TheOnlineBeacon.com
Thursday, March 12, 2020
Franklin
7 Berkshire
Hampshire Hampden
1 Worcester
1
Essex
41
20
Middlesex
Suffolk
22
Norfolk
Bristol
Plymouth
More than 40 cases More than 5 cases 1 or more cases
Dukes
Nantucket
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY BRIAN RHODES
Confirmed coronavirus (COVID-19) cases by Massachusetts counties as of Wednesday morning, March 11.
Governor Charlie Baker Declares State of Emergency
As COVID-19 cases nearly double in Mass., officials move to prevent further outbreaks BY JAKE VITALI EDITOR AT LARGE Gov. Charlie Baker declared a state of emergency as the number of coronavirus cases rose to 92, with 51 new cases announced by the Department of Public Health on Tuesday, March 10. “This declaration will give our administration more flexibility to respond to this evolving outbreak,” Baker said at a press conference.
“Responding to this evolving health threat requires everyone to be vigilant and for everyone to be part of this effort.” With the declaration, Baker has an expanded authority to make decisions including: canceling large-scale public events, expanding what is covered by health insurance, accessing building and facilities for stockpile storage and increased access to federal resources.
“This declaration is a critical and appropriate response to address the Commonwealth’s evolving needs around this crisis. State-sponsored support is particularly necessary for communities like Berkshire County that require coordinated efforts between local municipalities to implement a succinct response and action plan,” stated a press re-
Baker, Page 3
New Bachelor’s Of Science In Nursing To Start Fall 2022 BY COREY MITCHELL-LABRIE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Earlier this semester, the college announced its inclusion of a Bachelors of Science in Nursing (BSN) to be added to the curriculum with their first students entering the program around fall 2022. “Courses will be offered on campus and at the North Adams BHS satellite (formerly North Adams Regional Hospital), where the Radiologic Sciences classes are also held,” said Adrienne Wooters, vice president of academic affairs, in an email. Before they can move forward with the program, the college needs to hire a program director. This individual will take over program development, separate hiring procedures for ad-
ditional staff and keep the program at Massachusetts Board of Registered Nursing (BORN) requirements. This search will be lead by the academic affairs office. “My office has written the job description, and our office will oversee the hiring,” Wooters said in her email. “We are not in a position to discuss money at this point. However, Berkshire Health Systems will provide $200,000 over two years, which will pay for the program administrator’s initial work.” Wooters explained that the college intends the project to work along with Berkshire Community College’s (BCC) associate nursing program. “Their students who wish a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) will be able to apply those credits towards a BSN from MCLA,”
MCLA to Close Residential Halls Over Extended Spring Break BY BRIAN RHODES SENIOR NEWS EDITOR & COREY MITCHELL-LABRIE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Barnstable
More than 20 cases
Volume 90 • Issue 6
Wooters said in her email. “[It was] two years ago, when representatives from Berkshire Health Systems approached President Birge and asked him to consider creating this program of study. Berkshire County is in need of nurses with Bachelor’s degrees,” Wooters said in her email. Wooters echoed an idea shared by Birge in an email sent out earlier this semester. Her email claimed that the addition of the degree would aid the college’s strategic planning goals in responding to the needs of region. “Prospective students regularly ask about nursing programs, and the region needs BSN nurses. A BSN program will address both student and community needs,” Wooters said in her email.
Following the state of emergency declared by Gov. Charlie Baker on March 10, MCLA has extended spring break an additional week in order to ensure campus is safe from COVID-19. According to an email from president James Birge, students will have to leave campus by 7 p.m. on Friday, March 13 and can return to campus on Sunday, March 29, with classes resuming on March 30. Students will be able to petition to stay on campus if they have extraordinary situations by completing a registry form by Thursday, March 12 by 3:00 p.m.. “This decision allows the College additional time to clean all frequently touched surfaces and common areas in all of our facilities including the residence areas,” Birge said in his email. “Moreover, this additional time allows me to work with my colleagues to organize a coordinated campus response to COVID-19.” Additionally, Birge noted all official travel, both domestic and foreign, for MCLA students, faculty and staff is cancelled for the next 30 days, in compliance with the Massachusetts Department
of Higher Education’s recommendations. Jeff Puleri assistant director of athletics told the beacon web news that all sports events were canceled until March 30, at which point they will reevaluate the situation. At press time, it was unclear what other events and activities will be affected between March 30 and April 10. In a statement to The Beacon, SGA president Dean Little ‘21 said that the student government is in agreement with the college’s stance on travel. “Any student that wants to travel, they’re still free to do so, so long as it’s not sponsored by the school. That is what we’re prohibiting,” Little said. Little noted that work to figure out how to help clubs who were planning on traveling navigate this situation is still ongoing. “Really we’re trying to figure out how we can still support clubs and organizations without allowing them to travel,” he said. Birge spoke to SGA about the COVID-19 situation at their March 9 meeting. At the time, the decision had not been made to cancel domestic travel or extend spring break. In an email sent out from Catherine Holbrook, vice
Spring, Page 3
Christian Womble’s Arraignment Set For Friday, March 13
The incident was reportBY COREY MITCHELL-LABRIE ed to happen on campus EDITOR IN CHIEF and the victim was stated Christian Womble ’23 to be an MCLA student. faces a rape charge as a reIt also stated that sult of criminal complaint Womble was placed on an filed on Friday, March 6, interim suspension and is according to an email sent banned from campus. out by Chief Daniel ColonNeither college spokesno on March 9. person Bernadette Alden, The email stated that nor Andrew McKeever, Womble’s arraignment at public information officer the Northern Berkshire of the Berkshire District District Court is scheduled Attorneys Office, providto take place on Friday, ed more information when March 13. contacted by The Beacon
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Birge Talks Coronavirus with Student Government BY BRIAN RHODES SENIOR NEWS EDITOR President James Birge addressed questions and concerns from student government regarding the college’s COVID-19 plan at their March 9 meeting. Birge responded to questions from SGA members regarding COVID-19 and the college’s ongoing response to it. This discussion took place before the March 10 email announcement that spring break would be extended and domestic travel plans for clubs are canceled. Birge reiterated that students can find information about protecting against and tracking the virus on the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), World Health Organization (WHO) and Berkshire Medical Center (BMC) websites. “All of those links are on messages we’ve sent out last week and this week,” he said. According to Birge, the college is buying a surplus
of hand sanitizer because of the virus and is looking to increase the number of places across campus where students can access it. Joseph Bellas ‘20, senate secretary, expressed concern about potential class cancellation due to the virus. “If this does continue to get worse, what would that mean if classes do get cancelled? How would that impact the senior class? Especially with graduation being so close,” Bellas said. Also discussed at the meeting were club budget recommendations from SGA’s Budget Finance Committee. According to Coordinating Vice president Samantha Schwantner ‘20, SGA has sent out all club budget recommendations. She said clubs have until the end of March to appeal their recommendation. Schwantner said that Budget Finance Committee will be presenting all budget recommendations at SGA’s March 30 meeting, with vot-
ing tentatively planned for the April 6 meeting. Clubs are encouraged to attend. Also discussed at the meeting was the April 9 “Movement to End Sexual Violence”. According to Schwantner, $3900 of the $6000 SGA approved funding for the day will be used to pay for the event’s keynote speaker, Ashley Bendicksen. “That would leave still $2100 available for the [Sexual Violence Prevention Committee] to use for whatever is needed on top whatever other funds they have available,” Little said. Schwantner also briefly discussed the newest incident of sexual violence on campus made public to students on March 9. “Keep that in mind, as we move towards this day, to know that it is an ongoing problem,” she said. “It’s not something that targets our campus once or happens on campus once, it’s a problem that reoccurs repeatedly.”
PHOTO BY KYLAN MARTUS President James Birge addresses SGA concerns and questions about the college’s plans to handle coronavirus. This meeting took place before the announcements on March 10, which announced the cancelation of domestic travel and the extension of spring break.
