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@kentwired KentWired.com MONDAY, JANUARY 30, 2017
REDEFINING
SURVIVAL: One student adapts to life after assault Andrew Atkins Assigning Editor Editor’s note: This story is the first of continued coverage surrounding assault on college campuses. In an effort to open the conversation about assault, Corinne Engber has allowed The Kent Stater to use her full name and share her story.
C
orinne Engber survived. She was in a small lounge on the second floor of her dorm, across from her room. A glass wall faced the hall. The lounge only had a couple pieces of furniture. The other person in the room was a man she had just met. He pinned her against the wall, pulled her hair and forcibly kissed her. “They say either fight or flight,” she said. “Sometimes, you just freeze.” Engber, now a senior English major, said she was sexually assaulted the day before classes began her sophomore year at Kent State in 2014. When she got back to her room, Engber said she started crying and didn’t know why. Over the next four days, Engber went from her resident assistant to her residence hall directors and then reported the assault to the police. Even though Engber said she was sexually assaulted, the police report categorized it as disorderly conduct. Under the Ohio Revised Code, the specific legal categorizations of sexual assault include: rape, sexual battery, gross sexual imposition and sexual imposition. Each of these crimes contain distinct definitions, such as sexual conduct, which denotes penetration, and sexual contact, which denotes contact with erogenous zones. Kent State Police Sgt. Nancy Shefchuk said sexual assault is the general term often used but is not the legal classification for any sex-related crimes. “We have to fit these very specific definitions,” Shefchuk said. “We resort to (disorderly conduct) because these definitions don’t fit ... I’m not going to call a sexual imposition a disorderly conduct when I could have called it a sexual imposition.”
SEE SURVIVAL / PAGE 2
Corinne Engber poses for a silhouette. Aaron Self / The Kent Stater
Warren responds to immigration order
61% 44% 11%
of female victims were stalked by a current or former intimate partner
of male victims were stalked by a current or former intimate partner
of stalking victims have been stalked for five years or more
SRVSS advocates stalking awareness
2/3
7.5
of stalkers pursue their victims at least once per week
Beverly Warren (2016) Photo courtesy of Kent State University
Henry Palattella Administration Reporter Kent State President Beverly Warren broke her silence on President Donald Trump's executive order on immigration Sunday night in a university-wide email. The order, which Trump signed Friday, bans citizens from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen from entering the United States for the next 90 days, according to CNN. Warren wrote in the email that suspending visas from those countries "has the potential to have a powerfully negative impact on our global community and our climate of inclusion and care." Warren also said the university's Office of Global Education, Office of the Provost and other departments have been working to better understand the executive order, as well as reach out to any parties affected by it. "The faculty and staff of Kent State University affirm our longstanding commitment to be a welcoming, inclusive environment where all feel at home," Warren wrote. "That commitment does not change as political or social movements change." She urged any international students to reconsider traveling outside of the country "for the time being." Warren also wrote that the Office of Global Education is planning a "support session" that will take place later this week, where experts will be available to not only answer questions, but also to support students involved. The Office of Global Education can be contacted by email at isss@kent.edu, or by phone at 330-672-7980. hpalatte@kent.edu
million people are stalked each year in the United States
Cameron Hoover General Assignment Reporter Throughout the month of January, Kent State’s Sexual and Relationship Violence Support Services (SRVSS) have made it a goal to raise awareness of an important issue on college campuses: stalking. In honor of Stalking Awareness Month, SRVSS has taken the opportunity to inform students of what stalking is and what their options are if they feel they're being stalked. “Statistically, stalking impacts about 13 percent of college students in a given year,” Director of SRVSS Jennifer O’Connell said. “That is higher than sexual assault and intimate partner violence. However, it is often minimized or overlooked because stalkers can do a good job of being creative in their way to track and learn about what someone is doing." To raise awareness about the subtleties and realities of stalking, interns at SRVSS made signs to place around campus. These signs contain common quotes heard from stalking cases such as, "I called you 20 times, why didn’t you pick up?" or "I left a present at your apartment. I found your address online." Lauren Raymond, one of the interns who helped to make the signs, said she wanted students and other passersby to see the signs and know how often the warning signs of stalk-
Information provided by The National Center for Victims of Crime. Graphic by Erin Shea
ing appear, even if they go unnoticed. “This project was particularly interesting because I think a lot of people don’t notice that something someone is saying to them could be stalking,” said Raymond, a senior human development and family
studies major. “There’s a difference between when a friend tells you, ‘Hey, I see you! Turn around!’ and when someone you’re not particularly fond of does it. That can become stalking.” Raymond said she wanted to
place the signs in strategic locations around campus to maximize the amount of people that would see them. "So if people were paying attention, the signs would kind of startle you if you walked by,” Raymond said. “And if people recognized from the signs that they might have that sort of problem, we wanted to have the SRVSS information close zby so they could reach out to us.” Support Services Coordinator for SRVSS Stephanie Orwick said she believes one of the biggest challenges in raising stalking awareness is the evolution of the definition of “stalking” due to the social media use. “Sometimes it makes it easier to stalk,” Orwick said. “A lot of times there is information out there that wasn’t previously available. It’s no longer about the creepy guy following you in the bushes. They can follow you digitally now as well.” Todd Kamenash, director of student conduct, said that even though there are more possibilities for stalking, the behaviors remain the same. “I think there certainly have been some definitional changes,” Kamenash said, “But the concept has always been the same: a person attempting to exert power over another person by repeatedly doing something to annoy, harass or intimidate that person.”
