03/07/12

FREE | Take one Week of March 7, 2012 | Vol. 37, Iss 20

The

Mirror fairfieldmirror.com

The Independent Student Newspaper of Fairfield University The Reflection of Fairfield

2014 Elects Final Senator

By Maggie Andrew Assistant News Editor

Nicholas DiFazio/The Mirror

Students “Act Against” Hate

Gathered in the Lower Level BCC, students set the foundation for mending discrimination and encouraging open-forum discussions on campus.

By Richard O’Connor Staff Writer

Although Fairfield University aligns itself with Jesuit morals, preaching acceptance and social justice, there still lurks a sense of discrimination within the campus community. And for some, it has become intolerable.

The group Act Against held its first official forum last Thursday March 1, in the lower level of the BCC. Act Against was started by students living in McCormick in re-

sponse to the vandalism incident, which occurred in Claver earlier this semester, where a vandal carved racial slurs and an anti-Semitic symbol onto a plaque residing in the dorm.

The group drew inspiration for their name from a carving in their own dorm, bearing the inscription “Act Against.” For them the name exemplifies their stance towards discrimination on campus.

The topics covered at the forum focused on students’ sense of social injustice on campus: the failure to integrate the student population,

lack of respect for female students by their male counterparts, and stereotypes that male and female students feel they need to live up to in order to fit in on campus.

Senior Ashley De La Cruz talked about some of the instances of discrimination she had come across in her time on campus. She said: “I’ve passed by the townhouses and heard drunk white people saying, ‘I’m tired of these f**ing n***ers on campus.’” On another occasion she overheard two students discussing how they believed minority students

had an easier time in the admissions process.

Sophomore Xavier Francis, one of the group’s core members, believed that not enough of the student community was taking these issues seriously. When presented with a student’s analogy, comparing the vandalism with trash on the floor and other dorm damages, he replied: “I can pick up garbage from the floor and put it in the bin, but you can’t just pick up racism from the floor and put it in the bin. It’s rooted in the

Discrimination | page 2

One of the most anticlimactic FUSA election seasons is finally over, with Harry Cintineo named the fifth class of 2014 senator.

Cintineo won over opponent Astrid Quinones ‘14, 38 to 13 votes. He will now join Paul O’Brien ‘14, Samantha Hart ‘14, Alex Long ‘14 and Nicoletta Richardson ’14 in representing the rising junior class.

The positions in Senate were the only contested races of the 2012 FUSA Election. Cintineo and Quinones tied last Tuesday, when seven students ran for five Senate seats.

Both candidates received exactly 87 votes in the tie. The Election Code stipulates that a run-off election must determine the winner within a week, prompting the last-minute ballot casting in the BCC on Tuesday Upon hearing the news of his win, Cintineo expressed gratitude for everyone who came out and voted for him.

Quinones commented, “I don’t know my opponent personally, but I’m sure he will do his best on FUSA Senate.”

Sam Maxfield ‘14, the newly elected Chair of Senate, said, “I am happy this process worked and I’m excited to get started next year.”

Barstool Blackout Gets Blacked Out

By Mary Kate McCormick Staff Writer

The biggest party to hit Fairfield University and access to Ticketmaster were blocked on the University network, preventing students from using the FUSA sponsored pre-sale code this past Thursday.

A University email sent out on Monday by Vice President for Student Affairs Thomas Pellegrino, however, explained the reasons behind the error message and said that the school was not at fault.

Word that Boston Barstool Sports had chosen Fairfield U and Sacred Heart for their Barstool Blackout Foam Party tour spread over the past two weeks.

Because the event is being held at Webster Bank Arena, the tickets are open to anyone. The FUSA-sponsored pre-sale code increased students’ chances of scoring a ticket to the popular event, a perk that FUSA President Rob Vogel’13 said he has been talking to Barstool about for months.

“Rumors that the Fairfield server was purposely blocking Ticketmaster because they did not endorse the Foam Party spread throughout the townhouses on Thursday after-

noon,” according to Matt Watanabe ‘12.

Watanabe said he and his friend Matthew Levinson ‘13 received a message that said “access forbidden by server” and quickly drove to a friend at the beach’s home to use their WiFi. But the reasons for the website block were unknown.

“It just would not make sense for Fairfield University to block students from buying tickets after FUSA had worked with Barstool to arrange the event ... It would be of no benefit to the University,” Vogel said.

Rev. Paul J. Fitzgerald, S.J, senior vice president for Academic Affairs, did not know what the server error message was about, but he did comment on the fiercely anti-Fairfield administration article posted

by Barstool.

The posting portrayed the University’s rumored website blockage as “Hitler-like,” even saying, “Are you sh***ing me Fairfield? What is this Nazi Germany?” A Nazi propaganda poster was embedded in the article.

Fitzgerald was angered and hurt by the Barstool article, saying, “Many of the blog posts are reprehensible and should be condemned as hate speech. ... My goodness, the anti-Semitic accusations about Fair-

field are so wrong.”

President Rev. Jeffery von Arx, S.J., Dean of Students Karen Donoghue, and Steve Dailey from Computer and Networking Services (C&NS) sought to correct these rumors.

“Fairfield University did not block the Ticketmaster site. We would never arbitrarily block a website to stop students from purchasing tickets,” said Donoghue.

She went further to state, “After speaking with him [Steve Dailey at C&NS], it appears this site is actually blocking Fairfield University.”

Von Arx confirmed: “it is important to set the record straight that Fairfield did not block access to any website or take any other action that would prevent members of the Fairfield community from purchasing tickets to an event at the Webster Bank Arena at Harbor Yard in Bridgeport.”

Dailey explained the possible issue stating, “We checked our systems and we are not blocking either site. The issue, more than likely, resides on the hosting service providers side,” meaning that this is a Ticketmaster issue, not a University one.

“Many times Ticketmaster will block IP addresses or ranges of IP addresses when they think someone is trying to purchase mass amounts of tickets at once,” Dailey said.

This would explain the

blocking of on-campus students who were simultaneously sending requests to Ticketmaster from the same IP Address.

When the blocking occurred, students encountered an error message on the screen in place of the website, explaining the trouble that Watanabe and friends experienced.

Donoghue concluded, “We would not censor the events our students want to attend on or off

campus.”

The website is now up and running. Although many students have missed the pre-sale, there are still tickets available for the Foam Party.

News

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

Page 2

Military Embraces the Debate of Gay Rights

Contributed Photo

Marine Sgt. Brandon Morgan and Dalan Wells celebrate Morgan’s homecoming after the repeal of “Don’t ask, don’t tell.”

By Mary Kate McCormick Staff Writer They say that a picture says a thousand words, but in the case of US Marine Sgt. Brandon Morgan and his boyfriend Dalan Wells, one homecoming image represents even more.

While photos of military

homecoming kisses are not uncommon, the image of Morgan in the arms of his boyfriend is more than a picture of one couple sharing an embrace.

Morgan and Wells’ homecoming photo initially spread over Facebook and has received national media attention because it speaks to the larger debate over gay rights

in the U.S. and especially within the military.

With the repeal of the military policy “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) this past September and the recent movements to legalize same-sex marriage on a state level, this image confirms that strides for equal rights for gay Americans are happening.

Although the U.S. military is known for its conservative view on same-sex relationships, this picture proves that times are changing.

Parker Pierson, a second year student at the U.S. Naval Academy, had mixed emotions after seeing this image.

He said, “I am for gays in the military. I think everyone deserves the right to serve their country.

That being said, I do not like this picture.”

Pierson was conflicted with the professionalism of a sergeant in uniform expressing joy at seeing a loved one after a tour of duty. “My first impression was that it wasn’t ‘professional’ … Everyone has a different opinion about gays in the military, but I think most people in the military would find this picture a little unprofessional.” He continued to say that homecoming kisses are usually more subdued and do not draw excessive attention from onlookers.

After searching online for other homecoming photos, Pierson concluded that it is not the fact that the couple in the picture is gay that made him object, but the unprofessional display of public affection that gained so much attention.

Here at Fairfield University, faculty and students seem to welcome a more progressive view on same-sex relationships.

Fairfield University’s expert in Catholicism, Dr. Elizabeth Dreyer, stated that “all genuine love is a gift from God and should be celebrated,” a statement that may seem contrary to the Catholic Church’s conservative view against gay marriage.

Sophomore Astrid Quinones ‘14, co-founder of Fairfield University’s Gender, Sex, and Sexuality

Commons (GSSC), an LGBTQ advocacy group on campus, similarly remarked, “This photo speaks to how we should not underestimate the power of love, all love. These men, who may not be accepted in society, have accepted each other and have supported each other.”

According to Quinones, “The fact that one has returned from his tour of duty and his partner has waited for his safe return demonstrates that they both are just as strong and just as proud to be Americans as anyone,” a message that resonates with GSSC’s goals for awareness and same-sex advocacy here at Fairfield.

Sophomore Jesus Nunez, another GSSC member, stated that he did not even think about the conflict or situation surrounding the image when he first saw it. “Seeing two people show affection after a long distance and time apart seemed like a normal reaction to me. And then I realized he was trying to point out that it was two men kissing; I guess my work with Alliance has made me ... desensitized to these sort of images.”

“As I thought about it, I realized how this picture is a great way to expose others who don’t have my experience as a gay youth about LGBTQ people,” continued Nunez. “How we too are serving in the military for our country and how we have loved ones waiting for us back home when we arrive.”

Nunez did not see the lack of professionalism in the image that Pierson pointed out. “Now, moments like this don’t have to be hidden,” he said. “With the repeal of the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy, showing affection upon the return of a tour won’t cause one to be discharged.”

Students Plan Open Forums Against Discrimination

Continued from page 1

history of this country.”

In a similar way, Public Safety officer Charles Goodwin spoke about his experience as an undergraduate at Howard University. He advocated for increased personal responsibility from students to create change in the campus’s atmosphere.

Goodwin said: “You set the culture and the tone at Fairfield University... I don’t remember a time in my four and a half years at Howard University where it was acceptable for a student to get drunk, punch holes in the wall, and call a young lady anything other than a young lady. We checked each other, and we didn’t need public safety to do it for us.”

Students were also critical of the

main story of last week’s issue of The Mirror, calling the article biased and opinionated.

The article, which focused on the recent night club shooting in Bridgeport featured a photo of a man wearing a hooded sweatshirt while brandishing a pistol. Students voiced their distaste of the picture, stating that it furthered negative stereotypes of the Bridgeport community.

“This article is nothing but a perpetuation of the negative stereotype that held against our neighboring city,” said Frances to The Mirror.

While the formation of the new student group is helpful and will hopefully bring aid to the ailing campus, some students took a more realistic approach to what the group may accomplish.

“It is a step in the right direction, but the fact is: intolerance will never end. Until we are all the

Nicholas DiFazio/The Mirror

Audience members at this meeting consisted of multiple campus groups, such as FUSA, Public Safety, and The Mirror.

same complexion , racial bias will exist. People always want to feel superior,” said De La Cruz.

Students of the University have become cognizant of the diverse social groups our campus holds and how they relate with one another.

“I thought it was a good way to hear stories of discrimination on campus. They usually remain hid-

den and I think it’s a step towards fighting intolerance,” offered Mary Mendez ’12.

Act Against will look to have another student forum by the semester’s end, but to those interested in continuing student activism there will be a meeting run by the Gender, Sex, and Sexuality Commons today from 7 p.m.-8:30 p.m. in room 123 of McCormick Hall.

