Wednesday, September 18, 2013 Print Edition

Get a glimpse of Virginia Tech’s 377-acre sustainability center in Catawba see page 3

Wednesday, September 18, 2013 An

independent, student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903 www.collegiatetimes.com

COLLEGIATETIMES 110th year, issue 17 News, page 4

Lifestyles, page 3

Opinions, page 5

Sports, page 8

Study Break, page 6

Bricks and stones:

the facade of Virginia Tech

BY KYLE BARGER | news staff writer PHOTOS BY TREVOR WHITE / SPPS

Ever since the first building used it in 1899, Hokie Stone has been a defining feature of Tech’s campus. But where does it come from?

A

bench made of Hokie Stone sits in Northern Virginia as a memorial to the April 16 shooting victims.

Football players touch a slab of Hokie Stone before running out of the tunnel in Lane Stadium on gameday. One of the walls in the regional landmark Hotel Roanoke, is built from Hokie Stone.

The bookstore sells it, the buildings are lined with it, and Virginia Tech tradition is permeated with it.

Hokie Stone is as ubiquitous on the Tech campus as Hokie pride. There aren’t many college campuses where a piece of stone mined 10 minutes away is a valuable collectors item, but that’s the point.

Tech’s campus is not like the rest.

“The Hokie stone combined with the architectural style,” is what Carla Cox, a retired director of university relations says makes the campus unique.

Hokie Stone is the nickname given to the rock that is primarily mined just down the road in the university-owned quarry near Highland Park. Over 80 percent of the stone comes from that quarry while the rest is transported from another at Luster’s Gate, which is also within 15 minutes of Tech’s campus.

All spirited names aside, Hokie Stone is also known as limestone — a type of rock common along the Appalachian Mountains that was formed when this region of North America was under water. Dead organisms and other minerals were deposited along the bottom of the ocean floor, where they were buried and turned into limestone rock. As the Appalachians formed, the rock was pushed up to its current position. see STONE / page nine

College of Business moves Organizers prepare for MBA program to NOVA TEDxVirginiaTech SENAYT ALEMU news staff writer

The Pamplin College of Business has made a major shift in the MBA program that will hopefully make it more marketable and competitive.

The full-time Master of Business Administration (MBA) program on the Blacksburg campus will cease to exist, and the resources that were in Blacksburg will go toward advancing the evening program at Northern Virginia campus in Falls Church, Va. Associate Dean of the Graduate Programs Stephen Skripak has been in support of this change for many years now, and has finally got the backing he needed to allow the shift to come to fruition.

“It’s been under consideration for quite a while but this is the first time we’ve seen support for the idea all the way to the top,” Skripak

NEWS

said. “Dean Sumichrast was supportive of this idea and took it to the provost, and got support from the higher ups as well.”

According to Skripak, there has been a decline in students pursuing full-time MBA programs in the United States, and while Tech has had a flat rate of students entering the program, he’s noticed that an influx of students were from the Northern Virginia area.

“We want to be able to draw from the huge numbers of people in the D.C. and Northern Virginia area,” he said. “Actually, the biggest concentration of Hokie alumni live in Northern Virginia, so it’s a good opportunity to market our program to people who already know the value of our product.”

There are four MBA programs that Tech offers: the Executive MBA in Arlington, the Professional MBA in Roanoke and Richmond, the full-

time MBA in Blacksburg and the evening MBA in Falls Church. The first two will remain as they are, but the resources for both the full time and evening MBA will be combined to make the evening MBA program stronger.

Parvi Ghandforoush, the MBA and Information Technology Programs Managing Director explained the reason for this decision and how it benefits the students.

“The program has been successful over the years in recruiting highly qualified students to Virginia Tech and is highly ranked nationally,” Ghandforoush said. “The shift in resources will enable the program to increase its enrollments and to better serve the needs of the professionals in the Northern Virginia market.”

OPINIONS

Wish there was free public Wi-Fi in downtown Blacksburg? See when this might become a reality.

see MBA / page four

see page 5

news editor

With TEDxVirginiaTech 2013 event moving closer, several changes are in place from last year.

Narrowed down from over 100 nominations, the selection committee has finalized 16 different speakers, ranging from students and faculty to community members.

The event will take place on campus Nov. 9 during the debut week of the completed Center for the Arts.

Following with the tradition of TED events, the Tech event will feature a wide range of speakers, all touching on the theme “Beyond Boundaries.”

“The exciting thing for us is that we are one of the earlier activities in the week that will be opening up the Center for the Arts,” said Adam Soccolich, an organizer of the event.

“They’re excited to have us for the brand and the energy we bring.”

Though the new building will hold

SPORTS Read why one columnist thinks the strides made with the Title IX Legislature isn’t doing what it intended for athletes.

see page 4

CAMERON AUSTIN

over 1,200 people in its new performance hall, the TEDxVirginiaTech event will only be open to 500 people, with organizers expecting a quick sell out.

Soccolich cites the importance of growth, not numbers behind the decision to keep the event intimate in the large hall. “It’s about growing,” he said. “We don’t want to jump from 100 to 1,200 just because we can.”

Last year, 12 viewing parties were sponsored from places as close as dorm room common rooms on campus to areas as far as New Zealand.

This year, viewing parties hope to continue to help spread the TEDxVirginiaTech speeches farther than the confines of the venue.

Tickets go on sale in early October, and will be available on a first come, first serve basis. They can be purchased through the Center for the Arts ticketing system. Tickets will be $10 for students and $20 for faculty and community members.

ONLINE Men’s soccer beat High Point University last night 5-2 at Thompson Field.

See how they pulled it off.

Check out our website for continuous daily updates:

www.collegiatetimes.com CollegiateTimes @collegiatetimes

see page 8

2

newseditor@collegiatetimes.com

September 18, 2013

collegiatetimes.com

NEWS

Shooting rampage in D.C. grips the nation DAVE WEDGE mcclatchy newspapers

Sept. 17--The nation's capital was in mourning today as officials began the grim task of notifying the families of the dozen victims of a massacre at the Washington Navy Yard unleashed, police say, by disturbed former reservist Aaron Alexis, who fired away heartlessly into a cafeteria crowd.

