The Eligibility Verifi cation for Entitlements Act, passed by the Tennessee legislature last October, is in effect for all in-coming Spring 2013 students.

The new law requires all in-coming students to verify their United States citizenship or lawful presence in the country in order to receive state ben-efi ts. This law does not pertain to private tuition assistance or donations, only state benefi ts like the HOPE Scholarship.

“The intention of the law is to make sure state tax dollars do not go to non-United States citizens,” Alexis Pope, director of admissions, said.

Students can meet the re-quirements for the Eligibility

for Entitlements Act by provid-ing ID such as a driver’s licenseor birth certifi cate or by fi llingout the Free Application forFederal Student Aid every year.

“The most popular way isto fi ll out a FAFSA,” Pope said.“Most students who attendmeet the requirement by fi llingout a FAFSA.”

If a student prefers not to fi llout a FAFSA, he or she can pro-vide a scan of his or her driver’slicense or other form of identi-fi cation, to the Admissions de-partment.

“There are no other forms tofi ll out, just pop your driver’slicense into a scanner and emailit to us,” Pope said. “The emailaddress is admissions@tntech.edu.”

President Philip Oldham’s dream for Tech is taking fl ight this semester with the release of Flight Plan: Focused on the Fu-ture. The strategic plan involves four focus areas and key goals aimed to better several aspects of Tech’s campus.

“It’s a strategic plan on ste-roids” said Oldham. “What Flight Plan really did was look at the competitive marketplace for higher education. It’s a very data driven process to see how we stack up against other institu-tions and how can we go about addressing those differences.”

Oldham developed Flight Plan in October of last year. The president and his development team met with a company of con-sultants before branching out to faculty, staff, students and alumni to obtain feedback and sugges-tions.

The combination of these ideas resulted in the four focuses of Flight Plan.

The plan aims to improve the undergraduate experience and transform the campus’ technol-ogy. It also plans to create distinc-tive programs while invigorating the faculty and expand fi nancial resources while modernizing the campus’ infrastructure.

Flight Plan is not an experi-ment for the president. Oldham said he has seen success with this kind of planning in previous years.

“There was a program like this in place at UTC when I ac-cepted this position. It was very successful,” said Oldham.

Flight Plan is still in the prep-aration phase. A projected date for completion has not been set.

Oldham, however, is confi -dent that ideas will become proj-ects within the next two months.

“It’s critical that we move into implementation as rapidly as possible,” said Oldham. “My goal would be by the end of February, fi rst of March to be out of the planning phase and into imple-menting the strategies that move us forward.”

A plan with such high am-bitions will require signifi cant funding. Oldham is adamant that Flight Plan’s goals fi t well within the University’s budget.

THE ORACLEVolume 96 | Issue 10 | Free in single copy | February 1, 2013Tennessee Tech University | Cookeville, TN | 38505 | Est. 1924

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Oldham announces strategic plan ‘on steroids’

See “Verifi cation,” page 3

By SARAH REESEBeat Reporter

See “Flight Plan,” page 3

Blake Pierce

Finance students use cutting-edge technology to learn about investing through managing three funds in the Heidtke Trading Room in Johnson Hall.

Tech’s fi rst Golden Eagle mas-cot, Max Alderson, 70, died Thurs-day afternoon following health complications and cancer.

Alderson served as Tech’s fi rst Golden Eagle mascot during the 1961, 1962 and 1963 athletic sea-sons. Alderson returned to Tech as Golden Eagle during this year’s Homecoming festivities.

“To me, once I had dressed in the costume, I was the Golden Eagle mascot,” Alderson said in an Octo-ber interview with Quenna Jones, Tech News Director. “It was not Max Alderson dressed for Hallow-een or for a costume party, I became a majestic creature that represented a tradition that began in 1925 with the selection of the Golden Eagle as a mascot.”

According to a press release, Alderson made his fi rst appear-

ance as Golden Eagle when he and Tech cheerleaders John Peters and Leslie “Sam” Stuart had a spur-of-the-moment idea to have a mascot for the annual Turkey Day game on Thanksgiving against Middle Ten-nessee State College, now Middle Tennessee State University.

The trio borrowed a paper-ma-che eagle’s head from a Homecom-ing fl oat constructed by the indus-trial technology department, made of chicken wire, the release said.

Tech’s original Golden Eagle mascot diesBy WILL HOUSLEYEditor-in-Chief

Archives

Max Alderson, the fi rst Golden Eagle mascot, sports a hand-made costume during a University event.

Three students, including one as-sociated with the Tech men’s basket-ball team, were reported to Tech po-lice for alleged narcotics violations in New Hall South residence hall dur-ing the fi rst week of classes.

According to the police report, a student in the dorm called Tech po-lice Jan. 17 at 7:05 p.m. to complain of a strong odor believed to be mari-juana coming from a nearby room. The student was ultimately referred to the dean of students and men’s basketball coach.

According to the report, Chris-topher Russell, tech police offi cer, arrived at the room where he too no-ticed the strong scent of marijuana.

Russell knocked twice on the door, but there was no answer. When he asked if anyone was in the room, a voice inside the room replied that there was, the report said.

After opening the door, Russell questioned him. The student said that he lived in the room, had been smoking marijuana alone, and he had smoked it all, according to the report.

Russell was granted a search of the room and was unable to fi nd any

more marijuana. He also noted in thereport that the student was very co-operative and respectful throughoutthe investigation.

The fi rst incident was called inby the Residential Life Staff on Jan. 15at 7:15 p.m. who claimed there wasan odor of marijuana coming from anearby room.

Upon arriving at the room, TonyNelson, tech police offi cer, knockedand asked the room’s resident if hecould enter the room. The studentagreed to let Nelson inside, and Nel-son immediately noticed the smell ofmarijuana.

The student told Nelson that hehad been smoking marijuana withhis roommate, to whom the narcoticsbelonged. The roommate was in theshower when Nelson arrived.

