The Hofstra Chronicle, April 12, 2016

HEMPSTEAD, NY VOL. 81 Issue 16

The Hofstra

Chronicle

Tuesday april 12, 2016

KEEPING THE HOFSTRA COMMUNITY INFORMED SINCE 1935

Rat remodel ensures removal of Greek tables

By Fabiha Khalid STAFF WRITER

The University is in the process of finalizing renovation plans for both the Rathskeller and the basement of the Student Center as a whole. The changes, which are expected to be made over the summer, include removing the furniture that bears the markings of generations of Greek life members.

Vice President of Student Affairs W. Houston Dougharty led the effort to assess student needs and felt that the Rathskeller, Game Room and the rest of the basement of the Student Center

need “the most love.”

Dougharty has been at Hofstra for about two years now, and this is a project that has been in progress since he began here.

He has worked with three sets of student leaders and they have finally reached a verdict as to what is to be done in the lower level of the Student Center.

Currently, the Rathskellar – also known as the Rat – is a space that is open to all students, but is really only utilized by Greek life and a few other organizations.

There are tables in the space that have each been claimed by fraternities or sororities, bearing

markings that signify what organization uses it.

Reba Putorti, a senior member of the sorority Delta Phi Epsilon, feels the Rathskellar is currently exclusive. “[The Rat] is not welcoming to other students,” she said.

Dougharty and Sara Diem, assistant director for the Office of Student Leadership and Engagement (OSLE), organized a committee to address this issue.

They gathered people from the Division of Student Affairs, the Student Government Association, Compass Dining and the Facilities and Operations

Department. Throughout the process, members of Greek life were encouraged to ask questions and offer commentary.

The committee wanted a solution that wouldn’t disturb current Greek life members, but would also welcome all students.

“We need to expand the Rathskeller, physically and in terms of its identity, so that anyone can pop down there between classes and see their friends from Greek life,” Dougharty said. “We need a ‘wow’ factor.”

The design firm hired for this project is based in New York

City and has an eye for this type of work. Kouzmanoff Bainton Architects have done renovations at several other campuses including Fordham University and Columbia University. The company plans on creating a living room environment in the basement.

“All of us are incredibly enthusiastic,” Dougharty said.

The designers have drawn plans that include installing wood floors and new booths.

“There will be new booths,

Continued on a2

Kasich visits Hofstra as students consider candidates

By Michael Ortiz & Laurel O’Keefe NEWS EDITORS

Presidential candidates are gearing their campaigns toward New York as the state primary, set for April 19, rapidly approaches.

Ohio Governor John Kasich, a candidate for the Republican nomination, came to Hofstra for a town hall on April 4, where he was met with open arms from some local community members, and tough questions from several students.

To prepare for Election Day, Hofstra’s Center for Civic Engagement partnered with volunteers from Amnesty International, a global organization that campaigns to end human rights abuse, to offer easy voter registration to students.

According to a study conducted

by Project Vote, only 18 percent of United States voters in the 2008 election were below the age of 30. The study also concluded that only 11 percent of American voters in the same election were classified as new voters.

Barbara Epstein, one of

the volunteers with Amnesty International that helped students register to vote at a table in the Student Center on March 24 said, “We are very pleased with the response. We’ve gotten over 100 students to register to vote so far.”

This election cycle has seen important growth in the number of college-aged people casting their votes. The growing interest was apparent on April 4, as students and community members lined up to see what one of the five leading presidential candidates had to say.

Omar Hamad, a senior management major, felt the community clearly showed its political concern. “There was a tremendous amount of support and interest from Hofstra faculty, the student body and community,” he said. “I think the wide political engagement we are seeing at Hofstra speaks largely to how much of a defining moment this election is.”

Although students are more interested, they’re not necessarily pleased with what they see. The Chronicle orchestrated a poll on Facebook that asked students three questions; one of which

asked how they feel about the 2016 presidential campaigns.

The tallied votes totaled 124 and of those, over 86 percent say they are either displeased, very displeased or angry.

Tyler McCarthy, a freshman athletic training major and a registered voter in Massachusetts said, “I don’t favor any candidate right now. I think I see qualities in different candidates that I relate to but I haven’t decided who I’m going to vote for.”

This event was Kasich’s chance to sway some of those undecided voters like McCarthy, who have been instrumental in these close primary contests.

The Chronicle also asked students who they support for the presidency. Senator Bernie Sanders came out on top with about 58 percent of the votes.

Hillary Clinton and John Kasich were tied for second with about 12 percent each and roughly seven percent of participants chose ‘none of the above.’

Jesse Saunders/The Chronicle Jesse Saunders / The Chronicle

Continued on a3

Ohio Governor John Kasich addresses Long Island locals at a town hall event at Hofstra University on April 4.

NEWS

A 2 • April 12, 2016

The Chronicle

The IdeaHUb opens as collaborative space for startups Chronicle

By Danny Nikander ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

Hofstra’s Center for Entrepreneurship officially opened the IdeaHUb, a collaborative space that will serve as the home for the Center, on Thursday, April 7. The new space, located on the second floor of the Axinn Library, is designed to assist entrepreneurs-in-training and help startups execute innovative ideas.

“We are making real advancements in entrepreneurship here at Hofstra University,” Mark Lesko, executive dean of the Center for Entrepreneurship said. “We are really leaping to the forefront of entrepreneurial education in the country.”

Despite being a center for entrepreneurial activities, the space will incorporate students of all majors.

“Entrepreneurship relies very

much on the business school, engineering school and the law school, but the ideas that start businesses can come from anywhere,” Gail Simmons, the provost and senior vice president for academic affairs, said. “Many of the ideas coming from students are coming from students in the arts and sciences. It’s a place to gather and explore ideas.”

President Stuart Rabinowitz applauds the fact that the Center for Entrepreneurship was able to create a center that includes all areas of study for students at Hofstra.

“This is thrilling to me,” Rabinowitz said. “We are only one of three universities in the metro area that has a medical school, law school and engineering school. We were not taking advantage of the breadth of skills we have for the betterment of our community and education,

and what better way to incorporate that than a center for entrepreneurship.”

In addition to the IdeaHUb, the Center for Entrepreneurship offers many programs and resources to foster entrepreneurial education. One is the Accelerator Program, which will allow students to be trained by six entrepreneurs-in-residence: Aaron Foss, Kevin Hesselbirg, Peter Kestenbaum, Jeff Leventhall, Michael Quilty and Barbara Roberts. Furthermore, the center has programs like Hofstra’s CPXi Venture Challenge and Lion’s Den Challenge, which are competitions that award prize money to students with the best startup business plans.

Tamisha Lubin, a senior business management major, won the Lion’s Den challenge for her portable carbon monoxide detector for cars. She feels the resources

available to her contributed to making her idea become a reality.

“At first, I wasn’t going to do it, but I did it anyway and ended up winning first place,” Lubin said.

“I was nervous, but the [Center for Entrepreneurship] helped boost my confidence and helped me prepare a business plan.”

Lubin hopes to move forward with this idea by working with designers and developing more carbon monoxide detectors, showing the potential long-term benefits of this new collaborative center.

“When you look at it from the vantage point, from the business school, having this kind of opportunity for students is essential for jobs today,” Herman Berliner, dean of the Frank G. Zarb School of Business, said. “Going forward is all about the entrepreneurship, and having the [IdeaHUb] is first step to doing that.”

Renovations expected to begin this summer Continued from a1 tables, chairs, stools and other places to sit and hang out,” Dougharty said. “The new furniture will allow groups of students – including fraternity and sorority members – to gather together.”

Although many members of Greek life feel the current furniture has significant historic value, rumors of the tables being removed are true.

As for the crests and plaques currently featured in the basement, Diem said, “We saw some digital mockups and it was really cool to see that [the designers] had taken the time to put in the actual plaques and signs refigured in a mural, collage-type way, which looked pretty awesome. The tables and anything remaining will go to the alumni, and we definitely recognize the identity and presence of fraternity and sorority life.”

This is seen as both a great idea and a bit problematic for different members of Greek life.

For Putorti, the renovations can also be proven to be advantageous for fraternities and sororities. “From a recruiting

standpoint, the renovations will definitely have more of an appeal to prospective members,” she said.

Junior biochemistry major, Mehrab Ahsan, who is a member of Phi Delta Epsilon, a co-ed premedical fraternity, and Phi Kappa Theta, a social fraternity had contrasting thoughts. “I’m not a fan of this. I liked that the Rat was a place for Greek orgs to have a space on campus to themselves,” he said. “It was just an unspoken rule that it was where Greek orgs could go to hang out with each other and it was nice to be able to not be bothered by everyone [on] campus.”

Ahsan said he used the space to get to know new members better. “It really helped foster a sense of family when you’re eating dinner in a big booth with them,” he said. “I also have gotten to see all my friends in other Greek organizations whenever I’m in there, which is really awesome for me, because I made a lot of good friends this way.”

The basement is also a place for people to eat. Questions of adding a Starbucks, Panera Bread or some other establishment have been brought

up.

“Personally, I would like a bigger Starbucks in the Greenhouse, but the feedback from the students was that we can get coffee, we can get food from the Student Center. We just need a place to land and hang out,” Dougharty said.

Any summer camps or events to take place in the basement have been moved to other locations already. Although the goal is to complete the project before the fall 2016 semester, renovations may be ongoing

during that time.

When Allison Wolf, a freshman public relations major, saw sample images of the designs intended for the Rathskeller she said, “I never felt that I was excluded from the space, but I also never felt the need to be in the space either. From the outside looking in, I can’t see why anyone would want to hang out in the space, but the sample images do look nice. It looks very modern and fits the image of Hofstra much better.”

www.thehofstrachronicle.com

203 Student Center (516) 463-6921 Editor-in-Chief Lauren del Valle Managing Editor Kyle Kandetzki Business Manager Kristen Rodriguez News Editor Michael Ortiz Assistant News Editors Danny Nikander Laurel O’Keefe Entertainment Editor Brianna Holcomb

Assistant Entertainment Editor

Mohammad Muzammal

Sports Editors Mike Rudin Kevin Carroll Assistant Sports Editor PJ Potter @Hofstra Editor Janet Lee

Assistant @Hofstra Editor

Amanda Valentovic Editorial Editor Gabriella Ciuffetelli

Assistant Editorial Editor

Kirnendra Sidhu

Copy Chiefs Che Sullivan Medea Giordano Assistant Copy Chief Sarah Kocher Photo Editor Jesse Saunders Social Media Manager Kimberly Gazdek The Chronicle is published every Tuesday during the academic year by the students of Hofstra University. The Chronicle is located in Room 203 Student Center, 200 Hofstra University, Hempstead, N.Y. 11549. Advertising and subscription rates may be obtained by calling (516) 463-6921.

The Chronicle reserves the right to reject any submission, in accordance with our written policies. All advertising which may be considered fraudulent, misleading, libelous or offensive to the University community, The Chronicle or its advertisers may be refused. The products and opinions expressed within advertisement are not

A model design of the plans for the Rathskeller, which is to be renovated in the summer of 2016. Design courtesy of Kouzmanoff Bainton Architects.

endorsed by The Chronicle or its staff.

