Delta Gamma hosts third annual Dodge With DeeGee

By Hannah Bell

Phi Mu cheers on its winning team

Both Phi Mu and Alpha Kappa Lambda are celebrating their second year of winning Delta Gamma’s annual Dodge With DeeGee dodge ball tournament. Seven men’s teams and five women’s teams competed in this year’s games.

The games followed classic dodge ball rules: retrieve dodge balls after the whistle blows, run back to the boundary line, and begin playing!

Henna tattoos were available to those in attendance

This year, the Delta Gammas chose a music festival theme for their event. Vice President of Foundation Miriam Argote says, “Music festivals have gotten really popular, and we thought it would be a really fun theme!” 

Argote and her philanthropy team were dedicated to their theme, providing hula hoops and flash tattoos, face painting, and henna designs for purchase.

This is Delta Gamma’s third dodge ball tournament, and it plans to continue the tradition along with its fall event, Anchor Splash. Delta Gamma’s philanthropy events benefit Service for Sight, which provides aid to the blind and visually impaired. Winning teams from this tournament will also receive 10% of the overall proceeds.

National Broadcasting Society Takes On L.A.

Story By: Courtney Boyd



Every year the National Broadcasting Society holds a convention for students and professors to learn more about their field. Last year's convention was held in Atlanta Georgia and this year the student were able to fly out to Los Angeles California for the convention.

Mass Comm Professors With Awards

The convention allows participants to submit videos for categories such as PSA's to short comedy films and commercials. This year Montevallo's chapter of NBS submitted a couple of pieces to the competition.The pieces submitted by Dr. Finklea, Dr. Cofield, and Mr.Pruitt were nationally recognized.

Each day students get to go to different seminars and listen to speakers that spark their interests. They get time at the end of every seminar to ask questions and pick the minds of the professionals they look up to.

A couple of students even got to hear and meet NBC's Joe Fryer and ESPN's Crowley Sullivan.

NBS Students 

Seminars and networking weren't the only things students were able to do. They spent a couple of days sight-seeing and meeting up with Montevallo Alumni residing in L.A. Students were able to connect with the alumni and share Montevallo stories and memories.

By the end of the trip students were not necessarily excited to go home, but thrilled to have this experience under their belt. Some students even say they can't wait to go back and even move out to California to begin their career.

For more information about the National Broadcasting Society, click here and to find out about the convention and a complete list of competition winners click here.

Alpha Tau Omega Supports Wounded Warrior Project

By Kiera Hood

The brothers of Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity were excited to host their kickball tournament "Kicking Grass" for the Wounded Warrior Project. The event was held on Thursday behind the soccer fields.

During the event, fraternities, sororities, and individual teams competed to see who could win the kickball title.

While it was all and games for most, Graham Reiseberg, philanthropy chairman was hopeful that the goal for this years' event would be met.


2016 "Kick Grass" t-shirt design

Overall, he was pleased with the way things had gone this year compared to last year, which makes him hopeful for raising greater awareness for the Wounded Warrior Project.

Many of the men in the fraternity have ties to a veteran or active soldier, which makes them want to continue supporting the organization.

To donate, be sure to visit the Wounded Warrior Project website.

Duo Piano Concert Takes Stage for Piano Fund

By: Anleia Nance

 Various recitals have occurred within the Department of Music here on campus. However, one recital required a little team work effort as two professors performed a duo piano concert on Friday, March 11th.

Music professor, Dr. Cythnia MacCrae and professor emeritus, Dr. Anthony Pattin took LeBaron Stage as they practiced for the recital. Since last summer, both performers have been working on four handed classical pieces that would be good for an audience to hear such as Schumann, Rachmainoff, and Coplan.

Dr. MacCrae & Dr. Pattin Preps for Recital

The concert was used as a fund raiser for the Pattin Piano Endowment, a fund that will be used for the maintenance and restoration of the Steinway pianos inside the music department. This will make the third year for the piano fund benefit concert series.

Doing a solo piece last year, Dr. Pattin enjoyed his time working with Dr. MacCrae and performing the pieces together. "The music is fun," said Dr. Pattin. "Its fun playing it and discovering new things about the music together."

Professors Discuss Changes in  Music

Within the last three years, the department has raised about $8,000. Dr. MacCrae hopes that their end goal of $25,000 is met with the help of the concert. "The ticket sales will be used to generate part of that money." said Dr. MacCrae "We're hoping for bigger donations as well to help boost the fund."

