UPbeat Fall 2015

A University Press magazine November 2015

Inside:• People• Speech• Salimi

andmore

Page 12

OOLLDD IISS NNEEWW

RefugeePage 10

PeoplePage 4

AnxietyPage 8

A University PressMagazine

November 2015

EEDDIITTOORRLauren Van Gerven

SSTTAAFFFFKara Timberlake

Haley BruynWesley Williams

Desmond PickensTim Collins

Natalie Avery

Mitchell A. JuniousKyle SwearingenTrevier Gonzalez

Kayla HolmesDerrick Owens

Josh Aych

AADDVVEERRTTIISSIINNGGMelissa Conley

Cover photo byJosh Aych

This issue of UPbeat is a production of the

University Press staff.

UNIVERSITYPRESS

©University Press 2015

JunkPage 12

HolidaysPage 4

November 20154UPbeat PP EE OO PP LL EE

Breaking BarriersFootball is a man’s game, but now it’s a woman’s world as well.From the first female officials to the first female defensive coordi-nator, women are impacting the game everyday, even at LamarUniversity. Dominique Edwards is one of Lamar football’s equip-ment managers and has a deep respect for a game she barely paidany attention to before. “I knew what the obvious stuff was, like afirst down or a touchdown, but if you asked me what a specificplayer was supposed to do on a certain play — I wouldn’t knownothing,” the graduate student says. Dominique joined the teamover the summer and interacts with players and films away games.

She also has to wash the player’s dirty laundry. “They don’t botherme much because I’m a girl, they usually just leave me be, but theirstuff is so funky that I nearly gag sometimes,” she says, with alaugh. Dominique played for the Lamar women’s basketball teamfor three years before making the jump to the gridiron and has de-veloped a passion for the sport. “When we beat Sam Houston, I wasyelling and screaming so crazy that Sam’s camera people looked atme like, ‘Why is she so hyped?’” she says. “That’s just how muchpassion I have for them now.” And there’s nothing funky aboutthat.

Text and photo by Wesley Williams

November 2015 5PP EE OO PP LL EE UPbeat

Becoming a Fairy TaleDEVYN COLEMAN

Fairy tales. Superheroes. Other realms. We all dreamed of being insome other world as some other person when we were little — maybewe still do, sometimes. Devyn Coleman is making those childhooddreams come true. Devyn is a cosplayer. She designs and createscharacter costumes. “I get to play these really empowering womenand I really enjoy that,” she says. Currently, her favorite costume isEsméralda from Disney’s “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.” The char-acter offers a sultry and powerful personality that Devyn believes shedoes not portray on her own. Cosplay is a performance art, and ittakes a lot of work to achieve the perfect look. “I spend my free timecreating just the right look,” she says. She creates her own costumesand wigs for her looks. Devyn says she enjoys becoming other charac-ters. “I don’t consider myself very cool,” she says. “I try not to standout too much, but when you dress up you get to.” The managementinformation systems major says that she enjoys the contrast betweenher hobby and her studies. Devyn describes the relaxation she getsfrom creating her characters as her “Zen.” Overall, Devyn says themost magical part of her cosplay adventures is that when she is incostume, “I become the beautiful and confident princess that Idreamed of becoming when I was a little girl.”

Text and photo by Natalie Avery

Bridging the language gapCHATMAN SIEBEN

Language can be a barrier to communication, but it can also be a bridge to opportu-nity. Chatman Sieben, the first deaf student to graduate with a master’s in English fromLamar, tutors students, both deaf and hearing at the LU Writing Center. The Beaumontnative says that many deaf students struggle with English. “If you understood the his-

tory of deaf children, they’ve had a long struggle with reading and writing skills becausetheir native language is ASL,” he says. Students are forced to read an oral language they

did not grow up with, he says, so they don’t like English. “My goal is to change that.”Chatman is working on a doctorate in Deaf Education with a cognate study in English. “I

will teach English classes to deaf and hearing students,” he says. “That’s the first timethat Lamar will have deaf students being taught by a deaf professor not in their major.”The most interesting aspect of English, Chatman says, is its malleability. “Students don’thave to be stuck with the sentences they struggle with — they can break it up and moveit around,” he says. “One of the main problems is that students think the English lan-

guage is standardized, but it’s not. It can be different.” Language can be a bridge to newopportunities, and Chatman plans to build that bridge for his students.

Text and photo by Tim Collins

November 20156UPbeat PP EE OO PP LL EE

Girl on FireALEX WARNKEN

Her arms moving in a hypnotizing fashion, Alex Warnken smiles as the flames ather fingertips catapult through the air. For the Lamar University alumnus, it is just an-

other evening. “Fire dancing is an adrenaline rush,” Alex says. “It is spinning rightacross your face sometimes. It’s exciting. I always have that queasiness, but once you

are out there, you just have to own it.” After having the idea that Fire Fridays would bea nice addition at Zeus Café where she worked, Alex took four lessons before strikingher first performance. “I have a lot of jobs and don’t have time to choreograph before-hand, so I just improv while I’m out there,” she says. “I try to focus on the music andnot so much on everyone watching me.” After receiving her art degree from McNeese

State University, Alex completed Lamar’s leveling program for Speech-LanguagePathology in 2014. The Lake Charles native said performing is great for self-confi-dence. “I’m usually more of an introvert, so this is great practice for me,” she says.“Performing gets me out of my comfort zone and makes me more sociable. It really

opens me up in a lot of ways.” Her self-esteem rises with the flames.