NEWS

The Chronicle

April 12, 2016 •A 3

Chronicle poll finds participating students ‘Feel the Bern’ Continued from a1 After Donald Trump, the Republican front-runner, called on Kasich to drop out of the race, Kasich explained, “Why would I get out when I’m the only person that beats Hillary in the fall. They just did a poll in Wisconsin – this is amazing – I’m up 14 points on Hillary in Wisconsin, and I’m going to lose in Wisconsin.”

He did in fact lose in Wisconsin getting 14 percent of the vote, finishing in third place to Trump’s 35 percent and Senator Ted Cruz’s 48.

Kasich touched on a range of topics during his visit – from political correctness to mental health.

“I believe that it is really important for America to make a commitment that the mentally ill should not live under a bridge or live in a prison,” Kasich said. “That should be stopped in this country.”

Along with locals and students,

organization representatives were also in attendance.

Bernard Macias, the associate state director for AARP on Long Island, wanted to see if Kasich would provide a plan for the future of social security. “We’re moving into an important space where we need to make sure our candidates have some sort of plan,” Macias said. “We want them to talk about it, so that we can protect this for future generations.”

Kasich did eventually talk about this hot-button issue. However, whether or not he gave a concrete plan is up for debate.

“We have to save social security. It isn’t that hard to do it,” he said. He then began speaking about someone who’s rich, “We’re not going to take away his social security, but we’re not going to give him what he thought he was going to get. I’m not going to give you zero, but I’m going to take some of it away so that I can make sure that person out here, who completely depends on it,

gets what they need,” he said.

Nick Brown, a junior marketing major, wasn’t too impressed with Kasich’s answers.

“Unfortunately what I took away from this event was that Kasich is just another politician,” he said.

“At times he felt robotic to me with his answers and deflected some meaningful questions. However, that being said, I do feel as though he is the most responsible nominee for the GOP.” Some students were not at all pleased to hear Kasich would be coming to Hofstra. Karla Bradley, the president of Student Advocates for Safe Sex (SASS), attempted to organize a protest outside the Student Center, however inclement weather kept the students inside.

“I, just as student Karla, was organizing a counter-protest because I do not believe in Kasich’s politics,” she said.

“He has defunded Planned Parenthood, he said racially hostile comments and I don’t 76130

believe he has any reason to be a presidential candidate because of those experiences.”

Bradley is also the grassroots organizer for Planned Parenthood of Nassau County. “There used to be 16 abortion clinics in Ohio and now it’s down to eight. Ohio is not a small state; that means that it’s a lot more difficult for people to access the healthcare they need,” she said.

Similar concerns are likely on the minds of many collegeaged voters. The final question asked in the poll was what issue is most important to them when considering their vote. The top answer was ‘Social Issues’ with about 37 percent of the vote.

Economic policy came in second with 22 percent, followed by foreign policy, student debt, environmental policy and finally health care.

Joshua Wally, a sophomore finance major, supports Kasich for the presidency and feels the candidate relates to him.

“I was able to ask a question to Governor Kasich regarding student loan debt and I believe he is as concerned as I am regarding increasing college costs and burdening debt,” Wally said. A week later, President Rabinowitz spoke at a scholarship luncheon and referenced his interaction with Kasich in the speech, saying that in his first interaction with the candidate he was asked “how high is your tuition and can it be lower.”

Hamad, who voted for Marco Rubio and would now like to support Sanders, did feel he gained something from the townhall event. “I appreciate Kasich’s policies regarding Arab nations – developing relationships and allies in the region – and working with those countries to fight the growing rates of terrorism,” he said. “His rhetoric regarding the educational system, work force and recent graduates is very inspiring. I think he’s spot on when talking about skill development.”

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NEWS

A 4 • April 12, 2016

The Chronicle

Hofstra professors to mentor Hempstead teachers Hempstead school district aims to revive ‘struggling’ academics

By Marie Haaland STAFF WRITER

Hofstra professors will start mentoring teachers at Alverta B. Gray Schultz (ABGS) Middle School in a few weeks as part of a program to advance the Hempstead School District.

Hempstead School Board members approved the plan at their monthly meeting in March.

The program, which will cost $100,000, will be paid for by a grant from the state.

ABGS Middle School was chosen because the New York State Education Department classifies the school as struggling.

School districts are put into three categories: There are those in good standing, others with assistance plans and some fall under what is called focus, or struggling, districts. The Hempstead School District is

considered a focus district. The goal of this program is to help the school and the district in improving its standing.

Eustace Thompson, an associate professor and the chair of the Department of Teacher Education at Hofstra, explained that the professors will be coaching and mentoring the instructional leaders by subject area.

“We’ll be doing such things as advisory strategy and curriculum development and education,” Thompson said. “We’re coaching them through relationships with teachers; relationships that will have an impact on student performance.”

Thompson will be one of these

professors. The school has about six instructional leaders, so six to eight faculty members from Hofstra will be participating in the program. The middle school teachers being mentored will then be expected to teach peers

teachers’ schedules,” he said.

The program is expected to continue through next fall to allow enough time to really make a difference. “[We] will leave no stone unturned as we aggressively continue to pursue meaningful partnerships with our neighbors to better prepare both students and faculty,” LaMont Johnson, president of the Hempstead School Board, said in an article for Newsday.

If ABGS Middle School is unable to show improvement in student performance, there is a chance that outside management will then step in to try and help.

One goal of partnering with

“We’re coaching them through relationships with teachers; relationships that will have an impact on student performance.” what they have learned.

Thompson expects the program to start within the next few weeks.

“We’re getting the faculty together and we’re waiting for Hempstead to give us their

Hofstra is to stop that from happening.

“My only concern is that the middle school teachers may be offended that they’re getting outside help for what they’ve been trained to do,” Eve Morin, a junior early childhood and childhood education major, said.

“It’s likely not the fault of the teachers. Schools in Hempstead struggle for lots of reasons, mainly economic.”

Two other programs were also approved by the Hempstead School Board to help students in these schools thrive. One of these is focused on ABGS Middle School, while the other is at Hempstead High School.

“Teachers in general are usually eager to improve,” Morin said. “And I think many of the professors here are strong enough and capable of taking on this program.”

Veterans Health Summit airs lack of medical support

By Katie Krahulik STAFF WRITER

The participants of the Veterans Health Summit held on March 6, are determined to alleviate the invisible wounds of our country’s veterans. The event, orchestrated in Hofstra’s Axinn Library in conjunction with National Public Health Week, featured a panel of experts who have studied various dilemmas which prevent disabled veterans from obtaining medical support or benefits.

The topics of discussion included health care issues, suicide and self-harm in service members and veterans, as well as a case study on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from several perspectives.

“There are 22 million veterans in the country – with the recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, there are over 2.5 million veterans – and it’s estimated that about 1/3 of all those veterans may have some invisible wound from war such as depression, PTSD, anxiety or some other

type of condition,” Dr. Mayer Bellehsen, one of the experts, said. Bellehsen is the director of the Northwell Health Mildred and Frank Feinberg Division of the Unified Behavioral Health Center for Military Veterans and Their Families.

During his presentation, he talked about the general impact of PTSD on veterans’ families and loved ones, emphasizing the fact that mental health may affect more than just the immediate victim.

“My program is one example of a solution which collocates with the VA to coordinate care for the family in tandem with the VA providing care to the veteran,” Dr. Bellehsen said.

This program offers behavioral health services, counseling, therapy and medication for those in need. “The other community providers should be doing the same thing as well,” Dr. Bellehsen

said. “In general, it’s important to increase education about the potential challenges to the family, as well as raise awareness and develop resources in the community that are tailored to meet the needs of family members to help these families cope better.”

Several law students, includ-

said. “There is room for each one of us to help, whether it’s by being on the front line or by raising awareness.”

Weiner experienced some of the tribulations that veterans face first hand. “My dad’s on full disability so he gets everything for free, but he’s had friends that aren’t on full disability who have been in the Vietnam War,” she said. “They had to fight to get coverage for certain things. I think it’s important that they get what they’re due because they fought for our country, so they deserve it.”

Wednesday’s event was planned by Melissa Kessler, the associate director of the Gitenstein Institute for Health Law and Policy at Hofstra. Kessler hopes that Hofstra University can serve as a central resource for local veterans to come and receive services.

“We are working on a larger project called Mission Critical.

“[Veterans] have done a lot for this country and it’s important to thank them...”

ing graduate students Christine Isaacs and Mandy Weiner, attended the session, as it highlighted many of the legal conflicts that the system poses for veterans in need of assistance.

“Veterans are important to the community and to me. They have done a lot for this country and it’s important to thank them,” Issacs

The goal is to unite Hofstra as a cadet-friendly campus where we can provide one-stop shopping for resources for vets and also invite community based organizations to hopefully have a second home here so that veterans can access services in a more robust and concrete way,” Kessler said.

“What we found in Nassau County and Suffolk County is that services for veterans are very fragmented, so the veteran will have go here for one thing, there for another thing and then out to the VA for medical care,” she said.

Kessler believes that Hofstra can offer a solution. “My hope is that people will see Hofstra as a resource that can be accessed and utilized and that it’s not just a place where students come and learn,” she said. “Veterans can come here and receive services too. So it’s a mutual place where community based organizations will also recognize us as a partner and not as a competitor for providing services to veterans.”

NEWS

The Chronicle

April 12, 2016 •A A5

Appropriations Report: Budget Weekend

SGA WEEKLY WRAP-UP Compiled by Casey Lamkin

Category

Requested

Allocated

Percent Allocated

Academic

$8,668.20

$4,904.52

56.5%

Inter-Fraternity/ Sorority

$605.56

$289.44

47.8%

Media

$70,951.53

$27,358.40

38.6%

Multicultural

$82,630.01

$20,228.81

24.5%

Performance

$35,866.37

$10,957.26

30.5%

Political/Socially Active

$25,641.59

$9.797.22

38.2%

Pre-Professional

$31,811.58

$19,307.84

60.6%

Religious

$43,471.51

$19,098.32

43.9%

Social

$197,994.06

$73,662.60

37.2%

Sports

$166,347.59

$61,133.00

36.7%

Public Safety Briefs On March 24, a student reported that he was punched in the face numerous times by another Hofstra student in Bangers bar on March 22.

The assaulted student said the attack was unprovoked. Police assistance was declined and the student that assaulted him was issued a referral to the Office of Community Standards.

On March 24, an RA reported that she heard loud music coming from a room in Stuyvesant Hall.

When she knocked on the door, the resident opened the door and the RA smelled alcohol coming from the room. Nine additional people were also inside. PS responded, cleared the room and issued referrals to the Office of Community Standards.

On March 26 at 11:35 p.m., a PS officer on patrol observed someone who had previously been banned from the campus in the Student Center. PS apprehended the individual and escorted him to the Information Center, where the NCPD responded and took the individual into custody for trespassing.

On March 26 at 12:10 p.m., a PS officer on patrol in the 12th floor lounge of Bill of Rights Hall discovered there was vandalism

to a window and table. There were no witnesses. The incident was reported to the plant department for repair and police assistance was declined.

