The Equinox 11.29.18

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THE EQUINOX The student voice of Keene State College

Vol. 71, Issue #12

Thursday, November 29, 2018

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Facilitating fingerprinting

Campus Safety and the Education department collaborate to streamline background check process RACHEL VITELLO

Equinox Staff As of Sept. 16, 2017, students who are admitted into Education Preparation in the state of New Hampshire are required to complete a background check, which involves having their fingerprints done. Previously, education students did not need to complete background checks until they were beginning student teaching. Due to this new law, the Educator Preparation Office at Keene State College began collaborating with KSC Campus Safety since last fall to allow the fingerprints to be done at Campus Safety right on campus.

Director of Campus Safety and Compliance Jeffrey Maher said, “Campus Safety is happy to partner with the Education Department on this initiative. We hope that by delivering this service, our students will be able to complete all required steps in a more streamlined fashion with minimal inconvenience.”

In past years, students have had to visit one of a few live scan stations in the Keene area to have their fingerprints scanned. The most common one for KSC students to visit is at Troop C or the Keene Police Department.

KSC junior and education major Victoria Pelletier has already had her fingerprinting done

and had to go to one of the live scan stations in town. She said that finding transportation and going to a specific location was a time consuming and inconvenient process for her.

“Not only did I have to wait in line due to the mass amount of people, but also the process of the fingerprints itself took very long. If we had a machine on campus, I think that it would decrease the amount of time spent getting them done for students because it would only be a select few getting them done. Having this will be a very valuable and beneficial addition to the campus due to its convenience,” Pelletier said.

The Director of the Educator Preparation Office Kate O’Connor said that since students need to have this completed earlier in their college career, the number of students going to get their fingerprints increased greatly this past year.

“Because of the volume of students that needed it, there was a difficulty in students getting fingerprinting done locally at Troop C. This was an alternative option that we hoped to introduce to students and it would ease some of the logistics for them. We wanted to make it as easy as possible for them,” O’Connor said.

Making fingerprinting available on campus was a collective solution from the Educator Preparation Office in response to issues students were

having. After the idea was introduced, Director of Educator Preparation Lizbeth Buoro said the next step was conducting research and composing the proposal.

“There were existing live scan stations on other college campuses. One of the first things we did was conduct some research and talk to those people. We visited St. Anselm’s College and got information on how they were doing that, and that really helped us make the decision and move forward,” Buoro said.

As for where they are in the process right now, the equipment has arrived on campus, but Campus Safety still needs to be trained on how to use it properly. O’Connor said that due to the high demand for this service, they are going to introduce it slowly to ensure that it is done successfully.

“The next step is setting up a process to roll this out for our education students gradually. It’s a lot of students so we want to make sure we do it well,” O’Connor said.

Buoro said that once the system is installed and training is done, they will communicate with a small number of students to start, and then increase that number going forward.

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Thursday, November 29, 2018

From write-in rep to vice president

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Student body VP Sydney Olson dedicates herself to student government AMANDA BEVIS

equiNox staff Sydney Olson is a senior secondary education and psychology major. Originally from Cheshire, Connecticut, Olson was drawn to Keene State’s campus when she toured colleges. Now, four years later, Olson has an internship with President Melinda Treadwell.

She is both a leader and a logistics chair for the Alternative Break Program, and she is the community service chair for her sorority Delta Xi Phi. “I actually got involved in Student Government because I was a write-in for a Representative position two years ago. A lot of my friends were involved in this organization and it seemed like a way to really make an impact on KSC. I really like the impact that Student Government can have on the campus community. I believe that creating a tight-knit community feeling is important in a college, and I believe that Student Government has a big part in being able to do just that,” Olson said.

Further describing her position in student government on campus, Olson said, “As the Student Body Vice President, my job is to work alongside the Student Body President. We co-chair the Events committee. An example of what this committee does is put on Pumpkin Lobotomy and Carnival. If Sarah [Dugas], who is the Student Body President, ever needs some help, I am the

first person that she would get in contact with.”

Olson explained that her role as the Student Body Vice President is enjoyable for her. “Because of how much effort that I get to put into the organization that I love, it is so rewarding to see more and more students join this organization and how happy they are to be here. A few students from the class of 2022 picked up petitions the other day and it made my heart smile to see how determined these students were.”

“My overall goal for myself is to have the students feel like their voice is being heard, as Student Government is a large part in relaying student messages to the administrators of the school!” Olson said. “I would actually love for more people to join Student Government! It may seem a little scary and overwhelming from the outside. I thought so, too, but is actually the most rewarding thing I could’ve done. Class of 2022, 2021, and 2019 all have open spots on their E-boards! If anyone is interested, please pick up petitions, or get in contact with Sarah.Willson@ksc.keene.edu or myself if you have any questions!”

President Melinda Treadwell has worked closely with Olson through her internship that began this fall, “Sydney’s participation in student government and student activities helped me to think she could help connect as a liaison into those organizations, to bring ideas back, or get me engaged where I need to be. I think she has been an active person on campus, she’s been

engaged in a lot of different organizations, and that was really what resonated for me.”

“She’s been phenomenal. I think she brings high energy and a lot of organization. She, in the few weeks that she’s been with me … has been able to put research and ideas on the table in front of me … She’s been very professional about it. She’s gotten a lot done in a very short period of time,” Treadwell said.

Junior political science and management major Emily Foy is the Student Assembly Treasurer. Her role in student government includes managing all student organization budgets and chairing the finance committee.

Foy described how much Olson has accomplished during her time in student government: “Last year when she was on the class of 2020 e-board, she always had the most creative fundraising ideas, which really helped our class raise money for more class events. This year as Student Body Vice President, she already accomplished so much. [She] and Student Body President Sarah Dugas have worked hard to bring back Pumpkin Lobotomy, which has to be a Keene State tradition. In her time in student government, she has really grown and blossomed as a person, and has transformed into such a strong and helpful leader.”

Madison Olsen, who said she met Sydney Olson through their mutual friend Foy, is a junior secondary education and English literature major. Madison Olsen

is the chair of the Off Campus Housing Committee and the Class of 2020 President. She said her main job as class president is to run Class of 2020 executive board meetings and to create fun events for the Class of 2020 to enjoy.

Madison Olsen said, “Sydney puts Student Government as a top priority for her. She has brought creative ideas to the organization, like the activity for this year’s Rocktoberfest. She also does a great job acting as a liaison between Student Government and the KSC administration. The amount of time, energy and passion that Sydney gives to Student Government is inspiring.”

“In the future, I see Sydney Olson continuing to change lives, as she is today. I see her working with children, probably as a social worker. She is passionate about helping kids succeed and to see their worth. I am beyond excited to see where she goes and whose lives she changes,” Madison Olsen said. “Sydney is the most amazing person that I have ever met, and I am beyond proud of her. If the world had more Sydneys, the world would be full of a lot more peace, laughter and happiness.”

Amanda Bevis can be contacted at abevis@kscequionox.com

BRIEF

Odor causes major disruption in The Commons VINCENT MOORE

News editor An unknown pungent odor led to The Commons building being evacuated early afternoon Monday, Nov. 12.

First-year architecture major Melissa Field said she smelled what she suspected was a gas leak in her common area before the building’s fire alarm went off, “We saw a Campus Safety officer coming down the stairs, and we walked from one end of the building to the other into my room and then the fire alarm went off, and we walked out.”

Keene Fire Captain Jason Martin said that the Keene Fire Department was notified of the problem by Campus Safety.

“We received a masterbox, which is the fire alarm that went off. When we were en route we got an update that [Campus Safety] was actually here and pulled the pull station because they were called for an odor of something on the third floor. We got here, we went up and investigated, we had an odor on the third floor. We went through with our meters, and we had zero readings of anything. That’s [Carbon Monoxide], sewer gas, hydrogen-cyanide, we had no readings whatsoever. So we chose to ventilate the building,” Martin said.

Not every student left immediately after the alarm sounded. First-year architecture major Charles Shepley left the building through the emergency stairwell some time after the building had been evacuated.

“I just woke up from a nap, I had my headphones in, and I looked outside and I saw the firetruck. So I just went down the emergency

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ANGELIUQE INCHIERCA / SENIOR STAFF

FINGERPRINT cont. from A1

The goal of providing fingerprinting on campus is not only to provide student support, but to allow education students to have a better understanding of going through the background check process.

“It’s important for our students to understand the process because they’re doing the checks twice. When they are admitted to Educator Preparation, and they’re also going need to go through the same process when they graduate and they’re hired. It’s good experience for them to go through this and for us to support them in the process,” Buoro said.

In the meantime, and also in the future, education students can continue going to Troop C or other live scan stations to have their fingerprints done. The exact date of when fingerprinting will be available at Campus Safety can not be determined at this time. However, Maher said that Campus Safety hopes to begin training on the equipment later this month and condust some trials once training is complete.

Unable to detect harmful gasses, the Keene Fire Department ventilated The Commons building after a pungent odor was reported.

stairwell… they just told me next time to get ruled out that it was anything combustible, ventilated it, hasn’t started to come back, so out a little sooner,” Shepley said. nothing like [Carbon Monoxide] or anything it’s a safe environment.”

Martin said that the Fire Department was hazardous that we would’ve picked up on our unable to determine what had caused the odor readings. Unfortunately we don’t know what Vincent Moore can be contacted at vmoore@ but said that the building was safe, “We’ve it is, it was a pungent smell of some sort. We’ve kscequinox.com

Rachel Vitello can be contacted at rvitello@kscequinox.com

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News / A3

Thursday, November 29, 2018

Poets and scholars help bridge continents

CONTRIBUTED BY RODGER MARTIN

In response to last year’s Magic of Monadnock Symposium at Keene State College, Yancheng Teacher’s University invited seven American poets and scholars to visit China and participate in a week-long celebration of poetry bridging continents. Included in the week were readings, talks, calligraphy and visits to both urban and rural historic sites. From left to right, poet Susan Roney-O’Brien, Mason Library archivist Rodney Obien, poet Claire Mowbry Golding, American Studies professor Mark Long, poet Maura MacNeil, Dean of Mason Library Celia Rabinowitz, Journalism professor Rodger Martin and poet Chen Yihai. Look for a follow-up story in next week’s edition of the Equinox.

Changes considered for long-standing graduation tradition EMILY CARSTENSEN

Equinox Staff President Melinda Treadwell and student government are looking to change a tradition that was put in place for Keene State College’s 75th institutional birthday.

The idea to change the tradition of hoods being worn by undergraduates during graduation ceremonies has been brought up because of the cost of the hoods and how non-typical the tradition really is.

Coordinator of College Ceremonies and Events Rebecca Dixon proposed the idea to student government to use medallions instead of hoods at graduation. The medallions would cost less than the hoods.

“These medallions would be purchased by the college for our students at commence-

ment. It’s about a third of the cost because the hoods are more expensive,” Treadwell said.

Although the hoods have been a long lasting tradition at KSC, President Treadwell said the medallions will hopefully be more meaningful to students after they graduate.

