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Faculty underreport cheating
Senate approves replacement
By Mike Boylan The Collegian
By Thaddeus Miller The Collegian Fresno State instructors underreport incidents of cheating and plagiarism, according to university officials. Fresno State’s policy on cheating and plagiarism calls for instructors to report all incidents of cheating or plagiarism to
the office of the vice president for student affairs and the dean of students. During the 2007-2008 academic year, the university recorded 59 reports, compared to 162 during the 2008-2009 academic year. Joyce Ester, the assistant vice president for judicial affairs and division See CHEATING, Page 6 Photo Illustration by Michael Uribes / The Collegian
Athletes must self-report cheating By Thaddeus Miller The Collegian Athletes caught cheating or plagiarizing do not often receive a heavy sentence for first-time of fenses; repeat offenses, however, receive less leniency, according to university officials. The various punishments are academic sanctions, ranging from receiving an F on one assignment to expulsion from school. First-time offenders, almost exclusively, are assigned F’s for their misconduct. Students can appeal and take their case to an academic hearing. Joyce Ester, the assistant vice president for judicial af fairs and division planning, said “99 percent” of the instructor’s reports of cheating or plagiarism that make it to her office are for first-time offenses. Ester said no student under her tenure, two and a half years, has been expelled from Fresno State. “Students have been suspended, which means that they have to stop out for a semester or more,” Ester said. The rules around cheating
and plagiarism apply to every student across the board, Ester said. Students’ extra curricular activities are not directly affected from a firsttime offense. For example, a student-athlete caught cheating for the first time would receive the same academic sanctions as another student. However, the student-athlete’s playing and practice times would not be affected in anyway. The student-athlete’s coach is not infor med after a first-time infraction. “The cheating and plagiarism for ms [from instructors] come to me,” Ester said. “Therefore, the only way the athletic department would know about it is if the student told [the athletic department].” Ester said student-athletes caught cheating often inform their coaches. “I think that they’d probably rather their coaches hear bad news from them than somebody else,” Ester said. “But I don’t know that for sure.” Susan Gutkind, the assistant athletics director for studentathlete services, said she may
never know that a student cheated if the student doesn’t report it to her. All reports of cheating and plagiarism are confidential under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Gutkind said her first priority is to support the university and academic integrity. Student-athlete services teaches good study skills, time management and pride in one’s work, she said, in an effort to keep students from cheating because they backed themselves into a corner and “panicked.” “We try to do all those proactive things,” Gutkind said. Gutkind said student-athlete services could become included in the appeals process if infor med of the report of cheating or plagiarism by the student-athlete or professor involved. There is not a finite list of what will happen to studentathletes who admit that they cheated, according to Gutkind. They are handled on a case-bycase basis. Gutkind said when a studentathlete admits to cheating they take the consequence that the
professor gives them. “In that moment, they are acting as students on campus” Gutkind said. “They fall under the campus code of conduct. We help to enforce the campus code of conduct.” Gutkind said, in such a case, she would inform the studentathlete and his or her coach that such behavior is unacceptable. However, a first-time infraction rarely affects a student’s practice or playing time. Gutkind said student-athletes are in the same developmental stage as the other students on campus. So, studentathletes don’t deserve any harsher punishment, such as lost playing time, than the student sitting next to them. “Our 18-year-olds are the same 18-year-olds that are on campus,” Gutkind said. “They’re 18.” Gutkind said first-time offenses are handled from a developmental standpoint, and need to learn that actions have consequences. The studentathlete is expected to figure out what went wrong and how See ATHLETES, Page 6
At Wednesday’s Associated Students, Inc (ASI) meeting there were new and missing faces. The senate affir med Vice President Alex Andreotti’s recommendation of Patrick Simon to be the new senator for the school of social sciences, replacing Jamie San Andres who recently resigned her post. An official statement from ASI president Jessica Sweeten cited scheduling conflicts as the reason for San Andres’ resignation. San Andres was unavailable for comment. Simon is a political science major and an employee at the Henry Madden Library. In the meeting he expressed eagerness to step in and represent his school. Simon said he hopes to increase graduation rates, work with the dean to promote multicultural education and take part in community service as well. “I wanted to join the student senate because this year, I’ve had tremendous drive to become more involved on this campus to make a difference,” Simon said in an e-mail interview. “I am also involved and hold two positions in the brand new frater nity, Phi Delta Theta.” According to ASI bylaws, the vice president has two weeks to appoint senate replacements, and it is then presented to the senate to cast a vote. The motion to appoint Simon was passed and he was immediately placed on the senate with full senate privileges. Only attending briefly as a visitor was Sen. Cesar Sanchez, who was notified 90 minutes before the meeting that he was officially ruled ineligible through a memo he received from Andreotti. The reason was he had too many units. The ASI bylaws states in Article 1V section 1.2 that members must “satisfy the eligibility and qualification requirements established by the Chancellor of the [California State University].” This refers to California State Student Association (CSSA) student gover nment rules, which state: “undergraduates are allowed to earn a maximum of 150 semester units or 125 percent of the units required for a specific baccaSee ASI, Page 6
Opinion The
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Opinion Editor, Tony Petersen • collegian-opinion@csufresno.edu • Friday, March 12, 2010
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That’s What the People Are Saying On a new study of sexual activity verall, men were more likely than women to be sexually active, to report a good quality sex life, and to be interested and thinking about sex on a regular basis.” — Stacy Tessler Landau, nbcchicago.com
A fresh approach to ed By Maddie Shannon The Collegian