On March 31, a Hofstra administrator reported to PS that two medical students told her they had left four Xbox controllers and several video games in the lounge of room 142 in the School of Medicine. When they returned, the property, valued at over $700, was missing. An investigation is being conducted.

On April 1 at 1 a.m., an RA in Constitution Hall reported to PS that a student who he had written up for failure to comply and violation of the ID policy was harassing him in the RA office.

PS responded and issued the student a referral to the Office of Community Standards for harassment.

On April 1, PS received a report of a suspicious person in the Student Center. PS responded, confronted the individual and identified him as a former Hofstra University student. When questioned he could not provide a viable reason for being on campus. He was escorted to the Information Center and banned from the campus.

Compiled by Gabriella Ciuffetelli On April 3, a PS officer observed a nonstudent male lighting a flare inside the James M. Shuart Stadium during a Cosmos soccer game. The nonstudent was apprehended and escorted to the Information Center where he was banned from campus.

There were no injuries or damage to Hofstra property.

On April 4 at 4:30 a.m., a PS officer on patrol observed an individual wandering on the main campus. The individual was confronted and identified as a nonstudent. When questioned he could not provide a viable reason for being on campus. He was escorted to the Information Center where he was banned from campus.

On April 4, a staff member reported that she observed a student removing a black box containing a gift from the Health Professional’s office in the Hofstra Dome. PS responded to the location, apprehended the student and issued the student a referral to the Office of Community Standards.

On April 4 at 10:30 a.m., a faculty member reported that when he returned to his office in 113 Roosevelt Hall after spring

break, he discovered that an advanced engineering math textbook, valued at $200, was missing. The book was left on top of his desk. There were no witnesses. An investigation is being conducted.

On April 6, a student reported that a male student verbally harassed her on April 5 while studying in the library. The male was issued a referral to the Office of Community Standards.

On April 6, a law student reported that she observed scratch marks on the hood of her vehicle when she returned to her car in the parking lot in front of the Law School. Police assistance was declined. An investigation will be conducted.

On April 7 at 10 p.m., a staff member reported to PS that she found the doors and hood of her vehicle were opened and a bag containing $5 was taken from it as it was parked in the East Circle parking lot. Police assistance was declined. There was no damage to the vehicle.

On April 7, a student reported to PS that he left his backpack with his wallet, car keys and a MacBook Pro in a room in the Law School. When he returned

Key RA – Resident Assistant PS – Public Safety NCPD – Nassau County Police Department RSR – Resident Safety Representative an hour later, he discovered that his backpack was missing. A short while afterwards, he was also informed by his banking company that there was $15 in illegal purchases on his credit card. He canceled the card and a police report was filed with the Hempstead Police Department.

On April 8 at 3 a.m., PS received a report of a loud dispute between a male and a female on the 12th floor of Constitution Hall. PS responded and identified the two students.

The dispute was calmed and both students were issued referrals to the Office of Community Standards.

On April 8 at 12:30 a.m., an RSR in Netherlands South reported that a student was being rude and threw his ID card at the RSR as he entered the building at 11:50 p.m. A referral to the Office of Community Standards will be issued to the student.

@HOFSTRA

A6 • april 12, 2016

The Chronicle

Overheard@Hofstra Compiled by The Hofstra Chronicle staff In the Student Center: Guy: My roommate’s name is Frank. He sleeps in my room.

On the Unispan: Guy: I think I am the f***ing best thing to happen to Hofstra.

In Bits ‘n’ Bytes: Girl: I want to date a man in a suit with scruff and a nice watch who will bring me hydrangeas and orchid and roses in one bouquet.

In Lawrence Herbert Hall: Girl: Kylie Jenner is a culture vulture.

In Bill of Rights Hall: Girl: I’m sorry, I just never had friends who supported me. Like I want to give you a hug.

In Alliance Hall: Guy: I mean Kasich rhymes with basic. So he has my vote if Trump doesn’t work out.

In Breslin Hall: Guy: Back then, I thought I was going to be an astronaut. My dad would always say I was spaced out.

In Memorial Hall: Girl: We have a communist business school. All they teach is communist policies and if you go there you’ll become communist.

We’re always listening......

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Letters from the Pacific: Exploring Pagodas in Myanmar

By Kaeli Van Cott STAFF WRITER

Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, is a country I legitimately knew nothing about before studying abroad, but it has easily become one of my favorite places. It’s a country in Southeast Asia that neighbors Bangladesh, India, China, Laos and Thailand.

While visiting there, I flew up to Bagan; a place unlike anything I had ever seen before and yet I found it so inviting.

Before entering any pagodas, visitors were asked to remove their shoes as a sign of respect.

It was a surreal experience to climb the brick stairs of the pagoda without any shoes on, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Bagan itself could be described as endless dirt roads with the occasional pagoda. It’s the most spread out place I’ve ever seen

and looks like an untouched place you might find in a history book.

Buddhist influence is everywhere in Myanmar, in the way that Catholicism, Christianity and Judaism, as well as other religious practices, influence American life. Even if a Burmese person decides to be a layperson, as most Burmese people become

when the country’s pro-democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, was placed under house arrest by the military government.

Being a traveler in a militaryinvolved country like Myanmar proved to be difficult because any tourist was required to pay certain fees that surely went to support this government. I found myself constantly double thinking where I spent my money and trying my hardest to give back to everyday Burmese people instead of the government that hindered their rights.

Despite the government, the people in Myanmar were resilient and genuinely happy. Most Burmese women and even some men wore thanaka, a paste made from bark, on their faces, which helps to protect skin from the sun and is regarded as a traditional beauty trend there.

“It’s the most spread out place I’ve ever seen and looks like and untouched place you might find in a history book.” nuns or monks at some point in their lives, they can choose how long they want to do so. One of my tour guides, Bunny, became a nun for five days when she was younger to make her grandparents happy.

What was troubling about Myanmar though, was the government’s oppressive role in the lives of people. The country gained international coverage

Kaeli Van Cott/The Chronicle The Shwedagon Pagoda, which is regarded as the most sacred Buddhist pagoda in all of Myanmar, is in Yangon.

A woman in a market let me try thanaka myself and taught me how to apply it. That proved to me that people can be sweet and genuine even in a hectic place like a market, where most people try to forcefully sell foreigners things and lose their patience quickly.

Unan, a monk that I had the pleasure of meeting, described Myanmar as “a land of smiling people,” and he couldn’t have been more accurate.

The Chronicle

@HOFSTRA

By Michael Ortiz

(personal records). Each meet is a competition, but it is also a learning experience. Any mistake made is simply fuel for the fire of next training cycle.”

These athletes usually train for about 16 weeks leading up to a meet. The training cycle includes five days per week spent lifting and two spent actively resting.

The cycle is designed to leave them in peak performance on the day of a competition.

Some lifters put themselves on a strict eating schedule to maximize muscle growth; however, Ban doesn’t feel that’s necessary for him. “The whole point of the sport is to lift as much weight as possible. So the way you’re going to do that is to get as big as you can. I don’t watch my weight until probably a week out from the meet; then I’ll just make sure I’m within my weight class,” he said. “I can eat whatever I want, whenever I want. It doesn’t matter.”

Lifters wear different types of supportive gear in different divisions. For the division that Ban competed in – single-ply – the lifters wear a thick polyester singlet, which allows them to lift more weight, but it is by no means easier.

“It honestly feels like sandpaper. It’s very rough, it’s really stiff. You have to break it in and it takes a while to even wear it comfortably. Even then, it’s not very comfortable,” Ban said.

“This adds a completely different technique. I had to basically start from scratch relearning how to bench, squat and deadlift in this gear.”

Training for the event wasn’t much easier for Ayala, who started lifting after serving in the U.S. Army for six years. “For me it has been brutal preparing for the second meet and so on,” he said. “I picked up an overnight shift job, so it was more grueling with lifting before work then school the next morning but I made it happen ... and made this my fourth first place finish.”

Despite breaking these records, both lifters expect much more from themselves. “I typically set a pretty high standard for myself,” Ban said. “I’ve only been competitively lifting for a year and a half so I’m still a beginner but I have professional goals set for myself.”

Ayala fell short in his mind; however, he was impressed with his body’s ability to fight through an injury. “My ring finger was slightly cut and never healed which worried me going into the final event,” he said. “But overall, I exceeded and shocked myself that I was able to pull that off with my injured hand snagging a meet total PR 7.5 lbs. higher from my last meet.”

Ban is no stranger to injury and has sustained several burst blood vessels in his eyes and chest, something he says just comes

Gemini (May 21 – June 20): Over the past month, you have pushed your work and have been too hard on yourself. Make a conscious effort to slow down to prevent a break down.

Cancer (June 21 – July 22): In the next month there will be times where you will feel out of touch or out of favor, but don’t get depressed. The spotlight may be on others at the moment but that’s OK. Your day to shine is approaching.

Leo (July 23 – August 22): Now is a good time to start paying attention to your financial issues. By not paying attention to your finances, the issues at the

surface will dry out. Face your financial issues head on to take advantage of the opportunities at hand.

Virgo (August 23 – September 22): Pay attention to the changing seasons. Stop playing it safe. There are new places and adventures popping up that you should be sure to take advantage of.

Libra (September 23 – October 22): A change in your path is approaching. Changing your job or career path may be shocking to some, but you need to do what is right for you.

Scorpio (October 23 – November 21): Share ideas and

April 12, 2016 •

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Lifters power their way to the top

NEWS EDITOR

The Hofstra Powerlifting Club is proving it is a force to be reckoned with after two lifters broke a total of three world records at a Revolution Powerlifting Syndicate (RPS) competition on March 19. Louis Ban set the world record for squat and deadlift in his division and Miguel Ayala did the same for the deadlift category.

Ban, a sophomore exercise science major and the captain of the team, has only been lifting competitively for a year and a half. He competed in the 198 lbs., amateur single-ply junior division, where he set the world record for squat at 622.5 lbs. and for deadlift at 605 lbs.

Ayala is a junior of the same major and has also been lifting competitively for only about a year. His record was set at 617.5 lbs. for the professional raw modern open division in the 165 lbs. weight category.

Sophomores Stephanie Tattrie and Moriah Garzone also competed, as well as juniors Yu-Hsiang Huang and Jeff Jeon and seniors Danny Centeno and Nick Bielawa.

Luke Pelton, an adjunct instructor in the physical education department and the head coach, also competed in the event. “The team did great overall,” Pelton said. “Most of the team set multiple PRs

Courtesy of Louis Ban Louis Ban training for the Revolution Powerlifting Syndicate meet on March 19.

with the territory.

For Pelton, who has held several New York and New Jersey state records, as well as several world records in the RPS, these athletes are just getting started. “Miguel Ayala is currently on track to be one of the top-ranked 165 lbs. lifters of all

time and Louis Ban is one of the top 198 lbs. junior lifters in the region,” Pelton said. “Breaking records and making a statement isn’t some random act of chance; greatness is simply expected from these two.”

plans with those who have the same outlook as you. Coming together with like-minded individuals is the key to making things happen this month.