“Yes, it’s cost saving, but we hope it’ll be a tradition that’s even more meaningful. A medallion could be displayed in an office, in a car, whereas a commencement hood, not so much,” Treadwell said.

Vice President of the class of 2019 Allie Tolles said the decision the executive board made for their 2019 convocation was a decision that made the most sense financially.

“The Class of 2019 Executive board has decided that neither will be used at the 2019 convocation because neither seemed appro-

COLLEGE SENATE VINCENT MOORE

nEwS Editor

The Keene State College senate met for its 479th meeting Wednesday, Nov. 14 in the Mountainview Room of the Student Center.

During the courtesy period, Provost Nancy Fey-Yensan said that President Treadwell was unable to attend the meeting because she was hosting the Board of Trustees on campus for the day.

The Senate Executive Committee reported that it met on Nov. 7 and discussed next year’s ISP agenda and a resolution from the University of New Hampshire’s Senate that urged the state of New Hampshire to support higher education. The Committee discussed and voted to bring the resolution to the full senate, which subsequently voted on and passed the motion.

The last item on the Executive Committee’s agenda was regarding concerns over approach to the

combined masters program in exercise science.

The Academic Policy Committee reported that it had discussed policy issues regarding multidisciplinary minors.

The Academic Standards Committee met twice, with its first meeting focusing around the work the committee does, and the second meeting featured discussion of a proposal for an art design BFA. The Senate Curriculum Committee reported that at its Oct. 24 meeting they discussed several curriculum proposals and deadlines. On their Nov. 7 meeting, the Committee reported that it had discussed various other courses, majors and minors.

There was no new business.

Vincent Moore can be contacted at vmoore@kscequinox.com

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priate nor a good use of funds. However, future classes can decide for themselves,” Tolle said.

The decision to have neither option at the 2019 convocation is a decision Robillard said most students won’t even notice. “Students probably will not care either way. Most schools don’t do either and we doubt that students will notice. We think that those students who want to wear something to distinguish themselves have done impressive work within their academics and on campus over the past four years. Those students who have earned those distinctions will stand out even more now,” Robillard said.

President of the class of 2019 Briae Robillard said hoods and medallions have different meanings, but ultimately don’t hold

much importance because most schools don’t use either.

“The hoods represent master graduates and not undergraduates. Medallions can be worn for student’s undergraduate and future ceremonies, but they typically represent those who receive some kind of outstanding academic award or recognition,” Robillard said.

President Treadwell said the proposal for change was caused by the cost of the hoods and the idea of possibly saving money, but if students don’t want to make the change, the college would work with them to figure it out, “It’s really from a philosophical perspective of, ‘Does it make sense for us to have something in our regalia that’s totally out of the norm?’ If students want it, we’re gonna find a way to try and do it. But my

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hope is that we can talk about this and see if there’s another way to signify it.”

Before any change was made, President Treadwell said student feedback was important to hear because this decision was something that would affect all students.

“We can’t just cut it from the budget, let’s talk with students. The reason it was cut is because it’s such an atypical activity for a college to have hoods, number one, that we would buy, number two, at the undergrad level it’s not normal regalia,” Treadwell said.

Emily Carstensen can be contacted at ecarstensen@kscequinox.com

STUDENT ASSEMBLY SEBASTIEN MEHEGAN

ExEcutivE Editor

NEWS EDITOR VINCENT MOORE (603) 443-3877

For the third Student Assembly in a row, presentations were made to increase the student fee budget for three different departments.

The Student Assembly was called to order at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday Nov. 27.

Director of the Counseling Center and Interim Director of the Center for Health and Wellness Dr. Brian Quigley presented to increase the student fee budget for the Counseling Center and the Center for Health and Wellness by 2.5 percent, due to the increase in students needing mental assistance even though enrollment has been down. The money would continue to provide services as readily as the Counseling Center prefers. The increase was approved unanimously.

Director of Campus Life Jennifer Ferrell presented for the Student Center and the Dining Services Program, asking for a 2.5 percent increase in their student fee budget. Ferrell explained that without the additional revenue a projected decrease in enrollment, building and operation hours would have to be decreased along with less job opportunities for students and even staff cuts. For the Student Center budget, Ferrell said they were looking into revamping some of the outdated technology in the building and perhaps replacing some of the furniture. Ferrell’s request was approved.

At the end of the meeting, Winter Celebration on Wednesday, Dec. 5 was announced. The final Student Assembly is next Tuesday, Dec. 4.

Sebastien Mehegan can be contacted at smehegan@kscequinox.com

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OPINIONS

Opinions / A4 Thursday, November 29, 2018

EDITORIAL

Many can agree that waking up at four in the morning isn’t what they want to be doing after eating all those mashed potatoes and being interrogated by multiple family members. But many will willingly do so. Could it be the amazing deals, the electronics they bring home, or just the tradition itself? Yes, it’s a nationally well-known day and will most likely stay an American tradition for many years to come — but that doesn’t mean it’s a relaxing day, in and out of a store. It is a stressful day for everyone.

Pushing shopping on Thanksgiving doesn’t only put pressure on people to jump out of their food coma; it takes people away from their family gatherings because they have to run to work or to make it to the stores in time for the deals. It’s an odd experience to go from Thanksgiving, the day of thanks where people are thankful for what they have, to Black Friday where they need to buy everything that they don’t have. Many are thankful they make it out of Best Buy or Walmart alive.

No one signs up for getting knocked out over a flat screen, but it will happen. With the motto “first come first serve,” everyone is at risk for getting hurt — maybe the day should be called “Black Eye Friday.” In the end, is it worth the injuries? Some will say, “yes, I need all these things,” but do they actually? No, most people don’t need three of the new Macbooks, but some of the pushes and shoves are from people who go shopping to buy things they normally can’t afford.

The day is not what it used to be, the materialism is still high, but years ago it was overall a more exciting experience.

The old days for us young people were where people were camping outside of stores at 2 a.m., when the excitement felt was built on spending more time with family and accomplishing the missions our parents sent us on. Some went for the deals, others went for the excitement. The “tradition” should be called “Black Weekend” because the day lost its magic and isn’t even one day thing anymore.

The shopping hysteria in many cases isn’t even warranted, as some vendors stealthily markup their prices in the weeks leading up to Black Friday so that the supposed discount is more often than not the normal price. It’s the ugliest side of consumerism in the culture. It encourages people to get things they don’t need. It’s really just an excuse to get more stuff to fill a hole that will never be filled.

A safer and easier alternative to getting a better price for your Christmas presents is the following Monday. Some have turned to ordering their supposedly discounted appliances online on Cyber Monday to avoid leaving the comfort of home for the lines and chaos of buying in person and to support small online businesses.

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As the crazy holiday weekend passed, we are all just lucky to have eaten a little stuffing and snagged a couple stocking stuffers to look back on. For the rest of the season, we hope everyone has a stressless and memorable shopping experience.

PUB CRAWL: THE DREADFUL AFTERMATH ADRIANA SANCHEZ

Social Media director It’s something you hear about and have been looking forward to since the day you got to Keene State: The Pub Crawl. It’s a chance to be with all your friends, and hop from bar to bar the whole day. But nobody ever warns you about the consequences: How you’re going to feel the day after. Let me tell you, it’s like being hit by a truck.

Don’t get me wrong, the Pub Crawl is an experience you’ll look back on for the rest of your life. You’re with all your friends not worrying about an exam coming up, or homework, work and anything else that’s a bump in the road.

It’s all fun and games until you wake up. The sun and any noise makes you regret everything you consumed. This year, my class, class of 2019, was fortunate

to not have school the next day (due to the holiday.)

It hasn’t always been like that. I remember my sophomore year, half of my class wasn’t there because they were all trying to recover from the Pub Crawl.

Although you know you have homework, you still sit in bed all day and check if your friends are still alive.

You wake up and look at your messages, “Are you alive?”, “You good?”, and my favorite one, “What happened?”

I don’t know how the bars do this every year, every semester. I wonder how much money in repairs they’ve gone through since starting this tradition. Let’s be real, the bathroom might be the worst thing to clean after.

I can only imagine the smell. During the Pub Crawl when you’re hoping bar to bar, the bathroom becomes your best friend. How can it not?

The real question is, who invented Senior Pub Crawl? Did somebody just sit down and think ‘Yeah,

the whole senior class with all the bars to themselves for a whole day is a good idea!’ Because it’s not. If you ask a senior if they remember anything from that day, the answer is probably no. Because I don’t.

You have to give props where it’s needed — to the seniors that still go back out after the day is done. It starts at 12 in the afternoon and doesn’t end until seven at night. I was on yellow team, so my last bar was Cobblestone. I remember some of my team wanted to stay after the Crawl ended, but in order for us to stay, we had to go home and change out of our Pub Crawl shirts, which was pretty annoying to me.

Speaking of annoying, as much as it’s fun being in the bar, let’s talk about actually getting to the bars. The walking part is annoying when you have to go from Thirsty Owl all the way to Scores. But it doesn’t stop there — you have wait in line and get your ID checked.

You would think signing up would mean you’re 21. I

understand the people that might try to sneak their way in, but the bouncer who knows who you are shouldn’t be bending an ID like they haven’t seen an ID before. I waited outside of Cobblestone in the freezing cold to get in for so long, which was not fun. The scary part is looking at your bank account the next day.

You need moral support for that one.

Many people can relate to this one: You can’t hold anything down in your system the day after. You’re just staring at the toilet or your trash can for hours. It seems like you’re never going to recover from being hungover. Some might say it’s their worst one. But, class of 2019, guess what; it’s not over yet. We have one more to do, and let’s get ready to make more memories that will last a lifetime. The Pub crawl is the worst and best thing to ever happen to us.

Adriana Sanchez can be contacted at asanchez@kscequinox.com ADRIANA DANIEL / EQUINOX STAFF

THE EQUINOX

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EDITORIAL POLICY

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All articles and opinion pieces are assigned, written and edited by students without censor by administrators, faculty or staff.

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Opinions / A5

Thursday, November 29, 2018

STAFF COMMENTARY

The Thanksgiving reality KIANA WRIGHT

opinionS Editor Thanksgiving is a day filled with old family recipes, sharing memories with younger cousins, and the popping of sparkling apple cider. Everyone who enjoys this holiday would say that it represents love, giving, and a “great” history for the nation. These people are the same people that were taught that the pilgrims and the Native Americans were of a brotherhood — they put aside their differences, understood each other for who they were and celebrated a new tradition over a wonderfully cooked turkey. Almost everyone has learned this “cover up.” It’s usually taught in elementary schools, followed up with the students dressing up as Native Americans, incorrectly called “Indians.” It’s sad to think that most people still don’t know what actually happened on the last Thursday of November, the “day of thanks.”

In a Huffington Post article by Richard Schiffman, he explains that what most students are taught about this national holiday is: “Fleeing religious persecution, the Pilgrims sailed from England, landed on Plymouth rock over two months later, barely survived their first winter. With the help of Squanto and the friendly Wampanoag, who taught them how to exploit the local fish and game, plant corn and squash, and also protected them from other hostile tribes, the band of colonists succeeded in establishing a tenuous foothold at the edge of the North American wilderness.

