Sven Alskog
News Editor
Multiple events and changes occurred throughout the course of the 2013-2014 academic year at Idaho State University.
Prior to students returning for the fall semester, the Bengal tiger in front of Reed Gym was removed.
In August, new students and returnees alike invaded the campus, many of whom were welcomed in by the community at the annual CommUniversity Welcome Back Orange and Black event.
Whether or not to move the mural at the indoor entrance to Reed Gym was discussed, although nothing conclusive to fruition.
Also in Reed Gym, the pool fell victim to flooding due to a pipe collapsing into the drain, resulting in lengthy closures.
For ISU athletics, the fall semester marked a season of optimism with potential showing for s football and soccer, while volleyball had an outstanding season under Head Coach Chad Teichert, finishing 23-12 overall. Teichert’s squad also took the Big Sky Conference tournament championship prior to falling in the NCAA tournament to Hawaii.
When students returned from winter break, Pocatello had turned into a frozen tundra of sorts, with the brisk temperatures and snowfall creating solid conditions for winter sports enthusiasts.
Inside the gym, the ISU women’s basketball team took part in its best stretch of the season from Jan. 18 to Feb. 6, winning six of seven games. The Bengals fell to North Dakota in the Big Sky Conference tournament to end their season.
For the men’s basketball squad, much improvement was shown under second-year Head Coach Bill Evans, highlighted by a 78-75 victory on Feb. 17 over eventual NCAA tournament squad Weber State.
The spring semester also marked a time of accomplishment for other organizations and individuals on campus.
For the seventh year in a row, the ISU Society of Physics Students took home the Outstanding Chapter Award from the National Society of Physics Students and the American Physical Society.
The Pharmacy program received a grant from Idaho Power to help move forward with its community service initiatives Service Saturday, put on by the Student Activities Board (SAB) and the National Society of Collegiate Scholars (NSCS), continued to see increases in attendance.
Associated Students of Idaho State University (ASISU) President Matt Bloxham announced he would be running for the Idaho State Legislature in the upcoming election season.
Bloxham’s successor in 2014-2015 as ASISU president will be Kyle Son, who served as a College of Business senator this past year.
In athletics, ISU softball took home the regular season Big Sky Conference Championship behind outstanding performances from all members on the team, including newcomer Kacie Burnett and the veteran Bengal Vicky Galasso.
Outside of these accomplishments, further changes were introduced to ISU during the spring semester.
These include plans to give Martin Luther King Jr. Way a facelift, improvements to the Reed Gym interior and exterior components and the announcement of the upcoming removal of the “I” from Red Hill.
