The Cauldron - Issue 6 by Steve Thomas

Although the Line is Blurred, the Motivation is Clear

Hazing:

Everything You Thought It Was – And More

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N ois e In s pe c tors

The Cauldron Page 3

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Klein is CSU’s B Senior Tops 25 Ye

Monday, february 22, 2010

*** ESTABLISHED 1929 ***

Issue 6 | FREE

Facebook: Social Networking Site or Eternal Grieving Engine?

Do you know your Dean?

News

An in-depth examination of Dr. James Drnek

The Melting Pot

Opening Statements:

Page 3

What Occurred at the Board of Trustees Meeting, and How Does it Affect You? Page 6 Arts & Entertainment

Concert Picks of the Week Page 12

SPORTS

Strong Second Half Propels Vikes Over Rockets

Vikings Win 87-63 On Bracket Busters Saturday

Page 15

By Reid May

Page two / Monday, February 22, 2010

Contents V olume

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I ssue

si x

The Melting Pot

03 Although the Line is Blurred, the Motivation is Clear

News

04 Hazing: Everything You Thought It Was – And More 05 GLASA Encourages Students to Keep it Safe 05 CSU Community Helps Haitians 06 What Occurred at the Board of Trustees Meeting, and How Does it Affect You? 07 Weekly Events Calendar

Do you know your Dean? An in-depth examination of Dr. James Drnek By Reid May

Arts & Entertainment 10 Noise Inspector 13 The Irene Ryan Acting Competition

Sports 165 Can the Indians Rebound? 15 Strong Second Half Propels Vikes Over Rockets Vikings Win 87-63 On BracketBusters Saturday

The Cauldron The Staff

Editor-In-Chief Samantha Shunk Managing Editor Reid May Advertising Manager Jayson Gerbec Copy Editor Kristen Mott Copy Editor Justin Brenis News Editor Alexes Spencer Arts & Entertainment Editor Jonathan D. Herzberger Sports Editor Rob Ivory Layout Editor Steve Thomas Business Manager Anne Werner Student Media & Web Specialist Daniel Lenhart Faculty Advisor Dr. Rodger Govea

3 4 12 14

Mission Statement Opening Statements: Facebook Social Networking Site or Eternal Grieving Engine? By Justin Brenis When I first signed up for Facebook back in 2005 I was really excited; it was the first productive use I had for my Kent State e-mail address. A site completely devoted to social networking of college students across the country. A digital country club with the lowest of membership standards, and no pretentious polo shirts or ascots required. It all seemed so perfect…

Student Organizations Partake in Flavorful Fight By Nikki Kochman

As Cleveland State University’s student run, managed, and operated alternative weekly paper, The Cauldron is dedicated to delivering information to the student and professional body of CSU; doing so without bias, without constraints, and without fear. Presenting news, entertainment, opinion and other media that originates organically from within the student body, our distinctive media will organically flow and adapt to suit that body’s needs.

Apple Fritter, Banana Pudding, Strawberry Cream Pie, Almond-Vanilla Cookies--the list could on. All this and more was featured at the 2010 Student Organization Bake-Off Competition. It was located in the MC Atrium on Wednesday, February 17 from 10:30 a.m. until 2 p.m. when the winners were announced, earning themselves SOYA points for their organization.

The Cauldron prints according to sound journalistic principles of accuracy, accountability, integrity, transparency and with a recognition of press freedom and student expression.

Concert Picks of the Week By Alexes Spencer and Jonathan ‘Killstring’ Herzberger

The Cauldron shall remain a forum; maintaining a strong connection to the diverse campus community, regarding but not limited to Cleveland State University, the city of Cleveland, the United States, and the Global Community.

Happy midterms. Not happy, you say? It can’t be that bad...Oh, it is? Well, the good news is that when you get finished with all those grueling tests, when you’ve turned in your scantrons and retired your pencils to the bottom of your backpack, the weekend is loaded with great shows. So get out there and relax, take in some tuneage, and enjoy life again. Grapplers Fall On Senior Night, Still Fight With Heart West Virginia Wins 34-11 By Robert Ivory The Cleveland State Vikings wrestling team has finished their 2009-2010 regular season campaign with a loss to the Mountaineers of West Virginia Friday night at Woodling Gym. With the loss, the Vikes go winless in the year in the EWL and finish the year 2-17.

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Cleveland State University 4th Floor Cole Center Cleveland, Ohio 44115 phone (216) 687-2270 fax (216) 687-5155 www.csucauldron.com

Monday, February 22, 2010 / Page Three

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The Melting Pot

<< Next week’s feature - Pros and Cons of Living on Campus 2 By Editor-In-Chief, Samantha Shunk

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Opening Statements:

Facebook Social Networking Site or Eternal Grieving Engine? By Justin Brenis, The Cauldron Copy Editor When I first signed up for Facebook back in 2005 I was really excited; it was the first productive use I had for my Kent State e-mail address. A site completely devoted to social networking of college students across the country. A digital country club with the lowest of membership standards, and no pretentious polo shirts or ascots required. It all seemed so perfect… Now, whenever I login to the monster that used to be my favorite website I find myself cringing with apprehension. I fear I may have been recruited into someone’s Mafia, or someone will want me to buy the baby ocelot they found lost on their farm. Perhaps Facebook feels that I have been neglecting my friends, or that because my friends have friends that those friends should be my friends. Yet even worse than all this, I fear my “News Feed” will have been rearranged yet again just after having gotten used to the 16 changes they made last month. Honestly Mark Zuckerberg, if I was looking for an online experience akin to the frustration of a Rubik’s Cube, I would have just bought one—at least with the real ones you can peel off and rearrange the stickers before displaying it on your mantle thinking it will impress girls you bring home. (Disclaimer: It won’t.) I just don’t understand what motivated all of this. I suppose if I really suppress my inner rage I can agree that if Facebook hadn’t made some changes that eventually it would have seemed a bit stale and commonplace, but was all this excess really necessary? Outside of maybe a few reasonable games like Poker and Checkers, do we really need 60+ clones of the same game? More importantly, what benefits are there to this new “News Feed” that didn’t exist before? Do we really even need the “News Feed” at all—and if we do, does it really need this much constant

tweaking? If I want to check to see if I have any messages, or wall posts, I don’t need a request to become a member of your vampire pack, or your mafia, or a farmhand on your “FarmVille”. I also don’t need to know the origin of my name or the top five dead celebrities you’d invite to dinner. Nor do I need to join 15 different groups to be sure that everyone understands I was a child of the late-80s, that I like the cold side of my pillow, or that I wish the cast of “Who’s The Boss?” would do a reunion episode. (Yah, that’s right, I said it…I liked “Who’s The Boss?”...want to fight about it?) I suppose a lot of you reading this are just going to pass it off as a writer being bitter and venting. Maybe you’re right, but deep down you know you agree with me… maybe not at the moment, but try and tell me that when you logged into Facebook last week to find that your main page had changed yet again, that you didn’t, for the 50th time, mutter under your breath “That’s it! I can’t take it anymore! I’m deleting my account!” and then went and played with your “SuperPoke! Pet” instead. Trust me, you’re not alone. There are over 400 million Facebook users, according to their Statistics page, and with all the groups created out there protesting it’s easy to see they aren’t all happy…yet they keep coming back day after day and continuing to use it. Perhaps social networking has, as much as I fear to say it, gotten beyond me. Maybe my generation is becoming technologically “old” and I need to ask one of my little cousins to sit down and walk me through what this newfangled Facebook is and how to use it. Perhaps I’m just bitter because all the other Cauldron Editors are yet to accept my friend requests. Maybe Mark Zuckerburg and his team over at Facebook need to learn the meaning of the adage “If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It” before I agree to ever log back in again!!! Or, maybe I should go update my status letting everyone know to read this article and make sure my “Restaurant City” is taken care of first… Yah, that sounds good.

