December 2007
Monthly Archive
Fri 21 Dec 2007
When Carol-Anne and Don Hossler were college sweethearts, they talked about their hopes for the future. They daydreamed about their careers, their children, where they’d live, and how happy they’d be.
After they were married, they moved to Bloomington and had twin boys, David and Peter. Everything seemed to be going well.
Then Jonathan was born, and their lives changed forever. Jonathan is severely autistic, and also mentally handicapped – he has an IQ of just 26.
| Read other families’ stories: |
“We never talked about having a disabled kid,” says Carol-Anne, a professor in the School of Education at Indiana University. “Never ever. It never even crossed our radar. It just comes out at you. There’s no planning. It just hits you up the side of the face.”
Jonathan’s needs made it impossible for the family to go on vacation, or for his parents to have a social life. His communication skills were poor, and he didn’t sleep through the night for 10 years. He required constant attention and care, and the Hosslers sometimes wondered whether their older sons got short-changed during their adolescent years.
When Jonathan was 10, the Hosslers learned that a group home in their neighborhood had an opening. Though Carol-Anne had resisted the idea for years, she decided to give it a try. Today he lives in a group home operated by Stone Belt, a Bloomington residential facility for people with disabilities.
The new arrangement made life better for everyone – including Jonathan, who’s now 22.
But the Hosslers wanted more for their son. They were determined to help him become a productive member of the community.
While Jonathan was still in high school (he was educated in the Monroe County school system), vocational instructors let him try different jobs, like sweeping and returning grocery carts.
When nothing seemed to be a good fit for him, Carol-Anne worked with Jonathan’s teachers and Stone Belt staff to create a job designed especially for him.
Carol-Anne knew Jonathan liked to be driven around town, and suggested he could pick things up and make deliveries. They considered recycling, but scrapped the idea out of concerns about cleanliness.
When one of Jonathan’s teachers suggested food, Carol-Anne knew that was the answer.
Today, Jonathan collects food donations for the Bloomington’s Community Kitchen from neighborhoods around town. He works five days a week and can make as many as 17 stops a day. Stone Belt staff members do the driving.
The program is called Hand ‘n Hand. It’s worked well for Jonathan, and another Stone Belt client has now joined him in making pick-ups. The program also makes donating food more convenient, which makes people more likely to give.
Hossler thinks it could be a model for other severely autistic individuals.
“If this is the only thing he’s able to do from now till forever, I’ll be happy,” says Hossler. “It’s valuable, it’s worthwhile, it’s making a contribution, it’s getting him out.”
“I have a tremendous sadness I carry with me,” says Hossler, “but this has given me a sense of peace. I know we’re doing good things and Jonathan’s teaching a lot of people.”
Fri 21 Dec 2007
Hunter wasn’t quite 3 years old when doctors at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis first diagnosed him with “Pervasive Developmental Disorder – Not Otherwise Specified,” a condition on the autism spectrum.
“I didn’t handle it well,” admits Hunter’s father, Bloomington resident Jeremy Dilts.
Dilts already knew a little about autism. He has a younger cousin with autism. Dilts remembers that his cousin would get so nervous in public that his family couldn’t take him out. He was also obsessed with small plastic bowling pins. He would line them up and get upset if they toppled over.
Though Hunter’s speech was delayed – “cracker” was his only word at age 2 – he didn’t show other common signs of autism. He made eye contact, he responded to his name, and he could make his wishes known. Dilts resisted the idea that there was anything wrong with Hunter.
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As Dilts began reading more about children with autism, however, he started seeing the clues in his son’s behavior.
“He had a toy with four wheels that spun,” Dilts remembers. “We burned the batteries out of that thing and blew it up because he was fascinated by the spinning. It’s apparent to me now [that this is a sign of autism], but at the time I just thought that that was his favorite toy.”
Hunter went to a developmental preschool for three years. By the time the school psychologist evaluated him at the end of the second year, Hunter was showing some of the social signs of autism.
Hunter was also displaying sensory deficits. He couldn’t stand to have his hair brushed, and he preferred the feel of a certain kind of blanket.
When doctors changed Hunter’s diagnosis from PDD-NOS to autism last year, Dilts was better prepared. But the news was still hard to accept.
“It’s the loss of everything that you think your child is going to be,” says Dilts. “There’s a real sense of loss.”
Today, Dilts doesn’t feel quite so lost anymore.
He and his wife, Angela, joined the local chapter of the Autism Society of America, and Dilts is now the local liaison to the state chapter. The organization, he says, is his biggest source of support, because it puts him in touch with people who are well-informed.
Dilts also has neighbor whose daughter has Downs Syndrome. She knew the special needs community inside and out and helped Dilts and his wife find services for Hunter.
Dilts found a speech therapist and a social skills teacher for Hunter. When Hunter finished the developmental preschool, Dilts enrolled him in a private, home-based kindergarten that caters to children with developmental disabilities. Hunter joined the IU adapted PE program three years ago. This year, he’s learning to use the brakes on his bicycle and is working on his throwing motion.
Though Hunter sometimes gets anxious in public, Dilts says he’s “a pretty laid-back kid.”
“We take Hunter everywhere we go, partly because we can, and partly because the world’s not going to change for him,” says Dilts. “We want him to suck it up. It almost seems mean, but our theory is to desensitize him to the public, loud noises, big crowds.”
That strategy may be working. When he was 3, Hunter refused to enter the school gymnasium to watch a relative graduate from high school. The noise and activity was just too much for him to handle. Last year, Hunter was able to go with his family to the Super Bowl celebration in Indianapolis. Dilts says a pair of noise-canceling headphones may have made the chaos at the RCA Dome a more tolerable experience for Hunter.
Dilts and his wife have two other children. Kennedy, Hunter’s older sister, is a “mother hen” to Hunter, says Dilts, while Hunter’s relationship with his younger brother, Eli, is a lot more like that of typical siblings.
“Eli has been great for Hunter, because he makes Hunter play with him, he makes Hunter pay attention,” says Dilts.
“Hunter’s a really easy kid to parent, in part because of the autism,” says Dilts. “He’s a rule-follower. He knows what the rules are and he doesn’t break them.”
Dilts says autism has changed his expectations for Hunter but hasn’t limited them.
“I have the highest hopes for Hunter to be an independent and functional member of society,” says Dilts. “He’s probably never going to be involved in an organized team sport. He may never be particularly popular. He may just be one of the weird kids. But hey, I was a weird kid.”
Fri 21 Dec 2007
If Jay and Elaine Hackett could have gazed into a crystal ball 10 years ago, it might have saved them a lot of tears.
But when their youngest son, Jason, was diagnosed with autism at age 4, all they knew about the future was the doctors’ dark predictions.
“Basically, what [the doctors] said is, ‘We know your son has autism, we don’t know if he’s retarded, he may not ever graduate high school, he may not drive a car, he won’t go to college, see you later,” says Jay. Elaine remembers the doctors telling her that Jason wouldn’t have a normal childhood or make any friends.
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By the time he was diagnosed, Jason’s behavior had already become a problem and his parents were having trouble communicating with him. Elaine says it was like having “a little wild person living in your house running around doing whatever they want, and no one can control them.”
