Hard News Radio: Brian Chepulis

Hairy Women Make the World Go Round

West Fargo, DECA Fundraiser

By Stephany Wegenast

On the 16^th of October the West Fargo High School student organization DECA went to Applebee’s before it opened to serve pancakes to the locals as a fundraiser. The West Fargo DECA was stationed at the Applebee’s on 13^th avenue with their teacher, Jenna Skaff. This is Skaff’s third year working with the DECA students as a teacher at West Fargo High School. Skaff said that this event is a state wide event and that DECA and Applebee’s are sponsors for the event together.  This particular even has been going on for seven years. According to Skaff, DECA used to stand for Distributive Education Clubs of America but now it is just a marketing association for students as the acronym is obsolete.

When asking Skaff why she chose to advise DECA she said, “I was part of a family business and had a strong liking for it.  I just want to pour out to others to show how fun it can be.”

This event cost five dollars for the tickets. Ten percent of the money goes in to a statewide scholarship and the rest to the chapter fall leadership.

Talking to senior, Sam Eidenschank, a student at West Fargo High School, she said that she joined DECA because of “the free t-shirts, all the trips, and for the experience.”

DECA is a long standing organization that is well respected and held at a majority of the schools throughout the United States. It’s where kids get to have a good, safe time while helping out others at the same time. Serving the pancakes was only one way they get out and to do something fun while benefiting from it.

DECA was founded in 1946. With this 60 year history, DECA has touched the lives of more than ten million students, educators, school administrators and business professionals. Their strong connection with this organization has resonated into a brand that people identify as a remarkable experience in the preparation of emerging leaders and entrepreneurs.

Looking around the restaurant it wasn’t hard to see that the people there were friends, family, and some returning students sitting down to enjoy the pancakes.

This is an annual event so look for it next year and maybe you too can sit down and enjoy the mouth watering pancakes as well. Chances are Skaff will be there as well, although you may not see her for she prefers to stand watch in the kitchen.

The Intriguing College Life of John Lindstrom

By Dustin Krueger



Picture was taken while John was working this summer.
Picture posted with permission of John



                John Lindstrom is a man in many lengths. Just not in his height of being 6 foot 6 inches, but also in his career and choice in Valley City State University.  He came in to Valley City in the fall of 2007 to start is knowledge in Fisheries and Wildlife management and to play some football.  He has had an enjoyable college experience so far and is on his senior year where is to graduate in the spring of 2011. Throughout the years at college John has learned to respect life more.  He has lost many friends from high school and some from the first years of college, but on the up side he has gained many friends, that will become lifelong friends.

                He started looking at VCSU back in his junior year in high school, when the coach Lagrand called John and asked if he was interested in playing college football and what his college career goals were. Throughout his senior year he thought about Valley and many other colleges that had either contacted him or he was thinking about. But the one thing that put VCSU over the top is that they just started a Fisheries and Wildlife Management program two years before he started college. John played football till his sophomore year in 2008, because of a plethora of injuries throughout his organized sports career. The one that put him over the top and he decided it was the end of his college football career was a fracture in his foot. But without morning weight lifting and many other football activities they had to do. John can now enjoy his fall hunting of waterfowl and upland birds. According to John, “North Dakota is way easier to hunt waterfowl and was one of the reasons for choosing VCSU.”

                He has already worked in two different fields to give him some experience in work. His first job was after his sophomore year in college and it was an avian restoration tech out of The Fisheries and Wildlife Service in Minnesota. There he assisted a Graduate student at looking at waterfowl habitat and judging how it looked. His second job was with the Fish and Wildlife Service in North Dakota where he was a biological science technician. There he worked with waterfowl also, he did nest dragging and counted the number of female’s ducks that flew from their nest and looked at their nest and counted eggs.  He also looked around at water bodies and looked for dead waterfowl if he found any he was to collect the species and it would be tested for avian flu. John has enjoyed his college choose and looking forward to the real life of work. No matter where it takes him.

