While anti drag and anti trans sentiments have spread across the country, Corvallis’s drag scene stays resilient however, even here safety is a concern in the community. 9
HERITAGE AND HISTORY
CAMPUS
SOTS: What do you do to maintain your mental health?
In observance of mental health awareness month Oregon State University students share how they care for themselves. . 4
Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage month is known as a time to cele brate the ways AAPIs have contributed to history, but at Oregon State University, the month of May is also a time to learn about the numer ous communities held within the identity.
“Everyone has a different process of what education looks like to them, be cause everyone's iden tity is so different,” said Geoffrey Engel, Asian and Pa cific Cultural Center community relations representative.
Engel described how the experience of learning history within one culture can look very different from another, espe cially between cultures or countries that have more documented history. An ex ample being learning about Japanese his tory versus history of events within Laos which Dylan Luong, APCC leadership li aison, mentioned are learned about from speaking with elders in the community.
“A lot of it is about pride,” Engel said. “A lot of people growing up in a pre dominantly white area aren’t taught to
that it is something to be proud of… in constructs your understanding of yourself and I think it can also help validate your lived experiences when you have that academic literature and terminology to put a name to your experiences it can be empowering in that sense.”
While the APCC plans to host a variety of events highlighting different cultures included in AAPI community, not one person holds all of the knowledge of contributions that the community as a whole have made at OSU or even nationwide.
AAPI HERITAGE
FOUNDATIONAL
According to the National of these workers who laid the tracks were
The NEH claims that the term “Asian American” was coined in 1968 by student activists Emma Gee and Yuji Ichioka as a unifying political identity for people of Asian descent, in order to push back on the previous EuroThose that identify themselves in this community claim that how words used to describe them were in direct correlation to being empowered to continue supporting civil rights efforts in the 1960s.
more progressively alien - ated. So if you have a heritage month that promotes a time of learning and it tells you to embrace that and
It was during the Civil Rights Movement that the community began to speak out on issues that were prominent and significant to their communities, which was previously unheard of before.
According to the NEH, “1960s Asian American civil rights activism… signaled a shift from Asian Americans fighting for the right to be Americans, to fighting for their rights as Americans.”
Malcolm X’s ideologies
influenced many Asian Americans through the movement and on May 19, 1972, Yuri Kochiyama did an interview with a radio station, KPFK in Los Angeles, where Kochiyama acknowledged Malcolm’s stress on needing to know one’s heritage and history to know which direction to go in.
With this, Asian American students in California challenged the curriculum of higher education, arguing that research and teaching had propagated stereotypes about AAPI education history and culture.
In 1968, at San Francisco State University, and in 1969 at the University of California, Berkeley, Asian Americans joined the Third World Liberation Front student strikes alongside the Black Students Union and other student groups.
The strikes were used to demand that the universities hire more faculty of color, enroll more students of color and create departments devoted to ethnic studies. It was during this time that the Asian American Political Alliance was established at the UC Berkeley campus.
Soon, AAPA branches were on college campuses nationwide.
The AAPA was disbanded in 1969, however, the intention had been met–Asian American identity was declared.
“I think that there's probably a really significant amount of history that's not documented,” Engel said. Although the AAPA is no longer a running organization, across the country, Asian American and Pacific Islander communities have been able to create safe spaces where anyone who identifies as API can find a source of connection.
Here at Oregon State University, according to Alexis “Alex” Dinges, communications representative, the initiative for an Asian Cultural Center started as early as the 1980s, but was officially established in 1991.
Originally just the Asian Cultural Center, in 2003, it was re-established as the Asian and Pacific Cultural Center to be more inclusive of the API identity.
Previously, all cultural centers were located on Jackson St. It was in 2014 that the building the APCC currently
| continued on PAGE 2 |
From California, to Oregon, to Spain, Zach Lame's journey has landed him a spot on the OSU men's soccer roster. 10
MILITARY MILESTONEFollowing Oregon State University’s Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps 150th anniversary last year, the university will soon celebrate for another reason: 50 years of women in the AROTC program.
Hosted in the McAlexander Fieldhouse and open to all, the celebration will begin at noon on May 5. Valerie Ranum, a senior AROTC cadet planning the event, said the afternoon will feature lunch, cake and mingling.
“It’s a very special thing to be a part of, definitely shows you how far women have come,” said Makayla Steele, firstyear creative writing student and first-year AROTC cadet. “We’re all equal and we all have strength, that mental strength to do anything we put our minds to.”
OSU’s Army ROTC program is one of the top 50 programs in the nation, out of 273 total programs.
“This year, the number five cadet in the entire nation is a Beaver,” said David McRae, lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army and department chair and professor of military science at OSU AROTC. “Sophia Schmiedt is a double major in civil engineering and economics.”
AROTC is a leadership development program at OSU that develops Commissioned Officers for the U.S. Army.
“Our students, referred to as cadets, study military history, tactics, ethics and applied leadership,” McRae said. “The program takes as little as two years to complete, but many take all four years.”
ROTC is different from enlisting in the army, McRae explained, as enlisted soldiers are specialists in their craft, while officers are expected to know much of the same skills as their soldiers, but they are expected to plan, resource and lead training and combat operations.
From 1970-1972, the army conducted a pilot program at select universities, but it was only in 1973 that they opened ROTC fully to women.
“Since 1949, women could serve in the Women’s Auxiliary Corps and affiliated branches such as the Army Nurse Corps as Officers,” McRae said. “Unfortunately, I don’t fully have the history of how it came to be at OSU.”
Women were quickly incorporated into OSU’s ROTC program, and many have seen great success.
“Two of our most distinguished alumni are women,” McRae said. “Major General (Retired) Julie Bentz is a 1986 OSU graduate who culminated her career serving on the National Security Council as an advisor to the President on Nuclear Weapons. She was inducted into the OSU College of Engineering Hall of Fame and holds a Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering. Major General (Retired) Marti Bissell recently retired after serving as the Deputy Commanding General of Army Training and Doctrine Command, responsible for the training of all Army Soldiers from Basic Training through the Army War College.”
Bentz will be the guest speaker at the 50 years of women in AROTC celebration.
“In recent years, the army has opened all
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Riley Le Cocq baro.editor@oregonstate.edu
ASSISTANT EDITOR Lara Rivera baro.ed.asst@oregonstate.edu
CAMPUS EDITOR Katie Livermore baro.news@oregonstate.edu
CITY EDITOR Sam Misa baro.city@oregonstate.edu
COPY EDITOR Wes Flow copy.news@oregonstate.edu
SPORTS CHIEF Benjamin Rabbino omn.sports@oregonstate.edu
ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR Georgina Paez baro.sports.asst@oregonstate.edu
PHOTO LEAD Ashton Bisner omn.photo@oregonstate.edu
CREATIVE LEAD Alan Nguyen omn.creative@oregonstate.edu
MARKETING LEAD Vanessa Lopez omn.marketing.lead@oregonstate.edu
SALES TEAM: omn.ads3@oregonstate.edu
NEWS TIPS:
541-737-2231
TO PLACE AN AD CALL:
541-737-6373
BUSINESS: 541-737-2233
ON CAMPUS:
SEC Fourth Floor Oregon State University
The Barometer is published in the begining of every month during the academic school year, and publishes weekly news coverage and other content such as columns and videos on The Baro website at http://www. orangemedianetwork.com/daily_barometer/.
The Barometer, published for use by OSU students, faculty and staff, is private property. A single copy of The Barometer is free from newsstands. Unauthorized removal of multiple copies will be considered theft and is prosecutable.
Responsibility: The University Student Media Committee is charged with the general supervision of all student publications and broadcast media operated under its authority for the students and staff of Oregon State University on behalf of the Associated Students of OSU.
Formal written complaints about The Barometer may be referred to the committee for investigation and disposition. After hearing all elements involved in a complaint, the committee will report its decision to all parties concerned.
We encourage our readers to share their views by submitting a letter to the editor on our website, under the "about" tab. Letters should be limited to 300 words and include contact information of the writer. The Barometer editorial team retains the right to choose what letters are run based on relevance and appropriateness.
ALL UNIVERSITY SING 2023 May 5, 5:00-7:00 p.m.
Gill Coliseum
Come enjoy a performance to the theme
“Who’s on aux?” as Oregon State University greek life organizations represent a U.S. state in the musical performance.
NORTHWEST SPRING FEST
May 6, 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Memorial Union Quad
Enjoy an art fair featuring student and community vendors, food, live musicians and outdoor games. Come spend time at the event for spring family weekend. Event is free and open to the public.
SALMON BAKE
May 19, noon - 3:00 p.m.
Kaku-lxt Mana Ina Haws
Celebrate the salmon run and pacific northwest salmon culture. Salmon, side dishes and drinks will be provided
branches to women, including the combat specialties,” McRae said. “Our women have embraced this challenge and we have had women branch into the Field Artillery for the last four years, including one of our Cadet Battalion Commanders (the cadet leader of program), Mia McAdams. Last year, Bailey Breving was the first woman to branch Armor in the history of the state of Oregon.”
both ROTC Cadet Battalion Commanders were women. OSU ROTC has consisted of as much as 40% women in recent years, McRae said, although the national average for ROTC is around 20%.
One of these female cadets is Gabrielle Sanchez-Hernandez, a third-year construction engineering management student who is helping to organize the 50 years of women in AROTC celebration.
“Just being together and working on something besides school brings so much more meaning; the fact that we have a goal and purpose to become officers afterwards,” said Sanchez–Hernandez of her experience at AROTC. “What I was doing today was creating this event … it just brings more meaning to my life because I’m creating something and it’ll last for a long time — first event ever, and I’ll be a part of that. That’s something not a lot of people get to say.”
For Steele ROTC has allowed her to push past her comfort zone to her fullest potential, which she thinks is important, even if people feel afraid.
“It’s scary but if you don’t do it, then you’ll never know what you’re capable of,” Steele said.
Sanchez-Hernandez said being a part of AROTC gives her confidence, not just for army life, but also for her civilian life and career outside of the army, adding that “it just makes life easier.”
Use a QR code scanner or Snapchat to view Oregon State University’s Events Calendar in full
Continued from PAGE 1
resides in was built and in 2015, the area was opened to the public.
“That was really important, because a lot of the centers were built around the same time, like the BCC, Centro…it took [the centers] from being kind of like cast out to the outskirts to being really central on campus,” Dinges said.
According to Luong and Engel, having a heritage month promotes a time of learning and teaches individuals how to embrace heritage.
“It’s a point to be proud of,” Engel said.
The AAPI community represents over 60+ countries and ethnic groups that speak over 100 different languages. Geographically, AAPI encompasses all of the Asian continent and Pacific Islands of a multitude of nations.
With so many ethnicities, that doesn't mean alienation isn’t possible.
“It's a very conscious process,” Engel said.
According to Dylan Luong, APCC leadership liaison, the center is aware of their limitations, especially with only 10 student representatives at the center.
“...Our staff definitely isn't shy of reaching out to other communities if we feel like we're past our knowledge,” Dinges said.
“I think it is remarkable to see how routinely women lead our program,” McRae said. “We have grown from where they were rare, to where it is expected. I was once asked by a high school student if she would feel uncomfortable here as a woman in a maledominated profession, and I told her I don’t think so. We have women in all of our key student leadership positions.”