There was lots of screaming. If anyone said “good morning” to Jason, he would scream and drop to the floor in the fetal position. If they looked him in the eyes, he screamed. If someone took a toy car out of the row he’d made, he screamed. If he was hungry, he’d stand in the kitchen and scream until someone figured out what he wanted to eat.
The Hacketts had learned to adapt to much of this behavior without noticing – Elaine says it was like living in a family of crabs, with everyone always moving sideways around each other – but the diagnosis turned their world upside down.
“It was months before we could say ‘autism’ without crying,” says Jay.
Though the Hacketts live near Mooresville on the southwest side of Indianapolis, they decided to join the parent support group in Bloomington. Elaine’s mother lived in Bloomington and could watch Jason while they attended the monthly meetings.
“When you have a young child with autism who’s fairly non-verbal and hard to handle, there aren’t people lining up to baby-sit,” says Elaine.
Elaine says the support group helped her get over the feeling she got from the diagnosis – that
she’d be dumped into a foreign country where she didn’t speak the language. One parent in particular gave them some good advice.
“She encouraged us to just go ahead and not feel bad about not knowing anything, but just get in there and start moving toward getting [Jason] some help,” says Elaine.
Over the next 10 years, the Hacketts tried a variety of interventions to help Jason lead a normal, happy life.
They found a speech pathologist to help Jason with communication and an occupational therapist to help him develop skills for day-to-day life. His pre-school special education teachers gave him a lot of support, and when it was time to go to kindergarten, Jason joined a mainstream classroom.
Physical activity seemed to calm some of Jason’s unruly behavior. After swimming, for example, Jason could sit through an entire meal with the family. Jason had gotten so adept at leaping from his high chair that his parents had switched to seating him on a step stool.
It was Jason’s speech therapist who first suggested that Jason might like team sports. They tried soccer, but it didn’t take.
“It was very difficult,” says Jay. “He didn’t understand the concept of a team. A teammate would score a goal and he would not understand.”
With football, however, it was a different story. The rigid rules and all the pushing and shoving seemed to appeal to Jason.
“I was initially horrified at the thought [of Jason playing football],” says Elaine. “Then we realized it was actually the perfect game for him. After every play, they go back to the coach, and he draws the play, so it’s visual.”
Visual communication also worked well for Jason at home. To help him get the hang of the morning routine, Elaine made flashcards depicting each individual activity – wake up, get dressed, eat breakfast, brush teeth, etc. She taped them up in the kitchen in sequence, like a comic book.
Sticking to a routine was also the trick to running errands with Jason.
“We’d tell him ‘the bank, the store, the gas station.’ And that was fine, as long as you stuck to that,” says Elaine. “If you did anything else you were in trouble. If you decided, ‘Oh, while we’re here I’m going to go to the post office,’ forget it – you’re sunk.’”
Jason is now 14 and has undone everyone’s expectations. He’s in the eighth grade, and if he keeps up his A/B average, he’ll not only graduate high school but almost certainly have the choice to go to college. He’s a starter on the middle school football team. He also wrestles, plays bass in the school’s orchestra, and has friends – including close friends.
Jason’s parents were so focused on helping him that they missed the signs that his older brother, Jeff, was also struggling with autism.
Jeff’s symptoms were different. Unlike Jason, who as a 4-year-old had the speech ability of a 1-year-old, Jeff was speaking in full sentences by the time he was 3. But Jeff had trouble sitting still and paying attention in school and he wasn’t socializing like other children.
“We had always known that Jeff had a unique perspective, and sometimes it confused us. But most of the time we just found it kind of funny and charming,” says Elaine. “We didn’t see any real issue with it until he went to school.”
The school psychologist evaluated him and determined there was nothing wrong. The Hacketts got a second opinion.
That’s when they learned that Jeff has Asperger’s Syndrome, a condition on the end of the autism spectrum closest to “typical” people.
For four years, they tried several different medications to help Jeff settle down in school, but nothing seemed to work. At the end of the seventh grade, they took Jeff off medication for good.
A year later, both the Hacketts and Jeff’s teachers had seen dramatic improvement in his behavior.
Jeff is now 15, and talks like a Ph.D. candidate. Until recently, however, his grades didn’t come close to reflecting his obvious intelligence.
“He could never see the use of doing homework,” says his father, Jay. “He already grasped the concept, why keep doing it?”
“Up until this year he’s really struggled with school because it’s hard [for him] to get the importance of doing crossword puzzles for vocabulary words that he knew three years ago,” says Elaine. “It just totally escapes him.”
The meaning of homework totally escapes a lot of kids, but Asperger’s Syndrome can make it very hard for a child to understand and accept what appear to be unreasonable rules.
It’s taken a few years, but now that Jeff understands better what’s expected of him, his grades are rising.
Today, the Hacketts brag about their boys like any proud parents would.
“I do not know why God chose us to raise these two boys, but we are blessed to have them,” says Jay.
Fri 21 Dec 2007
When the doctors told Elaine Hackett that her youngest son has autism, it was like someone banging a lid down on top of her.
For Heather Andrews, it was like a herd of horses dragging her 10 miles.
For Carol-Anne Hossler, it was like someone she loved had died.
Until recently, it was estimated that about four or five in 10,000 children had autism. Earlier this year, the Centers for Disease Control published a new estimate – one in every 150.
It’s not clear whether the jump in the number of children diagnosed with autism is due to a rise
in actual cases or a greater awareness of what’s always been there.
| Local families share their stories of autism: |
What is clear is that more and more parents are experiencing the shock and confusion of finding out their child has autism.
Everything Changes
“There’s no such thing as having a normal family life when you have an autistic child,” says Susan Rautio-Dietz, a Bloomington psychologist who diagnoses and treats autism.
Carol-Anne Hossler, a professor at Indiana University’s School of Education, knows how true this is.
For nine years, Hossler and her husband had a normal life. They had two children, twin boys who had no disabilities.
When their third child, Jonathan, arrived, everything changed. Not only does Jonathan have a severe form of autism, he also has an intellectual impairment – he has an IQ of just 26.
The family used to vacation in Canada, where they stayed in cabins owned by relatives. They stopped going because it wasn’t safe for Jonathan, and it wasn’t a vacation for anyone.
For 10 years, Jonathan didn’t sleep through the night. Hossler and her husband would take turns staying up to keep an eye on him.
“We had no life,” says Hossler. “We had this traditional idea of what our family was going to be like. We were going to be high school central, where all the kids’ friends came in and went out. But Jonathan couldn’t tolerate it, and if he was going crazy then we were all going crazy.”
Hossler resisted the idea of putting Jonathan in a group home.
“We wanted to do what was right for Jonathan, but I’m looking at my baby, thinking, ‘I’m not shipping him out,’” says Hossler.
As reluctant as she was, Hossler allowed her husband to put Jonathan on the group home waiting list.
Six years later, when Jonathan was 10, a spot opened up in a group home just half a mile from the Hosslers’ Bryan Park home. They decided to give it a try.