Sagittarius (November 22 – December 21): It is OK to retreat from the world and be more self reflective. Taking time to yourself is not a bad thing. Everyone needs time to meditate on the meaning of life every once in a while.

Capricorn (December 22 – January 20): It is a great month for you if you know what you want. It is smart to have a plan as to how to achieve your goals.

Identify your goal and dedicate

your life to making it happen.

Aquarius (January 21 – February 19): This is an enjoyable time for you. Do not focus on the fact that you need money to have fun. The best things in life are free. Surround yourself with the company of family and friends for a good time.

Pisces (February 20 – March 20): Now is the time to work hard.

You are in the final stretch and you do not want to see everything you’ve worked for fall apart. Keep your eye on the prize. You are almost there.

Horoscopes: Are your stars aligned?

By Rachel Tyler STAFF WRITER

Aries (March 21 – April 19): This time of year is extremely important for you, but it is definitely not the easiest. It is important to understand over the next month that you cannot always get your way. Learn this lesson now or you will get yourself in trouble.

Taurus (April 20 – May 20): Do not be afraid to be assertive over the next few days. Allow yourself a confidence boost and make it easy to let others know how ambitious you are.

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@HOFSTRA

The Chronicle

Man on the Unispan What Was Your Favorite Thing That You Did Over Spring Break?

By Brianna Ciniglio STAFF WRITER

“I caught up on sleep.”

Austin Woolman, junior

“Worked.”

Linda Serrame, junior

“Slept late.”

Joanne Hernandez, junior

“Traveling. I went to Baltimore and Pittsburg.”

Charles Kim, freshman

“I went mountain hiking.”

Ali Mahfuz, junior

“Visiting Washington D.C. and Virginia and learning about the culture there.”

Rasel Rahman, junior

Photos by Sarah Kocher

The Chronicle

@HOFSTRA

April 12, 2016 •

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The Humans of Hofstra

By Jordan Laird STAFF WRITER

Xiling Coco Ye, Freshman “When I first got to Hofstra my major was going to be public relations because I always wanted to do something in communication. Previously, I saw design as only a way of making things look prettier.

But then I realized it’s not; it’s a way of thinking, a way of observing your surroundings. So I changed my major at the end of last semester. My design professor helped me a lot and I really appreciate that.

I’m from China. I went to high school in Illinois so I applied to American schools. My mom strongly recommended going to a university near a big city. I like Hofstra. Most of the people are really friendly. And as long as you’re willing to reach out to professors, they’re really helpful.

I’m open to different kinds of design jobs right now, but I don’t want to settle down. I want my job to involve traveling all over the world because I love travel. Part of the reason I came to the states is because I wanted to experience new things. That’s why I don’t usually stick with Chinese people: because I want to get to know new people and new cultures.”

Nora Thajudeen, Sophomore “I’m a refugee. I moved about a year and a half ago to Connecticut. Sri Lanka is a beautiful country, a beautiful place. Me and my parents came here alone. I guess it’s hard. It’s such a change. You don’t expect your life to turn upside down and then it does. It’s difficult to understand because it’s not technically culture shock: It’s a shock that things didn’t go as planned. And it’s not a great feeling when your entire lives are ripped apart and you’re in a place where you don’t really know people and you don’t really know anything at all; you don’t know how things happen or work. And you’re thrown there and you’re expected to conform. And a lot of people don’t realize that it’s not that easy. You can’t just go somewhere and conform in a blink. That doesn’t happen.

Alex Dangay, Sophomore “With pep band, we’re playing at the daycare on Monday. And I’m really excited about that. And I work there too, so it’s cool. I get to play for the kids and I know them. That’s kind of neat.

I hear other people say things like ‘oh they’re Americans now and they should learn how to speak English and American culture.’ And it’s not easy because the first thing on our minds when we come as refugees is not learning American culture. The first thing on our minds is coming to terms with the fact that our lives are literally not our lives anymore and we have no control over a lot of things.

So I think people really need to understand that the first thing on a refugee or an immigrant’s mind is not to learn or conform, but being OK with the fact that nothing’s going to be OK.

I worked there today. I usually work with the pre-K, the four-year-olds. And it’s a lot of fun.

The Hofstra daycare is connected to the Saltzman Center. Faculty or administrators or whoever who have kids under five can get them into the daycare.

So actually we play there every year. The pep band captains asked to play there one year and now the director of the daycare asks us to keep coming back.

Both sides enjoy it. We just have to find a day with good weather because we play outside.

I love pep band. We’re a big family; it’s cheesy but its true. We hang out. I love playing music with them. It’s my main chance to play music because I’m not a music major. So it’s a good excuse play my instrument.”

America is great in a lot of ways. People just need to learn how to be nice to other people I guess.”

Photos by Jordan Laird

John Kasich Visits Hofstra for a Town Hall Jesse Saunders / The Chronicle

Jesse Saunders / The Chronicle

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The Chronicle

‘Peer Gynt’ travels through the imagination

Joseph Kolb/The Chronicle Jack Saleeby as Peer Gynt

By Jake Pellegrino STAFF WRITER

Walking into the Black Box Theater I didn’t know what to expect. I had never heard of “Peer Gynt” before and was not familiar with Henrik Isben’s work aside from a play of his that I

read in a literature class.

Nevertheless, I was pleasantly surprised by it’s peculiarity. This is a play that does not spoonfeed you answers, you have to work for it and make your own interpretation of it, which is one of its many joys.

“Peer Gynt” follows a free spirit with a wild imagination. Gynt has few ambitions and the ones he does have are far too grand, such as being emperor of the world.

Much of the play takes place in Gynt’s imagination, which says something about his character.

We see this drastic imagination when he attends Ingrid’s wedding, a girl whom Gynt could have married but ruined his chances, much to the chagrin of his mother, Åse.

He then kidnaps Ingrid and takes her away to the mountains.

After getting intoxicated, leaves the bride behind and meets several trolls who offer him the opportunity to be a troll himself, which delights Gynt. However, it comes with one condition: He must marry the Troll King’s daughter.

Throughout the play he has many interactions with the trolls, which explores the question of what the difference is between trolls and men, a central theme of the play.

The play goes on to show Gynt’s many adventures, culminating in his final realization of his purpose in the world. He is hailed as the emperor he always dreamed of, however as an “emperor of the ‘self,’” which the audience can assume means that he only imagined it.

While all the actors were very

impressive the one that stood out for me, was Jack Saleeby, who played Peer Gynt.

Saleeby threw himself into a very complex role and acutely expressed Gynt’s transformation. His role appears as complex due to many lines dealing with abstract issues, all of which are spoken in old Victorian English.

Saleeby’s role was also mentally demanding because the play shifts between reality and fantasy.

The set was a unique combination of various elements. It had your typical wooden set, puppets and a video screen.

The video screen was especially interesting because it often showed the location of where the action was taking place to enhance the story.

Peer Gynt is a profound and intricate play and can be rewarding if you stick with it, suspend belief and let it wash over you. As a viewer, the play allowed me to think abstractly and opened up my mind to a new style of theater.

Emily VanCamp talks ‘Captain America: Civil War’

Photo courtesy of comicbook.com

By Muhammad Muzammal ASSISTANT ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

“Captain America: Civil War” actress Emily VanCamp answered questions from callers throughout the nation about the

release of her highly anticipated new film.

The new film, the next Marvel film after “Age of Ultron,” is part of the continuing chapter in the Marvel Universe saga.

The much hyped “Civil War” will place two of Marvel’s greatest

icons against each other – tech guru Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) and the patriotic, war hero Steve Rogers/Captain America (Chris Evans). Each hero will lead his own respective team in a crucial battle in the Marvel film series.

One member of Captain America’s team will be Agent 13, who goes under the alias Sharon Carter.

Carter is a skilled agent who catches deep feelings for Captain America. Reprising the role from “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” VanCamp will play Carter.

Despite the meaty comic book role, VanCamp was never a comic book fan. She discussed the unique methods Marvel used to help the actors prepare for their roles.

She was given a sort of bible on Carter, which listed important information about the character.

This was her guide to everything Carter.

VanCamp also spoke about the epic vastness of the film, citing her prior work in television as “a great help when it came to dealing with the pressured time constraints of filmmaking.”

Most recently she played the leading lady on the show “Revenge,” whose name was

coincidently Emily and has appeared in the show “Everwood” as well.

She reflected on her acting career and its success stating, “A young small-town girl from Canada wouldn’t believe it.”

Despite all of the fun that could be found on the set, VanCamp spoke on one of the most intense scenes she experienced as Carter; her choice was the funeral scene with Peggy Carter, Carter’s sister and Cap’s old flame.

She ended in a light, funny tone answering the question which three superheroes she’d invite to a party. In a nice turn of events, VanCamp didn’t answer with Spider Man, Iron Man or even Captain America. Instead she answered with Thor, the Falcon and the Scarlet Witch.

“Captain America: Civil War” will be released May 6.

Cover: FORM Show by Jenesis Curtis

The Chronicle

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‘Batman v. Superman’ does not fall as short as critics

By Brianna Ciniglio STAFF WRITER

Despite popular opinion, I didn’t think that “Batman v.

Superman: Dawn of Justice” was a horrible movie. If you take into consideration all of the poorlymade superhero movies over the years, this film definitely does not take the cake as the worst.

There were strong moments most of which were related to the future formation of the Justice League and its upcoming film.

and Junkie XL, was actually one of my favorite elements of the film. It helped to set the tone for many of the scenes.

Now, that being said, “Batman v. Superman” had plenty of flaws.

To begin, Batman and Superman did not work well at all as enemies. Obviously the two aren’t destined to hate each other but I would have liked to feel that the two were adversaries.

Batman’s reason to fight Superman felt somewhat flimsy and childish. Bruce essentially Photo courtesy of batman.com says, “Hey, there’s a chance that this guy might cause trouble because he’s not human. Let me Particularly the scene in which do everything I can to stop him Bruce Wayne views the file of just in case.” information and videos about Obviously Batman, who is the different superheroes, which older in this film than other porincluded the Flash, Wonder trayals, has come across many Woman, Cyborg and Aquaman, forces of evil in his years as a helped to entice me into wanting vigilante but I think he needed a to see the future films. little more motivation than that to I also loved the scene when fight Superman.

Superman, Batman and Wonder Which brings me to one flaw Woman are shown standing of the film that I’ve heard people together in combat. I thought the comment on frequently: the quick shot perfectly captured their unity transition of Batman’s hatred for then and for the future.

Superman into their friendship.

The music, by Hans Zimmer

This transition was brought about by Superman’s mention of his mother Martha, which also happens to be the name of Batman’s mother.

I agree; this mommy-Martha moment was ridiculous. Batman was beating the life out of Superman when suddenly the one mention of a name changes everything. Batman does a complete turnaround and wants to do everything in his power to help his new best friend, Superman.

By the end of the film, Bruce acts as if the two have been friends all their lives. Come on, writers; that was too easy.

Another aspect of the film that I did not enjoy was how often Lois Lane needed to be saved.