Travel Courses to Adjust After College’s Travel Ban BY BRIAN RHODES SENIOR NEWS EDITOR MCLA has canceled spring break trips abroad as part of its plan to prevent the spread of COVID-19 on campus. The three travel course trips to Peru, Japan and Munich have been called off, as has the alternative spring break trip to Haiti. According to an email from MCLA president James Birge on March 4, all students involved will receive refunds for travel expenses. “I know this decision will disappoint all of the students and faculty planning to travel: I am sorry that I had to make this decision,” Birge said in the email. “It is a decision, however, that is necessary to prevent possible exposure to the virus and to prevent the possibility of disrupting students’ semester of study.” Birge said the decision to cancel the courses was made in conjunction with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. He noted that Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker urged, based on information from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), that all college trips abroad should be canceled to prevent students from contracting COVID-19. Adrienne Wootters, interim vice president of academic affairs, is working with the registrar and faculty to ensure students still receive full credits for their travel course. She shared her sadness for the students involved while recognizing the necessity of
PHOTO BY KYLAN MARTUS Adrienne Wootters, interim vice president of academic affairs, is working with faculty and the registrar to ensure that students get full credits for their travel course, despite not going on the trip. the cancellations to prevent the spread of COVID-19. “This was not an easy decision, this is absolutely heartbreaking for all of us,” she said. “We just didn’t feel like we had a choice.” Wootters noted that MCLA is not the only institution that has canceled travel plans because of COVID-19 risk. “I think before we made the choice, three of the other state universities canceled all their trips, both domestic and foreign,” she said. According to Wooters, the college had been tracking the virus as it spread nearer to places where students would
be traveling. She mentioned a major concern was the potential difficulties of having to quarantine students and faculty returning from international trips, even if they were not infected. “If a student gets stuck or if a faculty member gets stuck and you’re quarantined, and you have to quarantine in place for two weeks, how are you gonna finish your classes? What can we do to help you finish your classes,” she said. David Cupery, professor of political science and the Peru travel course, said that despite the spread of the virus, he remained hopeful that the
trip would still happen. “Even the day before the cancellation, I was still feeling pretty good,” he said. Cupery mentioned that the cancellation of the trips, while understandable, is a missed opportunity for both students and faculty. He said that being able to travel and apply classroom learning is a highlight of teaching for him. “I know a lot of our students who were traveling in the course had never been abroad,” he said. “We throw out the term ‘life-changing’ a lot, but I think in my case, when I did this the first time, it was life-changing.”
Crystal Wojcik ‘21, who is enrolled in the Munich travel course, said she had been looking forward to the trip for over a year. “The first time I heard about it, over the email, I was kind of in shock for a while and was like ‘this can’t be happening’,” she said. “I understand it’s for the best, but it really does suck.” Kailai Huang, professor of history and the Japan travel course, expressed his appreciation for the students who took the course, despite not being able to go on the trip. He noted that he felt especially sorry for the seniors taking the course. “I feel strongly for [graduating seniors] because this is probably their last chance where they can travel with their peers while they are here as a student,” he said. “You can travel to any part of the world, by yourself or with other people. But traveling with your peers, that is a very unique and special experience.” Meghan Doyle ‘20, who would have been going on the Japan trip, said that the travel course was something she had been looking forward to throughout her time as a student. “Ever since I came to MCLA and I learned that they had the travel course to Japan, it was really one of my goals here, to attend and go on that trip,” she said. “So it was really disappointing
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March 12, 2020
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City Councilor LaForest State Lawmakers Propose $15 million Quarantined, Mayor Supplemental Budget Bernard in Self-Isolation BY JAKE VITALI EDITOR AT LARGE North Adams City Councilor Jason LaForest entered quarantine at his home on Tuesday after undergoing a test for COVID-19, while Mayor Tom Bernard has decided to isolate himself and work from home pending the results of LaForest’s test after attending social functions with the councilor this weekend. LaForest began to experience mild flu-like symptoms on Tuesday morning which prompted the test. He was directed to enter quarantine after consulting with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and the city’s health department staff. “Over the past few days
SPRING
From Page 1 president of student affairs, earlier this week about spring break travel, it was stated that students planning on travelling over the break should practice safe hygiene and CDC and WHO health recommendations. In addition, the email asks that any students planning for international travel should fill out a registry form that’s linked on Holbrook’s email. “If you travel and start to exhibit symptoms prior to your return, we suggest you remain at home and seek care at a local hospital or urgent
BAKER
we’ve heard many people use the phrase ‘abundance of caution,’ and that’s guiding my self-isolation decision,” Bernard said in a statement. The Berkshire Eagle reported that LaForest was exhibiting symptoms that included “deep dry cough, sore throat, headache and sinus congestion.” They also reported that LaForest may have come into contact with COVID-19 at a meeting of the Massachusetts Municipal Association in Boston last week. “As a father, nurse, and elected official, I take precautions for the transmission of an illness extremely seriously,” LaForest said in a statement. “Hopefully my symptoms are related to a simple cold and not the COVID-19 virus. Please continue to fol-
care center,” her email said. “Should you decide to travel internationally, please also register your travel with the U.S. State Department’s Smart Travel Enrollment Program (STEP) which provides access to alerts from the local embassies and Consulates,” she said. Birge clarified that the college does not intend on transitioning to entirely online classes for the rest of the semester. “It is possible that in the future, depending on the status of the coronavirus, we will explore with our faculty colleagues the possibility of teaching predominantly in an online environment,” he said. “It is unlikely that will happen this semester.”
ported Tuesday that DPH expects a shipment of 2,000 From Page 1 testing kits, some of which will be coming to Berkshire lease from Sentaor Adam county. Hinds’ office. Baker also announced Of the commonwealth’s that the Massachusetts 92 cases, 70 are linked to a Emergency Management Biogen conference held at Agency has been activated the Marriott Long Wharf and will be bringing tohotel in Boston from Feb. gether health and human 24 to 27. services, public safety and According to the DPH, several other government there are six people who agencies. are currently hospitalized, Also as part of the declarafour of the cases are trav- tion, it was announced that el-related and 18 are still employees in the executive under investigation. No branch are encouraged to people in Massachusetts work from home wherever have died from the virus as possible and that work-reof publication. lated domestic and internaBerkshire County cur- tional travel is banned. Any rently has 7 cases according conferences, seminars, or to NBC Boston while 41 of other gatherings hosted by the commonwealth’s cases executive branch employees are in Middlesex County. are cancelled or moved to a There are 22 cases in Nor- remote setup. folk County, 20 in Suffolk While these guidelines County and one in both Es- are only applicable to sex and Worcester counties. members of the executive The Boston Herald re- branch, Baker urged pri-
low handwashing and best health practices. I wish all those dealing with this virus a quick recovery.” The facilities staff cleaned and disinfected schools across the North Adams Public School system prior to opening on Monday. The facilities staff is also following heightened cleaning protocols at all schools, with a focus on high touch points. Large quantities of hand sanitizer has been purchased and distributed to all of the city’s schools. The North Adams Superintendent of Schools has also cancelled school wide events, field trips, and all related workshops through April 17. The school department plans to continue all classes and internal business until further notice.
BY JAKE VITALI EDITOR AT LARGE
On Tuesday, state legislators announced a plan to create a $15 million supplemental budget aimed at fueling the commonwealth’s COVID-19 response. “In the legislature my colleagues and I are acting to pass a supplemental budget that will provide an immediate infusion of $15 million to enhance our state and local response efforts to combat, contain and prevent the spread of the virus,” said Senator Adam Hinds in a statement. The plan was announced two hours before Gov. Baker declared a state of emergency for the commonwealth. “The Senate’s number one priority is to safeguard the health of our residents,” said
Senate President Karen E. Spilka in a statement. “In the meantime, residents should continue to follow Department of Public Health (DPH) recommendations and take preventative measures.” The initiative is a joint effort between the Senate and House of Representatives. “Public health emergencies demand immediate action from government, and the House today, alongside its partners in the Senate, committed to taking up legislation in direct response to the coronavirus outbreak in Massachusetts,” said House Speaker Robert DeLeo. The number of COVID-19 cases rose to 92 on Tuesday, up from 41 on Monday. Seven of those cases are in Berkshire county. There have been no virus related deaths in Massachusetts.