"We are confronting yet another mass shooting. And today it happened on a military installation in our nation's capital," President Obama said of the slaughter, which unfolded just four miles from the White House. "These are men and women who were going to work, doing their job protecting all of us."

Authorities say 13 people were killed, including Alexis, during a shooting spree that shattered the calm of the Monday morning work shuffle at the Navy yard. Witnesses reported hearing gunfire erupt just after 8:20 a.m. as fire alarms sounded and panicked workers scrambled for cover as police say the 34-year-old gunman opened fire.

Helicopters rescued terrified survivors from rooftops while others hid in closets and alleyways for hours, waiting for help. The dozen killed were still being identified last night, while eight others were injured, including a D.C. police officer who was shot and a man whose leg was almost blown off, officials said.

Tim Jirus, a 48-year-old U.S. Navy commander, told The Washington Post that he was working on the fourth floor of Building 197 when he heard shots ring out. He looked out into the hallway and saw a man firing in his direction, striking another man in the head, killing him. "I was running for my life," Jirus said.

"I was just lucky. There were two shots. He got that guy. He didn't get me."

A "shelter-in-place" order

OLIVIER DOULIERY / MCT CAMPUS

A police ofďŹ cer stands guard at the front of the Washington Naval Yard after a shooter killed 12 people before being shot to death by law enforcement ofďŹ cials on Monday. was given at the Navy yard, a secure military facility where 3,000 people work, as well as in outlying areas near the base. The U.S. Senate, as well as nearby schools, were locked down for several hours.

The shelter-in-place order -the first issued in the nation since Gov. Deval Patrick and Mayor Thomas M. Menino ordered Boston and surrounding towns locked down during the April 19 search for the marathon bombers

-- remained in place late last night as police continued to search for a man who may have been involved in the deadly shooting. At roughly 10:30 p.m., the D.C. police chief said authorities determined Alexis was the lone gunman.

"We don't have any known motive," Washington, D.C., Mayor Vincent Gray said last night. Alexis was a government contractor with a history of violence, including

a 2004 arrest in Seattle for shooting out the tires of a car in an "anger-fueled blackout," Seattle police said.

Gray said there is "no information that would suggest" the massacre was a terror attack, while Metropolitan D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier said there were "multiple videos" of the shooting scene that were being reviewed by investigators.

The FBI is asking for the public's help on Alexis and his

recent activity.

"No piece of information is too small," said Valerie Parlave, assistant director of the FBI in D.C. "We are looking to learn everything we can about his recent movements, his contacts and his associates. We ask the public to look at the photos of the deceased shooter."

Eyewitness accounts tell of a chilling scene when the gunman opened fire in a cafeteria, using weapons that included

an AR-15 assault rifle and a shotgun.

The rampage marked the deadliest military base shooting since the 2009 Fort Hood, Texas, massacre that killed 13 and wounded 30. Maj. Nidal Hasan has been sentenced to death for the killings. The carnage also marked the greatest loss of life in a single incident in the nation's capital since the Sept. 11, 2001, attack on the Pentagon that killed more than 180 people.

LIFESTYLES

lifestyleseditor@collegiatetimes.com

September 18, 2013

collegiatetimes.com

3

Center leads local efforts in sustainability MADELEINE GORDON lifestyles editor

Tucked away in the hills of the Catawba Valley, just a 45-minute drive from the center of campus, sits the hub of sustainability efforts for Virginia Tech and the surrounding region.

The Virginia Tech Catawba Sustainability Center is a 377acre property that is home to several historically significant buildings that date back to its time as a dairy farm for the Catawba Sanitarium in the 40s.

The center works to actively engage the community to help create and demonstrate a more sustainable way of life.

“I relate sustainability to environmental conservation and healthy vibrant communities,” said Josh Nease, the manager of the center. “Environmental health equals human health.”

According to Nease, the center is committed to developing, researching, demonstrating and the teaching of sustainable practices across all fields, including green building and construction, low-input agricultural production, energy production and communitybased business development.

The center’s main goal is to engage with faculty, staff, students and community members to work toward a more sustainable world, which they are striving toward with a variety of programs.

The center offers an eightweek agri-business course every winter called the “Growers’ Academy.” The course, which is open to the public, combines four weeks of sustainable farming classes with four weeks of business classes to teach participants the two sides of sustainable farming.

To make the experience more “hands-on,” the center has six resident growers that maintain demonstration plots throughout the property. These growers practice sustainable farming and low-input techniques and harvest crops like onions, garlic, beans, tomatoes and corn throughout the year.

The center also offers additional educational programming in the form of the “Homestead Learning Series,” which consists of a Beginning Beekeepers Workshop and a Midsummer Sustainable Gardening Workshop.

With the future in mind, in 2014 the center hopes to add an advanced beekeeping program, additional sustainable gardening classes, composting classes and possibly a permaculture course.

But what exactly does sustainability mean?

“If it is good for the people, if it is good for the planet, and it is good for the economy,

then that is sustainable,” Nease said. “They are the three P’s (of sustainability)--people, planet, and profit.”

Most of the center’s current strengths are agriculturally based, like sustainable farming and land-management because of their vast farmland property amidst the Appalachian Trail.

The center continues to expand its efforts with future plans, which include integrating other areas of sustainability like architecture and energy production, Nease said.

In fact, last year the center harvested their native warm season grass for use as biofuel at the Virginia Tech steam plant.

“It’s important to stay relevant to the community and in order to do so, we need to do things, try things, experiment with things that can help people’s farming and agriculture businesses financially but also improve their land at the same time,” he said.

Improving the land, while also maintaining financial success is the tenet of sustainable farming, Nease said.

“We can have a sustainable farm if we can afford to do it year after year,” Nease said.

“But it is more than that. It’s also working with the land in such a way that the land is better off at the end of the process than when you started.”

Working toward healthier land and soil can be as simple as using techniques like crop rotation and planting cover crops in between seasons. The former technique helps the soil maintain nutrients, while the latter technique introduces nitrogen into the soil and helps prevent erosion.

