Department of Journalism and Mass Communication Abilene Christian University Serving the ACU community since 1912

FRIDAY

IN THIS ISSUE

CAMPUSBurglaries solvedTwo juveniles were detained in connection with automobile burglaries behind Nelson Hall, page 3

THEOPTIMISTApril 13, 2007Vol. 95, No. 48 1 section, 8 pages www.acuoptimist.com• •

New editorThe Optimist chose its editor in chief for the 2007-08 year, page 3

SPORTS

Playoff implicationsLSC South fi fth-place ACU plays fourth-place Eastern New Mexico in Portales, N.M., needing a win to help their playoff chances, page 8

Kirk Goodwin RunThe Kirk Goodwin Run, organized by Galaxy, will benefi t local families in need of medical assistance, page 3

Netting an upsetThe ACU men’s tennis team upset East Central, the No. 1 team in the South Central Region, page 8

Student loan concerns Fifty one percent of stu-dent loan recipients say it will take them more than 10 years to pay off their student loans, up 5 per-cent from two years ago.The survey was conducted nationally using an online poll placed on the Col-legeGrad.com home page during Feb., 2007. The results are based on more than 1,300 respondents.

-CollegeGrad.com

SPEED READ

ARTS

Newest featureFilm critic Cole Williams reviews Quentin Taran-tino’s newest picture, ‘Grindhouse,’ page 4

n Matt Worthington, Daniel-Paul Watkins and Kevan Kirksey won their respective positions for next year by large margins after voting ended Wednesday.

By KELSI PEACEFEATURES EDITOR

Matt Worthington was playing “Guitar Hero” and making some Easy Mac with his roommates when the SA elections committee chair,

Maher Saab, called with the election results.

“I was like, ‘What’s the word?’ and he said, “‘How are you tonight, Mr. President?’” Worthington said.

Worthington, junior Eng-lish major from San Antonio, defeated Brandon Smith, in-ternational relations major from Kansas City, with 782 votes to 477, earning 62 per-cent of the vote.

This year, 1,307 students

went to the poll.Daniel-Paul Watkins, soph-

omore political science major from Fredricksburg, Va., won the vice presidency with 819 votes, defeating Ryan Ste-phen, sophomore finance ma-jor from Spring, who received 450 votes.

Watkins said he was con-fident the three-legged cat he used in his Chapel speech made the difference.

“I felt like I was the un-

derdog,” Watkins said. “I felt like it was me versus the establishment.”

In this case, Watkins said, the regular man won.

“Thank God for three-legged cats,” he said with a laugh.

Stephen said that while his supporters were confident he would win, and some did not vote, he thought it was back and forth between himself

Elections give clear-cut results

n Faculty members will take a sabbatical during the fall, spring or both semesters in the 2007-08 year to undertake academic pursuits outside of the classroom.

By MICHELLE JIMENEZCOPY EDITOR

The 2007-2008 academic year will have to do with-out seven professors as they leave for year- and semester-long sabbaticals.

Sabbaticals, meant to al-low professors time to pur-sue special interests.

Spring 2008 will be Dr. Jeanene Reese’s, associate

professor of Bible, missions and ministry, first leave on sabbatical.

While on leave, Reese said she will work on writing and publishing three or four ar-ticles on the theology of ser-vice learning, on how to con-duct scholarly research in the classroom, on the findings of what her students have shown her about what they have learned in the process of ministry and on how she has changed as a teacher in the seven years between fin-ishing her dissertation and becoming a tenured faculty.

Reese said she hopes the

sabbatical will be the “jump-start, the deeper opportunity to write.”

“This opportunity I’ve want-ed to do for so long,” Reese said. “It’s really a process of getting ready for what I hope is going to be a rich experience.”

Dr. Rusty Towell, associ-ate professor of physics, will be on a year-long leave to continue his research on the PHENIX experiment at the Brookhaven National Labora-tory on Long Island, N.Y. The purpose of the experiment is to understand what is in-side of a proton and how it is built from the parts that are

inside of it.“The way [the univer-

sity] supports us and allow us to go do this is wonder-ful,” Towell said. “Not only does it give me a break from teaching so I can go do this, but it means that we can involve our students in a whole different way because if I’m overseeing a project, then I can easily plug in stu-dents next summer when they’re ready to work on it in ways that I couldn’t if I hadn’t been working on it all year long.”

Seven faculty prepare for sabbatical

n The Campus Center, Don H. Morris Center, and Sikes Hall are set to undertake major renovations during the summer months to enhance the facilities.

By CHRIS HANSONSTUDENT REPORTER

During the summer heat, many buildings will be renovated, remodeled, built or altered. The projects include changes to McGlothlin Campus Center, Don H. Morris Center and Sikes Hall.

Phil Schubert, vice president for finance, said the projects help enhance the student ex-perience and meet the growing expectations of prospective students.

The first phase of the Campus Center re-model involves replacing the Hilton Room with a more open looking food court, said Bob Nevill, director of physical resources.

“The living room will stay intact; the post office will stay where it is; the book store will stay where it is, but most of the rest of the space will alter in some way,” Nevill said.

The Don H. Morris Center renovation will begin this summer and is likely to continue

Buildings to receive summer fi x

n Adjunct professor Ray Pettit and his wife, Amanda, decided to start a children’s home in India after hearing a guest speaker at his church.

By LAUREN SUTTONOPINION EDITOR

Like many have done in the past, Ray and Amanda Pettit sent their $50 check to support Christian humanitarian work overseas. But for this couple, a monthly check was not enough.

On June 1, after supporting an Indian min-istry for 11 years, Ray Pettit, adjunct profes-sor in the College of Computer Science, and his wife Amanda opened Sanctuary Home, a children’s home in Tenali, a town in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India.

The Pettit’s interest in India began after a guest speaker came to their church to talk

Adjunct opens children’s home in India

n Dr. Frederick Aquino, associate professor of theology

n Dr. Joseph Cardot, professor of communication and chair of the department

n Dr. Michael Frazier, associate professor and director of computer science

n Dr. Mark Hamilton, associate professor of Old Testament

n Dr. Jeanene Reese, associate professor of Bible, missions and ministry

n Dr. Rusty Towell, associate professor of physics.

n Dr. Wendell Willis, associate professor of Bible, missions and ministry.

SABBATICAL LEAVES

By ATSUMI SHIBATAPAGE DESIGNER

Cowboys, rodeo and a ranch: Texas has a good old American tradition. In Abilene, I sometimes see people wearing cowboy hats, boots and belts with big buckles at Wal-Mart. People dress like cowboys and speak like cowboys. What a good old Western tradition.

Growing up in Japan, I had so much interest in American culture. Drive-in theaters, high school prom and super-sized food, but more than anything,

BRIAN SCHMIDT SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

Christal Pitts, junior graphic design major from Richardson, votes for the Students’ Association executive offi cers on Wednesday.

See RANCH page 5

Konichiwa, y’allThe story of a West Texas ranch told through the eyes of a Japanese Student.

See RENOVATIONS page 7

See ORPHANAGE page 7

See SA page 7

E-mail Jimenez at: mmj04b@acu.edu

EMILY SMITH PHOTO ILLUSTRATION

Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Calendar Events&

The Optimist maintains this calendar for the ACU community to keep track of local social, academic and service opportunities.

Groups may send announcements directly to optimist@acu.edu or to the Page 2 Editor at mxe06a@acu.edu.

To ensure that an item will appear on time, the announcement should be sent at least 10 days before. The Optimist may edit items for space and style.

Corrections and clarifications of published news articles will be printed in this space in a timely manner.

About This Page

Friday, April 13, 2007

Announcements

Volunteer Opportunities

16 Monday13 Friday 14 Saturday 17 Tuesday

Spring Break Campaign Com-mittee applications for the 2007-08 school year are available in Room 129 of McKinzie Hall. The deadline to turn in applications is Friday. Make sure to sign up for an interview time when turning in applications. For more in-formation, contact Jennifer King at jjk04a@acu.edu.

The last day for students to withdraw from a class for the fall se-mester is Friday. Students who want to receive a “W” for a course must have the withdrawal from class form turned in by that date. The forms are available in the Depot, the Registrar`s office, or in each adviser`s office.

The 23rd Annual Kirk Goodwin 5K Run will be Saturday at 8 a.m. and will begin at the intersection of Cam-

pus Court and College Drive. This is a charity run sponsored by Galaxy to raise funds to help community fami-lies in need of financial assistance with medical bills. There will be door prizes and prizes for overall winners.

