Congratulations to all the new Undergrad Graduates

Congratulations to all the Masters Program Graduates

Congratulations to all the new Doctors of Chiropractic

Colton Cariaga is the only captain the Life University undergrad rugby team has ever known. He is a quiet leader and leads by example. He is completing his undergrad degree in business administration and will graduate with a bachelor’s degree in June, while simultaneously working on a Life Coaching certification. Following this season, he has one more year of eligibility to play college rugby. I was delighted to get to talk to him about his LIFE career so far.

“I am originally from Charlotte, N.C. When I was touring England playing on the USA National Under Nineteen Rugby Team, one of my coaches was actually coaching Life at the time. His name was Jason Payne and he encouraged me to come here. They worked out a little scholarship deal with me, and I was very flattered and excited to come to LIFE at that time.”

“I wasn’t too happy my first couple of quarters here, and I thought about leaving. But I decided to stick it out because I am not a quitter. After making that commitment, it seemed that I almost immediately became pretty good friends with Henry Hammond, my math professor. He is always looking after the students’ best interests and you can always just go into his office and he will talk to you like he has known you his whole life. That was a turning point in my enjoyment of my time here at LIFE and I really have not looked back since then.”

“In Summer quarter 2010, Coach Payne called me into his office. I had no idea what was coming. He said, ‘I like what I see in you, and the guys have a lot of respect for you. I want to ask if you would like to be the captain of our undergrad team.’ I jumped at it. I was like, ‘Yea…heck yea, I want to do this!’ I knew we all had a lot of big expectations for our team, and to be the first captain of the undergraduate team is something I really wanted to do.”

“Last year, we lost two games. We lost to our conference rival Arkansas State by two points. Then, in the playoffs, we got to travel out to San Francisco to play Cal-Berkley. They dealt us a pretty humbling defeat, beating us by 33 points. ‘Thirty-three’ became our motto for this season. We wrote it on the board and decided we had a year to close that gap. It is not so much about chasing someone else as it is more on us to get better. We are doing what it takes to improve and that is what the whole rugby program is all about. It is about constant improvement as a player and a person and I think that is the most important thing to take away from what our program is all about.”

“Being the captain of this team, I feel like I can ease up a little now, thanks to the success we have had. After winning the National Rugby Championship and Collegiate Rugby Championship qualifier in Las Vegas, I feel like the guys know how to win. They know what they need to do and how to treat their bodies. I don’t need to say much anymore. I do my part mostly just leading by example. The guys have been on top of it this year and they have been busting their butts, and it really makes my job a lot easier.”

“I have started taking life coaching classes and really enjoy it. I love my professors. I think they are very talented. My Intro to Coaching professor is Cherry Collier, the person who actually brought Life Coaching to Life University. I am excited about it, it is pretty intriguing stuff.”

“There are a lot of opportunities here at Life University and great people, too! That is what I really notice; there are a lot of good people here at this school, from the students to the professors to the staff who work here. Life University is a special place.”

The Movement for Chiropractic Quality and Integrity (MCQI) is a movement, not an organization, striving to unite the chiropractic profession and improve chiropractic education. MCQI has a vision of ending the in-fighting happening between “mixers and straights,” and to bring all chiropractors together under two basic core values, drugless and non-surgical. They believe doctors should have flexibility and freedom to utilize whichever techniques or specialties each chiropractor feels is in the best interest of their patients. The only stipulation is that they do not utilize drugs or surgery.

Arno Burnier, DC and Steve Tullius, DC are leading the fight. When asked about their uphill battle to unite this profession and do something that no other organization in the history of chiropractic could accomplish, Arno replied, “We are not battling, we are marching. With battling there is resistance, with marching we march over things. We are forging a path to peace to resolve this 100 year old civil war.”

MCQI also has a mission to improve chiropractic education. They believe the education students are receiving today is overloaded with unnecessary medical classes and does not place enough emphasis on techniques and entrepreneurship.

“MCQI has drafted a visionary curriculum and has asked for input, revision, and improvement. It is a vitalistic curriculum. We would like to see all the courses [in chiropractic program curricula] related to the philosophy and principles,” Arno said.

They are working toward reforming the National Boards and restructuring of the chiropractic curriculum around the world. According to the MCQI website, the organization feels that, “Students hold the power to choose, influence and control the chiropractic education they deserve. Students are the ones paying tuition, accruing debts from student loans and actually paying the faculty, staff, administrators and presidents of the colleges.”

In the interview, Arno restated that, “The students are the power, they are the revolution and evolution.” Revolution and unity have historically started on college campuses around the world. If there is going to be a change, it is going to have to take place on chiropractic campuses. The profession has been unable to come together for many years, but it is the new generation of chiropractic students who have seen their predecessors implode the profession. The time is now and the place is here to start the new profession. The MCQI needs students to support it by getting involved, interacting with each other and reaching out to doctors in the field to get their patients involved. The first step is for everyone to go to MCQI.org website and register. Then be sure to scroll down and sign the CCE petition to encourage reform of the Council of Chiropractic Education.

On the MCQI website people can interact with others in the open forum pages. They can use the resources offered on the website to get questions answered, as well as to find the latest news on the progress and growth of the profession.

Students can go to their own Facebook pages to post their opinions about the CCE and make comments on the MCQI Facebook page. According to Arno, “The CCE [urgent massive complaint campaign] Facebook page is like a crowd in the street; it’s nice when you have a lot of students in the crowd on the street voicing their opinions. I feel that many students have been shy to post on those various forums. They need to keep the awareness by participating on the various forums on Facebook.”

As it says on their website, “The MCQI community is made up of volunteers around the globe, promoting chiropractic as a separate and distinct life, health and well-being profession.”  It is a subluxation-centered movement rooted in the philosophy, art and science of Chiropractic. Join them today in uniting this incredible profession.  Get every person you know to register. Their goal is to bring together one million people for the quality and integrity of chiropracTIC. Won’t you help the world today? Go to http://www.mcqi.org to register. Also, ‘like’ their Facebook page and ask everyone you know to join us in this legendary march.

After months of buildup and preparation, LIFE Rugby took to the field in Philedelphia to compete in the College Rugby 7s Championship. Alongside them were big names in rugby including Penn State, Dartmouth, Maryland, and Cal Berkley, just to name a few. 16 teams would face off in 32 matches, all in an attempt to win this championship. If LIFE walked away with the win, they would be the first team in history to win the “Triple Crown” in college rugby 7s.  The first challenge LIFE faced was Penn State, beating them 19-17 with the final try coming seconds after the game had technically ended (one of the many things that sets rugby apart from other sports). Next came Temple, who showed to be an easier win for LIFE as the Running Eagles walked away with a 33-7 win. Last up on the first day of competition came Wisconsin, who LIFE defeated with a final score of 36-12.

LIFE fans and supporters filled the stands, all wearing matching t-shirts and making their presence known! Over the years, LIFE rugby supporters have transformed from just a handful of loyal fans in the bleachers in Marietta to hundreds of faithful fans that traveled all the way to Philadelphia to support their school. Alumni from all over joined in as well, as did several faculty and administrators from LIFE. While LIFE may not be a big name school, compared to the others in the competition, they are well known for their fierce rugby play on the field. Many of the athletes from other schools, when interviewed by NBC commentators, commented on LIFEs performances and how they are really one of the teams to watch. Arizona’s star player, Peter Tiberio, commented that LIFE would bring their most fierce competition and it would take all they had in order to defeat them.

A few of the amazing LIFE U Fans in Philly

Rugby 7s is a face paced game with two seven minute halves. In normal rugby, the teams have 15 players facing off against each other. In 7s, you have seven players who are covering the same field of play, which is approximately 10 meters longer and roughly 20 meters wider than a standard football field. According to Diffen.com “Rugby is best described as a blend of the contact of American football, the running of soccer, and the transition of basketball.” Rugby 7s is a game of stamina and speed, with quick turnovers and quick scores.

The second day of competition started out fierce. LIFE first faced off with a 12-5 win against Delaware, setting LIFE up for the Quarterfinals. The commentators on NBC had great things to say about LIFE, often stating that LIFE was the favorite to win and discussing what an upset it would be to Dartmouth and Cal Berkley, both of which are rugby power houses.  Our lesser known school next would face Arizona, who would prove to be the fiercest competition they’d faced so far. LIFE simply could not keep up with the speed and team work that Arizona and Tiberio would provide. After falling behind in the opening minutes, LIFE simply could not come back, although they made a hard push at the end but fell short. Ultimately, they succumbed to Arizona 19-12.

Cal Berkley faced off against Dartmouth, last year’s championship team, with Dartmouth taking the win, placing Cal Berkley and LIFE to face off for the 3^rd place spot. Cal Berkley, however, proved to be too much for LIFE to handle and walked away with a 26-7 win. LIFE fought hard to gain possession and up until the final play, LIFE wasn’t about to give up, walking away in the 4^th place position. Darmouth took 1^st  place for the 2^nd year in a row, defeating Arizona in a VERY physical, emotional game, taking out several players for Arizona in the process due to injury.

A great tribute to the school, its fans and its players was a statement found on Facebook by a Philadelphia native who works at Philadelphia University in their Financial Aid. He stated “Went from never hearing of Life University to becoming a fan. What a great group of people and such ardent supporters of their Rugby team. Their passion rivals that of any major program. In two days, every person I met from this school just north of Atlanta, GA in Marietta was so pleasant and really made working seem like I was at a good friend’s party.” While LIFE may have not walked away with the title, this tournament really put LIFE on the map!

Congratulations to Dan Payne, Tui Osborne and all the LIFE rugby players! You’ve had a great season and we are all proud to be called LIFE RUNNING EAGLES!!!

As LIFE’s sport program continues to grow, with the ultimate goal of having 12 sports programs offered by the year 2015, the next step along the way is the addition of a men’s wrestling program. According to Coach Barrett “Offering intercollegiate sports in every season is a goal of ours. We want student engagement and excitement all year long.” With this new addition, Life will have intercollegiate rugby, women’s volleyball and cross country in the fall and basketball in the fall and wrestling in the winter.

Currently LIFE has an intramural program consisting of seven sports and allows any student on campus to be involved with a minimum time commitment.  The club sports program includes rugby, tennis, hockey, cycling, tennis and some others. Club sports require a little more commitment and are more competitive in nature. It’s a great starting point for ChiroGames. With the addition of these new intercollegiate teams, including women’s cross country and volleyball, LIFE is truly showing its commitment to its athletes.

Wrestling competitions will begin in the winter 2012-2013 quarter. If you think you believe you have eligibility left and are interested in learning more about the upcoming wrestling season or trying out for the team, check out the Athletics page at http://www.liferunningeagles.com/ or contact the Athletics Department at Athletics@life.edu

As I look back at the five years I’ve spent on the campus of Life University, I’m still amazed at the changes that have taken place, the beauty of this campus and the opportunities I’ve experienced. As I walked across the catwalk a few weeks back after finishing up a meeting with Coach Barrett, I caught myself getting emotional that soon I won’t have meetings with executives, lunches with friends or drinks after a long hard day. At the same time, I won’t have midterms or finals to study for, long ten-hour days of classes or hoops to jump through.

My time at LIFE has been extraordinary! When I joined the campus in the spring of 2007, I had a goal to leave the school better than I found it. What that meant, I didn’t know, but I quickly found places to get involved and make a difference.