Class of 2020
Commencement Speaker Announcement to Come Soon
BY BRIAN RHODES SENIOR NEWS EDITOR
MCLA’s 2020 Commencement speaker will be announced in the near future. According to Bernadette Alden, director of marketing and communications, the student body will be informed of the commencement speaker within the next few weeks. vate businesses to adopt these rules where possible. “Everyone has a role to play to stay healthy,” Baker said. “That’s why I urge employers and other large organizations to follow our example when possible.” According to Baker, the number of people currently in isolation is not currently impacting commerce throughout the commonwealth. “The purpose of moving forward with these measures now is to act before the numbers increase to a point where the virus spread is severely impacting the commonwealth,” Baker said. To further mitigate the response, Hinds is part of an effort to pass a $15 million supplemental budget aimed at helping local and commonwealth efforts to combat, contain, and prevent further spread of the virus.
“Out of courtesy to the senior class officers, we are waiting until President Birge can meet with them to discuss this exciting news,” she said. Alden said that the Comencement speaker is chosen by MCLA’s Board of Trustees, stakeholders on campus and President Birge. Alden claims that MCLA has traditionally an-
TRAVEL
From Page 2 when I found out that it was canceled because I’m a senior so this was my last shot at it.” Doyle noted that Huang proposed that graduating seniors come back next time the course is offered to attend the trip, but that it is unlikely that she would be able to do that. Spencer Moser, director of civic and community engagement and organizer of alternative spring break trip to Haiti, believes that had the trip not been canceled, it would not have been the same experience due to the COVID-19 risk. “Even if we went, there would be this constant undercurrent of concern,” he said. “[Students] have to think about how that might impact the joy of the trip, the mission of the trip, the purpose, whatever it might be. Why do we wanna put ourselves in that position?”
nounced this speaker at this time of year, but has known earlier than usual for the last three. Congressman Richard E. Neal delivered the 2019 commencement address and talked about lessons from the house ways and means committee. Other past speakers include Representative John Lewis, and NASA astronaut Stephanie Wilson. Robin Williams ‘21, who is in the Japan travel course, also believes that going with the knowledge of COVID-19 risk would have been detrimental to the trip. “I think that it was honestly the best decision they could make,” she said. “Professor Huang, who was leading the trip, said that it would not be the same experience if we went now.” Jerome Socolof, professor of arts management and the Munich travel course, said that he is thankful for how both students and administrators are have handled the situation. “Having spoken to Dr. Cupery whose in a similar situation, we are very appreciative of our students’ understanding,” he said. “And we’re also very appreciative of the school’s consideration, and that they were hopeful enough that they waited; if there was any sliver of a chance that this could have gone ahead we were going to,”
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MCLA Talks, Where Students Share Their Voices BY LISE MANSARAY FEATURES EDITOR MCLA Talks, inspired by Ted Talks, will make its first appearance on campus on March 27 at 5 p.m. in Venable Theatre. The event allows students to share their various stories with the MCLA community. Stevelyn Desire ‘20, is the creator and co-coordinator, along with Nadia Tenorio ‘20, of MCLA Talks. They are also working with the fine and performing arts (FPA) department for the performance aspect of the event. Desire shares what kind of stories they are looking to hear from students. Desire shares the ideas they are developing regarding how these stories will be shared on the say of the event “We’re currently talking about how the theatre department can get more involved. We were thinking that they would read the stories that are going to be performed on that day and come up with a little skit before the performer goes on,” she said. “Then the performer will go out to the audience and explain what they saw then go further into their story.” “We’re looking for a story that’s personal to the stu-
PHOTO PROVIDED BY STEVELYN DESIRE
Flyer for MCLA TALKS encouraging students to submit their stories. dents more along the lines brighter side of things,” Deof perseverance or a strug- sire said. gle they went to that they “These stories are emocame out of, that reflect the tional and personal and they
mean a lot to these students. These stories can be connected to something broader, like to themselves, or to the world,” she continued. “We have a story about connecting social media and body image. We have stories about figuring out love for ourselves and coming from split homes. We really have a wide array of stories,” Desire said. Once a student’s story is approved, they will begin to workshop their story with a writing and performance coach. “We had a writing workshop recently, we are also having a performance workshop on March 9th to get our performers ready. The writing workshop was meant to help them step out of themselves and not just spout their story out in work vomit but actually make connections, comparisons, and dig into their feelings,” Desire said. Desire has been developing MCLA Talks since Fall 2019 with Christopher McDonald-Dennis, chief diversity officer, and Desire refers to it as her “passion project” with her goal to ensure the voices of students are heard. “The goal of MCLA Talks was to create a voice for students. We really want them to have a safe space in order
to share something that is personal to themselves,” she said. MCLA Talks also strives to build a sense of community between students. “As this journey has progressed, I’ve realized the reason why MCLA is not as tight knit as other schools is because we don’t know each other and we are very comfortable in our bubbles,” Desire said. “In a way [this event] is building community because we are stepping outside of ourselves to hear the voice of other students and find connections with students we may have never heard from,” she continued. Desire hopes to see this event carry on even after she graduates. She is currently working to find someone to take the responsibility of coordinating MCLA Talks after she leaves. “I hope that this continues on after I leave because it wasn’t until my spring semester of my senior year when I decided to take all this on. I really want this to be a semesterly thing which would be great so more students can have the opportunity to share,” Desire said. “However if not, then an annual thing, kind of like the Day of Dialogue that will live on through MCLA history.”
Catch the Latest Trends With the Fashion Club BY ISABEL COSTA FEATURES WRITER MCLA’s Fashion Club is known on campus for its annual fashion show, diverse members, and creative work! Each year, members come together to collaborate and share their ideas. March 28th at 8 p.m. the Fashion Club will have their first show of the semester in Bowman Hall on the second floor. Bridget Broyles, vice president of the Fashion Club, is really looking forward to the upcoming show. “I think this is going to be our best show yet!” Broyles said. “Its going to be big. We have 10 design concepts. All of the concepts are really cool we have one on the album Flower Boy and I am doing a look on sexual violence,” she continued. The Fashion Club has been around for some time but was picked up by Broyles last semester. “We really want people to engaged with the arts in a unique way and a really inclusive way,” she said Broyles said that joining
the Fashion Club has helped her make more friends around campus and boosted her confidence. “Plugging Fashion Club has made me so much more confident, not just in my overall appearance and the way I look, but interacting with people on campus and feeling like I have a voice.” Broyles said. The mission of Fashion Club is to come together and have fun while also learning something new about themselves and about the fashion industry. “The whole thing with Fashion Club is that we want it to be allowing people to express themselves how ever they want to do so,” she said. There are about 25 to 30 people involved in Fashion Club ranging from to designers makeup designers. There will be snacks provided and fun ways at the end of the show to learn more about being a part of the Fashion Club. “We are really looking this semester to push the Fashion Show, not just for a fun event but for Fashion Club as a recruitment event,
Bridget Broyles from the fall 2018 Fashion Show. which gets lots of people excited.” Broyles said. Fashion Club prides themselves on a mix of the opportunity to have freedom of expression and a chance to boost your confidence, as well as joining a second family. Fashion Club meets every Thursday in Bowman 222.
