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(12/05/14 8:45pm)
A crowd gathered on the steps of the Auburn University Student Center Friday, Dec. 5, to protest the deaths and grand jury decisions of Michael Brown and Eric Garner by uniformed police officers.
Neither police officer was indicted in the deaths of Brown or Garner, sparking riots and protests across the country.
"This is for everyone," said India Napier, president of the Black Graduate and Professional Student Association. "This is not just about black men who have been gunned down by the police. This is for everyone, regardless of sex, religion, your race, your sexual orientation, your religion, you should not be oppressed."
Napier rallied students at the eastern entrance of the Student Center before leading them to the Haley Concourse.
Throughout the event Napier held a sign that read, "I cannot stand idly by in Auburn and not be concerned about what is happening in America."
Protestors laid on the ground for 4 and a half minutes, symbolic of the 4 and a half hours Michael Brown laid uncovered in the Ferguson, Missouri street after being shot.
"This is a minority thing going on, and we go to a mostly white college," said Devin McCants, protestor and junior in information systems management. "For everyone to see that this really matters to us, I think they'll jump on board because Auburn is really a niche family. This mix is good, that's what you want it to be. You don't want it to be all black. You want to know that other races do care about this."
Michael Grogan-Herod, protester and senior in English, said he was on Twitter when news of the Garner case first broke across the Internet.
"I felt that I had to do something besides get mad at my screen, so I got my poster board and just started protesting," Grogan-Herod said. "It's not just a race issue. It's not just a police brutality issue. It's both. It's also a human issue.This man who died had a family and a wife and kids that aren't going to see their dad again. I just want them to get some comfort and get some closure and they're not going to get that."
After the demonstration on the Haley concourse, the crowd returned to their starting point in front of the Student Center to hear Napier's closing remarks.
"A student group applied for a permit for a peaceful protest, which we give them the right to do in a university setting," said Bobby Woodard, vice president of Student Affairs. "We support their ability to voice their opinions. There's a difference between supporting actions and their ability to voice their opinions."
Woodard said he and his organization support the right students have to peacefully protest.
"Yes [it is a peaceful protest], and that's what we're usually out here for, we're out here to support the students and administrators, and we're also out here to make sure it's a peaceful protest," Woodard said.
Multiple student organizations, including the Black Student Union and College Democrats, organized the demonstration through social media earlier in the week but waited until Friday, Dec. 5, to maximize their efforts, according to Nicole Harris, BSU member and senior in software engineering.
"We just compiled with everyone else to bring awareness to social injustice and how injustice anywhere is truly a threat to justice everywhere, and its not a bipartisan issue, it's a human rights issue," said Dana Trentalange, member of College Democrats' leadership team and junior in economics.
Harris said as a young African-American, the deaths of Brown and Garner have only become more significant.
"That could be me laying on the ground like that," Harris said. "Hopefully people will take notice and look into the situation and look at things better. Just get more knowledge out there so you really know what's going on in the real world."
Alexis Harrison, protestor and senior in environmental design, said she was thankful for the people who set up the protest.
"I really appreciate the organizers for putting this together and making us all come together," Harrison said. "I think it was a great way to show that Auburn is aware of the issues that are happening in America."
Kayla Warner, BSU member and freshman in business, said she attended the protest to promote change in Auburn and across the country.
"I came out here today because I want to be a part of something, to change our world, to change what we're doing, to change this country so everybody can see how... everybody in this country is being treated by the police, how we're being repressed by the police, how lives matter," Warner said. "Black lives matter."
(12/04/14 8:30pm)
In August 2014, the economics department spent the fifth anniversary of its forced relocation to the Haley Center basement the same way it always did: by trying to get out.
In 2008, the economics department was moved from the College of Business to the College of Liberal Arts because of internal disputes said Michael Stern, department chair and associate economics professor.
The home of the College of Liberal Arts is the Haley Center.
Despite trying to work with administration to leave the basement and, at least, return to its original home in Lowder Hall, the department remains in the basement, along with storage closets, leaky bathrooms and collapsing ceiling tiles.
Many professors and faculty members have spent time in the basement while their offices or classrooms were renovated, but no one has spent as much time as the economics department, Stern said.
"We're the only known department to have moved here without a plan or a facilities emergency," Stern said. "The space we were in on the second floor of Lowder that we vacated was then left vacant. We were not moved out of there because anyone needed to move in or because there wasn't any problem with the facility."
According to Stern, the administration's inaction over the department's facilities isn't just a burden on students and faculty members.
Stern said leaving one of the top 10 credit-hour-generating departments in an unused basement poses a serious threat to the department's credibility.
"When you come down here you think, 'What are these guys doing down here?'" said Alexander Richter, assistant professor of economics. "Let's say we're interviewing for an open faculty position. What (this situation) says is nobody takes us seriously from an administrative level, and that's a fundamental problem. People would be willing to come here, but they're not going to go work in this environment."
Richter said students routinely get lost on the way to his office in the basement, though he still teaches the majority of his classes in Lowder.
Although the lack of available office space is a contributing factor to their lengthy stay, John Sophocleus, economics instructor, said the time for the University administration to make a decision about moving the department is long overdue.
"What better thing can you say than we've entrusted the administration for five years to deal with this?" Sophocleus said. "We have been patient. It's time for them to do something. If five years of waiting isn't enough, pray tell, how many more?"
Stern said former Provost Mary Ellen Mazey made the decision to transfer colleges, and eventually move to the Haley Center basement in 2009.
"They were informed at essentially the same time that we were," Stern said. "(Mazey) wrote up this memo, called us in, looked at her watch and said, 'As of 9:05 a.m., you are now in the College of Liberal Arts.'"
Mazey shut down the department's academic programs over conflicts with their curriculum when the undergraduate economic students didn't meet the foreign language requirements as a result of transferring to the College of Liberal Arts, Stern said.
"In the fall of 2009, students could not sign up for any form of curriculum at the University," Stern said. "[Macroeconomics professor] Liliana Stern, who directed our undergraduate studies at the time, had to go with the undergraduate students to the president to get our programs opened. When he found out that Mazey had shut them, he ordered them reopened."
Mazey's assistant, Laurel Zawodny, said Mazey, current Bowling Green State University president, was unable to comment.
"(Mazey) has business to take care of and does not have the time to revisit decisions made while at Auburn," Zawodny said.
Mazey left Auburn University in 2011 to become the president of BGSU. The decision over the economics department's future was left unresolved, said economics professor Randy Beard.
"All of this just shows that when we were moved here to this college, and then also physically moved here into this building, it was very poorly planned," Beard said. "They didn't prepare for (the move) properly. It was an off-the-cuff kind of decision that nobody paid any attention to."
Beard said nobody owns this decision, now that Mazey is gone, though that hasn't stopped the department from appealing to the University administration.
"In fairness to Mazey, she indicated to me that this was temporary," Stern said. "It was just a cooling-off period. She did tell the business school not to touch our space on the second floor, and so she may have been rolling around some plans in her head, she just didn't finalize them yet."
Joseph Aistrup, dean of the College of Liberal Arts, said in an email to Beard that he is working on the issue now and does not have information that he can share with the department "either in private or public."
Aistrup said he had no further comment.
Timothy Boosinger, current provost and vice president of Academic Affairs, said he wasn't aware the economics department was trying to move out of their current office space until a few months ago.
Boosinger said he's put a process in place with the facilities division, the economics department and the College of Liberal Arts to discuss the current situation and evaluate the best decision.