We each have the same experiences here at LIFE and I challenge you to embrace it. While you may have an issue with a teacher, it is how you deal with it inside you that makes the difference. Just about everyone on this campus will experience a failure in a Dr. Fox or Dr. Rigby class, difficulty scheduling physicals in clinic, missed appointments, and disappointments of many types. You WILL continue to see your tuition go up, your parking spots be difficult to obtain and your financial aid messed with. It is how you choose to view each of these experiences that will dictate your experience at LIFE. When you become the victim, believing the school is only out to make money or to harm its students in some way, your experience will be a difficult, unpleasant one. If you choose to view it as a learning and growing experience, choosing to find a way to better yourself in the process, you will grow and thrive on the campus and become a person of true influence.

I’ve heard many of my peers say I’m too quick to justify the actions of the school or that I need to stop being such a big cheerleader. It’s not that I have agreed with every decision made, and in fact, MANY have infuriated me to my core, but in understanding these actions were not taken out of spite but were made with a bigger picture and goal in mind, I was able to dig deeper to find the true meaning behind the decision that was made. As I’ve now taken all four parts of National Boards, I’ve been able to realize the reason classes are offered in the order they are and why teachers have remained in place despite their apparent high failure rates of students. I’ve come to see that getting angry about my failures is more revealing of my character. It was in understanding it was my inability to accurately and completely understand a concept, that I failed a test or a class, not the teacher’s inability (necessarily) to teach it. And I say this after ‘successfully’ having failed about six classes as well as 12^th quarter OSCE. While 20 students may fail a given class, 80 would pass it. The 80 likely won’t see the teacher as the ‘bad teacher’ the 20 who failed did. It was the same class, same teacher, same experience, but different outcome. It is our job while here to find out why we get the outcomes we do. It’s our job to become the best student, doctor and educator we can!

I encourage you to change your outlook and experience LIFE in all its fullness! Get involved in the opportunities offered on this campus. If you aren’t happy about the direction of the school or your education, get involved in student council, the curriculum or clinic committees or Vital Source, Student Ambassadors or PLI where students are working with administration to make a difference. I heard a recent graduate state that he didn’t enjoy his experience while at LIFE and it would seem he was a former ‘disgruntled student’ but when digging deeper into the conversation, it wasn’t the school he didn’t enjoy but the fact that he didn’t do more while here. He wasn’t incredibly involved and didn’t experience all that he could have while here. There are more clubs now than ever, more intramural and club sports, more sporting events to attend and more chance to be a leader. Embrace LIFE and this journey and create your story while you are here. We have a big mission and goal before us. It’s a noble calling and one that will likely have many challenges along the way. Learn to handle the challenges, disappointments, and frustrations while you are here so that when you graduate and join the ranks within the profession you are best capable of being the doctor you wish to be. I wish you all the best in the remainder of your schooling and pray you will come to value your time here in the same way that I have!

As a third quarter DC student, I consider myself “new” to the DC program.  As a mother of three and someone who has worked in the corporate world and as a volunteer for several large organizations, the time I spend in classes and taking exams is relatively less stressful to me than raising children or coordinating events for large groups of people.   However, there is still some pressure to perform and a fear of failure to overcome.  As an undergraduate student, I had my share of failures. I probably set the record for taking and failing calculus, ultimately changing my major so I wouldn’t have to suffer through it a fourth time.  But despite the fact that I have had a little experience with failing, my first failure here at Life was emotional yet defining.

 My experiences with failure in the DC program have been on a small scale – a Gross Anatomy lab midterm, a Mo-Pal mini-practical and an Instrumentation lab practical. But I managed to redouble my efforts and pass all the classes I’ve taken.  However, even these small experiences of failure were intense for me, and I realize that they have produced more substantial personal growth and enhanced my commitment to the DC program more than the classes where I’ve been successful.  I started to ask other students what failure has meant to them.
At an average of $800 per class, failure is not only detrimental to the ego, it’s expensive.  Among the students I interviewed for this article, most wished to remain anonymous.  Though every class has its share of failures, some classes have a reputation for being difficult to pass.  Particularly the diagnosis and radiology classes came up again and again as a challenge to pass the first time.   Nathan Potter, 12^th quarter DC student, came to Life from a background in film.  “I was an artist.  Thinking ‘scientifically’ was a challenge for me.”  Despite this obstacle and taking each gross anatomy class twice, Potter found he passed the National Board exams with ease.  What was once as difficult to understand as a foreign language is now clear and familiar to him.  Like Potter, many of the students I spoke to have been able to overcome their failures, and have gone on to pass Boards and OSCE’s and, ultimately, to become great chiropractors.
The most important question that successful failers have to ask themselves is, “What is causing me to fail?” In my case, it was a lack of study skills.  Recalling information for a practical exam is very different from playing multiple guess on a written test.  I misjudged how much time and repetition it would take to do these tests well.  For other students, often life (not just LIFE) got in the way of their studies.  A family emergency, a stressful relationship or just a true lack of background in the subject contributed to their failure.  Do most students blame the instructor? Not usually. Most of the students I interviewed realized it was their failure, not the failure of the instructor.  In cases where the instructor was truly at fault, I found the teacher had usually been subsequently fired or reassigned.
Jonathan Via, DC, graduated from Life University in 2010.  He began his journey to his DC in 2001, first as an undergrad, then in the DC program.  He was at Life both prior to and following the accreditation issues and got to witness many changes in the school.  He began the DC program in the Fall of 2006, with the first class to start under the new curriculum.  During his school career, he had many opportunities to learn from his failures and believes they were a valuable part of his education. As a member of Delta Sigma Chi and president of the Chiropractic Philosophy club on campus, Dr. Via was very grounded in philosophy and felt like he was pursuing a calling, much more than just becoming a doctor.  After failing Spinal Anatomy, Dr. Via referred to his favorite ‘green book’ The Bigness of the Fellow Within and used the mantra he found in its pages, “I can. I will. I must!” to guide him.  Even when struggling with taking soft tissue radiology classes multiple times, once failing to pass a second time with a grade of 69.5, Dr. Via took it all in stride and believed that everything happened for a reason. He saw his failures as just pointing out the fact he was not ready, yet, to be a doctor.  Now, eighteen months into his practice in Pullman, WA, he is 50% of the way to achieving his initial practice goals, which he considers remarkable for a small business owner just starting out.   “School is a great preparation for practice. The failures help keep you humble. In practice, you need humility. It’s not about us.”  Dr. Via encourages students to appreciate the program for what it is and to realize that you will need to become a small business owner, community leader and volunteer to be successful in practice. All of these things take time and commitment, even when “life” gets in the way.

Experiencing failures during school, even though they may seem overwhelming and expensive at the time, might be the most valuable part of your education.  Dr. Via says, “All the successes in the world were one step away from being a failure. When you fail, you’re almost there.”
For me, failing was like the Universe asking me “Are you sure?”  I realized that even though I had completed the prerequisites, moved 600 miles from my family and completed the first quarter of the program, I still wasn’t fully committed to being here. On some level, staying was still optional.   Failing showed me that I needed to be fully present and completely committed to becoming a Chiropractor.
Have you failed a class or two? Has it made you question your commitment and your choice? Are you afraid to fail?  Of course, you’d rather not fail, but if you do, ask yourself what you’ve learned and how it can help you reach your goal.

Beginning in the summer quarter, new dress code changes, developed and recommended by the Student Council’s Clinic Committee, will be implemented in the clinic system at LIFE. While most of the changes to the dress code may be minor, one change that continues to concern me involves Vibram’s 5 Finger shoes.  The CC-HOP (a.k.a the student clinic) banned them several quarters ago. However, the C-HOP (a.k.a. the outpatient clinic) had continued to allow them, as long as they were the more conservative styles of black or brown. According to the new rule, this type of footwear will no longer be acceptable in either clinic, despite their reputedly beneficial proprioceptive and postural effects on the body.  In my opinion, this is a mistake. According to the testimonials of individuals who have worn Vibrams, including myself, many report a large decrease in their low back complaints. As a chiropractic student, this is what I strive to do on a daily basis – reduce my patients’ pain complaints, realign their spines and bring them into optimal health. When I began wearing Vibram 5 Finger shoes, I began to notice that all the pain in my L4/L5 area was greatly diminished. As long as I wear my Vibrams, I am pain free. As soon as I begin to wear other shoes, I start to slowly notice the return of the pain in this area, ultimately leading to an antalgic posture to try to reduce the additional stress being placed on these vertebrae.
As chiropractors, we pursue an understanding of how posture affects our body and overall health. Thus, when we consider the importance of the biomechanics of the foot, it is easy to see how by simply allowing our feet the freedom to function as they were created to function, we could effect changes throughout our bodies. When we have a dropped arch, for instance, it can have an effect on the ankles, the knees, and ultimately into the hips and spine. Within these two feet are 52 bones, 66 joints, 40 muscles, ligaments, tendons and hundreds of proprioceptive and sensory receptors. The thousands of neurological receptors within the foot continually send important information to the brain regarding the type of surface the body is walking on, which signals alternative muscles to fire in response. According to Vibram’s website, “Actively stimulating these receptors improves balance, increases circulation, and enhances overall foot health. There are more bones in the feet than any other area of the human body with the exception of the hands. When our feet are confined in shoes, it’s as if we are placing them in casts. The toes, which are designed to evenly disperse the weight and force of our body and help us balance, are placed tightly together and not allowed the freedom of movement they were designed for. Eventually our toes lose their ability to move individually as the tiny muscles weaken and potentially atrophy. The muscles and ligaments that hold the arch up are so used to being supported by the arch of a shoe that without the shoe on our foot, the arch drops and results in flat feet

A foot in a normal shoe. Notice the angulation of the 1st metatarsal
as well as the position of the 5th. This leads to altered biomechanics through the
whole body and into the low back and spine.

Feet in Vibrams, showing a much more proper alingment of the toes.

As students, we are taught the importance of proper foot kinematics and the importance of adjusting and taping dropped arches to help offer support, but we continue to encourage shoes with ‘arch support’ instead of understanding the importance of creating and maintaining the health of our arches on our own, independent of the shoe’s support. Vibrams encourage the creation of proper foot biomechanics and arch development. Because the shoe does not have a strong arch support, it preserves the natural demands on

the musculature within the foot, allowing the body to strengthen the arch without additional support of a shoe or tape. New research is currently suggesting the importance of not putting young infants in ‘walking shoes’ as our mothers did to us. Not wearing shoes allows children just learning to walk to feel the floor underneath their feet, helping them to establish better balance as proper gait cycles and proprioception develop.¹ The reasoning is that a minimalist shoe will continue this process in the adult foot, as well.
Postural compensations are unavoidable while wearing shoes that elevate the heels and most shoes do this to an extent. Even ‘flats’ and men’s shoes have a heel on them and most tennis shoes have a thick pad in t

he back, again elevating the heel. These postural compensations and distortions are necessary to maintain balance when the heel is elevated off of the ground and the body weight pushed forward from the center of gravity. It’s part of the reason why, when we do postural analysis, some chiropractors have their patients to take off their shoes, as having shoes on will alter our findings. Chronic use of a heel often results in some degree of kyphosis in the lumbars and lordosis in the thoracics, thus leading to additional pain in the low- and mid-back.
While we, as students, understand the importance of maintaining a professional look in clinic, we also understand the importance of proper postural alignment throughout the body. We understand that being barefoot is the best option, but due to hygiene and safety issues, being barefoot in public is not acceptable. Those who have worn Vibrams in the clinic have found them to be a great teaching tool for our patients.
It is ironic that high heels are considered acceptable in clinic and but students are no longer allowed to wear shoes that improve our posture and benefit our body’s biomechanics.

The horrible positioning of a shoe in high heels. Notice the pressure and  put on the metatarsals.