SEE AWARENESS / PAGE 2
Page 2 | Monday, January 30, 2017
The Kent Stater
From Page 1
SURVIVAL Redefining survival ... While the justice system operates under these very specific definitions, Kent State’s Office of Sexual and Relationship Violence Support Services (SRVSS) website defines sexual assault as “sexual contact without a person’s consent. It covers a range of acts, from unwanted touching and fondling to attempted and completed rape. What these acts have in common is a lack of consent.” Engber didn’t press charges, she said, because she didn’t have the money for a lawyer. Plus, she said the emotional burden was too much. “I defined it as sexual assault because it threatened my bodily autonomy and made me feel like I was public domain just for existing in a space as a woman,” she said. “I have trouble with interpersonal relationships and sexual relationships because of it. It affected me in a way that was more intense than just a physical assault.” Engber said she didn’t want to talk about or deal with it.
We know the numbers are so satistically high that it is happening so often, but we just don’t want to talk about it.” STEPHANIE ORWICK SUPPORT SERIVICES COORDINATOR “You just feel dead inside,” she said. “You don’t want to do anything. People always get on me, like ‘Why didn’t you press charges?’ Everybody’s got an opinion. I just didn’t have the energy. I just wasn’t strong enough.” Some of Engber ’s friends told her to get over it, including her roommate at the time. She told Engber she should feel lucky it wasn’t worse. “It (was) a week later,” she said, “and I (felt) like (there was) something wrong with me. And this girl — who was my best friend at the time — she was kind of like ‘Yeah, you’re over-reacting about this, like I’m kind of tired of hearing about it.’” Engber said she doesn’t have to be grateful her assault wasn’t worse. “That’s not how it works,” she said. Stephanie Orwick, support services coordinator for the SRVSS office, said the culture of victim blaming is “alive and well.” “Unless you’ve been through it, or
With sexual assault, you feel like you’re an open Wi-Fi network. You can be accessed by anybody.” CORINNE ENGBER SENIOR ENGLISH MAJOR unless you have an understanding or background in it, you’re not (going to) understand,” Orwick said. “We still live in a culture where nobody wants to talk about rape. Nobody wants to talk about sexual assault. We know the numbers are so statistically high that it is happening so often, but we just don’t want to talk about it.” Engber said she would often scream herself awake from violent nightmares about being sexually assaulted, stabbed or eaten alive. “With sexual assault, you feel like … you’re an open Wi-Fi network. You can be accessed by anybody,” she said. Following her assault, Engber began to carry a pair of scissors with her for protection. Now, she said, she carries around an item similar to brass knuckles. Outside of classes, Engber works part time off-campus. Her co-workers love to scare her, she said, because they think it’s funny to see her react. One night, she said, a co-worker of hers — unaware of Engber’s experience — began talking about how difficult it would be to report a sexual assault. “To a lot of people, sexual assault is hypothetical,” she said. When she’s working, Engber often flinches and takes a step back when someone makes unexpected physical contact. Outside of work, she said she flinches less because there are not as many instances of potential physical contact, making it easier for her to avoid. Even so, Engber sometimes flinches around her friends. Some of them — like sophomore English major Ollie Swasey — understand her reactions. “She keeps to herself when she’s triggered,” Swasey said. “I don’t like to bother her when she gets triggered … I give her space, and I give her support at a distance … I know it’s not her fault; her trauma isn’t her fault.” For those who don’t understand Engber’s experiences and triggers, their reactions often frustrate her, she said. “They get really offended because it’s inconvenient for them,” Engber said. “If your mental illness or mental disorder is not in a neat little box and with easy-todeal-with symptoms that are consistent, people get really uncomfortable.” The symptoms for each sexual
assault victim are different, Orwick said. “A lot of times the things you’ll see are ... confusion ... trouble concentrating, difficulty with memory,” she said. “Some people might not know that’s from trauma. They might just be like, ‘I’m just having a bad day, I haven’t had enough coffee, why am I so tired.’ You hear a lot about the fatigue — or the opposite end, where they can’t fall asleep — because again, the hormones are jazzed up.” Long-term effects of sexual assault can include depression, anxiety and hypervigilance, Orwick said. The subconscious aspect of the hypervigilance can affect a victim without them recognizing it. “If your assault happened in a yellow room, you might not recognize that on a conscious level. But then your class might be in a yellow room and you’re like ‘Why is my heart beating so fast, why am I so uncomfortable, why am I having a hard time studying in this room?’” Orwick said. Today, Engber ’s “bad days” are fewer and farther between. On the days they do happen, she listens to music, throws soft things like paper towels or screams into a pillow. “I write a lot of poetry,” she said. “I have a therapist on campus who’s amazing … Time just helps. I have a lot of supportive friends.” Now, Engber has applied to Emerson College for graduate school and is waiting to hear back. She’s passionate about literature. She’s working on her poetry for her honors thesis and is the poetry editor for Brainchild Magazine. For victims who feel hesitant about coming forward with their story, Orwick wanted to share her advice. “Be comfortable with the hesitation,”
To a lot of people, sexual assault is hypothetical.” CORINNE ENGBER SENIOR ENGLISH MAJOR she said. “Everything happens on your own time. You will know when it’s right. You will know when you want to go to counseling. You will know when you want to join a support group. You will know when you want to disclose to your family.” Victims can also get resources without reporting their trauma to authorities. Orwick said if a survivor is not ready to tell his or her story, they don’t need to do so to receive resources.