Text and photo by Kara Timberlake

Just busting a moveCEDRIC LYONS JR.Sophomore and Dallas native Cedric Lyons Jr. started filming all kinds of events from a very young age. “As a kid, I always had a cameraon me,” he says. “I really love to edit clips.” Cedric wants to become a professional film editor or a director — not just to be rich and havemoney but because it’s something he is good at and has a passion for. Along with his more cinematic works, Cedric is a skilled dancer.“Every once in a while, I’d bust a move here and there, and when I’m alone listening to music, I just get in a groove. I guess I found outon accident that I can dance.” Since high school, Cedric has been making dance videos, but has only just recently started posting any ofthem on YouTube. Collaboration with others is important to Cedric and he has many projects in the works including a feature film, acollection of different short films that could become a series, and a company where he can focus on the business aspect of film. “I’m apretty fun guy to be around,” he says. “I like to make sure that everyone feels comfortable and is in a good mood before I tend to myself.I try to put others before myself.” You can see Cedric’s work on his YouTube channel by searching Cedric Lyons.

Text and photo by Mitchell A. Junious

November 2015 7PP EE OO PP LL EE UPbeat

‘Rockin’the passion

JORDAN BLANCHARD

Sweaty palms slipping on grips. An armextended trying to grab a rock just out ofreach. A risky leap from one crevice to thenext. These are just a few of Jordan Blan-

chard’s rock climbing experiences. “Istarted climbing when I first got to Lamarduring my freshman year,” the Beaumontsenior says. “I didn’t start climbing with

the intent to stay into it, I just picked it upto keep me busy after I got out of class andbefore I go to work. But the more I started

doing it, I really started liking it — it developed into a passion of mine.” Jordan

doesn’t just climb as leisure activity. “Competitions were something that, as Istarted getting better at climbing, I reallywanted to get into,” the engineering majorsays. “Coming from a background of doingsports in high school and having a kind ofcompetitive nature, it was something thatreally appealed to me.” However, Jordan

says the competition isn’t an intense affair.“It isn’t so much competition driven, likeone person over another, as it is do yourbest at climbing and just have fun,” he

says. It may be daunting to those who havenot climbed before, but Jordan is quick toencourage others to give it a try. “Don’t be

afraid to try it out,” he says. “You don’tknow what you like until you try it.”

Text and photo by Kyle Swearingen

for more PEOPLE, see page 19

November 20158UPbeat

eart palpitations, clammy hands, stiff mus-cles, increased blood pressure and drymouth — these are sensations we have allexperienced before giving a class speechor presentation.

Most people chalk these uncomfortable feelings upto jitters or stage fright. However, for a portion of thepopulation, these symptoms are only part of a muchlarger issue that may prevent them from achieving ed-ucational, professional and social goals — communica-tion apprehension.

Communication apprehension, the fear of real oranticipated communication, is something that all of usexperience, but some experience to such a great extentthat it becomes debilitating, Ruth Stanley, Lamar Uni-versity communication instructor, said.

With a background in communication and commu-nication disorders, Stanley developed a special sectionof public speaking for students who suffer from publicspeaking-induced anxiety. The class concentrates onhelping students develop confidence in communicatingwith others in interpersonal, small group and publicspeaking contexts.

“We noticed that there was a significant percentageof people who were just disappearing at speech time,”she said. “We started studying up and realized that ithas a name. I am not only a communication professor,but I have a master’s in speech pathology, so I come atcommunications from the disorder side. I said, ‘Youknow, I can work with these people.’ So, we studied upand found methods.”

Stanley said that students qualify to take the class byfilling out a Personal Report of Communication Appre-hension form. The measure indicates the level of anxi-ety a person feels about participating in various oralcommunication situations.

“We focus on communication apprehension, what itis and how it affect us, why it affects us, and we learntechniques and strategies to help each of us deal withour anxiety,” she said. “We try to put them in charge oftheir anxiety instead of their anxiety being in charge ofthem. I always tell them I can’t get rid of all of youranxiety because, technically, the only people withoutanxiety are dead.”

Public speaking is an important part of communica-tion, Stanley said.

“No matter who you are or what your major is orwhat you do in life, communication is key to operatingin the world,” she said. “We have to deal with other

people. Public speaking helps you learn how to fashiona message, organize it and present it.

“In real life, there are so many places you need tohave public speaking skills. The Association of Ameri-can Colleges and Universities polled employers whohire people out of four-year institutions and askedthem what they wanted (employees) to have, and 89percent of them said we want them to able to commu-nicate orally.”

Stanley said she tells her students that public speak-ing is something they can conquer.

“Public speaking does not have to be a terrible, hor-rible, no good, very bad thing,” she said. “I tell (stu-dents) public speaking may never be your favoritething, but at least you have techniques and the abilityset up to do the best you possibly can.”

After Baytown senior Kaci Davis failed two classesbecause of her public speaking fear, her advisor recom-

mended that she fill out the PRCA form to see if shequalified for Stanley’s class.

