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December 2, 2011
Commencement, chapel divide for growing numbers For the first time in the school’s history, graduation commencement ceremonies will be split into two different times at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. on May 5, 2012, and graduates will walk across not the floor of the Ganus Athletic Center but the stage of the Benson. Beginning Fall 2012, chapel will also be split and held at 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. to accommodate growing enrollment. For now the changes to commencement apply only to May 2012, but the changes to the chapel schedule will apply to both the fall and spring terms and are likely permanent, President David B. Burks said. The 9 a.m. graduation ceremony will include the Colleges of Bible and Ministry, Business Administration, Education, Arts and Humanities, and the Honors College. The 1 p.m. ceremony will include the Colleges of Nursing, Pharmacy, Allied Health and Sciences. The two ceremonies became needed in part because Harding will graduate its first class from the College of Pharmacy, which comprises about 60 students, in May. “The split will allow approximately 360 students to graduate in the first commencement and approximately 300 in the afternoon,” Provost Larry Long said in a press release. Burks said there will probably still be a lunch for the graduates and their parents, this time between the two commencement programs. He, Long and the Registrar’s Office are among the few who will attend both ceremonies; faculty members will attend only the ceremony for their respective college. While the two graduation ceremonies will be new to Harding, the two chapel programs will not. According to Vice President for Spiritual Life Bruce McLarty, Harding introduced the two-chapel schedule in 2005 for the fall
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by AERIAL WHITING copy editor
Vol. 87 No. 9
OPINIONS
semesters because enrollment during the fall terms was so high that not everyone could be seated in the Benson. Harding reverted to one chapel service during Fall 2010 after physical resources added 150 new seats to the auditorium, but this fall the additional seating was not sufficient to accommodate the students and faculty, causing faculty members to sit in the orchestra pit and on the Benson stage. Offering two chapel programs will allow students and faculty to fit comfortably in the Benson and will provide room for guests to campus, Mclarty said. The two chapel services next fall will be as identical as possible; the speakers and the content of each program will be the same, although the song and prayer leaders may be different. And Burks said he will be at both. “Chapel is very important,” Burks said. He said during previous two-chapel semesters “in order for it to appear and in essence be identical as possible, it was best for me to be at both, and it was best for us to have the same speaker.” Having two chapels will affect academic scheduling since classes will be offered at 9 and 10 a.m. Burks said one of the drawbacks of having two chapel services is that people who attend chapel may lose the sense of community that comes with everyone being together. However, McLarty said that because the balcony will be closed with two different chapel times, there will be an opportunity for more audience engagement in the services. “With a smaller chapel, there is the opportunity for a closer sense of community within each chapel service,” McLarty said. “We won’t be spread out from the very front all the way to the back row of the upper heavens. … I think we will have an opportunity to create a more positive atmosphere where anyone can feel better connected and better engaged.”
Santa’s in town
Walk this way
photos by CALEB RUMMEL | The Bison The “Walk This Way” fashion show presented by the Harding University Fashion Merchandising program Tuesday, Nov. 29, in Cone Chapel to raise money to benefit amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease) research. The show sold 178 tickets and earned $750 in ticket sales. LEFT: Senior Kelly Beggs presents a dress created by senior Deborah Hill. RIGHT: Senior Caitlin Caldwell shows off a new style put together by senior Christa Smith.
Firehouse Subs coming to Searcy Sandwich restaurant founded by firefighters to open by year’s end by CAITLIN CALDWELL student writer Firehouse Subs is coming to Searcy and should be open by the end of the year, according to owner and operator Matt Crawford. The sandwich restaurant will be located in the Gin Creek Shopping Center on East Race Street. “We chose Searcy to open a Firehouse Subs because we felt that it would be a great fit,” Crawford said. Despite the established sandwich shops already in Searcy, such as Lenny’s, Which Wich, Quizno’s, Subway and McAllister’s, Crawford said Firehouse Subs will hold its own. “Our quality and steaming process makes the flavor pop,” Crawford said. “I’m a Firehouse Subs fanatic and look forward to the opportunity to serve Searcy.” Firehouse Subs is already coming prepared to be a step ahead of the rest
Firehouse Subs was founded in 1994 in Jacksonville, Fla., by brothers and former firefighters Chris and Robin Sorensen, who come from a legacy of more than 200 years of firefighting, and they have more than 450 restaurants in 29 states, according to the Firehouse Subs website. According to the website, Firehouse Subs steams its meat and cheeses and serve them on a top-secret recipe sub roll. One of the restaurant’s most famous sub sandwiches is the Hook & Ladder with turkey, ham and melted Monterey Jack cheese. Sandwiches such as the Hook & Ladder, New York Steamer, Firehouse Meatball, Engineer and Firehouse Hero are all named based on terms that might commonly be used by firemen. Despite other rumors of new businesses such as T.J. Maxx, Cracker Barrel and Kohl’s opening in Searcy, Firehouse Subs is the only confirmed new business to open in Searcy, according to the Searcy Chamber of Commerce.