Engber said her advice is that it’s okay to say no.
We’re all just people. And nobody’s gonna react to trauma in a nice, palatable, clean way.”
The
Stater 240 FRANKLIN HALL KENT STATE UNIVERSITY KENT, OHIO 44242
CORINNE ENGBER SENIOR ENGLISH MAJOR “Say no to sexual situations or situations where your refusal might make someone uncomfortable,” she said in a text message. “Listen to your gut. Don’t be afraid of hurting someone’s feelings if it affects your well-being.” Engber said her greatest piece of advice for sexual assault survivors is to talk about it. “We’re all just people. And nobody’s gonna react to trauma in a nice, palatable, clean way,” she said. “Talk about it ... So many people don’t talk about it. And you have to feel the feelings.” It sucks, Engber said. “It hurts.” “It makes you want to die. It makes you feel like you are dead. But you have to talk about it,” she said. “Even if you don’t report, coming forward and talking about things can really help in your healing process.” aatkins5@kent.edu
Resources: Kent State University Police Department: 330-672-2212 www.kent.edu/police Sexual and Relationship Violence Support Services: 330-672-8016 www.kent.edu/srvss Office of Student Conduct: 330-672-4054 www.kent.edu/studentconduct Psychological Services: 330-672-2487 www.kent.edu/uhs/psych Planned Parenthood: 330-678-8011 www.ppneo.org University Health Services 330-672-2322 www.kent.edu/uhs
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Reginald Byron Jones-Sawyer Sr., of the Service Employees International Union, talks to demonstrators opposed to President Donald Trump's executive order barring entry to the U.S. by Muslims from certain countries at the Tom Bradley International Terminal at Los Angeles International Airport Saturday, Jan. 28, 2017, in Los Angeles. Reed Saxon / Associated Press
White House: immigration order 'small price' for safety Jill Colvin Associated Press The White House on Sunday tried to tamp down concerns about President Donald Trump's sweeping immigration order in the face of widespread protests, as some Republicans in Congress urged him to proceed with caution in the face of legal pushback. Top congressional Republicans, however, remain largely behind the new president. During a round of Sunday show interviews, Trump's aides stressed that just a small portion of travelers had been affected by the order, which temporarily bars the citizens of seven majority Muslim nations from entering the country. The aides also reversed course and said that citizens of those countries who hold permanent U.S. residency "green cards" will not be barred from re-entering the U.S., as officials had previously said. As of Sunday afternoon, one legal permanent resident had been denied entry to the country as a result of the order, according to a federal law enforcement official. The official was not permitted to discuss the order's impact publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity. The changes, said White House adviser Kellyanne Conway, are "a small
price to pay" to keep the nation safe. But it's unclear whether the order, which also suspends refugee admissions for 120 days and indefinitely bars the processing of refugees from Syria, will accomplish that. The order does not address homegrown extremists already in America, a primary concern of federal law enforcement officials. And the list of countries in Trump's order doesn't include Saudi Arabia, where most of the Sept. 11 hijackers were from. Priebus said that other countries could be added to the list. The order has sparked widespread protests and denunciations from Democrats and a handful of Republicans. Many have accused the administration of rushing to implement the changes, resulting in panic and confusion at the nation's airports. "You have an extreme vetting proposal that didn't get the vetting it should have had," said Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, who urged the new president to "slow down" and work with lawmakers on how best to tighten screening for foreigners who enter the United States. "America's always been a welcoming home for refugees and immigrants," he said. Several Democrats in Congress said they would be introducing legislation to
stop the ban. Trump, meanwhile, defended his actions, saying in a statement that America "will continue to show compassion to those fleeing oppression" while protecting its own citizens. The White House said later that King Salman of Saudi Arabia and Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the crown prince of Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, had both agreed to support safe zones for refugees, but offered no further details. The comments came the morning after a federal judge in New York issued an emergency order temporarily barring the U.S. from deporting people from the seven majority Muslim nations subject to Trump's 90-day travel ban. The judge said travelers who had been detained had a strong argument that their legal rights had been violated. The order barred U.S. border agents from removing anyone who arrived in the U.S. with a valid visa from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen. It also covered anyone with an approved refugee application. The Department of Homeland Security, however, said Sunday said the court ruling would not affect the overall implementation of the White House order.
