Newspapers / Winston-Salem State University Student … / Feb. 1, 2003, edition 2 / Page 7
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The News Argus, February 2003 DEPLOY, from page 1 This is what they've been preparing us for," said Hooks. 'T'll be disappointed if I am (de ployed) though, because I just want to finish school. "After I graduate they can call whenever they want." Hooks is not the only student- soldier who's concerned about completing school in light of this conflict. "When you go to join, they don't make it clear that you can be pulled out of school," said sophomore Brandy Byers. Byers, an MIS and accounting major, joined the Army National Guard because of its great bene fits. She normally serves one weekend a month with her unit during drill, but things are start ing to look different for her unit. "Most students only [join] to pay for school," said Byers. "When your unit gets activated, the whole unit is deployed." Byers' unit was activated' and deployed last month. The unit spent two weeks at Fort Bragg for training and was shipped overseas from one to two years. There's only one reason why Byers, 19, is still at school. "I haven't been to Basic Train ing yet, and they can't send you off without having gone," said Byers. "They're sending me (to training) this summer, though." Byers' best friend. Crystal Knox, is also a member of the National Guard. During the weekend that stu dents began moving back on campus from Christmas Break, the 20-year-old received disturb ing information. "I was at drill going through normal procedures," said Knox. "It was Sunday, and we were preparing to go home when our company commander announces that our unit will be activated the following day." Knox, who describes herself as "devastated, because I'm a stu dent," had one evening to get her personal business in order and prepare for a 7:45 a.m. ar rival to her unit in Concord the following day. During the week that her unit officially became active duty, Knox began outpro- cessing. "There was a financial station where we made sure our income would be direct-deposited while we were overseas. There was a JAG station where we made out power of attorneys and wills in case we were to die in combat. There was also a gas mask, dental and medical stations." It would be the medical station that would allow Knox to return to WSSU as a full-time student. "The Friday before we were to have our farewell ceremony, a medical doctor came in and re viewed my records," said Knox. "I have scoliosis, so they couldn't send me off because of medical reasons." The banking and finance major says she is relieved that she didn't have to go so she can complete her goals as a student first. "Recruiters are gonna tell you what you want to hear," she added. "They'll work around the neg ative side of the Guard and high light things like the money. "The fact is, when it comes down to it, it's so hard to get out of what they want you to do. If I didn't have those medical records Byers says she doesn't believe the conflict with Iraq is worth a war. "It's too devastating. It's defi nitely not worth it unless you're fighting for your freedom. But that's not what this war is about. Dr. Larry Little, a political sci ence professor, has an idea of what the war is about. "I think it's about the United States flexing its muscle and demonstrating it has the ability to make folks bow down to it," said Little. "It's about control of oil fields in Iraq, and Bush finishing the work of his father. If Suddam Hussein has weapons of mass destruction, a lot of it was ac quired from the U.S. during Bush Sr.'s administration." Little believes that by the first week of March, the United States will be fighting in Iraq. Howev er, he doesn't believe a draft will be called, causing more universi ty-age students to be deployed. "As long as they have this technologically driven. Bush will have public support. If they start drafting, public sentiment will change on Bush." Despite the status on and rea sons for going to war, the possi bility of fighting in combat is be coming a very real idea for students at WSSU. "I'm young. I'm still a stu dent," said Knox. "Being pulled away from thing like school is something I'm not ready for." ALUMNI, from page 2 Everything from your school's reputation to who knows you is taken into consideration. The business world does not pardon the snoozer. Depending on the type of job, employers want to see examples of promise, such as good study habits and extracurricular activities that per tain to your major. Think about it. If you were the CEO of My Com puters Inc., would you hire a col lege graduate with a 2.0 GPA and no related volunteer or work ex perience in computer science to head your computer systems an alyst team? Professiofials hire college grad uates because they assume, based on interviews, performance tests and resumes that you can do the job and do it well. Some of us will not be able to get past this point. There may be others that can charm their way into a job and escape the initial tests for job performance. However, when it's time to actually do the job and you can't do it, you will be fired and replaced. Then there are those of us who will be prepared. We would have taken advantage of all of the re sources available to us in college. We would have made an effort to learn both inside and outside of the classroom. We would have placed an emphasis on hard work because we know that busi nesses seek bright young people with exceptional grades, a rea sonable amount of related work or volunteer experience and proven leadership qualities. Those are assets that we as re sponsible students must take the initiative to acquire. The competi tion is very stiff and you want