Rampage Magazine March 2022

ISSUE No. 10 | March 2022

Bluefield University Student Newspaper

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The Rampage

Featured Stories

Coach Stinson Tells Her Story

Student Elisha PenaHelps Homeless

BrokenBoiler CutsOff Heat onCampus

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Table of Contents

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8 Stories

Opinions

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13 Student Spotlights

Artwork

21 Employee Features

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The Rampage Student Newspaper © Bluefield University. Magazine printed by Wordsprint. Magazine design by Ben Ayers, Axel Johansson, Nathan LePere and Daniel Mullins. Front cover, back cover and section illustrations by Ben Ayers. Special thanks to Professor Chris Shoemaker and Dr. Cynthia Bascom for making our student newspaper possible and giving students a voice.

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by Warren Lester Communication • 2023 The Best Films of 2021

I am a huge fan of movies, and 2021 was an incredible year for them. Between the large amount of releases that were originally slated for 2020, as well as the ones meant for 2021, we got a ton of films. I’ve watched more than 80 releases from last year, and here I’m going to highlight just a few of the best films to come from 2021. Judas and the Black Messiah One of the earliest releases of 2021, as well as one of the strongest is easily found in Judas and the Black Messiah . This film chronicles the powerfully emotional, beautiful and tragic story of the leader of the Black Panthers, Fred Hampton, and his fall from power after being betrayed by FBI informant Bill O’Neal. This film is as frustrating at points as it is sad, seeing a group of protestors be labeled as a threat by the government and treated like dangerous criminals leading to an inevitable, but devastating conclusion. From the gorgeous camera work to the stellar performances from Daniel Kaluuya and Lakieth Stanfield, all the way to the musical score, Judas and the Black Messiah is a film you don’t want to miss. TheMatrix Resurrections In our current era of blockbuster cinema, it seems that every day there’s a new franchise film coming out. Whether it be the newest installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a new Transformers film, or the next Halloween movie, you can almost always expect a new film in a long running series in theaters, and with each of them you likely know what kinds of things to expect. Franchise films, especially ones that are sequels in long running series, often have elements you can expect in them, and one of the biggest elements of those are callbacks to earlier installments. Just this year we’ve had three big examples of this in Spider-Man: No Way Home, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, and Space Jam: A New Legacy . All three of said films have their fans, and although I enjoyed one of them a fair amount all three lean on the crutch of nostalgia and often use that as an easy way to please their audiences. The Matrix Resurrections offers an alternative to this. Although this film still makes callbacks to its predecessors, they are almost entirely used to mock the idea of the big Hollywood franchise. It manages to mock and comment

on the state of franchises, while also remaining a worthy entry in its own franchise. It’s clever, fun, action packed, and easily one of the best films of the year. Zack Snyder’s Justice League

members wincing, there’s no film from 2021 I’d recommend more. Wrath of Man While we’re on the subject of brutal action films, one would be remiss to not mention Guy Ritchie’s newest film, Wrath of Man . Unlike Nobody , this film is lacking in humor, but for what it lacks it makes up ten-fold in its frankly mean-spirited brutality. Though it’s far from the most violent film of the year, Wrath of Man‘ s cold and brooding take on revenge is hard not to find engaging. This film’s two plots converge as a series of cash truck heists and Jason Statham’s character’s thirst for revenge for the death of his son cross, leading to results that are predictably not pretty. Pig A truffle hunter who lives alone in the wilderness of Oregon is forced to return to the city of Portland, which he left behind years ago after the capture of his beloved pet pig. Nicholas Cage delivers one of his greatest performances in this, as every moment of pain, depression and loss is echoed through his every expression, movement and voice. Though this was strangely billed as a goofy action revenge movie, nothing could be further from the truth. This isn’t a revenge film, or even an action film, but a film about what it means to lose something or someone so dear to you. It’s a film about loss that manages to be one of the most heartfelt and touching of the year. No SuddenMove Director of Ocean’s Eleven , Steven Soderbergh brought us quite the treat this year with No Sudden Move. Released on HBO Max, this film follows a ragtag group of criminals hired to steal and deliver an envelope without having any clue what contents it holds or who hired them. This crime noir reminiscent of those from decades past takes many twists and turns, much like Soderbergh’s other films, all of which serve to keep you wrapped up in the incredible narrative it tells. Malignant

In 2017 audiences were delivered Justice League , a film that quickly became an embarrassment to its studio. It was credited as being directed by Zack Snyder, but it was quickly revealed to the world that although Snyder had filmed most of his own version of the film, what we got was not at all his. Snyder took time off from the film due to a personal tragedy of losing his daughter to suicide, and after stepping away from the filmWarner Brothers took the opportunity to replace him with Joss Whedon, who reshot most of the film before releasing it as a tonally confused mess that audiences and critics both hated. Fans campaigned for three years before Warner Brothers finally allowed Snyder to finish his version, and in 2021 we got it. Even if this film wasn’t any good, it’s worth having out there as a true artistic vision of one man, versus a messy mix of two different tones sloppily released by a studio for a quick buck. Thankfully this film is a wonderful epic, mixing dramatic and heartbreaking tones with the right amount of fun needed for a superhero film. At over four hours in length, Zack Snyder’s Justice League goes by like a breeze and manages to be one of the best comic book films of all time. Nobody It’s important to note that this list isn’t in a particular order, because if it was Nobody would easily make the top of the list. Taking a clever and fun twist on the “unlikely action hero” trope, Bob Odenkirk stars as Hutch Mansell, an overlooked suburban dad with a dead-end job and repetitive boring life, who’s past life comes to haunt him after a series of events stemming from a home break-in and the disappearance of his daughter’s kitty cat bracelet. Mixing the comedic tone of the more goofy action films of the ’80s with the violence and action of more modern action films, such as John Wick, Nobody manages to be entertaining from start to finish. Although some of its more brutal moments will definitely leave some audience

