The Signal Vol. 85 No. 28

APRIL 17 - APRIL 24, 2018

VOL. 85 | NO. 28

/gsusignal

@gsusignal

Who is

Furquan

Stafford?

NEWS | 3 Furquan Stafford claims university has racist practices that are keeping him from obtaining an honorary doctorate degree.

Georgia State says they’re concerned about his continuous policy violations.

PHOTO BY VANESSA JOHNSON & COVER DESIGN BY DEVIN PHILLIPS | THE SIGNAL

A LAST LOOK

SUMMER MENSWEAR

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

HOME COOKING

Take a dive into the history and radioactivity of our very own Kell Hall.

Look effortlessly luxurious with these menswear styles and trends for the summer.

Our work this year racked up awards, and we’re welcoming the new team with high hopes.

Beach volleyball is undefeated at home and CCSA Tournament is in their backyard.

NEWS | PAGE 6

ARTS & LIVING | PAGE 10-11

WWW.GEORGIASTATESIGNAL.COM

News 3

OPINION PAGE 8

Arts & Living 9

SPORTS | PAGE 17

OPINION 7

Sports 15

NEWS

2

GEORGIASTATESIGNAL.COM

BLOTTER APRIL 10

That’s one way to wake up

A Georgia State student was the victim of a simple battery early in the morning at Piedmont North.

This isn’t O-K!

A suspicious person was spotted in the morning at the K Parking Deck on campus.

Bringing green to the Urban city

A Georgia State student was arrested for possession of marijuana at the Urban Life Building.

APRIL 11

Want a sip, officer?

A non-Georgia State student was arrested

for driving under the influence and possession of alcohol in their car on Piedmont Avenue and Auburn Avenue.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Christina Maxouris signaleditor@gmail.com

executive editor (atlanta) Open executive editor (perimeter) Open

Who are you again?

A non-Georgia State student was arrested in Hurt Park for being suspicious.

Editorial NEWS EDITOR Open

signalnewseditor@gmail.com ASSociate NEWS EDITOR Noah Britton signalassociatenews3@gmail.com OPINIONS EDITOR Open signalopinions@gmail.com ARTS & LIVING EDITOR Camille Bolos signalliving@gmail.com ASSociate ARTS & Living EDITOr Sophia Marchese signalassociateliving2@gmail.com SPORTS EDITOR Jerell Rushin signalsport1@gmail.com ASSociate SPORTS EDITOR D’Mitri Chin signalassociatesport1@gmail.com copy editors Alaa Elassar, Sydnie Cobb signalcopyeditor@gmail.com

APRIL 12

A grand heist

A Georgia State student reported a theft of over $1500 from Piedmont North building B early in the morning.

Losing more than just that Freshman 15

A Georgia State student reported a theft of over $1,500 at the Student Recreation Center.

Production production design editor Khoa Tran signalprod@gmail.com

Associate production design editor Salinna Phon

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PHOTOGRAPHY photo EDITOr (atlanta) Vanessa Johnson signalphoto1@gmail.com

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PHOTO OF THE WEEK

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Digital online EDITOR Danny Varitek

Georgia State students participate in activities from spray painting to trash can pong at the annual Panther Prowl.

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TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 2018

www.georgiastatesignal.com/news

WHO IS FURQUAN STAFFORD? The honorary degree nominee alleges racist practices CHRISTINA MAXOURIS Editor-in-Chief

T

wo months ago, GSTV released a Panther Report on an individual they claimed was a doctorate student and Georgia State’s No. 1 fan. That same person was set to receive Georgia State’s President’s Volunteer Service Award yesterday, honoring students with exemplary community service.

But Furquan Stafford isn’t a doctorate student. He’s not a Georgia State student at all.

Now, he’s claiming he’s in pursuit of an honorary doctorate degree from Georgia State, but that Georgia State University President Mark Becker is standing in his way.

“It is what it is because of the color of my skin and me being a dark-skinned black male.

However, you know, I thought maybe Becker (...) would judge me on my fruit. When I say my fruit, [I mean] the things I’ve done,” he told The Signal.

WHO IS FURQUAN STAFFORD?

Graduating from Benjamin Banneker High School in College Park, GA, in 1991, Stafford continued on to receive his Associate’s degree in Pre-Nursing from McCook Community College, in McCook, Nebraska. Bouncing from Texas Southern University to Prairie View A&M to San Jacinto Pasadena College, Stafford eventually found his way to Georgia State in 1996.

It was then when he realized he wanted to follow in Dr. Charles Drew’s footsteps.

Drew,

known as “the father of the blood bank,” was the first African-American physician to develop and process blood plasma storage methods. Drew coordinated U.S. and British efforts for blood transfusions but resigned shortly after finding out African-American blood was being separated from Caucasian blood.

Drawing his inspiration from Drew, Stafford withdrew from his courses, and started his own blood plasma company, C.P. Plasma Center, Inc. C.P. Plasma Center, Inc., registered with the Secretary of State of Georgia in 1998, was Stafford’s attempt at creating the first AfricanAmerican owned and operated plasma center.

Not yet licensed and registered with the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and currently with no employees, Stafford says he’s in the middle of a lawsuit that would break the monopoly within the blood plasma industry.

“I saw that there was a disparity economically in [the black] community and health-wise and I felt, you know what, let me be the voice of the blood community and I said you know what there’s an injustice here.

If we’re good enough to donate plasma then we should be good enough to be operators,” Stafford said.

And Stafford did. He emailed Ryan Grelecki, his professor at the time, explained his financial trouble, and Grelecki allowed him to take the class at no cost - a decision that the university says is against the regulations.

Georgia State’s registration guide states that “enrolled students who wish to audit a course must get approval from the course instructor.

Registration for an audit should be submitted to a campus Enrollment & Registration Services Center.”

The Signal’s investigation found that no such audit form was submitted by either Stafford or his professors. University spokeswoman Andrea Jones confirmed that even under auditing procedures, there are no courses that Georgia State students can take at no cost (unless they are enrolled within the GSU-62 program).

Grelecki said he allowed Stafford to continue with the class in efforts to help him out. He said he wasn’t aware of the policy, and was “simply just trying to do right by a student who’s interested in the subject matter.”

“He was an active participant in the class, he was taking advantage of the materials, [was] very participatory,” he said. “He was someone who had a lot of life experience, and the information he shared in the class was very valuable with other students.”

had been on the Commencement Committee with former president Carl V. Patton and the current president, and knows what they look for in deciding an honorary degree recipient.

The Signal reached out to Miles, but he declined to comment.

With the recommendation in by November 2017, Stafford said he was hoping to receive the honor in December, and is now looking towards spring commencement.

“This is not feasible,” spokeswoman Andrea Jones said. “The commencement committee will not consider honorary degree candidates until its fall meeting in fall 2018. No honorary degrees will be awarded in May.” And none were awarded last December either.

A NON-TRADITIONAL EDUCATION

WHY AN HONORARY DEGREE?

In hopes of expediting the process, Stafford reached out to Becker to set up a meeting, to convince the president to recommend Stafford to Georgia’s Board of Regents (BOR) as one of the Honorary Doctorate degree recipients.

Based on records obtained by The Signal, Stafford reached out through email, LinkedIn and Facebook, but did not receive a response.

Brenda M. Trezvant, BOR Executive Assistant, informed Stafford that per BOR policy, until the the school’s committee “gives their selection for those students for an honorary degree to the president,” and the president submits his selection, they have no say or action in the process.

And even then, Jones said that the honorary doctorate degree award is a rare happening.

“Honorary degrees from research universities such as Georgia State are typically awarded to individuals in recognition of extraordinary lifetime achievements or farreaching societal impact,” she told The Signal.

“The distinction is rare and highly selective.”

As for his wrong “doctorate student” identification during a GSTV Panther Report episode, Stafford said the only thing wrong about that is that the word “honorary” wasn’t added to it.

“That’s what I’m in this for, my honorary doctorate degree. The only thing I felt was wrong about that was that it didn’t have ‘honorary’ on there,” he said. “That’s it.”

And why not just pursue a doctorate degree?

Stafford said that’s not enough.

“I want honorary. Because not everybody can get one of those. My work has gone across

Stafford came back to class in the summer of 2017, when he said he wanted to experience college alongside his wife. He enrolled in two courses, one of which was business law for entrepreneurs. He began taking the course, but in debt and without financial aid coverage, Stafford was dropped from his courses.

“My wife was at the Commons in the computer lab doing her homework, and I told her what happened and I started to cry, we both cried,” Stafford said.

“So then she was like, why don’t you ask [the professor] if you can just come to class because I know that you’re going to benefit from this because of dealing with the business law from entrepreneurs.”

In the fall, Stafford attended a business negotiation course - again at no cost - with Dr. Edward Miles, the professor that would go on to nominate him for an honorary doctorate degree.

Honorary doctorate degrees are awarded by universities to individuals for exceptional lifetime achievements.

As Priceonomics puts it, “the honorary degree has provided an opportunity for colleges to build relationships with the rich, famous, and well-connected.”

The last honorary doctorate degree given out by Georgia State was British-Iranian journalist Christiane Amanpour in 2010.

Amanpour is CNN’s Chief International Correspondent, host of the Amanpour show on CNN, and the Global Affairs Anchor of ABC News.

Stafford claims that when Miles, a Georgia State managerial sciences professor, asked him what else he wanted to do at Georgia State, he had specific goals in mind.

“I told him I want to be the commencement speaker for a graduating class and I wanna be the speaker for an incoming freshman class and I’d like to have my name on that research building [Research Science Center] for my research in plasma and I said someday I’d like to get my honorary doctorate degree here, cause I think I’ve put enough work,” Stafford said.

Miles offered to nominate him for an Honorary Doctorate degree, saying he

“But Becker’s mindset is, and this is my opinion, he’s treating me like property, and that’s where I got an issue with it.”

