TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2017
WESTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY
VOLUME 93, ISSUE 24
Gall indicted in shooting death of WKU student BY EMMA AUSTIN HERALD.NEWS@WKU.EDU
GRAPHIC BY CRAIG OSTERTAG • HERALD
BY THE NUMBERS Greek life shows low GPAs, higher retention BY SPENCER HARSH HERALD.NEWS@WKU.EDU
Involvement in Greek life can be the cause of lower grade point averages, according to recent national research. However, Greek life at WKU produces strong retention and graduation rates, according to research done by WKU officials. Nationally, undergraduates who join Greek organizations on average lose a quarter of a letter grade on their overall and incoming GPAs, according to research done by Andrew De Donato and James Thomas. De Donato and Thomas also found that students involved in a fraternity or sorority have an algorithm for choosing classes in an attempt to salvage their oftentimes lower GPAs. “There are strong negative effects in some periods but smaller effects in others,” the study said. The study shows students earn lower
GPAs after becoming associated with a Greek organization, which is typically during their first or second semester of college. Charley Pride, director of Student Activities at WKU, has recorded data associated with Greek students dating back to 1994. Pride said he agrees there is a drop in overall GPA among students who join a fraternity or sorority, but he said it is not the same for every organization and there are many other things to take into account. “College does allow your GPA to go down,” Pride said. Pride said students, Greek or not, are prone to lower GPAs when they are in college. Students who are in “Greek-lettered organizations” are simply more identifiable, he said. WKU Greek Affairs has a 2.5 GPA requirement in order for any student to become a prospective new member, Pride said. He said individual chapters can also have their own GPA requirements for new members, most of
which are typically 2.7, although some chapters have the requirement as high as 3.0 for incoming freshmen. In spring 2017, the average GPA for women in a sorority was 3.17, with new members in their respective organizations bringing in averages ranging from 2.4 to 3.4. Additionally, the average GPA for a male student in a fraternity was 2.8 last spring, with GPA’s averaging from 2.0 to 3.4. While some Greek organizations do show lower academic performance, the same cannot be said for every Greek organization, according to grade rankings from WKU Greek Affairs. Pride said he thinks people often overlook positive qualities Greek organizations provide, such as strong retention and graduation rates. “There’s a phenomenal relationship between being Greek and staying at WKU,” Pride said. In fall 2010, the most recent year with complete graduation data, WKU SEE GPA • PAGE A3
A former WKU student accused of fatally shooting his roommate has been formally charged with second-degree manslaughter. Peter Gall, 21, was indicted Wednesday by a Warren County grand jury, according to court records. Gall was arrested Sunday, Sept. 3, after calling the Bowling Green Police Department to report that he had shot someone. Police arrived at the 1600 block of Kenton Street to find WKU student Kenneth “Alex” Davis, 21, bleeding on the floor, according to Gall’s arrest citation. Davis died as a result of the gunshot wound, according to police records. Gall told police he went to get the gun from his bedroom, brought it out and showed the gun to Davis, then it went off when he set it on the couch. Gall told police he and Davis had gotten into a verbal argument and the shooting was an accident. Detective Melissa Wartak of the Bowling Green Police Department testified during a preliminary hearing in September that Gall told police he and Davis had been ribbing each other throughout the night “all in good fun,” Bowling Green Daily News reported. Wartak said witnesses told police there had been no fighting or physical violence leading up to the Peter incident. Gall Gall’s attorney, Alan Simpson, told WBKO Former WKU the shooting “was not student an intentional shooting.” Simpson added that Gall and Davis were “roommates and very good friends, if not best friends.” Gall was released from Warren County Regional Jail Sept. 8 on a $100,000 bond, which included conditions he does not have contact with Davis’s family. Gall is currently living in Frankfort with his family and attending counseling, the Bowling Green Daily News reported. Second-degree manslaughter is a Class C felony punishable by imprisonment lasting between five and 10 years in Kentucky. Gall’s arraignment is scheduled for Dec. 11.
Projects Editor Emma Austin can be reached at 270-745-0655 and emma. austin177@topper.wku.edu. Follow her on Twitter at @emmacaustin.
University College professor resigns mid-semester
BY MONICA KAST
HERALD.NEWS@WKU.EDU
An associate professor in the department of organizational leadership has resigned mid-semester, according to employment documents obtained by the Herald. Ron Mitchell, an associate professor in the department of organizational leadership within University College, resigned in October. Mitchell
had been an employee at WKU since 2005, according to employment records obtained by the Herald. Mitchell submitted a handwritten letter of resignation to Dennis George, dean of University College, on Oct. 18, according to his employment records. Mitchell’s resignation was to go into effect Oct. 23, according to the letter. George was contacted multiple times for comment, but did
Ron Mitchell Organizational leadership associate professor
not respond in time for publication. Mitchell was hired in 2005 as an instructor in the business and computer studies department of the WKU Community College, according to a letter sent to Mitchell from former-president Gary Ransdell. Mitchell was promoted to assistant professor in 2007 and was granted tenure in 2010. In 2011, Mitchell was promoted again, this time to associate
professor, according to Mitchell’s employment records. In June 2011, Mitchell became the department head of professional studies in University College, according to a letter sent by George in 2011. Mitchell had a semester-long sabbatical during the spring 2013 semester, where he received full pay while on sabbatical, according to employment records. Mitchell’s resignation was effective
SEE RON MITCHELL • PAGE A3