After the roommate came out ofthe shower, he told Nelson the mari-juana was his and there was noneleft. Nelson’s search confi rmed thatthere was no more marijuana in theroom.

Nelson informed the two thata report of the incident would haveto be fi led and forwarded to EdwinBoucher, dean of students.

None of the students’ nameswere released by police, and Boucherrefused to comment on the pendingpunishment of the three students.

By APRIL GILBERTBeat Reporter

Semester starts with multiple marijuana busts

Sarah Carlson

Ike Nwofi a, a computer engineering major, talks to Joni Gilmore in the reg-istration offi ce.

By CASEY WOODARDBeat Reporter

New students must prove citizenship

Page 2 | February 1, 2013 tntechoracle.com

NEWS

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Workers from Stone Steel Co. lower Charlie the Eagle into place in front of the Walton House. A public unveiling will take place today at 1 p.m. on the Walton House lawn.

Black History Month is a time to celebrate a part of American history and cul-ture, with plenty of activi-ties planned by the Minority Student Affairs Offi ce and the Black Cultural Center.

There is a list of varied events including a Center Stage Event called “Def Po-etry Jam” for anyone who enjoys rhythmic spoken language, and students will have the opportunity to per-form on stage with J. Ivy and Dana Gilmore. There is also a Soul Food Dinner after-wards. There is a schedule of the activities planned in the BCC.

Dr. Robert Owens II, director of the Offi ce of Mi-nority Affairs, welcomes the campus to celebrate Af-rican American history this month. “I wasn’t exposed to a lot of history in general until after I was working on my teacher certifi cation at MTSU.” He said “I took a course that highlighted black history as being a part of American History. I wish that Black History Month was not necessary,

but the amount of informa-tion learned because of this month is so important to understanding our culture as a whole. Our nation still needs Black History Month because an important part of our history is not covered in most K-12 textbooks.”

Not only is the depart-ment planning campus ac-tivities for the month of Feb-ruary, they are investing in all minority student success with the mentoring group, RACE. The mentoring group has been on campus for years and has recently changed its name to the acronym: Reaching Achievement and Committed to Excellence. RACE’s goals are to help freshman minority students transition from high school to college with the help of more experienced students.

The department also has two programs called the Pro-fessional Development Se-ries, and the Academic Suc-cess Workshops Series. With the former series, alumni are invited back to campus to share their experiences through speeches and lec-tures while the latter has scheduled events to insure the success of the students.

Black History Month to feature cultural performances, foodBy JACQUELINE ATKIELSKIBeat Reporter

CRIME BRIEFS:

For up-to-date crime information, visit tntechoracle.com

Members of the Tech community have a new way to keep up with the University on the go with a mobile app full of news, maps, videos and informa-tion about athletics and events.

In addition, students have access to all of that and information about their courses, including as-signments, grades and an-nouncements.

“Students are so busy and have so many demands

on their time that we want-ed to give them easier ac-cess to information,” said Rick Cumby, administrative software support group di-rector. “The app has several functions to provide access to news, sports, directory, dining and course informa-tion, among other things.”

The app, which replac-es one released last year, went live at the beginning of the spring semester. The free download is available for Blackberry, iPhone and iPad, and Android devices.

New app loaded with student features, Tech news, sportsPRESS RELEASE

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7:30 p.m.Katherine Kemler Guest Flute RecitalWattenbarger Auditorium, Bryan Fine Arts Building

12:00 p.m. Men’s Rugby vs. Se-wanee Foundation Hall Field

5:30 p.m. Men’s and Women’s Basketball at Belmont University

7:00 p.m. Women’s Basketball at Tennessee State Univer-sity

7:30 p.m. The Cumberland Quin-tetWattenbarger Auditorium, Bryan Fine Arts Building

11:00 a.m.TAB Scarf giveawayRUC Lobby

7:30 p.m. Jared Steward, Guest Percussion RecitalWattenbarger Auditorium, Bryan Fine Arts Building

7:30 p.m. Charles Decker and Joy Rachor, Faculty RecitalWattenbarger Auditorium, Bryan Fine Arts Building

12 p.m. - 2 p.m.Healthcare FairNursing Building

7:30 p.m. Mark Kosower, Guest Cello RecitalWattenbarger Auditorium, Bryan Fine Arts Building

8

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7:30 p.m. Windscape Quintet, Guest ConcertWattenbarger Auditorium, Bryan Fine Arts Building

2 p.m.One Mile for One Bil-lion WalkTTU Main Quad

3 p.m.- 6:30Courtney Tucker and Adam McInnes, Senior Student RecitalsWattenbarger Auditorium, Bryan Fine Arts Building

5:30 & 7:30 p.m.Men’s and Women’s Basketball vs. Jackson-ville State University

- Jan. 25 - 6:30 Classifi cation: Destruction/Damage/ Vandalism Location: Derryberry Hall Disposition: Open Case Notes: None.

- Jan. 24 - 10:10 Classifi cation: Liquor Law Violation Location: New Hall North (Lobby) Disposition: Closed. Subject arrested. Notes: None.

- Jan. 20 - 11:00 Classifi cation: Intimidation Location: Other (Off Campus) Disposition: Closed. Referred to Dean of students. Notes: Subject was warned of conse- quences if calls did not stop.

- Jan. 21 - 4:30 Classifi cation: Burglary/ Breaking & Entering Location: Tech Village East (Construc- tion Zone) Disposition: Open Case Notes: Theft of Tools.

- Jan. 20- 11:37 Classifi cation: Liquor Law Violation Location: Maddux (Dorm Room) Disposition: Closed. Referred to Dean of Students. Notes: None.

- Jan. 20 - Not Available Classifi cation: Destruction/Damage/ Vandalism Location: New Hall North (Parking Lot) Disposition: Open Case Notes: Vehicle Vandalism.