"President Trump's executive orders remain in place — prohibited travel will remain prohibited, and the U.S. government retains its right to revoke visas at any time if required for national security or public safety," the department said in a statement. Top congressional Republicans, meanwhile, were backing Trump despite concerns raised Sunday from a handful of GOP lawmakers. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said he supports more stringent screening mechanisms, though he cautioned that Muslims are some of the country's "best sources in the war against terror." Republican Sens. John McCain and Lindsey Graham, meanwhile, warned of unintended consequences, expressing fear the order could "become a selfinflicted wound in the fight against terrorism." "This executive order sends a signal, intended or not, that America does not want Muslims coming into our country. That is why we fear this executive order may do more to help terrorist recruitment than improve our security," they wrote.
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AWARENESS SRVSS advocates ... One of the main goals of SRVSS and the Office of Student Conduct is to make clear to students, who feel like they might be being stalked, that there are resources they can utilize on campus. “People tend to wait until things progress and escalate, and they don’t have to wait that long,” Orwick said. “We can talk over options. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want. If you just want to come talk over what your reporting options are, you choose what to do. If you’re not sure it’s stalking, come talk it out. This is a no-pressure space." choove14@kent.edu
Monday, January 30, 2017 | Page 3
The Kent Stater
Opinion
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The Stater hopes to encourage lively debate about the issues of the day on the Opinion Page. Opinions on this page are the authors’ and not necessarily endorsed by the Stater or its editors. Readers are encouraged to participate through letters to the editor (email them to jmill231@kent.edu) and guest columns. Submissions become property of the Stater and are subject to editing without notice.
Opinion Editor: Lucas Misera Senior Editor: Karl Schneider Diversity Editor: McKenzie Jean-Phillipe Sports Editor: Henry Palattella Assigning Editor: Jack Kopanski
THE OPINION PAGE IS AN OUTLET FOR OUR COMMUNITY’S VARIED VIEWS.
JOSEPH MCGRELLIS’ VIEW // To see all the cartoons this semester, visit KentWired.com
On Kent State hockey club sweeps Slippery Rock Erik Svensson Sports Reporter The Kent State hockey club (18-13) finished the weekend with two wins against Slippery Rock University (9-18). “It’s always good to finish out the weekend with two wins,” said head coach Jim Underwood, who also expressed dissatisfaction with the uncertainty of the third period Saturday. “We looked good in spurts, but in certain areas we weren’t strong enough,” he said. See extended article on KentWired.com
Cheers&Jeers Cheers to ... Costco. The wholesaler unveiled a plan to gradually push suppliers away from using chemicals that affect the dwindling bee population. Jeers to ... enclosures. A Bengal tiger escaped a circus in Monreale, Italy, roaming the streets for hours before finally being recaptured without harm.
Trump executive orders require pushback from public Bobbie Szabo Columnist My grandfather was an immigrant from Hungary. He sought escape from the effects of the rise of fascism in his home country before World War II, and – in order to become a citizen of the United States – he joined the U.S. Army. My father, who was born with dual citizenship in Germany, moved to the U.S. at age 13 to pursue the “American Dream”. We have all descended from immigrants and from refugees (minus direct descendants of the Native Americans who first inhabited this land). America is a nation of people who have sought respite, yearned for a better future and aspired for the diversity and inclusion synonymous with our very country’s name. The very symbol of the U.S., the Statue of Liberty, is home to a plaque, which states: “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!” Despite this, citizens of the U.S. have feared and discriminated against every major wave of immigrants throughout our nation’s history: the German and Irish immigration of the 1830s, Chinese immigration in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Jewish refugees during World War II, Vietnamese refugees in the ‘70s, Cubans and Haitians in the ‘80s and ‘90s, and now, refugees from Syria and surrounding countries. President Donald Trump recently unleashed chaos in our country with an executive order indefinitely banning refugees from Syria, barring all refugees regardless of country of origin for 120 days and blocked citizens of seven countries — Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen — from entering the country for 90 days. Protests have erupted around the country against Trump’s actions, many of them in airports in which people are currently detained. The executive order is widely deemed unconstitutional, illegal and inherently un-American. However, given our history with xenophobia, this irrational hatred is not new. But just because it is not new, does not mean we can allow it to be normal. Our country’s hatred for people we perceive to be “others” has had disastrous consequences for thousands of people. An entire ship of Jewish people was denied refuge in the United States during WWII, and over one-fourth of the passengers on the ship were killed in the Holocaust upon their return to Europe. That blood is on our hands. We cannot go back in history and stop that, but we can stop what is happening in our world now. We must refuse to let ourselves hate because of fear. We must fight back against a government that refuses to acknowledge what we are telling it. We cannot sit by and allow our country to deny its most basic principles for any longer. Call your senators and representatives. Sign petitions. Attend protests. Donate to the American Civil Liberties Union. Put an end to this ridiculous endeavor. It is time we recognized the commonality amongst all human beings: We all deserve life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. When our country is denying citizens of other countries their rights to do so, we must stand up to our own hypocrisy. bszabo3@kent.edu
OUR VIEW
#NoBanNoWall
The Statue of Liberty was once an emblematic sight to those looking for better lives, both for themselves and their families, as they left their homes and native countries and traveled to the land of opportunity. With one fell stroke of a pen, though, that same land of opportunity has now become a land of exclusion and exclusivity. On Friday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order barring the acceptance of Syrian refugees and strictly limiting –— through intense vetting measures — refugees from Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Libya, Yemen and Somalia. Trump’s reasoning behind signing this order was to “keep radical Islamic terrorists out of the United States of America.” What Trump is parading around as an act and measure of national security is nothing more than a thinly-veiled cover-up of his racism. While his stance on immigration should be nothing new for those who followed his campaign even slightly, there is still a sense of shock surrounding the fact that it has been allowed to happen.