Editor’s Note: To read the Editorial Board’s response to student criticism regarding last week’s article, turn to page 7.

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

News

Page 3

Hungry Students Help with Hunger Cleanup

By Nicoletta Richardson Contributing Writer

Twenty pounds of Garden Catering chicken nuggets, six containers of sauce and a twenty-four pack of water were placed in the Mezzanine for students participating in the “Hunger Cleanup Eating Contest” on Tuesday, Feb. 28.

Observers watched as eight male competitors and one female competitor sat around two long tables. Paper towels with 15 nuggets were placed in front of every participant as the announcer let everyone know the rules.

The contestants were told that when they were done, they would be checked to make sure that they swallowed all their chicken for fairness.

The announcer counted down from five, and then the contest began. A group of student watchers ran over to one of the tables when the first winner was announced.

Marie-Alexis Valente/The Mirror

Contestants for the “Hunger Cleanup Eating Contest” gathered in the Mezzanine and were challenged to eat 15 nuggets.

“It’s an accomplishment to win this competition,” said first place winner, Kenny Gilberg ‘12.

“I felt as if I redeemed the title from when I lost a nugget-eating contest at a spring lacrosse game back in 2010.”

The Hunger Cleanup is made up of a group of students, faculty, staff and alumni from Fairfield University who volunteer to fix up sites in Bridgeport, Norwalk, Fairfield and Stamford for a whole day. This year will be

the 22nd Hunger Cleanup.

Members of Fairfield Campus Ministry sponsored the event to raise money and awareness for the annual Hunger Cleanup.

The charge of five dollars to participate in the eating contest and

two dollars to watch was donated toward the cause .

“Every event that we do for Hunger Cleanup has an eating component,” said Wylie Blake, Campus Ministry community operations coordinator. “We were tossing around ideas for a while on what to eat. It was originally supposed to be a cupcake eating contest, then a cereal contest, and finally we chose chicken nuggets.”

The prizes were announced before the contest started: 1st place winning $50, 2nd placing winning $25, and 3rd place winning $15 in cash.

Blake mentioned that the event probably wouldn’t raise much money, but it would draw attention to the Hunger Cleanup event that was coming up.

On the way out, one of the competitors, Peter Lyons ’13, said, “I feel like a million bucks, I had a nicely catered dinner from Garden Catering and did something for a good cause. What more could I ask for?”

Photo Illustration by Nicholas DiFazio/The Mirror

Although many professors continue to lecture at colleges and universities, studies show that students do not benefit as much from this method of teaching as previously assumed.

Are Classroom Lectures Still Being Heard?

By Mabel Polanco Contributing Writer

Have you ever wondered why you can’t stay awake or pay attention for an hour and fifteen minutes when your professor is lecturing?

Maybe you didn’t get enough sleep, maybe the professor has a monotone voice, or maybe lectures are not as effective as they use to be.

“Human beings are and have evolved to learn through action,” said Dr. Michael Andreychik, a social and personality psychology professor here at Fairfield University.

But “the brain has not changed that much,” countered Dr. Linda Henkel a cognitive psychology professor.

Even though accessing information is no longer a problem, processing it and evaluating it is.

“Lectures are still necessary,” said Suleika Lopez ‘13. “Logical thinking sometimes needs to be explained and sometimes there’s no other way other was to do it.”

According to recent research,

seven out of 10 students said that lectures are not effective because learning is not about memorizing information but actively understanding it.

“For some tests I just repeat information in my head until it’s memorized,” said Julie Colangelo, a pre-med student.

“I do most of the learning on my own because I can’t memorize everything I hear right then and there. I need time to let it soak up,” she said.

According to Joe Redish from the University of Maryland, “The lecture is one of the oldest forms of education there is.” He added that the word “lecture” comes from the Latin word meaning “to read.”

When Redish began teaching at the University of Maryland in 1970, he lectured because it was the way he was taught. After a few years he met with his mentor, a famous physicist named Lewis Elton, who asked him about his teaching methods.

Redish believed he was doing well, but only those “who do really well are motivated.”

Elton responded to Redish, saying, “They’re the ones who don’t really need you.”

Some claim that lecturing has never been an effective teaching technique, and now that information is everywhere, Redish said it’s a waste of time.

“Sometimes I find myself just rereading the chapters and trying to explain to myself what I just learned in class,” said Alexander Guevara ’13.

David Hestenes, a professor from Arizona State University, said, “Students have to be active in developing their knowledge. They can’t passively assimilate it.”

“And I maintain, I think all the evidence indicates that these 10 percent are the students that would learn it even without the instructor,” Hestenes continued. “They essentially learn it on their own.”

Redish is not the only professor to come across this problem.

Eric Mazur, another professor from the University of Maryland, spent a large portion of his class period reviewing fundamental concepts only to discover that

around half of his class only got the questions correct.

After instructing them to discuss the questions among themselves, he saw that the entire class was dying to explain it to each other. This allowed the 50 percent of students who understood the material to explain it to the other half of the class.

Mazur explained these results.

“Imagine two students sitting next to one another, Mary and John.

Mary has the right answer because she understands it. John does not.

Mary’s more likely, on average, to convince John than the other way around because she has the right reasoning,” said Mazur.

The irony behind this is that she has recently learned it and still has some difficulties understanding it, but Professor Mazur learned the idea such a long time ago that he can no longer understand why somebody would have difficulty grasping it.

Mazur says, “It becomes harder to teach because you’re unaware of the conceptual difficulties of a beginning learner.”

In the past, students were assigned reading materials before class so they could prepare. Most students didn’t read and decide that they will pay attention so they can figure out what is most important and take notes instead.

Mazur feels this is the problem, and he teaches his classes in a different way.

His approach is to assign the reading and expect the students to be familiar with the topics, so that he can discuss it with them and review what confused them.

To make sure that they read, he organizes questions they must answer before class. These questions ask about any concepts or ideas that they find confusing.

He begins class with a brief explanation, asks them to talk about it with a partner and then asks the question again. Then he repeats the process.

One value of this approach is that it can be done with hundreds of students and in many class settings, so small classes aren’t necessary to get students active and engaged.

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

News

Page 4

Campus Crime Beat

Friday, 3/2 1:32 a.m.

FUSA Column

Two student were referred to Student Conduct in a harassment case that is still under investigation.

DPS called in Fairfield Police for the arrest of one student using narcotics on North Benson Road. Night 3:55 a.m.

Eight incidences of underage alcohol consumption were filed. All students were referred to StuNo suspects have been identified in the smash- dent Conduct. ing of a fence near Townhouse 10 block.

Sunday, 3/4 8:43 p.m.

1:45 a.m.

Fairfield police was called to a residence at 42 Bellermine Rd. for a narcotics violation.

10:14 p.m.

Exit signs in Campion Hall were broken from their hinges.

11:46 p.m.

Yellow Cab reported two students to have left a taxi without paying fare. The students were identified and referred to Student Conduct.

10:40 a.m.

An Exit sign on the 1st floor of Gonzaga Hall was vandalized.

A large rock was thrown through a townhouse Monday, 3/5 window, shattering the glass and hitting a resi- 10:58 a.m. dent.

A number of eggs were thrown at a vehicle parked Saturday, 3/3 at the Townhouses. No suspects had yet been 5:25 a.m. identified as of Tuesday.

Exit signs in Jogues Hall were smashed.

5:14 p.m.

12:40 p.m.

Two students were referred to Student Conduct in another harassment incident.

*If you information about any of these incidents, please contact the Department of Public Safety.*

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Editors

Danica Ceballos, News Elizabeth Koubek, Opinion Jennifer Calhoun, Sports Thomas Shea, Assistant Sports Nicholas DiFazio, Photography Margaret Andrew, Assistant News Luigi DiMeglio, Chief Copy Editor

The Vine

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Contact Information Mail Fairfield University 1073 North Benson Road, Box AA, Fairfield, CT 06824

I would like to start out by congratulating the men’s and women’s basketball teams for making it to the MAAC Championship. They gave a reason for the Red Sea to fill up and let the Fairfield community rally together.

Also, to clear up some rumors about the university blocking ticketmaster.com: please read the e-mail sent out to all students explaining the technical error that had with Ticketmaster. FUSA worked very hard to get the presale ticket code for the Barstool event so that Fairfield students would have the ability to order their tickets, and we worked with administration and CNS just as hard to make sure that you had access to Ticketmaster as quickly as possible.

Additionally, we have gotten a presale code through Ticketmaster for the Avicii Concert at Webster Bank Arena on April 17 so that students can be sure to get their tickets before they go on sale to the public.

Go to our Facebook page and like us to get the promo code, or follow us @ FUSA47 and get it there. Stay tuned for information on FUSA providing bus transportation for the concert as well!

Finally, we are currently accepting applications for our Programming Board and COSO for next year.

Apps can be picked up in the office or found at fairfield.edu/fusa. An info session will be held on March 19th at 7:30 in the BCC Mezz. You’ll be able to find out exactly what things you can be doing next year with FUSA. - Robert Vogel ‘13, FUSA President

Email info@fairfieldmirror.com

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Online

Joey D’Alessio, Editor Alex Gonzalez, Media Editor

Adviser

Dr. Thomas Xie

The Mirror strives to report accurately in all its stories.

If you encounter any errors, please contact Editor-in-Chief Martin O’Sullivan

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

News

Learning to Take Care of Business

Contributed by Caitlin O’Neill/Connecticut Society of Certified Public Accountants

Ross Riskin ‘12, president of YBLOF, discusses business matters with one of the club’s guest speakers.

By Kelly Pierce Contributing Writer Do you want to know how to be successful after college? If so, there are skills you should learn before heading off into the world of employment.

One way to learn these skills is

to join the Young Business Leaders of Fairfield, a new business-oriented club and the first and only nationally recognized chapter of Phi Beta Lambda in Connecticut.

This club is open to all students, and its members include a full range of majors from Accounting to English. President

Ross Riskin ‘12 hopes YBLOF will “bridge the gap between students in the School of Business and the rest of the student body.”

Riskin pointed out that even if you don’t want to work in an office, you’re still running a business. For example, an English major who dreams of publishing a

novel will have to talk to copywriters and publishers, and obviously, sell the book. YBLOF can provide for students who want to pursue virtually any career.

Amanda Perfetti ‘14 agreed: “As an English major, I do not have the opportunity to learn about business in my classes. This club is a great way to help me learn skills necessary for my future while connecting with a wide range of students.”

This semester, YBLOF will incorporate what they’ve learned from the Speakers Series into activities and collaborative events to build teamwork skills, communication skills, and many other proficiencies that will help the students in their lives after college, regardless of what their careers are. “[We will be] putting into action everything we were taught last semester about networking, communicating, and having an openness to different mindsets,” said Riskin.

Last semester, YBLOF held several Speakers Series Events where both young and experienced professionals came to speak to the club about the different aspects of business world.

These professionals included Andrew McMahon, president of AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company and Chairman of AXA Advisors, LLC, Nancy Altobello, America’s vice chair of People for Ernst & Young LLP, and Ed McCormick, financial advisor at UBS

Page 5

Wealth Management.

“I think it’s a great resource for anybody who has an interest in business. Ross has done an awesome job finding business leaders who really provide good advice and tips for being successful in your prospective career,” said Patrick O’Boyle ‘12.

