The Easterner: Volume 102, Issue 18

Volume 102, Issue 18

www.TheEasterner.org

Feb. 27, 2019

THE INDEPENDENT, STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER OF

EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY

Taylor Newquist for The Easterner

3 News | 7 Arts | 8 Features | 12 Opinion | 13 Sports

The cost of success

An EWU football player lines up on defense before the ball is snapped. The EWU football team placed second in the FCS Championship and finished the season 13-3.

Board of Trustees evaluates the expenses and revenue of the football playoff budget DREW LAWSON Reporter Athletics Director Lynn Hickey presented an athletics budget update focused on the football team’s January appearance in the FCS National Championship to EWU’s

Board of Trustees and President Mary Cullinan last week.

Hickey and Vice President of Business and Finance Mary Voves presented the revenue brought in from hosting three FCS playoff games, and how that compared to the expenses of sending a group to the

national championship. The three playoff games in Cheney brought in $349,455 in gate revenue and cost $334,298 to put on, profiting $15,157.

In the three to four days following EWU’s semifinal victory over Maine, the board had to decide on whether to purchase all

4,000 tickets offered to the university for the game. Hickey said they chose to buy all those tickets.

See Budget, pg. 13

News

Features

PDF problems for the sight-impaired

Ash Wednesday reminds students of faith

For sight-impaired individuals, PDFs pose a much larger challenge than other document types that allow students to use text-readers. EWU’s Disability Support Services office wants to spread the word.

For the many Christians that participate, Ash Wednesday marks the first day of Lent, the six weeks of repentance that precedes Easter Sunday. During this time, participants will often give up something in their life to prioritize their relationship with God.

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2 - The Easterner Editor in Chief Michael Brock 509.359.6737 easterner.editor@ewu.edu Managing Editor Jeremy Burnham easterner.mngeditor@ewu.edu Multimedia Director Richard N. Clark IV easterner.multimedia@gmail.com Chief Copy Editor Amanda Haworth News Editor Dylan Harris easterner.news@gmail.com Sports Editor Taylor Newquist easterner.sports@gmail.com Arts & Features Editor Erik Rotness easterner.aef@gmail.com Web Editor Colleen Ford Social Media Editor Matthew Pennell Copy Editor Sam Jackson Reporters Kendall Koch Drew Lawson Kaisa Siipola Marco Vargas Nicolas Zerbe Photographers Mckenzie Ford Bailey Monteith Director of Student Newspaper Carleigh Hill

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Editorial

Students must lead the charge for basketball attendance THE EASTERNER Editorial Board EWU men’s basketball has low fan attendance when compared to the rest of the Big Sky Conference.

According to a Feb. 20 article in The Easterner by Taylor Newquist, “Out of the 11 teams in the BSC, EWU is ranked seventh in average men’s basketball attendance pulling in an audience of 1,271 people per conference game this year.”

In comparison, Montana averages 4,389 fans per game, despite having a slightly smaller enrolment than EWU. This is a problem. The university is working to address the issue, but students are going to have to do our part.

Devon Thomas, EWU’s senior associate athletic director for external affairs, says there has been a lot of effort put into drawing fans.

“We have a marketing director whose primary function is to put butts in seats using a number of different strategies,” said Thomas. “We have some radio, we have billboards. On campus, we’ve had student athletes hand out flyers in the PUB ... For the public at large, it is making sure that we’re maximizing in game so

that we can cross-promote women’s basketball, men’s basketball, football.”

Men’s basketball does not match the high attendance of football. This isn’t surprising, as comparing football and basketball isn’t fair. Thomas emphasized that “football is a different beast here.”

“I don’t know if we’re trying to match (the attendance of football with basketball),” said Thomas. “It’s its own piece. We’ve put quite a bit of focus on students. Our students are really what bring quite a bit of the excitement to our football games. So we’ve put quite a bit of effort into our student population. So there is always some level of giveaway or promotion that is aimed directly at students … We start with students at an atmosphere standpoint.”

Gonzaga University doesn’t have trouble selling out its men’s basketball games. It may not be fair to compare EWU’s attendance to a No. 1 ranked NCAA Division I team, especially considering how much larger Spokane is than Cheney, but EWU is playing well enough to see more fans at the games.

There has to be a reason why attendance is so low at EWU. GU has less students than EWU, but more

students attend its men's basketball games to the point where students have to camp outside to obtain their tickets.

GU has “sold out every game since McCarthey Athletic Center opened up in 2004,” according to an email by Todd Zeidler, Gonzaga’s assistant director of athletics/communications.

Dave Cook, Zeidler’s counterpart at EWU, did not want to compare EWU to Gonzaga.

“What Gonzaga has accomplished and developed is very special, and admired by many of us for their consistency of success at the league and national level,” Cook said in an email. “We feel like our football program has developed in much the same way over the years, and our increased attendance and fan involvement has followed suit.”

So what does EWU football and Gonzaga basketball have in common?

Student energy. EWU football focuses on students, and the public follows. There is only so much the school can do to raise basketball attendance. At the end of the day, we, the students, have to show up.

The burden of raising attendance rests on OUR shoulders. We can’t sit at home and wonder why attendance is so low! •

New website.

Same great news!

To continue following our coverage of the EWU community, please visit:

www.TheEasterner.org About The Easterner

Faculty Adviser Jamie Neely

Correction for Issue 17: In last week's article on football ticket prices, The Easterner incorrectly relayed some information.

The listed season ticket prices on EWU's ticket webpage were accurate for the 2019 season, even though they were labeled for 2018. The Easterner applied a 35 percent increase to the 2019 prices, rather than last season's.

Mission We, as independent student journalists at The Easterner, inform our EWU audience of the governance, activities and views of our community.

We provide a voice and a learning environment for students to engage, connect and make informed decisions.

www.TheEasterner.org

Circulation The Easterner publishes a weekly print version as well as web content during the week at http://www.TheEasterner. org.

The Easterner is distributed throughout the Cheney campus and business district as well as Riverpoint and various Spokane businesses. If you would like the Easterner to be distributed at your business call the Advertising Department at 509-359-7010.

Corrections The Easterner never knowingly publishes inaccuracies. If any error is found, The Easterner is obligated to correct the error as soon as possible, regardless of the source of the error. The Easterner does not remove any editorial content from TheEasterner.org. However, if there is a factual inaccuracy in a story, the editors will run a correction or an update as needed.

News

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Jeremy Burnham for The Easterner

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EWU's Disability Support Services office located in Tawanka 121. DSS offers a variety of services to help accommodate students with disabilities.

PDFs pose a problem for blind students JEREMY BURNHAM Managing Editor Sending a PDF is a fast, convenient way to share a document. You scan a file, send a file and repeat. However, for sight-impaired individuals, PDFs pose a much larger challenge than other document types and EWU’s Disability Support Services office wants to spread the word.

Kaleigh Rainwater is a student in Dr. Dana Elder’s Moral Issues in America class.

Elder asked his students to write a polemic.

Rainwater, a legally blind student, wrote her polemic about PDFs. “A polemic … is a personal essay about something that makes one angry,” Elder said. “She was angry.”

Rainwater uses a document reader to read documents out loud to her.

