WHY WAIT TILL THURSDAY? READ MYTJNOW.COM.
The world still needs superheroes, according to one student. See Opinion, page 5
<html><body>Students put WU on the web</body></html> See Science & Tech, page 6
THURSDAY March 8, 2012
Eagles lose to VMI in BSC tournament last Thursday. See Sports, page 11
WINTHROP UNIVERSITY
Issue 21
NEWS
Pedestrian hit by car
SPORTS
Men’s basketball coach permanently benched DAVID THACKHAM thackhamd@mytjnow.com
Students, faculty and passers-by gathered on Oakland Ave. Monday morning after a student was bumped by a car. She sustained minor injuries, and the vehicle sustained no damage. Photo by Devang Joshi • joshid@mytjnow.com
See ACCIDENT page 4 for more information
Winthrop students had mixed reactions as the news trickled out that men’s basketball head coach Randy Peele had been fired early Monday morning, according to a Winthrop Athletics press release. While some were “shocked” at finding out the fifth year head coach was on the way out, others suggested the change was necessary for the health of an Eagle program suffering from inconsistency in the last two seasons. “It’s sad when people get fired,” said senior healthcare management major Daniel Gibson, “but it’s a business.” “I saw it coming because of
Randy Peele
Former men’s basketball coach
their bad record,” said Elliott Jester, a junior business management major. “It’s unfortunate for him, but the school has to do what it can to move forward.” While junior marketing major Nathan Rodriguez wondered how the players were taking the loss, others placed the blame less on Peele and
See PEELE page 10
NEWS
Police attacked, spit on by intoxicated woman JONATHAN MCFADDEN mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com
A joint incident response team of Winthrop and Rock Hill police officers were on the receiving end of one woman’s violent rage last Tuesday night when they tried to arrest her after she had just finished assaulting a man, leaving
Ragen Gee-Trotter
him with a gashed eye. Ragen Gee-Trotter, 34, of McConnell’s was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct, assault and battery in the third degree and throwing bodily fluids after she tried to headbutt, kick and spit on both Rock Hill and Winthrop Campus Police officers following her assault on a man at the Silver Dollar Saloon
at 1037 Camden Avenue, according to an incident report. Officers arrived on the scene and found Gee-Trotter in a red Ford pickup with her friend, Nicholas Vanvierssen, 26 —also of York— who authorities placed under arrest when they found that he was drunk and unlawfully carrying a firearm, the report states.
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
kreberm@mytjnow.com
Last year, Emerson College, located in Boston, Mass., created a school-wide music video. The video’s audio was a collaboration of pop singer Lady Gaga’s music, and was shot in one take. Emerson students from different clubs and organizations participated in the production of the video, which was later aired on YouTube. The video inspired junior broadcast major Kalene McDonnell to get Winthrop students to participate in such a project.
SeeVIDEO page 7
discuss Gay Politics: Orgs LBGT issues byunc@mytjnow.com
Gathering to speak of the politics behind gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered legislation, four different student organizations gathered in Plowden Auditorium for the “Gay Politics” program. The College Republicans, College
Club promotes Arab culture
McDonnell, who is president of the Video Production (VP) club, said Emerson’s music video was “very rehearsed and choreographed” and wanted to do something like that. Now, the VP club is waiting on March 23 – the date set for Winthrop’s own school-wide music video. “Ours isn’t going to be quite as upscale because Emerson is a small school, but they’re big on performances, so they’re creative and have a lot of money,” she said. “That’s kinda what we’re trying to do, but really it’s just a way for clubs and
NEWS
CLAIRE BYUN
See ARREST page 4
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
WU-Wide music video sings way to campus MONICA KREBER
When a Campus Police officer directed his flashlight on the vehicle, Gee-Trotter began cursing at him, saying “get that f***ing light out of my face,” according to the report. The officer ordered Gee-Trotter out of the vehicle, but she continued cursing and
Democrats, College Libertarians and GLoBAL discussed the fight for LGBT civil rights and the political figures advocating the cause. With two representatives each, the groups discussed political parties’ differing opinions on gay civil rights. “We wanted to participate in this event to show the Winthrop community
Questions? Contact us at editors@mytjnow.com Serving Winthrop since 1923
See RIGHTS page 3 I N D E X
Yaser Alhussayen, left, with Ibrahim Alhussain relax on Winthrop’s campus. Alhussayen has a hand in the new Saudi Student Club, which aims to teach about the Saudi culture and acts as a support system for exchange students. Photo by Sarah Auvil • auvils@mytjnow.com
Active since fall, new club officially chartered this spring SARAH AUVIL
business sponsorships for students to study abroad. But with the official chartering of the Saudi Student Club this semester, all students can benefit and have the opportunity to learn more about Arab culture and Islam firsthand. The Saudi Student Club has been active since fall, but was of-
auvils@mytjnow.com
While many American students must pay their own way to college and often gripe about rising tuition costs, Saudi students get a full ride and most of their expenses taken care of, thanks to government and
CAMPUS NEWS
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ficially chartered by Winthrop this spring, said Yaser Alhussayen, a Winthrop MBA student and the club’s secretary of cultural affairs. The club celebrates big events like Saudi Independence Day on Sept. 23, holds monthly dinners and plans to join in
See ARAB page 9
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
OPINION
5
CULTURE
SCIENCE & TECH
6
SPORTS
7-8 9 10-11
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THURSDAY March 8, 2012
JONATHAN MCFADDEN News Editor mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com AMANDA PHIPPS Assistant News Editor phippsa@mytjnow.com
Greek Life: ‘Time, money, effort,’ says upperclassman By Jonathan McFadden mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com
The Greek life list of priorities isn’t daunting to remember: Academics first; Greek Life second; work, church and sports third. Money, time and effort are necessary while resilience, patience and understanding are key, according to one member of an on-campus sorority. The commitment is sacred and the process incredibly involved. Nevertheless, “sisterhood is amazing” and lifelong friendships can be achieved, she says. But, before anyone considers joining a Greek organization, this member, who asked not to be named or identified, said Greek hopefuls should realize they may have to chuck out a lot more dough than they may originally expect. Even when chapters agree to help with some
of the costs, the sorority member said it might be “short term.” “If they say this is it for the month, that’s it for the month,” she said. “You might go one semester and they help you, then the next semester it’s like OK, ‘you have to [pay].’” “There are other fines they don’t tell you about as well, like T-shirts, formal…” she added. Time is also of the essence. Similar to athletes, members of Greek Life are required to fulfill mandatory study hours. “If you don’t go to these, you can have the possibility of being fined” or incurring judicial repercussions, she said. Advancement through the ranks is encouraged, but sitting in the captain’s seat as a chairperson is a lofty responsibility. Retreats have to be planned, money has to be spent and meetings are mandatory.
