Issue 3 March 24, 2016

Editor-In-ChiefNatasha Jones

Assista nt EditorsTrenton CanadaAshton Rector

Faculty Adv isorJeremiah Massengale

Sta ff Wr itersDJ HiteLydia Jay

Shyann NorrisLeanne Gregory

Sta ff PhotographerEric Ford EdwardsJay Sanksakulchai

Editor ia l Rev iew Boa rdLisa Bartram

Marianne Worthington

The Patriot is the biweekly student publication of the University of the Cumberlands. Our goal is to provide timelyand original content by highlighting campus news and views.

Award-winning member of the Kentucky Press Association.

Letter from the EditorMarch 24, 2016

Dear readers,During my time here on campus, I got

the opportunity to take a course called“Screenwriting in a Digital Age.” In thiscourse, we not only tried our hand at screen-writing, but we also studied the breakdownof what makes a good story and the formulafor developing the beginning, middle andend of your plot.

I learned that, much like in other areasof life, there are common factors to whatmakes a story interesting. One of the steps toget to that beginning, middle, and end is hav-ing what’s called an inciting incident. Thisinciting incident is what sets the rest of yourstory in motion. In “Legally Blonde” it’swhen Elle Woods gets a breakup instead ofa proposal from her boyfriend Warren. It’s when Mufasa dies in “The Lion King”and Simba runs away believing it was his fault.

Often these incidents lead to emotions of despair, hopelessness and uncertaintyof what to do next. The lead characters often find themselves with anxiety and fearof the future as all their plans have unraveled before them. As students, we often find ourselves in similar situations when relationships crum-ble, friendships dissolve or career plans we thought we were meant for take a newpath. It’s hard not to get discouraged when we compare the way our plans turn outto what we envisioned they would or what others envisioned for us. But it’s inthose times that I think we can most identify with inciting incidents.

If Elle’s boyfriend had never broken up with her because she wasn’t seriousenough, she would have never been determined to go to law school and become asuccessful lawyer who proved an accused woman’s innocence and met her futurehusband. If Simba had never left Pride Rock, he never would have met Pumbaaand Timon, and we would have never gotten “Lion King 1 ½” or even the “HakunaMatata” sequence!

Essentially, what I’m saying is not to let your change of plans discourage you!Embrace them for the exciting opportunities they could be! God’s plans are alwaysbetter than ours, and His are what will be. Keep this in mind as summer break andgraduation loom. You never know what could be your biggest blessings in disguise.

Sincerely,

Natasha Jones

3News

Rock-Slide shuts down Interstate-75Interstate catastrophe causes commute headache for students and staff

On February 26, 2016, a mishap took place on Interstate 75 around exit 144,which is about 27 miles from the Williamsburg exit, while on my way home fromschool. It was definitely unexpected and unavoidable. A rock slide was occurringaround 3:30 p.m. that Friday evening going north bound. I was going south boundas my heart suddenly stopped and I hit the gas a little harder and headed straightfor exit 141 where my house was a straight shot from there.

Cars going north bound were at a complete stand still, others were trying toavoid the situation in the median of the interstate, while TDOT trucks and Ten-nessee Highway Patrol were doing their best to get to the scene taking every routepossible dodging vehicles and falling boulders.

Who would have known then that they would soon be shutting down the in-terstate both north and south bound? I had just made it home when they shut itdown both ways. When hearing this I would have thought maybe this shut downwould only be but for a few hours, a day at most. But I was so wrong.

They announced approximately 3 days after the incident that we could expectthe interstate to be shut down from Jellico exit 160 to Campbell County exit 134for weeks, possibly even a month or two. This posed problems as I was drivingfrom Scott County, TN to Williamsburg every day to get to school. This also causedproblems for workers in our county, too as about 47 percent of our county’s pop-ulation works out of town where the interstate is required to get to work.

Recently we had had some very nasty winter weather. I have an alternate routeto school by taking Highway 92 in Pine Knot, KY; however, it isn’t the safest ormost ideal way to commute. I had been taking the interstate for most of the semes-ter trying to avoid the dangers of that road and the absence of phone service incase of emergencies. When the interstate closed, I had no choice. I had to begintaking Highway 92 again. To and from school.

