MONDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2018 • VOL. 122, ISS. 34
THESUNFLOWER.COM
WICHITA STATE UNIVERSITY’S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1896.
PRIVATE SCHOOL COMING TO WSU WSU MADE NO FORMAL ANNOUNCEMENT ABOUT DECISION
LEASE AGREEMENT SIGNED IN DECEMBER
BY CHANCE SWAIM
BRIAN HAYES / THE SUNFLOWER
Work has already started on the former Printing and Publication Services building on the main campus just south of the Student Credit Union. The building is being turned into a Koch-funded, K-12 private school.
Koch family-funded private elementary school coming to campus in September
C
BY CHANCE SWAIM
hase and Annie Koch, the son and daughter-in-law of Koch Industries’ Charles Koch, along with a former fundraiser and state director for Koch-funded political advocacy group Americans for Prosperity, are opening a private school on Wichita State’s campus in the fall. The school will be called Wonder, according to the Wichita Eagle, which first broke the story Sunday. The university has not released any information on the school, although it signed a lease agreement with the school in December. The school will be located in the Printing and Publication Services Building just south of the campus credit union, near the National Institute of Aviation and Research, according to a university official. In the fall, it will open as an elementary school, but plans to expand to serve students pre-K-through12th-grade education. As of Sunday, the inside of the building had been gutted and Dondlinger Construction trucks and construction materials were on-site. The Kochs will lease the building for $90,000 a year and pay for renovations, the report
“I THINK THEY HAVE AN INCREDIBLE VISION, AND WE JUST FEEL VERY PRIVILEGED TO BE A PART OF THAT CONVERSATION.” —SHIRLEY LEFEVER, EDUCATION DEAN
said. The lease agreement was signed through the Wichita State Innovation Alliance, a nonprofit formed to manage projects on Innovation Campus with a board full of Wichita State administrators, including President John Bardo. Shirley Lefever, dean of the College of Education at Wichita State, told the Eagle she’s excited to partner with the school, which will serve as a kind of living laboratory for teaching students. She did not elaborate on how Wichita State students would be involved in the private school in the article and was not immediately available for comment Sunday. “I think they (Wonder) have an incredible vision, and we just feel very privileged to be a part of that conversation,” Lefever said. Tuition for elementary-age children will be $10,000 a year. Pre-schoolers will pay about
WSU plans to use local, national newspaper fund for security cameras BY CHANCE SWAIM
Wichita State’s student government plans to use the student fees money that made local and national newspapers available for free on campus to install security cameras, fund an international hardship fund, and pay for “any special projects SGA would like to take on.” Wichita State Student Body President Paige Hungate announced Thursday that student government “discontinued” the student-funded Collegiate Readership Program, citing “inconsistent deliveries and breach of contract” as reasons. “Papers weren’t being delivered,” Hungate wrote in an
email Thursday. The Wichita Eagle, USA Today, and the New York Times newspapers have not been delivered on a consistent basis to campus buildings for months, and The Sunflower began hearing complaints from readers as early as September about the other newspapers not being delivered on campus. The Collegiate Readership Program, which is funded by $62,500 in student fees, provided free copies of the Wichita Eagle, USA Today, and the New York Times to Wichita State students. The decision will not affect The Sunflower, which has its own, separate newsstands and delivery system. SEE READERSHIP PAGE 2
$6,500 a year, according to the report. The Eagle reported that Wonder will not seek state accreditation. Instead, it will work under the guidelines of the International Association of Learner-Driven Schools. Zach Lahn, a former fundraiser and state director for Americans for Prosperity, a Koch-backed conservative political advocacy group, was a partner and co-founder of the project. Lahn said the preschool will be a Montessori-model. Students will be grouped into multi-age studios, instead of by grade level. There won’t be any teachers at the school, but “guides” and “coaches,” Lahn said. There won’t be traditional grades or report cards. Students will spend four to six weeks working on “theme-based, handson projects,” presenting them to family and community members, who will offer feedback and ratings. “Most of the private schools (in Wichita) are college-preparatory academies, and we are not that,” Annie Koch told the Eagle. “People who are really passionate about having a college-prep academy might not be as passionate about what we’re doing.”
WHO DECIDED TO BRING KOCH SCHOOL TO CAMPUS?