“But these programs can’t read PDFs because a PDF is an image,” Rainwater said.

“So, If I get a paper handout or a PDF, I can’t do anything with it.”

If the PDF or handout is something that needs to be read in order to complete an assignment, this can cause issues for students who can’t see. Elder said the polemic alerted him to an issue that he had not previously been aware of.

“I like to think I learn from students,” Elder said. “She pointed it out to me and I’ve tried to be responsible.”

Rainwater is in her first quarter at EWU after transferring from another university. She says while her professors here have been willing to work around the PDF issue for her so far, that hasn’t always been the case throughout her education.

“I would talk to (teachers who sent PDFs),” Rainwater said. “Then it would depend on the person. Sometimes they just didn’t know (about the problem). But sometimes

they just didn’t want to help.”

At EWU, Rainwater has received PDFs from EWU’s Disability Support Services.

“My textbooks I got from DSS, they are pictures of the book, not the actual book,” Rainwater said. “So my reader can’t read them.”

Rainwater said she talked to the DSS staff about the issue, and that the response was “very good.” She said she was told the office was going to work on correcting the issue right away.

Kevin Hills, EWU’s DSS director, said he was happy to hear that EWU professors were willing to work with Rainwater on PDFs. He also said Elder sent him a copy of the polemic Rainwater wrote. He has been brainstorming ideas to spread the word to professors. He suggested that Elder reach out to The Easterner.

Hills says when an issue with accommodation comes up, communication is key. For example, if a student is having an issue with PDFs, he said the first step is always to talk with that professor. If that doesn’t fix the issue, he says the DSS staff is ready to help.

“I would then have a conversation with that teacher,” Hills said. “Most of the time, we can work something out.”

Hills says the most important thing is to reach out.

“I tell the students to not wait until finals week to let us know of a problem,” Hills said. “We’re here to remove barriers, but we can’t remove barriers we don’t know about … My mantra is, ‘if I don’t hear from you, I assume the world is perfect.’

So, if the world isn’t perfect, I need to hear from you … If someone comes in with a problem, we will drop everything to help that student.” •

“We're here to remove barriers, but we can't remove barriers we don't know about ... My mantra is, 'if I don't hear from you, I assume the world is perfect.' So if the world isn't perfect, I need to hear from you.”

- KEVIN HILLS DSS director

Westside Church of Christ A Place for New Beginnings 13520 W 6th Ave Airway Heights Sunday Bible Class - 9:30 am Worship Service - 10:30 am College Age Class

Contacts: Jonathan Carpenter Youth Minister (EWU Grad) jonathan.carpenter93@gmail.com

www.TheEasterner.org

Patrick Newbill Minister

psnewbill@yahoo.com 509-951-9316

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News

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Instructors from 274 ROTC battalions nationwide competed for the award NICOLAS ZERBE Reporter An EWU Reserve Officer Training Corps instructor has been recognized as the 2018 U.S. Army Cadet Command NCO Instructor of the Year.

Sergeant First Class Jason Hennig, EWU’s ROTC military science instructor and training NCO, was chosen for the prestigious award in which 274 ROTC battalions across the country were competing.

Each ROTC program chooses only one instructor to participate. This year, Hennig was chosen by EWU. In order to enter, a packet containing accomplishments by the instructor is first sent to the ROTC brigade at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington, where a winner among instructors across the western U.S. is selected.

After winning there, Hennig was able to compete against all other ROTC programs nationwide.

Competition

Qualifications

Every year a competition is held for the top officer instructor and NCO instructor, with thousands of enlisted instructors entering.

Along with video of Hennig teaching, his packet listed accomplishments and activities including his role in planning and leading the German Armed Forces

EWU Army ROTC website

Jason Hennig earns Cadet Command Instructor of the Year

Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Stafford (left) shaking hands with Sergeant First Class Jason Hennig (right). Hennig was awarded the Bronze de Fleury medal this past January.

Proficiency Badge test last November.

Hennig also helped to train his ROTC cadets on the ranger challenge team, which competes against other ROTC programs in the region and who took first place in four of 11 events this year.

Hennig’s cadets also scored 15 percent higher than average in Advanced Camp at Fort Knox, where they are tested on various basic soldier skills like marksmanship, leadership and physical fitness.

Outside of his cadet training, Hennig runs a Boy Scouts den in Spokane, has guest lectured for EWU’s Women and Gender Studies department and has presented as a motivational speaker for the women’s soccer team.

“He’s involved in the community, the campus as well as being a good instructor,”

said Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan C. Stafford, EWU ROTC’s department chair.

Inspiration Hennig first joined the military to follow his brother, who is currently deployed in Afghanistan.

“He came in four years ahead of me, I saw just how many doors it opened for him and he’s always been my biggest role model,” said Hennig. “I’ll continue to follow him the rest of my life.”

Hennig will now go into a larger competition where he will contend for Instructor of the Year for Training and Doctrine Command, which oversees training of all army forces in the U.S. •

Students prepare to study abroad in Europe ANTHONY CARROLL Contributor EWU staff and students from the English, history and psychology departments are preparing to leave for a two-week study abroad trip through London and Paris on March 17.

The trip is a chance for students to take their studies into the field while also being able to take in some of the rich multicultural history that their studies are associated with.

English instructor Ryan Wise went on the trip two years ago while he was a graduate student. Wise said that he had never been abroad before and it was his first opportunity.

“Everywhere we went, we were learning information,” Wise said.

Rose Hall, a graduate student going on the trip this spring, said the trip sounded like a once in a lifetime opportunity.

“This is a different way to experience

“This is a different

literature,” Hall said, “I can apply this experience to other books I read.”

In order to be part of the trip, students had to first register with one of the three qualifying classes.

The classes are precursors ROSE HALL designed to teach EWU graduate students who are going on the trip about some of the things they will experience.

The classes are all 400 level courses, which are normally intended for juniors or seniors. The trips are supposed to happen every two years. The idea behind this is that freshmen and sophomores can learn about

the trip, and by the time they reach their junior or senior year they will have the opportunity.

Of the 24 students who are currently signed up, there are 12 English majors, three history majors and nine psychology majors.

History students student were to sign up for “Darwin and his Discontents,” psychology students were to sign up for “Senior Capstone: Tradition of Psychology” and English students were to sign up for “Seminar in Lit IV: London, Paris, & Victorian Literature.”

Dr. Beth Torgerson, who runs the English side of planning for the trip and teaches the

way to experience literature. I can apply this experience to other books I read.

”

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English seminar course, did express some worry for the trip due to the timing. The trip ends on March 30 , the day after Brexit is supposed to go into effect on March 29.

Brexit refers to the referendum to remove the United Kingdom from the European Union. Voters chose to leave the European Union with 51.9 percent voting to leave and 48.1 percent voting to stay.

“We’re actually really lucky, we are flying out of Paris,” said Torgerson.

Although the group will not be in England during Brexit, they will be there in the week that leads up to it.

Students who are interested in signing up for the trip or other study abroad opportunities can find more information at EWU’s School of Global Learning. The School of Global Learning is located in Hargreaves 103. •

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News

Raising awareness for mental health KAISA SIIPOLA Reporter

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The Veterans Resource Center has a suicide awareness and prevention display set up all week in the JFK Library to inform students of the resources that are offered on campus in honor of Mental Health Awareness Week, which lasts from Feb. 25 to March 1.