Director James Wan has had an interesting career in Hollywood. Starting his career with the game changing 2000s horror classic Saw ,

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their famous and often mocked twist endings that often make the timeline increasingly more and more confusing and absurd. These films are aggressively fun and entertaining, so obviously my friends and I were excited to see that a new spinoff film was releasing in 2021. This is very likely my most self-indulgent pick on this list, but it’s a film I genuinely love to the point where I believe it’s the best of the franchise. Furthermore, it being a spinoff makes it so that new viewers need only to be familiar with the first film to really follow the story of this installment. Do yourself a favor and check this one out if you don’t mind a fairly violent horror flick. You’ll have fun, I promise. Old Director M. Night Shyamalan’s career has been a long battle of being both loved and hated by the general public. His first American film The Sixth Sense was a cultural phenomenon big enough to have Newsweek boldly predict him to be “The Next Spielberg,” but his career after that would offer a variety of reactions from audiences leading to many considering him to be a terrible director, but I believe those people are wrong. Although his career has certainly had some missteps, nearly every one of his films are a showcase of his talents behind the camera (and even sometimes in front of it). Old only makes this more obvious. Telling the story of a group of people on vacation who get trapped on a beach that mysteriously causes them to age rapidly, leading them to having most of their lives reduced to a single day as they try to escape alive. Though it never oversteps into imagery that is too graphic (after all, the film is rated PG-13), Old ‘s concept is used perfectly to convey a level of horror that is as disturbing as it is intriguing. Ron’s GoneWrong

can serve you as a perfect introduction to them. In a little under two and a half hours you will fall in love with Sparks, their music, the band, and the brothers. The Tragedy of Macbeth In all likelihood you are in some way familiar with the story of Macbeth . Many of us had to read this Shakespeare play in high school, chronicling the rise and fall of a man who for a time would be the King of Scotland. Maybe you’ve even seen it preformed on stage, or seen one of the many movie adaptations over the years dating back to the earliest from 1948, all the way to the 2015 adaptation. It’s true this is not the first Macbeth film, nor will it likely be the last. In fact it may not even be the best version on screen to date, but an argument can be made that this film may be the most unique direct adaptation of this story to date. Joel Coen brilliantly blends cinematic language with the feeling of stage performance with sets that often blur the lines between that of a film and that of a play. Each performance given here is played perfectly, from Denzel Washington’s distressed and broken Macbeth all the way to Kathryn Hunter’s horrifying portrayal of the three witches. Not many films top how truly gorgeous this one looks, and if only for that reason this becomes one of the best of the year. Short Films I wanted to finish off this list of the best films of 2021 with a brief highlight of three wonderful short films I watched this year, because shorts are often overlooked and don’t get enough love. Especially since these are often only a few minutes in length, I especially implore you to check these out, as they are easily available online. Centuries and Still Centuries and Still is a short mixed-media filmmade to coincide with the “Stop Asian Hate” movement. It is a difficult watch, but an important one that is haunting in its material. Directed by Sally Tran, this film showcases America’s long and unfortunate history of discrimination against Asian people dating back centuries all the way to the California Gold Rush. You can find this one on Vimeo with a quick Google search. Abe’sWorld Stephen Steinbacher’s music video for the band “A u t o p i l o t” is a wonderful cosmic journey told through the eyes of an adorable dog. A wonderful meshing of visuals and light set to music helps to showcase Steinbacher’s keen eye for color as well as his incredible technical ability in visual storytelling. Bugbear Gabrielle Vines’ short horror film Bugbear is an abstract nightmare, featuring a heavy use of red lighting and a wonderfully creepy mask. The lack of dialogue and reliance on the visuals and music allow for Vines to tell a short story left entirely up to the audiences interpretation. In only five minuets you are treated to a nice eerie tale that has to be seen to truly be experienced.

he set himself up as a new face in horror. Immediately following Saw , Wan made one more horror movie before working on a revenge thriller with a focus on action known as Death Sentence . Although said film wasn’t a massive hit, it did establish Wan as someone who knows how to direct action. From this point forward he’d go on to start two of the biggest horror franchises of the 2010s ( Insidious and The Conjuring ), as well as direct two big franchise action films ( Furious 7 and Aquaman ). It seems that Wan’s career has been a sort of tug of war battle between two genres, until 2021’s release of Malignant in which Wan uses his strengths in both genres to create an incredible unique, fun and scary horror/action blend. This film beautifully plays to his strengths in both genres, never once making one overtake the other. It’s a wonderful thrill ride with a third act unlike no other. TheGreenKnight