Seniors, come to Joe Allen`s Lytle Bend Ranch on April 19 from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. for free food and fun. Enter the drawings to win prizes including gift certificates and a digital camera. Wear a crazy hat and com-pete for a prize. RSVP to (325) 674-2737 or seniorexperience@acu.edu by Friday. For more information, go to www.acu.edu/seniors.

Residence Life is looking for bands for the Backyard Bash on April 28. If interested, contact Jae Webb at jkw02a@acu.edu or at

Local Christian radio station, KGNZ, has a couple of opportunities for volunteers. They need help an-swering phones and entering data for its annual fundraiser between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. every day this week until Friday. Volunteers are also needed Saturday from noon until midnight to help with their “Thank You” event for the radio station. Contact the Volun-teer Service-Learning Center in the Bean Sprout.

ACU for Abilene is coming April 21. Students, staff and fac-ulty will join together to serve the Abilene community in a variety of ways at a number of locations. Watch for more information and make plans now to join in this time of service.

I-CAN, Interested Citizens of Abilene North, need help with community clean up Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Volun-teers will cut yards, trim hedges, plant gardens, pick up trash and help with household tasks. Con-tact the Volunteer Service-Learn-ing Center in the Bean Sprout for more information.

Freedom Fellowship Church needs volunteers to assist with a variety of after-school activities for at-risk youth, such as tutor-ing, basketball and air hockey Mondays, Tuesdays and Thurs-days from 3:30 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. and Fridays from 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. Contact the Volunteer Ser-vice-Learning Center in the Bean Sprout for more information.

MOPS at Highland Church of Christ is having its annual Great

Moms Walk and family day out April 28 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Nelson Park. For more informa-tion please contact Julia Stewart at (325) 690-9023.

Volunteers are needed to be peer visitors or in a support group for amputees. Both men and women are requested to help. For more in-formation, contact Wayne Briggs at (325) 691-1672 or (325) 829-1961.

Meals on Wheels needs vol-unteers to deliver meals to se-niors and adults with disabilities. This usually takes about an hour, and students can have one day of Chapel per week excused for this service. Contact the Volunteer Ser-vice-Learning Center in the Bean Sprout for more information.

Big A Club of City Light Community Ministries has an urgent need for volunteers to ride buses and vans with elemen-tary-age children and to help with Bible studies. This takes place on Wednesdays from 4:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Contact the Volunteer Ser-vice-Learning Center in the Bean Sprout for more information.

Girl Scout Troop #1550 needs young women who want to make a difference in young girls’ lives through Girl Scouting. The girls are from underprivileged homes, and they need positive Christian influ-ences in their lives. Volunteers will help conduct meetings, includ-ing arts and crafts. Help is needed every Thursday from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. until May. For more infor-mation, contact Diltzie Andrews at (325) 673-6379.

ACU Career InformationUpcoming Career Events and Workshops

ACU CAREER DAYDeal Or No Deal: Just In Case...You have not yet landed a job,or you don’t know where to look, or you don’t know what to do, or (Career-related fill-in-the-blank.) April 19 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.ACU Campus Center Featuring: -Gifts for graduating seniors -Networking with 20 employers -Resume, Cover Letter, and Job Search Advice -One-on-one with career counselors -Free food and drinks

This Week’s CareerLink Statistics:Number of Part-Time Jobs: 137Number of Internships: 284Number of Full-Time Jobs: 769Number of Opportunities Since Sept. 2006: 1574Number of Employers in Direc-tory: 3078

Hosted By:The Office of Career and Academic Developmentwww.acu.edu/ocad

Upcoming On-Campus Interviews

April 17: Woodforest National Bank Learn more on ACU CareerLinkApril 19: J-W Operating Human Resources Internship Interview Open Schedule Sign-up deadline: April 15April 24: Arrow Ford Multiple Positions All Majors Sign-up deadline: April 22

To schedule an on-campus interview, go to www.acu.edu/careerlink or contact Bradon Tharp at (325) 674-2653.

IT’S NOT A JOB IF YOU LOVE IT:Recent Jobs Posted on ACU CareerLink(www.acu.edu/careerlink)Job ID #5276 History Internship with Lopez Garcia GroupJob ID #5300 Community Out-reach Specialist Internship with Gilda’s Club North TexasJob ID #5421 Customer Services Operations Coordinator Cadbury SchweppesJob ID #5453 Field Technology Engineer with Halliburton (Houston)Job ID #5454 Advertising Account Manager with Centro, LLC (Dallas)

7 p.m.The last Chapel forum of the semester: will be a video interview between Bono and Bill Hybels of Willow Creek. Students may receive two chapel credits for attending this forum, which will take place in Moody Coliseum.

7 p.m.Delta Theta spring rush at 810 Harrison Avenue

9 p.m.Tri Kappa Gamma spring rush in the Bean Sprout

Purple Friday

Last Day to withdraw from a class for the fall semester

12 p.m. and 2 p.m.The softball team plays Eastern New Mexico at Wells Field.

6:45 p.m.Dinner begins for Spring Dinner Theatre. Tickets for dinner and the ‘Little Shop of Horrors’ show are $25.

8 p.m.‘Little Shop of Horrors’ is performed in Fulks Theatre. Tickets for the show alone are $15.

7:30 a.m.Alpha Kai Omega garage sale until 3 p.m. on the corner of Campus Court and Ambler.

8 a.m.The 23rd Annual Kirk Goodwin 5K Run sponsored by Galaxy to raise funds for families in need of assistance with medical bills. This run will begin at the intersection of Campus Court and College Drive. 6:45 p.m.Dinner begins for Spring Dinner Theatre. Tickets for dinner and the ‘Little Shop of Horrors’ show are $25.

8 p.m.‘Little Shop of Horrors’ is performed in Fulks Theatre. Tickets for the show alone are $15.

7 p.m.GATA spring rush at 774 EN 13th

7 p.m.Frater Sodalis spring rush at 802 Green Valley

9 p.m.Ko Jo Kai spring rush in the Campus Center Hilton Room

9 p.m.Trojans spring rush at Sonic

CreditedChapelsto date:

CreditedChapelsremaining:

Chapel Checkup5715

(325) 260-7347.The First Annual 5k Saving Ba-

bies Race will be April 28. This race will be held by March of Dimes in conjunction with Walk America. The race will start at 8:30 a.m. Check in at 7:30 a.m. at Redbud Park. The Entry fee is $25. Awards will be given to the top overall runners and the top-three males and females in each age cat-egory. For more information, e-mail sks06k@acu.edu or call (325) 672-0566. Download an entry form at www.abilenerunners.com.

ACU Police Tip of the WeekHelp prevent residence hall thefts and burglaries; lock your room anytime you’re away from the room.

Monday 04/02/200711:58 a.m. Unlocked vehicle at Uni-versity Church Lot 12:36 p.m. Unlocked vehicle at Vanderpool Lot 1:15 p.m. Assisted student with retrieving keys dropped in drain in Library Lot 4 p.m. Unlocked vehicle at Nelson Lot6 p.m. Assisted student with chang-ing tire in Business Lot

Tuesday 04/03/2007 6:47 a.m. Unlocked vehicle at Teague Lot 1:30 p.m. Unlocked vehicle at Univer-sity Park Lot 3:40 p.m. Parking violations on main campus 6:15 p.m. Report of suspicious sub-ject at 2200 Campus Court, checked area unable to locate 6:18 p.m. Parking violation at Smith Lot

Wednesday 04/04/2007 8:10 a.m. Parking violation at Cham-bers Lot 3 p.m. Parking violations on main campus lots 4:09 p.m. Medical emergency at

Medical Clinic, one female trans-ported to Hendrick ER4:32 p.m. Unlocked Cullen to retrieve lost item 8:53 p.m. Parking violation at Library Lot

Thursday 04/05/2007 12:30 p.m. Suspicious subject at Gardner Hall, contacted, Subject waiting on his girlfriend 3 p.m. Placed three students on Criminal Trespass at McKinzie Hall 4:50 p.m. Unlocked vehicle South Lot

Friday 04/06/2007 7:04 a.m. Assisted subject with flat tire at EN 10th & Loop 322

Saturday 04/07/2007 1:30 a.m. Checked Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building 3 p.m. Checked Don Morris Center

Sunday 04/08/2007 4:40 p.m. Report of subject stuck in vehicle window. Subject was out upon arrival.11:35 p.m. Fire alarm at Gardner Hall, unable to locate fire all okay

Police LogEdited for space

Friday, April 13, 2007 Page 3CAMPUS NEWS

n Jared Fields, junior print journalism major from Paducah and the 2006-07 managing editor of the ‘Optimist,’ has been chosen as next year’s editor in chief.

