitrary opinion of what they don’t understand.

Page 4ViewpointsThursday, March 15, 2012 • The Flor-Ala

Student newspaper of the University of North Alabama

LUCY BERRYEXECUTIVE EDITOR

JOSH SKAGGSNEWS/MANAGING EDITOR

ANDY THIGPENLIFE EDITOR

TOMMY BOLTONSPORTS EDITOR ALEX LINDLEY

COPY/OPINIONS EDITOR JORDAN BRADLEY

ONLINE EDITORCAMERON KELLY-JOHNSON

BUSINESS MANAGERSAVANNAH COMER

GRAPHIC ARTISTJULIANN LOSEY

CIRCULATION MANAGERMALISA McCLURE

CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHERKAYLA SLOANBARRY MINOR

DARRICK DAWKINSSTAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS

REBECCA WALKERADVISER

EDITORIAL BOARD: LUCY BERRY

ALEX LINDLEY

The Flor-Ala welcomes and encourages Letters to the Editor.• The deadline for submitting letters is 10 a.m. Monday, the week of publication.• Letters must not exceed 400 words. • Letters must be accompa-nied by the writer’s name, mailing address, phone number and email.• The Flor-Ala prefers to publish your letters exactly as written, but reserves the right to reject slanderous or libelous material.• The publication of any let-ter is left to the discretion of the Editorial Board.• Priority is given to letters critical of The Flor-Ala, or written in direct response to an editorial, a column, or a news story.• When the editors deem it necessary for ease of understanding or to clarify facts, an Editor’s Note may accompany a letter.• Address correspondence to The Flor-Ala. UNA Box 5300, Florence, AL 35632.Email: florala@una.edu. Letters may also be submit-ted through our website at florala.net.• Phone: 256-765-4364

Letters Policy

Copyright © 2012The Flor-AlaAll rights reserved.First copy free.Additional copies $1 each.

Have your own cartoons? Want to be published? Send us your stuff at fl orala@una.edu!

Cartoon of the Week

Help for eating disorders exists

Congrats to staff writer Brandon Thigpen for being named Writer of the Week for

The Flor-Ala. Also, great job to staff photog-rapher Kayla Sloan for having Photo of the

Week in the last edition of The Flor-Ala.

SHOUTOUT!

Want to be a columnist for The Flor-Ala? Email alindley@una.edu with your ideas and a writ-ing sample to be con-

sidered for publication.

Old lawmakers bad for young voters

Page 5Thursday, March 15, 2012 • The Flor-Ala FeatureDisaster relief fund, aid ready for students

In August of 2011, UNA secured a $15,000 grant through the Disaster Relief Fund for Postsecondary Education Stu-dents. The funding was dispersed to ap-proximately 20 UNA students who were affected by the April 27 tornado outbreak across north Alabama last year.

The funding was obtained through a grant from USA Funds, a student loan com-pany that wanted to give to students who were greatly impacted by the storms, said Student Financial Services Director Ben Baker.

“Insurance is not going to cover every-thing,” Baker said. “So we did give away the entire $15,000 to the 20 students.”

The money was a one-time gift from USA Funds and the entire sum was given to students in the fall, Baker said.

“We hope that (the Caring for the Pride fund) will be an ongoing thing,” said Uni-versity Spokesman Josh Woods. “There are still some funds (in the account).”

The money that was given to students last fall was from USA Funds, and donors donated separate money, said Vice Presi-dent for Advancement Alan Medders.

It will become an emergency fund and will never go away, he said.

There has been $6,935 donated to the fund from outside donors, according to the UNA website, and Medders said there have been no changes in that number in some time.

“We have not seen any new money come in since this last round of tornadoes came through,” Medders said.

Medders said to his knowledge no stu-dents were affected by the recent storms that hit north Alabama in recent weeks.

The university hopes to never see storms that impacted the UNA community like last year’s storms did, Woods said.

“We need to be sure that we are pre-pared as a university at any time,” Woods said.

Woods said the university has posi-tioned itself in a way that, if there was a need, students could and would be provided with resources and assistance from the uni-versity.

“As an educational institution, we don’t want to have a good student have their edu-cation taken away from them because of a situation like that,” Woods said.

In the future, the university is looking at expanding and continuing to offer disas-ter relief to students, Woods said.

“While the April events were tragic, the Caring for the Pride program got a lot of at-tention, which was a good thing in enabling us to help more students,” Woods said. “We just need for people to be aware that this is one good place to give (their contribu-tions).”

Woods said college students’ education is invaluable.

“The loss of a college education is a

very serious, tragic loss, and we just want to be able to help out,” he said.

In addition to the funding the university provided to the 20 students last fall, Woods said UNA also waived certain fees for stu-dents who were impacted by the storms. He said the university arranged things to make it easier for students who were greatly af-fected by the tragic events.

“The idea behind Caring for the Pride (was that) it was not as much an overall fund as much as an overall effort,” Woods said.

photo courtesy of SHANNON WELLS I University Photographer

President Bill Cale, UNA student Sarah Holmes and Provost John Thornell celebrate last summer when Holmes was awarded a Caring for the Pride scholarship after last year’s April 27 tornadoes destroyed her family’s home.

• Caring for the Pride program, funding still available for students

”As an educational institution, we donʼt want to have a good student have their education

taken away from them because of a situation like that.” -Josh Woods

Page 6 Thursday, March 15, 2012 • The Flor-AlaNews

power to the students,” Nash said.The fi nal question from the moderators

dealt with the integration of international students on campus. Nash wants more in-ternational students involved in SGA in the upcoming year, while Riley talked about the long-term goal of having a multicultural center built on campus.

After a short break, the candidates were asked four questions from the audience, as

well as a surprise question from the mod-erators. The fi rst student question focused on the D-I debate, to which the candidates briefl y restated their thoughts and opinions.

