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Week of Aug. 15 - 28, 2005 Welcome to the Tower Topics E-newsletter for faculty, staff and students at Western. |
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Missouri Western State College, 4525 Downs Drive, St. Joseph, MO 64507, 271-4200 |
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Click any link for these stories: The Honorable JC Watts to be 2005 Convocation Speaker Western's Financial Aid Office Warns Students about Scholarship Scams Lost & Found: If you have lost any items, please come to Blum Union, Room 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 speakers 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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On March 17, Gov. Matt Blunt signed Senate Bill 98, designating Missouri Western a university. That legislation becomes official on Aug. 28, and a weeklong celebration for the campus and community is planned to mark the historic occasion.
The celebration will kick off at 4 p.m. August 28 with a ceremony to unveil the new front entrance sign on Mitchell Ave. This ceremony will include brief comments by legislators and others. Following that ceremony, Western will unveil the updated MWSU sign north of the Looney Complex that can be seen from Interstate 29. This unveiling will be coordinated by the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity, since that group created the original sign.
“It’s All About U” will begin at 6 p.m. Aug. 28 in Spratt Memorial Stadium. The free evening of activities includes Fun U Kids Zone, a free children’s carnival and Party Masters, a troupe of entertainers who can paint faces, create balloon animals, juggle, do magic and much more. There is also a great lineup of musical entertainment, parachutists and fireworks.
On Aug. 31, a formal convocation will be held to honor the recognition of Western as a university, featuring guest speakers, including past presidents, and the unveiling of the new university seal. The convocation will also mark the beginning of new traditions for the university, including the use of new ceremonial accessories. The convocation will begin at 11 a.m. and last approximately one hour. Campus offices will close and the 11 a.m. classes will be cancelled.
The celebration continues when the Griffons play their first football game as a university Sept. 1 against Chadron State, Chadron, Neb., and a volleyball tournament will be held Sept. 2 and 3. Western’s new women’s soccer team will play at the Riverside Soccer Complex in St. Joseph at 5 p.m. Sept. 2.
"As a university, Western enters a new phase in its 90-year history of meeting the needs of students and our region, and this is a tremendously exciting prospect," said Dr. James Scanlon, Western's president.
Sponsors for the celebration activities include the Western Foundation, American Family Insurance, ARAMARK, Aquila, Commerce Bank, Dr. Joseph (Joe) Friedman, Heartland Health, Leah Spratt Charitable Trust and Rupp Funeral Home.
Western invites the campus community to join in the celebration of becoming Missouri Western State University. Join us for fun and fireworks on this historic occasion.
Below is a detailed schedule of the Aug. 28 celebration: 4 p.m. Sign Unveiling Ceremony Start the university celebration with the unveiling of the updated Missouri Western State University sign at our front entrance on Mitchell Ave. Join legislators, current and past presidents, and others in beginning the evening of festivities. 5:15 p.m. MWSU Sign Unveiling Thirty years ago, the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity created the sign as a way of giving back to the college and today they continue that tradition in this dedication. Join us in unveiling the newly created MWSU north of the Looney Complex, by the pond. 5:45 p.m. Spratt Memorial Stadium opens. All evening activities take place in the stadium. 6 p.m. Fun U Kids Zone Enjoy this free carnival with inflatable rides, balloon animals, magic and more! Children can enjoy an evening of fun at the carnival until 8:45 p.m. 6:15 p.m. Golden Griffon Marching Band Launch the celebration with the marching music of the Golden Griffons under the direction of Jeff Hinton.
6:30 p.m. Under the Influence This classic rock band has performed in over 2,000 concerts and has been a leading presence in rock-n-roll for over a decade. 7:00 p.m. Patriotic Salute Hosted by the 139th Airlift Wing of the Missouri Air National Guard, including an exhibition by the All American Freefall Team. 7:20 p.m. Kathleen Holeman Enjoy the cool jazz performance from one of the area’s best female jazz performers. 7:50 p.m. Western Cheerleaders Bringing spirit to the crowd, Western Cheer Squad will lead this rally that celebrates Western becoming a university. 8:00 p.m. Unveiling the “U” in the football end zones. 8:10 p.m. Western Steel Drum Band This student ensemble, led by Dennis Rogers, plays a diverse selection of high energy pieces and showcases the high caliber of Western’s student performances. 8:50 p.m. American Barber Boys Enjoy a medley of American favorites from this men’s a cappella chorus from St. Joseph. 9:10 p.m. Fireworks Aerial FX provides a spectacular array of fireworks to cap the evening’s celebration. |
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The Honorable JC Watts to be 2005 Convocation Speaker The Honorable J. C. Watts, former United States Congressman, business leader and athlete, has been selected as the speaker at the 12th annual Convocation on Critical Issues at Western. He will speak at 9:30 a.m. Oct. 6 in the M.O. Looney Complex. Watts’ presentation, “In-Depth Political Analysis,” will address current issues facing the country. The event is free and open to the community.
