Two of the most competitive brothers on campus—or maybe in the whole world—are Pota and Toma Toe. The Toe Twins are sophomores and infamous for sprinting from the Rhinehart Music Center to Kettler to see who would be faster, for building snow forts during the heavy snowfall and having a snowball war that could only be compared to the Trojan War, and for seeing who could last the longest during Humans vs. Zombies before succumbing to the virus. These are only a few of their feats.

“I’ve seen those two battle for alpha male status for Fort Wayne,” observes IPFW junior Abby Normal. “It’s almost spellbinding.”

The two brothers have caused two teams to form that share uncanny resemblances to the Team Edward vs. Team Jacob fiasco.

However, a new challenge and battleground has surfaced for the Toes: The classroom.

“My brother and I both signed up for Calc 1. Same time and teacher and everything,” says Pota Toe. “I didn’t know he was taking that class. But we both realized our rivalry got a lot more interesting.”

“We don’t talk about our classes that often, so it’s not surprising that we both mistakenly registered for the same course,” claims Toma Toe. “It was only a matter of time in my eyes.”

Now that the competition has extended to the classroom, both open and stealth warfare has been utilized. The brothers have been known to participate in every class discussion, derive equations expertly, and find limits with finesse in order to try to gain the upper hand over the other.

Toma admitted that he fed Pota’s homework to their dog one night in order to get his brother a missing assignment and drop his grade. However, Pota made two copies of that assignment. Likewise, Pota confesses he siphoned the gas out of his brother’s car in order to make him miss a class, but Toma was one step ahead with a bus pass and arrived on time. These are just a few examples of their subtle sabotage.

The professor is impressed as well with their dedication.

“They both have 100% in the class,” says Professor Mae Danerror. “I hope they’re content with tying this time.”

Team Toma and Team Pota are feuding as well, creating disturbance in the campus buildings.

After the semester is over, the staff is expecting the twins never to enroll in the same classes ever again.

IPFW communication major Sara Tavassol—also known as “Alpaca Punch” when skating for the Fort Wayne Derby Girls—said, “I wasn’t as scared because I felt like I could find my place within roller derby rather than basketball or volleyball … I never felt like I fit in with those girls.”

“People always ask me to play basketball and volleyball ‘cause I’m six feet tall. And I learned to resent those sports. The great thing about roller derby is it’s for everybody,” commented Kellie Adkins, “The Adkins Riot.” Adkins is a biology major at IPFW, who recently competed in her first bout of the season on the “Bombsquad,” FWDG’s nationally ranked A-team.

And it’s not just in Fort Wayne that roller derby has increased in popularity. FM Spotlight Magazine stated last fall, “the number of roller derby leagues in the U.S. has increased from 50 leagues in 2005 to 500 leagues in 2011.”

First time hearing about this roller derby resurgence? Former FWDG Amber Recker described it on ABC 21 Alive as “rough-and-tumble like football. It’s not like the old-school roller derby that’s on a banked track with all this choreographed staged stuff. It’s a flat track. It’s real athletics.”

“So it’s very different in a sense of companionship and camaraderie…the sisterhood all over the nation and—at this point—all over the world is so strong,” added Adkins.

She explained that “having people to depend on and having your teammates depend on you is part of my motivation to skate as hard as I can. They are just like family, and I never want to let my family down.”

“It’s my derby family! Full of derby sisters! Wouldn’t have been able to make it through my ankle recovery without all of them,” mentioned Tavassol, referring to a broken ankle she received last fall during one of their skate practices.

“When you join derby you join a whole new family,” said Adkins in Free and Young Indiana’s spotlight of the month interview.

The newly opened facilities, which have provided much needed space and resources to IPFW athletic teams and intramurals, are not currently available for use to student clubs and organizations.

“[Gates] is not a reservable space because the primary function was created for athletics,” said Student Activities Coordinator Thomas Landis.

“I am the president of what can easily be considered an alternative sports group. Our activities are primarily season-based and have needed indoor space for our growing amount of participants to continue practicing during the off-season,” said Joseph Carpenter, president of the Live Action Combat Club.

Carpenter was informed by student life that outside of reserving the racquetball courts the majority of the new facilities are not available to student organizations.

