Volume: 59 Issue: 13

Volume: 59 Issue: 13

JANUARY 20, 2016

driftwood.uno.edu

THE SEARCH IS ON

UNO hosts open forum for potential new COLA Dean candidates

BY NIGEL WASHINGTON Editor-in-Chief While all eyes are on the UL System as they search for a new university president, UNO is looking to fill the dean’s chair in the College of Liberal Arts (COLA) that’s been held on an interim status since 2013.(Rework lede--get rid of high and low) Last week, faculty and staff gathered four times to meet the four candidates individually in an open forum presentation in Kirschman Hall. The finalists opened with a ten-minute introduction and vision plan if they were to become dean. Afterwards, time was allotted for anyone in attendance to ask questions.

Kim Lersch, a professor and director at the University of South Florida School of Public Affairs, held the floor on the first day of the semester. Coming from USF with a reported 30,000 undergraduate students and 9,000 graduate students, Lersch said she was ready to get back into a more intimate school setting.

Despite the interest on moving to a smaller university, Lersch still emphasized growth as one her main visions if she were appointed the new dean. “I love the size of this institution, but we can get bigger and better,” Lersch said.

To achieve that goal, she cited resources for faculty and a need for expansion and upsizing in enrollment. Lersch detailed her plans of increasing enrollment by developing new marketing strategies to influence more out-of-state students, saying that it would be cheaper for students in Michigan to study in New Orleans than at-

tending a u n i v e rsity in their home state.

She added creating a clear plan for transfer students and extending the enrollment push to international students as well.

Current COLA interim dean, Kevin Graves, who spoke the following Wednesday, followed Lersch’s call to expansion, but in a different way.

Graves, who has been the interim dean since Dr. Susan Krantz retired from the position in 2013 after a ten year tenure, continued to push his plan to merge the departments of music, fine arts, theatre, film arts administration, human development and education into a brand new college.

The one-time film and theatre professor also brought up the recent reduction of faculty, staff and major programs, but believes the future is bright for UNO. With the changing political climate now that John Bel Edwards is governor and a presidential change over

the horizon, Graves said, “This is a tremendous opportunity for expansion.” “[New Orleans is] one of the most vibrant cities in the world. I am an artist, I will not lie, I am drawn to this city because of that,” Leroy Bynum said on why he would leave his position as dean of the College of Art and Humanities at Saint Rose in New York, a position he’s held since 2014.

Bynum, the third candidate to present his case for COLA dean, said he faced similar financial situations at St. Rose that currently plagues UNO and sees those challenges as opportunities. “St. Rose had challenging financial problems that the president and I jumped head first into resolving,” Bynum said.

To be a successful dean, Bynum believes in transparency and showcasing strong qualities of leadership in a department.

His vision includes pushing for growth and development of academic programs, working with fellow deans and department chairs inside and outside the university and a commitment to student diversity.

Bynum also noted his strong commitment to “fund and friend-raising,” in terms of creating sustainable growth for the arts and humanities here at UNO, as well as forming a strong relationship with the campus Advancement Office.

Kim Long, the founding dean for the School of Business and Humanities at Delaware Valley University since 2012, wrapped up the open forum presentations and in-

terviews. As founding dean, Long helped revise the core curriculum, led the foundation of two new interdisciplinary programs and helped launch two new master’s programs (Counseling Psychology and Policy Studies).

Long described her goals as dean as being able to provide more resources to the College of Liberal Arts, keeping the college relevant locally and nationally and communicating to invoke change.

“It hurts when you’re the butt of jokes as liberal arts,” Long said. “We have to stop that.”

Like many other candidates, Long brought up how important Liberal Arts is to all majors as most general education requirements flow through COLA. She plans on implementing a new rubric system to ensure general education classes come with a clear plan so faculty and students know what they should be getting out of those courses.

When talking about the university’s financial crisis, she reminisced about her time at Delaware Valley when her college budget was being cut by at least three percent every year. She communicated with department chairs and got their recommendations and increased class sizes in an effort to combat the economic struggle.

“I’m not just a cheerleader,” Long said. “But someone that can make a difference in programs.”

Members of faculty and staff will be able to send in their comments to Provost John Nicklow and other members of the voting committee who will ultimately decide who the next dean for the College of Liberal Arts.

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2016

OPINION

PERSPECTIVE

EDITORIAL

Driftwood needs you in order to succeed Potential. Everyone has it, but only few can maximize it. It’s truly inspiring to see something grow and be successful in the face of adversity, and it’s deeply saddening to see something with so much promise get swept away with only thoughts of what could have been. The University of New Orleans can be either, and the future is now for a university that should succeed more than it should fail.

Most of us agree the potential for UNO is through the roof. We are in a prime location in a great city, with massive amounts of culture and a city that draws people in.

UNO still struggles to reach that potential through various reasons, and the same can be said for Driftwood.

We have to be a better newspaper―for you. Driftwood has made significant leaps since last year and we know we are on the right track, but we know that we can do better, and we plan to.

We know we haven’t hit our full potential and it’s our job to make sure that we do.

The fact is that Driftwood has been understaffed for quite a while. We’ve been in a desperate search for writers for at least two years and we still are. Without reporters, it limits how much we can cover on campus at a single time.

Because we are a weekly paper, far too often news doesn’t make the final edition or website. Not because we choose to, but because we simply do not have the resources. News can also be late, and it’s difficult to stay up-to-the-minute in this new social media age

where information changes almost instantaneously.

We need more photographers to give our paper life and give the university life.

Driftwood is responsible for telling the stories no one else can, in words and pictures.