I understand that the whole “damsel in distress” theme is common in superhero movies, but this was just pushing it. If we compare Lois Lane in the movie to her role in the comics, she is not a weak female character; quite the opposite, she is portrayed as a strong, driven journalist who was clearly trying to help.

Throughout the film I was just sick of seeing Superman rushing to save her and wished she could have been doing something else instead of taking Superman away from his battle.

In contrast, I liked Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman and thought the character had some empowering moments, although she clearly was not the focus of the film.

As a whole, I felt that the film dragged on in certain instances while also rushing over some major plot points. I think that the script could have used some better organization to move the story along in a more convincing way.

While “Batman v. Superman” had a handful of prevailing moments, it fell flat in many other instances. Was it the worst superhero film of all time? Not by any means. But it also wasn’t the kind of movie that blew me away or left me eager for more.

Video Game Review: ‘Quantum Break’

By Rob Dolen STAFF WRITER

“Quantum Break” is a unique blend between an action video game and an action television show that satisfies both playing and viewing rather successfully.

“Quantum Break” is a third-person action shooter game based on a science fiction universe where an experiment has gone wrong and time itself is ruptured.

The player takes on the role of Jack Joyce, the brother of a scientist who has created a time travel machine. Joyce is caught in an accident with the machine where time itself has transferred its power to him, effectively allowing him to control time.

Paul Serene, another scientist and the brother’s partner, has also retained these powers.

Serene takes advantage of these new powers to go back and forth in time to facilitate the end of time on his own terms as CEO of Monarch Solutions, the company he created as a private military

corporation as well as a research company to help facilitate the end of time.

“Quantum Break” follows a similar formula that Remedy Entertainment pioneered with the “Max Payne” series in the early 2000s. It’s a cover shooter where the player is forced into constant firefights with Monarch soldiers as they attempt to fight the destruction of the future.

Firefights are fast-paced, exciting and rewarding to players who master their movement and abilities to dominate the enemy forces. Controls are familiar to any “Max Payne” fan and are very intuitive for those unfamiliar with Remedy’s previous works.

The main difference in “Quantum Break” is the power to manipulate time with various abilities.

These abilities vary from defensive, offensive and technical applications such as shielding the player from bullets or dodging them altogether to flank the enemies. All of these abilities are

also introduced quite early on in the story. Much of the second half of the game relies solely on story progression rather than unlocking new abilities and shifting the difficulty of enemies.

This is not necessarily a downfall for “Quantum Break,” as the storytelling is actually compelling, considering it’s one of the first games to seamlessly combine video game sequences with liveaction storytelling.

“Quantum Break” is divided into five acts interspersed with 20-minute episodes of live action television in between. Before each television episode is a junction, which is a sequence where the player makes a decision that influences which scenes are shown in the live-action sequences.

Despite being one of the first of its kind, the television show part of “Quantum Break” feels like a very run-of-the-mill sci-fi action show with several notable actors including Shawn Ashmore

(“X-Men” series) and Aidan Gillen (“Game of Thrones”).

The television show serves mostly as a way to flesh out the backstory of the villains in “Quantum Break.” Altogether this creates a surreal but slightly mediocre experience in storytelling, as the story itself doesn’t necessarily innovate in the science fiction genre.

“Quantum Break” is a fresh experiment into how games are developed and played, making it successful for the most part.

Despite conforming to genre tropes of science fiction, in execution “Quantum Break” is still fun to play and fun to watch, helping to satisfy both ends of the entertainment spectrum.

Joseph kolb / The Chronicle courtesy of Singerroom.com Peter Soucey / Photo The Chronicle Photo courtesy of go.sky Photo Courtesy of youtube.com

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A12 • April 12, 2016

EDITORIAL

The Chronicle

The views and opinions expressed in the Op-Ed section are those of the authors of the articles. They are not an endorsement of the views of The Chronicle or its staff. The Chronicle does not discriminate based on the opinions of the authors.

Diplomacy with Cuba is a mistake

By Johannes Sorto CONTRIBUTOR

President Obama decided to visit Cuba several weeks ago after normalizing relations with the communist government. The president believes that isolating Cuba has not been successful and argues that opening up a relationship will bring real change.

Although President Obama certainly has good intentions, his actions will likely strengthen the Cuban government. There are several flaws in his strategy and historical precedents provide a glimpse of what Cuba may become in the future.

There is an assumption by those on the left that the embargo has not been working at all. This assumption cannot be further from the truth.

Liberals seem to have forgotten that Fidel Castro stepped down in 2006. Expecting Fidel Castro to change his economic beliefs is the equivalent of trying to change Stalin or Mao’s views. No matter what we do, we cannot change the views of these radicals; neither economic sanctions nor diplomacy can work.

Coincidentally though, when his brother Raúl Castro took over, he implemented economic reforms that allowed some citizens to own businesses and property. Raúl Castro is much more likely to make reforms than Fidel Castro because Raúl is not the original leader of the revolution. Whoever takes over after Raúl will be even more likely to further liberalize because they see the damage that the embargo did.

Another flaw in Obama normalizing relations with Cuba is that the vast majority of money Americans will be spending in Cuba will be going to the Cuban government, because the government still owns most industries. This will only strengthen the Cuban government and encourage them to believe that their communist system is working.

Another false assumption President Obama makes is that American tourists will be able to engage with the Cuban people and inspire them to demand more rights, which will then lead to democratization. There are several obvious flaws with this.

The first is that every other

country is currently able to visit Cuba, including democratic ones.

If these tourists cannot convince Cubans to start a movement, how can Americans?

Another fundamental flaw with this strategy is that American tourists are not going to be visiting residential areas.

They will be in tourist areas like Havana and will have few interactions with regular Cubans.

Lastly, most Americans do not speak Spanish, so even if they wanted to have a deep political discussion with Cuban citizens, they wouldn’t be able to.

It is also important not to forget the fact that the Cuban government has a track record of arresting political protestors on a seemingly daily basis.

President Obama is either completely unaware of these obvious problems, or has decided to ignore this in a futile attempt to change Cuba.

If we go based on history, the future of Cuba looks very similar to that of China. The Castro brothers are looking at China very closely and are attempting to mirror their economic system, which is partly why they have

slightly liberalized their economy.

Keep in mind that China’s economic success is due in part to the fact that the United States opened up its economy and diplomatic relations towards the communist state in hopes that a more open dialogue would push the country to become a democracy.

Today, the Chinese communist government is stronger than ever and China has become such a

great threat that politicians have been campaigning on how to stop them for the last eight years.

If Cuba plays their cards right they could become the next China, thanks to President Obama.

Johannes Sorto is the president of the Republicans of Hofstra University.

Have an opinion? Email us at hofstrachronicleeditorials@gmail.com

Common Hour: worth saving, needs fixing

By Jake Pellegrino

SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE

Surf Club, Guitar Club, Filmmaker’s Club. These are all clubs that upon my acceptance to Hofstra I was excited to join.

Unfortunately, I was dismayed to learn that I would likely not be able to.

Why? Because their meetings are held in the evening.

While this may be fine for resident students – as all they need to do is walk a few feet from their residence hall – it makes it next to impossible for commuters.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I am done with class around 2 p.m. In order to attend these meetings, it would mean either waiting around campus for about five hours, or going home and returning to campus later in

the evening. This is very time consuming, time which I could be using to get other things done.

Commuters need our school days to be self-contained. Some commuters depend on buses, trains and other forms of public transportation to get to campus.

To return once again in the evening requires more time, not to mention the extra bus or train fare necessary for an additional trip.

Many commuters also hold part-time jobs in the evening hours, which prevent us from attending evening events. Activities taking place in the evening need to be changed because it is not giving commuters the college experience they deserve. To avoid this waiting game, we usually just go to class and go

home, missing out on the chance to make connections with other students.

Half of Hofstra’s student population is made up of commuters, but Hofstra doesn’t seem to be catering to them.

When I was first considering Hofstra they advertised themselves as “commuter friendly.” But I don’t understand how they can make that claim when commuters have to go through all these hassles just to be involved on campus.

However, it doesn’t need to be like this. Common Hour is set aside in the middle of the day every Wednesday. It baffles me why Hofstra does not seem to be using it for this purpose.

Instead, many students (myself included) just find themselves hanging around the Student

Center or Bits ‘n’ Bytes during Common Hour wondering what to do next, using the time to do menial tasks such as eating lunch or catching up on homework.

If more events and club meetings were held during Common Hour, it would allow us to have a self-contained day. We could go to class in the morning, attend a club meeting during Common Hour, go to work and then do homework or study in the evening.

At its current state, I would say that Common Hour is a massive waste of time. If there isn’t anything interesting to attend during that time, why even have it?

Furthermore, I am the type of student that likes to take classes back-to-back and get done early.

By having Common Hour use

up a block of time, it prevents me from doing this and forces me to bump back my schedule an hour and a half later. Perhaps one solution would be to offer classes at that time for those students who wish to take them.

I am not arguing against Common Hour. In fact, I am all for it; but it needs to be changed. Take note, Hofstra clubs and activities: Consider moving your evening meetings to Common Hour. Not just for the commuters but for the entire Hofstra community. Or, another alternative, more guest speakers and lecturers could be scheduled during this time.

The Chronicle

By Gabriella Ciuffetelli EDITORIAL EDITOR

With a lecture series for National Public Health Week coming up on campus April 17, I couldn’t help but notice one distinctive type of health education left off of the list: sexual education.

Of course, that is not to say that Hofstra doesn’t have a robust sexual education program. In fact, as a student, I am proud of how many organizations and events dedicated to sexual education Hofstra makes accessible to students.

I genuinely believe that Hofstra has succeeded at creating a safe space in which students can talk about sex, their sexualities and any accompanying issue or question that goes along with either.

However, I wish the same could be said about public schools.

To me, refusing to put sexual

OP - ED

April 12, 2016 •

Sex-ed is crucial, not crude education in a high school curriculum is equal parts naïve and dangerous.

I understand that everyone has different beliefs and that some people can say with full confidence that they have no intention of engaging in sexual behavior until their adult lives. However, we have a responsibility to give students the tools to make educated choices and whether or not they choose to use them is their own prerogative.

For students who don’t have an open dialogue with their parents about sexual education, school may very well be the only reliable source of information they can find regarding the subject. This is especially true in the cases where students and their parents hold different opinions regarding abstinence.

And if kids can’t turn to their parents or to their school, then

where can they turn? Their friends? The Internet?

While kids are more than comfortable turning to the Internet, we must remember that not everything there is true, and that not every answer can be found and answered by Google.

Furthermore, having kids depend on their peers for advice is an even worse idea. You’d be hard pressed to find anyone who thinks that one 15-year-old turning to another 15-year-old for sex-ed is anything less than a terrible idea.

Of course, there are also people who disagree with the idea simply because they think it is “too awkward” to learn about sexual education in school.

Frankly, I find this argument to be absolutely void of substance.

The point of learning, especially in high school and in college, is to be exposed to things you

don’t think about every day. More often than not, subjects will make students feel uncomfortable in some way or form, and considering you learn about half of these body parts and their functions in biology, sexual education really shouldn’t be that far of a stretch for your mind.