The first day I took that route after the interstate had shut, an 18-wheeler had

had a horrible accident the evening before shutting down 92 for a brief periodwhich could have caused a halt and potentially resulted in delays for me. Luckilyit was cleaned up and traffic was able to pass in a timely manner. Citizens aroundhere that are also having to take alternate routes are being delayed also as 18 wheel-ers are trying to take these routes in which are unsafe and unpassable for such ahuge truck. There have been many wrecks on these other back roads which madethem unpassable also and another route had to be taken.

Recently exit 141, the Huntsville/Oneida exit has been reopened for localscoming North bound from work but after that, the interstate is completely closedfrom ongoing traffic. However, this still doesn’t help me in my commute to school.

I know I am not the only commuter effected by the interstate mishap thatcaused it shut down for weeks to come.

Dr. Haley Turner states that the incident concerned her when it initially hap-pened. She has two young daughters in which the commute from Knoxville toWilliamsburg also affects. Turner quoted, “I really didn't know how long to expectit would take to get to campus on the new detour.” She said that she has foundsome great podcasts to occupy her on her commute which is currently an hour anda half instead of the normal hour. Overall, the detour has added about an hour toProfessor Turner’s "work day."

Professor Warren Headrick also stated that the detour has added an extra 30minutes to an hour (1-2 hours roundtrip) to his commute to Williamsburg. He doessay; however, that this detour has allowed him to see the back country of CampbellCounty, TN.

For at least four more weeks we can expect delays and to take alternate routesgoing Northbound, but south bound has recently been opened up. Be sure to staysafe and take the best route getting home on the weekends.

Ma rk Nagi, Ten nessee Depa r tment of Tra nspor tation spokesma n, ta kes a photo Sunday of t he

da mage from Fr iday’s rock slide on Interstate 75 Nor t h at mile ma ker 142 in Ca mpbell County.

(Shawn Millsaps/Special to The Patriot. Used w ith permission)BY SHYANN NORRIS

Sta ff Wr iter

4 News

Upon returning to campus from spring break, UC students were informed via emailthat the course known as Convocation will be renamed UC ENGAGE and willfeature a new format and attendance options for students.

With the transition to UC ENGAGE, attendances will not be connected to specificcategories, like in the past with Convocation. The total number of events studentswill now have to attend is six rather than eight. Of those six attendances, one willbe a required event that all students must attend. In the fall semester that event willbe the opening Convocation and in the spring semester it will be the Forcht Lead-ership Event.

Vice President of Student Services Dr. Emily Coleman says the change wasbrought on due to feedback received from students about Convocation. She alsoadds that the change has been a year in the making.

“Student success can be clearly tied to student engagement on a college campus,not just here but nationwide. UC ENGAGE will be another opportunity for UCstudents to become engaged with campus through the sessions offered and leader-ship opportunities presented campus wide,” said Coleman.

Students who have a leadership position on campus will be eligible for one atten-dance fulfillment based on that position per semester. Those students who do holda position of leadership (such as president of Student Government Association,captain of the debate team, student athletes or resident assistants) will have to com-plete a form online, which will have to be approved by their advisor on whether ornot that student is fulfilling that positon and should be granted the attendance basedon their performance in that role.

Jay Bourne, faculty advisor of the debate team said, “If the idea is to engage inareas outside the classroom, these are students who are engaging in activities out-side the classroom… it does respect the engagement they are involved in, whetherit’s a club, organization or other activity. It is sometimes difficult for these studentsto fulfill those attendance requirements in the past.”

Bourne said he believes subtracting categories and giving students who hold po-sitions of leadership on campus fulfillment should make the requirements for UCENGAGE more achievable and enjoyable.

Convocation ReconstructionConvocation transforms into UC ENGAGE

BY NATASHA JONESEditor-In- Chief

UC ENGAGE will be another oppor-tunity for UC students to becomeengaged with campus through thesessions offered and leadershipopportunities presented campuswide.

“”- Dr. Emily Coleman

Features 5

Coleman also says the decision to take out categories, like academic/cultural, faithdevelopment, and general interest, was made to simplify the process. The changealso gives students the option to focus on programs that are directly related to theirmajor or focus on other skills that the student would like to further develop. Thus,it allows them the chance to really customize the experience of UC ENGAGE.

Paige Cox, a UC freshman, said, “I like the change. I think not having any cate-gories will open up a range for students to get all that they need before the semesteris over. It won't be so stressful to get them done.”