By focusing on soil health, the need for expensive pesticides and fertilizers decreases, which not only makes for thriving and healthy plants, but it also saves money, Nease said.

One of the most popular and successful functions of the center is to be involved with the Catawba Valley Farmers’ Market that runs every Thursday from 3:30-7:00 p.m. during the months of May to October.

Through the farmers’ market, the message of sustainability is spread and community engagement is achieved, according to the Catawba Valley Farmers’ Market Manager Kati Span.

“The economics stay local.

The people that grow benefit from the people in the town that are purchasing and the cycle keeps going,” Span said.

“The product and the consumer stay in the same general area, and I think that’s what being sustainable means.”

Nease and Span agree that farmers’ markets contribute to the mission of sustainability by saving many resources like

transportation and personnel while also stimulating the local economy.

“Even more so than the nutritional and overall health aspects, I like getting to know the people involved (in the market) and how it really brings us together over something simple like food,” Span said.

Local vendor Michelle Heiller of the Red Wellie Farm said the sense of community gained over such a sustainable event is what keeps her coming back.

Heiller, who sells baked goods like apple scones and pumpkin cookies, uses as much local ingredients as she can.

“I like to know what is going into my body and where it came from,” Heiller said. “But I a lso love being connected to the community. (Getting involved with the farmers’ market) is a great way to meet people and buy ingredients locally.”

While the center engages with the public and community often, students aren’t always as active at the center because of its distance from campus.

But, Nease said, they are seeing more student involvement this year than ever before.

He attributes the higher participation to raised awareness about sustainability but also sees a need to continue raising awareness.

“Sustainability is so important because all of the choices we make today will affect everything in the future, and we tend not to think about the future,” Nease said. “Focusing on sustainability creates and maintains conditions under which people and nature can productively exist now and 25

PHOTOS BY KEVIN DICKEL / SPPS

TOP: The center showcases sustainable gardens that are maintained daily by six resident growers.

ABOVE: Center manager Josh Nease describes future plans to engage the public through education.

BELOW: The demonstration gardens, located throughout the center, teach sustainable techniques. years from now.”

In a three-pronged approach to accomplishing their mission of sustainability, the center is focused on engaging the public through education and outreach programs, engaging students and faculty through research and experimental learning and working to promote land-based business opportunities and economic sustainability in the

region.

“The potential here is endless,” Nease said.

Nease will be speaking more about the projects and goals of the Catawba Sustainability Center Wednesday at the Blacksburg Farmers’ Market from 2 - 6 p.m.

@maddi757

more info Visit the center at 5075 Catawba Creek Road, Catawba, Va. to see their efforts in sustainability research and demonstration projects.

September 18, 2013

newseditor@collegiatetimes.com

collegiatetimes.com

Free Wi-Fi coming to downtown ERICA CORDER news staff writer

Free public Wi-Fi will be making its debut in downtown Blacksburg on Thursday, as a result of efforts by the founder of TechPad Bob Summers.

Two years ago, Summers and his team began developing a gigabit project that would bring internet speeds as fast as 100 times the average connection to TechPad, a coworking space where innovators and entrepreneurs can collaborate under one roof.

“A gigabit network is the fastest internet connection you can get in the world. It’s a precious resource for soft ware startups and it really is what the future will be. The idea is to provide that resource here so that new applications can be built,” said Summers.

Summers hopes a dramatic increase in internet speed will attract more innovators and investors to Blacksburg, should the project be successful. To date, the gigabit network is already showing signs of positive outcomes.

Another of Summers’ endeavors, called Fitnet, uses the gigabit network to operate and raise funds. “[Fitnet] is already receiving funds to develop applications on the gigabit network, so the concept is really proving that if we build this network, it’ll attract capital and it’ll attract talent to build the next generation of ideas,” Summers said.

Fitnet is an example of the kind of development and growth could come from using a gigabit network.

Rather than only allow TechPad to enjoy the benefits of a gigabit network,

Summers decided to expand the program by installing a Wi-Fi system in downtown Blacksburg. In May 2013, Summers launched a crowdfunding campaign via Crowdtilt in order to cover the cost of a year-long pilot for the project. The initial goal was set at $85,000, but donors responded with $92,400 in support.

Summers credits the overall success of the campaign to the fact that his team raised half of the money before publicizing the campaign.

The campaign also received publicity from coverage by local Fox and NBC affi liates.

Additionally, high profile investors like Aneesh Chopra, the fi rst Chief Technology Officer of the United States, gave the project a larger scope of support.

“The campaign money that

need something to do today?

we raised is actually enough to last about 18 months and there’s already plenty of signs it’ll be well beyond that. We really view the length of the pilot as a three-year project.

Three years should be enough time to see how it’s used and find new sources of funding,” Summers said.

Initially, Wi-Fi will be running along Main Street beginning Thursday. Looking to the future, Summers has hopes of expanding the Wi-Fi network to campus.

“The real vision is that there’s high-speed Wi-Fi backed by a gigabit network available everywhere in our community,” Summers said.

“We feel confident going forward that we’re going in the right direction.”

@EricaCorder

The CT has you covered.

Education Abroad Fall Fair (Drillfield - all day) Interested in travelling abroad? Stop by the Drillfield in between classes to pick up information on various upcoming trips and how to apply for them.

NEWS

MBA: New location to offer more options from page one

Ghandforoush further explained that the evening program is so successful because the majority of the students in the Northern Virginia program work full-time and can only take their classes in the evening. Because their time is so limited, the program wants to meet the needs of these students by using their resources to allow students to graduate faster.

“We plan to redesign the program to shorten the time to graduation from 42 months to around two years. Th is is in response to requests from our students, and to remain competitive with other universities in the region. Such a redesign should result in increased enrollments and higher quality students,” Ghandforoush said.

While this change will be beneficial for Tech MBA students as a whole, the MBA students on Tech’s campus will go through some major changes. After this current class of full-time MBA students graduate, there will

no longer be full-time MBA students on campus. The same scholarship opportunities will still exist and same resources will continue to be available. However, now students coming to Virginia Tech will have to choose between the professional programs from Roanoke to Richmond or any of the other MBA options.