— FURQUAN STAFFORD

CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

PHOTO BY VANESSA JOHNSON | THE SIGNAL

NEWS

4

GEORGIASTATESIGNAL.COM

Construction taking place at the Northside Drive Pedestrian Walkway connected to the Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

PHOTO BY AZAM LALANI | THE SIGNAL

Recent development projects raising criticisms Georgia State experts talk “increased connectivity” BRENNA HILBY Staff Reporter

I

n the past decade, Atlanta has become all-too-familiar with the presence of large-scale urban development. The recent announcements of two significant development projects, a new pedestrian bridge and a MARTA extension have both urban planners and city leaders abuzz.

The pedestrian bridge connecting Vine City to the MercedesBenz Stadium is a $23 million project that, according to contractor Georgia Bridge & Concrete’s website, “is designed to improve interconnectivity between the Westside neighborhood, downtown Atlanta and MARTA,” and is being constructed in coordination with the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT), MARTA, the City of Atlanta, Georgia World Congress Center and the Mercedes-Benz Stadium contractor.

To Matt Garbett, co-founder of urbanism advocacy effort ThreadATL, this bridge provides “no connectivity improvement” and is contributing to an already massive “dead space” within the city.

“They’ve built a giant dead space, which is Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the Georgia Dome, the Congress Center, all that stuff.

If they really cared about connectivity, what they would do is they would tear the whole damn thing down and rebuild a neighborhood,” Garbett said.

“That monstrosity that they built is not Downtown. What they built is a dead space. So now, you can cross an 800-foot bridge to cross a 2,000-foot dead space to get to Downtown.”

Christopher Wyczalkowski, a postdoctoral researcher at Georgia State’s Urban Studies Institute, said that accessibility for the Vine City community is “not likely to meaningfully increase,” and that if this bridge is viewed as an amenity, gentrification pressures could amplify in the area.

“It is difficult to imagine that the Northside bridge is going to do much to increase accessibility for Vine City residents.

If access to the stadium becomes viewed as an amenity, it is possible for gentrifying pressure to be applied to parts of Vine City, and once parts of Vice City become gentrified, the gentrification pressure can become more intense,” Wyczalkowski said.

“In general, projects that provide accessibility to amenities and access to other gentrified areas are more likely to lead to displacement.”

NEW TRANSIT EFFORTS

MARTA’s new proposed BRT line was announced on March 7 after the federal government awarded $12.6 million to MARTA to build a bus rapid transit line connecting Midtown to Summerhill. The project is estimated to cost upwards of $50 million.

Wyczalkowski said the proposed BRT line will also most likely have a minimal gentrification impact since it is a “pseudo BRT service” and will likely be viewed as a typical bus line.

Garbett said the line is “not BRT” and is really just “a poor man’s bus line.” BRT runs in its own right-of-way and has a dedicated lane separate from other motorist traffic but this line does not.

He emphasized that BRT, by definition, “cannot be in traffic,” and that the efficiency of public transport pivots on whether or not it is in traffic.

“[The line] is poorly thought out, it is poorly implemented, it has had zero public input, and it continues to point out that Atlanta is not serious about transit.”

— MATT GARBETT, Co-founder of urbanism advocacy effort ThreadATL

“If the entire line is not in its own dedicated lane, it’s not BRT, period. End of story. [The city is] literally paying $110 million for a no public input rail that is not BRT. It’s a poor man’s bus line,” Garbett said.

“Every single study has shown that if you want transit to be effective, you have to not have it in traffic. I mean, that’s the whole point. If you put a streetcar line or a BRT line in traffic, you can’t move faster than traffic. That’s just common sense. As far as I’ve seen, the BRT line is both done without public input and is in traffic for most of it.”

And with the expansion of transit projects across the city, Garbett said he thinks the university will play a major role in whether students decide to drive or take transit, and that at some point, the university has to “be a player in a non-driving downtown, and [right now] they’re not.”

“Georgia State continues to invest in parking, and you look at the Bell Building, and their decision to tear that down and

build a parking lot. Georgia State at some point has to make a decision: are we going to encourage our students to take transit, or are we going to continue to encourage people to drive?”

Garbett said.

“They’re continuing to finance parking and encourage students to drive, they’re doing a terrible job.”

He said he thinks the new proposal highlights that Atlanta’s leaders are “not serious about transit,” and that “zero planning is going on” throughout the city. “[The line] is poorly thought out, it is poorly implemented, it has had zero public input, and it continues to point out that Atlanta is not serious about transit, but we are serious about spending money that the government gives us so that we can brag about it,” Garbett said.

He stressed that issues in current urban planning practices, such as policies that focus on property ownership in Southwest Atlanta, are “clearly not sustainable.”

“The whole model we’ve built ourselves is dying. We have to change our policies, and you cannot do that if your only policy change from the mayor is to try to make 40 percent of people in one neighborhood be able to pay the property tax. That’s just not sustainable.”

A LOOK INTO THE PROJECTS The federal government awarded $12.6 million to MARTA to build a bus rapid transit line connecting Midtown to Summerhill. The project itself costs upwards of $50 million.

According to ThreadATL, results from MARTA’s in-person and online surveys show that “Atlantans want BeltLine rail to be a spending priority.”

The BRT is publicly funded by TSPLOST (Transportation SpecialPurpose Local-Option Sales Tax), but so far has had no public input in any planning.

NEWS

TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 2018

5

Atlanta civil rights goes global Recent grant kicks off preservation efforts WILLIAM SOLOMONS

Closing testimonies are set to take place today in the Tex McIver case. According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, two charges for influencing a witness were dropped by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney. The murder charges are still in play and come from McIver allegedly accidentally shooting his wife in a car while asleep.

McIver also announced to the court that he will not be testifying on his own behalf.

G

NATIONAL Sexual Assault stories win Pulitzers

Sites such as Ebenezer Baptist Church are now being recognized as being important landmarks in relation the Civil Rights Movement.

to help us with doing the research on these sites, to provide stipends to scholars, not just those on faculty but also those we are consulting outside of Georgia State. I’ve been in touch with 75 scholars of the Civil Rights Movement and getting their input on this project to help us determine which sites are the most significant and important.”

Project Manager Anne Farrisee is in charge of organizing the project staff and also administering the project, but she said the funding isn’t nearly enough.

“One of the challenges of a World Heritage nomination is they are incredibly expensive

PHOTO BY JULIAN PINEDA | THE SIGNAL

because it’s a very demanding process. It has a lot of steps and a lot of people that have to review it.

We will come up with a tentative list nomination that the National Park Service looks at and they have to get that approved,” Farrisee said.

Eskew said that the university is taking on a large responsibility by nominating sites to the World Heritage List. A site must be maintained for centuries if it is added to the list.

“The sites have to be protected by law, with easements, with zoning, with all kinds of buffers.

The viewshed around the site has to be protected in some fashion,” Eskew said.

SB 339, known as Campus Speech bill, is sitting on Governor Deal’s desk Editor-in-Chief

S

enate Bill 339 is on Governor Nathan Deal’s desk after receiving approval from the Georgia General Assembly. The new bill would make college policies less restrictive for groups and speakers to obtain permits to the university free speech zones.

The issue came into the spotlight when Christian organization Ratio Christi sued Kennesaw State University in February 2018, alleging unconstitutional restrictions on speech and post displays. The club claimed that, after calling their pro-life posts “controversial,” the university placed moved the displays to a smaller, less visible location.

Last summer, protests held by students at the University of Berkeley drove conservative commentator Ann Coulter to cancel her scheduled event.

The new bill aims to prevent all kinds of free speech shielding on Georgia university campuses and “assure that each such institution does not

shield students, staff, or individuals on 27 campus from speech protected by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution, 28 including ideas and opinions which such students, staff, or individuals on campus find 29 unwelcoming, disagreeable, or even offensive.”

But both University of Georgia president Jere Morehead and Georgia State University President Mark Becker have spoken out against the bill, Becker calling it “unneeded.”

Sunity Chowdhury, president of Georgia State’s Turning Point, a nonprofit supporting conservative advocacy, said she supports the passage of SB 339, in hopes of college campuses endorsing free speech from both sides.

“Conservatives on campus often do not share their viewpoints because of the backlash we receive from our peers and professors,” she said.

“Many conservatives are labeled ‘racist,’ ‘homophobic’ or ‘xenophobic’ when we express our views, so it’s easier to remain silent.”

And she said it’s no different in Georgia State, where the majority of students and staff do not agree with conservative ideology.

“Therefore, it is not expressed in either private [or] public settings on campus,” Chowdhury said.

The college environment should be a space

The Pulitzer Prize went to The New York Times and The New Yorker magazine for their stories on sexual harassment in Hollywood.

The investigative reporting prize went to The Washington Post, for its stories on Senate candidate Roy Moore’s sexual misconduct. The New York Times and The Washington Post won another Pulitzer prize for their coverage on Russia’s 2016 election meddling. According to BBC, The New Yorker’s magazine contributor Ronan Farrow said The New York Times produced “explosive, impactful journalism that exposed wealthy and powerful sexual predators.”

GLOBAL

More freedom of speech CHRISTINA MAXOURIS

LOCAL McIver case kicks off closing testimonies

Staff Reporter

eorgia State has been tasked with getting some of the city’s Civil Rights Movement sites on the World Heritage list, a list put together by the UNESCO World Heritage Center.

The list includes famous landmarks around the world, such as the Pyramids of Giza and the Great Wall of China.

In 2018, the university was awarded $50,000 to nominate for the list sites that have played an integral role in the city’s and nation’s history.

According to the initiative’s annual report, “more than 150 places associated with the modern Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s [were nominated] for further consideration” for the list of sites to be inscripted on the World Heritage List.

The sites are currently in the process of being recognized as places that held significance for the Civil Rights Movement on an international scale.

Some of these sites include the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama and Ebenezer Baptist Church near the birthplace of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The project is being directed by Georgia State Department of History Professor Dr. Glenn Eskew.

“There are over 1070 sites inscribed on the World Heritage List. If you travel internationally, it’s a big deal, and these are sites of great significance to humanity,” said Eskew.

And while Georgia State does not oversee the preservation of the sites but instead overlooks preservation efforts, there’s still a large amount of money required to get the job done.

“The contract money from Alabama,” Eskew said, referring to an earlier partnership, “allowed us to hire a full-time preservationist as a project manager.”