Dependents have also been added to the exemption policy. Coleman says she clas-sifies students with dependents as, “the primary caregiver for a child or maybe foran elderly family member, or something along those lines.” Coleman added, “Theperson would just have to bring me that documentation with justification to showthat they are caring for someone and then we would be able to give them theircredit for that.”

Joshua Kidder, a UC junior said, “I think the changes are really going to changethe way students will view Convocation. Since there are only six required, I think

students will have a more positive outlook and will be more excited to go.”Compared to the current Convocation schedule, the program schedule for UC EN-GAGE will not be changing much. It will allow students a wide array of diverseoptions to meet those requirements, but will also open seats in events that studentsmight want to attend based upon personal interest.

The implementation of UC ENGAGE will also alter PASS100, a course all incom-ing freshmen must take during their first semester on campus. Their attendance re-quirements will change to six as well, including the required program of openingConvocation of the Forcht Leadership Event. The leadership attendance optionwill not be available for freshmen enrolled in PASS 100.

Attendance will still be available to view online, and the ticket system will remainto ensure available space, but only time can tell if it will be needed long term addsColeman. She also says depending on the schedule of events next year, programssuch as Fall Awakening and Spring Renewal- that take place multiple nights in aweek- may or may not count for multiple attendance credits. This decision will bebased upon the UC ENGAGE schedule and what best helps all enrolled studentsmeet the attendance requirement.

6 Features

The month of February is designated each year as a time in which we, asAmericans, honor and give thanks to the African-American lives that have influ-enced and shaped not only our nation as a whole but each of us as individuals.As such, it is also the time that we celebrate the man argued to be the single mostdefining voice for equality in America. That man is, of course, Dr. Martin LutherKing Jr., and while we each celebrate him in our own way, many universities setthis day aside as a memorial for Dr. King. Yet while colleges and universitieswithin Kentucky like Lindsey Wilson, Campbellsville, Asbury, Kentucky Chris-tian and many others chose to schedule this day off in Dr. King’s honor, the Uni-versity of the Cumberlands, along with 12 other universities and colleges, choseto continue classes as normal. This has left many students with questions aboutwhat kind of reverence is given to the leader of the Civil Rights Movement.

“I feel that UC has done a poor job of acknowledging Dr. King and his ac-complishments,” said UC student Erico Smith. “Not only do we have to attendclass but little is done to acknowledge him on campus. I think that as a role modelfor not only the black community but for everyone, there could be a better effortto educate people on how far we have come and the things that we can still do toimprove today.”

In past years, UC officially began each spring semester with the openingFounder’s Day convocation program, with each speaker traditionally touchingon the life and legacy of Dr. King. This year’s speaker, Dr. Kevin Smith, is notedas being the first African-American president of the Kentucky Baptist Conven-tion, according to an article published by the Western Recorder. This was not thefirst time Smith has spoken at the opening convocation. In fact, according torecords found on the UC’s campus website, Smith spoke at the 2014 openingconvocation with a specific topic of Dr. King’s legacy. That said, seldom wasmentioned about Dr. King during the 2016 convocation, and a very brief momentof silence left some students desiring more.

Dr. Barbara Kennedy, vice president for academic affairs, said of the oppor-tunities to honor Dr. King on UC’s campus, “The university celebrates diversity,

equality, and the achievements of Dr. King. In years past, there have been con-vocation events devoted to Dr. King, civil rights and diversity. Plus, many de-partments on campus place a focus on Martin Luther King, Jr. For example, inthe school of education, they have created displays and bulletin boards to honorthe life and achievements of Martin Luther King and also to celebrate black his-tory month… Additionally, as another example, students in our education pro-gram take an entire course called Race and Diversity, which concentrates on theseissues.”

Apart from these instances found in past Founder’s Day convocations andthose directly related to class events, no specific annual event is held in directhonor of Dr. King. In fact, according to press releases obtained from UC’s web-site, the last time that an event was specifically held in honor of Dr. King was in2010 when the UC Democrats sponsored a commemoration featuring severalguest speakers. Dr. Mike Dickman, faculty sponsor for the UC Democrats, re-called that the event stemmed from student frustrations that there weren’t moreopportunities at UC to honor the life of Dr. King, and while this event focusedon voicing the message that Dr. King left behind, it was sponsored by an organ-ization found on UC’s campus and not by the university itself.

One student at the time, Chris Felder, was featured as a speaker at the eventand was quoted in a UC press release as saying, “I felt that there was a need tohonor a truly great American; one who transcended race and cultures and daredto say that everyone was equal. As a young black man in America, I am keenlyaware that there are a lot of obstacles that Martin Luther King, Jr. has toppled,paving the way for future generations to succeed in this great nation."

