Sara Taylor and me at the annual Barnstable Brown Gala.
UPA volunteers experience shock of stun gun (WKU Herald)
Students, staff and faculty members volunteered to be at the receiving end of a taser Tuesday night at Ransdell Hall, shooting 1,200 volts of electricity through their body as a part of the University Police Academy.
The UPA was established in 1996 to develop relationships between WKUPD and the campus community, said Mandi Johnson, public information officer for WKUPD.
Johnson said she’s was surprised that students from the UPA volunteered to be shocked. Usually the Explorers volunteer, but there weren’t any to volunteer this year.
“We offered it to the class and to my surprise five people raised their hands.” she said. “I think it is great they are so involved in participating in the class. Three students, one staff and one faculty have volunteered.”
St. Joseph, Mich., freshman Sam Helsley said being tased is something she’s always wanted to do.
“I thought I’d regret it if I didn’t do it and I wanted to know what it feels like when it happens to other people,” she said.
Helsley said she has always been interested in the law enforcement even if she doesn’t join it.
“I’m nervous but it’s only three seconds of pain, but once it’s over, it’s over,” she said.
Johnson said taser International has a protocol that the taser instructor follows, as well as WKUPD’s department protocol.
“Participants in the UPA get to know us individually and as a department really well during the course,” she said. “We get to know them as well. If they need something from us in the future they will feel comfortable coming to us.”
Green Castle, Ind., senior Ryan Heiney said being shot by a taser is something he can tell his friends he did.
“It’s just something I’ve always thought about and I’ll have a better respect for this mode of defense,” he said. “Plus, I’m a little cocky and a little brave and I’ll try anything once.”
Johnson said 20 people will graduate from the UPA with knowing the ins and outs of the police department.
“This in turn will give us 20 contacts in the WKU community,” she said. “Through word of mouth, others will become familiar with how we operate and the services we offer.”
The UPA is open to faculty, staff and students, Johnson said. There is always a wide range of people who participate in the UPA.
“This class ranges from student-athletes to the music department and everything in between,” she said.
The first thing to do to get involved is to apply, she said. WKUPD then runs background checks on all applicants and it’s a first come, first serve acceptance unless someone has something on their record.
The academy breaks down into a six-week program one day a week on Tuesdays, Johnson said.
During the first week, the academy has a meet and greet and a program overview, and during the second week the class performs investigations and learns about less lethal weapons, including the taser demonstration, Johnson said.
She said the third week consists of mock traffic stops while the fourth week concerns firearms safety and a jail tour. The fifth and six weeks include live gunfire at the range and graduation.
“This class is for information only,” Johnson said. “It is not to train people to be police officers.”
Party like a journo: A preview of this semester, my LAST semester
I’m writing a short entry on my blog just because I’m so excited that I’m writing for the police beat again for the College Heights Herald! I’ve spent the last week establishing contacts, having meetings, applying for my media badge and filling my phone with all the essential law enforcement officials I will need for a strong well written beat. This is my last semester at the Herald and at WKU for that matter so I’ll be putting a 100 percent effort into my job that I’ve grown to love and become passionate about. Since my major at WKU is journalism and my minor is criminology, obviously writing the police beat fits into my interests perfectly. I can’t wait for the semester to start so I can start writing stories…errr wait a minute…I’ve already started writing about three robbery events that occurred on campus or around campus.
Although it’s kind of a strange transition that I’ve stepped down as an editor to cover a beat most people avoid, I’m glad I did it. I loved being the opinion editor and having my own column, but I really missed hard news. Also, I can’t wait to meet all of the new staffers and work with the news editor Tessa Duvall. She’s my partner in crime when it comes to journalism (pun totally intended). As opinion editor I only worked with a cartoonist and the editorial board, but now I’m with all the beat writers and general assignment reporters. Not only is the news staff a staff, but we’re a team and that’s a great feeling.
Also, the Kentucky Press Association conference is this coming Friday and all I know is that I won a third place award for work at the Sentinel-News and I can’t wait to see what hard work of mine earned the award! Receiving an award is quite a way to start off the semester.