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ight before Thursday’s protests, a fellow student came to my philosophy class to talk about the protests being held at various campuses across the country, and how they would affect Fresno State. “We’re trying to make sure the government follows up on its promise to fund the university,” she said. “That’s why we’re organizing the protests.” There is just one little problem: There isn’t any money left to give. We’ve been seeing the results of this since August, in the form of those ever-annoying furlough days, the frustration of seeing classes cut and having to tell family that they better hold off on sending those graduation announcements because you’re (ahem) not graduating this year. During this particular class, I was glad to realize I was not alone in my conservative viewpoints. One guy asked, “Why should I be expected to not go to class so I can protest against the government not giving me the classes that I’m not taking this semester?” After a very long-winded answer that could’ve taken about 20 seconds to explain, another guy asked, “Can we start lecturing now?” It seems to me that everyone is starting to get the picture. Despite the fact
of financial crisis, it’s safe to say that there are other, and probably much better, ways to pay here are other, and probably much for our education, rathbetter, ways to pay for our education, er than relying on the rather than relying on the government to give government to give us what we need. Cal Grant us what we need.” didn’t come through? Try Fastweb. Try Scholarship.com. Both Web sites provide more that the California State University than $10 billion worth of scholarships system is the people’s university and every year to students of every walk of has been run on almost entirely govlife. The government isn’t the end all, ernment funding, we need to stop bugbe all of financing your education. As ging the government for more money students, that’s our responsibility, not that they don’t have and turn to where Gov. Schwarzenegger’s. the money actually is: the private secI understand how difficult it is to get tor. up in front of a lecture hall full of peoSince last spring, private donors ple and give your spiel on something have given more than $130 million to that the audience may not understand Fresno State. That rivals the amount your passion for. I understand the difof money the entire CSU gets from ficulty of trying to explain something the state government. We have wellto someone you’re pretty sure doesn’t funded programs thanks to local busishare your view. And for the students nesses and alumni, ranging from the who are brave enough to do that, Smittcamp Family Honors College to kudos. But it’s time to stop beating our the $10 million donation to athletics heads against the wall and start advoprovided by NykelBam International cating something that actually has a last summer to the Jordan family’s chance of succeeding, and that’s seek$29 million cash donation to our ing money for our school from places Agriculture students. that actually have it. At this point, not Considering that there are so many taking personal responsibility for our people in our community who have education is something we can’t afford rallied around the school in a time to do.
I had centered my life so much on being a generous, philanthropic and giving person that I had lost connection with my limits in my life. I was o was a word that took a long not even able to say a simple two-letter time to incorporate as a part word, “no.” of my vocabulary. It was not At night, my mind would speak to that I wasn’t able to say it, because me (not in a crazy way). It would ask, obviously I was, but rather it was when “Can I set limits and still be a giving, I could say it. I would say “yes” when loving person? Can I say no and not I should have been saying “no.” I said feel guilty?” “no” when I should have said “yes.” I wrestled with these kinds of “Oscar, would you like a candy?” thoughts on a daily basis, and I did not “No,” I would quickly respond, even know what to do about it. I felt lost, though I was dying for sweets. confused and overwhelmed. And at other times it would go like Individuals would ask favors from this: “Oscar, can you help me with my me all the time and, the sad thing was, homework?” “Yes, of course.” I was not able to say no. This was always my problem and, Just last year, I was involved with in some cases, it continues to be. Even over 10 organizations, community serthough I had my own homework or vice, two internships, a job and was a other things to do, I would still help full-time student. others. Yet, no one seemed to help me Somehow, I thought in my lost mind when I was falling behind. that I could still take on helping othI ask now, do people take advantage ers. I was not at all evaluating any of of you? Do you have trouble saying no? my choices. I actually thought I didn’t have choices and, if I did, they involved helping others, no matter aying no is not a slight bit mean, rude or what. evil. It is actually a way that one can emit Many individuals, confidence, independence, honesty and openmyself included, try to do a good job with ness.” our relationships, our families, our employBy Oscar Perez The Collegian
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Collegian
The Collegian is a student-run publication that serves the Fresno State community on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Views expressed in The Collegian do not necessarily reflect the views of the staff or university.
Culled each week from discussions on The Collegian Online.
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To say no, to not say no
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ment, our education and our personal life. But when boundaries are not set and one cannot say no, it becomes difficult to do all these things to the best of your ability. To say no is to set a boundary. It is a way of letting others know that you are in control of your life, that you will not be taken advantage of or that you simply cannot do what they ask of you. Saying no is not a slight bit mean, rude or evil. It is actually a way that one can emit confidence, independency, honesty and openness. It is about involving yourself in standing up for your personal rights and expressing your thoughts, feelings and beliefs to the fullest. I wish I could say that saying no is inherited, but sadly it is not. Saying no is a learned aptitude. People need to truly find themselves before they are able to say no. You must learn to accept the fact that you are the leader of your journey in life and the rest will come at ease. You have the right to say “no.” You have the right not to justify your “no.” And finally, you have the right to put yourself first. The previous might sound mean, greedy and evil, but in reality it is called “me.” “No,” was a word that took a long time to incorporate as a part of my vocabulary, but I was able to do it.