“I think he is happier,” says Hossler. “Life is really tough for him because he doesn’t understand so much, but his world is a little larger because he has more than just one place to be.”
What is autism?
Autism is a neurological disorder that affects how people perceive the world and how they communicate, socialize, learn, and behave. It’s not an emotional disorder or a mental handicap.
The signs of autism usually show up before the age of 3 and usually include a delay in speech development. Children may not socialize like others their age, may seem withdrawn, and may appear obsessed with a particular toy or with lining up toys. Some also engage in self-stimulatory behavior, like waving their arms or flapping their fingers.
Although it’s not part of the criteria for a diagnosis, many children with autism also have extremely sharp senses – so sharp that loud noises like bells cause them pain, fluorescent lights appear to flicker like strobe lights, or gentle hugs are intolerable.
The effects of autism can vary greatly from person to person. Those with a mild form of autism may go undiagnosed until adulthood, or are never diagnosed at all.
There’s no known cure, and little agreement about what causes autism, though experts agree it’s definitely not the result of “bad parenting,” a theory that was popular in the 1960s. Today, researchers are investigating genetics, vaccines, allergies, viruses, and environmental factors.
What is certain is that each person with autism is an individual who will face a unique set of challenges with a unique set of abilities.
This can complicate a parent’s search for the best care for a child.
So where does a parent start?
Treatments and therapies
Rautio says it’s becoming more common for parents to have some idea of what autism is when they bring their children to her for an assessment.
Most, however, are mystified by the diagnosis.
“There’s always a little depression,” says Rautio. “[Parents think], ‘Oh my gosh, this is something horrible.’”
Rautio finds herself having to dispel myths about the kind of life parents can expect for their children.
People with autism do get married, says Rautio. They can have children, they can hold jobs, and they can lead happy lives.
Over the last two decades, scores of treatments and programs have been developed to help those with autism improve their quality of life. “The Autism Sourcebook,” a guide published in 2005, lists almost 70 different treatments that may benefit children with autism, including speech therapy, social skills training, physical therapy, medications, and special diets.
Bloomington also boasts a wide range of physical activity programs adapted for children with autism. The Monroe County YMCA offers several activities, including swimming, soccer, and general sports skills, and Indiana University offers an adapted physical education program. The City of Bloomington co-sponsors “Buddy Ball,” an adapted baseball program. For parents on a bigger budget, PALS offers “equine-assisted activities” – therapy on horseback.
Bloomington parents can get help sorting through all the options from the Indiana Resource Center for Autism at Indiana University. The IRCA’s extensive collection of books and videos on developmental disorders is open to all Indiana residents. The center also maintains a collection of pamphlets with local information and contacts.
The IRCA doesn’t offer therapies or treatment but can consult with parents on choosing the appropriate services for their children and finding agencies and individuals who can provide those services.
Most autism services are not free, however, and the costs can add up. Government benefits are available but can be difficult to access.
Eligibility for Medicaid benefits depends on the family’s income. The Medicaid Waiver Program, however, is open to all who require a certain level of care. It allows individuals with autism to receive services at home rather than at a live-in institution.
As of September, there were 345 people on Indiana’s autism waiver roster. There were 3,542 people on the waiting list.
Suzie Rimstidt, a local autism advocate who has worked with the IRCA and, more recently, as the Monroe County coordinator for the non-profit Southern Indiana Center for Independent Living, estimates the current wait time for a waiver to be about 10 years.
Educating a child with autism
One service that is absolutely free, however, is education.
The federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act requires public schools to provide appropriate education to children with disabilities, including autism, up to age 21. Last year, there were more than 8,000 students with autism in Indiana public schools, according to the Indiana Department of Education.
It’s up to parents and the schools to come to an agreement on what constitutes appropriate education for a particular child.
At least once a year, parents meet with teachers and administrators to design the child’s education plan for the coming year. If the school and the parents can’t agree, the parent can appeal for mediation, and then for a due process hearing, which is a legal proceeding.
Hossler says that managing her son Jonathan’s public school education was a daunting task, even though she is a former public school teacher and administrator.
“It’s very intimidating to go into a meeting and sit down with a bunch of people who are accustomed to just running right through it,” says Hossler.
Parents need to know the system and understand the law so they can advocate for their children, says Hostler. If they feel uncomfortable meeting with the school alone, she says, they can bring someone with them who’s done it before.
"The best resource we had"
With so many choices and so much at stake, parents can feel overwhelmed. They often face tremendous pressure from a society that doesn’t understand what it takes to raise a child with autism.
“Some of the parents tell me, ‘Our families don’t see it. They don’t see the autism. They just think he’s a bratty child. They think we spoil him. They criticize our parenting,’” says Rautio.
“They’re getting it from all over the family. I’ve even had teachers and other psychologists say, ‘I don’t see this kid as autistic.’”
Parents have to stay focused, says Rautio, because they are their child’s best source of support.
“I teach them at the time of diagnosis, ‘You are the number one advocate for your child,’” says Rautio. “They have been told they’re overprotective, but they have to be, because their child’s different.”
She suggests that parents join a support group.
“It’s the most isolating thing when you’re the parent of an autistic child,” says Rautio. “You can’t dialog with somebody who has no idea what you’re talking about.”
Elaine Hackett, who has two sons on the autism spectrum, says the support of other parents “was the best resource we had.”
When her youngest son, Jason, was diagnosed with autism in the late 1990s, the doctors told her practically nothing. She felt like she’d been “dropped into a foreign country where you don’t speak the language.”
The only advice the doctors gave her was to find a parent support group. It turned out to be good advice. It was a parent in the Bloomington support group who helped Hackett overcome her disorientation.
“She encouraged us to just go ahead and not feel bad about not knowing anything, but just get in there and start moving toward getting him some help,” says Hackett.
“Parents are, I think, the greatest resource – people who have been there and done that,” says Heather Andrews, who socializes with other parents once a week while their children play at IU’s adapted PE class.
Andrews says she’s come to accept a certain amount of chaos in her life. Her 10-year-old son, Eddie, is highly intelligent but has a severe form of autism and a penchant for escaping the house at night. Andrews asked that their names be changed to protect him.
Eddie’s learning to help with housework, Andrews says. He loves it, but he’s not always helpful.
“He wants to do the dishes,” says Andrews, “and before you know it you’ve got broken dishes all over the floor and the kitchen is flooded.”
Andrews was devastated when she first learned that Eddie had autism, but today she can laugh about the little things – like broken dishes.
“A good sense of humor gets you through anything in life,” she says.
More about autism
Fri 21 Dec 2007
Lessons in preparing for a funeral and its aftermath
It’s possibly the most unpleasant occurrence anyone will ever have to face, but planning for a funeral ahead of time can make a difficult time a bit less trying. While most people don’t even want to consider the death of loved ones, let alone their own, it’s the unpredictable nature of death that needs attention ahead of time to make things easier on those carrying out last wishes.
And though nuts and bolts like legal proceedings and funeral preparations seem like the last things you’d want to have hanging around your neck after the passing of a loved one, they are the most important things to attend to.
