Vol.61.No.3
Mars Hill College, Mars Hill, North Carolina
Friday, October 16,1987
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oanne Groom: Research Comes to Nars Hill
' Writer
appoints g world where small college
n to thir)yg0g are often left behind in
onged tg of scientific research by their
id foun(ir and richer counterparts, ex-
be, the Cons to the norm are indeed re-
ine fore\ing.
he wideje exception to this current trend
aps fron occur this year on Mars Hill’s
pus as faculty member JoAnne
about tliin conducts research in the field
xl to plaiicrobiology.
nto the qe research is being made possi-
rs, grinjjy a fifty thousand dollar grant
allowing the National Institutes of Health,
ndividuaierally funded organization that
inevitahdes money to support medical
r knockeqrch. The grant is designated as
cademic Enhancement Research
would rd and will finance Mrs. Groom’s
or one this,
e is not te research that Mrs. Groom has
is. He woed revolves around white blood
and sho\ or lymphocytes, and will study
ther, sitt^ffects that different substances
dersonvil on the DNA that carries genetic
and say, ''mation when cells divide.
■oom’s interest in the project was
i hand tvned while she took classes at the
bene Ridge Biomedical Graduate
h a
possibly ol Program. This program is af-
h that heed with the University of Ten
by stealae and will fulfill requirements
?els, mitte doctorate degree when she com-
a coarsets her courses there. Groom said.
The Oak Ridge Program and the
subsequent research are the latest
academic endeavors for Groom, and
these challenges are, for the mean
time, suitable to crown an already ex
tensive academic career that started
in Spruce Pine, North Garolina.
Groom’s high school graduation
took place there, and at seventeen
she was ready for new roads. Her
father influenced her to come to Mars
Hill, which was a junior college at the
time, and the graduate responded to
her father’s wishes. She completed
her general studies at Mars Hill and
transferred to North Garolina State
University to pursue her interests.
These academic interests were
consiunmated in the form of a Bache
lor of Science degree in biochemistry.
However, Groom was not content to
rest on her laurels and she was soon
back at the books.
She remained at N.G. State and
continued to study there until she
earned a Master’s degree in microbi
ology. After this fourth graduation,
she worked in the chemistry and
research industries of the nationally
famous “Research Triangle.”
In addition to academics, marriage
was also in her plans. She married,
and soon afterwards her husband
was transferred to Asheville. The
couple had their first child, and Mrs.
Groom decided that it would be best if
she did not start working again after
the move.
The home life, however, did not ful
fill Groom’s aspirations and eventual
ly she looked for another job. The job
that she was hired for did not meet
her original expectations, but things
worked out quite well for her.
“I started looking for a job and I
had always sworn that I would never,
ever teach because both my parents
taught and I had seen the frustrations
was that of a substitute teacher. She
got her first teaching job at Asheville-
Biltmore Gollege, which eventually
became the University of North Garo
lina at AsheviUe. She started as a
substitute teacher and also worked in
chemistry labs. This position evolved
into a prime-time teaching job. “It
was the beginning of a life-long in
terest in teaching” she said.
In teaching there is always that
unknown factor and that unknown
factor is the student.
55
that are inherent with education so
that was on my list down there right
around zero” she said in a recent in
terview.
The profession that originally had
such negative connotations for Mrs.
Groom began to have a new look
when she was confronted with the
possible jobs that would fulfill her
criteria, criteria that had been trans
formed with the arrival of her
children and family responsibilities.
She wanted a part-time job, and the
job that seemed to suit this desire and
still anneal to her academic interests
After teaching at UNGA, she taught
at Warren Wilson Gollege, at a Gatho-
lic girls’ school, and finally ended up
teaching patients at a psychiatric
hospital. The job at the hospital began
to put a gradual strain on her, and
after four years she decided to give
the position up. Mrs. Groom was
disillusioned with the job because she
had difficulty in dealing with the ap
parent hopelessness of some of the
students she was hired to motivate.
At the same time, the Groom family
wanted to get away from Asheville.
