Issue 16

THE AMHERST

THE INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER OF AMHERST COLLEGE SINCE 1868

STUDENT VOLUME CXLIV, ISSUE 16 l WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2015

Men’s Hockey Scores Two Wins See Sports Page 9 AMHERSTSTUDENT.AMHERST.EDU

Aquaponics Club to Build Greenhouse Ricky Choi ’18 Staff Writer

On Tuesday, Feb. 17, Amherst College’s Mead Art Museum hosted a special event to celebrate the Lunar New Year, featuring a capella group DQ as the night’s main performance.

Photo courtesy of Sydney Tate ’18

Green Games Returns With Modifications Jingwen Zhang ’18 Staff Writer

The Green Amherst Project will host its second annual Green Games next week. The Green Games are a competition between the first-year dorms to see which can be the most environmentally friendly. Winners will be determined by measuring dorms’ respective water, electricity and waste usage over the four-week duration of the event.

The Green Games, with a name inspired by the popular “Hunger Games” series, is intended to make a long-term impact on the usage of resources at the college and raise awareness of environmental issues on campus. Representatives, or “tributes,” will be selected from each first-year dorm to lead and organize the efforts of each dorm to win the competition.

Each week, the Green Games will hold dormwide challenges and monitor resource usage.

Through these challenges, each dorm can collect points and be awarded a prize at the end of

the four-week long event. Each week will seek to educate students about one of four different themes: food, electricity, waste and water.

The Green Amherst Project made several changes this year to how the Green Games would run. One of the major changes is the duration of the competition: It was shortened to four weeks from last year’s six.

“Many students found it hard to sustain commitment and enthusiasm across such a significant portion of the semester,” said Alexz Chalmers ’17, the member of the Green Amherst Project who will be heading the Green Games this year.

Additionally, the Green Amherst Project will aim to provide more support to the representative tributes from each first-year dorm. Last year, two tributes were selected for each dorm, which led to unequal organization methods and difficulties due to the widely varying sizes of different dorms.

“As an example, last year’s winner, Williston, is also the smallest of the first-year dorms,” Chalmers said. “It was easier for two students to

organize in Williston than in Charles Pratt. This year, we seek to level the playing field by providing additional support and guidance for tributes.”

The Green Amherst Project also seeks to involve more students on an individual basis.

“We hope to provide a more comprehensive education ... on the potential individuals have to make a difference through their actions,” Chalmers said.

While she declined to provide specifics on the event, she said that students can earn more points for their dorms by attending visiting speakers’ talks and participating in events such as “Meatless Monday.”

According to Chalmers, the mixed responses to last year’s Green Games inspired many of these changes.

“Our goals are not quantitative, so it’s hard to measure success. Last year, some students had great experiences with the Games while others were unaware or uninterested,” she said.

Continued on Page 3

A student club recently received funding from the President’s Office to construct a selfsustaining, soil-free greenhouse by Valentine Dining Hall. The club, Hooked on Aquaponics, is co-founded by Pete Suechting ‘15, Jim Hall ’15 and Thais Correia ‘16.

Aquaponics is a combination of aquaculture, which is the farming of aquatic animals, with hydroponics, a technique for growing plants without soil. The fundamental process behind aquaponics farming lies in repurposing fish waste into plant food.

“Bacteria in water take the ammonium in fish waste and turn them into nitrates and nitrites, which the plants need to grow,” Hooked on Aquaponics member Eli Mansbach ’18 said.

Additionally, the greenhouse allows for fish farming alongside its soil-less agriculture.

While the project intends to initially use carp, a freshwater fish, future advancements in design may allow for tilapia and trout farms.

Originally, Suechting sought to introduce this project as a part of his environmental studies senior thesis. However, he said his adviser cautioned him that he would be limited by the one-year duration of his thesis and by his impending graduation. As a result, Suechting reached out to students who shared his interest in the aquaponics system and eventually co-founded the club.

“It reminded me that Amherst is filled with incredible people with all sorts of hidden great skills,” Suechting said.

In the original conception of the project, the idea was to set up the greenhouse at the Book and Plow farm as a supplementary measure. To prevent burdening the farm employees, however, the club was created in order to convert the project into a student-run organization.

Currently, the club is solving logistical issues that range from generating publicity for potential new members to ordering the necessary materials for constructing the greenhouse. The greenhouse itself will likely be an ongoing project, passed down from senior members, with constant changes to improve the efficiency of the system.

“Things will come up even after we think that we’ve figured it out. It’s a process that keeps you humble, constantly tinkering for

Continued on Page 3

Faculty Discuss Changes to Fall Academic Calendar Dan Ahn ’17 Managing News Editor

The faculty discussed changes to the academic calendar, accreditation for Five College certification programs and archival of theses at the first faculty meeting of the calendar year on Feb. 17.

Following opening remarks from the president, Dean of the Faculty Catherine Epstein presented the minutes of the Committee of Six, which met on Feb. 16.

The committee had discussed, then rejected changes to the faculty tenure policy. The committee had also talked about changes to the position of academic department chair, with the goal of decreasing the workload and

increasing the authority and compensation of the position.

The faculty then held a minute of silence in memory of former faculty member Rose Olver, the first woman to be appointed to a tenure-track position at Amherst. Olver was a member of the Sexuality, Women’s and Gender Studies and Psychology departments.

On behalf of the executive committee of the faculty, Professor Christopher Kingston then proposed changes to the academic calendar of 2015-2016 to accommodate a later Labor Day in the fall. Fall break was shortened by one day, reading period by one and a half days, and examination period by half a day. Kingston said that this was necessary to maintain a 13-week semester. The new calendar was

approved by voice vote.

Professor David Hall proposed an amendment to the academic calendar changes stating that all school-wide closures must be decided by a vote of the faculty. After a lengthy and heated discussion, the faculty voted via paper ballot, and the results were 46 in favor, 58 opposed and 12 abstaining.

Professor Mark Marshall proposed that Amherst join the other Five Colleges in offering accreditation for the Five Colleges Coastal and Marine Sciences certificate program. The program has existed since 1983, and while Amherst was unable to accommodate the certificate program at the time due to a lack of faculty members and courses, the college now has the resources to do so. The motion passed

with a voice vote.

On behalf of the Committee on Educational Policy, Professor Adam Honig proposed Frost Library’s new policy on archiving theses.

The committee proposed that theses be collected and archived digitally, both in order to streamline the collection process and to allow audiovisual documents to be officially archived. The proposition would also allow faculty advisers to restrict access in the library to the theses of their advisees. Previously, this right had been limited to the thesis writers themselves. After a lengthy debate over access rights to theses, the faculty voted on the motion by paper ballot. The result was 62 in favor, 41 opposed and 12 abstaining. The meeting was then adjourned.

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News

David Walchak Feb. 9, 2015 - Feb. 16, 2015

>>Feb. 9, 2015 2:00 p.m., Social Quad A visitor reported that on Feb. 7 at 3 a.m., she was passing by Crossett when two men on a fire escape yelled an offensive word at her. She was unable to identify the men.

>>Feb. 14, 2015 12:45 a.m., Moore Dormitory An officer discovered an unauthorized party with beer and hard alcohol in the third floor common room. The gathering was shut down and the alcohol disposed of.

3:37 p.m., Converse Hall An administrative office reported an unusual voicemail.

1:36 a.m., Coolidge Dormitory Officers responded to a complaint of loud music and found a large group of people in a suite and in the stairway. The music was shut off, and the people dispersed.

3:01 p.m., Pond Dormitory An officer checked on a student at the request of a concerned caller.

6:48 p.m., Off Campus Locations An officer received a report of a vehicle accident involving a College van which occurred off campus.

>>Feb. 10, 2015 1:26 a.m., Charles Pratt Dormitory While in the building, an officer discovered the odor of burning marijuana and found a joint unattended in the basement.

6:34 a.m., Cooper House Officers and the fire department responded to an alarm and found it activated when water leaked into a detector. Facilities was notified.

6:52 a.m., Coolidge Dormitory Officers and the fire department responded to an alarm and found it activated when water leaked into a detector. Facilities was notified. >>Feb. 11, 2015 12:36 a.m., Morris Pratt Dormitory An officer investigated a smoke detector sounding in a second-floor room and found it occurred when popcorn was burned in a microwave. The residents were fined $100 for the alarm.

The microwave was confiscated and a $25 handling fee assessed.

9:31 p.m., Stone Dormitory Officers responded to a complaint of yelling and loud music and issued warnings at two suites. A short time later, a second complaint was received and residents of one suite were warned about their activity. >>Feb. 15, 2015 12:08 a.m., Powerhouse An officer directed a visitor to leave an event because of disruptive behavior.

1:06 a.m., Seelye House An officer discovered unattended alcohol in the first-floor common room. It was disposed of.

1:18 a.m., Powerhouse An officer responded to a report that two males at an event may be having an issue between themselves. No intervention was needed.

1:29 a.m., Coolidge Dormitory An officer investigated a report of a broken window and found that a visitor was responsible for the damage.

2:08 p.m., Frost Library An officer investigated a fire alarm and found it was accidentally set off by construction work. >>Feb. 12, 2015 7:39 p.m., Mead Art Museum Museum Security reported the theft of an iPod. The matter is under investigation. >>Feb. 13, 2015 12:19 a.m., Amherst College Police While inventorying a found wallet, an officer discovered a student was in possession of two fraudulent driver’s licenses. They were confiscated and a report was filed with the Registry of Motor Vehicles.

1:10 a.m., Morris Pratt Dormitory Officers responded to a report of the odor of marijuana on the third floor.

Nothing unusual was found.

2:26 a.m., Powerhouse A student reported the theft of a navy blue Northface coat from the Powerhouse. An iPhone was in the pocket.

7:14 p.m., Newport Parking Lot A student reported the theft of a Seiko watch valued at $200.

Illustrations by Luke Haggerty ’18

Thoughts on Theses Department of Philosophy

David Walchak ’15 is a philosophy major. who is writing his senior thesis about how, although people assume that judges in the legal system make their decisions based on precedent cases, this is not true because their thought process is more complicated than relying on a standard set of deductive rules. His adviser is Philosophy Professor Alexander George.

Q: What is your thesis about?

A: My thesis draws on the work of Nelson Goodman, who was a philosopher in the mid20th century. I apply a lot of his work to questions about how judges think about cases and how they reason by analogy. My argument is that, when we say judges should presume that precedent holds in their current case — which means we assume that the way cases have been decided in the past should hold for the way we decide cases now — we actually aren’t saying much at all. This is because judges can always tell a new story, which allows them to make a distinction between the current case they are facing and past cases. For example, if we think of the most straightforward burglary case — a man is caught on camera breaking into a house and taking things that aren’t his — we think there’s this deductive, straightforward process where this man fits the criteria of a burglar and, therefore, is a burglar. And we like to think that judges are just applying these general principles and that they’re not doing any guessing in their own right.

