Harshing the ‘Mellow Mood’ Head shop moving to PSU’s neighborhood
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Portland State University Tuesday, Nov. 20, 2012 | vol. 67 no. 24
SFC changes budget method New software gets mixed reviews Andrew Lawrence Vanguard Staff
Student groups and organizations are requesting funding in new ways this year. The shift is infuriating to some and a relief to others. After the purchase of a $100,000 budgeting software program, the Associated Students of Portland State University student fee committee is overseeing the changeover from a proprietary system used for more than a decade to one that can communicate directly with the budgeting software Portland State uses. The move has the potential to save these groups and the university time and money. The funds come from the $216 fee that an average 12-credit student pays each term. Alex Accetta, director of campus recreation, said that the new system, called TM1, will save its users time, since it is already formatted into language of the university’s software. He said doing this translation took four times as long as entering the budget itself. Campus Rec’s budget is funded with nearly $2.4 million from the SFC for the 2011–12 year, out of the roughly $14 million total collected in student fees. These student fees help fund everything from the Academic and Student Rec Center to the Electro Dance Club to the Vanguard. Changes, though seemingly unsubstantial, can affect many amenities students take for granted. See SFC on page 3
Mayor Adams loosens his tie Dialogues After Dark connects students with civic leaders Whitney Beyer Vanguard Staff
Not many people get an opportunity to sit down with Mayor Sam Adams and tell him about an embarrassing moment in their lives, but on Thursday night, 14 students got to do just that. Adams was this month’s speaker for Dialogues After Dark, an event series that aims to connect students with civic leaders in a comfortable environment. “Rather than facilitate a lecture or a Q-and-A, I wanted to create a dialogue,” said Brian Forrester, a senior social science major and creator of the event. “My goal is to cultivate an environment conducive to the exchange of ideas,” he said. Forrester’s theory is that if he can bring students and civic leaders together in a space where “no grown-ups are allowed,” as he put it, everyone will feel more comfortable and willing to engage in conversation. “Even if we got [President] Barack Obama to come, [PSU President] Wim [Wiewel] isn’t invited,” he joked. “For tonight, I’ve asked Sam to take off his politician hat.” Forrester said the series is still a work in progress and he’s learning as he goes, but he was pleased that all seats were filled at the Contrary on Thursday evening. The cafe, located on Southwest Fifth Avenue and Hall Street, has been allowing Forrester to host the event in its space afterhours, providing free tea and coffee to attendees. In the intimate space, surrounded by eclectic paintings, students formed a half-circle to face the couch where Adams and Forrester sat. Forrester introduced the event
MILES SANGUIINETTI/VANGUARD STAFf
Mayor SAM ADAMS and Brian Forrester, the social science senior who created the event, chat informally with a small group of students at Thursday’s Dialogues After Dark event.
and himself before asking students to go around the circle and share their names, majors and an embarrassing moment, just to break the ice, he said. Embarrassing moments out of the way, Forrester began by asking Adams a few questions of his own. “If you could go back in time and sit across from yourself as a 21-yearold, what words of wisdom would you have?” Adams said he’d tell himself to not be afraid of whatever it is he’s afraid of and give himself plenty of reassurance, which continued to be a consistent theme throughout the event. “At that age, it was my own misgivings and my own anxieties that
were holding me back—not anybody else’s,” Adams said. Throughout the evening, Adams answered questions from students and, in some cases, asked questions of his own. Halfway through, questions about how Adams’ sexual identity plays out in his politics came up. As the first openly gay mayor in the U.S., Adams said he ignores hateful responses to his sexuality. “It only gives them oxygen,” he said. “It’d be nice to blast them, but I don’t because they just want that reaction.” Adams recalled an event that took place while he was campaigning for mayor in which he was asked what
it’s like to be gay. “I responded with, ‘It’s all right,’” he said. “The next day, headlines read, ‘Gay candidate has normal, boring answer.’” At the end of the event, Adams made a point to shake everyone’s hand and thank them for coming, recalling names as he said his goodbyes. Adams said he was happy to be a part of the event, and noted the importance of dialogue in a lessformal setting. “Take over Portland; I’m retiring,” he told the group of students as he went out the door. See Dialogues on page 3
Students dip caramel apples, throw pies Third annual Fall Fest celebrates autumnal activites Kaela O’Brien VANGUARD STAFF
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Freshman Mariah Bianco dips her caramel apple into a bowl of toppings during Fall Fest.
Dreams came true Thursday evening as students celebrated the wonderful season of fall by hurling pies at residence assistants’ faces. “Fall is an exciting season filled with food and social gatherings,” said Christina Hanson, a second-year RA who helped plan this year’s Fall Fest. Students filled the first floor of Montgomery Court to engage in fallthemed activities such as pumpkin painting, squash bowling and
caramel-apple making. The event was free. Fall Fest was organized by University Housing and Residence Life with help from the Residence Hall Association. The Associated Students of Portland State University organized a nonperishable-food drive. A bit before 8 p.m., as a cappella group The Green Notes finished the first of its two performances, Montgomery’s main room was filled with 40–50 students who cheered and chatted with one another. It was the third year for the event and the most successful as far as attendance, said Matt Lewis, an area coordinator for PSU Housing and Residence Life.
With an estimated 250 students in attendance, this year’s event easily eclipsed last year’s count of about 100 students. As food cooked on the barbecue, students took pictures together in a photo booth. There was also face painting, caramel-apple making, pumpkin painting, squash bowling, prize raffling and, of course, pie throwing. Last year, pumpkin painting was the most successful activity, Lewis said. This year, however, students could hardly wait to smash a pie in an RA’s face, he added. See FALL FEST on page 2