ASEWU decided to reach out to the Veterans Resource Center to collaborate on Mental Health Awareness Week by hosting the Suicide Awareness and Prevention Fair. The goal is to spread awareness about suicide and promote resources for prevention on Feb. 28 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the PUB. Veteran Corps Navigator Jorge Santiago is a retired veteran of 22 years and works in the Veterans Resource Center through

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A suicide awareness display set up in the JFK Library by the Veterans Resource Center. The Veterans Resource Center, ASEWU and others at EWU are working together for Mental Health Awareness Week.

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Mckenzie Ford for The Easterner

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the AMERICORPS VET CORPS Program.

Santiago was intrigued by Mental Health Awareness Week because the subject of mental health hits very close to home for him due to having friends that have attempted and died by suicide.

The Veterans Resource Center is collaborating with ASEWU, CAPS and the Health, Wellness and Prevention Services for a panel and tabling portion during the fair, according to Santiago.

One issue regarding mental health, Santiago says, is that when veterans are seeking assistance, whether in or out of service, they can be scared to speak up because it affects security clearance issues and the ability to do their jobs.

“It’s one of those things but it’s getting better, but in the vet community, it is seen as a weakness that you got to have help,” Santiago said. “The idea that you can’t deal

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with some of those things you saw, some of the things you did when you were serving, a lot of times you don’t want to speak up because you don’t want to be weak.”

Addressing mental health topics can be uncomfortable, but ASEWU Health and Safety Services representative Jessica Lo says it’s important to highlight mental health issues at EWU. “With my position, I feel really strongly, mainly about wanting to focus more on mental health, some topics that maybe some people don’t really talk about here at EWU,” Lo said. “So I feel suicide awareness and prevention and depression and things like that are very important to me.”

Even though faculty members work throughout the day, Lo encourages faculty members to join the conversation during Mental Health Awareness Week because the events are open to everyone.

for about*

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“Especially with this serious topic, everybody is going through something,” Lo said. “And I feel like they should be included and they should feel comfortable and it would be great if they could come to these events, that way students and other faculty members could feel more involved because it is a community here at EWU so the whole point is to bring everyone together.”

Students and faculty can be reassured that there are resources on campus that are willing to help, according to Santiago.

Anyone struggling with their own mental health and thoughts of suicide can seek assistance by calling 1.800.SUICIDE (1-800784-2433), 1.800.273.TALK (1-800-273-8255) or can contact CAPS at 509-359-2366 or visit them in Martin 225. •

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Author Patrick Deneen Squirrels speaks at Gonzaga Satire

The author of "Why Liberalism Failed" speaks at Gonzaga about the implications of liberalism on American society University of Notre Dame

VINCENT SAGLIMBENI The Gonzaga Bulletin Vincent Saglimbeni is a contributor for The Gonzaga Bulletin, Gonzaga University's student'run newspaper. The following article ran on the publication's website on Feb. 20, 2019.

With a crowd filled with students and the public of Spokane, author and University of Notre Dame professor of political science Patrick Deneen, Ph.D., visited Gonzaga University on Feb. 20 to discuss his book "Why Liberalism Failed", while also discussing the implications of liberalism on American society.

Deneen’s novel has been acclaimed as one of the more influential novels to public figures. According to the Gonzaga News Service, “Why Liberalism Failed has earned praise from a wide variety of leaders and public figures, including Former President Barack Obama, Rod Dreher, senior editor of The American Conservative, Fred Bauer of National Review and David Brooks of The New York Times.”

When first being introduced to the audience, Deneen explained how this was a

Patrick J. Deneen bucket list opportunity for him to be the big man on campus, especially on a campus like GU. After stating that he had never had four bodyguards and a bag check at his own event before, Deneen delved into the typical description of what liberalism was, which he described as there is “no way to decide what the best way of life is.” Furthermore, Deneen described how liberalism also signifies allowing each group of people to decide for themselves, and as long as you don’t hurt someone, then you are fine.

Deneen also referred to 19th century thinker Alexis de Tocqueville throughout his lecture, emphasizing his importance of equal liberty and how equal liberty, according to

“He provided a refreshing take on a subject that is not often discussed.

By revealing how modern culture plays a role in how we view our freedoms, he described how liberalism is dead.”

- LUKE BUSBY Gonzaga freshman

De Tocqueville, is “the most complete form that equality can take on Earth.”

The next bit of information Deneen gave to the audience was a new understanding of what the true nature of human beings is.

Deneen mentioned the idea of a last name and how, in essence, the last name of others is not accidental and clearly defined.

Deneen explained that names were given to others based on their position in society, giving an indicator of who was what in the societal chain. Examples include Smith, Taylor, Weaver and Cooper, referring to a blacksmith, a tailor, a weaver and a barrel maker, respectively.

After mentioning the importance of the last name, Deneen talked about loneliness through liberalism, referring to the liberty from the next generation. According to statistics given by Deneen through Michael Hendrix, 40 percent of Americans said that they’re lonely. Furthermore, in the 1980s, close friends dropped from three to one.

Deneen believes one of the main causes of this loneliness is the continual development of technology, and how society forms said technology into being “alone together.”

Deneen ended by describing the overall motivation and purpose of writing his book.

Deneen explains that liberalism has failed because it has succeeded, and the causes of said success are that liberated individuals subject to tools of liberation, there is a war of all against all, and there is a continual creation of a new aristocracy.

Deneen left the crowd with a strong applause, followed by a question and answer period. Freshman Luke Busby believes that having Deneen come to speak was very beneficial for himself and the GU community.

“He provided a refreshing take on a subject that is not often discussed,” Busby said. “By revealing how modern culture plays a role in how we view our freedoms, he described how liberalism is dead.” •

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beware ANTHONY CARROLL Contributor

Anthony Carroll is a contributor for The Easterner. The opinion expressed in this article is his own, and does not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of The Easterner's editorial board.

It goes without saying that EWU has an infestation problem: squirrels.

This is my fifth year at EWU, and I can say, with God as my witness, that I have seen a lot of squirrels on campus. I once counted like 15 in a day.

This should be a rally cry for everyone thinking that these squirrels need to pack their bags and move away.

I think we should all collectively come together as a student body and spend a day capturing the squirrels. Just imagine the bond that we could create with comradery of that level.

The problem with gathering them all up is that we have no idea where they all are. Therefore, I think it is only fitting that we have EWU President Mary Cullinan dress up like a squirrel and infiltrate their hideout.

Assuming all goes to plan, once the squirrels have been removed and relocated to Washington State University, EWU could replace them with a more suitable breed of animal: eagles.

Imagine how majestic our campus would look like with 5,000 wild bald eagles flying around.

Come to think of it, perhaps it would be easier to release the eagles before we move the squirrels out, because I bet the eagles could handle the problem better than Cullinan dressed as a squirrel.

For those of you who think I am being insensitive wanting to move these squirrels, you should know that one of my best friends is a squirrel. I have no prejudice toward squirrels, it is, however, my opinion that there are a lot of them.