“Funding then is being provided to Georgia State to pay for the efforts of the project manager to provide funding for graduate research assistants

NEWS BRIEFS

where different ideas are challenged. This cannot happen if you try to silence the other side,” she said. “It is detrimental to students for a college or university to only host speakers with one particular mindset.”

But according to Gerry Weber, Southern Center for Human Rights attorney and board member of the Georgia First Amendment Foundation, SB 339 still limits speech.

He said the bill places unconstitutional rights on “those raising a viewpoint other than that of a speaker.

“If you raise a point or boo when a racist speaker is speaking, you may be disciplined even if you have not ‘materially and substantially disrupted’ the speaker. The ‘legal standard’ appears nowhere in the new law.”

A point that Chowdhury is not concerned about.

“Many of the students who ‘voice’ their concerns do it in a reprehensible fashion,” she said. “In many cases, they resort to physical violence, slander, and threats in order to prevent a conservative pundit from speaking on their campus. SB 339 will allow the police to intervene when this occurs.”

Experts say giving robots rights could be bad

The European Parliament passed a law that serves as the framework for granting “electronic persons” rights.

According to CNN, experts in the field of robotics and other similar fields are warning that this may be a bad idea. An issue that they see is that it may disrupt society as an entirely by adding in a whole new ethical argument. According to some experts, robots are built to serve humanity. In granting them rights, they fear that it will make the two parties indistinguishable from a legal perspective which may cause issues in the future.

NEWS

6

GEORGIASTATESIGNAL.COM CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3

the seas and I’ve never been there yet and so when I have respect from the Governor’s office, and the state Capitol and celebrities and stuff, and [to] get mistreated like this from the president of [Georgia State], it’s heartbreaking,” he said.

“Why didn’t they reach out to me and say ‘come to my office, let’s talk.’ That’s what real men do. But Becker’s mindset is, and this is my opinion, he’s treating me like property, and that’s where I got an issue with it.”

COMPETING CLAIMS

Georgia State’s first building is being torn down to create a green space for students.

PHOTO BY UNIQUE RODRIGUEZ | THE SIGNAL

The final curtain call for Kell Hall The history and status of Georgia State’s first building SYDNEY BLOEME & WILLIAM SOLOMONS Staff Reporters

G

eorgia State is looking forward to the $20 million conversion of Kell Hall to a green space, as part of the university’s master plan.

Kell Hall is home to the Geosciences department, which includes a collection of specimens and experimental equipment, soon to be transferred to Sparks Hall.

Professor Lanier Henson said that even if they do relocate all the collections, someone would still be in charge of reorganizing and recataloging all the rock and fossil samples which is “going to be a lot of work.”

SAYING GOODBYE

In 1964, Kell Hall took over what was known as the Ivy Street Garage, the first parking garage in Atlanta. The school was undergoing expansions who and the director of then-Georgia Tech Evening School of College at the time, George M. Sparks, decided that the parking garage could be quickly acquired and would open up new classroom space. This new building was renamed the “Bolling-Jones Building” before it was dedicated as Wayne Kell Science Hall

in 1964.

According to a 2010 Georgia State magazine “Sparks leased out parts of Kell Hall in the early days. He set up a sawmill on the fourth floor just after World War II, when lumber was in high demand and North Georgia had plenty of it.

“Other tenants included Southern Bell Telephone Co., Franklin Tire Co., the Board of Regents, and the teachers’ retirement system. The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra rehearsed on the sixth floor at one point.” It also stated that “in the days before animal research protocols, lab turtles had free reign over the science laboratory in Kell Hall.”

But to many students today, Kell is only used as a shortcut.

Student Tina Ellis said she’s never actually had a class in Kell but often uses it as a “cut through.”

“I always without fail get lost. I can’t find my way out ever. It winds around with ramps and everything looks the same with white walls and fluorescent lights. It’s a maze in there,” Ellis said.

But Henson says the maze-like hallways and his office view of the Plaza are the things he’ll miss “more than anything.”

“It will be nice having a building for the department where the rooms are numbered in a typical pattern. The first week of each semester I tend to give 20 people directions

who are aimlessly walking the halls lost. Half the time they think they are in [the] Art and Humanities [building] or Sparks still and not sure how they got there,” he said.

A SPREADING RUMOR

Graduate student and teaching assistant Nicole Vermillion said she’s been aware of radioactivity rumors within the building that could be due to past building materials.

“From what I’ve been told, Kell Hall is the most radioactive building on campus.

It’s nothing to be alarmed by; lots of materials are radioactive. The materials used to construct the building are most likely radioactive. Some natural materials, like granite, contain radioisotopes in the minerals. So, if granite from Stone Mountain was used in any of the building materials, then there will be some radioactive decay of uranium,” Vermillion said.

A Georgia State geology professor who wished to remain anonymous said the radioactivity isn’t from the building materials, but instead the “geology department’s massive collection of rocks and minerals” and “some specimens happen to be radioactive.” But he insisted that it is no cause for alarm.

The Signal reached out to Radiation Safety Officer Quintena Tinson, but she declined to comment.

KELL HALL TIMELINE:

1925

1945

1946

1964

1964

Opened as the Ivy Street Garage, the first parking garage in Atlanta.

Enrollment at the Atlanta Center’s Evening College spikes with the flood of veterans returning from World War II and it quickly outgrows its only classroom building on Luckie Street.

Classes began in the new building in March. The school occupies only two floors at first and leases the remaining space.

The building is dedicated as Kell Hall, after the first dean of the Georgia Tech Evening School of Commerce, the school that would become Georgia State University.

Kell Hall today houses the Geosciences, Chemistry and Biology departments, as well as research labs, and connects to Sparks Hall, Langdale Hall and the Arts and Humanities building.

College President George Sparks sees potential in the parking structure, also known as the Bolling Jones Building, and purchases the six-story, 180,000-square-foot building for $296,000.

Other tenants include Southern Bell Telephone Co., Franklin Tire Co., a sawmill, the state Board of Regents and the teachers’ retirement system.

In the building’s first few years, the sixth floor is used as rehearsal space for the new Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and also houses two bowling alleys.

Stafford says the lack of communication between the university and himself has everything to do with race. A claim that Jones said was “ridiculous.”

“Race plays absolutely no role in the awarding of honorary degrees,” she said.

In February 2018, Stafford filed a complaint with the Legal Affairs and Associate Vice President of Human Resources office against president Becker, claiming that he was being discriminated against by the university.

Despite being told his nomination was received and will be reviewed by the committee once they meet in the fall of 2018, Stafford says university actions have led him to believe there’s racism involved.

One day after the complaint, Stafford claims his Panther ID and email were disabled.

“The individual’s PantherCard and email account were deactivated because he was disruptive to university operations and considered inactive by the Registrar,” Jones told The Signal.

“He has attempted to use his PantherCard to gain unauthorized access to campus facilities and used his student email account to mislead others to believe he is a current Georgia State student.”

Jones also said there have been reports of Stafford following students into the dining hall without paying.

“We have let the police department know to be on the lookout should he try to access university resources without paying,” she said.

“Stafford is trying to use for free the services and facilities for which Georgia State students spend their hard-earned money.”

And that’s what Stafford said hurts the most.

“Ain’t nobody say nothing to me,” he said.

“That’s crazy that they’re saying that I’m accessing stuff illegally. It really saddens me that I’m even talking about Becker in the manner, you know because I’m a fan of his work, of how he’s expanded his university, but it’s a Jim Crow environment here. And what I mean by that is, we African-Americans are probably the number one percentage of students that attend this university… [but] if you go to his cabinet, do you see a black person? That says a lot.”

Disclaimer: The Signal and GSTV are separate, independent student media outlets both under the Committee on Student Communications at Georgia State. GSTV and Signal investigations on the issue were separate.

TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 2018

Weed is not a panacea Despite your friends’ promises, weed isn’t God’s perfect drug

I

SARA ABDULLA Staff Reporter

Sara is a senior student studying neuroscience and philosophy. She enjoys reading and gazing thoughtfully at local art pieces. Sara hopes to someday use science to promote human rights issues while making a living wage.

One-third of marijuana users smoke every single day.

n one of my favorite episodes of The Boondocks, Grandpa is warned that he will die soon if he doesn’t address his dangerously high stress levels (same, Grandpa). Not wanting to grow dependent on legal pharmaceuticals, Grandpa acquiesces to his gangster neighbor’s pestering, and starts smoking medical marijuana.

Immediately, his stress levels plummet, and he becomes the epitome of the stereotypical relaxed, easy-going pothead.

His grandchildren are shocked and confused by the drastic change in their grandfather, especially when one day Huey comes home to find him literally floating.

Inevitably, as a black man in a whitemajority neighborhood, Grandpa is arrested and ordered to give up marijuana. He’s told there are other legal drugs that he can use instead to “take the edge off,” and the episode ends with him barking at his best friend, unable to sit up straight and disgustingly drunk with empty bottles around him.

The Boondocks is just a cartoon, but the message of this episode is a sentiment echoed by many self-proclaimed health hipsters.

Indeed, weed is often described as a cure and preventative supplement for everything from social anxiety to gastrointestinal discomfort to certain types of cancer. However, while some elements of marijuana, like cannabidiol, or CBD, have proved to be so beneficial they are used in medications. There is ample reason to be wary of using indicas and sativas as universal cures or “health products.”

For one, it is essential to remember that above all, marijuana is a drug that changes the biochemistry of your nervous system and of your body. Like any drug, marijuana can have unexpected negative effects on those systems.

Research for the medical uses of marijuana have largely been mixed. While some swear by weed as their cure of choice for anxiety, some of weed’s best-documented effects are panic attacks and paranoia. This discrepancy doesn’t mean weed can’t help mitigate stress levels, but it’s something worth considering.

Another element of element drug-taking to remember is that they have dramatically different effects depending on dose. An easy example is how while a few glasses of wine can lead to feelings of euphoria and relaxation, going overboard leads to dysphoria and physical illness. Similarly, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive component of marijuana, can have sedating effects at low doses, or stimulating effects at higher doses. More is not necessarily better.

Experts estimate that in less than 10 years, as legalization spreads, the weed industry will be worth $50 billion.