The first Thanksgiving in 1621 was held to celebrate a bountiful harvest with the tribe that helped make it possible.” Why are these lies spread? Could the reason be

that as young children, knowing a basic of what’s right and what’s wrong, telling the full story could make the new generations think less of our founding fathers, and even question the nation’s principles?

On manataka.org, the Manataka American Indian council website, Susan Bates writes about what she believes happened: “In 1637 near present day Groton, Connecticut, over 700 men, women and children of the Pequot Tribe had gathered for their annual Green Corn Festival, which is our Thanksgiving celebration.

In the predawn hours the sleeping Indians were surrounded by English and Dutch mercenaries who ordered them to come outside. Those who came out were shot or clubbed to death while the terrified women and children who huddled inside the longhouse were burned alive.

The next day the governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony declared ‘A Day Of Thanksgiving’ because 700 unarmed men, women and children had been murdered.”

Many, like Bates, would describe the day as a tragic betrayal by the Englishmen that planned on making the land theirs. One of the Native Americans that the story brings up is Squanto. He was the man that taught the Englishmen how to plant corn; instead he was taken from his homeland and then moved across the globe more than once into slavery before he finally escaped back to his homeland.

When he returned, he noticed that everyone in his tribe died years prior due to an epidemic. Soon after the English came to America to settle, they turned to mass killings of the indigenous people. The way that people have been treated in this country in no way should be overlooked.

Lies are being taught in schools and that will not get the nation or its people anywhere. There has been many times where America, the land of the free, has treated people differently and hurt or even killed them based on who they are. Incorrectly covering the history of what our founders did will only ensure that it will happen again.

Tikkun.org stated that, “Barack Obama has called slavery our original sin.

But the historical fact is that slavery was our second sin. The original one was the taking of this continent and the near annihilation of its original inhabitants. The Thanksgiving Myth covers this over with a story of brotherhood and generosity. It induces a historical amnesia.”

Kiana Wright can be contacted at kwright@kscequinox.com

“There has been many times where America, the land of the free, has treated people differently and hurt or even killed them based on who they are.”

LAURA ROMANIELLO / ART DIRECTOR

Traditions vs beginnings

STAFF COMMENTARY

STAFF COMMENTARY

Dear students, it’s shopping season!

LINDSAY GIBBONS

Equinox Staff

LAURA ROMANIELLO / ART DIRECTOR

Trading hoods for medals this graduation SEBASTIEN MEHEGAN

ExEcutivE Editor For the last few years it has been proposed that Keene State College end the tradition of giving the graduating class commencement hoods as part of their graduation regalia.

Last year, The Equinox published many articles regarding regalia hoods given to Keene State College seniors for their graduation. This year, President Melinda Treadwell has suggested to the student assembly that they consider handing out medallions instead.

As a senior of the class of 2019, I feel comfortable saying my drive to graduate has little to nothing to do with what I wear or how I look on graduation day. My motivation to graduate, as well as my drive to go to college in the first place, is to better myself and have more opportunities than I did before I came to Keene State College.

In addition, it’s important to note the financial difference between regalia hoods and medallions. Last year The Equinox reported that it would cost $35,000 to purchase the hoods.

Vice President for Finance and Administration Susan LaPanne did not specify a number for the medallions but did say they would be much cheaper. With the tuition being increased, admission rates going down and club budgets being slashed, the cheaper option makes sense across the board. Financial

reasons notwithstanding, the tradition of wearing a hood during graduation is one usually recognized by grad schools.

This tradition of giving seniors at KSC hoods doesn’t make sense for this reason because if someone goes to grad school, they will be wearing their grad school hood not their KSC one, and because they will have gotten their grad school hood they will never wear the KSC one. Anyone who doesn’t go to grad school still probably won’t wear their graduation gown again, so for them it also makes little sense to give them such an adornment. Medallions, however, can be kept as a nice keepsake that’s easy to store away or display.

On top of that, upon hearing there might be controversy regarding this issue, the senior class representatives present during the assembly made a point of order saying they didn’t know what the hoods actually were.

With that in mind, it is more frugal, convenient and frankly more appropriate to receive a medallion rather than a hood.

I will be present on the day of graduation to walk down the procession with my classmates and shake hands with President Melinda Treadwell in recognition of my hard work and accomplishment. Whether I am there with my hood, robe or cap means very little to me.

Sebastien Mehegan can be contacted at smehegan@kscequinox.com

It’s that time of year! The holiday season has officially begun! Christmas shopping can be hard for anyone. There’s crowded malls, no parking spaces, and you never really know if you’re getting a good deal. According to ABC, the average person plans to spend about $900 this holiday season. However, with a much lower budget, holiday shopping can be even harder for college students.

With only a few weeks before fall semester ends, it’s crunch time for holiday shopping. We need gifts for college friends who we won’t see until next semester, gifts for our friends back home for when we see them during the break, and of course our family members. Buying all those gifts for everyone while also trying to stay on a budget is quite the ordeal. We have papers to write, exams to take, projects to finish and events to attend. You name it, and it’s on our list. It can be difficult to even find a time to go shopping for gifts in the first place.

When students can finally make time in their schedule to shop, it’s even harder to stay on budget.

Holiday shopping is stressful for everyone. Adding a very small budget — and, in a lot of cases, a very limited time frame — can turn it into a nightmare.

As if it wasn’t hard enough to stay focused and on budget, retailers also do their best to ensure you buy much more than you were intending.

Stores have all sorts of sneaky tricks to scam you into spending more money. One that isn’t commonly thought of but has a big impact on sales is the music playing in the store. Research from the Association of Psychological Science found that stores play relaxing music to entice you into spending more time there. “Retailers pump Christmas songs through their stores to invoke emotions of nostalgia and generosity, all leading to a greater basket size,” said their study. If you’re already in a buying mood, chances are you’ll end up buying a few extra items simply because you’re staying in the store browsing for longer.

Many students choose to go to their local school’s bookstore to pick up some gifts for friends and family members.

However, the prices make these items very difficult for some students to afford. It’s no secret that textbooks are incredibly expen-

sive. According to the National Association of College stores, the average student spends $655 on textbooks each year. But the outrageous prices don’t end there. School apparel also has a track record for insane costs. Many families will understandably want clothing representing their child’s school. But the prices make it almost impossible for students to afford. A simple t-shirt can easily cost $25 or more while it’s not uncommon for sweatshirts to cost $50 or more. This can easily break the bank.

While the holidays will always be a busy and stressful time, there are a few things students can do to make it a little easier. If it’s possible in their budget, students can try fitting all of their shopping into one day. Make a list beforehand so you don’t end up wandering around the store with no idea what to buy anyone. Try choosing an empty Saturday night and heading to a mall that you know will have everything you need.

One of the best things students can do is make a budget and stick to it. Try not to let your emotions get the best of you and end up overspending. Figure out how much you have to spend on gifts in total and divide it by the number of people. With the right approach, you will be able to make everyone smile this holiday season with a thoughtful gift that won’t break the bank.

Lindsey Gibbons can be contacted at lgibbons@kscequinox. com

L AU R

MA A RO

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Love is love

Thursday, November 29, 2018

Jacqueline's movie mania

JOSEPH GUZMAN

Equinox Staff

From Tuesday Nov. 13 through Saturday Nov. 17, in the Redfern Arts Center at the Wright Theater, director Kristin Riegler brought her adaptation to life of a play called “Stop Kiss.” The show takes place in the late 90s in New York City and follows main character Callie (Heather Hunt, ‘19) who takes in a stranger’s cat, meeting the owner Sara (Mariah Palmer, ‘20). After having one conversation with her, they both hit it off very well and begin to spend more time together. One half of the show then dives into the blossoming relationship between the two girls and highlights the ups and downs. The other half is a mystery circling around a hate crime against the two girls for kissing.

The show covers an array of different emotions, having people laughing at a scene and then tearing up during the next. A special way the show does this and helps tell the story in a more unique way is not telling it in chronological order. The show starts you off with the normal beginning scene.

However, every other scene after that starts from the end of the show and works its way backwards, until both sides of the story meet in the middle, where the hate crime occurs. This helps strengthen the ending of the show, because you know what’s going to happen before it already does.

“Stop Kiss” had 6 performances that took place Nov. 13 all the way through the 17. The show was written by Diana Son and has a relatively small cast of 6. Besides Callie and Sara, there’s George (Isaiah Lapierre ‘19), Peter (Antony Gentile ‘19), Mrs. Winsley/Nurse (Emily McIntyre ‘20) and Detective Cole (Benjamin Dionne ‘22).

Dionne, Megan Marcotte, and Leah Mitnitsky thought that overall, the cast did a wonderful job and it was very entertaining and well produced with an interesting plot. When asked which part of the show that they found the most profound/heavy, Dionne said he thought that “The way they handle Sara’s coma is really incredible, like how they tip toe around it.”

Marcotte said, “What I found more profound about the show was the actors [comfort] with the audience. I was really surprised when the actors took off their clothes in front of everybody, because they were students just like everyone else.”

“The most profound part of the play was when Sarah and Callie were talking about the names they were being called,” said Mitnitsky. Both Dionne and Marcotte also agreed that the show should be higher regarded in terms of straight play shows. When being questioned about the narrative order of the show, Dionne explained how: “It’s such an interesting way of telling a story, the emotional whiplash is crazy.”

Marcotte also said, “I had already heard of ‘Stop Kiss,’ so I knew the scenes were out of order, but this specific (version) did a great job during those transitions.” Lastly, Mitnitsky said, “I thought it was cool how every scene took place from a different end of the story. At the end of the play I was able to piece it all together myself.”

Then talking about their favorite parts of the show, Dionne said it was an intense scene: “The best part, in my eyes was when George and Callie argue, it shows a whole different side of fun-loving George.”

Marcotte mentioned that her favorite part of the show was, “The scene where Callie and Sara lay in bed together until the sunlight comes through the window. I loved how the orange light slowly lit up the stage as if (the light was coming) through a window.”

Joseph Guzman can be contacted at jguzman@kscequinox.

ANGELIQUE INCHIERCA / SENIOR STAFF

Bohemian Rhapsody JACQUELINE PANTANO

Equinox Staff

CONTRIBUTED BY CELINE

PERRON

BRIEF

Where politics meets poetry ERIN MCNEMAR

artS & EntErtainmEnt Editor The Night Owl Cafe got a little taste of politics when awardwinning poet performer Carlos Andrés Gómez showcased his work on Thursday, Nov. 15.

Gómez began writing and performing poetry at the age of 17, and has read his poetry at over 200 colleges and universities. Gómez has also appeared on television networks such as MTV and HBO. “The biggest thing I think about when performing pieces is being as present as possible, listening, being genuine and having as much fun as possible,” Gómez said.

Gómez showcased his works that discussed topics such as love, respect for women and the concept of judgements. In-between poems, he interacted with audience members and talked about people being open minded.

Gómez explained that he often writes about the things that people don’t want to talk about, but might just be the most impor-

tant. “I think a lot of the inspiration for my poems comes from the overlooked moments, the deep silences that we don’t want to touch, my hope is to shed light on things that there is not light already being cast [on] and to put a voice to things that are surrounded in silence,” Gómez said.

