Jasmin French

On Nov. 17, the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority was established at Colorado State University-Pueblo.

The Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, also known as AKA, is the first Greek sorority established by African-American college women and is one of the most prestigious sororities in the entire world.

The AKA sorority is the first African-American, Greek-life sorority or fraternity to be established on the CSU-Pueblo campus in all of its 80 years.

A few years back, a few African-American female students started an organization called B.A.B.E.S.  This organization’s primary goal was to bring a historically black sorority to campus so that black women could have the opportunity to come together and stand for something.

The women of B.A.B.E.S then decided to open their organization to those women who wanted to pledge AKA to use as a transition process.

Vanessa Emerson, president of the B.A.B.E.S organization, researched ways to get black sororities on campus. According to a few girls who recently pledged AKA, this was a very difficult process because a few of the sororities contacted didn’t feel as though there was a big enough black female student population on campus to establish a chapter.

AKA sorority allowed the women on the CSU-Pueblo campus to charter a chapter with a minimum of twelve women.

These women have chosen to remain anonymous for this article because they still have to officially come out as AKA’s to the campus.

Although the women have officially been established as women of the AKA sorority, they still have to probate, which means that the still have to establish the will to be in this sorority.

The probate is an open and public event. Students and staff can attend this event, which will be held Dec. 5 in the OUC underground at 7 p.m.

Video footage can be found here.

Courtesy of Latanya Tidwell-Dibble

Students may be looking at a longer semester at Colorado State University-Pueblo, since Provost Carl Wright proposed a 16-week semester at the Faculty Senate meeting on Nov. 4.

Wright presented eight proposals that would potentially change the structure of the academic school year. Three of these proposals have already been temporarily withdrawn after the input received at the meeting.

One proposal that is still on the table, however, would extend the current 15-week semester to a 16-week semester.

There has been an examination into the current number of instructional minutes being taught at CSU-Pueblo, and some classes fall below the minimum required number of minutes, and this is why the extra week of school may be added. 

According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, the required number of instructional minutes is 50 minutes of instruction per week, per credit, which is called the Carnegie Hour.  

The Carnegie Hour is a standard in higher education for measuring the academic quality of a university, and it is also used for the accreditation of the school. Without accreditation, CSU-Pueblo would not have access to federal financial aid.  

The Colorado Department of Education also follows this standard, and according to the department, the minimum required minutes of instruction per semester are 2,250 minutes.

For a three-credit course meeting on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, the class meets for a total of 150 minutes each week for a total of 2,240 minutes per semester. For a three-credit course meeting on Tuesday and Thursday, the class meets for total of 160 minutes each week for a total of 2,380 minutes per semester.

Since the 15th week of school is finals week, the classes that meet on Monday, Wednesday and Friday only meet for 140 minutes that week. This makes those classes ten minutes short of the minimum required number of minutes to achieve the Carnegie Hour.

However, in December 2012, the Carnegie Foundation for Advancement of Teaching began to research the effectiveness of the Carnegie Hour. According to the Foundation, the Carnegie Hour was not intended to be a standard measure for learning.

The Carnegie Foundation believes it is time to consider how a revised unit, based on competency rather than time, could improve teaching and learning in high schools, colleges, and universities, and the research they began last December will help them restructure the Carnegie Unit.

 Still, CSU-Pueblo’s solution to the current shortage of minutes is to change the 15-week semester to a 16-week semester, and some students are unsure of the proposal.

 “I think most other universities have a 16-week schedule, so I don’t know if we would or wouldn’t benefit from having that extra week of school like other institutions, but I think that if CSU-Pueblo wants to become more like say CSU-Fort Collins or CU, then they should add the extra week, for it would only make CSU-Pueblo function better,” said Renee Mitchell, a senior history major.

Mitchell said that adding the extra week on would be worth it if we did get holidays off like Columbus Day or Memorial Day. “It sucks when everyone else you know has the day off from work and school, except us here at CSU-Pueblo,” Mitchell said.