The people in our business department—business managers, advertising and marketing representatives—make this paper run. The same fact remains, however. We simply do not have enough. We struggle to get more advertisements, which are our main source of revenue and to get our name out on campus and beyond. We need more business savvy students to help us make our name mean more.

Some students don’t even know there is a campus newspaper, and we take that personally. We publish news both in print, online, and soon-tobe in videos. It’s our goal to become your go-to source for campus news and student voices.

Everyone on the Driftwood staff devotes so much time and energy to this publication.

We are here early in the mornings, we leave late in the night and we work on holidays. We work tirelessly everyday for you. For most of us, this is our life and we don’t do it so no one can realize our hard work.

Driftwood has to be a voice at UNO, and we have to be louder than we’ve been these past years. We have to update, innovate and expand to succeed. A great college newspaper can propel a university in so many ways, and to be a great college is our main goal.

We can’t be that without you.

Resolutions: You’re doing it wrong

BY ANNA GOWIN Features Editor “I just never make New Year’s resolutions,” a friend of mine told me over lunch. “I can never keep them anyway, so what’s the point?”

She seemed surprised when I told her that not only did I make a resolution, in fact, I made multiple resolutions. And I always do.

For me (and not to toot my metaphorical horn, but I think it works fairly well), the beginning of a new year is not just some opportunity to set a completely unreasonable goal for myself to stick to. It’s a chance to look at how I’ve been living over the last 365 days, and reflect

on all of that.

What did you do last year that you’re really proud of? For me, one of my resolutions was to get more comfortable with how I looked without makeup on. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do, and it’s a small enough thing to take a few extra seconds pointing out things I like about my bare face.

Getting to say that I accomplished that brought me a lot of pride, as cheesy as that is. Maybe you finally learned how to crochet, or you started calling your mom more. Dwelling on the fact that you didn’t keep up your gym routine or completely eliminate negative thoughts from your vocabulary will only make you feel unaccomplished when you don’t.

After I’ve taken a second to pat myself on the back (which you deserve to do. I promise. Appreciate yourself and your growth), that is when I take a step back and look at what I still want to do.

This is the make or break moment, and I’m going to tell you the key to staying unbroken. Think about your resolutions in groups: small and large. Make one or two large resolutions and a handful of smaller ones.

COLUMN Say, for example, you want to book a paying gig for your band, even though you’ve only had one rehearsal. That gives you one overarching goal to work towards at your own pace before the year is over, rather than telling yourself “I want to have band rehearsals every week,” and feeling defeated a month into the new year when that didn’t work out.

Big goal. Check.

Now think of some small things to work on little by little. Like, gradually eating less red meat or trying out some of those hair tutorials you saw on Youtube. Those are great. Ease yourself into things at a reasonable pace. Try it when you can but don’t give up if you can’t always.

Last step in my personal resolution system, and then you’re ready to head out into the world a brand new person (maybe, almost).

If you do even just one of those things on your list, you’re a winner.

Hell, if you don’t do anything on that list but accomplish something that never occurred to you, you’re a winner.

Resolutions offer you an opportunity to be proud of yourself, use them that way.

EDITORIAL BOARD Driftwood is produced solely by students of the University of New Orleans. Driftwood publishes every Wednesday during the fall and spring semesters with the exception of holiday breaks and midterms/finals week.

Editorials are the opinions of the Driftwood editorial staff and do not reflect the opinions of the University of New Orleans, its administration or staff.

Letters to the Editor and columns are the opinions of the author and do not represent the opinion of the Driftwood editorial board. All letters to the Editor are subject to editing for length, style and grammar.

Please limit letters to 500 words. Submissions can be emailed to driftwoodeditor@uno.edu and must be sent no later than 5p.m. on the Monday before publication.

2000 Lakeshore Drive, UC 252, New Orleans, LA 70148 | (504) 280-6377

Nigel Washington Editor-in-Chief driftwoodeditor@uno.edu

Charles Nicholson Managing Editor driftwood@uno.edu

Visuals Director | Grant Campbell • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • driftwoodart@uno.edu News Editor | Chloe Gagnon • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • cprange@uno.edu Features/Ent. Editor | Anna Gowin • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • driftwoodent@uno.edu Web Editor | Ave Maria Bordenave • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • abordena@uno.edu Reporter | Lones Gagnard • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • lgagnard@uno.edu Photographer | Helen C. Reed• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • hreed1@uno.edu Illustrator | Barrington Hebert • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • bkhebert@uno.edu Illustrator | Jared Buck • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • jbuck@uno.edu Business Manager | Matt Stennis • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • driftwoodbusiness@uno.edu Faculty Adviser | Vickie Kennedy • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • vkennedy@uno.edu

NEWS

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2016

UNO mourns loss of two community members

ADRIAN PÉRÉ Director of Counseling Services

UNO’s Director of Counseling Services, Adrian Péré, died on Jan. 3, 2016.

Adrian Péré’s connection with the University of New Orleans began when he was working on his master’s degree at Tulane University. In 2007, he secured a job as an outreach coordinator for Counseling Services. In 2009, he became the Director of Counseling Services at UNO. Péré established the Safe Space Allies Program on campus in 2009 which raises support and awareness for LGBTQIQ students. He also gave many seminars throughout each semester to students on a wide range of topics.

Before getting a Master’s degree in social services, Péré was an ordained priest from Notre Dame Seminary and Graduate School of Theology.

A visitation and mass was held on Jan. 8 in Houma.

DR. JOHN EDWARD ALTAZAN Retired UNO Professor

On Jan. 10, longtime UNO educator Dr. John Edward Altazan, born Sept. 18, 1926, passed away.