Last Wednesday, Riskin and Vice President Paige Manacek ‘13 gave a presentation to YBLOF members about important skills to know when entering the business world for jobs and internships.

They covered resume writing, handling interviews and connecting with peers via LinkedIn, the business-related social networking site.

After attending this presentation, Dr. Gibson, Dean and Professor of Management at the Dolan School of Business, said: “The Young Business Leaders of Fairfield is a great example of students creating opportunities for themselves. The club is student initiated and student run. By bringing in corporate speakers, both from the alumni and community, the club has really done a great job of exposing students to amazing business leaders.”

If anyone is interested in joining YBLOF, meetings will be held every other Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the Dolan School of Business.

Contact Ross Riskin at YBLOF11@ gmail.com for further information.

Fighting the Negative “Tiger Mom” Mentality

By Loan Le Executive Editor

The title “Why Chinese Mothers are Superior” in a Wall Street Journal article naturally lighted up a storm across the web.

Amy Chua, a John M. Duff Jr. Professor of Law at Yale Law School, stood at the center of the January 2011 controversy. Her book, “Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mom,” provided the excerpts for the WSJ article.

The article mainly compared Western parenting to Chinese parenting, which was an “entirely different parenting model.” Chua said that as she raised her children, she did not allow her daughters to sleep over at friends’ houses, participate in school plays or play instruments other than violin or piano.

Many of those who haven’t read “Battle Hymn” tend to believe that Chua’s book compares Chinese parenting to Western parenting, just because the article did so. On the date of the WSJ article’s release, the comments section received over 8000 comments varying from disgust to praise.

Last Wednesday, the Asian Studies department hosted a lecture on the controversy around the Tiger Mom concept. Panelists Qin Zhang, Danki Li, Jiwei Xiao and Lei Xie wanted to analyze the “Tiger Mom” term that

was popularized by Chua.

“The book sparked a firestorm of criticism and really provoked a huge outcry and [started] discussions about how far parents can go to push their children,” said Zhang, associate professor of Communication.

In Chinese culture, the tiger represents strength, power and perseverance. In slang, “Tiger Mom” describes mothers who are extremely strict in their parenting.

However, in regards to the book, Danke Li, associate professor of history, said: “I don’t think it’s [about] parenting at all.

It’s all about [Chua].” In an interview, Chua said that her book was meant to make fun of her parenting style and relationship with her two daughters, Sophia and Lulu.

Some of the panelists remarked on how Chua’s specific parenting style might be misinterpreted as traditional Chinese teaching.

Journalism professor and The Mirror adviser Lei “Tommy” Xie compared traditional Confucian teachings to Chua’s parenting style.

He believes that Chua failed to mention any sense of social duty in raising her daughters.

Also, while Confucius taught his students “according to their aptitude,” Chua forced her view of things on her children, said Xie. However, he did give Chua

credit for “believing in the potential of her kids,” and showing “great parental responsibility.”

At the lecture, worldly reactions to her book were shown. In one clip on CNN, moms in China, or “Tiger Land,” added their opinions.

One Chinese mother said that today, many families are looking to the West for teaching model, and the ‘traditional’ Chinese way of teaching is “becoming out of style.”

Chinese parents now want to focus on not only academic achievements, but also on the social development of their children.

The discussion also addressed the meaning of “success.” In Chua’s eyes, success might mean her daughters attend Ivy League schools and play violin or piano.

However Dr. Xin James He, attending member and chair and professor in the Information Systems & Operations Management department, believes that “success is case by case because each individual is different.”

Chua’s children might be successful, but other people’s children do not have to do the same things to be equally successful, according to Dr. He. Some students expressed their disapproval in Chua’s parenting. In a competitive society in which the best candidate for a job has to be well-rounded,

Contributed by Dr. Michael Serazio/Communications Department

Students gathered in Canisius to discuss the controversy started by Chua.

Chua’s parenting style instead focuses more on individual accomplishments.

Freshman Robert Hill remarked on how many AsianAmericans are forced to do something because of their parents. He played competitive tennis in high school, and noted that many of his Asian-American teammates disliked the sport.

“They were a product of what their parents wanted them to be,” he said.

In doing so, some children cannot find their true passion.

Hill disagreed with this parenting method. “I would much rather be happy, a little less talented - happy and enjoying myself

- than having to be forced to do something to be better at it.”

On her website, Chua reflected on last year’s controversy and still defends her memoir.

“Many people have misunderstood it,” she said. “If I could push a magic button and choose either happiness or success for my children, I’d choose happiness in a second. But I don’t think it’s as simple as that; it can be a tough world out there, and true selfesteem has to be earned.”

The panelists and students at the lecture concluded that Chinese parenting can be compatible with Western parenting, as long as children are allowed to express their independence.

News

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

Page 6

Marriages and Pregnancies No Longer Coincide

Photo Illustration by Nicholas DiFazio/The Mirror

Although 59 percent of child births still occur within marriage, births outside of marriage have become a rising trend in women under 30 in recent years.

By Farheen Khan Contributing Writer To marry or not to marry?

During the beginning of the 19th century and throughout most of the 20th century, this question did not even cross the minds of young American women. Societal notions taught that premarital sex was unthinkable and that women must marry before having children. However, giving birth outside of marriage was very common among poor women and minorities.

This trend of having children outside of marriage has quickly become the norm in middle class America.

According to Child Trends, the fastest growth occurred among white women in their twenties who had some college education but not a four year degree.

These births outside of marriage became a trend among women under 30, but 59 percent of births among all women still occurred when they were married.

According to the New York Times, this surge of early pregnancies is

changing the concept of a typical American family, but not always in a positive way.

This shift has a major impact on the children of the future generation. Researchers say children who live in dysfunctional families with a single parent are more at risk of living in poverty, failing school or being victims of emotional and behavioral problems.

According to Frank Furstenberg, a sociologist at the University of Pennsylvania, marriage has become a luxury good instead of a necessity. In the past, marriage

was a way for couples to gain respect in their respective societies.

The sexual revolution has had a major effect today concerning marriage.

According to Teresa Fragoso, a twenty-five-year old single mother in Lorain, Ohio, “women used to rely on men, but we don’t need to anymore.” She went on to describe how women are capable of supporting themselves and their children.

While these pregnancies have become increasingly common, college graduates resist this trend.

Most graduates marry before having children. If this gap persists, there will be a major class divide in the moral and cultural values of the country. The economic and social rewards of marriage may become reserved for individuals with the most education.

Despite this information, some individuals avoid marriage because they do not want to make the same mistakes as their parents.

Brittany Kidd, another resident of Lorain, wants to make sure she is in a committed relationship before she thinks about children.

Her father walked off with her mother’s best friend when she was 13, an event that led her mother into depression and left the whole family financially unstable.

The current economic standing of the United States deters some individuals who may be living together from getting married. The couple’s official household income would rise, leading to a potential loss of government benefits like food stamps and childcare.

Andrew Cherlin, a sociologist at Johns Hopkins University, says, “Family is no longer about playing the social role of father or husband or wife, it’s more about individual satisfaction and selfdevelopment.” In other words, individuals are looking to fulfill their own dreams or desires without realizing how the situation may be affecting their children.

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

Opinion

Online

Send your thoughts to opinion@fairfieldmirror.com.

fairfieldmirror.com

Page 7

Opinion | 7 Editor: Elizabeth Koubek opinion@fairfieldmirror.com

editorial Martin O'Sullivan |Editor-in-Chief Loan Le |Executive Editor

Reflecting and Responding

Because The Mirror is produced by students of different majors, genders and race, we like to think that the paper has a fair representation of people from all walks of life. In addition, The Mirror works hard to foster a comfortable environment in which a network of voices can be heard, and every week, the paper strives to produce the facts that our writers and our readers know to be true.

You can imagine the shock that The Mirror felt when we attended the Act Against forum last Thursday and heard that many students were disappointed in the front page article entitled “Bridgeport Shooting Threatens Student Safety.”

The intent of the article was to inform readers about the shootings that occurred outside of Club Lo at Bostwick Avenue and Pine Street, which left one dead and another injured.

However, according to students at the forum, a photo illustration of a hooded figure brandishing a gun, in addition to both the headline and manner in which the article was written, misrepresented Bridgeport as a dangerous place to live and visit. Other students also felt like the article did not consider the perspectives of students who live in Bridgeport, who see the town as their home.

As some background information, this past week served as a transition to our new staff for the 2012-2013 school year. With an overwhelming addition to our current responsibilities, staff members were forced to make certain editing decisions due to time constraints.

One of these was the photo illustration. Because we were unable to get reprinting rights for pictures of the actual crime scene, we made the last minute decision to use this picture from our archive. We do not believe that the photo illustration itself was bad. The article was about a shooting, and the picture had a shooter in it. However, in conjunction with the headline and some student quotes, we know that it could have been seen as bad taste.

So what have we learned from this? Attending this event and ones like it is crucial to promoting a nurturing community here at Fairfield. How? Although we initially realized that our editorial decisions were lacking in terms of visual design, none of us comprehended the negative message the front page was suggesting. It took the attendance of our editorial staff at this event to uncover and understand our mistake.

With this in mind, students should constantly strive to connect with those of different ethnicity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic background and every other conceivable aspect of what makes us unique. Although we all (hopefully) can agree that what happened in Claver is unacceptable by any standard, it shouldn't take a hateful act to promote these types of connections at Fairfield. General apathy and a lack of attention toward promoting diversity and acceptance at Fairfield can make your actions just as hurtful as those of the Claver vandal.

When we were considering how to respond to this criticism, The Mirror reflected on another controversy that had hit the newspaper in 2009. A “He Said, She Said” article degraded women by using coarse language and caused a wave of disgusted and disappointed comments to appear. After that, The Mirror’s reputation was tainted. However, since then, The Mirror has worked to improve its level of writing and to review the content that it publishes each week. By listening to these reactions, we’ve changed for the better and we’ve moved past - but haven’t forgotten - this controversy. We hope to do the same with this recent issue.

Lastly, The Mirror would like to defend the writer of the article who has been nothing but a reliable and dedicated member to the staff.

Let us be clear that The Mirror fully supports student activism on campus. The staff encourages future student participation in these Act Against forums. These forums can potentially become mediums for change, if only students offer more of their voices. Students who spoke against the March 2 article brought their discontent to our attention, and we thank them for that. We always welcome responses from students, faculty and administration.

Vincent Ferrer/The Mirror

What are your feeling about why school shootings have continued to occur and what can people do to stop them?

Have an opinion about something? Send us your thoughts at opinion@fairfieldmirror.com

School Shootings: Is There A Cure?

By Samantha Santana Contributing Writer We see it repeatedly on the news. A student is bullied or feels alienated at school and becomes so enraged that he or she retaliates by enacting violence on fellow classmates and/or faculty.

This unfortunately was the case for a local Ohio high school.

Tragedy struck Chardon High School on Monday, Feb. 27 when 17-year-old student TJ. Lane shot and killed three of his fellow classmates and injured two more. Lane has been charged with three juvenile counts of aggravated murder.

If convicted, Lane will be forced to remain in a juvenile detention facility until he turns 21.

Acts of violence in schools have now become almost commonplace in our society.

It appears as though since the horrific shooting at Columbine High School (regularly referred to as the Columbine Massacre), school shootings have become a regular occurrence.