Both candidates said they have strong plans for the continuation of becoming a greener campus in the upcoming year, which was focused on heavily in the debate.

“I want more recycling bins around campus,” Nash said. “We have to provide the means for recycling, and then educate about recycling.”

Part of Riley’s platform is conservation, and one of his biggest plans includes going

paperless in different areas of the univer-sity.

“I want to move towards having almost all applications online,” Riley said. “I also want to explore the option of having refund checks direct deposited instead of printed for students.”

The moderators asked each candidate to speak about what makes them different from his opponent.

Nash said his military experience and work in dealing with real student issues is the leading factor that sets him apart. Riley feels his experience on the executive board

of SGA for UPC as the current vice presi-dent and past experience with voting and legislation make him different.

Current SGA President Ralph Akalonu said both candidates are good, but there is room for improvement with the presenta-tion of their platforms.

“The debate has been good, and the candidates are both good,” Akalonu said. “I would really like to hear more spe-cifi cs about their plans, though. They

SGA candidates speak to students, community

From left to right, SGA candidates Laura Giles, Robby Thompson, Mary-Frances Wilson and Jordan Brasher speak to students in attendance at the Battle of the Wills debate.

photos by KAYLA SLOAN I Staff Photographer

Page 7Thursday, March 15, 2012 • The Flor-Ala Life

Students at the University of Pennsyl-vania can take a class guiding them in the principles of living as a monk. Throughout the course, students must follow many of the same guidelines as Catholic or Buddhist monks with restrictions specifi c to the cate-gories of food, communication, meditation and prayer.

Dr. Justin McDaniels is an associate professor in the Department of Religious Studies at the university. The inspiration for the class came from his background in Southeast Asian languages and religion. Having spent time in a monastery in Thai-land shortly after his college graduation, he was familiar with the monastic lifestyle.

Students who enroll in the course “Mo-nasticism and Asceticism” must fi rst apply for acceptance into the elective-only course and then be interviewed by McDaniels.

This is necessary since the course has very strict guidelines for the participants and they must understand what will be expect-ed of them. The inspiration for the course came from previous students.

“Thinking of lots of my students over time—late 90s, early 2000s—they were in-terested in things like meditation, monastic life in Asia; they wanted to know what a Buddhist actually does and not just the his-tory,” McDaniels said.

Food is an important part of the mo-nastic lifestyle, and students have to follow different diets throughout the course.

“There’s one week where students are not allowed to eat anything that grows underground, and this proves to be a chal-lenge when you realize how many foods are grown this way,” McDaniels said. “This includes garlic, turmeric, tubers and more.”

For another week, students may only eat food that is in raw form.

Within communication, students are not allowed to use technology other than

electricity and may not read the news un-less it is required by another course. They must take a vow of silence for one month and may only speak with an assigned part-ner in the class.

Senior Jason Hewer thinks a similar class might be a success for UNA.

“I think a class similar to this would be a big hit,” he said. “People would try it just because they were curious, but it would be a diffi cult endeavor.”

Other students, like senior Jon Mucci, are hesitant.

“I don’t think I would take the class,” Mucci said. “I’d be interested in knowing more about it and fi nding out the results ex-perienced by others. But at the moment I wouldn’t be willing to be led through even a temporary monastic existence unless I knew more about the class and, most im-portantly, the instructor.”

The course is not focused on the spiri-tual or religious tenets of monasticism as much as the lifestyle that is focused around

awareness and contemplation, McDaniels said.

“Throughout recorded human his-tory, in every religious tradition, a certain class of people have had the urge to take on restrictions for a better understanding of heaven or spiritual benefi t,” McDaniels said.

McDaniels said he believes the course is valuable to students.

“(Students in the course) ask great questions, are incredibly focused, think much more clearly in other courses, memo-rize better, and value time for thinking and refl ection,” McDaniels said. “The contem-plative life is part of the human experience, and giving yourself time to think about how great artists, poets, writers have had this tradition of a quiet contemplative life (suggests) that there must be some value to it. We take a few months to step into that world just a bit, and I think there is value in it.”

photos courtesy of morgueFile

A course titled Monasticism and Asceticism offered at the University of Pennsylvania enlightens students on the life of a monk. The course includes vows of silence, dietary changes and abstaining from all technology, except electricity.

University of Pennsylvania offers class in monasticism, asceticism

‘I want to walk like you’

The Japanese University Meal Project (JUMP) is an on-campus organization that provides Japanese cuisine to the students of UNA. They hold tasting events and bake sales regularly to help introduce popular

dishes from Japan to domestic students. JUMP held a “Nothing but Noodles”

event March 7 that featured udon, somen and soba noodles. Some other foods avail-able throughout the semester include green tea cookies and dango (rice cakes).

The members of the organization also want to introduce Japanese culture in other ways, such as Japanese movie screenings, origami, calligraphy demonstrations and traditional performances such as martial arts.

JUMP is not only for international stu-dents. All who share a love for Japanese culture are welcome to join.

Club members are excited about the opportunity to share cultures.

“It’s not only about our culture,” said Takayuki Kashiwazaki, vice president of JUMP and marketing major at UNA. “We get to share other cultures because we have more American students than other mem-bers.”

Kashiwazaki said the organization helped him think more about his culture and allowed him to see the differences that exist between his culture and others. He said he

also encourages new members to enroll.“We are very open to UNA students

here, and if you are interested in Japanese culture, then you should join,” he said.

Darrell Coble, the president of JUMP, has been to Japan four times. His wife is Japanese and works there. One of the main goals of JUMP is to educate the community on the history of Japan and what’s popular in Japan, he said.

“We are trying to share everything Jap-anese,” he said.

Some students said JUMP has helped them get more involved on campus.

“I joined JUMP about a year ago,” said Mack Cornwell, member and UNA student. “It really was the catalyst for me to get in-volved in all things international.”