1. Rossi WA, Children’s footwear: launching site for adult foot ills. Podiatry management 2002; 83-100.

The League of Chiropractic Women (LCW) began when fourteen women came together with an idea for a group that will empower women leaders in the chiropractic profession, elevate them into leadership roles, and provide a place for women to have a voice in what’s going on in chiropractic. The women met at the elegant Chateau Elan in late March and it was here that the group put everything into action by adopting a mission statement and electing officers.

The purpose of the LCW is to “intentionally develop, empower, and grow a community and a legacy of powerful and innovative women leaders in loving service for Chiropractic.” Most importantly, the mission of LCW is that “we commit to serve the vitalistic principles of chiropractic as a subluxation focused and drugless profession.” Any woman living by this philosophy is encouraged to join, including students, doctors, wives, CA’s, and teachers. One of the group founders, Sharon Gorman, points out, “We are called chiropractic women because we include all women of chiropractic, not just women chiropractors.” Although the group’s membership is ‘females only,’ certain events will include men. The group values and appreciates the lengths men have taken the profession thus far, but women need more of a voice in what’s going on in chiropractic.

The group had a luncheon early this quarter in Atlanta and 27 women turned out for the event. On July 27-28 the inaugural event will be held at the Atlanta Marriott Northwest at the Galleria. Some of the topics to be covered will include: How to define and create a unique practice, CA skills, keeping our life balances, personal finances, maintaining a chiropractic lifestyle in the ‘real world,’ spreading the big idea, and more. The event will also provide chiropractic women with the opportunity to network and develop new relationships. It will inspire women, look for and provide solutions to their concerns and help women to truly understand what it means to be a ‘woman in chiropractic.’ Barbara Lo Fisher, Sharon Gorman, Jeanne Ohm, and Selena Sigafoose Jackson are just a few of the empowering women who will take the stage, and awards will be given out to some chiropractic women warriors. Students can visit www.lcwomen.com and register under the DC2B for $20 and that will cover the remainder of time while in school and all seminars, including the inaugural event.

Chiropractic schools following a vitalistic philosophy, including Life University, have their own chapters of the LCW. The advisor for the Life University chapter is Cynthia Boyd, and the group leader is Ashley Staple. “We provide a network of support for mothers, daughters, wives, girlfriends, CA’s, etc.,” explained Staple. “Everything we do is to prepare women to be confident and competent forces in the profession. We are active in chiropractic philosophy, politics, and technique. We will be hosting Focus philosophy events, birthing classes, office tours, and different technique seminars to expose members to a variety of options for practice.” There will be an information meeting about the club Thursday evening of club day next quarter, so keep an eye out for flyers.

For more information on the group or the inaugural event visit www.lcwomen.com.

Corporate is detrimental to school’s progress

Katherine McCarty, DC Student

Starbucks. Say the word and already mouths begin to water, so thirsty for that addictive drug we all know as coffee. Some can even smell if from a distance, following with our nose as if a siren were seducing us towards it. I have even been pulled into the waters for an ice cold Mocha Frappuccino! So what will happen to us all when a Starbucks is put into our Plato II Go?

I appreciate the Starbucks franchise for its delectable drinks and treats, but I do not think it belongs at Life University. Just on a title basis, how can a school of philosophy and art move from a to-go shop called Plato II Go, a name derived from a renowned philosopher, to Starbucks, a company whose marketing has been put in place to overcharge us for coffee. Even if the area will still technically be called Plato II Go, would it not be a lie if from within it a commercialized company became the (caffeine-accelerated) beating heart of our café? I see a movement here that does not sit well with my sense of the wholeness and vitality that seems to vibrate from the walls of this university. If a change must occur within Plato II Go, then shouldn’t it be toward the very lifestyle that we are taught to follow? A change toward fruit and vegetable smoothies, for example?

To put the biggest name in over-priced coffee marketing into our school is not going to give the school what it needs. Nor do we need to be spending close to five dollars for a coffee drink. In the academic scene, coffee drinks are sought after to stay awake and keep minds focused for late night studying. On that note, Starbucks would be a good idea, but not great. I do not think our school should go down the path of supporting more coffee for the health of our minds, but rather find other suitable means to create drinks that could be scientifically healthy for our study habits. That, at least would go more with the philosophy of our school.

Do not misunderstand me. If a Starbucks is put in the café of our school, you will see me in line for it. I do not argue that Starbucks should be eradicated from this planet, but rather our school should be progressive in its philosophy, and not just satisfy the popular addiction to coffee.

I was recently invited to speak to the Better Half of Life group on campus about the techniques I use to feed my family (mostly) organic and natural foods on a limited student budget.  As an at-home mom on a modest income, I decided early on that organic and natural foods were going to be a priority. Over the years, I found resources and developed habits that helped us feed our family of five, (sometimes six, when we had an exchange student living with us– a teenager no less!) organically for about the same price as other families spent on their conventional foods.

“No one plans to fail, they only fail to plan.”  If you keep finding that your grocery budget has been blown by week three, this is probably the case.  In my experience, the first principle of eating healthy and economically is planning. If you went into your favorite restaurant and they didn’t hand you a menu, ordering would probably be a frustrating experience and the place wouldn’t last long. Without a menu and a plan, a restaurant couldn’t manage its expenses and provide a quality experience for its guests. Neither can you. Here are some rules to live by, if you’d like to eat healthy and stay within a budget.

Rule #1 – Always start with a (meal) plan, and always shop with a ‘shopping list’

Meal planning can be a challenge, especially when you want to ensure that you’re getting enough variety in your foods, but not buying expensive ingredients you’ll only use once. (Why do I have that plum sauce in my cabinet?) Many online meal-planning services provide weekly menus complete with recipes and a shopping list.  Each week you only need to scan your pantry and cross off anything you already have on hand, then go to the store and buy only what is on your list.  Just having a list and sticking to it will immediately save you money, since modern grocery stores are scientifically set up to encourage impulse buys and to lure you into purchasing expensive convenience foods.

Since my goal was always whole foods in the most natural state possible, I liked the menus I find on Savingdinner.com, (and also in the book of the same name by Leanne Ely) or on cookingtf.com (the ‘tf’ stands for ‘traditional foods’).  Both sites provide recipes that are simple and don’t use ingredients that come from packages.  Savingdinner.com has a variety of options from vegetarian menus to menus that avoid certain allergens, which are sized for two, four or six people.  The menus are mailed to you on Sunday of each week and include six recipes the shopping list for six main courses, and suggestions for sides and dessert.  Cookingtf.com sends a similar plan, with recipes based on the book Traditional Nutrition by Sally Fallon. The author includes reminders to soak the grains or start fermenting carrots that are in the plan for that week. Cookingtf.com’s menus are also gluten- and casein-free. Both sites pay attention to seasonal eating, (Savingdinner.com even has menus tailored for subscribers in Australia!) and rotate the recipes so you don’t get bored.  Using a service like this gives you great variety in your meals, but the recipes use similar ingredients. Once you’ve been using the service for several months, you’ll start to notice you are shopping for less because your pantry is stocked. Prices for these menus are minimal and once you’ve subscribed for six months to a year, you can probably reuse them for several years without getting bored.

Rule #2 – Buy direct and buy in bulk, whenever possible

I purchase most of my natural groceries directly from the distributor through a buying club.  In a buying club, members pool their time and talents to essentially run a co-operative store that is only open once or twice per month.  In my buying club, we worked collectively to order items by the case, meet the truck, sort the order and do the accounting.  Buying this way gives you access to special pricing, helps you build a community of people who care about their food, allows you to get your fresh food at its freshest, and saves you money by keeping you out of a store designed to stimulate you into buying things you don’t really need.  It also allows you to buy in bulk, which saves on packaging, lowers prices and gives you the opportunity to stock up on pantry items at good prices. UNFI (www.unitedbuyingclubs.com), the country’s largest natural foods distributor, offers buying clubs in the Marietta area, but I was unable to find a working produce co-op. I did find a produce distributor that welcomes buying clubs, so if there is interest on campus, it would be possible to get one started.

Rule #3 – Grow it yourself or buy it locally, freeze it, then cook it slowly

When you find a sale, stock your freezer. The book “Frozen Assets” by Deborah Taylor-Hough is a great resource for learning how to use your freezer, and how to cook your meals ahead and save them for a busy day.  If you are a meat-eater, buying local, grass-fed meats in bulk is the most economical way to eat ‘clean’ meat.  Vineyard Farms delivers beef and other farm-raised products to LIFE on Fridays. Get details at vineyardfarms.blogspot.com/.  One of the best ways for a busy student to come home to a hot meal is to use a crock-pot. Most slow cooker recipes just require you to toss everything in and leave it on low for most of the day.  Check out crockpot365.blogspot.com for a ton of great ideas.

Finally, you might want to check out the LIFE ‘support group’ for these challenges. It is the Better Half of Life Club, and it is open to the spouses and significant others of all LIFE students. The purpose of the club is to create friendships and provide support to those whose loved ones are going through any of the grueling and time-consuming programs at Life University. Find us on Facebook!

There is a little known area on the LIFE campus where most students have never set foot, and, I suspect a large percentage don’t even know exists. It is a very special part of the school where the people “in the know” bond and thrive and thoroughly enjoy the anonymity and peacefulness of their educational oasis. The Sports Health Science (SHS) department is its own little tribe within the LIFE community.

Though at first it may seem secluded, actually there are many paths to this haven. It is easily accessible to all, and nearly every student has been within twenty-four steps of this sparkling jewel and never realized it. The SHS department is located in the building at the end of the footbridge, which is also home to the gymnasiums. It is located on the lower level through the wooden door located next to the elevator. Upon first entering the department, students and visitors are greeted by the wonderfully caring and personable Miss Martha. The SHS department is home to two undergraduate degree and five Masters degree programs. This fall will be the first quarter they will be offering a Masters degree in athletic training. They are currently taking applications with limited space due to it being a new program.

The SHS department’s undergraduate degree in health coaching is focused on exercise, nutrition and psychology classes. The exercise science degree offers a wide variety of interactive classes within a well-rounded curriculum, including classes in biomechanics, sports nutrition, anatomy and physiology, exercise principles, kinesiology, a research class and two exercise science classes in addition to the core classes. There are lab classes that help students get hands-on experience. The SHS lab, located adjacent to the Student Services offices, has a plethora of equipment to train students. Students are trained in EKG testing, VO₂ max testing, and various strength tests. They are trained to measure body mass indexes and learn how to take vital signs. There are also labs in the Wellness Center to learn proper exercise techniques.

The department is lead by the highly driven and always nurturing Dr. Catherine Faust. Her leadership and passion for educating students is the inspirational force that drives the SHS department to the standards of excellence they have set. She is motivated to teach students at a high level, so they may leave the University with an exceptional level of competence and skill. She believes every graduate is a reflection on the University and she is dedicated to making sure the reflection is one that sparkles.

The SHS department stresses the importance of professor-student interaction. Dr. Faust says, ‘I know each and every one of my students. There is that one-on-one interaction. Real bonding takes place. We can figure out what their needs are and develop a career or degree plan that will help them realize their career goals.”

The SHS department has a fully engaged, dedicated staff of professors, who are student-centered. They’re a close knit group of educators with a wide variety of backgrounds and personalities, all with a common goal of sharing their knowledge with students, so that they can go out into the world and educate people to live healthier lives.

One of the things that draws the SHS faculty together is that they all come from athletic backgrounds in one form or another. While in college, Dr. Faust was a five-time Division-1 All-American distance runner. Dr. Lander, who teaches biomechanics, as well as some Masters classes, was a division 1-A track and field athlete at Oregon University. Dr. Rupp was a gymnast and long jumper in his days at Slippery Rock University. Dr. Rau ran track here at Life College, while Professor Lim played water polo on the Malaysian National team and was Swimmer of the Year in Malaysia. Mrs. Timberlake is an avid heath proponent, leading by example, walking two or three miles per day and stressing the importance of nutrition. James Paul has life experiences owning his own athletic training business that specialized in working with athletes. Speaking on behalf of all of the professors, Dr. Rau says, “We enjoy what we do and we are all experts at what we teach.”