Some friends had been looking at land
lasm WQ
sense of
m devolof
:hman is
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abinet
jrioiitizes
orms
Frady
■^.tant Editor
a common occurrence at Mars
k maintenance request is turned
2 d you wait and wait for repairs
made. It’s a stressful situation
rhe onlyl involved parties. This problem,
internatver, is not going unnoticed or un-
and 3nged. Steps are being taken by
lere is dministration and staff to troub-
es God wot and remedy the problems in
Dr a teanaining the dorms,
to win?:ently, the Administrative Gabi-
•ange, itted a meeting and on the top of
like Fal agenda was the maintenance
: that arem. They received reports and
Dtivity isimendations from Director of
Dr normaential Living, Gary Poole, and
next tins of Students, Merry Burgess,
street an were discussed at length and
D pass soiproach was decided on.
y, lock pording to Dr. Schmeltekopf,
j there vof Academics, the cabinet de-
inging to on a “three-pronged effort.”
you mighirst step in the plan is to pur-
interesit new mattresses for Edna
3, Stroup, and Huffman dormito-
rhese dorms are also slated for
ation beginning this summer
U completion. Also
ummer, new furniture is to be
^ased for some of these build-
he cabinet decided on
ree-pronged effort’
35
Poole says that he has pur-
250 new mattresses at a cost
,000, taken out of his overall
budget of $25,000. He
in to say that “some of the mat-
5 we found were close to over
years old, and this is the main
for such an extensive replace-
Nowhere on record has there
> mch a mass replacement be-
—i n the past, it has been piece-
—Replacement, just whenever one
i^ed. In doing this, we will be
gauge when to replace them
Dting the renovations done in
ist year on Brown, Melrose,
, and Fox dormitories, the reno-
3 slated for this coming summer
'ing seven out of thirteen resi-
halls into reasonably good con-
in only two years. Gary Poole
at after the dorms on women’s
! finished, the townhouses and
, /^lents are the next priority.
^ ^ ^ope to purchase new carpet
■ / tsome furniture for these
(j^gs,” says Poole.
^ road to completing all that
,to be done is very long indeed,
t at all a fast process. Some
must be put off to meet immedi-
IL9Z O N 'iWs. Many things have already
2 ON IjUilone, but there is much more
gi^j ahead. Truly, when dealii^
oheiSOd IP®*” Mars Hill, patience is
MtezmeQjQ III
tt
The 1940's Radio Hour"Set to Open
Mike Merrill
Guest Writer
Mars Hill Gollege’s Department of
Theatre Arts opens its 1987-88 sea
son on October 23 with the bright and
sassy musical. The 1940’s Radio Hour,
by Walton Jones. This big band era
musical comedy takes place on the
night of December 21, 1942 in the
studios of WOV, a 5,000 watt local
New York Gity radio station. It’s the
Monday night broadcast of the week
ly variety show, “The Mutual Man
hattan Variety Galvacade,” and fea
tures such hits as “Ghattanooga Ghoo
Ghoo,” “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy,”
“Strike Up The Band,” and “Ain’t
She Sweet.”
The 1940’s Radio Hour will be
directed by G. Robert Jones and in
troduces Mars Hill Gollege’s newest
faculty professor, John T. Oertling, as
set designer and technical director.
The Mars Hill Gollege Jazz Band, un
der the baton of Dr. Pete LaRue, will
be playing the score.
In the cast, the role of WOV’s
musical general manager Glifton A.
Feddington will be played by senior
musical theatre major David Baldree.
Rebekah Garpenter, a senior vocal
music major, will play the role of
singer/comedienne Ginger Brooks,
and Mars Hill Gollege theatre favo
rite Richard Groom, is cast as “Pops.”
Junior theatre major Ed Hix plays Lou
Gohn, the stage manager. Mars Hill
Gollege’s concert and marching band
director Dr. Pete LaRue will also per
form in the role of band director Zoot
Doubleman. Featured vocalists,
Johnny Gantone and Geneva Browne
will be played by senior music educa
tion major Gregory Stewart, and
unior musical theatre major Beverly
Todd.