Dr. Altazan first joined UNO back when it was LSUNO in 1958 as a founding dean of the College of Business Administration. He retired in 2008 after 50 years with the university.

He was Valedictorian at Port Allen High School in 1943, then went on to get his Bachelor’s in Accounting and Master’s in Business Administration from LSU. At the University of Illinois, he earned his Ph.D. in Economics in 1954.

Dr. Altazan is survived by his wife of 58 years, Marie Hayes Altazan, and his two daughters, Alison Ramiro Guerra Altazan and Kerrin Altazan.

His funeral was Saturday, Jan. 16 at Transfiguration of Our Lord Catholic Church.

MAN ON THE STREET

Which 2015 trend do you hope ends with the new year?

PRADIP ADHIKARI Junior, Political Science

ZACHARY TALAZAC Freshman, Electrical Engineering

Something I hope that ends in 2016 is the health hazards associated with drinking water in Jefferson Parish.

On a global scale, I would like to see a more tolerant society towards different races and religions all across the world.

Hoverboards, they are dumb!

PEDRO GONCALVES Junior, Mechanical Engineering

Public transportation!

Cars are much faster.

YAN ANDRADE Junior, Electrical Engineering

BARRINGTON HERBERT Freshman, Film

Justin Bieber!

Vaping, nobody cares about the size of your battery or vape clouds. And you’re still smoking.

Photos by Sanjiv Pradhanang

CRIME SCENE DO NOT

CROSS CRIME SCENE

• On Dec. 5, UNOPD investigated reports that gunshots were fired at the Privateer Place Gazebo.

• On Dec. 6, a bag suspected to be marijuana was found at the Privateer Place Clubhouse 1 Roadway and turned over to NOPD. • On Dec. 6, at St. Bernard Avenue and Robert E. Lee Boulevard, a victim reported to be stopped at a traffic light when a black SUV pulled up next to her vehicle. A suspect exited the vehicle and pointed a pistol at the victim while trying to open the driver side front door. The victim fled the scene where the suspect fired a single round at her vehicle. The victim was unharmed.

• On Dec. 8, a Sodexo housekeeping employee reported his jacket stolen from the math building.

• On Dec. 8, a person reported her car broken into and $32 plus a significant amount of loose change stolen.

• On Dec. 9, a Privateer Place resident reported that her girlfriend slashed two of her vehicle’s tires and damaged the victim’s cell phone, prescription glasses and several items of clothes.

• On Dec. 14, a student reported being the target of an unknown subject who sends threatening texts to coerce the victim into sending inappropriate pictures of herself.

• On Dec. 15, a Pontchartrain Hall resident reported a complaint of sexual assault.

• On Dec. 16, a Sodexo employee reported a possible theft from the Kirschman Hall break room in which the vending machine’s glass had been shattered and several rows in the vending machine had been emptied.

• On Dec. 25, a victim reported $30 and a gold plated watch stolen from his parked car at Privateer Place Parking Lot at Main Office.

• On Dec. 27, a Central Plant technician notified UNOPD of a stolen Central Plant cart located near the Chemistry building.

• On Jan. 9, a Privateer Place resident reported an Xbox console, five video games and a DVD were stolen from his apartment. UNOPD discovered the entrance point of this burglary was the living room window.

CAMPUS CALENDAR WED., JAN. 20 MLK Week for Peace: In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and in conjunction with Tulane, Loyola and Xavier universities; a series of events meant to stimulate students into activism as well as celebrate 30 years of remembering Dr. King’s legacy. For more info, contact Dale O’Neill, dmoneill@uno.

edu, or Lacey Cunningham, lmcunni1@ my.uno.edu, or visit uno.edu for the list of events.

at 7 p.m. in the UNO Lakefront Arena.

TUES., JAN. 26

WED., JAN. 27

MON., JAN. 25

THURS., JAN. 21

Homecoming Kick-off : Get in the school spirit! Celebrate the beginning of Homecoming Week by meeting the Court and playing games in the Quad from 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

T-shirt Swap: Come to the Quad from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. to swap out your t-shirt from another university for a UNO shirt and get some Privateer swag.

Women’s Basketball vs. Nicholls State: Watch as the Lady Privateers go up against the Nicholls State Colonels. The game is for 7 p.m. at the UNO Lakefront Arena

Women’s Basketball vs. Central Arkansas: Support the Lady Privateers as they take on the University of Central Arkansas’ Sugar Bears. The game starts

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2016

NEWS

Mold found in dorms brings attention to larger problem with air conditioning

BY ANNA GOWIN Features Editor When Patricia Coughlin and her roommates noticed suspicious black fuzz growing around their Pontchartrain Hall South A/C vent, they weren’t initially alarmed.

Coughlin says that they notified maintenance, who came and merely surface-cleaned the area.

“When it grew back, “ Coughlin said, “we were like, ‘Yeah, that’s definitely mold’.” It was then that their concern began to grow. Upon notifying her RA again, Coughlin said that maintenance came again and tried to resolve the issue the same way.

“They told us, ‘Let us know when it comes back and we’ll come clean it again,” Coughlin said. After several months, Coughlin and her roommates noticed the mold

spreading to other areas of their room on the first floor of South Hall.

It was then that Bianca Ezumah, one of Coughlin’s roommates, knew the issue needed to be brought to the attention of Mike Brauninger, Director of Student Housing.

Brauninger and Director of Student Affairs Brett Kemker handled the situation quickly within the last few weeks of the Fall semester.