The SHS department is a wonderful place, filled with wonderful people who care. It has a computer lab and three classrooms on the lower level located in the hallway near the racquetball courts. (Yes, we have racquetball courts! Two of them, actually!!) If you are unsure about which program to get an undergraduate degree in, I suggest you take a walk over the river or through the woods to the Sports Health Science department. You may find the educational gold you are seeking.

Grande double caramel Frappuccino – no whip. Venti white chocolate Mocha. Decaf double tall, non-fat, extra-dry Cappuccino. Quad venti, skinny with whip, iced caramel Macchiato.  Starbucks has a language all its own, but one that true Starbucks fanatics know and speak fluently.

With the upcoming change-over in management for the Socrates Café also comes the possibility of a licensed Starbucks in Plato II Go. While many may question the school putting a Strabucks franchise in our café, it should be noted that Allmora Culinary, the new management company, is a licensed Starbucks franchise, having already set up Starbucks coffee shops in many of its locations. The creation of a Starbucks is part of what they offer, alongside their culinary expertise.
This new location on LIFE’s campus will be a fully operating Starbucks, complete with baskets of coffee beans, yogurt parfait, RAW bars, pastries, biscotti, Protein Bistro Boxes and Izze drinks. Currently, students are leaving campus to run to the nearest Starbucks (which is just off Windy Hill) just for their dose of caffeine. They are stopping on the way to school for their morning wake-up cup and a quick breakfast, then scrounging to find parking. Now, students will have the option of avoiding the crazy drive thru and get their morning Latte right here on campus, possibly leading to an easier time parking and a better chance of making it to class on time. And while doing this, students will be supporting the school and keeping the money on this campus, instead of Windy Hill Starbucks or Cobb Parkway Starbucks.
 As LIFE moves forward in creating this new venture on campus, Liz McGarey, General Manager for Allmora Culinary has stated that every single employee who works in the Socrates Café Starbucks will have undergone thorough Starbucks training. That means no more waiting while the one person who can make your specialty coffee request is tracked down or brought from Socrates to serve you. And no more trying to get your coffee from that little Starbucks vending machine, only to find out, after you have already swiped your card, that it doesn’t work and you are still without your kick of caffeine. Liz stated that she is open to considering longer hours, including possible weekend hours, for Plato II Go, if the need is there.
The name Plato II Go will not change. However you will see the Starbucks logo, as well. The new Starbucks location should open on July 9, the same day as the new Socrates management.

Just over two years ago, Life University joined forces with Bon Appetite in an attempt to create a cafeteria that would provide healthy food at reasonable prices in a sustainable way. Bon Appetite’s motto was “Food service for a sustainable future.” It boasted high quality food that was made from scratch (as much as possible). It seemed like such a great fit. Over the last two years, however, the Café has seen many challenges from students, as well as multiple changes in management, menu, pricing and service hours. Students often complained of increasing prices with decreasing portion sizes, limited food options and poor customer service. Students began leaving campus or bringing their own lunches, rather than utilizing the Café for their meals.
On May 22, 2012, Dr. Tim Gross, Vice President for Administrative Services, announced that Life and Bon Appetite had agreed to part ways and that Life was partnering with Allmora Culinary Services. He stated that Allmora would be taking over operation of the Socrates Café and all catering functions, as well as all vending machines and concessions, on LIFE’s campus. Gross stated, “We are confident in the quality, commitment to service and overall abilities of our new partner, and look forward to a productive, creative and innovative relationship.”  Allmora currently boasts over 300 locations across the state of Georgia, including several large accounts such as Georgia Highlands College, Georgia Tech and Emory, as well as several corporate accounts including Delta Airlines. Recently, Allmora catered the luncheon for the new terminal opening at Hartsfield Jackson airport, and currently they are the only culinary service allowed on the tarmac.
In trying to understand the unique challenges of meeting the demands of LIFE’s students, the question came up about gluten-free options and paleo-dietary specific choices. Head chef “Chef Bruce” had never heard of the paleo-diet concept, so he went home to investigate. In researching it, he decided to become a “Green Chef” and is now paleo-diet certified. This is just one example of the commitment and dedication that Allmora is bringing to LIFE.  They believe that in order to gain and keep customers, they need to continue to find ways to offer new and exciting options.
General manager Liz McGarey says that her philosophy is simple – “Cook what they want and deliver what they want.” She states that consistency in both food quality and level of service are vitally important in maintaining customer satisfaction.

Some things that students can look forward to when the new company takes over on July 9 is more gluten-free options, perhaps a once-a-week all-gluten-free meal day, larger (and cheaper) pizzas that will easily feed two people, and a licensed Starbucks Coffee Shop in Plato II Go. Also, there will no longer be a shut down period between breakfast and lunch, and hours will be expanded to open earlier in the morning, and to stay open later in the afternoon and evening. The University is also exploring the possibility of weekend hours for Plato II Go, and the idea of meal plan options for students.
General manager McGarey also says that she is a big fan of give-aways, and that this is a large part of her promotional style. In the past, she has given away free meals, big screen TVs, and gift baskets to her loyal customers. Another option that is currently being investigated is the use of the Nutrition Exhibition Kitchen in coordination with the Nutrition Department to provide gourmet-cooking demos. The recipes will be simple to make, and use with simple ingredients, to help demonstrate that high quality healthy cooking doesn’t have to be difficult.
With this new company, the potential for the Socrates Café is unlimited, including the possibility of soft serve ice cream. (Attention Brett Kubricht, get ready to rally the troops and start the fundraising, because it’s not a cheap set up, but they are very open to the idea!!)
At the end of the announcement, Cynthia Lund, Administrative Services, thanked Bon Appetite for its service to the University, saying that Bon Appetite has been very gracious during this transition and that Denise Gilbert, Bon Appetite’s manager of the Socrates Cafe, has been great to work with.
Vital Source would like to take this opportunity to welcome Allmora to our campus. We look forward to great things ahead.
Have a comment about the Socrates Café? We’d love to hear it.  Email us at submissions.vs@life.edu or find us on Facebook at Vital Source Newspaper.

Ron Sweeney, DC Student

Recently, during my work with the WCCS, I had the opportunity to become familiar with the newly renamed International Federation of Chiropractors and Organizations (IFCO). The IFCO is an international organization of chiropractors, students and others who support the practice of chiropractic for the purpose of correcting vertebral subluxations because subluxations, in and of themselves, are a detriment to the fullest expression of life in all people at all times. Founded in 1979 as the Federation of Straight Chiropractic Organizations, the IFCO recently changed its name to reflect the international growth of chiropractic, and avoid confusion with translations of the term “straight,” which does not necessarily have the same connotation in all circles. While this new name may cause some to question whether it represents an “organizational shift,” Dr. Bill Decken, chair of the IFCO Board of Directors, and head of the philosophy department at Sherman College of Chiropractic (which also recently dropped the term “straight” from its name), ensures us that the IFCO’s actions and vision have always been and will remain congruent with the principles of chiropractic. “The mission of the IFCO is to support and advance chiropractic that is exclusive for the location, analysis, and correction of vertebral subluxation because vertebral subluxation, in and of itself, is a detriment to the fullest expression of life. Our ultimate goal is to ensure the future of chiropractic as a separate and distinct profession, to secure and insure public access to vertebral subluxation correction. We shall accomplish this by uniting and supporting chiropractors and organizations who share the IFCO mission through professional, legislative, educational and personal growth endeavors.”

In an interview with IFCO board member Dr. Liam Schübel, DC, after his address to the assembled student delegates of the first annual Americas region summit for the World Congress of Chiropractic Students (WCCS), Dr. Schübel elaborated his vision for student representation within the IFCO. “There’s been a rebirth of the IFCO. It’s the fastest growing international organization on the planet right now, and what we’re seeing is a lot of students are joining up with the IFCO. We’re in the initial phases of developing a more complete student experience as it relates to the IFCO. I would like to see eventually, in part of our global summits, that we actually have—just like the WCCS—student leaders from all over the world who are involved with the IFCO coming together in unison, united around the principle.”
Membership in the IFCO is open to anyone interested in the mission and purpose of the Federation. Student membership costs a one-time fee of $50 and covers the student through the entirety of their time in school, plus their first year in practice. Student members have no voting rights and may not hold office, but may receive special student publications, attend IFCO events at a discount, and gain access to a library of information at discounted prices. A mentoring program is also available to students and new graduates, pairing them up with doctors of chiropractic who are successfully applying the principles of chiropractic in their practices.
Dr. Schübel went on to say, “…unity behind principles—that’s what distinguishes the IFCO from most other organizations on the planet. We’re actually focused on the promotion and the protection. Many organizations are focused just on the protection, and when you focus just on protection and you’re just in defense, you’re always in a reactionary mode; rather than bringing the fight to the battlefield, you’re always in the defense mode. Bruce Lipton has a saying, ‘A cell in defense can’t grow.’ Just like a successful sports team has defense and an offense, we have very brilliant minds involved in defense. I wake up every day in the morning and say, ‘Thank God for Christopher Kent and Matt McCoy.’ These two minds are some of the most brilliant in chiropractic, some of the most politically savvy minds in chiropractic. They’re involved in some of the change we’re bringing about in the IFCO.”

In describing one aspect of the IFCO’s mission, Dr. Schübel joked, “We’re the first organization to divide the United States into fifty different states! We have a systemized process that we’re working to get an IFCO member on every state board in the United States, every provincial board in Canada, and every single regulatory board… in the world. The reason for this, new graduates, is that one of the first things you’ll notice as you go into your community, your town in the United States or Canada, is that if you start becoming very successful—which you will if you understand the principles of chiropractic and how to apply them—you will be called up before the state board. Other chiropractors will rat you out to the state board and make up things [like] ‘You’re practicing unethically; how could you see so many people and give quality care?’—that age-old, but ridiculous argument. What you would like to see is a smiling face from the IFCO on that state board when you go before it, because the IFCO does not practice “business protectionism,” based on the idea of scarcity. We’re the only profession that says ‘There’s too many chiropractors!’ at 50,000; the dentists have 142,000 dentists and say they’re in a crisis because they don’t have enough dentists to take care of all the people in the United States. Are there more people with teeth than with spines? 50,000 chiropractors is not enough. If you understand, really, what chiropractic is all about, that every person with a spine and a life force should be under chiropractic care, then you understand that we desperately need more chiropractors. What we don’t need are more chiropractors who have no clue as to what chiropractic is about; what we don’t need are more people who only focus on the diagnosis and treatment of disease through more natural methods. That market is definitely shrinking. That’s when you’re going to see an economically-driven shift in the profession. The system of musculoskeletal diagnosis and treatment of disease that we’ve been using and teaching in the schools is no longer viable for the modern-day practice of chiropractic. It’s ironic, because the educational process we’re receiving in school would have been very popular in the 1980s and 1990s, but today, it’s a system that is failing the graduates of schools.” Schübel went on further, stating, “We just need to fail badly enough in the current paradigm before people starting looking for the answer.”
In addition to political involvement, the IFCO has been heavily involved in the reform of the educational processes and standards of the Council on Chiropractic Education. The IFCO seeks to help the CCE outline an education that is adequate and will produce competent practitioners of chiropractic and chiropractors that understand the power of what it is they hold in their hands, that ability to unleash the potential of every human being on the planet. Regrettably, that message is not being taught in every chiropractic school, and is part of the reason the IFCO would like to increase student involvement and representation through the formation of campus chapters. For more information on the IFCO, please visit http://www.ifcochiro.org, and if you have any interest in forming a chapter at Life University, please get in touch with me, Ron Sweeny at ifco.life@gmail.com.