-Jan. 18 - Not Available Classifi cation: Burglary/ Breaking & Enter ing Location: Ellington (Dorm Room) Disposition: Closed. Subject arrested. Notes: None.

- Jan. 18 - Not Available Classifi cation: Other (Open Theft) Location: Jobe (Bike Rack) Disposition: Closed. No further action. Notes: Bike recovered. Victim does not wish to prosecute.

- Jan. 17- 7:05 Classifi cation: Drug/ Narcotic Violation Location: New South (Dorm Room) Disposition: Closed. Referred to Dean of Students. Notes: None.

- Jan. 15 - 7:15 Classifi cation: Drug/ Narcotic Violation Location: New South (Dorm Room) Disposition: Closed. Referred to Dean of Students. Notes: None.

- Jan. 15- 2:14 Classifi cation: Liquor Law Violation Location: Warf (Dorm Room) Disposition: Closed. Referred to Dean of Students. Notes: Res Life Report.

- Jan. 15 - 10:00 Classifi cation: Liquor Law Violation Location: Jobe (Dorm Room) Disposition: Closed. Referred to Dean of Students. Notes: Res Life Report.

Before coming to Tech, President Phil Oldham and First Lady Kari Oldham had admired a large metal eagle on the front lawn of one of their neighbors in Signal Mountain, Tenn.

That 3-foot tall eagle in-spired the Oldhams to try to fi nd one for the lawn of the president’s residence, Walton House, when Oldham be-came the university president in July 2012.

Soon after he took of-fi ce, Tech alumnus Charles Hawkins gave Oldham a large wooden eagle. When Oldham and Hawkins met, they came to realize they had been neighbors on Signal Mountain, and that Hawkins was the owner of that impres-sive metal lawn eagle Oldham had passed many times.

Hawkins, ’53, was asked to fi nd an eagle for Walton House.

“I worked on it a little while and said I couldn’t fi nd one,” Hawkins said. “Cheryl (Montgomery, College of Business development offi cer) said she had every confi dence that I would fi nd one so I kept looking and I found this one. I bought it without seeing it.”

After three weeks of trawling the internet for met-al eagles, Hawkins found a 1,500 pound, 7-foot statue in an antique store in Duncan-ville, Penn. Rather than mak-ing the more than 10-hour

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drive to look at it, Hawkins bought it and had it shipped to Cookeville.

Several Cookeville busi-nesses came together to help get the statue from Pennsyl-vania and prepare it to be installed at Walton House. Averitt Express transported it and Stone Steel Co. and Au-tomotive Enterprises worked to restore it and prepare it so it will be impervious to the elements. Facilities built the brick and limestone 1,000 pound pedestal for the eagle.

“We are so grateful to the Cookeville community for coming together to make this vision a reality for Walton

House,” said Kari Oldham.After several months of

polishing and painting, the eagle, nicknamed Charlie after Hawkins, is ready to place in the circular garden of the Walton House drive. Tech will unveil the statue in a public dedication ceremony from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. today at Walton House, 1155 N. Dixie Ave. on campus.

Charlie the Eagle is the latest of more than 40 eagles Hawkins has donated to vari-ous Tech employees over the years. It will be the largest eagle statue on the university campus.

Page 3 | February 1, 2013tntechoracle.com

NEWS

At the start of a new se-mester, students often set resolutions to make them-selves better.

Most of the time those resolutions involve getting in shape and staying fi t. On top of making resolutions, students are already prepar-ing themselves for spring break.

How to kill two birds with one stone? Goals

First, make sure that goal is specifi c and clear.

Being too general with weight loss or fi tness can be-come overwhelming.

Don’t expect to lose 50 pounds in only two months. The body needs time to ad-just and rest.

Another tip to keep in mind when setting goals is to set a time frame.

For those that resolved to get fi t and lose weight, the proper time frame is within a year, while setting small goals throughout. For instance, plan to lose 4 to 5 pounds a month allowing the body enough time to rest and recover like it should. Diet

With stress comes sac-rifi ce and for many college students their diet is the fi rst thing they compromise.

There are mixed opin-

ions on whether or not planned dieting is benefi cial. “If you don’t burn up what you eat your body is going to store that as fat, no mat-ter what it is,” said Teresa Hall, director of marketing and campus dietitian at The Marketplace. “3,500 calories equals a pound of fat. By re-ducing your calorie intake by 500 calories a day you will lose one pound of fat per week.”

Due to increased nu-tritional value, Hall recom-mended adding color to your diet, by substituting darker colored veggies such as green beans and broccoli for lighter colored veggies such as corn and squash. These foods help burn fat.

A meal should consist of one-half fruits and veggies, one-fourth whole grains, and one-fourth protein which Hall said can easily be done in the Cafeteria.

“It’s not so much what you eat, but how much you eat. I say you can eat what-ever you want in the correct proportions,” Hall said.

Crash dieting has be-come an increasingly popu-lar way to shed a few extra pounds when gearing up for spring break, but can come with some pretty nasty side effects.

“Starving yourself is def-initely not the answer to any form of weight loss,” said senior Human Ecology ma-

jor Beth Miller. “Starvation can lead to malnourishment, leaving you with no energy to support a busy college life-style. A well rounded diet, high in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy and lean proteins are the best

way to lose weight or main-tain a healthy weight.”Drink plenty of water

Water helps fl ush out toxins, hydrates the system and helps with weight loss.

According to the Insti-tute of Medicine and the

Mayo Clinic, men should be consuming roughly 13 cups a day. Women should con-sume roughly 9 cups of wa-ter a day. Workouts

The Fit is particularly roaring this season.

Don’t let the crowd beoverwhelming, fi nd timewhen there is not such arush at the gym. Going at thesame time every day helps in maintaining a routine to pro-mote motivation and consis-tency.