Contrary to popular belief, school shootings are not a new phenomenon. According to the National School Safety Center report, 84 homicides occurred in U.S. schools from 1992 to 1993. Despite there being a slight decline after 1993, numbers appear to have risen yet again after 1997.

Alarmingly, more and more students have resorted to bringing weapons to school.

According to the National Center for Children Exposed to Violence, a 2003 survey of high school students reported that 17.1% of students claimed to have carried a weapon to school during the 30 days preceding the survey. The survey also concluded that 57% of expulsions for bringing firearms to school involved high school students.

School shootings, however, are not confined to grades 9-12.

They can occur at almost any grade level. Just five years ago, a shooting took place in Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University where college student Seung-Hui Cho claimed the lives of 32 people before turning the gun on himself.

With the apparent frequency of acts of violence in school, many are wondering if there is enough being done to ensure the safety of students and faculty.

Schools across the nation have gone to extremes to provide safety for their students and faculty by going as far as installing metal detectors on campuses. Other schools provide counseling and encourage students to seek help if they are feeling troubled.

Despite these improvements involving school safety, violence in schools continues to occur. As a result we must have to ask ourselves: are these precautions enough?

With the recent 10-year anniversary of the infamous Canisius bomb scare, Fairfield University students are reminded that school violence can occur almost anywhere.

While this incident may leave some to question the safety Fairfield University provides its students, many do not believe they are in any immediate danger.

“I don’t feel any danger on campus. I believe if my life were at stake, this University would ensure my safety, “ said Chelsea Pabon ’12. “I don’t think they can prevent it, but I feel comfortable with my life in their hands. I think they will do everything they can do to protect a member of the Fairfield Community.”

Pabon isn’t alone.

In my four years here I’ve always felt safe. I frequently see Public Safety officers patrolling our campus and find that they do a remarkable job to ensure my safety.

Fairfield also provides a number of resources for students including psychological services, safe spaces and various other services for students who may be having a difficult time on campus.

That being said, to say a school can completely prevent an act of violence is illogical. At best, we can take measures to provide students with the resources they need to voice their concerns before taking matters into their own hands.

The Mirror welcomes the opinions and contributions of its readers: Letters to the editor must be timely and submitted by email at info@fairfieldmirror.com or Box AA. All letters to the editor that are appropriate will be published either in print or online. The Mirror reserves the right to edit letters and articles for content, length and grammatical error. Letters should be free of obscenities and personal attacks and should contain correct and factual information not exceeding 500 words.

Notable and Quotable: "I can pick up garbage from the floor and put it in the bin, but you can't just pick up racism from the floor and put it in the bin. It's rooted in the history of this country."

- Xavier Francis '14, "Students Act Against Hate" pg. 1

Opinion

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

Letter to the Editor

Response to "Bridgeport Club Threatens Student Safety"

To begin, I want to make clear that in no way is this a response to the writer of the article. I repeat: I am not attacking the person but rather critiquing the writing of “Bridgeport Club Threatens Student Safety," published on March 2.

On the night of the Act Against forum a lot of my friends spoke against the front page of The Mirror’s last article. This is my attempt to take our frustration and respond in a rational and systematic way.

To be clear, the premise for the “Bridgeport Club Threatens Student Safety” article is that there was a recent shooting at Bridgeport where no Fairfield University students were involved or injured.

One obvious problem is the narrowed view of the article. If you are not reporting on an incident regarding Fairfield students but want to address the dangers of leaving campus or attending night clubs, then why not support the article with other incidents from neighboring towns and cities?

If the article was to enlighten us on the potential dangers of night life outside of Fairfield, then why not include New Haven, parts of New York, etc...

The Bridgeport story could have opened the article but to have it as the only example of dangerous places that could affect Fairfield is limited journalism and biased writing.

I understand the role of a newspaper and its responsibility to relay relevant and important information to the audience. The basic: tell us what we want to know and what we should be aware of.

So, I am not asking you to be sensitive or avoid touchy topics – that’s not good journalism. This isn’t a call for limitations but a call for writers to dig deeper beyond the superficial stereotypes when writing an article.

This article is a perfect example of cherry picking. Although the focus seems to be dangers outside of Fairfield, only the negatives of Bridgeport are used to inform this focus.

This article marginalized the Bridgeport commuters, as well as

Bridgeport students.

The image and title further stigmatized their home. When dealing with controversial topics (especially some of our homes), consider the manner in which it is presented and its effects on the student body. Consider if it is only showing a limited view of a greater issue.

Next time you need a big story for the cover of The Mirror, why not consider the educational Head Start program or the Boys and Girls Club of Bridgeport?

Last week’s newspaper came out blazing with its bold cover picture and charged with the Bridgeport stereotype – then that very same day, students spoke out against these stereotypes. The Mirror was a reflection of what we were against and not what was important to Fairfield students.

Our newspaper should reflect what is relevant to us. All I know is this isn’t what I stand for.

Last week’s issue was not my – our school newspaper.

Page 8

Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down

• Spring Break starts after • Fairfield's Basketball this week. teams both lost in the MAAC Championship.

• Midterms are over after • Ticketmaster blocked this week.

Fairfield students from their site during the Blackout pre-sale.

• Fairfield's Basketball teams both made it to the • Midwest tornado last MAAC Championship. week killed and injured many.

• St. Patty's Day is on a Saturday this year.

• Disappearing salt and pepper shakers in Barone.

• The Men's Lacrosse team is ranked 17th in the nation.

• April Open Visions Forum speaker Neil DeGrasse Tyson has been replaced.

- Crystal Rodriguez

High School and Motherhood Now Two in One How today's reality TV shows are potentially changing the standards of society

By Emily Kert Contributing Writer The teenage years are often a turbulent developmental stage of an individual's life.

It is a period associated with growth, self-discovery, risk-taking, and forming close relationships. While teenage years may be a period of carefree bliss for some, for others who may have failed to pay close attention during health class, it may be a time of dealing with the financial and emotional stresses of becoming new parents.

While teachers and parents alike hope that teenagers will adhere to their advice and use proper contraception before having sex, nowadays they have become adapted to making necessary accommodations when an accidental pregnancy does occur.

It doesn't take a genius to realize that being a teen parent is challenging. The teenager faces embarrassment, financial stresses, relationship drama, and a delay for his or her education. And, with our first black president in the white house and the percentage of gay marriages increasing, we are clearly becoming a more liberal nation.

What is confusing, however, is where the line between openmindedness and conservativeness is supposed to be drawn.

Back in the 1940s and 1970s, the teen pregnancy solution was sending the mothers to maternity homes where they were browbeaten and forced to give their children up for adoption. In his 1850 romantic

work of fiction, Nathaniel Hawthorne explores the themes of legalism, sin and guilt, as the reader follows the journey of Hester Prynne, who conceives a daughter through an adulterous affair and is shamed by the community by having to bear the symbolic letter A across her chest. Being a teen mom or having a baby out of wedlock have always had shameful connotations.

With the increasing popularity of the hit MTV reality show, "Teen Mom," however, there is question as to whether or not our society is glamorizing teen pregnancy and reducing its standards of human behavior.

Every night, millions of Americans are turning on their television screens to watch episodes of "Teen Mom." Last season consisted of the troubled teen mom, Amber Portwood, verbally and physically abuse her boyfriend in front of her baby girl, Leah.

Audiences watched as vindictive teen mom Farrah Abraham manipulated her overly generous parents. Another teen mom, Catelynn, coped with her choice to put her baby up for adoption while simultaneously

battling a verbally abusive, alcoholic mother and a jailbird step-father.

In this year's season of Teen Mom 2, viewers are lucky enough to be entertained by Jenelle Evans, arguably the most outrageous teen mom yet. Viewers get to see Jenelle make a series of confusing decisions, some of which include smoking weed while pregnant, neglecting her baby, screaming in her mother's face, getting kicked out of her house, dating an abusive, alcoholic boyfriend, getting arrested, beating up other girls, stealing her mother's credit card, and taking advantage of a friend who lets her move in.

Me a n w h i l e, anyone who has recently gone to a grocery store has probably also learned that the teen mother of twins, Leah Messer, has discovered she is expecting again. Apparently, having twins wasn't enough to teach her to use contracep-

tives properly.

At the conclusion of the season, viewers get to see each of the teens receive bundles of empathy from the famous celebrity therapist, Dr. Drew, who reminds us yet again that teen pregnancy is one hundred percent preventable.

Meanwhile, these young women are earning between $60,000 to $65,000 per episode, and their faces are decorating the covers of "People" magazines in hundreds of grocery store checkout lines.

Having these young women being portrayed throughout the media sheds light on the issue regarding who we want as our role models.

While it is natural to have empathy towards teen mothers, is giving them their own television show, a front spot on "People" magazine, thousands of dollars, and the utmost empathy from the world's most famous celebrity doctor reducing our society's standards?

When did childbearing become an act reserved for the one we loved instead of a means to have a reality show?

Though the show in itself is undoubtedly entertaining, its purpose is confusing.

Does it reemphasize an already obvious point or does it question the definition of a role model?

Tolerance is important, but whether or not too much tolerance reduces our standards of human behavior is a controversy to consider.

The Vine

{The Vine}

"Theatre" | page 10

Photo Illustration Tebben Gill Lopez

Story Sarah Markham

The Vine

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

Page 10

Theatre Farifield Collaboration A Success

Sarah Markham Contributing Writer

T

his past weekend, Theatre Fairfield continued its successful season with its Lucille Lortel Festival of New Plays.

Collectively titled “Theatre in the Raw,” three plays were performed: “Minerva’s Mirror,” “Safeguard” and “A Brief History of America.”

Lucille Lortel, a theatre enthusiast, left money to Theatre Fairfield that was used to commission three new plays for the Fairfield University community. Lortel, an actress herself, changed the direction of theater when she opened her White Barn Theatre in Westport, CT in 1947.

Dr. Martha S. LoMonaco, Fairfield professor of theater and coproducer of Theatre in the Raw, detailed Lortel’s methods in her producer’s note.

“The theatre was a converted barn on Lortel’s estate…that could seat 150 people,” said LoMonaco.

“For the first two seasons, actors performed with scripts in hand on a bare stage.

The White Barn Theatre was well received, and for this reason, “rehearsal periods were extended, actors performed fully realized characters ‘off book,’ and designers were engaged to create polished productions,” LoMonaco said.

Lortel took a keen interest in cultivating new American theatre by hand picking her audience and encouraging discussion of theater.

After a show, the playwright, cast, crew and audience enjoyed refreshments in the green room.

Theatre Fairfield continued this tradition on opening night of Theatre in the Raw. “The only way to judge a play is when it is performed,” Lucille Lortel said of assessing new theatre. “It is also of great value to see the play presented on stage, because it gives you an idea of the play that you can never get from a script reading. It comes alive that way.”

The Lortel Festival of New Plays fulfilled Theatre Fairfield’s mission statement to “provide a well-rounded, fully participatory theatre experience for the University community.” The playwrights—

David L. Meth, Andra Vebell and Dipika Guha—each captured a piece of the Fairfield audience in their plays.

"Minerva’s Mirror" Meth’s play, “Minerva’s Mirror,” was arguably the most applicable of the three to Fairfield student life, as well as most transformed by the end of the production process.

At the initial stage reading, the audience was not particularly receptive to the play and found the references to popular culture forced, and the content almost too specific to Fairfield University.

