Senate statement cites
three areas of concern against move to I-A

As NCAA mulls realignment, talk of move for ASU may be unnecessary

Sean Oakley - Staff Writer

The Faculty Senate voted Monday in favor of endorsing an athletic position statement opposing moving Appalachian State University’s football program from division I-AA to I-A.

The statement, crafted by Senators Dr. William Barber, Dr. Paul Gates Jr., Dr. Alan Hauser, Dr. Michael Moore, Dr. Howard Neufeld and Senate Chair Dr. Gayle Weitz, is in response to recurrent questions over whether or not the Appalachian football program should make the step up to Division I-A.

“Rumors have been circulating for years now that alumni wanted to go Division I-A,” said Weitz. “The faculty decided to look into the issue.”
The statement opposing the move cites concerns in three areas: academics, finances and program philosophy.

“Division I-A football creates a pressured athletic environment in which players tend to be viewed as athletes first and as students second,” according to the statement.

The statement goes on to cite a student-athlete graduation rate at Appalachian State that ranges from 58.5 percent to 64.8 percent. This is slightly higher than the graduation rate for all Appalachian students, which is between 59.3 percent and 61.9 percent.

From a financial perspective, the Faculty Senate statement reported the move would cost $17 million, including $10.2 million for expansion of Kidd Brewer Stadium and $4.4 million to cover other costs associated with a move to the NCAA’s top football classification, which involves hiring extra assistant coaches and awarding additional scholarships.
“Prior to this year, money had been taken out of Academic Affairs to help fund the Athletic Department,” said Neufeld.

“Over the past decade, the faculty at Appalachian lost approximately $6.7 million in funds designated for faculty salaries to subsidize revenue shortfalls in athletics,” according to the statement.

Neufeld, after making a few calculations, estimated this loss equaled about $10,000 per faculty member over the past decade.

“Why would we want to go to a more expensive program at the cost of our salaries?” asked Neufeld.

Neufeld also pointed to a recent study showing that 94 percent of all Div. I-A football teams lose money.

Other issues cited by the statement included Title IX implications that would result from a football move to Division I-A and the idea that Appalachian does not need the additional “publicity from Division I-A football to enhance its reputation.”

The Faculty Senate also agreed money could be better used if directed to intramural programs from which all students would potentially benefit, as opposed to allocating dollars to a program from which only football players would benefit.

Weitz and Neufeld both said the majority of the pressure to step up to I-A is coming from alumni.

However, the entire issue could be dead in just a few years.
The NCAA plans to reorganize its Division I football classification system in the next two to three years. After reorganization there would be no I-AA, but instead there would be an I-A division and an “elite” I-A division.

This change was another concern voiced in the statement.
Faculty Senate members said they do not want to spend the needed amount of money to move the football team to I-A only to have the whole system reorganized soon thereafter.

Chris Bohle - Staff Writer

When Dr. Carter G. Woodson was studying for his Ph.D. at Harvard University, he was disturbed to find that seldom was there a reference to black history in the textbooks, and when there was, it was usually a depiction of blacks’ inferior societal position at that time.

Determined to have black history recognized, Woodson founded the widely respected Journal of Negro History in 1916. Ten years later, he launched Negro History Week in February, which would later become the Black History Month we celebrate today.

February was thought to be the most appropriate month for the celebration due to its abundance of important black-related dates, including the birthdays of W.E.B. Dubois, Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln.

On the Appalachian State University campus, there will be several events taking place during February to mark Black History Month.

The Student Wellness Center, Black Student Association (BSA) and the Appalachian chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) will be sponsoring a health fair on Monday, Feb. 4.

“It will be the usual health fair that [the Wellness Center] always has, but it will have more emphasis on black issues, such as certain diseases that multicultural students are more prone to,” said Tiffany Fant, president of Appalachian’s NAACP.

The fair, which will be free of charge, will also feature demonstrations and massages. It will last from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

There will be a “Weakest Link”-type game show that will determine who knows the most about black history on Monday, Feb. 11. The game is sponsored by the Appalachian State University Sweethearts and will be free of charge.

The weekend of Feb. 15-17 will mark the “Blackalachian Ski Weekend,” three days where black students from a number of universities will converge on Sugar Mountain.

The event is sponsored by the BSA and the Council of Cultural Awareness and usually draws students from as far as Florida and Louisiana.

“In years past, we have had students from FSU and LSU come up, as well as many from North Carolina,” said Fant. “It is a good opportunity for the students to bond and just have fun.”

The Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority will sponsor the “Celebration of the Arts,” on Monday, Feb. 18 which will feature Appalachian alumni Randy Leach.

Leach, who was an art major, will bring his civil rights series of paintings with him to commemorate the celebration of black history.
Also, on Wednesday, Feb. 20, there will be a Red Cross blood drive for Black History Month.

Fant said she hopes these events will be successful in raising awareness and knowledge of Black History Month so today’s society will not have to suffer the same dilemma as Dr. Woodson’s generation.

“ ‘The Celebration of the Arts’ will cover art and culture, the health fair will cover health and lifestyle, and the ski weekend is just designed for people to have fun,” said Fant. “Hopefully this way, there will be something for everyone to come out and enjoy.”

Wife of ASU professor killed in early-morning jogging accident

Kristina Egger - Staff Writer

The wife of an Appalachian State University professor was killed in a jogging accident this past weekend.