Get Fit: Advice for a healthier physical you in the new yearBY LINDSEY WALLACE& MATTHEW HILLBeat Reporters

Up to date campus crime information at:

tntechoracle.com

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“It doesn’t affect the amount of resources we have to allocate. However, when we start to allocate those resources, we’ll be looking at it through new lenses. We’ll be asking if those resources are further-ing our goals,” said Old-ham.

Oldham and his com-mittee are still encouraging students to express their

ideas and suggestions. “Stu-dents can respond electroni-cally and we’re cataloging that. In fact, I’m reading most of them myself. But if students or groups want to come to me and have those conversations, those are the kinds of conversations we’re looking to have.”

Many students who are aware of Flight Plan are op-timistic about its goals and objectives.

Courtney Walker, soph-omore agriculture business

major, remarked on the plan’s implementation.

“I’m excited to see this plan in action,” said Walker. “I’m going to be here for a few more years so I’m anx-ious to see the changes. I would really like to get in-volved in the feedback and share my ideas.”

For other students in-terested in submitting com-mentary to the Flight Plan committee, visit tntech.edu/fl ightplan/home.

>> VERIFICATIONCONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Tennessee law now assumes that all incom-ing students are from out-of-state until they verify their citizenship or law-ful presence in the United States. Incoming students from Tennessee who do not verify their identity will be charged out-of-state tuition until they provide proper identifi ca-tion.

“One girl was re-funded $6,000 because she paid out-of-state tu-ition,” Pope said. “She was not eligible for any scholarships because her parents’ income was too high, so she did not fi ll out a FAFSA.”

More information about the Eligibility Veri-fi cation for Entitlements Act can be found at tn-tech.edu/admissions/evea.

@ t n t e c h o r a c l e : For the latest news, e n t e r t a i n m e n t , opinion and sports, follow The Oracle on Twitter and Facebook. #Oracle #TTU #PurplePride

NOTHING BURNS LIKE THE COLD

Brittany Coomer is among many Tech students who are bundling up during frigid tempera-tures on campus. Last week, temperatures reached an all time low for the area.

Kimberly Manning

The debate on whether or not to legalize marijuana has been ongoing for years, though it has seemed to re-vive and gain steam since Election Day, Nov. 6, 2012, when voters in Colorado and Washington made their states the fi rst to legalize marijuana for recreational use. But in Oregon, a similar measure failed.

While supporters of Washington’s initiative said they hoped its passage would ultimately change federal law, which regards any possession or sale of marijuana as ille-gal, senior White House and Justice Department offi cials were considering plans for legal action against Colorado and Washington that could undermine the voter-ap-proved initiatives in those states.

Marijuana, whose bo-tanical name is cannabis, has been used by humans for thousands of years. It was classifi ed as an illegal drug by many countries in the 20th century. Over the past

two decades, there has been a growing movement to legal-ize marijuana, primarily for medical purposes.

The medicinal properties and use of marijuana is one of the biggest points proponents of its legalization use to ham-mer home their stance. Given some of the dramatic cases of medical transformation in some of its users, one would be inclined to agree or at least concede the point.

One such example is severely autistic, 11-year-old Alex Echols, of Oregon. Alex suffers from Tuberous Sclerosis, a genetic disor-der that causes unregulated growth in non-malignant tis-sue in organs. The condition affects Alex’s brain and is believed to cause his regular self-directed outbursts of vio-lence. In YouTube videos that have made news headlines around the country, Alex can be seen pummeling himself with his fi sts, clawing at his face, and slamming his head agaiast the wall until he’s re-duced to a bloody pulp.

Alex tried using mood-altering drugs to regulate his behavior—unsuccessfully—until his family made the diffi cult choice to move Alex into a group home when he was eight years old. When asked his feelings at the time, Mr. Echols, Alex’s father, said, “It was like we were throw-ing him away, like we were giving him to somebody else and saying, ‘Sorry buddy, you’re not part of the family anymore.’”

In 2009, when the fam-ily heard about a California woman using medical mari-juana to treat her autistic son, the family decided to give it a shot. The next year a doc-tor ap-p r o v e d A l e x ’ s marijua-na and his father said the c h a n g e in his son’s be-h a v i o r has been dramatic. “He went from being completely, yell-ing, screaming, bloodying his face, to within an hour, hour-and-a-half, he would be playing with toys, using his hands,” Mr. Echols said.

The home where Alex lives will not administer the marijuana so his family gives

him a liquid form of the drug around three times a week.

His father believes medi-cating his son with marijuana is worth the risk. “For us, the long-term side effects that are unknown for something that can’t kill him are a lot better than the long-term side ef-fects of him beating himself bloody,” he said.

In light of evidence such as this, it is no wonder that medical marijuana use has surged in 16 states and the District of Columbia that al-low its use. But states and cities are wrestling with the question of what medical marijuana is, or should be, a

question only complicated by the fact that recreational use is now legal in two states.

As the fi rst states to treat small amounts of marijuana like alcohol, Colorado and Washington are slated to be-come nationwide trial cases for drug legalization. As sup-porters and state offi cials prepare for a new frontier of legalized sales, they are also anxiously awaiting direction from the federal government, which still plans to treat the manufacture and sale of mari-juana as federal crimes.

Proponents of legalized marijuana are hopeful the Justice Department yields.

Despite some notorious ar-rests of medical marijuanapatients and suppliers, thefederal government hasmostly allowed medical mari-juana businesses to operate inColorado, Washington and 16other states.

While drug agents willprobably not beat down doorsto seize a small bag of thedrug, they are likely to balk atallowing the state-regulatedrecreational marijuana shopsallowed under the new laws,said Kevin A. Sabet, a formerdrug policy adviser in theObama administration.

The Sandy Hook shootings were a terrible crime against innocence, peace of mind and sta-bility. The problem isn’t where was God or that law-abiding citizens own military grade as-sault rifl es, the prob-lem is we took God out of the schools and that criminals, who started out sane, were driven to something dreadful and happened to somehow get a hold of military grade assault rifl es.