The play’s ending also felt like something of an afterthought. Allan, the protagonist’s long-time boyfriend, confesses that he is joining the military due to the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.

One viewer at the December stage reading, a member of the military himself, respectfully told Meth that his portrayal of people in the armed forces was extremely offensive. He believed that Meth oversimplified the complicated reasons people choose to join the military.

This process of evolution not only improved the plays, but also provided an enriching learning experience for those involved with the production. Dakota Trick ’15, an actress in “Minerva’s Mirror”

“It is also of great value to see the play presented on stage because it gives you an idea of the play that you can never get from a script reading. It comes alive that way.”

-Lucille Lortel found this to be true.

“It’s been a long journey. I didn’t actually think I would go through so many drafts. The story itself got better and the characters seem more developed,” Trick said.

Her comments parallel those of Brendan Freeman ’15, one of the

Tebben Lopez/The Mirror

Director Jesse Jou and playwright Dipika Guha rehearse with students Kate Hoffman '14 and Abby Treadwell '15.

actors in “Safeguard.”

“We were able to have discussions with the playwright about her writing, line alterations, and even character motivations. And in the end, just putting [it] into full production was awesome,” Freeman said.

As Lortel generalized, a play only comes alive when it is presented on stage. This was definitely true of “Minerva’s Mirror,” which most agree improved substantially.

The idea of Minerva as an unseen character was removed, and thus the play became less about the small scope of Fairfield and more about being a college student. The exaggerated presence of Facebook in the characters’ lives was reduced as well, making the story feel more realistic.

"Safeguard" The other two plays, “Safeguard” and “A Brief History of America” were less altered from their forms in December, but they did not suffer for it.

“Safeguard” was an engrossing story concerning four characters: Cody, Janine, Whit and an unnamed Afghani woman.

Cody is a recently returned veteran of the war in Iraq who is

plagued by memories of war. The Afghani woman, played by Grace Janiszewski, is only seen and heard

by Cody, but she often steals the scene with her dark, biting comments towards him. She is the reminder of his actions in Iraq. Janine is Cody’s ex-girlfriend, and she is torn between him and her current boyfriend, Whit.

“Safeguard” makes an impact because it addresses a burgeoning topic in our culture: the veterans of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Cody represents a lost group that often goes ignored in our country; he is looking for his postwar identity—a place to occupy in society—and he is at a loss.

The story is about Janine’s struggle to choose between Cody and Whit, but the play is also a statement about the way we view our veterans. Like “A Brief History of America,” it provides a modern perspective on something of an old idea.

“A Brief History of America" The opening scene of “A Brief History of America” was a welcome relief from the seriousness and intensity of “Safeguard” and “Minerva’s Mirror.”

The play as a whole was strong

because of its focused message: the personal lives of Americans are as important as the “traditional” idea of American history. This play was a refreshing take on what it means to be American today.

The essence of the play can be boiled down to one piece of dialogue. “Your home is the place where you grew up,” Sarah tells her childhood friend when they reunite after years of not seeing one another.

“Your home is what it says on your papers,” Roberto replies.

This exchange nods to the fact that “American history” has taken on a new meaning. People—immigrants in particular—have changing ideas of our national identity.

Are you an American if you experience your life here, or if the government says you are?

Guha’s play explores this notion, but it was also a charming glimpse into the average, relatable lives of two people.

The Lucille Lortel Festival of New Plays was a fascinating experience for all those involved. The plays certainly delivered, and it is safe to say that Lucille Lortel would have heartily approved of Theatre in the Raw.

Band Spotlight: Listen 2 Nothing2Simple

By Jennifer Calhoun Sports Editor

By Jeannine Nocera Contributing Writer

T Photo Contributed by Nothing2Simple

Nothing2Simple Band members Schull, Prescott, Velardi and McKane perform at RVP in West Haven, Conn. on Jan. 27.

en years ago, if you had told Marc Prescott ‘15 that he would be in a band and in love with music, he wouldn’t have believed you.

Yet today he is a member of both the Fairfield University Pep Band and Nothing2Simple, an alternative/punk band he formed with hometown high school friends.

With him as the drummer, his fellow bandmates include pianist and vocalist guitarist Nate Schull,

lead vocalist Matt Velardi, and rhythm guitarist Billy McKane.

The band came together in 2009, combining all of their musical influences to create a great collaboration of memorable bands. It is evident in their single “For the Record” that the band has been influenced by groups like alternativepop band Relient K and the well known Green Day. However, the band still incorporates its own flare by using the keyboards.

When asked about the use of keyboards, Prescott said,“I just think that adds a whole other aspect to the sound and it really al-

"Band" | page 13

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

The Vine

Page 11

Barone Made Easy: Turkey Stir-Fry

By Nicoletta Richardson Contributing Writer

T

ired of going to Barone to eat the same foods every day? Â Ever thought of mixing it up and coming up with a creation of your own at the stir-fry section?

Well, now you can, with this simple and quick recipe!

For those who always look for something new to try, the stir-fry station is the best place to start. Even if your cooking ability and creativity goes as far as making eggs with ham and tomato, it's easy to take simple recipes and tweak them to fit Barone ingredients and make a dish that everyone can enjoy.

By taking out a few of the extra spices and substituting with some vegetables, you can make an easy turkey stir-fry.

If you're looking for a quick, satisfying, and healthy meal that you can prepare yourself using only the ingredients in Barone, then try this simple recipe!

Ingredients: 2 spoonfuls of olive oil 1 turkey patty (from hamburger section) 2 spoonfuls of soy sauce 2 spoonfuls of chopped peppers 2 spoonfuls of chopped broccoli 2 spoonfuls of chopped mushrooms Directions:

1. Take turkey patty and cut it up into small pieces. Put to the side.

2. Get chopped peppers, broccoli and mushrooms from the stir-fry section. Cut them up and mix into a small bowl. Add salt and pepper for extra flavor.

3. Grease the pan with olive oil and add the vegetable mix and the soy sauce (located at the stir-fry section). Stir the mixture until the mushrooms have browned.

4. Add the chopped turkey to the pan and stir the mixture for 2 – 4 minutes.

5. Move the turkey stir-fry onto a plate and ENJOY!

Nicoletta Richardson/The Mirror

It's easy to get creative at the stir-fry station in Barone and make vibrant and delicious dinners.

Get your quick fix

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from Quick Flicks DVDs!

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

The Vine

Page 13

Campus Gets Moving with Music Blog

Matt Deane Contributing Writer

F

nev looked at “Levels” and said to himself, “You think it’ll sound good backwards?” The answer is yes. This is one you need to hear.

is well beyond his years, and he delivers hit after hit. If you’re a fan of this track, checkout his latest mix tape "Young Sinatra."

where they remix the Gym Class Heroes track “Ass Back Home.” Cal’s freestyles get better and better each week and his flow is unreal.

vibe, and it’s pretty hard not to like.

This is a personal favorite track off of "No Sweat" and one of the best they’ve made. Josh Cocktail's vocals on the hook and the verses from Loggy are top notch.

airfield's own hip-hop/electro music blog StagsFlow is updated daily with the new- "Calling (Lose My Mind)" by Se"Visionz Of Home" by J Cole "Born To Run" by Rick Ross and est music and up-and-coming tal- bastian Ingrosso & Alesso, feat.

It’s been a good two weeks for J Bruce Springsteen, prod. Jonaent.

Ryan Tedder Cole fans with two new leaks com- than Lee "In Bloom" by The Good HusSean Bannon '11 started the Ryan Tedder, the lead singer of ing from the North Carolina native.

Never expected to see a mash- bands site prior to his senior year and OneRepublic, teamed up with In- First he hit us with “Grew Up Fast” up album of Rick Ross and Bruce, The Good Husbands are an has since developed up-and-coming group relationships with out of Washington state. musical talent from They have a really laidall over the United back feel, and this one is States. ridiculously smooth. All The blog also refour of these guys flow ceives over 1,000 hits and deliver perfectly per day and has been with the beat, and it’s my featured on sites like favorite Good Husbands BroBible for their song yet. Their new projsignature Throwback ect "The Loft Sessions" is Thursday posts. coming soon.

Anxious to share StagsFlow with the "Hands On The Wheel" Fairfield community,

by ScHoolboy Q, feat. especially the youngA$AP Rocky er grades who may or ScHoolboy Q is a may not be aware guy who was a noticeof the blog, the Contributed Photo able snub from this current blog web- The student-run music blog StagsFlow is updated daily and features hip-hop and electronic music. The blog can be reached at www.stagsflow.com year's XXL Freshman master Matt Deane class, and A$AP Rocky '13 has teamed up with The Mirror grosso and Alesso to bring the vocal and now this new one titled “Vi- but Jonathan Lee has supplied it, is arguably the story of the year in to share a new 10 track playlist with edit to their track “Calling,” making sionz Of Home.” He released this and it actually works really well. hip-hop. These two linked up for top songs from the blog. an already unreal song even better. in honor of a day this past week Check out the whole album, which this smooth track that will keep you To download all of the songs Swedish House Mafia premiered named “J Cole Day” in his home- you can download for free on the listening. on this playlist right to your iTunes this one this week on BBC Radio 1, town of Fayetteville, North Caro- site. account, visit www.Stagsflow.com. and it’s now out on iTunes. lina. Turn the bass up and enjoy.

"The Encore" by Basic Physics "Waterfalls" by Radical SomeBasic Physics is a mashup "Levels (In Reverse)" by Avicii, "The Spotlight" by Logic "Ass Back Home" by Timeflies thing master, plain and simple. For this George Monev Edit A lot of you may not have Timeflies has exploded in Radical Something has blown one he used eight different samples Starting off with a bang. Av- heard of Logic yet, but he is most popularity in the past year thanks up in the past six months. From including Chiddy Bang, Deadicii’s “Levels” was arguably the song definitely someone to watch out for to their Timeflies Tuesday video the release of their debut album mau5, and Ellie Goulding. It’s got of 2011, getting that catchy synth in the future. He’s an 18-year-old series. They manage to consistently "We Are Nothing" to their recent a sick upbeat tempo and awesome melody stuck in everyone's head MC who’s been making some seri- impress every week with their new release, the "No Sweat" EP, they kill buildups and drops that will get it encountered. Well, George Mo- ous noise lately. His lyrical quality releases. This is this week's edition, it. Their music has such a feel-good you moving.

Stag Forms Band with Hometown Friends Continued from page 10 lows us to work with so many things because not only can we have the piano, [but] Nate also includes Synth sound.”

Prescott began to play the drums in fourth grade, and in eighth grade he upgraded to a full set. His father and siblings all played the drums, so his choice of instrument came with no hesitation.

“I didn’t put too much thought, from what I can remember, into being a drummer,” Prescott recalled.

“But as time went on and my brothers kind of stopped playing drums, my love for drums only grew.”

The drums didn’t stop him from trying out different instruments. Dabbling in both guitar and keyboard, Prescott has also expanded his horizons and allowed himself to become a well-rounded musician.

Prescott, who is constantly smiling and tapping along to a song, has also brought optimism to

the band.

“We kind of make it a point to talk to other bands and make friends with them,” said Prescott.

“Too many times I’ve gone to a show and I would try to strike up a conversation with other bands, and they would give me one-word answers and shrug me off.”

This attitude has helped Nothing2Simple book its next performance, which is scheduled for March 10 at the American Legion Hall in Southington, Conn.