He said he thinks this will continue to grow.
“As women become more common in the very male-dominated infantry field, we will have female cadets who choose to go this route as well,” McRae said. “We have not had one yet, but it will come soon. I think our program will continue to stay above the national average for representation and
potentially approach a 50/50 mix.”
As interested high school students or current college students read about the successes of female cadets at OSU, McRae said he hopes women will come to OSU ROTC knowing they will have equal opportunities to excel.
“A common misconception is that you have to join the army to take army ROTC classes,” McRae said. “Any OSU student can take ROTC classes without any obligation and see if they like it before committing to a future career… Ninety-five percent (55 out of 58) of our contracted students are on a fulltuition scholarship.”
For Sanchez-Hernandez, it is “astonishing” that it’s only been 50 years since women have been a part of ROTC.
“While it is special, and we should celebrate it, I think we should normalize it more,” she said.
This 50-year milestone is something Sanchez-Hernandez wishes she didn’t have to think about, though.
“But the fact that I do, and the fact that I get the opportunity to do it here, it just makes it that much more special,” SanchezHernandez said. “I try not to think about it too much because we’re all equal leaders, and should be thinking more of how we should be taking care of our future soldiers, (in) which (it) shouldn’t matter their gender.”
She encouraged women interested in joining AROTC, for a physical activity class or the program itself, to reach out.
“Don’t be afraid, definitely try it out,” Sanchez-Hernandez said. “There are people here to help you as well as to welcome you.”
MELANESIA
Papua New Guinea
New Caledonia
Vanuatu
Fiji
Solomon Islands
MICRONESIA
Northern Mariana Islands
Guam
Wake Island
Palau
Marshall Islands
Through community, the APCC has been able to widen the scope of their inclusivity, as they also stay in communication and work in collaboration with the API Council. This council is made up of the numerous cultural clubs that help those who are looking to see representation while here at OSU.
Through various events put on by the center in honor of celebrating heritage month, individuals in the community are hosting different events to showcase the different cultures at OSU.
Some events are currently ongoing, such as “Fashioning API Identity,” which was set up in the APCC by Engel as a project for the center. The rotating fashion display is a partnership with the Apparel Textile Collection at OSU. Beginning with Korea, which displayed from April 5 to May 1, India will be displayed for two weeks, concluding the year with China.
This is an in-house display that individuals can come in and explore whenever, as the garments are permanently at the center, to talk about the significance in the original culture contexts.
To honor AAPI heritage month the center will also be hosting a number of informational events, such as The Secret Wars, Nishihara Classroom Naming Reception, Roots of Resilience: A Hiroshima Peace Tree Documentary and APASU Culture Shock.
Kiribati
Nauru
Federated States of Micronesia
POLYNESIA
New Zealand
Hawaiian Islands
Midway Islands
Samoa
American Samoa
Tonga
Tuvalu
Cook Islands
French Polynesia
Easter Island
Scan the QR code to find the events and various opportunities put on by the APCC during May!
LILY MIDDLETON | ORANGE MEDIA NETWORK
members included are: Top row: Dylan Luong, Stanley Luu, Karthik Vijay, Lipo Sinapati; Middle row: Eric Kong, Lei Bugarin, Geoffrey Engel; Bottom row: Bekah Rocak, Alex Dinges, Kayla Kurahashi, Katelyn Nguyen
SAFETY
News
Trigger Warning - story contains mention of gun violence.
Amidst the current mass-shooting epidemic, your personal engagement and preparedness may save a life.
Oregon State University’s administration and the Department of Public Safety hold an active role in preparing for worst case scenarios via staff trainings and engaging in trainings for the community.
The DPS does a variety of preparedness exercises for the OSU community that can be as simple as reading policies and procedures about tactics for enhanced safety.
After an active shooter incident, DPS reviews their own tactics, procedures, what
the responding agencies did and how the institutions where the shooting occurred handled the situation.
After reviewing these, DPS officers get together and practice these t actics physically.
In the case of an active shooter on campus there is an emergency action plan - Appendix F - present in each building and on OSU’s emergency management website. There is a review process for updating the emergency action plans of buildings. The department of emergency management falls under DPS, and they keep track of which buildings need to update and register their emergency action plans.
OSU Police Chief Shanon Anderson also reminds the administration of each OSU building to review the emergency action plan with staff and faculty within the
building so they each know what their role is in the event of an emergency.
The DPS conducts in-person training for staff for the buildings that request training.
“Everybody’s role is being familiar with their surroundings, being familiar with what they would do in case this does happen,” Anderson said.
Anderson suggests becoming familiar with your environment each term as each building is slightly different.
“We need every student, every faculty member to understand what they need to do in an active shooter situation,” said Paul Odenthal, administration senior associate vice president. “That is equally if not more important than what Shannon and our team is going to do in response.”
| continued on PAGE 4 |
It’s a very special thing to be a part of, definitely shows you how far women have come.
- Makayla Steele, first-year creative writing student and first-year AROTC cadet
Following this year’s Student Fee Committee allocations, athletics will gain a designated sports psychologist, leaving all students to pay. This decision creates an unfair accessibility issue between students and athletes as all students struggle to access mental health resources on campus. 5
With the hope of shining a light on often overlooked cancer survivors, researchers from Oregon State University are conducting the Thriving Together study, an after-cancer project focusing on gender diverse communities.
Thriving Together is a follow-up research project on the Mindfulness After Cancer pilot study, which was conducted from 2019 to 2020.
The pilot study focused on female cancer survivors, examining the potential use of mindfulness-based interventions: meditations, group discussions and focusing exercises. The study overall was deemed successful enough to warrant a larger study–Thriving Together.
Thriving Together focuses on cancer survivors who are part of transgender and gender diverse communities. While still focusing on the initial topic of mindfulness-based interventions–in regards to sexual health and access to cancer treatment–this adds the intersectional interpretation of gender affirming care.
“This is a population where there’s just very little research,” said Jessica Gorman, the principal investigator for the study. “I do intervention research with cancer survivors and co-survivors to help them navigate various aspects of life after cancer. I wanted to expand one of my studies to include transgender and gender diverse folks.”
According to an article published in Translational Andrology and Urology, a scientific journal, cancer screening has decreased cancer mortality by a significant amount, like a 14% reduction in lung cancer deaths. However, all currently published studies on cancer mortalities and guidelines for screening are targeted for cis-gender patients.
There are many reasons for this, including the variability of stages of transition from patient to patient, alongside widespread discrimination from medical providers.
According to the article, 19% of transgender individuals have been refused care, 28% experienced harassment and 50% were discouraged due to nonexistence of gender nonconforming providers.
Thriving Together was conducted using primarily digital seminars, where the researchers collected testimonies from participants about their experience in the study. As the study is currently still ongoing, results from the survey are being kept private.
“I’ve been working with Jessica on the sexual and reproductive health equity consortium,” said Jonathan Garcia, the co-investigator on the study. “So when she was talking about having a study on trans and gender nonconforming folks focused on cancer support it really aligned with my work in LGBTQ+ health.”
While the study is still in progress, the intention is to increase the equity of health for transgender and gender nonconforming individuals.
Gorman hopes this study will identify aspects of need in the under researched area, whether that’s a new research question, action step or strategy.
“With the research that we do, we don’t want it to just be research, we want it to be able to go out into the world ultimately, with our goal of improving health equity in the end,” Gorman said.
From 1 on 1 sessions on a chaise lounge, to group puzzles, to performative groups, mental health support groups take on different shapes at Oregon State University.
OSU’s Counseling & Psychological Services hosts therapy support groups led by mental health professionals and facilitators for OSU students.
CAPS has a mission to “provide mental health counseling to students, and consultation, outreach and education to all OSU community members,” according to their website. Providing identity-based support groups as a resource creates a safe space to help participants feel less isolated in their experiences.
The month of May is dedicated to bringing awareness to mental health, and began in 1949, to show the importance of mental health and wellness in Americans’ lives, as well as celebrate those in recovery from mental illness.
“As part of minority stress, people are constantly monitoring the environment around them … our hope is that we're creating these spaces, where people can see themselves in each other and know that who I am as good and valuable and strong and resilient, and full of potential and love, and sorrow and all the things all human beings have. And our minority stress is real,” said Beth Zimmermann, Bites with Beth and TransForm! group facilitator.
By developing safe spaces where individuals, particularly marginalized groups with similar backgrounds and experiences can come together, can talk and express their thoughts and feelings allows the opportunity and ability to express in an authentic way, according to Ireti DeBato-Cancel, BIPOC Therapeutic Performance and Orange Table Talk facilitator.
“People don't realize how mental health is tied into everything…It's often seen as, ‘Oh, you’re depressed on the individual level,’ but when a whole system is structured to denigrate you or to somehow teach you that it's okay to denigrate others, right, that's traumatic on both forms,” said Michele Ribeiro, groups coordinator and Examining White Identity, as well as Critical Conversations: A learning and accountability group facilitator.
Zimmermann expressed that although these groups are a step in the right direction, they are just the foundation. Addressing intersectionality more fully is something that the community should focus on, according to Zimmermann
“When you have students of color that are on a campus that is predominantly white, sometimes, although you're hyper visible, sometimes you feel invisible. And so having that space and the ability to put art to feelings is a powerful way to feel seen and heard at the same time,” DeBato-Cancel said.
Identity Based Support Groups offered through CAPS:
BITES WITH BETH, AN LGBTQ+
SUPPORT GROUP
Bites with Beth is an LGBTQ+ support group that individuals in the queer community can stop by, bring in their lunches and have a little bit of dessert as individuals talk and express themselves together through storytelling and arts and crafts.
The support group is currently working on a queer puzzle where people can paint puzzle pieces that will be later displayed to share their queer experience here at Oregon State. “Bites with Beth really is meant to be
for all folks in the queer community, and we invite everyone … I hope [this group] feels affirming for folks in our community, where they can find a sense of place to take a deep breath and be encouraged and honored,” Zimmermann said.
Bites with Beth is held at the Pride Center on Tuesdays from noon – 1:30 p.m. and runs from week two to week 10 in both the winter and the spring.
ORANGE TABLE TALK:
DISCUSSION GROUP FOR BLACK
WOMEN
Orange Table Talk is a confidential dropin group for Black women that works to honor their stories and concerns through honest discussions and empowerment. The group was created through individual sessions mental health facilitators were having with students and recognizing commonalities within the community.
“I know that there are specific experiences or specific worldviews that black women go through, have to navigate. And it's helpful to have space where they can share with others, be able to relate with others, and also to receive support and encouragement not only from us, but from each other,” facilitator Chanale Propst said.
Orange Table Talk is held at the Lonnie B. Harris Black Cultural Center on Wednesdays from 5 p.m. –6 p.m. bi-weekly.
TRANSFORM! A GENDER SPECTRUM SUPPORT GROUP
TransForm! has undergone a few different names in the past, but most recently, students have requested the name “TransForm,” according to Zimmerman, and is a gender inclusive and gender expansive space. Beginning with ice breakers, name and pronouns in use, this drop-in support group affirms and confirms confidentiality with each other as they crosstalk popular topics such as resources, political climate and healthcare needs.
“It's a space where really I am hoping community is built, and friendships are developed,” Zimmermann said. “And hopefully, it's also feeling like a safe space to explore, and to share some of the stress, because that gives us more resilience to survive a very toxic world that we all live in right now.”