President Barack Obama said that our fi rst task is to protect our chil-dren. “This is how we will be judged. And their voices should compel us to change,” said Obama.

In a country where others don’t like people

judging then, why does it matter? It only matters if they actually believe in the one true and living God. And if they don’t, they tell people to not be so judgmental.

It has also been brought to light that the shooter didn’t even use an assault rifl e.

“Authorities now know the gunman used “an assault weapon” to “literally (shoot) an en-trance into the building,” Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy said according to CNN.com Interactive. So now the president wants to take away the ability for Americans to “bear arms.”

Another thing to consider is that the par-ents across the nation

want to keep their guns. The National Riffl e Association wants to put armed guards in our school. “More guns, not fewer, provide true se-curity,” the NRA stated

in the wake of the mass shooting.

School systems want to put resource offi cers in every school. How about putting God back in schools? When he was

taken out completely, more innocent people started dying than ever before. Not just in the schools, but in the courts, in government, and in this nation.

We are a spoiledcountry, who blames Godfor every wrong that hap-pens to us. When in real-ity it is the choice of a fewwho affect the majority.We have let our wealthand power numb us tothe reality that it was Godwho gave us the bounty that we have and we,powerless fi nite humans,in our pride have taken all the credit.

It is truly time forAmericans to stand up and give God the right tocome back into our lives, in our schools, and mostespecially in our govern-ment, not to control, but infl uence. We shoulddo this to honor thosewe lost in Sandy Hook, Columbine, VirginiaTech, Aurora, Kent Stateand University of Texas.We must begin to prayfor safety, pray for ourchildren and pray for our nation. Pray for the fami-lies who have lost lovedones because we kickedGod out of our schools.

Page 4 | February 1, 2013 tntechoracle.com

OPINION

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JAMAL FERGUSONJAMAL FERGUSONSports EditorSports EditorDREW HASTONDREW HASTONAsst. Sports EditorAsst. Sports EditorJACOB THREETJACOB THREETEntertainment EditorEntertainment EditorLINDSEY GORELINDSEY GOREEntertainment CriticEntertainment CriticHANNAH BENJAMINHANNAH BENJAMINEntertainment CriticEntertainment CriticMELISSA EDWARDSMELISSA EDWARDSWeb EditorWeb EditorJESSICA TERRELLJESSICA TERRELLCirculation ManagerCirculation ManagerHOLLY COWARTHOLLY COWARTFaculty AdviserFaculty Adviser

BEAT REPORTERS:BEAT REPORTERS: ALYSSA ADKISSON, ROSEMARY APPLE, SHELBEY ASHBURN, JORDAIN BLAIR, LINDSAY BLAKELY, CHARLI BRAY, SARAH

CARLSON, GARAM CHOI, KAYLA CLOUSE, ELLEN CONTI, KAYLEE GENTRY, APRIL GILBERT, CALLEN HARRELL, MATTHEW HILL, BISKIE HOLMAN,

EMILY HOMAN, ARTHUR JACKSON, JORDAN KERLEY, RACHEL KERR, ELISSA LONGFELLOW, LAUREN LUCKHART, BRITTANY LYNCH, KIMBERLY

MANNING, JUSTIN MATHENEY, ALEXIS MCALLISTER, ALLISON MILLS, SAMUEL OMACHONU, MEREDITH PAINTER, CHANDLER PECORA,

TAYLOR PORTER, TYLER RANDOLPH, SARAH REESE, KATIE VAUGHN, LINDSEY WALLACE, ADAM WEBB, ANNA WEGCHEID, CASEY WOODARD

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Getty ImagesWooden angel fi gures are seen placed beside a road near Sandy Hook Elementary School.

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KRISTINA HARDIN

Opinion Editor

By JAMAL FERGUSONSports Editor

Page 5 | February 1, 2013tntechoracle.com

SPORTS

Jim Dillon

By SAM OMACHONUBeat Reporter

Tech women’s team dominates rival Austin Peay

Tech Junior Guard Diamond Henderson drives passed Austin Peay defender on her way to the basket. Henderson leads the team in scoring this season.

Hockey games tend to get pricey, but the Nashville Predators are offering discounted ticket prices on college nights when students present their college id at the ticket offi ce.

There are eight college night games be-tween February and April. The fi rst is Feb. 7 at 7 p.m. when the Predators take on the LA Kings.

Upper bowl tickets are on sale for $15 and lower bowl tickets for $30.

Tech student Callen Harrell has attended many college nights at the Bridgestone Are-na. “I think it brings a younger, more ener-getic crowd to an already famously rowdy arena,” said Harrell. “You’re guaranteed to have fun whether the Preds win or lose, and if you don’t then you went with the wrong people.”

The Bridgestone Arena is one hour and 20 minutes away from TTU’s campus. It is lo-cated at 501 Broadway, Nashville, TN, 37203.

For those who want to head down before the game to grab a bite to eat, Broadway is the place to be. A popular, but more expen-sive place to go is Palm restaurant, located across the street from the arena. A few blocks up on the corner of Third and Commerce, Demos’ is an inexpensive restaurant with quality food.

“Hockey games are a lot of fun,” said TTU freshmen, Cara Hughey. “I have nev-er been to a Nashville Predators game but hearing about college night makes me really want to check it out sometime.”

Parking is available throughout the city with prices averaging at $10.

For more information about college night events you can visit their website at preda-tors.nhl.com/club/page.htm?id=59230.

After a two game conference skid, the women’s golden eagle basketball team rebounded with a blowout against Austin Peay.

The Golden Eagles were led by the strong 3-point shooting of their senior guards, Kellie Cook and Jala Harris. Harris shot 5 for 6 from outside fi nishing with 17 points and a game high 8 assist. Cook ignited the offense, coming off the bench, going 5 for 6 in the fi rst half and fi nished the game 7 for 9 from long range. She would fi nish with a game high and season high of 23.