You can check out more music before the EP comes out later this year and sample songs such as “For the Record” on their Facebook page or on purevolume.com/Nothing2Simple.

Prescott confessed that he doesn’t know where he’ll be musically in the next 10 years, but the future looks bright for Prescott and his bandmates. He said: “I mean, who knows? Only time will tell.”

Follow Nothing2Simple Facebook: www.facebook.com/nothing2simple YouTube: www.youtube.com/Nothing2SimpleTV PureVolume: www.purevolume.com/nothing2simple Twitter: @Nothing2Simple MySpace: www.myspace.com/nothing2simple

Opening the "Golden Door" to America

By Katie Acompora Contributing Writer

“G

ive me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” These words, from Emma Lazarus’s poem about the Statue of Liberty entitled “The New Colossus,” embody the struggles that Sicilians endured in their homeland and on their journey to America.

The film “Nuovomondo,” directed by Emanuele Crialese, played at the Quick Center for the Arts last Wednesday evening on Feb. 29. It portrayed the emotional and physically tiring passage of Sicilians to America in the nineteenth century.

The film was screened with special guest Vincenzo Amato, an actor in the movie, in conjunction with display of “From Italy to America: Photographs of Anthony Riccio,” which currently resides at the Bellarmine Museum.

“Nuovomondo” translates into English as “Golden Door,” representative of the movie’s storyline.

The film follows a family of Sicilians that face adversity, but ultimately open the “golden door” to new opportunities in a modern world.

The film begins with Sicilians living in the “old world,” one filled with pagan influences and no technology. Crialese uses life-size vege-

Contributed Photo

Amato stands among other Italian immigrants in the film "Nuovomondo."

tables and rivers of milk to symbolize the ideal of America as a place of endless food and contentment.

Most would describe the cinematography as breathtaking, ironically placed against characters that experience the filthy conditions of living aboard a ship for two to three weeks on their way to America.

“The film is unique in its focus on the Mancuso family’s leavetaking,” said Professor Mary Ann Carolan of Modern Language and Literature. “Their departure from the homeland signals a farewell to family and friends, as well as to the comforts of familiar habits and social mores.

Carolan continued, “In this way, the fears and hopes of the Mancuso family resonate with similar stories of our own ancestors who left home to come to America.”

The role of Fortunata, the strong Italian matriarch in the film, is a standout example of a struggling immigrant whose culture and ideals stand in the way of immigration. At the end of the film, she is labeled “feeble-minded” for failing to complete an English competency exam and is deported back to her homeland. Yet, she is elated to go back to her own promised land

"Nuovomondo" | page 14

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

The Vine

Page 14

A Killer Comes Back for More

By Annemarie Veira Staff Writer

detectives, Powers (Daniel Sunjata) and Lonsdale (Katherine Moennig), who worked her own abduction case.

Regardless of this past connection, the detectives blow her off. However, the newest member to Powers' team, Detective Hood (Wes Bentley), believes Jill and pulls out her file as Powers tries to convince him otherwise.

We come to learn Jill was found on the side of a highway in her pajamas, cold and wet, stating she was abducted. The police investigated her claims, canvassing the woods but unable to find anything.

Jill was also institutionalized twice because of her abduction and the death of her parents, and so the cops don't believe her reports about Molly at all.

With the cops being of no help,

Jill decides to take matters into her own hands.

As a main character who is supposedly crazy, Jill is surprisingly very strong. She busts down the stereotype of the "pretty girl," who usually suffers death in horror films because of her own choices.

Instead, Jill is resourceful and intelligent in using clues that present themselves to locate the abductor, proving that she can take care of herself.

There are some scenes that throw the viewer off in Contributed Photo respect to the characters Seyfried takes matters into her own hands to find her abducted sister in thriller "Gone." and plot, but the acting was decent and believable. "Gone" is brilOverall, this thriller rates in at a characters and good action. The film liantly paced and filmed, keeping the high B+. You never get too many clues was satisfying enough to say I would viewer tense as the plot unfolds and the early on as to who the abductor is, and watch it again in the future. abductor's identity is finally revealed. the film incorporates well-developed

Upcoming at the Quick Center

"Novomondo" Sheds Light on Italian Immigration

Performers from the Celtic World will tell the riveting story of the Celtic people through vocal and step dancing talents.

The show delivers audiences to a new state of emotion every eight minutes with its powerful storytelling, fast moving feet, beautiful voices and decorative imagery, and it features traditional Irish songs like "Danny Boy."

of Sicily, which she sees as the land she will always call home.

Critics have also complimented Vincenzo Amato on his preparation for the role of Salvatore Mancuso, which included months of living with shepherds in Sicily. In order for him to get into character, he camped outside and took limited showers. His hard work in the film got him a nomination for the David di Donatello Award as best actor.

K

nown for her screenplays "Underworld: Awakening" and thriller "Untracable," Alison Burnett brings movie watchers "Gone," staring Amanda Seyfried as the lead Jill.

The storyline is simple: Jill's sister Molly disappears, and Jill believes she has been kidnapped by the same serial killer who kidnapped her two years back. Jill thinks he has mistakenly taken Molly instead of her.

Still haunted by the trauma of her abduction, Jill's defenses go into overdrive to locate her sister and permanently stop the kidnapper.

After returning home from work one evening, Jill notices her sister's absence. Jill automatically goes to the two

Celtic Nights: A Journey of Hope March 9 at 9 p.m.

Communists: The Red Scare on the Air March 9 at 8 p.m.

March 10 at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Presented by Live Radio Dramas, the show ties in themes of the height of the "Red Scare" seen in television and radio scenes of the 40s and 50s.

Live Radio Dramas depict the vintage radio broadcasts of the heated post-WWII era of McCarthyism.

Open the Door to your Success • 22 Graduate Degree Programs • Master’s Programs in: • Bio-Technology • Education • Liberal Arts • Management • Occupational Therapy • School Psychology • Speech Language Pathology We put your mind to work.

worcester.edu/graduate

Continued from page 13

Amato himself is a native of Palermo who moved to America in 1993 and met the director of the film Crialese shortly after at New York University. He described his own story of immigration as a young boy on a plane, a much more comfortable transition in comparison to the conditions faced by his character.

Louis Greco ‘15 always heard stories of his Italian ancestors’ voyages to the United States, but the film gave him a fresh, first person account of immigration. Greco

compared the way Americans treated immigrants to the rule: “You have to be a certain height to ride this rollercoaster.”

Greco continued, “The Americans only allowed ‘the cream of the crop’ to be accepted because they didn’t want to be slowed down by people who [they felt] would not benefit their country.”

“Nuovomondo” provides a new perspective on immigrants and a better appreciation for those who risked everything for the future of millions of citizens today.

From Slave to Shepherd

St. Patrick as a model for forgiveness and faith

By Leo Manglaviti, S.J. Jesuit Community Member

E

nslaved, persecuted and defamed: St. Patrick was a model for Christianity.

He was quick to reconcile with and pray for his enemies, working toward healing and peace.

He overcame any obstacles opponents put in his path with charity, whether the obstacle was his own churchman accusing him of moral corruption or the forces of evil trying to keep the Irish people in ignorance and despair. To this day he personifies the endurance of the hardships of his adopted spiritual sons and daughters.

Everyone knows the St. Patrick of the parades–the heroic missionary to Ireland who converted a pagan king and people with the shamrock, the symbol of the Trinity. Honoring Patrick has always been in celebration of Irish freedom, dignity and spiritual favors as gifts of God. There is a nobler side to this great fifth century apostle, who personally had to free himself before he could liberate a people.

He began life as a slave, captured as a boy in Scotland and taken to pre-Christian Ireland.

Ironically, the enslaved shepherd boy became a shepherd of souls.

Patrick eventually freed himself and went to France, preparing to return and liberate the Irish from a spiritual darkness he recognized.

Returning as a bishop, he revealed a God who can unshackle the truly indomitable soul, the soul of an entire nation. Ireland became that “island of saints and scholars,” whose preservation of Western cultural heritage is told by Thomas Cahill in "How the Irish Saved Civilization" (1995).

Cahill notes a remarkable fact, that “the

greatness of Patrick is beyond dispute: [he was] the first human being in the history of the world to speak out unequivocally against slavery” (p.114). More extraordinarily, Patrick had a special compassion for the plight of women, declaring “it is the women kept in slavery who suffer the most” (p.109), a reality in whatever form that still persists.

Not until the 19th century would established churches arrive at Patrick’s wisdom on each count and begin to abolish both slavery and gender discrimination.

In March 1993, a New York Times essay appeared about Patrick the slave. Professors Nerys and Orlando Patterson proposed him as inspiration for all oppressed peoples and minorities, from Irish immigrants who endured prejudice to African Americans who arrived in slavery and still suffer from its tragic effects.

The Pattersons’ cultural comparison summarizes a magnificent, selfless act of reconciliation: "This Patrick, who helped to bring the Irish into the mainstream of Western history, who forgave and was forgiven [by the British who believed him too great a sinner], who suffered enslavement and overcame it, who epitomized the West’s central drama – the outsider who stayed to transform the culture of his conqueror – belongs to all of us.”

The strongest comparison is reconciliation. All who suffer discrimination are called, like Patrick, to Christ-like forgiveness. Patrick never yielded to the ethnocentric hatred of his captors, even returning as a foreigner at great personal risk to help them.

The fiercely proud Irish people inherited his indomitable spirit, promising never to submit but to always forgive as their founding saint had personally modeled for them.

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

The Vine

Contributed Photo

Harry Potter veteran Jason Isaacs lives in another kind of alternate reality, this time in NBC's new television drama "Awake" as police detective Michael Britten who experiences two realities after surviving a traumatic event.

Page 15

How Do You Know When You're Really "Awake?"

By Annemarie Veira Staff Writer

M

ichael Britten (Jason Isaacs) might lose his mind if he keeps this up.

Without sleep, the mind doesn’t recharge, and after a while it begins to go due to that lack of rest. Most people who are sleep-deprived for extended periods go insane.

Michael, a seasoned police detective, knows these risks, but he also thinks there’s a perk: his sleep deprivation results in a double life that ke e ps the two people he loves the most alive for him.

Michael, his wife Hannah (Laura Allen) and their teen son Rex (Dylan

Minnette) were in a car wreck. When the pilot begins, we witness the major impact of the wreck and then cut to Rex’s funeral.

Hannah tries to cope with the loss of her son by redecorating the house, her way of starting over.

Meanwhile, Michael visits the psychiatrist Dr. John Lee (BD Wong) to determine whether he is fit for duty. After working a case with a new partner, Michael heads home to dinner and bed with his wife.

But when Michael wakes up in the morning, his wife is no longer in their bed. As Michael finishes dressing before going downstairs to make breakfast, we see his son Rex come out of his room.

This day, Rex is alive and Hannah is dead.

Michael is also back with his old partner Detective Freeman (Harris) and working a completely different case before seeing a different psychiatrist, Dr. Judith Evans (Cherry Jones), in order to cope with the death of his wife.

Are you confused yet?

Michael is leading a double life, but in both lives, he confesses to his psychiatrists that he doesn’t really know when he is truly awake. After this confession, both doctors try to prove that their reality is the “real” one.

Either way, Michael says that

although no sleep will eventually make him lose his mind, he’s willing to take this risk since he can at least have both his wife and his son alive at different times.

