THE COLLEGIAN WEDNESDAY, APRIL 22, 2015
FRESNO STATE'S STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1922
FRESNOSTATE.EDU/COLLEGIAN
A CENTURY OF REMEMBRANCE
What to do, where to go: Your guide to summer fun. INSIDE STUDENT-ATHLETE PERSPECTIVE
Recruiting from afar a fine balance By Alex Sheedy @aksheeds
Editor’s note: Alex Sheedy is a senior mass communication and journalism senior from Australia who played for the Fresno State women’s basketball team.
Generations removed, students tell tales of Armenian resilience By Diana Giraldo | @dianainspired
Tragic history resonates with today’s generation, who say genocide is part of their cultural identity One-hundred years later, the first genocide of the 21st century remains a piercing anchor in the lives of younger-generation Armenians, impacting their values, beliefs and decisions. Armenian music, family and history are the three things that keep Ovsanna Simonyan close to her culture. “Music keeps my spirit alive. Family values have created such a close tie with all my relatives, and the history, of course, is a constant reminder of why I am still alive today,” said Simonyan, a senior business administration student at Fresno State. One of the first things Simonyan learned as a child was her lineage -- two generations of grandparents from her father’s side who were survivors
of the Armenian Genocide. Her great-great grandfather, Harutyun Simonyan, lived in the village of Moosh, where he witnessed the assassinations of his family, friends and 22-yearold mother at age four. He and others escaped to eastern Armenia and migrated to Lernakert where many survivors from Moosh resided, Simonyan said. Later, Harutyun Simonyan’s son, David Simonyan, a devoted religious man, also crossed paths with Turkish soldiers. “About two years before the Turks invaded Lernakert, he had a dream where an angel told him, ‘Very soon there will be mass deaths, but I will save you and your generation,’” Simonyan said.
“Family values have created such a close tie with all my relatives, and the history, of course, is a constant reminder of why I am still alive today.” — OVSANNA SIMONYAN, senior studying business administration
It started in the spring of 1918, Simonyan said, when a Turkish general entered the village with a few soldiers. Her great-grandfather David was asked to speak with the general, because he was the only Turkish-speaking man in the village. He, along with the elders of the city, gathered around the soldiers imploring them not to resort to violence. “The general said, ‘Look, I have come by myself. There is nothing to be afraid of. We have just come and will continue on our path without any violence,’” Simonyan said. “Little did they know that the Turkish army had already surrounded the village, closing off all possible escape routes.” As the soldiers and generals left, one soldier stayed behind to get water, Simonyan said, and David confronted him. The soldier said, “If you can, run, because once we leave,
See GENOCIDE, Page 3
Marine Vardanyan, president of the Armenian Students Organization, and Tatevik Hovhannisyan place ribbons on trees around Fresno State’s campus on Saturday in remembrance of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Photo by Paul Schlesinger • The Collegian
The influx of international student-athletes into the United States college system has led to a pushpull relationship for coaches, administration and athletes, as they find the balance between local recruiting and international recruiting. Fresno State currently plays host to 28 international student-athletes: eight men and 20 women. With the introduction of Title IX, the school suffered in the number of male
See RECRUITING, Page 6
Somalian presidential candidate talks refuge and education By Nayirah Dosu @doesuu11
Fadumo Dayib, the first woman to run for president of Somalia, spoke Monday at Fresno State about how her past and “the four deaths of a Somalian woman” have shaped her campaign. “A Somali woman actually dies four times in her life,” Dayib said. “She dies when she’s born. She dies on the day that she is mutilated. She dies on her wedding night. And she dies when she has her first child.” Dayib’s experience as a refugee and her knowledge of international public health were two themes
See DAYIB, Page 3