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THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF BENTLEY UNIVERSITY SINCE 1963

THE VANGUARD VOLUME LVII ISSUE XVIII

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2014

BENTLEYVANGUARD.COM

Bentley adjuncts remain hopeful for unionization Attempt at building momentum towards a new vote continues BY Michaela Stephenson News editor

Last semester, there was increased discussion on campus about creating a union for Bentley University adjunct professors. The discussion spurred from many open forum discussions and action committee meetings that spanned across the entire school year in hopes of finally establishing a legal obligation for the university to negotiate with Bentley adjunct professors on important employee benefits. Over the course of the past year, the country saw many successes in forming adjunct unions. A growing group of dedicated staff and students at Bentley look to build off this success and continue to push for a vote in favor of unionizing. Professor Jack Dempsey, helping to lead the charge, gave a brief background of the different voting results from

the past. Last fall, a little over a third of the Bentley adjunct professors signed a card in support of a vote in regards to getting an adjunct union at the university. “We had a very good ground game and outreach to adjuncts,” said Dempsey.

Professor Dempsey currently teaches writing and effective speaking courses, some key courses in the graduation requirements for many Bentley students. This semester, the group is building momentum towards a new vote and they

are confident that it will happen soon. Currently, there are 225 adjunct professors at Bentley, making up approximately 40% of the faculty. This percentage is responsible for teaching over half the courses at Bentley. These professors only receive

Adjuncts, higher education works because they do.

$5,000 per semester course and are limited to teaching only two courses per semester. “What is at issue is compensating adjunct faculty as the professionals that they are. Students usually do not know who is an adjunct professor and who is a full-time professor – we are all professors in their eyes,” said Professor Atlas in a past interview. This semester’s push for another vote comes after a recent unionization of adjuncts at nearby institution, Tufts University. According to Dempsey, Bentley’s committee has been affiliated with Tufts committee for unionizing, since the beginning. The hope is to follow suit shortly. According to the Boston Globe, adjunct professors at Tufts will get a 22% pay raise over the course of the next three years. This year they are under a new contract that improves job security. This may SEE Adjunct, PAGE 6

BY Usama Salim

Director of Advertising

Traditionally held during Halloween weekend and denoted as the Halloween party on campus, Groove Boston is coming back to Bentley, and this year, with a whole brand new concept. “Don’t Blackout. Whiteout.” cards were seen around campus, indicating the all new “Whiteout” theme. Posters with a very similar concept also released last Thursday, shedding light on what is one of the most anticipated events of the year. The Vanguard had an exclusive experience of having an inside look into how the event would be run, as well as get some details on some of the amazing things Groove Boston is to bring to campus this year. Notorious for their custom, one-of-a-kind shows, Groove Boston has shown immense dedication to the theme, and have some unique production technology that Bentley will experience this Saturday night. Part of the hand-picked dis-

tinctiveness that this Bentley show will have is something that only two companies in the United States have the license to do. It has only been done once before by Groove Boston, and is something that Justin Timberlake is currently using on his tour. Called a “mind-blowing experience” by the GB production team, it is something Bentley definitely would want to look out for. The VIP experience offered by CAB and GB has expanded year upon year, and this time around, it might be open to more of the public. This slight update has been added to ensure more people get to enjoy the full range of what Groove Boston can provide. To quote Bobby Dutton, the director of Groove Boston, “we want to try and create a full positive experience and to prevent a net loss of happiness”. VIPs will still have some exclusivity, including the ability to play with the custom DJ table, also known as the “Battle Station”. Likewise they will also be able to get a DJ’s point of view and be able to

Usama Salim/ THE VANGUARD

Falcons get ready to Whiteout this weekend

Bobby Dutton, Director and DJ, plays with the Battle Station as Ed Slapsik looks on. get a bird’s eye view of the full Dana Center. Topping it off, they will enjoy a sneak peak of the DJs warming up, and perhaps even get to try some of the special effects, or at least see them in action before the show. The experience is definitely part of the mission of Groove Boston. In another exclusive interview with Bobby, what we learnt is that selling the music isn’t the point that they are trying to get across. A lot of what

they try to do is with the experience. “It is our job to make things awesome,” I was told by Bobby. In conversation, Eddy, one of the managers, also stated “Get us stop-andshop pretzels and don’t worry about the food. If it means saving money and getting you an awesome experience, we don’t want a meal.” The dedication of building an experience was evident, with Groove Boston having their own production office,

customizing shows to cater to the audience. When asked why they went with the name “Cohesion”, Bobby explained that Groove Boston would not like to sell the same show twice, and bring something totally new and different. Even their show on Friday, The Vanguard was told, is night and day than the show Bentley will experience. “Cohesion” also meant the SEE GROOVE, PAGE 6

Diageo

Angus & Julia

Volleyball

An acquisition is underway for this company.

A review of their concert in Cambridge.

The women’s team is in a three-way tie for first place in the NE-10 division.

NEWS 7

ENTERTAINMENT 8

SPORTS 14


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