Image courtesy of Steve Thomas

Although the Line is Blurred, the Motivation is Clear By Lisa Sanchez, The Cauldron Staff Writer

There are many people who do not understand the concept of sexual harassment in the workplace and take the issue as that of persons who are overly sensitive or easily offended. However, the true issue is not the accuser because no one can tell another person how he/ she should feel in any situation. The real problem behind sexual harassment is the idea of power and how someone can wield it over another person simply by making a comment, a gesture, or a physical advance. Typically, it is women who feel they are being sexually harassed. Some people may credit this to the hyper sensitivity of female emotions, when in reality the threat is very real. “Women are more vulnerable in society, which makes them easier targets for sexual harassment,” explained Dr. Margaret Payerle, a professor of Math and Women’s Studies. Most cases of sexual harassment are men making

unwanted advances on women; however, men can also experience feelings of discomfort when they feel they have been approached inappropriately. However, men are less likely to say anything because they realize they are still in control due to the simple fact that they are men. Women just feel less in control of the situation than men would. This may be because men know they hold a higher level of credibility in society than most women, or it could be that men have a physical advantage over women in most situations. “Sexual harassment makes people who experience it unproductive and uncomfortable,” explained Dr. Payerle. “The purpose of it is to make someone feel less in control. The question is, does a person feel like they have options in a situation or that their options have been taken away?” If someone has to purposely watch what they say or do to avoid comments from a co-worker,

which is altering their normal behavior, which no one should have to do to avoid harassment in the workplace. Some people have said anyone could claim sexual harassment for the opportunity to file a lawsuit and potentially win a substantial amount of money. This idea further discredits the fact that sexual harassment is a valid problem and needs to be solved. “I believe anyone who claims sexual harassment for the benefit of money hurts all those people who are still victims,” commented Dr. Payerle. “The situation is tantamount to if a woman accuses a man of rape after consensual intercourse. This harms the validity of victims who have yet to come forward.” The idea that anyone can go through their entire lives and not offend someone or be offended is absurd. There is no feasible way we can please everyone all the time (or Continuted on Page7

Page four / Monday, February 22, 2010

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News

<< GLASA Encourages Students to Keep it Safe

>>> Page 7 | Weekly Events Calendar | Hey! Don’t see your event here? E-mail cauldroneditors@gmail.com to ensure your club or group’s next event gets listed.

Hazing: Everything You Thought It Was – And More By Derek Bumgardner, The Cauldron Contributing Writer At the time of writing this, the sisters of Delta Omega Phi were still waiting to know the results of a hearing this month in which they were accused of hazing. But what exactly is hazing? According to the “American Heritage Dictionary”, hazing is “to initiate . . . by exacting humiliating performances from or playing rough practical jokes upon.” The Cleveland State Code of Conduct defines it as “any conduct, act, method of, or coercion of another to do an act of initiation or admission into any organization which occurs on or off University premises and which willfully or recklessly causes or creates a substantial risk of causing physical or mental harm to any student or other person.” The code goes on to list acts that could be included in this definition: “extended deprivation of sleep or rest; forced consumption of food, liquor, other beverages, or drugs; beating or branding; forced exclusion from social contact; or forced conduct which could result in embarrassment to any person.” Of course, these are the acts that most of us would consider to be hazing – the over-the-top antics displayed in such movies as “Animal House” and such television shows as “Greek.” To me, at least, forced consumption of liquor and branding are not things in which I would particularly want to take part. It would, however, surprise most of us to learn exactly what is considered hazing by the University. I was shocked myself. So was Kattie Hager, president of Delta Omega Phi, when she received a letter from the University stating that her sorority had been accused of hazing by Amber Alt, vice-president of the Greek Council and member of Theta Phi Alpha. The accusation had apparently

been made after Alt viewed a photo on Facebook that showed a number of the fall 2009 pledges blindfolded in the back seat of a car. Alt declined to comment. The letter instructed Hager to call the University within ten days to schedule a hearing, either before a single Student Conduct Officer or the University Judicial Board, which is made up of two faculty members and seven elected students. The group chose the Judicial Board, feeling they would have a better chance to be heard before a group of their peers. The hearing was on February 8. Jim Drnek, Dean of Students, presented the charges. Evidence included the DOP pledge book, submitted by Kayla Cassell, and a written statement from Elena Schodowski, both pledges from fall 2009 who decided the sorority was not right for them. Cassell could not be reached, and Schodowski declined to comment. Rena Suhwail, another fall 2009 pledge, has rather different thoughts than those previously mentioned. Not only did she consent to anything she was asked to do (which apparently does not matter), but she felt as if she always had the option to decline and was never forced to do anything. She cited examples of other pledge sisters who did not necessarily meet the “requirements,” but were still able to join the group. One pledge sister could not attend many of the sorority’s events for medical reasons, and another could not even attend the official initiation, but both were still welcomed. According to Hager, the girls had no way of knowing that anything they are actually guilty of could even be considered hazing. The violations in question, which were read by Dean Drnek at the hearing, were taken

directly from StopHazing.org, not the Code of Conduct. A visit to this particular site is rather enlightening, but so is a conversation with the dean himself. Dean Drnek describes hazing in a much broader sense. Simply put, to him it is “any activity expected of someone to join or maintain one’s status in an organization that humiliates, degrades, or harms the person physically, mentally, or emotionally.” When I asked for examples, I was given the classic ones that few of us would advocate, but I was also given others: wearing certain articles of clothing, being expected to keep certain items on you at all times, tests on “purposeless information,” etc. I did not really get an answer when I asked what purposeless meant. He summed his position up by giving me his personal rule: “If you would be embarrassed to tell your mom about it, or for it to be in The Plain Dealer, then it is probably hazing.” But that is still problematic. Tests on “useless information” such as sorority history, the Greek alphabet and the official flower of the sorority are not particularly embarrassing. Nor are scavenger hunts, which StopHazing.org also includes in its list of activities considered hazing, along with forced alcohol consumption, and which many groups would claim build a spirit of teamwork, even though someone could get hurt. By the standards listed on the site, all of Greek Life could fall victim to accusations of hazing. For more information on hazing, view the Cleveland State Code of Conduct or StopHazing.org. Continue reading The Cauldron for an update on the results of the hearing.

Student Organizations Partake in Flavorful Fight By Nikki Kochman, The Cauldron Contributing Writer

Photography by Alexes Spencer

Apple Fritter, Banana Pudding, Strawberry Cream Pie, Almond-Vanilla Cookies--the list could go on. All this and more was featured at the 2010 Student Organization Bake-Off Competition.

It was located in the MC Atrium on Wednesday, February 17 from 10:30 a.m. until 2 p.m. when the winners were announced Continued on Page 7

Monday, February 22, 2010 / Page five

GLASA Encourages Students to Keep it Safe By Alexes Spencer, The Cauldron News Editor

Photography by Alexes Spencer

Everyday, 25,000 people ages 15-24 will contract an STD. According to the Ohio Department of Health, nearly 3000 people died in Cuyahoga County during 2008 as a result of AIDS and complications due to the disease. Students in CSU’s Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Alliance (GLASA), in conjunction with Planned Parenthood, hosted a Safer Sex Fest last week to promote the use of condoms, female condoms and dental dams to help stop the transfer of STDs and STIs within the CSU community. This event took place as a part of National Condom Week. Safer Sex Fest included the distribution of nearly 1000 condoms to CSU students. In addition to this, GLASA members volunteering at the table asked students to do

condom demonstrations, confirming whether or not students properly knew how to apply one. When condoms were applied improperly, volunteers would instruct people on how to correctly apply them. “When people are having sex, we want them to be doing it safely whether they’re using male condoms, female condoms, or using a dental dam,” said Mark Szabo, a sophomore electrical engineering major and volunteer. “We also want to teach them how to properly put on a condom. Some people think they know how to do it, but when they come to the table, they show us the incorrect method. We show them the correct method.” Volunteers also demonstrated the proper way to