Skripak has high hopes and expectations for this new implementation of the MBA program and thinks it will benefit future Hokie students and alumni.

“We’d like the enrollment to increase overall, while still maintaining the same quality level. We’re not unhappy with the quality of the students we have — it’s having enough quality students that is the issue,” Skripak said. “I think in the long run, this will increase the value of the MBA degree. As time goes by, people will know us as a top 35 program based on our evening program, and that will help add value to the degrees of our alumni.”

@CollegiateTimes

Engineering Expo 2013 (Owens Ball Room - 8 a.m.)

The Engineering Expo has been one of the largest student-run career fairs in the country for decades, and is one of the premier recruiting events for collegelevel engineering talent.

Mingle at the Market (Market Square Park- 4 p.m.-7 p.m.)

The Blacksburg Farmers Market presents their September Mingle at the Market featuring live music by Another Roadside Attraction. Admission is free, with various charges for food and beverages.

Thomas Thurman (The Cellar- 9 p.m.)

Join acoustic musician Thomas Thurman as he brings his guitar and voice for an acoustic show at The Cellar. The show starts around 9 p.m. upstairs.

The salsa dancing club on campus, SalsaTech, hosts their weekly beginners salsa lesson. After the initial lesson, the DJ will be playing music for the remainder of the night. The cost is $3 at the door or $2 with SalsaTech membership card.

GET TURNED ON

VTTV

WWW.VTTV.VT.EDU

Salsa Massive (O’s Lounge 9:30 p.m.)

channel 33 on campus

4

crimeblotter date

time

offense

location

status

Sept. 4 - 5

2:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.

Follow-up to Larceny of a Tablet

Whittemore Hall

Unfounded

Jul. 30 - Aug. 28

Various Times

Computer Invasion of Privacy

North End Center

Active

Jul. 14

1:30 a.m.

Underage Possesion of Alcohol x 6

East AJ Hall

Inactive: Reported to Student Conduct

Aug. 24

9:25 p.m.

Underage Possesion of Alcohol x 6

Pritchard Hall

Inactive: Reported to Student Conduct

Aug. 25

2:30 a.m.

Underage Possesion of Alcohol x 5

Vawter Hall

Inactive: Reported to Student Conduct

OPINIONS

opinionseditor@collegiatetimes.com

September 18, 2013

collegiatetimes.com

5

The Collegiate Times is an independent studentrun newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903 Collegiate Times Editorial Staff Editor in Chief: Priscilla Alvarez Managing Editor: Danielle Buynak Art Director: Kevin Dickel Design Editors: Brad Klodowski, Andrea Ledesma Public Editor: Andrew Kulak Web Editor: James O’Hara Multimedia Editor: Nick Smirniotopoulos News Editors: Cameron Austin, Dean Seal News Reporters: Melissa Draudt, Leslie McCrea News Staff Writers: Kelly Cline, Josh Higgins, Matt Minor Features Editor: Chelsea Giles Features Reporters: Madeline Gordon, Jessica Groves Opinions Editors: David Levitt, Shareth Reddy Sports Editors: Jacob Emert, Alex Koma Sports Media Manager: Mike Platania Assistant Photo Editor: Ben Wiedlich Collegiate Times Business Staff Business Manager: James Dean Seal Circulation Manager: Keith Bardsley

MCT CAMPUS

Landmark Title IX case creates inequalities

T

itle IX has recently come back into the conversation of college athletics with campaigns such as the “Nine for IX” documentaries and “The Power of IX” features on ESPN noting the 40th anniversary of the landmark law.

As a female student athlete, I owe my ability to play collegiate athletics to the law, but Title IX is inherently flawed.

While the law demands equality, it unwittingly creates inequality.

Under Title IX, colleges and universities are required to provide the same amount of athletic opportunities or roster positions to both genders.

This is only fair, right? Not quite.

And ironically, men’s athletics are on the receiving end of the unjustness.

Most schools have more

women’s sports than men’s sports because they need to create more roster spots to keep up with the upwards of one hundred football roster spots that men fi ll. There is no women’s sport equivalent to football in terms of sheer number of players on a team.

Because of this, there are three significant consequences at most colleges: 1. women’s rosters on similar team sports tend to be larger than men’s; 2. there are fewer men’s sports programs; and 3. men’s sports programs are the first to be cut in order to keep the number of athletes “equal” between men and women.

Last year the University of Richmond men’s track and field and men’s soccer programs were both cut in favor of making men’s lacrosse a varsity sport. Rather than creating a fair amount of oppor-

tunities, the athletes on both the track and field and soccer teams were stripped of their athletic opportunities.

“

As a female student athlete, I owe my ability to play collegiate athletics to the law, but Title IX is inherently flawed.”

The solution? Schools shouldn’t have to count football toward the Title IX regulations. They should match the other men’s and women’s roster spots based on the rest of a school’s sports.

At Virginia Tech this could allow sports such as men’s lacrosse to become a varsi-

ty level sport, which it duly deserves. Our men’s club lacrosse team has finished in the top 25 of club lacrosse teams for at least the last seven years with three top 15 finishes.

As an ACC school, creating a men’s lacrosse team should be a priority for Tech, seeing as the ACC is the best lacrosse conference in the country.

Title IX has paved the way for women’s equality in athletics, yet it is still important to look at how the law is affecting the whole population of student athletes.

Men’s athletics shouldn’t suffer for the sole benefit of women’s athletics.

CAROLINE KELLY - regular columnist - sophomore - English

Academic funding should not be sacrificed in favor of athletic success If

you are like me, you want Hokies sports teams to have the very best venues and practice facilities. But at what cost?

After the recently resolved Stadium Woods controversy, many people failed to question why our football team needed an indoor practice facility in the first place. While other Tech teams will use the facility, are we sure it would improve their performance or recruitment?

According to the Washington Post, the project has an approved budget of $25 million and is supposedly privately funded.

Yet, only $11 million has been spoken for as of Sept.