Athletic Director Thomas Bell says he hasn’t had any members of student clubs come to him about space, but even if they did, it would be hard to make space for them.

“Space here in our facility is a commodity. We’ve got to support the athletic program and meet the needs of academics. We don’t have a lot of space to accommodate more of the clubs,” said Bell.

Prior to the addition of the facilities, many IPFW athletic teams were forced to practice off-campus. According to Bell, with our Division I teams practicing in the facilities year-round, the hosting of intramurals and the limited sizes of other rooms within the building compared to its spacious hallways, making space for clubs like Wrestling and Jiu Jitsu is difficult to do.

“I understand sports teams get first dibs and full-heartedly agree, but don’t understand why the space isn’t in use, nor made available for use, during other hours for student organizations that could very much utilize the larger indoor room for their activities,” said Carpenter.

Bell suggests that student organizations searching for space should try the Dolnick Gym, but for those who find that the Gates Center should be made more accessible to students, self-advocating is key. The athletics department, while skeptical about the amount of space available, can’t make accommodations for clubs if the inquiries aren’t getting to the right people. Make your desire for space known.

Administrators in athletics should take note of this student interest and do their best to make time and space for student organizations. Student athletes deserve their space, but so do students who participate in athletic activities that aren’t recognized as official university sports.

Internet giant Google’s privacy policy and search changes have been one of the most recent causes of stir. Beginning March 1, Google will take over 60 policies and consolidated them into one in a move that extends across all of their services, including Gmail, Youtube and Google Plus.

Because IPFW runs its student e-mail through Google Mail, the new privacy policy directly affects students. The company already scans through e-mail content to produce relevant ads with its advertising service. The new changes mean that, in theory, content scanned from Gmail could be consolidated with other information, such as from an Android phone.

However, Google does not share any of that personal information with advertisers. It takes that information and selects the related advertisements other companies have already bought.

Still, the potential affect on the privacy of its users has many concerned about the changes. It has have even begun posing legal troubles for Google. “While it is undetermined at this point how the policy will impact specific Google services, it is imperative that users will be able to decide whether they want their information shared across the spectrum of Google’s offerings,” said Congressman Edward Markey in a statement.

With its standing as the most popular search engine, Google’s search function is also under criticism. The company recently decided to add pages from its social website Google Plus to its search results. Called Google Plus Your World, these search results are personalized—strangers will not be able to see the pictures and content that haven’t been shared.

The site has even been accused of cheating its algorithm to make Google-related results appear higher on the list and bump back competing companies. The Federal Trade Commission is currently investigating these anti-trust claims.

Facebook, Myspace and Twitter have even called out Google Plus Your World. A new Firefox add-on called “Don’t Be Evil,” named after Google’s famous slogan, inserts search results from the three sites to combat what some call favoritism for Google’s own social network.

“As we’ve seen time and time again, news breaks first on Twitter … We’re concerned that as a result of Google’s changes, finding this information will be much harder for everyone,” said Twitter in a statement about Google Plus Your World. Twitter previously had a real-time search agreement with Google to include its content in search results but they chose not to renew it.

But Google isn’t the only one facing allegations of whittling away at Internet privacy. Facebook’s new Timeline feature, which they have made mandatory for all users, is under suspicion. It could potentially allow Facebook posts to become publicized. There are features to privatize the Timeline, though.

By simply not logging into Google’s services while on the internet, users can avoid having their data collected. They can even use Google Search. However, logging into IPFW student e-mail will leave the user under the privacy policy.

Based out of Texas, ACC are management and developers who signed an agreement with IPFW to help turn IPFW from commuter student housing to residential student housing. ACC also has over 135 upscale and modern student housing complexes in which the results where based.

Commenting on the survey, sophomore resident Jasmine Bell said, “I like that there’s lots of stuff to do … always something going on.”

Kevin Morris, a freshman resident, said, “It makes me feel like I have my own place.”

“Customer service is what sets us apart,” said Sara Garcia, director of student housing. She receives help from over 30 resident assistants in planning and creating activities that help students connect with each other and feel more satisfied. After IPFW Housing didn’t do well in the survey last year, Garcia wanted to make sure that all the needs of the residents were met this year.