If you go into The Green Knight expecting an action fantasy tale like Conan the Barbarian, you may leave disappointed. This is a great fantasy film, but it’s not one of epic battles between knights and orcs like you may expect. The Green Knight is the tale of the nephew of King Arthur, Sir Gawain and his journey to confront his own mortality. It is a slow, existential and beautiful film that trades sword battles for examinations of life and what it means to live. It isn’t a journey for everyone, but it’s one that you will likely never forget. The Last Duel Ridley Scott released two films this year, and although House of Gucci is certainly worth your time, The Last Duel is arguably one of the best of his career. Following the true story of Lady Marguerite de Carrouges, a French noblewoman who in 1547 accused nobleman Jacques Le Gris of rape, The Last Duel is a story told from three perspectives. First, offering the perspective of her husband Jean de Carrouges, then the perspective of the accused Le Gris, and finally in its last act the perspective of Marguerite herself, which is aptly labeled “The truth.” Although this film’s story is of an incredibly dark nature, it can be fun at times without ever undermining the seriousness of the subject matter. This is a brilliant tale that will certainly be remembered for years to come. Spiral: Fromthe Book of Saw Over the course of 2020, I and a few of my friends gathered together and watched through all eight of the films in the Saw franchise. Starting with the first and ending with Jigsaw , I found myself absolutely enamored in the soap opera-esque horror drama that is that franchise. Each film uses every trick in the book to surprise you with

I felt I needed to recommend at least one family film here, so I offer you Ron’s Gone Wrong , an incredibly cute, simple kids’ film with a lovable titular character and a ton of heart. The story here isn’t anything entirely new. It’s a simple family film plot, but what makes this film is Ron himself. The titular character is an adorable broken robot whose personality takes on a life of its own. It’s impossible to watch this without having a smile on your face. It truly is a blast for kids and adults alike. The Sparks Brothers If you go onto Netflix right now, you can treat yourself to a wonderful documentary from Edgar Wright entitled The Sparks Brothers . This documentary follows the long extensive career of the band Sparks, led by the two enigmatic and charming brothers, Ron and Russell Mael. If you are a fan of the band, this documentary offers a wonderful amount of insight into their career, and if you aren’t it

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Question of the Week What are your thoughts about returning to virtual instruction? Daniel Mullins asks...

I am an international student and live in Sweden. I was home during winter break and (was) supposed to come back to campus January 10 so I would be prepared and ready for (the) new start of this semester. Unfortunately, I got an email just a few days before that our classes (would) be… remote and (the) check-in date was changed. This was a hard situation for me. I had the option to stay an extra week in Sweden to spend some extra time with my family and play soccer, but I needed to change my flight ticket. Changing tickets isn’t always that easy, and especially if it’s less than 72 hours until your flight is supposed to depart. This time, I was lucky and had the possibility to change it, and of course I did. The first week of classes holding remote was pretty calm for me. I had one online class and all of my in-person classes (were) cancelled. We just needed to read through the syllabi, read some chapters in the textbook and complete a few assignments, but we did not have any lectures. At this point, my flight was supposed to depart on January 16, and I had all of my forms and COVID test ready for departing, but two days before, I got another email from Bluefield University that they extended the online period another week and check in day was changed another time, too. This time, it was even more tricky for me. I had less than 72 hours to departure and changing flight ticket was not cheap at all. I couldn’t change my flight ticket and needed to be an exception for the school. The night before I was supposed to travel, I checked another time what the cost would be for me to change tickets and this time it was free. I took this advantage and re-booked my ticket for the second time. Now I had the opportunity to stay another week back home. This week, I actually had lectures and classes during the whole week. It was hard for me because of the time difference. We are six hours ahead in Sweden so I had classes in the evening, when I was supposed to have practices and work. I needed to cancel all of these practices and focusing on school instead. This week passed by fast and I had a conversation with Josh Arnold all the time when I was home. I needed to know if we were extending the time further or if I could travel as I should on January 21. I got the information that the check in will be as it should on January 23 and I could finally travel on the Friday. So, to be short, I was supposed to fly January 10 from the beginning, but due to online classes and all the COVID cases on campus, I changed my flight ticket two times and finally arrived on January 21.

When we came back to school we had to take our classes online for the first two weeks, and this caused me to struggle with getting in the flow of things. Other things that it caused is having to wear masks in certain classes, and personally I hate wearing masks because they are hard to breathe in.

Makenzie Gomez , Communication, 2025

I’m not a fan because there is a large amount of students that can’t stay on track.

MasonWest , Psychology & Human Services, 2022

The COVID-related changes, such as virtual instruction, haven’t really affected my spring semester. After being fully virtual in past semesters, I have gotten properly acclimated to the virtual world, so I haven’t missed a beat in that aspect. At this point, I believe that we must do whatever is best to decrease the spread of COVID whether it is virtual or in-person learning. Athletically, I have been sidelined by COVID-19 for over two weeks after catching it. However, I don’t believe there is a good enough reason to restrict fans from basketball games when we are in class every day with the same people that are going to be watching the games. We are now allowed to have fans so that is now in the past for the time being.

Brandon Shields , Business Administration, 2022

COVID restrictions, such as virtual instruction, have not had a negative impact on my life thus far. I actually find it easier to do virtual instruction for some classes, because I can learn from the comfort of my home. If COVID restrictions continue, I would not be disappointed depending on the classes I am taking. If I had to take a science class, I would prefer to be in person so I could be hands-on.