“We tried to resolve the issue,” Kemker said, “but it came back.

Later we discovered the problem was with the A/C coils.” According to Kemker, the coils of the room’s A/C unit was not properly controlling moisture levels in the room, thus causing the growth of mold.

Coughlin, Ezumah and their other two roommates were all displaced into other rooms in order

for this issue to be permanently resolved.

Some mold growth permanently damaged Ezumah’s personal belongings, she said, like clothing hanging in her closet.

Ezumah says that while housing has agreed to reimburse her for her lost personal items, she has not yet been compensated.

Coughlin also said that the first room she and Ezumah were supposed to move to showed the beginning signs of mold growth.

Kemker said that was actually a plus side to the issue being brought to his attention, making sure it is resolved for all Pontchartrain Hall residents.

“We are doing a couple of things, “ Kemker said. “ We are doing a thorough check of all the air conditioner units coils to make sure they’re all functioning properly.

Which has been brought about be-

UNO implements campus wide ban on hoverboards, electronic scooters

cause of this. We are also doing inspections of every room.”

These inspections for the presence of mold, Kemker says, will include both North and South Pontchartrain Halls as well as Lafitte Village. All of the on-campus housing that is under Kemker’s jurisdiction.

Kemker also said that a private company that specializes in mold remediation was brought in to do thorough abatement of affected rooms, but only Coughlin, Ezumah and their fellow suitemates were relocated.

Ezumah said that she’s not attending UNO this semester, but even if she were, she would personally not want to live in the dorms.

Brauninger said the company confirmed that the issue was isolated to that part of the South Hall building.

While Kemker could not confirm

the kind of mold present, he said “all I know is it’s the ‘m-word,’ so it’s going to get taken care of.”

Kemker reaffirmed that with this issue, as well as others, his number one commitment is student health and safety: “If my students are in any building, that building is going to be clean under my watch. And as soon as I find out about it, I will get on it.”

The results of these solutions are varied: Kemker said that this will result in an overall improvement of the on-campus air conditioning units, as well as piqued awareness for similar problems in the future.

“The good news is that the students reported it,” Kemker said. So the problem can be solved for all students in the future.

As for Coughlin, she has said that she already feels like her respiratory health has improved as a result of living in another room.

Alleged shooting leaves questions unanswered

BY CHARLES NICHOLSON Managing Editor

UNO joins a long list of Louisiana universities to ban hoverboards on campus.

BY NIGEL WASHINGTON Editor-in-Chief The University of New Orleans set a temporary campus-wide ban on hoverboards and electronic scooters on Jan. 8 after growing reports of these devices catching on fire.

In an email sent out to all students by the Office of Student Affairs, hoverboards and electronic scooters will be banned from all campus buildings and grounds until safety standards are implemented for them.

“Taking into account the safety concerns raised by these organiza-

tions, and consistent with the steps taken at other colleges and universities, the University of New Orleans has decided to be proactive in limiting the use of hover boards on its campus for the safety of our community,” read the official statement.

The ban comes after a recent warning issued by the National Association of Fire Marshals to all universities with numerous reports of these devices catching on fire from overcharged batteries.

The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission is currently investigating the safety of hoverboards and other self-balancing scooters.

Photo by Grant Campbell

“The well-being of our students, faculty, staff and visitors is always our top priority, and we are not willing to risk that safety for these devices,” the email concluded.

With the ban, UNO joins a growing list of universities in Louisiana banning electronic scooters from their campus. LSU, Tulane, Loyola, Nicholls State, Southeastern Louisiana, University of Louisiana at Lafayette and Xavier have all placed similar temporary bans on these devices.

In November of last year, a home in Jean Lafitte was destroyed after a hoverboard exploded while charging inside the house.

On Dec. 5, around 10:45 p.m., UNOPD were called to the Privateer Place Apartments for reports of gun shots. However, as explained in the email sent out to faculty, staff and students, there were no signs of any sort of incident.

One Privateer Place resident, who has requested to remain anonymous, was awake at the time and a witness to what transpired.

“I was trying to study for exams and whatnot and I had my window open. And I heard two, what ended up being gunshots, and I went ‘Hmm, that’s a gunshot.’ So I ended up laying on the ground.”

He continued, “Then I heard three more after that. Then there was some yelling, like ‘Oh shit man. We gotta go, we gotta go.’

And so I went into the living and looked out the window and I saw two guys just like booking it toward the front gate.

And then they left and I heard a little more running. Then, after that, for like a minute and a half, there was a dude who was like ‘Fuck, man, get up. We gotta go, come on. Get up.’ Just like, yelling to somebody. And then, pretty much, silence.”

Afterwards, he checked out of his window to be sure before going outside. It wasn’t long after that UNOPD were at the scene.

“Then, NOPD showed up and things started to get kinda confusing. Like the number of bullets changed at one point, between four and five, which was what me and everyone near me heard, to seven or nine,” he said.

“I started talking to some different people. Most people were like, ‘Yeah, I heard some gunshots.’ But one person had seen a group of people moving towards [the gazebo], but that was about it. So it was like a group of people and they all split up.”

He said that the managing of the situation by the authorities and university was a little light-handed and didn’t feel reassured as a resident.

“People at P-Place didn’t get like a ‘P-Place’ email about it.

Just UNO students as a whole got an email saying ‘Hey, something happened that may have been explosions.’ Me and a couple of people were like, ‘I come from a neighborhood where I’ve heard this before.

These were gunshots. It wasn’t even a question.”

