Idaho State University Professor Charged with Stealing from Fellow Professor

Professor Judy Morris Being Escorted Out of Her Class

As a professor gets removed form her own classroom, DURING class time, students are left wondering if they've been taught be a criminal the entire semester long.

Idaho State University has been having some troubles lately, thanks to a few unsavory articles from the New York Times. Now, once again, their getting into the limelight in another less-than-ideal way. Professor Judith Morris has been apprehended in correlation with stealing pictures and distributing them to her students. The victim, Dr. Terry Ownby, was outraged that his colleague and friend did this to him.

"This was a real surprise, it's totally out of character for her," Ownby said.

Professor Terry Ownby Discovers his Work

Morris maintains her innocence, but her students are already starting to doubt her claims. Many agree that this is certainly uncharacteristic from their professor, but overall they do believe that she is lying when she said she didn't steal the photos. All this is just adding to the already worsening PR that ISU has gotten as of late, mostly concerning international students. However, this wouldn't be the first time a, ISU professor has been escorted out of class, as a year prior, one chemistry professor shot himself in the foot, with students in the room, while class was being taught. (The full CBS article can be found here.)

The students are eager to learn the truth behind their professor's alleged crimes, and are hopeful that all the videos and pictures they took with their phones of the incident could help ISU become a little more famous.

Don't forget to check out the full report on this incident:
Full Article

Or Watch the full story for yourself:
Raw Footage

Idaho State Softball Looks to Break "Curse"

First basemen Maddy Hickman running to her teammates after hitting a home run

The Idaho State Softball Team is on the final stretch of their regular season with only six games left to play. The next three are out of town in Portland, Oregon against Portland State University. The last three games are right here in Pocatello on Bartz Field against Northern Colorado.

The team is trying to break a three year curse in which they have won the regular season conference championship, which made them host the Big Sky Conference Tournament, but have yet to win the conference tournament championship on their home turf. However, with how things are currently looking in the standings, Idaho State is sitting in third place with a conference record of 8-5 (wins-losses).

 "It would take a miracle for us to win the conference championship right now," outfielder Molly Nutt said. "I don't think we'll be hosting the tournament this year."

With the conference tournament not being held at Idaho state this year, the pressure seems to be off  the shoulders of all the players on the team. They are out with a vengeance and plan on taking the 2016 Big Sky Conference Tournament Championship this year. 

Idaho State University event "CommUniversity" Sparks discussion of SuperPowers

    On February 10, Idaho State University featured an event, called CommUniversity inside of the Pond Student Union Building with free food, entertainment, art, and culture. While attending the event my classmates and I was able to interview a few people at the event.

    Adam Reed was one of the many people who attended the event and I was lucky enough to get an interview with him. When he was interviewed he was asked "If you could have any superpower what would it be and why?""The ability to morph, Shape shift I guess so that I could be whoever I wanted whenever I wanted." He then was asked what he would do with his super power and his response was "I would probably play a lot of tricks on a lot of people".When asked how it would affect his life Adam felt as though he would lose the trust of a lot of people. Unfortunately for Batman, Adam is not a huge fan of his and with his powers would become the arch nemesis of Batman.

    It was a lot of fun attending the sixth annual CommUniversity event and next years event is something to look forward to.

Alex Mosher Tail to Activism

Alex Mosher

In December of 2015, Alex Mosher rescued a kitten hiding in a dumpster. She heard the meows coming and brought the young cat inside from suffering through a freezing winter. This act not only reflects her love of animals, but represents want she wants to do in her life. Alex has decided to seek a career as an animal rights activist helping fight against organizations such as Sea World, zoo's and circuses that mistreat their animals.

Jack, the kitten

Although Mosher's passion for animals has led her to the perfect career field, she understands she still has quite of bit of school left before she can save all of the suffering animals. In the meantime, Mosher is enjoying her time as an sophomore undergraduate student at Idaho State University. Aside from working part-time and being a full-time student, Mosher lives a busy life full of adventure.

She prefers to spend her time outside, camping, hiking, traveling, and exploring. Experiencing new places with her boyfriend of four years, Colby Borup, is one of her favorite activities. Although her adventures have been limited to places within the United States, she hopes to travel all over the world one day. In the upcoming summer, Alex hopes to make memories of a lifetime with her family and friends.

Nebraska Native Leaves a Management Position to be an English Teacher

Kyle Boston moved to Idaho several years ago after finding himself lacking fulfillment with his work. Born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska, Kyle left his position managing a bank to return to school and get a degree. Since then he has studied at Idaho State University and hopes to teach students more than just grammar and reading.