Trump’s discrimination and hatred toward a group of people is something likes of which we have not seen since World War II. U.S. Speaker of the House Paul Ryan also tweeted Friday, “On this #HolocaustMemorialDay, we remember the millions of innocent lives lost, and pledge #NeverAgain.” The irony of this remark would be almost laughable, were it not such a scary prospect that “never again,” was in fact happening right now. Philosopher Edmund Burke once said, “The only thing necessary for evil to triumph, is that good men do nothing.” We cannot allow this presidency to go down in history as one that is looked back on in a textbook, with students sitting in stunned shock, wondering how it could ever get to this point. We as a nation, we as citizens, must stand together and not allow this evil to triumph.
Nicholas Hunter Columnist
impressive is the one-on-one nature of tennis. Nobody carried Federer to those 18 Grand Slams – he singlehandedly ascended to the top of the sport. While Jordan had Scottie Pippen, Brady had Bill Belichick and LeBron had the help of Dwayne Wade in Miami, Federer has only ever had himself to rely on. He’s done it in a crowded field, too. Amidst an era of tennis that features Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Stanislas Wawrinka, Federer has amassed a career record of 1,087-245. Despite over 1,000 career wins and winnings that exceed $100 million, he’s been an ambassador of the game, representing tennis with a sense of humility rarely seen in sports. Sunday provided a prime example: Following his victory, he stated that – if ties could occur in tennis – he “would have been happy to accept a draw with (Nadal).” He didn’t say that to pander to the crowd, either. It’s the Federer that fans have come to admire for what seems like an eternity. Through his outstanding sportsmanship, unmatched tennis resume and grace on the court - which makes tennis look more like an art form than a game - Federer deserves to be mentioned as one of the greatest to ever step foot in an athletic venue. And — by the time he retires — he may just deserve the oft-disputed title of the greatest of all time.
In an interview with The New York Times, White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon stated, “the media here is the opposition party” and “the media should be embarrassed and humiliated and keep its mouth shut and just listen for a while.” His statement was backed by President Donald Trump, who said, in an interview with David Brody of the Christian Broadcasting Network, he thinks “the media is the opposition party in many ways.” Trump went on to say “the opposition party is losing badly.” I could spend the next 450 words going on a tirade over their statements. I could get angry, make a few irresponsible remarks about him and prove every Trump supporter who reads this right — or, I can throw him a bone. I can say yes, we are the “Opposition Party,” and I think it’s time we develop a platform. And I’d like to offer up its preamble: We, the Opposition Party, are journalists. Not elected politicians, not lobbyists, not bureaucrats. We are citizens who have dedicated our lives to the discovery and publication of the truth above all else. The Opposition Party’s members serve two roles: to report facts as they are to the public and to provide a public voice to all sides of an issue. As reporters, our responsibility to report is not to persuade, but rather, to inform. We strive to give the public information. Without the information provided by journalists, the public is left to depend on what politicians and public figures decide they need to know — regardless of whether that information is fact or fiction. And as we work to find and disseminate the truth, our job is also to allow members of the public we serve to tell their stories on a public platform. Without the voice of the people alongside factual reporting, facts and figures become unimportant and irrelevant. Allowing facts and public opinion to exist in unison allows those with opposing views to hear one another in a different light, as well as turn the information back toward politicians. The goal of what we do is ultimately to arm the people with information, so they are capable of holding the government that serves them accountable. As we are aware of what has resulted when politicians decide what should be public information in the past, we see today’s political climate as an indicator that there is no greater time than now to look wider, dig deeper and aim higher to increase the quality of journalism in the face of attempted de-legitimization from members of the White House staff, including the president. This statement about the roles of journalism may seem obvious, but as distrust in media grows and a deep questioning of our motives and validity is taking place, clarifying what we do and why we do it is needed. “Alternative facts” is an idea cooked up by Trump spokesperson Kellyanne Conway to back him out of a corner, not a tenet of journalism. Deep down, the public knows this. It is my hope that as the Trump administration makes further attempts to invalidate and discredit the media, we will doubledown on our roles as journalists. We are the Opposition Party, that is for sure. But there is no way we will, in Bannon’s words, “keep our mouths shut and just listen for a while.” They better start listening to us and to the American people.
lmisera@kent.edu
nhunter6@kent.edu
The above editorial is the consensus opinion of The Kent Stater editorial board, whose names are listed above.