“One of the first things you want to do is consult an attorney that specializes in estate administration or there can be legal consequences,” says William Fawcett, a Bloomington attorney who offers estate services.
Fawcett says the most common problem people run into after a family member dies is not having delineated clearly who gets what. There are a number of ways to designate heirs, including writing a will, establishing a living trust and establishing joint ownership, but Fawcett says each method has drawbacks.
“The method that involves the least professional assistance is naming a beneficiary using a ‘pay on death’ designation,” which he says establishes in writing who property should transfer to upon death.
If there is no beneficiary named, then the local government will have to mail out affidavits to notify each potential heir and that can get expensive, Fawcett says. The cost of postage will be billed to the estate.
The most obvious thing to get done is planning the funeral and, again, planning ahead is what those in the industry recommend to avoid unnecessary headaches.
“If people come in ahead of time and plan, the process will be easier and for people who lose a family member, the most common problem we run into is not having their vital stats such as maiden names and other information we need for writing an obituary for the paper,” says Ryan Goss, a funeral director at the Allen Funeral Home. “We advise people to have that stuff written down somewhere.”
Cost is another thing that should be high in people’s considerations and Goss says it’s something that is hard to estimate.
“The average cost is around $7,000 to $8,500, but we have caskets that are $7,000 by itself,” he says.
But a federal law known as the Funeral Act requires funeral homes to present customers with an itemized list of products, services and their cost. This list usually includes prices for preparation of the body, caskets, flowers, burial services and music.
According to Goss, the funeral home will take care of everything except the burial plot in the cemetery.
Customers should be aware that every time they interact with a funeral home, this list must be presented to them by law.
There are a number of places from which to choose burial plots in Bloomington. The city maintains two cemeteries, Rose Hill and White Oak.
Jay Davidson, sexton for the city, oversees the administration of grave plots and makes sure that individual family members are laid where they had requested.
Rose Hill has been around since about 1810, and until recently all the burial plots were sold as family plots, he says. “Everything is sold as single graves now and each one costs $340. It’s usually couples buying sets now.”
Davidson says that Rose Hill is about 70 percent full, so plots are still available.
“If you haven’t done this before, it’s very hard the first time, but if you have to do it again, you’ll be prepared to do it, and I recommend getting as much info as possible beforehand,” he says.
Although not a nuts and bolts part of funeral planning, grief and bereavement counseling may be necessary for some to help deal with emotional aspects of loss.
There are a number of options available to Bloomington residents, including free group counseling at the Bloomington Hospital as a part of the Hospice program.
The adult bereavement groups are held in all but the summer months and are free and open to anyone in the community. In addition to counseling sessions, they feature information and resources including books for those not wishing to attend group sessions.
Sandra Clark is a counselor who maintains a private practice in Bloomington and also provides group counseling for the hospice program. Clark says support from the hospice is primarily available to those who have family members in hospice care, but anyone can get support even if they don’t.
“Grief counseling is not about changing the person, it’s not about fixing anything. It’s about being there with them as they process loss and to figure out how to cope on a daily basis and face responsibilities,” Clark says.
According to Clark, grief counseling spans an average of five sessions with a counselor and the average cost in private practice is around $70 per session. The hospice programs run for six weeks per session and are free of cost.
“Taking really good care of yourself is of the utmost importance. It’s not a time for a life review; really try to take care of yourself. Don’t get in a hurry to make changes, and it usually helps to share grief,” Clark says.
Fri 21 Dec 2007
The energy from the crowd is palpable and contagious. The writhing throng focuses its energy on riders circling the cinder track. The riders push themselves to go faster and faster, feeding off the crowd’s energy as they race for glory.
“I can’t describe it. Looking up and having thousands of screaming people cheering for you is like nothing else in the world,” said Zachary Osterman, a third year rider for Sigma Alpha Tau. “It’s one of the greatest experiences of my life.”
Some students in this mass of emotion may wonder if it is possible to enter into that hallowed ring and compete for the crowd’s favor, and the answer is that it couldn’t be easier.
You don’t have to be an elite athlete; you don’t have to have any experience at all, but you do have to be determined and ready to train hard.
“My experience was amazing,” said Ashley Bigg, a second year rider for Alpha Chi Omega. “It was by far the hardest mentally and physically challenging thing I’ve ever done in my life.”
“That’s the beauty of the event — 95 percent of the people that come here have no cycling experience whatsoever … and they can be just as competitive as people that have ridden their whole life,” said Matthew Ewing, assistant director for the Indiana University Student Foundation and the race director of the Little 500.
All riders in the Little 500 have to be undergraduate students attending Indiana University. In order to be eligible to race in the Little 500, a rider must be a full time student for the fall and spring semester in which they will compete with at least a 2.0 grade point average for the respective semesters and a cumulative average of 2.0 or better.
Beyond these qualifications, as long as you have never been professional rider, nothing else is needed to participate in the race.
Getting started
The IU Student Foundation holds a rider “call-out” at the beginning of each semester where new riders can get acquainted with the race. From there, Ewing recommends that students with no prior riding experience go on “Rookie Rides” for a couple of weeks. These rides occur three times a week and are led by members of the riders council, comprised of 16 students that have participated in the Little 500. These rides are designed to get students with no experience acquainted with the bikes and riding.
Buying a road bike is a big commitment, with high-end bikes costing thousands of dollars, but there are many cost-effective alternatives for financially strapped students. The IUSF has a loaner bike program where students can come in and borrow a bike and go out riding. The IUSF gets 12 new bikes each year for the loaner program, and Ewing mentioned that he has known riders who have competed in the Little 500 who have never owned their own bike.
Many teams have equipment for riders to use that has been handed down from previous Little 500 alumni.
“I went out and bought a pair of riding shorts and some gloves, but that’s it,” said Bigg.
The Student Recreational Sports Center has many stationary bikes to train on when the weather does not permit outdoor riding. According to Ewing, SRSC has just purchased 30 new stationary bikes and next semester there will be a new class that meets at SRSC twice a week that is specifically geared for Little 500 riders.
With the IUSF and the university doing everything they can to help lessen the financial burden for student riders, the next step would be finding a team to ride with.
Finding a team
The teams in the Little 500 are divided into two main categories: independent and Greek. According to Ewing, residence hall teams are classified as independent. Originally riders had to live in the hall they rode for, but this rule no longer applies.
“The teams usually break down into three categories,” said Ewing. “You have the teams that are trying to win the race … teams that want to be competitive but also enjoy being part of the event, and they are happy with shooting for a top 15 or a top 20, and then you have the teams that are just trying to qualify and just love to be out there on race day.”
If a rider is in a Greek house or plans to rush, finding a team takes care of itself. Many Greek riders join a house before contemplating riding in the Little 500.
“I pledged the fraternity as a freshman for social reasons and then realized that we had a pretty strong tradition of seven championships,” said David Schweer, a fourth-year rider for Phi Kappa Psi. Phi Kappa Psi finished second in the 2007 Little 500.
“I was already in my fraternity before I even had a thought of riding in the Little 500. After I watched the first race my freshman year, I decided it was something I would love to do,” said Gregory Maves, second-year rider for Delta Tau Delta.