Beard said the large amount of construction over the last five years evidence their complaints are not being heard.
"(The University) has all these beautiful jogging tracks, coffee shops, indoor practice facilities," Beard said. "This (location) is like a dungeon."
(12/12/14 1:00pm)
Jim Voss, 1972 graduate and former NASA astronaut, will be sharing a lifetime of wisdom and experience with the class of 2014 Saturday, Dec. 13.
"Jim was an astronaut of the shuttle era when there was more science in that program than there had been in earlier programs," said James R. Hansen, aerospace history professor and author of the Neil Armstrong biography "First Man." "He's an engineer and his passion was for flying, like most astronauts. They come from a background in aviation and, through their engineering work, Auburn's had an outstanding aerospace engineering program."
Voss grew up in Opelika before coming to Auburn, where he studied aerospace engineering while in ROTC.
A mission specialist on board the space shuttles Atlantis, Endeavor and Discovery, Voss conducted experiments inside and outside of the International Space Station.
After retiring from the NASA astronaut program, Voss started a second career as a teacher, even instructing a few aerospace engineering classes at Auburn, Hansen said.
Hansen said he suspects Voss, his friend and former colleague, will focus on the importance of education in his speech.
"Auburn is still a part of his life," Hansen said. "He clearly has a message about a boy who grew up in Opelika, Alabama, who dreams of going into space and gets to go to the International Space Station. There will be an emphasis on education. Without Auburn, Jim Voss wouldn't have become an engineer, wouldn't have become an astronaut. Just what Auburn did for him in terms of education, maturing and becoming a professional."
In the past, Tim Jackson, Bo Jackson and Lt. Gov. Kay Ivey have shared their experience and wisdom with graduating students.
Director of Campus and Community Events Teresa Whitman-McCall said the graduation committee looks for someone who can provide a charge of action for the graduating students.
"A large majority of our graduates are about to walk into a job for the first time and some are still looking," Whitman-McCall said. "More than anything, we just want them to offer up that great piece of advice that perhaps they got when they were at Auburn, or in their lifetime, that would inspire that graduate to become an even greater person than they already are."
Commencement speakers are compensated for travel expenses through the graduation committee, but the figure for Voss' trip is unavailable, Whitman-McCall said.
"The trend is to get a graduate that's done something people can appreciate," said Jackson Pruett, SGA executive vice president of initiatives and senior in political science. "An Auburn man or woman sharing their experiences from the University. Someone who's very accomplished and has a unique background that's going to provide share some wisdom for these recent graduates."
(11/21/14 3:00am)
Thanksgiving came a week early for members of the Auburn University Mentor program, a campus organization that matches students with disadvantaged youth from around Lee County.
Project Uplift brought kids and their Auburn student-mentors to the Phi Delta Theta house for a night of food and fun.
"It's just a couple hours to let the kids have a good time and take their minds off their regular lives," said Chris Haenn, warden of Phi Delta Theta and senior in finance. "We host this event every year for Thanksgiving dinner as just a small portion of Project Uplift. We funded this individual Thanksgiving event and Delta Gamma is participating with us to support the cause as well."
In addition to a local petting zoo featuring a camel and a baby kangaroo, kids enjoyed a Moonbounce, arts and crafts and a special appearance by Aubie.
At the end of the night, after a short prayer, everyone helped themselves to the Thanksgiving-style foods provided by Greek Life Services catering.
"I love it, it's so much fun seeing them play," said Christy Rolf, former vice president of communications for Delta Gamma and junior in interior design. "We don't normally work with kids but when we have the opportunity we always jump in. They asked our sorority to join them for the last few years so we kind of help them set it up and bring crafts to help run it."
Rolf said even though Project Uplift is primarily Phi Delta Theta's philanthropy event, members of Delta Gamma have gladly assisted with the event since it started three years ago.
"Clark Macklemore, who graduated last year, actually started it," said Bennett Norris, treasurer of Phi Delta Theta and senior in accounting. "He was a former mentor to one of the kids and he spearheaded this a few years ago for our fraternity. We've just tried to keep it going and make it an annual thing. We'll clean up afterwards, we're just gonna let em rip and roar and have a good time until it ends."
Norris said the entire $2,000 budget was culled directly from fraternity dues in order to pay for the event.
Vicky Yarborough, administrative support assistant for Project Uplift, said the event provides the kids with a rare opportunity to see a side of life not always available to them.
'Some of these kids have never seen some of the animals out there," Yarborough said. "They get to play on the bounce house and they get Thanksgiving supper tonight so you know they're going to be fed very well. They always do a wonderful job here with Project Uplift."
Yarborough said anyone interested in joining Project Uplift should come by its office located inside Cater Hall for one of the training sessions.
The training sessions will be held Sunday at 3 p.m. and Monday-Tuesday at 4 p.m.
Background checks and interviews are required, but once students are certified they interact with the students on their own time.
"The kids really enjoy it," Yarborough said. "It gives the students at Auburn something to do and it gives the kids something to do at night besides being out on the streets."
(11/20/14 1:40am)
The annual Women's Health and Wellness Chocolate Festival, a community-funded bake sale and information expo to support a local charity hosted by the Women's Resource Center, brought confections and health concerns to the AUSC Ballroom Wednesday, Nov. 19.
"The way we try to bring people in is through selling chocolate, because you know people don't always want to go to a health fair," said Vi Nguyen, senior in Spanish and co-chair of Women's Health Auburn. "Chocolate is just something that a lot of people have in common, we all like sweets. There are so many services that most people don't know about, that's just one of our main goals is to put that awareness out there."
A $5 donation allowed guests to gather different confectionary creations ranging from brownies and cupcakes to cookies and cheesecake.
Nguyen said proceeds from the event will go toward the Miracle League of East Alabama, a baseball league that uses a specialized field that allows people with physical and cognitive disabilities the opportunity to play.
"[The League] has gotten big enough to where I've started an announcing program," said Danielle Tadych, junior in environmental science and announcer for the Miracle League of East Alabama. "We went from having about 50 or so players our first season to almost 200 now. I'm grateful that Women's Health decided to pick the Miracle league for their organization since we're steadily growing."
Tadych said the Miracle League is developing plans to include other sports in the future, but is sticking with baseball for the time being.
Annie Penrose, graduate student in physiology and registered campus dietician used the opportunity to inform students about the importance of proper eating during finals.
Penrose said promoting awareness about the Miracle League and women's health wasn't the only effect of the Chocolate Festival.
"My philosophy with food is that everything fits in with moderation, so I think it absolutely fits into a healthy diet, and if you love it then you can find ways to fit it in," Penrose said. "Especially with the stress of finals, people turn to food as a coping mechanism when they're stressed, or forget about eating because they're so stressed. In reality eating helps fuel our brains, its one of those factors like sleep, studying and eating well that our body needs."
A confectionary contest was held at the end of the Chocolate festival, awarding the best in show in a variety of categories.
Chloe Chaudhury, senior in biochemistry, won "Best Novelty Dish" for her Mint Oreo balls.
Lexi Burkard, senior in biomedical science, won the "Cookie and Brownie" category with her Strawberry Pillow cookies.
Ashlea Willoughby, freshman in pre-biosystems engineering, won the "Best Cake" prize for her Chocolate Mousse cupcakes.