Along with repairing the pianos, the fund will also contribute to naming the class piano lab in Dr. Pattin's honor.


For more information about future events in the music department, check out their page here.
To find out about other university events, click here.

Falcons lose heartbreaker 89-88

Story by :Wyatt Hall


The national tournament comes to an end early for the Falcons as Winagte prevails against Montevallo 89-88.

Wingate sent the game to OT with a game tieing three late. And the three point shooting continued to keep Winagte in the game.

Wingate hit a 3 with 20 seconds left in OT tieing the game at 88-88, Bryant Orange then turned the ball over giving Wingate one last chance with 10.7 to go.

Winagte was fouled and Griffin went to the line for the Bulldogs. He hit one shot giving Wingate the one point advantage and the victory.

After the game Coach Young described the game is one word "Tough", Young continued and praised the impressive shooting of Wingate. "Hard to beat a team when you shoot as well as they did. We made shots they just made more".

6 seed Falcons prepare to face 3 seed Wingate Saturday at 12pm

Story By : Wyatt Hall

On their way to Lincoln Memorial Univeristy in Tennessee the Falcons stopped in Knoxville for last minute practice before the NCAA tourney begins. 

Montevallo is the six seed in the Southeast region tournament marking their seventh straight NCAA tournament appearance and will face off against the three seeded Wingate Bulldogs. 

The Falcons are coming off a disappointing loss against Lander in the PBC Tournament in which Senior Guard Bryant Orange rode the bench most of the game with four fouls only adding five points.  

Orange has averaged 16.8 points per game this season and has been on fire as of late doing everything for the Falcons getting the nickname "The Floor General".

 At times the  duo of Orange and fellow Senior Guard Terrell Lipkins (21.7 PPG) has been unstoppable. 

Wingate and Montevallo have played two similar opponents this season both  going 1-1. 

The Bulldogs are led by Forward Isaiah Cureton who is averaging 14 PPG . 

Tip-Off is set for 12pm central time. 

Alabama K-9's Training Day

By: Austin Crafton

Constantly trying to provide the best protection for the area - Local law enforcement get out on Sundays to train at different locations with their high-powered "K-9 Units."

Deputy Alfred Grace of the Walker County Sheriffs' Office and his K-9 Robby are the gold standard. Partners for almost a year now, their classifications are staggering. They are certified for virtually any scenario that may come their way and their chemistry shows any time you have the opportunity to watch them work. Grace says, "He's so smart, I don't even have to lead him."

I'd feel bad for anyone in this situation without the suit!

Grace has been coming to these training exercises for roughly six months. He and Robby are the center-attraction when the time comes for an apprehension exercise. There's nothing but nerves when trying to figure out who is going to put on the 40-pound, $2000 dollar padded suit made specially for this kind of training.

Ronnie Phillips of Dora Police goes first and Robby all but bites through the suit's inches of padding. After much careful thought, I believe I'm up for the challenge as well. They harness me in and give all the scenarios of what could possibly happen - And then out comes Robby. My heart is thumping, my palms are sweaty. I can't believe what I have signed myself up for.

Grace, just as he would in the field screams "SUSPECT! On the ground! This dog will bite!" A quick count to three and Robby is unchained and on my arm before I can even realize what hit me. I buckle to the ground and the dog continues to drag me several feet before Grace pulls him off. I am unscathed but amazed at the power these animals possess.

I am in complete amazement of just how skilled these officers are to handle such power every day. 

                                                                              

Mold Found in Montevallo's Hanson Hall

by Hannah Bell

Sydney Fields found black mold beside her bed

If there’s one thing in common between residents assistant Olivia Ricks and Hanson resident Sydney Fields, it’s that they love the historic residence hall where they live. Fields says Hanson feels homey and loves the hardwood floors and central location. Ricks loves the history of the building, but history can come with a price.

Because the building is very dated, sometimes wear shows. In Fields’ room, a small hole in the wall allowed enough room for moisture to come through, soaking the edge of her bed sheets. Discovering the damp sheets led to a more pressing issue. Fields followed the trail of moisture to find a patch of black mold that was growing by the head of her bed in the corner of her room.

Fields did not hesitate to submit a work order to the physical plant. She included pictures of the damage. Employees of the physical plant arrived the next morning to clean the area and repair the hole. They also replaced filters in the air conditioning unit where more mold had grown.