With many students still maturing from precious youth to adulthood, it is cruel to let a squirrel sit there with its nuts out destroying the naïvetés of our students.

I speak for the people. I have had at least two other people on campus agree with my platform. And two persons is considered plurally people and therefore I speak for the people, even if it is only two people.

Despite my almost certainly unpopular opinion to move the squirrels to WSU, I think we all agree that for all the money we have either spent or added to our debt collection, we deserve to see Cullinan dressed as a squirrel during graduation. •

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The Easterner -

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Easterner Asks

Looking Back

What about being a college student in 2019 do you think people don’t realize?

Campus helps janitor rebuild after fire burns down home

- Miguel Robles, Freshman "That it is super expensive and a big commitment. Especially making the classes and choosing times that work for. It’s hard putting in your full effort for your grades."

- Fiona Lavelle, Junior "How much support there is for classes you’re struggling in. Because there is support for every class out there. I didn’t really notice it and need to start taking advantage of it."

- Zac Kinney, Freshman "From my personal experience (it's the) social aspect. For freshman, they should just be social with a lot of people. The college experience is much more fun if you just get out

- James Rose, Sophomore more."

"I feel like people don’t realize how fortunate we are to actually go to school. A lot of kids go to school for the wrong reasons."

- Hunter Klinge, Freshman "It is a lot more money than you think. My mom works a second job to help pay off extra costs.

Anything past tuition, like room and board, is a lot more expensive than you think."

- Avery Weston, Freshman

This story was originally published in The Easterner in Vol. 19, No. 25 in 1969 and has not been changed except for AP style.

In an overwhelming display of humanitarianism, the Cheney campus communities have rallied behind Foster Goodwin's family to help put them back on their feet.

Capping off the campus activities next Monday and Tuesday will be The Easterner’s “Help Foster Goodwin Rebuild” drive.

Foster Goodwin is the Patterson Hall custodian whose home three miles west of Cheney was totally destroyed by fire nearly two weeks ago while his family was attending church services.

Neither the Goodwin house nor its contents were covered by insurance.

The Easterner, Vol. 24, No. 20, April 18, 1974

“Maybe there are some people that have to work to also be able to come here and then have to get grades. I feel like people don’t realize how hard these people work to be successful."

The Easterner Archives

Everyone a chance The Easterner, working in conjunction with recognized campus clubs and organizations, has set a goal of giving everyone on campus the opportunity to give to the “Help Foster Goodwin Rebuild” drive by Tuesday night.

Goodwin had returned home between Sunday school and church to check on a roast and found the entire house filled with smoke and flames.

The Goodwin’s were left with nothing but the clothes they wore to church services.

Goodwin and his wife have five children ranging in ages from four to 14 years. He has been an employee of the college for 13 years.

Insurance canceled Goodwin said he had canceled his insurance earlier in the year to use the money to pay for a $2,800 well that had been drilled on his property.

That turned out to be a bad gamble when the Goodwin home went up in flames on April 7. The cause of the fire is believed to have been faulty wiring.

Responding to a plea from various members of the college community, The Easterner editorial staff agreed to free News Editor Rob Allen for the remainder of this week and Monday and Tuesday of next week to coordinate the all-campus drive.

Allen, working with his brother John Allen, past Associated Students president, has made plans to have a doorto-door drive in the dorms and in faculty and administrative offices. A “Help Foster Goodwin Rebuild” booth is also

THE HOT BOX-This refrigerator turned into a hot box in the fire that left the Foster family homeless on April 7. Money raised in The Easterner's "Help Foster Goodwin Rebuild" drive will be used by the Goodwin family to replace losses such as these. planned on the main street in the PUB. Drive coordinators in each of the dorms have been selected to coordinate floor chairman in the fundraising event next Monday and Tuesday. Service clubs and organizations on the campus will handle the drive in administrative and office buildings.

The PUB booth will display some of the ruined appliances from the Goodwin dwelling as well as a photo essay of the ruins.

Freshmen give 100 Two EWU students, Tona Bernard, a freshman social work major and Diane Stevenette, a freshman music major, have already gathered over $100 in donations from students eating in Tawanka Commons. The girls presented Goodwin with the check Monday in front of Patterson Hall where the campus custodian is employed. Goodwin’s wife is a cook for the Cheney Public Schools.

Other campus donations include nine boxes of foodstuffs given by a group of girls in Dryden Hall. The Washington Federation of State Employees Local 931, presented Goodwin with a check of $100 from their treasury Friday.

The college union employees are also

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taking up a collection for the Goodwins that had exceeded the $90 mark by Tuesday afternoon. That drive will be completed Friday.

Community kicks in The Goodwins have received several $100 donations from local Cheney organizations and churches and help from the Red Cross. Pastor Clair Richards of the Cheney Community Church has assisted in setting up a trust fund at the Farmers and Merchants Bank for cash donations from the Cheney community.

Rap-in volunteers at 359-7979 have agreed to take phone calls from campus donors, listing the goods to be donated and the location where they can be picked up.

The Goodwin family is now living in a dwelling at the intersection of the college access road and the main highway running through Cheney.

Goodwin plans to rent the house until he can solidify plans to rebuild on his own property.

Any person or group willing to enlist their services in the “Help Foster Goodwin Rebuild” drive call Rob Allen at The Easterner at 359-2517 or at 3597454. •

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Ministry brings ashes t F

MICHAEL BROCK Editor in Chief

or the fourth year, The Episcopal, Lutheran, Methodist Campus Ministry at EWU will be participating in Ashes to Go. The annual event, which is part of a larger national movement, occurs on Ash Wednesday. For the many Christians who participate, Ash Wednesday marks the first day of Lent, the six weeks of repentance that precedes Easter Sunday. During this time, participants will often give up something in their life to prioritize their relationship with God. ELM will be in the PUB from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on March 6 to celebrate Ash Wednesday. “(On Ash Wednesday) we are reminded that we come from dust, and to dust we shall return,” said Rev. Christie Soule, the Episcopal Campus Pastor.

The EWU Catholic Newman Center will also participate in Ash Wednesday on

March 6 in the PUB NCR. Ash distribution is at 12:10 p.m., while mass will be at 5:30 p.m.

The ELM Campus Ministry meets every Monday at 5 p.m. at the Emmanuel Lutheran Church a couple blocks from campus. They begin with a free, home cooked meal followed by “an activity, which usually isn’t directly related to religion, but rather personal growth and acceptance,” said Braden House, a senior at EWU and a Peer Minister at ELM. “We’re the only inclusive faith ministry on campus,” House said. “I feel that what puts us apart from other people mostly, is that we accept and approve everybody who wants to come in here, regardless if they’re religious or not. We've had Buddhists in here, we’ve had atheists, we get everyone.

We don’t push stuff on them because we try to keep a pretty neutral program going.”

House said that ELM’s program this term is based around guest speakers. On Feb. 25,

the ministry had Nick Franco, the Pride Center Manager, as a guest. After feasting on pancakes, waffles, eggs, fruit and coffee cake, the group listened and engaged with Franco in a discussion on gender identity promoting social justice initiatives. “(Guest speakers) educate them, help them become better leaders and (encourage them) to speak up on campus,” Soule said.