“I was desperate and I needed to graduate,” Davissaid. “I’m graduating and I haven’t applied because I’mso afraid of the interview. It sounds crazy, but when itwas time to present, I would rather fail than get up. Ineeded to not run away when it was time to give thespeech.”

Davis said she realized she had public speaking anx-iety after an experience in her senior engineering de-sign class.

“Engineers have a senior design group where youhave to design something, and at the end of the yearyou present as a group and you show them your de-signs, what you’re aiming for, stuff like that,” she said.“The dean comes and it’s a big to-do. I’ve always hatedgiving presentations as a group in all my other classes.But I was talking it up in my head, being very positive,

Standing up to publicCOMMUNICATION CLASS PROVIDES TECHNIQUES, HOPE

H

Story by Kara Timberlake

UP infographic by Desmond Pickens

November 2015 9 UPbeat

like, ‘You know all of this.’”Then, Davis said, she started to feel physically ill. “I seriously thought I had a virus,” she said. “I

thought I was going to throw up, even though in mymind I wasn’t nervous because I kept talking about itand it wasn’t worrisome. I had my group with me.We’re in the lab, and I had to take off my cardigan andput my hair up because I was so hot.

“A guy in my group told me that he had anxiety, too,but I told him I thought I had a virus and I was justgoing to push through this. I’ve been nervous before,but this was sick. I knew then this was something to dowith anxiety.”

Davis said she didn’t understand why she couldn’t talkin front of her classmates when it was time to present.

“For my engineering classes, about 40 of us stay inthe same classes, so I know everyone,” she said. “Icould talk one-on-one with each of them, but it was dif-ferent when I got up there. No matter how prepared Iwas, whatever I had in my mind and whatever cameout of my mouth was not the same.

“I would stutter. My mouth would get nervous.When I retook my senior seminar — because I had to inorder to graduate — I remember I kept saying ‘umm,’

like I had lost my place or like I didn’t know what I wastalking about. I hated that.”

As a mechanical engineering major, Davis said pub-lic speaking skills are necessary for her career.

“If you come up with a solution to a problem thatworks, and is efficient and is awesome, but if you can’tcommunicate it to your bosses or the people that makeit happen, it’s pointless,” she said. “I know communica-tion is an important part of my career, and I’ve made ita goal. If I can’t get up in front of these students myage, how am I going to get up in front of these hotshots at Exxon and present to them?”

Davis said taking Stanley’s class pushes her to dobetter.

“I came to Ms. Stanley’s class because it was knownthat it was for people who were afraid of public speak-ing, and I needed to graduate,” she said. “But once Istarted, I realized that I don’t just want to make thegrade and forget it to just get the degree. I want to takethis and apply it to my life.”

Knowing she’s not alone in her struggles has been ahuge help, Davis said.

“We’re all dealing with the same thing,” she said. “Ifeel like before, I’ve told myself that I’m just being dra-

matic and then tried to throw myself into it, but it neverworked. She’s taught us why we feel the ‘fight or flight’reaction, and that we’re not the only ones feeling it.”

The class has made a big impact, Davis said. “Unlike the other public speaking class I took, this is

more put your toe in the water, then your foot in thewater,” she said. “Ms. Stanley is understanding thatcommunication apprehension is a real thing. She’s re-ally available even with things not pertaining to class.Her office is always open, and she’s very much therefor her students. I love Ms. Stanley. I love this class.”

Davis said she would like to take another communi-cation or public speaking course before she graduates.

“Public speaking is really nothing to fear,” she said.“I’ve gone from this irrational thinking to more of a re-alistic approach.”

One technique that Davis has learned is to keep ajournal, she said.

“It asks you questions that make you think and pin-point what’s happened in the past to make you likethis,” she said. “It is more about getting to the root ofthe problem and facing it even if it’s not comfortable.

speaking anxiety

Carolyn Ortiz, Houston sophomore, gives a speech in front of her Public Speaking class that focuses on students with “communication apprehension.” RuthStanley, left, offers critiques and techniques for those with anxiety about speaking in public.

See SPEECH page 18

UP Kara Timberlake

ahmoud Salimi’s life storyis like a movie. TheAfghanistan native be-came a refugee in 1993when he fled his home-

town of Kabul from the Taliban. Sincethen, he has spent time in Pakistan, Ger-many, Japan and back home in

Afghanistan, before moving to theUnited States in 2006 to pursue a mas-ter’s degree in film.

Ever since he was a little kid, Salimihas been fascinated by film.

“I wanted to do film from early child-hood,” he said. “I wanted to be in themovies. But then, when I grew up a little

bit, I realized, ‘I think I like being behindthe camera more.’ When I finished highschool and went to college, I wanted tostudy film, but there were no programs(at Kabul University).”

Salimi said that the closest programto film that was offered was theater.

“I didn’t know what theater was,” he

said. “I wanted to study music, I likemusic, but they told me, ‘You don’t havea music background, so you can’t startfrom scratch, you need to go to musicschool.’ So, I went for theater. I really,really liked it, it was so much fun.”

It was during his undergraduate yearsthat the Taliban took power in

Frame by FrameSalimi makes journey from Afghan refugee to Beaumont film professor

M


Story by Lauren Van Gerven

Assistant profes-sor Mahmoud

Salimi, left, assistsBruce Wright during a film photography

class, Nov. 10.