WSIA ALLIANCE BOARD MEMBERS
The decision to lease a university building to a Koch-family funded private school was made three months ago. But you wouldn’t know if it weren’t for a news story that ran in the Sunday edition of the Wichita Eagle. Wichita State has not made any formal announcement of the decision. College of Education Dean Shirley Lefever is quoted in the story. The university — through a 501c3 formed to manage Innovation Campus projects called Wichita State Innovation Alliance (WSIA) — signed a lease agreement with the school in December. Several of the WSIA board members are Wichita State administrators. According to information in that article — which ran dominant on the front page of the Sunday paper — the school, called Wonder, will pay Wichita State $90,000 a year for the space. Wonder will invest about $1.1 million in the building, and total launch costs are estimated at about $1.5 million including the renovations and equipment.
(Pictured Below)
John Bardo - WSU President John Tomblin - WSU Vice President of Research and Technology Transfer and Director of National Institute for Aviation Research Andy Schlapp - Executive Director of Government Relations Lou Heldman - WSU Vice President of Strategic Communications Elizabeth King - WSU Foundation President Rodney Miller - College of Fine Arts Dean Ruth David - National Science Foundation Board Member Scott Redler - Freddy’s Frozen Custard Co-founder David Mitchell - Mitchell & Richards Bill Moore - Former Westar Energy CEO Tony Vizzini - WSU Provost and Senior Vice President
Willie Kendrick - Popeyes Franchisee
Wichita State Innovation Alliance Board
JOHN BARDO
JOHN TOMBLIN
ELIZABETH KING
RODNEY MILLER
ANDY SCHLAPP
RUTH DAVID
LOU HELDMAN
SCOTT REDLER
NO PHOTO AVAILABLE
DAVID MITCHELL
BILL MOORE
TONY VIZZINI
WILLIE KENDRICK
Bardo’s radio comments about ‘strongly ethnic Mexican’ recruiting draw criticism BY JENNA FARHAT
President John Bardo discussed recruitment strategies for “very strongly ethnic Mexican” families during a radio interview with KNSS last week. “When you recruit in different groups, you have to think differently about what it means to recruit,” Bardo said. “If you’re dealing with a very strongly ethnic Mexican family, for example, there may be 10 decision makers in that family as opposed to two. “So you have to think differently about, with whom do I talk? Who’s going to help make the decision here?” Bardo, who has a Ph.D. in
sociology, talked about the latest Innovation Campus developments and new recruitment strategies during the interview. BARDO “We’ve been experimenting with a lot of ways of trying to increase enrollment, and not just any one headcount.” Former president of Wichita State’s Hispanic American Leadership Organization Kelvin Lopez-Garcia said he thought Bardo was referring to first-generation Latino students with immigrant parents, who don’t necessarily have Mexican roots.
“I personally don’t think he ‘gets it’ when it comes to recruiting us to campus,” Lopez-Garcia said. “What we really need is more professors that look like us,” he said. He said he thought Bardo’s comments were based on stereotypes about Latino families. Lopez-Garcia said WSU would benefit from working with local high schools that are more familiar with Latino students. He said WSU can help by making undocumented students aware of resources available to them. “I don’t really understand . . . why he says that there are ‘potentially 10 decision makers’ in the mix.” SEE BARDO PAGE 2
INSIDE
PERFORMANCE OPERA
GROUP OF UNDERDOGS
SHOCKER TROTTER
Koch family-funded elementary school is perfect for ... THE PIPELINE.
Alan Held didn’t always plan to have a career in opera.
4 soloists feature their work with the WSU Symphony orchestra.
Former Shocker walk-on Hannah Mortimer shows off.
NEWS • PAGE 2
CULTURE • PAGE 3
CULTURE • PAGE 3
SPORTS • PAGE 4
FEEDING THE PIPELINE
OPINION
2 | MONDAY, FEB. 5, 2018
www.thesunflower.com
www.thesunflower.com
FEEDINGEditorial THE PIPELINE cartoon
THE STAFF EDITORIAL
Editor-in-Chief Chance Swaim Managing Editor Jenna Farhat Culture Editor Marissa Campbell Sports Editor Matt Crow Opinion Editor Evan Pflugradt Projects Editor Ray Strunk Creative Director Madeline Deabler Photo Editor Brian Hayes Digital Editor Nicole Byrne
ADVERTISING
Advertising Manager Christian Yost
ADVISING
Faculty Adviser Amy DeVault
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Send letters to the editor to editor@thesunflower.com or submit at thesunflower.com. Please keep letters to 400 words or less. All letters are edited for clarity and length. Please include your name, WSU affiliation and a phone number for verification purposes.