What my thesis argues is that there’s something more complicated going on under the surface. We want to think that all these cases are the same, but really every case is unique.

Let’s say this man only robbed the houses of Chicago White Sox fans. When a judge applies the general principle, drawing from all the cases that came before this one, he is implicitly hypothesizing a new rule, which is that it’s not relevant that this guy was robbing the houses of Chicago White Sox fans. So in reality, though we like to portray the law as following from past precedent, judges are constantly deciding what is not relevant. In fact, that’s how law progresses: Sometimes, judges decide something is relevant. Let’s say the man was sleepwalking. Even if no case has come before that says so, the judge has a strong sense that the sleepwalking matters. The question that comes from reasoning by analogy is: Where does this sense come from?

What I want to point out is that judges aren’t really just applying straightforward deductive rules that entail their outcomes, despite the fact that they portray themselves as doing that. In reality, they’re consistently drawing on this sense of what the law should be. This isn’t saying that the legal profession is corrupt, just that they’re still hypothesizing new legal rules along the way in order to draw conclusions in cases.

Q: What made you want to pick this topic?

A: I was interested in merging philosophy and law because law is a nice example of when philosophy seems to be applied to the real world.

It takes philosophy seriously, and it takes seriously the notion that it’s reasoning rigorously and carefully and using deductive properties of logic. But it seems like, when philosophers look at the law, they say it’s a lot messier than what we like to see in science and things like that. So what I was interested in were these philosophers who had dug into the logical structure of law to try to understand what’s going on underneath the surface, because it seems to matter. It’s how we decide cases.

Q: What has the research process been like?

A: It’s been long. I started reading over the summer. I started reading very broadly, and I found a few papers on reasoning by analogy that I read carefully and wrote a lot of papers on — sort of long studies of the people involved. And those guys alluded to Nelson Goodman being relevant, but didn’t have time to go into it, so I decided to try to sort of fill in the gaps and go into it. And I found that I had my own argument to make from reading Goodman.

Q: What has been the most difficult part of the thesis-writing process?

A: Probably narrowing the scope. I think philosophy, and any thesis, has this problem where you’re trying to address a big issue, and every time you get narrower, it feels like it’s ready to explode again into a big topic and you have to address every issue. I think the hardest thing has been cutting myself off and saying, “I don’t need to learn about that right now, I can’t pursue that right now,” and casting aside certain parts of arguments that would be interesting. It’s been the obvious need to sacrifice breadth for depth. That’s been hard to do.

Q: What has been the most valuable thing you can take away so far?

A: I think I’m going to leave really interested in the topic and am going to want to think about it more in law school. I’m happy that I did this because I’m going to be interested in the topic long after I’m done with the thesis.

Q: Did the thesis influence your decision to apply to law school, or vice versa?

A: A little bit [of the latter]. I wanted to see what philosophy had to say about the law. And it turned out there was a lot, and it was easy to get into. But I think it was more that I had this interest in the law that was driving me to law school, and I also had this interest in philosophy, and I wanted to see how they blended.

Q: Do you have any advice for students considering writing a thesis?

A: It seems like everyone’s experience is very different. Everyone tries to get something different out of it. Some people pursue something they’re really passionate about; some people find out they’re passionate about something way far down the line.

I think very often my impulse was to start writing the moment I had what I thought was a good idea or a reaction to what I was reading.

But my most productive work came when I resisted that impulse and read more, and tried to have a better grip on the thing I was writing about before I wrote it. I also think I benefitted from finding a question that I was actually interested in answering. I was really curious about how reasoning by analogy worked. It seemed odd that there was a scholarly debate about it; it seemed like something that should be straightforward. I think picking a topic that I found controversial, but I couldn’t figure out why it was controversial, was a nice way to start. It was constantly surprising how complicated it was as I read into it, and it made me feel like there was a nice challenge to try to resolve it.

— Sophie Chung ’17

The Amherst Student • February 18, 2015

News

Aquaponics Club to Build Greenhouse

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Continued from Page 1 perfect sustainability,” Jim Hall ’15 said.

Once the funding gets allocated to the club, the club’s leaders expect construction of the aquaponics system to begin immediately. In addition to constructing the greenhouse, it is necessary to insulate the greenhouse and set up the electronic monitoring system.

“We think there are a lot of opportunities for research. Thais Correia ‘16 and Henry Laney ‘17 have designed an electronic monitoring system that will not only automate the system, but will also collect data on pH, temperature and other key factors,” Suechting said.

The basic design of the aquaponics greenhouse involves two fish tanks, which drain into a filtered, or sump, tank. The water will be pumped up into the top of the greenhouse to a sequencing valve, which will have six outputs to drain into the plant grow beds. The sequencing valve can be controlled to determine which grow beds receive the nitrogen-rich water.

Aquaponic systems surpass traditional agricultural methods in several regards. Theoretically, hydroponic systems conserve 90 percent more water than traditional agricultural methods. Aquaponic systems, in turn, conserve 90 percent more water than the hydroponic systems.

“Of course, that’s a loose generalization; all systems, aquaponic or traditional, are widely variable. Generally, though, aquaponic systems do well in the conservation of water,” Suechting said.

Depending on the plant, it can be possible to place twice as many plants per square foot

Photo Courtesy of Eli Mansbach ‘18

The Aquaponics Club has the blueprint plans for building a soil-free, self-sustaining greenhouse on campus. as opposed to the configuration of traditional agriculture because the roots only grow downwards. In addition, aquaponic systems can grow year round and extend the overall plant growth time by increasing carbon dioxide levels.

The club is currently working towards establishing fish food as the only input into the aquaponics system. While a zero-input system has not been constructed before, the club’s leaders said that ideally all resources involved in the aquaponics greenhouse would become self-sustaining. Eventually solar panels would

conserve energy, hydroponic filtration would conserve water and composted plant waste could be converted into fish food.

“There is endless potential here for manipulating the system, growing new plants or different fish, and finding out what happens,” Suechting said.

Furthermore the club plans to be financially self-sustaining: there are plans for the greenhouse’s produce and fish to be sold to Valentine Dining Hall.

Hall said that advances in aquaponics greenhouse efficiency can have influential ef-

Second Annual Green Games Starts Next Week Continued from Page 1 Chalmers said the college’s administration was “wonderfully cooperative” and integral to the existence and execution of the Green Games.

“Campus Engineer Aaron Hayden manually takes the weekly meter readings that the Games are dependent upon,” she said. “The Director [of the Office of Environmental Sustainability], Laura Draucker, has helped with making specific endeavors possible.”

The partnership between the Green Amherst Project and the recently founded Office of Environmental Sustainability is also a change from last year. The Office of Environmental Sustainability was formed in fall 2014 to further environmental sustainability and sustainability awareness at the college.

The partnership between the Green Amherst Project and the Office of Environmental Sustainability has already begun.

“We have had several discussions with GAP about this and are happy to support them in any way we can,” Draucker said. “In fact, we are currently working with the [planning] squad to organize Green Game events related to recycling and waste diversion.”

In addition to making the first-year quad en-

vironmentally conscious and efficient, Draucker and Chalmers see the Games as an opportunity “build tradition and camaraderie in the first-year dorms,” Chalmers said.

Julie Xia ’17, a Green Amherst Project member and last year’s tribute from the North Dormitory, agreed that her experience in the Games created a tight-knit sense of community among the first-year students.

“I kept hearing stories about the freshmen dorms bonding over pulling pranks on each other,” Xia said. “While we never got around to that, it was incredible how easy it was to get people to come together about environmental issues when it was presented as a chance to win at something.”

Future changes for the Green Games include expanding the event to all dormitories, possibly by next year. Chalmers said that the student-run group and the administration have already begun developing a system to this end.

“This is a significant undertaking — financially and mechanically,” Chalmers said. “And without [administrative] support, it would probably be impossible for students to ask for it.” fert said. “They’re exceptional in every way: smart, adaptable, selfless, creative and tireless. I take this award to be as much an ‘excellent library

staff ’ award as an ‘excellence in academic libraries award’.”

Students also praised the library staff.

“I’ve always admired how dedicated the research and instruction librarians are to helping students succeed, and that holds for all the library’s staff members,” said Katharine Rudzitis ’15, who serves as a student representative of the Library Committee. “All of the library’s staff has a passion for making Frost an integral part of our college community … and ensuring that students have the tools to learn and conduct research.”

In order to be considered for the award, schools must submit an application to the ACRL. Colleges are given the opportunity in the application to demonstrate how their library has effectively supported the educational mission of the institution and facilitated collaboration amongst the library’s different departments. Later this spring, the ACRL will send a delegation to the library to present the award along with the $3,000 prize. “We’re hoping to use the money for a celebration.” Frost will also be honored at the ACRL President’s Program at the American Library Association’s annual conference in San Francisco at the end of June.

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fects in deserted urban areas. Abandoned buildings and factories can be converted into greenhouses to introduce local jobs and produce into urban dead zones. There would be no transportation costs and all produce would be organic, because pesticides and chemicals would not be used to facilitate plant growth.

While these advances are purely hypothetical, as zero-input systems are yet nonexistent, Hall said there is potential in the field of aquaponic agriculture.

“The end goal is perfect sustainability,” Hall said.

AAS Candidate Statements

Raymond Meijer ’17

I’m excited to run for the opportunity to represent our class of 2017 in senate.

I enjoy forming friendships with people who have a diversity of interests, ideas and backgrounds, and I look forward to responding to comments and concerns from various individuals, clubs and varsity and club athletics around campus. As well as being a reliable representative liaison to students and faculty, I hope to bring stability and transparency to the role of senator and work to establish better waste management, amongst other ideas. I promise to be a responsive and down-to-earth class representative.

Thank you!

Thomas Moore ’17 Hey, class of 2017! It’d be an honor and a pleasure to represent y’all as a senator for our class. If elected, I would focus on finding resolutions to the conflicts present in our student body in order to allow more effort to be put toward things that benefit all students. I believe that if all the time spent fighting amongst ourselves was redirected toward discussions with the administration, we would be able to achieve many more of the changes we all want to see.

Let’s work it out!

Lynndy Smith ’17

Fellow Amherst Students, my name is Lynndy Smith and I am running to be your class senator. My goal at Amherst is to ask: How might we? I believe that good communication between our Senate and student body is essential to making productive changes at Amherst.

Success will only come as long as the students direct the Senate, not the other way around. I will help provide a voice for those who need to be heard. I love Amherst and I want to see it change for the better. For these reasons, please vote me for your Amherst class senator.

Opinion A Case for Social Justice Education Editorial Amherst College’s admissions brochures love to tout the open curriculum. Save for the first year seminar, which has such a range of options that it can hardly be counted as a required class, we are free to explore our interests without restriction. If you hated French in high school, you can say “au revoir” to it for good here. Loved by more than enthusiastic tour guides, our open curriculum is almost universally seen as a boon for our academic careers. Before we go any further, The Amherst Student’s editorial board would like to clarify that we love the open curriculum. However, we would argue that it could use some tweaking.