Cornwell said it is interesting to com-pare how the international students do things, such as run the events. He said they have a high level of professionalism and are very organized.

JUMP provides social events to

JUMP promotes cultural diversity, awareness with food

photo by BARRY MINOR I Staff Photographer

Students line up for the “Nothing by Noodles” event sponsored by the Japa-nese University Meal Project (JUMP). JUMP tries to increase cultural aware-ness at UNA by providing Japanese cuisine to students.

Sleep texting caused by stress, overstimulation

A study released out of the Melbourne Sleep Disorder Centre in Australia indi-cates a new phenomenon occurring among teens and college students—sleep texting.

Completely unaware of the occurrence, people send incoherent text messages to friends and family while they’re sleeping.

The study shows—like sleepwalk-ing—sleep texting generally takes place during the third or fourth stage of sleep.

Research and study on the condition is limited, and until it is more extensive most professionals agree that the occurrence is just anecdotal.

“The phenomenon is unstudied in a rigorous way, and it is largely, if not com-pletely, anecdotal in its manifestations,” said Dr. George Robinson, professor

Page 8 Thursday, March 15, 2012 • The Flor-AlaFeature

Staff Writer Ann Harkey faces off with Link, the offi cial Flor-Ala mas-cot, during the potluck dinner March 12.

Online Editor Jordan Bradley prepares food for the potluck after the weekly writers meeting in the Student Media Offi ce.

Executive Editor Lucy Berry and News/Managing Editor Josh Skaggs do what they do best during the potluck dinner.

Staff Writer Ashley Vickers pets Link, the dog of Student Media adviser Rebecca Walker, March 12.

There are a lot of perks to being on staff at The Flor-Ala. I get to stand on the sidelines at sporting events, I get fancy press passes for some events and I can’t remember the last time I had to pay to get into a UNA-related event.

I love my job. I love being involved on campus and always knowing what events are going on. The rewards of this job are practically endless.

One of my favorite parts of being on staff at The Flor-Ala, however, doesn’t involve a sideline, con-cert or other campus event. It’s a little known occa-sional gathering of Flor-Ala staffers and volunteers we call the offi ce potluck.

On March 12, we had one of these potlucks in our offi ce located on Wood Avenue. As usual, this potluck was all about food, friends and fun. There was more food than we knew what to do with, in-cluding an endless array of deserts. All of the edi-tors and most of the writers and photographers were present. Link, our adviser’s dog, was running around in a Diorama T-shirt trying to get scraps.

We all brought our favorite dish to share, and we sat around while we ate, chatting and exchanging

recipes. Our offi ce was packed enough that some people had to sit on the fl oor (including my-self). Despite the lack of space, we all had a great time talking and catching up.

As I type, the potluck is winding down. There is friendly conversation and giggling going on, and we are probably all on a little bit of a sugar high. Link

is still running around looking for attention and scraps, and our adviser even got him to do some tricks.

I love these potlucks because they’re so simple, but such a good time. And while the food is great, the real treat is getting to spend some quality time with all of The Flor-Ala crew.

Staff Photographer Kayla Sloan and Volunteer Photographer Carrie Cook share photos at the potluck.

Malisa McClure

A sense of communityBy Malisa McClure - Staff Photographer - msmcclure@una.edu

To see more work from Malisaʼs series, visit her photo gallery at florala.net.

Page 9Thursday, March 15, 2012 • The Flor-Ala Feature

Pastula said if police don’t block those parking spaces early enough in the day, people will park there all day and leave no open spots for visitors.

Bret Jennings, director of University Events, said he and his staff worked with the former police chief in the early 2000s prior to Pastula’s arrival to establish guide-lines for reserving events at UNA. Cur-rently, there are approximately 46 parking spaces in that lot that can be reserved for on or off-campus groups that rent facilities on campus.

Jennings said a better parking lot moni-toring system would help to relieve some of the problems.

“Our original plan was to fi nd the least amount of spaces that can be used with the highest amount of effectiveness to us with the least burden to the students,” Jennings

said.Many off-campus groups won’t come

to campus for events if they can’t have a reserved number of parking spaces or are

forced to use the shuttle bus, Pastula said.Although offi cials try to encourage

groups to use the shuttle service instead of blocking off spaces, Pastula said UNA must accommodate guests on campus, build a cohesive bond and maintain posi-tive relationships between the university and community.

“It’s got to be a cooperative effort be-tween the students and everybody else,”

Pastula said.Pastula said his department has toyed

with the idea of sending out a mass email to the UNA community periodically to inform them when the parking lot will be blocked off due to an event, but he’s con-cerned that it might be ineffective because students, faculty and staff complain they already receive too many emails.

While offi cials work to fi nd solutions for the issue, Pastula encourages students to use the shuttle bus system from the Darby Drive parking lot on Florence Bou-levard or the downtown parking garage if they are concerned about not fi nding a parking space on campus.

“It just makes sense to me,” he said. “Why hunt for a space here when you can go park out there and not have to worry about it?”

Jayne Jackson, event coordinator for University Events, said most events that happen on campus, which require reserved parking spaces, are there to serve the stu-

dents in some way and provide opportuni-ties for them.

Jason Flynn, assistant professor of fi lm and digital media, said it’s not going to be easy to fi nd a solution to the parking issue because he understands the university’s perspective in wanting to accommodate other people and groups who host events on campus.

However, he supports the Ribbon Cut-ters Club in trying to raise awareness of and fi nd a solution to the problem.

“I always support people who are try-ing to stand up and make a difference,” he said. “Parking spots are not as enriching to society as other causes, but I think that anytime people identify a problem, orga-nize, stand up and be verbal, it is a positive thing.”

Pastula and Jennings both encourage students to contact them directly about concerns they might have about the park-ing lots or to offer solutions to the problem.

University explains process behind blocked parking lots

which plans events for a specifi c time.“Some students on SGA may not see

their ideas come to fruition before they graduate, but the work is still important.”