That sentiment about UC seems to hold true today. UC student KrystalRobertson addressed this by stating, “We don’t really honor Martin Luther King,Jr. at all. I mean, even thought the population of African Americans is low here,there still is no celebration for black history or Martin Luther King at all. Wedon’t see anything; we don’t even hear about it in class.”

BY TRENTON CANADA, LYDIA JAY, AND DJ HITE

Assita nt Editor a nd Sta ff Wr iters

Students reflect on how UC honorsDr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s legacy

7Features

Photo by K irsten SchollLisa Bartram, director of UC campus activities, addressed the Campus Activities Board’s role

in such events by stating, “The campus activities we schedule through CAB are viewed more asentertainment. The focus on Martin Luther King is more educational, so we’ve always left thataspect to the convocation side of things.”

Sara Donahue, graduate assistant for campus activities, recalls, “I don’t think that we havehad anything specifically focused on Martin Luther King since 2010. Prior to that, I think theremay have been a few events, but I don’t think we’ve had anything scheduled after that.”

Universities similar to UC have either sponsored or hosted events centered on Dr. King.Within the month of February, Asbury University hosted a lecture from Clint Baldwin, associateglobal executive director of Word Made Flesh, during which he spoke to students directly aboutfurthering Dr. King’s dream though non-violent protest, suffering, justice and love. In addition,recent years have found Lindsey Wilson College participating in service events in honor of Dr.King, according to articles published by KY Forward. According to press releases obtained fromCampbellsville University, the institution has sponsored services held in reverence of Dr. King,featuring guest speakers like the Rev. Marvin Frank Thomas Sr., bishop of the Second EpiscopalDistrict of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church in the Kentucky-Ohio region.

However, University of the Cumberlands officials understand the response expressed by stu-dents concerning opportunity.

Kennedy said, “Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is important to us at UC. We do care about cel-ebrating Dr. King’s life and legacy. We are reviewing this with an expectation of making changes.”

“Dr. K ing has show n me t hat you ca n have a big, impact ful

voice a nd in f luence on people w it hout being pompous a nd a r-

roga nt, t hat you ca n have a v ision a nd a big drea m, goa ls a nd

show it in appropr iate ma n ner. I rea lly respected t hat about

him.”

-Cor y Crabtree

“If it were not for him I would be here, to attend a predomi-

na nt white university. We would still be liv ing in Jim Crow,

racia l tension would be hig her t ha n t hey a lready a re

today. Wit hout Dr. K ing we would be in a much worse place

t ha n we a re r ight now.”

-Er ico Smit h

“MLK showed me what a tr ue leader is a nd how you a re to

reach people a nd com mun icate a nd look past ever yone’s

physica l appea ra nce a nd look more towa rds the person that

t hey actua lly a re.”

-A neta Elliot

“MK impacted my life, simply because in here. I would never have come

here i f t hings were as t hey use to be. It’s t he equa lity, we wouldn’t be

able to be here unsegregated i f it were not for his leadership a nd sup-

por t for us.”

-Ja zmine Taylor

UC students share their thoughts on the impact of Dr. King

LG: What inspired you to write about the specific topic that you choose for the ar-ticle?

BN: It took me a while to figure out what to write about. I was googling differenttypes of college articles on Buzzfeed, and a lot of them were problems of going toa collage, and problems of small collages, so I said “well let's talk about the perksof going to a small collage” so that's what that was. It was just the opposite end ofsome of the popular Buzzfeed articles already published.

LG: What was the most challenging part of writing the article for you, besidesfinding a topic?

BN: I think the most challenging part was finding twenty perks of coming to asmall school that weren't already done because there were Buzzfeed articles aboutperks of going to college. We’re all in college, we know how it is, and there aresome universal perks about going to college. So I think trying to find perks thatare related to going to a small campus that relates to everyone, not just specificallythe Cumberlands, that gave me a little bit of trouble, I’m not going to lie.

LG: Is there anything you would go back and change about the article you’ve writ-ten?

BN: I don’t think I would change anything, because I thought it was pretty goodbecause it was funny, but I guess the editor of Buzzfeed, who read over the listand published it, did change some wording and condensed the list. I had twentyperks altogether but they changed it to seventeen. They kind of mushed two of thepoints together. So they changed some things, but I don’t think I would. I likedhow it turned out and im very happy about it. 8

8 Features

What’s the buzz, Brody?