Our Mission
The Sunflower — both in print and online — will be a timely resource of information about the Wichita State University community. It will report on news, issues, activities, academics and athletics, in addition to offering a forum for discussion, reviews and commentary. It will also be an effective learnig experience for students, who will have the final authority over what is published.
Legal
The Sunflower (published for use by WSU students, faculty and staff) is private property and unlawful removal or use of papers is prosecutable. One copy may be taken for free. Additional copies must be purchased for $1 each. The Sunflower is also partially funded by the Student Government Association at WSU. The opinions expressed in The Sunflower editorials, columns, guest columns, reviews, advertisements, letters and editorial cartoons are not necessarily those of the staff, publications board, student body or university. The Sunflower reserves the right to edit or reject any submission. We also reserve the right to edit or reject any advertisement. MADELINE DEABLER/THE SUNFLOWER
CONTACT THE SUNFLOWER 019 Elliott Hall 1845 N. Fairmount Ave. Campus Box 134 Wichita, KS 67260-0134 ----------
SUNFLOWER OFFICES Front Desk: 316-978-3640 Fax: 316-978-3778 ADVERTISING Christian Yost: 316-978-6906 admanager@thesunflower.com EDITORIAL Chance Swaim: 316-978-6905 editor@thesunflower.com ADVISER Amy DeVault: 316-978-6052 amy.devault@wichita.edu ---------ONLINE www.thesunflower.com FACEBOOK www.facebook.com/sunflowerwsu TWITTER @sunflowernews INSTAGRAM @thesunflowernews
CORRECTIONS This space is reserved for corrections. Spot an error? Call us at 316-978-6905.
CLASSIFIEDS The Sunflower will not knowingly publish advertising that is false or misleading. If you have a question about an ad or a classified, call the Wichita Better Business Bureau at 316-2633146.
Thinking Abortion? Alternatives: Free Testing 265-0134
More classifieds can be found online at www. thesunflower.com/classifieds. Be see in the classifieds by calling 316-978-6906.
Ablah Library’s digital literacy workshop teaches research skills BY ROBERT HITE
Kathy Johnson knows she will be researching public policy because she is studying Social Work at Wichita State. Other students will be studying other topics. That is why she attended Ablah Library’s Digital Literacy Workshop about researching government documents Friday. “It opened up a whole new world to be able to find things without being so frustrated about it,” she
READERSHIP FROM PAGE 1
According to a PowerPoint slide Hungate provided Thursday afternoon, the program had “roughly $61,000.00 in reserves.” Plans for that money include using $46,000 to install security cameras on campus and indicate that amount would cover half of the installation cost. The university will fund the rest of the security camera installation costs. “We will be getting 360 degree security cameras on each of the blue emergency light poles. We have partnered with the administration on this project,” Hungate said via email. The plans also include putting $10,000 of the $61,000 towards the EOF International Hardship Fund. The fund provides one-time assistance to international students
BARDO
FROM PAGE 1
Lopez-Garcia said. “He seems to be playing off stereotypes to talk about how to recruit Latino students onto campus.” “. . . That all Latino families
said. “It made it a lot easier.” Information Service Research Assistant Sara Butts gave the presentation. She said the idea of the workshop was to show the different resources for finding and following legislation and policies anyone is interested in. One website was congress. gov which provides access to bill summaries, short descriptions, sponsors, and how much support it may or may not be getting at a time in the procedure.
“You can follow it through the process,” she said. Other websites provide access to local, county and state levels of government. A portal on your WSU homepage can get you there: homepage; libraries; research guides (under research help); government. Michele Pugh works in The Environmental Finance Center at the Hugo Wall School of Public Affairs. She attended the workshop.