The mission of our college is to prepare its students to lead “lives of consequence.” Granted, beyond that, that ideal is pretty vague.

Amherst is in no way pre-professional nor does it create many expectations beyond major requirements. Yet, this freedom leaves students at somewhat of a deficit when it comes to social justice issues. The fact is that any pre-med, econ or even English student can get away without taking a single class that explores social constructions of race or gender. In reality, it is entirely possible for an Amherst student to be as ignorant of political issues integral to their participation in our democracy as when they walked in. To put it another way, Amherst students should know the words “check your privilege” as something more than a catchphrase used by a few campus activists.

A mandatory half-credit class on race, gender, privilege and social justice would solve this fundamental issue. This class could be once a week and held during a first-year student’s first semester here. The essential idea would be to make sure that every Amherst student has

a basic knowledge of social issues to not only have the conversations that the Day of Dialogue strived to create but also to create better democratic citizens in the long run that can articulate solutions.

These issues should not and cannot be relegated to political science or sociology classes, since our perceived social identities affect us in all aspects of our lives. A once-a-week, mandatory survey class created in collaboration with the Black Studies, SWAGS, Political Science, History and Sociology Departments along with the MRC, QRC and WGC could push Amherst students to critically think about their future “lives of consequence” without forcing us to abandon the open curriculum we hold near and dear.

Students cannot lead lives of consequence without actually understanding that racism is still rampant, that colorblindness isn’t the answer and that feminism doesn’t mean hating all men. It would be foolish to dismiss this claim by saying that Amherst students are the “cream of the crop” and should somehow intrinsically understand society better than the average citizen. If the Day of Dialogue showed us anything, it’s that many of us often don’t know or care enough about issues of race, racism and gender inequality. Some have argued that the very nature of being in such a diverse environment forces us to have conversations about privilege and social justice. But Amherst cannot, in good conscience, rely on random late-night conversations between friends to educate students about these essential issues. Students should have informal conversations about race, class and gender, but the onus to start these conversations and educate should be on the institution.

Debunking Myths About the Police: Part II Robert Lucido ’15 Contributing Writer My last article, “Debunking Myths About Racialized Police Brutality in America,” which focused on the misleading “28 Hours” mantra that is common in the Black Lives Matter movement, was quickly and publicly reduced to “yet another attempt at undercutting a movement dedicated to the equal value of white and non-white lives” (see the Amherst Soul article “My Melanin Is Not A Myth, It’s Your Nightmare”). To this I ask: What does it say about a movement if its rallying cry is undercut by a mere statement of facts — facts taken directly from the very report that inspired it, no less?

For simply stating the truth, I was denigrated as an ignorant racist “single-mindedly committed to perpetuating the silencing of black voices,” according to the response article mentioned above. I know that it is politically incorrect to use facts that make people uncomfortable, but when did honesty give way to matters of convenience?

Only through an honest assessment of the facts can we hope to pinpoint the problem and ameliorate it. Thus, while my last article exposed the disingenuous nature of the claim that “in 2012, police summarily executed more than 313 black people — one every 28 hours,” this alone does not suffice to exonerate the police of problems related to the reality of unnecessary civilian death or the appearance at least of racism. A more comprehensive analysis of all lethal police force is required in order to discern whether people of color disproportionate-

ly fall victim to such. No one should accept the status quo: we all must admit that there are ways to improve both policing and safety in America today. But in order to solve those problems, we have to have a very good idea of exactly what they are.

“Deadly Force, in Black and White” has been one of the most frequently cited sources on the subject; news outlets from the New York Times to NPR have widely publicized its findings.

This report, originally published by the organization ProPublica, claims that “young black males in recent years were at a far greater risk of being shot dead by police than their white counterparts — 21 times greater.” While it is easy — even instinctive, for some — to read this statistic and conclude that the police are racist, ProPublica’s analysis in fact neglects to investigate the causes of such a stark disparity. Indeed, it is odd that ProPublica, the first online publication to win a Pulitzer Prize, would leave the most important question unanswered: Namely, what caused this drastic risk differential between white and black males, ages 15 to 19?

To begin to answer that question, one must control for the rate at which black and white male teenagers put themselves at risk of such lethal force. In October of last year, Slate claimed to do just that in an article entitled “Black Teens Vastly More Likely to be Killed by Police Than Whites Even After Adjusting for Crime Rates.” It arrived at this conclusion by using the “21 times greater risk” statistic and controlling for the fact that “black Americans are between two and three times as like-

ly to commit a violent crime as white Americans.” But that “calculation” is nothing more than smoke and mirrors: to compare the rates at which police kill black and white male teenagers, one must control for the violent crime rates of black and white male teenagers — not black and white males and females of all ages. Indeed, the violent crime rate among black male teenagers is significantly higher. For example, according to the Crime Prevention Research Center, they were nine times more likely to commit murder than similarly aged white males. Controlling for that difference alone, ProPublica’s risk figure falls sharply from 21 times as great to 2.3 times — just a fraction of the original claim, but still a serious matter for concern.

The idea that a human being would be 2.3 times more likely to be shot dead because of his skin color remains unacceptable in a supposedly post-racial society. However, we must note that this 2.3 statistic controls only for murder, not all violent crime, and that there are still other confounding factors.

For example, even ProPublica acknowledges in its analysis that the data on fatal police shootings are “terribly incomplete,” as “vast numbers of the country’s 17,000 police departments don’t file fatal police shooting reports at all.”

However, what ProPublica fails to mention is that the departments that do file such reports are usually found in urban areas whose populations are on average more than 50 percent more black than the rest of the United States. This is certainly no excuse for the inadequate reporting of

such shootings, but it could suggest that there is an under-sampling of the white victims of deadly police force. Instead, ProPublica attempts to disregard the effects of this under-sampling by simply quoting David Klinger, a former police officer and current criminology professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, as saying “the disparity between black and white teenage boys is so wide, ‘I doubt the measurement error would account for that.’” But ProPublica was forced to backtrack on that quote since Klinger himself had not given them permission to quote him.

His research later contributed to a Wall Street Journal article which contended that “the latest data from 105 of the country’s largest police agencies found more than 550 police killings during 2007-2012 were missing from the national tally or, in a few dozen cases, not attributed to the agency involved. The result: It is nearly impossible to determine how many people are killed by the police each year.”

Therefore, there is clearly a series of problems at play, but we cannot begin to improve the situation until we know exactly what they are. Slogans and marches are good tools for focusing public attention, but the passions they generate can lead to false conclusions and warped solutions. Police departments should be required to properly report an officer’s use of lethal force no matter how justified the use of force may be. And, until sound evidence that lethal police force is racially motivated exists, our focus should instead be on reducing all use of such force regardless of the victim’s skin color.

THE AMHERST

STUDENT

E X E C U T I V E B OA R D Editor-in-Chief Sophie Murguia Executive Adviser Brendan Hsu Managing News Dan Ahn, Sophie Chung, Elaine Jeon Managing Opinion Johnathan Appel, Marie Lambert Managing Arts and Living Marquez Cummings, Gabby Edzie, Evan Paul Managing Sports Kiana Herold, Lauren Tuiskula S TA F F

Design Editors Gabby Bishop, Megan Do, William Harvey, Sunna Juhn, Chloe Tausk Assistant News Editor Ryan Cenek Assistant Sports Editors Kiana Herold, Jeremy Kesselhaut, Jason Darell, Jason Stein Publishers Emily Ratte, Tia Robinson Photography Editor Olivia Tarantino

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The Amherst Student • February 18, 2015

Opinion

5

Why Bigger Isn’t Always Better When It Comes to Having Important Conversations David Yang ’18 Staff Writer College administrators seem caught in the idealized pursuit of a pan-Amherst conversation. To that end, there have been sweeping initiatives like the Day of Dialogue and the Ask Big Questions program.

These attempts at a college-wide conversation focus on broad abstractions like “race” and “thoughtfulness” that everyone can read into because they are so ubiquitous. The effect, however, is that it is difficult for individuals to personalize and invest themselves in these generalizations. In the process of trying to draw everyone in, broad initiatives fail to interest individual students because they are designed to generically interest everyone.

The false assumption behind every “campus-wide conversation” is that everyone cares enough to have a conversation. However, rarely is an issue so crucial that every student will clear his or her schedule and hop aboard to talk about it in a structured setting. The reality is that we’re disinterested about vital issues all the time and that there is a limited number of issues toward which we can devote our energy.

To propose that the entire college does not spend enough time talking about sexual assault is just as absurd as the claim that we don’t spend enough time talking about the limited availability of clean drinking water in Tanzania. The distribution of interest for any given cause is such that there are pockets of advocacy interspersed among a much broader apathy. It should not be a source of concern that students don’t want to talk about something, even when it concerns issues that are of particular priority to the college like race, sexuality and sexual assault.

The structure of a college “dialogue” is symptomatic of the impracticality of the endeavor. One of the biggest problems of engaging a large

group is that some students don’t know anything about the topic and therefore have trouble engaging in the conversation. To remedy this, we bring in speakers to help bring everyone up to a baseline understanding of the topics before students are set loose to dialogue. Armed with the premise, students then break off and “dialogue” about the topics before reaching a common conclusion that is more or less inevitable given the starting point of common ground.

Facilitators are necessary for large college-wide dialogues because it is difficult for everyone to be respectful of others when the only guardrail against unintentionally caustic remarks is an hour-long presentation that preceded the discussion.

All this is contrasted with conversations that are started by students.

The divestment movement led by the Green Amherst Project is a perfect example of student ability to take the initiative and create a dialogue on campus surrounding the issues that they consider important. The fact that the Green Amherst Project exists as an organization despite the fact that the college has no official position on divestment is a reminder that students will always be passionate about something, whatever it might be, and that they will act on their passions and spread it without any initiative on the part of the college. Although the Green Amherst Project may not command the same number of participants as the Day of Dialogue did, the people that it does draw in are absolutely committed to their issue. A passionate group of individuals, as small though the group may be, is a more powerful force for igniting meaningful college conversations because members of group have the potential incorporate their passion for the issue into their everyday interactions.

Conversations instigated by small-scale student activism are also less susceptible to cynicism.

Whereas college-led initiatives are

Photo courtesy of Office of Communications

Amherst students gathered in LeFrak Gymnasium to listen to a panel as a part of the Day of Dialogue on Jan. 23, 2015. impersonal and easy to disregard, often announced by way of college email, student initiatives have faces and names attached to them and often are announced by way of social media or a personal invitation to get involved. It is easy for students to write off the most recent Day of Dialogue as an abstruse intellectual discussion that is a lecture you can listen to later. But there are no substitutes for having small-group conversations about racial inequity with peers who are passionate about the

issue.There is validity to the idea that the college bears partial responsibility for uniting a student body that it purposely engineers to be diverse through the admissions process. I think that providing opportunities for students to interact that do not focus on differences will be the best way to help students overcome the divides on campus. The knowledge that a particular activity is meant to foster a sense of understanding for their peers often introduces a sense of artificiality and self-awareness to

the experience that may actually be counterproductive. But if the activity has another goal in mind besides merely pushing a diverse group of people together, it has the potential to be more successful. The college should increase its efforts in supporting activities like the recently announced backpacking trip to Zion National Park, activities that will demonstrate that on the individual level that the meaningful differences between us are small compared to our shared experiences.

