UST News Feeds

Mallory Burnham, Christina Rozeske, Erika Tipp and Emily Van Heel placed fifth in the preliminary round of the women’s 4×100 meter relay with a time of 47.35 in the NCAA women’s track and field outdoor championship Thursday in La Crosse, Wis.

Van Heel and Tipp also competed with Kayla Goeman and Angela Tipp to place fourth in the preliminaries of the women’s 4×400 meter relay with a time of 3:46.

Angela Tipp takes off in a race at the MIAC championships. Tipp and her teammates placed fourth in the preliminary round of the NCAA championship 4x400 meter relay.

Taylor Berg, seeded fifth in the 1,500 meter preliminaries, placed fourth in the race with a time of 4:35. Berg’s season-best finish in the 1,500 meter race is 4:28.

Van Heel is seeded 20th in Saturday’s triple jump event.

Dunne and Yseth sit in top 15 in decathlon

After one day of the decathlon, Maxwell Dunne is currently in 11th place and Gavin Yseth is two spots below him in 13th after Thursday’s events in the NCAA men’s track and field outdoor championship.

Dunne finished in sixth place in the men’s long jump at 6.57 meters and Yseth finished in 14th place at 6.23 meters. Dunne finished second in the men’s shot put at 12.20 meters while Yseth finished third at 11.94 meters. They both finished tied for sixth in the men’s high jump at 1.83 meters.

Dunne ended the 100 meter dash in 10th place at 11.39 and Yseth finished in 18th place at 11.82.

Eyo Ekpo is seeded seventh in Saturday’s triple jump event and 14th in Friday’s high jump event while Cody Jerabek is seeded 16th in Friday’s 100 meter run with a season best finish of 10.71.

Kyle Jonas can be reached at jona7984@stthomas.edu.

Late last month, the head of Health and Education Associations for Autistic Children in Turkey, Fehmi Kaya, said autistic children do not have the ability to believe in God.

“Autistic children do not know believing in God because they do not have a section of faith in their brains. That is why they don’t know how to pray, how to believe in God. It is need to create awareness in these children through methods of therapy,” Kaya said, according to daily Milliyet, a Turkish newspaper.

To say Kaya’s statement was a personal dig to my family and thousands of others is an understatement. There are so many wonderful people I know who are autistic who do not fit his description at all. Someone in my family has autism, but that has never limited her spirituality. I was outraged.

Not only was the statement inaccurate, it was demeaning.

To Fehmi Kaya, I say this: don’t undermine the abilities of children with autism. Especially their spirituality, because what a person believes and how they live it out are personal choices. Autism doesn’t limit a child’s ability to make those choices.  

From what I’ve observed autism spectrum disorder looks different in every child or adult who lives with it, so it’s hard to detect and diagnose. According to myautism.org, most people think of “autistic disorder” when they hear the word autism.

“People with autistic disorder usually have significant language delays, social and communication challenges, and unusual behaviors and interests. Many people with autistic disorder also have intellectual disability,” according to myautism.org.

But like the name explains, it’s a spectrum disorder. This means that it can look different from person to person.

While those with autism might have learning disabilities, they are brilliant. In fact, the few people with autism who I’ve had the honor of knowing are the most intelligent people I’ve ever met. Based on personal experiences and conversations I’ve had with friends who know autistic individuals, they would agree.

These gifted people excel in ways I could never imagine. Autistic children remember things those who are not autistic let pass by. They might know every statistic about every football game a team has ever played, or the lyrics to that one song they heard once five years ago.

Autism does affect a person’s communication and social skills. Much of the world is black and white to them; rules were not meant to be broken. Those I’m blessed to know are incredibly fun to be around. They enjoy when others are happy and don’t like to see disappointment in anyone.

What I admire most in my family member with autism is her ability to have unconditional love for everyone she meets. While some people in her life have let her down, it’s never stopped her from loving them. For me, if someone lets me down or makes me feel small, I’m less likely to give them a second chance. But she is full of second chances. She inspires me to be more forgiving and is a testament to this world about what a good friend is.

Autism isn’t something to be cured or looked at as a negative. It comes with challenges that are unique to an individual, each of whom are incredibly bright and special in their own way. It brings me to tears thinking about how those with autism have impacted my life; affirming my faith in an awesome God.

Caroline Rode can be reached at rode8318@stthomas.edu.

As the class of 2013 prepares to graduate Saturday, seniors reflected on their four years at St. Thomas.

This year’s senior class saw St. Thomas’ St. Paul campus undergo many changes, including the construction of the Anderson Student Center and Anderson Athletic and Recreation Complex, the Rev. Dennis Dease’s retirement announcement and the election of Julie Sullivan to replace him.

Senior Trina Sturlaugson said St. Thomas hadn’t been on her radar in high school, but she decided to take a walk through campus, fell in love, and hasn’t looked back.

“It’s some of the greatest years of your life. People told me that when I went into college and I didn’t believe them,” Sturlaugson said. “Looking back, I wish I could stay here three more years.”

Senior Ahmed Aldhafeeri decided to learn English and enroll at St. Thomas after visiting his younger brother when he was in school here.

“People here are very welcoming,” Aldhafeeri said. “I feel like I belong to this university.”

When it comes to advice for current and future Tommies, senior Bobby Ranallo said joining clubs had the biggest impact on his time at St. Thomas.

“It’s made my experience here so completely different and it’s the only thing you really absolutely have to do,” Ranallo said.

New buildings can go up and presidents can step down, but senior Mike Orth said the true spirit of St. Thomas isn’t in the campus, but in the people.

“I think that’s what makes St. Thomas so great is the caliber of people that we have here,” Orth said.

Baihly Warfield can be reached at warf3860@stthomas.edu.