By TAKISHA KNIGHTStudent RepoRteR

The Optimist anticipates a fresh start next year with Jared Fields leading the way as editor in chief. The junior print journalism major from Paducah is the managing edi-tor and will replace Mallory Schlabach, senior print jour-nalism major from Orrville, Ohio, as editor in chief.

While the decision seemed “pretty obvious,” said Dr. Kenneth Pybus, assistant professor of journalism and Optimist adviser, the commit-tee had much to consider.

“The Optimist is nearly 100

years old,” Pybus said. “The committee is looking for a person who has experience, who has dedication, a person who has maturity, who can carry on the quality reputa-tion the publication has.”

A committee composed of Dr. Royce Money, president of the university; Cade White, Prickly Pear adviser; Dr. Susan Lewis, assistant professor of journalism and mass commu-nication and chair of the De-partment of Journalism and Mass Communication while Dr. Cheryl Bacon is on sab-batical; Pybus and Schlabach, chose Fields.

“In most situations it be-gins to become obvious who the front runners are by the middle of the spring semes-ter,” Pybus said. “Occasion-ally, the field is wide open.”

In this case, Pybus said, Fields stood out. He said there weren’t many applications for the posi-tion to pool from, which is usu-ally the case. In a way, he said, the staff contributes to the ap-pointment by not applying for positions they feel another ap-plicant might do well at.

Pybus said his experience was another deciding factor. Fields began working with the Optimist during his fresh-man year covering softball for sports. He became sports edi-tor his sophomore year and managing editor his junior year. For about a year he has been covering Abilene Chris-tian High School sports for the Abilene Reporter-News.

“He has the interest in build-ing on what the Optimist al-ready is,” Pybus said. “[He] has a dedication to journalism.; he

has the capacity to lead.” Fields will get to put that

dedication to work next year.Schlabach said, “If you’re

the editor of the Optimist, it’s like having a baby that never stops crying.”

You have do whatever it takes to get things done, she said.

One of the most chal-lenging things, she said, is getting everyone to do their jobs on time.

She said the best advice she can give Fields is “to see the big picture” and “all the mechan-ics” of it at the same time. After all, the big picture is made of small parts, she said.

“Most of all you must be patient. You have to let people do their own work, even if you think you can do it better,” she said. “You have to be flexible,

to go with the flow and change things at the last minute.”

Fields said he’s not worried about the challenge. In fact, he welcomes it. This year, as man-aging editor, he learned the ins and outs of ACU; next year he’ll get to put his knowledge to work in new ways.

“I want the challenge and to see how I’ll perform under the circumstances,” he said. “And also there’s a bit of an ego thing to it; you want to leave your mark and see how it measures up against those who came be-fore you and to other publica-tions at other universities.”

Fields said he’s looking forward to being the first Optimist editor in chief to work in the news conver-gence center, which is in the works on the second floor of the Don H. Morris Center.

Fields said he’s also look-ing forward to adding some new touches to the look of the Optimist by redesigning, as is tradition for each year with new editors.

As for the Prickly Pear, Ra-chel Davis, sophomore print journalism major from At-lanta, will return as the editor for the second year in a row.

“It’s a great opportunity and I’m looking forward to another year of editing the yearbook,” she said.

Coming in with a year of experience already, Davis said she’s learned some things she’ll change next year.

“I think it will be easier next year. I know not to pro-crastinate as much.”

‘Optimist,’ ‘Prickly Pear’ select 2007-08 editors in chief

n Two male juvenile suspects were detained by Hardin-Simmons University campus police for burglarizing ACU and HSU in March.

By ATSUMI SHIBATApage deSigneR

Two students suspected of burglarizing cars at both Har-din-Simmons and ACU were detained, after three cars were broken into on campus.

Jimmy Ellison, chief of police, said two of the cars, which belonged to residents of Nelson and McKinzie Halls, were found around 3:45 a.m. March 11 at a parking lot behind Nelson Hall soon af-ter HSU police caught suspi-cious men at the HSU campus around 3:30 a.m.

HSU police caught two ju-veniles carrying a stereo in their hands and also discov-ered several valuables that

were stolen from ACU stu-dents in their cars, said Frank Rosa, chief of HSU police.

Ellison said some of the be-longings were recovered, and he will be following the case.

The suspects were 16 and 17 years old males, but ju-veniles are not the only bur-glars, Rosa said.

“We were lucky we caught them,” Rosa said.

Some thieves often appear at several spots on the same day, Ellison said, but it is un-usual to catch them. Also, thieves are more likely to tar-get vehicles that are unlocked and have valuables inside, especially when the campus is vacant during a holiday, El-lison said.

The number of auto bur-glary at ACU campus has in-creased to 23 cases this year from 15 cases last year as of April 1.

Rosa said the number of auto burglaries on HSU cam-pus varies each year, and no auto burglaries were reported last semester.

Ellison said crime on cam-pus reflects crimes happen-ing in the city.

“Whatever happens in the city happens on campus whether it is good or bad,” El-lison said.

Ellison said students al-ways need to lock their cars and park in the lighted area. Also, to make their cars less targeted, Ellison suggests put-ting all valuables out of sight. He also encourages people to be observant and report any suspicious behavior.

Students can contact ACU police at (325) 674-2305 or visit the office at 1634 Campus Ct.

HSU police catch suspects

E-mail Knight at: optimist@acu.edu

E-mail Shibata at: axs03d@acu.edu

n The 23rd annual Kirk Goodwin Run, named after a student who died in 1984, will take place to raise funds for medical assistance for local families.

By SARA SNELSONStudent RepoRteR

The men of Galaxy will play host to the 23rd annual Kirk Goodwin Run on Satur-day. All money raised from the participants will go to families in the community in need of financial assistance because of medical bills.

The run is named after Kirk Goodwin who died in a car accident in 1984. After Goodwin’s death, the men of Galaxy decided to come together and raise money in order to help his family pay for the medical expenses and his funeral. After this, a fund was set up in his name, and Galaxy has been playing host to the benefit 5k run ever since.

“The money we raise is placed in an account un-til a situation arises, and then the money that has been compiled through the years is given to the family

to help them out,” said Jeff Edwards, junior biology major from Fort Worth and Galaxy president.

Registration to partici-pate in the run began Mon-day, as Galaxy members handed out free T-shirts to those who bought tickets for $10 in the Campus Cen-ter ticket windows. Late reg-istration will also be offered Saturday at 8 a.m. before the race starts.

Door prizes will be given out at the event as well as priz-es for the over-all winners.

“This is a great event in which the community and businesses in the commu-nity come out and support this cause,” said Will Mor-ris, senior management major from Cypress. “Peo-ple rally around, and it is a good way for ACU to reach out to the community.”

Last year about 200-300 students supported this fund, and about 100-150 people participated in the run.

“Next year, Galaxy has a bigger idea for the run and would like to move the run somewhere different in or-

der to reach out to the com-munity more in honor of this great cause,” Morris said.

The race starts on the corner of Campus Court and College Drive at 8:30 a.m.

“This run is a fantas-tic thing that has affected many families throughout the years,” Edwards said. “Kirk Goodwin’s family re-turns every year to partici-pate in the event as well, so it obviously means a great deal to them.”

Galaxy sponsors Goodwin Run

n The sixth Ministry Summit will take place Thursday and Friday, and Richard B. Hays, internationally known New Testament scholar, will be the guest speaker.

By ERIN JORDANStudent RepoRteR

The office of Ministry Events is sponsoring the sixth Ministry Summit on April 19-20. This year’s theme focuses on reading Scripture in community.

“The Ministry Summit is a way for us all to come to-gether and talk about min-istry and build understand-ing,” said Dr. Mark Love, assistant professor of minis-try and director of Ministry Events. “The way Scripture is used in the church and the way people read the Bible is different than Bible scholars do.”

The summit will focus on the interpretations of Scrip-

ture among churches. Richard B. Hays, New Tes-

tament scholar and chair of the Biblical Division at Duke Divinity School, will be the guest speaker at the Summit.

Hays is expected to bring more students to this event this year because he’s inter-nationally known.

This year’s event is esti-mated to bring in about 150 people, he said.