“I like all the different pages you’re able to go to for information to do your search,” Pugh said. She said it helps prioritize how to find information, which is an improvement from using more general search possibilities or even old, paper sources. Other topics in the libraries’ series include Digital Literacy, Entrepreneurial Research, and Savvy Researchers. The times and dates are included in Shocker Blast and on the Ablah Library website.
who experience financial hardship during their time on campus. “SGA promised this money years ago, pledge was never deposited,” the document says of the plans to redirect $10,000 to the hardship fund for international students. “The remaining $5,000.00 will remain for any special projects SGA would like to take on,” the document says. Hungate made the announcement through her monthly “Engage with Paige” video, a forum where she answers pre-submitted questions from students. During the video, Hungate read the summarized findings of a survey sent to students through the university’s Qualtrics system. One of the questions related to the readership program. The survey asked students, “Are you aware of the Collegiate Readership program?” Of the 350, or 2 percent of the student
population, who responded to the survey, 25.57 percent of respondents answered yes, 11.49 percent were unsure, and 62.93 percent answered no.More than 52 percent of student respondents who said they are aware of the program said they “never pick up the paper,” Hungate said. Hungate said the program was ended “because of the perception from students that it was unnecessary, but moreso than that, there was a breach of contract and we weren’t getting the deliveries that we were required to have with our contract, so we ended up ending that program.” Hungate said the survey was sent out to 4,500 students, based on guidance from Qualtrics operators. She said student government does not have an issue with releasing the raw data of the survey. The Student Senate did not vote to formally approve this decision,
but Hungate said it was updated as discussions progressed. “(SGA) Treasurer (Marshall) Johnson also discussed with the Budget and Finance Committee and Senate regarding the ending of the Collegiate Readership Program,” Hungate said by email Thursday. Johnson has not yet responded to a request for further information about the decision. Hungate said the discussion of ending the collegiate readership program went on “for many months amongst many people” and that the information is available in the SGA meeting minutes. “Maybe it is not a lack of transparency problem; maybe it is a lack of individuals paying attention at meetings to what we say,” Hungate said in an email. Hungate said SGA would not be requesting funding for the readership program in the future.
have like 10 members in their family living under the same roof, even though studies have shown that immigrants coming to the United States don’t have as many children here as they would have in their home country.” Director of News and Media Relations Joe Kleinsasser said
Bardo’s comments were about how different cultures make decisions about college in different ways. “(Bardo) has done research on ethnic groups that share common national, religious or cultural traditions, including familism, which is a social structure that puts the needs of the family above
the needs of the individual,” Kleinsasser wrote in an email. “We’ve noticed from a recruitment standpoint that some students from familism-based cultures typically involve multiple family members in their campus visits and decision-making process.”
CULTURE
www.thesunflower.com
MONDAY, FEB. 5, 2018
|3
BRIAN HAYES/THE SUNFLOWER
Alan Held, associate professor of voice, conducts students during the a practice for the upcoming show “Scenes and Songs.”
A ‘performance-based’ opera program
A
BY MARISSA CAMPBELL
WATCH ON YOUTUBE
lan Held didn’t always plan to have a career in opera. He started his undergraduate degree as a tuba major with plans to become a music teacher. It wasn’t until his senior year when a recruiter for Wichita State heard Held perform in his master class that he was encouraged to go to WSU to work on his master’s degree. Now, Held has performed opera professionally for more than 32 years and is known as one of the leading singing actors in the business today. “I never planned on being an opera singer,” Held said. “I have a big, large voice, I can act well, I fit in and it put me through to the Metropolitan Opera and I’ve been singing around the world since then.” Held is back at WSU as the opera department director, that doesn’t mean he hasn’t stopped performing. When Held was
Watch “Scenes from the ‘Scenes and Songs’ rehearsal” on our Youtube Channel The Sunflower. called in 2013 to see if he would like to come back to WSU, it was under the condition that he could keep performing. “When my wife and I left here in 1985, we were driving up the turnpike and I said, someday I think we will be back here,” Held said. “It took 30 years, but we did it. Wichita is a hidden jewel. This has traditionally been a very strong music program. I have an emotional tie to it, I love Shocker basketball. It’s nice being back in a place that I care about.” Held is excited to be back in the program and opera students are excited to be in a program with a world-renowned performer. “I really came to Wichita State because of Alan,” opera graduate student Phillip Lopez said. “I didn’t feel comfortable studying with anybody else
because I think Alan is fostering and warm in terms of his ability to develop young singers and get them in the right tracks for what a lot of people are expecting in the professional world.” Now that Held is the director of the opera department, he has major plans in store for the opera students. Held said one of his major goals is to start offering more performances for the students so they can perform and gain experience in their field. “The best way these students are going to learn is by performing — by actually being involved, so I’m trying to provide them the opportunity,” Held said. “I’m trying to make sure these students are all good singing actors. I want them to be the best possible singers they can be.”