During his performance, Gómez would stop to ask the audience questions about the area, to make his poems more relatable. At the end of the show, Gómez stayed around to sell his book, “Man Up” to those who attended.

While poetry can be up to the interpretation of the reader, Gómez has a message he wants people to take away. “I hope people feel and think in more profound and more complex ways. And I hope people feel inspired to be kind to themselves and be kinder to each other,” Gómez said.

Erin McNemar can be contacted at emcnemar@kscequinox.com

“Bohemian Rhapsody,” a Hollywood 20th Century Fox production, was made with a medium budget of $51 million. It was released on Nov. 2.

As of Nov. 11, it has grossed $311.2 million internationally. “Bohemian Rhapsody” was a box office smash. However, it was not seen favorably by the critics.

The authenticity of its plot was greatly and repeatedly questioned. Biographical films always encounter this obstacle. It is hard to define to what extent literary license can oblige the creator to change the facts.

The authenticity of a biographical film depends largely on the goal of the biographical film in question. “Bohemian Rhapsody” was aiming to satisfy the voyeuristic need of the audience by giving them a glimpse into a legendary celebrity’s life.

The film, more than feeding the viewers with a detailed, truthful and apathetic report of the events of Freddie Mercury’s life, concentrated on defining and depicting the celebrity’s personality. At that, it masterfully succeeded. “Bohemian Rhapsody” is authentic; it truthfully, thoroughly and beautifully projects on screen, for the pleasure of the audience’s eyes, a portrait of the legendary character of Freddie Mercury (Rami Malek).

The audience has the chance to take a literal musical ride into the mind of this mysterious figure. The viewers have a chance to learn his values, his attitude towards life, music, art, family, love and friends.

A troubled human, like all of us, was poured on screen. His relationship with his family, with his friends, his lovers and all the drama that any human life is deeply affected by was boundlessy presented to the audience.

The film masterfully depicted the life of this incredible artist. His emotions and the ones of his loved ones are painted on screen with detail and extreme care.

All of this, that appears on screen, is sometimes depicted as quiet, subtle and shy, other times as extravagant, excessive, fiery and wild. Every element of the film is a form of characterization: The ultimate goal is to present Freddie Mercury. It is often mistakenly said and assumed that what you do is who you are. What you believe, what you feel, is who you really are. A biographical film must show who its main character is. What he believes, what he feels, is what should be on screen. The facts count, but not solely and not entirely.

“Bohemian Rhapsody,” directed by Bryan Singer (“The Usual Suspects” and “X-Men”) should be praised for its honest, soulful, incredibly introspective portrayal of the fabled lead singer of Queen. With only a 62 percent approval rating based on 305 reviews on the site aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, “Bohemian Rhapsody” was greatly misjudged by the critics. The public saw it for what it truly is. The box office gross can easily testify. In the endless ferocious battle between the public and the critics, the public just won a match.

Jacqueline Pantano can be contacted at jpantano@kscequinox.com

BENAJIL RAI / MULIMEDIA DIRECTOR

On Thursday November 15, the Night Owl Cafe hosted award-winning poet, Carlos Andrés Gómez.

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Thursday, November 29, 2018

Jury is in session

Music madness

LAURA ROMANIELLO / ART DIRECTOR

Review: Slime Baff CORALINE SEKSINSKY

WKNH Music Director

LAURA ROMANIELLO / ART DIRECTOR

Students begin facing the music ADRIANA DANIEL

equiNox staff As finals season inches its way around the corner, music majors tighten their strings and practice their high notes in preparation of this semester's juries.

Showing off their talents, the students of the Keene State College's music department will be performing one to two instruments in front of a jury of teachers.

All music majors attending Keene are required to have a primary and a secondary instrument, said KSC sophomore Nicholas So, and are graded on a final performance at the end of each semester. So said, “A jury is like an evaluation, where every semester, a panel of professors want to see how you've progressed on your main instrument.”

Going into his third jury, So described the juries as an accurate way of grading a performer: “I say as long as the judges know the students and know where they were last semester compared to this semester, I definitely think it's a good way of grading.”

Each jury is different depending on which instrument the student plays. Vocal student Hannah Love said, “For vocal

juries, depending on what year you are, you have a certain number of pieces that you have to prepare and memorize.

From there you are put in front of the voice faculty who become your jury board, and they will pick your pieces randomly that they want you to perform.”

Music students spend time once a week in private lessons for each of their instruments.

Practicing preparing for his jury, So said, “Teachers don’t usually grade you on your applied lessons, because it is one on one time, they just want to see you get better. So this jury is your only grade for the class, it’s a pass or fail kind of thing.”

For a first-year, the idea of a pass-fail final can be very nerve wracking.

Rosemarie Webster, a first-year at KSC, is about to partake in her first jury.

To prepare, Webster said she has been practicing her piece, different scales and major and minor arpeggios. Webster said, “I am excited, but I am also extremely nervous.”

Even with her nerves, Webster said the jury can be an accurate measurement of a student’s abilities, saying, “I mean to take into account that students are going to be nervous, it is accurate. It is practice for later on in life when you

go on to audition for orchestras and professional shows. The juries show where a student is more than a written test does.”

These students owe a lot of their ability to the department they study under, So explained.

“The music department doesn't expect you to walk in being a virtuoso, but they work you to the bone so you walk out as a virtuous. It's incredible, actually, the growth between a freshman and a senior is absolutely incredible,” So said.

So mentioned that the only thing that bothers him about the music program is the lack of student support for the arts.

So said: “These [music majors] are working so hard but the students here a Keene don’t really know about us. Come watch our shows, you can't watch juries because they are private evaluations, but some of the shows we put on are absolutely incredible, it would be a shame for students to just not go to them, some of them are free too.”

Adriana Daniel can be contacted at adaniel@kscequinox.com

STAFF COMMENTARY

Not meeting expectations KATHRYN SPADAFORA

equiNox staff This past weekend, “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” opened to American audiences in cinemas. The only crime it seems Grindelwald has committed, however, was an underwhelming performance at the box office. On Nov. 16, the film opened to an $87 million opening weekend — the lowest opening for a film in the Harry Potter franchise yet. This is not to say that the Harry Potter prequel series’ future is compromised.

Fans remain excited for the next installments, and the film hardly opened to critical hatred.

“Crimes of Grindelwald” was indeed met with mixed reviews, and labeled as a filler film — an all too common second installment syndrome in both book and movie series. Still, the question remains — what exactly went wrong with “The Crimes of Grindelwald?”

The most common answer and general consensus by fans is that the film is simply too big. Caught in the middle of a complex web of plotlines, “The Crimes of Grindelwald” seems stuck between telling the story and making connections and shocking rev-

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elations back to the Harry Potter franchise.

Between the main character, Newt Scamander, and his Fantastic Beasts after which the films are named, and his story, as well as his role in the larger plot of Grindelwald’s rise to power — a complex story which brings in young Dumbledore, sets up lore and history learned in the original Harry Potters, and expands the story to the entire wizarding world — the film has a lot to cover in its two and a half hour run time. The result? The story is too complex for its own good.

JK Rowling, who writes the screenplays for the films, is a seasoned novelist and is used to writing intricate, large books.

The same amount of complexity, however, cannot be fit into a single film. As the movie expands, this makes “The Crimes of Grindelwald” feel more like a small piece of a whole, which audiences can’t quite make an understanding of, and a set up film for what is to come. Many were left with more questions than answers and felt as though, in having so much to cover, the film felt rushed and brushed over a lot of plotlines and character development arcs. In other words, in juggling so much, “The Crimes of Grindelwald”

never got to dive in deep and truly tell many of the elements within — be it characters, history, world building, shocking reveals or plot. In fact, the film has been noted to be sloppy, with multiple inconsistencies with the established Wizarding World. Spells work and appear differently, timelines are changed, and more. Once again, the question is asked — has the franchise simply bit off more than it can chew? Has the Wizarding World expanded beyond what can be kept organized and consistent, as well as what can be followed by fans without confusion?

In the end, “The Crimes of Grindelwald” plays like a piece of a much bigger whole, rather than a cohesive standalone film. Though critically flawed, however, the film is still magic in the Wizarding World, and fans cannot wait to see the next installment as all the pieces come together. With more questions than answers, “The Crimes of Grindelwald” has prepared audiences for exciting things to come, and woven all of the necessary threads. At the expense of an entire film being a filler installment, however, who knows how the mass audience will react to future films, and if the Fantas-

tic Beasts branch of the Wizarding World franchise will recover from this bump in the road. With Hollywood more competitive and crowded than ever, not even the most profitable of blockbusters is safe, and the future of the Wizarding World franchise remains to be seen.

Kathryn Spadafora can be contacted at kspadafora@kscequinox.com

The latest release from Napali Anarcho Punk label Ris Records, Slime Baff Toilet Surprise's “I’ll Run With You,” is a fantastic concoction of post hardcore riffage, electro beats, and feminist introspection on the place of a queer women in a very heteronormative world. The band arose briefly out of the highly fertile and effective Kathmandu DIY scene.

According to a message the band sent out upon the release of their debut Extended Play Record, the band was formed when the three friends met at a climbing gym, and discovered they also had a common love for music.

They decided to form their band, even though they knew it couldn’t last longer than 3 months because one of them would be moving out of the country.

The main instrumentation on the record is guitar, bass, voice, a Yamaha synth and drum machine.

The production is crisp, at times dipping more into a lo-fi aesthetic, though the record maintains exceptional clarity and sonic brilliance throughout all six songs.

The album opens with the track “Be Free”, a bombastic opener which begins with a sing-song chant which after several bars gets underscored by the electronic drums and a stabbing distorted guitar, cool bass lines and a droning synth melody.

Aside from the sing-song chant, this formula becomes the bedrock of the record, rearranging elements as they need. Like on the track, “Straight White World,” the guitar takes a major back seat to the bass and synth in the first section of the song.

This formula that does not wear out its welcome over the six song run. This band has a knack for creating purpelent pop-punk music that keeps its thrust while maintaining a balance between their pop sensibilities and the beauty of their post hardcore drift and jam. The second track “Ookami Ona” highlights many of the major lyrical themes of the album. Here, we get the singer asking herself, or posing as someone else asking her, some very abstract questions about who she is and how one can live an authentic life.

The chorus, of sorts, responds by announcing all the various aspects of her identity as a woman.

If you're looking for a comparison, there’s Kathleen Hanna’s electro punk group Le Tigre, the obvious comparisons being Hanna’s known use of feminist theories and ideologies as a bedrock for lyrical construction, and the use of synth and electronic music elements in that project, though Le Tigre makes more aggressive use of the electronic production elements.

A large thematic element to Slime Baff’s record is the concept of ‘wild wolf women’, which originates from a book called "Women Who Run With Wolves" by Clarissa Pinkola Estes. Estes is a psychoanalyst and thinker who specialises in post-trauma and ethno-clinical psychology. One of the members found this book while hiking the Annapurna mountains in Nepal. The record packs a wild and digestible fury and creativity that is wonderfully suited for the times we are living. Take a listen.