A couple weeks ago, ELM had someone from Wells Fargo come in and discuss financial advisement. In a week or two they’ll have a guest speaker from Camp Cross, who will talk about outreach programs and participating in the community, House said.

“They mix fun with actual information,” said senior Kevin Torres, who has been attending ELM meetings for three years.

“There’s new food to eat, obviously. But also there’s new things to do, new things to learn. We do a lot of volunteer work, mission trips, that kind of thing. So it’s a

lot of actual experience. That’s what I like about it.”

ELM has been around the past four years and has been doing the dinners since the beginning. All three churches work together to provide the home cooked meals.

House is celiac and can’t eat gluten, but says ELM does a good job of accommodating.

Former EWU student Ben Fischer is not religious but has been going to ELM meetings for a little over a year. Fischer says that the atmosphere at ELM makes him feel welcome.

“It’s super open and accepting,” Fischer said. “Regardless of what you believe or who you are, you can come in here and feel accepted and talk about any issues you know you might have within your own faith. Or if you have questions about their faith, they’re super open to answer them.”•

Courtesy of Grant Whitty

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to students on campus “(On Ash Wednesday) we are reminded that we come from dust, and to dust we shall return.”

- Rev. CHRISTIE SOULE Episcopal Campus Pastor

Features

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Courtesy of the BSU

10 - The Easterner

Members of the Black Student Union pass out flyers, sell t-shirts and enjoy a soul food potluck during their quarterly Soul Food Sunday event. The club chose "Reclaiming Black Excellence" as their theme for Black History Month and will finish it with a ball.

Harlem Nights

BSU ends Black History Month with ball KAISA SIIPOLA Reporter Soothing Jazz and a 1920s aesthetic will soon send students, staff and guests at EWU back in time.

The Black Student Union is hosting the Harlem Nights ball in Hargreaves 201 from 7 to 9 p.m. as their final event to conclude the theme of “Reclaiming Black Excellence” for Black History Month.

“This is the first time that (the) BSU or Africana Studies has ever had the theme ‘Reclaiming Black Excellence’ for their Black History Month,” BSU President Gracia Alzoubeir said.

Dr. Shari Clarke, vice president of the Office for Diversity and Inclusion, was delighted to hear that the ball is Harlem Nights.

“I'm planning to attend and support BSU in this celebration of black culture, focusing on the rich music, culture, art and literature of the period,” Clarke said in an email to The Easterner.

Jazz music will be played throughout the whole event from artists such as Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday and other artists who have made a big difference within the black community to go with Harlem Nights at the ball, according to the BSU’s Treasurer Niaia Ortiz-Cotten and its Events Committee leader Tatyana Jones.

BSU members wanted the theme of the ball to have an impact. “(The) BSU came up with the theme and it was because we’re tired of having this month we’re supposed to be celebrating our history coming around and the only thing that we celebrate is slavery and oppression, and there’s more to us than that,” Alzoubeir said.

The Harlem Nights ball is celebrating all historical accomplishments and contributions of Black History.

“It’s kind of a celebration of a lot more than one chunk of black history that you know, people only hear about slavery and everything else,” BSU Events Committee member Jasmine Banga said. “We wanted to kind of shift the highlight toward more positive events and more positive lights that the culture has to bring onto campus and everywhere else."

BSU wanted to highlight a positive image toward celebrating Black History Month with inspiration from the Harlem Renaissance period.

“The Harlem Renaissance was about the rebranding of African Americans and after the Great Migration the African Americans that ended up in Harlem, all of the art and music and literature that came out of the Harlem Renaissance was to create a different image,” BSU Vice President Felicia Muhammad said. “And I felt like that’s what we were kind of going towards with the 'Reclaiming of Black Excellence'.”

Black History month doesn’t stop BSU from celebrating their Black Excellence or limit it to when they gather in the Africana Studies Lounge or during a meeting.

“Just because Black History Month’s theme is 'Reclaiming Black Excellence' does not mean that just because the month ends that our black excellence stops,” Alzoubeir said. “BSU is always celebrating our black excellence each and every day.”

Everyone is invited to the Harlem Nights ball. BSU is hoping to make the Harlem Nights ball their first annual event in conclusion to Black History Month.•

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Erik Budsberg hosts an information table in the JFK Library for the Office of Sustainability during National Food Day on Oct. 24. The celebration encouraged students to eat more sustainable diets, and showed off the school's efforts to reduce its environmental impact.

Students and staff promote sustainability AMANDA HAWORTH Chief Copy Editor Maintaining a sustainable environment is difficult, and while sporting a Hydro Flask and recycling are good starts, there is always something more that can be done.

Two organizations on campus are educating students on sustainability and encouraging them to make a difference: The Office of Sustainability and the EcoEagles club.

Office of Sustainability The OOS is starting more events to engage students and encourage sustainability.

“We have a garden," sophomore Kilei Motz, the event planner for the OOS said. "We used to grow food for Tawanka. Now we are kind of changing it up this quarter. We have a bunch of events; we have Sustainability Week, and we have Bike to Work Week next quarter, and we’re trying to do yoga in the garden and stuff like that. We’re just kind of setting that up.”

Senior Jessica Walker, graphic designer for the OOS, wanted to work for the office partly because of the programs they held.

“I was just interested in recycling and all the programs that they had been doing, and I wanted to learn more about sustainability, and so I thought this would be a great opportunity,” Walker said.

The OOS is focused on providing information as well as events.

“We are basically trying to inform the students on how they can be more sustainable,” Walker said. “Like recyclingwise—we have made posters and like infographics for them to learn what they can recycle and what not to recycle like on

campus. I post a sustainable tips on our social media so that they can try and stay sustainable.”

EcoEagles Formerly known as the Sustainability Club, the EcoEagles are also focused on education.

“We are kind of the student sustainability club here on campus," fourth year student and one of two copresidents for the club Jesse Johnson said.

"Our goal is just to kind of educate more sustainability, create more sustainability with individual people; we’re trying to make it a fun social thing while also persuading and convincing more about sustainability."

A few weeks back, the club held a vegetarian dinner and last quarter they held a panel in the library according to Johnson. He is hoping to “do one in agriculture this spring.”

EcoEagles has been around since 2016; it was reactivated by alumna Emily Sherman and is still growing, according to Johnson.

With the club active once again, members will be heading out of town to learn more about sustainability practices.

“Right now we’re planning our itinerary to go to the Washington Oregon Higher Education Sustainability Conference,” Johnson said. "It’s in Seattle this year.

We’ve got six people going—mostly officers—and then we have got two new people. It’s a really fun thing. A lot of fun talks. I’m kind of assigning everybody to go to this one event that talks about the future of sustainability jobs.”

The name EcoEagles is a recent change from the Sustainability Club, and

was thought of by one of the club's copresidents.

“The reason why we had a name change is because there was a lot of confusion with people because we have a sustainability office so they assumed that was part of the sustainability club,” Johnson said. “So basically we changed it to avoid confusion.

The EcoEagles is very catchy.”

Senior Trevor Burgess is the other EcoEagles’ co-president and is “just trying to get the name out there.”

