UVU Review, 2012-11-19

              wwn l JJ tub . , i ,;.,aClsiiB4 Volleyball Bl ) c A V. '4 1 Lai vJ ) u "! r t The Independent Student Voice Helping others and receiving help may come easier this Thanksgiving season By Camilla Stimpson Reporter CamillaJheRed Students will have the opportunity to help the community by donating food and money to an on-campus food drive this month, making it possible to give a helping hand this holiday season. Until Nov. 21, food donation bins will be placed mostly around The Orem Institute of Religion for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, where students can drop off non-perishable canned or boxed food. Coin jars will be placed in Dining Services, Centre Courte, the library and at dining carts and kiosks around campus. Students can donate spare change and money in these jars, which is the preferred method of donation. uvureview.com I -4 3k ; : & SICKEN '0oni f jj---,i3 to provide food "You can actually get 17 pounds of food for a dollar," said Tyler Nielsen, director of the food drive. "Everybody benefits from money donations and it's a lot easier to collect money." Nielsen said the Alumni Association has been essential for the food drive this year and is making progress toward reaching its goal of 12,000 pounds of food. "The Food Drive kick-off event ... raised over 10,000 pounds, so we're going to meet the goal despite a number of other setbacks," Nielsen said. Students may also be asked to donate a dollar at some of the cash registers on campus. If students choose to donate a dollar, they will receive a donor certificate they can write their name on. Donations will help both UVU's Food Pantry and Community Action Services, which works hand in hand with the Food Pantry. The Food Pantry is a service offered through UVU's Volunteer & Service Learning Center and has resources available to students, staff and faculty in need. First conference on Writing for Social Change Influencing society through writing Kyrie Hulick Assistant News Editor KyrieHulick Words have the power to influence society, or so presenters agreed when speaking to students about using rhetoric to make a difference at the Conference on Writing for Social Change on Nov. 13. As the first conference of this type at UVU, the event took place in both the UVU Library and Liberal Arts Building in three sessions. The conference featured staff from the university who spoke about the use of writing in society and how students can use communication to change j ineir communities. u it--- f:r o:v-s at t; When the Food Pantry needs food, it is requested and Community Action Services provides it. "They actually bring food to our pantry," said Natasha Carlton, AmeriCorps VISTA for the Volunteer & Service Learning Center. "All I do is put in a food order, and they bring the food from the food bank. They have been really good to us." Many of the items donated to the Food Pantry is often food that is "Any student can use it, even staff and faculty, and not a lot of people actually know that." NATASHA CARLTON AmeriCorps VISTA "I think we did what we came here to do," said speaker Rob Carney, English professor. Carney spoke about the use of poetry to achieve change in society. He shared some of his work and encouraged students to write their own. "Hopefully that continues beyond this one day, this one room, this one hour," he said. The sessions included topics such as "Women in Media," "Child Advocacy" and "Immigrants and Refugees," as well as one titled "Change the Story from Wealth to Health" by keynote speaker Chip Ward. Carney placed an emphasis on using art to reach out and touch an audience. "If I did well, the poems do their work," Carney said. "That's art's job and maybe that's enough." not edible. Because of this, money donations are preferable. "Donate things that you would want to eat," Carlton said. Students can seek other types of assistance from the Food Pantry, which offers blankets, knit hats and basic hygiene kits in addition to food items. "Any student can use it." Carlton said, "even staff and faculty, and not a lot of people actually know that." Those at UVU who would like to receive help from the Food Pantry can inquire in Losee Center 205. Requirements include a UVU ID, a completed intake form and a dourse schedule with at least six credit hours. The UVU Food Pantry program has been open since 2010. Carlton said that a class at UVU came up with the idea to see if it would work and it took off from there. "It's just amazing what students can do," Carlton said. Some students may have only attended the conference for extra credit in their English classes, but some were there because they truly wanted to know how to make a difference with their writing. Becca Askren, 23, attended the conference to enjoy learning from the writing of others. "I love Carney's writing. The way he makes everything visual helps to carry across the meaning," she said after listening to a poetry session. "He talked about tilings he's noticed that we need to pay attention to. If we don't care, no one will care." Though Askren's psychology major didn't require her to attend the conference, she went to listen anyway because she thought the topic was important. "I wanted to see how other writers approach making social change V l!Wit-:HlW i r . ' I )! LIT! r : s ; j : : . I ! it- : k M " 1 happen," she said. Askren pointed out an example from the conference about making a difference in society. "Like in elementary school, they tell you just write to your congressman and make a change. I don't think people really believe that anymore," Askren said. English major Janis Howse listened to the keynote to supplement a paper she was writing for a class, but the things she heard were of more value than she originally imagined. She learned a lot about the differences in style of Internet writing and other writing, and how to handle each. The conference was full of believers in the power of writing to change. Each session was created to inspire the audience to use words to impact the world around them. Utahns file two petitions to secede from the Union :': Citizens voice :: complaints about .;: reinstatement of the president - By Kyrie Hulick Assistant News Editor KyrieHulick : After the re-election of Prjsi; dent Obama, upset citizens frojn all 50 states filed petitions to se; cede their state from the Union; The petitions were created on a government website called We The People, written and signed by citizens, with statements such as, "Peacefully grant the State of Utah to withdraw from the United States of America and create its own NEW government." Utahns have filed not one, but two petitions - each with the exact same phrasing. One currently has over 5,000 signatures and was created on Nov. 1 1 . Another created on the same day has reached over 7,000 signatures. In order to earn an official response from the Obama Administration, a petition must meet the current threshold of 25 ,000 signatures. The petition with fewer sig- "Most of these states don't have the unity to secede just because they don't . .. like the president." ' LOGAN VOORHIS Student n natures states, "We the people of the great state of Utah, do see that in today's world the Federal Government has not led our citizens justly and with honor. We. ..do believe that it is time to take matter upon ourselves to ensure our continued freedom, and to enact our own laws and here by govern ourselves without the federal government's involvement in our internal matters from this day forward." The statement is accompanied by a quote by Benjamin Franklin. The other petition gives no explanation other than an excerpt from the Declaration of Independence. Nothing in the Constitution gives a state the right to secede from the Union. Some feel that citizens may be using petitions as a means to express their irritation from the results of the election. "Americans are so spoiled," said Dennis Farnsworth, a political science professor at UVU. Recently, one student brought up the subject of the petitions in his American Heritage class. Farnsworth explained to the class that states cannot secede' and the U.S. needs each state because it isn't feasible for a state, to leave - they wouldn't be able to support themselves. "It's hard for me to believe that the majority would sign it." Farnsworth said. The petitions on We The People seem to be written out ot resentment for various decisions of the government, though some petitions state, "Keep the United States United." "I could see it as a temper tantrum thing," said student Logan Voorhis. "It doesn't make sense. Obama's ob-ously not going to let them secede, and even if he were, that would be an excellent way to call a bluff. Most of these states don't have the unity to secede just because they don't like the president." Utah seceding may seem over the top, but citizens of Texas seem to pose a legitimate concern. SEE SECEDE, Ab