“Western has brought excellent speakers to campus for many years and J.C. Watts is the latest in a long tradition," said Dr. James Scanlon, Western's president. "He will focus on important political issues facing our country today. His message will broaden the perspective of our students and the surrounding community on these issues. Exposure to national leaders is one of the many elements that Western uses to develop leadership skills among our students.”
Before the convocation on Oct. 6, Watts will also meet with student leaders for breakfast to discuss ways to develop their leadership ability. He will also speak at a dinner on the evening of Oct. 5 at 7 p.m. in the Fulkerson Center on campus. Cost is $30 per person. For reservations, call 816-271-5646 by Sept. 29.
"Once again the Convocation offers a unique opportunity for the community to hear a high profile, outstanding speaker bringing us his perspective on critical issues that affect all of us," said Dan Boulware, volunteer chair of the Convocation committee, and former Regent member. "We have been interested for several years in getting J.C. Watts to speak. I'm pleased that he has accepted our invitation. He is a dynamic speaker and should have real appeal to our students."
Watts is the chairman of the J.C. Watts Companies and provides strategic focus and program leadership to the firm’s business engagements, alliances and initiatives. He works with clients to implement business development, communications and public affairs strategies. He currently leads a strategic alliance with Fleishman-Hillard, America’s largest public relations firm. He is the chairman of FM Policy Focus, a coalition of leading financial services trade associations. He is working with the Business Roundtable to develop a nationwide effort to increase business opportunities in America’s inner cities and poor rural areas. He serves as a corporate director at Burlington Northern Santa Fe, Clear Channel Communications, Dillard’s, and Terex Corporation. He is a frequent guest on national and international television news shows and radio shows, including a weekly commentary on NPR’s Travis Smiley Show, and has been quoted in numerous newspaper articles in the United States and around the world. He writes a monthly column in the Sporting News and authored a book titled “What Color Is a Conservative?”
"The Missouri Western State University Foundation is proud to bring this series of annual Convocations to our community," said Dan Nicoson, vice president for institutional advancement and executive director of the Foundation. "Western place a high priority on both the quality of its programming for students and its community partnerships. This Convocation series is a good example of Western serving both as an outstanding academic institution and a community asset by making programming of this caliber available to our students and our community at the same time. We believe that J.C. Watts will continue the tradition of high quality and stimulating presentations for which this series has become known."
For a complete biography of J.C. Watts go to http://www.missouriwestern.edu/convocation/WattsJC.doc
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Western's Financial Aid Office Warns Students about Scholarship Scams
Western's financial aid office has issued a warning to students: Watch out for financial aid scams.
Recently, an incoming student at Western was contacted and told he/she had been awarded a $5,000 scholarship. The caller asked the student to verify his/her birth date, social security number and legal name, and then asked for the student’s bank routing number.
When no money had been placed in the student’s bank account, he/she notified Western, and the college verified that it was not a legitimate scholarship. The student closed all his/her bank accounts.
Angela Beam, director of financial, noted that she is not aware of any organization that routes scholarship money to a student’s bank account. The majority of the time, the funds are sent directly to the institution. In a few instances, the student is sent a check.
“The most important thing for students and families to know is that a legitimate organization is not going to make contact with a scholarship/grant recipient over the phone, especially if the student has not applied for funds through that organization,” said Beam. “If is sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Students should never give their bank account or other personal information over the phone to an individual or entity that the student did not initially contact.”
Additionally, she said that the federal government only releases the information on the Federal Application for Free Student Aid (FAFSA) to the schools that the student has listed on his/her application.
Beam also warned that college students are often targets for Internet “phishing,” where students are asked for personal financial information on websites that look legitimate.
For more information, call Western’s financial aid office at 816-271-4361. |
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Wednesday, Aug. 24
Thursday, Aug. 25
Friday, Aug. 26
Saturday, Aug. 27
Sunday, Aug, 28
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