While the Greek teams seem to dominate the landscape, they are not the only option, and the IUSF is available to help place students not in the Greek system with teams. Ewing likes to meet with first-time riders to help them find a team that will be a good fit. He will ask them about their experience, expectations and personality, and then try to find a team that will meet the rider’s competitive abilities and desires.
Training
Only 33 teams qualify for the Little 500, so training hard in the offseason is vital. Almost all teams train for at least nine months. The riders for the more competitive teams will train year ’round.
A new rider shouldn’t feel overwhelmed when training begins, wondering how to train and prepare for the race. Riders have great support systems to help them get the best results. Not only can they get advice from their teammates, but teams also have alumni coaches, student coaches and even trainers who are as focused and determined as the riders.
Ewing says it is not uncommon for a rider to train 20 hours a week, which is a heavy commitment on top of a full course load. A competitive team will train six to seven days a week, supplementing riding with weight training and other aerobic exercise.
Training begins in the fall at a slow and steady pace, building skills and endurance and getting comfortable with your team.
“The beginning of the Little 500 season is mainly base miles; getting long, easy hours on the road,” said Anna Gartner, fourth-year rider for Kappa Kappa Gamma.
“It doesn’t need to be fast, just get used to being back on the bike and enjoy it and avoid getting burnt out from it long before the actual race,” said Maves.
Teams will have optional training over winter break and return to begin heavy training in the spring semester. The spring trainings will shift the focus from long slow rides to sessions devoted to speed.
“Cycling tends to follow running in that in the beginning you need lots of miles. The closer you get to competition, the shorter and faster you try to get,” said Schweer.
When the weather turns in the spring, usually around the middle of February, the cinder track at Bill Armstrong Stadium opens for rookie riders. Rookie riders must participate in rookie week, where riders from the riders council give lessons about track riding. It can be intimidating and scary riding on the track with veteran riders whizzing by, so first-time riders are the only ones allowed on the track during rookie week. This makes it an excellent opportunity to get acquainted with exchanges and pack riding before the veterans begin their track training.
Track practice is the most important stage of preparation. Nothing can get a rider ready for the race better than riding in race simulations around the track.
“The race is a pretty fast event. Getting your legs to be able to spin at high RPMs will be important,” said Schweer. “So we start doing specific workouts to train our legs to accomplish this.”
Spring break is the culmination of training, said Bigg. That is when training is the most intense. Most teams go on a Little 500 vacation dedicated solely to training, so students must be prepared to forgo the usual weeklong inebriated beach party that is spring break.
After spring break, the workouts begin to taper off until the race. There are four other events that take place in the four weeks leading up to the actual Little 500: qualifications, individual time trials, Miss-N-Out and team pursuit. Gartner says these events really help a team prepare for race day.
Race day is all about execution. Hundreds of hours of training and sacrifice are focused into a little over two hours of intense excitement. The crowd now cheers for you, urging you to go faster and faster, competing for victory and a place in Little 500 history.
“Hopefully you have had a good night’s sleep,” said Schweer. “Just try and relax and have fun because this is what you have put the countless hours into.”
Fri 21 Dec 2007
The challenges and benefits to being an international student at Indiana University
When walking across Indiana University’s campus, one can see students from all over the world. There are different clothing styles, ethnicities and languages. Together, the different components help shape the diverse atmosphere that is characteristic of IU.
China is one of three major sources of international students at IU, which makes Chinese students a group that cannot be ignored. They have their own unique characteristics, wants and needs, which can differ from other international students.
Why come to America and IU?
For many years, the United States has been the top destination for Chinese students seeking higher education overseas. Many students are motivated to come here because of the high regard for an American degree and the need for a challenging and fulfilled new life.
”An American master’s degree is a great chance for getting a job,” said Tian Ming, a Chinese graduate student at IU. “Besides, learning and practical experience are not closely correlated in the Chinese educational system. A lot of Chinese students end up doing something that has nothing to do with their major after graduation.”
Although some people may believe that living and studying in a new environment is synonymous with adversity, many Chinese students are far more optimistic.
“I try not to think I’m ‘suffering.’ As a matter of fact, I think studying abroad makes my life fulfilled and allows me the opportunity to experience a totally different life,“ said Cindy Jin, a Chinese graduate student at IU. “I oftentimes imagine that I’m on vacation.“
According to Amy Reyolds, the associate dean for research and graduate studies in the School of Journalism, more and more Chinese students are coming to IU every year. “We have far more Chinese students than any past years,” said Reynolds.
Despite the increasingly large number of Chinese students pursing college degrees, the students continue to face challenges such as financial pressures, language barriers, differing educational systems, cultural differences, lack of transportation, loneliness and the debate over whether or not to stay after graduation.
Financial pressures
Attending an American university can be expensive for Chinese students. Tuition is equivalent to approximately $150,000. Because of the high cost, many students tend to enter at the graduate level because they are often able to qualify for assistantships and fellowships.
In addition to tuition, rent and food must also be taken into consideration. To cover these costs, many Chinese students work while enrolled in school.
“Most Chinese students are very hard working, more hard working than other students. They try really hard to find jobs in school,” said Reynolds.
Language barriers
Unlike students from Canada or India, where English is their primary language, Chinese students are challenged to speak and read a secondary language upon their arrival at an American university or college.
Most Chinese students learn English in middle school. They receive further training at New Oriental School, which is considered one of the most renowned private language teaching schools in China.
By taking advanced courses in English, students are better prepared for the proficiency examinations, which are required for international students wishing to attend a school in America.
Every year Chinese students continue do well on exams such as the TOEFL and GRE.
However, comprehending the English language is not a “fill in the blank” or a multiple-choice question. It’s much more difficult.
“The good thing is nobody laughs at your accent, but it’s annoying when I can’t articulate what I really want to say in class and get misunderstood by others,” said King Hu, a Chinese student majoring in education at IU. “Sometimes it’s intimidating starting a conversation. … I’m not sure whether they will understand what I say.”
Differing educational systems
Although globalization and technological advancements have made the transition to America smoother, Chinese students still find it difficult to adapt.
Because the American educational system promotes creativity, critical thinking skills and the ability to challenge authority and prevailing paradigms, Chinese students find it challenging. Many times they are required to answer questions they may not fully understand or present arguments they cannot effectively articulate.
“Chinese students are generally very adaptable, but I do have some Chinese students come to me and say that they find it really hard to participate in class like their American classmates,” explained Reynolds.
In China, students rarely engage in dialogue because professors tend to lecture the entire class time. Chinese students must then adjust to the seminar-like settings found in American classrooms.
However, Chinese students often say that the payoff from learning these creative thinking and presentation skills is worth it in the end.
Cultural differences
China is best known for its long history, rich culture and ancient customs.
When Chinese students come to America, they experience a clash of cultures, which can make it hard for them to understand their American peers. Certain language devices tend to pose the most significant problem, specifically tone, sarcasm and clichés.
“People are really friendly and also comparatively simple,” said Tian. “You always hear people saying ‘have a nice day,’ ‘have a nice weekend,’ which you cannot hear in China. But the thing is, it’s hard to get close to Americans. They are just being nice sometimes, and you have nobody to turn to when you are not having a nice day.”