CSU Community Helps Haitians

insert a female condom as well as the proper way to use a dental dam. A female condom is a polyurethane condom inserted into the vagina and held in place by an elastic ring. A dental dam is a sheet of latex used to protect those performing oral sex on a female. The program did not go down without a hitch. Some members of the CSU community reacted adversely to the marketing scheme of the table, including an inflatable penis, and various volunteers who dressed in a penis costume. “We used these methods to tone down the seriousness of the issue and to ensure that we got people’s attention,” Szabo said to an individual, questioning the validity of the group’s methods. “People are scared to talk about sex. We wanted to bring the subject out in the open, to make it more fun and less taboo.” On Friday, volunteers ran out of condoms, choosing to tear the table down earlier than the planned 3 p.m. ending time. However, this was seen as a positive issue as members were happy to know that they had distributed so many safer-sex materials. In addition to the free condoms and information on how to correctly use them, the table included information on Planned Parenthood, birth control and abstinence were also available to students. “The most fun part [of Safer Sex Fest] has been teaching people how to use condoms, and educating them more on HIV and STDs, all of that, because a lot of them don’t know. They don’t understand that herpes are forever, are that a lot of STDs are as impacting as they are,” said Nicholas Valencic, a sophomore occupational therapy major and volunteer. “They laugh and shrug it off, but it’s really fun to see them go ‘Wow! I didn’t know that!’ and walk away more educated.” For more information on safer sex or STD testing, contact Planned Parenthood at 216-661-0400. Data source: The Cauldron

By Samantha Shunk, The Cauldron Editor-in-Chief Since the devastating earthquake hit Port-au-Prince, Haiti on Tuesday, January 12, 2010, the Cleveland State University community has brought their A-game to provide relief to those in need. The earthquake took place just one week before the students and professors returned to the campus to begin classes for the spring semester, and on the very first day of school funds were already being raised. The first efforts to support Haitian relief were organized by the Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs (ODAMA) with the help of GLASA, as well as any interested students. For that first week of classes, tables in the Main Classroom lobby and the Law Building atrium were manned by students from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. As busy students, taking a shift or more to sit at a table and collect money for the Haitians can be even more of a sacrifice than donating money. With the ability to fill all the shifts of working the relief table, it shows that students do really care to help others. The total money raised in donations through the table was $1877.38 according to Roberto Chavez of ODAMA, which is really an accomplishment at a university where the majority of the students have to pay for their own education. On Wednesday, February 3 the Phi Delta Psi fraternity began their “In Their Shoes” fundraiser collection of shoes

and clothes for Haitian relief. The collection continues through February 28 in the Business Building lobby, the Main Classroom lobby, the Fenn Tower lobby and the Viking Hall lobby from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. All the clothes and shoes go directly to the Red Cross to be shipped off to Haiti. So far, Phi Delta Psi revealed that they have collected two boxes of shoes and two boxes of clothes. At the CAB sponsored Date Auction that took place the Friday night before Valentine’s Day, students volunteered one date to be auctioned off to the highest bidder. Those dates all took place at the Cupid’s CABaret the following evening at Bricco. This event was a fundraiser for Haiti relief as well, and it raised $534 according to CAB leaders. Of course, Cleveland State has not finished fundraising yet for Haiti relief. The International Food Fest sponsored by CAB with the help of many student organizations on Tuesday, February 23 will donate all the profits to the Baptist Haiti Mission. Also, in the works is an event to be hosted by many student organizations where students will be able to pay to make a grab in the cash cube. For those who may not be familiar to that term, it is like the booth that people go in and try to grab as much cash as it blows around them, but this one is just for your hands. YPI is spearheading this event with the help of Latinos Unidos, STAT, Chi Lambda

Omega, Phi Delta Psi, PRSSA and any other interested student organizations. For those curious as to how the cash cube will be filled, it will be the generosity of local businesses that the organizations approach to donate gift cards and dollar bills. With the CSU spirit it is a sure bet that there will be more events to raise money or collect food or clothing to support the Haitians in need. Keep reading The Cauldron for updates on fundraising events.

Page six / Monday, February 22, 2010

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What Occurred at the Board of Trustees Meeting, and How Does it Affect You?  By Samantha Shunk, The Cauldron Editor-in-Chief

Throughout the Board of Trustees meeting held on February 16, many issues were discussed and decisions were made. For a summary of the actions taken at the meeting, you can visit http://www. csuohio.edu/studentlife/asktheboard/ or check out the Board of Trustees blog posted by the student representatives to the board at http://asktheboardatcsu. blogspot.com/. But, here in The Cauldron, we will be focusing on those decisions and announcements that most directly affect the lives of the students. President Berkman announced, “The Campus District was intended to be an organizational term and in visibility a significant step up from what we had with the Quadrangle.” This partners with the North Campus Neighborhood proposal in the Campus Master Plan and will provide a way for the area around CSU to create partnerships, especially with Saint Vincent’s and TriC. As a district, Berkman states that “we can begin to pull and create synergy between the medical and educational and commercial resources there are” within the district. President Berkman also revealed that there is now a budding partnership between CSU and NEOUCOM (Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy) and “a goal to have a NEOUCOM presence on Cleveland State.” This presence could be seen in a branch campus of the medical school present at CSU. This would result in the option of CSU students to remain in Cleveland and essentially on the CSU campus to earn their medical degrees. Another address President Berkamn made was that CSU has received the Pat Tillman grant to provide more scholarships for the Project SERV students. Project SERV provides support for returning veterans attending CSU. The program has grown to over 300 students. The Vice President of Business Affairs and Finance, Jack Boyle, said that the five bids for the North Campus Neighborhood project had been narrowed down to three. Last Tuesday there was a

meeting to discuss the plans further, and he insists that a recommendation will be made to the Board of Trustees concerning the plans at the April meeting. Once brought to the board, the plans will continue to go through the process of coming to life, hopefully sooner than some may think. Boyle also presented the Joint Use Agreement with Playhouse Square, which is an agreement to work together to plan the renovation of the Allen theater for the use of both the Cleveland State performing arts department and the Playhouse Square. This agreement needed to pass so the $350,000 in planning funds could be accessed, and it did. When the negotiations are completed, the actual agreement for sharing the space will be brought before the Board of Trustees for approval. The decision that many students are most concerned with is the K-12 Initiative. For the few that are not aware of this plan, it is a plan to bring a K-12 school to the campus of CSU. Now before you get all upset over this, just listen to the plan. The school will be operated by the Cleveland Municipal School District (CMSD) in conjunction with Cleveland State University. The location will be in the now vacant building located at 3000 Euclid Avenue, which was formerly a United Methodist Church. The church no longer inhabits the building and there will not be a church there while the school is housed in that building. The school will be an innovative CMSD school, a professional development school and an international school that will become an ivy high school. An ivy school has to be accredited and will contain an extremely vigorous curriculum, including the requirement of all students to complete foreign language courses in Spanish and Chinese. The students eligible for the school will be selected in various manners. According to President Berkman, “People who are living downtown will have access to a certain portion of the Continued on page 7

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Weekly Events Calendar By Alexes Spencer, The Cauldron News Editor

2/23 - International Food Fest in MC Atrium from 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. - Math Club Presents Human “Swarm” Presentation from 3-4 p.m. in Fenn Tower Ballroom. 2/24 - Study Abroad Information from 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. in MC Lobby. - World War I: The Soča-Isonzo Front and Slovenia in MC 134 at 3 p.m. - Dinner and a Dialogue: Going Green on a Budget in MC 101 at 5 p.m. - Book Discussion: “People of the Book” by Geraldine Brooks. RT 503 at 3 p.m. 2/25 - Poetry reading and signing with Jason Koo, Simone Muench, Mathias Svalina in MC 134 at 7:30 p.m. Weeklong Events: Career Week Information daily in MC Atrium from 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. Arab Student Union Raffle Ticket Table in MC Lobby from 10 - 1 p.m.

Although the Line is Blurred, the Motivation is Clear Continued from Page 3 even part of the time). Many people may not see the line between sexual harassment and flattery, which admittedly, at times can be a blurred line. The questions people need to ask themselves are is someone being demoralized by a co-worker? Are they made to feel weak? Are they made to feel violated? Sexual harassment is not a finite definition, but it certainly has a common theme of domination, control

and power. In summation, the answer to the question of where do you cross the line into the realm of sexual harassment is simple. The moment a behavior becomes about controlling another person’s actions or feelings, the motives become hostile and the victim feels helpless. We can live in a time of blurred perceptions, but personal control is always a clearly defined line.