Letters to the Editor (collegian@csufresno.edu) All letters submitted to The Collegian must not exceed 250 words in length, must be type-written, and must be accompanied by a full name and phone number to verify content. The Collegian reserves the right to edit all material for length, content, spelling and grammar, as well as the right to refuse publication of any material submitted. All material submitted to The Collegian becomes property of The Collegian. Each member of the campus community is permitted one copy of The Collegian. Subscriptions are available for $25, on a semester basis. Staff positions at The Collegian are open to students of all majors. Contact the Editor in Chief for details. All content Copyright © 2009 The Collegian.
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Brian Maxey Thaddeus Miller Michelle Furnier Danielle Gilbert Brianna Campbell Tony Petersen Matt Weir Anna Jacobsen Elisa Jimenez Michael Uribes Lacee Solis Allie Norton Sergio Cortes Brian Maxey Tony Petersen
Response:
A letter to campus protestors ‘concerned’: “Well said! It amazes me why students choose to exercise their rights for this ‘cause’ on campus. This is an issue of state and federal funding, in other words, the legislature. If a student really wants his/her voice heard, they should contact their assemblymen and congressmen, those are the people tasked with representing your interests.” ‘Matt’: “Mike Boylan, you have once again showed your complete lack of understanding of the meaning of the statewide resistance to the privatization of education. It’s rather disgusting to think that you can be a student at a university and still have a lack of understanding of student grievances and feel that we have a ‘sense of entitlement.’” ‘DDominguez’: “Not only is this a poorly written article, but the tone suggests you’re actually more of a ‘disgruntled, bitter and senseless human being’ than those you target this opinion at. Aside from the comical use of synonyms that you pulled from the thesaurus you no doubt had next to you as you wrote this, it’s very obvious that you are grossly out of touch with your own generation that you are blatantly attacking.” ‘michaelkincheloe’: “Look who’s talking, Dominguez. You begin your comments by taking a cheap shot at Mr. Boylan’s writing abilities, and you degenerate further into the abyss when your post begins to overflow with assumptions and innuendo. The only thing in your diatribe that surpasses your ignorance is your pretentiousness.” ‘Robert’: “Excellent article. These protesting sheep are nothing more than tools for the teachers unions who have been fooled into thinking that having someone else pick up 80 percent of the cost of their education (100 percent for the poorest students who they claim to represent) somehow equates to justice. They need to wake up and realize that state spending on socialist programs is the reason we don’t have funds for education to begin with.”
Response:
Shop cheap, responsibly ‘RealCheapFood’: “Bravo, Denton! It IS possible to eat very healthy foods for less than $4/day. There is some strategy afoot with the current flood of false assertions that healthy food costs more than unhealthy food—something to do with political power.
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COMMENT: The Collegian is a forum for student expression. http://collegian.csufresno.edu
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Friday, March 12, 2010
The Collegian • Arts & Entertainment Arts & Entertainment Editor, Danielle Gilbert • collegian-features@csufresno.edu
The daily crossword
Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Lewis Los Angeles Times
ACROSS 1 Pilot producer 6 Deep-sixed 15 “Are we __?”: Sondheim lyric 16 They make lots of contacts 17 Old Renault 18 Lucille Ball was one, slangily 19 Low-quality trumpets and trombones? 21 Greek liqueur 22 Con lead-in 23 Metric wts. 26 Letters on old rubles 28 Slight push 31 Squire 32 Sound from the bleachers 33 Spread unit 34 Man with a mission 35 “How many fools do we have here?”? 39 “Christina’s World” painter 40 Criticize 41 [snicker] 42 Drooping part of a Concorde 43 Cheri who portrayed a “Morning Latte” co-host on “SNL” 45 Hard-earned degs. 46 Bring action against 47 VII x LXXIII 48 Happy Meal choice
Puzzle by Brendan Emmett Quigley
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PUZZLE SOLUTION: http://collegian.csufresno.edu Copyright 2009. Tribune Media Services, Inc.
50 Grades in standup comedy class? 55 Ingredient in green salsa 58 “Giant Brain” unveiled in 1946 59 Wading, perhaps 60 “Soon It’s __ Rain”: “The Fantasticks” song 61 Messy places 62 Second of the five stages of grief
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DOWN 1 Dutch artist Frans 2 12-member cartel 3 Tortilla chip topping 4 Slow online connection 5 Pollo partner 6 Clock sound 7 Hawaiian food fish 8 Undiluted
9 “Yes __!” 10 Cut-rate, in company names 11 A Morse “I” requires two 12 Nosebag bit 13 Game with a discard pile 14 1/48 cup: Abbr. 20 Large sea snail 23 “The Radiant Baby” pop artist 24 Ate like a mouse 25 Brand owned by Pabst 26 Ceremonial headgear 27 Favor asker’s opening 29 Google hit datum 30 Score before ad in 31 “I’m mad!” 33 Dresden “D’oh!” 34 Clotheshorse 36 Abbr. in Québec place names 37 Make a dent in 38 Puncture 43 Durable leather 44 Best-seller list entries 45 Expect 47 Plane that competed with Lockheed’s L-1011 49 Last in a series 50 Baseball’s Maglie and Bando 51 “Sorry if __ you down” 52 Police 53 Rosebud’s owner, in film 54 War memento 55 Old salt 56 __ trial basis 57 NASDAQ, e.g.