Spotlight on Techies
Becky Horner
Staff Writer
. . .[the show] features
such hits as ‘Chattanooga
Ghoo Choo,’ ‘Boogie
Woogie Bugle Boy,’
‘Strike Up the Band,’ and
‘Ain’t She Sweet/^^j ^
others in the large cast are fresh
men Nancy Alise McKinster as Ann
GoUier, Lynn Nihart as Neal Tilden,
and Marcie O’GonneU as Mazie
Smith. Senior Jim Parks plays the
hardworking crew member Stanley,
sophomores Duane Partin and Mike
Houston play Wally Fergusson and
Bubba Babcock, respectively, while
senior communications major Kellie
Shirley will show her tap dancing
talent as Gonnie Miller.
The 1940’s Radio Hour will be per
formed in Owen theatre October
23-30 at Mars Hill Gollege located
just twenty minutes north of Asheville
on US 19-23 and one mile off NG 213.
Ticket prices will be $5.00 for adults
and $4.00 for students and senior citi
zens. The box office will be open be
ginning October 19 from 1 p.m. to 5
p.m. on non-performance dates and 1
p.m. to showtime on jDerformance
dates. Performances are at 8:00 p.m.
Monday through Saturday and at
2:30 p.m. for the Sunday matinee.
Reservations may be made by calling
1-704-689-1239.
The house lights go down and the
stage lights come up. The actors take
their places before the audience, and
the show begins. The director sweats
as he waits for someone to miss a cue.
Friends and relatives pray that the
performers won’t forget their lines.
Another night at the theater begins.
Although people occasionally stop
to consider the amoiuit of work that
the performers put in — memorizing
lines, learning stage directions, miss
ing cues and repeating sequences —
there is one group of artists who are
rarely complimented on their work. In
fact, the only time that the technical
crew ever receives any recognition
from the audience is when they make
a mistake. In all reality, this is not the
kind of recognition a person wishes to
gain from his or her critics.
What is this elusive ‘technical’
crew and what does it do? Possibly
you’ve heard it referred to as the
‘stage crew,‘ but this phrase often
brings to mind the wrong impres
sions: the guys who move props
around between scenes, open and
close the curtains, and maybe even
clean up after the show is over. Those
tasks are included in the job descrip
tions of the ‘techies,’ as they’re often
called by each other and those people
who possess a basic familiarity with
the stage, but there is a lot more to it
than that.
Technical crew is responsible for
doing all of the dirty work related to
putting on a stage performance. The
crew is guided by a technical direc
tor, the knowledgeable figure upon
whose head falls the worst of the
blame if something goes seriously
wrong. In essence, however, this
group of people is responsible for the
support system of the performers: the
scenery, properties (props), lighting,
electrics, sound and costumes. In ai
dition, all of this must be ready when
the actors need it — not opening
night, but in time for the final run-
throughs and rehearsals.
The performances bring with them
a special set of dilemmas. A bulb
bums out, a fuse blows, the sound
system develops an unbearable high-
frequency hum, the curtain won’t
close or a unique prop that was
shipped in from Outer Mongolia
disappears five minutes before it is
supposed to appear on stage. These
are little things, true; but if the stage
is left in pitch-black darkness, so
meone is not going to be very happy.
The techies’ job is to make sure that
all of the non-acting aspects of the
performance go off smoothly, without
a hitch.
At MHG, the responsibilities of the
technical crew are essentially the
same as they are at any other theater.
However, since the Theatre Depart
ment here is so small (between 20 and
25 people), most of the crew also acts.
“Those people who are interested in
the theatre work in all aspects of it:
building scenery as well as acting,”
says John E. Oertling, who is the
director of the department.
Much of the time spent in prepara
tion is doing things that the average
person would not even think about
when considering the work that the
crew does. There is an inunense
amount of research that has to be
done prior to the commencement of
the actual physical labor. Oertling
says that he spends between 40 and
60 hours researching and designing
the scenery for one show alone, and
then the crew spends fifteen hours a
week working on creating the final
product.
The 1940’s Radio Hour is similar to
other shows in the problems which it
presents, but at the same time it is
unique. The props are the most diffi
cult part, since “a 1940’s telephone is
not an antique, it is junk,” according
to Oertling, “and therefore it is very
difficult to find.” There are problems
like this in any production. The imu-
sual part of this show is not that the
crew members are also actors (or
vice versa), but that the crew mem
bers are acting out their jobs on crew.