TransForm! takes place on the 5th Floor of Snell on Mondays, 3–4:30 p.m. and runs from week two to week 10 in both the winter and the spring.
TRANSSISTERS: A TRANSFEMME SUPPORT GROUP
TransSisters is a transfemme support group that began in winter term of this year. This drop-in support group began directly in response to requests from students at the Pride Center. It is not required to attend every meeting and is structured in a way that students can bring up different points of conversation to the group, allowing them to connect and converse on many different topics within the community and the world right now.
“One of the most important things about any sort of support group is this experience of ‘I'm not alone and I'm not the only one going through this.’ So to have that experience of other people feeling the same thing, it can be supportive and healing,” TransSisters facilitator Rae Sidlauskas said.
TransSisters takes place on the 5th floor of Snell on Tuesdays, 3 – 4:30 p.m.
WOMEN OF COLOR SUPPORT GROUP
women’s group. This group works to provide a safe, confidential and supportive space for OSU students that identify as women of color to discuss a wide variety of topics and share similar experiences, according to group co-facilitator Chanale Propst.
“It's a time to say, ‘Me too,’ to hear, “Me too’ and also to have [a moment to go] ‘I'm not the only one who may be experiencing this or going through this or navigating this.’ It's a time to have and to develop a sense of belonging on campus,” Propst said.
Women of Color takes place in the Hattie Redmond Women and Gender Center on Wednesdays at 1 p.m. bi-weekly.
INDIGENOUS DROP-IN
The Indigenous Drop-In has not yet officially started, but will be a support group for Indigenous students to have a safe and confidential space to be in community with each other in a supportive environment. The name of the group is "uniikax̂" which means "story" in Unangam Tunuu or Aleut, which is facilitator Amanda Poe’s tribal affiliation from Alaska. OSU students are not obligated to attend from week to week but are welcomed to, and the topics of each meeting will mostly vary depending on what is brought up in group.
Indigenous Drop-In is scheduled to be held at Inner House at the Kaku-Ixt Mana Ina Haws on Thursdays from 5-6 p.m..
“It's spaces like this that help serve the goal of making this university a place where everyone, Indigenous students included, genuinely feels welcome and cared about,” Poe said.
BIPOC THERAPEUTIC PERFORMANCE GROUP
BIPOC Therapeutic Performance is a support group that launched in winter term of 2023, according to facilitator Shaznin Daruwalla. The group uses expressive arts performances to allow students of color to process any feelings or things they are going through in different art forms. The theme for last term, as well as this term, is power.
“There is loads of research related to using the expressive arts as a means of expression in processing feelings and emotions… or starting difficult conversations as it relates to mental health and how someone is processing their world around them,” DeBato-Cancel said.
BIPOC Therapeutic Performance Group is held at the Lonnie B. Harris Black Cultural Center on Tuesdays from 2 – 3 p.m.
CRITICAL CONVERSATIONS: A LEARNING AND ACCOUNTABILITY
GROUP Critical Conversations is a reflective and learning space for white identifying students to practice having conversations that identify and examine power and deconstructing whiteness. The structure of this support group is to begin conversations that might be difficult to understand from the perspective of a White-identifying individual and uses a flipped classroom model where facilitators Allison Comiskey and Ribeiro have students sign up to watch or read material outside of the group and then have the space to talk about it, as well as encouraging students to bring examples from their own lives.
“Our work is really around being in relationship … to change the system, you have to have conversations with white people that aren't as open [to having certain conversations], and how do we understand and work to be curious, rather than shut down,” Ribeiro said.
Kinesiology Major
“I just work out at Dixon (Recreation Center).”
Becky Killion (she/her)
Psychology Major
“In psychology classes subjects … can definitely be difficult to talk about. I find that having friends that are open to talking about your struggles, and also mediation and mindfulness, (can be helpful).”
“Sometimes I use wellness apps to try and help with that, and I also see a therapist to try to help with that. Mainly just being able to talk to other people and being involved in clubs like Dam Worth It and the Out of Darkness Committee has really helped open my eyes to how supportive the community is and how you can find support in many different ways on campus.”
Graphic Design Major
“(I maintain my mental health) mostly through drawing. I’m an art student so I feel really connected to my own mental health by drawing for fun, and expressing my emotions, especially hard emotions that I’m having, by journaling and doodling … being sure to make time for art and putting aside homework and work (for) a structured hour or two where I’m just going to focus on a painting I’m doing or practicing drawing or just doing stuff that I find enjoyable.”
Music Major
“I like to journal a lot, it’s something I’ve done for years, since 2016. (Journaling) just kind of helps me organize my thoughts and get all my emotions out ... I also like to reach out to friends and family and talk to them ... also, going for walks, putting in some earbuds and viewing nature.”
Zamilla Lugg (she/her)
Graphic Design Major
“I kind of balance doing homework and friends and then I do like a reward system with myself. So if I do all of my homework for the week, I get an ice cream bar or something … but it’s a little reward and it keeps me going, and spending time with friends is also a reward.”
Carrington Fastelin (she/her)
Public Health Major
“I like to exercise and go outside a lot. I’m in the running club and I like to go to the gym with my friends sometimes.”
Students on Oregon State University's campus discuss personal strategies to maintaining their mental health, photographed on April 14 at OSU in Corvallis.
Continued from PAGE 2
A crucial part of being prepared is becoming familiar with where red emergency phones are located in classrooms to call 9-1-1 or blue emergency phone towers throughout campus that connect you directly to OSU’s dispatch center, according to Anderson.
OSU also provides the Guardian app to text 9-1-1 if you are unable to speak on the phone or reach the red emergency phone in a classroom.
Guardian is an app provided by the Rave system, more commonly known as the OSU Alert System.
The OSU Alert System is the medium that alerts anyone with an OSU email address, communicating via text, email and through the Guardian app. People can add 3 cell phones, 3 emails or 3 landlines to their account. Parents may sign up for this program with the student email address of their family attending OSU. There is no cost to sign up to the Rave System or the Guardian app.
“One of the things that is really important is to build preparedness, which is different
than being paranoid,” Anderson said. In case of an active shooter, OSU’s website suggests to remain calm and call 9-1-1. During the call, they suggest providing the name and location of the caller and the building where the active shooter is located if known.
If known, the OSU emergency management website asks to provide a description of the race, clothing, type of weapon(s), location last seen, direction of travel and identity of the person(s) to the 9-1-1 operator.
“Students should add their text number to their OSU Alert profile so they can receive alerts on their mobile devices when an incident happens,” said OSU Emergency Preparedness Manager Michael Bamberger.
“People will have seconds to learn what is happening and to respond to protect themselves, so receiving the text will inform people what areas to avoid and what to do to protect themselves.”
Evacuating the location where the threat is located is the first step in the Run, Hide, Fight protocol. Anderson says while you run, alert others to evacuate.
If running proves to be a challenge, then the next step is to hide.
Jade Egger (she/her)
Computer Science and
Graphic Design Major
“I just go on with my day and just vibe. I don’t really have a set method because I’ve been pretty mentally okay. So, no, I haven’t changed anything.”
“If you are inside the building and the subject – the threat – is immediately in that hallway it may not be safe to run away,” Anderson said.
If this is the case, Anderson suggests hiding and barricading the door, which may look like taking tables to make a funnel to prevent or delay the threat from entering.
If the active threat does enter, the funnel will give an upper hand to the individuals creating the barricade and will have control while the threat attempts to enter. Once they breach the door, it would become time for fighting in the Run, Hide, Fight protocol. This might include making improvised weapons, according to Anderson.
The DPS posts on social media examples of Run, Hide, Fight videos with instructions demonstrating the protocol if there was an active shooter on campus.
“If you think you can safely get out, run. If you can’t get out, then hide.” Odenthal said. “If you are found, then fight.”
Anderson emphasizes that it is Run, Hide OR Fight.
“Not everybody can fight, or it might not be wise at the time to fight,” Anderson said. “It’s an individual decision based on the
totality of the circumstances at the time.”
According to Anderson, what matters is that anyone in that situation does something, be it run, hide, fight or a combination of all of the above.
“One of the things that is important to me is that folks know they are not going to be criticized for what they do,” Anderson said.
Odenthal said once the police arrive at the scene, “you need to stay down where you are, you need to be quiet, you need to listen to the instructions of the police.”
When police are at the site, their first priority is stopping the threat and making the scene safe. The standard procedure that follows is to ensure the site is safe with no explosives or other threats, which Anderson warns may be a lengthy process.
“Personal engagement in safety isn’t paranoia … if you see something, say something,” said Steve Clark, OSU’s vice president for university relations and marketing.
Clark encourages the OSU community to immediately contact the DPS if you are concerned about an individual or an object.
“Safety is the number one priority for the university,” Clark said.
How do you feel knowing that you’re paying for someone else’s therapist?
Well, you will be. Starting in the fall and throughout the academic year 2023-24, a sports psychologist will be paid for by anyone taking in-person classes on Oregon State University’s Corvallis campus.
In February, the Associated Students of OSU Student Fee Committee held a public meeting during their final deliberations of budget requests for the next academic year from student fee-funded entities, one being Intercollegiate Athletics.
During the deliberations, the request that an additional sports psychologist – student-athletes have one sports psychologist already – was approved by the SFC, and subsequently, the ASOSU Congress approved this SFC decision.
To have a sports psychologist, whose salary comes directly out of all students’ pockets, but is only accessible to student-athletes, isn’t fair.
When the fee request was first voted through by the SFC, student-athlete advocates for funding an additional sports psychologist said that the one psychologist they have was spread too thin. But, this is the nature of mental health resources on campus in general.
Counseling & Psychological Services availability issues remain a problem, as students in acute mental crisis have to wait weeks to months for an appointment.
In a Reddit thread about the sports psychologist’s decision, students shared frustrations about not being able to get timely help for their mental health crises and needs through CAPS.
The prioritization of making mental health resources more accessible to a select community at OSU implicitly values said select community over everyone else –requiring a student fee to reinforce this social inequity is just salt in the wound.
“I don't like the implication that because they're student-athletes (...) their struggles are more important than everyone else's,” said Emily Erving, a fourthyear political science student immediately following the approval of the sports psychologist by the SFC.
But, in a way, this is exactly what the additional sports psychologist position does.
Jared Pratt, a political science major and the Recreational Sports SFC Representative, said he has struggled with mental illness and has had problems with CAPS wait times as well; and was offended when student-athletes had spoken about the stress they are under during the public meeting, and argued every student is under stress and being a student-athlete
is their choice.
Though there has been controversy regarding whether or not students should have to pay for a sports psychologist, SFC Intercollegiate Athletics Liaison and ASOSU Vice President-Elect Dakota Canzano said that not all students use other student feefunded resources.
“How I also think of it is… all the resources that we fund on campus are important and are needed for many students because a variety of students use each resource, but also not every single person will be able to use each resource,” Canzano said. “Not every student is a parent that will be using the child care resources, and not every student is going to the Memorial Union.”
The additional sports psychologist is the only student fee-funded resource that poses problems of accessibility. Yes, not every student has a family and may need help from the Family Resource Center –though every student can become a parent – and yes, not everyone will use the MU to study; but no
Julie Weber, a second-year computer science student said although mental health is extremely important, she thinks it’s unreasonable to ask students to pay for a mental health service that they don’t have access to.