(11/11/14 5:14am)
The top 20 finalists for Miss Auburn 2015 were called out Monday, Nov.10 on Cater Hall Lawn. "The first round of interviews were pretty general," said Lauren Romano, Miss Auburn 2015 candidate and junior in elementary education. "They just asked how I felt about Auburn, so it wasn't anything too bad or too intimidating. They just wanted to see if you could represent Auburn well." Applicants interviewed earlier today to determine the top 20 finalists, beginning a selection process which will continue tomorrow with interviews from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. "I was honestly very shocked (to make the top 20), I wasn't expecting it," said Kyndal Tarziers, Miss Auburn 2015 candidate and junior in psychology. "Today I was really nervous for my interview, but I came here with my friends and I was like whatever the plan is for my life, that's what it'll be, so I'm happy to be here." Friends and fellow students gathered to support candidates as the names were announced. "I feel super honored," said Catherine Taylor, Miss Auburn 2015 candidate and Spanish and pre-pharmacy major. "This isn't something that all of Auburn gets to do so I feel super honored to even make it this far and represent something so awesome." Tuesday, Nov. 11 interviews will determine the top five candidates who will be called out on Cater Hall Lawn Tuesday night at 9 p.m.
Miss Auburn top 20 candidates: Catherine Taylor Ashley Abbott Lindsey Conry Lauren Jones Ann Nunnelley Ellie Inman Sara Bedsole Kyndel Tarziers Dae Jackson Lauren Hancock Emily Kennedy Elizabeth Moody Libby Knizley Mi'a Callens Macey Cleary Alana Broe Caroline Beauchaine Danielle Guy Michaela Fendley Lauren Romano
(11/08/14 2:00am)
Auburn students, families and friends roared with respect at Military Appreciation Night on Cater Lawn Friday, Nov. 7, as the Tigers gear up for tomorrow's conference football matchup with Texas A&M.
(11/05/14 11:42pm)
The Auburn Plainsman was recently awarded a national Pacemaker Award during the Associated Collegiate Press/College Media Association National College Media Convention in Philadelphia as one of the best four-year non-daily collegiate newspapers for the 2013-14 year.
The award, presented annually by the ACP/CMA, is considered the highest honor in student journalism.
The Red and Black of the University of Georgia was the only other newspaper in the SEC to receive the award.
This is the 25th Pacemaker Award won by The Plainsman, the most recent being 2012 and again in 2005.
"It feels as good as it possibly can," said 2013-14 Plainsman editor and 2014 graduate Kelsey Davis. "When you're in the middle of doing that kind of work, day in and day out, you wonder if what you're doing is good, if you're doing everything as well as you can be. It almost feels like I have some closure knowing that, looking back, you can objectively say that you did a good job based on the standards of a panel of experts."
Davis said she was watching the Auburn-Ole Miss football game at a bar in Austin, Texas, when a friend sent her the finalist results.
Davis said the credit goes to everyone on the 2013-14 staff and the honor is a conglomeration of all their efforts.
"It's hard to express how grateful I am for the staff I had back there," Davis said. "To be in a leadership position and know that everything is riding on you but still have the support system that I had, to be surrounded by students your age who believe in what you believe in, believe in journalism and are willing to sacrifice their time and social life, their sleep for it, asking people to do that and to have them respond to the degree that they did is all incredibly humbling and I could not possibly be more grateful for the staff I had."
(11/02/14 1:24am)
Long ago, according to the ancient Indian epic poem "Ramayana," Lord Rama, the avatar of the god Vishnu, defeated the demon king Ravana and rescued his wife Sita after 14 years in exile.
Rama's victorious return to his homeland initiates the weeklong celebration of Diwali, the Indian festival of light.
On Nov. 1, the Auburn Indian Student Association had its own Diwali celebraiton in the AUSC Ballroom for the local Indian community, featuring food, music, magic, dancing and an appearance by Speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives, Mike Hubbard.
"Initially, people used to see this as just a Hindu festivity, but not anymore," said Nakul Kothari, graduate student in mechanical engineering and president of the Indian Student Association. "In the past 250-300 years Diwali has been equally celebrated by everyone, including Christians, Hindus, Catholics, Protestants and Parsis. We all celebrate Diwali together at the same time. The one thing that everyone has in common is the good vibes coming out of it."
Students, families and distinguished friends hailing from all over arrived at the ballroom in traditional but ornate holiday garb native to the region.
Though Diwali is formally known as "the festival of lights," especially in the Northern provinces, where fireworks pepper the sky all week, the ISA made the theme this year based on southern Indian culture, which uses flowers in addition to lights, Kothari said.
Ornate, handcrafted strands of flowers imported directly from India provided the backdrop for the stage in the same way that lanterns are used for culturally northern events.
Chief Guest Mike Hubbard initiated the celebration by symbolically lighting an oil lamp with Suresh Mathews, president of the Indian Cultural Association of East Alabama.
"This is one of the things that's great about Auburn and the Auburn community," Hubbard said in an interview with The Plainsman. "All the diversity and the different cultures you're exposed to, it's just fantastic."
Hubbard, invited a month before Diwali, made no mention of the recent allegations of the indictment he is facing for abuse of power while in office.
During his speech, Hubbard mentioned that he and his campaign team knocked on a couple thousand doors earlier reminding people to vote on Tuesday.
"I have a lot of friends in the Indian community and I actually was able to attend one of these years ago in Foy Union and thoroughly enjoyed it," Hubbard said. "This really didn't have anything to do with the campaign, [but] the biggest thing I'm concerned about is complacency. Anything can happen if people don't show up to vote."
After lighting the oil lamp, Hubbard was awarded with a plaque by Mathews and the ICAEA as a sign of thanks for his continued friendship with the Indian community.
Dinner prepared by a private caterer provided table service for the packed ballroom, featuring an all-vegetarian cuisine native to South India.
"The food we're having you can't find in Auburn, the Indian restaurants here don't do south Indian food," Kothari said.
Partnering with the ICAEA, the Indian Student Association was able to raise a budget of $6,000, Kothari said.
"It's 50 percent theirs, 50 percent ours and they deserve equal praise for everything," Kothari said.
Students, children and friends of the community performed throughout the night, featuring traditional Diwali dances as well as more contemporary Bollywood-style music.
The Indian Music Ensemble, led by professor of music Raj Chaudhury, performed multiple traditional ragas throughout the night.
"Diwali is a festival that is celebrated all over India and one of biggest thing about Diwali music is that it personifies the festival of lights," Chaudhury said. "For instance, one of the pieces is all about light and how the light fills the world and brings joy to our life."
Raga Hamsadhwam, the first song performed, is unique because unlike most Indian music, which varies by region, this piece is played the same in both the north and south and keeping within the Diwali theme of universality and connectedness, Chaudhury said.
"Light has always been an interesting concept to me, especially interacting with music," said Sam Price, junior in interdisciplinary studies and a member of the Indian Music Ensemble. "Sound and light, they shift your perception and way of looking at things, just by understanding the interconnectivity between light and everything that it touches the way that sound does."
(11/03/14 1:00pm)
While the rest of the country continues to pass progressive legislation providing same-sex couples the legal and economic rights heterosexual couples have, much of the South and Midwest continue to oppose such measures.
Many of those states contain the highest populations of same-sex couples, Mississippi being the highest and Alabama ranking in the top 10.
"It's hard to know why, but research shows there are same-sex couples living in every single county in every single state," said Megan Haselschwerdt, professor of human development and family studies. "There's often this myth or stereotype about LGBT individuals who congregate in cities, but really, people are living where they want and, often times, regardless of sexual orientation, where they grew up. For people in the South, it's where their church is, where their family is."