ILLUSTRATION BY SHANCHEZE JOHNSON | THE SIGNAL

Additionally, research suggests that the concentrations of THC in street marijuana have increased in the past few decades, exacerbating the effects of the drug on common users.

That higher dose may have significant implications for users today. Studies show that social use of marijuana use doesn’t typically have substantial negative effects on the brain or body after adulthood, but it is worth noting that adolescent use of marijuana is strongly associated with cognitive deficits later in life.

However, heavier use of marijuana, even in adulthood, is strongly associated with memory loss, cognitive dysfunction, and overall lower quality of life, even when studies control for other factors like race and socioeconomic status.

Some of the most thoroughly studied effects of marijuana on humans involves brain volume. There is evidence that pot causes gray matter reductions in the regions of the brain associated with motivational and emotional processing. The severity of atrophy seem to be correlated with age and frequency of use.

What is significant about these brain regions is that damage can cause deficits in reasoned decision-making and reduced impulse control.

Disruption in these areas can also affect emotional processing and make people less empathetic, while also reacting more strongly to negative emotions. Meanwhile, these findings come to no surprise to those of us whose exes were potheads.

Despite the evident downsides of weed,

Studies suggest that there is one marijuana arrest in the U.S. for every 1,090 marijuana purchases.

there are obvious reasons why it can be useful for individuals, and society overall. For instance, marijuana is effective at managing chronic pain from various illnesses and injuries, without the devastatingly addictive properties of opiates. But keep in mind that while marijuana is indeed addictive, it’s not nearly as powerful as many other drugs. It is an appetite stimulant and anti-emetic, which can help those who have trouble keeping food down without getting nauseous, such as those going through chemotherapy or those who experience severe anxiety.

Even recreationally, while weed isn’t exactly “healthy,” the studied effects on the brain aren’t as damaging as heavy or even moderate alcohol consumption. Most negative effects on the body can be attributed to the fact that most people smoke weed, and smoking anything, even herbal cigarettes, will have negative effects on the pulmonary system. This is especially true for heart disease patients, who should steer clear of all forms of weed.

That being said, you might be wary of an argument against marijuana use by reasoning like, “it’s not as bad for you as this other proven carcinogen!” Rather, weed just has a place in American culture, like any other recreational drug. It is not a supplement or “nutrient” most people should take for health reasons. But a society that condones weed use like it does alcohol or cigarette use would arguably be better than our current one that imprisons its youth for drugs less dangerous than the ones it allows.

Men tend to smoke marijuana at rates twice as high as women.

OPINION

8

letter from the editor It’s that time again...

Dear Georgia State readers, As the university newspaper, we have continuously strived to actively cover all issues that impact the Georgia State community.

I can’t help but feel proud for all our team has established in the past year.

On the first day of spring semester, we launched our new, massively improved and endlessly awesome website, to deliver the news in the most user-friendly way possible. As a result, we swooped the Best College Website award in the Southeast Journalism Conference and took home Best College Magazine (yes, entire student body, we have a summer magazine) and Best College Newspaper.

We brought home Best Newspaper for a four-year college with more than 10,000 students, and Best Facebook Page, in the Apple Awards of the College Media Association conference in New York. We scored first place in the Georgia College Press Association General Excellence category.

Our team continued tackling important stories like motherhood in college, faculty diversity, staff accessibility, mental health resources and a lot of missed fact-checking from the university.

We always asked each other what you, as students, faculty and staff, deserved to know, what Georgia State should be recognized

for or called out on, and always hunted down ways to make our community transparent, fair and all-encompassing.

We have a lot to be proud of this year as the university’s independent newspaper. But perhaps one of the most important is our student media advisor, Bryce McNeil, who drinks way too much coffee in order to keep up with our concerns, questions and mishaps. Thank you, Bryce.

But what we’re proud of the most is the community our readers create.

The hub of progressive and diverse points of view that we’re proud to cover and represent. Thank you, Georgia State, for staying patient with our numerous phone calls, for sharing your thoughts when we asked and for keeping us in the loop about all occurrences on Georgia State’s campuses.

Handing off this great responsibility to a new Editor-inchief and a new editorial team, I’m more than confident they’ll continue and further the work that we, and others before us, have always been proud of.

We’ll catch you picking a Signal copy from stands in August, Georgia State!

BEST, CHRISTINA MAXOURIS Editor-in-Chief, The Signal

editorial We fact-check, so why can’t you?

Georgia State welcomes one of their students with free tuition?

To be considered a student at Georgia State, one must first submit an intent to enroll. And while it may be a costly process, being enrolled at Georgia State brings many benefits to students, including access to the Recreation Center, the library, university courses and dining halls.

Furquan Stafford is familiar with these resources, and he often boasts about them. In the past, he has used his PantherCard, taken courses, accessed the library and perhaps even dined at Georgia State’s dining halls. But Mr. Stafford is not a student, and he hasn’t been for quite some time. Mr. Stafford has deliberately exploited these resources, leaving the financial burden to us, the actual students.

Stafford has even claimed to be a vital role to Georgia State, and sought to receive a service award from the Office of Civic Engagement. The office fully intended to award Stafford its “President’s Volunteer Service Award,” until The Signal revealed a

trail of troubling inquiries, including Stafford’s unconfirmed claim that he achieved 300 hours of community service.

Yet Stafford will not settle for just a service award. Stafford believes he deserves more, and is now in pursuit of an “honorary doctorate degree” from the university, the likes of which have only been given to celebrities and other high-profile individuals. Stafford has obviously been met with pushback on his goal, which he claims is a product of racism on the university’s part. To Stafford, President Mark Becker is “standing in his way.”

What if there are other nonstudents that have exploited our Rec Center, classes and dining halls for free? What if there are other students that have received awards for bogus reasons? If it was this easy for Stafford to do, we can only imagine how bad the problem truly is. It may be our job to fact-check, but Georgia State should start, too.

GEORGIASTATESIGNAL.COM

TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 2018

Preparing for the best and the worst at festivals AUTUMN BOEKELOO Staff Reporter

F

estival season is approaching us. Glitter flying in the crowd, the rumble of the bass shaking the ground--it is basically calling your name and taking your savings out of your pocket. However, if you’ve never stepped foot on Centennial Park when it’s transformed into a psychedelic realm for Shaky Beats, you might be in for quite the culture shock. The same goes for the Atlanta Jazz Festival as the sweet sounds of the saxophone in Piedmont Park transport you to New Orleans during Mardi Gras. Whether you have a budget for several festivals to experience the different atmospheres or you have your heart set on a free local festival, this guide will prepare you for the best and worst parts of the festival experience.

PREPARING FOR THE FESTIVAL 1. Map out the festival

Before heading to the festival, look on the official website and download the map of the location. Take a screenshot and make it your phone lock screen for easy navigation. The festival maps often include first aid spots, water fountains, food stations, merch tables, stages, and exits. This will be a quick and simple guide to reference while jamming out to your favorite songs.

2. Have a safe spot in case of an emergency

In the hustle and bustle of the crowd, it can be a life or death situation if you do not have a safety spot. You may not have time to focus on a strategic plan to leave the festival while in a real-life emergency, so make sure to have a plan. Come to an agreement on where to meet and advise your friends to keep this safety spot in view in case of an emergency evacuation.

3. What to do if you feel sick

Chances are, if you are suddenly feeling nauseous at a music festival, you are probably dehydrated. Reminding yourself to keep your body nourished while having the time of your life will only improve your situation. Refrain from going more than six hours without food, even if that means losing a front-row spot to a popular band. Remember that Georgia heat without food and water will always leave you losing. You will thank yourself later when you feel energized and full at the headliners performance you have been waiting for all night.

4. What to wear

Ah, you have made it to the fun part. Music festivals are a prime time to explore your individuality and express yourself

through clothing and makeup. The norm of summer festival fashion is wearing a little, but making a big statement.

Shimmery face makeup, bohemian style clothing, and a fanny pack is your best bet.

5. How much money you should bring

At large-scale festivals like Shaky Knees and smaller ones like Candler Park Music and Food Festival, it’s best to leave your wallet at home. These festivals have up-to-date equipment, like iPads, to make transactions. Often times, there is even an Apple Pay or Google Pay option, so you can complete your payment at the touch of a button. However, you are at the risk of losing your phone and having no source of payment whatsoever. So, you could bring just your card or $20 for food deep in your pocket (to refrain from losing it while dancing) or a drawstring bag.

6. Should I drive or Uber?

If you are planning on drinking alcohol, plan on ordering an Uber or Lyft. Along with this, make sure to pack a mobile charger in case your phone dies during the festival so you have a guaranteed ride home. However, if you are not drinking alcohol and want to drive your own car, you are at an advantage. After the final set is complete, everyone exits the festival at once in an angry, uncomfortable stampede. Everyone is exhausted and the rush of adrenaline from the concert vibes disappear. Keep in mind, if you drive your own car, you will most likely save money, as the prices of Uber and Lyft skyrocket at the end of a concert, because everyone is ordering to be picked up in the same place. You also will not have to deal with the confusion of finding your driver, as it can be very difficult with 300 people doing the same thing.

7. Stay cautious

If you are attending one of these festivals, always keep an eye out for yourself and your surroundings. If you have a drink in your hand, make sure it has a lid, so no one can slip anything into it. Similarly, if you see someone obviously under the influence of a drug, make sure they are okay, and if they are not, call 911 immediately. At many electronic dance music concerts, there’s often paramedics nearby. Make sure to enjoy the moment but always be aware of what could happen in the worst-case scenario.

A FINAL NOTE

Festival season can be the worst or best time of your life, it just depends on what you make of it. While the care-free mindset might be notorious of people who attend festivals, the ones who prepare are the people who will enjoy it most. Tackle this list of preparations prior to partying, then get in that mosh-pit and have the time of your life.

