Starting in the fall of 2021, AU’s communication and design arts department will begin offering a full journalism major. The program will be headed by Dr. David Baird, who is already the academic adviser for the complementary journalism major. “Several students have asked us in recent semesters if we could offer a stand-alone major,” Baird shared. “It was possible to do that without adding any courses, faculty or additional expenses, so we went ahead and proposed it.” The … [Read more...]
Access is key, according to Mike Thigpen
The biggest issue concerning MOSAIC right now is access, according to Chief Diversity Officer and Co-Chair of MOSAIC Mike Thigpen. Thigpen emphasized that some students do not have the same opportunities as others. “It is the responsibility for those who provide care to diagnose the need for each person that comes in,” Thigpen said about students who enter the university. “MOSAIC is an acronym for ‘Making Our Students an Informed Community,’” Nia Carter, author of … [Read more...]
COVID-19: Looking forward
“It’s a big deal,” Professor of Nursing Dr. Sarah Neal said. “Where we’re at right now is a whole lot of bad. We are in the red zone in Madison County.” For the last 10 months, the world has been ambushed with a pandemic that has changed the normal way of life. Many students have had to adjust to online learning and businesses everywhere have been forced to close their doors. “We can mitigate a lot of spread if we change our behaviors,” Neal said. Neal, who has been at AU … [Read more...]
School of Science and Engineering offers new scholarship opportunity
AU is now offering a new scholarship for science and engineering students. “When Heather Kim, vice president for Enrollment, Marketing and Communication, arrived on campus, she wanted to help get the word out about our science and engineering programs,” said Dr. Chad Wallace, dean of the science department. Kim had the idea to redirect the current source of funds to be able to make this happen. “We were able to reallocate some of our funding to put it toward this … [Read more...]
AU hosts musical theatre and dance livestream
On Sept. 16 and 19, AU put on livestream performances for the department of musical theater and dance department that reached over 1,000 views. Kris Rinas, the director of studio and technical operations at AU, led the film students in capturing the events. “We took our broadcasting cameras from the studio and took them into Reardon and we controlled the broadcast from our control room in the Broadcast Center while everyone else was on stage,” Rinas said. Director of … [Read more...]
City of Anderson unveils new murals
This past August, the Anderson Indiana Main Street (AIMS) revealed two new murals around the downtown area painted by local artists. The organization is a non-for-profit that is passionate about providing an inviting culture within Anderson. Nekoda Witsken, the artist of one of the murals, is a native of Anderson who became involved with the project by applying online with the Arts Council of Indianapolis. “I was born in Anderson's hospital, so when I came across the callout, I felt … [Read more...]
New RDs introduced for fall semester
Three new Resident Directors have been added in Myers, Morrison and Dunn. Amanda Bradley Myers Hall will now be run by Amanda Bradley, from Warsaw Indiana. Bradley graduated AU in 2018 with a major in Christian ministries and is now pursuing her Master’s of Theological Studies. In the future, she would love to continue working in student life or pursue youth ministry. “I love the intentional time with students in this job,” Bradley said. “ Relationships are … [Read more...]
Food Services implement new dining procedures for fall semester
The topic of food services has been tossed around for months now as students have wondered how they will be receiving meals, what the culture of the Haven and Mocha Joe’s will be like or if they will be encouraged to stay in their dorms for meals. While it will still be encouraged for students and faculty to hang out in dining locations, there will be guidelines that everyone will be instructed to follow. “Our mission within [AU Food Services] is to always promote and support … [Read more...]
COVID-19 forces students to isolate themselves
Due to COVID-19, most students at AU have been forced out of their on-campus residences without many of their belongings or, in some cases, a safe place to go. In addition to this transition, students have also had to adjust to online learning. For junior Emily Frost, the biggest challenge so far has been finding motivation. “It is really hard to want to get work done during the day,” Frost said. “It feels overwhelming, and as an extrovert, it is really hard to stay energized … [Read more...]
Lacrosse coach discusses abrupt end to season
The lacrosse program at AU was in its second season, and Head Coach Jacob Ashton was prepared to get his boys to conference—until the season abruptly ended due to COVID-19. Ashton grew up in Virginia playing many different sports. In his youth, Ashton played baseball and football. It wasn’t until high school that he decided to make the switch over to lacrosse. Ashton had always been a fan of physical sports and wanted to give something new a try. “I fell in love with it,” Ashton … [Read more...]