Poli-sci majors simulate UN debates by LAUREN BUCHER news editor
photo by SAVANNAH LEE | The Bison Santa Claus learns what a Searcy child wants for Christmas this year at the court house on Wednesday, Nov. 30.
with the new Coca-Cola Freestyle, a drink machine with more than 120 drink choices. This futuristic drink machine is all touch screen and has drink combinations such as orange Coke, cherry vanilla Diet Coke, peach Sprite Zero, and cherry Dasani lemon water. With word out about the new addition to Gin Creek, Harding students said they are excited to have a Firehouse Subs in town. “Firehouse Subs is my favorite sandwich shop back home,” junior Jenna Brightwell said. “I can’t wait for it to open in Searcy.” The question still remains as to whether Firehouse Subs will offer promotional deals like Lenny’s and Quizno’s buyone-sandwich-get-one-free and the Harding discount at other sandwich shops, but Crawford said something will be worked out. “Firehouse Subs will for sure have a Harding student discount,”Crawford said.
Harding students representing Argentina and the U.K. debated fiercely for sovereignty of the Falkland Islands during the Arkansas Model United Nations Conference 2011 on Friday, Nov. 16, at the University of Central Arkansas. Model United Nations is a program provided primarily for students to simulate United Nations proceedings and educate participants on current events and diplomacy. Participants usually represent a single country on a certain council within the U.N., which they must thoroughly research and argue in the country’s best interest during a debate on a certain international topic. Senior Alan Elrod and junior Emily Wood argued the case for their respective represented countries (U.K. and Argentina) in the Model International Court of Justice while high school students worked out possible diplomatic solutions and asked questions. Senior Nick Rogers and freshman Jake Windley led the court on Saturday and discussed a conflict involving Turkey and Cyprus. “I learned a bunch about the case I was arguing, the Turkish occupation of Northern Cyprus,” Rogers said. “The
high school kids were fun to be around and they really impressed me with their questions.” The political science majors — Elrod, Wood, Rogers and Windley — along with Dr. Mark Elrod, professor of political science, traveled to the University of Central Arkansas Nov.16 and 17 to interact with high school students in the Model U.N. by leading the Model International Court of Justice. All the students, except Windley, who is a freshman, belong to Pi Sigma Alpha, the national political science honor society. “It’s good to be involved in anything that helps kids think critically in a global way,” Alan Elrod said. He said the high school students “are forced to consider moral questions in critical ways. I think it was encouraging to see a room full of high school students engaged in thinking critically and globally and aware of international events and the international community.” More than 400 high school students, who were enrolled in an international relations class or in their high school’s Model U.N. club, served as delegates from schools across the South for this year’s conference. “Although I did not participate in this exact kind of tournament in high school,
I was a debater and I was glad to be able to give back to the same system that gave me so much as far as critical thinking and public speaking skills,” Wood said. Last spring, Pi Sigma Alpha took part in a Model Arab League at University of Arkansas-Little Rock, and while at the league, Elrod met the coordinator of the Arkansas Model U.N., Dr. Mark Mullenbach, associate professor of political science at UCA. Mullenbach invited the Harding students to assist in the Model U.N. this year. “The MICJ was a perfect fit for us because the World Court is a subject I cover in my International Law course and most of our majors are familiar with how it works,” Dr. Elrod said. “I think it was a good opportunity for [my students] to work on their public speaking, research and critical thinking skills in a competitive environment. Because this was a bit of an experiment this year, I selected four students I knew would be comfortable in those situations.” Mullenbach invited Harding students to conduct the complete MICJ section at next year’s Model U.N., which includes selecting three cases to be heard and three teams of litigants. “I plan on taking making good use of that,” Dr. Elrod said.