Top 5 ATL Summer 2018 Festivals: 1. Sweetwater 420 (April 21-23) 2. Shaky Knees (May 4-6) 3. Shaky Beats (May 11-13) 4. Atlanta Jazz Festival (May 26-27) 5. Candler Park Music and Food Festival (June 1-2)

PAGE DESIGN BY DAO NGUYEN | THE SIGNAL

SPRING - SUMMER 2018 MENSWEAR

Men's Style Guide SAMUEL PUCKETT

Associate Arts & Living Editor

A

t this time of year, the weather becomes increasingly unpredictable. Dreary skies in the morning, the wind whips yesterday’s rain down our no-show socks. By noon, the sun is baking at its height and our damp socks are a sauna. A summer for the style-conscious has to be smartly planned.

Summer dressing is tricky business. Sometimes the weather allows layering, sometimes not. Of our layers, we require adaptability, versatility and God, let them dry quickly. But for the sweltering days it feels like even your skin is one layer two far. “How can I keep my clout high if I can’t even

keep my sinuses dry?” you ask yourself. To further confuse matters, our society has entered a fashion age where the established conventions of style are antiquated rules from a distant time, foreign to our modern senses. Black is fine for all seasons, and the rules for how things should fit have gone all out the window.

With that in mind, we humbly offer our picks of the summer trends, not as experts or arbiters of an increasingly irrelevant established taste, but as coconspirators against it. From knit Polos, buttondowns-as-outer-layers and rain-ready high-water hems, we’ve curated the most Summer ready fits.

@pimpdaddysadness

A CLASSIC, HIGH WAIST From 2000 to 2010, pants penciled into a slimmer fit and lower rise. Tastes change, and it’s time to play with a wider leg and higher waist again. This style looks great in any fabric you like, but for summer we like a raw silk or linen.

Flare the leg, play up the pleats and tie it all up with a contrasting belt.

AS SHOWN: T-shirt by Hanes. Trousers by Olive Clothing.

Belt from Rageblue in Tokyo. Shoes by Adidas x Alexander Wang.

@tylermazaheri

VERTICAL STRIPES

RACING STRIPED PANTS

Vertical stripes in a twill shirt are a solid choice, channeling your business-class jerk with this structured pattern.

This simple style is almost impossible to look stuffy, and you can always untuck it for beach bound 90’s Leo looks.

For inspiration, look to Kenzo Creative Director Carol Lim’s spring/summer 2018 menswear ready to wear show.

She styled the delicate lattice of stripes continuing from the shirt into the tie. Her take on an often rigid and formal design felt organic and the effect was as soft as the silk shirts themselves. You can rock it on its own or layered in more patterns for more advanced take.

This is the decade of athleisure. The trend that became a lifestyle has moved from street style to the runway, to the office. Major brands from Dior Homme to Prada introduced techy nylon bags and sock-sneakers. Men pay over a hundred dollars for tailored sweats and have Google alerts trained on each new ‘Ye outfit. Technical, sport elements can find there way into anything now, like racing stripes down slacks.

AS SHOWN: Shirt from thrift store. Long-sleeve t-shirt by Pacsun. Pants by Dickies. Bag by Coach. Chain from Amazon.

AS SHOWN: All by Zara. Shoes by Converse.

STYLED BY TYLER MAZAHERI, RYAN WEBB, NIYO MALIK, KHOA TRAN AND DANNY VARITEK & PHOTOS BY VANESSA JOHNSON, KHOA TRAN AND YURIE PIPER & PAGE DESIGN BY KHOA TRAN | THE SIGNAL

CHUNKY SNEAKERS Bulky, over-detailed kicks are in. Somehow, this look manages to be retro, futuristic, and utterly of-the-moment all in one.

And it’s totally unpretentious about it.

AS SHOWN: All by COS. Shoes by Adidas x Raf Simons.

@iamkhoality

ALOHA SUMMER

Show a little (or a lot) of those legs this summer! Cuff your shorts, or buy them hemmed far above the knee for a look that’s as daring and flirty as it is breezy.

Stay on trend this summer and pattern your wardrobe after the season’s biggest hit: verdant leaves and vibrant flowers. The organic shapes and fun details will give your outfits appealing texture. This style has seen a huge renaissance in brands like Louis Vuitton, under the creative direction of Nicolas Ghesquière. The brands Spring/Summer 2018 collection is sprinkled with the brand’s original take on the beachy print. Palm leaves superimposed over sunsets make up the elevated take, all in all a solid style moment. And let’s not forget the bespoke Gucci suits of Harry Styles. We might not have the British heartthrob’s money or connections, but by playing with a rosy scarf or Hawaiian shirt, you open your wardrobe to an array of colors you might otherwise neglect. The benefit here is the variety and possibility of combinations. You can find floral patterns any color, size and species.

These living patterns will spruce up any dull day, provided you remember to water them.

AS SHOWN: Shirt by Zara. Shorts by American Apparel.

AS SHOWN: Shirt by Zara.

RISING HEMS

@x0y

@niyomalik

KNIT POLOS

IN THE PINK

CHECKED OUT

For a softer take on René Lacoste’s original tennis shirt, try it in an open weave to stay hot this summer - without the heat.

This old-school sportswear will dress up your off-days.

Name one pink thing you don’t like. Really, what an iconic color. In Chinos, trousers, or leather details on a simple t shirt, there’s nowhere it won’t make you blush.

Nothing beats a checkered print. Tartan or houndstooth, glen check or madras, try small patterned details in socks or scarves, or go all out in a full grayscale tartan pant.

AS SHOWN: Polo by Supreme.

AS SHOWN: All by American Apparel.

AS SHOWN: T-shirt by Urban Outfitters. Trousers by ASOS.

ARTS & LIVING

12

GEORGIASTATESIGNAL.COM

See something, say nothing

Students conflicted over animal abuse policies SYDNEY BLOEME Staff Reporter

T

hese days, there’s an app for everything.

With just the click of a button, dog care becomes a walk in the park. Under the new Wag! app, registered users can sign on to a daily dog-walking routine for owners with a busy schedule.

But there’s a lot more you’re agreeing to when tapping “accept” on your next walk. A few of these apps have been popping up but the biggest and most popular one is Wag! Wag! markets themselves as an app “[making] dog ownership easier by connecting dog owners with dog lovers in their community they can hire on-demand for dog walking, dog sitting, or dog boarding services seven days a week.”

Clare O’Neill, a Georgia State student, has been with Wag! for three months and describes it as “kind of like Uber; you’re an independent contractor, so you are technically your own boss.”

Both O’Neill and her roommate, Hannae Clark, work full-time with Wag! and has become their main source of income to pay the bills after they both left their server jobs.

“I work as much as I want in one day or as little depending on how much I want to make that week,” Clark said.

But not everything is belly rubs and tail wags, as O’Neill recounts several times when she had to pick between her job at Wag! and speaking up about animal abuse.

“There have been a couple instances where I have walked into what appeared to be animal abuse. It puts you in a really difficult situation because you don’t want to get in trouble with Wag! but there is also potential animal abuse occurring,” O’Neill said.

When joining Wag!, walkers must sign a contract saying they can’t disclose dog owner’s personal information, so if they do see abuse, technically they are allowed to say something, just not where or who.

O’Neill told The Signal she has tried to contact customer support, but there is nothing in the client’s contract that says Wag will terminate their account if walkers report any signs of abuse.

“There ultimately is nothing that says that the clients can’t neglect and abuse their dogs and expect the Wag! walkers to perpetuate the neglect,” O’Neill said.

She recounts a time she walked into a house where she witnessed two Great Danes in a small single cage “covered in their own feces” and looked as if “they were not fed enough.”

O’Neill said they were not easy to walk on a leash and that she felt unsafe as a walker because of the size of the dogs pulling at her aggressively as if they weren’t accustomed to being outside.

Wag! told her that “we can’t say for certain

Contractors of the dog walking app Wag! sometimes see abuse but are bound by contract to confidentiality.

“There ultimately is nothing that says that the clients can’t neglect and abuse their dogs and expect the Wag! walkers to perpetuate the neglect.”

— CLARE O’NEILL, Georgia State student that an animal is being abused” and that it could have “just been adopted or sick” and that she “can’t make any assumptions,” which left O’Neill frustrated and upset that she couldn’t do much to help the dogs she came in contact with earlier.

“Hopefully, we will see a change from the Wag! client agreement soon. Wag! should do their part to fight animal abuse,” O’Neill said.

The Signal reached out to Wag! through their 24-hour customer support line, but the company refused to comment.

NO OTHER CHOICE

These walks can be the main source of

income when traditional work doesn’t cut it for students like Clark, who also freelances as a photographer.

Clark recounts, “I didn’t think I would like it as much as I do now. I can work as much as I want or as little depending on how much I want to make that week.”

But she too sometimes feels frustrated contacting customer support.

“I would say trying to reach Wag! support in an emergency or if there is an issue going on can be annoying [and] difficult at times. Also, reporting things that can seem suspicious is difficult because Wag support can’t really do anything about it,” Clark said.

The independent work model has pushed other Georgia State students towards dog walking apps such as Sean Ray who works for Pup Walkr, an Atlanta company. Ray said he likes Pup Walkr because it’s a smaller company and he already knows the developer so he can always shoot him a text if anything is wrong, while Clare and Hanae said Wag!’s customer service is impossible.

He said Pup Walkr over Wag! as it’s an “Atlanta only business and seems a lot more personable” than bigger apps.

Ray said he hasn’t seen any abuse with Pup Walkr but feels confident that if he ever did, he would “take many pictures and report it to the Atlanta Humane Society.”

PHOTO BY KIRSTEN JACKSON | THE SIGNAL

WANT TO KNOW MORE? Check out Wag! https://wagwalking.com/ Check out PupWalkr! http://www.pupwalkr.com/ Use Wag code HANAE46907 or CLARE2697 to get 50 dollars worth of free walks Request Sean Ray for your next PupWalkr Report animal cruelty to Fulton County Animal Services at 404-613-0358 Violence Against People and Pets: www. ahimsahouse.org

TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 2018

ARTS & LIVING

13

Dorm room garden: It’s possible!

The plants, techniques and tips you need for a healthy dorm garden SAMUEL PUCKETT

Associate Arts & Living Editor

A

dorm room, pallid and as personal as a rental car. The college apartment, a frenetic, messy crash. Many students are so overwhelmed with classes, they don’t put thoughtful effort into their environment.