Moving Forward and Implementing Strategies for All Academic Departments

Article written by Derek L. Davis

                From looking at the Valley City State University classrooms, it may not be easy to decipher what the next five years is going to bring to the academic departments.  The same situation could definitely be implied in the campus’s past, from the start of the college in 1890 by President James Sifton to 2010, headed by President Steven Shirley. 

                On October 18^th, President Shirley gave the State of the University address, in which he discussed in great detail, the new five-year strategic plan for 2010 to 2015.  This strategic plan is known as  Success 2015:  Moving Forward and Implementation.  Each academic department is affected by this five year plan.  Gary Thompson, the Dean of the Education Department, cited documents that describe how this particular department is affected by Shirley’s five year plan.  The document he provided has two goals for this five year plan.  Goal one is to make informed decisions to improve the teacher education program.  This will be done by collecting, sharing, and analyzing data, implementing Bush Grant Strategies, and implementing teacher support and the placement system.  Goal two is about promoting growth and retention of candidates within their units.  In order for goal two to be successful, strategies such as improving student retention and recruiting prospective students to the Education department will be done.

                Though these goals are the goals for the Education department, the goals can definitely be applied to the Communication and Social Science department.  Shannon VanHorn, the department chair, mentioned in an email interview how Success 2015 will impact her teaching.  “The goals give me a grounding point upon which to shape my courses.  I need to be accessible to the students, as does my course.  I need to learn new things, try out new innovation, and I need to be up-to-date and current in pedagogical and theoretical underpinnings of each course to provide students with strong experiences at VCSU,” she wrote. 

                The Science Department is also experiencing some impact from Shirley’s strategic plan. Donald Hoff, M.S., an associate professor for the science department, reported about the main goal for the department.   “Because of the expanded number of students, we really need improved facilities. The main focus of most of the different science divisions is supporting a new building,” Hoff says.  Planning for these improved facilities is underway.  Images of what the addition will look like can be found on the second floor of McFarland.  Another thing the science department will be looking at for the next five years is environmental factors.  Hoff, who is on the environmental committee, reports that they are “spearheading the paper recycling in the departments.”  During the interview, he pulled out a box with the label “Paper” written on it. They are no doubt getting environmental awareness out, as Hoff discusses their work with Sodexo.  Hoff reports,

Proposed image of the new Rhoades remodel.   Used by permission

“We’ve encouraged the lunchroom to cut the things they have to wash and diminish the amount of throwaway materials.” 

                As the VCSU campus is impacted by President Shirley’s five-year plan, there will be many more changes and innovations happening to the departments.  As Rhoades Science Building goes through their changes, many more changes will be taking place.  Even as the Education Department implements their goals, there is no doubt that by 2015, even more changes will be taking place for each and every five year strategic plan.  Though the college will go through many new presidents, changes in academics and student life will always be taking place.

Travis Rybchinski

 by: Justin Blue
Travis Rybchinski is the Men’s ice hockey coach at Dakota College at Bottineau.  He has been very successful at Bottineau, with 5 national titles under his belt already.  His teams have won the national titles in 2003, 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010.  Rybchinski will surely be looking for his sixth title this season.  When asked if he thinks this year will be another title year Rybchinski with a puzzled, unsure look on his face said, “I sure hope so, but we have a very young, inexperienced crew this year, but if we have some of our key guys step up and lead the team like I know they can, I think we can make another honest run at it.” 

When asked why this season might not look quite as promising as the previous years’ Rybchinski said “Many of our freshman leading scorers from last years’ did not return for their sophomore year, so we don’t really have any guys with the experience of playing college hockey.  That is why it is so tough for junior programs, like us, to be competitive year after year.”  Normally Bottineau has players who have at least played junior hockey before joining the team, which brings experience and leadership to the team.  This season will definitely prove to be a challenge for Rybchinski and his players. 