Another problem that Chinese students struggle with are jokes. Because they are mostly told within a specific cultural context, students have a hard time understanding why the joke is so funny.
“I just laugh together with them, although I sometimes have no idea what the point is,” said Sarah Chen, an IU undergraduate student from Hong Kong.
Transportation
For many Chinese students, transportation has been a nightmare because of long lines, scheduling and delays.
“The public transportation is very scarce here,” said Tian. “The interval between two buses is very long — like 20 minutes for weekdays. So if you are one minute late, you’ll wait a long time for another one. And if it’s the weekend, things are 10 times worse.”
Jin agreed. “I used to take the ‘E’ bus to school everyday, but the bus is really slow, and it comes every 25 minutes. I always get up late and miss the bus, so I finally decided to walk to school.”
Yet walking poses its problems as well.
“Walking can be a weird thing anywhere outside of the campus,” said Hu. “Oftentimes I’m the only one walking in the street whenever I go to the grocery [store]. You find nobody to ask for direction. Everybody is in the car.”
Loneliness and relationships
When traveling overseas for an extended period of time, Chinese students can sometimes experience emotional issues, which are more subtle and elusive than issues of money and school.
“I’ll overschedule myself to avoid loneliness and emptiness,” said Tian. “Sometimes I’ll call my parents, but I always tell them the good and positive things of my life … because I know they can do nothing to help since we are thousands of miles away from each other.”
For other students, finding “real” friends has posed one of the biggest challenges, along with engaging in small talk. “Once the topic is gone, you’ll have nothing to say,” explained Jin.
Tian agreed. “Sometimes I meet someone at the bus stop, and we kind of have a conversation. But after we get on the bus, the person will take out the iPod and headphones and start listening to music,” he explained. “I wonder maybe it’s because he also feels [that it’s] hard to go deep into any topic with a foreign student.”
At times, the lack of a companion with the same cultural background can also lead to a sense of insecurity and uncertainty.
“I think the sense of certainty and security is very important for me,” said Jin. “I heard that it takes at least five years for any alien in the U.S. to actually get this sense of security and feel totally at ease.”
In addition to loneliness and insecurity, “to-be-continued” relationships are also haunting for some Chinese students.
“I’m not sure whether I still have any boyfriend,” said Carrie Han, an undergraduate Chinese student at IU. “My boyfriend is in Nanking and of course we never break up, but I just feel that he is out of reach.”
Decision to stay or leave
The statistics gathered by the Institute for International Education show that during the 2003-2004 academic year, there were 61,765 Chinese students at institutions of higher education in the United States.
Of these students, many have struggled over the question of whether they should stay or leave; however, many are choosing to stay in the United States after earning their degrees.
“I don’t want to return as soon as I get the degree,” said Tian. “I think it’s hard to settle for just returning and getting a job in China. I have a higher expectation for myself since I have gone this far.”
Jin agreed. “I will choose to stay, as long as I can find a job after graduation.”
Fri 21 Dec 2007
The small college town of Bloomington, Indiana, offers a variety of options for getting around for those who do not have a car. Whether you are a Bloomington resident, a student, or just a visitor in town, you can select from many means of transportation, including buses, shuttles, bicycles, taxis, carpooling — and even your own feet.
Compared to similar cities in Indiana and some other small college towns, Bloomington is considered a pedestrian- and environment-friendly town. However, 74.8 percent of the city population still commutes to work by driving, whereas 8.4 percent walk and 1.7 percent use public transportation, according to 2000 U.S. Census Bureau statistics.
Raymond Hess, senior transportation planner for the city, said census statistics are lower than actual statistics in terms of people who use alternative transportation because the census does not include students who live in dormitories. Hess also said that the number of people who take the bus has increased significantly over the past few years.
Bus Service
There are two types of bus services in Bloomington: the IU Campus Bus and Bloomington Transit.
The IU bus service is a fare-free system and provides basic transportation on campus for IU students and Bloomington residents. It travels to all parts of the campus, to downtown Bloomington and to the area’s largest shopping center, the College Mall. The Campus Bus starts operating at 7:30 a.m. and runs as late as 11:30 p.m. on weekdays.
The Campus Bus is the primary transportation method for a number of students, whether they live on campus or not. Many students prefer taking the bus to campus because parking on campus is limited by the need for permits and a shortage of spaces. Also, because the bus schedules are shaped around class times, transportation is very convenient for students. Campus buses, however, provide reduced service during the weekends and university break periods, and no service on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Years Day.
Bloomington Transit (BT) is the city’s bus service. It costs 75 cents per person and is free for IU students, faculty and staff with a valid university identification card. The main bus terminal is at the corner of Washington and Fourth Streets. BT buses pass their designated stops either every half hour or one hour and do not offer service Sundays, which makes them less convenient for passengers. Although many Bloomington residents like the bus service in Bloomington, they say there is still room for improvement.
Edna Collier, a Bloomington resident, takes Bloomington Transit buses and walks to the places she wants to go every day, and she thinks the bus service in Bloomington is good.
“The bus service is very good. I can get almost anywhere I want, but I wish buses ran on Sundays too,” Collier said.
Raymond Hess said that the revenue earned from passengers and local money is not enough to pay for adding routes. He added that half of the funding comes from the federal government.
“It would be nice if buses ran more frequently,” Hess said.
An IU student, Jacob Benson, takes the bus every day to school and he said riding the bus can be frustrating at times because of the limited routes and operating hours.
“I have been living off-campus for three years now and I ride Bloomington Transit to school every day,” Benson says.
Benson says his apartment is not near Campus Bus routes and that is why he rides BT. He says bus schedules are not very convenient for him and he has to walk or call friends for a ride when he cannot catch the bus.
“One of my classes goes until 9 p.m. and buses stop running at 8:15 p.m. I walk 15 to 20 minutes to get home when I miss the bus those days,” Benson says.
“I usually arrive to school much earlier than my scheduled class times because the bus runs once an hour from where I live,” Benson says.
Hess says that BT has submitted an application for federal grants to extend its service until 11 p.m. If BT receives the federal grants, it is going to start providing the expanded service beginning in January 2008. The grant, however, is only for one year, which means that even if BT receives the grant this year, it will still have to reapply for grants for 2009.
“Providing additional service and routes based on federal grants is a gamble you take, but we do not have to worry about it until next year,” Hess said.
Bloomington also provides a service called Rural Transit throughout the county. Rural Transit services link Bloomington, Ellettsville and Spencer, and make 10 round trips per business day.
Airport Shuttle
The Indianapolis International Airport is the nearest major airport to Bloomington. The Bloomington Shuttle Service provides non-stop service to Bloomington and Indiana University for $25 per person each way. The shuttle picks up passengers from four different locations in Bloomington nine times a day from 4:40 a.m. to 9:15 p.m.; for the return trip the shuttle travels from the airport to Bloomington nine times a day from 6:40 a.m. to 10:40 p.m.