Like most colleges and universities, Life has a program in place to assist first year students in sharpening their skills in the areas of goal setting, time management and student finances.  The program is required for graduation in both the undergraduate and DC programs and is a non-credit course. So essentially, it is provided to students for free.  The program has been in place for several years and was implemented based on the recommendations of a student retention committee.  The committee found that students who were not successful in the programs at Life University were generally lacking in the areas FYEX addresses.

In the undergraduate program, FYEX is implemented as a one hour per week class and seems to get better reviews than its DC counterpart, which is implemented in an online discussion format.  Marc Schneider, D.C., Vice President of Student Services, recalls that the decision was made to implement the program in an online format to avoid adding more “seat time” to an already demanding program.  The program has been implemented rather smoothly in the DC program for the past few years, but recently, it has come under much criticism from DC students and many have sought to be excused from the requirement. Students can opt out of the requirement with the permission of the Dean of their college.  Each Dean sets the parameters for the exception, which usually involves the student showing they have received a college degree in the last five years or have demonstrated proficiency in the areas covered through work experience.

Dr. Schneider notes the program has had some staff changes that have prevented it from being reviewed for several quarters. However, the program is now under review, as is most of the DC curriculum, and changes and suggestions will go through the usual process to be considered. He also notes that the federal government is planning to require financial counseling for anyone accepting financial aid.  The FYEX program includes areas that would be required.  So Life University is ahead of the mandate and would not require an entirely new program to be developed. Dr. Schneider encourages all students with an opinion about the program to use the evaluation process and give constructive and specific feedback on the program.

DC students generally complain that the program is a waste of time and that students who are successful enough to get into the DC program probably already have the skills covered in FYEX.  The age and experience of students in the DC program varies widely and it is not surprising that a program like FYEX is a challenge to make meaningful for everyone.  A DC student might be a twenty-something with limited college experience or an older student with a life experience ranging from raising children and managing a household to managing a multi-national corporation to having completed other professional programs, such as law school or med school.  For students with this life experience, FYEX feels like a waste of time and a distraction from their studies. Steve Sisk, a sixth quarter DC student commented, “The main reason it was ineffective (for me) is that it attempted to mandate/standardize initiatives for personal growth that can only come from an individual’s own drive and desire. It’s annoying to have an overly simplistic program foisted upon us, particularly when we’re already bombarded with a huge volume of curriculum material.”  This comment seemed to echo the sentiment of many DC students concerning the FYEX requirement. Recently, a student-initiated petition was circulated requesting the program be discontinued because it is not being implemented according to the stated purpose in the syllabus.

Should the program continue? And if so, what could make it more acceptable to students and provide a better value?  Many students commented that they found the Rights and Responsibilities seminar useful and valuable to their education.  Perhaps designing FYEX into a seminar format that would expose students to dynamic speakers and successful chiropractors talking about the basics would give more meaning to the subjects of time management, study habits and financial responsibility.  Relating how these habits will translate into practice success may have more of an impact on DC students and turn the program into something viewed as a valuable part of the education. Other formats, such as using Open Space, World Café or other Transformative Large Group Conversation methods might give students an opportunity to focus their time on the issues where they need help, versus being put through the paces in areas they may have already mastered.  The online format is expedient, but an in-person program where a true “master mind” could be developed, and where students could develop relationships with fellow students, faculty and field doctors and be held accountable for their goals and commitments might be more beneficial in the long run.

We all share a common vision at Life University, yet the journeys we take to bring us together can be varied and diverse. This actually serves to enhance our studies here at LIFE, as we each bring fresh ideas and perspectives to the LIFE community. Sharing these journeys can inspire us and remind us of why we opted, at a point in the past, to choose Life University, and in the case of these two students, chiropractic. Recently, Vital Source writers Tania Demiray and Brandi Whitehouse caught up with chiropractic students Anthony Umina and Marissa Johnson, whose story is one of love and dancing.

VS: Where are you two from?
Anthony: I’m from LA, but I moved here from San Diego.
Marissa: I was born and raised in San Diego.  We came to Atlanta together.

VS: How did you meet?
M: My director saw Anthony dance and asked him to move down to San Diego to co-direct a dance team with her.  We then started a dance team together.   After two years, it didn’t seem like we could go further in dance as our full time profession.  This is when we decided to pursue a new dream.

VS: Why did you choose chiropractic?

A: Dance has been fulfilling, but I felt that with chiropractic I could reach out to many more people and empower them.  Two of my uncles and an aunt are Chiropractors, so I knew a little bit about the profession.  I’ve always been fascinated with human anatomy.

M:  I was undecided.  I knew I wanted to go back to school but I didn’t know what for.  Then I heard about Life Leadership and New Beginnings.  This is what inspired me to become a Chiropractor.

VS: Are you in the undergraduate program or DC program?

A/M: We are both in the pre-DC program.

VS: Is dancing still a part of your life?
M:  We have re-launched dance teams here in Atlanta, and we do private dance instruction.

VS: What is your vision for the future?

A: We want to implement chiropractic into dance and travel, and practice and settle in southern California.

M: There are only a couple things in life that I have known for sure, one is dance and I found God, which changed my life and how I feel about everything. We came here and I know this is what I am supposed to do.

If any students are interested in dance lessons with Marissa and Anthony, student discounts are available for private lessons.  Please contact the newspaper for more information.

How many times have you told a friend at home about your experiences at Life University? Have you referred someone from your alma mater to Life to study Chiropractic? Would you like to practice your public speaking skills while advancing Life University? Would you like to help spread chiropractic across the world?

Well, there is a new student organization on campus with a simple purpose: to spread knowledge of Life University and chiropractic across the globe. This organization, Student LIFEforce, is a student centered group based on LIFEforce 1000.

LIFEforce 1000 is a group of 1,000 chiropractors who believe a tribe of committed people can make the difference in helping Life University spread principled chiropractic and lasting purpose around the world. They will not stop until there is worldwide access to chiropractic and a chiropractic education to anyone wanting it. Why are they doing this? Because there are only 68,000 chiropractors in the United States, (compared to 1.1 million medical doctors.) Worldwide it’s even more dramatic. The European Union has 700 million people, but there are less than 5,000 DCs. China is home to 1.3 billion people, yet only about 20 chiropractors.

Students who become part of the organization have an enormous opportunity to make an impact on prospective students. As a participant in the organization, a student will attend a Student Recruitment Event (SRE) training presented by the staff of Enrollment Management. This gives students the skills and knowledge to host SRE’s at colleges, high schools, and other venues to recruit students for enrollment at our institution.

Michael Schmidt, a sixth quarter student, performed his first SRE over the break at his alma mater, Binghamton University. He describes his experience as extremely fulfilling, “Being able to serve as a representative of what a lot of pre-health students were looking for but unable to find.” Traveling, meeting prospective students, and exclusive networking opportunities with LIFEforce 1000 doctors are just a few of the many reasons to join the Student LIFEforce.

The club meets Monday evenings at 6 pm during weeks 5,7, and 9 this quarter in room B140 . Week 3 we will have a special presentation by Dr Riekeman October 17^th in room B112. For more information, please contact Student LIFEforce President, Andrea Smith asmith2437@student.life.edu.

According to the researchers from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), obesity is the epidemic of our time. Several factors contribute to the rise in obesity: genetic factors, dietary intake, and exercise activity. However, a lot of the focus is on inappropriate food intake – in other words “portion sizes” – perhaps because it is something we can control. The effect of over-consuming calories and more than doubled portion sizes is directly related to the rise in obesity.  In a study published by Healthy People 2010, there are 72 million obese adults in the United States. In 2010, more than 60 % of the nation was overweight, and this study estimated that if the current trend continues, then 50 % of the population would be obese by 2023.

Obesity is also on the top ten causes of death in the US based on Healthy People 2010 and 2020. This is due to obesity being linked to diseases like cardiovascular disease, type-2 diabetes, hypertension, cancer, sleep apnea and other respiratory problems, and osteoarthritis (CDC).  On the other hand, for someone who struggles with weight, it can be very difficult to know how much to eat, since restaurants tend to over-serve us.

Below are tips to follow when eating out or dining in. It is easy to determine your position size using six easy portion measurement tricks.

The first one is that your fist or cupped hand equals approximately 1 cup. (A serving size of cereal, cooked pasta or rice, or raw vegetables or fruits is approximately 1/2 cup.)

The second “rule of thumb” is that a dollop the size of your thumb is approximately equal to 1 teaspoon of high fat foods like peanut butter.

Another good “thumb rule” is that a thumb-sized chunk is about 1 oz. cheese.

The fourth approximation: 1 “tennis ball” of fruit = 1 serving.

The fifth is that a chunk about the size of the palm of your hand is around 3 oz. of meat.

The sixth helpful hint is that a handful (1 to 2 oz.) of a good, wholesome snack food (nuts or dried fruits) makes a good portion.

Adapted fromNorth CarolinaSNAC

Just by following these steps, you can drastically change your diet and affect your weight. Avoid over-sizing at fast food restaurants and “all you can eat” places.  Developing healthy eating habits includes knowing the correct portions of foods we should eat. This can make the difference between someone who diets and someone who makes healthy changes.

Oh, the Places You’ll Go….
Chiropractic can take you places you’ve never dreamed
Mike Hollerbach, DC Student

Eighth quarter student Ron Sweeney reflects on his time here while living life to the fullest. He is currently in student clinic and is a stunning example of living a life passionately with the goal of improving tens of thousands of lives through chiropractic. He is a leader in many aspects. He is currently the president of the World Congress of Chiropractic Students on campus and has been involved in numerous club,s including student council and Innate Enterprise. Ron is a committed believer in “straight chiropractic” and plans to focus his future practice on upper-cervical techniques.
If you had told me before I came to Life that I would travel the world because of being a chiropractic student, I never would have believed you. Granted, I grew up as a military brat, so I’ve seen my share of the world. And having lived in Germany and Japan, I’d already crossed Europe and Asia off my “Bucket list” of visiting all the continents.
So many things happened last year. 2011 was a big year, and let me tell you why. As you may or may not know, it started off with a bang—some called it the “Snowpocalypse,” others preferred “Snowmageddon.” Whatever you decided to call that laughable two inches of snow, Life canceled the entire first week of school, effectively turning our three-week break into four weeks. I don’t know what everyone else did with their extended break, but I took up Robert Love’s invitation to go skiing with a group of friends in West Virginia, and that first road trip set the tone for my year. Two weeks later, I was in New Jersey at New Beginnings, a life-changing seminar where I met Dr. Chris Taylor, one of Centro Quiropráctico Schübel’s “Chiropractic world domination masterminds.” His moving presentation on the substantial need for chiropractic in Central and South America inspired me to go on my first mission trip. By the end of January, I had already committed to going to Brazil for two weeks, as I had been selected to represent Life University at the World Congress of Chiropractic Students in Rio de Janeiro, (the mission trip was conveniently scheduled the week leading up to that Congress, so how could I not go?)
With my year already off to such a spectacular start, I had to keep the momentum up. About a month later, I hit the road once again with Robert Love and crew. This time, our destination was the ICA Symposium on Natural Fitness and Sports, held in Columbus, Ohio. In addition to getting to meet ICA president, Gary Walsemann, I had the opportunity to get pictures taken with celebrity chiropractic advocates Lou Ferrigno and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Surprisingly, those road trips paled in comparison to what lay in store for me in April.
Rio de Janeiro is stunningly beautiful. Majestic mountains climb right out of the ocean and brightly colored houses scramble high up onto the cliffs. But for all its picturesque scenery, there is a huge disparity between the haves and have-nots. The touristy resort hotel where I would experience my first World Congress of Chiropractic Students session bore a stark contrast to the favelas (slums) where our mission trip was serving the residents. Interestingly enough, the same can be said for the different aspects of chiropractic. In school, we learn a lot about textbook scenarios and diagnostic protocol, but our patient interactions can be very choreographed. This is particularly true in student clinic, where many patients have been handed off between interns quarter in and quarter out, and have become more or less “professional patients.” Being able to take part in a community’s first experience with chiropractic is an amazingly powerful moment. Also powerful, but in a much different way, was seeing the product of chiropractic education from schools around the world in the form of the international delegates we met at WCCS.
It’s my opinion that everyone should go on a mission trip at least once while they’re in school – ideally, beginning a habit of going once a year. The United States has the most chiropractors of any country in the world, and it’s an awfully big world. Make friends around the globe and start your own team of chiropractic world domination masterminds.
Because of my decision to become a chiropractor, I’ve been able to talk the tic while drinking from a coconut as waves crashed on a moonlit beach, ride a tandem bicycle across the Golden Gate Bridge, shake hands with the Governator, and make a fool of myself in front of hundreds of strangers while under hypnosis – and those are just last year’s highlights. This year, I won’t be doing quite as much traveling, but San Francisco and Australia are coming soon, with plans for South Africa next spring. Ultimately, you can’t wait until after you graduate to start living. While all the effort you put into your schooling is incredibly important, don’t forget to add experiences outside the classroom to your time at LIFE. Don’t neglect lowercase life. And as BJ Palmer said, “We never know how far-reaching something we may think, say, or do today will affect the lives of millions tomorrow.”

