ESTABLISHED 1826 – OLDEST COLLEGE NEWSPAPER WEST OF THE ALLEGHENIES
The Miami Student FRIDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2015 Volume 144 №16
Miami University — Oxford, Ohio
MIAMISTUDENT.NET
Pot or not: MU considers Issue 3
Forums held for IT finalists
With Election Day less than two weeks away, Issue 3 decision looms
New IT director to improve services for students with disabilities
BALLOT
TECHNOLOGY
SAMANTHA MULLIN
BRENNEN KAUFFMAN
THE MIAMI STUDENT
THE MIAMI STUDENT
Elections are less than two weeks away, and Miami University students have voiced differing opinions on the controversial Issue 3. If passed, Issue 3 would legalize the use of medical and recreational marijuana for those over age 21 in Ohio. The proposed amendment would also permit 10 initial sites to grow marijuana for commercial sale. The sites, one of which is located in Butler County, would be controlled by campaign investors and compete with one another on the price and quality of the marijuana. After four years, the Marijuana Control Commission would be able to add additional licenses as they see fit, based on the demand of the product. “Our plan is to start off slow and make sure the industry is safe, then add additional licenses as time goes on,” said Faith Oltman, a spokesperson for ResponsibleOhio. ResponsibleOhio is the group advocating for marijuana legalization through Issue 3. If Issue 3 passes, Ohio will join the four states and the District of Columbia that have legalized recreational marijuana.. Twenty-three states have legalized marijuana for medicinal use. Olivia Teteris, a sophomore who plans to vote Nov. 3, said legalization would be positive for students and people in general. “If weed was legal, people would probably be happier in general, honestly,” she said. “You don’t usually meet stoned people who are belligerent or destructive. They’re usually pretty laid back.” Publications, such as Business Insider, have published lists of health benefits of marijuana use, which include diminished anxiety and control of epileptic seizures. Students also agreed that legalization could aide in coping with stress or mental illness. “I think that when students feel overwhelmed with either schoolwork, social issues or anything else they’re dealing with, weed helps,” said Miami sophomore Todd Lambert. “That’s not to say it’s for everyone, but since so many people do smoke and such little harm really comes from it, students shouldn’t have to face such harsh consequences.” In addition, Teteris said she feels that that if marijuana-related arrests in Oxford were to disappear, the fear of academic careers being ruined by convictions involving marijuana would also be removed. Although many Miami students would like to see marijuana legal-
Following a discrimination lawsuit, Miami University will add a new position to its IT department starting next week. The position will work to make Miami’s online content more available to students with disabilities. The three finalists for the Director of Accessible Technology will be discussed in open forums, and the official recommendation will be announced next Friday. The new director is tasked with making Miami technology more accommodating to students with disabilities, which includes anything from phone number readers to website redesigns. Miami currently has around 850 students who would be directly affected by the changes, which is a record high for the university. According to Alan Fennerberg, the associate vice president of the IT department and the head of the University Search Committee, Miami plans to lead other colleges in this area. “We want to go so far beyond
CONNOR MORIARTY PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR
With sunny skies and temperatures rising into the high 70s this week, Miami likely experienced its last stint of warm weather for 2015. Expect rain and cooler temperatures in the forecast for the next few days.
TECH »PAGE 8
Basketball team goes global with inaugural ‘International Night’ ATHLETICS
RILEY STEINER THE MIAMI STUDENT
student community to get to know each other, because sometimes that can be an obstacle during daily life on campus. “We are trying to get closer to the international students,” he said. “We want them to not just see us as the players, we want to build friendships with them.” Head coach John Cooper said he sees the value in cultivating relationships for both the players and the student body. “It’s important that, as studentathletes, you understand engaging with the rest of the university com-
munity,” Cooper said. “We want to reach out to the international community because they are a very vital part of the university population.” Throughout the night, players and students were able to interact and get to know each other. The event was open to all international students, and included team introductions, three-point and dunk contests between players, free pizza and prize giveaways. The cheerleading team taught the students several chants for games later in the season. Afterward, the court was opened to students to shoot baskets
with the team. The basketball team and coaching staff are hopeful that International Night will attract support this season from students who attended. “Hopefully we’ll get involved with them and they’ll get involved with us, too,” said Wade. First-year Lulu Liu came to International Night to see what the program was all about. “It’s the first time I’ve taken part in a basketball [event] here, so I thought this would be a good
ISSUE 3 »PAGE 8
During the summer, the men’s basketball coaching staff began to think about ways to reach out to the student body, and came up with the idea for an event that would connect the team with the international student community. “Living in this community and noticing that we have a great international community, it was always very evident that they love basketball,” said assistant coach Trey Meyer. “We thought, ‘Why not connect the two?’, because we have an international presence on our team.” Several men’s basketball players hail from outside the United States. Sophomore guard Dion Wade is from Antwerp, Belgium; sophomore guard Abdoulaye Harouna is from Niamey, Niger; and forward Jere Vucica, a graduate student, is from Split, Croatia. Junior Jiaying Wang, the team’s manager, is from Beijing, China. “I know a lot of guys in China love basketball, so we want to introduce our team to the international students,” Wang said. “It’s a way for them to be part of the Miami community.” Harouna said it is important for the team and Miami’s international
NEWS p. 2
NEWS p. 3
CULTURE p. 4
OPINION p. 6
SPORTS p. 10
‘18 OF THE LAST 9’ COME TO CAMPUS THIS WEEK
NEW ASIAN RESTAURANT OPEN UPTOWN
AMERICAN HORROR STORY STARTS STRONG
EDITORIAL BOARD URGES TO VOTE NO ON ISSUE 3
REDHAWK HOCKEY TRAVELS TO NEW YORK
Noteworthy alumni visit campus for annual event, share experiences and advice
Tang Dynasty, which inhabits the old Quiznos location, recently opened Uptown
Lady Gaga headlines fifth season of the Emmynominated show
Editorial board argues Issue 3 not the right way to legalize recreational marijuana
RedHawks attend first away series of the season against St. Lawrence
TODAY in MIAMI HISTORY
AMANDA WANG THE MIAMI STUDENT
Senior Geovonie McKnight shows off his dunk for the crowd during International Night with the basketball team. After a successful night, the team and coaches plan to make it an annual event.
INT’L NIGHT »PAGE 9
Today in 1981, The Miami Student reported the beginning of a campaign to build a “student rec center.” This was a response to a 1976 survey that found 50 percent of the student body felt that current facilities were inadequate. The ’81 article reported that a recreation center with an indoor swimming pool and a racquetball court was an “impossible dream.”