For any writer, getting their work published is a life-long dream. For somewriters the dream manifests itself in movie manuscripts, and television advertise-ments. For others, it arrives in the form of novels and magazines. For BrodyNolan, a senior here at the University of the Cumberlands, his dream pixelateditself in an article titled “17 Undeniable Perks of Goint to a Small College,” pub-lished to the front page of Buzzfeed’s webpage. Sit down with Brody and me aswe talk about what the experience means to him.

LG: What was that like for you, getting your article published on a popular websitesuch as Buzzfeed?

BN: It was pretty exciting. I woke up to the email saying that they had publishedit to their front page, and I was kind of in disbelief. Then I checked and it wasthere, so it was very exciting.

LG: How did you manage to get the article on Buzzfeed's webpage?

BN: Well, I have Print and Web Journalism with Jeremiah Massengale and our as-signment was to do a Buzzfeed listicle. So what we had to do was make a list oftwenty things that relate to a college student. We had to post it to Buzzfeed com-munity so I made mine, and posted it to them, and they emailed me and said theyhad published it to their community site. I guess it got more attraction becauseafter that they emailed me again and it said, “Hey, we are putting it on our frontpage.” So I think it was because it got lots of reactions from their community thatthey published it up front.

LG: What did you enjoy most about writing this particular article?

BN: I think the fun thing about Buzzfeed is finding the little GIFs that go alongwith them. It's always fun to get that added sense of humor into it. I got to be sassy,and I love to be sassy.

LG: Were you surprised that the article managed to get as much attention as it did?

BN: I was very surprised, I didn't think it would go anywhere because it was moregeared towards a small school. The idea behind it was the perks of going to a smallcampus and a majority of Universities aren't small campuses like ours. So it wasvery shocking and very cool to see that they had published it on their front page.

A Q&A with Brody Nolan

Brody Nola n, a UC senior, poses in front of his a r ticle, published on Buzzfeed.comPhoto by DJ Hite

BY LEANNE GREGORY

9Features

LG: Has anyone from the University, like a professor or a stu-dent, who has read and enjoyed the article talked to you aboutit?

BN: I’ve actually had, not to brag, a lot of people come up tome and talk to me about it, it’s really cool. Their usually stu-dents or professors who I know and they’ll congratulate me on getting there, butsometimes it will be a student who I’ve come across in passing and they’ll be like“Hey you wrote the article it’s really cool, I loved it, it was really funny.” So it’sbeen really cool to see how people related to it on campus. It’s been really fun tohear what they want to say about it. It’s kind of an ego boost im not going to lie.

LG: What kind of a mindset did you go in with to write the article?

BN: The mindset I wanted, was to be sassy. I think I’m hilarious, and sometimespeople agree, sometimes they don’t, but I think im always hilarious so I wanted totry and get the humor across and be true to the fact that these perks do happenwhen you come to a small school. I wanted to emphasize the fact that we are asmall campus and that it’s nice coming to a small campus where people know youno matter what, no matter where you are, or what you do. That your professor isable to teach you one on one. You don’t get that on a big campus. I wanted to getthe point across that there are these perks coming to a small campus as well as

being funny.

LG: Did you enjoy the assignment?

BN: I did, it was very fun. I love Mr. Massengale, he’s agreat professor. He is always concerned about teachingyou real world applications that you can use beyond col-

lege and that’s what this was. It was getting you the experience to write somethingand then publish it to Buzzfeed. It was very fun because I love Buzzfeed and I lovewhat they do, and I wanted to get published by them for a while I had just neversat down to actually do something to try and get on Buzzfeed. So for an assignmentto get me there was really cool.

LG: So you think that this assignment helped you to further your ambitions to getto your career goals?

BN: Yeah maybe, I’m not saying I’m applying for them or anything, but if I had adream job it would be Buzzfeed or a film director so I think it’s kind of makingthat dream more obtainable. It’s like hey I can do this because I got published sowho knows, maybe in the long run I and see myself there.LG: Would you work with Buzzfeed again if you had the opportunity to do so?

BN: Yeah, Buzzfeed is probably one of my dream jobs. I would love to work withthem. If they offered me a job I would take it in a heartbeat.

LG: Do you have any advice for people who are looking to get their works pub-lished in magazines and news outlets like Buzzfeed?