Amanda Scott , Sport Management, 2022

Rob Littlejohn , Business Administration, 2023

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Through scholarships and grants in the areas of Education; the Arts, Culture and the Humanities; Health; and Human Services, the Community Foundation matches the generosity of the people of our area with the needs of area organizations and individuals.

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Music Alumni Concert and Reunion Rescheduled

by Daniel Mullins

Communication • 2022

The Bluefield University

Department of Music has rescheduled its spring 2022 Music Alumni Reunion. The Music Department was planning to host the concert and reunion for both BU students and alumni on Friday and Saturday, February 18-19 in Harman Chapel. However, the event had to be postponed to April 22-23 due to COVID concerns, particularly for alumni who are older and more at risk by being exposed to the virus.

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Institute in Illinois twice and as choral director for an international choir in the World Scholar-Athlete Games in Kingston, RI . The guest instrumental conductor will be Staff Sergeant Brianna Williams. She is a Bluefield native and currently serves as the first female euphonium instructor at the U.S. Army School of Music in Virginia Beach, VA. She enlisted as a musician in the U.S. Army in 2014. Since, she has conducted many ensembles across the nation and been featured as a soloist in the 399th Army Band, 399th Brass Choir, 392nd Army Band, Missouri S&T Orchestra, and U.S. Army School of Music Brass Quintet. She performs with the Virginia Wind Symphony, Chesapeake Bay Wind Ensemble, and U.S. Army School of Music Brass Quintet and will be featured as a soloist at the International Women’s Brass Conference this spring. “Reuniting with the Alumni from the Music Department is always a fun time because it brings back a lot of cherished memories of studying and making music with some of the dearest and closest friends I ever made,” Brannon said. The Music Alumni Reunion on April 22-23 will be a part of the annual Spring Choral Concert and the university’s centennial celebration.

Another factor in the cancellation was an issue with a campus boiler that provides heat to the chapel. The boiler is not functioning and has left many campus buildings without heat. The issue is in the process of being fixed, but no definite date for completion of the work has been determined. Thus, the Music Alumni Concert had to be moved to later in the spring. “The Music Alumni Concert is one of my favorite concerts that we hold at the University,” said performer Jeff Brannon, “because not only do we get to see our old friends again, but we also get to meet and be led by a guest conductor who is invited and brought in to work with the current students, the community members from Masterworks Chorale, as well as the alumni.” This year, former Bluefield University music professor Dr. Chris Sheppard, who now teaches at Newberry University in South Carolina, will serve as the guest choral conductor. Dr. Sheppard was a professor at BU from 1998-2002 and previously conducted the Bluefield Singers, Variations, and Masterworks Chorale. He received the Outstanding Faculty Award at Montana State University-Billings, and he was honored twice in Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers. He has been the music director for several church congregations. He served as chorusmaster at the Maud Powell International Opera

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Students Deal with Classroom Software Issues

by Kassidy Brown Communication • 2022

For the first month in the spring 2022 semester, Bluefield University graphic communication students were not able to access and use essential Adobe graphic design software in the Mac Lab in BU’s Science Center, causing a number of challenges and delays for the students in completing coursework. The issues have since been resolved, according to Chip Lambert, vice president of operations and technology, who said the problems originated from a change in licensing the software. “The issues were from Adobe changing the license

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structure we had used in the past,” Lambert said. “Going forward, since we are under the new licensing model, it shouldn’t be as big of an issue.” But before the fix, some coursework in the Publishing in InDesign class was delayed a few weeks because only four of the 16 computers in the Mac Lab provided access to the software, which made it difficult for students to get the hands-on experience the class provides. “I think the setback in the Mac lab has significantly impacted the way the class was intended to be taught,” InDesign student Abigail Gasperson said. “Although I use my own laptop (for the Adobe software), others in my class do not have access on their own personal computer. This makes it extremely difficult for the class to move on, because we don’t want to leave everyone else behind.” Other InDesign students spoke about the challenge of retaining information without the hands-on experience. “I think it’s a tad bit effected fromme personally being a hands-on learner,” one student said, “and retaining more from interaction, but listening is still beneficial. I think it’s still a tad bit of a setback.” The lack of access to the necessary software was not only difficult for students, but also professors.

“While I was still able to provide demonstrations within the software for students, the main setback was the students who weren’t able to touch the software themselves until later than anticipated,” said Allen Roberts, professor of graphic communication. “This required some shuffling of assignments and altering of deadlines to veer the course back on track.” While the issues with the Mac Lab had some negative consequences, there were also some positives. “It allowed me to focus on each assignment a little longer than it was originally scheduled to,” Gasperson said. Graphic design student Jesse Ragin agreed. “The setback had a few positives, like time to brainstorm ideas for future assignments,” Ragin said. “People had the chance to see if the software could work on their personal laptops. Things like that I think were a pretty good opportunity with everything going on.” Roberts added that the experience also provided a good life lesson. “We’ve become so reliant on the technology around us – both personally and professionally – but there’s no guarantee it will always work as it’s supposed to,” Roberts said. “Be prepared to adapt in order to keep moving forward in the face of adversity.”