SGA can take longer to implement new ideas because it looks at the big pic-ture, Jacques said.

“It takes individuals sometimes to plant seeds for things to get done,” she said. “They can feel like they’re not get-ting far, but they are.”

Brasher said SGA does not currently have the manpower to actively recruit, but McCann said SGA has still been try-ing.

“This past summer, I sent a letter to every RSO on campus and Greek orga-nizations asking them to send someone (to senate) to represent them,” she said. “I got 10 people from the about 140 letters I sent out.”

McCann said SGA engages in many recruiting activities throughout the year.

“We’re constantly doing stuff to re-cruit,” she said. “We’ve been having a DJ party by our offi ces every year where we give out free food and (senate) applica-tions.”

But, with senate application season in full swing, Brasher said things might be looking up.

“We have eight applications already submitted and approved and seven that are still pending,” she said. “Applications don’t close until (March 21).”

And Jacques said the applications are coming from new places on campus.

“Students who weren’t necessarily in-volved before are getting involved now,” she said.

McCann said she would really like to see students get more involved on cam-pus.

“There seems to be so little involve-ment on all ends of the spectrum,” she said. “The sad part is that it’s the same people involved in everything. We have a say in so much. I don’t know why you wouldn’t want to be involved.

photo by MALISA MCCLURE I Chief Photographer

Susan Okereke participates in the March 8 Student Government Association Senate meeting. Senate application season is currently underway.

”Itʼs got to be a cooperative effort between the students and

everybody else.” -Bob Pastula

Officials look for more senators in SGA

Third-baseman for UNA, Andrew Almon, has started off the 2012 baseball season for the Lions with a roar. He is a source of reliability both at the plate and defensively at the hot corner. Almon and his twin brother Daniel are both biology majors. Together, they constantly confuse professors as well as teammates from both the baseball and football teams. After redshirting his fi rst year at UNA in 2009, Almon has come into his own both as a baseball player and as a student.

M:M: What is it like be-ing at UNA with your twin brother?

A:A: Well, we have the same major and, besides about three or four classes, we’ve had all the same class-es together. Teachers have a hard time telling us apart. We’re at midterms and we still have some teachers that can’t tell us apart. We get along pretty well, but when we were younger we used to fi ght a lot. Once we got

big

got big enough where we started hurting each other, we kind of cut that out.

M:M: When did you start thinking that you could play at the college level?

A:A: When I was young-er, I just enjoyed playing the game, but when I got to high school, I just really started working on my game. I start-ed taking it serious and put-ting a lot of hours into it. By my junior and senior years of high school, I thought I could probably play at the next level.

M:M: What was the re-cruiting process like for you?

A:A: My high school coach, Jason Anderson, pitched here at UNA. So when I started the whole process, he asked me where all I was considering. I told him I wanted to go to a four-year school and that I wasn’t interested in junior college. UNA and West Alabama and Jacksonville State were all talking to me, but UNA of-

fered me (a scholarship) early, so I took it in case I got hurt my senior season

or something, I would still be able to come here.

M: What is the chem-istry of the team this

season?

A: Our strengths this year are defense and pitching. We’ve got the hitting; it just

takes a bit more time over the season for it to come around. We have some returning All-Conference batters; it just takes time. As a team, we all get along and we all hang out on the weekends. Every-body’s attitude is good and we all respect Coach Keehn and understand that he knows the game well.

M:M: Did UNA recruit you to play third base?

A:A: I played shortstop in high school, and UNA recruited me as a shortstop. After my redshirt season, they moved me to third base and told me they thought I would develop more over there. I like it more than shortstop now. I always thought I would be a short-stop, but I enjoy it at third base now.

M:M: What are some of your pre-game rituals?

A:A: We all take batting practice, and I get my arm loose, and then I like to say a short prayer. After batting practice, we all have time to go eat somewhere, so I try and go eat at Quizno’s or Subway and get a little en-ergy going.

M:M: What is a motto that you try and live by, and who is someone that you consider a role model?

A:A: Personally, I just try and do everything to the best of my ability and give God the glory. If I’ve been given the ability to do some-thing, then I’m going to go out and try and do my best. My high school coach, Jason Anderson, is a good man and a man of integrity. He really preached that to us in high school. Character, integrity and hard work will eventually pay off.

M:M: Do you have any favorite television shows that you watch regularly?

A:A: I like to watch “Criminal Minds.” I try and keep up with that. I also en-joy watching “Swamp Peo-ple” and a few other shows on the History Channel.

M:M: American League or National League?

A:A: Defi nitely the Na-tional League. I’ve been a Braves fan forever.

Page 10 Thursday, March 15, 2012 • The Flor-AlaSportsShoutout Shoutout

of the Weekof the Week

UNA UNA BaseballBaseball

The UNA baseball team had a The UNA baseball team had a tough week with Harding on tough week with Harding on March 6 and then faced defending March 6 and then faced defending champ and No. 1 West Florida champ and No. 1 West Florida over the weekend and fi nished the over the weekend and fi nished the week 4-1. week 4-1.

Week At A Week At A GlanceGlance

BaseballBaseballWhen: Saturday, 1 p.m. (DH)When: Saturday, 1 p.m. (DH)

Sunday, 1 p.m

Who: West Georgia

SoftballWhen: Saturday, 1 p.m. (DH)

Sunday, 1 p.m.

Who: Delta State

TennisTennisWhen: Saturday, 1 p.m.