Of course, this is all compounded with the fact that sexual education is about so much more than how to put on a condom.

Sexual education should be used to provide students with information regarding all aspects of sexual health and well-being, whether they are physical, mental or emotional.

Aside from the physical aspect, sexual education can, and in many other countries does, cover other things. Important topics like sexuality, societal and emotional aspects of sex, the proper usage of birth control (for males and

A13

females), sexual assault and consent – and that’s just the beginning of the list.

These topics have extraordinary impacts on students’ lives, and to boil sexual education down to nothing more than a list of STDs and a few diagrams of the reproductive organs is shameful.

These classes don’t even have to be compulsory. In fact, a feasible middle ground could be for schools to allow students to opt in or out of these classes.

But I believe they must, at the very least, be made available and easily accessible for students who want and/or need it.

We need to stop portraying sex-ed as crass and inappropriate and see it for what it really is: an opportunity to inform and encourage young people to make educated decisions.

Sexual education has no place in schools

By Erica Brosnan STAFF WRTIER

2 16

As a product of multiple private religious schools that did not offer any sexual education, I can safely assure you that teenagers don’t need to be taught about sex in school. They can figure it out just fine on their own.

Anyone with a sane mind and a little bit of common sense should be able to comprehend the significance of practicing sex safely. After all, our culture is obsessed with sex and nearly every mention of it in pop culture is followed with a warning to practice safe sex.

My friends and I figured it out just fine on our own and I tend to have faith that high school students aren’t idiots. They should be smart enough to know the basics of sex, to know to use birth control and to be aware that all parties involved have to agree before having sex.

My high school peers and I didn’t need a teacher to lecture us about the dos and don’ts of sex, and frankly, there are more important things we need to focus on teaching teenagers before we start worrying about the birds and the bees.

To me, sexual education in schools is the same idea as somebody saying, “We should start requiring religious education in every school because many children aren’t being exposed to it at home.” Many people would scoff at the idea because religion isn’t supposed to be a part of educational programs. It’s supposed to stay out of public schools.

Many people are angered by the idea of sex education in schools because

they feel that teachers send a mixed message – “Don’t have sex right now, but here’s a condom if you want to.” – which violates their moral and cultural beliefs.

The defense: If parents aren’t providing information on the topic, schools should pick up the slack, right?

If that’s the case, there are a lot of other subjects schools should be teaching, things that were lacking in a lot of homes where I grew up: how to take out loans for college, how to get a mortgage, how to fill out taxes and how to know when to do so.

There’s a world of information not being taught to teens. I didn’t know what I was getting myself into when I applied for a student loan. I didn’t even have a bank account until two months before I graduated from high school because it had never been taught to me.

I could take my questions about sex to my friends, to the Internet or to my parents or siblings, yet I couldn’t get a straight answer about what interest rate would be considered low for a student loan.

I completely understand the concern about sex education in schools, but the fact of the matter is that initiating sex education programs creates a debate about beliefs that many people aren’t going to be quick to change.

If parents are really concerned about their kids learning safe sex, they can talk to their own children about it. If teens are really desperate to learn about safe sex, they can find out about it online where the answers are straight-forward.

Let’s focus on teaching kids real-life future planning skills before we start worrying about if they can “do it” correctly.

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A 14 • April 12, 2016

SPORTS

The Chronicle

Seth Tierney reflects on 2016 campaign so far

By Kevin Carroll SPORTS EDITOR

It’s been a bit of an up-anddown year for the Hofstra men’s lacrosse team, currently sitting at 7-4, with a 1-1 record in the CAA. After opening the season with two victories over ranked opponents in the University of North Carolina and Princeton, as well as a beatdown of the New Jersey Institute of Technology, the Pride has come back down to earth, playing .500 lacrosse over its last eight games. This past week, I sat down with head coach Seth Tierney to talk about the season.

Kevin Carroll: You opened up conference play with a tough loss to Fairfield, how are you bouncing back from that one?

Seth Tierney: Certainly, that loss hurt. We didn’t play as well as we could; we had a couple of guys that didn’t have the game they hoped they were going to have, and in return we came up one goal short. Hopefully, we’ve learned from that.

KC: You started out the season in possibly the best way you could have: knocking off North

Carolina. Talk a little bit about the emotions going into that game and how you felt after that win.

ST: Yeah, it was a pretty wild trip. We went down there and had a great pregame practice. Then we started to play and one thing led to another, and things are rolling in your direction. To get a win like that in your first game of the season, it certainly was an emotional high. Guys were playing with some confidence. It’s been a little bit of a rollercoaster, with some really high highs and a couple of low lows. We’ve got to manage that emotion.

KC: In the losses against Georgetown and Providence, the losses that maybe we didn’t expect, what do you think was going wrong for the team out there?

ST: Just one thing led to another. In the first loss, against Georgetown, they were 0-3 and we were 3-0, and they played harder than we did. It’s hard as a coach to say that, but the truth is the truth. The game got away from us, we ran out of time.

In the Providence game, they

jumped on us early. We go down 5-0, it becomes a difficult task.

KC: Sam Llinares, CAA Preseason Player of the Year. He has certainly lived up to that billing. He’s got 21 goals this year, having a heck of a season. What do you think of his performance this year?

ST: He’s playing well, I think he could even take it up a notch.

He’s been battling some injuries and setbacks, and that’s hurt him a little bit. He’s a senior, he’s technically got four games left in his career, hopefully there’s more than that with the CAA playoffs if we could get into those.

Hopefully, he could put those things aside. It’s hard, playing this kind of sport banged up.

KC: Sam was drafted earlier this year, did you give him any advice about how to spend his last couple games before heading off into the pros?

ST: Just pushing the pile. Be great, have fun, play fast and make sure that you don’t have any regrets. Don’t leave any plays on the table.

KC: Sam was maybe expected to be the top guy on offense, but there’s been a four-man attack on offense with Llinares, Josh Byrne, Brian von Bargen and Korey Hendrickson, last game especially. Was that something you expected or were you a little surprised by the production of these guys?

ST: I think we’ve always expected it, and for one reason or another, those guys have had things that they’ve gone through.

We’re certainly thrilled that von Bargen, Hendrickson and Byrne have all come up and done their job and have had great years, along with Llinares. We need a little bit more from the other guys.

If we could get a little more from those guys, then maybe we could make a run at this thing.

Cam Keough/The Chronicle Hofstra has won three of its last four games, the last versus Delaware.

KC: The offense has been very strong and so has been the play in net, with Jack Concannon back there in goal. Getting his first starts in net for the Pride and he has performed spectacularly this season. What do you think of his performance so far?

Cam Keough/The Chronicle Head coach Seth Tierney watches his team from the sidelines against Delaware.

ST: Jack’s been playing really well. I think he’d like to have a couple goals back, maybe a game back. To his credit, [the] first time playing just about every minute of every game he has made the saves that he’s supposed to make, and he has stolen a couple. He’s done a good job with that. I’m proud of him.

KC: Josh Byrne transferred in from Nassau Community College and he’s been a bit of a human highlight reel this season, scoring goals that you can’t see coming.

He even made SportsCenter one time. What do you think that excitement brings to the team?

He’s certainly been a sparkplug.

ST: He’s an electric player.

He’s got the ability; he’s got unbelievable hands. He could do things with a lacrosse stick that a lot of guys can’t. He’s been a bit disappointed; in three of our four losses Josh has been held scoreless. They’ve been focused on him. We need him to not be held scoreless in those scenarios and he knows it. He’s a playmaker, a guy that likes to score the lacrosse ball and he likes to share it as well.

KC: You played a pretty tough nonconference schedule with teams like Ohio State, Stony Brook, North Carolina and Princeton. How does that tough

nonconference slate of games help prepare you for the CAA schedule?

ST: There’s not that many people that get these at-large bids – outside of the teams from the ACC – so we load up. I just want to be prepared for the CAA and that’s what we need to do.

I have some regrets over the Fairfield game, maybe we get a chance to play them again, hopefully. We’ll see how it goes.

Now, what we learned from that nonconference schedule, we could put it to good use.

KC: Going forward, what do you think the team has to work on in order to make it to the playoffs and win the CAA? ST: Anger. They’ve got to be angry. They’ve got to remember a bit of the CAA last year. We were tied for fourth in the CAA last year and we were the team that got left out due to a tiebreaker.

We’ve got to remember that and remind our guys.

KC: Where do you see this team at the end of the season?

ST: I see them fighting for a CAA championship. You know, we get a little bit of confidence going at this part of the year. We learn from our losses, learn from our wins and now it’s time to put it all together.

The Chronicle

SPORTS

April 12, 2016 •

A 15

Shannon Smith sees league play as clean slate for Pride

By Mike Rudin SPORTS EDITOR

The Hofstra Pride women’s lacrosse team recently ended its nonconference schedule with a 2-7 record. The Pride now stands 3-8 overall, 1-1 in CAA after the opening CAA action against William & Mary and James Madison.

Just before the team traveled down to Virginia for the weekend, I had the chance to talk to head coach Shannon Smith about the team.

Mike Rudin: So your team went 2-7 in the first nine games but split the last four. How has your team progressed throughout the season?

Shannon Smith: Obviously, [it was] a little bit of a disappointing start, but I think that we have a locker room filled [with] really resilient kids who have a lot of heart and passion. And we’re starting to work hard.

I think our roster is really young and we gained a lot of experience in the beginning part of our season. Now we have that experience and we’re starting to put it together … We’re starting

to clear the ball better, but now we’re dealing with injuries – team injuries. We lost a couple of key players for the season and so we have some other players stepping up.

I just think it’s an exciting part of our season right now because we’ve gained a lot of experiences from the games that we played and we’re going into conference play where it’s a brand new season.

MR: Since Tiana Parrella has missed the last two nonconference games, how has her absence impacted the team and is she close to competing again soon?

SS: Tiana Parrella is just dealing with a lower body injury right now so we’re hoping she can come back; she is not one of the players that are done for the season.

We’re hoping she can come back here, but it’s all going to depend on her recovery right now.

I think that she’s a big miss, she’s a dynamic threat for us.

She can feed the ball, she can dodge, but I think that Morgan Knox [and] Lexi Lenaghan have

been stepping up … and a lot of players have been playing better at practice. Amanda Seekamp is starting to get her offensive groove back so we’re excited.

Tiana is a big miss and hopefully we can get her healthy towards the end of the season.

MR: Lindsay Scott has become an offensive catalyst with 31 goals in nonconference. How has her presence made a difference?

SS: Scott is a very special player. She’s like that freshman and senior all [in] one and I think that she’s really starting to take over that leadership role on the attack.

She just loves playing the game of lacrosse; she’s always smiling everyday at practice.

She has a lot of passion for the game. She loves playing and she loves playing with her teammates. They do a great job at cutting for her, opening up for her [and] giving Lindsay her dodges.

Lindsay comes off of cuts a couple of times so kids are stepping in and being able to get her the ball. So she’s a great player and I think she’s only going to open up more for other players because a lot of teams are going to start keying on her.