But a little effort can go a long way towards more comfortable surroundings. Enter: Plants.

A pop of color, air freshener, a calming ritual and RA approved too. Plants in your living space can add so much.

FOR THE FORGETFUL

Keeping a plant doesn’t have to be a huge endeavour. There are a variety of plants that do well in pots, prefer shade and can tolerate irregular watering (don’t worry, it happens to everyone).

If you are less than careful, avoid ferns and other water intensive plants. Choose a snake plants, Peace Lily, or English Ivy, which have the added bonus of filtering common pollutants. Aloe or a succulent might seem like an attractive and low maintenance option, but few apartments or dorms get the required sun.

If that’s not a issue for you, consider yourself lucky. Set one of these up next to a window, set a reminder on your phone and you’re done.

FOR THE CULINARY

There isn’t much you can’t do on a kitchen counter, growing plants included. If you’re looking to get more than decoration from your plant, an herb garden is one of the simplest but most delicious things you can have.

George Sanko is the founder of the Georgia Perimeter College Botanical Garden, and he said herbs are one of the hardest kinds of plants to kill. Basil, thyme, and dill will make your room smell nice, but if you’re a known plant murderer, mint and rosemary are the way to go. They all do well with moderate sun and frequent watering.

FOR THE SHADY

Not everyone is blessed with abundant natural light, but that doesn’t stop some plants!

Create your own small home gardens with these tips.

For this kind of house, Sanko recommends ferns and summer blooming flowers. Sanko has an affection for the Christmas fern and Azaleas.

“They do real well in shade,” Sakno said.

“And in the winter, when the blooms die back, you’ve still got a fern for visual interest.”

PHOTO BY CHRIS YOUNG | THE SIGNAL

FOR THE AMBITIOUS If you lust after a round, red and ripe tomato, or the crinkling curves of Kale, that’s still possible if all you have is the balcony or porch of your apartment. Forget a yard, pots are just as good.

The key to growing plants in pots is preventing the plant from becoming ‘root

bound’. This means the root system of the plant has grown to fill, and be confined by the boundaries of your pot.

If your plant is browning and your watering is regular, you might be root bound.

“You can move it to a bigger pot,” Sanko said. “You could prune the roots, or you could split it and replant it in two pots.”

Coffee and your health Morning beverage may have deadly side effects LOGAN CLARK Staff Reporter

W

ith California Superior Court Judge Elihu Berle’s ruling this past March that coffee should be sold with a cancer warning, many coffee lovers are reconsidering their relationship with the popular beverage.

The ruling stems from a chemical known as acrylamide, a carcinogen produced in the coffee bean roasting process that can also be found in some vegetables when cooked at high temperatures, such as potatoes, as well as tobacco smoke, according to the National Cancer Institute.

However, the American Cancer Society finds that direct links between coffee and

cancer deaths remain unclear. Yet there are still some who are reconsidering their coffee drinking habits “When I went out with friends in high school, we would always go to the coffee shop,” Georgia State student Don Johnson said. “But my stomach became more sensitive and I started feeling nauseous after drinking coffee, so I stopped for a while. After that I only drank water and green tea every day.”

Despite no longer drinking coffee frequently, Johnson said he still enjoys the occasional cup.

“I like the flavor of coffee and coffee-based drinks, but I’m definitely going to be thinking more about my coffee consumption,” Johnson said. “I feel like people should put more thought into the things they’re putting into their bodies.”

There are others, however, such as Georgia State Psychology student and former barista

Brill Carrington, whose relationship with coffee remains unaffected by the ruling.

“I love coffee,” Carrington said. “I worked at a coffee shop for a year and a half and I loved it. I got addicted to coffee but moved past it and now I just like the taste. What is life enjoyed without a cup of coffee?”

While Carrington said she acknowledges the health risks associated with coffee, she’s more concerned about caffeine than carcinogens in the brew.

“I think people should cut down on coffee, but not because of cancer,” Carrington said.

“Caffeine, being a stimulant, is really bad for you. If anything, coffee should come with a stimulant warning.”

The dangers of caffeine have been long reported by health professionals, and in some cases have even caused death from overdose, such as with 16-year-old Davis Cripe who passed away on April 26, 2017, in South

Carolina after drinking multiple beverages containing the drug.

For Georgia State students looking for coffee alternatives, Saxby’s employee and Georgia State senior Ciara Bernard said that many can be found in the coffee shop located in the Atlanta campus library.

“We have teas, such as chai, smoothies, as well as other alternatives,” said Bernard.

“They’re pretty popular because a lot of people come in not wanting coffee.”

Despite not drinking coffee herself, Bernard said she’s not specifically concerned about the potential health risks associated with the drink.

“I think it could cause risks to your health, but there are many things we consume that have risks,” Bernard said. “There are foods that we eat, even some vegetables, that also have carcinogens. So why specifically coffee?”

ARTS & LIVING

14

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things you don’t want to miss

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The nerds down at the Basement Theater will be hosting a night of Improv and Dungeons and Dragons, the two best/worst things!

Beginning at 8 p.m., this event is sure to make all m’lieges and m’ladies happy.

The sustainability minded beer people at Mother Earth Brewers will be taking over the taps of Atlanta’s Whiskey Blue bar in Buckhead. A portion of the beer sold will benefit the Piedmont Park Conservancy.

Sweetwater 420, esteemed local brewers, will be hosting a festival in Centennial Olympic Park over the weekend. Featuring concerts booked with local bluegrass and a 5k race, this is packed with fun stuff.

A celebration of the art, food, music and dance of the Arab world will be hosted by the Alif Institute. Explore the market, join in the dance and enjoy wonderful arabic coffee.

The ALIVE! Expo is a ecologically minded and greenproduct consumer exposition. Explore the appeal of the emerging green lifestyle market, full of naturally derived vitamins, recycled housewares and whole foods.

The Center for Puppetry Arts, despite sounding like an evil lair in Gotham, is an exciting museum filled with history and culture. They will host a workshop on the tradition of Commedia dell’Arte theater style.

A three-day design and art market will be hosted by the Atlanta Decorative Arts Center in collaboration with Veranda. Thousands of art professionals and tastemakers will gather to network and collaborate at the ADAC.

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Go West this Summer.

You are going places. And UWG can help you get there faster.

Earn credits over the summer break by signing up for any of our summer sessions. Enrolling over the summer can boost your GPA, allow you to graduate early, or let you focus on that tough class without distractions.

Whether you’re a current UWG undergraduate or graduate, or returning home to Carrollton from another university for the summer, join us for an unforgettable summer experience!

Get started by visiting westga.edu/summer. June and July session courses are available in Carrollton, Newnan and online. The Priority Application deadline is May 15th.

Word List: Urbanism Transit Radiation Summer Festival

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Go West. It changes everything.

TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 2018

S JUSTIN JONES HAS THE

JUICE

Jones has been consistent at the plate, surpassing 200-career hits Shortstop Justin Jones reaches 200 career hits on March 31 against Troy University.

D’MITRI CHIN

Associate Sports Editor

O

n March 31, Georgia State shortstop Justin Jones secured his 200th career hit against the Troy Trojans, but he still remembers his first collegiate hit vividly. It was a challenge that required Jones to be patient and relentless to overcome.

“I didn’t get one my first game,” Jones recalled. “I remember opening day my freshman year, I think I went Ofer, so I didn’t have a single hit. But I think my first at-bat my second game, I hit a ground ball past the third baseman for a double down the third base line. I remember it well.”

Four years later, Jones is still practicing the same techniques since he registered his first hit. However, he did mention that his routines vary depending on the opponent. But Jones also gives credit to the coaching staff who have contributed to him being second on the team in hits (39) and tied at first in doubles (8).

“For me personally, I think one thing for me that has been big is developing a routine,” Jones said. “I have certain things I like to do each game and going through those to make sure I’m comfortable and I got the swings that I need.”

Jones also said that there are a variety of drills that he implements into his routine, although he preferred not to discuss what those drills are precisely. Nonetheless, he has the same mentality once he steps into the batter’s box.

“There’s a ton of different things really, but it depends on the situation,” Jones said as he explained his approach to every atbat. “Obviously, I’m trying to do whatever my team needs from me that at-bat, whether it’s get a runner on, get on base, draw walks, see some pitches— whatever it may be. I try to just do my job, and that’s kind of our offensive mentality, is do our job and pass it to the next guy.”

Jones has undoubtedly performed well thus far and has a batting average of .312. In fact, head coach Greg Frady has considered it an advantage to have a player such as Jones in his lineup and ultimately a part of the ball club.

“Right now he’s seeing the ball good,” Frady said. “We’ve always believed in him as a hitter always had confidence in him as a hitter, and right now he’s really on his game. It’s like having a coach on the field, and to just see him hit, it’s like a complete package.”

PHOTO BY CHRIS YOUNG & PAGE DESIGN BY AMBER KIRLEW | THE SIGNAL

Perhaps what makes Jones such a prolific offensive player is the fact that he is able to withstand a slump at the plate. Great offensive players have the ability to remain poised and focus on making fluid contact with the ball, and Jones is the epitome of a skillful hitter.

“Obviously, I’m trying to do whatever my team needs from me that atbat, whether it’s get a runner on, get on based draw walks, see some pitches— whatever it may be.”

— JUSTIN JONES, Shortstop Not to mention, he is also patient at the plate. Jones leads the team in walks with 23 on the year, and his on-base percentage is currently .438.

“For me, it comes back to just trusting your preparation,” Jones said as to how he remains composed as a hitter. “I’m my best when I’m thinking ‘hit the ball into the opposite field.’”

Jones is listed at 6-feet tall and 180 pounds, which is not considered massive by any means in baseball. Furthermore, he does not believe his size affects him at the plate. He actually feels as if his size motivates him to perform at a higher rate offensively.

“Not really,” Jones said. “The American League MVP in the big leagues last year is 5-foot-6, so I mean I think a lot of times bigger guys do have an advantage but that’s the beautiful thing about baseball, you don’t have to be the biggest, strongest guy, you don’t have to be the fastest guy. So yeah, that’s one of the reasons why I love the sport.”