Coraline Seksinsky can be contacted at wknhmusic@gmail.com

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Thursday, November 29, 2018

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Stop and stair “It’s been about everyone helping out and creating this thing together.”

- Angela Jenks

Welcome to the circus ERIN MCNEMAR

Arts & EntErtAinmEnt Editor Working together to create something beautiful can be rewarding to many people.

Keene State College’s Color Design and Mural Paintings class, led by faculty member Molly Fletcher, has been decorating the walls in the Redfern Arts Center’s stairwell with an array of colors for about 3 weeks now. Four groups were created, and each assigned a wall in the stairwell.

Prior to beginning, the class decided on an common theme to base each of their murals on; the circus. Junior Audrey Kaiser explained how the class came up with the circus idea: “Our class discussion began with us sitting around a table shooting out ideas, and we talked about how part of Keene’s history was that the circus came through. That kind of birthed the idea of ‘what if we did a circus themed mural?’”

Murals on each of the four walls centered around a concept from the circus; a wallpaper circus pattern, circus food, a large target and elephants and lions.

However, the art piece consists of a fifth wall. Sophomore Jessica Madore expressed the purpose of the additional wall. “We’re going to incorporate one or two parts from the other walls into the fifth wall. We have a lot of elephants in ours, so [we] might do some smaller ones on the fifth because it’s such a big focus on our wall,” Madore said.

While the theme of the art project is the circus, the group decided they wanted to do it with a twist. Rather than having people running the circus and animals being in cages, the class decided to give the animals the power. “When we first started talking about the circus, everyone was kind of uneasy about animal cruelty and the elephants and everything like that. Everyone was really excited about putting our own twist on it. Everyone was in favor of switching it around and putting the animals in charge,” Madore said.

According to Kaiser, having multiple people painting in the same stairwell can be a challenge. “It got very overcrowded. There were days where all of us were down there at the same time trying to block things out, and it just got to the point where everyone was bumping into each other,” Kaiser said.

It was for this reason that the groups were created: To give people the time and space they needed to work on their art.

A number of students in the class are non-art majors. However, they expressed that they enjoy collaborating and taking a class that was not a major requirement. “It’s been a good change of pace for me because I’m a biology major, and normally I’m focusing on science. It’s been fun and relaxing,” Kaiser said.

Appreciating the opportunity to work with her peers on a art project, Madore said, “I’ve never done a group art project so that’s been interesting. We had to make sure we were getting everyone’s ideas incorporated and trying to come to an agreement on what we want in our mural.”

Senior and Teaching Assistant for the class, Angela Jenks, explained she liked being able to work with those that were non-art majors. “It’s really awesome. I love working with the people that are not particularly in the studio art major. It’s nice to see the ideas they come up with, especially not being fully involved in art as much as some of my other classmates who are in the BFA program,” Jenks continued. “It’s fun to be around people who aren't in it for the art, and they are doing an amazing job,” Jenks said.

According to Jenks, the point of the project is teamwork and creating something beautiful. “It’s been about everyone helping out and creating this thing together,” Jenks said.

Erin McNemar can be contacted at emcnemar@kscequinox.com

ANGELIQUE INCHIERCA / SENIOR STAFF

Keene State College's Color Design and Murals Class has been working on creating murals in the Redfern Arts Center's stairwell this semester. The students chose to paint a circus theme.

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STUDENT LIFE

Student Life, B1

Thursday, November 29, 2018

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Season Three Students intern for a third season with Inside Owl Athletics SELENA LEGACY

Equinox Staff Inside Owl Athletics is Keene State College’s newly founded broadcast. This broadcast is a news show that highlights main athletic events happening each week at KSC. Assistant Athletic Director and Executive Producer of the Show Abe Osheyack shares that he works closely with Journalism Professors and Associate Producers of the show Chad Nye and Mark Timney.

Osheyack said “[As of now,] six interns host, produce, design and interview to make it the best content for the athletic department.”

These interns mostly include students in the journalism majors, film majors or even minors in graphic design.

“Students will stretch their wings and use their talents,” Osheyack said.

Inside Owl Athletics has come a long way with only being in its third semester.

According to Osheyack, although this is a stressful job, the ones in the internship stay calm when overwhelmed.

“Students aren’t always really open and forthcoming when they are overwhelmed,” Osheyack said, “This group is one of the hardest working groups I’ve ever been around. A lot of fun.”

“From where they started to where they all are now, they all improved by leaps and bounds,” Osheyack said.

Osheyack said he was extremely pleased with the content they have produced.

Branching out into more of a human-interest role is something Osheyack is really proud of doing and wishes to continue covering humaninterest pieces.

But there hasn’t been smooth sailing through the semesters at Inside Owl Athletics.

On a Friday of Oct. 2017, “When in the middle of our editing, the entire campus lost power. A squirrel had bitten through transistor, so I drove Justin Mahan to local cable access channel because they have the same software. But they didn’t have the right version. Then I drove him to Dr. Timney’s house,” Osheyack said.

This made the show drop four hours later than expected.

Even with this mishap, Osheyack was still

proud of the student’s work and ability to work under pressure.

KSC Alumni Justin Mahan was an anchor producer for Inside Owl Athletics until he graduated in the spring of 2018.

Mahan spent a lot of nights in the Media Arts Center (MAC).

“There were a couple nights I would almost spend the night in the MAC. It was a lot, we had to be proud of what we did... It was because of those sleepless nights that myself and everybody put in the work and just went with it,” Mahan said.

Mahan wants to become a sports play-by-play announcer.

“I am now working at Keene’s men’s club hockey team as a PA announcer,” Mahan said.

Mahan’s biggest take away from the internship was to take risks.

“I was an outsider. There was only a small handful of us interested in sports and journalism,” Mahan said.

Peter Dubois is a current intern who works as a host and feature reporter.

“I really, really enjoy it.” Dubois said, “I think the experience I’ve gained has really given me a big

push to find a job.”

After he graduates, Dubois said he would like to stay in the journalism field.

“I want to be in the journalism field doing television broadcast...now that I’ve done Inside Owl Athletics the sports realm has been opened up for me because it’s something I wouldn’t really have been doing before this internship. I felt as though I didn’t have the right information to be a sports reporter. I didn’t have the knowledge behind sports, but now that I’ve started doing this and putting out professional work it’s been a really good experience for me,” Dubois said.

Dubois wants to finish out his senior year being part of Inside Owl Athletics.

Dubois also thinks Inside Owl Athletics needs more advertisement and promotion about what it is.

Inside Owl Athletics is still in its experimental phase. New things are being added each semester to perfect the show.

Selena Legacy can be contacted at Slegacy@kscequinox.com

“This group is one of the hardest working groups I’ve ever been around. A lot of fun.”

- Abe Osheyack

ANGELIQUE INCHIERCA / SENIOR STAFF

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STUDENT LIFE / B2

Thursday, November 29, 2018

Seniors Dance Away the Night

Equinox Staff Sometimes, getting lost is as simple as pulling up Google Maps or asking a friend for directions. But on a taxi ride where you barely speak the driver’s language — Arabic and Darija — finding your way becomes a lot more complicated.

Coming from downtown Agadir, Morocco, my two friends and I stood on the sidewalk looking down the mildly-busy road for an empty taxi. I had received a message prior to this and was in a relaxed state of mind. I observed the city life — the colors, the sounds, the sights — all while calmly thinking about getting back to our host school.

The white taxi pulled up and we piled into the back seat. While my one friend, Alexis, spoke to the driver in French, the other, Cheyanne, pulled up the address on her phone. I wasn’t too concerned but I did know the school could be hard to find. When we realized the driver, a middle-aged man with a friendly air about him, did not speak much French, Cheyanne spoke with him in Arabic but the situation only got more confusing from there.

After pulling over to ask for directions, the driver understood what area the school was in, so we decided to give him step-by-step directions once when we got closer.

We were now on our way and decided to make the best of the situation by striking up a conversation with the driver. At this point, I had been taking Arabic for three weeks, not enough to say more than “I am a student,” “I am from America” and “I study journalism.” However, Cheyanne had studied Arabic for a year and knew the language better than I. As Cheyanne began a conversation, I tried to listen to familiar words. After asking the basics, such as “Where are you from?”, Cheyanne asked, “Madtha loonha almufadil?” Suddenly, the driver began laughing. He turned back to look at us and continued laughing. Cheyanne joined in with him while I looked over at her, somewhat confused. “What did you ask him?” I said to Cheyanne. She responded with, “What his favorite color is.”

About five minutes after our conversation, we reached the area our host school was in and started giving the driver directions. As we started up the hill, Alexis took the role of being the guide. “Gauche,” she’d say while pointing to the left, and “droite,” motioning to the right. Suddenly, we realized we had a small problem — not all the roads were charted on Google Maps, meaning we’d have to figure things out by sight, an act not so simple with zero streetlights.

We followed the map, Alexis telling our driver, whose favorite color is blue by the way, to continue straight. After a few turns, we sat silently, trying to evaluate the map in relation to the school and our current location. The silence was broken by our driver’s voice.

“Hash,” he said, pointing to the left.

“Hash.”

We looked at each other in confusion and started laughing.

“Hash?” I asked him, not sure what he was talking about. “Hash,” he said.

After ten more minutes of driving around aimlessly, we finally reached our destination. Though I was relieved, I found the whole night to be humorous and anything but stressful. After a long adventure to get home, we paid our driver and headed in for the night.

What started as a normal night trying to catch a taxi resulted in one of the most humorous situations we’ve been in. When you’re travelling, don’t be afraid of confusion. Embrace it and find humor in the situation. Trust me, you’ll make memories that will last a lifetime.

ALYSSA WISNIEWSKI

Equinox Staff

people dancing,” said Salkovitz.

Students were served little snacks and appetizers provided

by Keene State.

“The food was good! The menu was pretty much just classic appetizers but it was still good and a nice treat,” said Salkovitz.

“I really had a good time overall and it was such a fun event,” said Sakovitz.

Samatha Bryant is another senior who attended the event. To her, the event felt like it was a time to celebrate the graduates.

“It was a very fun formal night for seniors, kind of like a rite of passage for graduates,” said Bryant.

The decorations stood out to Bryant, “ The DC looked really nice, it was cool to see it all decorated.”

The only thing Bryant would have liked to see was more food options: “The food was alright, but there weren’t too many options we could choose from, said Bryant.

In the end, everyone interviewed agreed that the night was fun and enjoyable, be it from the perspective of someone working the event or a senior just there to enjoy time with the senior class.

Alyssa Wisniewski can be contacted at awisniewski@kscequinox.com

“It was a very fun formal night for seniors, kind of like a rite of passage for graduates” - Samantha Bryant

Getting Lost ALEXANDRIA SAURMAN

Class of 2019 celebrates Red & White Night Keene State College hosted the annual Red and White Night celebration for the class of 2019 on Nov. 17, 2018.

Because the event was in the Zorn Dining Commons, students were able to eat small appetizers and enjoy the bar.