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The more you do, the more people look at you and the more people respect you. And respect is very, very important. Student
On-campus sorority
“When you join a sorority… this is their first priority,” she said. “If you have work, that comes second. If you have a basketball game or if it’s not something that has a date that was like [planned] a
Vice president to take position elsewhere, Winthrop faculty supports decision By Amanda Phipps phippsa@mytjnow.com
Winthrop Vice President of alumni relations and development Brien Lewis will be leaving the university to take the position of college President at North Carolina’s Catawba College. Lewis, who joined Winthrop in 1999 as the executive assistant to the president and secretary to the Board of Trustees, has worked as the founding dean of University College and managed the Distinction Campaign, the second capital campaign for Winthrop, which has raised $37 million toward the $50 million goal, university president Anthony DiGiorgio said in an E-mail to faculty. “It should be affirming to all of us that Brien is the fourth member of the Winthrop executive staff to be selected for a chief executive position at least partly on the strength of the Vision of Distinction planning process and opportunities for replicating it,” he said. “That is a great compliment to the process itself and to the work that we have achieved together over the years by using that process.” Catawba is a private liberal arts college af-
filiated with the United Church of Christ, DiGiorgio said. The college’s current undergraduate enrollment is 1,300. Lewis said he first became interested in issues facing higher education when he was involved in student government as an undergrad. “In that sense, I guess you could say I have been working towards this goal for about 23 years,” he said. Lewis said Catawba had what he was looking for. “Catawba College seemed to have the right combination of a size small enough to get to know everybody and a diversity of academic and co-curricular programs to attract a diverse student body, faculty, and staff,” he said. “I also liked that it was in the Carolinas so that the area is familiar.” Lewis applied for the
position late last fall and said while a final timeline has yet to be decided, it is likely he will go to Catawba some time in April. DiGiorgio encouraged faculty to support Lewis in his move. “Please join me in extending best wishes to Brien as he prepares to take that Winthrop experience, and others as well, into this new chapter of his professional life,” he said. Lewis said Winthrop has been supportive of his decision. “Everyone has been very encouraging and supportive,” he said. “I deeply appreciate the confidence my colleagues have demonstrated in me.”
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I deeply appreciate the confidence my colleaques have demonstrated in me. Brien Lewis
Vice President of alumni relations and development
semester prior or written out in stone, then you can’t get excused for those things.” Church and Bible studies aren’t excuses, she said. The member said she remembers one young woman became upset because she was unable to devote as much time to church. “Your sorority goes first,” she said. “A lot of people in a sorority don’t get that either. They’ll work on you with a lot of things but the main part, when you join, is first priority the sorority.” Nevertheless, academics are prized above all Greek matters. “If you have class and you have to miss something, of course that’s excused,” she said. “Your sorority will come before work, any other time commitments you have.” A hard-working, charitable Greek Life member earns high marks in the
fold, she said. “The more you do, the more people look at you and the more people respect you,” she said. “And respect is very, very important.” Sorority members who aren’t as active as they could be are treated “kind of like dirt,” she said. On the flipside, though, “sisterhood is amazing.” “I’ve seen lifelong friendships, I’ve seen godparents come out of it; sisterhood can be really amazing,” she said. “I just want girls to know that they need to be serious during the new member time to make sure that’s the right one [sorority].” All sororities, not just at Winthrop, are driven by quota, she said. Each sorority must meet a number to enhance their image on campus. “How you look is everything to the outside because you have to constantly be recruiting,” she said. “There’s a num-
ber we have to meet each semester.” “My advice would be to girls while you’re going through this to ask yourself why do you like this? What friendships are you making?” And, she wants them to realize, that they’re not just numbers to meet a quota. But after initiation, things change, attitudes shift and responsibilities mount. “You just have to determine if Greek life is for you,” she said. “Sometimes girls feel obligated after initiation to stay because they made that commitment and they want to honor it. It’s hard for them to balance all the things that they love and focus on.” “A sisterhood, if it is for you and you find your home, is one of the most amazing things you will experience in your life.”
No WU expense increase on the radar; pay raises a go? By Jonathan McFadden
mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com
For the first time since the Great Recession hit Winthrop with a tidal wave of funding reductions and expense hikes, the state House Ways and Means Committee has drafted a budget proposal that suggests no increases in operating funds for the university. Also included in the spending plan is a proposed 2 percent salary increase for state employees, according to a budget update by President Anthony DiGiorgio. Discussion of a potential salary increase for faculty and staff came from DiGiorgio himself, who in August told a faculty and staff assembly that the university took steps to examine whether any salary improvements were possible. In February, DiGiorgio told members of the Board of Trustees that legislative leaders had spoken favorably about a salary increase, even Gov. Nikki Haley didn’t include pay raises in her proposed budget. At the time, the range 2 percent was just an illustration DiGiorgio used. Now, it’s a tangible possibility. Nevertheless, Winthrop will still have choices to make. “The amount allocated by the General Assembly in this process does not include funds sufficient to cover all full-time Winthrop employees,” DiGiorgio said. “Winthrop will need to identify $750,000 in additional funds for this purpose.” It costs the university $375,000 for each percentage point of increase. All eligible, permanent employees would get an increase, said Rebecca Masters, assistant to the president for public affairs. The university would also have to cover costs for annualizations, which include employee health care and retirement costs. The state spending plan also proposes some additional one-time funds for campus maintenance projects, the report says. Some capital projects needing atten-
tion include repairs to the roof of Withers. Rep. Gary Simrill (R-Rock Hill) helped convince his Ways and Means colleagues to include $500,000 in proposed funding for Winthrop technology needs, the update says. The only universities slated to see increases in operating funds for the coming fiscal year—which starts on July 1— are two of the state’s main three research-level institutions, the University of South Carolina and Clemson University. “The technical colleges would also receive increased operating support under the Ways and Means plan,” DiGiorgio said. But, none of these values are set in stone just yet, DiGiorgio cautioned. The bill will have to be reviewed by the full House and become open to floor amendments beginning on Mar. 13. Once the House adopts its finalized version of the budget, it’ll pass it along to the state Senate. When the recession’s impact hit full force in 2008, Winthrop lost nearly 24 percent of its funding from the state, leaving a gaping money hole for the university to keep going. The university was granted federal stimulus funds to cushion the impact, but students still paid 8.3 percent more in tuition and fees. The following year, Winthrop received less than $18 million from the state. During the 2010/2011 academic year, Winthrop’s Board of Trustees mandated a 4.9 percent tuition increase, a number administrators hoped would be a cap for any potential future tuition upsurges. A testament to their efforts was the 3.9 percent tuition increase students saw this academic year.