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Arts&Living

Images courtesy of Tuna and the Wongs

Jake Vitale ’17, Andrew Wang ’15, and Michael Ordower ’15 are Marsh Coffee Haus regulars and the recent winners of the Get Out of the Garage sweepstakes.

Tuna and the Wongs Take to Boston’s Converse Rubber Tracks Studio Christopher Roll ’17 Arts & Living Managing Editor Most musicians dream of making music that is readily available for others to listen to and appreciate. Last Friday, Amherst College’s very own Tuna and the Wongs took a step toward accomplishing that dream. The band, comprised of three Amherst College students and one Holyoke Community College student, was selected among numerous contestants to enjoy a free day of recording at Converse Rubber Tracks Studio in Boston, as part of the Get Out of the Garage sweepstakes courtesy of Converse and Guitar Center. With the help of a professional recording engineer, Tuna and the Wongs were able to put down five tracks over the course of a day.

In September of 2014, Holyoke Community College student Tim “Tuna” Ray (vocals, songwriter and guitar) and Amherst College senior Andrew Wang (bass, vocals and songwriter) found themselves looking for two more members to complete their band. It

didn’t take long for Wang to recruit two more Amherst College musicians, Jake Vitale ‘17 (drums) and Michael Ordower ’15 (guitar, vocals and songwriter). Within a month of the band’s formation, Ray had already submitted some of their new demos to the Get Out of the Garage sweepstakes, although he said he forgot to mention to his new bandmates he had done so. As a result, when the band was eventually selected it came as much as a surprise as it did a delight for the other three band members.

During the fall semester, the band played shows every couple weeks at Marsh, supplemented by performances at the surrounding colleges and local record stores. All the while putting together new music in a surprisingly, somewhat regimented style. Their creative process is as follows: Ordower provides the band with the “barebones” of a new tune and then passes it on to Wang and “Tuna” for editing and finalizations. Finally, Vitale is free to create his own drum beat to complement the sound of the new opus. To that end, Tuna and

the Wongs have created a sound that they have described as “The Cars meet Billy Idol meets Blink-182.” The band incorporates a range of styles such as pop, grunge, punk, indie, surf rock and synthetic rock.

A week before last Friday the band was notified they had been selected to partake in the Get Out of the Garage sweepstakes.

Although they were already scheduled to perform a show at Marsh that evening, they said they could not pass up an opportunity to record at a state-of-the-art recording studio. Therefore Tuna and the Wongs packed up Vitale’s Toyota Rav4 and made their way to Boston. They arrived at 10:30 a.m. and following introductions, immediately began their check. Following sound check, they were ready to lay down what are known as the “basics,” or a live renditions of each song.

In three hours they were able to get down five of their songs. The rest of the day involved perfecting vocals and solos, doing overdubs and editing, all with the help of the audio engineer hired by the sweepstakes. It was the

band’s first time with a soundboard, two-way recording glass and a professional engineer helping with production. When the day in Boston ended, the band packed back in the car and raced home to perform at Marsh Dormitory for another Friday night show.

Tuna and the Wongs’ recognition by the Get Out of the Garage judges and subsequent escapade in the studio last Friday has forced the band to think about their future as a unit.

Vitale said he is is leaning toward cancelling his applications to study abroad while the two Amherst seniors, Wang and Ordower, are planning on sticking around after graduation for a year to continue what they have started.

As for this semester, Tuna and the Wongs are planning on going back into the studio in March to record seven more songs to complete their first album. They will continue to perform all over Western Massachusetts this spring and have their sights set on touring up and down the East Coast this summer.

“Things are still up in the air,” Ordower said. “We are just going with the flow.”

Amherst Cinema Showcases Oscar-Nominated Animated Shorts Sophie Currin ’17 Contributing Writer

Image courtesy of usatoday.com

“Feast” (above) among 2015’s most innovative shorts featured in the local exhibition.

Nestled in the corner behind A.J. Hastings and Amherst Coffee, Amherst Cinema is a local gem that can easily be overlooked. With the motto, “See Something Different!”, the independent nonprofit gives students and townies alike the unique opportunity to watch, in an intimate theater setting, carefully selected films, cartoons, documentaries and, right now, both the animated and live action 2015 Oscar-nominated shorts.

Because I had never watched shorts as a collection before, and because they typically lack exposure compared to films that normally win best picture or Best Actress at the Academy Awards (coming up on Feb. 22), I decided to indulge myself and attend a showing for the nominated animated shorts. With little knowledge prior to entering the theatre about the short films awaiting me, I had few expectations.

I left the theater with a newfound, overwhelming appreciation for these

short works of art. Ranging from two to 18 minutes, originating in four different countries, varying across forms of animation and mixed media and differing in modes of narration, each short somehow grasps and succinctly exposes a reality, a lesson, of the human experience. They’re relatable, telling, whimsical and comical, sometimes in a slightly cynical way.

I observed that the creativity and freedom that comes with animation allows artists to express emotions in ways that transcend, in effectiveness, that of everyday, perceived reality — complete control of colors, motions and setting allows this.

The nominated shorts are as follows: “Me and My Moulton,” “Feast,” “The Bigger Picture,” “A Single Life” and “The Dam Keeper,” however, Amherst Cinema also includes “Sweet Cocoon,” “Footprints,” “Duet” and “Bus Story.”

“Me and My Moulton,” made in Canada, depicts the struggles of a middle child growing up in an abnormal Norwegian family in the 1960s, stuck between the

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Arts & Living 7

The Amherst Student • February 18, 2015

“The Bigger Picture” and “A Single Life” Highlight Exhibition Continued from previous page anxieties of not being “normal” compared to her friends and wanting to impress by her modern-architect parents. Playfully comical, the plot centers around the child and her sisters asking for a bike, showing the protagonist coming to terms with her family’s quirkiness.

Clearly an American film, “Feast” explains through a dog’s perspective, focusing on his relationship with food, his owner’s love story. Sans dialogue, the viewer follows the dog as he helps his owner pursue happiness and a good life.

“The Bigger Picture,” produced in the United Kingdom, provided extraordinary relief from the typical animation; through an incredible mixed media, modernist-like representation, it expressively depicted the tribulations of brothers caring for a parent in old age and coming to terms with death. If not for the content, the visual effects alone make this a must-see.

From the Netherlands, the two-minute film “A Single Life” shows the reaction of a woman who discovers

she can fast forward and rewind her life by moving the needle on a record. The film explores the human obsession of the past and the future and our tendency to be dissatisfied with whatever is happening in the current moment. Finally, she accidentally bumps the needle too far, shrinking into an urn. This scene immediately, and slightly (and quite shockingly) induced laughter throughout the theater.

Finally, “The Dam Keeper,” another American short, depicts a once-lonely young pig’s journey to self-acceptance and assurance through new friendship in a town of animals that shun him. He grapples with the weight of great responsibility (keeping his town healthy) as the dam keeper and the plight of a letdown that only turns out to be a bad miscommunication.

I could easily distinguish, in quality and content, when the nominated films ended and the extras began.

The extras are entertaining, but if you are short on time, you honestly won’t miss much by leaving after “The Dam Keeper.” “Sweet Cocoon,” “Duet” and “Footprints”

are aesthetically pleasing, yet lack the thought-provoking content of the others. And “Bus Story,” though awkwardly funny (it shows a bus driver failing miserably at her job) essentially did nothing more than reinforced my impression that bus driving is an unappealing job.

The animated shorts thoughtfully explore themes that affect people every day —fear of death or time, the dynamics of familial relations, friendship and love.

Though the shorts are available to watch individually online, I feel that smoothly moving from one short to the next, one idea to the next, is key — watching one after another has a compounding effect that enhances the experience of appreciating the short films. The quick turnover of stories and artistic nature of each short make the experience far from boring, and the way emotions are enhanced through art make these short films relevant. I would highly recommend seeing the 2015 Oscar-nominated animated shorts, along with appreciating and taking advantage of our very own Amherst Cinema.

“Show&Tell” Offers a Raw Look Into the Individual Experience Daniella Colombo ’17 Contributing Writer The latest community endeavor to surface in my Facebook newsfeed has presented itself in the form of a video blog of sorts, titled “Show & Tell.” A week ago, I received a notification inviting me to like the show’s Facebook page. Intrigued, I decided to visit the page.

Posted was a short description advertising “Show & Tell” as a series of short videos aiming to humanize the faces we walk past every day, along with a 24-second promotional video that left me with many questions, but eager for more. The short clip featured a gold chain being dangled by a hazy silhouette in the background. A few days later, this clip was followed by the first edition in the series.

The hazy figure in the teaser was unveiled to be Amir Hall ‘17, who was put in the spotlight to show his object and tell his story. In the video, Hall introduces viewers to the “culture of letters” he and his friends managed to establish through the exchange of messages, characterized by length and fluidity, appreciation and sentiment. He reflects on the lesson he learned about communication after maneuvering through feelings of disappointment upon receiving a birthday card from home, penned simply with the message, “We love you more than life.” The realization surfaced that he had lost sight of this distinct culture of letters, embodied by great meaning being packed into a simple form — a symbolic representation of life back home.

The people spearheading this community endeavor are Meghan McDonough ‘16, Khalil Flemming ‘16 and Sarah Jordan ‘16, who came together to create “Show & Tell”, individually inspired by a variety of

catalyzing factors. In my interview with her, McDonough recounted a string of enlightening experiences with the Athletic Team Engagement Leaders and the Pioneer Valley Citizen Summer (PVCS) that she said together enhanced her sense of pride in the student population and led to the realization that student backgrounds are a valuable facet of the Amherst community we do not exploit enough.

The design of “Show & Tell” is inspired by an icebreaker activity done with the Athletic Team Engagement Leaders, in which all members of the group were asked to bring in an item meaningful to them and talk about what it reflected about their background or values. What began as a cheesy icebreaker turned out to be a very real experience, rooted in dialogue across the exchange of personal narratives, which was formative of profound connections. McDonough said that getting to know the 30 students she lived with in Newport during PVCS reiterated for her the importance of building relationships based on acknowledging and learning from her peers’ diverse backgrounds.