10. In these strained economic times, borrowing money to pay for this sort of facility seems irresponsible.

Beyond that project, Lane Stadium is likely to get an expansion to the student section in coming years.

Whether you want more seating capacity or not, you can be sure that such an expansion will come at a significant cost.

Remind me again — are the Hokies an NFL team, operating like a regular business, or merely a college team with a lackluster offense?

Students cannot keep footing the bill for the loft y goals of coaches and athletic directors. We cannot expect tuition costs to decrease when universities engage in reckless spending over bloated sports programs.

Universities must also think of the academic expectations of student-athletes.

As the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Sports states, “Student-athletes… insofar as possible, should be indistinguishable from other undergraduates.”

If only that were the case.

The Knight Commission, led by many university presidents and officials, agrees that the collegiate sports mentality must change. Starting in 1991, the Commission has published three comprehensive reports detailing problems with intercollegiate sports and proposing solutions.

Many such proposals have

been adopted by the NCAA, which has no official ties to the Commission.

The Commission notes that athletics spending per athlete has risen substantially compared to stagnant academic spending per student. At ACC universities, the ratio between the two types of per capita spending was 660 percent in 2008. In SEC universities, the ratio was a whopping 1080 percent.

This would be somewhat acceptable if funding for athletics came only from game revenues and private donations. The reality however, is that colleges generally lose money on their athletics programs, compensating their losses by digging into their institutions’ general funds and student fees. That money is better spent investing in the improvement of academic programs.

Intercollegiate sports are only one manifestation of universities’ desire for visibility. Tech’s new Signature Engineering Building and Center for the Arts are great examples of excessive

spending beyond athletics.

The Engineering Building indeed fulfi lls a need for more classroom space for the department, but it does so with many unnecessary features.

Alas, it is understandable that the university wants to be lauded with state-ofthe-art facilities. We should want to attract the best talent, scholarly and otherwise, to come to our great university.

Similarly, no one denies that intercollegiate sports are an integral part of the college experience. They build a sense of community among students and are a source of campus pride.

But these benefits are only worth so much.

Colleges must fi nd the proper balance between investing in impressive, shiny new facilities and investing in their students’ academic success.

HECTOR QUESADA - regular columnist - senior - political science

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Katherine Miller

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September 18, 2013

It’s your ad LET’S PUT IT TO GOOD USE

Today’s Birthday Horoscope: Today’s Birthday (09/18/13). Your

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next solar year begins auspiciously; discipline and authority amplify power and regeneration. Perseverance can lead to a revolutionary shift. Group efforts bear greatest fruit this year, so increase community participation and leadership. Careful inancial management allows growth.

Piled Higher and Deeper by Jorge Cham Quote of the Day

Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors where there were only walls.

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ACROSS 1 Bank heist 4 Bedframe piece 8 Beyond harmful 14 “... by __ other name ...”

15 Bare bones 16 Billiard ball feature, about half the time 17 Buzz-filled 2007 animated film 19 Brings together 20 Burdensome additional levy 22 Boldly states 23 Birthplace of Hans Christian Andersen 26 Baker’s meas.

28 “Behold,” to Brutus

Willie - Cat Power Dance, Dance, Dance - Lykke Li Indie Rokkers - MGMT Everybody Here Wants You - Jeff Buckley Superstar - Sonic Youth

9/18/13 29 Ball-shaped frozen dessert 30 Betty White costar in “The Golden Girls” 32 “Ben-Hur,” e.g.

33 Bedrock resident 34 “But then again ...”

35 Bug-bitten?

36 Brown who wrote “The Da Vinci Code” 37 Billion-year period 40 Brother of Judah 42 Bump off 43 Biotin, thiamine et al.

47 Blinked the sleep from one’s eyes

48 Bothersome parasites 49 By order of 50 Bigheaded sort 51 Bing Crosby’s “__ You Glad You’re You?” 53 Baseball team’s list of players 55 Balanced state 57 Behave candidly 61 Black-tie wear 62 Bardot’s “the same” 63 Breathtaking snake?

64 Began, as a lawn 65 Beachfront property?

66 Buddy

DOWN 1 Boxer’s punch 2 Binary digit 3 “Bon voyage!”

4 Better half, so to speak 5 Burgundy book 6 Bickering 7 Box office setting 8 Baton Rouge sch.

9 Blower of Sicilian smoke 10 Buffer between a hot plate and a dinner table 11 Built for NASA, say 12 Brief summary 13 __ Bear: Ursa Minor 18 Broadcaster of “Morning Joe” 21 Blackboard symbols in the locker room 23 Bride’s passé promise 24 Birdbrain 25 Belch, say 27 Blissful song 30 Better for enjoying the outdoors, as weather 31 “Belshazzar’s Feast” painter Rembrandt van __ 33 “Black Sunday” airship 35 Biblical prophet: Abbr.

37 Blond sci-fi race 38 Barrel sources 39 Bolshevik’s denial 41 Bundles up (in) 42 Bound by oath 43 Blaring siren sounds

44 Basis of morality 45 Belaying tool for climbers 46 Became edgy 47 Belonging to an ancient time 50 “Blood Simple” co-screenwriter Coen

52 Bay of Fundy wonder 54 Big name in video games 56 Bald spot filler 58 Backward flow 59 Bronze coin of old France 60 Bar bill

Tuesday’s Puzzle Solved

(c)2012 Tribune Media Services, Inc.

9/17/13

WORDSEARCH: Money Money Money Locate the list of words in the word bank in the letter grid.

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WORD BANK 1 Dollar 2 Cordoba 3 Florin 4 Shilling 5 Pound 6 Kuna 7 Colon 8 Peso 9 Ruble 10 Yen 11 Dinar 12 Euro 13 Rand 14 Yuan 15 Rupee 16 Franc 17 Krona

Aries (March 21-April 19) Infuse love into your efforts and activities today.

Put more into the household account.

No need to rush. Build your partner’s self-esteem. Compassion and passion go together. Apply creativity at home for impressive results.