Jones has a unique hitting ability and has a knack for reaching base. So, who does his hitting style resemble in the MLB? Well, Jones likes to think of himself as a student of the game and enjoys studying multiple player’s offensive attributes.

“For me personally, I think it’s kind of about knowing my ability and knowing my strengths,” Jones said. “I like to watch guys like Dansby Swanson and Alex Bregman, two infield guys

who aren’t necessarily the biggest or strongest, but they do a great job of really handling the bat and being able to hit to all fields. So, I have a lot of similarities to guys like that.”

As Jones embarks on what has been a prominent college baseball career, he took time to reflect on the accomplishment of surpassing 200 career hits— one that he was unaware of until he received multiple texts and calls informing him about the achievement.

“When it happened I didn’t even know until after the game,” Jones said. “My phone was kinda blowing up a little bit, which is awesome. That’s really cool, I’m sure a ton of guys would love to get to that mark, and that’s a really special thing to me. I have to give credit to my coaches. Not just my coaches here but my coaches in the past.”

Jones is in his final year at Georgia State, but it has undoubtedly been a grand slam of a career for him.

JONES’ ACCOLADES Named 2015 Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American Team by Collegiate Baseball CoSIDA Academic All-America (second team): 2017 CoSIDA Academic All-America (third team): 2016 CoSIDA Academic All-District (first team): 2016 and 2017 Sun Belt Commissioner’s List, 2014-15: 2015-16, 2016-17 President’s List: Spring 2015, Fall 2015: Spring 2016, Fall 2016; Spring 2017

SPORTS

16

GEORGIASTATESIGNAL.COM

PHOTO COURTESY OF JASON GETZ & GRAPHIC BY PHILIP DURAL | THE SIGNAL

Men’s tennis seniors grinding for final shot at title Andrukhoua and Acuna have helped establish a winning culture CHRISTIAN CRITTENDEN Staff Reporter

M

en’s tennis seniors Sebastian Acuna and Andrei Andrukhou both took different paths to get to Georgia State, but as their time winds down they will both go down as winners.

“I saw Georgia State grow from three and a half years ago until and I see how it’s growing exponentially and it makes me feel so much happier that I can say I’ve been a part of such a program here at Georgia State,” Acuna said.

The two players come from entirely different backgrounds but have grown together as teammates as friends over their four years at Georgia State.

ANDREI ANDRUKHOU

Andrukhou is a native of Minsk, Belarus. He started his tennis career when he was 6 years old. His brother discovered tennis and took Andrukhou to play with him one day, and from there he became to love the game.

“I met a lot of people, and made a lot of friends, started liking it, and now I don’t want to leave. I want to stay here.”

—ANDREI ANDRUKHOU, Men’s tennis player “At the beginning, it was just for fun so I could do something else after school,” Andrukhou said, “And then in a couple of years I was actually getting really good, and I was one of the top players in my country, and by 12 or 13 I was trying to go professional.”

Andrukhou contemplated the idea of moving to America

to continue his career but was unsure because of the distance, language barrier and the fact that he didn’t know anyone. But he decided to give it a shot. And he credits former Georgia State head coach Brett Ross for helping him feel comfortable enough to make a move.

“I didn’t know if I wanted to come to America or not in the beginning and then once I decided I wanted to come I started speaking with the head coach who was [Brett] Ross at that point and he started telling me about the team, about the school, about the program and their future plans,” Andrukhou said. “I was really excited about this opportunity, I also wanted to be in a big city.”

Andrukhou decided to pack up his bags and come to Georgia State, where he would continue his tennis career.

“The first semester I would say that I didn’t really like it because everything was new and it was just a hard time for me, but then after a year, I got used to it,” Adrukhou said. “I met a lot of people, and made a lot of friends, started liking it, and now I don’t want to leave. I want to stay here.”

Playing tennis at Georgia State turned out to to be the right decision because he has had a great career. Andrukhou is a two time Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week winner, with his most recent coming on April 11, 2018. He was named AllConference Doubles Second Team in 2016 and 2017. Along with that, he was named to the All-Conference Singles First Team. Andrukhou was instrumental in the Panthers’ Sun Belt championship run last season. He was 13-6 playing in the No. 2 position and won his match in the title game against the South Alabama.

“I’ve been here for three and a half years, and it’s been my best three and a half years of my life,” Andrukhou said.

SEBASTIAN ACUNA

Acuna like Andrukhou began playing tennis at a very young age. Acuna knew that playing professional tennis was his goal and he made a commitment to it. His family decided that it would be best if he was homeschooled in the seventh grade because of the strain it was putting on his schooling.

“I chose to be homeschooled, and I was able to practice four more hours over my days, and with my training, I was getting

way better, and that’s where my level started peaking,” Acuna said. “I started blossoming as a tennis player, and I would say it’s solely because of being homeschooled.”

Acuna didn’t have many options when he finished high school because he ran into some problems with his recruitment, but Ross was able to sell him on the program and all of the opportunities that Georgia State could offer him. Since he didn’t have many options, Acuna decided to take a flyer on Georgia State.

“I decided to come here for a year or so, try it out and I ended up falling in love with the school,” Acuna said. “I couldn’t leave, I settled in so well, grew such a great network, and I just knew this was meant to be.”

SENIOR LEADERS Acunca was named All-Conference Doubles Second Team in 2016 Acuna had the second best overall singles record on the team in Spring 2017 Acuna is from Miami Beach, Florida Andrukhou is a two time AllConference Doubles Second Team member Andrukhou made the 2017 AllConference Singles First Team

SPORTS

TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 2018

17

Beach volleyball continues to dominate at home Pride, sun patterns and family all contribute to the success BLAKE CORRIGAN Staff Reporter

T

he Georgia State beach volleyball team has been impressive, to say the least in 2018, storming their way to a 22-10 overall record thus far. This record locks up a fifth consecutive winning season as there are only four matches left before the CCSA Tournament is set to begin on April 20.

Maybe their most impressive feat this year and for years past has been the squad’s ability to dominate home matches at the GSU Beach Volleyball Complex. In their past 22 matches played at home, they have recorded just one loss, dating back in April of 2017 to LSU. This run of dominance stretches back to the 2015 season, making it something that is quickly becoming a Georgia State tradition.

The home court advantage could be attributed to head coach Beth Van Fleet and her wisdom or the familiarity with the court, but for senior Allie Elson, it’s something different.

“I think it’s split between us wanting to protect our home courts like you never want to get beat when you’re playing at home, but then also all of the energy that our fans bring,” said Elson on why they’re so good at home.

The sentiment of wanting to protect their house was a feeling not exclusive to Elson.

Amie Held, a graduate student-athlete, echoed saying they want to protect their court when they can.

The atmosphere of the complex on game weekends is another reason why the Panthers fare so well at home. Elson and Held both credited friends, family and even studentathletes and administrators who come out for the games as a driving force behind their success. During their home weekend in late March, every member of the team had a friend or family member there to support them according to Held. This is something that goes a long way for student-athletes, especially in such an intimate space like beach volleyball courts where fans are mere feet from the players.

“We’re very comfortable with the wind, and we’re very comfortable with the sun patterns here,” said Van fleet.

Not only does the home court advantage bode well for the team’s overall record, but it’s also an under the radar advantage heading into the CCSA tournament. The tournament is held at the Rally Volleyball Complex at Lakepoint in Cartersville Georgia, just 30 miles from Georgia State.

The majority of the team has spent significant time playing at Rally, and the team believes there will be a large carryover regarding home crowd and success in the sands.

“I think it’s a huge advantage for us since

MAY 9 – 20 ATL ANTA SYMPHONY HALL

The beach volleyball Panthers have remained undefeated at home matches.

so many of our friends and family are able to travel out to that, so we kinda have that homefield advantage [at Rally],” said Elson.

As the Panthers looks to make a run in the

ALLIANCE SERIES

The Alliance Theatre and Atlanta Symphony Orchestra together for the best of all possible worlds.

1280 PEACHTREE ST NE // ATL ANTA GA 30309

book adapted by HUGH WHEELER music by LEONARD BERNSTEIN lyrics by RICHARD WILBUR additional lyrics by STEPHEN SONDHEIM & JOHN L ATOUCHE

PHOTO SUBMITTED GEORGIA STATE ATHLETICS

CCSA Tournament one thing is for certain, Rally at Lakepoint will have plenty of blue and white come April 20 all cheering on the Panthers.

tickets

as low as

$20

box office 404.733.5000 alliancetheatre.org/candide directed by Alliance Theatre Jennings Hertz Artistic Director SUSAN V. BOOTH musical direction by Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Music Director ROBERT SPANO based on the novella CANDIDE by VOLTAIRE

SPORTS

18

GEORGIASTATESIGNAL.COM

Athletics program growing Atlanta footprint Neighborhood relationships are pillars for growth inside Atlanta JERELL RUSHIN Sports Editor

G

eorgia State is a formidable athletic program but doesn’t have a following to match their accolades. The Panthers are one of just 13 programs to win a 20172018 football season bowl game and make the 2018 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament. But, nearly 37 percent of home football and 60 percent of men’s basketball seats were empty for those seasons.

Georgia State was the only program to accomplish the feat in the state of Georgia— and is by far the least recognizable. In the school’s own city, they are firmly behind Georgia, Georgia Tech and other regional schools in the pecking order of status.

Competing with century-old programs while their biggest sports are less than 50 years old gives Georgia State Athletics an uphill battle. To increase their footprint, Georgia State is exposing its brand in Atlanta neighborhoods from the inside, out.

“A lot of it, we work through our corporate sales folks, Van Wagner Sports & Entertainment. They handle all of our multimedia rights and corporate sales. So they have a book of business here right in the city of Atlanta. And it’s working with them to connect us to the city, or have the city connect to the campus,” said Brian Kelly, Georgia State Athletics’ senior associate athletics director of external affairs.

The next tactic is building relationships hands-on. University academic departments work with the athletic program and notify them of chances to talk to the potential fans.