If you’ve ever watched NBC, you might have seen that they use a lot of filters with some of their shows, giving them a bit of a blue tint. Avid fans of “Law and Order: SVU” see this film technique a lot in certain scenes.

In “Awake,” we see the blue filter appear in the reality with Rex, while the reality with Hannah seems warmer in each shot. But as the two realities begin to blend, so do the appearances of each reality. It’s a great aspect of the show because it isn’t clear which reality is real, adding to the tension of Michael’s life as well as his cases.

The show premiered on March 1 on NBC at 10 p.m. and pulled in a decent rating at 6.247 million views, with 1.9 million in the 18-49 viewing demographic.

Although the ratings weren’t spectacular, the show premiered higher than NBC’s other shows at the beginning of pilot season. It was also released early via the internet.

It will be interesting to see if the plot can remain strong, keeping us in the dark about which reality is the “real” reality.

Catch “Awake” on Thursday nights at 10 p.m. on NBC.

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

Online

Coffee Break | 16

Send your thoughts to info@fairfieldmirror.com.

fairfieldmirror.com

Editor Loan Le» info@fairfieldmirror.com

His iPhone / Her BlackBerry Joe McConville

“It’s a quarter after one, I’m a little drunk and I need you now.”

Yes, I am talking to you sweet, sweet buffalo chicken pizza from the Stag. Sadly, if it’s past 9 p.m., there is no way for me to get food on campus. This begs the question: “Where the $#%* is the food?”

Fairfield University’s major contribution to the local town is the easy economic boost through financing Dominos deliveries at odd hours of the night. That being said, the University should totally try to jump on that and try to get some revenue from it.

Think of the potential to close the budget gap without tapping into the endowment.

Just throw open the doors to the Stag ‘till like 1-2 a.m. and watch the profits roll in on a Saturday night.

I’d destroy a pizza on my walk back from the Townhouses -no matter how much I had to pay. Nothing would stand in my way on my quest to achieve happiness in that piece of buffalo chicken pizza. God, I love that sauce…

Late Night at the Stag is one of my favorite days of the week. There is nothing like

Dude, where’s my food?

consumi n g some firewater and going to eat really good, cheap pizza.

I love the Stag’s wraps and pizzas as a palatable alternative to Barone’s sometimes-questionable cuisine. There is nothing better than feasting on greasy, terrible food, while being hung over from my tequila-fueled escapades.

On a different note, the Pope needs to change that whole rule about meat on Friday. It’s really starting to kill my buzz.

Either that, or Barone needs to start catering to this without putting out more fish.

Nothing like watching my roommate try to eat catfish and then puke it back up onto the plate after tasting it. Like actually vomiting up cat fish. Try the fish with that visual in your head. It’s like they’re trying to make me a sinner.

Barone also has the strange habit of removing food from the cafeteria after 2 p.m.

This sucks because I don’t get out of class until 1:45. I finally escape the marathon of classes and then I find out that there’s no food? It’s devastating.

If Fairfield opened up a food place late, they’d make so much more money and be able to cater to the late-night crew who will do anything for food. Think of everyone who doesn’t have access to a car who would be all for it.

Just throwing out some more ideas to the ‘fairest of fields.’

- Sent from my iPhone

Normally, on a college campus, there’s late-night snacking on greasy fries and disgusting amounts of pizza.

This is usually where college kids pack on the extra pounds. I guess Fairfield isn’t a normal college campus, because there’s hardly any food available after 9 p.m.

And let’s just talk about going to dinner in Barone. Seriously, there’s no way that you can spontaneously go to dinner. It has to be planned. You’re screwed if you go at 6:15 p.m.

You may as well just sit on the floor, instead of walking around the seating area like an idiot for a half hour, waiting for that group of eight girls to finish eating their lettuce so that you can steal their table.

Barone Dining Room is supposed to close at 7:30 p.m. But if you go in at 7:30 p.m., there’s nothing to eat but cereal and burnt pasta. All of the food is taken away by the workers far too early, and we’re left with empty orange plates and silverware that you can bend into Barone art.

The Stag is another option, but that closes at 9 p.m. Going there for “late-night” at the Stag is an adventure in itself, because everyone that goes is either drunk or in desperate need of cheap food. Personally, I only go to the Stag when I’m either a) hung over or b) need an onion ring fix (#fatgirlprobs).

In my opinion, Jazzman’s hardly exists because it’s not open on the weekends. Who wouldn’t love to have a caramel macchiato on a Sunday morning without making it an hourlong trip into the Starbucks in town? But no.

Instead, we jump on the Jazzman’s line at 9:20 a.m. expecting to make it to our 9:30 a.m. class

Megan Forbes in Bannow. Good luck with that one.

But what if we want something later on into the night? Unfortunately, Dominoes is not on our meal plan, and we need to pay out of pocket for our pineapple and bacon pizzas.

The Levee is either cash or StagBucks, and they stop taking orders at 11 p.m. There’s hardly any late night options for students to use their meal plans on campus, and it just seems so ridiculous to me.

So we’re left with no food. And it sucks.

Dining halls at other colleges are open 24 hours, so there’s always food available. For us?

We can hardly get lunch after 1 p.m. because all the food is taken away from us. Forever alone in Barone after my 2-3:15 class.

Sometimes, I see tours going through at about this time, and perspective students walk through Barone, wondering why all of the food stations are empty. And what’s up with the fact that there’s never grilled chicken in Barone on the weekends? Rambling complaints here, sorry.

I know there’s not much that a pint-sized girl like me can do to fix the food availability at Fairfield, but I know there has to be people that agree with me. I’ve yet to hear someone say that they love going to Barone, and that they are always satisfied after eating a meal there. Instead, students dread meals and leave with either the stomachs barren or running to the nearest bathroom.

I guess we’re just stuck with what we got - a dining hall that stops making food at 6:30 p.m. and an empty plate.

- Sent from my BlackBerry

Sports

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

Page 17

This Week in Sports The week that was in Fairfield Athletics

Sports Shorts

Men’s Lacrosse– For the third straight game, the Stags decided the game in overtime as they defeated UMBC 10-9 last Saturday. Senior, John Snellman scored the game-winner, 44 seconds into the first overtime period. The 4-0 Stags next travel to Quinnipiac on Wednesday.

Men's Tennis- The Stags battled hard but didn't have quite enough, as they fell to St. John's 7-0. The team takes on Gonzaga next as they travel to California this week.

Women's Tennis- Fairfield won five of six tiebreakers as they went on to beat Albany 4-3. Sophomore Victoria Pirrello had the deciding victory defeating her opponent, 7-5, 6-7 (4), 11-9. The Stags next take on Gonzaga as they travel to California.

Baseball- The Stags ended a four-game series with a tough defeat at the hands of Delaware, losing 4-3 last Sunday. They will play their first home game of the season as they host St. John's on Wednesday.

New Sports Blog

Sports 3x5 Eric Bernsen Former Sports Editor

Ivey Speight Contributing Writer

John Tessitore Former Assistant Sports Editor

Wednesday- Baseball at St. John's, 3 p.m.

Thursday- No games Friday- No games

Saturday- Women's Lacrosse at UConn, 1 p.m.

Sunday- Men's Lacrosse at Vermont, 1 p.m.

Monday- Men's Tennis vs Gonzaga in Palm Springs, CA Tuesday- Softball vs Wisconsin-Green Bay, 3 p.m. in Orlando, Fla.

By The Numbers

17

8

The Men's La- The second half crosse team is of the MAAC final ranked 17th na- saw the Stags go tionally after start- on a run of eight ing the season minutes without with a 4-0 record. scoring a basket.

6

Junior Laura Vetra of the women's basketball team scored a career-high six points as they fell to Marist 61-35 in the MAAC Finals.

Quote of the Week

Make sure to check out our new Sports Blog with online-only coverage at sports.fairfieldmirror.com, as well as featured Sports videos.

Because they like to talk... Sports.

What To Watch For

“We’re a family. We’re very close. It’s a collective group effort. We just weren’t able to convert in the end and unfortunately it had to be today.”

-senior captain Ryan Olander after the tough 48-44 loss to Loyola in the MAAC Championship Finals this past Monday.

Your 2011-2012 3x5 Columnists: Eric Bernsen, Ivey Speight and John Tessitore.

Heartbreaking losses for both basketball teams in the MAAC Tournament.

Final words?

3x5 plus "The Mate" took Springfield by storm.

Thoughts on a Mardi Gras-like weekend?

The Fairfield/Dobbs Ferry/WNEC connection was in prime form. What was the shining moment?

Fairfield University media killed it at the tournament. More swag than any other MAAC team?

So many legends at the Mass Mutual center and the hotel. Who deserves the biggest shoutout?

Words can't describe the dissapointment. Our players put their hearts/souls into every game. Thought we had it, just gotta move on. Keep those heads up.

Wow, between the Odyssey and the hot dog stand, from Alumni to JT's, the crew went into the city and they said, "wassup."

Left it all on the table.

Dj Gorms had the elite creep atmosphere going.

Me and the Scatt man had that Beee swag going and the small man was most defintely swarming.

Oh no question, we won by a landslide. The Mirror/ WVOF passion was through the roof, ran circles around the competition, huhu. Just an unreal experience.

Between the Clinton food vouchers and the surped out security guard, safe to say that there was mutual respect. Feed the keg like a crab. Free food was clutch.

Not much to say. It was fun. Thought both teams had it, but what more can you ask for? Both the squads left everything on the court ... that's all that matters.

Never thought I would have a Mardi Gras employee refuse my service.

Must've done something when I was surped. Well I got a hot dog instead.

Yaaaay!

I was in primetime trying to dance with everything that moved. But defintely the 3x5 dancing with the same girl at Alumni. And there's pictures! Hope it goes viral.

WMAR had nothing on us. What other radio station has a Kiwi basketball broadcaster? For swag we are going to the big dance as the number 1 seed!

So many at the hotel. Seeing the Marist head coach in the elevator eating a plate of spaghetti was epic. But the sad thing is that was not the main thing on my mind then. sssss.

Man I love my team, ride with the Stags 'till the day I die! It was as an amazing weekend. Thanks to the players for letting us stay there four nightsssssss.

They gave it their all!!!!

Visit our new website at www.barkedrecedingsmallman.com to get the scoop on the weekend, or follow me on twitter @ l3br0n'sPr0digy

Haha, one shining moment had to be watching Ivey Speight into darkness while O'Keeffe was with the Bee shooting in the Gym. Wait?

Ivey wasn't with Bee in the GYM? SURPSCHEMIN'

Call us the Butler of student media... the mate has to be the only Kiwi in history to broadcast basketball. Ivey is like mini Gus Johnson, except much, much creepier.

Gotta go w/ my new wifies, the two lovely ladies at the food voucher desk... always greeted us with a smile. Or the mad creepy dude always checkin' our passes then acting like he didn't know us. SMH.

Sports

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

Page 18

Women's Basketball Falls Once Again to Marist

Contributed by: Stockton Photo Inc.

Sophomore Christelle Akon-Akech attempts to defend Marist's Corielle Yarde, MAAC Player of the Year, from getting to the basket. Fairfield was handed a 61-35 loss by the Marist Red Foxes in the MAAC Finals.

Continued from page 20 "That’s a great Fairfield team,” Marist head coach Brian Giorgis said. “Extremely well-coached [and a] great group of players.”

Although they still do not have that MAAC Championship trophy, the women’s basketball

program has already seen some significant strides under Frager.