Public Relations Director, Adam Norris, said that the jurisdiction from UNOPD is that there were reports of explosion sounds but because there was no victim or evidence to determine what caused the noises, the possiblity of gun shots has been ruled out. Until new evidence appears, the case is technically closed.

FEATURES

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2016

5

Permanent Canal Closures & Pumps near completion

The London Avenue pumping station is scheduled for completion in 2017.

BY CHLOE GAGNON News Editor In UNO’s backyard lies a construction site that has been built and improved on since 2005. Currently, the site is hosting its latest project, the Permanent Canal Closures and

Pumps (PCCP).

Public Affairs liaison for the project Matt Roe said: “The point of the PCCP, Permanent Canal Closures Project, is to stop surge waters from Lake Pontchartrain from coming into the outfall canals.”

The project, started in 2013 and not due for completion until 2017,

Photo by Grant Campbell

is headed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and is a $14.45 billion project funded by the U.S. government. The project consists of 350 miles of levees and floodwalls, 73 non-Federal pumping stations, three canal closure structures with pumps and four gated outlets.

This PCCP is currently working

on building three main pump stations. “There is one at London [Avenue], which is here by the UNO campus, Orleans [Avenue], and 17th street.”

On London Avenue, Roe said: “There was nothing right here during Hurricane Katrina, so this was just open to the lake and when the lake levels rose, it just flushed and came straight down the canals to the interior of the city. At the three outfall canals, there were three breaches that resulted in flooding.

So we’re working to put a cap on the canals.”

Roe explained that barge doors surround the perimeter of the city and they are able to be opened and closed for barge traffic. “When all of them are closed for a tropical event, it helps create one continuous wall around the city perimeter.”

“New Orleans sits in a bowl. Every drop of rainwater that falls in has to be pumped out. So this canal is attached to one of the sewer and water board pump stations on the way. The water comes in here and it’s gravity fed out to the lake most of the time. During a tropical event they will close the gates and pump around it.”

The pump stations will then pump water out of the city and push it out to the lake so the city will not be underwater and the people will

not become fish. “It creates a perimeter around the city and it’s all these different elements tied together and work together to help reduce risk for the city.”

The main construction site structure was built right after Katrina in 2005 and was operational in 2006.

“When we are out of hurricane season, they test this structure once a month. Then when we’re in hurricane season they test it twice a month to make sure everything is still operational. They will test the generators and the pumps.”

Because of the construction site, there are many noise levels that are bothersome to students especially ones who live in Privateer Place.

“We do get noise complaints from the students [about once a month] so we’re working harder to let the student population know what we’re doing, why we’re doing it, and what exactly is going on over here.”

A PCCP virtual town hall presentation will be held on campus for student residents on Jan. 27 at the Privateer Place Clubhouse from 6-7:30 p.m. where residents at Privateer Place will become aware of “what’s going on next door because if they are driving sheet pile in the middle of the night, it could be scary if you don’t know what’s going on.”

HRT students get taste of the industry with professional membership

BY CHARLES NICHOLSON Managing Editor The Lester E. Kabacoff School of Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism (HRT) is one of the flagship schools hosted at UNO. Resources are in abundance for its students in a city like New Orleans, especially considering the school’s 100 percent employment rate for HRT graduates.

Students in HRT also have an advantage in the American Hotel and Lodging Association (AH&LA).

The AH&LA services the hospitality industry through advocacy, communication and educational resources. The Association has chapters based in more than 20 colleges and universities including Cornell and Purdue. UNO is one of the first five colleges to start it’s own chapter.

“Every November we would attend the show in New York and I would bring a group of students there and that was our annual conference,” said Dr. Kim Williams, interim director of the HRT school and faculty advisor of the UNO chapter of AH&LA. “So we would sit in a room together and talk about what all of our chapters are doing, how we promote to student groups what we need from them. Then, the students would be able to go to the hotel show where you see all the products, all the services that are offered from hotels around the world.

So it’s an international conference.”

The UNO chapter attended a conference this past November where

six grad students in HRT attended a competition there. The students achieved sixth place among 17 competing schools. Nina Balan, a student and member of AH&LA, was at the conference when they competed.

“This was my second year and it was a fantastic experience. We had a chance to attend the trade show when all the companies from the hotel industry, tourism, culinary and food and beverage industries bring all of their innovations,” said Balan. “You get to know what’s new on the market. You get to know everything that’s happening. You get to meet CEOs, managers, directors who give speeches about what their goals are for the next year. What are their priorities, what do they focus on?”

The AH&LA members stayed in the Sheraton hotel in Times Square for three days. On their first day there, they met with students from other universities and exchanged their experiences as separate chapters.

Balan continued, “The second day we had to attend conferences and a trade show which was different CEOs and directors of companies giving motivation. They tell you why they’re doing that job and why they work in this industry. The third day the grad students attended their competition.”

For the competition, the six grad students created a powerpoint presentation with information of financial statements and revenue management of New Orleans businesses. They explained how New

American Hotel & Lodging Association members celebrate after their yearly conference.

Orleans stands in the hospitality industry and its average daily occupancy, including how the city recovered from Hurricane Katrina.

As faculty advisor to the chapter, Williams supervises students by making sure they are following the bylaws of the association. The chapter holds two meetings every semester, participate in community service projects and stay involved in the service industry.

“Last semester, we did a career fair in conjunction with Greater New Orleans Hotel and Lodging Association. We had more than 30 companies come to campus to recruit students for job opportunities,” said Williams.