Who: West GeWho: West Ge

S ftb llS ftb ll

WhW oWhWWWWWWWWWW o

we were younger we used to fi ght

y gy g

a lot. Once we g

gggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggoot bbbbbbbbbbbbiigg

gggg

him I wanted to go to a fouryear school and that I wasn’t

gg

interested in junior college. yy

UUUUNA and West Alabama andj gj

JJJJJJJacksonville State were all tttttttttttttttalking to me, but UNA of-

ffered me (a scholarship) g ,g ,

early, so I took it in case I ( p)(

got hurt my senior season y,y,

or something, I would still g yy

be able to come here.g,g,

What is the chem-istry of the team this

season?y

Our ssssstrengths ttttttthis year are

g

defense andyy

pitching. We’ve

g

got the hitting;

gg

it just g

Getting to know breakout player Almon

photo by MICHAEL REDDING I Student Photographer

UNA athletic teams currently in be-tween seasons are spending their time dur-ing the off season training and preparing for their upcoming seasons.

UNA teams in the off season now in-clude football, soccer, men and women’s basketball, and volleyball.

“I think the off season is the most im-portant part of training,” said head vol-leyball coach Stephanie Radecki. “That’s when you have actual time to focus on a lot of individual stuff instead of always having to worry about getting your team ready for a match.”

Radecki said the volleyball team spends a lot of time working on jump training, skill training and speed training during the off season. The team, which started training in January, also spends time getting stronger in the weight room.

UNA’s football team started spring training March 12. The team will play a spring game in which the team will be split into two and play against each other April 14.

Head football coach Bobby Wallace

said creating team unity is his biggest goal at this time.

“I think the biggest thing that we’ve tried to do this off season is build a little team unity,” he said. “Obviously in foot-ball, getting bigger, stronger, and faster and being in shape for spring training is all im-portant, but, at the same time, I think that creating team unity and building a team is very important in the off season.”

Wallace also said the off season is a time of teaching fundamentals and focus-ing on individual players.

Head men’s basketball coach Bobby Champagne said he fi nds focusing on in-dividual players to be an important part of off-season training. The men’s basketball team will start its training next week.

“With most of the underclassmen, strength is a big thing—just getting overall strength development—and for some guys it’s more about getting better at dribbling, passing and shooting,” he said. “It all de-pends on the individual.”

All three coaches said during the off season they focus on teaching fundamen-tals and improving the players’ skills. Off-season training allows for more focus on individuals because the coaches don’t have

upcoming games to prepare for.“There’s three things you have to learn:

you gotta learn what to do, then you gotta learn how to do it and then you gotta learn to do it full speed,” Wallace said. “But you can’t do it full speed until you know what to

do and how to do it.”Though off-season training is impor-

tant, the coaches said that year-round train-ing is essential at the college level.

“It takes year-round training to be in the best condition you can be in,” Wallace said.

Winning is part of every college sports team, but dealing with the pressure of a tradition of success can take a toll on anyone.

At UNA, the standard is high with the amount of success the sports programs for the UNA baseball team have and now a thriving power in the UNA women’s soccer team. The pressure to succeed has been put on both of these programs the last couple of seasons, and winning may not be the thing that concerns most coaches.

“The pressure is what you put on yourself,” said UNA baseball coach Mike Keehn. “Obviously, here at UNA, expec-tations are always high for all sports to win championships, but I think what’s also important is making sure the players are doing the right thing on and off the fi eld. That’s probably the more stressing thing than any.”

The UNA soccer team came into this past season with huge expectations after

the amount of success from the previous seasons. The Lions were able to rise to the occasion and win the Gulf South Confer-ence and advance to their fi rst NCAA Tour-nament appearance. For UNA soccer coach Graham Winkworth, the pressure is off the fi eld.

“The biggest pressure for me is the pressure I put myself under,” Winkworth said. “ I’m a terrible loser, and I put high expectations on the soccer program and on myself more than anyone else could possi-bly put on me. It’s not just about wins and losses, it’s about bringing in quality student athletes and people for the program.”

The UNA baseball team has risen to ex-pectations so far this season after clinching the weekend series over No.1 West Florida to move to (18-6, 4-2) on the season. The Lions were projected to fi nish second in the conference, but Keehn said he worries about the little things more than anything else at times.

“There are a lot of things baseball coaches have to endure,” he said. “You’re responsible for so many other things like fundraisers, practice and fi eld preparations. The weather for me is stressful because you

have to make a decision on to bring the op-posing team and call the umpires.”

Pressure can take control for anyone, but both Winkworth and Keehn have been able to put it aside and be successful on the

fi eld. “It’s not so much pressure from the

outside as it is from within, but the hardest thing for me is balancing my home life with my professional life,” Winkworth said. “It takes its toll sometimes, but I love what I do.”

Page 11Thursday, March 15, 2012 • The Flor-Ala SportsCoaches face pressure to succeed on, off field

Head baseball coach Mike Keehn gives his signal during a game this season.

photo by KAYLA SLOAN I Staff Photographer

”The pressure is what you put on yourself. Obviously, here at

UNA, expections are always high for all sports to win champion-ships but I think whatʼs also important is making sure the

players are doing the right thing on and off the field.” -Mike Keehn

Teams refine skills in off-season training

photo by CARRIE COOK I Student Photographer

Head coach Bobby Champagne talks strategy to his players during a timeout in a game earlier this season.

Page 12 Thursday, March 15, 2012 • The Flor-AlaSportsMarch Madness has begun: Staff picks the tourney

On Sunday afternoon, I was glued in with millions of other sports fans as the Division I basketball brackets were an-nounced. There were some sur-prises and snubs just like every year, but I believe the committee

did a very good job because there was really not much controversy afterwards. Enough with my thoughts of the analysis; now it’s my turn to unveil my bracket.

In terms of picking upsets, there were a couple games that struck my attention. The upsets in the fi rst round: I have the 12-seed Long Beach St. beating 5-seed New Mexico, 11-seed North Carolina St. beating 6-seed San Diego St., and, lastly, 13-seed New Mexico St. tak-ing down four-seed Indiana.

I’m looking forward to see if Kentucky coach John Calipari can put it together with such a young team and also for the upsets to occur in the opening weekend. The best part of the tournament is seeing who will survive in my eyes and to see if I picked the right Cinderella teams.