Monday, February 22, 2010 / Page seven

What Occurred at the Board of Trustees Meeting, and How Does it Affect You?

Continued from Page 6 seats in the school.” Applicants will also be selected on a lottery system for those who apply throughout the district. In addition, some seats will be made available for children of CSU students, faculty and staff, as well as students interested in an ivy education. The planning process has been moving extremely fast as many are in favor of the idea. According to President Berkman, the plan is to be “admitting students in August of this year.” Although there are two possible plans for developing the school, the favored plan is to start this August with two sections of each kindergarten, 1st grade and 2nd grade, and to follow the students as they move on to the next grade each year and grow the school in that manner. President Berkman claims that “the mayor has a strong voice in this.” He told Berkman that he wants to make sure the school is grown right. By this he means that it will be best to grow “our own students” to make sure they are prepared for the ivy high school curriculum. The board approved the continuation of the negotiations of acquiring the building for the school and appointed themselves to approve the final lease. For the CSU Education students, this means the chance to attain classroom experience on campus and hopefully complete practicum conveniently close to possible classes. For the rest of the students, the location of the school will not interfere with collegiate work as it is located on the far eastern end of the campus area. The next meeting of the Board of Trustees will be in April, so check in for more information on the decisions and announcements. To learn more about the Board of Trustees, check out their website, blog and ask the board anything you desire to learn about its actions and responsibilities.

Student Organizations Partake in Flavorful Fight Continued from Page 4 earning themselves SOYA points for their organization. Fourteen Student Organizations participated in the bake-off. Each organization could enter four desserts; one for each category of pies, cakes, cookies and specialty desserts. Multiple judges, three per category, went around taste-tasting small portions of the delectables. The judging was based on table presentation, food presentation, and of course, taste. It was up to the organizations on how much to charge, or to charge at all. Many only accepted donations, all going to their own organization. SALAD (Cleveland State Animal Liberation and Defense) sent all their proceeds to the local animal shelters, whereas STAT (Students Today, Alumni Tomorrow) used their proceeds for the Students Helping Students Scholarship Fund. Marcia Mohammed, one of the judges who is an SLA Leader, said this bake-off “is an excellent way for students to raise money.” The Latinos Unidos won big with the best (and only) table display. They won first place for the best cake, called flancocho, a Puerto Rican dessert made of flan and yellow cake. They also won second place in the cookie category for the white chocolate no-bake cookies. Their chocolate no-bakes won last year. Expressions of Praise Gospel Choir went all out with strawberry shortcake, white chocolate chip macadamia nut cookies and red velvet cake as their specialties. The Non-Prophets won third place in the cake category with Darwin’s Favorite Cupcake and first place in cookies for the Rocky Chip Cookie. Their mantis pie looked gourmet, with the drizzled syrup and “glass” plates. SALAD had a range of vegan desserts, all made without any animal products like peanut butter cookies, cappuccino cupcakes, Mexican hot chocolate cupcakes and cinnamon crumb cakes, which won first place in the specialty category. In the pie category, the Classical Club won first place with their Razz-Apple pie, completely made from scratch down to the crust with, of course, help from mom. Next in line came the piled high strawberry cream pie by the Young People Initiative Club. The Student Environment Movement won third with sweet potato pie. They also featured organic zucchini bread, which wasn’t in the competition. Although The Society of Automotive Engineers burned their chocolate in the fondue pot, they still won second place in the specialty category with their chocolate dipped fruit kabobs. Coming in third in specialty was the PRSSA’s deep fried Snickers topped with chocolate syrup, vanilla ice cream and strawberries. If these goodies were not enough to make you attend, maybe the non-stop playing of Michael Jackson would have been. For more information on student organizations, contact the Department of Student Life at 216-687-2214.

Page eight / Monday, February 22, 2010

Do you know your Dean? An in-depth examination of Dr. James Drnek By Reid May, The Cauldron Managing Editor

In the world of higher education there are many players, cornfields and I thought ‘I cannot see myself there.’” from students, to professors, to administrators, deans and So, Drnek, a city dweller from the start, was not trustees. Throughout a student’s collegiate career, many interested in a University with too many people, but also of these people fly by unnoticed - a part of the everyday not a University with too few (and too many ears of corn). routine. It is the rare occasion that a young academic, His experience, for one, sounds not too different from that weighed down by the burden of four classes, two jobs and of most high school seniors in the midst of a collegiate countless other life matters takes the time to get to know search. the people in their world. It does not help, that often times Of his next stop, Drnek says the University of Illinois those people—those players—seem so different from the was an eye opening experience where, “Nobody was students. studying. I thought this is college, what is going on— The truth is, they are not so different. The perfect but everyone was drunk.” So, Drnek was led to Southern example is Dr. James Drnek, the Dean of Student In action at the CSU ROTC Patch ceremony, Feb 4, 2010 Life who has been at Cleveland State since early in 2008. Drnek, who says that the time he most often sees people in his office is when they “know they are going to get a bad grade or have a problem with a teacher,” is actually a very down-to-earth educator with a very down-to-earth story. As such, it is high time that the students at Cleveland State begin to see that Drnek is not so different from them. With a similar background, Drnek’s story is quite like many others. Drnek grew up in Chicago, a major city not unlike Cleveland. “I grew up on the North Side, near Wrigley Field,” says Drnek, a self-proclaimed Cubs fan. Chicago was the starting point for the Drnek family, as Drnek says, “When I was in high school we moved— well we moved a couple times—but my Dad was transferred to Rockford, which is about an hour northwest of the city, and that is where I went to high Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois because of his school…I went to Auburn High School in Rockford.” During those high school years Drnek, the ever-so-cool friends who had already decided to attend. About Southern, Drnek says, “Southern had this Dean of the present day was a self-proclaimed bookworm, who did little else. “I didn’t do anything really in high reputation of being real, again a place where people don’t school except study a lot, hung out with some friends, go to study—they go there to do a lot of other things. So caused a little bit of trouble—but nothing major,” Drnek the only reason I went there was because my friends were says. However, despite his academic reverence, Drnek did going there.” As a matter of fact, Drnek never even visited the University before deciding. not have a set plan in regards to further education. Drnek revealed another interesting tidbit—relating Drnek’s father was the first to attend college in the family—a University of Wisconsin graduate—and was the well to all those who claim a constant desire to get out of driving force in Drnek’s collegiate search in his senior year Cleveland. During his time in Chicago, he and many of his of high school. “We traveled to a couple different schools. peers shared the same sentiments about their city—often The University of Wisconsin-Madison of course—he looked at as a bigger, better alternative from the shores of wanted me to go where he went to school, but I wasn’t Lake Erie. In fact, Carbondale (home of Southern Illinois) interested,” Drnek said with a chuckle, before continuing, was seen as “the Miami of Illinois,” due to the much “we [also] went to a place called Western-Illinois higher temperatures. As such, Drnek’s time in Cleveland University in Macomb, which is in the middle of all these has certainly not been his first with snow. Of snow, Drnek

says, “it’s like riding a bicycle—you never forget.” Drnek, like many collegiate students, was not sure what he wanted to do when he arrived at Southern Illinois, so he followed the route recommended by many in the world of higher education, “I studied what I really enjoyed. And I was told by somebody—I can’t remember who— that you should study something you love, something you really enjoy.” Taking the advice, and capitalizing on his interest in the political process, government and politics, Drnek decided to study political science. He says, “I worked hard, but it came easy, so I really enjoyed it.” To this juncture, Drnek was very much like many college students. Studying in a field he enjoyed with no real intentions for future careers. He considered Law School, as many political science majors do, but had no real passion to attend. His experience, though certainly positive to that point, had not yet led him to a real destination. This, Drnek says, is when he began to involve himself with student affairs. “I met people that were involved on the Activities Board and they were a lot of fun and had a purpose,” says Drnek. “So then I got into planning events and I joined the Special Events Committee. And we were responsible for planning homecoming, family weekend and Springfest—a day long concert event.” Springfest even included elephant rides during one of Drnek’s years as a planner. The elephant, ridden by Drnek, was named Dandi and can still be found working presently. The event, at one point or another, also hosted camel rides and a cardboard boat race, which Drnek describes as “people construct[ing] boats out of cardboard and race[ing] them across the lake. And people would sink and others would shoot all the way across. It was just a lot of fun.” Drnek’s involvement with activities came during his sophomore and junior year. During his senior year he attained a new position, which made him Director of Travel and Recreation. “I was the student who planned student recreation trips, sport trips, spring break and ski trips,” says Drnek, who was able to go on all the trips—because it was his job to staff them. The trips were so popular that they would take 15 buses to Daytona Beach for Spring Break—and make thousands of dollars for the department. The advisors that Drnek worked with encouraged him to forego law school and work with them in student affairs—in fact, they liked him so much that they offered