Kyle Boston taking a break form a hike.

Kyle wants to be able to impact the lives of youth and, once accepted into ISU’s teaching program, he sees himself teaching students at a high school level. He also would like to involve himself in extra-curricular clubs for students and wants to volunteer his time to make sure they continue to be provided. Clubs like high school yearbook or newspaper are clubs he is willing to advise in order to help students.

Since his interview, Kyle has remained busy with school and has begun registering for classes to help him enter the teaching program at ISU. His love for the mountains in Idaho has made it hard to decide whether he wants to teach here or in his home state. He has faced some personal issues that have prevented him from considering moving back to Nebraska, like the passing of his beloved dog, and the future remains unknown for now.

Kyle Boston in his home state of Nebraska.

Though he faces many daily obstacles to get an education, like the fifty-minute commute to ISU from Idaho Falls where he lives, Kyle is dedicated to seeking a career that can provide him with more than just a paycheck.

What's the Big Deal with Bigamy

What's the Big Deal with Bigamy

by Kyle Boston

Rallying for the cause at a San Francisco Pride rally in 2004
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyamory)

In light of the incident that recently took place on school grounds involving some of the faculty here at ISU (read about it, or see a video of the issue), the issue of polygamy has recently become a subject of some interest on campus, but I, for one, don't see what the big deal is.

For those unaware, Judith Morris, an ISU professor, had her class interrupted several weeks ago by Todd Morris, another professor, who accused her of infidelity and provided evidence in front of her surprised students that she was in a relationship with another man.  Morris admitted to being married to another man and courting a third leading to her being arrested under suspicion of bigamy by the public safety officers on hand at ISU.

In this instance, one can see why there are laws against plural marriages.  Yet, what about instances where all the parties involved are aware of one another and love and support one another?  Why should this be considered illegal in our country?  The law against bigamy is derived from Christian beliefs that a marriage should be between a man and woman yet in our country isn't there supposed to be a separation of church and state?  Why then, does our country's laws prohibit it?

Recently, a federal judge ruled that part of the law is "unconstitutional," a small victory for polygamists.  It seems that many opinions are changing as well due to the access gained into the personal lives of some prominent polygamists due to reality TV, and some think that it will soon be a bigger topic of contention going forward.

As far as I'm concerned, as long as everyone involved knows what's going on and is comfortable with the situation then I don't see why it's such a big deal, though I don't plan to bring the subject up with my wife any time soon.

Idaho State University Professors Full of Surprises

Students at ISU have witnessed bizarre incidents involving their Professors over the last few years.

Last month, Judy Morris was confronted by her husband Todd Morris in front of her class in the Liberal Arts building. After being questioned about her recent suspicious activity, Judy caved under the pressure and confessed her love for not one, but two other men besides her husband Todd in front of the class. Public Safety officers were called to the room and placed Judy under arrest for "trigamy," a crime we don’t hear about very often. Eventually it was revealed to her shocked and confused class that this was just a performance to give them a spot news article to write about. This is not the first time Morris has staged a crime for her students to write about. She has stolen dogs, money, and a skateboard, all for the sake of her students.

While this incident was only a personal matter that was staged for the purpose of an assignment, another incident that happened in September of 2014 had the potential to be deadly.

Physical Science Complex, Idaho State University

Shortly after classes began for the 2014 fall semester, chemistry professor Byron Bennett accidentally shot himself in the foot during his lecture. He was carrying a small caliber pistol in his pocket when it went off in the Physical Science Complex in a class with about 20 students. Out of everyone in the classroom, Bennett was the only person who was injured. Bennett was treated at Portneuf Medical Center for non-life threatening injuries. This accident occurred shortly after a new law went into effect permitting people to carry concealed weapons anywhere on campus except the dorms. The incident has people questioning whether this law makes people safer or puts more people in danger and has received national attention from sources such as the Washington Post, CBS, and the Huffington Post.

No matter how bizarre, rehearsed, or serious the incidents are, students at ISU should always be on their toes ready for anything that might happen.

ISU student Colton Bankhead dreams of Travel

ISU Logo

Idaho State University

ColtonBankhead is a Sophomore at Idaho State University. Like most students he dreams about what he going to do when he graduates but instead of a dream job, he's looking for a dream vacation

Be Ready For Travel!

 

 “I came to ISU cause it’s cheap.”, he said.

 Coming from Jerome, ID, Bankhead has made a lot of choice that make economic sense.

The scholarships he received for his GPA and SAT scores even softened the financial blow. 