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THURSDAY March 8, 2012
Organizations talk LGBT rights RIGHTS • from front that we, as an organization, are 100 percent for LGBT rights,” said Stokes, president of the College Libertarians. The College Democrats used the event for publicity, as well as dissemination of the party’s views. “We have been looking for different opportunities to get some recognition and we thought that ‘Gay Politics’ would be the perfect outlet and a great opportunity to ‘shamelessly plug’our preference for the presidential candidate and broaden some perspectives on the Democratic party as a whole,” said Tyler Calloway, organization president. The College Libertarians started off the discussion by integrating basic libertarian believes with advocation for gay rights legislation. Stokes, modern languages major, explained the core ideology of libertarianism and it’s affect on gay rights. “We believe the smallest minority is the individual, thus we prefer individual rights to gay rights, but that doesn’t make it any less important,” Stokes said. “Every individual should be able to love who they want, to adopt children, to be treated respectfully regardless of their race or sexual orientation.” Tim Kroboth, president of the College Republicans, echoed Tyler Calloway Stokes’ College Democrats presiideas. dent “It is absolutely important that we respect the individual rights of every person, regardless of their background or sexual orientation,” Kroboth said. State’s rights should also be respected, Kroboth said, meaning the states should have a say in civil rights legislation. College Democrats, repped by Calloway and Hampton Ballowe, explained the difference between individual sup-
“”
...Your sexual orientation shouldn’t have any say in access to a sick family member.
Left: (From left) Hampton Ballowe and Tyler Young, both College Democrats, sit beside Trey Stokes and Kyle Steele, both College Libertaians, during the Gay Politics event. Photos by Sarah Auvil • auvils@ mytjnow.com
port and political advocation for civil rights. “If you were to individually ask any member of any groups you’d fine a different answer,” said Ballowe, political science major. “Yes, we are for gay rights, but that doesn’t mean we as a unit are pushing for activity for gay marriage.” Unilateral federal LGBT legislation could cause negative national response, while state legislation might be more accepted by the state’s populace, Stokes said. “On the other hand, there are going to be states where it is going to be a while before they even consider pro-LGBT legislation,” Stokes said. “Ideally, I think that going state by state would be the best option.” Julianne Causey, representing the Republicans, advocated for further laws needed to make the LGBT community equal. “We would have to add sexual orientation to civil rights law,” Causey said. “It would be a shame if everyone can get married, but you can also get fired or not hired for sexual orientation.” The Democrats chimed in arguing for equal hospital visitation rights among same-sex couples, which was an issue until January 2011. Under new federal regulations, patients are now allowed to decide who has visitation rights and who can make medical decisions on their
behalf, according to a Jan. 11, 2011 ABC News article. The new rules apply to hospitals participating in Medicare and Medicaid programs, and President Obama first proposed the changes in April 2010. “Everyone should have equal access to a dying or injured person,” Calloway said. “Your sexual orientation shouldn’t have any say in access to a sick family member.” Audience interaction was encouraged, and a Q&A session provided the speakers with new discussion questions. Separation of church and state and its relation to LGBT rights was presented, and the Republicans were spotted for an answer. “It’s very difficult to separate church and state 100 percent,” Kroboth said, “because there’s not a fine line between moral and arbitrary law.” Calloway argued for the Democratic advance of church and state separation, but stated “then there are individuals like Rick Santorum, which causes the issue to regress.” Overall, the party “believes in the en-
forcement of equal and individual rights and freedoms,” Caolloway said. Even after full equality is reached, Stokes said Libertarians would continue to support LGBT rights and LGBT organizations. “Society can always move forward,” Stokes said.
Only 2 students in the running for student leadership slots By Jonathan McFadden mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com
Two current members of the Council of Student Leaders will go on to campaign and run for student body president and vice president during Winthrop’s second-ever democratic student elections. Thus far, current CSL Chair Kambrell Garvin is running unopposed for his second term as student body president. Garvin, a junior political science major, told The Johnsonian in a previous story that he didn’t feel the work was done despite some of CSL’s successes with parking, transparency and creating dialogue with state legislators about higher education costs. “I look forward to getting my message and platform out to the student body and working to ensure that we have good voter turnout and student involvement throughout the entire process,” Garvin said. “For only the second time in a decade Winthrop student’s will have the opportunity to head to the polls to directly elect student leadership. This is an experiment in democracy that we can’t afford to fail.” Running for vice president is Christopher Aubrie, a sophomore international business major who joined CSL this January. When applying for the position, Aubrie told members of CSL about his extensive international experience, including spending three years in Shanghai, China while in high school. Aubrie also said he wanted to see recycling more aggressively pursued on campus. Late last month, CSL held four information sessions for students interested in putting their names on the election ballot. Only five students expressed interest. Only two returned their application materials by the designated deadline, said CSL Election Commissionaire Christine Counts-Davis. The two applications received were placed under a screening process.