The results also follow new updates such as Wi-Fi, pool tables, ping pong tables, 24-hour Internet access and rooms with wood floors and washers and dryers. Garcia encourages anyone who has not seen the housing to come in on a walk-in basis to see what they have to offer.

The housing rank wasn’t IPFW’s only achievement. It also ranked 10th in faculty credentials and training, 19th in teaching practices and assessment and 9th in student services and technology for its online undergrad program according to the U.S News and World Report.

The bookstore now has retail room on two levels, the first and second floors of Walb. Textbooks and notebooks are on the second floor, while clothing and other merchandise are on the first floor. The new store space is also about one and a half times larger than the old location in Kettler Hall. Shoppers will notice that the new space has higher ceilings and silver interior design. The whole store feels airier, more like the halls of Glenbrook Shopping Center rather than a shop in a basement.

According to Store Manager Rusty McMakin, the bookstore moved after IPFW invited Follett’s to become a part of the new center for student activity on campus. This new hub is comprised of Helmke Library, Walb Student Union, the Gates Sports Center and the elevated walkway which connects all three buildings. The new bookstore is located in the middle of the walkway.

At this time, the variety of merchandise sold in the new Follett’s store is about the same as that which was offered in the old location. Merchandise emphasis is still on school texts. For this school year, the IPFW Follett’s store has sold more than 80,000 books and about 450 electronic texts. One quarter of the school texts sold have been rental books.

Because of the more spacious location, however, more non-textbook items are visible, which might lead to a shift in shopping focus.

“We wanted to get into the new space and see what people asked for,” said McMakin.
Student reactions to the new bookstore location are mixed. For some people, the move makes no great impact on the way they get class materials.

Graduate student Darleen Baker, who drives to the Fort Wayne campus from out of state, said, “I’ve only been there once. Most of my stuff I get online.”

Sarah Styf, who is pursuing her master’s degree, commented, “It makes sense to have the bookstore in the student union – then it’s in the center of campus.”

“The new traffic pattern leads people past our store from any of the buildings… It also will give us the opportunity to work more closely with athletics and student services for tours, camps, and other events since we are no longer on the other side of campus,” said McMakin in an e-mail.

For students interested in exploring the new shop or who need to grab a school necessity, Follett’s bookstore hours are Monday through Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., Friday 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., and Saturday 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Having worked as a professor in UNL’s department of theater from 1993 to 2003, O’connor said he still has a very close attachment to the university and couldn’t turn down the offer to go back to the college that he helped to develop.

“When a person gets a chance for advancement, they deserve to take it,” said Chancellor Michael Wartell.
Although O’Connor did not ask IPFW to match any of the offers made to him by UNL, Wartell said that attempts were made to keep him here at the university.

“I would have if I could have [kept O'Connor]. … We said to him is there anything we can do to keep you here. When you get an offer from the institution where you started in originally, it’s really hard not to want to go there,” said Wartell.

“I really appreciate that. I think it’s indicative of the kind of support that I‘ve had here from the beginning. If it wasn’t for this unique opportunity that I‘ve found, I really wouldn’t ever leave IPFW. I couldn’t speak more highly of the university. So it is a sad farewell,” said O’Connor.

According to Wartell, the position that O’Connor has taken will not be very different, if at all, from the one he still currently holds at IPFW.

“It’ll just be, to put it in theater terms, on a bigger stage. A more prominent stage. The University of Nebraska is a Research One institution and gives doctorates and M.F.A.s and it’s just a bigger, more prestigious institution,” said Wartell.

With the university’s loss of such a high-ranking professional, for any reason, the question of whether or not Fort Wayne is suitable for artists to make a living in the arts lingers.

While the city has a distinct art community, there will be an influx of VPA as well as Visual Communication and Design (VCD) students graduating in the coming years, and if Fort Wayne cannot accommodate such professionals, they may just be learning to leave in search of employment.

The College of VPA at IPFW has seen growth in student registration every year.

“We’ve had a greater number in the community who are continuing to support us,” said Susan Domer, marketing and publication specialist for VPA. More support means more money for scholarships, even some that cover full tuition. “Because of that, our requirement efforts have grown.”

IPFW also offers many chances for students to begin making art right away. This is helped because undergraduate students don’t have to compete with graduate students for stage time. VPA does not have graduate programs.