 “I don’t quite understand it, but while it is only one week, I do prefer having a shorter semester. But it would be nice to have holidays off,” said Ashleigh Rhoades, a senior mass communications major. “But that’s one more week that I would have to deal with school.”

 The next Faculty Senate meeting will take place on Dec. 2. Faculty and students should know more about this proposal by then. 

Commonly known as the “melting pot” of world cultures, the United States has multicultural dimensions in every area of life, including pop culture.

Former Miss World and the top Bollywood actress from India, Priyanka Chopra, is back in Hollywood with her single “Exotic” featuring Pitbull. Chopra debuted last year in Hollywood with her single “In My City” with will.i.am, and is once again rocking her music career with the king of rap, Pitbull. 

Marissa Munger, a senior business management major at Colorado State University-Pueblo, said Chopra’s music does a good job of blending American and Indian cultures. The music video included elements of American dance, but also integrated dance from Indian culture.

“If she sticks to her cultural values, I think she’ll do fine with our pop culture,” Munger said.

Not only did she like the Indian aspect of the song, Munger also said that she thought it added an element which would be lost if Chopra became too “Americanized.”

The Arsenio Hall Show, Good Morning America, Fox News, The Los Angeles Times and E! News are a few of the media outlets which have interviewed Chopra about “Exotic.”

In order to promote her single, Chopra had an “Exotic Shakes” event in Los Angeles in summer 2013, where the attendance was far higher than expected and the line of people spread out for many blocks.

“I definitely liked the music video and outfit, and it felt like she definitely showed that she’s exotic. I loved what Pitbull said that he’s Mr. World and she’s Miss World,” said Samantha Cush, biology major at CSU-Pueblo. “I definitely think she has career in American pop-music industry, and her song is very catchy. I believe we are ready to accept such amazing diversity in our songs.”

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Chopra said she was brought up both in the U.S. and India and she wants to bring this mix in her global music, which is primarily made for entertainment.

“The song is unique, and she paints a very cool picture with her lyrics. I like how she puts her heritage spin in the song, as you can tell that she’s doing Bollywood dance moves on an American song along with a South American rapper,” said Jenissa Rutt, sophomore psychology and Spanish major at CSU-Pueblo.

After winning four Filmfare Awards and one prestigious National Film Award, considered equivalent to Oscars and Golden Globes in Bollywood, Chopra is ready to make a career in the American music industry.

Her first single “In My City” became triple platinum in India, and her second single “Exotic” was number one on the Indian iTunes chart and among the top forty in the American iTunes chart. She also recorded her voice for the Disney movie called “Planes,” where she voiced the character called Ishani.

Last year, Chopra was signed by the National Football League for the Thursday night football ad endorsement for her single “In My City,” and this year her contract was renewed.

Students may be looking at a longer semester at Colorado State University-Pueblo, since Provost Carl Wright proposed a 16-week semester at the Faculty Senate meeting on Nov. 4. File photo.

Sarah Matott

Students may be looking at a longer semester at Colorado State University-Pueblo, since Provost Carl Wright proposed a 16-week semester at the Faculty Senate meeting on Nov. 4.

At the Faculty Senate meeting, the provost presented eight proposals that would potentially change the structure of the academic school year. Three of these proposals have already been withdrawn after the input received at the Faculty Senate meeting.

One proposal that is still on the table, however, would extend the current 15-week semester to a 16-week semester.

Many students are wondering why a longer semester is necessary, and a detailed explanation can get a little complicated.

There has been an examination into the current number of instructional hours being taught at CSU-Pueblo, and some classes fall below the required number of minutes. This is the reason the extra week of school may be added.

The required number of instructional hours is 120 hours of class or contact time with an instructor over the course of a year. This is called the Carnegie Unit, which is a standard for most public schools.

The Carnegie Unit provides a basis for the administration of higher education institutions to manage and compare students, faculty and institutions.

The units assist in determining student completion of course work and degrees. Faculty workload, efficiency and evaluation is rooted in these units.

This breaks down into a single one-hour meeting, five days each week for a total of 24 weeks per year. However, since the weekly class meetings for Monday, Wednesday and Friday only meet for 50-minutes a week, this makes those courses short of the required instructional minutes.