“Richard Hays is well known. Graduate school pro-fessors use Hays’ textbooks in their classes, so the gradu-ate students should be more familiar with him than some of the speakers in the past,” said Kate Miller, Ministry Events coordinator.

When addressing the is-sue of interpreting Scripture and how the church can take advantage of all the gifts of the Bible, Hays was the best choice, Love said.

The summit will be two days long with 10 different parts.

“Guests are allowed to register up until the event,” Miller said.

ACU faculty, staff and stu-dents of the Graduate School of Theology can attend free of charge, while students attain-ing their doctor of ministry degree will be charged $30, and others wanting to attend will be charged is $60.

“The event is geared to-ward church leaders, and it’s used as something that we plan specifically with them in mind. We have peo-ple that come from all of over Texas,” Miller said.

Summit to bring Scriptural discussion

E-mail Jordan at: optimist@acu.edu

E-mail Snelson at: optimist@acu.edu

n Participation fee: $10 with free T-shirts.

n The race begins on the corner of Campus Court and College Drive at 8:30 a.m.

n Late registration available at 8 a.m. before the race begins.

n Door prizes and winning prizes will be given.

n Total amount of money raised in:2004: $6,000,

2005: $1,500

KiRK GOOdWiN RUN iNFORMATiON

On the Web

www.acu.edu/events/summit.html

April 13, 2007Page 4

Newly released movies and gross rates for April 6-8. Total gross in parenthesis.

n Blades of Glory: $22,522,330($67,905,237)

n Meet the Robinsons: $16,715,437($51,947,271)

n Are We Done Yet?: $14,262,724($18,517,017)

n Grindhouse: $11,596,613($11,596,613)

n The Reaping: $10,025,203($11,958,518)

Coming Soon

Movies opening Friday:

n Disturbia. Starring Shia LaBeof, Carrie-Anne Moss, David Morse, Sarah Roemer, AaronYoo. Withdrawn and reclusive after his father’s death, Kale shuts himself in his house leaving his mind to wander. Soon, Kale suspects one of his neighbors as being a serial killer. (THRILLER)

n Pathfinder. Starring Karl Urban, Moon Bloodgood, Russell Means, Clancey Brown, Nathaniel Arcand. A thousand years ago, a Viking boy was left alone in North America after a raid on the eastern shores. After 25 years and being raised by Indians, the boy must fight against his own countrymen as they return to pillage and plunder. (ACTION/ADVENTURE)

n Perfect Stranger. Starring Halle Berry, Bruce Willis, Giovanni Ribisi, Gary Dourdan, Nicki Lynn Aycox. After a friend’s murder, reporter Rowena Price goes undercover to see if powerful executive, Harrison Hill, is connected. As Rowena gets closer to uncovering the truth, she discovers people will go to great lengths to protect it. (THRILLER/DRAMA)

Box offiCe StatS

n in ‘grindhouse,’ directors taratino and Rodriguez compiled two ‘B-movies’ to create an old-movie house effect, yet the films fail to live up to their potential.

By COLE WILLIAMSCartoonist

I’m definitely in the tar-get audience for Grind-house. I love B-movies. Always have, always will. From my eternal love for Godzilla, to B-movies on “Mystery Science Theater 3000,” to Saturday nights renting and discovering forgotten gems like Wolfen, I love movies that are off-beat and deal with “normal” things “good” movies don’t. Heck I even paid to see, and enjoyed, Snakes on a Plane. So I’m seriously wonder-ing if there’s something wrong with me for not lik-ing Grindhouse.

Grindhouses were movie theaters that would show mostly obscure films, ex-ploitation fare or some-times old classics and of-ten had double features to boot. Sometimes they were nice, classy joints; other times they were a town’s ghetto theater.

Such places no longer exist, so directors Robert Rodriguez (Sin City, Des-perado) and Quentin Tar-antino (Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill) decided to make one B-movie apiece then put them together, along with a few fake movie trailers, and create a double-feature that replicated the experience of going to a grindhouse. And for the most part, they’ve succeeded. But whether that’s an experience many people will enjoy, or wheth-er the movies they’ve made are as good as B-movies

you can already rent, isn’t so sure.

Rodriguez’s film, Planet Terror, is about a group of people banding together in a town that is infected with a virus that turns peo-ple into flesh craving, boil covered mutants. It’s the same type of over-the-top, gory, action filled romp as movies like Evil Dead 2 and Romero’s Night of the Liv-ing Dead films.

Death Proof, Tarantino’s half, follows two groups of women who find themselves marked for death by a man with a “death proofed” car. It’s more in vein with speed freak films from the ’70’s like Vanishing Point (which plays a big role) and Hal Needham (Smokey and the Bandit) movies.

Unfortunately, like a lot of B-movies with awesome content but flawed execu-tion, the films fail to live up to their potential. Mov-ies like Planet Terror, with mutants/zombies amuck, unique characters and out-landish violence have been done better in the likes of Night of the Creeps, the Evil Dead series and Braindead (also known as Dead/Alive, one of Peter Jackson’s first movies). And Death Proof, which has the awe-some premise of Kurt Rus-sell in full tough-guy mode hunting down women in a supped-up car, is really about the women he hunts.

Instead of a tension filled game of cat-and-mouse ala Duel, Death Proof is, like a lot of disappointing B-mov-ies are, filled with lots of boring talky scenes to pad things out until the cool car scenes. Either Tarantino intended this to capture the feel of a B-movie, or

the long, pointless talking scenes are supposed to be entertaining. Either way, it misses the entertainment mark by a mile, and the movie drags badly. How-ever, the car chase scene at the end is so amazing it’s almost worth the wait.

That’s not to say that all of Grindhouse is disap-pointing. The fake movie trailers shown before and between Planet Terror and Death Proof are a blast and better capture the spirit of a grindhouse and B-mov-ies than either of the full length features.

There’s enough goofy and gross-out gore in Planet Terror to fill about three Italian hor-ror movies. The final car chase in Death Proof is long, tension filled and exciting, and the women in both are gorgeous; from the steamy Rose Mc-

Gowan to real-life stuntwom-an Zoe Bell, who plays herself in Death Proof and, with her girlish yet tomboyish attitude, almost steals that movie out from under Rosario Dawson and Kurt Russell.

The rest of the cast is solidly rounded out, with B-movie vets like Michael Biehn and cameos by the likes of Tom Savini. Heck, even Fergie of the Black Eyed Peas gets eaten by mutants, which gets high points from me.

Digitally added film scratches, fake “missing reel” segments and ’70s era soundtracks and title cards further enhance the grind-house feel.

I have to admit I may have shot myself in the foot when I saw Grindhouse be-cause I saw it by myself in a near empty theater on a

Monday afternoon, which is definitely not how it or oth-er B-movies should be seen. Then again, I saw Slither by myself and had a blast. Ei-ther way, Grindhouse is an experience, one better suit-ed to a viewing with friends or on an empty Saturday night on DVD with lots of junk food and beverages ACU’s student policy for-bids you from imbibing.

But, with its three hour running time, very “un-ACU” subject matter (which may be a problem for some), and the fact that there are bet-ter B-movies you can rent already, Grindhouse is, sad to say, hard to recommend.

Gory ‘Grindhouse’ misses the entertainment mark

courtesy of ROTTENTOMATOES.COM

The second film in Grindhouse is a Tarantino slasher-thriller where Kirk Russell plays a serial killer who uses his car to dispose of his victims. Both ‘Death Proof’ and ‘Planet of Terror’ combine for a three and half hour feature.

e-mail Williams at: cww02b@acu.edu

Friday, April 13, 2007 Page 5FROM THE FRONT

grassland of vast extent with haystacks, cattle and horses aroused my interest.

In my imagination, ranch people have a beard, wear a worn-out straw hat or a cowboy hat, old checkered shirt, a pair of overalls and leather boots. They sit on a rocking chair on the porch with a dog, drink coffee and read a newspaper.

I realized I’ve never seen anything like that here in Abilene and thought, “How can I miss those things liv-ing in Texas for more than three years?” I wished I could be like one of those characters in the movies, but I looked too foreign to fit in my imaginary world of ranch people.

Culture ShockThe day before Thanksgiv-

ing, I finally got a chance to experience an old culture of America. I woke up at 7 a.m. and spent 20 minutes try-ing to find the best clothes for my first ranch experi-ence. I didn’t have any ranch clothes, but I tried my best. A dark blue sweater, a red checkered shirt and a pair of blue jeans — clothes that are a bit different from what I usually wear.