“This decision tells me that athletics comes first,” Weber said.
During the SFC deliberation, SFC MU Liaison Noah Roberts employed the ‘students-athletes are students first’ reasoning.
“If I can help in any way, say even just one person's life to the creation of this position, then to me it will have been worth it,” Stoll said.
Many students do not share this philanthropic mindset; especially when student-athletes on average receive more tuition aid than anyone else at OSU.
According to a U.S. News article, “the average need-based scholarship or grant awarded to first-year students at Oregon State University was $12,897… The average non-need-based scholarship or grant awarded to first-year students at Oregon State University – excluding any athletic scholarships, if applicable –
On the other hand, a College Factual article says the average sports-related tuition aid awarded to student-athletes is around $19,323 per athlete, not counting the 2020 NCAA rule change allowing athletic departments to pay athletes up to $5,980 per school year depending on academic performance.
“I have to work to be able to pay for my own therapist and go on my own time through a private therapist,” Pratt said. There is no clear direction on how to make mental health more accessible on campus, but this undoubtedly is not the ideal course of
Eighty-degree weather in April is unheard of in Corvallis, but look no further than the second floor of Gilbert Hall, where Xiulei “David” Ji, professor of chemistry at Oregon State University keeps his zinc batteries nice
The batteries, arrayed on a special shelf in a small workroom with controlled conditions, undergoing charging tests, have increased in efficiency to nearly 100% after Ji and his collaborators created a new electrolyte to be used in their zinc metal anodes–which is one step closer to solving renewable energy storage.
Ji, the primary investigator of this National Science Foundation-funded research project and co-author of the research paper, said the uniqueness of the battery lies in the use of an aqueous, or waterbased, electrolyte in the anode –which is the positive electrode in this case.
Published in Nature Sustainability, an online research journal, on March 23, the paper was co-authored by a handful of OSU researchers and researchers from other universities, as well as individuals from Hewlett-Packard Corvallis and GROTTHUSS Incorporation, an OSU spinout company.
Zinc batteries can serve as a tantalizing alternative to lithium-ion batteries for storage of renewable energy, since lithium-ion batteries pose safety concerns. Lithium-ion powered scooters have caused explosions from Medford, OR to the Bronx, NY.
“This battery is not explosive, it’s non-flammable and potentially cost-effective,” Ji said.
Although Ji said a lithiumion battery’s cycle life is “pretty impressive,” allowing it to have a lifespan of around 8 to 10 years before needing replacement, one of the most important motivations for him and other researchers is to work on nonflammable alternatives.
reached an efficiency of over 99%. The electrolyte developed to be used in zinc metal anodes by Ji, other OSU researchers and collaborators including scientists at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Pennsylvania State University and University of California, Riverside, creates a CE of 99.95%.
Still, zinc batteries have problems of their own, said Heng Jiang, lead author of the research paper and a postdoctoral scholar at Penn State who earned a Ph.D. in chemistry from OSU in 2020.
Though a battery with an aqueous electrolyte will not catch fire, water is corrosive to zinc, Ji said.
To minimize the corrosive effects of water on zinc, Jiang and Ji added the organic solid dimethyl carbonate into the electrolyte solution, which decomposes on the surface of the zinc anode and forms a protective layer.
“The water cannot penetrate through this layer… the (corrosive) reactions cannot happen,” Jiang said.
Ji admits this discovery was not completely intentional.
“When we discovered that adding this compound into the electrolyte helps form a passivation layer on a zinc metal surface, it was like a gift,” Ji said. “It provides a better performance than I could probably design or hope for.”
The intended use for the zinc metal batteries is to store solar and wind energy. This goal has proven difficult in the past, and insufficient technology to store renewable energy has led to curtailment, which is when electricity use is less than the available renewable energy being generated.
Ji and Jiang said that zinc batteries may be able to store renewable energy that would otherwise be curtailed for days when it’s not windy or sunny.
“We all know the weather is sometimes not so predictable,” Ji said. “So when you have a reliable energy storage solution, basically you can install solar and wind as much as you want.”
Jiang’s major concern about the technology does not arise in the extensive research on zinc batteries that he and other researchers have carried out, but is more related to large-scale manufacturing of them.
“The concern is the lack of supply chains globally,” Ji said. “The market has not prepared for a new zinc battery technology.” Ji and Jiang hope to commercialize the zinc batteries.
the option to utilize the sports psychologist.
Canzano said that the entire student fee for Intercollegiate Athletics – which will be $44.68 each term next year, according to the ASOSU minutes from a joint congress session on Feb. 15 – is allocated to a handful of student-athlete services and that these fees will continue to provide free student tickets to OSU sporting events. The reality is that Intercollegiate Athletics student fees in place today allow students to obtain free tickets, without tacking on additional money for the sports psychologist.
Another argument thrown around in both the SFC deliberation and joint congress session was that ‘students-athletes are students first.’ They are, so let’s not treat them as more than any other student.
If there truly is no hierarchy among the student body, why are we set to financially endorse one?
“I've had friends that have tried to access (mental health) resources,” Canzano said. “I've even tried to access the resources for CAPS and the wait is way too long and mental health cannot be put on a waiting list.”
Everyone agrees accessibility is the key issue to mental health resources on campus, so why are we making students pay for something that inherently is inaccessible to the vast majority?
In the joint congress session, SFC Chair Joe Page said “historically athletics doesn’t ask for additional things,” when arguing for the proposed sports psychologist.
Frankly, I see Intercollegiate Athletics asking for students to pay for a sports psychologist is like a teenager who’s never asked for anything for Christmas suddenly imploring about a Mustang for their 16th birthday; only their brothers, their sisters, even their parents can’t drive it too.
“The fatal issue of lithium-ion batteries is its safety,” Ji said.
Ji said lithium is also relatively rare, and researchers want to save it for transportation.
The zinc battery that OSU researchers created shows a competitive efficiency to the long-used lithium-ion battery.
“Coulombic efficiency” refers to the rate at which electrons flow between the anode and cathode in a battery. The lower the CE, the more the battery’s efficiency will decrease after each cycle of electron flow.
Lithium-ion batteries have been developed by researchers for about 30 years, and have
Ji said that if the batteries are commercialized, their lifespan could reach 10 to 15 years.
Though Ji is looking to improve the cathode part of the battery, he is encouraged by this breakthrough, as he has been working on different types of energy storage batteries for a decade at OSU.
“We have been going through several different types of batteries… sodium batteries, potassium batteries, proton batteries, ammonium,” Ji said. “Addressing the storage challenge for energy has been one of the primary goals of my lab.”
That means this battery is not explosive, it’s non-flammable and potentially cost-effective.
- Xiulei “David” Ji, professor of chemistry at OSU
or try out?”
Lame understood that coming in as a walk-on freshman participating in team camps meant that he would be at the bottom of the pecking order.
By BENJAMIN RABBINO Sports ChiefAs a young boy, Zach Lame (pronounced Luh-May) wanted to follow in the footsteps of his father, who had played soccer his whole life and kicked his first soccer ball as an infant with the help of his babysitter.
“Soccer was a pretty big influence in my life,” Lame said.
Growing up in Sherman Oaks, California, a town about 20 minutes outside of Los Angeles, Lame strived to become the best athlete that he could be, spending his time both on the pitch and on the golf course.
“I did play golf as another competitive sport growing up, but ultimately, I think around age 12 is where I wanted to go forward with it (soccer),” Lame said.
His commitment and dedication to the sport of soccer led him to great opportunities that could enhance his skills and potentially network with some of the nation’s best talent.
“I played up an age group just to kind of step myself up and push myself to another level, and then at my U-14 level made our academy travel team, so I got to play some of the greatest competition in the U.S.,” Lame said.
During Lame’s sophomore year of high school, he started to look for college opportunities where he could spend his next four years.
“I always kind of wanted to go out of state for school. I originally was looking at the Midwest for colleges, just because I wanted to be a little bit closer to my grandma,” Lame said.
Eventually landing on Oregon State, and studying Business and Management, Lame has been grateful for the memories that he has made here.
As for the start of his college soccer career, it started with a competition that ultimately led to uncertainty on if he could make the Oregon State team, at the time run by Terry Boss.
“I remember when I came here for START (weekend), that was the same week they (Oregon State) had their college ID camp,” Lame said. “I went into the camp and talked to the coaches about it, saying, ‘Hey, what are the odds of me at least coming in to practice
“I did relatively well at the camp. But in soccer, you can do well at a camp, but you still have to play or train and beat out the guys on the team,” Lame said.
After the START weekend on campus, Lame decided to expand his circle of friends and join the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.
“Freshman year for me … being a California kid, friends weren't all around me … joining the fraternity gave me the chance to meet a lot of great people. I am still very close friends with people to this day,” Lame said. “I was halfway through freshman year and I was like, ‘You know, maybe this lifestyle isn't so bad.’”
As Lame was just starting to get into the
and all of that kind of stuff. Then you have the people who try to make helpful tips and just do that,” Lame said. “For me, I wanted to get into the motivational or the sports side of it.”
Amassing 1,900 followers and 98K likes on TikTok, Lame has found levels of success on the app having videos with over 1M views.
Moving back into his fraternity house in Corvallis during his sophomore year of college, he was joined by only 26 others who elected to come back to Corvallis for the fully online 2020-21 school year. Through this time, Lame was still pursuing any soccer opportunities that may arise during the pandemic.
When Lame saw an ad on Facebook to join the Almenara Athletic Club in Spain during the spring, he decided to apply without knowing if he would ever hear anything back from the program.
Weeks had passed since applying and when he was starting to forget about it, a director from the International Development Academy sent back a message wanting to know more about Lame.
“Honestly, that was something that just came out of the blue for me,” Lame said.
in Spain to be the last time he played competitive soccer, so he got back to training.
“I got healed and started kicking a ball again. I was like, ‘Well, I'll give it one more shot, because it doesn't hurt to try,’” Lame said.
His ankle held up, and Lame’s motivation was back to where it needed to be to put him in the best position to play divisionone soccer at Oregon State.
Alongside consistent training, Lame spent his time working as a student manager for the men’s soccer team during the Fall of 2022. During this time, Lame was heavily involved with the men’s soccer team, ensuring equipment and uniforms were organized and maintained, working with assistant coaches to make sure the drills were running correctly, which gave him opportunities to pick up on the team's schematics throughout the process.
“Usually with there being a heavy international influence, a lot of kids decide to go home and opt-out for the winter season,” Lame said. “On rare occasions when people would want to do extra training or play small-sided on weekends when they're not playing, I would reach out to them (Oregon State) and be like, ‘Hey, can I join and be an extra number?’”
Lame was able to participate with the team during drills for the winter season making a name for himself around the coaching office. He was presented with a two-week trial period in which he would do everything with the team, including lifts, practices, and scrimmages.
groove of things his freshman year, the COVID-19 pandemic sent everyone home, and for him, back to Sherman Oaks with nothing to do but work on himself and his soccer dream.
“I had a backyard with a soccer ball and I went to work,” Lame said.
Through this time, Lame was motivated by a Portland-based YouTuber, Matt Sheldon who runs the channel ‘Become Elite’, who kickstarted a passion of his which would be recording his workouts and progress to share with friends and people who were interested in soccer.