UP Photos byTrevier Gonzalez

Afghanistan and Salimi was forced toflee to Pakistan.

“In 1993, when I became a refugee,they closed the border,” he said. “Therewere thousands of Afghans waiting be-hind a closed door. So, we spent thenight there. It poured, it rained, and youcouldn’t sleep, because if you slept, youwere robbed, raped or killed. There weresmugglers. They walked around, talked,asked how much you’d pay to be takenacross the border.”

Salimi said he was in group whoended up agreeing on a price of $100 aperson.

“A lot of money in ’93, compared toPakistani currency,” he said. “At four inmorning, the guy came with a pick-uptruck. He drove until 10 o’clock throughthe mountains. Then at 10 o’clock —there was no road, no path at all — heasked us to get out. We put our stuff onmules and we walked. There was a reallyreally high mountain — we had to climbit. There was a path so narrow, you couldbarely walk on it. If you looked down, thepeople looked tiny. Even the mules werescared. We barely made it to the top, itpoured again and it was evening.”

The group of around 10 people wasbrought to a one-room clay house with asingle door where they were to spend thenight, Salimi said. The smuggler wouldpick them back up at 4 a.m.

“‘I can’t sleep here,’” he said. “’What ifsomething happens?’ It’s no-mans-land,anything is possible to happen to you be-cause there are smugglers — it’s allmountains, and they have nothing. Theonly way they survive is by smugglingdrugs, weapons and people.”

Salimi said that the smugglersbrought them plain rice for dinner.

“It was so delicious,” he said. “It hasno salt or nothing. At four o’clock, hecame back with a pickup truck. Around10-11 o’clock, we got to the other side ofthe border. This was the first time in mylife I saw something like this. I got out ofthe truck, I looked around and therewere weapons stores and drug storeseverywhere. Big pieces of hash were justhanging there. People would just walk in,buy it, leave, thank you.”

There were policemen sitting allaround, like at a checkpoint.

“The police couldn’t do anything to(the merchants) because they were tribalpeople — the entire checkpoint could

have blown up and disappeared,” hesaid. “And then it started there — therefugee life.”

Salimi said the refugee life was terri-ble. He lived a life of unemployment,homelessness, hunger and poverty.

“The one that was the worst, was dis-crimination,” he said. “You get lookeddown on — ‘bastard Afghanis.’”

Salimi said he heard from family thatis was even worse in Iran.

“We are nasty, disgusting Afghanis inIran,” he said. “We don’t deserve any-thing. In some places in Iran, the govern-ment tells their people, ‘Don’t sell food toAfghanis. Hospitals — don’t accept

Afghanis. Busses, cabs, don’t take Afgha-nis anywhere.’ If they do, they will befined or put in jail. Even the parks, theydidn’t let Afghanis go to the parks. It wasjust like Jews in the ’30s and ‘40s. Not allwere like that, I’m talking in general.”

After working his way up from con-struction and selling goods on thestreets, Salimi started working for a non-profit organization and was able to setsome money aside with which he co-founded Exile Theater, a group that per-formed for Afghani refugees in Pakistan.

“I wasn’t the only one,” he said.“There were other team members aswell. We would rent a tent, chairs, put all

of it together and invite people — it wasalways free. We celebrated Afghanistan’shistorical and cultural days. It was agreat opportunity for us, when you are arefugee, to come together with otherAfghans and celebrate.”

However, law enforcement stoppedthe theater productions, Salimi said.

“There were unknown Pakistani peo-ple that reported us,” he said. “Authori-ties came, and they questioned us. Tothem, they were asking us legit ques-tions. We were not affiliated with any po-litical party. They would ask us, whichparty do we belong to, who is supportingus, who is behind us, who is our leader?

“We are Afghan refugees, we just wantto celebrate our heritage. So, they threat-ened us. They said, ‘We are going tothrow you in jail if you do that.’ This wasright at the time refugees started movingback. Some of our members left to Eu-rope, some went back home, so I movedback to Afghanistan in 2003.”

After finishing his undergraduatestudies and spending three years inAfghanistan working in theater and film,Salimi came to the U.S. in 2006 to attendfilm school after receiving a prestigiousFulbright scholarship, an exchange pro-


See SALIMI page 17

“It poured,it rained,and you couldn’t sleep,

because if you slept,you were robbed,raped or killed.”


J JU UN NK K

orT TR R

E EA AS SU U

R RE E? ? Vendors

ply waresin streetmarketThe sun shone bright on a crisp fallday as vendors and buyers flockedto Downtown Beaumont Commu-nity Junk Days, Nov. 14. Many ofthe items were handmade or up-cy-cled. Proceeds from the event, heldmonthly, benefits local charities.November’s chosen recipient wasthe Southeast Texas Food Bank.Most of the vendors were local, al-though some came from as far awayas Austin. The stalls featured a di-verse collection of wares, from re-furbished furniture to artisanalmonds. The BAW Resale shop, awarehouse of eclectic parapherna-lia, spreads along the block andhouses miniature dolls and peddlecars and vintage furniture. Thestreets buzzed with the sound ofvendors and patrons haggling forgoods. Junk Days is held on the cor-ner of Fannin and Neches eachmonth, with the next one scheduledfor Dec. 5. For more information,visit the Downtown BeaumontCommunity Junk Days Facebookpage.