Life rugby will be live and nationwide on June 2 and 3, participating in the Collegiate Seven’s Championship just outside of Philadelphia. Sixteen teams will play thirty eight matches to decide one champion. The biggest schools in the country have been invited to play, Texas, Notre Dame, Penn State and Florida, just to name a few. Life is the only team who earned their way into the tournament by winning the Las Vegas Invitational tournament in February.
The championship takes place at PPL Park in suburban Chester, Pa. PPL Park will be filled with 18,500 college students from all across the country, who will all be cheering on their schools. One unique aspect to the stadium is the four party decks that will be rocking with excitement throughout the weekend. There will also be a live concert taking place at the stadium, with the band to be announced soon.
“This is a great opportunity to put Life University out there to the nation and promote chiropractic all around America,” said Life University player and DC student Paul Bester.
UG student-athlete Glen Maricelli added, “We are all excited to get the Life University name out there and show the country what Life University is all about. We appreciate all the support from the students, faculty and administration.”
Life University is hoping to make a big showing at the event. The school set a goal of 1,000 fans at the event, with hopes of being the loudest and most enthusiastic fans in the stadium. Being live on national television will give the school some great notoriety. Never before in the history of the school has it stepped onto this level of a national sports stage.
The school has put together four great packages for those that want to be a part of the action. All packages can be purchased by going to the main page of the Life website, http://www.life.edu. There is a Student Package that includes tickets to the games, hotel, and three team t-shirts all for $115. The team shirts look similar to the jerseys the team will be wearing. Everyone will be told prior to the tournament which color shirt to wear to each particular game. The team will be sporting three newly designed stylish and cool jerseys. The objective is to wear the same colors as the players so our school stands out in the crowd and on television.
The Veteran Package is $100. This includes tickets to the games, three team shirts and a two-day pass to the awesome party deck. The party deck is a special area of the stadium for those who want to mingle and enjoy the game in a more raucous area. PPL Park has four different party decks located throughout the stadium.
If you want to go full out, you can choose the MVP package which includes tickets to the games, three team shirts, a dri-fit replica jersey, a party at the team hotel the night before the tournament and a two-day pass to the party deck. If finances are an issue but you still want to be in the game, the Rookie Package is the least expensive. It includes tickets to all of the games and three t-shirts for only $65.
If students want to load up their friends in the car and go on a road trip, it’s about a twelve-hour drive to Philly. If you’re interested in flying, Air Tran, Delta and, US Airways have direct flights. The school has reserved twenty-five rooms at the Econo Lodge in Lester, Pa. If you do not want to drive once you arrive in Philly, the Econo Lodge is offering free shuttles to and from the games. So, this may be a place where you want to reserve a room.
NBC is very excited about televising the sport of Rugby Seven’s. It’s a fast paced, non-stop action game less than twenty minutes in duration, which is perfect for the attention deficit television audiences of America. When asked about NBC’s interest in collegiate rugby, Jon Miller, head of programming for NBC Sports and Versus, said “Rugby Sevens first came on our radar a few years ago when it, along with golf, was admitted as a new sport into the Olympics. We started looking into it, and we realized what an incredibly fast-paced, exciting sport it was, one that people in this country really didn’t know about.”
The entire rugby program is working hard to bring home a championship. Undergrad player Cam Dolan adds, “We are excited, but our first goal is finishing out the 15’s season as strong as possible, although we really can’t wait to be on national TV and make our school proud.”
This is a huge event for this institution and the students. Please, step up and get together with your friends, get involved and go to Philly for the weekend and enjoy the festivities. Eat some Philly cheesesteak or hoagies. Go visit the Liberty Bell. Run the Art Museum steps like Rocky. It is going to be unlike any other event this school has ever seen. It’s the end of week nine. Blow off some steam, have a great time supporting our boys and come back ready to slam the door shut on the last two weeks of classes. This may be the one weekend you look back on years from now and say, “Wow! I was there and it was awesome!” Don’t miss it. As Jim Rome would say, “It is going to be epic.”

Talk the ‘TIC is coming. To some, those few words are enough to cause sweaty palms, nervous twitches, and butterflies in stomachs. Sadly, to many, it means absolutely nothing. What is Talk the ‘TIC, you ask? Simply put, it’s a contest showing how well you really understand and communicate chiropractic. Arguably, participation in this contest is just as important, if not more so, than sitting for your National Board exams. How can that be, you ask? Talk the ‘TIC forces you, the participant, to take a good, hard look at yourself and ask the question, “How’s your health talk?”
Talk the ‘TIC was first conceptualized by Dr. Erik Van Slooten in November, 2006, following an incredibly vivid dream. He dreamt a student was on stage, passionately sharing the principles of chiropractic with an audience of thousands. Even though he was only a student himself at the time, Van Slooten recognized this dream for what it was—a call to action. He knew that he and his fellow students could rekindle the understanding of the importance of the chiropractic lay-lecture. As he pored over ways to bring students together, he came up with the idea of a health-talk competition. And thus, Talk the ’TIC was born. I believe Dr. Van Slooten says it best—“Talk the ‘TIC is a beautiful story. It’s a story of dreaming, believing, creating, organizing, and delivering. It is the story of a student, a chiropractic brotherhood, a student body, and a multitude of institutions. Indeed, it is a story that is being woven in to the fabric of the chiropractic profession, perpetuating a conversation that joins together students and practitioners, associations and organizations, past and future generations.”
Over the last five years, Dr. Van Slooten has worked tirelessly alongside his brothers in ΔΣΧ (Delta Sigma Chi, chiropractic’s oldest professional fraternity) to share this competition with every school that wants it. Currently, approximately 15 chiropractic schools around the world participate in Talk the ’TIC on an annual basis. Last year, nine schools participated, with each sending a finalist to Parker University in Dallas, Texas. Among the nine was Life University’s Mackenzie Hubert, who represented Life with passion and verve, but was beaten out by Julia Pinkerton of Life College of Chiropractic West, Magalie Lefevre of Palmer College of Chiropractic Iowa, and Derrell Pratt-Blackburn of Parker University. In addition to the accolades of victory, the top three contestants took home cash prizes: $500, $1000, and $2000 for third, second, and first places, respectively.
Following the registration and informational meeting, scheduled for May 15, the competition consists of three rounds of single-elimination presentations, carefully graded by a panel of judges. Successful participants move on to the next round, before one finalist from our school will be chosen to represent Life University at the grand finals, this time being hosted by Life College of Chiropractic West in Hayward, California August 3-4. The schedule for the events is as follows:
Informational meeting & Express Registration — May 15-11am C125
1^st Round — May 23, 7:30pm
2^nd Round — May 24, 7:30pm
Local Final — June 2, 8:00pm-Ampitheater
National Finals — August 3-4
Event coordinator Ben Rubinstein has successfully reached an agreement with the administration to have the local presentations take place on campus. Not only does this make it more convenient for students to participate, but it provides the rest of the student body with the opportunity to watch their colleagues hone their craft. Please contact Ben Rubinstein for more information, using the Facebook group “Talk the ‘TIC 2012”. In the meantime, sketch out your ideas, get started on your PowerPoint or Prezi presentations, and get ready to bring your A game!

On April 16, 2012, the Village Retreat sponsored a presentation on 5 Keys to Eliminating Stress.  The ideas for eliminating stress were presented by members of the B.E.S.T. Club.  B.E.S.T. stands for Bio-Energetic Synchronization Technique and is a non-force technique for addressing the neuro-emotional causes of dis-ease.  Rob Wood (DC, 3^rd quarter), a Resident Advisor at the Village Retreat, planned the event.  “Being a student is stressful and it is great to have as many tools as possible for dealing with the day-to-day experiences we have here.  I enjoy B.E.S.T. treatments and have gained a lot from attending B.E.S.T. Club. I was glad to be able to sponsor the presentation for our residents.”

About 20 residents of the Village Retreat attended the presentation.  Carla Gibson (DC, 3^rd quarter), a B.E.S.T. club member who is certified in the technique, started off by showing the participants how to recognize when their body was experiencing stress by noticing “defense physiology.”  The first key to eliminating stress is to take the body out of defense physiology and cue the nervous system that it is safe to go into “rest and digest” mode.  Participants were advised to “lower your shoulders.”  When the body senses a threat, it will naturally elevate the shoulders to allow for deeper but shallower inhalation that is needed when running away from a predator.  By lowering your shoulders, the body gets the signal that only normal respiration is necessary and starts signaling other stress physiology to relax.  Carla also explained the “Six Essentials for Health” – what you EAT, DRINK and BREATH, how you EXERCISE and REST and what you THINK.  A brief description of why each of these is essential was given and club member Ginni Gross (DC, 3^rd quarter) explained to the group how to use Rhythmic Breathing to further relax defense physiology.  Club member Daren McKean (DC, 6^th quarter) demonstrated the Empower March, a simple exercise developed by Dr. Morter to update the nervous system to present time consciousness and relieve stress.  The fifth key to eliminating stress was presented as getting treated with B.E.S.T., along with getting regular chiropractic adjustments.

Two audience members agreed to have the technique demonstrated on them.  Mandy Ming, an undergraduate student, had been suffering from low back pain on and off for the last few weeks.  Her range of motion when touching her toes was evaluated and was found to be much less than expected, since Mandy told the group she is very athletic.  Carla explained how the body has a “priority of healing” and that the body would decide what was most important to address once the B.E.S.T. treatment had been performed.  B.E.S.T. uses kinesiology and a series of questions to find an emotion, breathing pattern, eye position and interference number, and then the practitioner uses a light touch at various points on the cranium to allow the nervous system to update with the new input.  After finding several patterns in Mandy’s body, her range of motion was reevaluated and found to be much improved and she reported her pain to be alleviated.   Next, John Shalvey (DC, 3^rd quarter) asked if he could be a subject for demonstration.  He explained that he’d had some pain in his shoulders for many years resulting from an injury and also that he had been having some imbalance in his lower extremities for the past few months.  His range of motion was also recorded and Carla proceeded to find some interference relating to a stress or recurring thought that he had been giving a lot of attention to recently.  After Carla took a few contacts and re-patterned the way John was thinking about this stress, she re=evaluated John and found his ROM and balance were remarkably improved.  The next day, John reported, “I was feeling so good that I went to our local track and ran a workout of 6x880yds, the first of which was my fastest time in over 15 years!”
The evening ended with club members providing B.E.S.T. treatments for all those in attendance.