             Bankhead says his financial situation is the source of many of his problems and he is attending school hoping to find a way to fuel his travel goals. 

“It’s just that everything takes money so I’m working on it” he said.  

             There is one problem. He doesn’t know what he wants to do. The classes he has taken so far have only been general studies and he has yet to find a profession that sparks his passion.

            Bankhead is not dissuaded by this. He knows one day he'll find the right job that allows him to travel the world.

            “There is an entire world out there but they (society) only live in one part of it.” he said.

             After three months, Bankhead is still chasing the dream at ISU and working for The Stephan's Preforming Arts Center.

Lance Roe Follows Love and Finds Education at ISU

Box full of balloons to reveal the gender.

Lance Roe, an Idaho State University junior followed his high school sweetheart to school at ISU and that's where he found the program he wanted to pursue. Roe started dating Hilary when he was a sophomore at Malad High School in Malad, Idaho.  After they graduated, Roe left for Santa Rosa, California for a two year mission with his church. Meanwhile, Hilary was attending ISU for culinary arts.


Once Roe returned from his mission, he decided to attend ISU because he wanted to be with Hilary. He was attracted to the instructional design master's program but needed to find a bachelor's degree program that would lead to that master's program. After searching for awhile, he found the organizational leadership performance program to be the best path to take.

Treats from the gender reveal party.

Throughout this entire journey, the couple stayed together and then got married. They have been married for two years now and are still madly in love. They live in a house together and have found out that their family will be expanding in September. The couple will be expecting a baby and had a gender reveal party to find out that they are expecting to have a baby girl.

Idaho State University Students Prepare for Valentine's Day.

Valentine Day cards

Students at Idaho State University are starting to prepare for Valentine's Day by stocking up on hearts, chocolates and even pick-up lines. Valentine's Day is just around the corner and students are beginning to come up with ideas on how they can make a romantic and special valentines night for their significant other.

Valentine's Day is a well known holiday for showing your romantic side to those you love and care about. The history of Valentine's Day dates back to the Romans with St. Valentine. This holiday’s roots began from a Roman festival and evolved into what we know today.

Creating the Perfect Gift 

As students come up with crafty ideas on how to show their love for their significant other, many students this time of year are left single. Well, this does not stop them from pulling out all their creativity to get themselves a date. The famous pick-up lines come out and many hope that phone numbers follow. A well crafted pick-up line is sure to put a smile on anyone's face and get that date that everyone wants for Valentine's Day.

However, many students put making plans and creating a romantic date till the night before the big day. This can often lead to stress and anxiety or the illusion of a well kept secret and surprise that not even you knew about until the night before. But for many, they show their love by gifting roses, chocolates and a romantic dinner.   

Idaho State Professor Arrested During Journalism Lecture

     During the middle of Judy Morris's journalism class lecture at Idaho State University, her husband, Todd Morris (also a professor at Idaho State) walks in and demands to talk to her. He confronts Judy with multiple pieces of evidence that proves that she has been with another man while married to himself. But there's more. Judy has been seeing not one, but two men whilst being married to Todd. After confessing her love for the three men in her life, Todd asks for a divorce as well as calls the cops to arrest Judy under the suspicions of bigamy. Keep in mind that the whole time this is happening, Judy's students are in sitting in their desks in utter awe.

Photograph of a moose taken by Judy Morris in
Grand Teton National Park

     Their marriage wasn't always rocky. The couple said their "I-Do's" on June 9th, 2006 and weren't anything less than head over heels for each other. During the beginning of their marriage they bonded over their love for moose for moose. They took many trips to Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado to explore the wildlife and to take in the beauty of the moose they encountered. Moments like those are the ones they knew that they'd cherish forever. They later on got their fur-babies (dogs) that made their family feel whole.

     It wasn't until about four years prior to the recent in-class confession where Todd began suspecting that his beloved wife may have been cheating on him. After frequent "research" trips to Park City, Utah Todd noticed abnormally high restaurant bills on Judy's bank statements, as if she were buying dinners for two. While cleaning, Todd found an old photograph of Judy and her ex-boyfriend. When he asked her why she still had it after all of theses years, she responded by saying that she must not have thrown it away. When in all actuality, she kept the photograph because she was married to the man in the photograph. 

     And get this! Judy was delivered flowers while in the middle of Todd confronting her! Who must those flowers be from? Turns out they were delivered to Judy by a third lover. After minutes of denial, Judy realized that she should confess to Todd everything (or everyone) she had been hiding.