“They get onstage almost immediately … it’s an opportunity to start right away in making art,” said Domer.

Certain programs even require that students participate in ensembles from the first day of freshman year. Others, like VCD, have mandatory internships and music and art education majors have to have experience teaching in an actual classroom.

“You have to have that practical application along with the classroom experience,” Domer said. In addition, “The mass majority of our students get jobs,” she said.

“It’s one of the reasons we continue to grow and grow,” Domer added.

For many graduates, finding a job means going to the big cities on the east and west coasts, a reality many theatre majors may face. As for programs such as art and music education and music therapy, jobs can be found throughout the United States and some even in Northeast Indiana. Domer said many positions exist in these fields, making job prospects high.

Jes Farris, of Consipracy, a men’s clothing and shoe store that also works as an art gallery, said that about 75 percent of the art showcased there last year was from local artists, and it typically sells more. He expects the numbers to turn out about the same for 2012.

“It’s definitely good” to hang up the work of local artists, he said. When they showcase local art, people “are more likely to walk in our door.”

However, Farris said most of the local artists end up only being able to utilize their skill as a part-time or second job.

While he wouldn’t call the work from residents products of passion or hobbies, Farris said that making a living off art “is hard.”

Calls to Arts United and the Continuum Art Gallery, which was created through VPA, went unanswered.

Image from aucollegedems.org

Obama also called upon citizens and lawmakers to come together to achieve his goals.

“This nation is great because we built it together … And if we hold fast to that truth, in this moment of trial, there is no challenge too great; no mission too hard,” he said.

An enhanced version of the debate, which was available through the online stream and on the White House’s YouTube channel, included graphs and other visual aids to go along with the president’s talking point.

Mitch Daniels, governor of Indiana, gave the official Republican response to the debate. In it, he accused the president of trying to “curry favor with some Americans by castigating others.”

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney also gave what some are calling a “prebuttal” to Obama’s address, in which he attacked the president’s job performance over the last three years. Romney instead promoted himself as a president who would use his State of the Union Address to “get our country back on track and get our fiscal house in order.”

“I thought Mitch Daniels’ address was a heck of a lot better than the president’s,” said Romney in another speech after the president’s State of the Union.

Romney also claimed that Obama was “in fantasy land” and was “extraordinarily detached” from the actual state of the union. Both of the candidate’s speeches occurred in Florida, which had its primary on Jan. 31.

Citizens were given opportunities to comment and ask questions about the State of the Union, demonstrating the government’s use of social media. Vice President Joe Biden held a Twitter interview to answer questions about Obama’s address. YouTube and Google+ hosted a conversation and interview with the president, where questions were selected and answered.

Members of the administration also answered questions from a live audience on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

Sophomore Joseph Rivera has his fellow male students in awe after apparently learning the art of the friend-zone.

“Man, he totally friend-zoned this chick that’s been hanging around with us lately. I mean, I didn’t even know a guy could do that to a girl,” said a friend of Rivera.
Professors on campus have also keyed in on the response of students to this trail-blazing phenomenon.

“Friend-zoning has traditionally been viewed as belonging to the feminine sphere, but I think it’s really great that Joseph has taken this opportunity to bust through gender roles,” said a psychology professor.

Rivera, however flattered by all the high-fiving, wishes that his fellow students would move on with their lives.

“It’s not like I meant for this to happen. We just have this really strong connection on a deep level. I think of her as one of my best friends, a sister even. It’s better off if we just remain friends,” he said.

Galleries in downtown Fort Wayne have been swept by the work of local artist Dimitri Brand. His most recent collection includes several self-portraits. Brand cites his own importance as the inspiring factor.

“I was just staring in the mirror one day and realized that I’m amazing. Look at this face. Can’t you just see the brooding brilliance in my eyes?” said Brand.

Gallery operater Finnigan Tyler has touted the display as an ode to the plight of many up and coming artists who struggle with showing the world their unique, individual contributions to the world.

“All these people are trying to sculpt the perfect man, but I think I really caught the essence of man,” said Brand.

Brand captured many of the photos using a camera phone, and particularly feels that audiences will enjoy his sensitive and charismatic duck face.