To become a member of AH&LA there is a $45 annual membership fee. But Balan added that keeping one’s membership means being an active member. “[The money] goes to the main chapter, who gives you an account and you become a small part of a big thing,” said Balan. “In order to keep your membership active, or to rise to an eboard member, president or vice president, you have to attend activities. Activities for service hours, things on campus, at conferences. We go and volunteer for the Tourism Tee-off.”

At the Tourism Tee-off, AH&LA members raise money for the education foundation through the

Photo courtesy of Dr. Kim Williams

association. Volunteer work is also an important part of opening job opportunities, according to Dr. Williams.

“Because we volunteer every year, that helps us to get money back, like the $25,000 that we just got from them,” said Williams.

“Our students help check in the golfers and that’s primarily managers in the industry: owners of hotels, different tourism operations.

I can’t tell you how many general managers of hotels and business owners have come over and said ‘I want people just like them working for me.’ That’s not something you can teach.”

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2016

FEATURES

UNO Art Graduate Dan Tague

“Sedate Maneuvers,” the solo exhibit by two-time UNO alumnus Dan Tague, is a reflection Regular gallery hours are Sat. and Sun. from 12-5 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2016

7

featured at St. Claude Gallery

n on his journey of art and loss in the ten years since Hurricane Katrina. Exhibit runs through February 7, at 2429 St. Claude Avenue.

Photos by Helen C. Reed

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8

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2016

ENTERTAINMENT

Tarantino delivers despite slow start

BY NIGEL WASHINGTON Editor-in-Chief Did you love the gory shootings and tense scenes in “Django Unchained?” How about “Pulp Fiction” and it’s riveting story combined with an interesting, diverse collection of characters? Or maybe “Kill Bill Vol. 1” and “Kill Bill Vol. 2” had the action-filled scenes and awe-inspiring cinematography that tickled your fancy. Let’s roll all of those together, sprinkle in some verbal warfare and mind games from “Reservoir Dogs,” and voila: Quentin Tarantino presents “The Hateful Eight” for your viewing pleasure.

Tarantino keeps us away from civilization again as “The Hateful Eight” opens up slowly panning away from a wooden crucifix almost buried in snow. In a post-civil war world, Major Marquis Warren (Samuel L. Jackson) is an ex-union soldier and current bounty hunter stranded in a brutal Wyoming blizzard. He’s en route to Red Rock to turn in his frozen corpses for his reward, but there’s one problem: he’s stranded. Luckily fellow bounty hunter and nominee for best onscreen mustache John “The Hangman” Ruth (Kurt Russell) rides along in an eight-horse drawn buggy with a shackled Daisy Domergue (Jennifer Jason Leigh), Ruth’s own bounty, who has a $10,000 price

on her head for murdering her husband. Ruth is heading to Red Rock to cash in as well and Major Warren is coming along for the ride.

A few dialogue exchanges and a Lincoln letter later, we find Chris Mannix (Walton Goggins) stranded as well. Ruth is obliged to help the supposed future sheriff of Red Rock (especially if he wants his bounty) and now the wagon’s filled with quite the bunch. Don’t expect too much gunplay here as these sequences all occur within first 90 minutes of this three-hour film.

This dialogue heavy section of the film is mainly used as character development and it all takes place in the back of the buggy. While the exchanges between Mannix, Major Warren and Ruth come with a funny line here or there, it wasn’t long before a few fellow moviegoers got a little antsy. The dialogue doesn’t kill the movie, but things do tend to get boring with little variations in scene or characters.

The heavy discussion scene shifts when the gang reaches its safe house at Minnie’s Haberdashery to take refuge until the storm passes over. Almost immediately, the plot begins to brew and heat up like the pot of coffee Ruth makes upon entering Minnie’s. The traditional, loner cowboy Joe Gage (Michael Madsen), Englishman Oswaldo Mobray (Tim Roth), retired Confederate General Sandy

Photo courtesy of The Weinstein Company

Smithers (Bruce Dern) and Bob (Damián Bichir) have already arrived at the small shack in the middle of nowhere. From there the movie becomes a western version of Clue. All of the characters are out for their own interests, and do as much politicking as they can to protect themselves and their assets.

Mind games are played among the characters and what’s the truth and what’s a lie is never really revealed.

This ultimately influences discussion among viewers as to what (or who) they think is right or wrong.

Like real world politics, words

can only delay inevitable violence for so long. The gory gunfights we’ve come to know and love charge in almost instantaneously.

The final hour and a half of “The Hateful Eight” will leave any spectator who could bear the initial dialogue-heavy half of the film on the edge of their seats. Tarantino takes us on a roller coaster ride with twists and turns throughout that leave our once warm and cozy haberdashery into a blood soaked cabin filled with secrets and stories that will never make it out of the raw, unforgiving blizzard.

In the end you might be left with more questions than answers, but what do you expect? Cut and dry answers isn’t Tarantino’s style (the Internet is still arguing over what’s in Jules’ suitcase). Outlast the first hour and a half and you’ll be left with a film that’ll leave you thinking long after the credits roll and the epic spaghetti western style music begins to play. “The Hateful Eight” is another great addition to the legendary Tarantino repertoire, and with reports of possible adaptations in plays, it could easily turn into another classic in American film.

“The Big Short” both confuses and captivates

Photo courtesy of Paramount

BY CHLOE GAGNON News Editor Released in December of 2015, The Big Short is an incredible film about an enormously confusing topic—Wall Street and the early 2000 housing market crash.

Directed by Adam McKay, the film is about a select group of men who discover that the economy is on the verge of collapsing and decide to bet against the banks and housing loans. When the market does collapse, their goal is to collect millions upon millions of dol-

lars.

This film was based on the book

by Michael Lewis, “The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine.”