Though only two candidates are in the running—both unopposed— Garvin and Aubrie will both run serious campaigns, Counts-Davis said. “They are ready to meet and greet with the student body on Mar. 20, and they are looking forward to questions from the student body at the candidate forums on Mar. 27 and Apr. 3,” she said. There are no set rules that require candidates to campaign, she said, but “it would be to any candidate’s benefit to do so.” The Election Procedures Guide also allots money to candidates for their campaign. During a previous CSL meeting, members voted on an amendment that allows candidates to use $500 divisible among them. That means both Garvin and Aubrie will have $250 to use as the campaign season gets underway after spring break. Students who missed the deadline for applications can still enter the race as write-in candidates. To qualify as a write-in candidate, the student must turn in a petition with 200 signatures from Winthrop students. There’s still a chance for other students to join the race. “I hope that interest will be generated through the voting process and the 2013 elections will be even larger. This is only our second election in over a decade, so there are still some things that can be improved,” Counts-Davis said. “By returning to internal elections, those things will never be improved.” Last year, Winthrop saw the first democratic student elections in a decade. Eighteen percent of the student body voted, putting Garvin and his running mate, current Vice Chair Kaitlin Sapp, in office. Before, CSL’s election process was completely internal, with members of the organization choosing the president and vice president without student input. “Having only a few students run for office will not necessarily mean that voter turnout will be low,” Counts-Davis said.
check MYTJNOW.COM for all the breaking news on campus
THURSDAY March 8, 2012
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Local leader: Women ‘smarter,’ can run politics By Jonathan McFadden mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com
Women who buffer their involvement in state, local and federal politics can take the political arena by storm, one York County councilman said to a large crowd of Winthrop students on Monday night. Councilman William “Bump” Roddey joined two other panelists in emphasizing why college students need to be as informed on state and local politics, as well as national during the first of a series of ‘Delta Days’ programs hosted by the Xi Beta Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Standing before a crowd of almost 100 in Owens, Roddey asked the women in the room to be engaged politically and, in effect, outclass their male counterparts in government. Roddey said he believes “women are smarter than men.” On college campuses, women outnumber men “probably 30-to-1,” he said. But, when it comes to the decisions, bills and laws that trickle down from the top and affect everyone, it’s men who primarily bang the gavel. “I think it’s asinine that a group of men can get together in a room and define what’s best for women,” said Roddey, a 1996 Winthrop alumnus and the only African American on a maledominated county council. Roddey made mention of the current federal debate surging over whether employers should have to provide contraception insurance if it conflicts with their moral or religious convictions. In February, President Barack Obama introduced a bill that would require employers to provide free contraceptives to
female employees. The decision earned a rash of criticism from Roman Catholic institutions and other religious groups. Soon, a revision was introduced that would require the insurers and not the institutions bear the cost of paying for contraceptives. Republicans and Democrats in the U.S. House and Senate have been divided on the issue for weeks, while leaders in Washington —many of them male— have taken flak for excluding women from the conversation. The issue has become so prevalent that many have taken to the streets in protest, beckoning an end to the ‘war on women.’ Roddey explained that he longs to see the female perspective represented more evenly in the political circle, but the change begins “at home.” “All politics are local,” he said. Rock Hill Councilwoman Susie B. Hinton, another panelist at the event, agreed. Entering her second term representCSL Vice Chair Kaitlin Sapp joined elected officials in teaching Winthrop stuing Rock Hill’s Ward I on Rock Hill City dents that women do have a place in politics. Photo by Jonathan McFadden • Council, Hinton encouraged students to mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com. know the local-level happenings of their own cities and towns. elections, Sapp explained that Winthrop ing students “We’re always in politics,” Hinton said. beat the national average of student gov- to attend “All of life is politics.” ernment voter turnout during last year’s Monday An educator and ordained Baptist elections. night CSL minister, Hinton gave attendees a little Last April, 18 percent of the campus meetings homework assignment, asking them to voted in the first democratic elections and even put become knowledgeable voters and learn in a decade. The national average is 10 their names more about their home’s population and percent, she said. on the ballegislative structure. “That’s great for Winthrop but it still lot in the Susie B. Hinton “Please don’t leave here and go back to kind of sucks,” she said. upcoming Rock Hill Councilwoman business as usual,” she said. Minus the 18 percent, there are still 72 elections. Joining the elected officials was Kaitlin percent of students who didn’t vote yet Students Sapp, an elected official in her own right still complain. who missed last month’s CSL chair and who serves as the Council of Student Sapp said she’s sensed a “growing vice chair information sessions can still Leaders’ vice chair. epidemic of apathy” on campus and so enter the race as write-in candidates. Taking the opportunity to talk about she issued a “call to action,” encourag-
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We’re always in politics. All of life is politics.
Woman arrested for hitting, spitting at police officers ecute, the report states. The victim told police he and other members of his billiards league yelling. were playing at the bar when GeeWhen the officer asked another Trotter approached several of his Winthrop police officer to place Geeteammates, a Rock Hill police report Trotter in a patrol vehicle because says. When the victim asked Geeshe was under arrest, she lunged at Trotter to leave, she struck him in him and tried to headbutt him in the the face on his left cheek, causing his face, the report says. eye glasses to lacerate his face. Another officer restrained GeeThe owner of the Silver Dollar told Trotter, cuffed her and placed her offi cers she wanted both Gee-Trotter in the back of a patrol vehicle. Still, Gee-Trotter patrol vehicle. Still, and Vanvierssen banned from the Gee-Trotter became “uncontrol- premises. Vanvierssen gave officers lable,” the report says, and began his driver’s license and a concealed kicking at the right rear window in weapons permit. An officer asked Vanvierseen if he the officer’s car. had a firearm on his person at the More Rock Hill officers arrived time, the report says. Vanvierseen on scene and made contact with the admitted that he had a 9 mm Ruger victim, who said he wanted to prosSR9c secured on his hip. Officers seized the gun and also realized that Vanvierseen’s breath smelled like alcohol and his eyes were glossy. Vanvierseen was placed under arrest. Meanwhile, other officers with Rock Hill Police Department attempted to move. Gee-Trotter from the Campus Police patrol vehicle The Silver Dollar Saloon. Photo by Claire into a Rock Hill poVanOstenbridge • vanostenbridgec@mytjnow.com
ARREST • from front
lice vehicle. When officers tried to move her, Gee-Trotter began kicking, spitting, swinging violently and lodging racial slurs against one of the officers. The report says Rock Hill Police had to use a hobble cord to secure Gee-Trotter and finally put her in the patrol vehicle. Campus Police helped Rock Hill officers transport Gee-Trotter to jail because she was still uncontrollable. While at the jail, the Winthrop officer was attempting to place his firearm in a safe locker when GeeTrotter lunged at him and again attempted to headbutt him in the face, according to the report. She then spit in his face. Officers restrained Gee-Trotter and took her into the booking area kicking and screaming. Gee-Trotter once again lunged and attempted to kick the officer in his face. For a second time, officers restrained Gee-Trotter, placed her in a cell and shackled her to a bed after she tried to kicked the door and window repeatedly, according to the report. Asked whether Gee-Trotter’s rages were drug or alcohol related, Assistant Chief of Police Kenneth Scoggins said: “Gee-Trotter was most certainly intoxicated.”