Photograph by Reid May

Monday, February 22, 2010 / Page nine “At the time it was this new phenomenon, called, um, the Internet…people were just starting to email, you know the web was very unsophisticated. But I looked at how the Internet could be used by instructors to enhance student success in courses… basically, I tried to match up learning styles with Internet use.”

him a graduate assistant-ship. “For a college student it was really lucrative. Full tuition waiver, 600 bucks a month to buy your groceries and two-and-a-half years later you have your master’s degree…so I did it,” says Drnek. In his new position, Drnek was able to work with a number of groups he had not worked with before— included among them cheerleaders, film and video clubs and a craft shop—helping him round out his experience and find a job after finishing school. Drnek graduated early—in December, as opposed to May—and set himself up for an off-semester before a bulk of the job fairs began. To fill the void Drnek found, “an internship in Colorado. And I moved out to Colorado and worked a sixmonth internship doing operations for the student center at Colorado State University. And I [ended up doing] that for a year and it got me connected with some folks down in Arizona…and they had a job and I was definitely interested.” Drnek ended up meeting with the staff from the University of Arizona at the national conference in New Orleans and they offered him the position. Drnek worked in the programming office at Arizona and partook in the organization of a number of different on campus events, often focused on a central theme, such as Egypt. Drnek also helped organize a Madrigal Dinner, which is a “medieval holiday celebration, where each course is introduced with a song,” according to Drnek. For much of his time at Arizona, Drnek thought he would only be there for a few years and that he would rather not stay long term, instead finding something different along the way. However, his director Bob Ernstein had other ideas. “From the moment I started he said ‘well, now that you’re here working and you’ve got your master’s degree we’ve got to get you working on your doctorate, because if you want to move up in higher education administration you’ve got to have your degree,’” says Drnek.

Ernstein encouraged Drnek to take classes at Arizona while working for the department concurrently. Drnek got into the educational administration program at Arizona but after several years, the program was eliminated because of budget restrictions. Students without a certain number of credits were cut loose and unable to finish the program. Drnek was one of those students. As an alternative, Drnek took classes in Tucson as a satellite program from Northern Arizona University. The program was able to credit his master’s work toward his doctorate. “It was great, because basically, a couple years later I was done with my coursework,” says Drnek. As a matter of fact, Drnek had an interesting dissertation topic: the Internet. “At the time it was this new phenomenon, called, um, the Internet…people were just starting to email, you know the web was very unsophisticated. But I looked at how the Internet could be used by instructors to enhance student success in courses… basically, I tried to match up learning styles with Internet use,” says Drnek. In fact, Drnek’s ideas were so good, that the “teaching center at the U of A actually took my recommendations and used them for the teacher instructor-training program,” says Drnek. A lot of the predictions he made in 1995 are visible in the way the Internet is used in classrooms today. Drnek left the University of Arizona for Cleveland State University in January 2008 after being sought in a nationwide search for a new Dean of Student Life. While the adjustment to some weather changes and the use of daylight savings time—something that Arizonians are not familiar with—were tough, Cleveland, and the University, have become a new home. As for work in higher education, Drnek says, “The best part is working with young, and old, creative, energetic, enthusiastic, optimistic students. That’s the best part. And

seeing how students change over a real short period of time…that’s definitely the best part.” On the flip side, Drnek says that resources and expectations that often fail to align can make the job very difficult to perform. While the organizations—like CAB, and Student Government—on campus do a great job working to program and create student life there is often a considerable lack of resources among them to adequately create the desired atmosphere. “It takes resources to have concerts and comedians and lectures and that’s the piece that I feel is missing here and with the new student center—that’s going to help a lot. We’re going to have a venue and we’ve never had a venue,” Drnek says. The Student Center, which will open in May 2010, will be a “building for students, a living room for our campus,” says Drnek, who is obviously quite excited for the new prospects. Drnek thinks Cleveland State is still on the path to achieving the goal of becoming an elite University and praises the research initiatives taken by new President Ronald M. Berkman. Drnek spoke specifically of George Walker, the new Vice President for Research who will help make Cleveland State an elite research facility. “I think he’s really going to take us to new levels at CSU and make this an even better place to work and study,” says Drnek. Through all of his experiences, Drnek has had a path to Cleveland State—and higher education—that was not unlike many of Cleveland State’s own students. Higher education as a career because of involvement in higher education as a student certainly leaves open the possibility that any one of Cleveland State’s population could be an upstart Dean in waiting. Drnek, about to enter his third year as Cleveland State’s Dean of Students resides in Strongsville, Ohio. His father and three siblings are still residents of Chicago.

Page ten / Monday, February 22, 2010

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Arts & Entertainment

Concert Picks of the Week.……Page 12

*** The Irene Ryan Acting Competition | This year Randy Muchowski, one of Cleveland State’s very own, was selected to compete in this five-day acting competition. | Page 13

Noise Inspectors

By Jonathan “Killstring” Herzberger & Jon Conley The Cauldron A&E Editor, and Contributing Writer Been a while, hasn’t it? And in the meantime, all these Big Important Records have come out, placing the discerning listener in quite the Guillema. How will you know what you like without a washed-up bitter old rocker drowning you in snarky sarcasm (SNARCASM ™) telling you what to think? Quite easily, as it turns out. Even so, lest I talk myself out of a job, here’s a brisk little rundown: Peter Gabriel and Snoop Dogg (never thought I’d write that) both come up significantly short of their respective legacies, Lil’ Wayne couldn’t provide a rebirth for Rap-Metal (for which we are eternally grateful), Animal Collective reissued a disc that wasn’t any good the first time; and Story of the Year made another Story of the Year album. Laziness efficiency aside, your humble narrators have managed to actually write a proper review or two along the way. So we’re going to examine a quadruple shot of releases all over the emotional spectrum today – hang on tight. Do not attempt to adjust your dial – this is a newspaper, and that’d be more than a little strange – it’s the Revenge Of The Noise Inspectors! Images couresty of myspace.com

Vampire WeekenD

Sade Soldier of Love By Jon Conley

Contra

By Jonathan “Killstring” Herzberger

Note to all future review candidates: when you begin your album by reminding me how delicious a frothy Horchata is, and promptly rhyme it with Balaclava (Google it), you will have my undivided attention. Keeping it might be another manner. Everybody’s favorite Ivy League Soweto-pop band returns with further pretentiously literate bouncy anthems for English majors, Librarians, and Paul Simon’s fans. To be fair, that’s a lot of people when you do the math. English majors, come back! You don’t actually have to do the math. Ezra Koenig’s merry band of literati is hard at work here with, well, with more of the same. This is not a bad thing – if you remember, the band’s cleverly titled 2007 release, Vampire Weekend was decidedly unlike anything else on the market, deftly blending popular African music with western indie pop to unique effect. Not since Paul Simon’s Graceland had this really been done, and to be fair, ‘indie pop’ as we currently know it wasn’t really around in 1986. Flash forward to 2010, and there still

isn’t anything else like it on the market. So, Koenig & Co. continue mining their formula, and really, why not? Sure, they dabble in a touch of synth in “Diplomat’s Son,” and “White Sky.” And perhaps unsurprisingly, the leadoff single “Cousins” has echoes of Tokyo Police Club in what is probably the closest Contra gives us to A Punk song. Yeah, that’s a shameless bit of wordplay, and I promise I’ve been duly punished for it. So, now that they’re no longer the undiscovered darlings of the snobbish rock elite, now that their fanbase has undoubtedly played the first album to death, revived it through foul necromancy, and then played it to death again – how does their new album sit in the year 20XX? Honestly, it’s still an enjoyable experience. Different enough to be fresh, similar enough to feel immediately familiar, Contra is a good record. Maybe not great, but certainly, unquestionably good, and absolutely worth purchasing. Besides, there’s almost no better way to counteract the oppressively gloomy Cleveland winter.