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Complete the grid so that every row, column and 3x3 box contains every digit from 1 to 9 inclusively. SOLUTION: http://collegian.csufresno.edu
Word of the Day
Midnight munchies The emptiness you feel in your stomach in the middle of the night, usually while watching commercials for pizza or Burger King. Source: UrbanDictionary.com
Arts & Entertainment The
Collegian
Page 4 • Arts & Entertainment Editor, Danielle Gilbert • collegian-features@csufresno.edu • Friday, March 12, 2010
By John Esquivel The Collegian In a time when most comedians are putting out DVDs and albums of their standup, Sarah Silverman can say she is doing it with her very own television show. To celebrate the premiere of “The Sarah Silverman Program’s” third season, Comedy Central has put out a 99-track compilation of songs and excerpts from the first two seasons of her show. Silverman’s main dose of comedy comes from her complete disconnection from the world. Her happy-go-lucky attitude is a far step from the conflicts and troubles that surround her. In the show, she spends her days looking for adventures, making fun of her gay, science fiction loving neighbors and bugging her sister for money. At times, her humor can come across as offbeat, weird and even offensive. Silverman does not hold back and gets right to business. On the first song of the album, titled “The Meaning Of Brunch,” we hear Silverman with her friends talking about the definition of their favorite meal. Her gay neighbors, Brian and Steve, define the meal with loud farts and giggles. Silverman, who refuses to be outdone, tries to add to the
humor. As the next track begins, we realize the attempt did not go so well. On her slow acoustic ballad “That’s What I Wish,” she starts by singing how she “tried to be like the others” and “tried to join in with my brother” while ending each line with “but I pooped instead.” Her offbeat humor kicks in and she describes other synonymous wishes she had like “I wish every child had a mother” and “I wish our religion was love.” Silverman also makes an attempt at tackling some serious issues. Her AIDS Public Service Announcement, an excerpt from the first season, adds to her lack of social sensitivity. “Over 50 billion people get HIV everyday — that’s one out of three people. So, look to your left and look to your right and if you don’t see someone with AIDS, you are probably the one,” Silverman says, who began the PSA as many serious ones do — following a game of tennis. She adds to this on the excerpt called “Man On The Moon.” In this clip, she speaks of people with AIDS almost as if they are minorities — not as people who need a cure but rather people who are being oppressed. “If we can put a man on the moon, we can put a man with AIDS on the moon,” announces
Photo courtesy of www.SarahSilvermanOnline.com
The uncensored soundtrack includes 99 songs from the Comedy Central hit show.
Silverman, almost giving a sense of seriousness to the album. Her final line is sure to kill this mood. “And then someday, we can put everyone with AIDS on the moon.” Offended? No worries, the confusion from the next track is sure to help you forget the horrors of the speech. In “Loch Ness Animation,” Silverman drinks a bottle of nighttime cold medicine in the middle of the afternoon and imagines she is hanging out with the Loch Ness Monster, who in turn tells her she is looking terrific and skinny. In a way, making the album 99 tracks
is a small attempt at adding more humor to her songs and sketches. Does she really expect everyone to listen to every track in one sitting? The joke may very well be on the listener rather than her friends in the show. While the album may not be an appropriate introduction to the show, it is sure to lead to the same confused “did I just see/hear that” response. Silverman is uncompromising and has always taken her humor with a “take it or leave it” attitude. As with any comedy album, take this with a grain of salt and prepare for the fart and poop jokes.
POWER GIG: Rise of the Coco tours SixString puts realism in play By Meg James McClatchy Tribune
By Randy Lewis McClatchy Tribune Ask any musician what’s wrong with video games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band and you’ll get some variation of this response: If gamers spent half as much time with a real instrument as they did pushing plastic buttons on a toy version, they could become musicians instead of just mimicking them. That argument has been heard loud and clear at Seven45 Studios in Boston, where game designers have come up with Power Gig: Rise of the SixString, which puts a genuine electric guitar into players’ hands, allowing them to unplug from the game, hook up to an amplifier and rock for real. At the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, Seven45 officials on Tuesday demonstrated their version, which they boast has “the most sophisticated game controller ever invented.” Power Gig is expected to hit the market this fall despite the sputtering sales of music-centric games. “This is unique and different enough to give the industry the shot in the arm it needs,” Seven45 Vice President of Marketing Jeff Walker said Monday. “We believe there’s a sizable audience out there that is wanting to see the next natural evolution of where these music-based video games need to head.” Walker also noted that several prominent musicians and bands who have withheld their music from other games because of the lack of realism
have agreed to license songs to Power Gig, but he wouldn’t specify which acts. The new game offers players a “beat-matching” mode in which strings are pressed on the guitar neck to score points. That parallels the experience of pressing multicolored buttons on the toy controllers in Guitar Hero and Rock Band. But Power Gig also has a more advanced “chording” mode in which playing notes correctly and forming basic guitar chords advances the game play. That function, Walker said, “is only for that segment of the audience that says, ‘I want to take the next step.’” Makers of the existing games concede that their products aren’t intended to create real-world guitar heroes. Alex Rigopulos, one of the creators of Guitar Hero and Rock Band, has often said his goal in developing those games was to give nonmusicians a significant portion of the experience of being a musician without the endless hours of practice and dues-paying. Seven45 officials take pains to say the game won’t turn tone-deaf players into Eric Claptons and John Mayers. “This is not a learn-how-to-play game,” Walker said. Many, if not most, video-game players aren’t interested anyway. “It’s like people who like to play racing games they don’t go out, get a car and then enter the Indy 500,” said Guitar Player magazine associate editor Barry Cleveland.