When he first started creating soccer videos on social media, Lame was unsure if his videos would find the right audience.
“You have the people who do the dances,
After multiple meetings with his parents and the director about all the details of the program he decided to go to Spain after a couple of months of deliberation.
Being located in a small town outside Valencia, Lame lived and became close with his teammates from the Almenara Athletic Club.
“The organization I did it with was called IDA (International Development Academy), it was a great group. What they do is they take all foreign players or people who are not necessarily from Spain … and you'll be with a whole bunch of international kids and like top-level coaches,” Lame said.
Arriving later in the club's seasons and initially starting with the club’s B-team, Lame remembers back to the initial feeling of playing soccer at the level that he was.
“I remember being announced on their Instagram and stuff like that. I would never have thought I'd be playing in the fifth division in Spain,” Lame said. “Even though it's obviously the fifth division, it's still something that's pretty crazy. Considering, you know, I’m just a kid from Sherman Oaks.”
It was not the most ideal start for Lame, as he was struck with an early injury.
“I almost even came back in December (2021),” Lame said. “Four games through my season there, I fractured my ankle.”
Being told at first that it could have possibly been a sprained ankle rather than a break, Lame decided to ride through the pain and hope that his ankle eventually got better. Unfortunately, the doctor's optimism wasn’t accurate.
“I went back (to California) and saw a doctor and he said, ‘there’s a hairline fracture in your foot,’” Lame said.
Now, back in the United States with his focus on the rehabilitation of his injured ankle, Lame was presented with the realization that his soccer playing days could be finished.
“It was tough because…in soccer, 21 is considered an old age. If you're not where you want to be at 21 or 22, then you're as good as done,” Lame said.
However, Lame did not want his experience
“The two-week period came, I was locked in. I wanted to do well,” Lame said. “I finally got my shot, I was like, ‘this is probably the last shot I have and if I don’t make it, then I graduate and move on with life.’”
His hard work paid off and he was rewarded with a full-time winter roster position leading into another full-time spring roster finalization.
“It's definitely nice being on the other side, but I am really happy to have worked with the group I did work with,” Lame said, speaking about his time as a student manager.
He has earned the respect of his peers and teammates through the short time that he has been with the team, including team captain Javier Armas.
“You can tell that he (Lame) cares about being here,” Armas said. “He is a good player and brings a good attitude to practice every day.”
Lame enters his first full term on the team, and conversations with current head coach Greg Dalby have led to offers of returning full-time next fall during the main season. His goal for this next year is to contribute and to win as a team.
“I think a win for me would be to get some minutes in PAC-12 play,” Lame said. “But if that wasn't the case, I think a win for me
| continued on PAGE 7 |
I got healed and started kicking a ball again. I was like, ‘Well, I'll give it one more shot, because it doesn't hurt to try.'
- Zach Lame, OSU men's team soccer player
I was halfway through freshman year and I was like, ‘You know, maybe this lifestyle isn't so bad.’
- Zach Lame, OSU men's team soccer player
It’s that time again where we crack open the Barometer Sports PO box. I read your Oregon State sports questions and I answer them in the DAM Mailbag.
Q: Impact of Jade Carey on OSU Gymnastics recruiting? -
@WARRENDGRAY
A: The impact of Jade Carey on Oregon State Gymnastics recruiting is definitely a big factor. Now, I don’t think that she’s the sole reason for recruits deciding to come to Oregon State but an appealing factor for sure. I don’t want to take away from the success that program has had both historically and nationally as well as from the individual accomplishments of gymnasts that have competed for the Beavers. I think that for a recruit getting to compete with and learn from an Olympic gold medalist gymnast would be an important factor in deciding where to take their gymnastics career at the college level.
Q: Why has this season been disappointing so far for Beaver Softball? I thought they would take the next step after last season’s success? - WES FLOW
A: I would agree with you in the assessment of this season, but that’s mainly because of all the injuries the team has suffered,
including injuries to Savanah Whatley, Sara Haendiges, and Kiki Escobar to name a few players. The team has been decimated by injuries and that’s forced head coach Laura Berg to play a bunch of different players and shift players positions around on the field to mitigate those losses. The record for the team also doesn’t tell the full story either as in some games they’ve been competitive despite their injuries, but at the same time haven’t been able to close them out either. Looking ahead to next season, I do expect the team to be much healthier and improved. I think this is an anomaly of a season and wouldn’t expect the struggles of this season to occur again in 2024.
Q: If Jonathan Smith turns DJ into the quarterback he was projected to be out of high school, how worried should Beaver Nation be that Smith gets a coaching offer that he can’t turn down (NFL or bigger college)? - BRIAN RATHBONE
A: If he does, I don’t think Smith ends up at another college partly because of him raising his family here and the time it takes for a coach to establish a new culture. With him already being a head coach of a top-20 team there’s no other place he could go to. Personally, I think that an NFL opportunity could be possible for Smith in the future based on
what he’s been able to accomplish during his coaching career before and at Oregon State. I could see him earning maybe a position coach role or a coordinator position, but I think it would have to be with the right team and system. However, with Smith’s current contract extension locking him in until the 2029 season with Beaver Football and with how much he loves Corvallis, I’d say that Beaver Nation should not be really worried about him leaving for now.
Q: What are you expecting out of sophomore running back Damien Martinez this season? Also how has the defense looked so far this spring? - @SEANKETZ23
A: I’m expecting Damien Martinez to be better than last season and reach the 1,000-yard rushing mark, which he was close to his freshman year. I also expect Martinez to be a little more involved in the passing game with him improving his pass protection as that is something that running backs coach Bhonapha has emphasized in the offseason. In terms of the defense, they have looked solid so far in camp, there’s still some things to work on with figuring out starters for positions groups like inside linebacker and cornerback. However, there’s a lot of good depth in those groups and starting positions won’t be decided till fall camp rolls around.
Q: Any indication of players feeling the pressure to outperform last year? The bar has been raised and I’m worried it can get to some of them - JOSH HARLEY
A: Not really, I understand the concern though, but I haven’t seen any indication from the players that I’ve talked to in spring
practices. However, the players know the expectations are higher this year after the success of last season and that they’re looking to improve upon that success, which every player has echoed the sentiment. Offensive lineman Jake Levengood echoed that sentiment in a post practice interview for spring football on Tuesday, April 11 mentioning that the goal is to go from good to great and great to best, which the Beavers want to be at when the season starts on Sept 3. So, I think that Beaver Nation shouldn’t be too worried about the players feeling that pressure, that hunger to get better is there like it was last year and the players are committed to being better than last year.
Q: Do you think the past month for Beaver Baseball was a turnaround that will continue throughout the rest of the season? -
CALEB POWELLA: I think the past month was a big turnaround for the team, they found some momentum and are going to carry this throughout the season. I also agree the team was struggling at times in games to score runs to go along with shaky pitching performances but that’s also part of baseball at the same time, it’s going to happen. Now, I understand the expectations that are around this team every year and I get it especially with a team that’s earned three national championships, but fans must relax and not act like the sky is falling when these struggles occur. Now, with that being said I do expect this team to make it to the post-season otherwise it would be a failure.
Q: How do you think the Oregon State Men’s Basketball team will look next season? - SAM MISA
The House of Representatives passed the transgender athletes ban on April 20.
This ban would prohibit transgender athletes whose sex assigned at birth was male from competing on girls’ or women’s sports teams at federally supported schools and colleges under legislation.
Supporters of the legislation said that ban is necessary to “ensure competitive fairness” and would put violators at risk of losing tax dollars, according to ESPN.
This decision would follow the steps of 20 other states that have implemented and imposed similar regulations on transgender athletes at the K-12 or collegiate level.
This bill, if passed, would change the landmark civil rights legislation of Title IX, which works to protect student athletes from sex-based discrimination at any school that receives federal funding.
Transgender athlete, Oliver Cochener, regards the ban as a setback.
“I will say it is disheartening to see people celebrate discrimination against others,” Cochener said. “I feel athletic policies should not be made by our government as many people choose to play sports for fun and most leagues already have their own policies to fit their own sports.”
Even though the bill was approved by a 219-203 party-line vote, it has been reported that the advancement of the bill is expected to stop here, as it is said the Senate will not support [the bill] and the White House already declared that President Joe Biden would veto it.
“Oregon State University extends rights and protections beyond those currently required under federal or state law, specifically based on gender identity and gender expression,” Interim Executive Director and Title IX Coordinator Susan Freccia said.
OSU and OSU Athletes are a part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association institution, which regulates student athletes across the country, Canada and Puerto Rico. Due to this, OSU and all of its constituents are required to follow NCAA regulations and policies, including policies pertaining to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging.
Per the NCAA website, the NCAA Transgender Student-Athlete Participation policy “aligns transgender student-athlete participation with the Olympic Movement… the updated NCAA policy calls for transgender student-athlete participation for each sport to be determined by the policy for the national governing body of that sport.”
According to Kimya Massey, Deputy Athletic Director and Chief Operating Officer for the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Steering Committee, both OSU and OSU Athletics follow the NCAA policy that has taken a sport-by-sport approach.
“In addition, we strongly believe that inclusivity is a hallmark of the university and OSU Athletics, this is who we are,” Massey stated. “We believe in inclusion for all of our student-athletes and always strive to ensure that everyone is given the resources needed to be successful on and off the fields of play.”
According to OSU’s sexual misconduct and discrimination policy, the university is committed to creating and maintaining an
equitable and inclusive working and learning environment as the “university embraces and respects differences in sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation among all individuals.”
This policy also addresses that, “All individuals who are participating in university programs and activities have the right to do so fully, free from sexual misconduct, discrimination, and retaliation.”
OSU’s sexual misconduct and discrimination policy was established in line with Title IX, including the Education Amendments of 1972, the Violence Against Women Act of 1994, the Campus Sexual Violence Elimination Act of 2013, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as well as other applicable state and federal civil rights laws.
“When a student-athlete shares that they identify as transgender, we ensure that they have access to the resources they need to be successful in all aspects of their life here at Oregon State,” Massey said. “The university and OSU Athletics offer specific training and programming around multiple dimensions of diversity and identity to support all student-athletes as needed.”
A: I think it’s a little too early to give an exact prediction until things get settled with the transfer portal, departures from the team, and the new incoming freshman into the program. Now, I would expect this team to be improved and win more than 11 games, which won’t cut it by any means in terms of being a successful season, but it will still be better than the 3-28 season two years ago. I do think that a potential expectation for the Beavers’ record for the 202324 season would be somewhere around .500, but that’s a very early prediction before seeing the finalized roster.
Q: Any word on how Kelze Howard and Thomas Collins have looked in spring practice? Or any other D-lineman standing out? - @BEAVERSFAN69
A: Both Kelze Howard and Thomas Collins have looked good so far in spring practices, but Howard has gotten a lot more buzz throughout spring practices than Collins. Howard arrived on campus in winter term and has dealt with a bit of an early learning curve thrown at him but has picked up the playbook so far in spring practices. Howard could potentially have a role as a contributor on the defensive line this season depending on how fall camp looks for him, but we’ll have to wait and see. The other linemen on the defensive side of the ball that have stood out to me so far are Takari Hickle, Sione Lolohea, and Joe Golden.