During Fashion Club meetings, ideas for the show are discussed and students are able to participate in fashion workshops where they can learn new techniques. For example, in the past, they had a sewing workshop. During the meetings, designers and models are also able to work more closely
PHOTO BY ZACHARY BENJAMIN
together as they prepare for the show. “It’s truly a safe environment where you have the opportunity to grow,” Broyles said. To learn more information about the Fashion Club or if you are interested in joining, you can contact Broyles at, Bb8088@mcla.edu
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Erica Wall Endeavoring to Connect Students with the Art Community our obligation to support the arts. Also it’s our obligation to create a real representaErica Wall, director of the tion of what the arts are and Berkshire Cultural Resource- who participates in that for Center, brings back the impor- our children,” she said. tance of art and expression to Given her wide backthe community by incorporat- ground and experience, Wall ing her passions in her work found her way to MCLA and at Gallery 51. Wall was hired is actively working towards in October, and since then has strengthening the connection been working to highlight art between students and art. within the community. “I’ve really just been excit“I love art and I feel it is a ed about all the things that necessary part of our culture. we have done and are planI feel it’s undervalued and I ning to do,” she said. feel that the work I do helps Recently, Wall has worked people to understand why it to help launch the very first is necessary,” Wall said. Art Shuttle bus which took Wall expresses her pas- place Thursday, March 5. sion for inclusion in art. This was a free shuttle that “I’m particularly inter- took Williams College and ested in broadening the un- MCLA students to MASS derstanding on what the art MoCA, Clark Art Institute, world is about and who par- Williams College Museum ticipates. When I say that, of Art, and Gallery 51. There it’s about inclusion and cre- are plans for another Art ating a real representation of Shuttle bus in the future. all the contributions that’s “I really want to find the been made within the arts by best way to communicate artists of all different back- with students to reach them. grounds,” Wall said. I want to find out ways we Wall started an artist resi- can serve and collaborate dency, 36 Chase & Barns Res- with them. Everything we idency, about two years ago. do is rooted in the arts but “I felt like what I was do- that makes it really broad ing with the residency and and subjective, which is a the gallery was my modest good thing. It means that attempt at being proactive so we can do lots of different that if we create an inclusive things but we just want to holistic approach to showing get more involved with stuartists and creating dialogue dents,” she said. around the work, that we Wall shares her hopes for won’t have to go back and students and Gallery 51 for bring those in,” Wall said. the future. “I’m really passionate “I’d love even get some about that because just as groups that serve as ambasindividuals and citizens, it’s sadors and create a space BY LISE MANSARAY FEATURES EDITOR
Erica Wall, MCLA’s new director of the Berkshire Cultural Resource Center. beyond the staff by including other students that can answer questions, be there, and come up with ideas that will be more exciting or engaging. This is really an extension of the campus and connection to the art community,” she said
It’s that same artist residency that she started up that brought her to North Adams, then eventually working as the director of Gallery 51. Wall, who is originally from California, has a very strong background in the arts working in museums
PHOTO PROVIDED BY ERICA WALL
such as The Getty and Museum of Fine Arts, as well as with a variety of different artists. She also has a background in education and even worked with non profits specifically to diversify offerings and help organizations to diversify their staff.
FINANCIAL AID ANNOUNCEMENT THE 20-21 MCLA SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION PROCESS IS NOW OPEN!! APPLY ONLINE AT WWW.MCLA.AWARDSPRING.COM LOG IN WITH YOUR MCLA PORTAL USERNAME AND PASSWORD MARCH 27TH DEADLINE DATE! ************** APPLY FOR SCHOLARSHIPS FROM OUTSIDE SOURCES: WWW.SCHOLARSHIPS.COM VARIED DEADLINES AND AMOUNTS
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Write-In Event Teaches Through Collaboration BY SABRINA DAMMS A&E EDITOR The Writing Studio held its first ever Write-In event this Tuesday, March 10 in the Freel Library creating a collaborative and open environment for writers of all kinds to destress and work on their writing. “I hope that this provides an opportunity to come together and write at a stressful time of year. Oftentimes we kind of seclude ourselves in our rooms, our offices, our dorm rooms when we write and research shows that working collaboratively talking about our writing is the most effective way to write well,” Amber Engelson, English Department Chair and Writing Across the Curriculum Coordinator, said. The “Write-In” event gave students the opportunity to learn how to communicate effectively in their writing with the guidance from the writing associates who helped proctor the event. “There is just something nice about writing with other people. It’s like you are setting aside time specifically to write. So it’s like, you should write and sometimes just talking to people just gives you inspiration,” Amanda Purello, ‘23, said. “When you are writing alone you won’t have anyone you can bounce ideas off but when you are with writers they can bounce ideas off even better than you could with someone who isn’t a writer.” The “Write-In” event allowed students to collaborate with one another on their writing. Students were surrounded by a group of people who were able to critique each other’s work to find out what was successful about the writing and what would need improvement.
“It [writing using collaboration] allows for an instant check on anything that you are thinking that you are thinking. You can just say it out loud and someone at your table will be able to give you an answer as to whether or not they enjoy this or think it is working in your writing. This space offers just many eyes to look over your work,” Jacob Valenti ‘20, writing associate, said. Many of the writing associates expressed the importance of writing and language discussing the impact it can have on a person and society. “Writing literally improves people’s lives. I think writing is valuable, not just for its own sake. Not only is it valuable as escapism. It’s valuable as processing thoughts. It helps improve the lives of other people as well as the lives of the people doing the writing. Writing is valuable both inherently and a value to others and that’s just a good reason to write,” Nick Gamble, ‘20 and writing associate, said. For many students writing is an important activity that appeals to them for many different reasons. Purello discusses how she loves that writing is something that lasts and can be revisited and revised. “I love stories. I love it’s a more permanent form of words and when you see other people writing amazing things it kind of inspires you to write your own kind of amazing things,” Purello said “Unless you have a recorder if you just say something, even if it is remembered, it can be remembered incorrectly. Your writing is your writing and it is much easier to go back to.” The workshops that they have had prior to this event had specific focuses while the write-in was a more casual event.
PHOTO BY SABRINA DAMMS
Kathleen Hayman ‘21 (above), writing associate, helping to run the “Write-In” event. “I have done workshops in the writing studio multiple times. I do workshops every year in the writing studio so we had one last month a career material workshop in the writing studio space itself, Engleson said. “I have done write-ins at two other institutions where I have worked in collaboration with the Learning Commons so this WriteIn was really inspired by our new Learning Commons and the beautiful new space and the increased interaction that students have here in the library because interaction is key to a successful writing collaboration as well.” The new design for the first floor of the library now the Library Learning Commons was described as a great place to interact and collaborate.
“We have this new Learning Commons which is beautiful and so I really have been as WAC, Writing Across Curriculum Coordinator, I have been really been trying to think of way we can collaborate and work together with the Learning Commons to take advantage of this new space to introduce people to what we can do in the Writing Studio as well as to bring people who may come into the Writing Studio into the library,” Engelson said.
PHOTO BY SABRINA DAMMS
PHOTO BY SABRINA DAMMS
Jacob Valenti ‘20 (above left) Amanda Purello ‘23 (above center) and Nick Gamble ‘20 (above right) helping in the Writing Studio’s “Write-In” event.
Justin O’Connor (right) ‘20, working in one of the library’s lounge chairs.
THURSDAY, MARCH 12 PLANT A FLOWER DAY - MCLA Tೲ೯೫೯ P೯೯: T Dೱ/ U೮೯ Dೱ V೯೫೬೯ Tೲ೯೫೯ 2 P.M. - A P೫೭ೳ೭೯ ೳ Pೱ೯ G೫೯ഃ 51
- Wೲ೫ ೳ N೯ഁ Eೱ೫೮ Dೳೱ A೬ Nೳ೯ Pೳ? CSI 121 5:30 P.M.