BRIAN HAYES/THE SUNFLOWER
BRIAN HAYES/THE SUNFLOWER
Annual soloist concert ‘a group of underdogs’ I spent a day in college girl uniform and this happened BY DANIEL CAUDILL
Four student soloists will feature their respective arts with the Wichita State Symphony Orchestra during its annual Concerto-Aria on Tuesday Evening. The Concerto-Aria is an annual soloist concert organized by the WSU Symphony Orchestra. Various musicians and singers audition in order to be featured in. Among the soloists is Krystin Skidmore, a graduate student in opera performance. This summer, Skidmore is attending the Aspen Music Festival and School. “I’m only able to go because I got a financial scholarship through WSU, the Michael Powell-Aspen Fund,” Skidmore said. The program, which takes place in Aspen, Colorado, features oneon-one educational training and concert experience for musicians every summer. “No one (from WSU) has been accepted into (the Aspen Music Festival) for four years,” Skidmore said. Originally from California, Skidmore transferred to Wichita State to earn her bachelor’s degree in vocal performance. In the upcoming Concerto-Aria, Skidmore will be performing “Awake Saturnia! . . . Iris, Hence Away” from German composer George Handel’s “Semele.” Skidmore described the Concerto-Aria performers as a “group of underdogs.” “We have a viola, which normally doesn’t get a lot of solo performance time because violin does instead. We have saxophone, which does not get time with a symphony orchestra,” she said. Both Skidmore’s performance and saxophonist Christopher Agnew’s performance of one
COURTESY
Phillip Lopez (bass-baritone singer), Ricardo Cavalcante (viola), Krystin Skidmore (mezzo soprano), and Christopher Agnew (alto saxophone) are going to be featured by WSU Symphony Orchestra in the Concerto-Aria
movement from Takashi Yoshimatu’s “Cyber Bird Concerto” will be directed by graduate conductor Gaby Garzón. Garzón is currently earning a master’s degree in instrumental conducting and holds both a cello and conducting assistantship. Nine years ago, Garzón started undergraduate school at WSU, but move back to her home country Mexico in the middle of the program. “My father is the founder of a social project that we have in Guadalajara,” Garzón said. “This social project aims to integrate families and all kinds of people to society . . . through music.” Garzón said she was originally seeking a graduate degree in education, until a friend at WSU,
convinced her to pursue conducting instead. “Sometimes in life things happen and change the whole route of your life,” she said. Garzón said that she has conducted in two previous concerts with professor Mark Laycock. Laycock and guest conductor Jesse Henkensiefken will conduct alongside her in the upcoming Concerto-Aria. “[The Concerto-Aria] is a whole different mix of instruments and singers and the repertoire is very varied,” Garzón said. “You don’t expect a saxophone player being a soloist and a viola player.” “The versatility that you’re going to find at this concert is nice,” she said. “It’s cool, it’s very relaxed.”
I stumbled across this meme the other day depicting a college-age male wearing the unofficial college uniform — leggings, an oversized T-shirt and a Polo canvas cap — and I spit out my Cheerios laughing. First of all, I was shocked at how good I thought the guy looked in the typical leggings outfit, but mostly because the person who put this meme together shared my observation that this outfit has become ubiquitous among women on campus. Let me start by saying that I love the look. These girls have achieved a certain cuteness that I don’t feel that I’ve ever managed to harness. This cuteness stems from the whole “I just woke up like this” vibe. It’s like if the days of legwarmers and leggings paired with enormous chunky turtlenecks and the frizzy pube-like perms of the 80s (I’m looking at you, Molly Ringwald) had a baby with a middle-aged dad who takes the little league team to Pizza Hut after practice. That pairing shouldn’t work, but somehow, it does. Now, I’ve been a jeans girl all my life. I’ll probably have to be cut out of my trusty, dusty Gap 1979’s once the rigor mortis has set in, so leggings are a bit out of my comfort zone. Nevertheless, I committed to a day of wearing this college girl uniform, and these were my observations. I own four pairs of leggings. These leggings are worn every day for one hour or so when I’m sweating and contemplating ending it all on the treadmill. They’ve probably seen better days, but I’m broke, so these will have to do. I paired them with my dad’s T-shirt that I sleep in, and a
AGNES CORRIGAN COLUMNIST
pair of long turquoise socks. As for my hat, I had nothing that really fit the outfit guidelines. I’ve noticed that most of the hats are some faded pastel color, and many of them are Ralph Lauren Polo or Vineyard and Vines. Again, I’m broke, so I wore what I had. This happened to be a black, ill-fitting Dave Matthews Band tour hat of my mom’s that I was embarrassed we even owned. My initial thoughts were, “Wow. I’m so comfortable.” Swiftly followed by, “Oh no. I don’t have the right underwear on for these leggings,” and “Do they kind of smell like sweat?” Nevertheless, I stepped out into the world with my Dave Matthew’s Band hat held high. I fit right in with the rest of the girls in my class. The comfort of my outfit soon matched the comfort of fitting into a crowd. I felt like one of them. Nevermind that my newly purchased YETI thermos only had water in it: I had drank the proverbial Kool-Aid. By the end of my day, I felt free. My legs felt ready to do a cartwheel at any moment. I felt like I was a part of something bigger than myself, mostly because I was wearing the unofficial campus uniform. I felt camaraderie with my fellow female campus students. For the first time in my 22 years, I fit in.
