Unveiled: Crow's Nest News Report from April 12, 2019
Park University Men's Volleyball Team Heads to NAIA National Championship
The Park University men's volleyball team is set to compete in the inaugural NAIA Men's Volleyball National Championship, which takes place on April 16-20. The championship match is scheduled for Saturday, April 20, at 6 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN3.
The team has earned an at-large bid into the tournament, joining other top-tier universities such as Saint Thomas, Missouri Baptist, and Grand View University, among others. The tournament format includes pool play followed by elimination rounds, with the exact pool assignments announced before the event.
Park University will open pool play on Tuesday, April 16, against host No. 4 Grand View University at 7 p.m. On Wednesday, April 17, the team will take on No. 1 Missouri Baptist University at 4 p.m., and on Thursday, April 18, they will close out pool play against No. 8 seed Saint Xavier University (20-7) at 4 p.m.
If the team finishes first or second in their pool, they will advance to the tournament semifinals on Friday, April 19. The exact schedule and participating teams for the tournament have not been fully detailed, but the event is expected to take place in mid-2025.
Meanwhile, Park University has also made a mark in other areas. The university's speech and debate team finished fourth in the team sweepstakes at the Public Communication Speech and Debate League Nationals. Hailey Raw, a Park University sophomore majoring in U.S. history, won a pair of first place awards from the same competition, taking the Great Speeches category and the Table Topics category.
In the academic sphere, Blanche Sosland, Ph.D., professor emerita of education, has published a book titled Banishing Bullying Behavior: A Call to Action - From Early Childhood Through Senior Adulthood. Greg Claycomb, Ph.D., chair of the Department of Natural and Physical Sciences, and associate professor of chemistry, presented a poster and a paper at the American Chemical Society's national meeting and expo. Scott Hageman, associate dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and associate professor of geology, and Brian Hoffman Ph.D., professor of biology, presented research at a paleontology symposium session at the joint meeting of the Kansas Academy of Science and Kansas Entomological Society.
In the literary sphere, Jocelyn Clayton, a junior secondary education/English major, presented a short story "Straws" at the Sigma Tau Delta International Convention. Aimee Walton, a senior secondary education and English literature major, presented a short story "The Kiss" at the same event. Madelyne Hartleroad, a junior English major, presented a critical paper "A Good Prophet is Hard to Find" at the same convention. Brandi Handley, lecturer in English, and Stacey Kikendall, Ph.D., assistant professor of English, moderated two panels on "Southern Gothic" and "Fiction: Finding Themselves in Fiction" at the same convention.
Lastly, Brad Kleindl, Ph.D., professor of marketing, was a keynote speaker at the Pearl River Forum on International Education in Foshan, China, on March 22. Brad Kleindl, Ph.D., professor of marketing, and Kevin Vicker, senior director of international education, presented a roundtable presentation on accreditation processes and standards for the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs at the same forum.
The Park University men's volleyball team will aim to make history in the NAIA National Championship, while the university continues to excel in various academic, literary, and international endeavours.
The Park University men's volleyball team, amidst their pursuit of championship glory in the NAIA National Championship, finds parallels in the university's endeavors in education and self-development. These include the speech and debate team's success at public communication competitions, faculty members publishing pertinent research, and student achievements in literary presentations.