“They painted my air conditioner with mold killing paint,” Fields says. “Then they came back two days later and painted it the normal color.”

Ricks says she has had several residents voice concerns about mold in their rooms.
“Last semester some girls reported that they had found mold in their room,” she says. “And within the next couple of days they were moved to a new room.” The physical plant can determine whether the problem can be fixed or whether the residents should move rooms.

Although Fields did not experience any noticeable health problems from the mold in her room, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says symptoms such as wheezing, shortness of breath, and irritated skin or eyes can occur.

Sunday Alcohol Sales, Shelby County Votes Yes

By: Courtney Boyd

Super Tuesday brought many things to the state of Alabama and Sunday alcohol sales for Shelby County was one of them. Shelby County has been a dry county for as long as residents can remember.

The law went into effect this past Sunday. Residents and local businesses are excited for this extra day of sales. Until now restaurants and bars have been able to sell alcohol on Sundays by being classified as a private club.

Lucky's Foodland

The problem with some restaurants and bars that are new in Shelby County is they have struggled with becoming private clubs. The Alcohol Beverage Control Board stopped issuing private club licenses years ago so new businesses have had trouble with the Sunday Sales Law that was in place.

The Greater Shelby County Chamber of Commerce did a study on how Sunday Sales with impact the county. They learned that almost $2.2 million in earnings will be brought to the county, along with around 171 newly created jobs.

Some students on campus think this is a great idea and it will benefit our county but others do not agree. A student at Montevallo, Lexi Womack, believes that alcohol should not be sold on Sunday because it is an important day for her Religious views.

Assorted Alcohol

With Shelby County being one of the last dry counties to vote yes for Sunday Sales, most of Alabama is now selling alcohol seven days a week. The law does come with one stipulation, alcohol cannot be sold before 12pm on Sundays.

For more information about Shelby County and what is happening, click here. To read more about residents voting yes to Sunday Sales on alcohol, click here.

Montevallo Students Respond to AL Primary Results

By Kiera Hood

There has been much controversy surrounding this year's presidential election. With Alabama being a part of the 12 states participating in the 2016 Super Tuesday primary, many students felt the need to get out and make their voices heard.

Democratic Presidential Candidate Hilary Clinton

One student in particular, Xavier Scruggs, believes that it is very crucial for students to go to the polls. He says that all students need to pay more attention to the election especially this year.

He stated that this is something not be taken lightly. "I take this very seriously" he said as he referred to his future being at stake.

As the day came to close on Tuesday all of the other candidates were outvoted by republican front runner Donald Trump and democratic front runner Hilary Clinton in the state of Alabama.

Republican Presidential Candidate Donald Trump

Although many other candidates came out on top in the 2016 Super Tuesday primary results.

Lanie Bell was not shocked at all by the results from the Republican votes. "Donald Trump is a wrench in the political system, not necessarily good or bad" she added.

In the end, political science major Hunter Huie believes that America will make the best decision and in the general election we will have the best candidate leading the country.

Highlighting Montevallo's McNair Scholars

By: Anleia Nance

The word "research" is probably not the best thing that a student wants to hear. However, that is not the case for students that are members of the McNair Scholars Program. The federally funded program, found in honor of Ronald E. McNair, allows the group to dedicate their time and effort conducting their own studies.

With the help of a faculty mentor, each of them are able to brainstorm over a research topic that they are interested in, and investigate it over the course of the summer I term. At the end of the term, they are given multiple opportunities to present their findings either here on campus or out of state conferences.


The program was designed to help underrepresented undergraduates with low income or those who are first generation college students, and prepare them for graduate school.

 Dr. Leichnitz Helps With Grad School Applications

As of now, over a 100 students have been through the program and have obtained their masters or doctoral degrees.

Director  of the program, Dr. Roberta Leichnitz, enjoys assisting the students with their goals of furthering their education. "It is exciting to see them grow and set off to graduate programs," said Dr. Leichnitz. "I know that they can be successful in this."

Bria Hines Assists New McNair Schola

Besides the staff, members like McNair Scholar Bria Hines, assists many with their research and encourages them to apply for graduate school. " We're all in it together and we're all looking for a goal," said Hines. " We're all pushing each other to get there."

Along with getting the opportunity to present and display their research, the students receives a stipend up to $2,500, three credit hours, and free room and board during the summer.

To see more on what the TRIO program is up to click here.