Resident Halls show support to the PSU Volleyball team

Last Friday at 7 pm, students from the Residence Halls went to the PSU girls’ volleyball game against Missouri Western, displaying banners and cheering the team. Representatives from the various university dorms compete against each other to see which building show the most support.

Tambree Wilson, resident assistant from Willard said:  ‘’Our coordinators let us know about this initiative and gave us the idea of making banners, which they turned it into a competition of banners between each hall,’’ said the sophomore in Psychology.

According to Wilson, the main purpose of encouraging students from the dorms to come to the games is to support the Volleyball team and as an incentive for the resident halls, the winners of the banner competition gets a pizza party in their building.

Rachel Jordan, senior in Commercial Art said: ‘’They students were actually really excited to come here today and that was a pleasant surprise for me as a resident assistant, just to see how many of them were willing to get here and watch the game.’’

‘’Just from our building there are approximately ten of us, and there’s a lot more people from the other dorms as well. It is a lot of fun and it is nice to see all the RAs come together to support the PSU Volleyball team,’’ said the resident assistant from Willard.

Pittsburg State’s University Housing includes the Crimson Commons apartment style complex, Bowen and Dellinger Hall, as well as Nation, Trout, Tanner Complex and Willard Hall.  

Shantae Cobb, resident from Tanner Annex said: ‘’Actually I am here with my RA, I try to come to the games whenever I can and when I do make it here it is always very interesting and intense. I love watching the encounters and cheering them on every time,’’ said the freshman in construction management.

Andres Myers, resident from Willard, won a volley ball autographed by the players of the PSU Volleyball team: ‘’ This is my first time actually going to one of the games and it is an exciting experience,’’ said the junior in construction engineering.

Kalee Woody, resident from Bowen said: ‘’I like Volleyball so I really enjoyed being here today,’’ said the freshman.

Hank Chrisman agreed: ‘’ The environment of the game is a very cool thing to be a part of and people get really into the competition,’’ said the freshman in tech engineering.  

PSU Indian students celebrate Diwali

Last Sunday at 5 pm the Indian Student Association presented a show popularly known as Diwali Night, the festival of light where people get together to celebrate life. The event took place at the Crimson and Gold Ballroom and the celebration continued until 8 pm. The main attractions included a fashion show, a presentation on Diwali and a Bhangra dance choreography. Also, classical music performances and Bollywood dance.Tasting of traditional Indian Food and the celebration concluded with a fireworks show.

According to the president of the Indian student association Navneet Kaur, the name Diwali is formed from two words: ''Deep'' meaning ''Lamps'' and ''awali'' meaning ''rows,'' so the entire word Deepwali means ''Row of Lamps''.  

''We celebrate it back home in almost every region of India and we do it by filling our household with lights and it is a very traditional occasion,'' said the sophomore in Accounting. ‘’All the most important preparations have been made in the last month and that includes all the performances and presentations.’’

Kaur said: ‘’We organize this event every year and we try to get people involved as much as possible, including Americans and other international students from countries besides India,’’ she said.

According to her, there are currently 70 students from India studying at PSU. ‘’I am actually performing one of the numbers, which is a folk dance from the North region and there will also be a Bollywood show, as well as music performances with classical infusion,’’ said Kaur.

They were also serving Indian traditional meals like chicken Tikka Massala, cooked in cream sauce and spices. Accompanied with boiled basmati rice and Palak Paneer, made with fresh spinach and homemade cheese. Guests could also enjoy the Indian traditional white bread called Naan and a sweet mango lassi, made from yogurt and mango pulp.

‘’We tried to make the meals a little mild this time because Indian food is usually really spicy and not everyone is used to it; but we kept the exact taste from home,’’ said Kaur.

‘’It is nice to show our culture and wear all our traditional clothes; even though I wear it normally, it feels good to wear it in front of people from other countries and represent ours.’’   

According to Navneet Kaur: ‘’The PSU student government association supported us and we also got sponsorships from companies like the US bank, because they really like our event and they want us to make it bigger every year,’’ she said.

‘’I just want to thank the entire audience from the Pittsburg area because we had students and families from the community; and we also had people from Joplin here today,’’ said Kaur.  

Katie Laidler, senior in early/ late childhood development said: ‘’This is my first time experiencing an event like this and it was really amazing, I had a blast getting exposed to the Indian culture, especially since I was a part of the Fashion show tonight,’’ she said.

According to Ananda Jayawardhana, professor from the math department: ‘’It was a lot of work for the students to first of all raise money for the event, as well as practicing all the performances and getting the food ready.’’

‘’It was challenging but the result was very successful, Indian students are special in many different ways, mostly because they are well prepared kids and they are always willing to contribute with others,’’ he said.  

Jinxin Wang, graduate student in communication said: ‘’The event was really good and now I know what Diwali means; also why they celebrate it. I also thought it was interesting that a lot of other countries besides India have this tradition, and I feel like everybody can connect to the idea.’’

‘’My favorite part was the dancing because it was really joyful and I watch a lot of Bollywood movies so I enjoyed that, and the food was very delicious as well,’’ said Wang. 

People on this particular festival show their happiness by lighting earthen 'diyas' (lamps) decorating their houses, bursting firecrackers and inviting near and dear ones to their place for partaking in a sumptuous feast. The lighting of lamps is a way of paying obeisance to God for attainment of health, wealth, knowledge, peace, valor and fame.  

How students can deal with allergies

According to Carrie Farrington, nurse practitioner at the Student Health Center, an allergy is a reaction that occurs when the immune system recognizes as foreign or abnormal substance in the body, and then reacts to it.

Farrington says there aren’t many ways to prevent allergies, but that you can avoid exposures that could trigger a reaction. For example if you are allergic to pollen, you might try to limit your time outdoors and maybe keeping windows shut.

But since avoiding allergens can be so difficult, most of the time the best you can do is to treat a reaction after it occurs, Farrington says. Recognizing symptoms early is important, according to Farrington, because if you recognize them early you can treat them early as well. 

As far as environmental or seasonal allergies, the most common symptoms are going to be sneezing, itchy watery eyes, runny or stuffy nose, sometimes body rashes, or sore and itchy throat.     

Farrington says that the most common allergens are seasonal, such as pollen, grasses, molt, and animal fur from pets. 

Is not necessarily dangerous to do nothing about an allergy, according to Farrington, but it does put you more at risk for another illness, because the extra mucus in your system is a good place for bacteria to grow.

Leaving allergies untreated can lead to sinus infections and respiratory illnesses, because it keeps your immune system more sensitive to the allergens.

Allergies also affects students’ sleep, nutrition and often causes difficulty to concentrate in class.

There is an option for people who want to be cured of their allergies. ‘’We offer the possibility to see an allergist specialist in that area, who usually exposes them to what they are allergic to in small doses over long periods of time and they get allergy injections on a regular basis. Then the body will actually build up a stronger immune system and eventually your body won’t react to the allergens anymore, but it takes a long time and it is a long process,’’ Farrington said.

Farrington says that this year is particularly bad on people with allergies, and that this has a lot to do with the extreme changes of the weather conditions and temperature lately.  Also, the wind aggravates allergies more because it moves around dust and pollen.    

ISA kicks off with a soccer tournament

Last Saturday, the PSU International Student Association hosted a soccer tournament at the Bicknell Sports Complex, each team had about eight players and this time there were female teams competing as well. The games started about 8 am and continued until 4 pm.

Yana Kirichenko, a senior majoring in Finance and Accounting from Kazakhstan was in charge of organizing the games that day and making sure everything runs smoothly, she was also in charge of timing the encounters.  

According to Abdulghani Almushir, a member of the winning team: ‘’As an international student, I think this kind of events helps us know each other better and no matter where you are from; you get to represent your country.’’

‘’For some of us, it also serves as a practice since we are part of the PSU Soccer Club and I would personally love if the University recognizes this as an official sport because even for the girls, it is a great experience,’’ said the sophomore in Mechanical Engineering.  

Valeria Romero, student from the Intensive English Program said: ‘’To me, it was incredible because I love soccer. It was also a great opportunity to make new friends and we had a good time together. It was really fun and we should do it more often,’’ she said.  

According to Giuliano Mora, junior in International Business: ''I would say that representing my country with my friends has been quite satisfying, because we are playing against teams all around the globe. I wish there were at least two of these tournaments per semester,’’ said the Paraguayan student. 

Pedro Lopes, senior in Business Management said: ‘’I think this is an experience that brings us together and help us know each other better, including the customs and traditions of other countries.’’

‘’As a Brazilian student, for me is nice to play a sport that is so popular where I come from and it is very interesting to see it being played in the US. This tournament is not necessarily about winning, it is mostly about having a good time and share experiences,’’ he said. 

According to Paloma Perez: ‘’It was fun and a different kind of activity. I enjoyed playing with all the girls, and it was a good day to get together as a team and also promote soccer at PSU,’’ said the first year postgraduate student in School Psychology.

Ben Hawksbee, junior in International Business said: ''It was a great opportunity to play against representatives of other countries and learn about their culture at the same time, all the students that are here today share a love for soccer, which is a universal sport,’’ he said.   

GTV is back on the air

GTV is Pittsburg State University's television news show, broadcast live every Thursday at 4pm on the cable access channel 13. Students of both Television Production and Directing classes come together and produce the show.

According to Andrew Dodson, last week's anchor: ''Being part of a television show with your classmate is a lot of fun; you definitely get a different understanding of the production process, how to make the videos that go on air, and then to actually doing the show.’’ 

‘’I like being on camera, and being an anchor is a big responsibility because you are being watched by all these people but I loved doing it. In the set we all get along so that really helps the process,’’ said the junior in Photo journalism.     

‘’We do several run troughs and practices, so as soon as they say Ok we’re live and that feeling of adrenaline you instantly get that feels like a rush; would be the most memorable part of the show for me,’’ said Dodson.

‘’I would definitely recommend this experience to other students on campus, if anybody either likes Broadcasting as a hobby like I do, or if they want to do it as a career, this gives you an opportunity to do something you won’t ordinarily do,’’ he said.

Sydney Ward, last week's Floor Director said: ''It teaches us to work with people of different backgrounds and personalities, we come together to create something that is very similar to what we would experience at a job in this field.’’

‘’During the production process, I really like stacking the show and deciding what is going to go where and how the show is going to look. I think is very interesting to see how people react to certain segments of the show,’’ said the junior in Broadcasting.

‘’I decided to take the producing and directing class to kind of get the flip side of what goes on in the actual set production as supposed to just producing content, and how that material is implemented into the show,’’ she said.

According to Ward: ‘’The most memorable part for me is to actually call the camera shots myself and connecting the control room with the studio, that was really accelerating because I didn’t know how things were going to go and having that pressure on me really showed me how I react under stress.’’

Tim Spears, producer of the show agreed: ''It’s a bit of a pressure cooker at times but it is also great because in this class you get useful experience that is very relevant to your career.’’

‘’I really like shooting and editing the story, because we get to write our own script in relation to the things that we are interested in. We are pretty much doing the same things that we will be doing in the work force later on and we are already familiar with it,’’ said the junior in Broadcasting.

‘’I will always remember the late nights, because broadcasting requires a lot of outside classroom work and we have to have that commitment of staying until we get everything done,’’ he said.

Erica Edwards is the instructor who guides students through this experience: ‘’I think this is one of the best ways to teach a class like this, because it is very hands on. We have some class room time and then with the live show they get to practice everything that we discussed in class,’’ she said.

‘’It is a ton of work; each student comes up with their own story idea, goes out and shoots it by interviewing people. After that, they bring the material and write a script, then they spend a few hours editing and putting it together, and that is just individually,’’ she said.  

According to Edwards: ‘’When it comes down to the show they decide the order of the stories and timing it exactly, also adding the titles and sound production. There is so much work that goes into it and the live shows is simply the reward of all that.’’

‘’The show is usually divided into four segments, and helping students putting it together is very rewarding because broadcast journalism is such a passion for me just as teaching is, and this is a combination of both,’’ she said.     

The PSU live show project started in the 90’s and it became GTV in 2010, before that the show was called Gorilla Vision.   

PSU in Paraguay program keeps growing

This program arises from an agreement between Pittsburg State University, with the Catholic University of Asuncion, and the Paraguay - Kansas Comittee. In which PSU offers classes in Paraguay for the first two years of undergraduate studies and this are the general education credits required as part of the curriculum for all students that choose a career in the United States.

Students may either complete the program with a chosen career on the Pittsburg campus,or may be also transferred to another university in Kansas or anywhere else in the country.The classes in Asuncion are taught in English mostly by PSU faculty, they are held monthly in modules, which means that students can enroll at any time and the requirements they need to meet are the same as the regular admission requirements for international students at Pittsburg State University.

Andy Gonzalez, senior in Human Resources Development, is part of the PSU IN Paraguay program and he is graduating next December. ''I had always wanted to go to college in the US, so my family and I were constantly looking for options and this is how we learned about the program,’’ he said.

‘’Pittstate has gifted me with happy memories, good friends and a chance to learn from its excellent faculty. They provided me with the opportunity to find a career that really fits who I am,’’ Gonzalez said.

‘’I strongly encourage students to take advantage of all of the exchange programs that PSU
offers, you can experience new things and learn a lot about yourself in the process,’’  he said: ‘’It's one of those opportunities that you will never regret doing it.’’

Cynthia Woodburn, from the Department of Mathematics taught her Intro to Analytic Process class in Paraguay, ''It was a wonderful experience and I am so glad that I did it,’’ she said.

‘’It is very much different from teaching in Pittsburg, but the students were very friendly and even though sometimes they talked a bit more in class than American students, they were also very hard working and had good background of knowledge.’’

Woodburn said: ‘’Students were constantly asking me questions about the subject and it was very obvious that they wanted to learn. I taught a three hour, Monday through Friday class that lasted three weeks.’’  

‘’I would definitely recommend it to another colleague on campus, because I believe the experience made me a better teacher.’’

According to Cynthia: ‘’Driving in Asuncion was very different, the traffic was not at all like in Pittsburg, but the country was very beautiful,’’ she said: ‘’they took me to one of the tourist places, called ‘’Iguazu Falls’’ located in the boarder of Brazil and that was such an amazing experience.’’

‘’There were lots of beautiful blooming trees with pretty colorful flowers and I also got to see some blue orchids while I was there, so that was fun.’’

‘’I would definitely go back if I could and the experience really made more empathetic to international students with the language differences, if feel like I have a better understanding of how hard it is to adapt to a different culture or just to be away from home,’’ she said.

Gary Wilson, from the Department of Social Sciences taught his Intro to Sociology class in Paraguay two times, first in Spring of 2009 and then again in Spring of 2011, since the subjects in the program alternates every year.

‘’It’s a bit of a culture shock and overall is a great experience. It’s interesting because the students are already familiar with each other, because they move through the program together and even though sometimes students enroll only for certain classes, still most of the time the teacher is always the new person in the class and that changes the atmosphere in the room,’’ he said.

According to Wilson: ‘’Students are very conscientious about their work and they are very concerned about making a good grade in the class. They want to make sure of almost always having perfect attendance, because the class only lasts around a month so if you miss a day in class you will miss a lot of material and they understand that,’’ he said.

‘’I would absolutely recommend this experience to another instructor in PSU, because I just think is such a wonderful opportunity, he said: ‘’ In 2009 I visited the ‘’Jesuit Ruins,’’ located in Encarnacion.’’

‘’Then in 2011, the weekend before my class started I spent a couple of days in the beach of Montevideo, Uruguay, and the weekend after my class was over; we went to Buenos Aires, Argentina, so sometimes you get to visit the surrounding countries as well,’’  he said.    

One of my favorite websites..

Personally, this is one of the sites that I daily visit because is one of the best ways to stay informed and updated with what is currently going on in my country. Not a lot of newspaper’s websites in Paraguay are as updated as this one and sometimes I even find myself informing my family about news that could potentially impact them. It also includes articles from all around South America and the whole world but it mostly focuses on countries surrounding us, like Brazil and Argentina. There are hundreds of absolutely amazing and interesting news websites in the US but unfortunately they don’t pay as much attention to what happens in South America unless is extremely controversial.          

http://www.abc.com.py/