I was meeting a young present-day cowboy in front of Nelson Hall, but I had no idea how he or his car looked like. Having lost my cell phone a few days ago, I didn’t have any way to reach him.

“What am I going to do if I can’t find him?” I wondered.

The next moment the wor-ry left me. A white, unusu-al-looking truck with a big silver tank on the back and mud on the tires was parked along East North 16th Street; I knew that car would take me to a ranch.

Casey Armstrong, 25-year-old ACU alumnus, is one of those present-day cowboys. He used to travel around the states to com-pete in rodeo. He works at two ranches on the west and east side of Abilene: Tye Ranch and Hardy Grissom Ranch. Since he graduated from ACU with a bachelor’s degree in agricultural busi-ness in 2005, he has been working full time at Phil Guitar’s ranches for about a year. The Tye and Gris-som ranches belong to the Abilene division of Guitar’s ranches, and two other divi-sions are in Big Spring and Spur. The owner, Phil Gui-tar, is the third generation to manage the Guitar fam-ily’s ranches, according to Big Ranch Country Produc-tions Web site.

Five days a week, Arm-strong’s day begins at 7:30 a.m., putting on a black cowboy hat, a pair of blue jeans, a belt with a big buckle and cowboy boots. He drives a white truck to Tye Ranch, where his father used to work. He takes care of cattle, patrols around the field and he goes to train horses at Grissom Ranch

until around 5 p.m.During a 20-minute drive

to Tye Ranch, I was already experiencing a culture shock as we exchanged brief life stories. I was surprised that most of his family members can ride horses, and he was surprised that I had never seen a horizon until I came to Texas.

As I was staring at dry land from the passenger seat, the white truck passed through the gate of Tye Ranch. An endless, straight road and vast, flat land, a small cabin, a windmill and no sign of technology was before me. I was having a real culture shock, finally.

All in a day’s workArmstrong told me Tye

Ranch is about 2,500 acres and Grissom about 6,500. It sounds really huge, but for some foreign people like me, the unit acre is uncom-mon. Compared with my only knowledge of the unit — Winnie the Pooh’s 100-Acre Wood — those numbers sounded huge.

Natural gas and oil depos-its bring more than 75 per-cent of the ranch’s income.

The rest of income comes from selling cattle. The ranch usually keeps about 200 cattle of horses and cows and sell older cattle in spring and replaces them with younger ones.

As he patrolled around the ranch, he pressed one of several buttons that are un-common in a normal type of car. Suddenly, a loud, stun-ning siren went off. Shortly after, the truck was sur-rounded by a group of black and dark brown cattle and some newborn ones. Those cows are trained to respond to the siren that announces dinner time.

“This is just like an African safari!” I said.

The wildness of the sight was well beyond my expecta-tion. As I said that, a cowboy next to me laughed.

“You get to see a lot of wild life here,” Armstrong said.

Around noon, Armstrong and I went to the Grissom Ranch, which is on the east side of Abilene. While Arm-strong was patrolling around the ranch, a group of hunters came from the front.

“Did you catch anything?” Armstrong began talking with

a father of the hunting family. They chatted for a while over the car window in the middle of the dry field.

“Take care,” Armstrong said to them.

Even an everyday conver-sation like that sounds differ-ent and unordinary in a wild environment like that.

New friendsAfter a short drive, I met

a beautiful 7-year-old horse, Bill. He had ocher smooth hair, a dark brown mane and big kind eyes. Arm-strong took Bill and anoth-er younger unnamed horse with dark brown hair to the inside of a field surrounded by a wooden fence.

“You can name the horse if you want to,” he said to me, but I couldn’t think of any good name for the horse.

He first let the young one run free and he rode on Bill. Armstrong usually rides and trains horses for about five hours a day, four days a week.

After a while, I had a chance to ride Bill: the first horse ride of my life. I al-ways thought I had ridden a horse at a ranch theme

park in Japan, but it was really a pony. A real horse looked much bigger than I thought, but surprising-ly, I wasn’t scared at all. I grabbed the leather saddle with a cross and flowers el-egantly engraved on it, put my left foot on a foothold and hopped on Bill’s back. I didn’t feel very comfortable, but the view from Bill’s back seemed different.

I gently squeezed my legs to tell Bill to start walking. He didn’t respond at first, but slowly Bill began walk-ing. Walk, stop. Walk, stop. Bill seemed a little confused, but we began communicat-ing better after a few tries. Bill and I were just making a little circle in the middle of the field, but still it was a special experience.

“You did well. You weren’t scared,” Armstrong said to me. “Many people are usually scared at first, but there is

nothing to be scared of.” While Armstrong was train-

ing those horses, a few older and younger cowboys came and talked with him.

“He’s a good cowboy,” a younger cowboy said about Armstrong.

Had there not been big trucks around them, they seemed like cowboys from the Western movies.

After the training, I led Bill to a shed and patted his back and face. I said thank you to my first horse friend.

My six-hour-long ranch experience became some-thing memorable in my studying abroad college life. When I went to New York, I thought that was America. But I was wrong.

Surely, America was in Texas.

Ranch: Student experiences cowboy cultureContinued from page 1

emily smith CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER

Robin, named after Armstrong’s grandfather, is a three-legged cow dog Armstrong bought last year.

emily smith CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER

Armstrong, an ACU alumnus, herds bulls into a trailer at the Grissom Ranch outside of Abilene with Robin’s help.

emily smith CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER

Hoyt Foster of Cross Springs repairs a horseshoe for Jet at the Grissom Ranch on Wednesday after the horse’s shoe fell off. Jet belongs to the ranch’s owner, Phil Guitar.

E-mail Shibata at: axs03d@acu.edu

Page 6 April 13, 2007

The issue:Matt Worthington won the race for SA studentbody president.

Our view:Worthington has made many promises to lead and communicate with the student body, which he should pursue and remain committed to.

The solution:Like Worthington proposes, he should not make a list of things to do, but make it his priority to be in relationship with students.

Worthington romances ACU student bodyWith the election of Matt

Worthington for Students’ Association president, the student body can now only wait to see if Worthington will impress like he said.

Worthington did not give a huge list of things he wanted to accomplish, but instead compared his plans with going on a date.

Worthington said when he takes a girl on a date, he has a plan but doesn’t de-tail the events ahead to his date. Now, he says he is tak-ing the same approach with leading the student body next year.

Matt may have an idea of what he wants to do, but the student body does not. We are being taken on a blind date and want to know what

to expect. Worthing-ton will un-doubtedly use his skills, and the skills of those surround-ing him, to be the president the stu-dents expect.

While the Optimist en-dorsed Worthington because of his wanting to be a leader amongst SA Congress and his views of being a commu-nicator to the student body, Worthington needs to fulfill his promise of making next year similar to a good date.

Worthington speaks of communicating with the student body by bringing

discussions, forums and dinners to campus to brand the SA name.

Part of communicating with the students, Worthing-ton said, will be to be a voice for students to faculty and administrators. Worthing-ton is serving on a com-mittee looking at changes in social club changes. His on-going involvement with the committee gives him the experience needed to make

decisions for the students about chang-es in policy that could be affected.

Worth ing -ton also says he wants to cut back on

some of the spending on the Cabinet and put it towards monthly forums and build-ing relationships with the campus. With the money that each student pays into the SA budget, Worthington should be the president to ensure that the students’ thoughts and concerns reach the appropriate people.

To use an acting anal-ogy, Worthington said he wants to be the director for

the cast of actors in SA. His willingness to be a strong leader will be needed to a Congress that has faced at-tendance problems.

Cracking down and being a leader to the campus and rest of Congress while trying to bring more people to SA will be a positive step for SA.

Summing up his thoughts on what he wants to accom-plish, Worthington said it would be a tragedy to do a lot of good thing, but to never do the right thing. If Worthington lives up to what he says, then the stu-dents will feel like the date is successful.

Unsigned editorials are the opinions of the Optimist and may not necessarily reflect the views of the university or its administration.

Signed columns, cartoons and letters are the opinions of their creators and may not necessarily reflect the viewpoints of the Optimist or the university.

The Optimist encourages reader response through letters to the editor but reserves the right to limit frequent contributors or to refuse to print letters containing personal

attacks, obscenity, defamation, erroneous information or invasion of privacy.

Please limit letters to 350 words or fewer. A name and phone number must be included for verification purposes. Phone numbers will not be published.