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BU Exceeds $18 Million Fundraising Goal

Communication • 2022

by Daniel Mullins

Bluefield University raised funds as part of Go Further: The Centennial Campaign to grow scholarship support for students, enhance and construct facilities, and develop and create academic programs. With a goal of $18million, the campaign has received $20,094,769 as of December 31, 2021. Funds given through June 30, 2022 will count toward this campaign.

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Additionally, the college is investing in new and existing academic programs. “We have seen investments made into programs like an undergraduate nursing program, the naming of the Caudill School of Business, and many other impactful gifts,” Cline said. The campaign committee is dedicated to providing improvements for the campus community, demonstrating growth to alumni and friends, meeting goals in the higher education community, and elevating the perception of the university. It secured pledges and donations for Go Further: The Centennial Campaign through grants, campaigns like Giving Day and #RiseUpRams, and individual solicitations. “I’m…grateful for a special group of individuals who served on the campaign cabinet,” Olive said. “These individuals sacrificially served on the cabinet and gave leadership, as well as their treasure, to the campaign: Mrs. Catherine C. Payne (’92); Chair, Dr. Garry Jones (’74); Honorary Chair, Mrs. Peggy Bickford (’71) (deceased); Mr. Steve Bickford, Honorary Alumnus, Dr. Donald Caudill; Dr. Michael P. Harris (’97); Mr. Robert Houck (’67); and Mr. Thomas Scott, Jr. , Esq.” Those that partnered with the university through this campaign will be listed in the President’s Report and Honor Roll of Donors this summer in the Spire magazine. “Gifts of every size and category brought us not just to our $18 million public phase goal, but far past it,” Cline said. “For the faithfulness and generosity of many, we are a grateful institution.”

“Many of these funds assist students with aid in the form of scholarships provided by the University,” said Josh Cline, vice president for institutional advancement. “These funds will create scholarship support year after year to benefit students.” Furthermore, the third-floor addition to the Science Center was made possible by this campaign, providing modern classroom space and a home to the School of Nursing. Campaign funds will also be used to construct the south campus sports complex and centennial entryway.

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Broken Boiler Cuts Off Heat on Campus

by Kassidy Brown Communication • 2022

On February 5, the hot water boiler systemon campus stopped working, leaving students, faculty and staff with dorm rooms, offices and classrooms in several buildings without heat. “At present, buildings relying on steam heat — Lansdell, Science, Shott, Harman, Dome, Rish and Cruise — have no means of receiving or maintaining heat,” said BU President Dr. David Olive in an email to the campus community on February 5. “Efforts are being made to repair the boiler.” Dr. Olive said the issue with the boiler developed from unforseen mechanical errors with the circulation machine. “The primary issue with the main boiler is with the recirculation system,” he said. “This failure has impacted a large amount of our heating operations within a number of buildings. The circulation pump that circulates condensate water into the boiler keeps shutting off due to the pump motor having failed. This in turn causes the water to drop in the boiler, which then shuts the boiler down due to a low water alarm.” Students were instructed to spend time with friends in buildings that were not affected by the boiler problem, particularly since extremely low temperatures were forecast at that time. “Residential students in Rish and Cruise may need to seek alternative places to hang out and/or sleep,” Dr. Olive said. “If you have friends in Alumni, East River, and/or Bluestone Commons, you may want to visit and hang out with them. Those facilities have electric heat.” The president added that while the heating of classrooms was important, the residents were the top priority with the heating issues. “All of the other residence halls have electric heat,” Dr. Olive said. “Rish has a small gas-fed boiler that is still providing heat to residents; it just isn’t as much heat as normally delivered to that facility. For residents in Cruise, residence life staff began this weekend to reassign each resident to a temporary room in another residence hall.” Residential student Daniel Mullins said he was not having much of a problem dealing with the broken boiler. “Before moving into Cruise Hall, I was told the building stayed rather hot,” Mullins said. “It wasn’t

long before I realized that was true and found myself being jealous of the residents with electric heat. When the boiler still worked, the temperature would have to be below freezing before I considered shutting or lowering my window and turning off my fan. I’m surprisingly more comfortable now that the boiler is down. When I am cold, I can put on another blanket or warmer clothes, but I was never able to fully remedy being too hot while the boiler was working.” Harman Chapel is among the non-residential buildings affected by the heating issue, so BU’s Music and Theater departments have been managing the cold for rehearsals and class. “The heat issues in the Chapel auditorium have been around for a while,” said Rebecca McCoy-Reese, co-chair of the Theater Department. “It typically is addressed when maintenance is made aware of it, but there have been times we haven’t reported it and just learned to live with it.” BU’s maintenance team began working diligently to resolve the boiler issue. Chip Lambert, vice president for operations and technology, said they found and installed a new circulation pump and are actually in the process of doing other major renovations to the boiler to prevent issues like this from happening again. According to Christian Hershey, director of campus facilities, the maintenance staff has dealt with transition this year and improving processes within maintenance. “I am dedicated to promoting a much different culture in the way in which we approach our facilities infrastructure here at Bluefield University,” Hershey said. “The issues we face are actually very common for religiously-based liberal arts institutions. I am slowly and methodically putting in place a professional team and a durable system that will move from the previous culture of reactionism, which has been the dominant culture in the facilities industry for decades, to a new culture that will be professional, proactive and positive in all that we do so that Bluefield University’s facility infrastructure will service not only its students and staff, but the whole of everyone we engage in the world as salt and light.”