For the Elite Eight, I’m a fan of the Baylor Bears defeating the Dukies to set up a Baylor-Kentucky matchup in the South. Marquette for me goes on to upset Missouri to face off against Michigan St. in the West Region. No upsets in the East bracket with Ohio St. and Syracuse matching up. Finally, I have Kansas versus their old coach Roy Williams and North Carolina to represent the Midwest.

My Final Four is set with Kentucky, Marquette, Ohio St. and Kansas, with the championship game set for Kentucky against Ohio St. where Calipari brings back the glory to a very successful program 71-66.

It should be a very exciting tournament, and I can’t wait to see what happens.

Orrey BoltonStaff Writer

Leave it to the NCAA to fi x something that is not broken, but we now have 68 teams to choose from in our March Madness brackets. Even if you haven’t followed any college basketball

this year, there are a few things you can keep in mind that will have your Final Four still intact while your friends trash their brackets after the fi rst weekend.

Every year there is a 12 seed that knocks off a fi ve seed, and this year is bound to follow suit, but the 11 ver-sus six games look like the place where a Cinderella team could emerge.

Very rarely does a Final Four contain all four of the No. 1 seeds, and this year does not look like that will hap-pen either. Stick with the chalk picks early on, but eventu-ally there are going to be some upsets.

The last thing you need to keep in mind is which teams are hot and which teams are not. Some teams have been fi ghting for a tournament spot for the past month and are likely to keep that momentum at least for the open-ing game. Some of the higher seeds have been coasting, which is evidenced by their lack of success in their confer-ence tournaments.

I see Kentucky and Duke in an epic rematch in the Elite Eight. Missouri and Michigan State are the other two top seeds that I think will meet in the last eight. On the other side, I think Florida State will take its momen-tum into a match up with the No. 1 seed Syracuse. And in another great potential elite eight match up, I’m picking North Carolina to meet up with North Carolina State.

The Final Four will see Kentucky facing Missouri and Florida State facing North Carolina State. Unfortunately for N.C. State, its dream run through the tournament will end badly in a blowout at the hands of the fi fth youngest team in Division I: the Kentucky Wildcats.

Matt WilsonStaff Writer

As an athlete, knowledge-able sports fan or sports follower, when one thinks of fall, football most often comes to mind. Like most seasons, different sports tie into specifi c months. March, of

course, means college basketball, the NCAA playoffs or March Madness.

This season, the usual several teams stick out to me, not just because I follow them, but because they represent conferences I support or have had recent big wins or win-ning streaks in the last few years or even lately, which has sparked an interest in me to make sure I watch each game when their teams take the hardwood.

I have fi lled out my bracket and, after going through the 64 teams, I’ve come up with my Final Four predic-tions and my overall team winner. Keep in mind, I do possess a slight bias for my favorites, but I did my best to stick to the stats and pick the best teams who beat pres-sure, show up in playoffs, step up when time calls for a big time player and show out for their university.

My fi nal four teams: Kentucky, Ohio State, Louisville and North Carolina.

The Champion: North Carolina, the Tar Heels winning it all.

Join the fun of March Madness. Pick your teams, and watch these tough athletes fi ght for the National Champi-onship.

Lauren EstesStaff Writer

Tommy BoltonSports Editor

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, and it’s always full of excitement. For three solid weeks, teams battle it out to get that most coveted national championship trophy in what people call “March Madness.”

This year’s tournament should be no disappointment, with upsets sitting across the bracket in the early rounds. Every year there are always teams who are expected to go far in the tournament and can’t even make it out of the opening weekend.

That is what I am excited about seeing in this tourna-ment is who is going to be that David to slay the Goliaths of basketball and shock the whole country. Also, I would like to see that moment that I will talk about for days, like a buzzer-beater to win the game or an unknown player who makes a name for himself, like Stephen Curry of Davidson did a few years ago.

In the end, I think these teams will survive the madness and avoid the upset bug to make it to the Final Four (Ken-tucky, Missouri, Ohio State and North Carolina). Kentucky and North Carolina have the most talent and will be play-ing in the championship game, and John Calipari will be

Follow @FlorAlaSports for live updates on UNA sporting news for games and interviews with play-

ers and coaches.

Students, professors and guests gath-ered last week at the UNA Planetarium and Observatory to watch the spring laser show, featuring music from Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” and the band U2.

The laser shows have been hosted by the planetarium for two years and have since become one of its most popular at-

tractions.“The people who come really like

them,” said Dr. Mel Blake, director of the Planetarium and Observatory. “The re-sponse we get is almost universally posi-tive.”

The 75-minute laser show, full of psy-chedelic patterns, distorted guitars, omi-nous sounds and images perfect for fueling nightmares, did receive an overwhelmingly positive response from those attending. The lobby of the planetarium was full of excited

conversation, glazed over gazes and people eager to experience the show again.

“I thought it was really good,” said Taylor Holman, a freshman. “I thought the lasers went really well with the music.”

Others said the environment wasn’t perfect.

“It was good,” said Dale Cronkhite, a freshman. “Just neck-breaking.”

The chairs in the planetarium have been a big complaint among people attend-ing the laser shows.

“People are not fond of our chairs be-cause they’re not really designed for look-ing straight up for an entire hour,” Blake said. “But we’re working on that aspect of things.”

People who have attended the laser shows before prefer lying on blankets more than sitting in chairs. Even those without blankets were lying on the fl oor within a few minutes.

Since the laser projector is a rental and all the shows are stock, it limits the choice on what music can be shown. However, Blake makes several considerations when deciding on a show.

“I try to pick stuff that will have a gen-eral appeal,” he said. “Somebody asked me how do I pick the music, and I said ‘well, I have to hear it every night for a week, so it’s going to be something I like.’”