Photo story package byJosh Aych with contribution byNatalie Avery


What do these writers have in common?

They all worked in journalism at one time!Ernest Hemingway Alex Haley William Faulkner Dorothy Parker Tom Stoppard Nora Ephron

ADVANCED JOURNALISTICWRITING is a great way to develop your skills as a writer,whether your degree is in Communication or English.

LEARN ALL THE ELEMENTS OF FEATURE WRITINGPersonality profiles, reviews, investigative/interpretative stories, editorials, brights, columns, sidebars, seasonal/aftermath stories, and series.

PERFECT FOR JOURNALISM, ENGLISH AND PUBLIC RELATIONS WRITERS

COMM3330 • Tues-Thurs, 8a.m. • Spring2015PRE-REQUISITES INCLUDE FRESHMAN COMPOSITIONOR COMM 1373Instructor: Andy Coughlan, Director of Student Publications • [email protected]

Qualifying elective for English majors with writing emphasis. • Qualifying elective or requirement for Communication majors.

UNIVERSITY PRESS‘Doing our best to be the best’

‘‘JJOOUURRNNAALLIISSMMIISS AANN AACCTT OOFF FFAAIITTHHIINN TTHHEE FFUUTTUURREE’’ — Ann Curry

These writers learned their craft in the profession.

Learn yours with us.


gram that provides both Americans andforeigners an opportunity for culturaland educational growth.

“I wanted to study film in France, be-cause I like French cinema,” Salimi said.“Either France or Italy, both are great.But, I was walking by the American em-bassy, and I saw that there was an an-nouncement about the Fulbrightscholarship. If you met certain require-ments, you could apply for it. So, I putthe portfolio together and I applied.”

There were more than 400 applicantsfor 10 places. After going through severalinterviews and an English test, Salimifound out that he had been selected whilehe was in Tokyo for a theater production.

“I wanted to go to France, but, hey,Hollywood!” he said. “I was supposed togo to NYU, but then they told me aboutUCLA. Later on they contacted me againand told me that I was going to study atSavannah College of Arts and Design.‘Where is Savannah?’ I asked. They saidit was in Georgia. ‘No, no, I was sup-posed to go the United States, not Geor-gia.’ So, I looked up a U.S. map, andfound that Georgia was there.”

Salimi said that he could have pickedwhatever school he wanted, but he didn’tknow anything about U.S. colleges, so heended up in Savannah.

“I went from Tokyo and New York —where I did my pre-academics — to Sa-vannah,” he said. “It was a culture shock.Everything was so slow. Kabul city issmall, but it is fast-paced. The first threemonths in school, I was like, ‘I want toget out of this place.’ But, after threemonths, I started liking it. Savannah be-came my second home. And, (SavannahCollege of Arts and Design) is one of thetop-25 film schools in the nation.”

Salimi said that people in Americaoften think he’s from South America, butwhen they find out where he’s from,their reaction changes.

“Quickly, they get the picture,” hesaid. “War, Taliban, drugs. Stereotypesare there. But so far, I have not beentreated badly.”

Salimi said he did have some weirdreactions while living in Georgia.

“It was St. Patrick’s Day,” he said. “Iwas on a bus, when a few stops latersome people get on. A nice, middle-agedlady sits next to me and asked where I

was from. Middle East, what part?Afghanistan. She made a comment, ‘Oh,I hope I don’t get kidnapped.’

“Another time, I was shooting a filmand I was looking for props. I went to aflea market in Savannah and walkedthrough it. I talked to people. Finallythere’s a store with a white gentleman —I was with a white American friend ofmine — so, we introduce ourselves,‘We’re film students and we are lookingfor props. We are looking for dummygrenades.’ He looked at me, turned to hisfriend, ‘Do you have grenades for theseIranians?’ And I just look at him. First ofall, I’m not Iranian. I can understand theassumption, but (my friend) is white,he’s American, he has no accent at all.The other gentleman was nice, he real-ized that we didn’t feel comfortable andhe referred us to another store. The firstguy turned back and asked, ‘Do you needmissiles, too?’ I was really offended. I gotupset and I said, ‘No, thanks. I can takecare of things with grenades,’ and Iwalked away. What did I say that I of-fended him?”

Salimi said that although Beaumont isa conservative place, he hasn’t had anyproblems here.

“It’s good at Lamar,” he said. “It’s anacademic environment, which makesthings a little easier.”

Compared to his previous teachingjobs, Salimi said that at Lamar he hasmore time to work on his creative proj-ects. He has produced and written bothdocumentaries and films.

“I did a documentary when I came tothe United States,” he said. “Savannah isa beautiful place. One day, I was sittingin the city and there were some Asiantourists eating ice cream and taking pic-tures of the statues. There was a home-less guy sitting there, too. The policecame, went directly to that guy and ha-rassed him, asked him to leave. ‘Whatdid I do? I’m just sitting here. You’re ha-rassing people.’ And he kicked him out ofthat place. It just broke my heart.

“This guy is no less a human beingthan any of us. He was African-Ameri-can. I just looked and thought, these aretourists, they have the right to enjoyevery corner of this place, I’m an out-sider, I have the right, but this guy, who’san American, doesn’t have the right?Something is wrong here. So, I went andmade a documentary on homelessness,and my entire goal was to link politics —

that it’s the government’s responsibility.But after a while, it changed me. Yes, thisis the structure, but also, some peoplemade the choice to be homeless.”