“The rest of it is using other people’s connection. The Robinson College of Business is really good about telling us about their corporate events. ‘Hey, why don’t you come and present here,’” Kelly said. The college of education is really, really good about connecting us with Atlanta Public Schools. And they give us 15 minutes to get in front of either principals, or vice principals or teachers that are from Clayton County, Gwinnett County, Cherokee, it doesn’t matter— they’re here and they give us an opportunity to explain what it is that we have going on.”

However, the process begins on campus for Georgia State.

Kelly says that when the athletics program has the attention of the students, the city will take notice.

During freshman orientations on the Atlanta and perimeter campuses, Georgia State Athletics shows up to make an impression on students from their first days as a Panther.

“We attend every one of them, either from our ticketing staff or our marketing staff, and we make two pitches. We make one to the incoming freshmen, to have them to sign up to be a fan from day one,” Kelly said.

The pitch includes instructions for accessing student tickets,

Georgia State is expanding their Atlanta fanbase through corporate and neighborhood relationships.

running onto the football field on opening day and parking for all athletic events. They may be small steps, but they are necessary for Georgia State Athletics to reach the heights they’re aiming for.

“It’s just connecting yourself to the people, it’s forging the relationship. It’s a lot of grunt work. It’s not fun, it could pay off, it couldn’t payoff, but at least you make a connection,” Kelly said.

More success on the field is undoubtedly a way to lure in, and then keep people in the stands. Georgia State won the 2017 AutoNation Cure Bowl, but it’s is arguably the least recognizable postseason football game. The men’s basketball team made the NCAA Tournament twice in four years and has one win to show.

Yearly achievements in those two sports can drive higher interest in the entire athletic program.

“It has tremendous impact, I think what was really exciting for us the past year with the NCAA [Tournament] run is we were the only school in Georgia in the tournament. When you can pound your chest and say that, the other folks in the state are like ’what’s going on over here,’’’ Kelly said. “When you’re the only show in town, there isn’t anything that’s gonna water it down. Successes of football and men’s basketball will help propel the university, definitely in Atlanta. You only grow from that point as it becomes consistent.”

Georgia State’s football team is younger than middle schoolers,

PHOTO BY UNIQUE RODRIGUEZ | THE SIGNAL

a very unique position for an FBS program. They are studying other programs that experienced early success, primarily those younger than 15 years old. A key emphasis this spring has been meeting with student organizations. Central Florida, who is coming off a 13-0 football season executed the same tactic in the past.

“We went into OrgSync and there’s about 490 groups. We reached out to each one of them explaining who we are and what we’re looking to do. Basically from February until student groups don’t want to meet with us anymore, we’ve been meeting with them individually,” Kelly said.

A less tedious way programs raise their status quo is having a transcendent coach. Georgia State’s own, former men’s basketball head coach Lefty Driesell turned Maryland into a feared basketball program. Before he arrived in 1969, Maryland made just one NCAA Tournament. Driesell took them to eight, and recorded winning seasons in each of his 17 years there. They’ve made 18 NCAA Tournaments since.

Georgia State has the potential to put more butts in seats than every school in Georgia with their 50,000-plus student population. They began athletics more than 50 years later than their competition. But Georgia State isn’t taking a second to think about it. Bridging the gap is the only thing on their minds.

Men’s tennis Sun Belt Conference Tournament begins April 20 The Panthers are looking to win their second straight conference championship title JOSHUA FIFE Staff Reporter

T

he Sun Belt Conference Tournament runs from April 20-22 at 3 p.m. at Peachtree City Tennis Center in Peachtree City, Georgia. Georgia State is on a three-match winning streak and currently sit at 12-10 (2-1 in the Sun Belt Conference) leading up to the tournament. The semifinals and finals will be broadcast on ESPN3 on Saturday April 21 and Sunday April 22.

The Panthers are on a roll heading into the tournament, despite losing the last match of the regular season to a talented Middle Tennessee team. Georgia State fell 4-1 against the Lightning in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

Middle Tennessee is ranked No. 43 in the nation by ITA, and has an impressive 20-4

record.

Georgia State is 0-5 against ranked opponents this season, however they have won three of their last four matches. Head coach Jonathan Wolff believes the Panthers are playing some of their best tennis at this point in the season after battling injuries all year long.

“Our journey thus far as a team has been a tough but rewarding one at the same time. We have just come up short in a bunch of close matches against great programs, but have also won a lot of matches this year in convincing and dominating fashion,” Wolff said. “When we are healthy and competing hard, we can compete with any team out there. Now that we are all close to 100 percent healthy, the sky is the limit when competing in the Sun Belt postseason tournament. Our team is confident that we can defend the conference title again this year and receive that prestigious bid to the

NCAA Tournament.“ The Panthers are the reigning champions of the Sun Belt Conference after last year’s 4-3 championship victory over No. 2 seeded South Alabama. Returning members from the 2017 team include Andrei Andrukhou, Quentin Coulaud and Sebastian Acuna. Andrukhou and Acuna are seniors who both won matches during last year’s conference championship.

Assistant coach Steve Forman, who won a national title as a player at Wake Forest, mentioned the keys to preparing for a big tournament from a player’s perspective.

“The key is preparation and having the vision. As a player, I always got up for the big tournaments and the task ahead lit a fire under me. My practices got better leading up to the tournament which led to the confidence I needed when I was at the tournament.

At conference tournaments or national championships, everyone’s energy is up so it’s

good to feed off of it,” Forman said.

Senior, Andrukhou was named the Sun Belt Player of the Week on April 11. Andrukhou went 2-0 in singles and 2-0 in doubles against UNC Wilmington and Louisiana while clenching his third match of the season. He is currently 8-9 in singles and 6-9 in doubles this season. The senior also won conference player of the week in 2017 and was chosen for the All-Conference Singles First Team.

Junior Giles Hussey was named conference player of the week on March 7 and is the only other Panther to have received the honor this season.

Georgia State celebrated Acuna and Andrukhou on April 8 for senior day. Both players were acknowledged and presented with plaques before the match. Andrukhou won matches in singles (6-4, 3-6, 6-0) and doubles with Bailey Showers (6-2). Acuna’s match went unfinished (2-6, 6-3, 1-2).

SPORTS

TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 2018

panther of the week

STANDINGS

NBA PLAYOFFS PREDICTIONS

2018 BASEBALL school

19

JERELL RUSHIN Sports Editor

Conference Overall streak

EAST DIVISION

COASTAL CAROLINA

12-3

26-12

W2

SOUTH ALABAMA

10-4

21-13

W4

GEORGIA SOUTHERN

8-6

16-19

L4

TROY

8-7

23-12

L2

GEORGIA STATE

5-9

17-18

L3

SOFTBALL

APPALACHIAN STATE

1-14

8-26

L7

Junior pitcher Mandy Chance was Georgia State’s most valuable player during the past week. Chance’s durability was on full display. In each of the Panthers four games, Chance stepped out on the mound. In a tough 7-0 loss to Georgia, she allowed one earned run in three innings. She came alive two days later, throwing a complete game shutout against Appalachian State, setting the tone for the rest of the series.

Chance threw a scoreless 1.1 innings to secure the 17-5 Game 2 victory. In Game 3, she struck out two batters and allowed two runs in 5.1 innings. Chance is 8-8 on the season with a 3.86 ERA.

west DIVISION

9-5

20-14

W3

PHOTO BY GEORGIA STATE ATHLETICS

Mandy Chance

SPORTS BRIEFS Baseball Georgia State went 1-3 on the week, with the only win coming at Georgia Tech. Pitchers struck out the Yellow Jackets 14 times.

Texas State swept Georgia State at the GSU Baseball Complex in the weekend series. The Panthers are 17-18 overall and 5-9 in conference.

Beach volleyball No. 11 Georgia State (22-10, 7-7) lost both of their matches on Saturday, but won both on Sunday. Losses to Florida State and LSU leave the Panthers at 0-2 and 2-1 against them respectively in the regular season. Their two Saturday wins give Georgia State some momentum before the CCSA Tournament begins on April 20.

LITTLE ROCK UTA

8-6

17-17

W1

TEXAS STATE

8-7

20-15-1 W3

LOUISIANA

8-7

15-12

W1

ULM

6-9

17-18

L3

ARKANSAS STATE

4-10

12-19

L1

SCAN HERE TO JOIN US!

BOSTON CELTICS V. MILWAUKEE BUCKS

BOSTON CELTICS

PHILADELPHIA 76ERS V. MIAMI HEAT

PHILADELPHIA 76ERS

CLEVELAND CAVALIERS V. INDIANA PACERS

CLEVELAND CAVALIERS

GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS V. SAN ANTONIO SPURS

GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS

PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS V. NEW ORLEANS PELICANS

PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS

OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER V. UTAH JAZZ

UTAH JAZZ

SPORTS CALENDAR BASEBALL

SOFTBALL

APRIL 18

APRIL 18 KENNESAW STATE

Robert E. Heck Softball Complex

6:00 P.M.

COASTAL CAROLINA

COASTAL CAROLINA

1:00 P.M.

GSU Baseball Complex

COASTAL CAROLINA

3:00 P.M.

APRIL 21

Robert E. Heck Softball Complex

Robert E. Heck Softball Complex

COASTAL CAROLINA

GSU Baseball Complex

APRIL 22 COASTAL CAROLINA

Robert E. Heck Softball Complex

12:00 P.M.

APRIL 20 - 22 Emerson, Georgia

6:00 P.M.

2:00 P.M.

APRIL 22

BEACH VOLLEYBALL CCSA CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT

6:00 P.M.

APRIL 20

APRIL 21

softball With just two hits, softball fell 7-0 to fifth ranked Georgia. The Panthers outscored Appalachian State 30-7 during their weekend sweep. Mandy Chance had a complete shutout in Game 1, as the Panthers won 4-0. Georgia State had innings of three, four, five and six runs scored in the Saturday doubleheader.

MERCER

GSU Baseball Complex

COASTAL CAROLINA

GSU Baseball Complex

TBD

TRACK AND FIELD APRIL 20 - 21

TBA

GEORGIA TECH INVITATIONAL

Atlanta, Georgia

TBA

ILLUSTRATION BY EVAN STAMPS | THE SIGNAL