Tech’s bench played extremely well almost outscoring the Lady Govs by themselves.

Dominate post play from T’Keyah Williams and Candace Parson helped Tech take away many second chance points, limiting Austin Peay to just 7. Along with Williams and Parson’s rebounding efforts Cook with 6 rebounds and Diamond Henderson’s 4 outrebound the Lady Govs by double digits.

After going up by seven at halftime, Tech was able to spark a second half scoring run behind the scoring of Henderson, the team’s leading scorer, who fi nished the contest with 12 points.

“After our last two conference loses, coach really emphasized better rebounding and defense”, says Junior Guard Henderson. “As a team, we have improved the most on playing with each other and capitalizing on our strengths. Our coaches are focusing now on getting more effort out of us on the court.”

During halftime of the game the nine pioneers of women’s athletics here at Tech were honored. They had returned to their alma mater for the weekend to speak to female

student-athletes about the Title IX legislation and how it changes their lives forever.

Saturday nights win brings the Tech women’s team an 11-9 over record and a 5-3 record in Ohio Valley Conference play.

The women played again Tuesday night in the Eblen Center

but came up short against Murray State. They are hoping to bounce back as they go on a quick two game road trip to Nashville against Belmont Saturday night and Tennessee State Tuesday night then returning home on February 9 to play Jacksonville State.

Predators to host ‘College Nights’ again this season

The Tennessee Tech soft-ball team kicks off its season in less than two weeks, with a new head coach and a sec-ond place ranking in the Ohio Valley Eastern Division pre-season poll.

One of four return-ing seniors, third baseman, Brittney Spalding, discussed the team’s preparation for the upcoming season. “Since Coach Bynum was a success-ful pitcher here when she was at Tech, we’ve defi nitely focused on our pitching and strengthening it as best we can. We’ve been working on our communication and mak-ing our practices as game-like

as possible.”The team opens up its

fi rst series away at Georgia Southern on Feb. 9 and will not host a home game un-til March 23, making it only one of four home weekends the team will have all year. Despite the fact the team will not be home many times this season, the team is confi dent in its ability to adjust to such a tough schedule.

“The softball team has always done better when we are at home. Since we will be away a lot more this year, we are going to have to focus mentally on the road. We have a really good pitching staff and a good group overall so I don’t think it will be a prob-lem.” Spalding said.

The Golden Eagles have always placed an emphasis on working together as one unit on the fi eld. One of the leaders on the team, senior shortstop, Melody Christian said, “We push each other to do our best, so when game time comes we can lay it all on the line. We have really good team chemistry, which helps us in our goal for an OVC championship.”

As seniors, both Spald-ing and Christian said they want to make this season as memorable as possible. Spalding said, “We not only want to make it special for ourselves, but for all of our teammates since we are all so close. There’s a lot of family dynamic within this team.”

Former head softball coach Tory Ache-son resigned last Thursday after 14 years with the program, leaving the former player and two-time OVC pitcher of the year, Bon-nie Bynum in charge effective immediately.

Acheson’s abrupt resignation left many people across campus wondering why this had happened and what the softball pro-gram was going to do.

“It’s strange that a coach would just re-sign like that three weeks before the season starts,” said Tech senior and intramural soft-ball enthusiast Roggie Haston. “Will the as-sistant coach just take over?”

Oddly enough, the wife of coach Ache-son and assistant softball coach Terry Ache-son did not take over the head coaching po-sition. However, coach Bynum taking over seems to be going over well with everyone including Senior infi elder/outfi elder, Melo-dy Christian.

“The news of Coach Acheson leaving was upsetting, but Coach Bynum and this adversity as a whole will bring us closer as a team,” said Christian.

Christian also added, “There are going to be struggles along the way to the OVC Tournament, but as a team we are strong enough to overcome any of them.”

“Coach Bynum made such an impact in the fall that it was easy for our team to see her take over the coaching position,” Christian said. “The team is very confi dent despite the adversity and we are very lucky to have her step in.”

Confi dence will be good for this year’s team because the AP ranked Tech No. 2 in the Ohio Valley Conference to start the sea-son.

“We are extremely excited to be ranked second, but we are more excited about the great new group of girls, the new coaching, and the amazing family-like bond we have created this year,” said Christian. “We are going to work hard this season and compete for the number one spot in league and to make a huge statement at the OVC Tourna-ment.”

Bynum appears to be excited about her new role as well according to an article on ttusports.com.

“I’m excited to have the opportunity to build on an already great program that Coach Acheson has established and I’m looking forward to the future of Tennessee Tech softball,” Bynum said. “I want to thank Tory for everything he has done for me in my career, both as a player and as a coach.”

Bynum will make her head coaching debut at the Georgia Southern Tournament Feb. 9 against Akron University.

By CALLEN HARRELLBeat Reporter

Tennessee Tech men’s bas-ketball team handely defeated Austin Peay Saturday night in the Eblen Center.

Senior Forward Terrell Barnes commented on the feel-ing headed into the game say-ing, “ With this being my se-nior season I’ve learned to have that next game mentality when it comes to those quick turn arounds.” He added that Coach Payne had emphasized that they couldn’t hold on to the loss a few nights earlier against Mur-ray and let it be a factor in the game at hand. This seemed to really set in and it was apparent from the start. It was easy to see that the energy of the team was at a high level and they were ready from the opening tip off.

Though Tech was a meek 1-6 in conference play headed into the game with Austin Peay with recent losses to Southeast Mis-souri State, SIU-Edwardsville, and Murray State but the Gold-en Eagles would get it together and handle the Gov 70-52.

Barnes felt that it was a good win for the team saying that, “Any win in OVC play is a big win for us especially with the league being so strong this year.” Which is especially true on East of the OVC with such a cluster of teams seemingly com-peting for the regular season conference title. Barnes added, “This one defi nitely this one had a little different feel to it being that we came out and domi-nated for the tip plus it being against Austin Peay made it that much better.”