WU student hit by car ACCIDENT• from front
By Jonathan McFadden mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com
A Winthrop student walking on Oakland Avenue and making her way to Cherry Road was hit by a car early Monday morning. Sometime between 8:30 and 8:45 a.m., the student walked along the crosswalk when a vehicle turning left onto Myrtle Drive bumped into her, Rock Hill Police say. Jeremy Allen, senior computer science major, passed the scene on his way to class and saw a young woman lying on the street, surrounded by paramedics, emergency responders and concerned bystanders. Allen said he saw a man drape a yellow coat over the young woman. The student was transported to a medical facil-
ity. She sustained minor injuries, according to Brad Redfearn, lieutenant with the Rock Hill Police Department. The vehicle sustained no damage, Redfearn said. The driver was found as the contributor to the accident, but was not cited or charged. The student was not named as a contributor to the accident, police say. Police have closed the investigation, Redfearn said.
Amanda Phipps contributed to this story.
–––Police Blotter––– POSSESSION OF MARIJUANA, PUBLIC DISORDERLY CONDUCT, CONSUMPTION OF BEER UNDER 21 (2/26/12) A Winthrop reporting officer saw a man urinating next to a vehicle in the parking lot of The Crazy Horse at 12:16 a.m., according to the police report. The subject’s genitals were completely exposed. The reporting officer spoke with the subject and smelled a strong scent of alcohol and marijuana. The reporting officer found that the subject was under the age of 21. When asked if he had been drinking the subject told the reporting officer he had not. The owner refused to do the Pas-Vr alcohol sensor so the reporting officer placed him under arrest for consumption of beer under 21 and public disorderly conduct. When the officer returned to the car the subject urinated on he found a bag of marijuana in between the two front seats, according to the police report. The reporting officer ran the tag number and located the owner of the car. The subject informed the reporting officer that the marijuana was his. The reporting officer placed him under arrest for possession of marijuana. Both subjects were transported to the Rock Hill City Jail, according to the police report.
CONSUMPTION OF BEER UNDER 21 (2/26/12) At 1:30 a.m., a Winthrop reporting officer was called to West Thomson due to reports of noise complaints on the fourth floor, according to the police report. When the reporting officer reached the fourth floor he saw two females and one male standing in the hallway near the room where the noise was coming from. The reporting officer asked for their identification and the male informed him that he did not have his ID on him. The subject also informed the reporting officer that he was not a student and he was just visiting friends. When asked if he had been signed in the subject told the reporting officer that he had just walked in. The reporting officer smelled alcohol on the subject and found the subject to be 18. The reporting officer told the subject that he was placing him under investigative detention. Then he knocked on the door to the room that the noise was coming from. He also noticed loud noises coming from another room and knocked on that door as well. The reporting officer advised all the subjects to come into the hall. After finding out that all of the subjects were Winthrop students the officer let them go back to their rooms. The subject told the reporting officer that his host had lent him
his student ID and room key so that he could get in while the host went to stay with his girlfriend for the night. The host came back to West Thomson and when the reporting officer spoke to him he smelled alcohol on him. When asked if they had been drinking the host said he had not and the subject said he had had two drinks. The reporting officer conducted alcohol tests on both subjects. The host was given a ticket for possession/consumption under 21 and referred to the Winthrop Judicial officer for violating Visitation/Guest policy. The other subject was placed under arrest for possession/consumption under 21 and issued a trespass warning. When the reporting officer checked the subject’s property, he found another student’s ID. The ID belonged to the subject’s aunt who is a Winthrop student. Upon contacting the aunt, she told the officer that she had given her ID to her nephew so he could eat in the dining hall. The subject was taken to the Rock Hill Law Center for booking, according to the police report. Compiled by Zoe Irizarry
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Why the world needs Superman
Only two students applied for a student government position in CSL. Kambrell Garvin, current CSL chair, and Chris Aubrie are running for Chair and Vice-Chair, respectively. Both are current members of CSL. At a time when the democratic elections are in their infancy, students must take control and step up to the plate by running for office. Otherwise, what’s the point of democracy? We might as well go back to the old form of student government, where the CSL chair was appointed by the group itself. While the College Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians, Winthrop’s Think. Speak. Act. organzation and Student Congress can sit back and complain about an appointed leader, they’re sure not taking any action to sustain democratic elections. We’re disappointed in you, Winthrop. You done goofed.
The price of freedom
“Critique is an art”
Editor-in-Chief CLAIRE BYUN Managing Editor & Webmaster DEVANG JOSHI News Editor JONATHAN MCFADDEN Assistant News Editor AMANDA PHIPPS Culture Editor ALISON ANGEL Opinion Editor SYDNEY EVANS Arts & Entertainment Editor MONICA KREBER
My sophomore year I started to get into my digital mass media concentration and a whole new world opened up to me. I never thought I would like it, but then I began to understand how much goes into writing articles, doing newspaper/magazine page layouts, checking everything for correct style. The news is more than tabloid gossip – it’s the way we learn and share information about what’s happening in our world and our community. It’s easy for a bystander to slam a student or professional hometown publication. But now as I am seeing on the other end – a lot of journalists receive much more hate than praise or appreciation, yet trudge on and work to share the truth anyway. Being in the public eye can be scary for a student. For many college assignments it may not matter if your work is professional yet. But I think preparing for a high level of professionalism is the goal of being a college student. Critique is an art. Not everyone has the gift of sugarcoating what they say, but everyone can learn to be professional, honest and constructive. It’s almost always just an opinion, after all. Sometimes those teachers that drive us crazy by putting us on the spot in class and telling us “this isn’t good enough” are the ones preparing us for the workforce, where that quality of work wouldn’t be accepted. Professionalism is a journey all of us are on, and it starts with admitting we don’t know everything, no matter what field we are in. Coming to college in itself is putting yourself in a position where you admit you need to learn from others.