     After soaking in the information, an outraged Todd calls it quits on their marriage while calling in the cops to take her in for bigamy. The journalism students were absolutely shocked to see their professor get arrested. 

Idaho State University Football Player Finishes His Junior Season Strong

Holt Stadium is where the ISU football team hosts all of their home games. 

Nikko Taylor just completed his junior year football season at Idaho State University. Although he was a red shirt last fall, Taylor was able to compete in all of the spring scrimmages.

ISU Junior, Nikko Taylor 

Taylor is a California native that transferred from Riverside Junior College to ISU last fall in pursuit of a communications degree and a positive football experience. Overall Taylor has enjoyed his time in Pocatello on the football field. 

"My favorite thing about being at Idaho State is that I have the chance to improve myself on the field and in the classroom," Taylor said in an interview. 

Next year Taylor hopes to be the starting defensive tackle for the Bengals, a position that he is very familiar with. Taylor, along with the rest of his football family, looks forward to the year of football to come. 

Dr. Fahim Rahim Discusses His Eight for Eight Program at Idaho State University

Dr. Fahim Rahim spoke to an audience on the Idaho State University campus last month, introducing his organization: Eight for Eight.  This program provides help and support to post-disaster communities in third world countries.  He, and several others, do not just rebuild ecosystems and move on.  In fact, they focus much on empowering women in these areas and also creating friendships along the way.

Rahim hoped that his words and experiences with Eight for Eight would encourage audience members to want to learn more about the program and perhaps even be willing to lend an extra hand.  This happened to be the case, as several students were interviewed after the event, saying that it was something they'd actually be interested in.

Rahim did a great job at getting across the fact that his program also doesn't simply donate money to those countries that are struggling.  The act of service, he feels, is much more important to these communities and empowering them and giving them hope that they can recover quickly, leads to a much better outcome.  It is the necessary thing to do.

Professor's at Idaho State University Confirm Divorce in Front of Classroom Full of Students

Idaho State University Seal.

Todd Morris a chemistry professor at Idaho State University asked for a divorce from his wife while she was giving a lecture to her news writing students at ISU. Morris walked into the classroom and confronted his wife, Judith. He was persistent to talk to her at that moment, even when Judith suggested they talk about this at another time.

Morris had come to talk to his wife about suspicions he had been having for months now about her lying to him and cheating on him. After a string of events that only proved Morris correct about his suspicions there was no other choice but for his wife to admit her crime. She admitted to being married to two men, one being Todd, and in a courtship with a third man. 

After finding out that his suspicions were true Morris told his wife that he wanted a divorce as he pulled a piece of paper out of an envelope that he was holding, it was their marriage document. Morris bravely ripped the document into two pieces as he walked out of the room. Shortly after Morris left two public safety officers walked in and arrested Judith for suspicion of bigamy. 

Todd remains to be a chemistry professor at ISU as well as the star for a new program called Chemistry Corner at ISU. Morris may have lost his wife recently but is doing great for himself and his work in Pocatello. On the other hand Judith is awaiting her interview process at the Public Safety station and was humiliated in front of a classroom full of students.

Idaho State University Hosts the 45th Annual Frank Church Symposium on Sustainable Development

His Excellency Arun K. Singh delivering the keynote speech.

This year, Idaho State University held it's 45th annual Frank Church Symposium. The symposium is planned and executed by the International Affairs Council, a club comprised of Idaho State University students that hope to make a change in the world. The topic of the 2016 symposium was "Sustainable Development: Security, Health, Technology, and Environment in a Globalized World." The key speakers included local kidney doctor Fahim Rahim M.D., the Indian
ambassador to the United States His Excellency Arun K. Singh, and Emory University professor Rafi Ahmed, Ph.D.

The Symposium was first created to honor Frank Church. He served during World War II in India, Burma, and China. He then attended and graduated from Stanford University with a law degree, and returned to his home state of Idaho to practice law. He then served in the United States Senate from 1956 to 1981, where he served on many committees, then returned home to practice law until his death in 1984. Church was known for his intelligence and his sensitivity to American foreign affairs, and this symposium was created to encourage others to think about the future of United States foreign affairs.

 

Some of the past speakers at the Frank Church Symposium include General Amos "Joe" Jordan, who spoke in 2013 on different challenges facing the United States, Sara Roy, who spoke in 2014 on the Gaza and Israeli-Palestinian conflicts, and Charles "Charley" Metcals, a former ISU Alumnus who spoke in 2015 about cross cultural communication as viewed from a national security perspective. Each year, the IAC tries to select a topic related to current events and generate discussion in the community.