For example, the sound technician
who appears on stage during Radio
Hour is not only an actor playing that
part; he is actually ruiming the sound
from the stage.
Although the products of the tech
nical crew are almost always on view
to the audience, the work that goes in
to making sure that the show goes off
as planned isn’t usually on display.
When watching Radio Hour, the
viewer will actually see the crew do
ing their work. Although it is by no
means a documentary portrayal of
“A Day in the Life of a Techie,” Radio
Hour provides an opportunity for
everyone to get a glimpse into what
the ‘behind the scenes’ work in the
theatre is like.
in the Mars HUl area and recom
mended it to the family. The Grooms
found Mars HiU to their liking and
bought some land on Grooked Street
and built a house. Mrs. Groom was
imemployed and worked to make the
new house a home.
“After about four months of paint
ing and decorating and that kind of
stuff I decided ‘I need to get out of
here and use my head a little bit
more’ so I called Mars Hill Gollege to
see if they needed somebody to teach
part-time.” The Gollege had a position
open and Mrs. Groom accepted. The
part-time teaching job turned into a
full-time job, and after twelve years
at Mars Hill, Mrs. Groom continues to
find that teaching is a good profes
sion.
“I enjoy students and I like fresh
men because they still have those
rough edges” she said. “By the time
they get to the senior class they know
how to play the game too well” she
added. Unfortunately, Mrs. Groom
will be imable to teach freshmen
while she conducts her research pro
ject.
Regardless of her class load this
year, she will still achieve a sense of
fulfillment as she works on her re
search. “It’s very, very different” she
said. “In some respects you have
more control when you are doing re
search than when you are teaching
because you know that if you invest
energy and time you are going to get
Joanne Groom at her microscope.
some results.”
Mrs. Groom said that teaching was
a “different ballgame.” “In teaching
there is always that imknown factor
and that unknown factor is the stu
dent. There is always a certain ex
citement that you get when you are
dealing with a student that you do not
necessarily get when you are dealing
with chromosomes, although I am
Gontinued on page 4
A Re-Grand
Opening: WVNH
90.5 FM
Jay Jackson
Staff Writer
It’s a re-Grand Opening! Perhaps
this is how we should annoimce this
year’s radio station. Broadcasting
from the top of the Fine Arts building,
WVMH 90.5 F.M. is finally in opera
tion. On October 5, the station was of
ficially declared “on the air” for the
1987-88 school year. Prior to the 5th,
the station had been used for practice
only, but now it is live, hot, and ready
to roll.
In existence since 1975, the station
has had a history of hard times. Me
chanical problems, keeping it from
operating last year, have plagued it
throughout its 12-year career. The
transformer, a key instrument used in
transmitting the station’s signal, has
been in constant need of repair.
Jeff Davis, manager of the station
and full-time student at Mars Hill, is
glad to see the station finally back on
its feet. He hopes to “develop the lis
tening audience to at least one half of
the college and a majority of the com
munity.” By next year, Davis said he
plans to have the station back to its
original status (a majority of the cam
pus and community) by broadcasting
football games and educational pro
grams, then to exceed its present
status.
A former D.J. for the station, Davis
has had to put the station back togeth
er. Because it was not producing re
sults, but was still in the college’s
operating budget, the station was put
on probation by the college. It is "do
or die” for Davis. He and his staff
either put the station back on its feet,
or it will be removed from the budget.
The station, though broadcasting
only while school is in session, could
also be a training field to prepare
those going into broadcasting and
communication. Davis said there
were stUl several positions open for
D.J.s.
From 6 a.m. to 1 a.m., the station
plays a variety of music including
contemporary Ghristian, jazz, and
album-oriented rock (A.O.R.). Davis
explained A.O.R. consists of music
played only from albums, such as U2,
John Gougar Mellencamp, Billy Idol,
and Genesis, but does not include the
“one hit wonders” like Espose, ABG
and Go West.
In spite of those hard times, things
are looking very bright. The redevel
opment of the station should produce
great things in the future.
Marty Feebus broadcasts on WVMH.
■■ ■'r'
INSIDE
Editorials p. 2
Just the Facts .p. 2
Reel Talk p. 3
Crossword . p.3
Football p.4