Address letters to:ACU Box 27892

Abilene, TX 79699

E-mail letters to: optimist@acu.edu

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Editorial and Management Board

Mallory SchlabachEditor in Chief

Jared FieldsManaging Editor

Michelle JimenezCopy Editor

Lauren SuttonOpinion Editor

Emily SmithChief Photographer

Kelsi PeaceFeatures Editor

Daniel JohnsonSports Editor

Todd PiersallArts Editor

Shelby CoatesVideo Editor

Christi StarkAdvertising Manager

Kenneth PybusAdviser

While the Optimist endorsed Worthington be-cause of his wanting to be a leader amongst SA Congress and views of being a communicator

to the student body, Worthington needs to fulfill his promise of making next year similar

to a good date.

E-mail the Optimist at: optimist@acu.edu

Alex YorkLebensgefhar

Early last semester on Sept. 27, I made a comic some people feel made fun of IJM. While I didn’t intend

that, and have noth-ing against IJM, what I did in-tend was to make a point. And, with Pam Cope s p e a k i n g in chapel r e c e n t l y and oth-er things

happening in my life, I think the point should be brought up again.

I’ve always seen a lot of attention paid on helping the less fortunate in the world, and here at ACU that attention is often fo-cused on people in poorer foreign countries, on feed-ing them, c l o t h i n g them, free-ing them from slav-ery, even a d o p t i n g them. But I think there are other peo-ple we’re not paying enough at-tention to, which is terrible be-cause they’re all around us. I think we need to re-member to take care of what’s at home, of our own lives, of those in our hometowns, of those right down the street, before we fly halfway around the world.

There are plenty of peo-ple right here in Abilene who need help. How many homeless people do you see on the average day begging for change by the side of the road? What about people born into the poverty that overruns parts of this town? Don’t they need help too?

I can understand why people are sometimes more willing and inter-ested in helping people

in developing countries. They have even less op-portunities than the fi-nancially poorest people here, but I think there’s another side to it, a side that appeals to a sense of good, old-fasioned, liberal guilt and pride in helping the “less fortunate” from exotic lands. Honestly, which sounds more im-pressive: that you do mis-sionary work in Abilene, or that you do it in Afri-ca? That you’ve adopted a child from Vermont, or one from Vietnam?

I’m not going to say that all people work in or adopt from poorer coun-tries for those reasons, and I’m not implying it in the case of Mrs. Cope. But I’m not going to say it doesn’t happen either. Sorry for being cynical, but hey it happens.

I’m not saying we shouldn’t help peo-ple in oth-er parts of the world, but we shouldn’t f o r g e t those at home ei-ther. Peo-ple talk about res-cuing oth-ers from slavery in the world,

but there’s more than one kind of slavery. There’s the slavery of poverty, of drug addiction, of being born in a violent house-hold. The people around us are just next door, and they’re the people we live with, grow up with and die with. We can’t forget to plant the seed of good will and a better life in our own gardens while watering those of others, or else our gardens are going to rot.

The Mouthof Madness

Cole Williams

Helping those close to home

The biggest mystery of the year — and perhaps the decade — was solved earli-er this week. After months

of debate, a Bahamian court re-vealed that Danny Birk-head was indeed the father of Anna Nicole Smith’s 11-month baby Dannielynn. A d o r i n g fans, gossip

mongers and everyone else entranced by perhaps the final saga in Smith’s life can rest assured. We now know who the father is.

But the court’s announce-ment made more than one thing clear this week. Not only did I learn truth about the baby’s paternity, but also I realized the value of life. It’s not usually in good taste to speak ill of the dead, but if my life is re-membered for my unusual marriage choice, distaste-ful profession, suspicious death and debate over the father of my child — then my life was a waste.

This year the U.S. expec-tancy rate reached an all-

time high, despite the fact that it seems half our popu-lation is either obese or di-agnosed with cancer at 78 years. Although the country isn’t even in the top 10 for expectancy rates, the rate has improved from age 74, 30 years ago.

If the majority of people in our country continue to live longer, then most of us have more than 50 years of life left in us, Lord willing. Why not make something of your life — and not just as much money as you can.

Organizations around the world focus on making a dif-ference in the world. The op-portunities that one has to-day to make a difference of any size is incredible. They can range from using your education to find a cure for cancer, AIDS, leukemia to being a mentor in a child’s life through Big Brothers Big Sisters, local churches or af-ter-school programs to mak-ing the personal decision to recycle.

Leo Buscaglia once said, “Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.”

If you want to make something of your life, and not necessarily through fame or riches, find your identity in service, giving, community and charity.

Makeadifference.org lists projects and gives ideas of how one person to 100 peo-ple can reach out in their own community. 43things.com is a Web site where “do-gooders” can make lists of what they want to accom-plish in the world and whom they want to help. The lists become a form of blogging and allow the philanthropist to find encouragement and inspiration from the site’s other members who offer advice and suggestions on how to achieve those goals of service.

The ONE campaign was created with the idea of get-ting every American to help make poverty history and find a cure for global AIDS by donations. The organiza-tion derives its name from the belief that by allocating an additional 1 percent of the countries budget could change the future for the world’s poorest countries.

Bethecause.org lists ser-vice opportunities across the country people can par-ticipate in from helping an interior designer in Michi-gan makeover a bedroom 30 women share at a bat-tered woman’s home to vol-unteering to give free hugs in Manhattan Beach, Calif.

Planet Earth is an orga-nization that gives tips on conserving energy and wa-ter, slowing global warming and how to reduce, recycle and reuse every day objects. Making a difference can be as hard or as easy as you want it to be. The choice is up to you. How will you make a difference?

Make something of life, make a difference

Face theFacts

MallorySchlabach

If you want to make something of your life, and not necessarily through fame or riches, find

your identity in service, giving, community and charity.

I’ve always seen a lot of attention paid on helping the less

fortunate in the world, and here at ACU that attention is often fo-

cused on people in poor-er foreign countries.

E-mail Schlabach at: mes02e@acu.edu or optimist@acu.edu

E-mail Williams at: cww02b@acu.edu or optimist@acu.edu

Friday, April 13, 2007 Page 7FROM THE FRONT/SPORTS JUMPS

all sports other than football and basketball as part of the Lone Star Conference’s 75-year anniversary commemoration. In the 11 years that Jones has been head coach of ACU tennis, his teams have racked up 459 wins and only 167 losses.

“I can’t believe I’ve been here for 11 years,” Jones said. “It seems like I’ve just started. Whatever award you win is be-cause of a lot of other people. I mean, it’s nice, but it’s hard to take any credit because of all the players and then the sup-porters of the program.”

The only other ACU tennis honorees were Donna Sykes, who played for the Wildcat women from 1986-89, and Michelle King, who played for ACU from 1988-92.

Upset: Three athletes honored by universityContinued from page 8

E-mail Freeman at: mxf04b@acu.edu

One of the five start-ers is Belgian golfer Hugues Joannes who has finished top 15 in every tournament so far this season.

“Hugues was a good junior player before he came to ACU, and now he’s still doing great,” Campbell said.

Campbell said Curt Harris has really come on strong with his tie for fifth with Joannes in the Kickingbird Classic last March and his top 15 finish at North Alabama. Campbell also explained that Patrick Hanauer and Stephen Knight have really played well when needed this season.

The Wildcats will head into the LSC Championship on Monday ranked tied for 13th with Valdosta State in the Golf World/NIKE Golf Coaches Poll. ACU will be the top-ranked LSC team at the tournament with Central Oklahoma not too far behind at 16.

Golf: ACU golf enters ranked No. 13 in nationContinued from page 8

E-mail Macdonald at: optimist@acu.edu

of the training for some of his runners.

Serge Gasore, usually a 5,000-kilometer and 10,000-kilometer runner, will run the 800- and 1,500-meters this weekend.

“We’re training him there,” Hood said. “It will be part of

training to run a faster pace.”Hood is using Julius

Nyango the same way, run-ning him in a longer event than he usually runs.

“We need to do the opposite with him,” Hood said. “Build up his endurance.”

To build his endurance, Nyango will run the 5k, a far stretch from the 800-meters

and 1,500-meters he is accus-tomed to running.

Women middle distance runners, Denise Morgan, Mary Mwangi, Vanessa Whittle and Olha Kryv’yak, will have the weekend off to rest an d train.

“They’ve had about three weeks of competing so they need some time to train through,” Hood said.

Nicodemus Naimadu is tak-ing the weekend off after win-ning the 10,000-kilometers at Stanford, then the steeple-chase in Austin in consecutive weeks. The rest for Naimadu is a welcomed break after his two tough weekends.

