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Volume 112 Issue 2

ACUOPTIMIST.COM | Friday, October 18, 2024 | 1

A student publication of Abilene Christian University since 1912

BY SARAH EUNYOUNG THOMPSON | PHOTOGRAPHER New students wave towels while PJ Martinez, Associate Dean of Student Engagement, sounds the siren.

Homecoming events promote community, connection BY ASHLEY HENDERSON EDITOR IN CHIEF

Students and alumni will have the opportunity to connect at this year’s Homecoming, which is themed “The Sky’s the Limit.” While students spent the week participating in activities like late-night breakfast, a scavenger hunt and Sherbet with

Schubert, the celebrations are only just getting started. Friday will begin with Praise Day Chapel at 11 a.m., followed by several events throughout the day such as the Homecoming Carnival, Candlelight devotional, the Freaky Friday musical and Midnight Worship. On Saturday, several student organizations will

walk in the Homecoming parade before the football tailgate and game, which will be followed by a drone show and another performance of the Freaky Friday musical. There will also be reunions and department events throughout the week. April Young, assistant director of alumni and university relations, said Homecoming is one of

the most attended events of the semester and thousands of alumni return to campus for it. “Our alumni love to be together,” Young said. “Homecoming is a time to remind them why ACU is such a special place, why these connections matter, why these relationships matter.” Young said that students can benefit from

this week in two ways. “One, it’s just fun,” she said. “And two, to continue to create great memories at ACU, to continue to create connections, and then being a part of things this weekend, the opportunity to connect with alumni, in my opinion, there’s no better time.” Highlighting some of the bigger events, Young

encourages people to watch the drone show, which she believes is “one of the coolest things ACU has ever done.” She also teased a potential surprise during the parade to be on the lookout for. “Homecoming is a time for our community to come together and have fun and celebrate what this place means to us,” she said.

Bean addresses 14 health code violations in city inspection NEWS BY ASHLEY HENDERSON EDITOR IN CHIEF

The Bean is responding to a city health inspection in September in for which the campus cafeteria received 14 health violations, including issues related to proper holding temperatures and pests found within the dining space and storage room. Dr. Ryan Richardson, vice president for student life, said when he saw the results of the inspection, it was his priority the health of students had not been negatively impacted. “While I am always concerned about making sure that the Bean and ACU dining is always providing an absolutely stellar experience for our students,” Richardson said, “I was not concerned that that experience was being hurt by the things that were cited.” Ken Weaver, senior director of dining services, said the inspection’s overall score of

85 was largely affected by “minor infractions,” which he finds to be “coachable” issues that can easily be addressed. For example, one of the violations referred to a cup that was left on the food preparation counter of the salad station. “She just set her drink down and was getting ready for a shift, and the health inspector had happened to be there, and that was only one that was found in the whole facility,” Weaver said. “We just told her, ‘Hey, next time, just make sure, when you come to work, place your cup on a low shelf where it’s not on a food contact surface.’” Weaver said if taken away this, along with other violations, including a wet rag left on a rolling cart and a cracked utensil, the Bean’s score would have been in the 90s. “Sometimes the score does not really tell the true story,” he said. However, news of the inspection and viral so-

BY ASHLEY HENDERSON | EDITOR IN CHIEF ACU dining recommends using the “happy or not” machines to provide feedback on the quality of food and service at The Bean.

cial media posts about the Bean sparked discussion on platforms like Facebook, Instagram and YikYak about the Bean’s sanitary and nutritional values. “I was definitely scared to eat anything there, especially the meats, vegetables and fruit,” said Kamile Rodriguez, sophomore nursing major from Hewitt. One of the posts that Rodriguez saw was a picture of a piece of broccoli with a bug in it, which led to increased complaints from students and par-

ents. Richardson said ACU takes these complaints seriously and launched an investigation to verify the post. “That one happened to be a national concern that everyone was dealing with, and that specifically had to do with a broccoli product that we discontinued at that moment,” Richardson said. Weaver said the Bean serves fresh vegetables, so the broccoli was a grower issue, but efforts were still made to eliminate the problem. Despite these efforts,

Rodriguez said she still has yet to see progress in the daily meals. “It’s been very, very mediocre, like there’s been good days and bad days,” Rodriguez said. “I kind of just go and eat the same things, but recently, I feel like not a lot has been changed.” Both Richardson and Weaver encourage people to avoid taking their critiques to social media, but instead use the feedback machines in the dining hall, which send them a daily report. Students can also reach out to speak to someone directly and follow @acudining on Instagram for updates. “It’s not that you shouldn’t tell other people your experiences, but if you tell ACU dining, I know them to be the most amenable humans to helping remedy any dissatisfaction,” Richardson said. “We’re gonna keep doing better, more, grow. I want this to be the place that people would prefer to come to eat.”

Clery report notes change in alcohol violation reporting PAGE 2

FEATURE

Oh, how the stages have turned PAGES 4-5

SPORTS

American Sign Language class to sign anthem at Homecoming BY BRYLIE LEACH NEWSLETTER EDITOR

The American Sign Language classes taught by Cassie “CK” Knutson, instructor of deaf education of almost 20 years, will be signing the national anthem at the Homecoming football game on Saturday. Knutson has taught Deaf education for 5th12th grade students in Texas, Arizona and

Washington state, and she has taught ASL at ACU for 6 years. “ASL is a wonderfully full language that gives a minority population a voice,” Knutson said. “Teaching ASL gives me the unique opportunity to teach about this Deaf culture, and how hearing people have historically been very oppressive of them.”

Students who have signed the national anthem in the past have said it is very impactful. Emma Palafox, senior communication sciences and disorders major from Lubbock, said gaining the ability to communicate in a new language and learn about a culture different from the one she grew up with is a beautiful thing. She encour-

ages others to “pick up their hands” and learn to communicate with the Deaf community. “I have absolutely loved learning ASL from CK,” Palafox said. “She encourages us to be better every class and supports us through all we do. I am so blessed that she is teaching me not only a beautiful language but a wonderful culture.”

Shaffer showcases talent in first half of season PAGE 8

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