But she’s very quick, fast and athletic. Her work ethic is unparalleled compared to others and she can really finish the ball.

MR: You’ve mainly switched between Alexis Green and Maddie Fields defending the net.

Do you plan to use one goalie more often than the rest or stick with a platoon?

Cam Keough/The Chronicle Hofstra started out 0-3 but went 2-2 to finish the nonconference schedule.

SS: I think it all [depends] on who’s hot that game day.

If they’re not doing well in the first half or we’re not afraid to pull them, [we will] put the other goalie in. Maddie Fields is playing well right now, but if she’s having a rough day, then we have Alexis Greene.

If Alexis Greene is having a rough day, we have Sara Guarascio, so they continue to battle it out everyday at practice and we’re challenging them to also get better outside of practice because we need our goalies to play well in the month of April.

MR: The defense has had

Victoria Mickens/The Chronicle Head coach Shannon Smith is currently 33-32 overall at the helm of the Pride.

some rough outings, some against the best teams in the country. But has their overall performance gone in the direction you were looking for?

SS: I think it was rough for the defense in the beginning of the season. We were playing a lot of defense and they were struggling on getting on the same page of each other. Getting that defensive chemistry that they needed [and] the communication.

Communication is talking but also listening, trusting one another. I think they struggled in those areas but I think we’ve done a lot of team building.

We’ve done a lot of activities and we really emphasized things at practice. We showed them film and they can see what exactly we’re saying is where they’re struggling.

I think they’ve gotten a lot better over these past few games so they’ve been working really hard and we’re going to need them to continue to get better … I really saw that against Columbia, they battled with a little more spunk in them.

MR: Has it been mainly the defense or as a team altogether that you aimed to improve in certain areas?

SS: It’s an overall team effort. I think it’s bringing it everyday and bringing that passion and that fire and that intensity and focus

everyday to practice. It’s hard to do and we need to continue to be competitive. I think draw controls is an area that we need to get better at.

I think we’re inconsistent … and that’s something we are continuing to get better on … [this includes] overall stick work and being able to clear the ball up and down the field.

On offense, we have to do a better job at producing more and not having mental turnovers where we probably shouldn’t have that turnover and just being able to finish our shots.

We do have a good offense it’s just that they’re hot and cold some days … hopefully we can put both sides of the field together, playing well and for a full 60 minutes.

MR: With nonconference over and CAA play just starting, do you have a better sense of where your team stacks up when compared to the rest of the conference teams?

SS: I think it’s huge, but I also think that the CAA, when it’s conference [play], is a lot different than your nonconference schedule. I think it’s really a backyard brawl that anybody can win on any given day.

A 16 • April 12, 2016

SPORTS

The Chronicle

Men’s lacrosse fights through rain, knocks off Blue Hens

By Gio Annatelli STAFF WRITER

Six different players for the Pride scored two goals en route to Hofstra’s 13-7 victory over the Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens on Saturday at James M. Shuart Stadium.

Hofstra improves its overall record to 7-4 and move to an even 1-1 in CAA. Delaware drops to 4-8 and 1-1 in conference play.

Josh Byrne tallied six points or more for the third time this season.

Brendan Kavanagh also had a great day, tying his career high with two goals and two assists for a personal-best four points.

Other two-goal scorers were Korey Hendrickson, Sam Llinares, Brian von Bargen and Zachary Franco. Trevor Kupecky also added a goal and two assists.

Andrew Romagnoli and Dean DiSimone led the Fightin’ Blue Hens with two goals apiece.

Collecting the win in net for

Hofstra was Jack Concannon, recording seven saves for his seventh win of the season.

For Delaware, Parker Ferrigan tallied 11 saves en route to the loss.

After about 11 minutes of both teams being scoreless, the Pride jumped out to a 4-0 lead to close out the first quarter and to open up the second frame.

Kupecky, von Bargen and Hendrickson twice each found the back of the net.

Following a goal from Delaware to cut into Hofstra’s lead, the Pride went on another four-goal run.

Kavanagh scored the first man-up goal on the day, followed

by Byrne’s first goal since St. John’s.

Llinares then scored his 22nd and 23rd to put the Pride up seven.

Romagnoli scored for the Fightin’ Blue Hens to end the half at 8-2.

In the third frame, the Pride extended its lead thanks to goals

from Franco on the man-up and von Bargen’s 23rd of the season.

It was Franco’s first time scoring since having a hat trick against NJIT. Delaware closed out the quarter on another high note, finding the back of the net twice to cut the lead to six.

In the final quarter, six goals were scored, three from the Pride and three from Delaware, to end the game at 13-7. Byrne scored his team-leading 24th goal of the season.

Franco and Kavanagh hit the pylon on two separate extra-man opportunities.

In total, Hofstra converted on four of seven extra-man opportunities.

From the faceoff, Kris Clarke went 14-for-24, including winning nine straight to start out the game.

The Pride also won the shooting battle, 44-25, and the groundball battle, 33-26. “[CAA games] are a battle ... there’s nothing that’s easy,” head

Cam Keough/The Chronicle Hofstra’s Dylan Alderman evades a defender in Saturday’s win over Delaware.

coach Seth Tierney said on the conference slate.

Hofstra begins a two-game conference road swing, starting at Drexel next Saturday with

game time set for 4 p.m.

The Pride follows that up with heading to UMass on April 23.

Women’s lacrosse suffers bombardment by JMU

By Regina Volpe STAFF WRITER

The Pride women’s lacrosse team fell on the road to the James Madison Dukes on Sunday by a final score of 20-8.

Hofstra now has three wins and eight losses overall, and one win and one loss in CAA play.

The first half showed promise for the Pride, with the offense racking up six goals.

Both defenses played at the top of their game, creating a maze of people blocking the path to the goal.

The Pride offense fumbled in making passes though.

These dropped balls gave JMU the opportunity to regain possession.

Graduate student Lindsay Scott led the team in goals, scoring four in the first half alone.

Morgan Knox and Lexi Lenaghan, the freshman who scored the game-winning goal in the contest against William & Mary on Saturday, scored Hofstra’s remaining goals for the

first period.

Coming out of a Hofstra timeout, the Dukes turned up the heat.

Nearly doubling their goals in the last 15 minutes, the first half ended with JMU holding a seven goal lead over the Pride, 13-6.

Scott scored for the Pride again coming out of halftime.

JMU responded and scored with a free-position goal by Brooks Lawler.

After this goal, there was a long battle for possession and neither team scored during the struggle.

A foul on Hofstra’s Lindsey Alfano gave the Dukes another opportunity for a free-position attempt and JMU used this to score once again.

JMU got the ball rolling after this goal, earning three more goals, giving them a 10-goal lead over the Pride.

The Dukes didn’t back down, stretching their lead in the second half.

Scott scored on a free position shot with only three minutes

remaining in the contest.

Betsey Angel, a senior for the Dukes, scored the 100th goal of her career in the first half.

She led her team along with Lawler in goals with four apiece.

Scott racked up a game-high six goals to lead the Pride.

The Pride collected only two saves in all 60 minutes.

After this game, neither team moved in the CAA standings.

James Madison remains at the top with a perfect 3-0 conference record and Hofstra drops to 1-1, remaining tied with Drexel and Elon.

Hofstra returns home for a twogame series. The Pride takes on the Towson Tigers (2-0) at Shuart Stadium this Friday, April 15 at 7 p.m. Followed by this Sunday’s matchup against University of Delaware at 1 p.m.

To check out the rest of our content, go to: http://thehofstrachronicle.com/category/ sports/

Cam Keough/The Chronicle Lindsay Scott scored six goals despite JMU outscoring the Pride by 12 goals.

The Chronicle

SPORTS

April 12, 2016 •

A 17

Finlayson is a one-man band on & off the course

By Mark Mausner STAFF WRITER

Junior Hofstra cross-country runner Jack Finlayson is in the midst of a long off-season after the Pride finished in 29th place in the NCAA Division 1 Northeast Regional.

The Orillia, Ontario, Canada native has improved every year since he’s been on the team and he now looks to have his finest season as a senior.

“I don’t know what it is, but there’s something about disciplining yourself and your body for months at a time just so that you can run a couple of seconds faster than you did the year before,” Finlayson said.

After first receiving a crosscountry scholarship to Hofstra in 2013, Finlayson had to make some minor adjustments to his new home.

“Orillia was a very small town so coming to New York was a huge difference. Other than that, though, the U.S and Canada are pretty similar. The only thing I had to get used to was the sayings people use down here,” he said.

When making the jump from Twin Lakes High School to Hofstra University, he also had to get used to a strenuous training regimen.

“All of a sudden you’re training

more and more. Training in college isn’t necessarily more intense than high school, there’s just more volume,” he said. “The big jump was the amount of miles I ran in a week went up a lot.”

Finlayson saw the fruits of his labor at the 2015 NCAA Regional. Finlayson’s 10K time of 32:53 is the ninth-best in Hofstra history.

His progress is due to the team’s high level of training, which is something for which the 20-year-old has been preparing for most of his life.

“I started running in grade four.

It wasn’t until my senior year that I just dropped everything else,” he said. “You’ve got to, at one point, decide what you’re going to focus on.

“I think when you’re younger it’s better to do as many sports as possible and it’s better to just do it for fun. But when you want to go to college and play that sport, you have to really narrow it down.”

Finlayson played five different sports in high school, but focused mainly on basketball, crosscountry and track. In the end, he let nature narrow things down for him.

“By the time I reached grade 11, I realized I wasn’t going to go D1 for basketball. I’m only 5’9” and I’m not athletic enough. So it was then that I decided to focus

more on track and cross country,” he said.

Although he is a multi-sport athlete, Finlayson’s interests go beyond sports.

“I play a lot of music,” he said.

“I play guitar, bass, synthesizer and keyboard. I produce a lot of stuff, too. I prefer psychedelic rock or pop.”

Finlayson is a film studies major, but he believes he may go in another direction after college.

“I think I’m leaning more towards the sound production side of things. I’m hoping to work in a studio, audio engineering for bands or doing sound design for film. I haven’t quite decided which one I want to go with yet,” he said.

Before he builds his career after college, Finlayson has more goals he would like to achieve while he still runs for the Pride.

“For me, the end goal would be breaking the school record in the 8K of 25:02 set by Dan Rono, a former teammate of mine who graduated a few years ago,” he said.

Finlayson recorded a time of 26:10 at his final 8K of the season at the CAA Championships in October.

“It’s just about the amount of work you put into it. At the end of the day, whoever puts in the most is going to get the most out of it,” Finlayson said.

Photo Courtesy of Hofstra Athletics Jack Finlayson posted the ninth-best 10k time in Hofstra history at 32:53.

HOFSTRA ATHLETIC CALENDAR Away

4/12

4/13

4/14

4/15

4/16

4/17

4/18

Home

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Monday

DREXEL UNIVERSITY 4 p.m.

men’s lacrosse TOWSON UNIVERSITY 7 p.m.

UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE 1 p.m.

IONA COLLEGE 3 p.m.

UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE 12 & 2:30 p.m.

UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE 12 p.m.

MANHATTAN COLLEGE 3 p.m.

COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON 3 p.m.

women’s lacrosse Softball

baseball

NEW YORK INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY 3 p.m.

COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON 1 p.m.

COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON 1 p.m.

A 18 • April 12, 2016

SPORTS

The Chronicle

Former club pitcher Matteson excelling as Division I starter

By PJ Potter

ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

It is not every day that a club baseball player makes the unthinkable jump all the way up to the Division I level to compete at the highest stage in college baseball.

It is even less common to find one who becomes the best pitcher on the team’s staff.

Entering the week, Bowie Matteson, a fifth year senior from Saugerties, New York, was ranked third in the Colonial Athletic Association with a 2.56 earned run average.

Not many people would realize Matteson took an unusual path to becoming the pitcher he is today, considering his impressive statistics so far this season.

Coming out of high school, Matteson was too small to be recruited to a Division I school, so he decided to go to Boston University, a school without a college baseball program, to focus on academics.

While at Boston, Matteson joined the club baseball team so he could still play. Things began to change for him when he started to grow and his talent began to overshadow his teammates on

the club team.

“Once I got to BU, I realized that through playing club baseball, I definitely had more to offer on a bigger stage,” Matteson said.

Matteson was then put in touch with an amateur scout, who directed him to Coach John Russo of Hofstra. The sports science major transferred from Boston to Hofstra after his sophomore year, but he did not have a spot on the Pride roster as a junior, so he was redshirted.

Matteson finally stepped onto University Field as a senior, where he found himself in a major role as an innings-eater coming out of the bullpen or as a spot-starter. Making 13 appearances and eight starts, Matteson finished his 2015 campaign tied for first in strikeouts on the team with 31 and just one-third of an inning shy of leading the team in innings pitched, totaling 53.2.

Matteson’s biggest issue was keeping a low earned run average, ending the year with a 6.04 ERA. The answer to his problem was not difficult to figure out: He needed to develop an effective changeup.

In the offseason, the Hofstra baseball team added John

Habyan to the coaching staff to manage the pitchers, who came in with an impressive resume.

A former MLB pitcher for 11 seasons, Habyan was also the head coach for St. John the Baptist Diocesan High School for 17 years. His guidance was exactly what Matteson needed to improve himself as a college pitcher.

“His knowledge and expertise coming from his professional background in baseball has been a huge help for me as far as putting together what stuff I have the mound and being able to use it effectively more so than I have last year,” Matteson said.

So far, it appears that the offseason acquisition has panned out for Matteson, who has fared well against top programs around the country as a solidified weekend starter for Hofstra.

His debut against No. 4 Texas A&M gave his coaches and teammates more to look forward to for the rest of the season, giving up just two runs in four innings.

Matteson found himself facing another SEC team, Missouri, the following week. The fifth year senior was nothing short of special in his second outing, tossing

Mike Rudin/The Chronicle Matteson has the only win in conference play this year, a victory over Towson.

seven solid innings against the Tigers, allowing one run on four hits.

A few weeks later, Matteson had another tough task in front of him, Ohio State.

But, just as the entire season has gone for him, Matteson threw the best game of the weekend for Hofstra, only giving up two runs over 6.2 innings.

These outings were not easy, but prepared him well for conference play knowing he has what it takes to be a Division I starter.

“It’s a certain level of comfort

being able to know that what I have can get hitters out on any spectrum of the game,” Matteson said.

Last week, the Pride opened its CAA play in Maryland against Towson, picking up one win out of three games. Matteson, of course, led the way in Hofstra’s only conference victory in 2016, going 7.2 innings while holding Towson to two runs.

Matteson will look to be the head of the Pride in its hopes to swing the season around after a struggling start.

Walter’s no-hitter with a double drilled into the right-center field gap, scoring Kevin O’Connor, who reached on a walk.

Witkowski then scored on an error.

Diaz Nardo made it a 3-2 ballgame in the top of the fifth on a sacrifice fly RBI. An inning later, David Leiderman, who entered the game 0-for-7 in the series, launched his second home run of the year over the left-center field fence, tying it all up at three.

In the seventh, Jordan Glover, who now has 16 doubles this season, roped a RBI two-bagger over the head of Steven Foster in centerfield.

Glover then crossed home plate on a wild pitch to cap a two run inning for Delaware.

It was Leiderman who rose to the occasion again for Hofstra with a double off the 30-foot

fence in left-center field to score Vito Friscia in the eighth inning to close Delaware’s lead to 5-4.

Then, in the ninth, Teddy Cillis came in relief and issued three doubles in the inning, which amassed three runs, blowing the game open to 8-4.

Delaware’s Nick Spadafino picked up the win in 1.1 innings, improving to 3-2 this season.

For Hofstra, Chris Bonk received the loss, slipping to 1-3 after allowing two runs in 1.2 innings.

John Rooney started his first career confrence game, letting up three runs in 5.1 innings Brandon Walter opposed Rooney, fanning nine batters over 5.2 innings.

Hofstra dropped to last place in the CAA with a 1-7 record. They return to action April 12 at home against NYIT, beginning at 3 p.m.

Pride falls to Fightin’ Blue Hens in series sweep

By PJ Potter

ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

Cam Keough/The Chronicle David Leiderman went 2-for-4 with a home run in Game 3 against Delaware.

The Hofstra baseball team was unable to avoid the sweep against the Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens Sunday at University Field, falling 8-4 in the series finale.

Nick Tierno reached base five times in the game for Delaware, hitting 4-for-4 with a double and three runs scored.

The Blue Hens (21-11) jumped ahead 2-0 in the top of the second inning with a solo home run by Nick Patten and a wild pitch by John Rooney to score Jeremy Ake. Patten now has eight home runs this season, which is good for the top five most blasts in the CAA. Hofstra (8-24) answered back in the bottom half of the fourth inning with two runs to match Delaware’s score. Brad Witkowski spoiled Brandon

The Chronicle

SPORTS

April 12, 2016 •

A 19

Jessica Peslak makes her way as team’s new ace

By Anders Jorstad STAFF WRITER

For Jessica Peslak, the 2016 softball season has been a long time coming.

The junior pitcher didn’t see a whole lot of action in the 2015 season, appearing in just six games to the tune of a 6.18 earned run average.

Seniors Morgan Lashley and Taylor Pirone were the main forces on the mound that season.

But with the two of them graduating at the end of last year, someone had to step up to take their place.

Peslak is now the go-to pitcher for the Pride.

She’s appeared in 21 games already, all of them starts, and has thrown 110.2 innings with a 4.62 ERA. “[Last season] I focused on learning from Morgan and Taylor,” said Peslak.

“Every single game I watched them and asked them questions.

On and off the field. They really helped me.

“I took every opportunity I could and used that year as a real learning experience. To learn from their mistakes and learn

from their triumphs.”

Both pitchers helped Peslak out in different ways.

Lashley – known more as a strikeout pitcher with terrific stuff – helped Peslak out with the physical part of the game such as mechanics and delivery.

Pirone, the groundball specialist and innings eater, helped Peslak learn the mental aspects of the game.

To go from throwing just 5 2/3 innings in a whole season to being the most relied-upon pitcher surely isn’t an easy task.

Peslak has been preparing for this role for a long time and her hard work is paying off.

“I haven’t thrown this much since high school,” Peslak said.

“But I feel prepared for it. We worked a lot in the offseason.

“Our coaching staff really helped prepare me. It was a tough transition, I’m not going to lie. But I was able to do it with the help of my coaching staff.”

Coming into the season, it appeared that Peslak and incoming freshman Madison Grimm were going to be competing for time on the mound.

Despite the competition

between the two pitchers, Peslak says that the two are teammates more than they are rivals.

“We help each other out and try to make each other better,” Peslak said of Grimm.

“When I’m not doing well in a workout she’ll tell me.

“I see her more as a friend who is trying to make me better and I’m doing the same for her.”

The Pride pitching staff, headlined by Peslak and Grimm, has posted a 4.63 ERA so far this season.

The two pitchers have led the Pride to an 18-15 overall record and are both young enough to continue improving their game.

Peslak’s specialty this season has been helping her team win.

She’s posted a 12-6 record on the season so far.

The Pride is just 5-7 in games not started by Peslak.

“Softball is a game of failure and you’re going to fail more often than you succeed,” Peslak said. “The coaching staff has helped me deal with adversity and challenges.

“They’ve helped me learn how to bounce back and help my team win. We’re looking to

Cam Keough/The Chronicle Jessica Peslak has been the number one starter for the Pride this season.

accomplish the same thing we did last year.

“We’re looking for a CAA championship and we want to

get better every day. We want to make the regional championship and make it to the College World Series.”

Hofstra knocks off Elon in extras, wins series

By Jeff Werner STAFF WRITER

Cam Keough/The Chronicle Brielle Pietrafasa’s 10th inning RBI single to center drove in the go-ahead run.

After splitting the doubleheader against the Elon Phoenix on Saturday, the Hofstra Pride softball team took the rubber match of the series on Sunday, winning 4-3 in extra innings at University Field.

Most of the game was dominated by the pitching.

Jessica Peslak of Hofstra and Kayla Caruso of Elon each pitched five-plus scoreless innings.

Peslak, despite giving up three runs, pitched a total of 10 innings with two strikeouts and five hits.

It was only a matter of time before one of the offenses broke the scoreless game.

That offense came in the sixth inning in the form of Elon’s Carey Million. She belted the ball over the left-center wall, giving the Phoenix a 2-0 lead.

With its back against the wall, the Pride rallied to tie the game back up in the top of the seventh.

Brittany Allocca got the rally started with a solo home run to open the inning. Then, with a runner on second and two outs, Lacey Clark hit the ball hard enough to right field to drive in the runner and keep the Pride alive.

Elon couldn’t answer the tworun inning rally in the bottom of the seventh, so the game went into extra innings.

Pitching once again dominated the game, not allowing any runs until the eleventh inning.

By then, the Phoenix were starting to show fatigue, as an error and sacrifice bunt put runners on second and third with one out for Brielle Pietrafesa, who singled to center field, allowing the runner on third to score.

Following Pietrafesa’s RBI single, Alyssa Cuzzola grounded out to third, adding an insurance run and making it a 4-2 game.

That insurance run proved to be decisive, as Peslak gave up

a solo homer at the start of the bottom half of the 11th. Head coach Larissa Anderson decided to pull Peslak, put in Courtney Scarpato and she shut the door on the Phoenix to give Hofstra the 4-3 victory.

With the win, Hofstra gets back to an even record in conference play at 4-4.

Next up for the Pride will be a trip to New Rochelle, New York, for a game against Iona College on Wednesday before a three-game series next weekend against the Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens.

First pitch for Iona starts at 3 p.m., followed by game one against Delaware also commences at 3 p.m.

Back Cover: Jessica Peslak improved her record to 14-6 after the series finale against the Elon Phoenix on Sunday.

The Hofstra

Chronicle

Extra! Extra!

Jessica Peslak throws 10 innings en route to win in rubber match against Elon Cam Keough/The Chronicle