Conan O’Brien rolled out his 30-city Legally Prohibited From Being Funny On Television Tour on Thursday, billing it as “a night of music, comedy, hugging and the occasional awkward silence.” The comedian’s live tour will begin in Eugene, Ore., on April 12 and make a stop, on April 24, at Universal Studios in Los Angeles (yes, the same entertainment complex owned by O’Brien’s longtime employer, NBC Universal, and just a stone’s throw away from the glitzy studio that NBC built for O’Brien to host “The Tonight Show,” a job that lasted less than eight months). The tour, sponsored by American Express, is being arranged at a time when Fox executives are crunching numbers to figure out how to make a late-night comedy program work financially on their network. O’Brien famously surrendered his job hosting “The Tonight Show” on NBC when the network decided to bump O’Brien’s show to after midnight to make room for Jay Leno’s return to late night. Leno this month reclaimed his job as host of “The Tonight Show.” NBC’s decision to move O’Brien’s show in January sparked an Internet furor, and enormous ratings, in the comedian’s waning days at the network. O’Brien and his crew sidekick Andy Richter and members of O’Brien’s band will make stops in Vancouver, British Columbia; Boulder, Colo., Chicago; Atlantic City, N.J.; and in New York City at Radio City Music Hall across the street from NBC’s corporate headquarters, 30 Rockefeller Plaza. Tickets start at $39.50. “It was either a massive 30-city tour or start helping out around the house,” O’Brien said in a release announcing the event.
Friday, March 12, 2010
The Collegian • Features Features Editor, Michelle Furnier • collegian-features@csufresno.edu
Page 5
Students share works at
national literature conference By Michelle Furnier The Collegian Two Fresno State students will travel to the national society for the Study of Multiethnic Literature of the United States (MELUS) conference, generally a place where professors and Ph.D candidates present their work, in April to discuss the papers they wrote. English Master’s student Kristen Johnson, 24, and English major Erin Alvarez, 35, both submitted abstracts, a 250-word description of what the paper is about, to MELUS
and both were chosen to speak at the 24th annual conference. According to the MELUS Web site, the 1973-founded society ventures to create an in-depth definition of literature through the studying and teaching of Latino American, Native American, African-American, Asian and Pacific American, and EuroAmerican literary works, as well as their authors and cultural contexts. This year’s theme for the
Kristen Johnson For Johnson, speaking at a national conference is a brand new experience and she’s not sure what to expect. “This is the first time I have done something like this on a national level,” Johnson said. “I presented a paper called ‘The Truth Beneath the Disguise’ for Fresno State’s Graduate Research and Creative Arts Symposium in Spring 2009.” Johnson will present her paper titled “The Many Spaces that Influence Identity,” a piece she wrote two years ago in her Seminar in Women and Literature (ENGL 194T) class. Johnson said her paper is about how Azar Nafisi, Iranian author of ‘Reading Lolita in Tehran’ can only gain access to public space in Tehran by going through her mentor, the magician, since women aren’t allowed to discuss their opinions on politics and literature. At the conference, Johnson looks forward to meeting interesting people and presenting her work at a national level. Johnson has researched and prepared for the questions the professors and Ph.D candidates will ask during her panel. “[Speaking] is nerve wracking since I am a nervous public speaker,” Johnson said. “I
conference concentrates on multi-ethnic literatures of the United States. The society would like to hear from those who will focus their presentations on the literature of the city and theories of the urban experience in a multi-ethnic context. The conference will take place at the University of Scranton in Scranton, Pa on April 8 through April 11.
Erin Alvarez
Photos by Joy Hallare /The Collegian
suspect I will be practicing as much as I can to be ready for this conference.” Johnson said that she feels more pressure because she is one of the few speakers who hasn’t received her doctorate. Students of the English Studies Association (SESA) are paying up to $750 for Johnson’s hotel and transportation. She plans to cover the rest of the fees. “I plan to try to my best at this conference since that is all I can do,” Johnson said.
When Alvarez discovered the theme for the conference was about what immigrantsbring to the cities they live in, she realized that was exactly what she was writing about. “I want to look at Chicana stories b u t they’re hard to find. I [found] a lot of male Chicano stories but nothing from a Chicana viewpoint,” Alvarez said. “So I thought about contributing to the Chicana literary cannon.” In her paper, Alvarez analyzes Chicana identity with Chicana literature, focusing on Central Valley writers Luis Valdez and Gary Soto. Alvarez said that there’s a lot of Chicana literature that comes from Chicago and Los Angeles but there’s very few
from Fresno. “[Luis Valdez and Gary Soto] are male writers and they’re projecting my identity, they’re creating my identity,” Alvarez said. “I want to look and see how we can change that.” A l v a r e z e x p l a i n s h ow a friend’s 12-year-old daughter, who reads Gary Soto’s book in her school, was the one who really made her wonder about the scarce amount of Chicana authors and stories in Fresno. “I asked her ‘do you see yourself in his work’ and she said that she doesn’t identify with any of the characters,” Alvarez said. The majority of the stories he writes are memoirs about growing up in Fresno as a boy, so there’s no room for a Chicana identity, Alvarez said. Alvarez also said that while McNair, a post-baccalaureate achievement program intended to support low-income first generation college students, will pay a travel stipend, she will be paying for this trip on her own.