to be a standout graduate, not a mediocre one. Don't find yourself kicking at the ground when graduation rolls around; start planning for the future now. In other words, "Handle your business." Do you know a successful WSSU alumni? Tell us about him or her by e-mail, newzargus@yahoo.com, or call us at 750-2327. DIVERSE, from page 1 However, Chawla didn't let sexism or even the lack of an aerospace program in her na tive India discourage her. She emigrated to the United States, earned a doctoral de gree in aerospace engineering and, against all odds, became an astronaut. "For me, it's really far fetched to have thought about it and made it," Chawla said. "It's almost like having won a lottery or something." The 41-year-old engineer was returning from her sec ond shuttle mission. Known as "KC" around NASA, Chawla became the first per son from India to fly in space in 1997. MICHAEL P. ANDERSON Television shows such as "Star Trek" and "Lost in Space" fueled Michael Ander son's dreams of flying in space. As a young man, he meticu lously plotted his career down to what planes he'd fly to im prove his chances of being chosen for NASA's astronaut corps. Eventually, persistence paid off and his dreams came true. "Fortunately someone else was looking over me," said Anderson, a devout Christian married with two daughters. "For me, it's the answer to a lot of my prayers." The 43-year-old Air Force colonel was returning from his second space voyage. On his first shuttle flight in 1998, he became the first African- American to visit a space sta tion during a trip to the Russ ian Mir outpost. "I hadn't really thought about it," Anderson said. "Any time you break ground on something new, there's some benefit in that." Anderson said he enjoyed being a role model to young blacks because he liked to do "anything I can do to inspire a young child, to tell someone about the importance of edu cation." Cecilia Davis, a sophomore, English major; "The diversity [on the shuttle] was showing progress, and 1 think we should honor him [Anderson] and [Israeli Ilan Ramon]. This shows that anybody, despite ethnicity, has compassion for human life and will succeed." ILAN ROMAN One evening in 1997, Israeli Air Force Col. Ilan Ramon was at his desk at Israeli Air Force headquarters when the phone rang. The voice on the other end asked whether he wanted to apply to be an astronaut. In Is rael, the term astronaut often is used as an insult to describe those who are unstable or have their head in the clouds. "I thought it was a joke," Ramon said. It wasn't. The Air Force was looking for candidates to be come Israel's first astronaut. Ramon had all of the neces sary qualities: Gifted pilot. Team player. A technical back ground. A background con ducting experiments in the Air Force. He was chosen after a short selection process. Five years later, Ramon was returning from his first ship into space on Columbia. Mar ried with three sons and one daughter, the 48-year-old for mer combat pilot's flight has been front-page news throughout Israel. "When 1 first started this, 1 didn't realize how big it was for Israelis and Jews," Ramon said. "1 am a Holocaust sur vivor's son, an Israeli pilot and now, an astronaut. People can't believe it. It's very emo tional for me also." Dr. Oyelaran also said, "How is this university trying to prepare students for that global society? This tragedy emphasizes the need for stu dents to be ready to work with others in society. We need to live in a world with no boundaries or frontiers. Students need to be prepared to work in a society with peo ple from different cultures. There are two serious tragedies that have occurred in the last 24 months — Sep tember 11 and the Columbia space explosion. The Septem ber 11 tragedy involved peo ple from over 115 different countries, and the shuttle ex plosion involved people from different backgrounds as well. If you don't go abroad the rest of the world will come to you." CAREER, from page 3 teachers fair is so important. They have the opportunity to talk to 90 school systems from across the country and each school system has different re quirements. That way they can find the school system that best fits those things that they've already obtained and required so they can go on and get their degree," Cameron continued. You may be thinking that these programs are only for seniors but don't be fooled. It is never too early to start on your career development, so don't wait until you be come a senior to partake in this program — the earlier, the better. Ccireer Services offers a number of career develop ment magazines that are free and available to students, along with much counsel and advice. These magazines have information about preparing resumfe, networking informa tion and industry trends. Don't pass up the opportu nity to be informed about your occupation. BRAI n- U1MA1 ORKOUT Be a medical technologist Stretch your brain power examining the chemical and biological composition of cells, human tissues and other body specimens to discover the villains of disease. Assist in the diagnosis of diseases. Join the search for new treatments and cures. Exercise your career options in healthcare. Ask your librarian or guidance counselor for the Healthcare Careers CODE BLUE Resource Book. Call us or check out our website. Apply for our scholarships today! HEALTHCARE CAREERS Winston-Salem: 336-765-8002 • Toll Free: 1-866-765-8002 www.codebluecareers.com A hearth careers awareness program JointJy sponsored by: FORSYTH MEDICAL CENTER/NOVANT HEALTH HIGH POINT REGIONAL HEALTH SYSTEM • MOSES GONE HEALTH SYSTEM WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY BAPTIST MEDICAL CENTER ©2001
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