Leo (July 23-Aug. 22) Balance all the factors. An older individual offers an interesting opinion. Advance to a whole new level. Let friends advise you. Make a tantalizing promise. Don’t insist on making your own mistakes.

Learn from others.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) Use what you’ve learned for success. A discovery supports what you know by experience. Plan your verbal campaign. Foreign contacts love your ideas. The money looks better. Add to your hidden treasures. Beautify your surroundings.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Make a positive commitment. Use what you’ve been saving. Working at home increases your bene its. Abundance can be yours. Lose yourself in an art project. You don’t need to reveal your agenda, yet.

Gemini (May 21-June 20) Be frugal with a windfall pro it. A surprising development allows for a shrewd new plan. Get more for less. You’re testing the limits. Make a bene icial addition at home. Enjoy it with good company.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) You have what you need. Back up your ideas with practical data. Allow your decision to carry you forward. Good news comes from far away. Get something you’ve been saving appraised. Make plans.

Include your love.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) Work faster and earn more. You gain career stature with a lucky break. Don’t try a new idea just yet. Take a moment. Dig in your claws and maintain decorum.

Prepare to venture farther out.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Collect a debt. It’s all for the family. Be loose with your imagination. Help arrives.

Shop carefully, and store away extra provisions. There’s another pro itable development. Roast a feast and toast your client.

Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) Take care of family. Take a phone call in private. You hear from a distant relative. Decide what to learn next. Consider comfort and pro it. Okay, you can go now.

Never give up.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) Streamline your work routine and make more.

Monitor results. Friends help you make an important connection. Share information. Get your message out.

Friends act as mediators. Party big or party small, but celebrate.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) Fix up your place. Find the perfect solution.

You have what you need. It’s also a good time to travel. Enlist support.

Associates nail down practicalities.

You’re making a good impression. All ends well.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) Finishing old tasks satis ies. Provide excellent service. Collect a nice paycheck. Invest in your business. Keep practicing.

Strengthen your infrastructure. Allow for household improvements. Go for romance and other personal aims.

CONTACT US BY EMAIL AT COLLEGEMEDIA.COM & WE CAN GET STARTED!

LIFESTYLES

lifestyleseditor@collegiatetimes.com

September 18, 2013

collegiatetimes.com

7

Samberg transitions into new role following SNL YVONNE VILLARREAL mcclatchy newspapers

Andy Samberg is having trouble keeping his toothy grin in check.

There’s no studio audience. Or the pressure of performing live. So it’s a bit of a relief when the “Saturday Night Live” graduate breaks a scene — more than once — on the set of his headlining Fox cop comedy, “Brooklyn Nine-Nine.” The episode finds his character, the competentyet-juvenile Det. Jake Peralta, plotting revenge at a local bar against an archrival with the aid of his co-workers.

Each outlandish scheme proposed during the fun-run take, in which the actors ad-lib, has Samberg wound up and playing with what they’ve doled out (e.g., the script’s mention of Tonya Harding becomes a one-liner about the ice skater turned tabloid staple that would make for a charming hand-stitched pillow: “Crazy in life, crazy in bed.”)

“It’d be amazing if Kevin Reilly showed up,” Samberg joked between takes, referring to the network’s chairman of entertainment. “He’d shut this down immediately.”

Careful, Andy.

The 35-year-old comedian is a year into the career seesaw that afflicts even the most promising alums of the comedy Ivy League. For six seasons, Samberg was “SNL’s” go-to goober — elevating the anatomy-in-a-box industry, deep V-necks and Mark Wahlberg impressions to new heights — before announcing his departure. Equilibrium was quickly tested. A movie career wobbled. In an atypical move, he starred as an American hippie in the BBC series “Cuckoo.”

With every teeter comes an upswing. Viral video super-

stars Lonely Island, the trio of “SNL” writer-rappers led by Samberg, has served as such; their January video, “Yolo,” featuring Adam Levine and Kendrick Lamar, has notched more than 50 million views on YouTube, and their third album entered the Billboard charts at No. 10.

But “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” premiering Tuesday from “Parks and Recreation” vets Mike Schur and Dan Goor, has the industry eager to pin down Samberg’s place, like the Amy Poehlers and Adam Sandlers before him.

Samberg’s Jake Peralta plays up the employee-boss dynamic against straight-faced Andre Braugher, who plays Capt.

Holt. The pilot episode has Samberg in his wheelhouse: His character imitates Donnie Brasco alongside a teddy bear, wears a necktie around his belly, and, in a later scene, dons a brightly colored Speedo.

“The character of Jake is like me if I was actually smart,” Samberg joked. “We have the writers to fill in all the smart blanks, and then I get to be silly and stupid, which is how I am in real life. So it’s like the perfect blend of my dumbness and their smartness.”

Still, his peers can’t help but rib him about the uncertain fate the quirky comedy faces in the crazy-quilt TV landscape.

At Comedy Central’s recent “Roast of James Franco,” MC Seth Rogen kindly noted: “Andy plays a cop on his new Fox show. His first case will be investigating the disappearance of his new Fox show.”

Samberg has heard it all.

“People love tracking ‘SNL’ stuff,” he said during an interview on the L.A.-based, Brooklyn-wannabe set. “I feel like ‘SNL’ is a sports franchise at this point. America is the city and ‘SNL’ is the team,

EDDY CHEN / MCT CAMPUS

Andy Samberg stars in the headlining Fox comedy “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” as a young detective, his first television role since leaving SNL. and everyone feels ownership.

Everyone is a coach: They all think they know what’s best for it, they all think it used to be better than it is now, they all think its retired players should stay at home.”

So, appropriately, Schur and Goor visited Samberg at his home — an L.A. rental where the Lonely Island gang had been working on their album — to keep the funnyman from obsessing over more analogies and get him back on TV. The pair developed the halfhour cop comedy as an antidote to the fast-paced, highstakes cop dramas overrunning the prime-time grid, settling on Brooklyn as a backdrop because “right now it’s

such an interesting slice of the world, with its hipsters and its old-school population and its Hasidic population — you have all of these groups that are bumping up against each other, and the cops are right in the middle of it,” Goor said.