Extended snow season at Sierra Summit By Kelly Mason The Collegian El Nino has brought in snow and lofty crowds to Sierra Summit, providing the resort with more than12 feet of fresh powder this season and isn’t looking to stop anytime soon. According to the Western Regional Climate Center, El Nino conditions, precipitation and temperature effects combine to accentuate the effect on the snowfall. With a strong tendency toward wet winters, it makes the high elevation snowpack deeper. Several huge storms have brought much snow to Sierra Summit, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration this El Nino is predicted to bring even more storms and snow to the area. “We got 11 feet back in January, and right now, today it is at 100 inches,” Lyndsie Couto said, an employee at Sierra Summit, in a phone
“T
Day.”
he previous El Nino was a heavy year of snow in the '05-'06 season and we skied into Memorial — Lyndsie Couto, Employee at Sierra Summit
interview Tuesday. “It is snowing right now.” According to a conditions blog on the Sierra Summit Web site, they have excellent coverage over the entire mountain with some fantastic skiing and riding. The blog continues to say with the amazing amount of snow this season, they plan to ski and ride well into April. For some skiers and snowboarders an extended snow season is great news since the last extended season was five years ago. “The previous El Nino was a heavy year of snow in the ‘05-‘06 season and we skied
into Memorial Day,” Couto said. With news such as this, Sierra Summit has started a new promotion for season tickets. On Monday, season tickets went on sale, and if skiers and boarders purchase their season ticket now it will count for this season as well as all next season. The snow has really brought in the crowds. “There have been no sold out days yet, but it gets very busy on sunny weekends,” Couto said. Brenna Blagg, a Friant local, has frequently visited the mountains this season and
attests to the large crowds. After getting new skis and boots for Christmas, Blagg said she has absolutely loved the amount of snow Sierra Summit has received. “It is definitely the most snow I’ve seen in a long while,” Blagg said. “Having grown up in Huntington Lake, it’s weird seeing the snow over the snow markers.” “Right after about eight feet of snow came, we went up the nice day after the huge storm,” Blagg said. “We were stopped for about an hour and had to walk a mile and a half to get to the park. There have been multiple instances where not all of the runs have been open because there was so much snow and not enough power to plow them all.” Other than the crowds Blagg has really loved how awesome the snow conditions have been. “The snow has been great,” Blagg said. “It’s nice getting
there early and skiing right after they plowed. There is snow all over the trees and there are always clear skis. It’s just gorgeous.” Recreation and leisure professor Justin Butchert and the general manager of Kings River Expeditions, is excited about the snow at Sierra Summit, but is especially excited about the river when the snow starts melting. “The snowpack is good but not unusually high -- we had bigger years in '05 and '06 but the winter is not over yet and there is more on the way,” Butchert said. “We are river people first so we are really looking forward to getting on the water when all this snow starts melting and tearing down the canyon.”
C
COMMENT: The Collegian is a forum for student expression. http://collegian.csufresno.edu
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The Collegian • News News Editor, Thaddeus Miller • collegian-news@csufresno.edu
CHEATING: Goes underreported CONTINUED from page 1 planning, said the increase in reports was a reflection of more reporting, not more cheating. Ester said she made an effort to let instructors know that her office, which is the clearinghouse for the reports, is not out to harangue students. “It’s really just a policy and a process,” Ester said. In a 2004 survey of 375 Fresno State faculty members, 46 percent reported they had at some point ignored a suspected incident of cheating. A 2008 survey of 244 Fresno State faculty members reported that 10 percent filled out a report after catching a student cheating. A member of the honor code committee, biology professor Jim Prince, said the problem is twofold. Faculty members are reluctant to report students because they think it is difficult and that it will ruin a
student’s academic career. Prince said the honor code committee has made an effort to encourage faculty members to report every incident of cheating and plagiarism. He said it’s difficult to know how many times a student has cheated otherwise. “This way there’s going to be a trail,” Prince said. “And there’s going to be some consequences for what, we hope, are the small number of repeat cheaters.” Prince said increased reporting would also serve as a deterrent. Prince also referenced a study by the Center for Academic Integrity, which showed that just having an honor code at a university decreases cheating among students. Dennis Nef, the dean of undergraduate studies, said one idea to combat repeat
offenders is still in the idea phase. The program would handle a first offense of plagiarism similar to traffic school. “So, many of our students who are caught cheating or plagiarizing, usually it’s plagiarism, claim they didn’t know that what they were doing was cheating or plagiarizing,” Nef said. That kind of program, Nef said, would eliminate the I-didn’t-know excuse, as well as keep a paper trail. Thomas Holyoke, a political science professor, said professors don’t do enough to teach students what constitutes plagiarism, and that may lead to an instructor’s reluctance to fill out a report. Holyoke said he often spends the first couple of class meetings per semester going over plagiarism. “I probably don’t talk about it enough,” Holyoke said.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Reports of cheating and plagiarism for the 2008-2009 academic year The numbers represent the punishment received by the 162 students reported cheating or plagiarizing. • 82 – 0 or an F for the test or assignment. • 42 – an F for the course. • 14 – loss of points on the assignment. • 11 – loss of points, and a redo on the assignment. • 4 – given a warning. • 12 – other punishments on a case-by-case basis.