Science & Technology Editor CATHERINE ZENDE Sports Editor JEFF BRODEUR
Photographers CLAIRE VANOSTENBRIDGE JOHN RHODES SARAH AUVIL
Sports Editor DAVID THACKHAM
Ad Manager / Ad Designer RILEY SCHOTT
Copy Editor STEPHANIE ROJENCHES
Ad Sales Representative JOSH DEMAREST
Copy Editor EDWARD SZEMAN
Graphic Designer COURTNEY NISKALA
Multimedia Editor JEREMY ALLEN
Faculty Adviser GUY REEL
Assistant Multimedia Editor SARAH AUVIL
Our Say
Democratic elections no longer an option, obviously
Alright, so I’m going to reveal my in- gotten to the point where we no longer ner nerd on this one. I love want to look up to someone and comic book characters. realize that they are superior to I love Batman, Superman us in almost every way? and just about everyone else Yes, Superman is a boring in the Marvel/DC line up. read for the most part, and his Still, I have been noticing movie wasn’t that great, but the a trend with superheroes values that he upholds are what lately that startles me a are supposed to be important. bit. Everyone is becoming Characters like Frank Castle Jacob Wingard darker, grittier and more and (The Punisher), Wolverine, Freshman more flawed as the series go Deadpool and many other antialong. heroes are gaining popularity; While flawed characters are much however, are these really the people we more interesting to read about, there want future generations imitating? seems to be a fine line between makEach of them has been wronged in ing a character flawed and just making their own specific ways, yet their rethem worse than any normal human sponses are becoming almost atypical being reading the books. in the comic book world. Just as a case in point, Tony Stark, We have Castle viciously murdering also known as Iron Man, is probably anyone who he deems to be a ‘threat one of the most popular heroes to to the innocent’ much like Rorschach date. The last two movies released on from the Watchmen. Wolverine is a him were box office hits and now he is violent sociopath whose answer to scheduled to appear in The Avengers. everything is to shred it apart with his While his character has always been knife hands, and Deadpool is a psydeeply flawed, impulsive and often chotic mercenary. There is nothing foul-mouthed, the newest rendition challenging about these characters. and the new comic books show a much They don’t make us try to improve ourworse version of Stark. Iron-Man has selves in order to imitate them, we only been changed from a crime fighter have to drop to their level. that makes poor choices regarding Superman may be boring and can his personal life, to becoming a ragoften times be viewed as an allegory for ing alcoholic, sex-fiend with complete Jesus, but at least he never balked on disregard for anyone but himself. his values or compromised in any way. So, how is he any better than his first Comic books are a great medium villain Obadiah Stain, a man that he for entertainment. They deserve to hd a hand in murdering, albeit in selfbe read, and dark stories are amazing; defense. however, there needs to be someone Superheroes were originally brought to look up to as well. People don’t all up to be role-models as well as enterhave to be bad, nor do they all have to tainment; they were intelligent, courabe so flawed they can be viewed as the geous and selfless, doing what they did scum of the Earth or even be seen as as a way to make society better. just as bad as the villains they fight. Of the super-heroes that exist today, Please, give me more Captain AmeriI can really only think of a small handcas and Superman. Let me look at a ful that still do this and by no coincihero, and let me aspire to be like him. dence do they all belong to DC (with Give me an impossible goal. Even the exception of Spider-man). though I’ll always fail to meet it, I will So, why is it that society has to make still be a better person for it in the end. the best of us compromise? Have we
Imagine you are assigned to write a research paper due in a week. Perhaps several. It must be timely, informative, and error free. You scramble to get sources and stay Sarah Auvil up late working on it, Junior hoping to impress. But there’s another catch. Instead of just your teacher reading it and handing back your grade discreetly, it is distributed to the whole student body with copies in every building, who are free to critique you, maybe even insult you and say things that aren’t true because they don’t like your paper. Some may just laugh at you and say they could do better, even though they don’t have the courage to put their work out there in front of everybody. This is the kind of thing that would only haunt most students’ worst CRTW nightmares, but it’s the daily reality of being a journalist or writing content for any type of media. Whatever you write is out there for everyone to see, which can be a great honor, but also a great responsibility. My freshman year I had a totally different perspective on journalism. As a digital information design major, I had never worked with the media before. The first things that came to mind when someone mentioned “the media” were tabloids talking about how such and such is pregnant or had a nasty divorce, with invasive and badly doctored paparazzi photos plastered all over the cover. My view of the media was that they always seemed to wrongly slam people and were up to no good.