Schur had been a writer on “SNL” but left before Samberg joined the lineup. When the duo heard Samberg was leaving the veteran sketch comedy show, they knew they had found their goofy cop.

“We spent, like, eight minutes describing the character and the back story — how Jake aspires to be the best detective, how he’s not great with rules, he’s a bit of a ... up,” Goor said. “And he just looked

at us and was, like, “Oh, so comedy McNulty (referring to the famed police detective of HBO’s ‘The Wire’).’ We both just bowed down and begged him to do the show.”

The comedian’s first thought: “I was, like, ‘You think people will believe that I’m a cop?’”

Samberg, naturally, sought Poehler’s advice on what to expect in headlining a network comedy. The actress, who on occasion has popped over to the neighboring set during breaks from “Parks and Recreation,” predicted “it won’t be long before (Samberg) is hosting the Golden Globes.”

But an endorsement from Zooey Deschanel, star of the network’s hit comedy “New

Girl,” is what sold Samberg.

“I’m interested in stability,” Samberg said, but “wanted some reassurance that I wouldn’t feel caged in terms of what the schedule ... entails in doing a show like this. So if this ends up killing my mojo, I’m going to blame her.”

Meanwhile, the star is hoping for perks.

“When we shot the pilot, I was driving home at the end of a long day, and I was going a little fast. All of a sudden I saw a cop car, and I was, like, ‘Oh, no, it’s the cops!’ Then I started daydreaming of using this role to get out of speeding tickets and to score free doughnuts.”

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sportseditor@collegiatetimes.com

September 18, 2013

collegiatetimes.com

SPORTS

Men’s soccer dominates High Point for year’s third win JULIA CANON sports staff writer

After starting the game off slowly against High Point, the Virginia Tech men’s soccer team notched their third win of the season last night, 5-2.

High Point started the game with all of the momentum as junior Mamadee Nyepon snuck a shot past the Hokies’ defense and netted the first goal of the game.

“We are a different team this year,” said Hokies senior midfielder Robert Alberti.

“We don’t put our heads down after giving up a goal.

I know we have been giving up early goals the past three games and we have bounced back every time.”

Tech stormed back. Alberti scored his first goal of the game 11 minutes in off of a cross by sophomore Deven Mason.

“I peeled off the defender’s shoulder and was sitting on the back post and the ball came through. I just hit it and put it in the corner,” Alberti said.

Alberti has been a key player for the Hokies in the past weeks. He scored the gametying goal in the end of regulation that lead to an overtime win against then-No. 17 Syracuse. The following week Alberti scored the lone goal in Tech’s 1-1 tie against ACCfoe Duke.

“You won’t meet a guy who wants to win more than Robert, and he shows it every time he plays,” said head coach Mike Brizendine.

“Every time he plays he leaves everything on the field and when you have a bunch of players like that, you’re going to win.”

After surviving High Point’s initial push, the Hokies controlled the game for the rest of the first half. Junior Andre Thomas scored a header goal off of an Alberti cross.

The half ended with the Hokies leading High Point, 2-1.

In the second half, High Point attempted to regain their momentum by playing a more up-tempo style.

“They were coming after us all night. Even when it was 4-1 we were over here on the sidelines trying to get the guys prepared because they have an outstanding forward who can score on you at anytime,” Brizendine said.

While High Point did manage to have 11 shots on goal in the second half, Hokies goalie Kyle Renfro only allowed one more goal. He made five saves in the game and two in the second half.

“We went up a couple more goals on them, so they were pushing numbers forward and trying to get more chances,” said Renfro.

The Hokies combated High Point’s second half push with three goals of their own.

Alberti netted his second of the game with a left-footed shot in the 51st minute.

Senior David Clemens and sophomore Daniel Lauretano also scored second half goals.

The Hokies take on No. 1 North Carolina on Friday in Blacksburg at 7 p.m.

@jcanon

upcoming schedule Friday, Sept. 20: No. 1 North Carolina Tuesday, Sept. 24: US Naval Academy Friday, Sept. 27: No. 20 Clemson Friday, Oct. 4: at No. 15 Wake Forest Tuesday, Oct. 8 at Pittsburgh

PHOTOS BY TREVOR WHITE / SPPS

TOP: David Clemens (11) fights to keep the ball in bounds while driving to the High Point net. ABOVE: Tech goalkeeper Kyle Renfro (1) blocks a High Point shot on goal.

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Volleyball dominates third consecutive tournament ALI BOWKER sports staff writer

The Virginia Tech volleyball team won their third consecutive tournament this weekend in front of fans in Cassell Coliseum.

“We had good energy this weekend,” junior middle block Latasha Samson-Akpan said.

“We had a good overall tournament this weekend. Everything that we have been working on in practice has paid off and is on display right now.”

Tech is coming off of a stellar weekend at the Hokie Classic, which included sweeps of Duquesne and Lipscomb. With the win the Hokies improve to 9-1 on the season, marking their best start since 2009 when the team went 9-0 in the first three weeks of play.

“We played low error and didn’t give away too many free points,” head coach Chris Riley said. “We weren’t clean with our passing, but we played the game that allowed us to win.”

In their first match of the tournament the Hokies were trailing Lipscomb 15-10, but strung together a five-point run to pull back into and eventually take the game.

The rest of the weekend seemed to go the same way, with the Hokies fighting for every point they earned.

Though they beat Lipscomb and Duquesne in three games and William and Mary in four, the team didn’t dominate as they have in the past two weekends.

“We didn’t play well in any of the matches this weekend,” Riley said. “We can keep getting better. We played better last weekend.”

The Hokies built a sevenpoint lead against Duquesne but numerous errors allowed the Dukes to gain momentum and come back into the match.

The Dukes went on a 6-0 run, pulling the score within one

TREVOR WHITE / SPPS

Amanda McKinzie (10) dives for the ball as it goes out of bounds. before freshman outside hitter Lindsey Owens smacked backto-back kills to give the Hokies a little more breathing room.

“They started serving tougher,” Riley said. “We didn’t handle the ball well, it allows teams to come back. We gave them too many free points.”