ASI: Senate votes to approve the replacement for the recently resigned senator of social science
ATHLETES: There is no policy set in place to inform coaches when an athlete cheats
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laureate … whichever is greater.” Sanchez, who is a double major, currently holds 159 units and already holds a bachelor’s degree in entrepreneurship, but is working toward
“T
his is hurting students who are trying to achieve above average ...”
— Cesar Sanchez, ASI Senator
acquiring a second degree. Sanchez said this is unfair, since he is a double-major student. “This is hurting students who are trying to achieve above average, for those who are attempting to acquire a second degree,” Sanchez said. Two weeks ago, Sanche z sent a letter to President John Welty regarding his pursuit of
candidacy for the vice president of finance position for the 2010-2011 school year. ASI advisor Gary Nelson notified Sanchez that he was both ineligible for the vice president position and to remain senator of the Craig School of Business due to the number of units he had completed. According to Sanche z, Nelson advised him to speak to Vice President of Student Affairs Paul Oliaro regarding the appeals process. Oliaro advised Sanchez to write a letter of appeals to Welty if he wished to contest the ruling, once he was officially notified that he was deemed ineligible. Nelson said, in an e-mail interview, that there have been extenuating circumstances in the past for bending eligibility rules. “Under extraordinary circumstances the campus president may make an exception to the requirements for unit load, maximum allowable units, residency or GPA,” Nelson said in
an e-mail interview. Oliaro reiterated that each request to appeal the CSSA rule is considered on a caseby-case basis. “The student needs to make their own case and provide reasons why their circumstances – often related to their educational goals or circumstances that are way beyond their control – should be considered for an exception,” Oliaro said in an e-mail interview.
to prevent it in the future. Repeat offenders are on a separate level, according to Gutkind. Repeat offenders are choosing to no longer represent student-athletes and the university in a way that is appropriate. Gutkind said in her four years at Fresno State, she could not recall any cases of widespread cheating. There were, however, cheating problems before the overhaul in the athletic department. The cheating problems took place in 2000 while Jer ry
Tarkanian coached men’s basketball. In an article that ran in February 2003, a former statistician for the team told The Fresno Bee he was paid $1,500 by an advisor, who confirmed the story, to write 17 pieces of course work for three players in 2000. A member of the honor code committee, biology professor Jim Prince, would not be so lenient on student-athletes, even after a first-time offense. “I know what I would do if I were the coach,” Prince said. “They’d be gone.”
Friday, March 12, 2010
The Collegian • Sports Sports Editor, Brianna Campbell • collegian-sports@csufresno.edu
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Lacrosse falls short in home opener
Head coach Sue Behme said being a new program is no longer an excuse took care of the ball, and she attacked at the right time.” However, Cross’s offense was n’t enough to s atis fy After a hard fought matchup Behme on her team’s perforin the season home opener, the mance. Fresno State women’s lacrosse “It’s disappointing when you team fell short to the Detroit take 32 shots on goal and you’re Titans 13-18 on Thursday. out scored,” Behme said. “It’s Although Fresno State frustrating. It shouldn’t hapfans remained hopeful and pen.” determined for their diligent With the Titans producing a lacrosse team to pull through, total of 28 turnovers, Behme the home crowd advantage said there is no excuse her wasn’t enough to help the Bulldogs shouldn’t score every time. “Until we start putting the ball in the back of the net, and every tur nover we have doesn’t lead to a goal on the other end, we’re going to continue to struggle,” Behme said. In addition to Cross, teammates Sara Weber Margaret Wolford each came up with goals of their own. Weber had three goals while Wolford made two. The last meeting Matt Weir / The Collegian between the two teams The women’s lacrosse team has yet to win a game in the career of the program, but resulted in a Detroit they continue to fight hard. victory 17-3. The titans By Megan Morales The Collegian
Bulldogs reach their first victory. The ‘Dogs trailed 7-9 at the half, but managed to keep the point margin within four throughout the rest of the game. Freshman Amanda Cross continued to lead the team in scoring with four goals and two assists. “I think she had a good game,” head coach Sue Behme said. “She played smart, she
Matt Weir / The Collegian
Freshman Amanda Cross led the team in scoring with four goals and two assists.
now lead the series 2-0. While some are still cutting the Fresno State women’s lacrosse team some slack for being a new prog ram, Behme doesn’t think her team deserves that justification anymore. “There’s no excuse that it’s a new program,” Behme said. “We have enough kids that have played and they’re just not getting the job done.”
This is the new program’s second season at Fresno State and the team has yet to win a game in the 19 they’ve played. “We’re definitely moving forward,” Behme said. “Our time will come. It’s hard to be patient, but we’ve got to keep working hard.” Up next, the Bulldogs will face Iona on March 17 at 7 p.m. in Bulldog Stadium.