Students suggested a variety of bands for future laser shows. Among the bands suggested were Black Sabbath, Daft Punk,

Aerosmith, Muse and Snow Patrol.While most students enjoyed both of

the bands at the laser show, many said they preferred one band to the other.

“I liked ‘The Wall’ a little better be-cause I’m a little more familiar with Pink Floyd,” said Chase Alexander, a planetar-ium visitor.

Others preferred U2.

“I guess because I’m a little bit young-er than (Alexander), I liked U2 better,” said Vivian Lesende, a junior at UNA.

Blake said he hopes in the future that UNA will invest in a laser projector. He said he sees how investing in one could have many positive benefi ts to the planetar-ium, as well as the community.

“I am very interested in getting a la-ser system on campus that we could make our own shows, but it’s a very expensive piece of equipment,” Blake said. “But, po-tentially, it could be a big program from us because we could do partnerships with a lot of different people.”

Page 13Thursday, March 15, 2012 • The Flor-Ala Life

Pretty lightsPretty lights

photos by KAYLA SLOAN I Staff Photographer

• • Planetarium and Planetarium and Observatory entertain Observatory entertain with music of Pink with music of Pink Floyd and U2 Floyd and U2

From left to right, The laser light show features brightly lit patterns and shapes accompanied by music. Bottom left: This show featured music from Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” and selections from U2.

”The people who come really like them. The response we get is almost universally positive.”

-Mel Blake

Page 10 Thursday, March 15, 2012 • The Flor-AlaNews

utes. It is shorter than other standardized tests, such as the LSAT, SAT or ACT.

“Imagine if you were to go to the ACT and they told you that you could leave after the fi rst section, and that’s about how the CAAP is; it’s not a whole afternoon,” Ru-

sevlyan said. The data collected is also used to make

sure that students at UNA are getting the education they should be as compared to universities of similar size and cost. Once the test results are returned to UNA, the information is turned over to the Offi ce of Institutional Research, Planning, and As-sessment.

University seeks more involvement on social site

UNA is currently seeking a more active, student-led Foursquare presence on cam-pus.

Foursquare is an online network that al-lows users to check in at certain locations, follow locations of a circle of friends, and learn more about their community and en-vironment in the process.

The network can be used to enhance the college experience in particular, said Jer-emy Britten, UNA’s web communications manager.

Foursquare is currently promoting a new Foursquare for Universities program, which emphasizes exploration around cam-pus and communication between students, alumni and staff.

Ray Lin, a marketing associate for Foursquare, is working to use this program in a way that will cater to the community around universities. He said it is catching on extremely well.

“(Schools are) realizing its potential to help students, alumni and staff connect with each other, fi nd new and interesting things to do, and earn rewards for exploring their campus and nearby areas,” he said.

While UNA is not yet among the uni-versities who use the program, Britten is working to improve the Foursquare pres-ence which already exists.

“We’ve had a Foursquare presence for about a year—it has been a learning year to see what other schools are doing, what we can do and how many students are us-ing it,” Britten said. “We’re starting to see more people using it now, which leads me to believe that it’s starting to be more desir-able to students.”

He and other university offi cials are making an effort to take online ownership of UNA’s check-in locations. In doing so, the university is able to manage these loca-tions and add various promotions and dis-counts for checking in there.

Most students who are familiar with the network agree that their main concern is se-curity.

UNA sophomore Jonathan Oliphant said he used Foursquare for approximately a month last semester, but lost interest.

“I got uncomfortable being that much on the grid,” he said. “It’s great for busi-nesses to use it for promotions, but I never used it like that, so I don’t see the point.”

UNA sophomore Mack Cornwell agrees.

“If I got benefi ts from using it, or if there were solid promotions, I would prob-ably use it,” he said. “But I don’t care that people know where I am.”

Britten said security can be controlled if users limit the friends who can see their information.

Others, like UNA sophomore Abril Agnew, are actively using the network.

“It’s a great way to advertise special events on campus and get connected with others,” she said.

Britten said Foursquare is active on campus. In a year’s time, UNA has created 75 venues and has almost 24,000 all-time check ins.

“We’re in the growing phase as far as knowing what students want to see,” Britten said. “As we get further along, we’ll know what we can and should do. Our overarch-ing goal is to get students to use this cam-pus as their backyard. This is a beautiful campus and great place to hang out.”

photo by BARRY MINOR I Student Photographer

UNA student Daniel Swope checks in at the Gulliot University Center on campus. The UNA campus is littered with Four-square venues.

UNA works to add presence on Foursquare network

need to focus on more specifi cs, instead of rushing through them.”

Overall, the debate was well-received by students.

“I’ve enjoyed it,” said Daniel McGuire, a computer science major. “The debate for-mat was good, and I’ve enjoyed the can-didates’ dedication to the presentation of

their information. That’s why I came to-night—to get information.”

Getting to know the candidates through the debate was a highlight of the event.

“It was good to see their faces and body language,” said Harrison Knowlton, a junior criminal justice major. “You could also see their confi dence levels and the way they handled themselves. They both por-trayed good stuff and knew what they were talking about.”

Want to know the Want to know the outcome of the outcome of the SGA election? SGA election?

Go to www.florala.net to Go to www.florala.net to get the latest results and get the latest results and

election information. election information.

I will admit I was not excited about seeing “Project X.” I assumed it was like “Superbad,” as stated by the previews, only turned into a home video version.

The fi lm follows the events of Thom-as, Costa and J.B., seniors in high school wanting to gain popularity by throwing Thomas a huge 17th birthday party. Costa hires Dax, a “gothic AV nerd” to follow them around and shoot a video for them to remember the evening.

The main goal for the three guys is to hook up with hot girls (obviously) and make the party “big.” After Thomas’s par-ents leave for the weekend, Costa begins sending mass texts to the students inviting

them for a night of debauchery. The fi lm itself has a pretty simple for-

mula. The events progress slowly in the be-ginning, where the most trouble to be had was making a drug dealer angry, causing him to dead sprint into the car, cracking the windshield. However, once the partygoers arrive in hordes, the fi lm picks up.