Sade deserves an applause. For almost 30 years, this British R&B outfit (yes, the band’s name is Sade, named for their sultry little singer Sade Adu) has been the model of consistency. Rhythm and blues (see: hip-hop/soul) music has been the antithesis of stable. Not only have things like the average length of a hit song changed, but the entire writing process and musical stylistics have undergone dramatic facelifts. We are in the age of artificial instrumentation and voice homogenizing, counterfeit drums and pseudo-singers. Sade has stayed true to what they do honest and best, and have proven to be the James Brolin to R&B’s Barbara Streisand (thank you, Homer Simpson). Soldier of Love baffles me, though. The continuity is almost too smooth and the band always seems to sneak out of relative obscurity to drape a new album over everyone’s heads. Not only are they an enigma, but for a band that hasn’t released anything in 10 years, this album clocks in at an astonishingly short forty one minutes in 10 tracks. With that time point, the record feels longer and can seem indulgent or be a bore at times. I don’t know, maybe that’s part of the album’s charm.

Very traditional, very elegant and patient, but still persistent and with enough lyrical emotional breadth to leave this album timeless. Adu’s vocals still wrap me in her smokey blanket and lift me to dissipate in the twilight just like they did in 1985 when “Smooth Operator” made it’s debut. Her tone is the best feature of the group, and her voice hasn’t aged. Arcane and mysterious in every way, I can never figure out her details - who she is literally – but I am so emotionally involved with her. One of the best lyricists in pop, that side shows the most dynamic growth. I get more aloof cultivated emotional imagery sometimes showing pain, but always with reserved sophistication. Keep in mind that this is mood music and if you aren’t in the mood for Sade, you might never be. This is one of the few albums I endorse that I don’t think everyone will appreciate. There is reverence here and you have to be a patient listener and that’s not easy. This music takes its time to unfold, and an experience is created that is not always appreciable or even noticeable until it’s over. But if you have the patience for this smoke hound, this record won’t disappoint you.

Monday, February 22, 2010 / Page Eleven

M a s s i v e

A t t a c k

Spoon // Transference By Jon Conley

Heligoland By Jonathan “Killstring” Herzberger

While it would have been easy to lump 3D and Daddy G’s latest release in the “oh look some legends have a new cd” bit above, Massive Attack’s latest salvo is worthy of a closer look. For the uninitiated, this is the band that the term ‘trip hop’ was coined to describe. For people who don’t know what the hell that means, and don’t have a stack of Portishead records cluttering their bedroom, well, two things. Thing one – Portishead is awesome. Stop reading this and give them a listen you’ll thank me, I promise. Thing two – Trip-hop, as it were, is an experimental, incredibly moody, and almost exclusively British type of electronic music. Usually atmospheric and spooky; this is heavy, brooding work. Less rave anthem than film soundtrack, there’s an undeniably cinematic quality to the best of the genre. Indeed, the members of Massive Attack have done no small amount of film scoring – including a collaboration with Snoop Dog, because apparently, Snoop will rap on anything, anywhere, any time. Have to love the man’s collaborative spirit. Anyway. Delving into subgenres that you would love, if only you knew about their existence, is really more the purview of Now Hear This! - so allow me some distillation. Massive Attack was a huge deal in the 90’s when they were some of the UK’s biggest gloom merchants. They haven’t really done anything together since 1998’s Mezzanine, which has lead to a lot of expectations regarding the release of Heligoland, as well as a lot of checking to ensure the bloody word is spelled correctly. Also, critics have almost unanimously blasted this new album to hell and back. So here we are. The critic and the CD, ready to square off. Indeed, I was more than prepared to unload the full salvo of Snarcasm™ on this duo of washed up has-beens. Mainly because I’m a washed up has-been, and if I can’t be happy, then no one should, right? Blah blah blah, get off my lawn, back in my day we had to download the .mp3 uphill both ways, on 28.8k dial-up, and we were grateful! But a funny thing happened. En route to ripping it to shreds, it turned out that Heligoland is actually kind of good. While there’s nothing as intense as “Angel,” nor as beautiful as “Teardrop,”

this isn’t a reissue of Mezzanine, and to expect anyone to make the same record after what’s essentially a 12-year hiatus, well, we can’t all be Axl Rose. Zing! So is it brilliant? Nope. Does it stumble? Absolutely – some of these experiments just don’t translate into good music. Perhaps most heartbreakingly, is that Guy Garvey – lead singer of Elbow, and possibly this critic’s favorite vocalist in the world – is reduced to mumbling unintelligibly like some half-crazed hobo on “Flat of the Blade.” Even when his trademark soaring croon hits a high note, it just feels disjointed, and uncomfortable. Which is probably the point, but even so – I’m reviewing this as music, not highfalutin artistic statement, and even if one thinks succeeds at the later, it stumbles a bit at the former. It’s not all bad news, however. “Saturday Come Slow” features Damon Albarn on vocals, which is only fair. The Gorillaz’ more introspective moments have always borrowed heavily from the Massive Attack playbook, so it’s little wonder that Albarn sounds so comfortable here, in what is arguably the record’s high moment. Tunde Abimpwe from TV on the Radio lends his baritone drone to the opening track, “Pray for Rain” and while it’s not going convert anyone who didn’t really get into 2008’s Dear Science, the fit is a natural, and obvious one. While lacking the near-apocalyptic tone of either group’s more epic work, the slow build is nonetheless satisfying. In the end, Heligoland is not going to set the world on fire as Massive Attack returns to the height of their popularity in a blaze of achingly beautiful symphonic ecstasy. It’s not even up to the (admittedly high) standards of Portishead’s 2008 return, Third. That doesn’t make it a bad record. If you’re in the mood for something atmospheric and more than a little dark, you could do a whole lot worse. If you’ve a fan of the genre, and can bring yourself to let the album stand on its own merits, there’ are a lot of reasons to visit Heligoland. The album, not the German island that the British tried to bomb into not existing anymore. I wouldn’t recommend you go there.

On their 7th, (and first selfproduced) effort Transference, Texas natives Spoon have favorably strayed away from the amicable sugar pop that made their last album Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga so vomit-inducing and coincidentally successful. They put the emphasis on live-studio and demo cuts for the major instrumentation and put the word “record (n.)” back into recording. I believe Ani DiFranco (yeah I know, right??) once said that a record used to be just that; a record of an event taking place in a room. I truly acknowledge Spoon for taking things back to that level. This is right about where I run out of nice things to say. Tip-toeing around pop doesn’t equal integrity and I would hope a bunch of seasoned indie veterans would have learned that lesson by now. The real problem is that this album comes across too machine like; industrialized, if you will. All of the work was obviously put in post-production, turning the album into a virtual assembly line of chunks upon chunks of staggered rhythm and rhyme. This cold production over shadows any heart and provides mountains of jagged discourse between music and listener. Singer Brit Daniel’s brittle voice steers clear of a good hook throughout the entire album and this in turn leaves every track

lacking Spoon’s sweeping offkilter sentimentality that had us embracing them in the past. The truth is that all of the postproduction takes away from any real-time recording grit and comes across as showy. A lot of body with no heart that left me feeling...well, bored. I would list some stand out tracks, but it’s hard to say that anything genuinely shined here. Everything is for the most part forgettable. Maybe the giddiness from their first full outing behind the helm was too overwhelming to focus on the important part: the songs themselves. Sorry, fancy bells and whistles do nothing for a broke down train. Adding immense reverb to every fourth snare hit or cutting out and dropping in instruments to build a fortress of sound with jutting walls just doesn’t enthrall me when the context isn’t right. The fortunate side of things is that these fellas have been up and down and have put years into their trade with some really great recognition and pay-off, so this isn’t last call for them (I hope). Spoon’s track record speaks for itself, showing off more hits than misses. Hopefully next time around they can balance their over-bearing hand of production with their poorly under-thought songwriting and lay another golden egg. Can someone get these guys a producer please?

