Week of April 24-30, 2006

Welcome to the Tower Topics E-newsletter for faculty, staff and students at Western. 

Missouri Western State University, 4525 Downs Drive, St. Joseph, MO 64507, 816-271- 4200

Click any link for these stories:

U.S. Senator Christopher Bond Visits Campus

Internship Allows Student to Leave Her Mark

Dr. Crowley Motivates at Eggs & Issues

Tower Sports

News Briefs

Calendar

Ads

Archives

The deadline for all entries is 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, for the next week's issue. Tower Topics will be online weekly during the fall and spring semester.  For more information call 271-5651.

Student Editor:
Katie Johnston

Staff Advisers:
Kristy Hill and Diane Holtz

U.S. Senator Christopher Bond Visits Campus

“Once again, this university is leading the way to attract new and innovative businesses to the region.” Those words of praise were from United States Senator Christopher “Kit” Bond when he visited Western’s campus April 18.  

Sen. Bond spoke to a room full of business leaders, Chamber of Commerce personnel and campus and community leaders to express his support for the Western Institute’s Venture Center, a business incubator. The Institute has applied for a $2 million grant from the Economic Development Administration (EDA) in Washington, DC to build the business incubator on campus. Sen. Bond serves on a Senate committee that oversees the EDA.

“This major project is really exciting to me. By working together, I believe we can make this center a reality,” said Sen. Bond. “It’s more than just a building. Students not only earn a degree, but more importantly, they earn a job after graduation.”

Also speaking at the gathering were Patt Lilly, president and CEO of the St. Joseph Area Chamber of Commerce; Mike Mills, deputy director of the Missouri Department of Economic Development; and Dr. Chris Shove, dean and executive director of the Institute.

Dr. Shove told the audience that the incubator will help increase the number of small businesses in the St. Joseph area, noting that nationwide, 60 – 80 percent of jobs are generated from small businesses. “Our goal is to create high-tech firms that will create high-tech jobs.”

He introduced two students in the audience, Valerie Lee and Jackie Lee, who had created some of the displays for the event. “The Venture Center could be a tremendous asset for students; they actually engage in real world projects,” said Dr. Shove.  

Sen. Bond and several members of the audience toured the proposed location of the incubator, which is west of Interstate 29 on the west campus, near Mitchell Ave.

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Internship Allows Student to Leave Her Mark

Nollee Underwood plans to leave her mark when she graduates from Western in May. The intern in the marketing office of the Western Institute designed a logo for a new Institute program, and the logo is in the process of becoming trademarked.

The trademarked logo for Lunar-Camp, a course where middle school, high school and college students will learn about setting up a base camp on the moon, will be used on t-shirts, brochures and any other type of publicity for the program.

“Actually, it’s kind of cool to put on my resumé. It’s pretty rewarding to see my hard work paid off,” she said.

Underwood, a graphic design major from St. Joseph, has been working as an intern in the Institute for a year, and values her applied learning experience. She has designed a number of brochures, posters, flyers and banners for the Institute’s programs.  “It’s fast-paced with short deadlines, and it’s taught me a lot about the ‘real world,’” she said of the internship. 

Underwood said she hopes the Lunar-Camp program becomes well known and expands, and that her logo is used for many years. “I want to come back years later and say, ‘Hey I did that!’”

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Dr. Crowley Motivates at Eggs & Issues

There’s no better way to start the day – a free hot breakfast and a pep talk. That’s what more than 120 people discovered when they attended Western’s Eggs and Issues April 13 and enjoyed the wit and wisdom of Dr. Tim Crowley, a counselor at Western for 18 years.

“How many of you are willing to stretch yourself and take some risks this morning?” Dr. Crowley asked the audience as part of his talk, “Owners Manual for Success – How to Create the Life You Really Want … Today.” Throughout the presentation, audience members paired up with strangers and talked about themselves,  stretched their arms to indicate a hoped-for life span, and shared their blessings with the person next to them, all sprinkled with lots of laughter and fun.

He told the audience of  W Mitchell, who was severely burned and paralyzed in two separate accidents. Mitchell is now a motivational speaker and “one of the happiest guys I have ever met in my life.” His secret, said Dr. Crowley, is that Mitchell focuses on the things he can still do, and does not dwell on what he cannot do anymore since his accidents.

Dr. Crowley offered the breakfast crowd three strategies to obtain the life they really want: one, stop doing what’s not working, two, practice extreme self-care, and three, don’t leave the planet without making an impact. He noted that numbers two and three may sound like a paradox, but people increase their capacity to touch more lives if they take care of themselves first.

His presentation was sprinkled with catchy phrases – “If we don’t learn to bend, life will bend us;” “Meaning is more important than money;” “Purpose is more important than power;” and “Giving is more important than getting.” He also told the audience that they would have a lot more energy if they could “Stop their stinkin’ thinking.’”

Along with his duties at Western, Dr. Crowley is a professional motivator, and has been a keynote speaker at state, regional and national conferences. His talk was the third in a series this spring.