Sharing a similar perspective on the effectiveness of communicating raw stories to spark connections, McDonough and Flemming had been toying with ways to use such a model to increase solidarity across the Amherst student community since last spring. Moved by the sharing that was done in small groups on the Day of Dialogue early this semester, Jordan was eager to join the partnership. The trio’s individual provocative encounters with the Day of Dialogue was the final the catalyst in bringing the idea of “Show & Tell” to fruition. The overarching mission of the project is to offer Amherst’s community of students a tool that could aid in the facilitation of conversations about

Images courtesy of Show & Tell

The first installment of the series explores an Amherst student’s relationship with his loved ones through short letters and notes. experiences that many students are willing to share, but rarely get the chance to talk about.

“There’s nothing antagonistic about what we are doing. We’re not trying to ‘fix’ anything,” Jordan told me. “We were inspired, and this is our attempt to enhance the goldmine of students by tapping into the experiences and stories our classmates have to share. People here are so open and willing to talk about these kinds of things.”

Khalil touches on the feeling of missing out on the interactions that we, by nature, are unable to have with the people with whom we share a campus. “Show & Tell” aims to offer the closest thing to a solution to this limitation.

The trio is deserving of admiration for committing to a project that carries the challenge of presenting just a fragment of an individual’s story — enough to captivate the viewer, yet in a way that does the subject’s narrative justice. Jordan, Flemming and McDonough bear the great responsibility of striking a balance between conveying the subjects’ stories in order to accurately reflect their feelings and experiences, and doing so delicately and respectfully.

The short-term vision for the “Show & Tell” project includes the production of six more installations in the series by the end of the semester and continuation of the effort into next year. The creators said that the long-term plans for “Show & Tell” will be dependent on what the student community makes of the project.

As we inevitably find ourselves scrolling through our Facebook newsfeeds in whatever downtime we manage to find between the intricacies of our daily schedules, take 90 seconds to watch the first in this series of Show and Tell videos. Hopefully it may encourage you to reflect on the experiences you are passionate about to share with others, and the profound dimensions there are to the people we walk among daily that are ready to be explored.

“If something intrigues you about the people in these videos, ask them,” Flemming encouraged students in an interview. “These people have fully consented to sharing their story and are not just putting themselves out there to be profiled.

They are starting a conversation, and we are trying to facilitate that. A lot of conversations can be started from this kind of thing.”

Spicing Up the Sandwich Station: How to Get Creative at Val Olivia Tarantino ’15 Staff Writer After a semester-long hiatus, your favorite tips and tricks for eating at Val are back! This week’s theme is sandwiches. Of course, sandwiches are a staple food item during lunchtime because they’re relatively easy to make and are very portable.

The only thing that makes the convenient lunch better is making it hot — and that’s where the panini comes into play. While I’m sure all students have traveled over to the panini press at some point during their time at Amherst, here are some ways to take your ordinary sandwich to the next level.

The key to making a good panini is

having the perfect temperature of the grill and right amount of pressure on the sandwich. Make sure the grill is set to around 310 degrees. Once the sandwich is assembled, cover it with parchment paper and lightly close — don’t push it down — the panini press for five to six minutes, or until the cheese melts.

The aim is to gently heat the entirety of the sandwich in order to melt the cheese, rather than smashing it all together, while also getting those desired grill marks.

Regardless of if you decide to venture to the panini machine, or stick to the ease of the cold sandwich, here are a couple recipes to try during your lunch break.

Triple Turkey Club with Spicy Guacamole Sauce

1 part sour cream Frank’s Red Hot Salt and pepper

Image courtesy of Olivia Tarantino ’15

3 slices of whole grain bread 3-4 slices of bacon 4-5 pieces of turkey 3 slices of tomato 2 pieces of lettuce Spicy Guacamole Sauce 3 parts guacamole

Instructions: Make the guacamole sauce by mixing 3 parts guacamole to 1 part sour cream, adding a couple dashes of Frank’s Red Hot and seasoning well with salt and freshly ground pepper. Toast the bread until it is golden brown.

Assemble the sandwich by topping one piece of bread with the guacamole sauce, bacon and turkey. Then add another piece of bread, guacamole, turkey, tomato, lettuce and then a final piece of bread spread with guacamole. Eat with a side of pickle spears for that nostalgic deli experience.

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Arts & Living 8

The Amherst Student • February 18, 2015

The Panini Press Offers Unique Alternatives to Student Dining Continued from previous page

Image courtesy of Olivia Tarantino ’15

Italian Panini with Tangy Pesto Mayonnaise 2 slices of sourdough bread (or peasant bread) 3 slices of salami 3-4 slices of ham 2 slices of provolone cheese (can be substituted with Swiss) Handful of arugula (or spinach) A layer of roasted red peppers (found in the Lighter Side) Drizzle of balsamic vinegar Pesto mayonnaise 1 part mayonnaise (can be substituted with Greek yogurt or sour cream) 1 part pesto

Spoonful of Dijon mustard Lemon wedge Salt and freshly ground black pepper Instructions: Mix the pesto mayonnaise by combining 1 part mayonnaise to 1 part pesto, adding a spoonful of Dijon mustard, splash of lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Spread a healthy spoonful of the pesto mayonnaise on both slices of bread.

Add a slice of provolone cheese to each side, then the salami on one side and ham on the other. Layer on the roasted red peppers and arugula and drizzle the open sandwich with balsamic vinegar. Once the sandwich is assembled, cover it with parchment paper and lightly close the panini press for 5-6 minutes (it’s worth the wait!) or until the cheese melts.

Honey Ham and Apple Grilled Cheese 2 slices of sourdough bread Dijon mustard 4-5 pieces of ham 2-3 slices of cheddar cheese 1 sliced Granny Smith Apple Drizzle of honey Cherry jam (optional) Instructions: Spread the Dijon mustard on both slices of bread, then layer the cheese and ham evenly on both sides. Thinly slice a Granny Smith apple and distribute evenly on both slices. Add the chunkier part of the cherry jam to one side (if it is too wet, it will drip and cause your sandwich to be soggy). Drizzle over the top with honey. Stick in the panini press for 5-6 minutes.

The Mead Art Museum Debuts Three Asian Art Exhibits Darya Bor’18 Staff Writer The Mead Art Museum opened up three new exhibits featuring Asian art on Friday, Feb. 5, marking the first time the Mead has ever simultaneously featured three Asian art exhibits. The exhibits are a collection of Japanese prints called “Nature, Pleasure, Myth: Animals in the Art of Japan,” an exhibit on 20th-century Japanese history in “Fifty Years of Showa Japan: The photography of Kageyama Koyo,” and a collection of miniatures in the exhibit “Gods, Kings, and Lovers: Paintings from Courtly India.”

The three curators of these three exhibitions briefly introduced their work to the approximately 50 members of the audience, including professors, students and other members of the Amherst community. The conjoined exhibition was not planned to be a historic event; the three were planned independently, but correlated their opening together, leading to a major event celebrating the Mead’s collection of Asian art.

The largest of the three exhibits is “Nature, Pleasure, Myth: Animals in the Art of Japan.”

The exhibition grew from a seminar on Japanese prints headed by Bradley Bailey, E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter postdoctoral curatorial teaching fellow in Japanese prints, whose appointment at the Mead two years ago was instigated with constant work with students in mind. In the seminar, students interacted with the Mead’s collection of prints in the Timothy Green collection, learn about the prints, their intricacies, and their place in the history of Japanese woodblock prints, and then curate an exhibition, deciding which prints would be featured, researching the backgrounds, writing the label text, and forming a booklet of essays about the prints. The blend turned out to create what Bailey described as “a class on curating an exhibition while also surveying the history of Japanese prints.”

While exhibitions are usually curated with experts at the helm, the difficulty of curating an exhibition with a seminar class lay with allowing students time the students to catch up to the existing scholarship on the material and then incorporating the ideas between the seven executors of the exhibition, including Bailey. In addition, the “Nature, Pleasure, Myth” was created in the span of a semester – which is extremely rushed in the world of curatorial exhibits. The broad topic of “animals in Japanese prints” still allowed differentiation in different topics, from animals used

as designs in kabuki theater, to courtesan dress styles, to legends showing animals as dangerous villains.

All in all, the class and exhibition offer something that other classes cannot – practice in the field.

“Back in college, people would ask me, ‘What do you do with an art history degree?’”

Bailey said. “But actually, it is the only humanities discipline that studies a commodity. With an art history degree, you can work at a museum, you could be an academic, you can work at an auction house, you can be an arts dealer, you can be an appraiser, you can be an educator – there are so many things to do that are directly related to the degree. It is a rare thing to have curatorial experience at the undergraduate level, even the graduate level.

If we could have a year-long course doing the same thing, then exhibitions like this would be much more feasible as well as being an excellent practical supplement to the academic art history training we have now.”

The Mead will be showed Japanese erotic prints from the Green collection, held in conjunction with the exhibition “Nature, Pleasure, Myth” this Friday, Feb. 13, as a Valentine’s Day celebration of love.

The second exhibit focused on a later portion of Japanese history – the Showa period, or reign of Showa Emperor, Hirohito from 19261989, as seen by news photographer Kageyama Koyo. This impetus for the exhibit came from three sources: the interest of Samuel C. Morse, Howard M. and Martha P. Mitchell Professor of the History of Art and Asian Languages and Civilizations, the generosity of an enthusiastic Amherst alumnus, Scott Nagle ’85, and the support of a son of Kageyama Koyo, Kageyama Tohiro.

The collection features photographs spanning this period, showing the development of Japan along with its glories and its falls – an artistic and informative view of the life of a country.

“Kageyama was a news photographer, but he somehow he was able to add more to the photograph,” Morse said. “He wrote extensive notes on the backs of each of his archival photographs. On the photograph of the women in beach pajama fashion, he would acknowledge that the Japanese were invading the Shandong peninsula at the same time. He was very conscious of the social context in which he was making these images and he was perfectly willing to write down this context and his own personal reaction.”

The result is a stunning exhibit that would

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not have been possible without the contributions of Scott Nagle ’85 and Kageyama Tohiro.

While Nagle produced the funds for acquiring these pieces, Kageyama Tohiro’s generosity allowed the Mead to have newly-made prints from the original negatives. Such a collection currently makes Amherst’s collection of Kagayama prints the largest in the United States.

The third exhibition, “Gods, Kings, and Lovers: Paintings from Courtly India,” was curated by Yael Rice, Visiting Assistant Professor and Robert E. Keiter ‘57 Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Art and the History of Art, with assistance from Chen Jiang ‘15. Rice’s interest in these works sparked the whole idea.

“As soon as I moved into the area, I contacted the Mead to take a look at their Indian paintings,” she said. “There are dozens and dozens. From there I chose based on quality of execution, interest, historical value, where it was made, subject matter, etc.”

From these dozens, Rice ended up with nine pieces.

The prints are characterized by their minute details and pointillism. Guests at the reception on Feb. 5 leaned closer and closer and closer to the glass, trying to discern the tiny and

intricate designs on the subjects’ robes without fogging up the museum glass. Rice said that, often, with these intricate objects, the naked eye cannot discern the intricacies that a digital format may easily give.