SYDNEY EVANS Opinion Editor evans@mytjnow.com
THURSDAY March 8, 2012
It’s a nice thought to think we have saying that fraternities accept all kinds. complete freedom over the I don’t deny that they try. Howchoices in our lives. But ever, with any group, be it Greek examine them closer and life or any other organization, these freedoms become less there are certain standards the defenite. members are expected to meet What we experience is a in order to maintain their accepbalance between wants and tance. freedom, in which we weigh Case in point, as a member of our freedoms against our The Johnsonian I have to adhere Riley Schott to certain standards. I trade a desires. On one side of the Senior scale we place the freedom. little freedom of speech, in order On the other side sits our to be published. Its a trade I am wants and needs. When these desires willing to make. outweigh our individual freedom, the No matter what group you are a part freedom is relinquished. of, or organization you are involved I like to think of it as a marketplace; with, you want and need for its mem“The Freedom Supermarket,” if you bers to comply. In doing so they give will. Every day we decide that we want up their freedom of individuality, just something, and use our personal freeas you have. If this were not the case, dom as currency. you could imagine the chaos. One of the easiest examples to grasp Picture a soccer match. If all the is class attendance. Are you free to players maintained absolute freedom, skip your 8 a.m. every day for some no rules would apply and the game extra shuteye? With no wants and would be meaningless. Only when the desires, yes. However, if you want to participants relinquish their individual pass the class, you have to trade that freedom does organization, order, and freedom. You are paying for what you overall meaning take hold. want. Not with money, but with free It is not in our best interest to have will. absolute freedom. In fact, we need to The same rule applies to even less relinquish some of it in order to mainconcrete desires. Take acceptance for tain safety, security, and a satisfactory example. Like it or not, as humans, lifestyle. we have the need to be accepted. With I think the problem most people have this need for acceptance, we trade our with this concept is they pair freedom freedom of individuality. and happiness. The belief is that in Lets apply this principle to the averorder to be happy, we must maintain age fraternity man. He doesn’t have complete freedom in our lives. to wear that silly, florescent snap-back However, we actually trade freedom hat coupled with his “letters” shirt. But for happiness. If you were truly free, with the freedom not to, he trades the odds are you wouldn’t be very happy comfort of group admission. So he at all. Stop thinking of freedom as haphappily trades a more individualistic piness. Instead, think of freedom as a approach to dress in order to safely actool to get you happiness. company and adhere to the group. I’m sure some of you are up in arms,
“He’s gonna win, so why bother?” This past Monday night it was announced that only two individuals submitted applications to run for student body president and vice president. Sydney Evans Kambrell Garvin, Opinion Editor current student body president and Chris Aubrie will both run unapposed for the highest paid, most prestigious positions on campus. For two years I dealt with student groups that said CSL without the voice of the students was a joke and elitist; unable to truly fulfill its mission. The system then changed to reflect a more direct democratic format. Now in the second year, the sound of crickets chirping is deafening when it comes time to step up to the plate. Where are the remnants of Winthrop Student Congress and Think. Speak. Act? How about the College Republicans, College Democrats, College
Libertarians, or members of the Socialist Student Union? Or any member of any club and organization that has received Student Allocations funding? It is a struggle to get people to apply for annual member positions and as seen this week an even bigger disappointment when it comes to stepping up to the plate of leadership. I understand that student government isn’t everybody’s thing, and that in the big scheme of our lives as students university politics is low on the scale of importance. But politics infuses every part of your life, whether you want it to or not, and recognize it or not. I am shocked at the students that have said that they are not interested because they don’t think they can win. Buck up and put yourself out there. If you have ideas they should be heard and could possibly work. Maybe I’m asking too much. This situation has me even more convinced that there are two types of people in the world; those that do and those that don’t.
About The Johnsonian The Johnsonian is the weekly student newspaper of Winthrop University. It is published during fall and spring semesters with the exception of university holidays and exam periods. CONTACT INFORMATION Our offices are located in suite 104 in the DiGiorgio Campus Center. Phone: (803) 323-3419 E-mail: editors@mytjnow.com Online: mytjnow.com LETTER POLICY Letters and feedback can be sent to editors@mytjnow.com or by mail at The Johnsonian, 104
Campus Center, Rock Hill, S.C., 29733. Comments submitted online at www.mytjnow.com may be printed as letters and may be shortened for space and edited for clarity. Please include your name, major and year if you are a student; your name and title if you are a professor; or your name and profession if you are a member of
the community. Letters, cartoons and columns reflect the opinions of the authors and are not necessarily the opinions of The Johnsonian staff. CORRECTIONS Contact us if you find an error in an issue of the newspaper. We will correct it in the next issue.
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THURSDAY March 8, 2012
CATHERINE ZENDE Science & Technology Editor zendec@mytjnow.com
By WU students, for WU students Students build and maintain campus websites
By Catherine Zende
experience of working on the site has helped Nichols gain experience. “This is a really good opportunity to gain experience and apply my Winthrop students are not only viewdigital information design major,” Nichols ing Winthrop affiliated websites, they said. are also creating and maintaining them. But for Nichols, there was one benefit she Students majoring in digital informadid not expect. Although she did not expect tion design and computer science to join DSU as a member, it has become her have been involved with the creation favorite part of the project. “I joined to be webof many well-known and widely used master and became part of the DSU family,” websites. They do not get paid well and Nichols. their work is not always recognized by Nichol journey to becoming involved with fellow Winthrop students, but their DSU began (much like Martindale and Reid) experiences are helping them prepare through connections made on campus. Nichols for life post-graduation. and Reid heard about the positions via their Senior digital information design professors while Martindale was hired through major (DIFD) Karissa Martindale is one STARS. In addition to this connection, all three of many students developing websites students currently work at the Hive, a local in her free time. organization dedicated to building websites for Martindale’s most recent work can be non-profit organizations. The project is part of seen with the Big South Undergraduate the DIFD 451 Senior Synthesis course, which is Research conference (BigSURS) weba requirement for senior DIFD majors. site. Martindale created an informaWhile these three web creators come from tional website detailing all the registrathe DIFD major, another student from a differtion and conference information. ent major has also gained experience making Senior digital information design majors Janna Reid and Karissa Martindale She heard of the opportunity through work in the student lab in Carroll Hall. Photo by Catherine Zende • zendec@ Winthrop web pages. Senior Brandon Clopton the Winthrop chapter of STARS, an is a computer science major who has made mytjnow.com organization dedicated to encouragwebsites for the Winthrop Honors Society and it was very confusing,” Reid said. Despite those ing and supporting those interested in and, most recently, pages for professors in the struggles, Reid found the experience rewarding for its computer science. art department. Unlike the other webmasters, Clopton Martindale’s work is currently being