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| Zeynep Altinay A bike rack on campus. |
Bicycling has long been a popular activity in Bloomington. Bloomington is one of only 44 communities recognized as bicycle-friendly by the League of American Bicyclists. The town provides a number of bike trails in addition to bike lanes on major streets. IU provides a number of bike racks for students and requires a $5 parking fee on campus for bicycles.
There are several places in town where bicycles can be purchased.
Bicycle Garage Inc. is in downtown Bloomington. Bicycle Garage workers said that late summer and early fall are the busiest seasons for bike sales, when prices usually range between $250 and $1,000. Bicycle Garage workers say that there has been an increase in the number of people who ride bikes in town. However, they also say that the number can increase even more if the city of Bloomington finishes the bike paths that are currently under construction. Hess says that the city has been working on its three major bike paths, which are Bloomington Rail Trail, Clear Creek Trail and downtown B-Line Trail. Hess added that the city of Bloomington received grants to buy the property where it can begin building bike lanes.
“We will begin constructing phase one in the downtown area in March 2008,” Hess said.
Hess says that once the construction of the three major bike lanes is completed, there will be a 7-mile bike path, which will better link neighborhoods to each other.
“My crystal ball is cloudy; I cannot tell when the projects will be completed,” Hess said.
Hess also emphasized that although many cities do not set aside money for alternative transportation, the city of Bloomington has been saving $500,000 each year since 2002 to implement the project.
Walking
Bloomington’s downtown and older neighborhoods have a compact urban form, which provides destinations that are in close proximity to one another. Because major employment and commercial areas are clustered in the town, it encourages people to walk to get to campus, stores, work and other destinations. The City of Bloomington, however, is still aiming to improve its pedestrian routes. There are seven high priority projects on city government’s agenda to improve its side paths, and six of these projects are already in construction phase.
Bloomington downtown offers a number of restaurants, shops, entertainment, and businesses all in walking distance. If you are in Bloomington downtown, you can walk down Kirkwood Avenue, also known as Fifth Street, that starts from the IU Sample Gates and continues until Rose Hill Cemetery. There are more than a dozen restaurants on Kirkwood, including cafes, bars, pizza places and other type of food places. Peoples Park is at the intersection of Kirkwood and Dunn Streets for those looking for recreation.
The Square is where College Avenue, Walnut Street, Kirkwood Avenue and Sixth Street intersect. If you are walking by The Square, you can stop by The Fountain Square Mall to shop, or check out Howard’s Bookstore and many other shops around The Square. College Avenue is one of the major streets in Bloomington. Some of the important buildings on this two-mile street are the Justice Building, Graham Plaza and Bloomington Convention Center.
| National averages indicate that bicyclists will commute approximately 3 miles in 15 minutes and pedestrians 1 mile in a 10-15 minute walk to reach their destination. |
Important transportation numbers:
Taxi Service
Yellow Cab Co.: 339-9744
Bus Service
Bloomington Transit: 336-7433
IU Campus Bus: 855-8384
Rural Transit: 876-1079
Car Rental Agencies
Ace Rent-A-Car: 336-1501
All-Ways Rent-A-Car: 800-214-4501
Budget Car Rental: 800-527-7000
Campus Auto Rental: 961-9358
Enterprise: 336-1018
National: 339-3443
Limousines
Classic Touch: 339-7269/ 800-319-0082
Round-trip to Indianapolis
Signature Limousine: 332-6004/ 800-589-6004
Indy Connection: 800-589-6004
One way to Indianapolis Airport or one way from Indianapolis Airport
Charter Services
Bloomington Shuttle Service: 332-6004/ 800-589-6004
Bloomington to Indianapolis
Star of Indiana: 876-7851
Fri 21 Dec 2007
Although moving from one city to another may present new opportunities, it also creates an unstable atmosphere where there is an increased risk for domestic violence.
Domestic violence is considered to be an abuse of power between intimate partners, where the victim is controlled, threatened or harmed by the abuser.
“The reason leaving is the most dangerous time is because the abuser feels like he [or] she is losing control. The only way an abuser maintains control is with more violence,” explained Elizabeth Lopez, a case manager at The Rise.
Services for victims of domestic violence
The Rise is a transitional living program for women who may need shelter or other protective services. Its mission is to create “a supportive, nonviolent community that provides individuals and families with opportunities to grow and prosper and the power to determine the shape of their own future.”
Because domestic violence is one of the least reported crimes in the United States, men and women must be better educated on what constitutes this type of abuse and what the legal ramifications are for the abusers.
A common myth equates domestic violence with physical violence; however, this is not true. It can also be in the form of emotional, psychological or sexual abuse.
Understanding what resources are available within the community can help victims to cope with these issues and to better understand their legal rights.
Middle Way House, Inc., a local nonprofit organization, offers support to abused women and children. Each year the center provides shelter, child care services, education, 24-hour crisis intervention, legal advocacy and prevention programs to the residents of Monroe County.
According to the organization’s 2006 annual report, it received 215 crisis calls, 370 information/referral calls and 339 requests for shelter. Middle Way House also monitored 1,673 court cases and filed 106 protective orders.
Reports conducted on domestic violence
However, the number of women being abused is estimated to be much higher, which is why the Bloomington Commission on the Status of Women launched an investigative report in 2001.
The commission’s goal was to measure the status of women within the community in regard to social, economic and gender equality. It sought information from various sources such as Middle Way House, the Monroe County Domestic Violence Task Force and the Bloomington Police Department.
Yet it found that information was difficult to obtain, especially when the crimes were classified as some form of victimization.
In the report, the commission documented that there was “no effort in place to gather and analyze data of this kind” and that outside of Middle Way House, the task force has not received reports from the prosecutor’s office or the Bloomington Police Department for over five years.
Although the commission could not find a large amount of data regarding domestic violence, it concluded: “Bloomington may be a community more free of gender-based bias and its manifestations than others in the state and country, but the data collected for this study do not suggest that violence against women and the local response to it are issues the community can ignore.”
For this reason, organizations like Middle Way House participate in community outreach programs.
According to its 2006 annual report, it “made 97 presentations about DV [domestic violence], rape/sexual assault, and/or other issues to 5,594 attendees.”
Domestic violence and the Bloomington community
By providing educational presentations, Middle Way House hopes to empower victims within the community and dispel myths that often deter them from seeking help.
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Danielle Dravet
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| Middle Way House, a nonprofit organization, provides shelter and counseling to victims of domestic violence. |
Because domestic violence is not limited to any one group, outreach services must be able to connect to a wide variety of people from a plethora of different backgrounds.
“It [Bloomington] is a very diverse community. It broadens the range of people that you’re working with,” said Sara Huntington, outreach coordinator for Middle Way House. “We have to make our services accessible, especially for people who aren’t from this country or who don’t speak this language.”
In addition to cultural and language barriers, thousands of new students from around the world come to Bloomington each year. Liz Hannibal, crisis intervention services coordinator for Middle Way House, explained that although students may be aware of domestic violence, they still possess the “it can’t happen to me” mentality.
Huntington agreed. “Every fall is particularly an issue because a lot of people come to Bloomington.”
