I N D I A N A D A I LY S T U D E N T | T H U R S D AY, J A N . 1 5 , 2 0 1 5 | I D S N E W S . C O M
Campus dining rethinks labeling
IDS
By Bridget Murray bridmurr@indiana.edu | @bridget_murray
RACHEL MEERT | IDS
Actress and activist Laverne Cox spoke about her experience as a transgender woman during her lecture Wednesday at IU Auditorium.
& to Cream&Crimson
From Orange
Black
Laverne Cox takes stage for Union Board sponsored talk By Lanie Maresh emaresh@indiana.edu
Last night, Laverne Cox opened to a full house. An hour before the show started, freshman Andy Branham stood at the head of the long line that had formed in front of the auditorium doors. Behind those doors, Laverne Cox, star of “Orange is the New Black,” was prepping for her Union Board-sponsored talk. “I watch ‘Orange is the New Black,’ and I know a little bit about Laverne’s activism,” Branham said. “I have seen some of her speeches before and I know she is a really good speaker, so I wanted to come and she what she had
to say.” Wednesday evening, Cox spoke at the IU Auditorium about her journey of being transgender and how that influenced her career and life. “Hopefully she speaks about her experience as a trans woman,” Branham said. “I’m trans, so that’s something I’d really like to hear about.” The crowd erupted, applauding and cheering as Cox graced the stage. She sported a red and black dress and her curled blonde hair swayed as she placed herself behind the podium. “Indiana University,” Cox said. “Indiana University, oh my goodness.” Cox attended IU for two years for her undergraduate studies. “I gotta tell you that I’m pretty
emotional tonight because this is my first time being back in Bloomington, Indiana, since I left here so many years ago,” Cox said. “It feels real good to be back.” When the cheering simmered, Cox switched gears to address a more serious subject. “According to the Injustice at Every Turn National Transgender Survey, 78 percent of students in grades K through 12 who express a transgender identity experience harassment or bullying,” she said. “Seventy-eight percent.” Cox continued, sharing some of her own experiences as a child that SEE COX, PAGE 6
RPS Dining Services put a new spin on old favorites Wednesday. The Good2Go, or G2G, campaign for carryout food products in residential dining halls, emphasizes a fresh taste with a fresh look. “We do a lot of grab-and-go, if you will, carryout at all of our locations, and we wanted to give it a new look,” Director of RPS Dining Services Sarah Fowler said. Chris Frank, RPS dining marketing manager, said the rebranding of prepackaged foods is meant to bring attention to the freshness. “Obviously we’ve taken a big step in it looking more professional,” Frank said. “I think, really, that is just more a matter of bringing the communication, the marketing about it, up to the quality of the food.” The new packaging clearly displays the green G2G label on the front, indicating what the product is and a few key ingredients. Freshman Tom McGue said he liked that the label was larger and he could clearly read the descriptions on the front. “It just generally looks nicer, too,” McGue said. The new label on prepackaged food is not only an aesthetic change but also emphasizes the locality of the products. “The focus is all on the food being fresh because it was made on campus,” Frank said. He said he would consider many of the products “homemade,” meaning the food is assembled on campus rather than shipped as a prepackaged item. Freshman Emma Gill is an organic consumer, and she said knowing if her food is fresh and where it comes from is important to her. She said she liked knowing G2G products were made on campus. The perception of the product is important, Frank said. He said the better quality of the packaging and more visible information about the ingredients is key to giving the consumer a better perception of the product and how it was made. “There’s a lot of attention to detail that gives the customer a little bit more access and a little bit more power,” he said. One side of the label contains a full ingredient list, while the other side has a Quick Response code that Frank said leads to the nutrition facts for the product. Sophomore Ricky Picardi said nutrition is important to him, but the placement of the information on the package was difficult to see. SEE RPS, PAGE 6
IU, Ivy Tech respond to presidential proposal for free community college tuition
Former UAB running back trying to establish his own legacy at IU By Sam Beishuizen
By Brett Frieman bfrieman@indiana.edu | @brettfrieman
American college students could soon be eligible for free education. President Barack Obama has proposed a plan that would provide two free years of community college to students who meet certain requirements. The proposal, America’s College Promise, would implement new partnerships with states in order to make the tuition for well-ranked community college programs free to students who are at least attending school parttime and have a 2.5 grade-point average. This plan would offer community college students feasible tuition and open admission policies to conveniently-located campuses. The federal government would cover 75 percent of the costs, while states would be responsible for the remaining one-fourth. The proposal is contingent on the current job market in conjunction with standard educational requirements for entry-level jobs. According to a press release from the White House, in five years an estimated 35 percent of job openings will require at least a bachelor’s degree and 30 percent will require some college or an associate’s degree. Although the proposal has yet to go through Congress, the impact of it could positively aid
Bloomington as well as the rest of Indiana, with Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana being the state’s largest institution of higher education. “Certainly this plan will benefit Ivy Tech and other colleges across the country with increased enrollment,” said Jennie Vaughan, Chancellor of Ivy Tech-Bloomington. “With our capital campaign under way and building expansion expected to be completed for spring semester 2016, we are confident we can accommodate the influx of students we expect to see if America’s College Promise moves forward.” Vaughan said the real benefit from this proposal would be a national one and that Ivy Tech president Tom Snyder referred to this plan as a game-changer for our country. Not all, however, are anticipating that this proposal would be in the state’s best interest, let alone the entire country. Don Hossler, Professor of Higher Education at IU, said that not every state has fully recovered from the 2008 recession and therefore may be reluctant to commit to any cost-sharing proposals that President Obama has put forth. He said this type of program does have a history of success, datSEE COLLEGE, PAGE 6
sbeishui@indiana.edu | @Sam_Beishuizen
When sophomore receiver Marqui Hawkins arrived on campus at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, everyone was talking about one player in particular: Jordan Howard. Naturally, Hawkins wanted to see the running back turn heads. So Howard did, at practice and on film. But he didn’t quite leave his impression on Hawkins until UAB’s first game last season against Troy. “That Troy game, the first game, it was unbelievable,” Hawkins said. Howard, who transferred to IU this month, ran for 179 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries that game. It was just the beginning of a 1,587-yard season with 13 touchdowns and only two fumbles. By now, Hawkins is familiar with Howard, a true junior. The two are good friends and both set to join the Hoosiers for the 2015 season. When Howard steps onto the field, he’ll be lining up in the same place that junior running back Tevin Coleman stood before declaring for the NFL draft. Howard has stressed he’s not trying to replace Coleman, but rather add his own flair to the Hoosiers’ offense. But what, exactly, is that? What was it that made him turn his teammates’ heads at UAB? “He don’t go down on the first
COURTESY PHOTO
Former UAB running back Jordan Howard is amongst the commits for the 2015-2016 IU football season.
tackle,” Hawkins said. “He’s a good player. He can see the holes. He’s got good vision. He’s about to do good things at Indiana.” When Howard is running, he doesn’t think about being hit. He prides himself on his toughness.
The 6-foot-1, 228-pound rusher wants to be the one doing the hitting. A physical back, Howard doesn’t like being brought to the SEE HOWARD, PAGE 6