The Golden Eagles seemed to be fuel by the loss to the Rac-ers, in which they lost the clash in the paint, and the feeling of the

rivalry and dominated the glass. They would fi nish the night leading the battle for rebounds 36 to 27. With Tech grabbing so many rebounds that in turn lead to them getting more second chance points. Another aspect Tech bench also outscored Aus-tin Peay’s 15 to 9 lead by Barnes . At times he is used to provide a spark of the bench and other times starts. Tech’s big menTech were also a force in the half court putting up more points in the paint than Austin Peay.

The team has some under-classmen that are really contrib-uting. “I think are young guys are really beginning to get it, Anthony has really stepped up these past two games and so has Diressa,” said Barnes. Anthony Morse, a freshman seeing sub-stantial minutes and even mak-ing his second OVC start of his young career, scored a career-high 10 points in the win over Austin Peay.

The Golden Eagle men’s team will travel to Nashville for their next two games. Barnes noted that the team felt last time they played TSU they “let one get away against TSU.” The Bruins of Belmont, newcomers to the OVC, thrashed the Gold-en Eagles by nearly a 30 piece. Barnes chomped at the thought of that game saying, “we defi -nitely owe Belmont, I’m ready to go I wish we could roll them out and play right now.”

The Golden Eagles did travel to Tennessee State to play how-ever, fi nal scores were not avail-able at the time of publication.

Belmont is next on the sched-ule. The Golden Eagles will be taking on the Bruins on Saturday at 7 pm at Belmont as part of a double header with the women’s team who play at 5 p.m. CST.

New head coach Bonnie Bynum throws batting practice Saturday as she gears up for the season.

Tech Softball higly ranked in pre-season pollBy EMILY HOMANBeat Reporter

ByLINDSAY BLAKELYBeat Reporter

Matthew Hill

Men handle Austin Peay, look to next on schedule

Golden Eagle softball under new coaching

2013 Available dates:Thursday, Feb. 7 vs. LA Kings

Thursday, Feb. 14 vs. Phoenix CoyotesFriday, Feb. 22 vs. Vancouver Canucks

Friday, March 8 vs. Edmonton OilersThursday, March 21 vs. Calgary Flames

Thursday, March 28 vs. Phoenix Coyotes Thursday, April 4 vs. Columbus Blue Jackets

Friday, April 12 vs. Dallas Stars *all games begin at 7pm CST

tntechoracle.comPage 6 | February 1, 2013

ENTERTAINMENT

‘Dance Moms’ put the ‘cray’ in crazy on lifetimeBy JAKE THREETEntertainment Editor

OK! Magazine

Newly expecting parents, Kim Kardashian and Kayne West, arrive on the red carpet at an event.

By HANNAH BENJAMINEntertainment Critic

By LINDSEY GOREEntertainment Critic

Entertainment headlines while we were on break

Social media hoaxing, pranks are out of control

The third season of Lifetime’s hit reality series “Dance Moms” is back and crazier than ever.

Abby Lee Miller and her dance team are proving again that people will watch anything. This show is a hot mess and the mothers must make a nice paycheck to keep coming back for more. Leading into this season, I was unsure if I could handle any more of this mostly scripted drama. Once I saw the commercial for the new season, with its knockoff off of the 80s fi lm ‘”Flashdance” and the song “Maniac”, I could not say no.

Yes, the “Maniac” is back, but surrounding her is plenty of crazy and delusional. Four weeks into it and already I am drawing the same conclusions as last season. This show is probably about forty percent real life and sixty percent lies and nonsense.

During season’s one and two, I was vehemently on the mother’s side and thought Abby was too harsh. Well it’s been forty-six episodes later and nothing is new. Dance is like sports; the coach cannot constantly praise their student. Where would that get them? Signing their name as Goofy at Disney world? These mothers would complain if they were going to be hung with a new rope. It is constantly something new they are complaining about and I’m over it. Quite frankly, these mothers need to leave if this is all they can do.

Christy, who in seasons past had been my favorite and still kind of is, can never seem to have a positive moment or comment any more. Maybe it’s the editing or maybe she’s just wanting out of her contract. Either way it’s time for her to put up or shut up. Her fan

favorite personality is slowly draining out of her and the ugly, miserable evil twin is taking over.

Kelly acts and sounds as dumb as ever. Jill has had more plastic surgery done and her hair makes her look like a damn cockatoo. Melissa is trying harder not to be such a snitch and phony person, but she’s failing at it. Holly is too nice, too educated, and too sophisticated to be on this show. This new season features new moms trying to weasel their way onto the show, but it’s not happening.

The show becomes more entertaining when Cathy is on. She is television gold. She is crazy, outlandish, and full of spunk. She’s not afraid to mix it up with Abby and the moms. Cathy and her dancers are always looking for a good fi ght. Abby is a very stern and commanding woman. I get that people

think she is mean and unfair and cruel. She is that, sometimes it’s like Godzilla attacking the city, but that is only at times. She is like any coach or teacher who tries to get the very best from his or her student. She does push the limit too far sometimes and is fl at out cruel and turns into an evil dance teacher from hell. Generally it’s only because she’s trying to help these kids have a stronger backbone. She is preparing them for a future in show business, which is going to be full of worse things than Abby Lee Miller.

Dance Moms is packed full of great dancing, half scripted drama, and crazy women fi ghting. I would say I am done watching, but everybody knows I cannot look away from a good cat fi ght.

Dance Moms airs Tuesday nights at 9/10c on Lifetime.

‘Movie 43’ has a plethora of famous faces and raunchy jokes, but it is not enough to save it from being just plain bad.

‘Movie 43’ is made up of short fi lms that come from the desperate mind of a producer (Dennis Quaid) that is way past his prime.

Each short is directed by different directors and all showcase a star studded cast with actors like Emma Stone, Gerard Butler, Johnny Knoxville and Kate Winslet.