WKNH was there providing music for the students to dance to.

Peter Dubois, a member of the E-board, said they were prepared with a list of song choices requested by the students.

“In order for people to hear the music they wanted, we set up a Facebook page so they could request what they wanted to hear,” said Dubois.

Dubois also said that it was a way for the members of WKNH to bond.

“We had a lot of fun doing it and think everyone enjoyed the music,” said Dubois.

One of the ways WKNH got students to go on the dance floor was to have fun with their jobs.

“Our job is to have a good time, we play music together as a club and I think us enjoining ourselves prompted other students to go on the dance floor,” said Dubois.

As a student, Dubois says he liked the event a lot but what made it even more special was that he got to play music with his club members.

“To be able to experience it as a senior and a member of WKNH was so cool for me. It’s so cool that I can experience it with a group I met here at Keene State,” said Dubois.

WKNH was proud to provide music for the event for the second year in a row and also receiving funding going back into their program.

“I liked that a student organization got to provide the music. We also get an amount of money that goes back into our program, it showed a sense of community and organizations helping clubs,” said Dubois.

Jenna Salkovitz also attended Red and White night with a group of friends. One of Salkovitz’s favorites things about the event was the way it was set up.

“The dance floor was pretty big but I liked how they have the bar upstairs too, they had a lot of different [drink] choices,” said Salkovitz.

Like many attendees, Salkovitz liked the music WKNH was playing.

“They played a lot of throwbacks which was awesome, throughout the night there were many

Life in Morrocco

Alexandria Saurman can be contacted at asaurman@kscequinox.com

ANGELIQUE INCHIERCA /

SENIOR STAFF

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STUDENT LIFE / B3

Thursday, November 29, 2018

Being a Hispanic Student at Keene HALEIGH PATCH

Equinox Staff Like any student on a college campus, everyone’s experience is different here at Keene State College. For students who use English as their second language, their experience may vary from others even more.

Senior Tina Pinzon is originally from Columbia, but moved to the United States in middle school. Pinzon just recently gained full U.S. citizenship due to the fiveyear waiting period after receiving a green card. She said after she studied abroad to Spain, which delayed the process, she came back and was ready to start applying. Pinzon said the application process involved various paperwork, tests and interviews.

She said her family came to the U.S to seek asylum, but she misses all of the family she had to leave behind. Now that she has full citizenship, she said she plans on going back to Columbia for Christmas. “[Columbia] is still a part of me,” Pinzon said.

She said when she first came to the U.S., it was a huge culture shock for her family.

She said one of the hardest parts was learning English along with her sister. They would take English as a Second Language (ESL) classes for five periods a day during school along with tutoring.

Pinzon said the biggest differences between the U.S. and Columbia are cultural aspects such as food, holidays and school systems.

Pinzon said her parents also learned to speak English, but at home they speak Spanish. However, she and her sister will speak English to each other.

When coming to Keene State, Pinzon said the change was not that drastic since she went to high school in Connecticut. Pinzon said she was aware she was coming to a school that was predominately white, which

was the same as her high school. However, she said it was easy to make friends and enjoy her college experience.

Sophomore Jomy Gonzalez is originally from Puerto Rico and moved to the United States in fifth grade.

Her family moved here to get away from dangerous events happening in Puerto Rico.

Gonzalez said she knew some English before moving to the U.S. from children’s television shows, so it was not too hard to pick up, however she said grammar and English slang was the hardest to learn.

Gonzalez said they speak mostly English at home, however when family comes over, only Spanish is spoken.

She said when she first started school in the U.S. only a couple students would comment on her ethnicity, but other than that, the adjustment was not too difficult.

Both students agreed moving to the United States so early in their lives made the transition and learning English easier.

Dr. Patricia Pedroza Gonzalez has been teaching Women and Gender Studies at KSC for 18 years. She moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota from Mexico, lived there for about one year and then moved to New Hampshire in 2000.

Dr. Pedroza Gonzalez said she originally learned how to speak English in middle school because it was a requirement to learn a language. She said students were told about American language and culture very early on. However, she never really took it seriously until she was in college completing her Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry-Pharmacology for technical reasons. She said she wanted to be proficient in English so she could communicate with her new international friends and colleagues who she loves to spend time with. She said she finally accepted the reality that English is an international language and needed to develop that commitment.

As for KSC, Dr. Pedroza Gonzalez

ADRIANA SANCHEZ / SOCIAL MEDIA DIRECTOR

said there should be more academic help given to students who use English as their second language. She said the process of writing is difficult for everyone and faculty should be able to help edit papers because they are in English.

“When students use English as their second language, some faculty are already expecting a bad paper,” Dr. Pedroza Gonzalez said. “Sometimes the entire class can equally hand in a bad paper but it

doesn’t matter, some faculty will assume it is because English is their second language.”

Dr. Pedroza Gonzalez said there has even been Latino comedians who came to KSC to perform, but that there has not been a Latino guest speaker to talk about important topics because there is ‘no room in the budget.’

She said the College can create as many multicultural events as they want, but this will not change how students learn. Dr.

Owls of KSC

What’s your Thanksgiving like?

Compiled by Angelique Inchierca

“Delta Phi Epsilon’s Amelia Fisk travelled to Seattle, Washington over break. She went and visited the Space Needle which stands at 605 ft tall.

She said the best part was the revolving see through glass floors.”

- Kylie Hull

“My family always has 30+ people at our house, all at one table. This year we had 35. we have a big family! Luckily, both my mom’s and dad’s side of the family get along really well.”

- Gerty Flagg

“my friend invited me to her home for the week for thanksgiving in Tewksbury, Mass. She introduced me to her family who were so sweet and really looked after me, they let me bake typical English food for thanksgiving dinner and then she drove me around showing me popular sites, typical Massachusetts pizza and Black Friday shopping” - Emily Morrell

“This is at the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland. One of the most breathtaking places I’ve ever been. Behind me is the cliff where Elizabeth Bennett stood in Pride and Prejudice.”

- Hannah Bower

KSCEQUINOX.COM

Pedroza Gonzalez said resources such as the Writing Center, study nights, or event faculty should help Hispanic students more.

She said if there were an English student willing to sit down with a student and go over their work to fix grammar issues and spelling, it would make those students feel more successful and help them in the future.

Haleigh Patch can be contacted at hpatch@kscequinox.com

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STUDENT LIFE / B4

Thursday, November 29, 2018

what’s happening in

December

3 c e D

Love, ate t S e n Kee Dining

5 c e Dnch Curated Lu c i t e t e i

by D nn e J n r e Int

0 1 c DCeLate Nite

D ds n a B Food & 2am 1 m p 10

1 1 c Dtuednet Center S n! u F & Food am 2 1 10pm

Stay Connected: www.dineoncampus.com/keene

To write for Student Life contact:

Student Life Rachel Vitello

awisniewski@kscequinox.com KSCEQUINOX.COM

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CREATIVE COLLECTIONS

Creative Collections / B5 Thursday, November 29, 2018

KSCEQUINOX.COM

SHORT STORY

The Puppeteer Part Two equinox staff Eager to see what was inside, Liam opened the box, “What in the world is this...?” ● ● ● ● ● ● ● In the box was what looked like a young wooden boy. Liam reached his hand in and grabbed the clump of strings that became very tangled as he pulled this mysterious object out. He flipped the boy over and saw how beat up his face was with little divots in his wooden skin and the chipped paint from the boy’s crooked smile. He noticed his hands and legs were attached to strings. It wasn't until Liam saw this that he realized that the boy was a puppet. The puppet wore corduroy overalls and brown shoes on his feet. Liam examined the puppet. “ I never knew mom had a puppet,” said Liam. Suddenly, he began hugging the puppet and crying. He knew his mother must have saved this for him. “I think I'm going to call you Chipper,” said Liam as he gave him another hug, holding him close to his chest in the dark basement. Liam shut the trunk and left the key in the lock. He headed upstairs with his flashlight and his new friend.

When he got to the top the stairs he proceeded to keep quiet, as Uncle John was still asleep on the couch. He got to his room and set Chipper down in a chair. “So what do you do for fun?” Liam said to Chipper.

He didn’t answer. He just sat there looking at Liam. “Oh right, you’re a puppet. You can't talk,” said Liam. Frustrated, Liam went to bed.

“Liam! What were you doing in the basement last night?” said Uncle John. “You

know you are not allowed to go down there for any reason!” he continued.

Liam jumped from his slumber, watching Uncle John’s face tense up. “I was curious to see what was down there. I met a new friend, Chipper,” said Liam with excitement.

“Liam, listen to me,” Uncle John said, becoming frustrated. “You never to go down there again, and this new friend Chipper is not yours to have. It belongs in the basement where you found it.” Liam was speechless. He didn't know what to think, he just sat up with a blank stare looking at his uncle. Uncle John started again, “Promise me you will never go down there again.”

Liam knew that this would not end well if he didn't promise. “I promise, Uncle John.” said Liam. Uncle John walked out of his room and went outside to smoke a cigarette. Liam started to cry. He wished his mom was here.

He looked over to the chair and saw that Chipper was no longer there. “Uncle John must have taken him when he left,” thought Liam. With tears still streaming down his face, Liam became determined to learn all he could about Chipper and the reason why his mom had him. Liam knew what he had to do.

Liam had his plan. He went over to his closet and reached for his baby book his mom made him when he was just a newborn.

He searched through photos and found so many memories, but no Chipper. “Maybe I'm looking in the wrong places,” Liam thought to himself. A thought came to Liam's mind, “There must be more in that trunk, maybe I can sneak down there and find out more about Chipper.

Liam waited until his Uncle was asleep to go down to the basement again. He tiptoed across the kitchen floor and made his way to

the basement door. He turned the doorknob all the way before opening the door. He looked down the dark staircase and gulped. He stuck his foot down and made his way downstairs using the flashlight he had used the night before.

When he reached the trunk, he realized his mistake, “Dang it! I forgot the key.” He made his way back upstairs to retrieve the key.

He opened the basement door to see Uncle John sitting at the kitchen table with the key in front of him. Liam was white as a ghost. “Liam, come sit down.

There's something I think you should know,” said Uncle John.

The Puppeteer part one can be found on kscequinox.com Alyssa Wisniewski can be contacted at awisniewski@kscequinox.com

RECIPE

Fun Fact:

Christmas Bark LAURA ROMANIELLO

arts Director

"The term Cyber Monday, a neologism invented in 2005 by the National Retail Federation's division Shop.org"

WIKIPEDIA.COM

Ingredients: • 40 saltine crackers • 2 sticks of butter (1 cup) • 1 cup packed brown sugar • 2 cups chocolate chips semisweet or milk chocolate • 1/2 cup holiday sprinkles or 1/2 cup chopped nuts of choice Directions: 1. Line a sheet pan with foil and coat with cooking spray or alternatively you can use a nonstick silicone baking mat.

2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

3. Place the crackers in a single layer on the baking sheet.

4. Place the butter and brown sugar in a medium saucepan, bring to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes. Be careful not to burn the mixture!