Page twelve / Monday, February 22, 2010

concert picks of the week

By Alexes Spencer, The Cauldron News Editor & Jonathan “Killstring” Herzberger, The Cauldron Arts & Entertainment Editor

On Tour

Images couresty of myspace.com

Now!

Other Shows to Lysacek out:

Alexes’s Pick

02/28

2/22 Metal as Art feat. Hypno53 @ Peabody’s, $10

Saosin with Maylene & The Sons of Disaster @ Grog Shop

2/22 Supersuckers w/ Sun God @ Grog Shop, $10 2/24 Sex Slaves @ Peabody’s, $7 2/25 Otep w/ Bury Your Dead @ Peabody’s, $17 2/26 Wonder Years, Therefore I Am @ Peabody’s Pirate Cove, $10 2/26 Drink Up Buttercup @ Grog Shop, $5 2/26 The Ataris @ The Rockstar, $12 2/27 Craig Ramsey @ Grog Shop, $6 3/1 Kill Paradise @ Peabody’s, $10

Jonathan’s Pick

02/27

APG @ Peabody’s

I literally exclaimed “wow!” when I saw this show listed while I looked at the various venue sites to write this column. If you typically read my music-related ramblings, that should be enough for you to make sure that nothing in your life prevents you from being at the Grog Shop on Saturday. However, for those of you new to the madness that is Alexes “THEBESTMUSICJOURNALISTALIVENOTREALLY” Spencer, here is an explanation. Saosin is awesome. Aside from their more mainstream stuff, they can actually get pretty heavy, and knowing how dedicated Saosin fans can be, this show has the capability to get pretty intense. True Saosin fans are intense people. Expect to witness this. On top of this, Dallas Taylor has rejoined Maylene on tour, so those of you sorely disappointed in finding Schuylar Croom on stage during their tour with All That Remains, should be pretty darn excited. Because, let’s face it, Dallas is the spirit and heart of Maylene. He’s that crazy guy that climbs all over stuff and does flips, that guy who plays the straps that hold amp stacks together, that guy who will sing an entire song with his head under a drum. If you can’t shell out $14 just to see what he’ll do this time, you, my friend, have no soul.

Everybody in Cleveland knows Don Dibiase. The above statement is not actually true, but it can certainly feel that way. From the hayday of Gatlin (yes, they had a hayday) to Don’s work producing records for Cleveland bands (for Victory and Metal Blade records, among others) the dude’s been busy. One of the friendliest people in rock, and possibly the most entertaining guitarist I’ve ever seen perform, Don’s worth catching live in any incarnation. Not that APG proper is anything to sneeze at. Formed from the remnants of Gatlin and Another Path, APG’s steadfast adherence to the past decade’s “Modern Rock” aesthetic actually recommends them more today than it did during the era of Fuel and Sevendust. This is honestly the music they love, and it feels a lot more genuine in this context. Sure, they wear their influences on their sleeves - there’s a reason Breaking Benjamin cherry-picked their current drummer from Another Path - but if this particular brand of mainstream-accessible rock is your cup of tea, you’d be hard pressed to do better. Oh. And tickets are six bucks - and if you send them a message on MySpace or wherever, they’ll probably just give you one. As well as roughly 1,000 high-fives.

Monday, February 22, 2010 / Page thirteen

The Irene Ryan Acting Competition By Ricardo Derrek J Brown The Cauldron, Contributing Writer The Irene Ryan Scholarship competition is held regionally every year for gifted acting students. This year Randy Muchowski, one of Cleveland State’s very own, was selected to compete in this five-day acting competition. Starting on January 12th, and running through the 17th, the competition is held in the name of actress Irene Ryan (best known for playing Granny on the Beverly Hillbillies) because she donated her estate to an actors’ scholarship fund. The competition started with 215 contesting actors from schools all over the country, each actor was selected to perform based on the strength of a role portrayed by them in the past year. For Randy, it was his role as “the alchemist” in The Orestia that got him onboard. “It’s a really nerve-wracking process, seeing if you go to pass on to the next round. You have just a few minutes to impress the judges,” Muchowski said. This year the keynote speaker was actor, Bill Pullman (aka the President of the United States from Independence Day). As Randy had discovered, “He’d actually been in region two of the Irene Ryan competition and felt a special connection to it.” The Irene Ryan competition is a huge honor and a fantastic opportunity for young actors, offering scholarships upwards of $500, awards and fellowships. It gives students the opportunity to really show what they are made of and test their metal against hundreds of other competing hopefuls. “It really showed me what it meant to compete against the finest,” Randy said, “no one from CSU had ever made it to the finals before and it really felt like we all belonged.” After five days on the road filled with intense competition, the numbers eventually dropped from 215 to 32, according to Randy, “We each get three minutes to impress the judges and based on the strength of one monologue we get to pass to the next round.” For Randy, the monologue came from Henry IV by William Shakespeare. “It was really a pleasure and a blessing to have Stephanie Wilbert as my scene partner,” Randy said. Having worked with Stephanie, a fellow CSU student, in past productions like The Orestia and The Fantasticks, Randy says that he felt lucky to have ended up with her for his partner in the second round. By the time they had reached the finals only 16 actors remained, “it was five days of non stop competition,” Randy says, “while I was there I got to know some people and made some really strong friendships…the great thing about the art community is that it is so close knit and you always wind up meeting someone who knows some of the same people as you.” Randy was among the finalist in the competition and has made history in being in the first competitor from CSU to ever make it to the final round in this acting competition. What does he plan to do in his downtime? “The only thing left to do next year,” he says, “is go back and win the whole d*** thing!”

Images of Irene Ryan courtesy of dvdbeaver.com and sitcomsonline.com

Page fourteen / Monday, February 22, 2010

Sports

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***The Cauldron Sports Online | Check out our online poll and forums where you the reader can express your opinion about The Cauldron | csucauldron.com

Grapplers Fall On Senior Night,

Still Fight With Heart West Virginia Wins 34-11 By Rob Ivory The Cauldron, Sports Editor Photography by Robert Ivory

The Cleveland State Vikings wrestling team has finished their 2009-2010 regular season campaign with a loss to the Mountaineers of West Virginia Friday night at Woodling Gym. With the loss, the Vikes go winless in the year in the EWL and finish the year 2-17. “I think we had a great effort,” wrestling head coach Ben Stehura said after the match. “I don’t know if it was Senior Night, but whatever it was I am happy about it. I felt we wrestled hard and I think we are starting to come around.” The Vikings took a great fight to their opponents and looked to be the best Viking team that has competed on the home mats this year. Cleveland State at one point took three straight decisions as Freshman Mike Mencini got the Vikings rolling winning the decision 21-5 and bringing the Vikings their first points to make it 11-5. Senior Dan Castillo, wrestling for his last time on Cleveland State turf, added another three points and sophomore Corey Carlo tied the match at eleven a piece with his eighth victory of the year. “We had some guys gut out wins,” the coach said of the three. “It’s nice for senior Dan Castillo to walk away

with a good win.” Thanks to the effort of especially those three, the coach seemed to get quite excited on the sidelines jumping up and down in excitement for his club. “I looked up at the scoreboard halfway through the duel and when its 11-11 against West Virginia, you are doing something right,” the coach remarked of his team’s effort. And that is the number one things fans of the Vikings took out of the evening, the team never quit and wrestled until the duel was over. “We stood our ground and got a lot of respect tonight,” the coach noted about the team’s determination. “We wrestled with a lot of intensity and heart tonight.” Cleveland State will now get ready for the EWL Championships in West Virginia starting Sunday, March 7, yet the CSU community is already a buzz for next year. “We seem them progressing and we are going to have essentially the same team out there for a long time,” Stehura said. “You see how far they have progressed in one year, three to four years down the road its going to be pretty serious.”