Hey readers! Want your Oregon State Sports questions answered on The DAM mailbag? Submit them to me on Twitter @ RYAN_HARLAN7 or by email HARLANR@OREGONSTATE.EDU
Continued from PAGE 6
would be being PAC-12 champion. I know everyone in our locker room wants to win, so even a college cup, I think that's like the cherry on top. Being able to make that trip to the final four for soccer would be insane.”
Overcoming adversity and rehabbing from an ankle injury for the past year never detoured him from chasing his goal, no matter how hard it may have gotten.
“I wanted this to happen before senior year, but I had to deal with the cards I was dealt,” Lame said.
On April 8, Lame’s name was called by the coaching staff with around 20 minutes left in the match to enter the game.
“I remember just being on the sideline, like, ‘This is gonna happen. I worked very hard for this and now I get my chance,’” Lame said. “It was a nice feeling to get (my) first game, first appearance, and first win. I think it comes with sacrifices and failures.”
Senior Luke Ness, one of Lame’s five roommates, attended the Beavers’ first Spring match against Varsity FC, staying the entirety of the match, not wanting to miss the potential moment of Lame achieving his childhood dream.
“I think it was cool, it was something he was always talking about doing,” said Ness. “He proved a lot of people wrong. He went all the way to Spain to play soccer and came back never giving up on what he wanted to do, not a lot of people can say that.”
Although the future is uncertain, Lame has had to think about his future in life and what he wants to accomplish outside of soccer.
“My main goal after soccer, once I hang up the boots, would be to work in the sports business world … maybe event management or retail sales management, all of that,” Lame said. “Whatever I can do in sports, I think that would be cool. Doesn't need to just be soccer. I'm an avid sports fan. Obviously, growing up in L.A., one of the best sports cities in the world … if I got the chance to work back home, that'd be great.”
At times he questioned if his body had enough left in the tank to make it to the division-one level, but Lame never gave up on his goal Lame shows how dreams can come to reality.
Artificial Intelligence, something once seemingly reserved for sci-fi films like The Terminator and Blade Runner, has now become a part of everyday life thanks to the rise of AI programs like ChatGPT that will have positive and negative ramifications..
Since ChatGPT’s launch in November, it seems that new AI programs are appearing everywhere from Google to Bing and even Snapchat. While these novel programs are often fun and entertaining for people, there are many longer-lasting effects that may permanently impact life as we know it.
Alan Fern, Oregon State University's Executive Director of AI research for the college of engineering, said he first became interested in AI back in high school thanks to Star-Trek’s robot, Data. He worked on AIrelated projects in high school and as an undergraduate research assistant at University of Maine before completing his master’s and Ph.D in computer engineering at Purdue University.
Now, Fern has been at OSU for 18 years, dedicated to working with AI.
“It is a challenge to keep up with the accelerated progress in recent years, but that is a wonderful problem to have,” Fern said.
According to Fern, human-computer interaction is going to change drastically thanks to developments in AI, especially now that it’s possible to use English as the primary interface between humans and computers and it’s easier to simply tell computers what to do.
“I have wasted so much time in my life trying to (find out) out a particular way of doing something in Excel or some programming language, even though I knew exactly how to describe what I wanted in English,” Fern said. “The children of today are going to find it crazy that we weren’t able to talk to our machines in English.”
According to Fern, there are “revolutionary” implications for AI’s impact on education, and students in this generation have a “first to market advantage” to affect the upcoming progress which will likely be of high value to society.
Fern pointed out that the United States’ current education system doesn’t work for everyone and AI may help to “reshape” that system into something that works better.
“Imagine a highly personalized virtual teaching assistant for each student that is overseen and works with a real human teacher,” Fern said. “If I were a young person today, interested in helping people flourish, diving into AI-enabled education could be a
GUN POLICY
very satisfying way of doing that.”
Fern also suggested AI may be a “game changer” for people battling writer’s block, or even those whose native language is not English, and he encourages education on AI use across the board.
“If a student can do the work purely with current AI tools, then I might argue that the problem might be with the assignment rather than the tools,” Fern said. “In some sense, language models might level the playing field, where currently eloquence is often valued more highly than the ideas expressed.”
Fern acknowledged that some positions in the workplace may be eliminated as advances in technology make tasks more affordable, but said that job availability
where socially-minded young people can have a huge impact.”
As for art, Fern admitted AI image generation will likely reduce the need for certain kinds of art due to the reduction of the cost of producing said art, requiring some artists to adapt, but compared this to the photograph changing the need for handpainted portraits.
“This decrease in the price of art will allow for new types of media, which could very well create new types of jobs,” Fern said.
Fern said AI, particularly language models, can help workers such as journalists by completing mundane tasks, allowing the journalist to focus on doing more important work.
A journalist who primarily summarizes
Fern added that AI itself can be used to deal with issues arising from misused AI tools, much like the early issues with spam emails before spam detection technology advanced to the point it has today.
“There will likely be an entire economy around the development and application of AI tools to combat misuse of AI and related technologies,” Fern said. “I’m very glad that we did not ban email because of the initial bumps in the road.”
According to Fern, there are ongoing talks about potential regulations and pauses in terms of the development of some AI models, including a potential six month pause in the development of AI, although he said this letter doesn’t necessarily reflect the views of AI experts.
Fern believes it would be better to regulate the use of these technologies rather than banning them outright.
According to Inara Scott, associate dean for teaching and learning and the Gomo family professor in the college of business, her role has been to “elevate the culture of teaching within the college.”
“I’m always looking for how we can improve our pedagogy and what we do in the classroom to better reach students and serve our students,” Scott said.
has historically increased due to advances in technology and he hasn’t seen a good argument for why this time would be any different.
“This eventual increase (in jobs) may come after a transitional period that will be
news online to get clicks can be replaced by these models.
“Rather, a serious journalist who goes into the world, identifies important stories, find sources, does the ground work and produces real information is not going to be replaced anytime soon, if ever…AI will be a superpower that the best journalists will learn to use.”
In extreme cases, there is a “spectrum of worry” about the potential dangers of AI in terms of jobs being replaced or even the extinction of humanity, but Fern said this is often due to personal bias and lack of education on the topic. He said he finds the theories for an AI-caused catastrophe to be “philosophically interesting,” but extremely unlikely.
According to Fern, users not properly understanding the limitations of the technology at first will lead to more problems than the technology itself, referencing people who trusted too deeply in self-driving cars and ended up in fatal accidents.
Scott heard about ChatGPT when it was first released and quickly saw “huge potential” to change things in the classroom. She said she initially thought faculty may be able to find a way around it by changing some methodology to create a “ChatGPTfree classroom,” but has since realized that is unlikely.
According to Scott it’s a challenge to find which student work has been influenced by using ChatGPT and difficult to develop assignments and discussion boards that students can’t easily complete via ChatGPT, despite faculties’ best efforts.
Scott said it’s difficult to know whether a student has completed an assignment or AI has. She also warned that ChatGPT is often wrong in its generated answers, which makes it problematic for students using it to generate schoolwork beyond issues with cheating and plagiarism.
“My biggest concern is that we don’t have a structure in place to ensure that students are going to continue to engage with our curriculum,” Scott said.
There is, however, massive potential for the use of AI in different fields and Scott believes it will affect most of them.
painful for some workers, which has been the historical precedent,” Fern said. “In an economy as rich as the U.S. we certainly have the potential to assist these workers through the transition. This is another place
“Most people, however, understand now that one must carefully monitor a self-driving car—human judgment is still required,” Fern said. “Similarly, people will need to learn that language models like GPT are generators of text that may or may not be true or exactly what you want.”
“Everything from automating writing tasks to helping us brainstorm new ideas to helping us analyze data.” Scott said. “Really, once you start seeing what the technology can do, it’s going to enter just about every workplace.”
Though new gun control laws under Measure 114 were approved in Oregon by voters in November, the laws are still stuck in limbo due to court challenges.
Despite not knowing when or in what form updated gun laws will be passed, Benton County is preparing to enforce the pending gun control measures as if they will be approved by Oregon courts any day, to avoid a rocky transition period.
Senate Bill 348, which was proposed in place of Measure 114, mandates a permit to buy a gun starting July 1, 2024, requires state police to complete a background check before gun sale or transfer, raises the minimum age required for gun purchase from 18 to 21 – with some exceptions – bans high-capacity magazines and sets a 72-hour waiting period before a sale or transfer can be completed, once a background check is approved.
SB 348 was passed out of the Oregon Senate Judiciary Committee on April 4. Since passing through the SJC in early April, SB 348 has been sent to the Joint Committee on Ways and Means, and is being further reviewed.
“When the voters passed (Measure 114), implementation was, of course, a large concern,” Benton County Sheriff Jef Van Arsdall said.
Van Arsdall preemptively hired additional staff to prepare to handle gun permits that the law in limbo – as written now –would require.
Van Arsdall said he does not want these changes to keep anyone who is eligible under the new restrictions from purchasing a firearm.
“The sheriff’s office isn’t going to be the hiccup in somebody exercising their 2nd Amendment (rights) and their ability to purchase a firearm,” Van Arsdall said. “Regardless of when this goes into effect, I do have somebody on staff that will do the permit-to-purchase process.”
Though Van Arsdall is not sure what form the gun control laws will take after the current court processing and what all they will entail, he hired Shelby Moody as a temporary employee for the time being, and plans on opening up the position to full-time.
Moody, who completed a degree in criminal justice at Western Oregon University and has worked on concealed handgun licenses with background checks as part of her education, said that if the permit laws are passed, her position
would allow implementation of the laws virtually immediately.
“The concern was that, technically, if (the gun control law) passes, we could have to enforce it as soon as the next day or that week,” Moody said. “It was something that
we wanted to be prepared for right away if needed.”
Though Van Arsdall has done the preparatory work necessary to enforce the proposed gun control measures, he said that he wants to make sure the measures don’t prohibit survivors, victims or Benton County citizens without a criminal history from being able to possess firearms.
Van Arsdall said even though gun sales in Oregon are strict, police departments in and near Corvallis arrest people every month for being in possession of firearms.
“Do we have a violence problem?” Van Arsdall said. “I think we do, and I think the gun is the vehicle.”
Van Arsdall does harbor some concern about the magazine capacity limit proposed by both Measure 114 and SB 348, as there is no exemption in the law for off-duty law enforcement or military personnel from carrying firearms with a magazine capacity greater than 10 rounds.
In anticipation to this, Van Arsdall has purchased 10-round magazines for his staff, so they can be prepared to still use firearms legally when off duty.
“I’ve been doing it my entire adult life, carrying a firearm off duty,” Van Arsdall said. “What I would hope people expect of my law enforcement partners (is) to be able to respond to something that happens right here and right now.”
The children of today are going to find it crazy that we weren’t able to talk to our machines in English.
- Alan Fern, OSU's executive director of AI research for the college of engineering
Last year alone there were 124 attacks against events involving drag across the United States, and now that violence is seeping into the colorful drag community of Corvallis.
Although many critics see drag as an act of crossdressing, according to Dharma Mirza, drag performer and graduate student studying women, gender and sexuality studies at Oregon State University, drag is a celebration of gender.
“Drag really is just folks using gender and aesthetics to perform either a gender different than their own, or a hyperexaggerated version of themself their own gender or something entirely out of this world,” Mirza said.