The proposed solution to not meeting this requirement is extending the current 15-week semester to a 16-week semester.

“I think most other universities have a 16-week schedule, so I don’t know if we would or wouldn’t benefit from having that extra week of school like other institutions, but I think that if CSU-Pueblo wants to become more like say CSU-Fort Collins or CU, then they should add the extra week, for it would only make CSU-Pueblo function better,” said Renee Mitchell a senior history major.

Mitchell said adding the extra week on would be worth it if students did get classes off on holidays like Columbus Day or Memorial Day.

“It sucks when everyone else you know has the day off from work and school, except us here at CSU-Pueblo,” Mitchell said.

For the third year in a row, the Colorado State University-Pueblo ThunderWolves were one of the teams selected to compete for the national championship. Photo courtesy of gothunderwolves.com.

On Nov. 17, 24 teams were selected to the NCAA Division II playoffs.

And for the third year in a row, the Colorado State University-Pueblo ThunderWolves were one of the teams picked.

The ThunderWolves, who were rewarded with a first round bye after being selected as the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Division II Super Region 4, will take on the winner of the Nov. 23 match up between Saginaw Valley and Grand Valley State on Nov. 30 at the Neta and Eddie DeRose ThunderBowl.

“We’re going to play the winner of two historic programs in Division II football, what an opportunity for us,” head coach John Wristen said. “We’re just going to make sure we enjoy this experience and go play our tail ends off.”

After making the Division II playoffs the previous two seasons, the ThunderWolves will take a different approach than in prior years.

“The first year I think we were just excited to be in the playoffs, the second year we kind of understood about the playoffs,” Wristen said. “I think this third year, this team is more business-like in trying to approach it. Hopefully we’ll be able to play that way.”

In being selected as the top seed in the Super Region 4, the ThunderWolves will host each game until at least the national quarterfinals on Dec. 7.

“It’s nice because you can stay in your own bed. You get to eat some of the same food that you’ve had, we get to practice here, you don’t have to uproot everything and travel,” Wristen said. “It really is a nice luxury to have.”

President Lesley Di Mare addressed student questions and concerns during Breakfast with the President on Nov. 13. File Photo.

Christine Wiabel

President Lesley Di Mare addressed student questions and concerns during Breakfast with the President on Nov. 13.

Approximately 25 students attended the event and asked questions ranging from recruitment to the status of the university’s phone and Internet service.

Many students and staff have received incorrect information about the initiative to increase semester weeks from 15 to 16.  Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Carl Wright, addressed the group about the issue and stressed that the proposal is still being discussed.

An investigation into the number of instructional hours offered in each class is ongoing.  It will take approximately a year to gather the information and determine if a change is necessary.

Di Mare said that if a change needs to occur, it would take a long time to instigate.  Students and staff will be notified well in advance and will take part in any discussions on the matter.  She said that rumors of an impending change next semester, or anytime in the immediate future, are false.

In addition to the semester hour initiative, Wright is also working on the early alert system that allows students to solve academic issues before they become serious.

The early alert system begins with faculty identifying students who are performing poorly or have sporadic attendance.  Student Academic Services will then contact those students to offer one-on-one assistance.  So far this year, over 1,000 students have been contacted and helped through the early alert system, and Wright said the system would ultimately help retain freshmen and sophomores who might otherwise leave the school.

Getting freshmen and sophomores to declare a major was also suggested as a way to help them become more connected.  When they are part of a specific major, they will have peers and advisors who can keep them on track.  They will be able be more involved on campus by joining specific student organizations based on their major, and this should help with retention.

One student suggested playing campus news when a caller is put on hold, rather than the music that is currently played.  Further discussion produced other ideas such as using the prerecorded messages as recruiting tools, which could be department specific.

Wright said the current outdated phone system needs to be replaced, but he and Di Mare agreed that using prerecorded messages about Colorado State University-Pueblo would be a great way to promote the school to outside callers.