SPORTS
4 | MONDAY, FEB. 5, 2018
www.thesunflower.com
SPINNING, SPINNING, SPINNING Former Shocker turns ball-spinning hobby into career with Harlem Globetrotters
H
MATT CROW/THE SUNFLOWER
Former Shocker Women’s Basketball player Hannah Mortimer now plays for the Harlem Globetrotters. Mortimer, a Salina native, posts ballhandling videos online that have garnered an impressive audience.
annah Mortimer’s basketball career keeps spinning. Once a walk-on for former Wichita State coach Jody Adams-Birch, Mortimer had aspirations of a professional basketball career. But at 5-foot-4, her ambitions were leveled. She put her passion for basketball behind her and attended Kansas State University for her freshman year of college. But without a basketball, Mortimer would grow stir-crazy. Nowadays, Mortimer can rarely be found with a basketball not at arm’s reach. Mortimer, or “Mighty” as she’s referred to on the court, is a rookie for The Original Harlem Globetrotters. Mortimer, a Salina native, is a recognized Internet sensation. Thanks to her growing audience on Instagram and Facebook, Mortimer has built a strong following for her ball-spinning skill videos. With the help of her videographer — twin sister Haley — Mortimer has turned heads of hundreds of thousands online. Mortimer developed her ball-handling skills beside the help of her dad, Vaughn, in their driveway. Vaughn was never much of a basketball player himself. His passions were limited to wrestling, and his jump-shot was average. He could, however, spin the ball on his finger, impressing 10-year-old Hannah. Mortimer bugged Vaughn until he revealed the secret howtos. Mortimer said she mastered the ability in a day or two. Vaughn leaned in and said, “You’re going to be the next Lynette Woodard,” he said. Woodard, a graduate of Wichita North High, signed with the Globetrotters in 1985, becoming the first female to play with the Globetrotters. But simply spinning wasn’t enough. After watching the 2002 movie “Like Mike,” Mortimer learned to spin the ball across her arms. Then, the challenge became spinning the ball, and transferring it to other objects — like her toothbrush, a
“PLAYING IN MADISON SQUARE GARDEN, THAT’S WHEN YOU KNOW YOU’VE MADE IT IN BASKETBALL.” —HANNAH MORTIMER, HARLEM GLOBETROTTER
guitar, a book, or a ballpoint pen. The most challenging? “Probably the toothbrush,” she said. When she’s home, Mortimer said she’ll be up late working on crafting new tricks. She’ll stay up past midnight, sometimes waking her dad when she loses the ball. “He’s supportive of it,” Mortimer said. “Hopefully he waves it off.” Her spinning skills circulated the Internet and quickly amassed 100,000 views — at that point, Mortimer thought her hobby could be something more than just a way to pass the time. Sometimes, Mortimer will scroll through Facebook and see videos featuring snippets of her video compilations. One video, she said, had more than seven million views. In no short time, scouts for the Globetrotters reached out to Mortimer and asked her to tryout. She made the team and is now halfway through her rookie tour. A year ago, Mortimer and her step-mother went to see the Globetrotters at INTRUST Bank Arena. Her step-mom bought her a red-and-white-striped basketball, and Mortimer said, “I’m going to play for them.” Saturday — a year following that night — Mortimer returned to Wichita, this time on the court, to play in front of her family, friends, and former teammates at INTRUST Bank Arena. Mortimer has played at some of basketball’s premiere stages, like sold-out shows in Madison Square Garden, TD Garden, the AT&T Center, and others. “Playing in Madison Square Garden, that’s when you know you’ve made it in basketball,” Mortimer said. “Never did I think I’d get an opportunity like that.” Mortimer has played in more than six states in her tour so far. The Globetrotters will complete a 350-game 30-country international tour later this year. Globetrotters sport unique nicknames given to them by fellow players. “Mighty” represents Mortimer’s tiny size and might skills, she said, or as she often jokes, the name represents her
