GARDNER-WEBB UNIVERSITY
vwvw.gwupiiiU.aim
Volume 10 No. 10
Serving the Gardner-Webb University community for more than 60 years
This Edition
— In campus news —
The GWU School of Busi
ness has received multiple
donations recently. Read the
Page 1 story to find out how
they will be used.
The Front Porch Club, an
unofficial GWU organization,
will have to learn to deal with
the new tobacco-free policy.
See the Front Page story for
more details.
— In community news—
Shelby Mayor Ted Alexander
will run for re-election this
fall. See more on Page 2.
GWU professors get together
to play music at The BRCC.
Find out more on Page 2.
— Opinion/editorial —
Jacob Conley voices his
opinion on the smoking
policy on Page 3.
A Web site has made Matt
a frightened nerd. Find out
what perplexes him these
days on Page 3.
— In sports —
The women’s swimming
team shot for their fourth
straight NEC championship.
Find out how they did on
Page 4.
GWU women’s tennis player
Monica Walser fought off an
illness to help her team win.
See more on Page 4.
Weekend
Weather
Saturday
Feb. 24
56/45
Chance of showers
Sunday
Feb.25
58/41
Chance of showers
Index
News
Op/lCd
Sp»rts
page 4
Eutertainnient.
..page 5
Photo
6
Online
photo by Rachel Lloyd
Several regular attenders, Andrew Zawierucha (left), Mark Winning (middle) and Nate Aymond
(front right), of the Front Porch Club smoke pipes and blow off steam on Feb. 15.
Moving off the front porch?
Unofficial GWU club affected by new tobacco-free policy
By Matt Tessnear
mattlrewtl984@earthlink.net
Andrew Zawierucha and his
inends might have to move off
campus due to a new university
policy that will ban tobacco use at
Gardner-Webb as of Aug. 6. Za
wierucha and others who partici
pate in the weekly gathering of the
Front Porch Club may have to get
together elsewhere.
According to Zawierucha,
eight to 10 students get together
each week to smoke and talk about
a wide variety of things. Some of
the students smoke pipes, which
have been a staple of the club
since it began.
The Front Porch Club is an
unofficial organization that isn’t
sanctioned by the university.
There are no membership rites
and attendees change each week.
The group welcomes anyone.
“The heart of it had always
been community,” said Zawieru
cha. “It seems like, when you’re
sitting down with a bunch of
friends, smoking a pipe, your bar
riers go down and your defenses
go down.
“You’re able to build a strong
community with your peers. The
Front Porch Club has brought to
gether a group of people that prob
ably would have never associated
with each other otherwise.”
Wes Rice, who has long attend
ed Front Porch meetings, said the
Front Porch Club is just a title for
the group. The club might sound
somewhat elitist, but it’s mostly
about hanging out, he said.
“It has a lot of different mean
ings to different individuals,” said
Rice. “It’s a good time once a week
to put everything aside and forget
about our classes. It’s kinda of like
preparing for the weekend.”
The university’s announce
ment Jan. 29 of the tobacco-free
policy caused concerns about the
club’s future. The new policy bans
cigarettes, cigars and smokeless
tobacco on campus.
“I don’t think you could have
Front Porch Club without having
someone smoking a pipe,” said
Zawierucha, who says the group
will survive, regardless of the
policy.
“If we have to find a place off
campus to do it, we will. Unfortu
nately, that could hurt attendance.
It will keep people from coming
that might not have the means.
(The policy) will be damaging a
good thing.”
None of the Front Porch Club
attendees are planning to get a
house off campus next year.
The club started about three
years ago on the back porch of a
house behind Nanney Hall. Last
year, it moved to a side porch of
Royster Hall, where Rice and
Brandon Russell lived. Students
currently meet on the porch out
side the room occupied by Rice
and Nate Aymond.
The current location has a
roof and three couches. Rice and
Aymond even bought Christmas
lights and have an old lighthouse
that they turn on to light the
porch.
“Brandon and I weren’t origi
nally supposed to live together,”
said Rice, a senior. “I was sup
posed to room with John Clay.
(Clay, a former GWU student)
was the person who wanted to first
smoke a pipe. He wanted to form
a theology club, but it just didn’t
pan out.”