Australian Open win makes Federer the greatest Lucas Misera Opinion Editor Long after the marquee athletes of our generation have retired – when the stars of the 2000s have moved aside in favor of athletes whose names are not yet familiar to us – I often wonder who I’ll look back on as the best of the best, the premiere competitor of the early 21st century. There are obvious choices that materialize; Tom Brady will have established himself as perhaps the greatest quarterback to play the game of football by the time he retires, Clayton Kershaw’s dominance on the mound will immortalize him among baseball’s greats, and LeBron James may only need contend with Michael Jordan for the title of the best to ever play basketball. It’s also important to include Michael Phelps in that conversation, the most decorated Olympian in the history of the games. However, one name quietly looms over the rest: Roger Federer. Federer has dominated the sport of tennis since he first won a major tournament with a Wimbledon title in 2003. His record of 18 Grand Slams – four more than Pete Sampras, the next closest in terms of major titles – easily establishes him as a legend of the sport. His most recent – a victory over Rafael Nadal at the Australian Open this Sunday – came at the age of 35, an unfathomable feat in a sport that takes a considerable toll on players’ knees, backs and shoulders over the course of a career. What makes his long run of success so
The ‘Opposition Party’ platform
Page 4 | Monday, January 30, 2017
KENT STATE HOSTS ANNUAL FASHION TECH HACKATHON Kent State fashion design major Olivia Kissenger sews a design for pants to have a discreet, built-in knee brace for Fashion Tech Hackathon in Rockwell Hall on Saturday. Alyssa Keown / The Kent Stater
Paige Miller Fashion Reporter
Kent State junior applied engineering major Brigid Kearns examines her Fashion Tech Hackathon project at the College of Architecture & Environmental Design building in Kent, Ohio, on Sunday. Angelo Angel / The Kent Stater
Students traveled to Kent State this weekend for the Fashion Tech Hackathon event to create the most innovative fashion-forward, technology-based product. “The Hackathon allows participants to work with people not in their discipline,” said Kevin Wolfgang, the outreach manager for the TechStyle LAB. “They have to come up with a problem and solve it. Students are most likely using technology they’ve never tried.” The event, which took place over the weekend is open to students from other universities and majors. Sauua Madar, a computer science major at Cleveland State University, traveled to Kent State to compete. “I have engaged in a previous hacking program that was strictly technology based,” Madar said. “This is my first time participating in anything related to fashion.” Junior fashion merchandising major Ella Zurawski said she is a Hackathon veteran. “The Hackathon is a great weekend of ideas and failures,” Zurawski said. “It’s an inclusive event that brings people together.” Zurawski and her teammate junior fashion
Liquid crystal design student Tanya Lopatkina sews a jacket design that can convert into a bag for Fashion Tech Hackathon in Rockwell Hall. Alyssa Keown / The Kent Stater Baldwin Wallace University computer science major Dragan Dijakovitz and University of Toledo computer science major Tyler Golias team up to create a bag that alerts your cell phone gets too far away from it on Saturday at the Fashion Tech Hackathon in Rockwell Hall. Alyssa Keown / The Kent Stater
University of Pittsburgh senior math major Connor Stout and Kent State sophomore fashion design majors Olivia Pickard and Elizabeth Tarleton celebrate after winning the Best Fashion Project during the Fashion Tech Hackathon Awards Ceremony at the College of Architecture and Environmental Design building on Sunday. Angelo Angel / The Kent Stater
merchandising major Kevin Williams designed a vibrant green and red, fashion-forward voice box bag offering 12 programmable notes as well as an insert for a SD card and an external battery. “If you are travelling in a different country, you can program 12 essential phrases in different languages to make for easy communication,” Zurawski explained. The Project Expo Sunday lined the Center of Architecture and Environmental Design lobby with 30 tables of garments designed by students over the weekend, and teams buzzed with excitement as they explained their product to the public and judges. “Whatever project you make, you are judged in the category you choose,” Wolfgang said. “It’s not just about the product. The type of student that will show up and participate in this project is an employee someone wants.” Prizes are awarded for the creation of new technology, use of technology in creating new fashion products and technological advancement of the retail experience. Wolfgang said the most gratifying takeaway from this opportunity is teaching people how to communicate with each other and said at the end of the weekend every participant is a winner. pmille39@kent.edu
Monday, January 30, 2017 | Page 5
The Kent Stater
Kent State graduate student wins PITCH U competition with water filtration system Abigail Winternitz College of Nursing and Public Health Reporter Shanice Cheatham, a graduate student in Kent State’s College of Public Health, recently took first place in the Burton D. Morgan Foundation PITCH U elevator competition with her Endemic Filtration Portable Water System. Originally working to become an orthopedic surgeon after she completed her undergraduate degree in cellular and molecular biology at Kent State in 2013, Cheatham changed her focus of study to health policy and management after nearly losing her father to methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a type of staph bacteria resistant to antibiotics that infects those in healthcare settings. She now has a passion to stop the spread of