Whiteside Theatre, Max’s Food and More and Biere Library are a few spaces where drag performers participate in events around Corvallis.
“It's really great because here it's different than a lot of the scene in Oregon,” Mirza said. “It's been rooted in education, it’s been rooted in queer and trans of color liberation. We've always centered queer and trans people of color in the scene.”
Fernando De Los Santos, a local drag performer whose drag name is Carmela La Madrina, is the Haus mother of the Haus of Indica, where he and his co-producer hold a monthly show called “Saucy Saturdays.”
“Drag creates community amongst local and out of town queens,” De Los Santos said, “we get to know each other and see each other's art flourish and grow with time we all cheer each other on.”
Mithril Ajootian, a local Corvallis performer who goes by Charlotte D. Harlotte in drag, says that while drag is doing well in Corvallis, the recent violence surrounding drag events is “extremely concerning.”
“I canceled participating in a show last month because we had gotten so many anonymous threats of violence to a drag brunch, I was rightfully scared,” Ajootian said.
Ajootian said performers in the Haus of Dharma, a local Corvallis drag organization started by Mirza, are split in their opinions as to how they plan to handle these threats. Some individuals feel it’s time to lay low but others believe it’s the moment to be louder than ever before.
According to Mirza, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic swept the world, there was an uptick in trans violence which ultimately lead into drag violence.
“People are experiencing a lot of violence. I've never felt actually scared to do drag until this year, like this is coming
HOUSELESSNESS
up (on) 10 years of tenure as a community organizer and drag queen,” Mirza said. “I used to walk around in Albany, in like skag drag, 18 years old and not be afraid. But now I'm afraid leaving my house.”
Ahead of an early April drag brunch held at Biere Library, Mirza, who was set to perform in the event, received death threats and feared the event would be canceled.
Recently advertisements for the all ages drag brunches held at Biere Library have added a content warning including content warnings for potential strong language, suggestive humor and body positive expression, according to Mirza.
On April 2, the day of the brunch, protestors were waiting outside of Biere Library and as Mirza got out of her car. They stuck phones in her face and began taking pictures of her and her car.
During this, local community members and event security came to Mirza’s aid, outnumbering the protestors, and the protesters left.
According to Mirza, the best way for OSU students and Corvallis residents to take action amidst the concerning climate is to support local organizations like Haus of Dharma, Haus of Indica and the venues that currently hold performances in the community.
In fact, financially supporting the venues by attending events means getting the drag performers paid for their performances. Many drag performers rely on these events and monetization of their social media accounts as a part of their income. De Los Santos said showing up and supporting local events will help create a safe space for all to participate in Corvallis drag.
As for the future of drag in Corvallis, Mirza envisions having a designated space for drag, as the current spaces have limited capacities, only being able to turn into a drag space for a day. She hopes this designated permanent drag space will take the form of a gay bar opening in Corvallis someday.
De Los Santos hopes drag is accessible to everyone who wants to participate without the fear of violence, wondering if it’ll be their last show.
“I hope we can express ourselves without the backlash of ignorant anger and misunderstanding. We are not dangerous, we are not perverted or dirty. We are beautiful, sacred and divine. We are living art” Ajootian said.
From top to bottom, Richard Rider (he/ fae/they/xies), Charlotte D. Harlotte (they/ them), Crusty (they/them/him) and Frisky the Transgender Reindeer (she/her) performing at Bombs Away Cafe on April 20. Bombs Away Cafe and Haus of Dharma hosted this event as a 4/20 event and to support the queer community.
A state Bill passed last year gave Corvallis $1 million to support the homeless, however, the removal of the city’s Housing Operational Committee has delayed the process. House Bill 4123 passed last year, allowing The Oregon Department of Administrative Services to provide grants to local governments and nonprofit corporations that agree to create a coordinated homeless response system.
Benton County stated on their website, the City of Corvallis and them hope to build organizational capacity, strengthen the sheltering system, and support a coordinated homelessness response, with the help of local community partners.
According to them, in the past year, shelter bed capacity increased by 44%.
The county is also in communication with other grant recipients to research the most sustainable model, while ensuring an equity-based approach to homelessness support.
In the wake of a meeting on Jan. 17, the Albany Democrat-Herald reported the city manager, Mark Shepard, chose to remove the HOC from the review process for nonprofit grant applications, citing the process “flawed.”
Applications from Benton County and Unity Shelter, a nonprofit organization, were rejected because they didn’t meet cost-benefit expectations. This prompted Shepard to pause the process to get more information before deciding to pull the plug.
“Recent efforts by the city to contract with nonprofits for social services have felt more appropriate to buying a fleet of trucks than a cooperative grant-making process,” Shawn
Collins, executive director at Unity Shelter, said at a city council meeting reported on by the Democrat-Herald.
Collins claimed that closed-door discussions from the city are limiting what can be said publicly by those involved. He said that public funding should involve the public, not just staff experts.
development, wrote in an email, “In the past, there have been organizations who just came to a council meeting, asked for funds, and were granted them from the council discretionary budget with a vote of the council. That is perfectly fine legally with discretionary budgets, but it does not work with state and federal funds.”
their website that a common form of fraud is contracting and procurement frauds in community development organizations.
“The city is just adapting to the new funding landscape where there are now so many more state and federal funds available to the city, so we need to evolve our processes accordingly. Our old methods were not well suited to state and federal funding sources,” Bilotta wrote.
The funding process change also altered the role of the HOC, however, they are still working on housing issues. Bilotta clarified that it was the process itself that was “flawed” and not the people working on the committee.
“Our Housing Operational Committee will still be actively involved on all things related to housing, including helping us decide funding priorities, etc. They just won’t be doing the technical exercise of scoring the applications,” Bilotta wrote.
“This process change is permanent.”
Bilotta wrote that non-profit service provider input is still sought after. For example, the city reached out to a number of service providers when they wanted to understand the most critical prioritized needs for the community as part of the state’s five-year Consolidated Plan.
In the council meeting, he asked for some avenue to allow community engagement and influence.
According to the article, a large, financial part of Unity Shelter’s cost estimate included improving existing operations, as opposed to funding new beds which was specified in the request for proposals from the city; so it was rejected.
Paul Bilotta, director of community
According to him, since the amount of state and federal funding has increased dramatically, there are different legal requirements around those funds. “With state and federal funds, the focus is on ensuring their funds are distributed in a fair, open, competitive and legally compliant manner,” Bilotta wrote.
The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development states on
According to him, non-profit service provider input is still important, but it is also important when that input occurs and the type of input it is. For example, allowing extra input during the funding process could be intended or perceived to give an advantage to one applicant over another.
“This process change will definitely speed up getting aid to the people that need it. We can score applications and make funding decisions in days whereas the old process used to take weeks or months,” Bilotta wrote.
The continuing struggles of a term that represents too many people and underrepresents communities it aims to highlight
In recent years, we’ve seen a growing use of the term AAPI, Asian American Pacific Islander. But does it really represent all the people it claims to?
This term is mainly used to describe people of all identities and backgrounds relating to heritage or connection to countries and regions within the Asian continent and the Pacific Islands.
The U.S. Census Bureau first used the term “Asian and Pacific Islander” in the 1980s as a category to group peoples of Asian ancestry. Later, in 2000, the category would be separated into “Asian Americans” and “Native Hawaiians and Other Pacific Islanders.”
As we celebrate AAPI month, we’re in a time where education and awareness on our issues is becoming ever more prevalent. The term AAPI, that has remained in the common vernacular when referring to people of over 60 countries full of distinct cultures and identities. The term has minimized problems of specific groups, left out communities that are not conventionally a part of the stereotype of being “Asian” and a whole multitude of other issues.
“‘Historically Asians and Pacific Islanders were grouped together by government classifications,’” said Tihani Mitchell, a first-year political science major, who identifies as Native Hawaiian and Tahitian, quoting the Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence. “I guess that kind of says it all, you know, we were grouped together because of classifications. And while our different, minority backgrounds share a lot of commonalities, we're so diverse and we're so different.”
One common issue with the term is media representation and how certain communities are portrayed on screen and in the stories that are written about them. Many minority groups within specific AAPI countries often don’t have their stories told.
Mavi Brar, a fourth-year public health major, said as a Punjabi Indian American, there’s not enough coverage for people to know anything about her culture and religion, Sikhism.
“Unfortunately, my community doesn’t receive the attention that we need, even living in America, and it’s sad that many people don’t even know about us despite Sikhism being the fifth-largest religion in the world,” Brar said.
Brar said even major issues affecting her community back in India had little to no coverage, like the 2020-21 farmers’ protests.
“Farmers from all over India… blocked major highways into the city of Delhi for a whole year and peacefully protested until the laws were repealed… This was the world's largest protest, yet many people I’ve talked to over here don’t know about it, because there was not enough media representation,” Brar explained.
There are many cases of “minority” communities with significant population sizes in the U.S. that often get less media coverage. For example, the Hmong population is the ninth-largest AAPI community in the US, but are rarely discussed in the media because they don’t come from a specific country; rather, they are from multiple countries.
Even with on-screen AAPI
representation, many communities that get the chance to be featured are pushed to the side in favor of people that are seen as the conventional “Asian”.
For example, in “Crazy Rich Asians,” a movie set in Singapore that received rave reviews, casting missed the mark on bringing in representation that actually portrayed the true diversity of the island.
Singapore consists of a variety of different ethnic groups including Chinese, Indian, Malay and other Southeast Asian cultures. The movie mainly shows wealthy Chinese characters and excludes more marginalized Asian cultures that typically have darker skin tones.
Mitchell expressed similar sentiments with colorism in the casting of the upcoming live-action remake of “Lilo and Stitch”.
“My issue is that it's not about heritage, it's about representation… There are certain things that people that are just from Hawai’i can't talk on, because you'll never be able to understand it,” Mitchell said.
not a language. That doesn't mean that I didn't go all the way and take the six years of schooling to learn the language,” Mitchell said. This experience illustrates the lack of representation in language classes for cultures that aren’t usually associated with western perceptions of “Asian,” mainly Pacific Island languages and nonEast Asian languages.
Mitchell, who is also from Hawaii, said she didn’t feel immediate belonging when she went to her first meeting for Hui’ O Hawai’i, OSU’s Hawaiian student association.
a very white community in town, so finding where I belong is really difficult,” Fastelin explained.
Fastelin also discussed how many TRAs are not accustomed to the intricacies of their own heritage.
“A lot of times, TRAs have ethnic socialization, like our families bring us up, and they're like, oh, let's go to this Asian restaurant, let's introduce you to this Asian tradition (and) this is a holiday that you should know about. But because they're white, they don't know what it's like to be Asian. And so they can't teach us racial socialization, which helps us combat racism and microaggressions,” Fastelin said.
experience is… You have a support system that gets you and you're always welcome there. And it's also supposed to mean that a diversity of different experiences exists within the term and are valid. But, of course, I feel like a lot of us don't actually experience this,” Fastelin said.
While we're starting to see more progress in highlighting issues and creating spaces for people from all over the AAPI community, more needs to be done from not only a societal standpoint, but even here in the OSU community.
Mitchell also discussed representation issues among the term AAPI for Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders as a whole.