FRIDAY, MARCH 13 EARMUFF DAY - Sೳೳ Fೳ೮೫ഃ
- A P೫೭ೳ೭೯ ೳ Pೱ೯ G೫೯ഃ 51
March 12, 2020
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
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7
Women’s History Month
Celebrating Current and Historical Women BY SABRINA DAMMS A&E EDITOR MCLA’s Susan B. Anthony Women’s Center will be having its 7th Annual event series celebrating Women’s History Month to recognize women and their achievements. Their Movie Night will be on Tuesday, March 31 in the Sullivan Lounge from 7 p.m. until 9 p.m. where they will be showing the film “On the Basis of Sex”. The film examines the career of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. “The [movies is about the] exceptional life and career of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who has developed a breathtaking legal legacy while becoming an unexpected pop culture icon,” said Amanda Beckwith, coordinator of the Women’s Center, in an email. Ruth Bader Ginsburg was appointed by President Bill Clinton in Aug. 1993 as an Associate Justice for the U.S. Supreme Court. She is the one of four female justice confirmed to the court “[The series is] an opportunity to recognize women and their achievements [and] get people aware of women’s history and accomplishments,” Beckwith said. “The series is a month-long event versus the individual events that traditionally that occurs through Women’s Center sponsorship,” Beckwith said. They hope to influence students and get them to think about the lives of past and present women. “I hope to get students to think about Women’s
PHOTO TAKEN BY ANGELLA GROSS
Women’s Center Sign from Women’s Center Breast Cancer Event in 2014.
History month and the influence of women in their lives today,” Beckwith said. “The variety of events should appeal to various audiences and allow people different amounts of time to participate in the month long calendar,” Beckwith said. “We are trying to get people to think about women in history and in their everyday lives who have made a difference,” Beckwith said, “We also want to try to reach people who have not previously
come to the Women’s Center and or come to other events of ours.” Unlike previous years the Women’s Center has changed the series a little to incorporate more current women rather than just women in the past. “It has changed a little to include recognizing women more in the present,” Beckwith said. On Monday, March 2 the Women’s Center kicked off the series with their “Feminism to Me is. . .” event in the marketplace. “The market place is a great place to reach out and connect with a variety of people,” Beckwith said. The “Feminism to Me is . . .” even gave students a chance to share their thoughts on feminism. Thirty-seven people shared their thoughts on feminism during the event. “For ‘Feminism to Me is. . .’ we had people write what they think about what feminism is and share their thoughts around feminism,” Beckwith said. On Monday, March 9 for International Women’s Day the series highlighted women with displays of current and historical women. The “We Think You’re Woman-ful. . .” event is a new event that they added to the series this year. It happened on Wednesday, March 11. Students were given the opportunity to write a letter to women they appreciate in their lives. “‘We Think You’re Woman-ful. . .’ this is an opportunity for students to write a letter of appreciation to those women in their lives,” Beckwith said, “We will not only get on campus letter delivered, but will send out letters off campus as well.”
IGE Documentary “We Exist Beyond the Binary” BY AIDAN RAWSON A&E WRITER The Identity and Gender Equality resource center (IGE) hosted a screening of the film, “We Exist Beyond the Binary,” on March 6. The documentary, which was shown in Murdock 218, follows the story of a person named Lauren Lublin, and their journey in discovering their gender identity. The film received an official selection in the 2019 Seattle Queer Film Festival.
“We chose this film to highlight that there are people that live beyond this binary and they do exist,” said Lilly Broman ’20 who helped coordinate the event. “The film was well received, the students in attendance enjoyed it a lot and the message it shows.” IGE hosts monthly movie nights that expose the campus community to LGBTQIA+ films. Broman explained the importance of doing these public screenings, given the under-representation of queer media. “Public screenings give students a chance to see movies or films they
may not have access to otherwise. There is not much queer media out there, so having films that show these kind of topics helps to normalize the topic,” Broman said. “We live in a very heteronormative society where there is not much representation, so providing that is very important to me,” Broman said. WeExist.co is the official website for the movie and the movement and states that its international presence is continuing to grow. “Lauren’s story chronicles their life across multiple continents cap-
turing the emotional, physical, and mental changes and obstacles Lauren must face just to be. From leaving a promising basketball career to a near-death experience in the depths of the rainforest, Lauren’s journey is transformative and unique yet parallels the tale of so many around the world,” it states. “The conversation around this project has started an international ‘WE EXIST’ movement, allowing those who exist outside the gender binary to stand-up for their recognition and say ‘I Exist’.”
Students Show Off at Second Annual Talent Show BY JACOB MACK A&E WRITER Khyahjah Alexander ‘23 won the Student Activities Council’s (SAC) second annual Talent Show on Saturday, March 7 in the Church Street Center Social Hall. Alexander, who performed an original stand up routine, won $300 as the show’s grand prize and plans to spend the money on paint, or general art supplies. “I felt pretty nervous going in, but I only expected to have fun,” Alexander said. “I’ve always wanted to do a stand up act, so I took the opportunity. I never expected to win money.” Second place went to Houa Xiong ‘21 with her performance of “Shallow” by Lady GaGa, with third place going to Leo Skoble ‘22 with a lip-sync dance performance of “Livin La Vida Loca.” The act that won student choice award was Frankie Deriso ‘23 singing “Anyone” by Demi Lovato. Last year’s winner, Michelle Frost ‘22, performed again this year. “It was amazing. I didn’t expect to win, I did it for fun and because I love performing,” Frost said.
Frost decided to get two tattoos with the prize money from last year’s performance, both referencing the play “Waitress” which is the play that she performed a song from at this years talent show. Students performed in front of a full house of students and judges Tara Barboza, assistant professor of business administration and economics, Christopher Thomas, associate professor of mathematics, Jerome Socolof, assistant professor of arts management, and John Tremplay, facilities maintainer, while competing for cash prizes and student votes. SAC entertainment chair, Paula Evans ‘22, the event organizer was also in attendance. “It did not go smoothly,” Evans said. “At first we had nobody signing up to audition, then all of a sudden, we had 16 people signed up the day that sign ups ended.” Attendees, like Chase MacPhearson ‘22 and Jamie Vachula ‘22, enjoyed the performances. “This talent show was pretty on par with last year’s,” MacPhearson said. “I always love going to talent shows. It’s usually not a huge thing, but I enjoy it.” “Honestly having some better, more stable audio
PHOTO FROM SAC
Winners of SAC’s Second Annual Talent Show. Leo Skoble ‘22 (left), Houa Xiong ‘21 (center left), Khyahjah Alexander ‘23 (center right) and Frankie Deriso ‘23 (right).
equipment might make future talent shows a bit better, the audio was a little dodgy,” he said. “I really enjoyed the talent show. I think it’s great to allow students to showcase what they love to do,” Vachula said. “Although I think SAC should advertise a little more next year.”