Statistics gathered by a Gallup Poll and LGBT demographic professor Gary J. Gates for the Williams Institute stated among the 8 million adults who identify as LGBT in the U.S., 3 million have children and at least 6 million people claim to have a parent who identifies as LGBT.
The report also found the majority of same-sex couples were living and raising children in the South, Midwest and Mountain West regions of the country.
Haselschwerdt said it's imperative states with high LGBT populations make equal marriage rights legal for the benefit of both the individuals and their families.
"Many of the people living there are financially tied there," Haselschwerdt said. "They can't just pack up and leave because the laws don't support their family. I imagine there'd be an increase in the health and financial well-being of families, especially low-income or working-class LGBT families in Southern states, if they have that equality, because then they'll be able to file their taxes together. That can be the difference between $1,000-$7,000 in taxes by filing separately versus filing together."
Haselschwerdt said tax exemption is only one of the benefits recognized marriage can bring to same-sex couples.
Adoption rights for children, legal recognition in court and hospital visitation rights are all currently denied to same-sex couples in Alabama, but would come with state authorization.
The University does not provide employment benefits to same-sex couple.
According to Haselschwerdt, this deters people from working at the school.
"Many states have changed their legislation because of the advocacy of the people who have lost loved ones, but were not allowed to be there when they died, or were banned from the rooms," Haselschwerdt said.
Matthew Bagger, Goodwin-Philpott eminent scholar in philosophy and religion, said although political progress is denying same-sex couples from equal state recognition, the deep-rooted conservative beliefs steeped in southern evangelical traditions continue to influence public opinion.
"Do I think there are good arguments for banning gay marriage?" Bagger said. "Absolutely not. The issue is do religious folks have the right to deprive others of equal protection under the law, and the answer is no. There's a misplaced use of civil-rights language here where somehow allowing gay marriage is infringing on the religious rights of other Americans, and that I think has to be strongly resisted."
Bagger called the change in public sentiment on gay marriage rapid and sharp, often outpacing the views of their churches and denominations.
Bagger said though many in the religious community have embraced marriage equality, widespread legislation of same-sex marriage will likely lead to further divison within denominations and churches.
For some, that polarization is already happening.
"I never use the words same-sex marriage or gay marriage because it's a contradiction," said Bruce Murray, associate professor of reading education. "The basic question to ask is 'what is marriage?' and the answer is it's a conjugal relationship, a pledged mating relationship. The view seems to be that [same-sex marriage] means a romantic friendship that you would like recognized as a marriage, but when you think about a romantic friendship, it doesn't have those things that we expect from marriage."
Murray said allowing same-sex unions to take place not only jeopardizes the rights of everyone in the country, but can be harmful to the children those couples are raising.
Haselschwerdt cited joint research evidence from the American Medical Association, American Pediatric Society and her organization, the National Council on Family Relations, pointing to the opposite.
"There's now rather conclusive evidence that there is no harm done," Haselschwerdt said. "Kids in same-sex couple relationships are just as likely to do well as their heterosexual friends' kids."
Murray said marriage is something that needs to be protected by law, which means defining a legitimate marriage.
"If you think about what a romantic friendship is, why should the government get involved?" Murray said. "I don't need to be recognized by a judge to be someone's friend. If we stopped being friends, I don't want a judge saying you have to pay alimony now. Really, it's not good for homosexuals to have their relationships come under a legal standard of some kind and tie themselves up with the law."
Some in the religious community are already making the decision themselves, regardless of popular opinion.
In 2006, 81 percent of Alabama voted to keep marriage in the state constitution defined as one man and one woman.
Thirty-one states legalized same-sex marriage, with another four awaiting court appeals.
"It would be nice if our state's decision was to go on the side of equality, instead of looking back 20 years from now and, of course, there's Alabama again not supporting a progressive initiative," Haselschwerdt said.
(10/28/14 3:00pm)
Midterm elections are when political parties vie to win a majority of the seats in government.
With the first open presidential election just around the corner in 2016, winning a majority of the available positions would give either major political party control over the nation's decision-making process.
Despite historically low turnouts, campus representatives of both main political parties have been hard at work for their own local candidates and registering voters.
"Vote what you feel in your heart and what you feel is most consistent with what you believe in," said Morgan Giddens, chairman of the Auburn Campus Republicans and senior in accounting. "The main thing is just getting voter registration up. College-age kids don't tend to vote in elections lately. For me, I just want people to have a chance to vote. I would rather someone vote for something opposing to me than not vote at all."
Giddens said members of Campus Republicans were invited to spend their fall break on an all-expenses-paid trip to Atlanta to assist on the David Perdue campaign for the Georgia Senate against Democratic nominee Michelle Nunn.
In the past, Campus Republicans assisted in campaigns for Alabama senate nominee Tom Whatley, Attorney General Luther Strange and 2012 presidential candidate Mitt Romney.
Giddens joined the Campus Republicans during the 2012 presidential race and said the outcome was "a pretty hard hit for the Republican Party."
"That was a very winnable election, and honestly, we should have hit the minority groups a lot harder," Giddens said. "That's one place that Republicans failed, in my opinion. The Republican Party needs to show that they care and fight the perception that we've become elitists."
Despite political trends toward marriage equality, abortion rights and more liberal policies, Giddens said he still leans towards more conservative policies.
"(Marriage equality) is one of the most important issues for me because of my faith in those areas," Giddens said.
According to Giddens, opinions are likely to change by generation.
"With the younger generations coming, it's a possibility that there will be a more relaxed stance on social issues in the future. Honestly, I can't say for certain, but it's a possibility that that could happen."
At the opposite end of the ballot, the Auburn Campus Democrats have been fighting what Alicia Valenti, president of the Auburn Campus Democrats and senior in public administration, calls an uphill battle.
"Maybe not in this state, because it's so conservative and you have the Republican super majority in the state senate, but at the national level, I think (this election) is going to make a big difference in terms of the composition of the Senate and the House," Valenti said. "Say that the Senate becomes two-thirds Republican. If a Supreme Court justice leaves, they're more likely to want a conservative justice to take their place. That could make a big difference in the long run, moreso than any other member of Congress taking office."
While still the minority party in Alabama state legislature, Democrats embody the dissenting opinion on many social rights topics, making it more appealing to women and younger generations in the process, Valenti said.
Though Democrats might enjoy a majority position in other parts of the country, Valenti said, in the South, Alabama specifically, it can be difficult to campaign on anything other than a Republican ticket.
When she joined during the 2012 presidential election, Valenti said she and other members of the Auburn Campus Democrats raised money to support the Obama campaign in states where the incumbent was predicted to have a stronger following.
Additionally, Democrats in Alabama have begun adopting Republican traits to make themselves and their policies more attractive to conservative voters.
Valenti pointed to Democratic candidate for Attorney General Joe Hubbard as the latest example in blurring political lines.
"He's pro-family but also pro-gun, and that's definitely not one of our platforms," Valenti said. "Just locally, I think that's a good example of the extremism that has made Democrats more centrist. There may be people who think that [Democrats] are leaning too far left, but in my personal opinion, I think the Republican Party has been pulling the nation, as a whole, more to the right."
Members of the Auburn Campus Democrats have been volunteering on the campaign of former Auburn professor and state representative candidate Shirley Scott-Harris.