Salimi said that through his work hewant to make a difference. He would liketo go back to Afghanistan and workthere, because there is a need for somuch to be done.

“At least I can do my part as a citizenof that country,” he said. “And not justthat country, my plan is to work in South

America and Africa. There are so manyplaces that need help.

“I believe that artists are global, so arejournalists and doctors, and they are in-ternational citizens. I know you have apassport, but that’s paper stuff. In yourheart, you are international. It doesn’tmatter what religion, what belief, whatpolitical ideologies you have, but you are

SALIMI from page 12

See SALIMI page 18

Mahmoud Salimi, left, is mock attacked by a fellow cast member during atheater production staged at the ruins of the Kabul University school of FineArts which was bombed by Mujahedin fighters in the 1990s.

Courtesy Image


It’s rewarding.” Stanley said journaling is just one of the various

techniques that help students cope with and managetheir communication apprehension.

“We start out with deep breathing exercises, startingoff with diaphragmatic breathing to help calm our-selves,” she said. “Cognitive restructuring is the nextthing we do, which is basically taking your negativethoughts and turning them positive and not dwellingin the negative.

“We also learn some other techniques such as sys-tematic desensitization, which is huge. What that en-compasses is, that we learn to relax our body, and thenwe learn to stay relaxed when we learn about stressfulthings. Also, we learn mental rehearsal where we visu-alize and think our ways through things. Mental re-hearsal is a powerful tool.”

The public speaking class, offered in the fall and thespring, teaches students that though their fears arereal, they’re not always justified, Stanley said.

“So often we have either learned to be afraid ofspeech because we’ve had a bad experience, or we justhave worrisome thoughts about it,” she said.

Elizabeth Aronson, associate psychology professorand director of the Lamar psychology clinic, said a lotof factors contribute to anxiety.

“We think that a lot of people are genetically morelikely to feel anxious than others because of differencesin the way their brains are wired,” she said. “They mayhave more receptors for the nerve transmitters that areinvolved in the fear reaction, or they may have chemi-cal imbalances that make them more prone to anxiety.Probably some people are set up for it biologically.”

People may also develop fear from having a bad ex-perience or by observing another person’s fear, Aron-

son said. “So maybe they got really badly teased when they

were speaking publicly or talking in front of peoplewhere they were being evaluated,” she said. “Or ifsomething negative didn’t happen, they could havelearned it from watching other people. So if they knewsomebody who was afraid of public speaking, they mayhave learned from that person’s fear. Or if they watchedsomeone else give a speech and get made fun of, theymay have learned that is a dangerous thing to do.”

Aronson said an additional aspect is that peoplehave ideas about how their bodies react that might notbe accurate.

“There is a certain amount of adrenaline that comeswith a new situation or a challenge,” she said. “If youdon’t know that this is normal, and you interpret that as,‘Oh my god, I’m terrified at this; this is so horrible,’ youcan make a bigger deal of that and scare yourself. Onceyou start to worry about it, the reaction gets worse.”

The best way to get over any kind of fear is to exposeyourself to it, Aronson said.

“You experience it and find out that nothing awful isgoing to happen,” she said. “Then your body learns notto get scared. One of the hardest things about anxietyfor people, is that people’s tendency with somethingthat they’re afraid of is to avoid it, which actually thensets up a pattern to strengthen the anxiety becausethen you feel relief. You feel so relieved by escapingthat it’s like a treat for your body in a way.

“Usually people will keep avoiding and avoiding —then, it has drawbacks in terms of their career andtheir social life.”

Aronson said that the class provides a supportivecontext to learn how not to worry.

“People can get up and give speeches in front ofeach other in a warm, friendly environment,” she said.“They’re with a whole bunch of other people, for in-stance, who are also in the same boat and will be a

sympathetic audience. They keep giving speeches andgiving speeches, and over time, their body is going tolearn that this is not a dangerous thing to do.”

Students can discover that public speaking doesn’thave to be a bad experience, Aronson said.

“A little bit of your heart racing or your voice shak-ing is normal,” she said. “People can learn to not jumpto the most worst-case scenario about what might hap-pen, and have a little more realistic understandingabout how it’s going to go — something that will oftentake away from the fear. The class gives you a lot ofpractice, and it also helps people learn a little bit aboutwhat the fear is about.”

Stanley said the class, which began in 2005, allowsstudents to feel empowered and to find their voices.

“The smaller class gives me a chance to build a rela-tionship with each person and to get to know them,and some of their ups and downs and special needs,”she said. “It’s a tough semester, but if they do theirhomework, it’s just transformative. This class reallygives these kids a chance to put themselves in charge ofthat anxiety.

“It’s so much fun to watch people blossom andfind their confidence. They’ll tell me afterward,‘Oh, wow! My life is changed.’”

human. And as a human being, you have a responsibil-ity to help another human being. Whatever you can do.”

Salimi said that he wants his movies to become avoice for people.

“Either make a difference, a positive change in peo-ple’s lives, or motivate people to take a stand — mean-ingful movies,” he said. “My movies revolve aroundsocial, political topics.”

The film he is working on right now carries a mes-sage of coexistence.