In practice, Hood said Naimadu felt fine except for a few cramps, or “stitches,” in

his side. His legs and back had been troubling him, but Hood said that is behind him now.

“Other than a few stitches in his side, he’s OK,” Hood said. “He’ll run the 5k at TCU.”

Some field event athletes are taking some time off as well, but the rest will compete in San Angelo.

Even some sprinters are tak-

ing time off to recuperate. “I feel a lot better from

indoors; I was out for most of indoors,” said sprinter Sasharine McLarty.

While McLarty does feels better, she said she’s not at 100 percent yet, but will help pre-pare her for the TCU meet.

Angelo: ACU runners change events to sharpen specialtiesContinued from page 8

E-mail Fields: jrf03b@acu.edu

Watten, who also starts at shortstop and never pitched before this season, has an opposing batting average of .232 and is fifth in the LSC in strikeouts with 49.

In addition to one of the conference’s best starters, ACU has one of the nation’s best closer in right-hander Jameson Maj.

In his first season at ACU, Maj already holds the career and single-season records for saves (10) and has made more

appearances (24) than any other pitcher in the league. Maj also is fifth in the nation in Di-vision II base-ball for saves and has five wins on top of his saves.

At the plate, cen-t e r f i e l d e r Matt Spotanski has been the most consistent hit-ter for the Wildcats, with a team-leading 63 hits and

eight triples. “I try not to think; I just go

up and hit,” Spontaski said. Spotanski’s eight triples

broke the single-season re-cord for ACU set by Brain Runnels in 1995 and the eighth in the nation for tri-ples per game.

Seven of ACU’s 10 losses have been on the road, but ACU has won the last two meetings between the Javelinas.

Kingsville, who is tied for second in the LSC South with Angelo, is coming off of a series loss to Tarleton

State, and ACU is looking for its first series win on the road since March 13 against Southeastern Okla-homa State.

ACU leads the series against Kingsville overall at 37-30 and won the last two series between the two in 2005 and 2006.

ACU will play a double-header starting at 4 p.m. Friday in Kingsville and will finish the series with a dou-bleheader Saturday at noon.

Kingsville: ACU boasts league’s best closerContinued from page 8

into the fall. The renovation includes extensive alterations to the second floor and minor changes to the first floor which should make the spaces more functional for the departments of design and journalism and mass communication.

The Sikes Hall remodel is already underway. Construc-tion had to be started early to allow enough time to

complete the project by next fall because the project is so massive, Nevill said.

“We have 70 days in the summer to do whatever we’re going to do to residence halls,” Nevill said. “It’s very, very tight. That’s the reason we had to start Sikes this spring.”

The renovation includes extending the rooms and mak-ing the exterior of the building look like Barret Hall.

Other buildings will also

receive alterations in addition to normal maintenance. Mabee Hall will receive new carpet, paint and drop ceilings; the exterior of Edwards Hall will be sealed to fix leaking; and Chambers Hall will receive a minor renovation to the clinic.

New windows will be in-stalled in Smith-Adams Hall, and the open patios will be screened to prevent unwanted pigeons from roosting there.

Construction of the Diane

and John Duncum Center for Conflict Resolution will also begin this summer. The 6,000 square foot building will be located at the corner of Judge Ely Boulevard and East North 16th.

There are also other proj-ects physical resources plans to have completed by fall, which includes resurfacing five parking lots and extending and resurfacing the tennis courts.

The parking lots that will

be affected are the lots next to Barret Hall, Gibson Health and Physical Education Center, Larry Sanders Intramural Field, Williams Performing Arts Cen-ter and the lot across from the Zona Luce Building.

Nevill said he has three peo-ple acting as project managers and will employ 100 student workers this summer.

Renovations: Construction filled SummerContinued from page 1

E-mail Hansen at: optimist@acu.edu

about the needs in India. Intrigued, the couple asked how they could support work going on in India, and for more than a decade, the couple has financially sup-ported missionary Isaac Palaparthi and his family.

The Pettit’s love for In-dia grew gradually as they, through correspondence, be-came friends with Palaparthi and looked for new ways to increase their support. Each Christmas, the Pettit family

would buy clothes and rice for the widows and orphans of India, and in 2006 they even asked their relatives to help fund Indians as well be-cause Palaparthi was looking to open a children’s home.

Little did the Pettit’s know that Palaparthi wanted them to begin the home. Ray said he and Amanda prayed about the situation and were sure they weren’t supposed to serve in that capacity.

“We kept looking for a way to tell Isaac we couldn’t do this without letting him

down,” Ray said. But through a strange se-

ries of events including con-nections with people from Eternal Threads and the partnering of Ruth Jackson, a missionary to Haiti, the couple decided to not only start the home but travel to India to meet the children who will live there.

Through the financial support of other Chris-tians, Sanctuary Home was opened in June of 2006, which provided 15 Indian children a home, and in

four short months, 42 chil-dren were sponsored.

Americans can sponsor a child for $30 a month, which provides the child with school uniforms, bed-ding and utensils for the home, special medical treatments and surgeries and legal bills.

Last December, the Pet-tits traveled to Tenali for the first time. Amanda said it was amazing to finally see all the children they had been supporting from the states.

Right now, the couple is raising money to build an-other children’s home in hopes of one day having multiple houses as a part of Sanctuary Home.

“I think what’s so excit-ing is that it takes so little for us to make such a huge difference,” Amanda said. “It’s making a difference for a child’s whole life and for many future generations.”

Orphanage: Sponsorships only $30 a monthContinued from page 1

E-mail Sutton at: les03c@acu.edu

and Watkins.“I’m OK that it’s D.P.,”

said Stephen, who plans to apply for the chief advance-ment officer position again.

Kevan Kirksey, sopho-more finance major from Tyler, was elected treasurer with 736 votes; his oppo-nent, Kyle Moore junior man-agement major from Double Oak, received 481 votes.

Kirksey said he waited

for results from a Rangers game in Dallas.

“It was the least-enjoy-able baseball game I’ve ever been to,” said Kirksey, who didn’t hear the results until the ninth inning.

“I was kind of surprised,” Moore said. “I think a lot of people wanted [Kirksey] because he was the chief fi-nancial officer.”

But Moore said he isn’t done with SA.

“I still have projects that

I want to do,” Moore said. “Just because I didn’t win treasurer doesn’t mean I’m going to cop out.”

While the work of cam-paigning is over, the newly-elected cabinet members have several things on the agenda for the rest of the semester.

On Thursday, Worthing-ton met with Jim Holmans, executive assistant to the president, and Kevin Wat-son, associate vice presi-

dent for administrative ser-vices, and a few candidates for the vice president of Campus Life position. He said he is ready to meet with his executive cabinet and establish a plan as a team.

“That’s what I said I was about,” Worthington said. “Community.”

Smith was unavailable for comment by press time.

For the rest of the semes-ter, Watkins said he plans to meet with about half

the student groups, and all three plan to begin making connections with adminis-trators. Worthington, Wat-kins and Kirksey will also review applications for the appointed officer positions and make their selections before the end of the year.

SA: Worthington prepares for year as president Continued from page 1

E-mail Johnson at: djj04a@acu.edu

Maj

The ACU baseball team leads the Lone Star Conference in numerous offensive and defensive categories.

n Hits (484)

n RBI (323)

n Batting average (.367)

n ERA (4.48)

n Saves (10)

n Runs scored (366)

n Fielding percentage (.973)

LSC LEadERS

E-mail Peace at: knp04a@acu.edu

OUTDOOR SOCCERSee intramural board for schedule.

VOLLEYBALLMen’s and women’s champ league began Tuesday, see intramural bulletin board in Moody Coliseum for schedule.

SOFTBALLSoftball began Monday, see intramural board for team names and schedule.

SportSFridayPage 8 April 13, 2007

SCOREBOARD

Standings

InTRAmURAL ROUnD-Up

n The intramural schedule and points seen on the Optimist sports page are not final and subject to change. Any last-minute changes can be viewed on the intramural bulletin board in Moody Coliseum.

Scoreboard as of Thursday

BASEBALLTeam Div. OverallACUAngelo St. TAMK-UTarletonENMU

WTAM

6-25-35-32-42-41-5

31-1028-1222-1917-2317-239-27

SOFTBALLTeam Div. OverallAngelo St. TAMK-UTarletonENMUACU

TX Woman’s

15-111-17-55-76-102-10

36-628-1026-1020-2020-1714-27

WTAM 2-14 12-31

Upcoming

Friday

WOmEn’S TEnnISACU vs. Texas Southern, Houston, 10 a.m.