If you would like to know more about B.E.S.T., the Club meets Mondays at 11am in C-152.  The patient tools, such as the Empower March, are taught along with the basics of patient evaluation and B.E.S.T. balancing.  If your club would be interested in presenting to the residents at the Village Retreat, contact a Resident Advisor.

Five Keys to Eliminating Stress from the B.E.S.T. Club at Life University

• Lower your shoulders
• Practice Rhythmic Breathing
• Learn the Empower March
• Obey the Six Essentials for Health
• Get B.E.S.T. and chiropractic care regularly

The idea of chiropractic and medicine bestows upon healthcare a synergistic effect. Combined, their interactions lead to breakthroughs–literally through adhesions–but more metaphorically through a barrier of ideology. Some would say they should remain separate, while others consider their forces combined would equal a sum greater than their individual parts. Manipulation under anesthesia is a growing avenue which incorporates the two professions, one in which targets the everyday demand of relief and optimal health.

Dr. Scott Bertrand, D.C. works with a team of pain management professional who include anesthesiologists, medical doctors and many chiropractors around the United States. “Manipulation Under Anesthesia or MUA is an advanced procedure designed to optimize the ranges of motion in adhered or “frozen” joints,” Dr. Bertrand stated. He states that an MUA patient is defined as a patient who exhibits a restricted range of motion in any joint. This patient has failed to respond to a traditional regimen of six to eight weeks of conservative medical or chiropractic treatment. Adhesions create a large concern when it comes to physical movements of a person’s everyday lifestyle. They can develop in a matter of days following acute traumas, and if treated insufficiently, can lead to permanent restrictions.

A diagnosis of restrictions is determined during examination by reduced active and passive ranges of motion, and while the hope is that traditional therapy could reverse these restrictions, advanced methods such as MUA have been shown to break adhesions efficiently and painlessly. In other words, there is no longer conscious protective muscle guarding by the patient.  When the patient is in this relaxed state the restricted joint is taken through a series of painless maneuvers which releases any restrictive scar tissue.

Before MUA can even be considered for a person, they must be cleared by a medical doctor. Bertrand states that it is imperative that a series of diagnostic studies be performed to rule out any contraindication to the MUA procedure.  These studies include plain film x-rays, a recent MRI, bone density scans, and blood work. Once the patient has been cleared, MUA can be safely preformed.

How exactly is MUA performed?

The MUA procedure utilizes a series of specific maneuvers designed to release the joint from any restrictions that may have been caused by intra-articular or peri-articluar adhesions.  Dr. Bertrand states that this is accomplished by gently stretching the musculature of the involved joint while the patient is in a state of monitored sedation. “These maneuvers take into consideration the actions of all the musculature that either originates or terminates in or around the involved articulation,” states Bertrand.

While the practice of MUA has opinions both for and against it, the results speak for themselves. When MUA is performed in a surgical setting, followed by physical therapy to maintain recovery and minimize new adhesion development, a 70-90% recovery rate has been verified. MUA is beginning to grow nationwide, with its roots deep here in the Atlanta area with several doctors working within a surgical facility in southwest Atlanta.
As future chiropractors, we expect nothing in our careers than to serve others. While manipulating under drugs seems to some an unusual practice for chiropractors, sometimes it is the only pathway for people to experience optimal health and relief, which is, after all, what we strive to serve. Dr. Bertrand strongly feels, “If any joint on anybody is to be mobilized in any setting, shouldn’t chiropractors, as the joint mobilization experts, become the doctors of choice?”
I have been fortunate enough with my acquaintance of Dr. Bertrand to witness a session of an MUA procedure, and have seen the profound effects of it. Not only can the patient move his/her extremities with normal ranges of motion again, but I have been told by the patients that they have had a life changing experience. For further information, please visit the website at http://www.MUAhealth.com.

It’s not hard to find great Southern food inAtlantaand South City Kitchen (SCK) is no exception. With Southern staples like fried green tomatoes, chicken and waffles, and shrimp and grits, there’s no need to visit your local IHOP or Denny’s. SCK has two locations, one in Midtown the other in Smynings, as the locals call it. Since the Vinings location is in closer proximity to school, we chose to venture there.

My female companion is a chicken and waffles enthusiast. Since SCK is also notorious for their fried chicken, she had to indulge and was not disappointed. Our next excursion will be to Gladys Knight and Ron Winan’s Chicken and Waffles to discern who has the better blend of these two southern staples.

I was dying to try the fried green tomatoes with goat cheese, sweet pepper coulis and basil. I’m a pancake fan myself and had the buttermilk pancakes with whipped butter and sugar cane maple syrup. With a heavy dose of cornbread and biscuits prior to your meal, expect to take some home for later.

Some other interesting options to try are the Southern-style eggs Benedict (beef brisket, English muffin, pickled jalapenos with Creole mustard hollandaise) or the crab cakes Benedict.

SCK also has Southern dinner options like that famous buttermilk fried chicken with collard greens, or pan-roasted catfish withMississippicomeback sauce. Banana pudding and bread pudding are just some of the dessert options.

If you need an eye opener after a long Saturday night, try the Preach it!, a mix of 12-year-old Elijah Craig Bourbon, Sweetwater 420 and ginger ale, or sit back with a Low Country iced tea. Take yourself back to the 1920’sHavanabar scene with Ernest Hemingway’s favorite drink, the Papa Doble, a mixture of rum, Luxardo Maraschino, fresh grapefruit, simple syrup and fresh lime juice. Local, craft and standard beers are available with an extensive wine list. SCK is not just for knocking back mimosas before noon; it’s kid friendly, too. Kids are welcome for brunch with all menu items at $6.95 and kids eat free Sunday – Thursdays from 5 to 6pm at the Vinings location.

SCK Vinings is open for brunch, on Sundays only, from 10am to 3pm and closed for lunch. They open for dinner at 5pm every day. The Midtown location is open for lunch daily and brunch on Saturday and Sundays from 11 to 3:30pm with dinner starting at 5pm. Expect to spend about $20 per person for brunch, not including alcohol. To get to the Vinings location from school, take a right ontoCobb Parkway, then follow 75S to 285 W and take exit16 S Atlanta Road. Take a right off the exit ontoAtlanta Road, then a right ontoCumberland Parkway. SCK is on the left next to Muss and Turners Deli. Call ahead for to-go orders at 770-435-0700.

With Life Rugby preparing to go to Philadelphia for the Collegiate Sevens Championship, it is an exciting time here at Life University. Many students and faculty will be traveling to Philly June 2^nd and 3^rd to watch the tournament in person, while most will stay in Marietta and watch the games live on NBC. I would like to give those who are new to the sport a little bit of information to make the game more understandable and enjoyable.

The games are played on a field similar in dimension to an American football field, in two seven-minute halves with a three-minute half time, the exception being the championship game, which will be played with two ten minute halves. A typical rugby game has two forty minute halves. In Sevens, each team has seven players with only three player substitutions per game. Each team is allowed to have only twelve players on its roster for the entire tournament. This makes substitutions and line-ups a key strategy in Rugby Sevens.

The seven players on the field consist of three forwards and four backs. The forwards are typically bigger and taller while the backs are smaller, shiftier and quicker. Rugby Sevens is played on the same size field as traditional rugby, which has fifteen players per side. With fewer players on the field there is more room to maneuver and run. Having more space on the field increases the importance of precise passing, which is key for ball movement and control.

The scoring of rugby games is similar to football. The touchdown in rugby is called a ‘try’ and the player that crosses the goal line must touch the ball down on the ground with two hands. Following a try, the conversion kick is kicked from a spot directly in line with and up field from where the ball was touched down. For instance, if a player scores a try in the corner of the try-zone, the place kicker would have to bring the ball straight back down the sideline quite a distance to get a good angle to kick the ball through the uprights. Therefore, the closer to the middle of the field the try is placed, the easier the conversion kick. The try is worth five points and the extra point kick is worth two. There are penalty kicks worth three points, which happen following a penalty when a team has the option to kick a penalty kick or run the ball.

In Rugby Sevens, following a score the team that scores gets to kick off, which is an advantage because they can kick it in such a way that it is possible to get the ball back. In fifteens, the kick offs are reversed, with the team that scored receiving the kick offs. Teams practice kick offs often, as ball control is an extremely important part of the game, especially in a short, fourteen minute game.

In Sevens, there is less contact and more open play. The games are non-stop action with the players constantly running. Endurance, speed and passing skills are essential. The players prepare with more aerobic training than rugby fifteens players. Sevens players typically have a higher heart rate for a longer period than they do during a fifteens game.

Get ready. If you are a sports fan, you are going to enjoy this exciting sport. It has all of the attributes we love in sports; scoring, hitting, passing and plenty of non-stop action. It is a rapidly growing sport and Rugby Sevens will be an Olympic sport in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. You will be seeing more rugby on television in the future. If you would like more information on this awesome sport, visit http://www.usarugby.org

For the past several years, LIFE has been hosting the Octagon Conference, which is described as a conference “seeking to create world-changing dialogue on health care and the human endeavor.” The Octagon seeks to bring forward some of the most current, up to date thinkers and doers of various topics of concern to chiropractic and create a dialogue amongst them regarding chiropractic and health care. Over the past couple of years, we’ve heard such amazing speakers as Bruce Lipton and Joe Dispenza discuss important topics such as vitalism and subluxation. Dr. Riekeman and Dr. Clum both opened up this year’s Octagon with great talks! We are honored to have both these men leading the way and fighting for subluxation-based chiropractic care. The concept of the Octagon and LIFE leading the way is a great one, and one we can all embrace.
The problem, however, is that year after year, students are told at the very last minute there will be mandatory attendance. This year’s Octagon was no different. Nine days before the conference, students received an email stating that all “senior level students” were required to be in attendance. The email, however, failed to take into account the numerous preplanned events, many of which were also taking place right here on this campus. There were two business classes taking place during that time, as well as Irene Gold Board Reviews, an SOT seminar, and a very inexpensive Activator seminar where many students were going to be earning their basic certification.
Classes or labs that only meet on Fridays were now at a disadvantage because they were missing the first two weeks of class, leaving eight weeks to accomplish ten weeks worth of learning.  Throw in that we will be missing time for Part Four Boards and now we are down to seven weeks of class time.
This last minute change put PEAK doctors in the position of not having their PEAK student in the office Thursday-Saturday because of mandatory attendance requirements and our Outreach Clinics having to find eleventh quarter students to fill in or close down all together. This is a huge disservice to the patients we serve who already missed last Friday due to the school closing for Good Friday, and being closed over the week-long break.
Many students felt they were being forced into attendance due to the school not selling enough tickets to the Octagon and needing to fill seats so the speakers had people to talk to. On Thursday, it would appear that this was the case. The entire front six rows were EMPTY! The speakers were in fact, talking to a front section of empty chairs as the 50 or so students who showed up were in the back. The 30 – 40 doctors in attendance were scattered around the room. Friday’s attendance seemed to be even smaller than Thursday. While we students were required to be there, we weren’t allowed to attend the banquet that followed. As the final speaker finished up, Dr. Clum presented him with a gift and announced that there would be a reception immediately following in the Socrates Café. FREE FOOD! That always attracts students!!  Nope…upon getting to the café, we were all turned away by the Student Life Force manning the gate. We were told that there was a mistake and that students weren’t invited. It was a huge slap in the face to feel as if we were needed to fill seats to help the University proverbially save face, however we weren’t trusted enough to intermingle with the Board of Trustees, supporters and doctors who were in attendance. It was later verified that this was a $75 dollar a head reception for Life Force doctors and the guest speakers for Octagon, and this is the reason students were not allowed to participate.
Over the years, student voices, including the Vital Source, have been raised to try to help the administration deal with this issue. Once again Vital Source is going to give some tips on how this can be better handled at next year’s Octagon, as we know that it will come around again and students will again be told it’s mandatory. Octagon has a great potential for both the school and students, but if it continues to be handled with such disregard to students, it will never be met with the excitement and passion that it could be met with!