diseases. “It just changed my world,” Cheatham said. “I started researching with the doctors to try to figure out, at the time, what was wrong with him, and I just realized that this is what I needed to be doing.” Cheatham said her product will help healthcare professionals in undeveloped countries with limited water sources to use the backpackstyle filtration system to treat patients. “Say medical personnel need to wash a wound and run out of saline, or a person needs to wash his hands. They can use my product for that and in other ways,” Cheatham said. “It all depends on what a person needs it for.” Cheatham has been focusing on product use in underdeveloped countries and plans to market her product both domestically and globally,
but believes her product will most benefit medical missionaries are abroad. “As Americans, most of us don’t realize what it’s like to go without continuous access to clean water,” Cheatham said. “But people who have volunteered in the medical field in underdeveloped countries, they get it. It’s not something that can ever be taken for granted.” Mark James, a professor and chair of the Department of Biostatistics, Environmental Health Sciences and Epidemiology, is optimistic about the possibilities that Cheatham’s invention has for global health as a whole. “Water sanitation is a huge aspect of global health,” James said. “Most countries throughout the world, especially low and middle-income countries, could stand to benefit from the product (Cheatham) is developing.”
Cheatham is also the founder and CEO of Endemic Solutions LLC, which she created in November 2015. The company develops filtration systems, has a focus on charitable global health work. Kent State’s LaunchNET helped Cheatham develop her product and company for the past two years, according to LaunchNET venture advisor Tabitha Martin. “We’re so proud of everything (Cheatham) has accomplished,” Martin said. “She has grown so much from where she first started with us, and I have no doubt that she will accomplish amazing things in the years to come.” After graduate school, Cheatham plans to purse a doctorate of medicine and philosophy and become a medical missionary. awintern@kent.edu
CCI dean elevates local radio to new heights Henry Palattella Administration Reporter During the week, Amy Reynolds makes her presence known on Kent State's campus as the dean of Kent State's College of Communication and Information (CCI). But for five minutes every Saturday morning, Reynolds' voice carries over 20 Ohio counties and parts of Pennsylvania on her new show called "Elevations," which airs on local NPR affiliate WKSU. "President (Beverly) Warren had a goal to create a better linkage with WKSU and the university," said Emily Morris, executive communications director and "Elevations" co-producer. "We have this wonderful asset here in WKSU, and she felt like there had to be more opportunities that we need to do to leverage that relationship." Morris said that after discussion with Warren, the president said she'd like to see a program on WKSU about the university. "We worked with (WKSU production manager) Ele Ellis and envisioned launching this program in the format that it is," Morris said. When it came to picking a host, Morris said Reynolds was a natural fit. "She has a broadcast background, and as the dean of (CCI), (picking her) made a great deal of sense," Morris said. "So we put our heads together and said, 'Let's launch the program and focus on those activities, programs and initiatives at the university that really have an elevating effect." The show — which runs for five minutes — airs at 7 a.m. While at first glance the early hour may not be a time that would seem to garner a high listenership but Reynolds is happy with the morning slot. Part of this is because "Elevations" is followed by the NPR show "Living on Earth," which is a
Amy Reynolds. Photo courtesy of Kent State University
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Page 6 | Monday, January 30, 2017
The Kent Stater
Sports
SPORTS EDITOR: HENRY PALATTELLA // HPALATTE@KENT.EDU
Flashes struggle in MAC dual meets Samantha Ross Sports Reporter This weekend proved to tough for the Kent State wrestling team (2-11, 0-5 Mid-American Conference), as they fell to both Northern Illinois and Northern Iowa. “I thought that as a group we did better (against Northern Illinois), but there’s still so much more improvement for our team and so much more that we need to do that we don’t do on a regular everyday basis,” said head coach Jim Andrassy. “We have to make wrestling a lifestyle and not all our kids are doing that.” Northern Illinois 30 Kent State 12 Kent State opened their weekend with a 12-30 loss to Northern Illinois (6-5, 2-3 MAC). The Huskies dominated in the wire to wire, securing wins in all but three matches. Kent State Junior 141-pounder Chance Driscoll snuck past the Huskies Anthony Rubino with a 3-0 score for the Flashes first win, but they wouldn't taste victory again until the 184-pound weight class when junior Jerald Spohn claimed a victory via pin. Spohn pinned Northern Illinois’ Bryce Gorman four minutes into the second period of their match to add six points onto the Flashes score. The Flashes final win came in the 285-pound weight class when sophomore Devin Nye dominated in his match against Northern Illinois’ Caleb Gossett, winning 5-1. Northern Iowa 31 Kent State 16 Driscoll opened up the scoring Sunday for Kent State by defeating Northern Iowa’s Tyler Willers. Driscoll got off to a hot start against Willers and found himself up 2-0 after a first period takedown. Driscoll didn't slow up the rest of the match and eventually won 5-2. “During situations when you’re put on your back, you have to fight harder,” said Andrassy. “You have to give more effort in situations when you’re getting ready to go to your back and when