Tech cleaned its act up in the rest of the match committing only four errors over two games, compared to the six they committed in the first game.

“We have to be much more stable with our blocks,” Riley said. “We also need to be cleaner at controlling the balls that we do defend and give us more options with our attack.”

Samson-Akpan was named the MVP of the tournament as she put up seven blocks and knocked down 21 kills for the weekend. Owens and junior middle blocker Kathryn Caine both made the all-tournament team as well. Owen tallied 31 kills and two blocks, and Cain notched 23 kills and one block over the course of the weekend.

“This coming weekend will be a great challenge for us before ACC play,” Samson-Akpan said. “Hopefully we will finish

our preseason tournament play strong.”

This weekend Tech will have to be clean in every aspect of play when they head to the Louisville Classic to face Bowling Green, Rice and future ACC-powerhouse Louisville. “(This weekend) will be a huge test for us and (will) let us see if we can play with the big leagues,” Caine said.

“We need to be working on our low error game. We also need to be aggressive and play to win instead of being tentative.”

Though Louisville is currently only 2-6 on the season, they finished in the top 10 last season and had numerous players make the USA National A2 team, which went on to take the gold medal in Dallas over the summer. Rice and Bowling Green just are equally as good. Bowling Green finished fi rst in the Mid-American Conference.

“Playing low error and being a better ball control team will be key against these teams,” Riley said.

The Hokies are set to open the weekend off against Rice at 3 p.m. Friday.

NEWS

newseditor@collegiatetimes.com

September 18, 2013

collegiatetimes.com

9

Stone: Local quarry supplies iconic rocks

TREVOR WHITE / SPPS

The Hokie Stone quarry, which is located a short drive from campus, has embraced the changing technology and in response, has cut down the number of employees over the years. said. “They had to declare it off-limits to keep them out of it because it was dangerous.”

From the construction of the Performing Arts Building until now, Tech has consistently designed each building to ensure that Hokie Stone is a part of the facade. Buildings like Derring and Cowgill Halls are exceptions, as they were built following a nationwide movement toward modern architecture around the 70s.

It wasn’t until three years ago, however, that the Board of Visitors passed an official requirement for each new building on campus to be at least partially composed of Hokie Stone. This solidified the precious limestone’s prominent place in Blacksburg, as well as ensured the workers at the quarries that their mining services would be required for years to come.

“We’re producing 50 pallets a week, 50 weeks out of the year,” said Ricky Johnston, manager at the quarry near Highland Park.

Each pallet costs $440 and is 2,400 pounds of stone, meaning the quarry provides Tech with 6 million pounds of building material yearly.

On a typical mining day, holes are drilled into the rock, which is then blasted from the hillside with black powder.

Then, large chunks of stone are taken down the hill to a diamond-toothed saw for more precise cutting. From there, the stone is taken to a hydraulic breaker, which shapes it for building. The pieces are stacked on a pallet, weighed and shipped to the construction site.

Due to shifts in technology,

from page one

The fossils of ancient gastropods, clams and possibly trilobites can be found within the walls of the buildings, according to geology professor Ken Eriksson. “If you walk around campus and use a magnifying glass, you can identify all sorts of fossils in the blocks of Hokie Stone,” he said.

Originally called “our native limestone” by former Tech President John McBryde, the stone was first used in the construction of the Performing Arts Building, which once housed the YMCA in 1899.

This construction signified the beginning of an architectural movement to transform the dull appearance of Tech’s campus to one that could be set apart from other universities. “(Former) President Joseph D. Eggleston is the one who wanted to change the look of the campus because most of the buildings were brick,” Cox said. “He thought they looked like factories, and (that) the place looked poverty-stricken.”

Tech adapted an architecture style known as neo-Gothic or Collegiate Gothic, because it looked similar to European colleges such as Oxford and Cambridge.

During the early years, Hokie Stone was mined from a quarry where Derring Hall currently stands. A natural spring complicated the extraction process, making the mine a source of entertainment as well.

“The cadets would go swimming in the quarry, so they built a fence around it,” Cox

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TREVOR WHITE / SPPS

Industrial saws prepare Hokie Stone for distribution to campus, after it is blasted from the hillside with explosives. the quarry has cut down from 30 workers over a decade ago to only 12 now, as they learn to work more efficiently with less manpower.

“We’re under the gun all the time (to produce Hokie Stone),” Johnston said. “We have been ever since I’ve been here.”

Some students, visitors and construction workers however, are surprised to find out that Hokie Stone is mined locally.

“Everybody’s tickled with it,” Johnston said. “They’re fascinated when they come down to see the quarry. They just can’t believe that there’s an area here in Blacksburg

behind the housing division that the Hokie Stone comes from.”

Once the Hokie Stone reaches job sites, it is ready to face chisel and hammer and is then sorted into shapes, colors and sizes to be placed on the building.

While it may appear that each stone is distributed at random due to lack of a pattern, there are, in fact, about 20 different criteria for installation. Ironically, not creating a pattern is one of the criteria.

“The goal with (Hokie Stone) is really to see it and appreciate it, but you don’t want to have something jump out at you. It should all blend in,”

said Eric Hotek, project engineer for the new Signature Engineering Building.

When an earthquake hit Louisa County in 2011, Blacksburg felt the reverberations, raising the question of how the Hokie Stone buildings would hold up against a more powerful earthquake.

“At different levels of the building and vertically as well, you will have a break in the stone so that when the building moves, it doesn’t crack the stone,” Hotek said. “Even if the building does move, whole sections of the building will move together.”

According to Eriksson,

limestone is one of the hardest sedimentary rocks to exist.

However that doesn’t prevent it from slowly deteriorating.

“Hokie Stone will eventually dissolve, as all limestones do, to form caves, but that is millions of years in the future.

Long after we’ve gone from this area, the buildings will start dissolving,” he said.

Since the weathering isn’t an immediate threat, Hokie Stone will continued to be used to carry on the Hokie tradition.

“It’s just so ingrained in all of us now,” Cox said.

@KyleB_VT

10

September 18, 2013

collegiatetimes.com