Sports
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8
Men’s Lacrosse overtaken late by Becker 11-8 FROM MCLA ATHETICS WEBSITE Becker College scored the games final four goals as the Hawks rallied past the MCLA Trailblazers 11-8 this afternoon in non league action for both teams. Becker earns their first win of the season and is 1-3. MCLA drops to 0-4 on the season. The Trailblazers started off flying high. MCLA led 4-0 early in the first quarter. Lucas Colavecchio started the scoring with a pair of scores for an early 2-0 lead. The hosts would add a man up goal by Thomas Irwin and when Johnny Hebert connected, it was 4-0. They would eventually hold a 4-1 lead after one quarter of play. The teams traded goals in the second period with Matt Ortiz connecting as did Hebert and Irwin. MCLA would take a 7-4 lead into the break. Becker began their comeback in the third quarter. MCLA led 8-5 after Colavec-
PHOTO BY KYLAN MARTUS
Johnny Herbert ‘22 (left) and Dan Cook ‘23 (right) in their game against Becker College last Tuesday. chio’s third and final tally of the afternoon, but the Hawks would outscore MCLA 6-0 the rest of the way to earn the comeback win. Becker’s rush began with two goals to close the third period. In the fourth, Jack Schneider’s marker for the
Hawks knotted things up at 8-8. With just under 12 minutes remaining, he would connect again, this time after an MCLA penalty to give Becker their first lead at 9-8. Becker gained some separation when Cameron Sangster scored with 4:38 left and
CBS, Turner Unsure How Coronavirus Might Affect NCAA Tourney Plans BY TIM TUCKER THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION
CBS Sports and Turner Sports, which are scheduled to team up to televise the NCAA basketball tournament beginning next week, don't know how coronavirus concerns might affect the event. "As of now, everything is proceeding as scheduled," Jeff Zucker, chairman of WarnerMedia News & Sports, which includes Turner Sports, said Tuesday. "We're in close contact with (the NCAA), but this is their decision to make, to the degree any decision needs to be made. "Notwithstanding the incredibly serious nature of what's going on with the virus, I think the tournament can hopefully be an outlet of emotional and psychological relief for much of the country. And so I think we are all hopefully looking forward to that." As CBS and Turner held a media conference call to discuss their coverage plans for the NCAA tournament, including the Final Four in Atlanta, the Ivy League announced the cancellation of its postseason basketball tournaments because of coronavirus. Some other sports events in the U.S. and overseas have been canceled or played in venues without fans because of concerns about the virus. NCAA President Mark Emmert said in a statement Tuesday: "NCAA member schools and conferences make their own decisions regarding regular-season and conference tournament play. As we have stated, we will make decisions on our events based on the best, most current
public-health guidance available. Neither the NCAA COVID-19 advisory panel, made up of leading public health and infectious disease experts in America, nor the CDC or local health officials have advised against holding sporting events. In the event circumstances change, we will make decisions accordingly." On the CBS/Turner conference call, play-by-play announcer Jim Nantz, who is scheduled to call the Final Four games April 4-6 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on TBS, expressed hope that the tournament can provide a respite for a worried nation. "We had a webinar yesterday, and the common theme throughout was that this comes at a time when the country really needs more than ever a chance to have something that brings some joy to their lives and more of an escapism, if you will," Nantz said. "Like everyone else, we have no idea where this is going over the next three or four weeks, and we'll adapt to whatever the NCAA decides to do with the tournament," Nantz said. "There's a ton of hypotheticals at the moment." He acknowledged broadcasting games without fans in attendance would be a challenging experience. "I can only try to imagine what it would be like as a broadcaster," Nantz said. "(If) you've got an empty building, you're going to hear a lot of squeaking sneakers, you're going to hear the coaches calling out plays and defenses. ... Hopefully it doesn't come to that." Said CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus: "Right now, all plans are to go forward."
Andrew Agen tallied in the final seconds to provide the final margin. Matt Guerin and Schneider each ended with three goals for Becker. Sangster added two goals and two assists. Daniel Whittenburg notched the win in goal
stopping 19 shots for Becker. MCLA was paced by Colavecchio’s three goal afternoon. He added three assists to his stat line as well. Irwin and Hebert ended with two goals apiece. Brady Larkin saved 12 shots in goal for MCLA.
NBA
LeBron James Changes Stance, Would Play Games Without Fans BY TANIA GANGULI LOS ANGELES TIMES The only real changes the NBA has made in response to the coronavirus outbreak have involved limiting media interaction with players. They have closed locker rooms to media members, banned "scrums," when reporters gather around a player or coach, and declared that for all group sessions, reporters must remain six to eight feet from their interview subjects. For the Lakers, the first evidence of that policy occurred after Tuesday morning's shootaround. LeBron James spoke to reporters in front of a Lakers backdrop, as he normally would, but this time there were ropes for reporters to stand behind. The ropes had been measured to be six feet away from where James was standing. "So much safer. You guys are such a threat every time I come out," a smiling James said facetiously. "No. No. I don't even know who to ... listen, I have no idea what happened with ... I miss you guys being right here." James then motioned his arms to indicate a small circle around him. "Like right here in my bubble," James said. "Very challenging to do an interview like this." What was clear during his news conference was that James isn't concerned about his own health. But in the four days since he said he would not play in a game that didn't include fans, James has revised his stance, saying he will do so if it's in the best interest of the franchise and the league. "It's funny, because when I was asked the question of would you play without
... fans, I had no idea that there was actually a conversation going on behind closed doors about the particular virus," James said. "Obviously, I would be very disappointed not having the fans, because that is what I play for, I play for my family, I play for my fans. They say no one could actually come to the game if they decide to go to that point, so I would be disappointed in that. But at the same time, you've got to listen to the people that's keeping a track on what's going on. "If they feel like it's best for the safety of the players, the safety of the franchise, the safety of the league to mandate that, then we all listen to it." James said he hasn't changed any of his personal habits because of the coronavirus. The team doctor spoke with players over the weekend about coronavirus safety. They were mostly told not to worry too much because their age group has not been severely affected by the virus. The organization held a town hall on Monday so the team doctor could answer questions about the illness. A league memo suggested teams reconsider the size of their traveling parties to reduce the number of people who had access to players. The Lakers don't typically have many guests on their flights, and coach Frank Vogel said they have not made any changes to their travel party at this point. At home, Vogel said he is taking common-sense precautions. "Just wiping things down in the house, in my office, washing my hands relentlessly, and I've replaced the handshake with the dab," Vogel said. "I just dab people now instead of shaking people's hands. It's a little cooler, and I think it's gonna be trending in a little bit."
Sports
March 12, 2020
Baseball
Trailblazer Baseball sweeps CMSV in non league action FROM MCLA ATHETICS WEBSITE
SCOREBOARD Men’s Lacrosse MCLA (8), Becker College (11) March 10
Johnny Herbert - 4 Turnovers Brady Larkin - 12 Saves
MCLA (8), Albertus Magnus (22) March 3 Johnny Herbert - 5 Goals Matthew Wallace - 4 Turnovers Brady Larkin - 24 Saves
vs. Husson University
Game One-
April 4, 2:00 p.m. PHOTO TAKEN FROM MCLA ATHLETICS
Trailblazer baseball team in their game against SUNY Cobleskill on Sunday, March 1. ered to left to make it 7-3. The Dolphins started to rally and eventually chased Leino in the fifth. The Dolphins scored a pair of runs to get within 7-5. The Trailblazers added a key insurance tally in the sixth on Austin Rachiele’s solo homer to left that made it 8-5. The Dolphins added a run in the seventh, but Max Gabrielly held them at bay to record the save. Leino got the win tossing the first 5.1 innings. He allowed five runs and struck out 4 as he improved to 2-0 on the season. Maxon ended with a pair of hits as did Seariac and Shawn James.
Game TwoIn the nightcap, CMSV scored twice off MCLA starter Ryan Ruef in the second on a two run home run for a 2-0 advantage. The MCLA offense couldn’t do much over the first three innings, but began to rally in the fourth. MCLA began their rally in the fourth. A double steal got things going as Logan Rumbolt swiped second and Ferrara came around to score on the throw to cut it to 2-1 after four. The score remained that way until the sixth. Ferrara singled to start the frame and after an out,
Maxon doubled to left putting himself and Ferrara in scoring position. After another out, Joe Toledo came up clutch delivering a two run single to give MCLA a 3-2 lead. MCLA’s Noah Matrigali kept CMSV at bay over the final two frames to secure the win. He tossed 3.1 innings in relief of Ruef to earn his first collegiate victory. He allowed just one hit. Rachiele continued his great early season play with a 3 for 4 showing. Ferrara added two hits and scored twice for MCLA. The Trailblazers are off until Friday when they begin their annual Florida trip.
Men’s Tennis begins season with 8-1 win over NVU-Johnson FROM MCLA ATHETICS WEBSITE The MCLA Men’s Tennis team opened up their 2020 season with a resounding 8-1 win over NVU-Johnson this afternoon at the Bennington Tennis Center. The win moved MCLA to 1-0 while the Badgers start 0-1. In this non league matchup, the Trailblazers started fast as they swept through the doubles matchups. Cal Najimy paired with John Archer-Harvey for an 8-1 win in the top doubles slot. Andrew Nygard and Nick Castle disposed of Patrick Bell and Kyle Robbins for another point, and when Mohamed Mahrous and Curt Nitzsche won, the Trailblazers were up 3-0. In singles play, Nygard defeated David Cos-
9
Lucas Colavecchio - 3 Goals
For the second consecutive weekend, the MCLA Baseball team took the long trip to Long Island for a pair of contests. MCLA defeated Mount Saint Vincent 8-6 in the opener and then rallied past the Dolphins for a 3-2 win in the nightcap. The Trailblazers improve to 3-3 on the young season. CMSV dips to 2-2.