“It’s about an American soldier and an Iraqi suicidebomber handcuffed together,” he said. “It’s like an oldcouple that don’t like each other. All the time they nagand argue, but they have to live together.

“The whole point is that once you put your religiousand political beliefs aside, you respect each other — there

is mutual respect. There is so much in common to share— emotions, families, relatives, friends, memories, pain,love, joy — they are all common things that we share, allhuman beings. And that’s what matters, I think.”

Salimi said that he like movies that make him think. “I like entertainment,” he said. “But, when I leave

the movie theater, I want to feel enriched, enhanced, Iwant to have learned something. When I’m with myfriends, I want to talk about it. When movies spoon-feed me, it’s just like okay, I spent $10 and I’ve been en-tertained for two hours. But the movie doesn’t make medo something — it doesn’t make me think about it andinfluence other people by talking about it.”

The situations in his life have shaped the way helooks at film.

“Afghanistan is a big market for Bollywood films,” hesaid. “I learned Hindi from watching movies. It wasthose kind of movies that I liked from early on. Butwhen I went to college, I realized that, wait, it’s the

same story told over and over again with different peo-ple, there really isn’t much in it. There is more than justBollywood. So when I watched other, non-Bollywoodfilms, it was so strong, so powerful.”

Whether it is through film or documentaries, ulti-mately Salimi’s goal is to pay his duties back as a citizenartist and become a voice of voiceless people.

“In life, I have seen so many regimes change andpeople come to power, and then fighting for Godagainst communism and fighting for communismagainst the opposition. But who suffers? The people, theones that get left behind — mothers, wives, children, fa-thers. These political, religious beliefs, they just takelives away.”

Salimi’s story could be a movie in itself. A story ofstruggle, of courage and of survival. Most of all, it isa story of a man who has seen the worst of theworld, but seeks to make the best of the world —and tell that story.

SALIMI from page 17

SPEECH from page 9“It helps people learn a little bitabout what the fear is about.”


PEOPLE from page 7

Powerliftingto GoldALVIN GOLDMAN JR.Going to the Olympics is every athlete’s dream. But Alvin Goldman Jr. aims to makehis dream a reality. The political science major is a powerlifter. The Beaumont nativestarted lifting in seventh grade as a way to relieve stress. “I was always small andshort in size, and I hated that all my friends had imposing figures,” Alvin says. “Igrew up with anger problems, and after a school fight, a counselor told me to focusthat energy in the weight room and see how it turns out.” One thing led to another,and now the Lamar senior is training to being a strong competitor. Alvin won threestate championships in powerlifting while attending West Brook High School, andfirst place in one national championship. Alvin has leg pressed 1,200 pounds andbenched 425 pounds. He keeps practicing in hopes that his hard work will pay off.“Hopefully, I see myself in the Olympics on the U.S.A. Olympic lifting team, which Iam currently training for,” he adds. While training, Alvin also finds time to completehis schoolwork and his goal is to become a politician. “I grew up around judges andhad the chance to meet a few members of the House of Representatives,” Alvin says.As hard as Alvin works, he may well bring home the gold in sports and politics.

Text and photo by Derrick Owens

Understandingthrough ArtCARLA TOWSON

Carla Towson is an artist and a teacher, and she uses these skills to guideyoung minds. “Art and educating are two things that I enjoy,” she says. “Artis an emotion.” The Orange native began her studies at Lamar University

before earning a degree in interior design from Texas Christian University.Carla has been an educator for six years at Central Medical Magnet HighSchool, and says she loves to mentor the students and coach them to ex-press their feelings through art. “I try to understand my students,” shesays. “Having someone that understands and relates to you, where you

come from, and your feelings truly helps my students.” Although Carla en-joys teaching, she plans to interior design in the near future. “My favoriteart is modern and especially pop art, because I love the fact that artistssuch as Andy Warhol and Claes Oldenburg took everyday objects andeveryday things and turned them into brilliant art, like the Campbell’s

Soup art,” she says. Carla has also helped many of her students place in theSoutheast Texas State Fair Art Contest. Whether it is designing house inte-riors or developing the interior minds of her young students, Carla brings

creativity to everything she does.

Text and photo by Kayla Holmes

GALVESTON — The weather is getting colder andthe sun sets around 5:30 p.m. What does that mean?Winter break is just around the corner. With no classes to attend, LU students will find

they have more free time than normal on their hands.This holiday season, friends, family and loved ones inthe Southeast Texas area should hop in their cars andplan a day trip to check out some of the great thingshappening in Galveston later this month.Just over two hours from Lamar, Galveston has so

much to offer, even for a quick trip. I suggest travelerswake up early and get breakfast in Crystal Beach atDannay’s Donuts. Their kolaches graced the breakfasttable for many of my childhood Fourth of Julys.Warm and fresh — they should provide plenty of en-ergy to get anyone through the second half of thedrive. Most of the remaining trip is a ferry ride. It’s ac-tually pretty fun — sometimes there are dolphins tosee. Of course, that is preceded by the interminablewait in the ferry line because, of course, they havedecided to cut back to one boat that day. But I di-gress.If getting up early doesn’t sound ap-

pealing, or maybe you’re just toohung-over from post-exam cele-brating to function until theAdvil kicks in, having a latelunch in Galveston aftera leisurely morningat home is justas enjoyable.A bit offthe