Students of the front porch
club do discuss theology, but top
ics also range from philosophy to
recent events, said Zawierucha.
“For me, it’s always great,
once I’ve gotten done with all
my homework for the night. It’s
a great relief to hang out with
friends and blow off steam and
enjoy company,” he said.
The club has even been around
long enough to welcome alumni
back for visits. One former Front
Porch Club attendee lives in Bos
ton, but still checks in on the club,
said Zawierucha.
“It’s kind of a link or connec
tion to Gardner-Webb,” he said.
“Part of my whole college life
has been Front Porch Club every
Thursday night. It’s something
I’ve always looked forward to.”
Rice says he’s sure people will
hang out on the porch in the fu
ture, but things won’t be the same
with the policy.
“We might try to have one
last hoorah sometime, make it
pretty grand and probably smoke
a whole lot,” said Rice. “If some
people who have gone here do get
to come back, hopefully we’ll be
able to have one more time
Taking care
of business
Money to be used
for technology,
scholarships for
business students
By Matt Tessnear
matthewtl984@earthlink.net
Recent donations to the Gard-
ner-Webb University School
of Business, totaling more than
$185,000, are a sign of the
school’s recent success and goals
for growth, according to Dean Dr.
Anthony Negbenebor.
“The recipients of all this mon
ey will be the students, bottom
line,” said Negbenebor, adding
that the business school needs to
update its technological offerings
and add scholarships. “Businesses
are very dynamic. You have to
keep up with the latest business
models. Making sure (our stu
dents) are ahead of others is what
this is about.”
The Charlotte Business Jour
nal has ranked the GWU School
of Business as one of the best in
North and South Carolina for
seven consecutive years. Many of
the school’s graduates work for
Fortune 500 companies, includ
ing BMW, Wachovia and Bank of
America.
“Things are beginning to hap
pen here,” said Negbenebor. “I
feel it’s because of the ranking
and our Christian environment. I
have been here 17 years and none
of this has happened before. This
happened because of Dr. Bonner
and Steve Varley. They are the two
catalysts,”
The Broyhill Family Founda
tion donated a general program
endowment of $100,000. John
Gobold, a former Cleveland Coun
ty businessman and GWU School
of Business Board of Advisor
member, gave a gift of $25,000.
The Stonecutter Foundation and
Chairman Jim Cowan, of Spin-
dale, donated $10,000.
Dr. Charles Tichenor, a GWU
professor of business administra
tion and Distinguished Executive
in Residence, donated a $50,000
estate gift. Tichenor wishes for
his donation to be used to create
a doctorate in business administra
tion program at GWU, according
to Negbenebor.
As more donations continue
to come in, the business school is
currently making plans for a fund
raising event that would provide
additional money for advanced
technology. The board of advisors
see Business, page 5
‘Radio’ and Coach Jones bring inspiring story to Dimensions
www.gwqpilot.com
By Jared Graf
I jgrqf@gardner-webb.edu
James “Radio” Kennedy, the
inspiration for the movie “Radio,”
spoke at Dimensions Tuesday. His
friend and coach, Harold Jones,
accompanied Radio to share their
story together.
Radio and Jones were at Gard
ner-Webb as part of the universi
ty’s annual observance ofNational
Disabilities Week.
With Radio and Coach Jones
talking about people with special
needs, they are trying to “break
down the barriers” between those
who have special needs and those
who do not.
Jones met Radio in 1964 at
TL. Hanna High School in An
derson, S.C. At first. Radio was a
little scared to approach he team,
but before long he was out on the
field running sprints. Radio soon
came to be a part of the team, and
has made a tremendous impact on
the players over the years.
Radio received his nickname
because he always carried a tran
sistor radio around with him where
ever he would go.
Radio was left at home for one
football game, and only one game.
That night the players lost the
game, and even though the head
coach was not superstitious. Ra
dio never missed another game.
In 1970, Radio was enrolled at
TL. Hanna High School. He ran
track in the 100, 200 and 400 yard
heats. He lived right up the hill
from the practice field, so it was
easy for him to get to and from
the games and practices of many
sporting teams.
see Radio, page 5
photo by Katie Bryant
James “Radio” Kennedy and Coach Harold Jones greet people
and sign autographs after they spoke at Tuesday’s Dimen
sions program in Lutz-Yelton Convocation Center.