Assistant coaches Ron Gullet and Jeremy Tweed are still very positive about this years’ team.  They have been working very hard to help Rybchinski form this team into the team they know they need to compete in the national tournament.  Gullet says, “We have a lot of work ahead of us for us to get where we need to be come tournament time, but I think we have the players we need to get the job done,  Travis and I just have to figure out how to get them there and I know Travis is capable.”  Sophomore defensemen Jordan Kippen  also remains very confident with this years’ team.  Being one of the only sophomores to return Kippen has been forced into a leadership role on the team.  “I have a lot of confidence in our young team, I know our coaches will do all they can help us out.  Coach Rybchinski is a good coach and has been here before so his experience and knowledge gives us a little comfort.”   

Rybchinski’s players and fellow coaches seem to have great confidence in him to get things moving in the right direction.  He has a lot of big challenges ahead of him, but I’m sure he will handle them with poise and confidence like he always does.

Along with being a good hockey coach, Rybchinski is also just a great guy to have in the community.  He helps out with many other organizations , including youth hockey programs, so he is just a stand up guy and a great guy to have around inside or outside the locker room.     

               

The Many Hats of Courtney Henkel

By Kayley Erlandson
(Profile story)

Courtney Henkel (l) talks to Kyle Vareberg (r), while Laura Kapaun works on her computer.Photo taken by Kayley Erlandson

She’s ten minutes late.  Courtney Henkel, an active student at Valley City State University, comes bustling through the door of Kolstoe Hall, subtly favoring her left leg.  

“Have you been waiting long?” she asks, then goes into a comical story explaining her reason for her lateness, unpacks her sidebag, and prepares to go on duty as a Resident Assistant, one of the many hats she wears.  There is hardly an activity that Henkel isn’t involved in.  She holds leadership positions on the Viking Campus Activity Board, Student Senate, Theatre Club, Improv Club, and works in the Student Affairs Office.

As she finishes listing off each of her positions, several people come to the front desk at Kolstoe, where Henkel is on sitting on duty.  They pepper Henkel with questions before making themselves at home in the front desk area while they wait for her to stop talking. 

Even though Henkel holds many positions of influence over student life, she doesn’t think of herself as a role model, believing that students see her as “The Man” instead of a cool parental/friend figure.

“They don’t look up to me, but I feel like they (students) think that they can’t be themselves around me.  Like I’m going to nark on them or something.”

Despite Henkel’s allegations that others do not want to emulate her, she relays several stories where she had to help people with their personal problems, even “helping a guy pick between two girls”.

 “Courtney is very much a people-person.  People just kind of flock to her,” Kyle Vareberg, a student at Valley City State University who has worked with Henkel on a few projects, said.

Although Henkel presents herself is a confident and competent manner, she insists that the journey toward her current state of mind was a long road.  After her parents divorced when Henkel was a baby, her childhood was filled with daily bullying about her weight.  

“My mom would always tell me, when they insult you, just shoot them back.  I used to just ignore the bullies.  But it helped to make sure that the friends you had liked you for who you were.”

Henkel’s mother died when Henkel was only 12 years old, and she went to live with her aunt and uncle in Buffalo.  She felt as though she’d been “thrown” into a new family where adjusting was difficult for both her and the people she was living with.

Henkel adjusted to life with her aunt and uncle and believes she’s a stronger person because of it.  “God  never gives you what you can’t handle”, her personal motto.  “It’s something I live by and totally believe in. God has a plan for everything.”

When asked why she sometimes noticeably favors one leg over the other, Henkel replied that she hurt her ankle in high school after one of her friends fell on it while they were sledding  and it has never fully recovered.  

As the interview comes to a close and the last question has been asked, Henkel immediately switches into her role as a VCAB governor, planning the next event and shooting off a couple of e-mails.  Every hat that she wears is asks something new of her every day, but switching between each of those hats seems to come just as naturally as breathing.