“Right now, lots of historians and librarians are experimenting with the digital image; not that it is replacing the experience with the object on display, but rather us to see the manuscript page in a way that the naked eye does not allow,” she said.

In addition, the exhibition features minerals on display that correspond with the various colors of the pigments used in the paintings.

The minerals came on loan from the Beneski Museum of Natural History on campus and the Skinner Museum of Mount Holyoke College. The collaboration there, Rice said, was much easier than it might be at a larger institution.

“People in the sciences [at Amherst], I’ve found, are very willing to collaborate with their colleagues in the arts and humanities,” she said.

On Thursday, April 2, at 6:30 p.m., Rice and her assistant Jiang will be hosting a Gallery Talk at the Mead Art Museum for “Gods, Kings, and Lovers: Paintings from Country India.”

Image courtesy of Mead Archives

One Japanese exhibit explores animals images through various media.

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The Amherst Student • February 18, 2015

Sports 9

Women’s Hockey Falls to 15-3-4, Faces Bowdoin This Weekend Nell Patterson ’15 Senior Staff Writer With two tough games at NESCAC rival Trinity this past weekend, the Amherst women’s hockey team moved to 15-3-4. Coming off a successful campaign against Williams last week, where Jeffs goalie Yuna Evans ’17 was named NESCAC Player of the Week, the Jeffs faltered slightly this weekend with a 1-1 tie and 5-2 loss at Trinity College.

The loss on Sunday represents only the second loss in conference play for the Jeffs and did not affect their second place position in the NESCAC standings. In the national rankings, Amherst ranked No. 6 in the country according to D3hockey.com and No. 9 in the USCHO.com coaches’ poll. As the NESCAC postseason play quickly approaches, every win in conference counts.

“Although Trinity isn’t as big of a rival as Middlebury, every NESCAC game is huge,” said Emily Flom ’15, who had an assist and goal in the Sunday loss against Trinity. “The competition between NESCAC schools has been outstanding and regardless of the rankings, every team has the skill to beat any team at any day. We cannot afford to take any team lightly, so we prepared for Trinity as we would any other team.”

Preparation was key in the hard-fought battle on Saturday against the Bantams. The first period was an all-out brawl with both teams firing hard on the opponent’s nets. Trinity edged Amherst in shots 10-9 in the opening period. The Jeffs had early opportunities to score with two power plays in the first period, but the Bantam defense remained difficult to surpass. With only 41 seconds left in the first period, Trinity got on the board with a shot by Cheeky Herr. The first period ended with the Jeffs down 1-0, a rare position for the talented team.

Opening up the second period, the Jeffs had an early scoring chance on a man-up situation.

Talented first-year Alex Toupal scored her seventh

Photo by Peter Connolly ‘18

Senior forward Emily Flom has contributed 10 goals and 14 assists throughout the 2014-15 season. career goal midway through the penalty. Lynndy Smith ’17 fed her the puck to even the score.

“Our underclassmen are really stepping up and playing great and have been instrumental in our success so far,” Flom said.

Amherst had two other power plays during the second period, but were unable to convert another score. The 1-1 tie continued throughout the third period. The Bantams really put on the pressure during the third, holding an 11-8 shot advantage over Amherst. Evans lived up to her NESCAC Player of the Week Performance from last week making 11 saves in the third period to keep the score even. The game went into overtime, but neither team was able to score.

On Sunday, the Jeffs returned to Trinity’s ice

for a rematch. The Jeffs had a strong first period with 12 shots on goal and Sabrina Dobbins ’18 making nine saves in goal. Flom scored the first goal of the game off of an assist from Brenna Sullivan ’18 barely four minutes into the game.

Trinity answered less than two minutes later, as Lauren Fitzgerald was able to sneak the puck past Dobbins. The tie remained for most of the period, but Trinity’s Lucy Robinson broke through to give the Bantams a 2-1 lead. The second period was all Bantams as Shannon Farrell scored twice to make the score 4-1. Dobbins was replaced by Evans midway through the second quarter. Amherst opened up the third period with a goal by Sullivan, assisted by Flom and Erin Martin ’16. With the score 4-2, Amherst continued to put the pressure

on the Trinity defense, but without much success.

The final score of the game was 5-2 as Trinity scored in the last minute of the game on an open net.

“It was Trinity’s senior night so they were playing with a lot of emotion and were very physical,” Flom said. “In the end, they simply were able to make the plays to score and win the game.”

The Jeffs will hope to brush off the loss to Trinity for the final weekend of their regular season. The Jeffs host Bowdoin at Orr Rink this Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m.

The final two games against Bowdoin will help determine the home-ice advantage for the competitive NESCAC tournament, which begins Feb. 28.

Men’s Hockey Picks up Two Indoor Track Finds Success Crucial NESCAC Victories at Valentine Invitational Lauren Tuiskula ’17 Managing Sports Editor

Drew Kiley ’17 Staff Writer

The men’s ice hockey team took to the road this weekend, picking up two decisive victories over NESCAC opponents Connecticut College and Tufts.

The first win came on Valentine’s day, as the Jeffs handed the Camels a 4-0 loss.

Chris Roll ’17 started the scoring early on the day, netting an unassisted goal 14 minutes into the first period. The goal was the sophomore’s first of the season.

The Jeffs maintained momentum and extended their lead to three during the second two minutes of action. Conor Brown ’16 found the back of the net, good for his ninth of the season, at the 4:54 mark. He was assisted by classmate Topher Flanagan and first-year Tyler Granara.

Later in the frame, after suffering a tripping penalty, Amherst went on the counter attack, as Brendan Burke ’16 notched an unassisted, shorthanded goal to give Amherst a 3-0 lead heading to cap off the second period.

Finally, in the final period, Amherst put the final nail in the coffin. Austin Ho ’17 scored thanks to helpers from Andrew Fenwick ’15 and Kevin Ryder ’16.

Senior goalie Danny Vitale was credited with the shutout and the win, turning away 23 on target shots.

Amherst had a quick turnaround, squaring off with Tufts the following day, Sunday, Feb. 15.

The win again proved to be decisive, this time a 3-1 victory in Amherst’s favor.

After an uneventful first period of play, the Jeffs struck first in the second stanza. Fenwick netted his fourth goal this season, thanks to passes from Ho and Patrick Arena ’16.

Amherst took advantage of a power play

The Amherst College men’s track team participated in the annual Valentine Invitational at Boston University last weekend.

Running against a competitive field of teams from Divs. I, II and III, the team looked to build on the momentum of the recent victory at the Springfield Invitational and a strong performance at the Tufts Cupid Challenge.

Senior Romey Sklar led the Jeffs with a time of 2:29.26 in the 1,000-meter run, claiming 24th place, the team’s best finish on the day.

Brent Harrison ’16 impressed in the middle distances as well, posting a 1:55.61 in the 800 meters en route to 59th place. Teammate Chris Butko ’18 was not far behind, claiming 64th place with a time of 1:56.16.

Nick Codola ’15 and Jamie Sandel ’17 impressed in the sprinting events with top performances in the sparingly contested 500 meters. Codola laid down a strong time of 1:06.98 in one of the early heats to eventually claim 32nd place before Sandel bested his teammate by a little over a half-second to finish in 1:06.28.

In the distance events, Greg Turissini ’15 provided a standout performance with a time of 8:16.58 in the 3,000-meter run, claiming 30th place.

Khalil Flemming ’16 claimed another 30th place finish for the Jeffs with a 13.00 m. mark in the triple jump.

Codola, Harrison and Sandel then competed in the 4x400 meters along with David Ingraham ’18, claiming a 30th place finish with a mark of 3:22.0.

This meet provided the stiffest competition of the season for the Jeffs. The team next travels to Springfield this Saturday to compete in New

Photo courtesy of Rob Mattson

First-year Thomas Lindstrom has 12 career points to his name. opportunity just 2:32 later. Aaron Deutsch ’15 beat the Tufts’ goalie on a shot from the left point, the goal that would be the eventual game winner.

David White ’18 and Flanagan were credited with assist on the play.

The Jumbos finally found their way on the board in the third period, as Brian Brown took advantage of a Tufts power play for his 12th goal on the year.

However, the Jeffs again provided the final blow, as Flanagan and White were again involved in the play, finding Brown to leave Amherst with their final 3-1 lead.

Amherst held a slim 23-22 advantage in shots on the day but capitalized on their opportunities.

Vitale had another impressive performance, turning away 21 shots en route to the win.

Amherst will face two more NESCAC opponents to round out the regular season.

They’ll play host to Middlebury on Friday, Feb. 20 starting at 7 p.m. and then square off in a Saturday matinee against rival Williams, starting at 3 p.m.

England Div. III championships.

The women’s track team travelled to Boston University on Friday, Feb. 13 to take part in the Valentine Invitational, competing against some of the top athletes in the Northeast from all divisions across collegiate athletics.

Karen Blake ’17 highlighted the day for the Jeffs with two top-50 finishes. She finished 16th overall in the 60-meter dash, crossing the finish line in a time of 7.82 seconds. She also ran a time of 25.49 in the 200-meter dash to claim an impressive 50th place in the 228-person field.

Kelli Ellingson and Olivia Tarantino provided top performances in the 1,000-meter run. Ellingson crossed the finish line in 3:01.87 to eventually claim 52nd place, while Tarantino finished in 3:05.16 two heats later en route to 59th place.

Lexi Sinclair ’16 led the Jeffs in the distance events with a time of 9:56.42 in the 3,000 meters to cross the line in 42nd place.

Other top performers for the purple and white included Taylor Summers ’16, who claimed 48th place in the 60-meter dash with a mark of 8.04 seconds.

Keelin Moehl ran a time of 2:20.58, claiming 87th place in a field of 180 in the 800-meter run.

Nicky Roberts finished the one-mile run in 70th place with a time of 5:06.18, while Savanna Gornisiewicz posted a mark of 10:07.78 to cross the line in 58th place.

In the field events, Becky Golia ’18 claimed 23rd place in the high jump, clearing a height of 1.55 meters.

The team will travel to Smith College this Saturday, Feb. 21 for the Div. III New England Championships. Following this weekend’s meet, the team only has two more regular season meets before NCAA Div. III Championships in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

10

Sports

The Amherst Student • February 18, 2015

Swimming and Diving Stands Out at NESCAC Championships Sarah Zuckerman ’17 Staff Writer One year after their 2014 second-place finish at NESCACs, the Amherst women’s swim team fought hard over three days to take fourth at this year’s conference championships.

“Even with a couple bumps along the way, everyone really came through on the last day,” said senior captain Sabrina Lee. Sarah Conklin ’16 started the weekend off well for the Jeffs, winning the 50-yard butterfly for the third consecutive year. Her time of 24.73 set both a pool and program record.

Conklin’s first-year season, including her win in the 50 fly, earned her the Rookie of the Year title in 2013. After nine events, Conklin’s would be the only win for the Jeffs after day one.