Crime is terribly revealing. Try and vary your methods as you will, your tastes, your habits, your attitude of mind, and your soul is revealed by your actions. — Agatha Christie
Hold on to 16 as long as you can
I just love this. I took at it a 4th of July festival and I think it says a lot about small town America and the Midwest/South.
Shelbyville horse
As allergic as I am to horses, I could shoot photos of them all day long because they’re so beautiful.
WKU police respond to second attempted robbery in same week
by Spencer Jenkins and Tessa Duvall WKU Herald
BOWLING GREEN, Ky An attempted robbery took place last night near Minton Hall and the rear of Academic Complex, the second attempt this week.
A WKU Alert sent around 9 p.m. warned of “attempted Robbery black male beard 6′ dark hoodie sweat shirt gray pants, in the area of Student health services, direction of travel unknown.”
The perpetrator displayed a knife and demanded money from the victim, according to the WKU Police Department. The attempted robbery happened at 8 p.m. and was reported at 8:03 p.m., according to the WKUPD website.
“A scuffle ensued and the suspect fled on foot in the direction of Mass Media and Technology Hall,” Captain Mike Dowell said in an email to faculty and students.
Dowell said it is unknown if the perpetrator had a car.
On Tuesday, an attempted robbery of a 16-year-old Gatton Academy student was reported near Bates-Runner Hall at 1:05 p.m.
The suspect was described as a black male, about 6 feet tall and 30 years of age with a full beard and mustache, wearing a dark toboggan, gray jacket and dark pants.
It is unknown if the two incidents are related.
“The description is very similar but it’s hard to say that they’re the same individual,” Dowell said.
WKUPD is investigating the incidents separately but isn’t ruling out if they’re related.
The victim was unharmed after the incident, Dowell said.”There’s just very little information at this time on those which also makes it very disturbing to me,” he said.
Everyone should download this app
Photosynth is my favorite photo app at the moment. I’m not cheating on you Hipstamatic. I love you both. But getting a 360 angle is awesome.
Goodbye Scribbled Words: My last column as opinion editor
Throughout the semester I’ve shared many of my own life experiences (some of which I’m not sure I should have put in print, but I did anyways). Whether I wrote about boozing and partying, Greek life or how the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina still plagues New Orleans, I hope I reached out to as many of my college peers as possible.
Yes, this is my last column of the semester because I’m stepping down as the opinion editor of the Herald to write the police beat on the news side of the paper. So be careful; if you’re arrested by WKUPD I’ll be writing your name up on page two!
Now that I look back on my writing, I realize I wrote a lot about drinking, but hey, we’re college students right? Many of you probably had a laugh at my not-so-finest hours because I’m sure you’ve drunk yourself silly having the time of your life.
This semester has given my time to reflect on my many life experiences, and sharing them with you has been an honor and a privilege. It’s not every day that someone can share with an entire community their thoughts, opinions, feelings and life experiences. But I had the opportunity for sharing my life with you, and I took full advantage of it.
I am not above any one of you. I just so happened to have had a column where I usually asked for a call to action, and I hope you’ve learned some lessons from my experiences.
Remember: don’t drink and drive. It’s dumb. Also, it’s okay to break down. You’re human. And don’t take things for granted, because you never know when those things will be taken away from you.
Anything can happen. And not just negative things.
I’m a firm believer in the philosophy that if you have enough drive to complete something then nothing can stop you. We’re all college students with our whole lives ahead of us full of massive potential.
Although we do need to be thinking somewhat about future jobs and whatnot, have fun! Laugh out loud, get into trouble, and have the time of your life with friends you’ll never forget and always love.
Sometimes I think people take themselves too seriously, and sometimes I can be one of those people. But recently someone told me to just go with the flow and play things by ear, because making plans doesn’t always work out, which I’m sure all of you know.
So here is my last call to action to you: as cliché as it may sound, live your life to the fullest and have fun. Laughter is the best medicine…oh, and don’t make plans because God just laughs.
Thanks for letting me share my life with you this semester. Good luck!
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