Because Thomas was given absurdly strict rules by his parents (I felt bad for the guy, seriously. His parents were more con-cerned about him not ruining their house than him actually having a decent birth-day), he orders that the party stay only in the backyard where the pool and DJ are located. This doesn’t last long, as people start getting drunker and begin migrating for bathrooms and bedrooms.

While the events of insanity (such as tying a dog to a bunch of balloons, a “surprise” garden gnome situation and a neighbor punching a kid) progress at a steady pace, the dialogue is what kept me intrigued throughout the movie. Some of the best moments in the fi lm are just the spoken lines themselves, out-ranking the mass hysteria that fi nally turns the party into a riot.

The riot eventually attracts the atten-tion of the police. The party no longer be-comes fun, as people run from riot police, helicopters and a crazy man with a fl ame-thrower. The attention attracts reporters and news professionals, which blows any attempt for hiding the chaos from Thomas’ parents.

Thomas’ parents return to a destroyed home and neighborhood, but the party was successful in making him and his friends popular.

This movie does its job well; it enter-tains. It is a legitimately funny movie that has no lulls in action. It doesn’t have a high re-watch value because the plot is simple with no real twists. This movie is worth seeing, but I would personally wait for it to show up in a Redbox or Netfl ix.

Page 15Thursday, March 15, 2012 • The Flor-Ala Life

Check out what’s coming up this weekend in the Shoals.

Friday, March 16th

Saturday, March 17th

Thursday, March 15th

Gabe Allen and Friends On the Rocks 9:30 p.m.

Workin’ for the Weekend

Max Russel and The Shakedown Kings DP’s 9 p.m. - 1 a.m.

The Decoy’s DP’s 8 p.m. - midnight

Dylan LeBlanc JD’s 8 p.m.

The Crosstown Rivals DP’s 9 p.m. - 1 a.m.

students on campus.“It is a great way to meet different

kinds of people,” said A.J. Mashburn, a secondary education major at UNA. “I’ve been into Japanese culture for around 10 years, and this is a logical club to be in.”

His favorite food from JUMP is tonkat-su, a pork tenderloin that has been breaded

in panko breadcrumbs and deep fried. Dr. Bob Hendren, who is the adviser

for the group, said this is the best group he has ever worked with.

“What I see happening is (interna-tional students) establishing such a cultural prescience; they want Americans to appre-ciate what they appreciate,” he said.

JUMP has an active Facebook to post upcoming events. Students who are inter-ested to join may also visit the site.

photo courtesy of Warner Bros.

‘Project X’ opened March 2 and brought in $21,051,363 during its fi rst weekend.

ʻProject Xʼ Review: wait for DVD

emeritus of psychology at UNA. However, despite the lack of research,

the belief that sleep texting occurs in select individuals is strong.

“I certainly don’t doubt that it could happen, but I would like to see more data before I believe the scientifi c and psycho-logical roots,” said Dr. Ryan Zayac, UNA assistant professor of psychology.

Sleep texting has occurred among some students at UNA. Public relations major Danielle Howard has experienced the phenomenon in the past.

“From fi rsthand experience, I know sleep texting happens,” Howard said. “I haven’t done it in a while, but when I did I might have been texting someone and fell asleep, and they would keep texting me and at some point I would send some jum-bled together letters that sometimes made words.”

Some of the major factors affecting sleep texting are stress and busy schedules

during the daytime. Stress is interrupting sleep patterns, thus causing individuals—particularly teens and college students—to get less sleep at night.

“Compared to 80 years ago, the aver-age teen is now sleeping two hours less,” Zayac said. “Their schedules are just so packed with lots of activities that it’s cut-ting into sleep time.”

Heavy usage and reliance on technol-ogy is also a key factor. A study conducted at the JFK Medical Center sleep laboratory in Edison, N.J., has reaffi rmed suspicions that electronic media and technology have a signifi cant impact on both the quality and quantity of sleep in students ages eight to 22. Students are so dependent on texting and technology that is diffi cult to not feel compelled to stay connected, even in the middle of the night.

“What students need to know is that it is OK to disconnect sometimes,” said Peggy Bergeron, a clinical nurse for UNA’s University Health Services. “Sleep needs to be just as much of a priority as technol-ogy is.”

The Lovelution Presents: Indie Movie Night JD’s 9 p.m. - midnight $5 cover

LaughRock 2012 JD’s 9 p.m. - midnight

Barry Billings Swamper’s Bar & Grille 8 p.m. - 11 p.m.

Hope Stamps Swamper’s Bar & Grille 5 p.m. - 7 p.m.

Spencer Murphy Swamper’s Bar & Grille 5 p.m. - 7 p.m.

28 Between Swamper’s Bar & Grille 5 p.m. - 7 p.m.

St. Patrick’s Day Party On the Rocks 9:30 p.m.

Matt Roy On the Rocks 9:30 p.m.

Jon Blumer Swamper’s Bar & Grille 9 p.m. - midnight

Becky’s New Car Norton Auditorium 7:30 p.m. $5 students/ $10 general

Becky’s New Car Norton Auditorium 7:30 p.m. $5 students/ $10 general

Becky’s New Car Norton Auditorium 7:30 p.m. $5 students/ $10 general

Page 12 Thursday, March 15, 2012 • The Flor-Ala

Tweets of the week DISCLAIMER: The tweets below are public tweets found on Twitter by searching hashtags involving UNA, Florence, Shoals and other uni-versity-related topics. Want to see yours on here? Be sure to hashtag

UNA and Shoals in your tweets.

Visit our website at florala.net to

get up to date info about UNA!

Want to write for The Flor-Ala? Come to our meetings every Monday at 5 p.m. at 643 N. Wood Ave.