The Samford Crimson
- Serving Samford University Since 1915 -
Volume 104, Issue 7
November 1, 2018
thesamfordcrimson.com
Jazz Band set
to perform on
Nov. 1
EMILY THOMAS
Contributing Writer
Samford's J azz Band will perform
Thursday, Nov. 1 in Brock Recital
Hall.
J azz Band member Olivia J ones
shared her experiences in the band.
"J azz Band is always a really fun
part of my week. Our rehearsals are
really laid back and we have a really
good community within the group,
come to our concert and experience
some big band jazz before homecom¬
ing, "J ones said.
J ones and her fellow musicians
are gearing up for their fall concert.
The performance is focused on show¬
casing the students' talents, with
a wide variety of music styles and
instruments. The concert is free and
open to anyone who wants to attend.
In the J azz Band, there are a wide
variety of instruments, including
the saxophone, trombone, trumpet,
along with a rhythm section includ¬
ing piano, bass, drums and a vibra¬
phone. The band has already been
active this year, going on tours and
attempting to recruit new students.
They view their performances as a
way to showcase the school and its
music department. While it may be
geared towards music majors, the
J azz Band accepts any student with
musical talent.
This particular performance will
feature many different music styles.
'We will play all kinds of music,
from swing to Latin to rock. We like
to mix it up," J azz Band Director
Grant Dalton said.
There is no set theme to the show,
so there is something for everyone to
enjoy. While Dalton chooses most of
the music that is played in the show,
he likes to allow the students to have
input. He tries to choose music based
on the abilities of the musicians.
When it comes to solo perfor¬
mances, Dalton said he likes to mix
it up and give every student a chance
to showcase their talents. There are
people who want to do a solo, and
those that want to be in a section,
but everyone has a fair chance. It is
mainly based on skill, he said.
J azz band continued on
page 2
INDEX
Sports 3
Features 6
Opinions 7
Samford's Q Union student speakers
stress unity in a divided America
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2018.| PHOTO COURTESY OF ELIZABETH STURGEON
CAROL GRAFFEO
Staff Writer
What does it look like to have a
respectful conversation with dialogue
that does more than scratch the
surface of important topics in 20 18?
According to Q Union’s national and
student speakers this year, cultural
change towards the good requires
unordinary acts of hospitality,
intentionality, and humility. Through
the Q organization, founder Gabe
Lyons seeks to create a space in
which people move past the idea
that the loudest voice in a dialogue is
always the correct voice.
On Oct. 25 , Samford hosted Q
Union on campus as one of 22
colleges and universities around the
U.S. The event, broadcast to over
25,000 viewers, consisted of nine-
minute talks led by national speakers
and chosen student leaders, with
ample time for audience discussion.
Attendees were asked to discuss
what topics challenged and inspired
them the most, and how they could
respond to these topics through
countercultural actions. Long after
Samford's last student speaker took
the stage, conversations for the good
continued in Reid Commons.
National speakers J
о
Saxton, Scott
Harrison and Bob Goff provided a
national frame for the event. Saxton
spoke first about hospitality and the
progressive step of seeing all people
as truly equal.
"A love directed towards the other,
the stranger, the foreigner," Saxon
said.
She also asked the audience to
think about how today’s leaders
demonstrate hospitality that unifies
people from different backgrounds,
or how they fail to do so. According to
Saxton, the hospitable lifestyle is an
unfashionable but meaningful way of
life that can inspire cultural change.
Q Union student speakers
continued on page 2
Organization employs community to teach children
ANNA GRACE MOORE
Contributing Writer
"No child will ever learn to read un¬
til he wants to," retired English teach¬
er J oanna Boyd said. "I don’t care who
it is. No one will ever begin to learn
until he tries.”
Reflecting on her career as a teach¬
er, Boyd said teaching was some of the
hardest work she had ever done, but
it was also the most rewarding work,
too.
"Seeing students grow, seeing them
'get it,' was my greatest reward. The
only way they began to learn was if
they tried," Boyd said. 'You have to
listen to the child because everyone is
unique. Be patient."
Teachers have strived to help stu¬
dents grow academically for ages, but
not every student always meets the
standard quota. In an effort to leave
no child behind, the non-profit orga¬
nization, Better Basics, uses retired
teachers and volunteers to promote
literacy in lower- income schools in
Birmingham, Alabama
Better Basics is positively impacting
lower- income schools by encouraging
students to read, by budding harmo¬
nious relationships between students
and teachers- in- training and by legit¬
imizing the need for the community to
give back to its students.
In addition to motivating elemen¬
tary students, Better Basics helps get
college students excited about teach¬
ing.
"Better Basics partners with educa¬
tion majors at Birmingham Southern
College and the University of Alabama
at Birmingham in utilizing teachers-
in- training and putting them in the
classrooms, " Bradford said. "We have
something called reading mentors
who work with students who are read¬
ing below the 26th percentile (pre¬
dominantly students in kindergarten
and first grade). They encourage those
students that reading can be fun. Once
our students build up those skills, they
will be better prepared to read on their
own."
Better Basics’ most influential pro¬
gram, Reading Intervention, uses for¬
mer educators and community mem¬
bers to tutor elementary students
weekly on budding reading and com¬
prehension skills.
'We pretest these kids to see who
is reading below grade level," Better
Basics Executive Director Kristi Brad¬
ford said." 'That teacher uses the pre¬
test to determine where to start with
that kid’s reading skills. We put kids
who are scoring from the 26th percen¬
tile to the 50th percentile with certi¬
fied teachers to work on building their
comprehensive skills. They work with
their teacher three times a week for
about 35 minutes, so they get 60 ses¬
sions with that teacher per academic
year."
Outside help is always welcome.
"I think that if the person who's
teaching it (reading the books to the
kids) is excited, then the kids pick up
on that, " second- grade teacher Valerie
Tucker said. "My kids get so exdted
when the volunteer comes in to read to
them. They always became motivated
to read because it was someone new,
someone fim, coming to their class."
Better Basics continued on
page 2