BN: Maybe just try and add some humor, because that's the main thing about Buz-zfeed, they try to be witty and sarcastic with some other things, and I think thathelped my article gain traction, because some of it was a bit sarcastic, and someof it was actually genuine. I think if you have the added sense of humor then peopleare going to react to it better than if it was just huge links of paragraphs of readingand dry, boring stuff.

LG: You mentioned that you're dream job would be to work for Buzzfeed, is thereanything specifically you would like to do for them?

BN: Probably more of the same stuff. Just writing sarcastic pieces for them becauseI am a very sarcastic person, and sometimes that gets me introuble, but Buzzfeed seems to love the sarcasm. Maybehelp them with their videos, I love film and stuff so I couldsee myself shooting a video or two for them. Just the funstuff, they seem like very fun people to work for.

LG: Where do you plan on going from here in your writingcareer?

BN: I have no idea. If I could talk myself into it and do another article and get itpublished on Buzzfeed that would be really awesome, but as for writing there’sjust school assignments as of right now. I might think of trying to do another Buz-zfeed list eventually but right now there’s no ideas flowing.

LG: One final question for you, what do you think is the most important aspectfor writing this type of article?

BN: I think the most important thing is to be yourself. If you try to write in themindset of someone else it’s not going to happen. You wantto write how you normally think or talk. Don’t try and putup a façade and it should all fall in line, and it did in my case.Im literally always sarcastic, and kind of was in the article sometimes, and it paid off.

New

s

Photo submitted by Tedarrius Teasey

Student Government Associationor Swimmer Government Association?BY LYDIA HUGGINS

Guest Wr iter

Instead of thinking about all of the important issues that University of the Cum-berlands’ Student Government Association address for the student body to the ad-ministration, UC students often think of all of the swimmers who seem to run SGA.The student president, Grace Van Ryckeghem, senior biology and exercise sportsscience double major with a missions and ministry minor at UC and women’s swimteam captain, encourages any student to join SGA.

“Others can just as much be involved,” said Van Ryckeghem. “We’re not ex-cluding anyone. Everyone is welcome to join. We would love for our room to bepacked every week and need a bigger room with more people in it. If you want tocomplain about it, then do something and join SGA.”

SGA has tried open membership to get more of the student body to get in-volved. Non-members are allowed to come to their every other Wednesday nightmeetings. Students can fill out an application (located in the SGA office located inthe Mid Boswell Campus Center) and have students sign a petition who want theapplicant to be a representative in SGA’s senate. “ SGA is the voice of the students,” said Lisa Bartram, director of student activ-ities. “If students want change on campus or need something for a club they arein, they go to SGA.” Recently, the archery team approached SGA about wanting to send members oftheir team to the University Championship Trials in Phoenix, Arizona, becausethey need help getting their members there. SGA is able to help other student or-ganizations or sports teams because they are one of the few student organizationsthat gets a budget directly from UC. SGA doesn’t fundraise for their expenses, buthelp others with their funds.

The leather couches in the new Ward Correll Health and Wellness Center wereprovided by SGA to complete their pledge that they gave for the building projectof the Health and Wellness Center. They also fund the recycling program and areconsidering getting new recycling bins.

At the beginning of the school year, SGA meets to discuss ways to improvestudent life at UC. Members of SGA as well as non-members are welcome to come

to their meetings and present ideas. Dr. Emily Coleman, vice president for studentservices, asks them if they have any new ideas to improve campus. Last year, SGAhelped to implement new open house hours. Most recently, they have taken pro-posals for a new meal plan to the administration who are now looking into a newID system and infrastructure to do so.

“This school is not perfect. No school is perfect. SGA is the place to come ifyou want to see something changed. If you just complain about it, but if you don’ttake it to anybody, than how can anything change?” said Van Ryckeghem. “Evenif you’re not a member, tell one of the members on SGA so we can bring it to thepeople who can look into that. Sometimes [the administration] just doesn’t know.

They’re not students living on campus day to day the way we are. They don’tand can’t know everything.”

SGA does more than speak for the students; they also facilitate activities.Throughout the school year, SGA hosts annual study breaks with food for studentsto study or relax during finals week, provide students with a free movie, popcorn,and drink during spring fever and homecoming weeks, have a booth at Relay forLife, collect votes for an honored faculty member as well as homecoming kingand queen, and have senate members on many committees throughout UC. VanRyckeghem is currently on the committee for the QEP for the reaffirmation of theschool.

