WSM Fall 2002

Fall 2002

Whispered prayers

On the floor of Beasley Performing Arts Coliseum, Native American children dressed in full regalia run off steam before the grand dance at the Pah-Loots-Pu Powwow this Saturday night in April. One of them is Red Bear McCloud, the 5-year-old son of arena director Russell McCloud, seated at the announcer’s platform in jeans and a crimson wind jacket. Father looks on at son unhurriedly. The grand dance is scheduled for 6 p.m., an hour away, but McCloud knows it will most likely be later. Always factor in Indian time—about half an hour more than what’s advertised.

“I grew up going to powwows,” McCloud says. He … » More …

Fall 2002

From farm to College Hill, the migration continues

When Don Appel left the family farm at Endicott in the 1930s to enroll at Washington State College, he didn’t know what he was starting. Or where it would end.

Unfortunately, failing eyesight ultimately forced him to withdraw from school one semester short of graduating. He returned to farming but continued to stress the importance of education. In 1979 he was awarded a degree in engineering. Now all nine of his children hold Washington State University degrees. They were followed by a third generation of graduates. A fourth is in the queue.

Dick Appel (’59 Agri. Engr.), Don’s oldest, was the first in the family … » More …

Fall 2002

Gillies receives Alumni Achievement Award

Cliff Gillies, longtime executive director of the Washington Intercollegiate Activities Association (WIAA, 1982-93) and former president of the National Federation of State High Schools Association (1990-91), has received the Washington State University Alumni Achievement Award. The award was presented February 4 during the 2002 Man of the Year banquet in South Bend, Washington.

Gillies was recognized for leadership and service to the youth of Washington as a teacher, coach, counselor, principal, assistant superintendent, and as executive director of the WIAA during a career that spanned more than 40 years.

As executive director of the WIAA, Gillies and his staff were responsible for overseeing athletics for … » More …

Fall 2002

Spokane Health Sciences Building enhances research, medical partnerships

Linda Massey swings open the doors of large kitchen cabinets that store portions of the $10,000 worth of groceries needed over eight weeks for people in a kidney-stone- and low-salt-diet study. Nearby are industrial-sized freezers to keep perishables. The Washington State University Spokane professor of human nutrition is studying the role salt plays in the formation of calcium kidney stones under a grant from the National Institutes of Health.

Next door in another lab is a white contraption that might have come straight out of NASA, a six-foot long container with a window. Large enough to hold one person, the “Bod Pod” has instruments to … » More …

Fall 2002

Killing the messenger

Christiane Amanpour, chief international correspondent for CNN, received the 2002 Edward R. Murrow Award for Distinguished Achievements in Broadcasting May 23 from the Murrow School of Communication. Amanpour, who has been covering the Israel-Palestine conflict, flew in from London to present her talk, “Killing the Messenger.” Earlier in the day, Washington State University broke ground for a 24,000 square-foot addition to the Edward R. Murrow School of Communication. The facility is scheduled to be completed by fall 2003.

A few excerpts from Amanpour’s talk:

“In my opinion, what we say and how we report the truth defines not only the moment but us as people.”

… » More …

Fall 2002

Guardian angel comes to the rescue

When his home and family life was in turmoil, Kathy Cochran came to her nephew’s rescue. At the time Robert Cochran was 15, living in Kansas, and the court was about to place him in a foster home again. Kathy gave the court another option. She agreed to take him in, and the judge awarded her custody.

“Aunt Kathy … has been my best friend, my mom, and my guardian angel all at the same time,” Robert wrote in a letter nominating her for Washington State University 2002 Mom of the Year. She was selected from 24 candidates and recognized at the April 13 Mom’s … » More …

Fall 2002

Keeping our food safe

If you’re worried that our food supply might be the next target of international terrorists, you probably needn’t be, says Barbara Rasco, associate professor of food science and human nutrition. Rasco’s research centers on bioterrorism and the safety of our food and water supply.

“I don’t think the events of September 11 mean there’s any increased risk to our food supply,” she says. Domestic ecoterrorists and bioterrorists are more likely to target our food supply than are foreign entities, she says. “The risk from them hasn’t changed.”

A lawyer as well as a food scientist, Rasco has worked on the prevention of international terrorist incidents. … » More …

Fall 2002

A common reader: Overcoming inertia

I’d like you to meet someone. He’s a vulnerable fellow, rather too open to the joys and despairs of deep remembering. His life, therefore, is disordered but rich, evocative but dangerously reflective. He gets along, he thinks too well, he cuts corners, he sighs great sighs. Wisteria blooms and withers while he gouges his summer with indolent harrow thrusts. He regrets memory’s hold on him, yet memory, a vast overgrown archive, secrets vital news. He has a hunger there to lose himself, and a trough of youth to do it in. The luxuriant foliage thins with the approach of life’s winter, clarity trumps extremes and, … » More …