Volunteering Burgess would like to see the club fulfill one of its purposes and increase volunteering on campus.

“We have done volunteering and that’s something that I want to do more of.

This year we haven’t set anything up like that, but we’ve worked with the Office of Community and Engagement before and the Lands Council to do Reforest Spokane Day,” Burgess said. “We’ve also provided volunteering opportunities in the campus garden which is being defunded. So no one will be employed for the garden. Definitely next quarter we will start reaching out more for that and we’re getting more volunteers.”

Sustainawhat?

Part of the reason students may not know about the sustainability effort at EWU is due to the distance of the office and the novelty of the club, according to Johnson.

“It’s kind of out of the way,” Johnson said. “The Office of Sustainability is up by the free parking lot. We’re a smaller thing.

We don’t have as big of a budget as some

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clubs and we’re still new. Still trying to expand. We’re hoping to grow it this year.”

Sustainability Coordinator Erik Budsberg emphasized students’ busy schedules as a possible reason why students may not be as involved in sustainability on campus.

“People are just generally very busy.

It’s tough as a student, you’re trying to get your classes. A lot of students we have on campus here hold a job outside of (school). So it’s about finding the time to get used to it,” Budsberg said.

“There is sometimes this perception that sustainability is more of a west side of Washington idea while we’re over here on the east side ... A lot of our students come from a rural background—at least to my understanding—the demographics haven’t been exposed to these kind of things or programs like composting or recycling. We’re being introduced to these things. So it’s kind of a new concept. It’s about not knowing what you don’t know.”

Getting involved There are a few options for students who want to become more eco-friendly according to Budsberg.

“I would say if you’re interested in just being engaged, there are the EcoEagles," Budsberg said. "There is also the Alternative Energy Engineering club, if you’re like engineering focused ... If you’re interested in an academic perspective, there are classes you can take. There is a sustainability minor ... or if you are just kind of curious, you can just take Environmental Science 100.”•

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The bottom line: NCAA athletes should be paid Examining the possibility of compensation amid a new bill proposal in Washington state NCAA, Continued from pg. 16 The cheapest ticket to the UNC-Duke game on Feb. 20 was $2,500, while the steepest ticket sold for $10,652, per Vivid Seats. For reference, the cheapest ticket a week before this year’s Super Bowl cost $2,674, Kyle Zorn, a marketing strategist for secondary ticket seller TickPick told ESPN. The NCAA is a money-making machine, surpassing $1 billion in total revenue for the first time ever in 2017. Over $700 million was made off the NCAA men’s basketball tournament alone. About half of the total revenue is distributed back to NCAA Division I universities.

Williamson is already the consensus number one pick for the 2019 NBA Draft and a major reason why over 9,000 people, including 44th President Barack Obama, were willing to fork over the hefty fee that night. Even so, neither Williamson or his teammates will see a dime.

The bottom line It's simple: NCAA players should be paid. The logistics are tricky, and the eventual result would likely only be the top players at the leading universities getting paid. But since that is still years away from occurring, if ever, I’ll settle for players at least being able to make money off of their likeness.

On Feb. 8, Washington State Senator Guy Palumbo proposed Senate Bill 5875, which would allow student athletes in Washington to do just that, along with hiring an agent.

There are many potential issues with paying college athletes outright, including determining a salary scale and which universities and athletes would be eligible. However when dealing with image and likeness, athletes’ involvement would depend on demand.

Paying athletic staff The top four paid Washington state employees in 2017 were coaches.

University of Washington head football coach Christopher Peterson was atop the list at $3.42 million, while Washington State University head football coach Mike Leach raked in $3.14 million. Nine of the top 13 paid state employees in 2017 worked in athletics, including assistant football coaches and an athletic director.

Although not as extreme as the statewide trends, athletic staff is well compensated at EWU too. In 2016, then-head football coach Beau Baldwin was the second highest paid EWU employee, making $232,500. (President Mary Cullinan was first at $316,600).

William Chaves, then-athletic director, was eighth at $177,100, while then-head basketball coach James Hayford came in at 11th at $167,100.

Marketing value The reason why coaches and top athletic staff around the country are well compensated is simple: the teams bring in tons of revenue and attention for their universities. It makes sense that they would sign hefty contracts and promotional deals. However, those same athletic officials are able to sign agents, market themselves, sell autographs and be in commercials if the demand is there.

The players should be allowed the same privileges.

The majority of players, especially at smaller NCAA Division I universities like EWU, wouldn’t have their likeness advertised outside of team promotion. However the best players at the top universities, along

with some at the mid-level schools, would have high demand for apparel commercials, billboards and shoe deals, to name a few.

Universities as well as major companies often sell merchandise with player’s likeness attached. Nike currently has a No. 1 Duke jersey (Williamson’s number) on its website listed at $120. Although it doesn’t have Williamson’s name embroidered on the back, fans are surely purchasing these with the freshman phenom in mind.

In the past at EWU, the university has sold No. 10 football uniforms in the bookstore for record-breaking wide receiver Cooper Kupp, who was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in 2017 after four years with the Eagles.

For many college athletes, a scholarship is sufficient. They will get their schooling paid for while playing a sport for four to five years. But the premier talent at the top universities should be allowed to brand themselves as well as sign an agent to represent them. •

“Athletic officials are able to sign agents, market themselves, sell autographs and be in commercials if the demand is there. The players should be allowed the same privileges.”

- MICHAEL BROCK Editor in Chief of The Easterner

Letter to the Editor Submission Guidelines 1. Letters should be 300 words or less and typed, or legibly handwritten.

2. Send to our Editor in Chief Michael Brock at easterner.editor@ewu.edu.

3. Include your full name, signature, telephone number and email address for verification.

4. We reserve the right not to publish letters; furthermore, all letters are subject to editing for adherence to Associated Press style.

5. Letters must be received no later than Monday at 10 a.m. to be considered for publication.

6. If your letter is in response to a specific article, please list the title and date of the article.

7. We encourage the EWU community to submit letters and opinion pieces that conform to the requirements listed.

8. Opinion articles and letters to the editor do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of The Easterner, its staff members or Eastern Washington University.

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The Eagles' defense gets ready for a third down play in the FCS national championship game in Frisco, Texas, on Jan. 5. EWU athletics spent $169,802 on travel expenses to the game according to a presentation given by Athletic Director Lynn Hickey at the Board of Trustees meeting on Feb. 22.

Board of Trustees evaluate football playoff budget EWU fans did not buy all of the purchased tickets, with the board estimating only 2,500 tickets being sold to the Eagle faithful.

Since the tickets were nonrefundable, EWU decided to sell approximately 900 tickets to North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota zip codes.

“We had held those tickets and it was too late to give them back,” Hickey said. “That probably cost us about $20,000.”

Hickey noted that they also discussed the nonrefundable policy with the NCAA. The NCAA reported that the game was sold out, but EWU hadn’t been able to sell all their tickets, so Hickey said they should be able to give back the tickets they didn’t sell so the NCAA could put those up for sale.

Lance Kissler, associate vice president of strategic communications and marketing, presented to the board the costs of promoting and marketing the playoff run to the Spokane community.