regular tourist beat is Farley Girls, a modern café withsomething for everyone. The restaurant will probablybe filled with locals, including my older brother andhis fiancé. They’re regular patrons. Seriously — it’s sogood. If a visitor wants more of the typical island experi-

ence, I get it. It’s fun to do the touristy things. Most ofthe restaurants along Seawall Boulevard, like Gaido’sSeafood, have a great view of the ocean, and the his-toric Strand district is a great place to grab a bite toeat and window shop for holiday gifts. Visitors shouldget a henna or airbrush tattoo if they’re feeling frisky.But please, all I ask: don’t go to a chain seafood

restaurant. I’m not saying lunch has to be seafood, butif it is, make sure it’s local. Yes, I understand that justabout everyone loves popcorn shrimp, but resist theurge to settle for something you can get elsewhere. Find somewhere local to get real southern seafood,

like Miller’s Seawall Grill. May I suggest seafoodgumbo if the weather is extra chilly? Or, for those will-ing to pay a little more, Fisherman’s Warf has, hands

down, my favorite stuffed flounder. Crab andcrawfish in a fresh gulf-caught fish? How much

more SETX can you get? Since it is fall, I don’t suggest goingswimming off the Seawall or visiting

Schlitterbahn Water Park,though they do have a

heated indoor attractionfor the brave enthusi-

ast (I’m not goingto be the one

riskinghy-

pothermia, thank you very much). The holiday season is the ideal time of year to visit

Moody Gardens. They’re open year-round, but falland winter is my favorite time to visit. The animalsseem friskier and it’s not god-awfully hot walking be-tween the buildings. Visitors who aren’t a fan of the cold can beat the

chill in the Rainforest Pyramid. People can get up-close and personal with exotic animals in the warmtropical habitat. Here’s fair warning — once you enter the main

pyramid, the animals are not contained in typicalcages. Monkeys frequently dash across the walkwaysand perch on the handrails. The sloths, which are apersonal favorite of mine, hang overhead, slowly inch-ing their way across their suspended netting. Be care-ful looking up, though — bird poo is a real andfrequent danger.There are exotic reptiles, mammals, fish, amphib-

ians and beautiful birds filling the enormous struc-ture, and educational resources about rainforestconservation throughout.According to Moody Garden’s website, the Aquar-

ium Pyramid has been undergoing renovations sinceAugust of this year. Thankfully, the first wave of con-struction was scheduled to end Nov. 13, so the pyra-mid should be open with the rest of the holidayexhibits. The park is keeping most of the details a se-cret, so I can’t say what visitors can expect with thismonth’s re-open, but I’m hopeful. According to the renovation schedule, the penguins

should be on exhibit through January. Honestly, thepenguins are my favorite part. They have so many dif-ferent types, like Emperor and Rock Hopper penguinsthat waddle and fall, and they swim right up next tothe glass. There are other exhibits and activities at Moody

Gardens, and limited engagement events for the holi-day season, like the SpongeBob Squarepants Ice LandExhibit. Artists from around the world were broughtin to carve over two million pounds of ice into BikiniBottom’s most beloved characters. Personally, I don’tget the connection between SpongeBob and Christ-mas, but it still sounds really cool (pun intended).


Don’t be ‘Moody’A quick trip along the Gulf Coast is perfect


for the holidaysOnce the sun goes down, one of Moody Garden’s most festive holi-

day traditions opens — the Festival of Lights. More than one millionlights illuminate the park with displays that pay homage to both theholiday season and Moody Garden’s non-human residents. Giant but-terflies flap their wings and bright fish splash across the night sky. As a 21-year-old female, one would think the magic of pretty lights

and holiday music wouldn’t appeal like it used to. Well, it does.There’s something about being surrounded by thousands of shimmer-ing, colorful, happy lights that makes me feel festive in spite of mynormal Scrooge-esque outlook on commercialism during holidays. Visitors can enjoy outdoor ice-skating under the lights, or simply

sip on hot cocoa while they wander the path that winds through thepark. People like me may get a kick out of watching native Texans try to

ice-skate. (Spoiler: they fall. It’s hilarious).After all of the sights of Moody Gardens have been gawked over,

travelers should go to the Rainforest Café for dinner.OK, yes, earlier I did advocate for local restaurants

only. I’m a hypocrite. So what? And, yes, maybe it’s abit juvenile — but the animatronic jungle animals, reg-ular pretend volcanic eruptions and large fruity drinksin glowing cups are fun. After an afternoon of rekin-dling a sense of child-like wonder at Moody Gardens,why not indulge the inner kid and eat somewherethat’s meant to be an experience? And, if patronsare so inclined, there is even a river raft ride in-side of the gift shop to finish off the nightwith one last smile.There are tons of other things

to do and see in Galveston. I’mpersonally just a big fan ofMoody Gardens this time ofyear, obviously. My ideal day trip might not

be everyone’s cup of tea, andthat’s okay. The point is thatthere is fun to be had withouttaking a whole, big arduous va-cation. Try something new thisholiday season. Or, there’s al-ways the option of stay-ing home and cryingover student loans.Your choice.

winter pick-me-upStory and graphic by Haley Bruyn



Documents

UPbeat Fall 2015