MCLA scored four times in the top of the first to take an early lead. Jake Ferrara started the scoring with an RBI single scoring Ben Durland. Starting pitcher William Leino drove in Christian Seariac for another run and Dillon Maxon followed with another RBI knock to increase the lead to 3-0. A squeeze bunt from Joe Toledo wrapped up the scoring for the frame and MCLA led 4-0. The Dolphins would chip away at Leino and get three runs back over the second and third frames to cut it to just 4-3 after three. MCLA extended the lead in the fourth on Durland’s two run single to make it 6-3. In the fifth, Maxon hom-
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vs. SUNY Cobleskill April 8, 4:00 p.m.
Baseball MCLA (8), Mt. St. Vincent (6) March 8 Christian Womble - 2 RBI Logan Rumbolt - 2 Runs
MCLA (3), Mt. St. Vincent (2) March 8 Christian Seriac - 4 RBI Austin Rachiele - 4 Runs
@ Westfield State April 1, 3:30 p.m.
@ Bridgewater State April 3, 3:00 a.m.
vs. Bridgewater State
April 4, 1:00 p.m. & 3:30 p.m.
vs. Westfield State
April 7, 2:00 p.m. & 4:30 p.m.
vs. Worcester State April 9, 3:00 p.m.
@ Worcester State
April 10, 2:00 9.m. & 4:30 p.m.
Men’s Tennis @ Norwich University Nick Castle ‘20 in his match against NVU-Johnson. man 6-2, 6-3 for his second point of the day. Archer-Harvey won handily in the third singles slot while Castle earned his second point in the fourth matchup.
PHOTO TAKEN FROM MCLA ATHLETICS
Mahrous and Felix Bou also earned points for MCLA to round out their scoring. The Badgers Dylan Griffin topped Najimy in a hard fought, three set
matchup to earn the lone point for NVU. MCLA is off until Wednesday when they head to Castleton for another non league match.
April 2, 3:00 p.m.
@ Essex Edge Northern Vermont-Johnson April 4, 2:00 p.m.
@ Northern Vermont-Lyndon April 5, 12:00 p.m.
News
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Radiologic Sciences Gets Over $400,000 Grant BY NATALIA GIACOMOZZI STAFF WRITER
Starting in the fall of 2020, MCLA will be offering a health sciences bachelor’s degree with a concentration in radiologic technology, with the help of a $421,546 Skills Capital Grant from Gov. Charlie Baker. MCLA is one out of currently five higher education institutions in New England that offers a radiologic technology concentration. The radiologic technology concentration is another step in the process of MCLA being the teachout partner for the radiologic sciences program of Southern Vermont College (SVC). Twenty eight SVC students transferred from the radiology department after SVC’s closure the previous spring. The school is working with the Berkshire Medical Center North Campus (BMC) to allow students in the radiologic sciences program to get hands-on experiences. Adrienne Wootters, vice president of academic affairs, noted that most of the students who transferred from the SVC radiologic sciences program were juniors and seniors. “Their first cohort of seniors will graduate this May,” she said. Wootters said that with the curriculum starting in the fall, current sophomores can declare the radiologic technology concentration as soon as the registration period be-
gins in April. As part of the partnership between MCLA and BMC, all of the radiologic sciences classes take place at the BMC North Campus and the faculty’s offices are located in the BMC physician’s offices building. “One of the things the hospital was able to provide were these things called sim labs, short for simulation. They had some existing sim labs that McCann [High School] was using for their nursing programs, and they are letting us use that space also,” Wootters said. According to Alyssa Dufresne, assistant professor and clinical supervisor for the radiology program, the grant will allow the college to update equipment to resemble the kind that is used in hospitals. Dufresne, who came from SVC via the teach-out, teaches radiographic positioning lab, where students learn how to use x-ray equipment and how to position the x-ray equipment to complete medical work such as spinal, chest, and abdominal exams. “The current x-ray unit we have is limited in its ability for the students to be able to perform some of the positioning routines that they will perform within the clinical setting,” Dufresne said in an email. Through the grant, MCLA purchased an anatomage table, a visual touchscreen table that is six feet long and functions as a virtual analysis of
PHOTO BY NATE BIRON
Radiology equipment located in Berkshire Medical Center North Campus, where MCLA’s Radiologic Technology concentraton is housed. human bones. “This table will be utilized in order for the students to view the different bones within the body and we are able to move the body within the table to demonstrate what radiographic views would look like,” said Dufresne. Linda Lippacher, professor of radiology, also came to MCLA from SVC and is excited about the grant. She noted that the main difference between each school’s radiologic sciences program was the objective. “At SVC, our focus for radiologic sciences was building specifically on just technologist and special modalities. With the new concentration, one of the benefits is that the students will
be taking other health science core classes that are not a part of what we had at SVC,” Lippacher said. She explained that upon SVC’s closure, the administration there found that the programs potentially able to enroll students studying radiologic sciences required classes that were not offered at SVC, such as chemistry and statistics. “When we designed the new concentration once we got to [MCLA], we decided that if we were here full time, we decided to make our curriculum more universal to what other bachelor’s degrees in Rad-Sci had,” Lippacher said.
What’s The Risk of COVID-19 For a Healthy Young Person? BY SOUMYA KARLAMANGLA LOS ANGELES TIMES The first person diagnosed with COVID-19 in New Jersey was a 32-year-old man who had been admitted to the hospital. In a video posted to Twitter over the weekend, the patient explained that he’d had no underlying medical conditions that would make him susceptible to severe illness, yet the new coronavirus was making him sicker and sicker. He spoke from a hospital bed where he had been hooked up to tubes helping him breathe. The video, which has been viewed more than 440,000 times, raised concerns that young people may be more vulnerable to COVID-19 than health experts had been letting on. So is that really true? According to medical experts, no. The risk of serious illness due to COVID-19 is far higher for people who are older and have underlying medical conditions. People 60 and older accounted for more than 80% of the deaths in China, according to a major study in the Journal of the American Medical Association. But rare exceptions have popped up in the scientific
literature, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. “There will be, as we’ve seen in influenza, an occasional person, who’s young and healthy, who winds up getting COVID-19, seriously ill and dies,” Fauci said in an interview with Dr. Howard Bauchner, the editor of JAMA. “But if you look at the weight of the data, the risk group is very, very clear.” With the U.S. outbreak in its early stages, there isn’t yet good data on the ages and other characteristics of infected patients here. So experts have relied on the analysis of nearly 45,000 COVID-19 patients in China that was conducted by the country’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The study accounts for more than a third of all reported cases of the disease. Worldwide, 118,000 people have been diagnosed with the disease so far and 4,200 have died from it. The study identified very few deaths among people under 40. More than 12,000 people in that age group were infected, but only 26 died. It is unclear if those people had other medical conditions, such as asthma
or cancer, that may have made them more vulnerable. The study found that the chance of dying from COVID-19 clearly increases with age. There were no reported deaths from COVID-19 in children under 10, and other studies have suggested that children who are infected do not become very sick. These are the COVID-19 mortality rates by age calculated by the Chinese CDC: ages 10-19: 0.2% ages 20-29: 0.2% ages 30-39: 0.2% ages 40-49: 0.4% ages 50-59: 1.3% ages 60-69: 3.6% ages 70-79: 8% 80 and over: 14.8% The overall mortality rate estimated by researchers was 2.3%, but experts caution that it is likely exaggerated due to milder cases that have gone uncounted. As for the younger deaths, they represent what you would see if you pored over any disease data with a magnifying glass, experts say. “It is possible, but apparently very rare that otherwise healthy people can get severe disease,” said Dr. Jeffrey Klausner, an infectious disease expert at UCLA’s Fielding School of Public Health. “But right now we
have patients in the hospital with severe influenza that were otherwise healthy people in their 40s and 50s. ... It’s rare as well, but it occurs.” Indeed, in the 2018-19 flu season, 2,450 people between the ages of 18 and 49 died in the United States, according to the CDC. The mortality rate from the flu is lower than from COVID-19, but far more people caught the flu last season _ more than 35 million _ than have gotten COVID-19 so far this year. In an interview with a local CBS station in New York, the New Jersey COVID-19 patient identified himself as James Cai, who works as a physician assistant. Cai said he believes he contracted the virus at a conference in New York and within three days was hospitalized because it had spread to his lungs. “The virus is everything. Diarrhea, watery eyes, shortness of breath, chest pain, you name it. High fever,” he told the CBS station. “Every day is getting worse ... it happened so quick.” Cai isn’t the first person to raise concerns about how quickly people become severely ill. The average time it takes for people to start showing symptoms after
infection is about five days, according to a new study by Johns Hopkins University, but there have been reports of rapid decline once illness sets in. At a news conference Sunday, Timothy Killian, spokesman for nursing home Life Care Center in Kirkland, Wash., said it had been “surprising and shocking” to see patients become deathly ill so quickly. At least 19 people who were linked to the nursing home have died, most of them in their 70s and 80s. “We have found this to be troubling and volatile and unpredictable,” Killian said. “We have seen as little as one hour, somebody getting no symptoms to going to symptoms that were severe enough that they needed to be transferred to the hospital, and then within a short amount of time, that patient died.” Scientists are still learning more about how the virus kills its victims. But it’s possible the older patients did not show the telltale signs of the virus, including a fever, that could have clued people into the illness earlier, Klausner said. “While they are brewing infection, it may go unnoticed,” Klausner said.