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Tower Sports

Baseball

• April 21 - Western 4, Central Missouri State University 12

• April 22 - Western 10, Central Missouri State University 5

Softball

• April 21 - Western 4-7, Southwest Baptist1-1

• April 22 - Western 1-5, Central Missouri State University 0-4

Western senior men’s golfer Brice Garnett won the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) Championship for the third straight season and helped the Griffons snap Washburn University’s 3-year run as MIAA champions at the Country Club of Blue Springs, Mo. Western gets the MIAA’s automatic qualification spot to the NCAA Division II Central Regional, which takes place May 1-3 at Prairie Bluff Golf Club in Joliet, Ill.
 

Brice Garnett and Amy Beverly, both seniors, earned the male and female athlete of the year honors for the second straight year. They were honored at the student athlete banquet held April 20. Garnett, a four-year all-MIAA golfer, holds a 3.6 GPA. Beverly is Western's record holder in hits, RBIs and home runs on the softball team.
 

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• The public relations office is seeking 30 photogenic models for upcoming photo and video shoots on campus. 10 models who are available six hours during the shoot will be paid $10 and hour. Twenty volunteers will be needed for an hour or more. Hours of the photo shoot are 8:30 a.m.-12 p.m. April 28, 11:30 a.m.-5 p.m. May 1, and 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. May 2. For more information, all 5649 or email hillk.

• The deadline to nominate distinguished faculty and alumni for the Alumni Association's Distinguished Service Awards is May 1. Nominations may be made online at Western’s website, www.missouriwestern.edu, by clicking on “Alumni,” then “Alumni Recognition.” Individuals may also contact the alumni office at 5676 to obtain an application. A letter of recommendation must accompany the application. Forms and letters can be mailed to MWSU Alumni Services.

• Tickets for Worlds of Fun and Silver Dollar City can be purchased in the counseling/testing office, Eder Hall, room 203. Worlds of Fun, $25, Oceans of Fun $20.50, Ride & Slide, $38 and junior/senior, $9.95. Silver Dollar City tickets are all two-day tickets except SDC season pass and three-park season pass. SDC adult $43, child (4-11) $33, Celebration City adult $20, child $16. White Water adult $32, child $27. SDC season pass adult $62, child $52. Three-park season pass adult $115, child $105.

• Help support the Pride Alliance in a day of silence April 26. To help spread the word about the day of silence and about lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issues, t-shirts will be on sale for $10. For more information or to get a t-shirt, call 7105 or 5634, or email pride@missouriwestern.edu.

• Campus Compact has issued a call for proposals for its regional conference. Deadline for submissions is May 1. The deadline for submissions for the statewide conference is May 26. Applications and the full request for proposals are available at http://www.missouriwestern.edu/appliedlearning/compact.html.

• Y's Kids World Early Learning Center is currently enrolling for the summer and fall 2006 semesters. You can enroll your child by stopping by Y's Kids World in Wilson Hall to get an enrollment packet and take tour. Y's Kids World is licensed for children ages 2-14. Children must be completely potty trained. For more information, contact Jennifer Jacques, center director, at 271-4462.

• Students wishing to live on campus during the summer 2006 semester may pick up a housing application at the front desk in the Commons Building. Students must be enrolled in a minimum of three credit hours and will be charged $80 a week. For more information, call 383-7100.

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Monday, April 24

• Reception for Outstanding Staff Employee Award recipients - 3:30 p.m. Spratt Hall, Enright Room, 214

Tuesday, April 25

• ACT Residual - 8 a.m. Eder Hall, 208

• Strategic Planning Meeting - 3-4:30 p.m. Blum Union, Forrest Hoff Room, 219

Wednesday, April 26

• Western Baseball vs. Washburn - 3 p.m.

Thursday, April 27

• Alumni Brown Bag Lunch - 12 p.m. Spratt Hall, Enright Rooms 214-216

• CSMP Colloquium "One Semi-Automated Forces" by alumnus Eric D. Root - 1 p.m. Agenstein, 108

• Strategic Planning Meeting - 3-4:30 p.m. Blum Union, Forrest Hoff Room, 219

• Board of Governors Meeting - 5 p.m. Blum Union, 220

Friday, April 28

• Scribes & Muses student writers meeting - 2 p.m. Blum Union, 223

• Night at the Ritz - 6 p.m. Mayes Memorial Armory, Woodbine and Faraon

Saturday, April 29

• PRAXIS - 8 a.m. Popplewell Hall, 105

• Egyptian Escapade Step Show - 7 p.m. Potter Hall Theater. $12 per person

Sunday, April 30

• Spring Choral Concert - 3 p.m. Potter Hall Theater

• Jazz Ensemble Concert - 7:30 p.m. Potter Hall Theater

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• Now hiring waiter/waitress and host/hostess at Chu's Garden Restaurant. Apply inside at 3619 Beck Rd.

• House for sale by owner: 5506 Long View Dr., Eastbrook subdivision near Western. Beautiful, split-foyer built in 2001 by Jim Ingle Construction.  4-bedroom, 3-bath, all-electric home has approximately 2,100 sq. ft. and a lot of upgrades. Hardwood floors, custom oak cabinets, whirlpool tub in master bath, water softener, 6 ft. by 20 ft. storage/utility room with shelving. For more information, call 279-2042.

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