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jbu in focus
jbu in focus
students in Fall 2008.
JBU Initiates New Crisis Alert System
In February, more than 2,500 students, faculty, and
staff of John Brown University received an e-mail from
JBU’s new Crisis Alert System. Of those, 359 also received
automated text messages and 480 received automated phone
calls. Fortunately, there was no crisis at any JBU campus.
The messages were a test of JBU’s new communications
system, which JBU will employ in the event of an actual
emergency.
In a day when our societal security is continually
challenged and when technology has raised the bar of
expectations for the speed of communication within
organizations, JBU has taken proactive steps to help ensure
the safety of its campus communities by setting up the new
campus-wide Crisis Alert System (CAS).
In the event of an emergency on campus—a tornado
warning, a bomb threat, or some other event in which people
may be in immediate danger—JBU administrators can send
information and instructions to everyone on campus through
the CAS, allowing them to respond appropriately.
“While we hope that we never have to use the system,
the reality is that significant situations do happen, and we
need to be prepared to alert our JBU community in the event
of a crisis,” said Steve Beers, vice president for student
development and chairman of JBU’s crisis team.
The JBU CAS allows administrators to target alert
messages to students, faculty, and staff on any of JBU’s
eight Arkansas locations. In the event of a crisis, only the
people on the affected campuses will receive instructions
from the CAS.
Since JBU’s system was installed in January, the
university has already employed the system to send a
number of messages about campus closings and potential
weather dangers.
Speech and Debate Reaches New Height in
National Competition
The JBU speech and debate team secured its highest
finish ever at a national tournament, placing third overall
at the National Christian College Forensic Invitational. The
tournament was held at Belmont University in Nashville
March 7-9.
The tournament included 20 schools invited from around
the nation, including teams from Arkansas, California, Idaho,
Kansas, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Tennessee,
Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Texas.
Leading the team in individual event points were junior
Rissa Murphy and freshman Amber Wilson. Murphy placed
first in Varsity Dramatic Duo with her partner, junior J. D.
Hengenmuhle, second in Varsity Communication Analysis,
third in Varsity Prose Interpretation, and fifth in Varsity
Program of Oral Interpretation. Wilson secured a first place
finish in Novice Program of Oral Interpretation, first place
The speech and debate team shows off their numerous awards.
in Novice Prose Interpretation, and second place in Novice
Poetry Interpretation.
Leading the team in debate points were Novice
Parliamentary debate partners Cecelia Wells and Kyle
Macfarlan, and partners Anna Carol Brymer and James
Cook. Both these teams advanced to the semi-finals.
Women’s Swim Program Takes Final Lap
JBU Athletic Director Robyn Gordon announced in
January that the university would discontinue its women’s
swimming program at the end of the school year. The
women’s swim program, which began in 1984, follows the
conclusion of the men’s swim program at the end of the
2005 school year.
“Over the last three years, we’ve been evaluating our
program and watching what is happening to swimming at
the national level,” Gordon said. “With only 28 women’s
teams in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
(NAIA), and none in the Sooner Athletic Conference (SAC),
we really feel this is the right decision.”
With several student-athletes affected by the change,
JBU plans to honor all scholarships of those who remain at
the university through their senior year. JBU will also grant
releases to any athlete who chooses to transfer to another
university to continue swimming.
The women finished their season in March, sending all
six swimmers to the NAIA National Competition in San
Antonio. The women placed 16th overall.
SIFE Team Heads to National Championships
JBU’s Students In Free Enterprise team was once again
named Regional Champions at the SIFE regional competition
held March 27 in Bentonville, and will compete in the SIFE
national competition in Chicago May 15.
JBU competed along with many other schools including
the University of Arkansas and the 2006 National
Champions, Graceland University.
JBU is one of 10 teams selected from the region to
compete in the national competition. In addition to the
general competition, JBU was selected to compete as a
national finalist in three of six areas of criteria: Market
Economics, Ethics, and Program Sustainability.
“Our students displayed nothing but excellence during
their presentation to a standing-room only crowd,” said
Joe Walenciak, business professor and SIFE advisor.
“Several people commented that they were overwhelmed
The JBU SIFE team is all smiles after their regional win.
by JBU’s presentation, and that JBU was the only team
that they targeted to watch during competitions. It is
exciting to see others acknowledge what our students have
accomplished.”
Note: The Brown Bulletin was published before the
May 15 competition. To learn how the JBU team fared at
nationals, check the JBU web site (www.jbu.edu/news).
Governor’s Cup Rank Leads JBU Team to
National Competition
Since 2001, JBU undergraduate business students
have traveled to Little Rock each spring to participate in
the Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup, a statewide
undergraduate and graduate business plan competition for
students in Arkansas. The competition requires students to
create a business plan that could be used to solicit start-up
funds from potential investors, and it is aimed at simulating
a real-world entrepreneurial spirit in students.
In April, eight teams from JBU submitted plans for
competition, and five of those were among the 12 teams that
advanced to the semifinal round of competition. For the
second year in a row, JBU had more teams in the semifinal
round than any other university.
Two of JBU’s five semifinals teams advanced to the top
six in the final round of competition.
When the winners were announced at the awards
luncheon on April 17, JBU team Enterra was given a second
place award in the undergraduate competition for their plan
to develop a retail store specializing in environmentally
friendly fashions. For their achievement, the Enterrra
members received a $10,000 prize to be split among them.
The Enterra team, which included seniors Micah
Williams, Marcus Naramore, John Williams, Maria Jose
Valencia, and Yaribeth Pacheco, will travel to Las Vegas
to compete against the top teams from Governor’s Cup
competitions in Oklahoma and Nevada and the first place
team from Arkansas May 13-15.
“I wish that all of our seniors completing their capstone
business plan could get recognized publicly,” said Mandy
Moore, JBU instructor of business. “This business plan
represents hundreds of hours worked by each student.
JBU’s award winning team Enterra poses with instructor Mandy Moore
and shows off their second place awards.
The best thing about working with the students this year
was seeing [five JBU teams] at the semifinal round of the
competition . . . I was glowing with pride.”
Note: The Brown Bulletin was published before the
May competition. To learn how the JBU team fared in the
competition, check the JBU web site (www.jbu.edu/news).
Student Newspaper Takes Top Prize in
State Competition
The staff of JBU’s student newspaper, The Threefold
Advocate, traveled to Jonesboro, Arkansas, April 17 to
participate in the Arkansas College Media Association
workshop and awards contest.
The Threefold Advocate staff won first place for General
Excellence—the first time the paper has reached the top spot
in the state. Arkansas State placed second and the University
of Arkansas placed third.
“All semester we’ve worked hard to create the best paper
that we possibly could,” said senior Emily Moberly, 2007-
2008 editor for The Threefold Advocate. “To be recognized
for all our hard work this year is one of the best feelings ever.
The moment that The Threefold Advocate was announced as
the best college newspaper in Arkansas is one of the best
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