Kissler estimated that over $13,000 in direct expenses were used throughout the playoffs and national championship. He noted that many of those dollars went toward reusable materials such as banners and flags.

Kissler touched on other promotions of the team used to raise awareness in Spokane as well.

“You probably saw the staffs lit up in red and the flag on top of the STCU building

downtown,” Kissler told the board. “The Eagle (logo) on the side of the Wells Fargo building and on the Davenport Tower …

Our goal there is to increase community spirit and awareness.”

Kissler told The Easterner via email that the board estimated $3.3 million in added media value from the football team’s appearance in the national championship. “(This) includes traditional news media and social media,” Kissler said.

Traveling to Frisco, Texas, for the championship game drew unpredicted expenses. One was a second charter plane that cost EWU $171,000. The NCAA supported one plane, but Voves explained that plane didn’t have enough seats for everyone to be able to go. She said the high cost was worth spending.

“We had a couple of additional football staff and two spouses on (the second plane),” Voves said. “We had some athletic administration.

We had 17 university representatives and spouses. We had 75 band members and 14 cheer members. That’s the cost of providing the presence in Frisco. As Lynn will tell you, can’t send a team to the national championship without the band (or) cheer.”

Hickey then explained that the NCAA does not reimburse the school revenue for appearing in a football national championship.

Men’s basketball is the only sport where reimbursements are made by the NCAA. “What the (NCAA) will do is give you so

much travel reimbursement for a certain number of team, administrators and coaches,” Hickey told the board. “For this particular championship, it was 145 … they will not support travel for band and cheer.”

Hickey added that the EWU athletic department had a phone meeting following the championship with the NCAA to discuss the experience. She said they asked the NCAA to review their policy of not supporting band and cheer to travel to football championships.

North Dakota State, the team EWU faced in the championship, was able to bus band and cheer members down to Frisco. EWU, being much farther away, had to pay for them to fly.

“We asked them to consider in future championships, they could put some distance parameters in,” Hickey said. “If

you’re outside a certain line, that there’s some level of reimbursement. They don’t want to host the national championship without your student support groups to help the atmosphere and reward the kids.”

With the second charter plane, EWU was also able to send 30 football players who couldn’t dress for the game down to Frisco to be a part of the experience. Hickey noted that everyone, including administration, went to Frisco with a job to do.

“From all the different events we had helping the team, to getting tickets,” Hickey said. “We did not want to take anyone that didn’t have a role.”

Combined with university support the total budget for the playoffs was balanced between revenue and expenses at $1,060,406.•

Football playoff budget

Football playoff budget as they were presented at the board of trustees meeting on Feb. 22. An extra charter flight to Frisco, Texas, cost the traveling expense an extra $171,000.

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Taylor Newquist for The Easterner

Budget, Continued from pg. 1

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Going back-to-back Junior Keshun McGee sweeps long jump and triple jump at the Big Sky indoor championships TAYLOR NEWQUIST Sports Editor Fifty EWU track and field athletes competed across 30 events at the Big Sky Conference indoor championships in Bozeman, Montana, last weekend.

The team came away with two first place medals, both worn by junior Keshun McGee. McGee won his third career long jump championship on Feb. 22, breaking an EWU record that stood for 18 years, with a 7.77-meter leap.

The following day McGee won his first career BSC championship in the triple jump with a 15.67-meter mark.

“That long jump was one of the best feelings I’ve ever experienced before,” McGee said. “I’ve been trying to break that record ever since I got here.”

McGee became the first Eagle to win BSC indoor championships in the triple jump and the long jump at the same meet since EWU Hall of Famer Kurt Kraemer in 2001.

Kraemer also held the long jump record that McGee broke.

Previously, McGee finished second in the triple jump during the 2018 outdoor season and 2017 indoor season.

McGee won the long jump on his final attempt after two consecutive fouls. His 7.65-meter mark on his second attempt would have been passed by freshman Zach Nunis from Idaho on the last jump (7.66 meters) if McGee didn’t step up.

“I knew (Nunis) was going to pop a big one on his last one, because he is a great competitor,” McGee said.

“I just told myself to stay calm and stay poised and know that I was going to win. I kept telling myself I was going to win.”

The triple jump was not as tightly contested. McGee landed his winning effort on his first attempt. Nunis again finished behind him in second place, but was off by 0.53 meters.

“I didn’t reach the goal that I wanted to,” McGee said of the triple jump. “But it is setting me up for a great outdoor season, so I’ll take it.”

The last step in the indoor season is the NCAA Division 1 indoor championships in Birmingham, Alabama, on March 8-9. The top 16 athletes across the country in each given event qualify.

McGee missed out by 0.05 meters in the long jump, and is ranked No.

22 in the nation after the final week of competitions. His mark in the triple jump ranked No. 33.

McGee will head into the outdoor season as the clear cut favorite to repeat as champion in both the triple jump and the long jump. Both of his marks from the BSC championships were the best in the conference throughout the season.

Men’s head coach Stan Kerr has praised McGee throughout his EWU career. Kerr previously told McGee that he would be able to break the university's long jump record.

“Keshun's double gold medal performances in the horizontal jumps will forever be a highlight of the indoor championships,” Kerr said.

Looking forward, McGee anticipates repeating as Big Sky champion in the outdoor season, but he is striving for more than that.

McGee said that he wants to make the NCAA championships for outdoor season and become an All-American.

“Just to break that barrier, get to nationals and get that experience,” McGee said. “To know that I’m able to compete with the top competitors in the nation.”•

“That long jump was one of the best feelings I've ever experienced before. I've been trying to break that record ever since I got here.”

- KESHUN MCGEE Junior jumps

Junior Keshun McGee competes in the long jump at the 47th Pelluer Invitational on April 14, 2018. McGee won his third career Big Sky long jump championship at the BSC indoor championships in Bozeman, Montana, last weekend, to go along with his first career BSC championship in the triple jump.

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Courtesy of Joey Payne

Sports

Junior Dominique Butler competes in the triple jump during the Mt. SAC Relays in Torrance, California, on April 14, 2017. Butler set two EWU records at the Big Sky indoor championships last weekend in the pentathlon and triple jump. Her 39-foot-7-inch effort in the triple jump earned her third place in the competition.

Butler serves up school records DREW LAWSON Reporter Senior Dominique Butler broke two EWU records at the Big Sky Indoor Championships in Bozeman, Montana, on Feb. 21-22, stepping onto the podium with a third place finish in the triple jump.

Her 3,597 points in the pentathlon broke her own record she set earlier in the season, and her 39-foot-7-inch effort in the triple jump broke a record set in 2015

by Morena Mannucci. Butler placed sixth overall in the pentathlon.

Butler walked on at EWU her freshman year in 2014 after graduating from Lewis and Clark High School in Spokane. Her track career started her junior year of high school, when she competed in triple jump. Her cross-country and gymnastics background got her interested in track.

“I kind of wanted to try pole vault,” Butler said. “But then I was kind of afraid of it, so I started doing jumps instead.”

This is Butler’s fifth year on the EWU track team. Last year, she had to redshirt both the indoor and outdoor seasons due to multiple leg injuries.

“At the Candy Cane track meet last

year I pulled my hamstring,” Butler said.