“mighty good looks.” Part of being a Globetrotter, Mortimer said, is being able to inspire people every day. At 5-foot-4, Mortimer likes to share her own struggles as a motivator for children. “I want to inspire the next generation,” Mortimer said. “It doesn’t matter how tall or how fast you are. “If you have a dream, then you can conquer it.” Mortimer the greatest lesson she has learned is to not be afraid of failure. Mortimer passed up the opportunity to play college basketball her freshman year. After a year at Kansas State, she started to weigh offers from Division II schools, but few intrigued her. She elected to go Wichita State and tryout for a walk-on spot. Adams-Birch loved her persistence, and the fit evolved into an eventual scholarship Mortimer’s senior year. Adams-Birch said she was grateful to have played “a small role” in being able to award Mortimer a scholarship her senior year. “Hannah has a pure love for basketball,” Adams-Birch said. “You could tell the game meant something more to her. Basketball is representative of a lot of great things in her life.” Adams-Birch, a former point guard for the 1991 National Champions Tennessee Vols, shared a special bond with Mortimer. Adams-Birch, who was only 5-foot5, bonded with Mortimer over the unique ways to use speed and angles to score on the floor. But where Mortimer impressed Adams-Birch the most was with her ability to inspire others. “When you talk humble and kind, Hannah is the example,” Adams-Birch said. “She embraced every opportunity. She continues to give. And as a coach, that’s a blessing.” Adams-Birch would frequently see Mortimer around the stands before and after games showing off her tricks to children in the stands. Kids would gravitate to Mortimer, waiting to see her ball-spinning skills up close. Mortimer said she stays inspired because she “was once the little girl in the stands, too.” She said the best feeling is seeing kids’ faces light up when she spins the ball on their fingers. “This is a dream,” she said.
Wichita State looking to bounce back Tuesday at Memphis BY ALIYAH FUNSCHELLE
After picking up their third conference loss, Wichita State still has some things they need some time “getting used to.” One of those things happens to be The American’s physicalness. Head coach Gregg Marshall said one of the main differences he sees about The American is the amount of toughness each team has not only in players, but coaches as well. “It’s a very physical brand of basketball, but when I came to the Missouri Valley from Winthrop, I thought it was a very physical brand of basketball and it took some getting used to” Marshall said. “I’ve said it all along, there are great coaches. You’re not going to out-coach these guys.” He also said one thing that stands out about The American is how many potential NBA players are in the conference.
“Every team has a guy that can really go off on you...potential NBA guy. You have to be ready to play,” Marshall said. “If you hit the snooze too many times on one of these teams, you’ll get an L.” The Shockers just so happened to “hit the snooze button” too many times in Thursday’s overtime loss to Temple. Despite facing adversity, Wichita State is looking to bounce back Tuesday as they hit the road again to play Memphis. Memphis’ head coach Tubby Smith is among nine active Division I coaches who have won an NCAA title. Smith led the Kentucky Wildcats to the NCAA Championship in the 1997-98 season, which happened to be his first season with the team. Smith is in just his second season with The Tigers after coming from Texas Tech. The Tigers are 14-9 overall and
5-5 in The American, and have only dropped two games at home this season. They are currently coming off of a 3-point loss to ECU. Memphis’ guard, Jeremiah Martin hit five threes and dropped 33 points in their most recent game against The Pirates. Martin averages 35.4 minutes per game, where he averages 19.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, and four assists per game. The Tigers average 70.4 points per game with a 0.1 scoring margin. They average 12.7 assists per game with 13.7 turnovers. Their rebounding margin is a 2.3 averaging 35.7 rebounds per game. The Shockers have a 13.6 scoring margin and a 10.5 rebounding margin. Wichita State averages 19 assists per game with 12.1 turnovers per game. Tipoff is at 8 p.m. and will be broadcasted on CBS Sports.
BRIAN HAYES/THE SUNFLOWER Wichita State forward Rashard Kelly shoots the ball over Tulsa guard Sterling Taplin during the first half at Koch Arena.