Amherst finished the day with three second-place races. Emily Hyde ’16 picked up second in the 200-yard IM while Ashleigh Stoddart ’15 claimed the same spot in the 50 free. Both finished in NCAA ‘B’ cut times, finishing in 2:02.73 and 23.81 respectively.

The third second-place finish closed out the day, with the 400 medley team of Stephanie Moriarty ’18, Hyde, Conklin and Stoddart finishing in a NCAA ‘B’ cut mark of 3:49.04.

In her only solo race of the day, Moriarty finished seventh in the 50 back with a time of 27.43, followed shortly by Lee, who touched the wall in 27.48.

In the 500 free, Stephanie Ternullo ’15 took third with a NCAA ‘B’ cut time of 4:58.85.

In the last individual race of the day, Victoria Chao ’18 took eighth in the 50 breast, finishing in 30.61.

Just before closing out the day with the 400 medley, the 200 free relay team of Lee, Conklin, Moriarty and Ternullo finished in 1:36.72 to take third. The Jeffs closed out day one in fourth with 403 points, behind Williams (686.5), Bates (541) and Middlebury (469.5). Williams reclaimed the NESCAC title in 2014 after Amherst broke the Ephs’ 12-year reign in 2013.

On day two, the purple and white returned to the pool for another eight events, after which they would claim another win and several more top finishes.

“The attitude on deck was really positive throughout the whole meet which made it easier to bounce back from bad swims,” Stoddart said.

Hyde started the day off strong for the Jeffs, finishing first in the 100 breast and cutting her program record time by 1.31 and touching the wall in NCAA ‘B’ cut time of

1:02.56. Classmate Hannah Hummel placed sixth with a time of 1:05.54.

Conklin carried her impressive performance from day one back into the pool on Saturday to set another program record, this time in the 100 fly. The junior came in second, touching the wall in a NCAA ‘B’ cut time of 55.23. Teammate Geralyn Lam ’18 finished seconds later, with a time of 57.73, to take eighth for the Jeffs.

In the two freestyle events of the day, four Amherst swimmers earned their team points.

In the 1,000 free Charlotte Chudy ’16 finished fourth in 10:21.97, while Marie Maxwell ’18 placed eighth in 10:32.11. In the 200 free Ternullo and Stoddart placed third and sixth with respective times of 1:52.24, which earned a NCAA ‘B’ cut mark, and 1:53.71. Moriarty closed out the individual races for the day with a fourth-place finish in the 100 back. The first-year finished with a NCAA ‘B’ cut mark of 57.40.

The Jeffs took second in the last event of the day, as Hyde, Stoddart, Chudy and Ternullo finished the 800 free relay with a NCAA ‘B’ cut time of 7:36.60.

Day two closed with the same top four teams. Amherst, at 757 points, trailed Williams (1,406.5), Bates (1,010) and Middlebury (886.5). Bowdoin sat in fifth with 708.5 points.

Sunday brought the third and final day of NESCAC women’s championships. Amherst would finish the day in fourth, behind Williams, Bates and Middlebury.

Hyde continued her outstanding performance, taking first in the 200 breast with NCAA ‘B’ cut time of 2:16.61. With another ‘B’ cut time, Hummel nabbed fourth in the event, touching the wall in 2:21.07. Chudy took seventh in the 1,650-yard freestyle with a time of 17:30.49 to earn the team another NCAA ‘B’ cut.

Stoddart raced to a third place finish in the 100 free, finishing with a NCAA ‘B’ cut time of 52.01, while Conklin finished her weekend with a second place finish in the 200 fly. Conklin’s 2:04.36 finish earned her another NCAA ‘B’ cut. In the last race of the weekend, Hyde, Ternullo, Stoddart and Lee placed fifth in the 400 free relay with a NCAA ‘B’ cut time of 3:30.03.

“We had a bunch of breakout swims and top place finishes. I think we will have a really solid team going to NCAAs over spring break,” Lee said.

The women return to the pool Feb. 2728 for NCAA regionals. The men travel to Middlebury Feb. 20-22 for their NESCAC championships.

Photo courtesy of David Nam

Sophomore John Brody continues to perform well in the freestyle.

ATHLETE SPOTLIGHT

Romey Sklar ’15

Hannah Peterson ’17

Favorite Team Memory: Jumping into an

Favorite Team Memory: Crushing

ice cold pond after winning my high school

Williams at home this season

cross country state championship

Favorite Pro Athlete: Tom Brady

Favorite Pro Athlete: Malcolm Butler, for a

Dream Job: Working in a neuroscience lab

few weeks

in Spain

Dream Job: Fun uncle

Pet Peeve: Closed-minded people

Pet Peeve: People who don’t put soda can

Favorite Vacation Spot: Galicia, Spain

tabs down

Something on Your Bucket List: To live in

Favorite Vacation Spot: Tulsa, Oklahoma

another country

Something on Your Bucket List: Purchase

Guilty Pleasure: Chocolate

bucket

Favorite Food: Sushi

Guilty Pleasure: Putting soda can tabs

Favorite Thing About Amherst: How

down

diverse it is, I love the variety of people here

Favorite Food: Crust

How She Earned It: Just a sophomore,

Favorite Thing About Amherst: Philosophy

Hannah Peterson has become a key

department course offerings — in the mail!

component of Amherst women’s basketball’s

How He Earned It: As a senior captain,

recent success. The guard/forward played an

Romey Sklar has proven his ability to lead

impressive 25 minutes in the Jeffs’ Sunday

his team to victory. The middle distance

win over Middlebury, contributing nine

runner turned in an impressive performance

points and three assists. Peterson’s main

this past weekend at the Valentine Classic, a

contributions come on the defensive side of

meet consisting of athletes across all three

the ball. She was essential in keeping Midd.

collegiate divisions. Sklar earned the Jeffs’

at bay this past weekend. Look for Peterson

top finish on the day, placing 24th overall in

to break out as the Jeffs close out the

the 1,000 meter run with a time of 2:29.26.

regular season and being playoffs.

Women’s Basketball Dominates on Senior Day Celebration Ashlyn Heller ’17 Staff Writer The Amherst women’s basketball team celebrated their seniors’ careers this past Sunday against Middlebury. Senior Megan Robertson lit up LeFrak, scoring 14 points, pulling down eight rebounds and blocking six shots. Fellow senior Taylor Smith knocked down the first 3-pointer of the game to help lead the Jeffs to victory.

“I think this was one of the most fun games we’ve had all season; not only because it was senior day, but because we played well and we enjoyed playing basketball,” Smith said .

Sophomore Ali Doswell scored 12 points, and classmate Jamie Renner pulled down six rebounds while also dishing out four assists to supplement Robertson’s efforts. The game was back and fourth in the first 20 minutes of play, until Ali Doswell hit two from the floor and one from downtown just before the half to send the Jeffs into the locker room on a high note.

Riding Doswell’s moment, the team pulled ahead after the half and eventually won the game 61-33.

“This was the kind of game we needed to have going into the post season where things are going to get tougher; we need to remember how to have fun and enjoy ourselves when playing,” Smith said.

Going in to the postseason, the Jeffs have earned the third seed in the 2015 NESCAC women’s basketball tournament with a 10-2

Photo courtesy of Peter Connolly ’18

Meredith Doswell ’17 averages 2.5 assists per game this season.

NESCAC record. The defending champions, Tufts, earned the No. 1 seed with a perfect 10-0 record in the NESCAC and Bowdoin (9-1) earned their highest seed in six years at number two.

Tufts and Bowdoin account for Amherst’s two NESCAC losses this season, but in order to have a shot at redemption in the tournament, Amherst must first take down sixth-seeded Colby College on Saturday at 3 p.m. in LeFrak.

This game is bound to be a tough one, as Colby gave Amherst a run for their money at the beginning of the month only losing by nine to the Jeffs. First, however, the Jeffs will finish out their regular season this week on the road at Wesleyan.

The Amherst Student • February 18, 2015

Sports

Injured Players: Are you the 12th Man or Just a Fair Weather Fan?

Post to Post with Dave Cunningham Dave Cunningham ’16 Columnist

In the early months of the first semester, I wrote an article about drawing the line between tough and soft in the midst of an injury. I concluded that there is no universal equation to determine whether or not someone is acting valorously or foolishly when playing through an injury, and only the injured individual possesses the ability to dictate whether or not he or she should participate in an athletic contest. While this idea is clouded when transcending different levels of competition — NHL fighters are expected to battle through injuries, or are at risk of losing a roster spot — as Amherst student athletes, it is our duty to support our teammates and believe they are acting appropriately when choosing to sit out due to injury.

The idea for the article was sparked by personal circumstance, as it was found that I would need to receive bi-monthly cortisone shots in my hips in order to push through the pain of a torn labrum and participate in the hockey season. The choice was only mine to make, but unfortunately my decision caught the best of me, and my season was cut short after a fluke play late in the third period against Connecticut College. While watching my brothers battle on the ice is surely difficult, I stand by the decision I made; however, while sitting in the stands in a suit and tie these past few weeks, I was struck by the level of dedication necessary as a non-competing member of a team.

Whether a teammate is injured or a healthy scratch from the lineup, the role he or she plays is crucial to the overall success of the club.

As a proud fan of the Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots, I found myself religiously tuning into ESPN during the days leading up to the big dance. Hidden underneath the deflategate scandal and conversations of Tom Brady potentially catapulting into the throne as the Greatest of all time, sat an interesting analysis of the Seattle Seahawks and their “12th man.” For those unfamiliar with the term, the “12th man” refers to the Seahawk fan base, their earthquake categorized cheers, and the impact they have on the team’s success. The “12th man” obviously doesn’t play, but can be considered one of the most important assets of the game.

While the NESCAC isn’t known for its record-shattering attendance and rowdy fans (although we do greatly appreciate the large number of students who do attend our games) I found the “12th man” theory to pertain to a different facet of athletic life here on campus. Unfortunately, a large number of Amherst student athletes are forced to sit out games, either for injury or depth chart reasons.

And while it becomes easy to dismiss these teammates, their role on the team should be embraced and their opinions sought after. Furthermore, as a player unable to compete — for whatever reason — understand that you now possess unique leadership capabilities, and can contribute in any way possible, no matter how insignificant the task or idea may appear.

Non-dressing student athletes provide teams with important and influential viewpoints, and have the ability to make a difference and be the “12th man.”

The first week after my season-ending injury, I tuned out completely. Going from starting goaltender to the kid sitting in the training room while the team practices is a tough pill to swallow, and I crept into a

realm of complacency. Watching the team play in games produced an awkward flurry of jealousy, bliss, anger and elation. I wanted the team to win with such an undying passion, but to be honest, not without me on the ice — I was constantly frustrated. My role on the club appeared insignificant and my disheartened emotions radiated throughout the locker room.

However, after my first week as a nondressing player, my idea of the role I played on the team was altered; with my injury came a new perspective and level of obtainable leadership. I was hit with a barrage of questions from the coaching staff and teammates about my viewpoints on certain situations. While in the stands, I could see the game in a way the coaches could not. Being in the locker room, I could better understand the feelings of teammates and get a sense of the overall level of intensity among the boys.