1. Give the Octagon a course number, just as Assembly, clinic or any other class has.  This will make it appear more official.
2. Learn to ADVERTISE IT! Most of us didn’t even realized it was Octagon time again, for as we had not seen any information about it until we got the email stating it was mandatory.
3. Feel free to charge us a small fee to cover the food and meals we will be consuming, much as what was done back when we tried Lyceum.  However, make it that it is part of enrolling. When we had Lyceum, we would get our cost of living check and then a few weeks later have to write a check back to the school to cover the cost of Lyceum. Make it a class fee just as any other class. Once it has a course code on it, make it a .5 credit class, charge us the $143 for a half credit class and make it seem much more official.
4. And when all is said and done, don’t treat us as second-class citizens when it comes down to it.

To those students who skipped out on the entire thing, you really did miss out! There were some really good speakers who gave some good ideas and thoughts on how to build your business through the corporate world. You truly might be at a disadvantage over your peers who did go… and actually paid attention. While we may have been nothing more than seat fillers, there is something that can be gained from every situation. I know MY business will be a step ahead because of the connections I made and the tidbits of information that were received during this event, despite any lack of planning or regard for students by the faculty and administration of the Octagon.

Have you thought about eating foods that could make you smarter? What if I told you it can help with your studies?  Being a student at Life University and in the Nutrition Department enhanced my knowledge of foods good for the functioning of the nervous system. Most foods that are part of a healthy diet are known to help brain development, lower anxiety levels and are a good source of essential amino acids. Sadly, few people know about these advantages.

It all starts with breakfast; “Most college students have a routine of not eating breakfast,” said Carter Rogers in his article Nutrition, academic performance linked to a healthy morning meal. Experts such as Dr. Christina Economos warn that skipping breakfast can have negative consequences on weight and academic performance. It can help in every part of the day, as a snack, lunch, and even diner.

That being said, here are some food choices to make your day better. For starters, avocado with scrambled eggs provide both high protein and fats to build energy that will last the entire day. You can eat them any hour of the day. Secondly, fruits in general can help to give you enough energy to last the entire day. A good example is blueberries; they are said to be the best brain food on earth. They have been shown to improve learning ability and motor skills; also they are one of the most powerful anti-stress foods you can eat.

Another essential for your brain is the wild salmon, which contains Omega-3 fatty acids. They are linked to improved cognition and alertness, reduced risk of degenerative mental disease, as well as improved memory and mood, and reduced depression, anxiety, and hyperactivity. Salmon is a perfect dish for lunch or dinner.

In addition, there are different kinds of seeds, such as sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, flax seed, and tahini. Seeds contain protein, helpful fats, and vitamin E, as well as stress-fighting antioxidants and important brain-boosting minerals like magnesium, also beneficial to the brain.  College students tend to underestimate the benefits of seeds, but their nutritional properties are countless.

Coffee serves as a good energy drink. Coffee contains fiber and has shown benefits to your brain, in addition to providing an energy boost. Try not to use sugar when you are drinking coffee, to avoid extra calories.  Coffee also should be used in moderate amounts due to the fact that caffeine is addictive and withdrawal effects can be a little overwhelming. In reasonable amounts, coffee can be very beneficial for everyday activities.

Furthermore, avoid eating or drinking foods that can drain your brain.  A vivid example is alcohol, which kills brain cells; can reduce brain function and cause energy loss. Avoid eating high amounts of corn syrup and sugar in order to avoid high caloric contents.  Also avoid nicotine, which is very addictive and dangerous for the health. Also remember to always eat light, as high carbohydrate meals will tend to make you sleepy and sluggish.

In conclusion, there are many healthy choices of foods that can help with brain development and functioning.  These foods can enhance the effectiveness of our study skills and intelligence, improve our concentration during class, exams and daily life activities. Healthy choices can also help with stress control and anxiety relief.  In addition, avoiding some foods and toxic habits will help you to succeed in life and take care of your body and health.

On February 5^th, the Life University Chapter of the World Congress of Chiropractic Students (WCCS) held a fun-filled Super Bowl party forLifeUniversity students. Approximately fifty students attended the off-campus event to watch the New York Giants edge out the New England Patriots 21-17 in a historic last-minute victory. The nerve-wracking game came down to the very last play, in which New England quarterback Tom Brady fired a pass into the end zone with just seconds left on the clock, only to be narrowly missed by receiver Rob Gronkowski, costing them the game.

“The game was a nail biter. It had me on the edge of my seat. It is not very often that I get a chance to go to parties during the quarter,” said second quarter chiropractic student Rob Wood. He added, “I am very grateful I was invited. They put an awesome environment together for watching the football game. Plenty of seats and food, the honey garlic chicken wings were the best wings I’ve ever eaten.”

“I’m not much of a football fan, but I definitely enjoy a good Super Bowl party. You can always feel the electricity in the air as everyone is screaming for their team. I would say that even the students who only came out for the beer and food enjoyed the way the game played out, as well as the chance to meet new people,” said WCCS club president Ron Sweeney. He continued, “It’s the students at Life that make WCCS possible. We wanted to give something back to the community, in appreciation of our fellow students and how they’ve supported our club over the past year. I’m very pleased with tonight’s turnout; I know a lot of students are taking time out of studying to watch the game, and they could have gone anywhere, but chose to spend the night with us.” Echoing Sweeney’s sentiment, chiropractic student Eric Axmacher said, “It was nice that the WCCS had people out that are not in their club. The food was awesome and the chicken wings were fantastic.” He went on to say, “Seeing all of the chiropractic memorabilia in the house was really cool too.”

As is the case for any self-respecting Super Bowl party, the food was the real star of the show. Just before kickoff, the house was buzzing with culinary activity—chicken wings were sizzling in the fryer, the savory smell of burgers and brats was wafting off the grill, plantains were magically turning into tostones at the skilled hands of chiropractic student Ramón Miranda, homemade guacamole was being lovingly churned by hand, and ice-coldNewcastlewas flowing from the tap. In the spirit of the Super Bowl, supplying the guests with good food and drink was a total team effort. Life alumnus Dr. Lou Hilliard was gracious enough to cook up his own secret recipe of delicious flavors of wing sauce. Trying to cater to the wide array of taste preferences, Hilliard mixed up a little something for everyone: honey-garlic, lemon-pepper, sweet and spicy BBQ, and of course, fiery hot wings. The wings were a huge hit—thirty pounds of wings were gone within minutes of reaching the table.

There were mixed reactions to the Madonna halftime show. When asked his thoughts afterward, chiropractic student Ryan Ball was straight to the point, “Liked it. I liked how Madonna played her good songs.” Surprisingly the majority of the women at the party enjoyed the mini concert while the majority of the men were not impressed. Club president Ron Sweeney said, “I didn’t even watch it. I stepped out of the room to check on food stuff, and walked back in on the middle of it. I recognized an aged Madonna and Nicki Minaj, but I had to have someone tell me that was M.I.A. The [halftime] show didn’t hold my interest at all.” There was also mixed opinions on the highly publicized Super Bowl commercials. Many party goers didn’t feel they were as good as past Super Bowls, summarized by Ryan Ball as, “Letdown. Definitely not as good as past years.” One of the more popular commercials of the evening showed a Great Dane bribing his owner with bags of Doritos after finding the “missing” cat’s collar buried in the backyard. Kia had some entertaining entries as well, and Coca-Cola went a little overboard with its polar bears, trying to compare not dropping a drink with a game-winning touchdown play.

The WCCS is a club on campus for students considering political involvement and/or international practice. Once a year, students from thirty-three chiropractic schools around the world come together for a week to discuss chiropractic topics from a student perspective. They discuss global chiropractic issues from legislative levels where they learn what is going on in other countries politically. The WCCS tries to help countries develop laws and guidelines to better the profession worldwide. During this week, students also learn what is going on at other schools around the world to gain a different viewpoint on what is being taught. The week spent together is also a great avenue for students to network and make friends in other parts of the world. These friendships quite often lead to future job opportunities.

If you are interested in learning more about the World Congress of Chiropractic Students club here on campus you can contact them at wccsclub@life.edu. Their club meets Wednesdays at noon in room C-108.

As students, we do a lot. We go to class, do assignments, study for tests, and try to cram social activities in the tiny little holes that remain. So how can we be expected to take time to do things for others when we have no time for ourselves? We often think of this aspect of lasting purpose as a herculean task, requiring about 30 hours per week of service in order to feel we’ve done something. Rather, I like to think of it as doing tiny acts as they present themselves, and making it a habit.

Between classes, studying, family obligations, and church, I don’t typically have a lot of “extra time,” or even “me time.” What I do instead is try to do what I can. I try to take those extra few moments to really engage with the person at the checkout line, let someone in front of me in traffic when I don’t have to, or give someone a ride when they need it. Do these actions cause me to be late sometimes? Yes. Are they worth it? Absolutely.

Oftentimes, we prioritize our needs above those of the people around us. This is called being human. We do for ourselves. When we take on the responsibility of doing for others, we get anxious that we won’t do what is right, or we won’t be able to do for ourselves. However, when we do for others, we are nurturing our own souls, thus effectively doing for ourselves also.

So how do we look for these opportunities to do? In our busy world, how can we get outside our “Barclay Bubble” to help those around us? How much time do we need to spend doing for others? I wish there was a static “your opportunity will arise this way” answer for the first question, but there isn’t. I find that if I open my eyes and try to really engage with those around me, I will find lots of opportunities. If we go to Wal-Mart, Target, or pretty much any other store, we will see a plethora of people in need. They may not need money or physical items, but they might need help carrying their items, they might need advice, or they might just need someone to listen to them. If all else fails, there are nonprofits all over this city looking for help. How much time should be spent doing for others depends entirely on your schedule and how much you can actually spare. If we go on Biblical principles of tithing, the standard is 10%. Even non-Christians often donate 10% to various charities as a way of giving back to the community. I like to try to give 10% of my time as well. If a month has 30 days, 10% of that is 3 days. Maybe make Saturdays your day to do. MUST ministries is always looking for people to serve food and launder clothing and linens. Habitat for Humanity is always looking for volunteers to help build homes. Even chiropractors are often looking for people to help screen, and by doing it for free, you are helping others and getting experience. Are you musical? Go share your talents with the local nursing homes. Not musical, go share a cup of tea with those in a nursing home. They are always excited to see people and have conversations. And why not just wear a “Free Hugs” shirt to a crowded area and just love on people?

I’m not proposing that we spend out entire Saturday doing this, but every little bit helps. The bonus? By telling people that you are a Life University student, the public will see that the people enrolled at the school genuinely care about the community. Dr. Riekeman spends a lot of time telling leaders in the community about Life University’s accomplishments and contributions in the community, but without the students doing footwork too, the people of this community will never understand what it means to be a Life student, nor will they understand that we are an asset to the community.