Harris is running on a platform of equal and affordable college education and fighting unemployment.
"The Democrats have an eventual goal of making college more affordable and accessible, creating greater equality, both economic and social, and to maintain a woman's bodily autonomy," Valenti said.
The dominant election theory for both sides has been to regroup their bases while attracting new voters, but political victories this year might hinge on neither the candidates nor the policies, but the voting itself.
The rules of the election vary state to state because of the 2013 outcome of Shelby County v. Holder. Because of the case, states no longer have to review changes to their local election practices with the Department of Justice.
"[Now] states can change the election laws whenever they want, and many already have," said Kathryn Hale, political science professor. "Many states have chosen to impose new rules about identification or changed restricted periods of early voting or the ability to register and vote on the same day. These are things that we could generally think of as making (elections) more convenient for voters."
In recent years, the Democratic Party has taken measures to expand access to elections, while Republicans have made efforts to restrict or limit elections, Hale said.
Under new regulations passed in Alabama, Wisconsin, Kansas and Texas, among others, voters will need to provide additional identification and proof of citizenship, making the process more difficult for voters who don't have access to those documents.
With a predicted turnout expected to be lower than the midterm elections in 2006 and 2010, Hale said the rules of access and participation this year will matter even more.
"The big strategy is set up the rules so you can win," Hale said. "That's what politics is all about, winning so you can write the rules to win again."
(10/21/14 2:38am)
The Student Government Association's Senate Council meeting voted unanimously Monday, Oct. 20, to approve the creation of a Diversity Learning Community on Auburn's campus.
First-year students interested in matters of culture, religion, race and inclusion will have the opportunity to learn alongside peers with similar interests and identities.
Though the learning community is not a "living-learning" community just yet, College of Liberal Arts Senator and senior in political science Dillon Nettles said he believes it's a step in the right direction.
"As a senator, I thought it was important the First-Year-Experience Office knew that this was something that was in the interest of students," Nettles said. "I hope as a member of the Office of Multicultural Affairs and Diversity that SGA can expand upon issues of diversity, LGBT rights, issues of race, gender, even class on this campus. Those are all things that our committee wants to promote throughout the rest of our term, and I hope that more legislation like this will come to the floor.
The learning community was established as part of a resolution put forward by the College of Liberal Arts.
Nettles said he was happy to bring the issue of a diversity learning community to SGA's attention, but he felt it was not his responsibility to mandate a timetable for its completion.
"It's really a framework to work within and it doesn't actually implement a specific date," Nettles said. "It was important not to do that because I felt that administrators tasked with carrying out the learning community process can do it in the way that they feel will be most beneficial for students.
Members of Spectrum, Auburn's on-campus gay-straight alliance, were in attendance to offer support and gratitude.
Max Zinner, senior in anthropology and Spectrum political affairs director said the establishment of the learning community was a big step in correcting Auburn's LGBT image problem.
"I don't know if you're aware, but Auburn's been listed as one of the most LGBT-unfriendly colleges by The Princeton Review," Zinner said. "Anything that the University can do to get off that list is great. Anything that can be done to make an underrepresented community, especially the LGBT community, more visible would be very welcome by Spectrum."
Auburn University was also recently recognized by The Princeton Review in their 2014 edition of their "Guide To Green Colleges," the only college in Alabama to do so.
In appreciation for their efforts, SGA voted to specially recognize the Office of Sustainability for their work in keeping Auburn's campus clean and green.
There was a brief presentation from the Office of Compliance from within the Athletic Department regarding NCAA infractions at Auburn.
Though there are currently no malpractice claims filed by the NCAA against Auburn, the Athletic Department aims to nip any future infractions in the bud.
"There are two things in the Athletic Department we try to live by," said associate athletic director Dave Didion. "Tell the truth, no matter how painful, and if you see something say something."
Didion said it's easy to get in trouble when you don't understand the NCAA rules, having worked for the NCAA for 25 years himself.
The Athletic Department asks the student body and community not give student-athletes any extra benefits, make special arrangements in restaurants or at businesses for them or to contact future athletic prospects outside of approved Athletic Department communications.
Even paying for a student's free lunch could put Auburn and the team in jeopardy, Didion said.
"If you are friends with someone who is being recruited by Auburn and they send you texts, leave it to the coaches, unless you're a lifelong friend," Didion said. "In any case, you should contact the compliance department first to make sure you're OK. You're helping to protect their eligibility to play college sports."
Next week, a resolution to extend the amount of time between the formal end of the school semester and the beginning of exam week will be up for vote.
The proposition wants to add additional "dead days," or open weekdays, to the schedule for the first time since Feb. 2010.
(10/16/14 3:17am)
Chad Griffin, president of the Human Rights Campaign, HRC, and international advocate for LGBT equality in America, came to the University for an intimate talk about human rights.
Speaking to a packed Auburn Hotel and Dixon Conference Center, Griffin shared his views LGBT political victories, upholding marriage equality around the country and his own personal struggles with being gay in a conservative community.
The Human Rights Campaign is the largest LGBT civil rights organization in the world and the event Wednesday, Oct. 15, was the latest in a tour of southern college campuses to spearhead a campaign focused directly on fighting for equality in the south.
"(The organization) announced a massive $8.5 million investment in a new program that specifically focuses on Arkansas, Mississippi and Alabama," Griffin said. "Today we've opened offices in Montgomery, Little Rock and Jackson and we have staff on the ground in all three of those states. We will increasingly make changing hearts and minds a priority in those three states and ultimately changing laws."
Griffin said statistics compiled by the HRC were the reasons for increasing their activity and campaigning on the Southeast.
According to Griffin, HRC researchers found the largest per capita number of same-sex couples raising children is in the south.
"Alabama is in the top 10 and Mississippi is No. 1," Griffin said. "That means that those families don't have a single legal protection. In the eyes of the state, that's a single person raising that child. During every decision, one parent is completely foreign in the eyes of the law."
The new HRC offices in Alabama, Mississippi and Arkansas will work to lobby for local, state and federal rights for same-sex couples as well as increase community awareness to 'come out' in public.
HRC reports estimate at least 90 percent of Americans today know someone in their immediate family, friend circles or workplace who identifies as lesbian, gay, transsexual or questioning.
The event was moderated by Auburn engineering professor Gwen Thomas, the University's first openly LGBT faculty member, and featured Patricia Todd, Alabama's first openly LGBT state representative.
Sarah Jo Gomez-Lorraine and her wife LaReina said they drove from Phenix city to attend the event, partially to hear Griffin speak and partially to get more information about LGBT events in the area.
"It's hard living in a state where (LGBT events) are not easily accessible, or widely publicized," Sarah Jo Gomez-Lorraine said. "It's definitely not something that's out in the public view, because if it was we would be at more events. That's partially why we're, to figure out what's going on and how we can help."
A chaplain candidate for the military at seminary in Massachusetts, Gomez-Lorraine said religion is an integral part to opening up the LGBT community to the wider public, a statement echoed by Griffin in his talk.
Griffin said like the Civil Rights movements of the 1960s, religion plays an important part in contributing to the success of the Human Rights Campaign and spreading the message to the more conservative parts of the country.
Griffin also said many are known for being on the wrong side of history.
"Make no mistake about it, marriage equality will be to all 50 states very soon," Griffin said. "The state of Alabama will see marriage equality come to it very soon, within months or perhaps a year to a year and a half. It's coming."