Wright also mentioned the need to increase bandwidth for the university Wi-Fi.  There have been issues all over campus with unreliable Internet connections due to a weak infrastructure, and fixing this will be a priority in the upcoming months. He said the university will be entering a contract with Comcast and students should see a difference soon.

Students brought up several other ideas in attendance.  These included a dedicated phone number or email address where students who have questions about anything related to CSU-Pueblo would be able to get answers.  A possible name for this service would be “Ask Wolfie.”

Di Mare said she was pleased with the outcome of Breakfast with the President.  She said it was one of the most productive discussions of the semester and encouraged everyone to keep attending the various open forums.  These include Breakfast with the President or Pizza with the President and a constituents’ meeting held each semester.

Di Mare hopes to hold the open forums at varying times of day throughout the semester to give more students a chance to attend. The meetings are always announced via email and in the Howl on campus and are one means to get direct answers to questions and concerns.

Wide receiver Paul Browning broke the single season receiving mark of 994 yards early in the third quarter on Nov. 16. Photo courtesy of Tyler Shomaker

By TODAY writer Jason Cowan on GothunderWolves.com

The ThunderWolves went into the game on Saturday in a familiar position – being in control of their own destiny in the final week of the regular season.

All they had to do was get past the Western State Mountaineers during the fifth annual Hall of Fame Game

The ThunderWolves defeated the Mountaineers 38-13, clinching the outright RMAC title for a third straight season and all but securing the top spot in the NCAA Division II playoff seeding.

“It’s pretty special, we’ve done something only a few teams ever done,” head coach John Wristen said. “If you told us when we started this in August, this chapter of this team, I didn’t know whether we were prepared to do it. These kids kept playing, and playing hard each week and we kept getting better. I’m very proud of them.”

Early in the third quarter, wide receiver Paul Browning broke the single season receiving mark of 994 yards, which was set by John Trahan in 1982, following 38-yard touchdown reception.

“It was definitely a goal going into today, but I tried not to focus in on it,” Browning said. “I tried to focus on getting this win so we could get another championship.”

Browning finished the game with five receptions for 96 yards and one touchdown, finishing the regular season with 50 receptions for 1012 yards and 10 touchdowns, becoming the first receiver in program history to log a 1,000-yard receiving season.

“All the praise goes to the offensive line, they did a good job all year, the quarterback, Chris Bonner (also),” Browning said. “(It was) a whole complete effort, we did a lot of work to get to right now.”

The ThunderWolves, who came into the game as the ninth ranked team in Division II in total offense with 519.2 yards per game finished the game Saturday with 511 yards total.

“I just think we’re throwing the ball down the field, we got more explosive plays,” Wristen said. “We gamble a little bit more on throwing the ball down the field, that’s just how we’re built right now vs. last year.”

In addition to the record setting performance, Bonner, who is also a Harlon Hill award nominee, finished the game with 309 yards and two touchdowns on 17-for-24 passing. Bonner finished a record breaking regular season with 3,116 yards passing, 30 touchdowns and eight interceptions.

“We were hoping,” said Wristen on whether Bonner could have the season he had. “I thought he had a good spring and I thought he carried over from spring.”

Although the ThunderWolves finished 11-0 in the regular season and won one game in the playoffs last year, Wristen believes that the team going into the playoffs this season is different.

“I think last year we were better on defense and we were pretty good on special teams,” Wristen said. “This year I think we have all three facets and we’re going to be alright.”

If the ThunderWolves, who entered Saturday as the top ranked seed in the NCAA Division II Super Region 4 rankings, remain the No. 1 team by the time of the “Division II Football Selection Show” on Nov. 17 on NCAA.com at 3 p.m., the road to the NCAA Quarterfinals would run through Pueblo, following a first round bye.

Wide receiver Paul Browning has 45 receptions, 916 yards and nine touchdowns this season. Photo courtesy of pueblochieftain.mycapture.com

Nick Jurney

With one more victory, head coach John Wristen and the Colorado State University-Pueblo ThunderWolves can further secure their place in Division II football history. 