“It really upset me that we are grouped with other Asian communities because this was yet another Western European mindset that just allowed for more ignorance… One of the big things that hurt me specifically when I moved to the mainland from Hawai’i was how Native Hawaiians were hardly recognized as an independent and Indigenous community,” Mitchell said.
Typically, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Island identities like Fijian, Marshallese, Samoan, Papua New Guinean and many more are not invited to conversations and spaces dedicated to AAPI, even though they comprise literally half of the AAPI term.
According to Michell this erases aspects of history and culture that are crucial to Pacific Islander culture.
“My culture and my history is so important to my identity as an Indigenous woman, and I think that other Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders could say the same thing,” Mitchell explained.
Prior to coming to Oregon State University, Mitchell taught Native Hawaiian history and has always had a strong connection to her community and culture, to the point where she previously wanted to take on Native Hawaiian history as a major. She even learned the Native Hawaiian language, ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, for six years prior to OSU.
“I took a level five language, ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, back in my old school, but it was an issue in transferring the credits because, (OSU) didn't really see it as a language, because they didn't teach it at OSU. Just because you don't teach it doesn't mean it's
“Normally I'm not this fair skin(ned), I haven't been home in six months, so I was a lot darker back then,” Mitchell said. “But I just got a lot of weird looks walking into the room, which really made me feel uncomfortable and kind of ruin(ed) my mood off the bat. And I shared that same opinion with a few of my other fellow peers that look like me.”
Michell is not alone in this experience at OSU in trying to get involved with cultural clubs.
“I once tried to go to a few (Vietnamese Student Association) meetings, and everyone was super friendly, but I just couldn't shake the feeling that I didn't belong there,” said Carrington Fastelin, a fourth-year public health major. “Especially because sometimes they would talk about issues that they were experiencing racially, but I couldn't connect to any of them.”
Due to the nature of how race and ethnicity is discussed in this country, a lot of people often discuss the topic through a binary lens without considering the intricacies and intersectionality of cultures and experiences.
Sometimes members within the AAPI community disregard issues that affect commonly marginalized groups due to colorism, racism and other factors. Some of these groups include adoptees, multiracial people, darker-skinned groups and more.
Fastelin identifies as a Vietnamese transracial adoptee. She learned about this term while looking for an honors college thesis topic and said she has never felt more connected to her identity than during her time researching this topic.
According to Fastelin, TRA refers to an adopted person who has to navigate understanding their own race while being raised in or around another race.
“I grew up in a white family, and
Due to the model minority myth, an idea perpetrated throughout American history, AAPI of all kinds are grouped together to create stereotypes about being “smart” and “hard working” to pit other people of color against each other. Certain AAPI groups don’t relate to these stereotypes and are left behind when it comes to basic resources and support for their needs.
“There's more of an intentional effort to curate diversity within this campus. However, at the same time, it feels like, even though this effort has been made, OSU has implemented it to check off a higher education DEI box,” Fastelin said.
Even I have felt tokenized at OSU and used for “diversity points”. I remember getting texts from friends, saying they saw me in OSU advertising pamphlets, pictured standing next to someone of Bengali descent and Japanese descent.
I felt really weirded out by the experience. It felt like the marketing team for the university had chosen this picture to check off the diversity box and make themselves appear more diverse than they actually are. Even worse, these pictures are still being used in marketing materials to this day.
- Tihani Mitchell, first-year political science studentAs a Vietnamese American, oftentimes, I see my community lumped with East Asians due to general similarities in appearance, as well as the sharing of a few cultural traditions, even though our issues relate more to the Southeast Asian diaspora.
According to AAPI Data, a national publisher of demographic data and research on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, over 25% of Vietnamese Americans attained less than a high school diploma. While certain groups with East Asian descent like Taiwanese and Japanese had under 5% in the same category.
“AAPI is supposed to be anyone who identifies as or with the Asian American and Pacific Islander experience. And it's supposed to mean a community where no matter what your particular
“There's always more that can be done,” Mitchell said. “And I think that one thing for me personally, that I want to see more about in OSU’s faculty and administration is more people that look like me.”
It’s time for everyone to reexamine the term AAPI and highlight the individuality within each culture, rather than diminishing their importance through surface level, monolithic representation.
We need to stop painting the mural of AAPI using one color and start to bring in hues from all over the spectrum to truly cherish the beauty of each individual culture.
“We share common interests and common backgrounds, but I will never have that knowledge and connection to your culture—same way that you'll never have that to my culture,” Mitchell said. “That's (one) reason why I don't really believe in the umbrella term, it's just because it doesn't accurately depict us as individual people, (or) us as different groups.”
Unfortunately, my community doesn’t receive the attention that we need, even living in America...
- Mavi Brar, fourth-year public health student
My issue is that it's not about heritage, it's about representation… There are certain things that people that are just from Hawai’i can't talk on, because you'll never be able to understand it.
High rates of mental illness raise concerns on whether treatment opportunities, with its price and accessibility, are effective for people seeking help, especially with the institution suffering from a shortage.
Last year, the American Psychiatric Association reported six in 10 practitioners said they no longer have openings for new patients. Psychologists reported being contacted by more than 15 potential new patients seeking care a month. Furthermore, 46% of practitioners said they have been unable to meet the demand for treatment.
The National Institute of Mental Health estimated more than one in five U.S. adults live with a mental illness (57.8 million in 2021). In 2019, spending on mental health reached $225 billion, with hourlong conventional therapy sessions ranging from $65 to $250 for people without insurance, according to a CNBC report.
The effectiveness of modern therapy, including treatment online, can’t be solely relied on due to capitalist greed from the middle and upper class, choosing to feed on the money and mental health struggles of the poor as opposed to healing the patient.
With the rate of practitioners unable to handle the growing rate of people seeking treatment, and 30 million uninsured Americans, many have turned to alternative forms of therapy, such as BetterHelp.
Simran Khinda, a third-year student studying biohealth and art, has been using therapeutic services for around a month, starting with BetterHelp–an online platform that provides mental health services.
“I got matched up with a wonderful therapist and my progress with her was (on an) upward trajectory,” Khinda said.
Khinda felt that by using BetterHelp, she’s spent more time repairing the “damage,” as opposed to excessively talking about her issues. In conventional therapy, Khinda feels she hasn’t made much progress yet because she’s spent too much time talking about her trauma.
She switched to conventional therapy because BetterHelp isn’t covered by insurance and could
CORVALLIS WEATHER
BY HAILEY TOEDTLI
cost anywhere from $60 to $90 per week, or $360 each month, according to their website.
With 64% of Americans living paycheck to paycheck according to CNBC, some may consider BetterHelp a waste of money.
In their own terms and conditions, BetterHelp states the therapist they provide “may not be appropriate for every particular situation and/ or a substitute for certain mental health needs that might require inperson therapy services.”
Would you spend $360 a month on a service that says you still might need conventional therapy?
According to Indeed–a worldwide American employment website–the average therapist in the United States makes about $35 per hour, almost $73,000 per year.
Would a therapist risk losing
Using the Wayback Machine, a digital archive of the World Wide Web founded by the nonprofit Internet Archive, in 2019, BetterHelp said in their terms and conditions:
○ We make no representation or warranty whatsoever as to whether you will find the counselor services relevant, useful, correct, satisfactory or suitable to your needs.
○ We do not control the quality of the counselor services and we do not determine whether any counselor is qualified to provide any specific service as well as whether a counselor is categorized correctly or matched correctly to you.
Today, BetterHelp now requires “an accredited, trained, and experienced licensed U.S. psychologist (PhD / PsyD), licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT), licensed clinical social worker (LCSW), licensed professional counselor (LPC), or similar applicable recognized professional certification based on their state and/or jurisdiction.”
Last month, the Federal Trade Commission reported coming to a $7.8 million settlement with BetterHelp for sharing user
desire to keep your private information private? Is $360 a month worth Facebook knowing your trauma?
I don’t know when BetterHelp updated their terms of service, but
increasingly decrease until it is no longer a top leading cause of death.
In other words, mental health issues are most prevalent among people 10 to 34, but mental health services are widely inaccessible for low-income people of color, aged 18 to 64. The most at risk people would then be low-income people of color, aged 18 to 34.
What’s causing this age group to suffer the most from mental illness, and for those who don’t have access to therapy, what’s the next best thing?
There isn’t one, specific, factor that can be pointed to, but likely a multitude of many and a culmination of some. Though living paycheck to paycheck and feeling tied to your underpaid job because they provide insurance doesn’t do mental health any favors.
with 25 thousand therapists on the platform, 50 million interactions and $1 billion in revenue in 2022, according to Behavioral Health Business–an independent source for breaking news on the mental health and addiction recovery industry–I’d assume it was before then.
Tiffany Spendiff, an incoming graduate student in biomedical science, is someone who isn’t comfortable with online therapy.
“There’s something about it that doesn’t feel very personal to me,” Spendiff said. Although she has the insurance for conventional therapy, she’s also at a point where her frustration has led her to give up on the system.
Spendiff could only find group therapy at the Counseling and Psychological Services on campus, because there were no one-onone sessions available. When she tried group therapy she found that results were mixed.
After the experience with CAPS, Spendiff found conventional therapy off campus but one of her therapists later quit, and the replacement for them transitioned to virtual therapy.
Of the 30 million Americans that are uninsured, most of them are adults aged 18 to 64, or working-aged people who could benefit the most from insurance.
Thomas Szasz, a HungarianAmerican academic and psychiatrist, said the idea of therapy is “crippling” and psychoanalysis is a contractual conversation about a person's problems and how to resolve them, in an interview with Reason magazine.
“I tried to avoid the idea … that the therapist knows more about the patient than the patient himself. That seems to me so offensive,” Szasz said. “How can you know more about a person after seeing him a few hours, a few days, or even a few months, than he knows about himself? He has known himself a lot longer!”
Szasz said that mental illnesses are “metaphoric diseases.” They are essentially conflicts within oneself and conflicts between oneself and other people.
“They are problems, but they are not medical problems in that they do not involve somatic, organic etiologies and are not amenable to a somatic, organic resolution,” said Szasz.
Understanding Szasz would then suggest that therapy and medication aren’t necessary in curing “mental illness,” but understanding and resolving the conflicts between oneself and other people. He criticizes psychiatry more profoundly in his 1961 book The Myth of Mental Illness.
money used to feed his family by telling you they might not be your best fit?
A blog post from a university in the Netherlands, Maastricht University, detailed the controversies surrounding BetterHelp: excessive fees, unresponsive counselors and ones who even refused treatment, in some extreme cases.
information with advertising platforms including Facebook, Snapchat and Pinterest. The FTC said the company pushed people to hand over sensitive health information through unavoidable questionnaires. Capitalism rears its ugly head again.
Does needing mental health services outweigh your innate
HELEN WHITE
The Kaiser Family Foundation reported, among the uninsured, most are in low-income families, with 60 percent of them being people of color.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported, in 2020, suicide was a top three leading cause of death for people ranging from 10 to 34. Not coincidentally, as people age, suicides rates
Audiobooks, fitness, and taking pride in reaching my small goals first before the big ones have done more for me than antidepressants and therapy. However, I can only speak for myself, because I also know there are different severities to mental illness.
However, depending on a government system to fix your problems, especially one that values profit over well-being, doesn’t yield good results.
Does needing mental health services outweigh your innate desire to keep your private information private? Is $360 a month worth Facebook knowing your trauma?