In 1992 Griffin worked on the presidential campaign for Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton and at 19 years old became the youngest person to ever work in the West Wing of the White House.
An Arkansas native, Griffin spoke about his experiences of being afraid to come out to his family and friends in a Baptist community where it wasn't uncommon to attend church three or more times a week.
Between working with the American Foundation for Equal Rights in defeating Propaganda 8, the same-sex marriage ban in California and politicking in Washington for LGBT equality, Griffin is one of the movement's most public leaders, said Michelle Gordon, senior in art and psychology and treasurer for Auburn Spectrum.
"This is like the first time we've gotten anyone actually famous from the LGBT community or a representation thereof to actually come here and speak," Gordon said. "The fact that he's here shows we're making great strides."
(10/16/14 12:00pm)
Oct. 11, 1987 marked the first-ever National Coming Out Day, a celebration of sexual identity among the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community.
Today, NCOD is an internationally recognized holiday, allowing people still "trapped in the closet" to come out and publicly declare their sexual orientation.
This year, NCOD falls at the end of a week where the Supreme Court declined to hear the appealed gay marriage bans in five different states, opening the door for marriage equality in 30 states total.
Though attitudes toward gay rights and marriage equality are changing, social stigma in conservative communities is still holding many back, said Ariel Barasch, president of the Auburn Gay-Straight Alliance and senior in English and resource management
"The biggest obstacle to coming out is the reaction that people get," Barasch said. "Especially when you're a teenager. If you come out to your family and your family is very conservative, if you get kicked out of your house what are you going to do? There's nowhere to go, so you just stay in the closet because you would rather live in your home than be who you are, which is a horrible trade-off but it's one you have to make."
The Auburn Spectrum provides the support many recently declared LGBT students lack at home, Barasch said.
Through concourse events, classroom outreach and public panels Spectrum encourages both social acceptance on campus and confidence to come out.
"We're a safe space, anyone can come in and feel safe among us," Barasch said. "We get some people who are pretty excited about it, and they make it worth it, just to show those people that we have a presence on campus, that people aren't alone."
Throughout the week of Oct. 11, Spectrum and the Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs hosted events around campus to promote discussions of gender identity and sexual equality.
In addition to student-run programs, Auburn hosted two advocates for LGBT rights, Robyn Ochs and Chad Griffin.
Allen Sutton, OMD director, said he wants to provide the same services and support for the LGBT at Auburn that he helped develop in his previous job at Texas A&M.
"[LGBT Month and Coming Out Day] is something that we did fairly often at Texas A&M," Sutton said. "Texas A&M was very supportive of LGBT students, so supportive in fact that they actually have a LGBT resource center that's directly tied to LGBT students and has programming for those students."
Sutton said he would like to establish an LGBT resource center at Auburn to continue to provide support for students throughout the year.
In the meantime, programming featuring Chad Griffin, head of the Human Rights Campaign and Robyn Ochs, editor of the LGBT Resource Guide, are ways to encourage sexual identity awareness.
"Robyn Ochs was someone that I specifically sought out to bring on campus," Sutton said. "I've heard her speak at several venues, she's very down to earth, she's someone who knows how to talk about LGBT issues without trying to force it on anyone."
Sutton said he chose Ochs because she comes across very naturally when talking about issues concerning LGBT students.
Ochs spent Thursday, Oct. 9, lecturing around Auburn's campus, including short presentation during a business management class in Lowder where she discussed her own personal experiences.
"My very first month of college I fell had over heels in love with another woman and until that point I had never considered the possibility," Ochs said. "I was frozen with fear, I spent more time thinking about this than my schoolwork, to be quite honest. It took me a really long time to come to a place of comfort with my identity and I'm really happy to say that now I'm very comfortable with my identity, but it's not an easy thing because there's so much silence."
Ochs called the expansion of LGBT rights and gender expression though government legislation "a huge step forward," but it's only another part of the campaign for complete equality.
"We are in a moment of profound cultural change," Ochs said. "Part of that change happens through the legislative process and by extension through the judicial process, [but] the bulk of that change needs to happen through hearts and minds, through personal conversations, through education and through increasing awareness by having people stand up and tell their own personal stories. Ending a discriminatory law doesn't end discrimination."
(10/09/14 3:00pm)
In Hong Kong Central, China, people fill the streets, blocking traffic and stealing the attention of one of China's most urbanized cities.
They don't fight the riot police who have come to drive them away, and they recycle the small amount of trash they've generated in the week-long occupation of Hong Kong's most public areas.
The protest is called The Umbrella Revolution, because protestors used umbrellas against tear gas, pepper spray and other crowd breakers used by Hong Kong riot police, while protesting
Beijing's communist government.
"It's an aging society in an economic downturn," said professor of sociology Ariana Gaetano. "I think young people are probably feeling under so much stress they don't know what their future is going to hold, and their society is hanging all on them to generate the welfare for society. China has been having tens of thousands of protests annually for the last seven or eight years."
The movement began as Occupy Central with Love and Peace.
The movement is a civil disobedience campaign created by Benny Tai Yiu-Ting, law professor at the University of Hong Kong.
The objectives of the campaign were initially to oppose the Chinese electoral process in which candidates are selected by a 1,200-person committee based in Beijing.
A student-initiated referendum against Beijing's candidate approval process was the spark that began the protests in September.
A New York Times article said the referendum denounced Hong Kong chief executive C.Y. Leung in favor of the Beijing-centric process.
One of the rallying cries of the movement is "689," the alleged number of votes incumbent Leung amassed during his 2012 election.
"C.Y. Leung is going to be the fall guy, regardless," said Daniel McGowin, Auburn employee who studies Asia and China. "He's already become the focal point of the demands by the students to step down. He's at least trying to engage the students, but he's refusing to step down. If he's not the fall guy from the Chinese perspective, he is from the students perspective."
McGowin said the government might try to minimalize the occupation by electing a new chief executive, but protests will likely continue until citizens of Hong Kong are allowed their own free elections in the country.
"I think in the end the (people of Hong Kong) will be granted universal suffrage," McGowin said. "Eventually China knows that those 50 years will be up and Hong Kong, by the treaty and by the agreement with Britain, will be folded in. Of course, the Western hope is that China will give in and not turn Hong Kong into a communist state, but China is waging a war of attrition."
When the United Kingdom handed over control of Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China in 1997, one of the stipulations was social, economic and political relations would remain unchanged for 50 years.
That provision has been in jeopardy since 2006, when Xi Jinping ascended to the head position of the Chinese government, becoming more hard-lined with conservative political policies.
"Xi Jinping is definitely hard-nosed," Gaetano said. "This guy has totally turned the tide in China by cracking down on those weaker minorities."
As the protests enter their second week, support for the occupation has begun to falter in the face of stalled negotiations and an increasing number of detractors within the civilian population.
BBC reported Monday, Oct. 6, there remained approximately more than 1,000 protestors occupying three separate locations.
"The Chinese government has been very clever about how they handle this situation, especially regarding its public image," said Ted Becker, political science professor. "They're brutal and ingenious.
According to Becker, with elections for the chief executive position not until 2017, it would seem this movement will go the same route.
(10/08/14 8:30pm)
Wednesday, Oct. 8, the Pro-life rally week on Cater Lawn was interrupted by a rally called Lives Lost To Misogyny.
The rally was put together almost overnight by Auburn students in response to the crosses on Cater Lawn put together by the organization Auburn University Students For Life.