With the fresh idea and huge cast, ‘Movie 43’ seems too good to be true and that’s because it is. The fi lm relies heavily on lewd jokes and cheap laughs that are almost too uncomfortable to watch.

Moments that do not involve some type of distasteful or offensive joke are basically nonexistent, and there are only a couple shorts that are based on a funny idea and even those shorts are not even halfway amusing.

Even the impressive cast could not save ‘Movie 43’

from being what could be the worst movie ever made. It is as if the actors were trying to perform at a subpar level, which is probably true.

The ravishing Emma Stone and Kieran Culkin lack any type of chemistry, and this tends to be a reoccurring theme throughout the movie.

The overall idea for the fi lm has potential, but it seems as if not a single person involved puts any

Five weeks is a long time for the entertainment industry, so while we were enjoying our holiday these celebrities, fi lms, and musical artists were making headlines and doing what they do best – keeping us entertained.

Award season is upon us, and over break the Oscar nominees have been announced to include recent releases like Les Misérables and Django Unchained. Silver Linings Playbook took the nominations by storm, becoming perhaps the most underestimated award winner this year. Our local theater didn’t even pick up the movie until it was Oscar nominated for Best Picture, Actor and Supporting Actor, Actress and Supporting Actress, Director, Film Editing, and Adapted Screenplay.

Kimye (Kim Kardashian and Kanye West) announced a pregnancy after publicly dating since last April. West dropped the news at a concert in Atlantic City, right before New Year’s when asking the crowd to make some noise for his baby mama. Both families are incredibly supportive of the new baby.

Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o was allegedly hoaxed by a “Catfi sh” scam late last year and while we were on break, the real story broke out. Te’o had an online girlfriend who turned out never actually existed. The two had never met but kept a long distance relationship until her death from cancer

Sept. 11, 2012. Except her death was fake too!

After Te’o learned of the hoax, he perpetuated the lie to save face and not cause a distraction for his team. Speculation on the validity of the hoax has been made, claiming that Te’o faked the whole scam for publicity or that it was a cover up for potential homosexuality. So far, nothing has been confi rmed and Te’o still seems to be the victim.

‘Movie 43’ fi lled of famous actors, very few laughs at all

effort into molding it into the tolerable fi lm it could have been.Transitions between shorts are thrown together and just as lackluster as the rest of the fi lm. ‘Movie 43’ makes the future of comedy fi lms look bleak with its lack of taste and its tendency to be offensive.

‘Movie 43’ is rated R for crude and sexual content including dialogue,graphic nudity, language, some violence and drug use.

Believe it or not, just because something is trending on social networking sites doesn’t mean it’s true.

On Jan. 24, Twitter was fl ooded with more than 1,300 Tweets containing # R I P R u s h L i m b a u g h , many implying the famous talk show host was deceased.

The trend continued during the live broadcast of the “Rush Limbaugh Show,” in which Limbaugh is the primary speaker.

#RIPRushLimbaugh was just one of the many examples of false news spread through social media.

Earlier this month, controversy sparked when Tweets depicting young girls cutting themselves surfaced using the hashtag, CutForBieber.

While it was initially thought #CutForBieber was started by teens protesting the picture of Justin Bieber allegedly smoking a joint, it was later discovered that many of the Tweets, specifi cally those involving pictures, were part of an elaborate prank by members of 4Chan.

“Lets start a cut yourself for Bieber campaign,” according to the original post on the online message

By CHANDLER PECORABeat Reporter

board. “Tweet a bunch of pics of people cutting themselves and claim we did it because Bieber was smoking weed. See if we can get some little girls to cut themselves.”

It’s currently unknown how many of the Tweets were part of the hoax.

Spreading false news is becoming an increasingly popular trend on sites like Facebook and Twitter – starting them may result in consequences.

“There is someone in my hour ecall 911,” said 16-year-old Kara Alongi on Twitter, typo and all, just hours before her disappearance on September 30.

Police responded to the Tweet and what eventually became more than 6,000 calls regarding it by launching an investigation, and quickly became suspicious at the lack of evidence pointing to foul play.

“The investigation quickly revealed a number of inconsistencies in the teen’s statement,” stated the police report.

Two days later, Alongi was picked up by police after the New Jersey teen dialed 911 at a Burger King restaurant, but not before police deemed the story she told untrue.

“Possibly she can face charges down the road,” said Alan Scherb,

police chief in Alongi’shome town of Clark,N.J., citing creating falsepublic alarm as one of the possibilities.

While the police bill was not passed ontoAlongi’s family, policehave not yet revealed ifthey will press chargesagainst the teen girl whoallegedly started the hoax.

With how heavilyinfl uenced by social mediasites a college audience is,it’s very possible for Techstudents to be impactedby such widespread hoaxes.

When asked howshe would recommendstudents to respond tosocial media news, TTUCommunications writerLori Shull, who handlesthe university’s socialmedia presence, had thisto say.

“I think that a lot of the time it can be easy to getconfused because socialmedia moves so fast,” said Shull. “When in doubt, it would probably be bestto check a credible newssource.”

Facebook and Twittermay be popular sites tofi nd the latest news, butwith how easily rumors arestarted, and the possibilityof being hacked, it wouldprobably be best to takenews found on it with agrain of salt –at least until the information can beconfi rmed.

After years of denial,Lance Armstrong confessedusing performanceenhancing drugs to win theTour de France to OprahWinfrey. Armstrong wasstripped of his titles, lostmost of his endorsements,and stepped down aschairman of the Livestrongfoundation.

If all of that can happen in fi ve weeks, who knowswhat this semester willbring? Let’s hope it’s just asexciting.

Kate Winslet, one of the stars of ‘Movie 43’, performs a scene in the fi lm.

Paste Magazine

Abby Lee Miller, surounded by some of the dancers on the show, is back for a third season of ‘Dance Moms’ on Lifetime.

Reality Nation