5. Pour the brown sugar mixture over the crackers and spread with a spatula to coat.

6. Place the sheet pan in the oven and bake for 3-5 minutes, or until bubbling.

7. Remove the pan from the oven and immediately scatter the chocolate chips over the top.

Campus Wide Photo Contest!

8.

Place the pan back in the oven for another 2-3 minutes to melt the chocolate. Spread the chocolate evenly over the top.

9. Place the sprinkles on top of the chocolate. Let the toffee sit until completely cool, either at room temperature or you can refrigerate.

10. Cut into pieces and serve.

Laura can be contacted at lromaniello@kscequinox.com

Goodbye EMMA MEHEGAN equinox staff

I had to say goodbye to my castle on a hill The hill, which in the spring teemed with birdsong and the laughter of a brook, Newly melted and curling itself through the budding forest in triumph The hill, which in the summer overlooked a lake that sparkled like royal jewelry, And adorned itself with green trees that danced along to the wind’s careful choreography The hill, which in the fall blazed with fire as the trees gave their grand finale, Bursting with stationary fireworks, their jubilant tribute to life The hill, which in the winter, though all seemed dead, sparkled with twinkling light, Keeping safe the beauty of the trees with great coatings of icy fairy dust And the hill, atop which I sat in the dirt, hand caressing the cool, rough earth Because I had to say goodbye.

LAURA ROMANIELLO / ARTS DIRECTOR

ALYSSA WISNIEWSKI

POEM

THE EQUINOX IS HOLDING A PHOTO CONTEST. TO BE ELIGIBLE TO ENTER, PHOTOGRAPHS CAN BE: NATURE/LANDSCAPES, JOURNALISTIC, MACRO, PORTRAITS, SPORTS, ARCHITECTURE OR ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY. ANY KEENE STATE COLLEGE STUDENT MAY ENTER ONE (1) PHOTOGRAPH OF THEIR CHOICE UNTIL MONDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2018 AT NOON. ANY STUDENT WISHING TO ENTER CAN EMAIL THEIR SUBMISSION TO AINCHIERCA@KSCEQUINOX.COM FOR A CHANCE TO HAVE THEIR PHOTO PUBLISHED ON OUR NEWSPAPER, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM AND OUR OFFICIAL WEBSITE: KSCEQUINOXCOM.

note: the equinox cannot publish any

photograph with profanity or nuDity, or any photograph that promotes any illegal activity.

CREATIVE COLLECTION'S POLICY Creative Collections is a compilation of Keene State College Students' in multiple art forms (fiction writings, photography, graphic arts, ETC.) Any enrolled KSC student can submit to this section by contacting Angelique Inchierca at ainchierca@kscequinox.com

My castle stood watching passively as always, Yet I know it was filled to bursting with precious memory Eyes closed, I can see them all, and my younger self dances across my eyelids, Careless and laughing, unaware of future goodbyes, head thrown back with abandon.

Versions of me I no longer know, yet hold very dear, swept past: There I am playing in the big room, the one that was always too cold in the winter, I scream as my brother plays a trick, and I run up the winding wooden stairway The one that leads to my room, the room with picture windows, The room in which I am a princess: I rule over my hill, over the silvery moonlight that shines perfectly onto my bed on clear nights, Over the winking stars that keep me company when I feel alone, Over the lake, the dear lake in which I’ve spent happy hours Being a mermaid, swimming here and there, imagining my hair flowing red behind me; Being the helpless victim of a dramatic shipwreck; Being a romantic castaway on my small desert island The one that was a rock, the rock that could be a dinosaur, a mighty brontosaurus My father used to tell me about the dinosaur which was a rock It was his when he was young like me, When his father owned the castle and the hill which was his kingdom.

I didn’t know then that kings could die and kingdoms fall I didn’t know then that my castle on a hill would one day cease to be mine I opened my eyes against the tide of memories which continued to bombard me ruthlessly, My hand stopped trailing through the earth that wasn’t mine My eyes flicked from trees to sky to grass to lake, longing to capture all that was around me So that I could own, at least, the captured glances.

A solitary tear wound its way down my face like the brook around my hill Because I had to say goodbye.

GWEN PHILLIPS / EQUINOX STAFF

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Sports / B6

Thursday, November 29, 2018

Finished strong Stauffer ends field hockey career at Division III senior all-star game

PAXTON BLANCHARD / EQUINOX STAFF

Stauffer playing a conference game against Bridgewater State earlier in the season where the Owls won 7-3 and Nina Bruno scored 5 goals alone.

CAILLA PRISCO

SportS Editor Keene State Field Hockey is known for their record-breaking statistics, multiple All-American athletes, and countless Little East Conference recognitions.

For a senior, there is one season left to give it all you’ve got and to make your name known in Keene State field hockey history.

Senior and Captain Erica Stauffer did just that when she was originally picked as an alternate for the Division III Senior All-Star game, but was called up to play only a few days before.

Stauffer will join Keene field hockey alumni Kayla Renaud and All-American Sami Smith who also participated in the All-Star game in 2017.

Being an accomplished forward during her first two years at Keene, Stauffer was quickly reassigned to play midfield where the stronger players usually are.

As a captain her Junior and Senior years, she lead her team to consecutive LEC Tournament championships as well as being named First Team All-conference.

According to the National Field Hockey Coaches’ Association (NFHCA) the “Victory Sports Tours/ NFHCA Division III Senior Game features top senior players in the nation — selected seniors are given the opportunity to represent their institution while competing against their peers.”

Though the timing was last minute, Stauffer said she was “very excited” that she was able to play field hockey one last time.

RECAP

Owls triumph over Albertus Magnus 105-96 CAROLINE PERRY

Equinox Staff The Owls soared over the Falcons in last Tuesday’s game against Albertus Magnus.

Big things happened for Ty Nichols as well. The senior set a new career high after he went 14 out of 15 at the free throw line, becoming the team’s new alltime leader in that category. On top of that, Nichols scored a new career high of 42 points, helping the owls take away a 105-96 victory in overtime. Nichols’ effort also included a 13 out of 26 from the field, helping him become the first Owl to score more than 40 points since Derek D’Amours in 2010.

Sophomore James Anozie kept pace and added a double-double of 16 points and 11 rebounds. Fellow sophomore Sidi Diallo made 8 out of 11 shots, adding up to 16 points.

Nichols started out with an early three-point play and a jumper, helping the Owls lead 7-2 less than three minutes in. However, the Falcons answered quickly, snagging the lead and later extending their lead to 18-11 at the 12:02 mark. The Falcons were able to lead for much of the remainder of the period.

First-year Paul Mahon’s triple tied the game at 29 with 5:40 to go. Consecutive layups from junior Ben Olson helped put the Owls ahead 35-34, but this was short lived after the Falcons made a pair of triples on the next two possessions. The Owls got within reaching point after Nichols’ free throws at the 1:45 mark, but went into the locker room with a 42-39 deficit.

The Owls remained behind at the start of the

second half, but quickly found an opening, finishing a 15-7 burst with a layup from Diallo and a triple from Nichols. This put KSC ahead at a 56-55 lead at the 13:58 mark. It was a back-and-forth battle from there, but the Owls found their pace and began to separate from the Falcons midway through the stanza.

Sophomore Jordan Haywood made a three, Anozie converted inside and Diallo powered home a dunk for a 69-61 lead with 10:14 to go. The Owls worked to have the upper hand and took control with a little over five minutes remaining. Nichols and Diallo made jumpers to spread the lead back to 81-72 after the Falcons had gotten within four, but they had a hard time leading in the final minutes, pushing both teams into overtime.

The Owls quickly dominated the Falcons in overtime, scoring the first ten points and not letting up after that. Diallo opened the scoring with a layup and the Owls extended the lead by continuing to attack the basket, as Mahon made two buckets and Nichols one for a 99-89 lead with 1:51 on the clock. The Falcons lost momentum quickly after the Owls made 6-of-8 from the field in the extra session and all four free throws, leading by a game-high 11 in the final minute Caroline Perry can be contacted at cperry@kscequinox.com

“We had already finished our season and I sort of made peace with the fact that I was done, so when I got the email that I was called up to play, I was thrilled,” said Stauffer.

The date and time of the game also happened to be the same as the Keene State Senior Red and White Dance, where seniors celebrate their four years at a dance in the Dining Commons with food, drinks, and music.

“I was bummed out at first that I wouldn’t be able to go, but after talking to some of my old teammates that missed their dance for the same reason, I decided that this game was something that I just couldn’t pass up,” said Stauffer.

Stauffer played two games against other seniors in Division III across the country during this tournament.

“I felt very intimidated at first because I was playing

with girls that were National Champions and the best in the country, keeping up with them was something I was very nervous about. At the end of the game, I really kept my own and was able to play a decent game with them so I was really proud of myself and it was the perfect way to end my field hockey career,” said Stauffer.

Erica Stauffer finished her collegiate field hockey career on Nov. 17 as a key member of the Keene State women’s team, captaining and starting for two years The field hockey coach failed to comment before the deadline.

Cailla prisco can be contacted at cprisco@kscequinox.com

Owl Nation: Games Looking to support KSC athletes?

Support thEm at homE gamES!

Women’s Basketball Vs. Worcester State, Saturday Dec. 1 @ 1:00 p.m.

Men’s Basketball Vs. Rhode Island College, Wednesday, December 5 @ 7:30 p.m.

Men’s Basketball Vs. UMass Dartmouth, Saturday Dec. 8 @ 3:00 p.m.

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Sports / B7

Luke’s Kickin’ Column

Thursday, November 29, 2018

Involved and active West finishes her final season of volleyball while staying active on campus

MLS CONFERENCE FINALS START OFF HOT LUKE STERGIOU

Photo Editor On Sunday November 25, the Major League Soccer (MLS) Conference finals kicked off, with the four remaining teams battling it out for the prestigious MLS cup final spot.

The first leg of the Eastern Conference final was played against the hottest team in the league right now, Atlanta United, and the best team in the league, the New York Red Bulls. This matchup could be the most crucial match of the playoffs, as both teams are eyeing their first MLS Cup title.

Atlanta hosted the first leg, knowing very well that everything was on the line. After tragically going out in the playoffs last season, Tata Martino’s team knew it had to do everything this year to redeem not only the team but the city.

Atlanta United have been red hot all season, and especially at home, the team looks very hard to beat. This is the second year in MLS for the expansion side, and it’s looking to make sure that the MLS Cup comes home to Atlanta.

For the New York Red Bulls, it’s a different story. Like Atlanta United, the team have never won the MLS Cup. Being one of the league original teams (formerly known as the New York Metrostars), the club have only made it to the MLS Cup once in 2008, where they came up short against the Columbus Crew.

Since then, the team have shown glimpses of greatness, but have always come up short. This year was different though, as the Red Bulls were the best team in the Eastern Conference, clinching first place convincingly with 71 points and the Supporters Shield with it.

But even though the Red Bulls have been dominant during the regular and postseason, the New York side could not break down Atlanta. Atlanta United defeated the Red Bulls convincingly 3-0. Atlanta’s attack was too strong for New York, as Venezuelan striker Josef Martinez continued his marvelous form this season and broke the deadlock early on in the 31st minute. Atlanta didn’t score again until the 71st minute, but dominated possession for the rest of the game. Atlanta look in good shape going into the second leg with a 3-0 victory and look to wrap up the eastern conference in New York.