Gwendolyn W. Tyrie, 61, wife of Dr. Carl H. Tyrie, associate professor of communication and faculty advisor for WASU-FM, was struck by a passing vehicle while jogging down a rural road close to her home Saturday morning, the Watauga Democrat reported.

Anthony Cass, 20, driver of the three quarter-ton flatbed truck, hit Tyrie with the extended cab mirror on the passenger side.

The blow to the head caused massive internal damage.

Tyrie was pronounced dead at the scene.

A memorial service was held for Tyrie last night at Boone United Methodist Church.

“The loss of Gwen will certainly be felt throughout the entire community because she just gave so much,” said Dr. Stuart Towns, chairperson of the Department of Communication.

The department plans to set up a memorial fund for Tyrie at the Watauga Humane Society, said Towns.

“After she retired she planned to volunteer her time at the Humane Society, so this seemed appropriate,” said Towns.

Brian Oliver, principal of Blowing Rock Elementary School, said Tyrie had been a third grade teacher for 23 years. “Everyone loved her; she had a great presence here,” he said.

All of Tyrie’s third grade students were invited to Blowing Rock Elementary Sunday with their parents to ask questions about her death and to share their concerns.

A similar meeting was held for the faculty later that evening.
“The staff is putting together a book of their favorite memories of Gwen to give to the family,” said Oliver. “Her students have been allowed to do the same.”

The elementary school has several ideas for projects they would like to do in Tyrie’s honor.

A water garden, currently under construction in the courtyard behind her classroom, will be dedicated in her memory.

In addition, a book fund will be set up in the school’s library, with books to be dedicated in her name.

“She was a very strong advocate of literacy,” said Oliver.

Local resturants: Frequency of discount card use mixed

Sarah Newell - Staff Writer

The SGA-created Student Discount Card has received mixed responses this year from both students and local eateries.

Kristin Bidez, a psychology major from Tennessee, said she does not use her discount card. “I don’t get off campus too often, and when I do I never remember to look and see if I can get a discount at the store,” said Bidez.

Kara Hodge, another student, concurs. “I don’t use the card that much this year. Not having the stores [where I can get a discount] listed on the back of the card is a problem.”

“When they were listed on the card, it was easier. A lot of the businesses don’t have signs posted saying that ASU students can get a discount, and it’s difficult to remember everywhere that I can use my card,” said Hodge.

Many of the restaurants featured on the card, such as the Southern Sideboard Cafeteria, located in the Boone Mall, said they have seen an increase of students this year, as opposed to previous years.

“We have approximately 30-50 students a day use their discount card when school is in session,” said James Resset, one of the managers of the Southern Sideboard Cafeteria. “We’ve had more students this year than previous years. We would put our name on the card again.”
Klondike Cafe, however, reported a drop in the number of students that use the card. “We have about 25 students per week use their card,” said Chris Mentlewski, manager of Klondike. “Most people buy what’s on special, and you can’t use the card on top of that.”

“I would put Klondike on the card again because I’m very student-oriented,” said Mentlewski.

Monkshood Market and Deli has seen a complete drop in the number of students who use their discount cards, said manager John Peters. “We used to have a lot more students use their card, and now there are hardly any students who use their discount card.”

David Forbes - Staff Writer

The two blades hitting against each other go almost faster than the eye can follow, until one of the combatants maneuvers around her opponent’s blade. A red light goes off on her side.

“Halt!” the director of the match shouts. “Touch right!” The contestants step back to their original places and prepare to fight again.
This scene from a fencing match during the under-20 women’s Epee was typical of the matches that took place at the Junior Olympics Qualifiers for fencing on Dec. 8-9 in Fetzer Gymnasium at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Members of the Appalachian State University Fencing Club, one of the university’s oldest sports organizations, were in attendance.

There are three types of weapons used in fencing: foil, saber and epee. The foil is a light, thrusting weapon. In foil matches, only hits on the trunk of the body count for scoring. The saber resembles a cutlass and is primarily a slashing weapon, with the entire upper torso as the target area. Epee, resembling a foil but heavier with a thicker blade and larger covering of the hand, is the simplest of the weapons, with all parts of the body as target.

In modern fencing, the weapons are wired electronically to register when a fencer scores.

“I like the sport so much because it’s steeped in tradition but very challenging at the same time. You have to be emotionally and mentally strong, as well as having athletic ability. It’s like a chess match,” said Gail Sellers, a freshman who started fencing this semester.

The Junior Olympics Qualifiers are divided by weapon, gender and divisions, under-20 and under-17. Fencers finishing in the top third of the contestants will go on to Ohio in the spring for the National Olympic Qualifiers.

“I think I did pretty well for only about four months of fencing,” said Sellers, who came in seventh in both the women’s under-20 Epee and Saber. “It was a good experience to know that there are a lot of other people out there enjoying this sport.”

“I’ll definitely be back next year,” promised Sellers.

Brendan McConville, a freshman who has been fencing for five years, came in fifth in the under-20 men’s Saber and tied for third in Foil, where he qualified to go to on to Ohio.

“The club here is a good organization, loose enough to have some fun but with enough serious people to train for competition. For many of the fencers from our club it was their first big tournament, and it was good for them to get the experience,” said McConville, who also competed in Junior Olympics last year.

The Appalachian State University fencing club meets and practices on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7 p.m. on the second floor of Varsity Gymnasium.