"I think these crosses are misogynistic because they're shaming women for having abortions," said senior in microbiology Imani Tucker. "We felt that since this happens every year, there's a lot of misinformation and shame associated with a display like this and we wanted to counter that."
Tucker said the Anti-Misogyny rally was born out of a discussion in Andrea Baldwin's men and masculinities class.
The demonstration isn't about whether or not you agree with abortion, it's about making people feel ashamed about their actions, said Megan Skipper, junior in human development and family studies.
"We were talking about how intrusive and shaming [the crosses] are and we decided that if [the Auburn Students For Life] are able to put on a demonstration, we should also be able to counter that demonstration and provide more information about the things they're presenting," Skipper said.
October is not only Respect For Life month, but also Domestic Violence Awareness and LGBT Pride month as well.
The Anti-Misogyny rally is an attempt to bring awareness to the interconnectedness of all movements, Tucker said.
Members of the Auburn Students For Life were also in attendance, though observing from a distance.
"We're here representing the pre-born babies who were aborted, which are represented by the crosses," said senior in interdisciplinary studies Sarah Hirschfeldt. I" think its very easy for the world to see people who are pro-life as people who attack those who make the decision, and yes there are pro-life people who are like that, but that's not at all why we're here. I can only speak for myself but I want to fight for the dignity of all humans."
Hirschfeldt said she has never been implicated in a situation in which she had to consider getting an abortion, but that she still believes that abortion should be illegal in the United States.
"It's the most personal thing, and for someone to almost make the decision for that individual, I can see how people would look at that and see that's unfair," Hirschfeldt said. "A life is a life, whether inside the womb or out. I believe that as a human I feel like it's my job to do everything I can to stop the life being taken."
Hirschfeldt said she doesn't exactly agree with the views of the protestors, but hopes that the groups can come together in promoting awareness about the dignity of life.
Elizabeth Glaser, sophomore in communication disorders, said the crosses were there to symbolize graves and the lives lost to abortion as part of a display called "The Cemetery of the Innocents".
Accompanying the crosses is a sign stating that each of the 150 crosses erected represents 20 individual lives that are aborted each day in the United States.
"This issue is just so important to our world today, I believe that everyone has a right to life and I want to stand up for that," Glaser said.
Though the university gave permission for the crosses to be staked on Cater Lawn, many find them to be tasteless or offensive.
Skipper, Tucker and the other members of the Men and Masculinities class who gathered on Cater to challenge that decision said they'd rather inform people about practical options than appeal to emotions.
Among the options considered is raising money for single mothers or prenatal care, Skipper said.
"No one should ever feel alienated by something that's going on campus," Skipper said. "I know people who have personally hurt by this display and we want to make sure that everyone on campus knows that there are people on their side and give them options besides this one-dimensional display," Skipper said.
(10/01/14 7:30pm)
On the wing of decapitation videos and presidential calls for military action, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, ISIS has regularly headlined world news.
Despite opposition from both inside and outside the Muslim community, misconceptions are still perpetuated by media outlets, beginning with the name itself, said Asim Ali, project manager of University initiatives and adviser to the Muslim Student Association.
"ISIS was named on opposite day," Ali said. "Everything they do is actually the opposite of what Islam says. It's very un-Islamic, and it's disgusting. We, as a society, by allowing ourselves to call them the Islamic State, are giving them legitimacy that they crave that they do not deserve."
In an open letter to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, ISIS leader, from Islamic scholars around the world, shared with The Plainsman by Ali, the self-proclaimed head of the Islamic State and the entire ISIS ideology is deconstructed and defeated by religious logic.
"That letter is perfect because it says, 'This is where ISIS is wrong,' through terminology and exact education," Ali said.
Like most terrorist movements in the region, the actors were pushed to extremism by government action, said Jill Crystal, political science professor.
"The Shia-dominated government in Iraq became so exclusive, so discriminatory or, in many cases, violent towards the Sunni population that they became alienated from the government," Crystal said. "They would never moved in the direction of the Islamic State had it not been for the Shia government essentially pushing them in that direction."
The movement was able to gain traction in Syria in 2013, because of Bashar al-Assad's increasingly violent regime, which prompted widespread military opposition.
"The extremist Islamist groups were able to get more funding and were better organized than the Free Syrian Army, which doesn't really exist as a coherent group," Crystal said. "The Syrian side is largely a reflection of the Assad regime and the reaction to that."
While some applaud his hardened stance on international terrorism, others are critical of the threat of exacerbating the situation.
"Our intervention might turn them to extremism, our intervention could help their recruitment, this could backfire in a number of ways," Crystal said. "We've seen this movie before. How many times do we have to invade Iraq before we figure out that that's probably not going to work?"
Strategists need be wary of the unintended consequences of starting a new ground war in the Middle East, said military history professor Mark Sheftall.
"You can destroy a group like ISIS, but the ideas that create radical militant Islamic groups are still going to be out there," Sheftall said. "Until you make them less appealing to people or give them a reason not to gravitate towards them, you'll always have some people who find groups like al-Qaida or ISIS appealing."
Sheftall warned that eliminating either the Assad regime or ISIS too quickly would leave a vacuum of power in Syria that could lead to a similar situation.
"The best option is to empower forces who will fight against both Assad and ISIS," Sheftall said.
According to Ali, responsibility falls on Muslims to denounce extremists, but that everyone should know by now that fringe minorities in any group do not define the greater movement.
"Iraq was like a rose: It's different petals that make up one flower, and those different petals are different ethnicities and religions that come together to make this one flower. ISIS is tearing away each petal and killing the flower," Ali said.
(09/24/14 9:36pm)
Kellie Jones - senior - supply chain management Platform: Love Your SelfieJones' campaign, Love Your Selfie, aims to promote self-confidence and acceptance on college campuses in the social media age.
"My platform centers around comparison and how social media has made that a growing issue," Jones said. "It's really easy to feel like you aren't measuring up to the people around you, but instead of seeing what other people have that you don't, you should appreciate what you have and think more positively."
Jones said her platform stems from her own personal struggle.Take Away:
Jones said she had no thoughts to run for Miss Homecoming until nominated by her sorority, Chi Omega, but considers it an honor to represent all of Auburn's female student body.
"I hope for it to be a role model for younger girls," Jones said. "If they're struggling with the things that I've struggled with in my past, I hope I'm relatable and they can come talk to me."
Francis Harris - senior - child life
Platform: Go Gold, Go Francie
September is pediatric cancer awareness month.
Harris's campaign will raise money to benefit Kayla Perry, an Auburn freshman currently undergoing cancer treatment in Atlanta.
Funds raised during her campaign will be donated to Perry's foundation; Open Hands, Overflowing Hearts.
"Kayla and I have been meeting and one of the things she would love to do is make Auburn's campus and other organizations aware of her foundation," Harris said. "She has started a '100 Ways, 100 Days' campaign, and she and I have been talking about ways of raising money after this campaign."
Take Away:
Though the initial goal of her campaign is to promote awareness, if elected Harris said she will continue to raise money for pediatric cancer relief throughout the year.
"It is so under-funded," Harris said. "It doesn't need to stop once September is over. They can't stop from going to chemotherapy, so why should I stop raising money?"
Alexis Jackson - senior - biomedical science
Platform: Journey With Jackson
Jackson's campaign is centered on wellness, encouraging individuals to be healthy mentally, physically and spiritually throughout the week. Partnering with Active Minds Auburn, Jackson's campaign will use the student voice to raise awareness about mental health, donating all proceeds and profits to the organization.