ACU vs. Rice University, Houston, 4 p.m.

BASEBALLACU vs. Texas A&M-Kingsville, Kingsville, 4p.m. (DH)

SOFTBALLACU vs. Eastern New Mexico, Portales, N.M., noon (DH)

Saturday

BASEBALLACU vs. Texas A&M-Kingsville, Kingsville, 1 p.m. (DH)

SOFTBALLACU vs. Eastern New Mexico, Portales, N.M., noon (DH)

TRACK & FIELDACU at Angelo State Relays, San Angelo, all day

Sunday

mEn’S TEnnISACU vs. Texas Southern, Houston, noon.

ACU vs. Rice University, Houston, 6 p.m.

monday

GOLFACU at Lone Star Conference Championships, Roanoke

Tuesday

GOLFACU at Lone Star Conference Championships, Ronaoke

Upcoming

Briefs

Long distance duo

n ACU long distance runners Nicodemus Naimadu and Olha Kryv’yak each were named Lone Star Conference Track Athletes of the Week on Thursday after they each posted first place finishes at the Texas Relays in the 3,000 meter steeplechase. Naimadu won the men’s race and Kryv’yak won the women’s competition.

n Beginning with Eastern new mexico, the ACU softball team needs to win its last three Lone Star Conference South series to secure a postseason appearance.

By RACHEL DAVISSportS Writer

ACU will play Eastern New Mexico this weekend in a Lone Star South division battle for a postseason tournament spot.

Currently, ACU is ranked fifth in the conference, one game behind Eastern New Mexico, and to receive a tournament spot the team must be ranked at fourth

or higher in the division. “We know we need to

take care of business the next two conference series with Eastern New Mexico and West Texas A&M if we are going to have a chance at postseason play,” said head coach Chantiel Wilson.

The four-game series with Eastern New Mexico could make or break the team’s chances to appear for the third straight time in the postseason tourna-ment, but Wilson said the team is uninfluenced by the

pressure situation. “I feel we can deal with

that kind of pressure,” Wilson said.

This weekend and next weekend’s games leave the team with only eight con-ference games left to play, and because the team has been struggling offensively this season, the games are crucial for them.

“We feel if we can win at least five of the conference games, we’ll have a shot,” Wilson said. “But we are shooting to win all eight.”

If the team does win all eight of its next games, they

will most likely receive a post-season berth ahead of Eastern New Mexico, Texas Woman’s and West Texas A&M.

Postseason will be tough for ACU and its struggling offense, matching them up against teams that have been batting over .300 all season. ACU has kept an average between .270 and .260 this season and may have problems against Eastern New Mexico’s of-fense this weekend. East-ern New Mexico has an overall batting average of .317, several points ahead of the ACU offense.

First baseman Jenna Daugherty received special mention from the Lone Star Conference for her perfor-mance in last weekend’s games against Southeastern Oklahoma, where she was 3 for 6 with one run scored, one double, one home run and four RBIs. Her homerun was the securing score of the first game that ACU won 6-3.

“We’ll continue to do the things we need to do to win four games this weekend,” Wilson said.

n Some members of the ACU track and field team will rest this weekend while the rest will compete in San Angelo at the Angelo State Relays.

By JARED FIELDSManaging editor

Depending on who you are on the ACU track and field team, this weekend will either bring rest or the Angelo State Relays.

“It comes at a good time for half of the team who didn’t compete at the Tex-as Relays,” said distance coach Derek Hood. “For us at a training standpoint, it comes at a good time in the season; it’s about halfway through the season.”

While some runners are tak-ing time to rest, Hood is using the meet in San Angelo as part

Rest, ‘Relays’ await Wildcats

n ACU’s upset of top ranked St. Edwards in its last regular season match should enhance the Wildcats chances of hosting the Central region tournament.

By MICHAEL FREEMANonline editor

The ACU men’s tennis team upset St. Edward’s, the No. 13 team in the nation and the top ranked team in the Central region, in Austin on Wednes-day with a 5-4 victory. The win over the No. 1 team in the Central region gives ACU a good chance to be a regional host in the Division II National Tournament next month.

“This win gives us great momentum going into next week’s Lone Star Conference Tournament,” said head coach Hutton Jones. “Our goal is to not only make the national tournament but to also host a regional site. I think this win solidifies our case for that. The guys are playing good tennis right now, and it’s great that we are ending the regular season on a crescendo.”

The men’s win Wednesday places ACU at 22-9 on the sea-son. The women, who have a record of 21-3, played Lee College, the No. 2 junior col-

lege in the nation, on Thurs-day. On Friday, the women will face Division I foe Rice University.

“It should be a good match,” Jones said. “Rice is a top 75-type D-I school, but I think we’re capable of beating a team like that.”

The ACU men are now done with their regular season, and the win over St. Edward’s was an exciting way to end the season. On Wednesday, ACU dropped two of the three dou-bles matches, and St. Edward’s grabbed two singles matches to gain a 4-2 advantage. But the Wildcats, whose singles play has not been quite as strong as

its doubles in the past, clawed back to take the match. Senior George Carstens, senior Bryce Hicks and freshman Luke Hawk won the final three sin-gles matches to give ACU a 5-4 win. Next up for the Wildcats is the Lone Star Conference Tour-nament which is set for April 19-20 in Oklahoma City.

ACU’s consistent play over the years, on both the men’s and women’s side, helped name Coach Jones to the Lone Star Conference All-Sports Team on April 4. The list honored the top 75 student-athletes and coaches from

Men upset Central Region leader St. Edwards

n The nationally ranked ACU golf team will enter the Lone Star Conference tournament on monday and Tuesday as one of the favorites to win the tournament.

By NATHAN MACDONALDSportS Writer

Monday the ACU golf team will face its first postseason

step to becoming national champions at the Lone Star Conference Championship at the Trophy Club Golf Course in Roanoke. Although the step will be difficult, ACU golf coach Mike Campbell and his team are ready for the challenge.

“We are one of the favor-ite’s teams along with Cen-tral Oklahoma, and we are peaking at the right time so the chance is there for us to win it,” Campbell said.

The Wildcats have finished third in the past two tourna-ments, being, at most, only five strokes behind the leader. The five starters who started

in Alabama will be the lineup Campbell believes will bring the most success for ACU.

“The five starters all have different strengths and weaknesses, but they all are very competitive, and that will help us out,” Campbell said.

ACU squad favored at LSC tourney

brian schmidt SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

George Carstens returns a shot against Cameron University on April 6. Carsterns won a crucial singles match against St. Ewards on Wednesday.

brian schmidt SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

Leisha Johnson gets caught stealing second base during Wednesday practice. Johnson and the rest of the ACU softball team will play Eastern New Mexico this weekend in Portales, N.M.

Softball

E-mail Davis at: optimist@acu.edu

Wins needed for postseason appearance

Tennis

Crunch time

Golf

n The nationally ranked ACU baseball team will play in its first Lone Star Conference South series this weekend against Texas A&m-Kingsville.

By DANIEL JOHNSONSportS editor

After splitting a series with defending Lone Star Conference champions Central Oklahoma, sweeping Tarleton State and nearly winning its series against defending LSC South champs Angelo State, ACU may have already seen the best its conference has to offer.

But if the nationally ranked Wildcats want to continue its way to its tenth straight playoff appearance, it won’t be the opposing teams keeping it out of the postseason.

“Our toughest enemy right now is our-selves,” said head coach Britt Bonneau.

The ACU baseball team will continue divisional play this weekend in its first LSC South road series against Texas A&M-

Kingsville Javelinas. ACU will head to Kingsville with a first

place divisional record of 6-2 and No. 12 national ranking; and for Bonneau the se-ries is theirs to lose.

“This time of the year every weekend is a big weekend,” Bonneau said. “It’s just a matter of us playing our game in a differ-ent environment.”

ACU has continued to be the best in the LSC, leading in team batting average (.367), ERA (4.48) and RBI (323). Wild-cat starting pitcher Trey Watten is the only starter in the LSC that has not lost a game and survived two pitching duels his last two starts.

“Its only because [Watten] was in the game that we were able to pull something out,” Bonneau said.

First road test expected at Kingsville

brian schmidt SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

Designated hitter J.J. Pacheco runs past second base during the Wildcats series against Angelo State on April 6.

Baseball

See GOLF page 7

See KInGSVILLE page 7

See AnGELO page 7

See UpSET page 7