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Elisha Peña: Finding Faith Through Service

by Kassidy Brown Communication • 2022

Over the Christmas break this year, Bluefield University student Elisha Peña went home to Knoxville, TN, and while there she didmore than spend time with family, celebrate Christmas, and take a break fromher studies. In fact, Peña used the time to serve the disadvantaged of her community, particularly the homeless of Greater Knoxville. Before going home, Peña planned on selling some of her clothes on Facebook — something she’d done before to earn a little money. However, this time she decided to do something else with her extra clothes, all because of a detour she took while driving home. “I was driving through Knoxville,” Peña said. “I always use my GPS, because I am terrible with directions, but this day for some reason I wanted to see if I could find my way without it. I ended up thinking I was lost. That is when I found this street that was heavily populated with homeless people. When passing by I looked at all of the people, and it truly did something to my heart. I had never in my life seen so many homeless people.” After seeing all the different tents and people around the street, Peña felt a calling to help them. So, she drove home just talking to God. “As I drove home I just talked to God and cried,” “That’s when I felt he led me to take my clothes to them,” Peña

“I one hundred percent believe this experience changed my whole life” “It changed the way I look at money,” she said. “I realized money really doesn’t mean anything. We live our whole lives focused on ourselves and how we can make money and buy things that we want that we honestly don’t really need. So instead of going out and spending $50 on something I really do not need, I would rather put that money toward making someone’s life just a little bit better if it’s possible.” Peña plans to continue giving back to those she finds in need. She wants to continue her work with the homeless anytime she can.

said. “As soon as I got home I started rummaging through all of my clothes, and before I knew it I had three whole trash bags of men’s and women’s clothes.” Peña made three different trips bearing gifts to the homeless. She first took her clothes, and then made and delivered hygiene goodie bags for 90 men and 90 women. The third trip involved reaching out to others for help. “I decided to make a Facebook page dedicated to helping them (the homeless),” Peña said. “That’s when I made more hygiene bags, made muffins, went through my clothes again enough to have two big boxes — one for men and one for women — blankets, hats, scarfs, gloves, and waters.” Helping the homeless, Peña said gave her a new outlook on life and faith.

“Since the area I live in isn’t very large, Knoxville is the biggest city in a wide range of distance,” Peña said. “The homeless population is very high, especially for the area. I believe they definitely face judgment. I face judgment every day, and I’m not homeless, so I can only imagine how they feel and what they go through. I know it can’t be easy.” Peña hopes one day people will recognize the struggle that homeless people face and that it is not a choice in life. “If it’s me and 100 people that stand behind me or me standing alone, I will do whatever I can to make a difference because I believe that’s what God wants me to do,” Peña said. “They need someone to stand up for them, and I will be that person.”

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Kylie Meadows: More Than an Athlete

by Andrea Stinson Sports Communication • 2023

Bluefield University’s Kylie Meadows is the epitome of a successful student-athlete. She’s a vital member of the BU women’s basketball team, but equally important she is among a select group of students recognized for academic excellence. A senior from Beaver, West Virginia, majoring in criminal justice, Meadows is the captain of the Lady Ram’s basketball team. She also leads the team in scoring and rebounds. Off the court and in the classroom, she maintains a 3.5 grade point average (GPA) and was recently named to the Academic Dean’s List. In fact, being an average student wasn’t good enough for Meadows. At one point during her college career, she decided she would be the best both on and off the court. As a result, her time management skills improved significantly, and she found better ways to balance her time with her studies while leading the women’s college basketball team. “Kylie has been an incredible

addition, not only to our basketball program, but to the campus as a whole,” said Corey Mullins, head coach of the women’s basketball team. Most student-athletes, he added, struggle with time management, but Meadows he said knows what she wants and is determined to get it through hard work. Her favorite quote is, “It is what it is,” and she lives by it every day. “Kylie is learning some invaluable life lessons that will propel her into leadership roles throughout her life,” Mullins said, “and I look forward to seeing the impact she will have on the people around her as she continues to grow and lead.”

Having a supportive mom and dad gives Meadows the inspiration she needs to continue her journey as a Dean’s List student-athlete at Bluefield. “If you are going to really live up to the student-athlete name, then you have to manage your time and work hard to secure your future,” Meadows said.

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Illustration by Nathan LePere

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Abigail Gasperson

Taylor Southerland

Antowyne Shaw

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BU Cheer Team Competes at National Tournament

by Kassidy Brown

Communication • 2022

The Bluefield University cheer team competed on the national stage in the Open All-Girl Game Day Division of the Universal Cheerleaders Association (UCA) College National Championship in January in Orlando, Florida. The team is led by coaches Ashley Taylor and MyKenzie Roach. Taylor has been the head coach for three years and has been assisted by Roach throughout that time. “The team placed 17th this year,” Roach said about the