"Every one out of four college students struggles with mental health," Jackson said. "Depression, anxiety, it's all very real for college students."
Take Away:
"It's so easy to get caught up in the small details, wanting everything to go exactly how you planned it out and getting caught up in the rush of trying to get everything together by campaign week," Jackson said. "This is such a unique experience, it can be so much fun if I just slow myself down sometimes and really enjoy every moment."
Callie Henley - senior - communication disordersPlatform: Coming Together With Callie
Henley's campaign is working with the organization Insure Your Right, a humanitarian charity that operates in Africa.
"I've spent my past two summers in Africa and it's completely changed my entire world," Henley said. "After my freshman year I went to Africa for the first time and fell in love with the people and the culture, but something that hit me really hard was the women I met there. Our goal is raise money to send sewing machines over there. For every sewing machine we send over, that's another life saved, that's a woman that's going to have a job and an income and have hope."
Take Away:
Henley said she's excited to share something she's passionate about with the Auburn community and wants to show it's possible to change someone's life on the other side of the world.
"I think Miss Homecoming is one of the coolest traditions on campus," Henley said. "It's a great way for five women to have a week set aside where they get to share something they love, something that has meant a lot in their life that they want to see Auburn passionate about and involved with. That's what this is all about."
Daly Foster - senior - business managementPlatform: Daly's Got Your Back
Foster's campaign is especially personal, but one that she wants to share with the University in order to help make a difference in struggling parts of the world.
"My dad passed away in 2006, and there's actually an orphanage in Kenya in memory of him called the Kevin House," Foster said. "I've been over there several times to work, and you look at these kids, they only have the clothes on their back, they don't know where their next meal is going to come from, and, yet, they have this joy that's contagious. They just captured my heart."
Take Away:
Managing Foster's campaign is Elizabeth Moody, junior in early childhood education and a sitting member of both the SGA cabinet and senate.
"When you're working on a campaign and trying to create a campaign that Auburn students can get behind, you can't do it by yourself," Foster said. "I've learned to depend on a lot of other people to get through it and have just appreciated a ton of help. This is not something that any one person can do. It's a team effort, and having a team behind me has been pretty incredible."
(09/12/14 4:30pm)
Less than 200 years ago, Auburn and the surrounding area was an undeveloped wilderness teeming with diverse species of flora and fauna.
Though development and growth have altered the landscape, graduate students in Auburn University's biology department are striving to preserve Lee County's ecosystem.
"Our main effort in the Live Animal Lab is to keep animals from getting killed," said Katelyn Henderson, senior in zoology. "The live animal collection is mostly rescued snakes from people owning them illegally. Once we find out about it, we go in as Auburn University and pick up the snakes."
According to Henderson, the University's biology department is the only organization in town that will deal with unwanted animals, such as the Eastern indigo and rat snakes, without killing them.
The Live Animal Lab, a haven for dislocated animals from around town, provides researchers with live specimens and form the basis of several ongoing conservation projects.
Among the animals in the room are a California king snake, Gila monsters and a tank of newborn alligators.
Henderson, undergraduate TA in herpetology, first volunteered to help out in the Live Animal Lab out of personal interest, and she now uses it as a base for her research on sexual dimorphism in the color patterns of marbled salamanders.
"The old research said that females were this grayish yellow color with black spots and the males were this whitish blue color with black spots," Henderson said. "My research showed that while, yes, the females were a grayer color, the males were gray and white. Now my research is looking at why there's a difference in color, and I'm thinking it's either predation or sexual preference from the females of why they have the different colors because the bigger male salamanders were darker and they were with females."
The animals collected in the lab are returned to the exact place they were first collected, sometimes through GPS coordinates, in order to ease the transitions back to the wild.
The department's reputation for humane treatment and productive research has netted them some high-profile state-funded projects, like the Eastern indigo snake conservation project, now entering its fifth year.
"The Indigo Snake project was a project where the state came to us with the idea and we were excited to do it," said zoologist and Auburn professor Craig Guyer. "We collect and then release them into the Conecuh National Forest. We're trying to bring back that species in that habitat after they got wiped out by humans."
Indigo snakes, once exterminated as pests before being sold as pets, are starting to successfully return to the Southeast, partially due to the enthusiasm and activism of the students involved, Guyer said.
Guyer is currently involved with a joint research project with the entomology department to trace the origin of equine encephalitis.
Similar to West Nile, the neurological disease is spread between mammals and mosquitoes and can be fatal to humans.
"We know that birds are the main host for the disease, but birds' (immune systems) can get rid of it and we couldn't figure out how the birds still contracted it every year," Guyer said. "We think that birds get it and transmit it to mammals at the end of the year, then mosquitoes take it from the mammal to the snakes, snakes keep the disease here over winter and the mosquitoes that feed on both snakes and birds transmit it back to the bird population the next year."
The study found that water moccasins are a leading host species in the disease cycle, Guyer said, and a number of graduate students are already collecting DNA samples in the field.
Graduate biology student Melissa Miller spent the past few weekends collecting water moccasin samples from Montgomery to Miami.
"My dissertation research is aimed at examining how the Burmese Python in southern Florida has altered the pattern of parasite infection in native snakes," Miller said.
Miller said her research team made a discovery about pythons.
" We discovered that pythons have acquired a native lung parasite commonly found in our native pit vipers. If pythons are acting as a reservoir of that parasite, I expect the prevalence of the shared lung parasites should be higher in cottonmouths living near pythons compared to cottonmouths collected from locations separate from pythons."
The greater awareness of conservation has prompted cooperative efforts between construction companies and environmental groups, Guyer said.
Hopefully, Guyer said, in the future, animals will no longer need to be relocated, but can coexist with urban development.
"Rather than building in a way where those organisms have to live somewhere else, we're exploring designs where you would still have the same number of people, but have your parks and green spaces created in a way where the animals can still maintain themselves as well," Guyer said.
(09/11/14 1:07am)
Wiccans, Druids, Isians, Witches and all manner of Pagan practitioners from across the state will convene at Alabama's only Pagan National Pride Event Sunday, Sept. 14, in the Davis Arboretum.
The pagan community is hosting classes on mind awakening, divination and artisanal vendors free to the public from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m..
"Some people are still in the broom closet because of negative connotations here in the Bible Belt, but we have a fairly large pagan community here in Auburn," said Rodney "The Wizzard" Hall. "This is for the community to get to know us and to get rid of a lot of the negative stereotypes and misconceptions."
Hall crafts magical wands and staffs in a workshop in Auburn and takes his name from a character from Terry Pratchett's comic fantasy book series "Discworld."
A raffle benefiting the East Alabama Food Bank will feature a wand carved by Hall from Applewood as the main prize.
Contestants need only bring a non-perishable food item, like canned goods, to enter in the raffle.
One of the biggest misconceptions about paganism is that people believe it's a form of Satanism, Hall said.
While Satanism is an offshoot of Christianity, if only in reverse, paganism embraces mystical, astrological and supernatural elements through multiple deities.
"Paganism means deities other than the "Big G" god," Hall said.
This is Auburn's third annual Pagan National Pride event, but the community has grown tremendously since then and Sunday should be the largest turnout yet, Hall said.
"This is the place to find out that you are not alone," Hall said. "Not only do we have a very open and welcoming pagan community but this is a great place to make friends and get new information. You're not alone and pagan pride day is a place to prove that."
For further information visit the event's website.