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Week of Feb. 17-22, 2009 Welcome to the Tower Topics E-newsletter for faculty, staff and students at Western. |
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Missouri Western State University, 4525 Downs Drive, St. Joseph, MO 64507, 816-271- 4200 |
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Click any link for these stories: WAC Plans Blake Shelton Concert Drum Major for Justice Awards Announced State Funding Assured for Remington/Agenstein Project Lost & Found: If you have lost any items, please come to SU 228 to claim them. You may be required to describe the item. Click on
Guidelines for Tower Topics: Tower Topics submissions should state time, date, place, sponsor, title of event, name of speaker's and admission fees. Send complete information to the Public Relations and Marketing office (Leah Spratt Hall, Room 106). 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:
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WAC Plans Blake Shelton Concert The Western Activities Council (WAC) at Western has announced that country music star Blake Shelton will headline the annual WAC spring concert at 8 p.m. April 9 at the St. Joseph Civic Arena. The husband-and-wife duo of Joey & Rory will be the opening act. “We’re very excited to be bringing these quality entertainers to Western and St. Joseph,” said Don Willis, director of student engagement. “Blake Shelton is an established star, and Joey & Rory are rising stars with a local tie. We think our students and the community will be excited about this show.” Shelton burst onto the country music scene in 2001 with “Austin,” the first single from his self-titled debut album. The song was No. 1 on the Billboard singles chart for five weeks, tying the record for a debut single. He also reached No. 1 for three weeks in 2003 with “The Baby.” More recent hits include “Nobody But Me,” “Some Beach,” and Billboard’s current No. 1 Hot Country Song, “She Wouldn’t Be Gone.” Joey Martin and Rory Feek have been married for six years, but only began performing together last year to audition for CMT’s series “Can You Duet.” They became finalists on the show and landed a record contract, releasing their debut album “The Life of a Song.” Feek has written three No. 1 singles, including Shelton’s “Some Beach.” He is a native of Atchison, Kan. Martin runs a restaurant named Marcy Jo’s Mealhouse with her sister-in-law near their Tennessee home. Western students will each receive one free ticket. Tickets for the general public will be $30. Details on ticket distribution will be released later. For more information, contact Willis at 4220. |
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Drum Major for Justice Awards Announced Three women were presented with the 2009 Drum Major for Justice Awards during the second annual Black Heritage Ball Feb. 7 in the Fulkerson Center. Ivory Duncan was named the student recipient. Duncan, a senior legal assistant major from Kansas City, Mo., has worked in the Center for Multicultural Education (CME) since her freshman year. She planned programs focusing on a wide range of issues. She has also coordinated leadership classes for African-American students at Bode Middle School and Benton High School in St. Joseph as well as self-improvement classes for area teenage girls through MidCity Excellence. Tay Triggs was named the campus recipient. Triggs, CME director, has been at Western four years. She has created a student intern program to help empower students, develop outreach programs and carry out the mission of the department. Her message, according to the nomination of Michael Speros, director of residential life, is "get involved, better yourself, better your community and add value to your relationships." Zulima Lugo-Knapp was named the community recipient. Lugo-Knapp last year founded a bilingual magazine in St. Joseph, Here-Aqui, which publishes community information in both English and Spanish. Her goal is to bridge the gap between the growing Latino/Hispanic population and the larger St. Joseph community. Lugo-Knapp is also an adjunct instructor in Spanish at Western. The keynote speaker at the Black Heritage Ball was Joseph Sebarenzi, a survivor of the genocide in Rwanda, who spoke about peace and reconciliation in his native country. |
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State Funding Assured for Remington/Agenstein Project The state of Missouri has assured Western officials that the university will receive $30.1 million to complete the construction of Remington Hall and the renovation of Agenstein Hall. The project is among those in the Lewis and Clark Discovery Initiative, funded by the sale of Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority (MOHELA) assets. Kelvin Simmons, commissioner of the state’s Office of Administration, sent Western a letter on Feb. 10 assuring the university that the project "will continue to be fully funded." "While other projects have been suspended or placed on review status due to MOHELA’s inability to make its regularly scheduled payments, this project will continue to receive funding as originally designed," Simmons wrote. Construction of Remington Hall, a 54,000 square-foot addition to Agenstein Hall, began last summer. Although weather has delayed the project at times, the target date for completion is still December 2009. Once Remington Hall is completed, Agenstein Hall will be completely renovated, with completion scheduled for December 2010. The total budget for the project is an estimated $37.5 million, with private funds providing the balance. The new addition is named for Wes and Patsy Remington, who pledged a $5 million gift to the university in 2007. |
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Men's Basketball
