Fort Riley hosts ceremony for deployed soldiers
A ceremony honoring the approximately 200 Fort Riley soldiers heading to Iraq to combat ISIL is taking place today at 10 a.m, according to the radio station KMAN’s website.
The soldiers come from the Division Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion and will be deploying soon to Baghdad, Iraq. The ceremony is located in Fort Riley’s Victory Park.
The soldiers are being deployed in order to help stop ISIL in the Middle East. Three hundred more will follow from the same battalion, according to the article. Maj. Gen. Paul E. Funk II, 1st Infantry Division and Fort Riley commanding general, will deploy with the battalion, leaving Brig. Gen. J. Wesley, 1st Infantry Division’s deputy commanding general in charge.
Central States Marching Festival brings in more than 40 high schools
K-State’s Bill Snyder Family Stadium is hosting the 28th annual Central States Marching Festival on Saturday, Oct. 18, according to K-State Today. The festival is bringing in more than 40 high schools and 5,000 band students. Frank Tracz, K-State professor in music, theater and dance and director of bands and the university’s marching band are working to use this event as a recruitment for potential university marching band students.
“I hope the high school students walk away thinking (about) what a great festival, outstanding band program… incredible organization and tremendous people (are) at K-State,” Tracz said via email. “And that they want to come to school here.”
Tracz said in an email that 67 percent of the current university marching band actually participated in the festival when they were in high school.
The high school bands will perform in Bill Synder Stadium for a panel of eight judges then receive immediate feedback. According to Tracz, the judges are experts from all over the country that come to help out with the festival.
Also performing will be the Boston Brass at 4:00 p.m. and the K-State marching band. The marching band will performing “Beatles Invasion” featuring a medley of Beatles’ songs. Admission to the festival is $5.
Job market demands college grads
Kerri Keller, executive director of K-State’s career and employment services, said in K-State Today that college graduates are in more demand in the job market. According to the recruiting report from Michigan State University, the college labor market is up three percent for all degrees. K-State had a 93 percent placement rate in for the 2012-2013 academic and more students are either getting jobs or going on to go to higher degrees.
Despite an increase in demand for college students, colleges are seeing a decline in enrollment, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