It starts in a confusing sort of way with Ryan Gosling breaking the fourth wall and speaking directly to the audience. He tells viewers that this story is based on true events and that he will see everyone in a little while. This style of filmmaking in not super common in films, but successful when done right.

The amazing cast includes Christian Bale who plays Michael Burry, a hedge fund manager who discovers the “short” in the housing “bub-

ble.” He then takes the millions of dollars he manages, goes to big banks and sets up contracts betting against their housing loans. Jared Vennette (Ryan Gosling) discovers what Burry is doing and tries to make a deal with a bank who will do what Burry did so that Vennette will earn money when the bank makes money. Mark Baum (Steve Carell) enters into the deal with Vennette. The fourth and final factor are two men who open their own small company, Charlie Geller and Jamie Shipley, and find Vennette’s discovery and team up with abandoned-from-the-world

Ben Rickert (Brad Pitt). These men play the main characters who discover the hole in the economy and reap the benefits. Each is on his own path in the film and never meet. But, all are after the same goal.

In addition to this all-star cast, there are other celebrities who do cameos and essentially pause the film because of the confusing nature of the film’s topic. The narrative story stops and celebrities, once again, break the fourth wall by talking directly to the audience to break down meanings of big confusing Wall Street terms such as CDOs, credit default swap, and sub-prime mortgages. Among these celebrities are Margot Robbie, Selena Gómez and Chef Anthony Bourdain who explain by means of a bubble bath, poker and cooking respectively.

The plot itself was just a boring money game. Five men bet against banks who are making money illegally, and these five men make money off of them. However, the directing style of the film was almost a “mockumentary” which is what made it so intriguing to watch. A mockumentary is a style of documentary filmmaking where non-fiction scenes are reenacted in a cinematic way.

There was a scene in the film when Geller and Shipley find a binder in a bank lobby about “short

in the housing bubble” that Burry created and from there, they get interested and partake in betting against the banks. In the middle of this scene, the two characters stop, face the audience, confess that this scene happened differently in real life, describe how it happened and then continue acting out the scene.

This film points a negative finger to just about anyone who played a hand at causing this: banks, loan managers or anyone on Wall Street.

Even the government is accused of negativity because after all that happened and all of the illegal activity, only one person was arrested and charged and the banks were bailed out through taxes in order to save the national government from going into another depression. The film makes it seem that it’s only a matter of time before this happens again because there were no repercussions and no responsibility from anyone.

“The Big Short” is a worthwhile movie to see because it explains what really happened by giving facts but may end up confusing you more. The directing style and the subject matter are the two most worthwhile reasons to watch.

“The Big Short” has received five Academy Award nominations including Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor in a Leading Role, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Editing.

ENTERTAINMENT

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2016

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The Hungry Privateer: Restaurants to look out for in 2016

Photos by Grant Campbell

The Cubano sandwich at ¡El Libre! is worth the 2 a.m. trip, not to mention other Cuban favorites like guava pastries and cafe con leche.

2015 was a year of great eating had by all (especially the Hungry Privateer), but the Crescent City and its dining scene have more to offer yet. Here are some gems to look out for opening in 2016.

‘redeveloped’ and the location was permanently closed. But fear not!

The restaurant will soon be reopening on Tulane Avenue to satisfy all your cravings for pho, bahn mi and vegetarian options.

Pho Tau Bay

¡El Libre!

1565 Tulane Ave

Anyone who considers themselves a fan of Vietnamese cuisine is intimately familiar with this tried and true Gretna spot. But news recently arose that the shopping center housing Pho Tau Bay would be

508 Dumaine St

Okay, maybe this hole-in-thewall Cuban café opened at the end of last year. But it still feels recent enough (and delicious enough) to include. The menu is as small as the space it’s housed in, but the flavors

sure aren’t. This co-op tucked away on Dumaine Street is serving fresh sandwiches, pastries and cocktails with authentic Cuban flavors. Oh, and they’re open until 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. You’re welcome.

Taceaux Loceaux 627 Celeste St

If you’ve been around to watch the food truck renaissance here in New Orleans, then you’re familiar with one of its godfathers. The truck has been slinging incredible,

NOLA-inspired tacos around the city for years. But now, its patrons can get ready to get their fix of brisket, carnitas and shrimp ‘taceauxs’ (plus the stellar avocado fries) at the upcoming brick and mortar location on Celeste Street. Not to mention the Del Castillos say the new building will offer them the opportunity to have a wood-fired grill. Roasted chicken and goat in the hands of Taceaux Loceaux? Yes, please.

Lula

1532 St. Charles Ave

The new micro-distillery set to open on St. Charles Avenue will feature a “casual, Southern inspired” menu in addition to distilling vodka, gin and rum in-house using local Louisiana sugar cane.

Jess Bourgeouis, the owner and developer, has said that even though the distillery will be on site, the restaurant will certainly be reasonably priced and family-friendly. It’s still in the very early development stages, but the location (affectionately named for the sugar mill in Assumption Parish) just got zoning clearance for the distillery.

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LAGNIAPPE

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2016

Illustrated by Barrington Hebert

ink blots

Illustrated by Jared Buck

1/18/2016

Solutions for Distr

What We Offe

sudoku

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Puzzle 1 (Easy, difficulty rating 0.41)

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Generated by http://www.opensky.ca/sudoku on Mon Jan 18 20:52:33 2016 GMT. Enjoy!