Women's Basketball
Baseball
Softball
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Massage and Wii Fit Day for PTA Club The Physical Therapist's Assistant Club is having their annual massage day fundraiser event from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Feb. 18. Come and get a relaxing table massage by our own PTA students. Follow up with a trial on one of three Wii Fit balance board stations to discover your center of gravity, BMI and postural control. You can sign up for an appointment in Murphy 304 or just show up with your donation Feb. 18. Surviving & Thriving as a Foreign Language Teacher What is it like to teach French? Spanish? English as a Foreign Language? First-year teachers tell it like it is at 4 p.m. Feb. 18 in Eder Hall 210. This event is sponsored by the department of English, foreign languages and journalism. Refreshments will be served. Planetarium Series Western’s computer science, mathematics and physics departments will hold a spring series of shows in the Bushman Planetarium. This series will feature “More Than Meets the Eye,” “Hubble Vision,” “Light Years From Andromeda” and “Lewis and Clark.” Shows last approximately 50 minutes, and begin at 7p.m. Show dates are: · Feb. 23, “More Than Meets the Eye,” a general program on astronomy, covering the moon, visible planets, constellations and other topics. There will be an additional showing at 6 p.m. on this date only. · Feb. 24, “Hubble Vision,” a program about the history of the Hubble telescope and what its pictures from space have taught astronomers. · March 2, “Light Years From Andromeda,” a program that teaches the concept of light speed and the light year, showing how astronomers measure distances to celestial objects and “look back” in time by gazing farther into space. · March 4, “Lewis and Clark,” a program that follows the journey of the famous explorers from 1804 to 1806 and explains how they located their position day after day. Seating is limited so reservations are required. These can be made by calling either 4370 or 4288. Tickets are $3 each. The Bushman Planetarium is located in Agenstein Hall, room 105. Interview Day Juniors and seniors looking for internships and jobs after graduation are encouraged to attend Interview Day Feb. 24 at KCI Expo in Kansas City. Students will be pre-screened to meet qualifications and matched to employers. Interviews are scheduled for you. Students will be able to meet with recruiters from several companies in one day at one convenient location. Register at www.missouriwestern.edu/careerdevelopment, click on COSMC or call 4205 for more information. Students must upload a resume to participate. Registration is free. Eggs and Issues Western will host Dr. Melody Smith '87, superintendent of the St. Joseph School District, when she presents, “St. Joseph School District: Vision for the Future,” during the next Eggs and Issues at 7 a.m. Feb. 25 in the Fulkerson Center. Dr. Smith will discuss her vision for the St. Joseph School District, including the two April ballot issues – renewal of the temporary operating levy at no increase and a bond issue proposal to build new schools for the first time in nearly 40 years. To make reservations for the free breakfast, call 5646 by Feb. 20. For those unable to attend, Dr. Smith’s speech will be broadcast March 15-26, Tuesdays and Thursdays at noon, and Sundays at 7:30 p.m. It will air on MWTV via St. Joseph Cablevision, Channel 39 and Channel 97 in Atchison, Kan. FAFSA Deadline Approaching! The financial aid office needs all faculty and staff members to remind/encourage students to complete their Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) as soon as possible. Deadlines are quickly approaching. Students should make every attempt to have their applications completed by March 1, 2009, to be considered for all of the resources that may be available to them. The Financial Aid Office will be hosting three events on Feb. 17 and Feb. 23 in Spratt Hall room 212 and Feb. 25 in the financial aid office, Eder Hall room 103. Financial aid staff members will be available to assist students in completing their FAFSA applications. Students should bring theirs and their parent's (if dependent for FAFSA purposes) 2008 Federal tax return information and W-2 forms, as well as their PIN number (if they have one). Pizza will be provided for those who come in and complete their applications. Given the current economic conditions in our country, it is more important than ever for students to complete their applications and start planning for next year. Call the Financial Aid Office if you have any questions, 5939. Griffon Softball Players Honored Three Western softball players were named to the Angelo State Blue and Gold Classic All-Tournament Team, as the Griffons went 3-3 in the classic. Senior third baseman Amanda Nocita, sophomore shortstop Ashley Hudson and junior centerfielder Becky Diehl were named to the team.
MIAA Tournament Tickets
Tickets for the MIAA Basketball Championships March 5-8 at Municipal
Auditorium in Kansas City are available through the athletic department.
The all-session pass for $40 includes admission to all 14 games of the
tournament. Tickets are available from the Griffon ticket office through
March 4. Call 5904 for details. |
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Tuesday, February 17
Wednesday, February 18
Thursday, February 19
Friday, February 20
Sunday, February 22
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Surplus: The department of government, social work and sociology has two office chairs in good shape from our department for the asking. Please see the hallway outside of our office. Needed: a dog house for a medium to large dog. Email judnol or call 4554 |
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