see on TV for football. It was really cool to be on the same mat as big teams and get to showcase what we work on just as they would.” Carrie-Anne Moss, another BU cheerleader, also added, “The best part about competing at nationals, in my opinion, is the boost that it gives the whole team. All of our work for the whole year comes together in one weekend, and we all get to spend so much time together that we really come together as a team.” The coaches both expressed extreme pride in the way the team competed this year. “As a coach, I ammost proud of this team because we faced some adversity in the short weeks prior to the competition, and as a team and family, they rose to the occasion to rearrange our routine,” Taylor said. “Not only that, but for the first year since arriving, we hit zero. In the world of cheer, that means that our routine did not have any deductions.” Roach also added, “I was very proud of all the effort the girls put in this year. I really hope the squad continues to grow and improve.” McFarland and Moss describe the team’s time there as a learning experience. “I think the team can learn from this that no matter who we go against, big or small,” McFarland said. “We can’t change the outcome, and we just have to be proud of what we put out there. We also have to understand that under every circumstance, us as a team did good.” Moss also added, “The feedback from the score sheets and watching National Championship routines really gives us a great opportunity to learn, and we can incorporate these experiences into the next routine.” The BU cheer team plans to head back to nationals next year with the goal of improving each time they attend.

national competition in Florida. “Each year the University has gone and competed we have continually improved our scores Teams come from all over the country to compete in this competition. All the teams that come to compete are fierce, and it creates a great, competitive atmosphere. “Competing at nationals is a very exciting feeling,” Roach added. “The level of competition is insane. This is one of the largest cheer competitions a college program can compete in. The experience is very nerve-racking for the athletes, but also very rewarding.” BU cheerleader Jordan McFarland also added, “The best part about competing in nationals was probably getting to see other college teams that you would and minimized our mistakes.”

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COVID Limits Fan Attendance

by Payton Smith Communication • 2025 for BU Home Athletic Events

Bluefield University student-athletes are missing fans at home athletic events this semester, thanks to on-going restrictions related to COVID-19. At the beginning of the spring 2022 semester, the attendance policy for Bluefield University Athletics for indoor sporting events was as follows: • Spectators will not be admitted to BU’s indoor sporting events. • Only participating student-athletes and game-day staff will be allowed inside the Dome and Herb Sims Center. • Masks are required.

Waelti also spoke about the effects the lack of fans has on his team’s performance. He said he didn’t think the wrestlers were affected that much by the limited number of fans, but he did say it affects recruiting. “I believe it affects the growth of our program,” Waelti said. “Southwest Virginia is a cradle for high school wrestling culture. Without allowing young wrestlers to come to our matches, we are missing some opportunities to show local recruits that we can be an exciting environment to go and wrestle in. Part of the exciting environment is wrestlers that wrestle with their heart on their sleeve, and we have that. And of course, the part of an exciting environment is a crowd. We have a plan for growing that crowd and fostering an exciting wrestling meet. We just haven’t been able to implement it with COVID protocols in place.” Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Tonia Walker spoke about the new COVID attendance policy and explained why the Athletic Department decided to allow some fan attendance. “As student-athletes returned to campus in the spring, the COVID numbers were again on the rise,” Walker said. “Thus, we made a temporary pause in attendance until the numbers leveled off. This was all done in the interest of the safety of the student-athletes and in an effort to avoid a breakout on campus.” Walker added that she does not anticipate any other changes in attendance policies for winter sports. She explained that changes to the existing policy would be based on the number of positive COVID cases and contacts on campus. Trent Dunn, a player for Bluefield University’s men’s basketball team shared his thoughts on the new policy for fan attendance. “I think the limited fan policy isn’t the most ideal situation considering home crowds do make a difference, but I think it’s the best decision because of how COVID has been.” Dunn said. “It does help when we have a crowd, but we played a lot of games last year without fans by feeding off our own energy. Not having a crowd forces us to find our own momentum, but I don’t think it necessarily affects us because we have to be ready to play, regardless of the circumstances.”

As the case numbers for COVID decreased, the Athletics Department decided to make a few adjustments to the attendance policy for indoor sporting events to accommodate some of the students and staff at Bluefield University, all while staying within safety guidelines. Updated on January 24, 2022, the revised attendance policy for winter indoor sporting events reads as follows: • BU students, faculty and staff will be admitted to BU indoor winter sporting events. • Each participating BU student-athlete will be allowed two guests on a pass list. • No visiting spectators will be permitted. • Masks are also mandatory for entry. • Fans are to be seated in the upper level of the Dome and Herb Sims Center. “We are trusting our medical professionals in their area of expertise, so I think that we are doing the best that we can under the circumstances,” said BU wrestling coach Jason Waelti about the policies limiting fan attendance at games/meets. “I hate the limited attendance at home events, but I am also thankful we get to compete.”

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Athletic Trainer Erika Bell:

by Javien Fleming Sports Communication • 2024 A Valuable Asset to BU

Bluefield University has had an abundance of good athletic trainers over the years, but there aren’t too many as valuable and consistent as current head athletic trainer Erika Bell. Bell came to BU in 2011 after attending Marietta College in Ohio from 2005-2010 where she received a bachelor’s degree in athletic training and played intercollegiate softball. She later earned a master’s degree in athletic training fromWest Virginia Wesleyan where she also served as a graduate student athletic trainer. She said she went to college for athletic training because of the care she received from a trainer after suffering her own sports injury. After college and right before BU, Bell served as an adjunct instructor for Concord University. “I taught lower extremity evaluation,” Bell said about her teaching experience at CU. “It’s a sophomore level class in a CAATE (Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education) accredited athletic training program.” Bell came to BU in 2011 as an assistant athletic trainer before becoming the head athletic trainer in 2014, a position she still holds today. “She’s an outstanding athletic trainer that keeps things running smooth,” said Josh Shroyer, a BU associate athletic trainer who works alongside Bell. Since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, Bell has taken on significant additional duties in monitoring and testing for COVID cases on campus, as well as helping manage the school’s response to the pandemic.