In the Western Conference, the Portland Timbers hosted the best team in the west, Sporting Kansas City. Sporting Kansas City were looking to maintain its dominance with a win away, while the Timbers were looking to survive and give the team a cushion in the second league.

Despite Portland hosting the first leg, the team struggled to break down Kansas City’s defense. Both teams struggled to get a goal this game, ending the game in a 0-0 stalemate.

This game was certainly not as goal heavy as the first leg of the Eastern Conference final, but both teams showed plenty of passion, with tempers flaring throughout the game.

Sporting Kansas City look to wrap up the Western Conference in the second leg, with the support of the Blue Cauldron pushing them for the title.

The second leg for both of the Conference finals will be huge, with all teams looking to either maintain their lead or make a comeback to clinch the title. But it looks like all eyes will be on Atlanta United, who look in good shape to host the MLS Cup final.

SOREN FRANTZ / EQUINOX STAFF

Riley Bunker and Kait West playing against UMass Boston where the Owls lost 3-2.

CAILLA PRISCO

SPortS Editor Being involved in collegiate athletics is a lot for a student to handle, but for some, competition just isn’t enough.

Being active physically as well as being active on campus is one of Kaitlyn West’s many attributes.

Senior and Libero Kaitlyn West played for the Keene State Women’s volleyball team for her sophomore, junior and senior years.

After not being offered a position on the team during her first year, West continued to practice and stay in shape as the 2016 season loomed around the corner. She was then offered a spot on the roster.

“I got back into the weight room and trained for the spring season, never once losing the drive that I came into school with.

I had to do the whole tryout process again like the year prior, and ended up making the team,” said West.

West continued to say that Keene State volleyball was, “One of [my] greatest accomplishments.”

“Keene State volleyball has been the most amazing experience as an Owl. It has brought me a whole new family of teammates, and many fun memories. This senior year season was definitely one to remember,” said West, as she reflects on her final days of collegiate volleyball.

Senior and captain Niamh Dodd expressed admiration for her teammate.

“She is a hard worker and has worked so hard to be one of the most important players we have on our team. She really makes you want to work just as hard because she is a great role model and makes working hard fun,” said Dodd.

Volleyball is a big part of Kaitlyn West, but it’s not all she is.

She continued to be a part of the Keene State community by branching into different areas, including the Garden Club.

While most students may find the multiple responsibilities intimidating or overwhelming, West says that multiple activities help her manage time: “I actually find that it helps me manage my time better because I know I need to get things done (school work and other chores) while I have that limited

time available to do so. The activities I do on campus help me clear my mind and destress so I can manage my time better and get things done! This was something that I have gotten better at throughout the years, and have learned to balance.”

Dodd agrees with West that time management can be “challenging and hard.”

“It’s hard, but you have to look at it from a ‘once in a lifetime” perspective. We were both given the amazing experience to play volleyball, but at the same time we need to branch out into other things,” Dodd said.

West said that the Garden Club not only helps her “unwind and focus on other things” but that she actually enjoys “watching plants grow.”

“My dad owns his own landscaping company in my hometown (Hopkinton, MA), where Iʼve worked on-and-off since sixth grade doing small jobs, planting trees and doing some gardening construction. I find gardening to be extremely therapeutic, and I look at it as my kind of green therapy,” said West.

After attending meetings since her first year and helping design the permaculture

garden in the Science Center courtyard, West is now the acting President of the Garden Club.

“I know that what weʼre doing is good for us, the school, and for the environment, which drives me to keep planning projects and getting more people in the club involved,” said West.

On top of Volleyball, the Garden Club, school work, and a social life, West has also volunteered herself as a practice player for the Women’s Basketball team.

West will join the the 2018-2019 roster during their morning practices at 5:30 a.m. to help the team run plays and scrimmage.

“They tend to be down players sometimes with small injuries, and with a smaller team, they might need [a] few more numbers. Iʼve been playing basketball since I could walk and was originally trying to play in college, so I figured, why not? It will be a good way to stay in shape,” said West.

While West still wishes there were “more hours in the day,” she is continuing to branch out into all her passions.

Cailla Prisco can be contacted at cprisco@kscequinox.com

Workplace bliss Students talk about their experience working at Spaulding gym MATTHEW BARRIGA

Equinox Staff There are many on-campus jobs offered here at Keene State College, but none are quite like working at the school gymnasium. The gym offers a variety of jobs to students, from front desk work to personal training.

According to coordinator of intramural and club sports David Sweeney, there are 27 front desk workers currently employed at the gym, as well as roughly 60 other staff members that range from lifeguards to fitness instructors.

While Sweeney’s job doesn’t directly deal with student workers at the gym, he often helps out around the facility when he can, and interacts a lot with workers on shift.

He also said that he works a lot with practicum personal trainers, students who are majoring in exercise science that have the ability to get hands on experience in the gym for class credit. When asked about the staff and overall work experience at the gym, Sweeney said it was a very positive environment.

“They enjoy being here,” he said. “It depends on the area, but they’re all very friendly and they work hard,” said Sweeney.

Gerald Barth is a sophomore and a facility supervisor at the gym, and said that the none of the work is too demanding.

“Usually we’re back here at the desk writing up memberships or swiping cards. I can get basketballs for students and work with signing out the lockers. It’s pretty basic stuff, nothing too hard or crazy,” he said.

Barth also said that the schedule at the gym is very flexible, and students are able to work just the amount of hours they desire. “My schedule is definitely pretty flexible, I pull in a good amount of hours in a two week span. If I need someone to cover there’s usually one or two people

who can come in which is nice.”

He said that the shifts are small, typically only ranging from two to four hours at a time depending on what part of the day you work.

When asked why working for the gym might be better than working a different job on campus, Barth said “Personally, I would say working at the gym is one of the best experiences we have for working on-campus jobs. Not only do you have the chance to meet new people coming in the door everyday, you can also get to have a conversation with them about their day or how their workout was.

The television’s always on with ESPN so we can talk about sports games. Personally I like it because it beats standing behind a desk ringing up stuff at a register and allows for a lot more open conversations.”

KSC Junior Emily Peach is the senior facility supervisor, and said her work consists mostly of basic things around the facility as well as helping make the schedule. Peach also said that the schedule is very flexible, and that the work is very easy to balance with other activities. Being a member of the swim team, Peach said she has had no problem with balancing her work schedule with her extracurricular activities.

She said that a big perk of working at the gym is the laid back environment and the friendliness of the staff.

“Our boss is super nice, we all love hanging out with him,” she said. “My favorite part is working with my coworkers, we get along really well,” said Peach.

While both Peach and Barth said that they loved their work, they both agreed that the opening shifts are definitely the most boring part.

Peach mentioned the fact that most of the staff members even have their own dodgeball team that they often get together with and play around. “We just get to hang out and play dodgeball, it’s great.”

Matthew Barriga can be contacted at mbarriga@kscequinox.com

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Sports / B8

Thursday, November 29, 2018

“The chemistry on our team is incredible right now.”

- Emily McPadden

SPORTS

KSCEQUINOX.COM

Leading the way

McPadden is the only senior on the Women’s Basketball team ADRIANA SANCHEZ

Social Media director

understanding, she can tell almost any position their role in a play as well so she’s awesome to have on the floor if anyone’s confused.” She described McPadden as a great captain, good friend, and an even better teammate. “She’s a good leader, dependable, compassionate and she has an incredibly high basketball IQ,” Bennett added.

McPadden’s personal goal is to leave this team with a winning mentality.

“I want to show them Keene State is all about winning, we had a rough year last year and that’s not normal for us... especially the freshman, I want them to know this team doesn’t take losing lightly and personally I just want to win games,” McPadden said.

All four years of her basketball career have been completely different, McPadden said. During her first year, the team was successful. But her sophomore year, the team made history. The team won the LEC championship for the first time in Keene State’s Women’s basketball history. But then her junior year, it was the opposite.

“It was a rough year,” she said.

This has helped her have a different perspective on basketball.

“Freshman year you’re just there ready to play, but through the years you learn a mentality that [not] everyday is a given.

You can get injured and not be able to play for 10 games straight so you learn to give it your all every day,” she said.

One of the biggest things that McPadden has done throughout her years playing here is learn how to balance school and athletics. Her freshman year she was all about basketball.

“I did well in school back then but I’m doing much better,” she said. As well as learning how to manage being a student athlete, she’s also learned more about the team.

“I’ve learned how the team works, and not everything is going to be perfect. So we can at least come into the gym every day and give everything we have and me being a senior help out the underclassmen when it comes to this,” she said.

McPadden still keeps in contact with one of her senior captains from her freshman year, Kelsey Cognetta.

“I bounce ideas from her all the time and captains after her, I talk to them and ask them about different situations and how I should handle them, I’m a senior and still going through the learning process,” she said. She adds on how she wants the underclassmen to still reach to her and talk to her whenever they need help.

Imagine being the only senior on a college sports team. That’s what Emily McPadden is dealing with, as well as being a captain.

McPadden plays for the Keene State’s Women’s Basketball team, and has since her freshman year. McPadden knew she was going to be the only senior early on in her college career. At the end of her sophomore year, she realized that if the team didn’t have any transfer students, she would be the only junior and senior.

“For the most part, I knew we weren’t going to get any transfers because not many people transfer for just their senior year, but it’s different being by yourself and not having anybody be in your class,” she said.“I think being the only senior is great and all but I definitely want to leave something with the program and that’s helping the juniors now even the sophomores and freshman just getting better every day, and realizing how hard it is to handle college basketball with school. I think that’s the greatest thing a senior on the team can tell them how they made it all four years,” she said.

Players left the team due to school, she explained. Their coach has always told them school comes first, and has no problem people stepping down, McPadden said. The team has 13 players on the roster, making them a small team.

Some might think this an obstacle, but McPadden thinks otherwise. She thinks because the team is small, it makes them closer.

“The chemistry on our team is incredible right now,” she said.

McPadden said regardless if she wasn’t the only senior, she would still be feeling the same pressure she has now.

“I think there’s always going to be pressure for the senior on the team because they’re the people that are looked to for the tough moments to make a play,” she said. Although she is the only senior, she said the juniors on the team will help her out when it comes to mentoring. Seeing the senior before McPadden leave was hard for her.

“I’ve learned that you can’t take every single day for granted because one day it’s not going to be there, so I’m giving everything I have in practice and games and enjoy my last year,” McPadden said.

McPadden tries to get in the gym as much as she can to practice her shooting. Even before games she gets in early to shoot around.

“Especially being the only senior I have to make the plays that we need at crunch time,” she said.

Women’s head coach failed to comTeammate and junior Kenzie Bennett ment before deadline. said, “She brings a ton of knowledge to Adriana Sanchez can be contacted the team. Not only can she shoot, but she at asanchez@kscequinox.com gets the game and has this incredible

LUKE STERGIOU / PHOTO EDITOR

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