Ladd out, Bulldogs go home Ladd is sent home before first round of WAC play for ‘Dogs By Brianna Campbell The Collegian The Bulldog men’s basketball team fell Thursday in the first round of playoffs at the Western Athletic Conference Championships after starting forward Mike Ladd was sent home for violation of athletic
department policy. This afternoon Fresno State athletic director Thomas Boeh announced in a news conference from Reno, Nev. that Ladd had been sent home. The reasoning was not said due to confidentiality. Ladd averaged 10.3 points a night and leads the team with
66 3-pointers made this season, averaging 5.4 attempted a game. With the starting shooting guard out, and power forward Sylvester Seay sick with the flu, the ‘Dogs were left with little hope in getting past the first round of playoffs. The Bulldogs came from
behind and only trailed by one at the half (33-32). Paul George led the ‘Dogs at the half with 12 points and nine rebounds, while center Greg Smith had only seen five minutes on the floor with three fouls. The second half star ted well with the ‘Dogs taking the lead 48-46 with 14 minutes
left to play. But the team lost momentum as Louisiana Tech claimed a 10-point lead, posting a final victory over the ‘Dogs 74-66. Paul George finished the game with 22 points and 11 rebounds followed by Brandon Sperling who had 14 points, four rebounds and four assists. In just the first half the, ‘Dogs were 2 of 12 from the three-point arc, finishing the game 4 of 18 with a 22 percent shooting percentage. With or without Ladd the ‘Dogs finished the season today in Nevada at the Lawlor Event Center 15-18.
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Collegian
Sports Editor, Brianna Campbell • collegian-sports@csufresno.edu • Friday, March 12, 2010
Ed has played and coached volleyball since his senior year in high school By Ben Ingersoll The Collegian Often one of the overlooked aspects of sports is the relationship between the coach and player, but how about the coach and the spouse? Fresno State volleyball assistant coach Ed Jackson not only shares a home and family with his wife Alanna, but also a volleyball court. The two have been Bulldog assistants for the past two years, just one of the many stops in their volleyball careers. Ed met his wife while finishing up his master’s degree at Sacramento State, where he doubled as a top performer on the men’s national championship club team. Alanna’s best friend was an athlete on the Hornet’s women’s team, and the two soon became close, bonded together by volleyball. But Ed admits it was not exactly love at first sight, and he had to muster up the courage after six years to approach his wife-to-be. “Eventually I got the guts to ask her out, and the rest is history,” Ed said. From there, Ed and his wife began their long stretch of volleyball coaching. Ed’s first stop was as a coach in Illinois, but found himself working alongside Alanna in 2001 after jumping around from various high school and collegiate coaching positions. Together the two were drawn to Fresno, a close proximity to Ed’s hometown of San Diego and Alanna’s hometown of Sacramento. Since being hired on at Fresno State, Ed said has experienced nothing but great things and has a bright outlook for his tenure as a Bulldog assistant coach. “There’s a lot of support here,” Ed said. “Being a student-athlete or even being a coach, we have a lot of people that help us out, more so than any other school I have been a part of, and I’ve been a part of three other divisionone programs.” In Ed’s two years as Fresno State volleyball’s assistant coach, he has guided the team from seven wins in 2008 to 15 wins this past season.
Q&A Is there such thing as too much volleyball for you? No. We [Alanna and I] pretty much talk about it daily. It’s never enough. I mean sure, you know you need to rejuvenate here and there, but for the most part there isn’t too much. My senior year of high school, I started playing this game, and really fell in love with it. What have you enjoyed more, coaching or playing. That’s a hard one to say. I enjoyed playing, and the reality is I felt I could impact the game more from playing, so that part I enjoyed more. I do like the challenge of trying to help the athletes on the team perform at their best. The nice thing about being a player is working toward something. As an athlete,
Photo Courtesy of Fresno State Athletics
being one out there on the floor and making it happen, that’s awesome. What has been the most memorable moment for you, coaching or playing? Winning the national title at Sac State for club. We were always one of the better teams. Every year I was there, we were always in the top five in the country, but we were never number one. And I did it at the end of my career, so to be able to push through and persevere, and finally get to say we were the best team in the country for a day, was pretty cool. If you’re not doing a volleyball related activity, what can you be found doing?
Hanging out with my son and my wife. Being a dad. Going to the park or doing anything to be a part of his life as much as I can. It doesn’t seem like we get to do it very often, but when we do we always try and spend time with family. Do you have any aspirations of being a head coach again? I have not been a head coach at the NCAA level. I’ve been a head coach at the high school and collegiate club level for men. We’ve had opportunities to be head coaches, but none of them really ever fit for both of us. Ultimately I think that is ideally our dream job, Alanna and I, to be coaching together with a program.
What do you look forward to in the years to come as a Fresno State coach? Just more success. We are starting to talk about the NCAA tournament and trying to get there. My first year at Santa Barbara, we got to go there. We all have that experience, but none of these athletes do, so that’s what I would like for those athletes to be able to say they got to play in the national championship tournament. What is it like coaching with your wife? It’s great. We are pretty much like yin and yang, we just really connect. She knows how I coach and I know how she coaches. I really couldn’t see myself coaching without her.”