The Plainsman Press - South Plains College

According to DeEtte Edens, coordinator of student health services at South Plains College, as of March 20 there have been 15 reported cases at SPC. The first case of mono at SPC was diagnosed on March 2.

“There are cases being reported across the county of Hockley and some of the South Plains,” said Dr. George Young, medical director for Levelland Clinic North. “We have had over 100 reported cases of mono.”

There has been no official word of a mono epidemic from the Health Department, but the number of cases reported gives that indication, said Edens.

The symptoms of the virus can take up to a month to occur after it enters the body. It often causes no symptoms when children have it, but for adolescents and young adults it causes illness and leads to missed school.

The first symptoms usually are tiredness, fever, headache and muscle aches. Many people have extreme tiredness and need to sleep 12 to 16 hours a day before they have any other symptoms. After a few days of fever and aches, other symptoms are sore throat and swollen lymph nodes in the neck. People with the virus might also have a loss of appetite, nausea, joint aches and a rash, sometimes including tiny red spots in the mouth.

“If you start to experience any of the symptoms of mono, go to your doctor immediately,” said Edens. “There are most likely more cases of mono, but people might think the symptoms are the common cold or allergies and don’t come in to get tested.”

Mono is diagnosed through a blood test given by the health care provider. Along with the blood test, symptoms of the virus will be looked for. The first blood test might come back negative, but a complete blood count might show that a mono infection is beginning to develop. Your doctor then may ask you to come back for a second blood test.

There is no specific drug treatment for mono. Antibiotics are not helpful, because it is a viral illness. The most important thing one can do is to get plenty of rest. Acetaminophen or ibuprofen can be taken for fever and sore throat, but if symptoms seem to be getting worse rather than improving, tell a health care provider.

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Science, Biology Faculty Selected for Title V Leadership Academy

by Jacob Tucker, feature editor

Scholarships, financial aid, and faculty advancement were among a few of the topics of discussion at the March meeting of the South Plains College Board of Regents

This year, students have been awarded a little more than $1 million in scholarships, according to Stephen John, vice president for institutional advancement. This dollar amount includes SPC program awards such as basketball, track, cheerleading, rodeo, and the many other programs with which students become involved. These programs gave students about $390,000 this year alone.

“We can never have enough scholarships,” said Dr. Kelvin Sharp, president of SPC. “I only wish that there could be more to give to all of the students here at the college.”

The total also includes scholarships from the SPC foundation, which totaled more than $200,000. Donors from all around the community and the state fund many of the scholarships. These endowments are then put into categories and distributed to students who meet the qualifications for receiving the money.

“Our Developmental Office has done an excellent job of raising the money for these scholarships,” said Dr. Sharp.

The college held a scholarship gala to bring in money for the SPC Foundation on Feb. 18. During this event, businesses and independent donors are invited to come and visit the campus. The college helped raise a total of $82,000, and $52,000 will be distributed throughout various scholarships.

The bulk of the scholarships come from third parties, who are not involved directly with the college. Students can bring these scholarships from a club or organization back home, or even from a larger donor such as the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo scholarship. This year, the third-party scholarships totaled more than $440,000.

During the past four years, the total amount of money for scholarships received at the college has increased by $600,000. The number of students applying and receiving these scholarships has also doubled during the past few years.

Petition Calls for By-The-Drink Alcohol Sales

by Amanda Hurt-Piercy, staff writer

People have signed petitions for years to express their opinions on certain subjects.

On Feb. 7, R.L. “Bo” Bowman, the chairman of the “Committee of Citizens for the Improvement and Expansion of Levelland, Texas,” started a petition to call for an election to legalize the sale of alcoholic beverages in restaurants inside the Levelland city limits.

Petition forms were placed at various places across the city of Levelland such as at Worley Welding Works, Palmer’s, Wayne Bo’s and Crawford Equipment. Bowman set up an RV on the west side of the courthouse square, where Bowman said he averaged 23 signatures a day for the petition.

Bowman was given 60 days to get 624 registered voters to sign the petition. As of March 6, he had collected more than 700 signatures and was able to deliver the petition to the county clerk and tax assessor’s offices for verification on March 8 only a month after it began