“It’s an ever-changing thing” Bell said about her daily duties in a COVID world. “Trying to keep up with it all is definitely the hardest part, but my role is really making recommendations to the college, and then they decide what happens.” Shroyer spoke about Bell’s contributions related to COVID. “Without her,” he said. “we’re not open during COVID.” Bell admits that she planned to be at Bluefield University for only 4-5 years to gain experience, but the relationships and bonds she’s built during her time here made her reconsider. She said the Athletic Department is like her family as they always try to help each other out. She had planned to go back to Ohio, where she is originally from, but the BU staff she said grew on her. She also met her husband-to-be, Stephen McDaniel, in Bluefield, which also helped make her stay. “There are so many great things about Erika,” said Christopher Nixon, a senior vice president of collegiate sales who has worked as a vendor with Bell during her time at BU. Erika has been a fantastic partner to work with as she understands the details, but also grasps the big picture. Relationships are important to Erika, and she is a great communicator, a true professional.”

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My Story:

by Andrew LaPan Sports Communication • 2025 Coach Andrea Stinson

Andrea Stinson is the assistant coach for the men’s and women’s basketball teams at Bluefield University. She started coaching this season and has been a great mentor and role model for the players both on and off the court. Stinson has always had a passion for sports, but basketball was not the first. She actually began her athletic career in softball, but once she discovered basketball her focus shifted. What made her fall in love, she said, was all the unique dribbling, passing, and even the different ways you could score. Growing up, Stinson had many basketball role models, including Cherly Miller (a Basketball Hall of Famer who played for the University of Southern California and later coached in the WNBA), Micheal Jordan (arguably the greatest basketball player of all time) and Sam Perkins (who had a heavy influence on Stinson’s learning how to use her left hand and being dominant with both hands). Not only were popular basketball players her idols, but her community played a big role in her basketball career, as well. She said the guys in her neighborhood taught her how to play the game, and anytime she needed something the community was there. “My mom was always there pushing me,” Stinson said, “and guys in my neighborhood were there teaching me the game and helping me get better.” As a result of the positive influences and her hard work, Stinson excelled on the court. She was introduced to legendary North Carolina State women’s coach Kay Yow in middle school, and by 10th grade she said she knew she was headed to NC State. However, when Stinson arrived at NC State she was academically ineligible her first year because she did not score as well as she needed to on the SAT. “After being ineligible, I took a year and focused on school so there was no reason for me to not be eligible for the next season,” Stinson said. After getting eligible, Stinson played in every game for the Wolfpack, averaging 23.6 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game throughout her college career. Her production was great, and she was very consistent in the numbers she put up. In fact, she won Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year in 1990. As a result of her outstanding play, professional teams overseas started to take notice of Stinson, and in 1992 she left NC State to take a two-week contract for a team in Tarbes, France. That two-week deal turned into a contract to finish out the season, where Stinson averaged 21.5 points per game and helped lead the team to the finals. She got a contract for the following season and put up 26.6 points per game shooting 54 percent from the field. After two years in France, Stinson moved on to Italy where she played three years and was named to the Italian All-Star team all three years. In 1997, she got to bring her talent back to the United States to play in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), close to home with the Charlotte Sting where she got to play in front of the community and the fans who helped her get to where she was.

“My mom was always “It was a very honoring thing,” an emotional Stinson said about the opportunity to play professional basketball in her home state. During her eight-year stint in the WNBA, Stinson was a two-time All- WNBA teammembeer and a three-time All-Star. She was among the top 10 scorers in total points four seasons, the top 10 in points per game three years, and the top 10 in field goals made five years. In honor of her accomplishments, Stinson was the first person from North Mecklenburg High School in Huntersville, NC, to have her jersey retired. She also had her jersey retired with NC State and the Charlotte Sting.

there pushing me.” Stinson retired from the WNBA in 2005, and not long after she said she developed a passion for coaching. She began her coaching career at the middle school and high school levels. It was her way, she said, of “assisting” the community that once helped her out. “It makes me feel good to be able to share what I learned over the years with younger kids,” Stinson said when she first started her coaching career. “So that way they can learn and play, and they can teach somebody else.”

For her efforts in giving back to the Charlotte community, Stinson received the WNBA’s Community Assist Award, the Bobby Phills Community Award, the Maya Angelou

Leadership Award, and the United Negro College Fund Leadership Award. Now coaching at the collegiate level as an assistant for the men’s and

Photo by Alchetron.com

women’s basketball team at BU, Stinson is also pursuing her bachelor’s degree in sports communication — something she didn’t quite finish when she left NC State early to pursue her professional basketball career. Balancing her work as a coach while pursuing her degree, she admitted will be a challenge. “I haven’t gotten to the hard part,” she said, “which is traveling and missing class. It’s all time management. Getting homework done in between my class and getting to practice.”