“As I was coming back from that injury, I strained my calf and then I also had a cyst in my knee. It was kind of a big, long list, and I was out for nine months.”

To rehab her injuries, Butler spent time in the training room, pool and on a training bike. She discovered a skill for swimming through pool exercises, which helped her set a goal post-graduation.

“I kind of want to try a triathlon,” Butler said. “When I was coming back from my injury (and) swimming a lot, I realized I was kind of good at it.”

Butler said after graduation she plans on being a PE teacher and hopes to coach track.

EWU multi-events and jumps coach Dave Nielsen had positive things to say about the impact Butler has had on the Eagles' track team during her five-year career.

“She’s obviously a great athlete, but she’s also a really nice person to have around,” Nielsen said. “A team leader by example. She doesn’t go out of her way to draw attention to herself. That comes because she’s just good.”

Nielsen was impressed by the way Butler handled herself through a season when she couldn’t play due to injury.

“Not being able to play is one of the tough things athletes go through,” Nielsen said.

“She handled it pretty darn well.”

As Butler reflected on her nowcomplete indoor career, she remembered her journey from walk-on freshman to a school record holder.

“I struggled a lot my freshman year,” Butler said. “I guess the coaches just saw potential in (my) multi-events ... I guess my favorite memory is that I broke the school record in pentathlon three times this year.

I think the first time I did it was the most exciting because I wasn’t expecting it.”

When Butler first broke the pentathlon record this season at the Candy Cane XI Invitational on Nov. 30, women’s head coach Marcia Mecklenburg said the record wouldn't last for long. She said that Butler’s performance at the indoor championships was a great way to cap off her indoor career.

“Breaking a school record in two different events at the Big Sky championships isn’t an easy thing to do,” Mecklenburg said.

Junior Dominique Butler runs the track “Kudos to Dom.” at the EWU Fieldhouse during the Butler and the EWU track team now Candy Cane XI Invitational on Nov. 30, look ahead to the outdoor season. The 2018. Butler broke the school record first meet is the Whitworth University in the pentathlon for the first time at Buc Scoring on March 16.• that meet.

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Courtesy of Trina Butler

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Sports

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WA state bill questions NCAA compensation TAYLOR NEWQUIST Sports Editor

Column

S

Washington state Senate Bill 5875 calls into question unfair practices involving compensation of athletes in higher education. The bill would make student athletes able to receive payment for their name, image or likeness. athlete compensation are coming up he would like to see Washington state provide more scholarships and cost of attendance stipends. Smaller schools like EWU don’t have the same funding as UW, WSU or powerhouse programs outside of the state.

“There are kids on full ride who still need to take out loans,” McPherson said. “I could name a couple guys on the (football) team specifically.”

McPherson added that giving student athletes extra opprotunities to be paid could be a good thing. He gave an example of a student athlete being paid to do a car dealership commercial in Spokane as a win-win situation, giving publicity to the dealership and the university, while allowing the athlete to make some money.

When it comes to selling a players likeness, both Hickey and McPherson agreed that it wouldn’t make much of

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a difference for the majority of student athletes, but McPherson gave the example of former EWU wide receiver Cooper Kupp and how he would’ve felt in his situation.

“If you’re Cooper Kupp I bet it's hard seeing number 10 jerseys sold in the student store and you get none of that,” McPherson said.

“Everyone is buying your jersey, but you don’t touch any of it. That’s gotta be a little tough.”

2018 Fred Mitchell Award winning kicker Roldan Alcobendas said that he can see both sides of the issue from the player’s and university’s perspective.

“We’re representing our university, but I think our name is kind of our brand,” Alcobendas said. “If we’re able to sell our brand and advertise our brand while marketing the school, I don’t really see an issue with that.”

Alcobendas gave the example of former University of Central Florida kicker

Donald De La Haye, who in 2017 was forced to choose between his YouTube channel and his NCAA scholarship. De La Haye picked YouTube, leaving the team the same year. In 2018 he sued the university, reaching a settlement in November.

“He was doing nothing wrong,” Alcobendas said. “He was just creating entertainment through a website and getting paid for it. He was making fair money that anyone in the world has the opportunity to make.”

Alcobendas brought up Title IX and said there would be an issue between compensating men’s and women’s athletics equally. He added that there would be a larger gap between big and small schools, and that the focus would be taken off of academics.

Washington SB 5875 was referred to the Ways and Means Committee and has not yet been set for hearing.•

The bottom line: NCAA players should be paid Michael Brock is the Editor in Chief for The Easterner. The opinion expressed in this article is his own and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the rest of The Easterner's editorial board.

MICHAEL BROCK Editor In Chief

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Colleen Ford for The Easterner

Washington state 1st District Sen. Guy Palumbo proposed a bill on Feb. 8, that if passed, would put the state in the forefront of the national conversation about a compensation for student athletes beyond their education.

Washington Senate Bill 5875 called for students to receive compensation for use of their name, image or likeness and to be able to agree to be represented by an agent.

It included that students should not be compelled to choose between forfeiting these rights and participating in college athletics.

The bill directly contradicts with NCAA guidelines, but would prevent Washington's universities from enforcing NCAA rules under consumer protection laws.

Chris Mulick, a spokesperson for Washington State University, told the Senate Higher Education and Workforce Development Committee that, “We’d rather not be the guinea pig for this national situation,” on Feb. 19.

Morgan Hickel, associate director of state relations at the University of Washington was concerned the law would create confusion and “more or less encourage non-compliance.”

The Senate committee approved a revised version of the bill on Feb. 21 that appeased the schools that didn’t want to be, “guinea pigs.” The revisal added a new section that only makes the bill take effect if all the states with populations over 50 million enact similar legislation.

EWU athletic director Lynn Hickey shared concern with how the university would be able to comply with NCAA regulations if the bill came into effect, and ultimately wasn’t sure about how realistic it was.

“If it did pass I don’t know how the schools in Washington would be able to operate,” Hickey said. “Right now it wouldn’t matter if the bill was passed or not, we couldn’t use it.

If we did all of our kids would be ineligible.”

Hickey added that an open compensation policy would create an unhealthy environment among colleges to bid against each other. She said part of the reason why all these rules are in place is because there is a tendency for people in the business to find their way around the rules.

“If one school calls you and says we can get you a contract with Nike for $50,000, the other schools gonna start bidding against you and say, ‘well we can get it up to $85,000’,” Hickey said.

EWU’s leading rusher last season, Sam McPherson said that if talks about student

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When Duke freshman sensation Zion Williamson slipped and broke through his left shoe against North Carolina last week, the basketball world held its collective breath.

It was just 36 seconds in to the most anticipated college basketball game of the year, and the sport’s biggest star was down in pain. He missed the rest of the game with a mild knee strain and is currently day to day. Although Williamson avoided serious injury, the incident sparked a multitude of conversations surrounding college athletics, including the one-and-done basketball rule and compensating athletes.

@The_Easterner

A new proposed bill in Washington state would allow student athletes in the state to be paid for the use of their name, image and likeness, and hire an agent, all of which are currently barred by NCAA rules. This is a logical step in the right direction.

See NCAA, pg. 12

@EasternerSports

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