West Virginia 34, Cleveland State 11

125: Shane Young (WVU) 17-3 Tech Fall Ronald Butler (CSU) (5-0 WVU) 133: No. 18 Colin Johnston (WVU) Fall 2:52 Zech Huff (CSU) (11-0 WVU) 141: Mike Mencini (CSU) 21-5 Tech Fall Ryan Ramano (WVU) (11-5 WVU) 149: Dan Castillo (CSU) 5-4 Dec. Jonathon Waldron (WVU) (11-8 WVU) 157: Corey Carlo (CSU) 7-3 Dec. Kyle Eason (WVU) (11-11) 165: Donnie Jones (WVU) 25-9 Tech Fall Dustin Doty (CSU) (16-11 WVU) 174: Matt Weston (WVU) 6-0 Dec. Aric Thurn (CSU) (19-11 WVU) 184: Rob DeSano (WVU) 8-7 Dec. Danny Michaels (CSU) (22-11 WVU) 197: Kyle Rooney (WVU) Fall 2:50 Jeff Schuller (CSU) (28-11 WVU) HWT: Brandon Williamson (WVU) Fall 2:12 Chris Weber (CSU) (34-11 WVU)

Page fifteen \ Monday, February 22, 2010

Can the Indians Rebound? By William Wodka The Cauldron, Staff Writer

With pitchers and catchers reporting to the Goodyear Stadium in Arizona for spring training, the Indians look to rebound from a disappointing season, but can they? The owners and general manager made the announcement just six games before last season that the team would not be managed by Eric Wedge this upcoming season. This year the team is with a new manager, Manny Acta, and have been working hard to get back into the Central Division race. Pitching is going to be a big factor in whether or not the Indians will be a contender. Last season General Manager Mark Shapiro traded away their ace Cliff Lee. Though they have not made any real trades or picked up any key pitchers their core rotation did not do so bad last year. Rafael Perez was inexperienced last season but worked through some tough outings. He looks ready to play this season and is sure to be ready to play at the caliber that he played at in Buffalo when the Bisons were the Indians Triple A affiliate. The Triple A affiliate, now the Columbus Clippers,

have some good pitching coming through the ranks and this includes the coaching staff as well. Jon Nunnally, the manager of the Clippers last year, is now in the bigs with the Indians who recreated their coaching staff. Tony Sipp looks calm and ready to come through in the clutch as a set up man for the Indians who need someone to step up to keep a lead. This was one of the problems that the Indians had last season. When their hitting started to come together the pitching started to go downhill. The line-up is going to need to change a little too. Center-fielder Grady Sizemore was not the greatest last year at the top of the order. Most of the teams figured out a way to pitch to him that worked in their advantage. A good fit for Sizemore would be the cleanup or fourth spot. He is sure to get a lot of RBIs in that spot and in certain situations the opponent will not have a chance to pitch around him. Sizemore is a great fastball hitter and can work the count to his advantage

making him a dangerous person in the right spot. A guy to watch for is Travis Hafner. Last year he was supposed to be at the top of his game but an elbow injury hindered his chances at having any production. If he ever had a season where he needed to step up it is this season. Look for him to come out swinging, if he could position himself in the two spot he could be another threat. Shin Soo Choo is looking to build off of a great season he had and is looking to continue his production this season. A guy like this is what you need to round out your order to keep your opponent guessing. With all of this and great fielding the Indians are poised to be ready for postseason action. The season is a long but exciting one and though they might not start the season as the best team, through practice and experience this team will come together and make a run along with the Minnesota Twins for the Central Division. It is tribe time!

Strong Second Half Propels Vikes Over Rockets

Vikings Win 87-63 On BracketBusters Saturday By Rob Ivory The Cauldron, Sports Editor

Despite the two Universities being only 120 miles apart in Ohio, the gap between the basketball programs at Cleveland State University (14-15, 9-7 Horizon League) and the University of Toledo (3-25; 0-13 MAC) was displayed Saturday night at the Wolstein Center. Cleveland State lit the afterburners after a subpar first half to cruise to a 87-63 win. A strong second half by the Vikings brought Toledo its 25th loss over all and their 18th in a row as Norris Cole again led all scorers with 18 points, and added six assists. The Vikings snapped a three game losing streak and now finish their regular season with home games versus Detroit and Wright State this week. “We were not worried about losing to Toledo, we just had to get out of the cobwebs,” Waters said. The Vikings were without the services of sophomore Trevon Harmon, who had suffered a concussion during the games in Wisconsin over the week. He is listed as day-to-day, doubtful for the game Thursday against Detroit and unsure about the finale Saturday night versus against Wright State. Waters said that he had suffered a “jarred concussion, rammed the floor and shook his brain.” To take his place in the starting lineup, freshman Tim Kanczyc made his first NCAA start, as he scored a career high 12 points in 27 minutes. “I didn’t know I was going to start until game time,” the freshman said of his preparing for his new role. “When you lose a player like Tre, everybody on the team has to step up.” Along with Tim, freshman Charlie Woods saw plenty of time (21 minutes) and went 5 for 5 from beyond the three point as he scored 15 points. Head coach Gary Waters knows that Tim has been stepping up his skills in practice and on the court, “Tim is working had and defending, and he’s doing the smart thing.”

Cleveland State has a tough time coming out of the blocks, as the Vikes would trail six early in the half and would not hold a lead until the 13:11 point of the first half. The Vikings’ biggest lead of the first half was only five, as Toledo looked to stay in the game. “Took us a while to wake up,” Waters said, “Practices haven’t been going well because the guys are tired. They were fighting and fighting on the last road trip, and eventually you give up somewhere and that was our defense in the first half.” The Vikes did pull it together, but they could not close out the half with momentum. Cleveland State led by four after Jeremy Montgomery (14 points and eight assists) hit a big three pointer from a pass from freshman Anthony Wells with 49 seconds to go in the first half. The Rockets continued a trend that has plagued CSU as they collected an offensive rebound and freshman Kevin Rohner hit his only bucket of the game, a three pointer to make it a 34-33 Cleveland State lead going in the half. “You have to have the right people in there (to defend). You holler and scream for them to do the right thing,” Waters said of the scary trend of teams being able to hit key shots at the buzzard, whether it is at the first half or at the end the game. “Exciting and interesting first half,” Toledo’s head coach Gene Cross said after the game. “We handled their pressure well, that was a huge concern coming in.” Although Cross knew exactly when the game got out of hand, “First three minutes (of the second half) told the tale. It snowballed from there.” In those first three minutes, the Vikings got a threepoint play from Kamczyc to go ahead by four, then a jumper by D’Aundray Brown (14 points) put the Vikings up for good, as they would then race out to a 14 point lead in just under six minutes played in the half.

Another big three pointer by Montgomery put the Vikings out to a 61-42 lead as the Vikings would shoot just over 74% in the half and 64% overall. “Anytime you let a team shoot that well, you are not going to have many chances to come back,” Cross said. The coach also complemented the Horizon League to where the league is at; “It’s a tremendous league, with great coaches, they are capable of getting their (to the level of MAC play), they are very comparable to the MAC.” The Toledo head coach is no stranger of the league, as the Chicago native was an assistant coach at the Horizon League school, University of Illinois-Chicago. During his time at UIC, three teams from the Horizon League made it to the NCAA Tournament in a single year (UIC, Butler, and Detroit in 1998), so the coach knows about success in the league. Not to mention, this year’s rendition of the Toledo Rockets have failed to beat a Horizon League team as they fell to Wright State, Valparaiso, UIC, and now Cleveland State. The Vikings have now won four of their last five BracketBusters, as they beat Marist in 2008, Cal St. Northridge in 2007 and Delaware in 2006. They have not lost a BracketBusters game at home since 2004, when the pre-Gary Waters team was defeated by Eastern Michigan 87-66. As for the current coach of the Vikings, Gary Waters knows how important his last two games are as the Vikings could finish as best as fourth, or they can drop down to seventh and no host an opening game in the league tournament. “We are going to play very tough teams, it will be a challenge for us,” Waters said. “We are going to fight because we are all within a game of each other.” To sum it up, Waters explained, “We have to get a home game (in the Horizon League tournament).”