She went on to explain that perpetrators often prey on college towns where students may be naïve or new to the area. Students are also the group least knowledgeable about services specific to the Bloomington community, which puts them at a greater risk for violence.
Although Middle Way House only provides services to women and children, Huntington reiterated that domestic violence crosses all borders. It is not limited to any one gender, age group, race, income level, sexuality or educational background.
National statistics on domestic violence
However, national statistics show that women are five times more likely to be victims of domestic violence than men, according to a report by the Bureau of Justice Statistics.
The same report also found that people with lower annual incomes were more likely to experience domestic violence than those with higher than average incomes.
Yet this could be because higher-income men and women are not reporting the crimes as often because of the resources available to them.
“We tend to see women who don’t have as much money, since women who are capable of making more money don’t need our services as often,” explained Mandi Priest-Redden, child care coordinator for Middle Way House. “They can afford a hotel room or go to a family member’s house. They can afford to move out.”
But many times, victims return home even after seeking shelter and legal assistance. Reasons vary, but many times it has to do with dependence — social, emotional or financial.
“There are high emotional costs for people who are experiencing domestic violence. In fact, the emotional scars are the ones that tend to last the longest,” explained Priest-Redden.
Because domestic violence is a multifaceted problem, it is difficult to pinpoint the origin of the violence.
“In some cases, the violence may be a means to control the other person. In other cases, the violence may be a result of poorly regulated emotions,” explained Dr. Zoe Peterson, a former research fellow of the Kinsey Institute at Indiana University.
Although domestic violence is linked to a number of different factors, researchers agree that it is generational. “Someone who is abusive has probably been treated poorly as a child … [and] not taught good boundaries about communication and relationships,” said Priest-Redden.
Sgt. Jeff Canada of the Bloomington Police Department agreed. He explained that many problems stem from the same families year after year and that substance abuse tends to play a significant role.
“A majority of the time the main factor is alcohol,” said Canada, reflecting on his experience as a police officer.
However, alcohol cannot be blamed for domestic violence; rather, it acts as a catalyst.
“Alcohol and drugs do not cause domestic violence. They might add to it. They may make it easier, but they don’t put the beliefs in their [the abusers’] heads,” explained Huntington.
Rehabilitation
But this isn’t to say that abusers cannot seek treatment on ways to better control the way they respond to and treat others.
Nonviolent Alternatives Counseling Service is an organization dedicated to helping abusive men and women find ways to better control their emotions while promoting “healthy thinking habits.” Services are available in Franklin, Shelbyville and Lafayette, Ind. The Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence has certified this organization.
There are online quizzes, resources for abusers seeking help and a referral information center found on its Web site. There are additional services that deal with substance abuse as well.
“As a human being, I have to believe in rehabilitation,” explained Priest-Redden. “I have to have faith that we have the capacity to change.”
Fri 21 Dec 2007
If you want to know a place’s culture, the food is a good way to start. Bloomington has all kinds of restaurants from different countries in the world. You can find Greek, Italian, Indian, Japanese, Korean, Thai, Chinese food and any other exotic food here. The diversity in food reflects the cultural diversity in this small town. In a way, it reflects the kaleidoscopic scene and multicultural attitude at IU.
With nearly 10 percent of its study body international students, Indiana University-Bloomington (IU) is friendly and welcoming to international students. IU enrolled 3,687 international students in 2006. The top five countries of citizenship are South Korea, India, China, Taiwan and Japan. You can find a large number of international students coming from Asian countries and areas. Besides the top five, there are also many students coming from Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, and Macao.
We often say, “Demand drives supply.” With so many international students, faculty members and visiting scholars at IU, there is a large demand to satisfy the needs of those missing their home countries and ethnic food.
How many Chinese food restaurants are in Bloomington? If you enter “Chinese restaurant in Bloomington, Indiana” into the Internet search engine Google, you will find about 531,000 results. If you narrow down your search results by adding “near IUB” into the key words, you will get 570 results in Google Maps. Together with the brief introduction of the restaurants, you will find their locations, maps and contact information as well.
Near campus, you can easily find some Chinese restaurants, such as Chow Bar, Lucky Express, Dragon Express, and Great Wall. Not far away from campus, you can also find Chinese Buffet and Sunny Palace near the College Mall.
There are three types of Chinese restaurants that exist in most areas of the United States — sit-down dining, takeout, and buffets. In Bloomington, the most common types are buffets and takeout. The Chow Bar serves a lunch buffet from Monday through Friday for $6.90 per person, $10.50 on weekends. It also offers sit-down dining for lunch and dinner. On weekends it will offer more dishes, such as fresh crab, shrimp and soymilk. Some Chinese students who tried the more expensive lunch buffet said they have more traditional Chinese dishes there on weekends. Want to try it? The owner of the Chow Bar came from Taiwan about 30 years ago and she serves authentic Taiwan hot bubble tea (pearls tea).
| “My friends and I like Asian food. I like Chow Bar best because I think it’s more authentic and kind of like close to what we experience as the real Chinese food. We come here for buffets, and we also sometimes come here for dinner with my family." |
An IU sophomore nursing major, Courtney Amelia Oczkowski enjoys the hot bubble tea and lunch buffet with her friend at Chow Bar. She said, “My friends and I like Asian food. I like this place best because I think it’s more authentic and kind of like close to what we experience as the real Chinese food. We come here for buffets, and we also sometimes come here for dinner with my family. The owner here is really nice. She is the best lady I have ever met. I love her. ” Her favorite dish is ginger chicken and noodles.
Her friend Angela Balmer, an IU sophomore majoring in psychology, said, “I brought my parents, friends, and my boyfriend here. This is a really good place for us. Last year I ate three or four times a week at lunchtime. So I mean it’s definitely my favorite place. My favorite dish here is snow shrimp and fried rice.”
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| Jingting Zhao |
| Fried rice is a staple of U.S. Chinese restaurants.
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Oczkowski and Balmer’s grandmothers and mothers all come from the Philippines originally. But they were born and grew up in the United States. Both of them are members of the Asian American Students Association and Philippine Students Association at IU. IU has a variety of centers and student associations to better serve diversified students on campus, such as the International Center, La Casa Latino Cultural Center, Asian Culture Center, Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center, and Tibetan Cultural Center.
However, it’s difficult to cater to all tastes. An IU faculty member from the Department of Folklore said at Chow Bar, “It’s not so good. I have tried better Chinese restaurants in Bloomington and in Chicago. I think Great Wall is better than Chow Bar. Today we have two friends coming from Mexico and one from Paris. They just arrived and want to try some Chinese food. So we came here because it’s right on campus.”
But his two other friends, also IU faculty members, said they like the buffets served here. Their friends from Mexico said in Spanish, “We like it.” The girl from Paris also thought Chow Bar is much better than any Chinese restaurant she has tried in Paris.
Lucky Express and Dragon Express offer take-out food and sit-down dining. You can call in and pick up your order yourself. They put the food and sauce in a box or pan, so it’s very convenient for customers to take out. The dining décor is simpler than Chow Bar and Great Wall. But they don’t lack fans.
| "When I go to Chinese restaurants, I mostly want trad |
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