The squad won their first-ever post-season game in 2010, and has clinched a spot in the WNIT this year for the first time since 2000. And Frager knows that when they find their next opponent, they will be ready to com-

pete again.

“We’ve got more basketball left to be played,” he said. “We’re going to play another day. So, we’re going to take a few days off here, retool, and get ready to lace them up again.”

It’s hard for any team to compete with the likes of Marist,

who have now won seven straight titles and eight in the last nine years.

They have also made national notice winning several games in the tournament, even moving to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament.

But Frager and the program

still know that one day, the Fairfield Stags will achieve their ultimate goal.

“It’s where we want to be.

It’s where we’re going to continue to strive to be and it’s eventually where we will be,” Frager said.

Maybe it starts next year.

Women's Lacrosse Suffers First Loss of the Season

By Tom Shea Assisstant Sports Editor

Addie Reilly and Melanie Raso scored three goals apiece, but their efforts would not be enough, as James Madison pulled away to defeat the Stags 15-9 at Alumni Field on Sunday.

The game started poorly for the Stags, as they found themselves in an early 5-0 hole less than ten minutes into the game.

Fairfield finally got on the board about two minutes later with a goal by Chloe Mangan with over eighteen minutes left to play in the first half.

The initial James Madison onslaught was not over however, as it extended the lead to 7-1, which would end up being its largest lead of the game. Fairfield answered with quick goals by Mangan, Amanda Best and Addie Reilly, pulling the Stags within three at 7-4. It appeared that the Stags had taken another step towards completing the comeback when they scored again right before half, but the goal was waved off by the officials due to a penalty on Fairfield.

When asked why he thought the team played so poorly at the start of the game, head coach Mike Waldvogel pinned it on the players being “overanxious."

“We just had [unforced] turn-

overs. We fell a couple times, we threw the ball where we shouldn’t have, we dropped it in the beginning of the game,” said Waldvogel.

“It was just nerves I think. Once we relaxed everything was fine. It was just in the beginning of the game against a top ranked team.”

The Stags committed eleven turnovers for the game, seven of which came in the first half.

“It’s the second time we’ve had that happen,” said Waldvogel, referring to the team’s previous game against Hofstra, where they fell behind early and were forced to mount a comeback. “We’ve got to be more focused at the beginning of the game.”

Coming out of halftime, the Dukes’ Monica Zabel scored a quick goal, but the Stags answered yet again with a pair of goals by Reilly and Raso to bring the lead back down to two.

After James Madison extended the lead back to four with under 20 minutes left to play, Reilly and Raso responded again to score twice within two minutes of each other, bringing Fairfield back within two at 10-8.

This would be as close as the Stags would get however, as James Madison scored three straight goals and outscored Fairfield 5-1 in the last 14 minutes, to cement the 15-9 victory.

Coach Waldvogel showed mixed feelings about the loss. “I’m happy with the effort we put in.

I’m not happy being down early in the game, but I think that’s a young team,” said Waldvogel. “We have no seniors starting on offense…it is a fairly young team and I think a lot of players are still learning to play their role.”

Despite tying the Dukes in groundballs with 15, Fairfield was outshot by James Madison 28-17 for the game, including a 15-7 difference in the first half.

The coach also pointed to how the team struggled when faced with man-down situations. “I think the biggest thing that affects us is when we get yellow carded, going a man down. Defense has to play extra hard … [it] puts a lot more pressure on the defense and puts a lot more energy into the game for the defense.”

Five Stags had time spent in the penalty box, all in the second half. With 20 minutes remaining, both Courtney Chmil and Melanie Raso were forced to the penalty box, putting the Stags down two players at once.

Women’s lacrosse recently adopted rules similar to men’s lacrosse, where players are put in the penalty box after being penalized. Before the rule change, women’s teams were always at even

strength, even after penalties.

Going forward, Waldvogel believes games like this will be good experiences for the team later in the season.

“Anytime you play a quality team like this, you learn a lot of things. I think we know [that] we can play with these [top tier] teams,” said Waldvogel. “When we play teams that are not as good as this, we should dominate and come out with that fire in our eyes.”

Thanks in part to her three goal effort in Sunday's game, sophomore attack Addie Reilly is now among MAAC leaders in multiple categories. She is second in the league in goals per game, and third in points per game.

The next game for the Stags is March 7, when they go on the road to battle cross-town rival Sacred Heart.

The next home game for Fairfield is March 21 against Lehigh.

Jeannine Nocera/The Mirror

Junior Chloe Mangan looks for a teammate in the 15-9 loss on Sunday.

Sports

The Mirror | Week of March 7, 2012

Page 19

Stags See NCAA Bid Slip Away to Loyola Continued from page 20

Loyola will make its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1994, the only previous year they had won a MAAC Championship.

Junior Greyhound forward Erik Etherley, who scored 10 points, gathered seven rebounds, and blocked three shots, proved to be a dominant defensive force throughout the game as he altered many of Fairfield’s shot attempts.

Etherly was named the MAAC Tournament MVP due to his strong efforts in Loyola’s three victories over the course of the weekend in Springfield, MA. In a season in which the depth of guard play was a primary strength for the Stags, the backcourt provided only nine points in the loss to Loyola as Fairfield was denied a MAAC championship for second time in three years.

Nevertheless, Jamel Fields and Sean Crawford of the Stags played through injuries and showed a lot of heart while starter Desmond Wade had limited minutes due to early trouble.

“We left everything we had on the court and they dug deep to put themselves in a situation to win. we just didn’t score enough

baskets,” said Johnson, as he acknowledged the passion demonstrated by his group.

Sophomore forward Maurice Barrow missed a couple of easy lay-ups in the contest, but he was a monster under the basket with 13 rebounds against the Greyhounds.

Senior center Ryan Olander missed a tightly contested threepoint attempt late in the game, but scored 11 points and had three blocks.

The frontcourt was instrumental in keeping the Stags in the game as Fairfield had 26 points in the paint compared to Loyola’s 14.

“We’re a family. We’re very close. It’s a collective group effort. We just weren’t able to convert in the end and unfortunately it had to be today,” said Olander.

Rakim Sanders and Desmond Wade earned All-MAAC Tournament team honors for their performances over the weekend.

And despite the loss in the MAAC Championship game, Coach Johnson is confident that his team will be invited to a postseason tournament such as the College Basketball Invitation or the CollegeInsider.com Tournament.

“People didn’t have faith in

this team, but now people have taken notice. It would take some sting away to continue to play basketball and show who we are,” said Johnson.

The Stags played in the CIT two years ago and came out of that tournament with an impressive come-from-behind victory against a highly respected George Mason program.

Fairfield was down 27 points at halftime, but came away with a 101-96 victory.

Regardless, the Stags will have to wait until the NCAA and NIT fields are chosen next Sunday before finding out if they will have another opportunity to show what they are made of.

The blood, sweat and tears this team have shown are impressive in a season full of ups and downs as the Stags overcame a good deal of adversity, especially when they lost junior guard Derek Needham after he broke his foot against Iona toward the end of the regular season.

And as Coach Johnson said after the tough defeat, hopefully this will not be the last game this team plays together.

“We will be good and we will move on," senior Rakim Sanders said. "Hopefully, like coach said, there will be more basketball to be played."

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Ryan Olander tries to block a shot against Loyola at the MAAC Championships.

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Sports | 20 Sports Editor: Jen Calhoun » sports@fairfieldmirror.com

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Colin Nickerson is called for the charge against Loyola in the MAAC Championships .

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Brittany MacFarlane attempts to prevent a Marist basket in Monday's MAAC Championship.

Defense Prevails, Stags Denied Women Struggle Against Marist

By Eric Bernsen Former Sports Editor

After rattling off two straight wins in the MAAC Tournament, the Fairfield men’s basketball team lost a heartbreaker, 48-44, to the Loyola Greyhounds in Monday’s MAAC Championship game.

The Stags could not have been more solid defensively, as they have been all season long, but Fairfield’s inability to score allowed the Greyhounds to edge out a victory and win an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.

Fairfield shot a season-low 28 percent from the field and was held to their lowest point total of the season.

Loyola’s defense was impenetrable coming out of halftime as the Stags were held scoreless for nearly the first eight minutes of the second half.

In a game in which buckets were hard to come by, Stags point guard Desmond Wade nailed an improbable three-pointer with 2:42 left in the contest that narrowed the deficit to 47-44, giving Fairfield a glimmer of hope.

“We still felt like we had an opportunity to win at that point in the game," said Wade. "We just fell short."

Senior captains Rakim Sanders and Ryan Olander had chances from

beyond the arc to tie the game and make a comeback, but in the end it was just not in the cards for the Stags.

Sanders led the Fairfield with 12 points while Loyola was relentlessly double-teaming him throughout the contest, knowing how dangerous of a player he has been for Fairfield all year long.

“I just wanted it so bad for myself and for my teammates, so yeah, this is as tough as it gets,” said Sanders.

While Fairfield had no lack of offense in the team's 85-75 MAAC Semifinal win over the No. 1 seeded Iona Gaels, the Stags lacked the presence of an outside threat against the Greyhounds as they shot only 2-11 from the three-point line.

Coach Sydney Johnson of the Stags did not hide his disappointment after the game and was quick to credit Loyola’s work ethic in the high-pressure win-or-go-home situation.

“We’re pretty devastated right now and crushed that’s it’s not us [to advance]. Patsos [Loyola’s head coach] had his team playing hard and their defense was as good as ours, which is something we pride ourselves on. We held them to 48 points and in a Division 1 game that’s usually enough to win,” said Coach Johnson, who would have made his second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance with a victory.

Men | Page 19

By Ivey Speight contributing writer

This could have been the season when the dynasty was finally dethroned. The Stags had the chemistry, senior leadership, and talent to do something that no MAAC team had done in six years and that was win the MAAC championship over the Marist Red Foxes.

But there was one aspect that Marist had that was superior to Fairfield: experience. They put that experience to good use, defeating the Stags 61-35.

“They’ve got a lot of things working for them right now,” Coach Joe Frager said. “It’s not only a hurdle for us but also for eight other schools right now.”

From the start, it looked like the poise of the Red Foxes was going to outshine the Stags. Fairfield started off 3-19 from the field and found themselves down by 12.

“You get anxious, you want the next shot to go in,” senior Taryn Johnson said. The first-team AllMAAC selection was also named to the All-Tournament team. “I think maybe in the beginning we really wanted it and rushed some shots and missed some open shots.”

All season long, this squad believed in Frager’s emphasis of put-

ting the group first. They won as a team and lost as a team (more winning than losing this year). Each player knew their exact role and tried to do what they could to help each other.

That’s why when Taryn Johnson, who was playing in her last MAAC conference game, went down with foul trouble, spectators could see that she was visibly upset on the bench. After picking up her second foul in the first half, she would sit for the next nine minutes and her team could not inch any closer.

“It felt longer,” she said. “[It was] very, very frustrating. I wanted to do what I could for my team. It’s hard to watch on the bench in any game, especially this one because it’s my last chance for a championship.”

Even though the Fairfield women’s basketball team is not where they want to be as of now, they are getting close. Including this season, they have three 20-win seasons in coach Frager’s five years and have been to two MAAC championship games (both times losing to Marist).

“I think we [the program] has made leaps and bounds over the last five years,” Frager said. “I couldn’t be any prouder of these kids.”

Women| Page 18