I became something of an undercover coach.

If you’re not dressing, understand that you are more than a messenger boy, filling water bottles and carrying team gear. If you are dressing, the same goes for you — don’t dismiss the leadership role of a teammate who is unable to participate in a game.

As the “12th man,” non-dressing athletes possess a certain level of confidence and swagger. You work just as hard — if not harder — than every individual in your respective locker room. Your opinion matters. Dedicating the same amount of time and hard work, but not benefiting by individual performance, is true devotion.

If someone is taking their role for granted and slacking off let them know because it’s a direct insult to you and work you put in.

If a teammate’s faced is painted with a look of discontent, approach them and build them up. When the room is silent after a tough second period, make your presence known and provide the team with your two cents.

You have earned the right to participate, and your words hold significant weight.

If you choose to keep your thoughts to yourself and separate yourself from the team emotionally, you run the risk of losing relevance. You’re no longer the “12th man” but more or less a “fair weather fan,” and as we all know, respect is minimal for someone in that role.

This is not to say a non-dressing athlete should spew garbage from his mouth every day, just because he thinks he has to say something — make it meaningful, and if your words aren’t meaningful, wait until they are. The “rah-rah” talk holds no weight if your regular work ethic doesn’t resemble your words, if it doesn’t sound genuine, or if you sound like a broken record, just talking to talk.

Athletes have been taught at Amherst LEADS to be ourselves, and lead the way we know how. You don’t need to be someone you are not in order to act as a leader — change what’s cool.

Ultimately, non-dressing athletes play extremely important roles on their teams.

You know your teammates better than your coaches and have the ability to positively utilize that point of view. It is important to find a happy medium between complacency and over-zealousness en route to becoming a successful team leader. Non-dressing athletes, while you may not be able to play as much as others, embrace your role as a hardworking, important team piece and be heard. It’s in your hands to decide who you want to be. Do what it takes to be the “12th man,” not a “fair weather fan.”

11

Men’s Basketball Looks to Gain Momentum in Postseason Play Jason Stein ’16 Assistant Editor While men’s basketball continued its winning ways with a mid-week victory over Lasell, pushing Amherst’s winning streak to six straight, the Jeffs were unable to conclude the regular season in the manner in which they had hoped for after falling to Middlebury on the road. With these two games in the books, the Jeffs finished the 2015 regular season with an 18-6 overall record and a 6-4 NESCAC record.

Lasell opened its game against Amherst at LeFrak Gymnasium with a three-pointer, but the Jeffs would erase the lead before the Lasers had a chance to score again and continue to lead for the entire game. Indeed, the Jeffs responded to Lasell’s opening 3-point field goal with an 8-0 run, which became a 19-2 streak.

The Jeffs led by 15 points at 19-4 with more than 12 minutes remaining in the first half, but the Lasers showed some signs of life, as they managed to cut the lead down to 8 points on a few occasions, and to as little as 7 points with two minutes to play in the half. However, a 6-0 run for the Jeffs to close out the half would give Amherst a 44-31 lead over Lasell at the half.

Amherst posted only 25 points in the second half, as the team, but their fairly low second half output proved to be enough, as the Jeffs defeated the Lasers 69-52.

Balanced scoring characterized Amherst’s effort over Lasell, as four players notched double figures in the game. First-year guard Johnny McCarthy and forward David George ’17 both had 14 points, while George also had four blocks and finished with a double-double after pulling down 11 rebounds. Joining McCarthy and George in double figures were junior guard/ forward Connor Green and forward Jacob Nabatoff ’17, who both had 10 points.

While the Jeffs did not perform at their best against the Lasers, the team still managed to secure a sizable victory.

“Although we didn’t play as well as we wanted to, it was important to keep our win streak going to keep our minds in the right spot, and keep the ball rolling, so to speak,” junior captain and forward Ben Pollack said.

Against Middlebury, the Jeffs were unable to keep their momentum going, however.

While the Panthers took an early lead in the contest, a solid run by the Jeffs gave them a lead about seven minutes into the game. The Panthers would quickly respond and be in control for most of the game, as the Panthers never trailed by more than two points against the Jeffs.

Middlebury took a 41-34 lead into halftime and outscored the Jeffs by a similar margin in the second half, as the Panthers once again scored 41 points in the second half of play, while the Jeffs posted 35. Overall, the Jeffs would fall 82-69 in the regular season finale, as Middlebury shot better from the field than Amherst and more than doubled the Jeffs’ points in the paint total (the Panthers won the points in the paint battle at 42-20).

In the 82-69 loss against the Panthers, Green

provided most of the offensive punch for the Jeffs, as he continued his sharpshooting from beyond the arc. Against Middlebury, Green had a gamehigh 29 points, as he went 10-18 on field goals and 7-11 from 3-point range. Sophomore guards Jeff Racy and Reid Berman also posted double figures, as Berman finished with 11 points and Racy scored 10. Green, George and McCarthy also combined for a solid total of 26 rebounds against the Panthers.

“We had no energy, no drive and on their senior day and last game of their season, they certainly did,” Pollack said. “We were static offensively and not communicating enough defensively, and missed a lot of easy shots and layups too. This loss definitely hurts us, especially because it dropped us from second to fifth in the NESCAC right before conference tournament play starts.”

This weekend, the Jeffs will look to once again do some damage in the NESCAC Tournament. Amherst will be the defending champions heading into the tournament, as they have won the past three. However, Amherst faces a different challenge this year, as this is the first time in the past four years that the Jeffs will not be playing as the No. 1 seed in the NESCAC Tournament.

Last year, the Jeffs won the NESCAC Tournament after knocking off Colby, Trinity and Williams.

On Saturday, Feb. 21, the Jeffs (the No. 5 seed) will face Tufts (the No. 4 seed) on the road at 2 p.m. in the NESCAC Quarterfinals.

Earlier on this season, Tufts (who closed the regular season with a 13-11 overall record and 6-4 mark in the NESCAC) got the better of the Jeffs. Just over a month ago, the Jeffs lost to the Jumbos by a score of 80-53.

This time around, the Jumbos will be without one of their better performers, however, as Hunter Sabety (who scored 14 points against the Jeffs during the meeting between Tufts and Amherst this season and who had averaged over 15 points per game and 7.4 rebounds per game prior to sustaining an injury) will be unable to play due to injury.

The last time the Jeffs played Tufts in the NESCAC Tournament, they had the edge over the Jumbos, as the Jeffs defeated Tufts 80-64 in the 2013 NESCAC semifinals.

The Jeffs will certainly have their work cut out for them going forward if they hope to play meaningful games deep into the postseason.

“I expect us to come out with a ton of energy,” Pollack said. “We need to beat Tufts to have a decent chance at getting in the NCAA Tournament, so it is extremely important that we win this game and keep moving on in the tournament.”

If the Jeffs manage to defeat Tufts this coming Saturday, they will likely have to face some combination of the trio of top NESCAC seeds the following weekend, as Trinity (the No. 1 seed and 9-1 in the NESCAC), Bowdoin (No. 2 seed, 7-3 in the NESCAC) and Bates (the No. 3 seed, 7-3 in the NESCAC) are all dangerous and talented squads.

Photo courtesy of Peter Connolly ’18

First-year Jayde Dawson contributes an avergage of 7.7 points per game.

Sports

Photo courtesy of Rob Mattson

First-year Kim Krayacich played from the first court all three days, beating her Wellesley rival and helping her team to defend their national title.

Women’s Caps Season Strong, Defends Walker Cup Title Kiana Herold ’17 Managing Sports Editor Traveling to Harvard to defend their national title, the Amherst women’s squash team again emerged victorious. Harvard and MIT both hosted the 2015 women’s national team Championship, in which 44 teams from six different divisions competed in separate cups.

Amherst played in the Walker Cup (C Division), against similarly ranked teams.

The 17th-ranked Amherst women dominated their first match-up against Wellesley during the opening day of competition. Amherst went 9-0, sweeping all of their matches.

The Jeffs took charge of the tournament from the start; not a single match had to be played

to five sets.

“It was a fun weekend for the team with three days of great squash,” Nicole Yang ’16 said. “We were all really excited to compete for the Walker Cup again.”

The Jeffs advanced to the second day of play, facing off against No. 21 ranked Colby College. On the No. 1 court, Kim Krayacich ’18 fell to her opponent in a fierce battle of five back-and-forth sets.

Her teammates swept courts two through seven, dropped the eighth in another five set match, and claimed the ninth. On the second court, Arielle Lehman ’15 won against her opponent in four sets, after dropping the first set she won three in a row. Haley McAtee ’18, Tiana Palmer-Poroner ’17 and Ericka Robert-

son ’16 swept the next three courts in a quick three sets.

Advancing to the finals, the Amherst women faced off against Bowdoin for the national title. The Polar Bears brought their A-game, taking the No. 1 and 2 courts. From the first court Krayacich again played another nail-biting five set match. McAtee on the No. 3 court brought home the win for Amherst in another lengthy match-up, winning 3-2.

Palmer-Poroner impressed on court No. 4 securing the win 3-1.

“I am really happy with my team because we definitely support each other on and off the court,” the sophomore said.

Amherst also swept courts No. 6-9, beating Bowdoin overall 6-3. Taryn Clary ’16 over-

came her rival in four sets, while Meyha Sud ’16, Khushy Aggarwal ’16 and Corri Johnson ’16 all defeated their Bowdoin counterparts in a clean three sets.

Coming off winning the national championship for the second time in a row, PalmerPoroner said future prospects look good for future seasons.

“Everyone did a great job on court and fighting for every point. I hope next year is just as successful,” she said.

The team finished the season with a 13-6 record. While the women are not competing as a team again this season, top individuals will head to the CSA Individuals in two weeks, from Feb. 27 to March 1, hosted by Dartmouth.

Photo courtesy of Rob Mattson

Photo courtesy of Rob Mattson

FRI GAME SCHE DULE

Men’s Squash @ MCSA Teams, TBD

SAT

Men’s Squash Men’s Swimming & @ MCSA Teams. TBD Diving Men’s Indoor Track at NESCAC Championand Field ship, TBD @ DIII New Englands, Men’s Hockey 10am vs. Middlebury, 7 p.m.

SUN Women’s Indoor Track and Field @ DIII New Englands, 10 am

Men’s Hockey v. Williams, 3 p.m

Women’s Hockey Men’s Swimming & v. Bowdoin, 7:30 p.m.

Diving at NESCAC Championship, TBD

Men’s Basketball Men’s Squash @ NESCAC Quarterfinals. @ MCSA Teams, TBD TBD Men’s Swimming & Women’s Hockey Diving v. Bowdoin, 3 p.m Women’s Basketat NESCAC Championball @ NESCAC Quarterfinals, ship, TBD TBD