A win on Saturday against the Western State Mountaineers would secure a third consecutive 11-0 season for the ThunderWolves, which would mark only the second time ever in Division II that a team has accomplished such (the first since Grand Valley State racked up four consecutive 11-0 seasons from 2004-09).

The ThunderWolves can also win their 37th consecutive regular season game on Saturday, which would tie the second-longest regular season win streak in Division II. The longest streak is held again by Grand Valley State at 48 games.

“I’m not into all the record books or any of that,” Wristen said. “Maybe 20 years from now I will be, but right now I’m focused on getting our kids ready to give it their all, play for each other, and beat Western State by one.

The Mountaineers are another Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference team that has had a tough season, boasting only two wins on the season compared to seven losses.

One of the bright spots of the year has been freshman running back Austin Ekeler, who has already racked up over 1,000 yards on the ground.

“(Western State) remind me a lot of us when we first started up,” Wristen said. “They play really hard, they don’t beat themselves, and the kids are out there having fun. I have a lot of respect and am nervous about that.”

The ThunderWolves, on the other hand, have a lot to play for. With a third consecutive RMAC title, a first-round bye, and a home playoff game now in their grasp, the last thing they want to happen is to be unprepared.

“Ultimately, it’s just about trying to win each week,” junior receiver Paul Browning said. “Nothing is promised here in college football, so you have to just focus on each game in front of you.”

Browning has a chance to make his own history this week and in the playoffs. With 45 receptions, 916 yards and nine touchdowns, Browning is in a position to break school records in each of those three categories.

Browning needs only nine receptions, 78 yards and two touchdowns to tie the all-time CSU-Pueblo marks.

“That has to do with a lot of things,” Browning said of his success this season. “Our offensive coordinator is a genius, our offensive line has been able to exceed expectations, and (Chris) Bonner can really sling the ball around.”

Bonner has already surpassed the school record for passing touchdowns with 28 and can accomplish the school’s second 3,000-yard season with just 193 yards (school record is 3,011 set by Ross Dausin).

With Bonner’s success comes recognition, as Thursday he was named one of 28 national candidates for the Harlon Hill Award, Division II’s equivalent of the Heisman Trophy.

Browning, Bonner and company will kick off against Western State at 2 p.m. on Saturday, and contingent upon a win, there will be an RMAC trophy presentation immediately following.

The dean of Student Life has supervision over many student life programs and services including Colorado State University-Pueblo Associated Students’ Government, the recreation center, student conduct, Residence Life and Housing and Student Engagement and Leadership. Photo from http://upload.wikimedia.org

Katie England

Two candidates for the dean of Student Life position visited campus for interviews this past week. 

The position has been vacant since Marjorie Villani retired on Sept. 30, 2013, according to Human Resources Associate Angela Bender.

The dean of Student Life has supervision over many student life programs and services including Colorado State University-Pueblo Associated Students’ Government, the recreation center, student conduct, Residence Life and Housing and Student Engagement and Leadership.

The dean is responsible for promoting and supporting a safe environment on campus and making sure that Student Life programs are based on student development theories and practices.

Marie Humphrey, the first candidate to interview, has served as the director of Residence Life, Housing and Event Services at Regis University since 2003. She has a doctorate in educational leadership and human resource studies from CSU Fort Collins.

The second candidate, Michelle Schutt, has served as the director of Student affairs at Penn State-Worthington Scranton since 2012. She has a doctorate in education and human resource studies from CSU Fort Collins.

Both candidates came to campus last week to meet with the ASG, faculty and students. Humphrey visited campus on Wednesday, and Schutt on Friday. Approximately 20 faculty and students showed up to the session to hear what each candidate had to say and to participate in question-and-answer sessions.

Both Humphrey and Schutt expressed interest in working at CSU-Pueblo because of its small size.

“I am quite interested in this college because you guys are not 20,000 or 40,000 students. You seem to have a lot of community,” Humphrey said.

Both candidates were asked specifically what their management style is, and both answered that they prefer hands-on management to overseeing from a distant office.

“I try hard to engage them (students) where they are. I can’t expect them to come to my office,” Schutt said.

She said, though she is hands-on, she is also laissez faire in that she expects those under her to be their own experts.