Answers will be published online on Friday via our Instagram account:

M U D C G H O V E R B O A R D

C O O Y Y Q X Q E X G Y X Z A

O L C V S K K S S N A R V U N

A N H K K V H D O G Q E C P E

ARENA ARENA ASPIRIN ASPIRIN COLA COLA CONVENTION CONVENTION DISTILLERY GALLERY DISTILLERY

T S I V U O Z I J R K L H V R

HIPSTERS HOVERBOARD LEVEES UNODrift wood MOCKUMENTARY MOLD PUMPS

W A E T O M T F T P U L I B A

S Z C T N N E S P H F I Z K G

M P I E E A E N O Y D T Q K R

T N M V A E R F T G Z S C T W

G G N U V U I A V A U I S K S

L O F E P I X U T L R D L O M

GALLERY HIPSTERS HOVERBOARD LEVEES MOCKUMENTARY

C U L X A Y T T O L A Y P D Z

S R E T S P I H Z E M K Q A W

A S P I R I N J D R W D O U O

A T C Z A E A T X Y V O D B E

MOLD PUMPS SHOOTING TACEAUX TARANTINO

SPORTS

UNO surrenders late lead, falls to Houston Baptist 73-69

BY NIGEL WASHINGTON Editor-in-Chief The UNO (5-10, 1-3 SLC) men’s basketball team couldn’t hold a late lead as they lost to Houston Baptist 73-69 in the Lakefront Arena on Saturday.

Junior guard Christavious Gill had been struggling to find any type of rhythm all night. With Gill standing at only 5-foot-8, he had been given the tough assignment of finding ways to score against the Huskie guards, all of whom stand at least six feet tall.

With the game tied at 60 with three minutes left, Gill came up with a clutch steal near half court to score a layup while getting fouled.

He converted the and one to give his team a three-point lead and momentum going into the final minutes of this hard fought game.

With two minutes left to play, the Huskies gained control of the score and momentum with a three-pointer

by HBU’s leading scorer Anthony Odunsi.

Junior Nate Frye managed another timely steal and set up Gill perfectly to finish off the fast break layup. HBU would also foul on the attempt, giving Gill another and one and allowing the Privateers to cut the lead to only one at 67-66 with a minute remaining.

The Huskies would miss their next attempt, but an offensive re-

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2016

Lady Privateers score nine points during final period in 71-51 loss to Huskies

BY NIGEL WASHINGTON Editor-in-Chief

Photo courtesy of UNO Athletics | Ron O’Rourke

bound forced New Orleans to foul.

HBU would make both free throws stretching the lead to three.

Senior Kevin Hill would miss on a hook shoot to keep the game within one. HBU converted both free throws to give themselves a 71-66 lead.

The contest seemed to be had, but Gill kept the Privateer’s hopes alive with a three-pointer in the corner to make it a one-possession game.

UNO would never get the opportunity to score, however, as Odunsi sank both free throws to seal the Huskie victory 73-69.

The contest got physical early in the first half of the game as both teams tried to get inside the paint and score in transition or get to the free throw line. The Privateers tried to establish the tempo early as the team tried to run the floor after ev-

ery rebound. Frye took a rebound full court to set up a momentum building alley-oop to fellow junior Tevin Broyles (pictured above) to take an early two-point lead.

It was a close, back and forth contest throughout the first period as neither team led by more than five points. After freshman guard Cameron Reed split free throws to end the period, the Privateers found themselves down to the Huskies 28-27 at halftime.

Gill led the team in scoring with 15 points, no assists and a steal.

Sophomore Michael Zeno grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds while tallying two steals and one block.

The Privateers will host Stephen F. Austin (11-5, 4-0 SLC) on Monday before going on the road against Texas A&M Corpus Christi on Saturday.

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After a miraculous game winning shot the night before, the UNO women’s basketball team couldn’t recreate the same magic on the Lakefront as they fell to Houston Baptist 71-51.

Both the Lady Privateers (5-9, 2-3 SLC) and Huskies (8-8, 3-3 SLC) had a rough time shooting the basketball to start the opening quarter. Sophomore Randi Brown got the scoring started with a jump shot three minutes into the start of the game and the team wouldn’t convert on their next attempt until three minutes were left.

UNO kept it close and finished the first quarter trailing Houston Baptist 11-8.

After a 5-0 run from the Huskies to open the second quarter, sophomore Halie Matthews scored six points to cut into the HBU lead. A three-point play by junior Jewel Angelo cut the Husky lead before halftime with a 28-25 score.

Matthews would lead all scorers at the half with eight points. Both teams shot around 40% from the field for the first two quarters while UNO had 13 points off turnovers.

New Orleans got off to a quick 4-0 run to start the third quarter, but the Huskies answered the run

with back-to-back three pointers to retake the lead at 37-34.

The Lady Privateers made valiant efforts throughout the game to retake the early lead that was quickly snatched away by the Huskie shooters. Both teams found their offense as the scoring was back and forth for the majority of the quarter.

Houston Baptist went on a small 4-0 run that gave them momentum and a 48-42 lead going into the final period.

The Privateers couldn’t find the same offensive spark they had in the previous quarter and found themselves on a four minute scoring drought. Meanwhile, the Huskies continued their rhythm and quickly pulled away with an 11-0 run to give them a 59-42 lead with 6:26 left in the game.

Houston Baptist would outscore New Orleans 23-9 in the fourth quarter en route to a 71-51 win.

Matthews would finish as the Privateers leading scorer with 12 points two rebounds and a block.

UNO will finish off their threegame home stand against the University of Central Arkansas (14-2, 4-1 SLC) on thursday. Tip off is scheduled for 7 pm.

UCA currently has a four-game winning streak going into Thursday’s game.