Opinion
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Off-Campus Student Media is Ineffective
The COVID-19 situation on campus is being taken seriously, evidenced by the college extending spring break a week and all domestic and international travel for students, faculty and staff being canceled. It is truly an unprecedented situation that will have a notable impact on all facets of MCLA. One of the areas that will be affected the most is student media. According to the email president James Birge sent out, students will not be allowed back on campus until March 29. Unless the college shifts the academic calendar, this means that MCLA’s student media: WJJW, The Beacon and Beacon Web News, will not function as normal for a week longer than expected. That’s one fewer issue of The Beacon, one fewer week of radio shows, and one fewer episode of Beacon Web News. That doesn’t even account for the dozens of newsworthy events, lectures and workshops that student media would be covering that may not happen at all now. With many other institutions, such as Williams College, Amherst, and Harvard moving classes online because of the outbreak, it seems more and more likely that MCLA could move to an online campus for an extended period of time. This is an outcome that The Beacon hopes does not become a reality. “It is possible that in the future, depending on the status of the coronavirus, we will explore with our faculty colleagues the possibility of teaching predominantly in an online environment,” Birge said in his email. While he did note that this is unlikely this semester, the outbreak is moving at incredible speed, making it hard to predict what could happen in a few weeks time. While such a precaution would be entirely understandable given the risk that COVID-19 presents, it puts student media in a difficult situation.
BRIAN RHODES NOTHING INTERESTING HAPPENS If the college is mostly online, and students aren’t staying on campus, all three of MCLA’s biggest student media platforms cannot function. It is inconceivable that students can make an episode of Beacon Web News without access to the television studio at Mark Hopkins. It is similarly impossible that students can host their WJJW shows without the radio station in the Campus Center. It is unfathomable that The Beacon could create a physical newspaper without access to Adobe InDesign to design the pages. It isn’t just student media that is hurt by this either. Many classes in various academic departments, such as four-credit labs, rely on the technology that is present on campus in order to properly function. Even if these three entities could miraculously do these things off-campus, there is the question of what there would be for student media to talk about. A large portion of what The Beacon, WJJW and Beacon Web News do rely on coverage of events on campus, whether it be events held by MCLA’s clubs, lectures hosted by academic departments, interviews, and many other events. If there is no physical campus, it becomes immensely difficult for any of that to happen, meaning WJJW, Beacon Web News and The
Beacon have very little content to work with. Not having student media is a major problem because of the unique role it has within the MCLA community. The three student media groups keep students constantly informed on campus topics relevant to them, something few other student organizations do. The Beacon and Beacon Web News provide weekly briefs, while WJJW can contribute up-tothe-minute updates on any news that happens on campus, which is crucial for keeping students engaged in what is happening at the college. There is also a credibility that can come from students informing other students that cannot be achieved if it is done by administrators or faculty. Furthermore, there are course credit implications that come with the loss of a physical campus.. There are several concentrations within the English and communications majors that require students to be a part of student media at one point or another in order to graduate. Not being able work properly on student media would cause significant issues for many students. Aside from the graduation requirements, there are financial aid implications that come from this as well. In the event of an online campus, significant changes would need to be made to many classes, similar to what just happened with the spring travel courses, in order to accomodate being off-campus. If the college were to move to an online campus, it would be a massive disservice to the students of MCLA. Campus facilities and resources provide tremendous benefits to both student media and the wider campus community, and to lose them for any amount of time is a detriment to everyone. Any action to move to an online campus should only come as a last resort.
at the moment but I can’t help but to draw comparisons between TikTok and Vine. Vine was one of the leading social media apps around 2013. Similar to TikTok, users were able to post and share six-secondlong, looping video clips. These videos consisted primarily of singing and skits. This also opened up opportunities for popular users on Vine, as some of the biggest influencers on Vine obtained their fame from that app. Some even used that fame to build their platform on other forms of social media such as Youtube. However, in 2017 the app shut down and was no longer available to download or use. Ironically enough, some Viners have made their way to TikTok, but I feel that TikTok doesn’t have that same sort of “vibe” that Vine had. TikTok is fun, but I feel it doesn’t have that same creativity that Vine had. Users only had six seconds to captivate the audience and it was impressive with how well people utilized such a short time span. I feel that TikTok generally consists of people recreating viral dances to popular mainstream songs. That
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Could TikTok Possibly Be the New Vine? We all know that with social media, new trends always come and go. It can be hard to keep up with especially if you are like me, and enjoy taking a social media cleanse every now and then. Those cleanses can be healing as they keep you away from the distraction that social media can sometimes cause. However, although you may be on a break, social media never takes one. Every few years there is the rise and fall of a new app. Right now, the next big thing in the world of social media is TikTok. TikTok is a video-sharing social networking service that is based in Beijing, China. The app was launched 2017 and has just recently begun to grow rapidly, now used by millions of users globally and is available in 40 different languages. Users often create videos consisting of short skits, dancing or lip-syncing. TikTok has even opened up opportunities for some of their most famous users landing them brand deals and other opportunities. There is no doubt that TikTok is one of the leading social media apps
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Senior News Editor
A&E Editor
Brian Rhodes
Sabrina Damms
Features Editor Lise Mansaray
Editor-at-Large
Jake Vitali
BWN Executive Producer Symantha Kehr
Staff Staff Writers Natalia Giacomozzi Nicole Lemire
Copy Editor
Amanda Bortman
LISE MANSARAY I SAID WHAT I SAID
Features Writer
A&E Writers
Isabel Costa
Aidan Rawson Jacob Mack
BWN Reporters happens to be one of the biggest trends on the app. Although I do see some similarities between TikTok and Vine, I don’t think it will ever truly take the place of Vine. Vine holds a special place of nostalgia for me, that i’m sure many other people who grew up with the app could agree with as well. Some may disagree, but what do you think? Could TikTok beceme the new Vine?
Mei Craig Giovani Jajoute Julia Teixeira
Robert Wehry Antoinette Webster Cara Fusco
Photographer Kylan Martus
Advisers Shawn McIntosh Jim Niedbalski
March 12, 2020
IN OTHER BEACON NEWS
Macayla Flanagan ‘23 (below) tabling for The Susan B. Anthony Women’s Center’s Women’s History Month Photos by Kylan Martus
Sam Schwantner ‘20 and Sophie Smith ‘23 at SGA’s yarn ball Snoball Fight event last Wednesday, March 4 as part of its Winter Week events
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