Kent State sophmore Isaac Bast fights against Northern Illinois sophomore Bryce Steiert at the M.A.C. Center on Sunday. Kent State lost 31-16. Aaron Self / The Kent Stater
you’re on your back and you can’t give up pins at this level. It’s the bottom line.” Sophomore Casey Sparkman, a 157-pounder, took down Northern Iowa’s Paden Moore in the waning seconds of the first period. Sparkman added an escape and a takedown over the next two periods and won by a final score of 7-3. Junior Stephen Suglio and Northern Iowa’s Jacob Holschlag, scored got the biggest win of the night for the Flashes when he beat NIU’s Jaob Holschlag on a major decision. Neither of the two scored either first in the first period, but Suglio took the lead in te second period when he recorded a reversal and four-point tilt to make the score 6-1. He pulled off another reversal in the third period, which guranteed him the major decision win. “I watched some film on the guy,” Suglio said. “I knew he was pretty good on top so I figured I could control the rest of the match and just be really solid on the mat. My go to move on top is the tilt. I went immediately to that and got the four points.” The Flashes will host Oklahoma State Saturday at 2 p.m. in the M.A.C. Center. sross39@kent.edu
Central Michigan junior guard Marcus Keene pulls up for a mid-range jumper over Kent State junior guard Kevin Zabo at the M.A.C Center on Saturday. Kent State lost 105-98 in overtime. Nate Manley / The Kent Stater
Flashes’ game plan ineffective against nation’s leading scorer Nick Buzzelli Sports Reporter There’s a reason "Sports Illustrated" wrote a three-page story in its Jan. 30 issue that chronicles Marcus Keene’s journey from a Youngstown State University role player two years ago to this season’s unlikely star in for Central Michigan University. There’s a reason he’s been interviewed multiple times by ESPN and other national media outlets. And there’s a reason he’s on pace to accomplish something that Division I basketball hasn’t seen in 23 years. Simply put, Keene is a natural scorer. He is a shooting guard who seems as relaxed fighting for defensive rebounds in the paint as he is knocking down clutch three pointers from the wing when the game’s on the line. “Yeah, he’s a good player. He can shoot the ball, he can score,” a somber Jimmy Hall, slumped in his chair in the media room, said following Kent State’s 105-98 loss to CMU Saturday afternoon in which Keene scored 41 points. “A good player.” Keene missed his first two shots — both three pointers — but once he drained a fade away baseline jumper four minutes in, the shots began to fall. First, there was the coast-to-coast layup he had after tipping a defensive rebound to himself near the far foul line. Then, there was the screen set at the top of the key that allowed him to roll to his right and hit a floater in the lane, followed by multiple step-back three pointers. At times the Flashes were able to contain the 5-foot-9 guard, double teaming him down low and limiting the effectiveness of his midrange game. And, he was whistled for four turnovers during the game, most of which occurred on traveling calls.
But then again, Keene took over when he needed to the most. Sitting at 30 points at the end of regulation — his season average — Keene went 4-4 from the floor in overtime, recorded his team’s first eight points of the final frame, and finished with his second doubledouble (41 points, 10 rebounds) of the season on a 13-26 performance from the field to lead his program to its first win in the M.A.C. Center in 20 years. While Kent State head coach Rob Senderoff admitted that Keene played well during his postgame press conference, he attributed the loss to his team’s mistakes down the stretch — defensive lapses, fouling a three point shooter, turning the ball over late in possessions — and not necessarily Keene’s heroics. “You tip your hat to him, but that’s not why we lost. Again, what costs you the game isn’t the overtime tough, contested three’s,” he said. “What costs you the game is in the second half, the two, three, four defensive lapses that allow other guys to get wide open threes or allow (Keene) to get to the rim for layups.” Because of Keene’s perfect mark from the floor in overtime, which helped spark an 11-1 Central Michigan run, the Flashes were forced to rush three pointers of their own early in the shot clock, something that wasn’t necessarily anticipated prior to tipoff. “That (attempting 36 three’s) wasn’t part of the game plan,” Hall said. “We just kind of got outside of ourselves. Though Senderoff didn’t specify what his game plan was to contain Keene, he was quick to point out its ineffectiveness. “Whatever it was didn’t work.” nbuzzel1@kent.edu