“Really there’s a place for SGA pretty much everywhere in school,” said VanRyckehem. “They really listen to our opinions.”Aside from Van Ryckeghem, half of the executive board are not swimmers. SGAdoes their best to involve all of the students that are a part of SGA.

“The reason why I joined SGA is I wanted to earn community service hoursat first,” said Yuko Baba, senior business and administration major with a minorin history at UC. “Before I joined SGA, I didn’t know what was going on in SGA.After I joined, I realized that SGA is really important for UC students. We can helpUC students because we represent them.”

Photo courtesy of University Comunications

Student Gover nment Association for University of t he Cumberla nds poses in t he lower BCC.

10 Features

A gifted group of young singers gather Tuesday nights to compete for thechance to win University of the Cumberlands Spotlight. Twelve contestants cur-rently vie to be the winner of season four, but only a few people on campus knowwhat it takes me become that winner.

Graduate Brandy Norman and junior Sara Jo Hampton won the past two sea-sons of Spotlight. The two are talented singers, obviously, but they say it’s morethan just singing and pure talent that wins the coveted $1,000 first place prize.

Sara Jo and Brandy both agree that performing and singing are two differentthings. Having friends and some notability help in the voting. Practice and con-fidence make the difference to the judges. And visible growth from a judge’s per-spective helps keep a contestant in the competition.

For those who want to know the key to success: song choice. Both Brandyand Sara Jo say it can make or break a performance and the prospect of a win.Both say they made the mistake of choosing songs they liked, but the audiencedidn’t know or like.

“I made that mistake my first year,” Sara Jo says. “I learned from that mysecond year.”

Sara Jo won her second year performing in Spotlight. As a freshman, sheplaced third while senior Jordan Infield placed second and Brandy won. Sara Jocame back stronger her sophomore year and won season three of Spotlight. Shesays she’s performed since she was three-years-old.

Brandy performed in Spotlight three of her four years as an undergraduate.She placed third her first year and won her third year as a senior. She’s performedsince she was 11-years-old with a showband until she was 18-years-old.

“I love to sing; it was never about winning,” Brandy says. “By college, Istopped singing with the showband and I missed it. The money was obviouslynice, but it was never about winning for me.”

Talent, an obvious requirement, goes beyond what it takes to win Spotlight.Name recognition is important for voting. Brandy’s winning season came down

to a close vote in the finale between her and Jordan Infield. She was a senior andhad a lot of friends by that season of Spotlight. But knowing how to make friendsand be outgoing makes a difference in voting.

“I lacked the votes I needed my freshman and sophomore year,” Brandy says.“You can’t just stay in your room when you’re in Spotlight. It made the difference[between finishing well and winning].”

The accompaniment of live music also helped both singers win Spotlight.Sara Jo sang with her father, Joe Hampton, behind her on the guitar most weeks.Brandy learned between her seasons that live music made a huge difference thansinging along with a karaoke track.

“My dad played with me every week except a few times when they had thewhole band for the performers,” Sara Jo says. “The musicians work just as hardas the contestants.”

Song choice, recognition, and talent are the key ingredients to winning Spot-light that Brandy and Sara Jo agreed on, but the moment they knew they weregoing to be winners couldn’t be more different. Sara Jo says she knew after shegot the reaction she needed from judge Megan Hinkle. Brandy says she didn’tknow she was a winner until the emcee called her name.

“The night I sang ‘I Can’t Make You Love Me’ by Bonnie Raitt and thejudges’ reactions made me think [I can win],” Sara Jo says. “Megan [Hinkle]said she wanted a raw performance and that’s the night she told me I did it.”

That song was also Sara Jo’s favorite to perform. “Too Little, Too Late” byJoJo was Brandy’s favorite song. She says she gave the song an acoustic feel andgot into it during her performance.

Certainly it takes a lot to win Spotlight. Weeks of practice, pressure and per-formance drop contestants every Tuesday night in Gatliff Chapel until one re-mains. Brandy and Sara Jo are among the few to win Spotlight and they knowwhat it takes to win.

What it Takes to Win Spotlight

BY AMANDA KELLY

Guest Wr iter

11Features

Past Winners of Spotlight give their advicefor success 2014 Winner, Brandy Norman

(Pictured Left)

2015 Winner, Sara Jo Hampton(Pictured Right)

PHOTOS COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS