Jan. 27, 2014

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MONday, JAN. 27, 2014 | MOUNT PLEASANT, MICH. | ISSUE NO. 49 VOL. 95

Cheerleading brings two teams to UCAC Nationals, place 7th in small co-ed division  »PAGE 1B

CMU lobbying goes beyond allocations and state cuts

Life in brief STUDENT LIFE

By Mark Johnson Staff Reporters

Central Michigan University lobbying efforts have helped offer stability in tough times with state representatives having taken notice. Kathleen Wilbur, vice president of development and external relations, and Toby Roth Jr., director of federal programs in the GovKevin Cotter ernment Relations Department, both lobby on behalf of CMU to help bring funding to CMU, as well as represent faculty, staff and administration at the state and national levels. “We try to impact what the budget will be that comes from the state,” Wilbur said. “Those are significant dollar amounts for a place like CMU. Trying to impact what that budgetary piece is going to look like is a very big piece of what we do every year.” According to Wilbur, CMU received $80 million in state funding last year. To help influence the amount announced by Gov. Rick Snyder, Roth and Wilbur work with legislators and have them visit campus w money | 2A

Mobile health clinic to serve rural Michigan this summer By Taylir Emery Staff Reporter

Central Michigan University is bringing a whole new meaning to recreational vehicles as the Herbert H. & Grace A. Dow College of Health Professions will be operating a customized RV as a mobile health care provider this summer. The vehicle will travel to rural and underserved areas of Michigan to bring the Carls Center services to those unable to drive to Chris Ingersoll a clinic and provide students with a less traditional approach to completing their school work. “The College of Health Professions is very people oriented and involved in clinical services and research for communities,” said Christopher Ingersoll, CHP dean. “The vehicle will give us more opportunities for faculty and students to go out into the community.” The vehicle will be an extension of the Carls Center for Clinical Care and Education, which specializes in cochlear implant services, fall and balance therapy, hearing aid services, physical therapy and speech-language therapy. Funded by a $500,000 grant from The Herbert H. & Grace A. Dow Foundation of Midland, the recreational vehicle will hit the road in late spring or early summer of this year. “It will provide the same services and opportunities the clinic does, as well as allow for research that requires going out into the community,” Ingersoll said. The cost of the services provided on the RV will be similar to what one would pay if visiting the Carls Center. Depending on the service w Health | 2A

Louisiana Sweltering Louisiana music and spicy cajun food could have melted the ice around Finch Fieldhouse at the 23rd annual Night of Louisiana.            w 3A

METRO Emily Brouwer | Staff Photographer Sandusky gradute student Arian Pérez prepares to climb an ice tower during Ice Fest at Peabody Ice Climbing, 12326 Foley Road, Fenton, on Saturday. It was Pérez’s first time ice climbing and her first trip with the CMU High Adventure Club.

Frosty ascent

Student adventure club climbs ice walls for chills, thrills By Elizabeth Benson Senior Reporter

Students from the High Adventure Club at Central Michigan University traveled to Fenton this weekend to practice their ice climbing abilities at the Peabody Ice Climbing complex. Members of the club traveled there Friday morning to climb the massive man-made ice walls before the festival’s official start Saturday. “The climbing areas were two metal structures (where) they pour water over from the top down over the course of several days and let it freeze like a natural sort of waterfall,” said Jeffrey Davies, a Commerce senior. “You get spikes on your boots and pickaxes to climb up with, then you clip yourself into a rope for safety, and climb your way up.” The two walls were 75 feet and 45 feet tall, respectively, and took several days to create. “You have to really dig into the ice with your tools to make it to the top,” Davies said. “Both walls were tilted at different angles, so one had a more severe tilt that makes it easier to climb, and the other was nearly vertical, making it much more difficult.” On Saturday night, after the climbing was done for the day, the students and other patrons enjoyed a party in the barn, which included live music, food and dancing.

in memory Deceased Marine veteran Justin Ellsworth was honored at the Mount Pleasant VFW’s annual dart tournament. Supporters and residents alike came together for a night of bull’s eyes and brews.            w 5A

Back in town With his sold-out concert only a day away, Jeff Daniels sat down with Central Michigan Life to explain his influences, and favorite spots in Mount Pleasant.            w 7A

SPORTS

Dealing with the cold

The group planned to camp out in tents in the orchard, but was instead able to sleep on the barn floor with a space heater to combat the subzero temperatures. “We expected to be sleeping outside in tents, so we were happy when the owner of the place offered us the barn floor to sleep on,” said Arian Perez, a grad student from Sandusky. “It was still plenty cold, I think it was around negative 20 Friday night and negative 10 Saturday.” Perez said he was excited about sleeping outdoors, highlighting the adventure and the Emily Brouwer | Staff Photographer challenge, but knew it would be awful while Sandusky graduate student Arian Pérez begins to ice climb during the CMU the group was fighting the cold throughout High Adventure Club’s trip to Ice Fest at Peabody Ice Climbing, in Fenton, on the night. Friday. “I had not idea what to expect, and after having gone, I’d go back in w ICE | 6A a heartbeat without changing a thing. I discovered I really love ice climbing

Faculty basketball Central Michigan students squared off against university faculty members in a fundraiser for the Isabella County Soup Kitchen on Friday.            w 3B

and can’t wait to go back,” Pérez said.

New behavior analyst certification program at CMU to help autism spectrum patients By Mark Johnson Staff Reporter

Psychology undergraduate students now have a pathway to become board certified assistant behavior analysts. The behavior analyst certificate will allow students to work with children and other patients who suffer from autism spectrum disorders and other learning disorders. Students with the certificate will work under the supervision of professionals who have already received Behavior Analyst Certification Board certification. Carl Johnson, Michael Hixson, Mark Reilly, Sharon Bradley Johnson and Katrina Rhymer, all faculty members in the department of psychology, will help teach in the program and believe the program can serve a vital service. “We want to train students to provide services in different areas, not only autism, but also ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) and other areas as well,” Johnson said. “We’re emphasizing early childhood because the data shows if you get to these kids at age 2 to 3 or younger, even preschool age, then the

“We want to train students to provide services in different areas, not only autism, but also ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) and other areas as well.” Sharon Johnson, psychology department faculty member prognosis for improvement is much, much better.” Michigan legislators passed a law in 2012 providing insurance reimbursement for children with autism spectrum disorders, Johnson said. When the law passed, it became obvious there was a shortage of behavior analysts in the state. This led to a $500,000 grant awarded to CMU from the Michigan Department of Community Health, in the hopes that the program could produce more analysts. Johnson attributed the efforts of both Kathleen Wilbur, vice president of Development and External Relations, and Toby Roth, director of Federal Programs, for their help in bringing the funding for the program to CMU. Both Wilbur and Roth work

HibbitTs Sophomore Blake Hibbitts scored a career-high 21 points as men’s basketball dropped its fifth-straight game in a loss to MAC East-leading Akron.            w 4B

LIFE INSIDE Speak Up, Speak Out forum to discuss local politics     »PAGE 5A Kathy Wilbur

Toby Roth

in the university’s Government Relations office. “I talked to them before (the insurance reimbursement movement) and they knew this was coming up,” Johnson said. “They were paying attention in Lansing and knew what a demand this was.” w AUTisM | 2A

New medical examiner for Isabella County announced »PAGE 7A As State of the Union address approaches, students and faculty hope to hear about education »PAGE 8A