“I am not a micro-manager,” Schutt said.

Developing a sense of campus community is another issue both candidates stressed.  Humphrey likened a campus to a family, saying that it has to “pull together.” Schutt said she would try to build a campus community by doing her best to catch students being good, and by being proactive rather than reactive.

Humphrey also stressed the importance of different parts of campus working together to do what’s best for the students.

“I may not do curriculums well, but you do. So how can we partner,” she said.

A final decision on which candidate to hire is expected to be made within the next two weeks, according to Bender.

Colorado State University-Pueblo President Leslie Di Mare discussed the future of the Wolf Creek Project, the initiative to increase semester contact hours and ongoing efforts to increase enrollment when she addressed the Associated Students’ Government on Nov. 7. File photo

Christine Wiabel

Colorado State University-Pueblo President Lesley Di Mare discussed the future of the Wolf Creek Project, the initiative to increase semester contact hours and ongoing efforts to increase enrollment when she addressed the Associated Students’ Government on Nov. 7.

The decline in enrollment this year has played a part in the shelving of the Wolf Creek landscaping project.  The proposal would cost close to $1 million and with fewer students on campus, Di Mare said the university would not proceed with the project.

The funds allocated by the university for Wolf Creek will be used to help with recruitment and retention of current students as well as other vital campus initiatives.  Di Mare said monies from the ASG that were allocated for the project would remain in the bank for future projects.

If enrollment numbers improve significantly in the future, the Wolf Creek project may be resurrected and students would have input in the process at that time.

Di Mare discussed issues surrounding the initiative that would increase the existing 15 week semester to 16 weeks.  There has been an investigation into the current number of instructional hours and there is a possibility that some classes fall below the required number.  If this is found to be true, the university must correct the discrepancy and comply with federal law.  A full report will be available as soon as the investigation is complete.

Recruitment and retention was a focus of Di Mare’s address to the ASG.  She outlined the many plans the university is working on to increase future enrollment.

Scholarships have been repackaged into five different categories, and so far, this has been a successful effort with the number of applications jumping from 29 last year to 243 this year.

This is the first year that CSU-Pueblo has done serious advertising, which includes billboards on I-25.

There is a plan to work with area high schools to encourage students to take college classes before they graduate.  This concurrent enrollment will bring future students onto campus earlier and will help CSU-Pueblo be more competitive.

REV 89’s recognition by Billboard magazine as one of the top college radio stations in the country will be a huge publicity boost, according to Di Mare.  She compared it to $1 million worth of free advertising for the university.

The efforts to retain current students have been very successful this year. The number of first year freshmen continuing into spring has doubled and Di Mare hopes this trend will continue.

Breakfast with the President is scheduled for Wed. Nov. 13 at 9 a.m. in the Aspen Room of the OUC.  Di Mare invited all to attend and said she hopes to have updates on the semester hours initiative to present at the event.

ASG President Vanessa Emerson elaborated on Di Mare’s discussion, saying there are several smaller ideas being considered by the University Leadership Team.

In addition to the 16-week proposal, changes to summer semester schedules and the addition of community time were examined.  During the community time, no classes would be in session and students would be able to freely participate in campus activities.  Events would be scheduled during the community time to maximize attendance.

Emerson also said a two to three year schedule was discussed. The schedule would lay out what classes will be offered each semester in subsequent years which will make degree planning easier.

She said that all of these changes are in the discussion phase and there will be continued deliberation.

Vice President Michael Weiner reported on the Health Advisory Committee.  He said that nursing students are required to have a tuberculosis test and the on-campus health center is out of the vaccine, which is on backorder.  Students are being sent off campus to get the test and the cost is significantly higher.  The committee is concerned that students should not be required to pay the higher cost and will be looking into solutions.

Weiner also said that flu shots are still available at the health center.

Work on issues such as biweekly pay, the organization of a housing advisory committee and changes in the strategic plan are all ongoing and no further information was presented.

The next meeting of the ASG will be Nov. 14 at 4 p.m. in the OUC Room 201.  Attendance is open to all.