used by scholars real-world application. “The College of Education webfound the art department position on Winthrop’s website really helped me because I actually worked there. attending the BigSURS conference, but her work did site instead of a professor. I had my own cubicle and a boss to report to. It was not come without its share of struggles. Her biggest But like the other webmasters, Brandon had to deal really cool because it showed that real world setting,” struggle came with her programming language (PHP). with clients, which presented challenges for him. “They Reid said. Martindale’s language was not supported by Winthrop are arts people and I am a business and computer perIn contrast to the College of Education project that so she looped the site to first go to her personal server son, so it’s two different mind sets. They are arts people utilized Winthrop web templates, Reid’s work with the then back to the BigSURS site — in an instant. so they want their website a certain way,” Clopton said biology department offered her more freedom because For Martindale, the experience has helped her deClopton’s experience with websites has distinctly velop her independence and ability to work with clients. the site was made from scratch. “The other project impacted his career goals, albeit in an unexpected way. [Master’s in Biology site] was really great because I was “It’s helped me realize I don’t want to do websites for a “It’s always good in the web world to talk and interact working in a partnership. I had a lot of client meetings with your client because you don’t get that in school,” career,” Clopton. Instead, he wants to go into software and learned how to interact with clients,” Reid said. Martindale said. development and cloud security and has already been While Martindale and Reid made academic sites, seA fellow DIFD major, senior Janna Reid, has also had offered a job at a company that creates software for nior Kaylee Nichols has been involved with maintaining restaurants. her share of web development at Winthrop. Reid, who is also president of STARS, has worked for two academ- the DiGiorgio Student Union (DSU) website. Nichols, While some of these web creators are unsure of where who is also a digital information design major, curic departments on campus. She has designed pages for they will be working after graduation, Reid knows she rently maintains the DSU website. Part of her duties as the College of Education and the biology department’s wants to use what she has learned in her experiences. webmaster include inputing all events at the beginning Master’s program. “I want to get a job. I’d love to work somewhere where I of each semester and updating the pages throughout The website for the College of Education was made use the skills from my major. I know a lot of people who the semester. for accredidation purposes. Reid’s main obstacle was graduate don’t have the luxury of using their degree, so For Nichols, the obstacles for building the sites come dealing with previous code. “There was something that I’d love to be able to,” Reid said. from accessibility to the site. “A lot of the issues come had already been built so I had to figure out what the from cross-browser compatibility,” Nichols said. The person had done. The code was not very organized,
zendec@mytjnow.com
Spring Fair encourages spring break safety
By Catherine Zende zendec@mytjnow.com
Winthrop students will soon be enjoying warm weather and a week’s vacation. But that extra free time should also be an extra safe time. To encourage students to think about their safety this spring break, the department of Health & Counseling Services hosted a Spring Fling event to share safety information and prizes to students. Several local vendors and organizations set up on Scholar’s Walk to host the annual Spring Fling. If students visited at least three vendors, they received a free food from local restaurants who attended. Other goodies included a game with rubber ducks in an inflatable pool and small prizes, as well as a corn hole game set up in the grass. But these prizes were not the only things given away at the event. Information from local organizations like Keystone and Catawba Care was distributed to students addressing a variety of issues like sexual health, alchohol consumption and skin care. Brianne Gemeinhardt, wellness coordinator for health and counseling services,
said the event was designed to raise awareness during Safe Spring Break Week. “[There will be] things you think about for having a safe spring break, but also things you don’t think about,” Gemeinhardt said. The event included a party atmosphere, complete with beachy music. “It’s about coming away with tips for having a safer spring break and making sure you have what you need to be safe and be healthy and have a good time too,” Gemeinhardt said. “I think health can be fun too.” For Gemeinhardt, two major concerns for students’ health over spring break are sexual safety and sun exposure. To further address sexual health on campus, Health & Counseling Services has planned other events. On Mar. 7 from 8-10 p.m. in the DiGiorgio Campus Center and Mar. 8 from 11-12:3o p.m. in Thompson Hall, the center will host Rapid HIVE testing. The events will also include drunk goggle activities and a smoking cessation program. On Mar. 20 at 8 p.m. in the Richardson ballroom, the center will host an event called “Sex in an envelope” to address sexual concerns.
Tips for a Safe Spring Break If you’re having sex, stock up on protection and use it! If you’re at the beach, use plenty of sunscreen and avoid drinking and swimming. If you’re traveling, buckle up and make sure your car is ready for the trip by getting the tires and fluids checked. If you’re drinking, be with friends and be responsible. If you’re going to an ATM, go in a group during the day and be aware of your surroundings. Source: www.safespringbreak.org
Katie Sardelli and Miranda Knight, both Resident Learning Coordinator for Residence Life, host a booth with goodies and swimming ducks. The Spring Fling event included information from local organizations, prizes and food. Photo by Catherine Zende zendec@mytjnow.com
2012 Winthrop Elections All the info, all the candidates, all the issues.
The Johnsonian March 22 edition
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THURSDAY March 8, 2012
MONICA KREBER Arts & Entertainment Editor kreberm@myjnow.com
Emerson inspires WU music video
Emerson College did its campus-wide music video in one take, shooting students lip-syncing and dancing to Lady Gaga songs. The students finished up the video in the above auditorium. Photo courtesy of Google Images
After watching Emerson College’s campus wide music video, the Winthrop Video Production Club has decided to make a music video of its own -- involving student clubs and organizations VIDEO• from front organizations to get their name out there and get some sort of advertising. McDonnell said Winthrop’s music video is also a good opportunity for students who are not part of an organization to get involved on campus. “That way they can get a bunch of friends together, and they can be in a music video,” she said. The selected music for the video is called “Party on the Floor” by DJ Earworm, a collaboration of popular songs from 2011. McDonnell said they picked the music because, since the songs were popular, students would be familiar with it. McDonnell said the audio is set up in “short, 15-second bursts of song.” Those seconds are being divided up and assigned to clubs and organizations being featured in the video. “It’s really easy to tell somebody hey, this is your time frame and you’ll notice the change in the music,” McDonnell said. “It was just easier to figure it out that way.” The VP club will feature itself in the first 10 seconds (roughly) of the video. McDonnell
said the plan is to have her club “lead” the rest into the video. “We’re going to open the video and then lead them to the Campus Green, which is where it’s being held,” she said, “that way it’s not just all on the Campus Green and boring – we’re going to lead them downstairs and stuff like that.” McDonnell said they picked Friday, March 23 as their shooting day because it is the weekend after Spring Break and the VP club figured more students would be present. “It’s going to start at 2 p.m.,” she said. “That way, classes are over, and it’s a Friday, so it’s not interfering with anyone’s plans.” The VP club recruited other campus organizations by discussing the music video idea with them during the Student Organizations Fair. McDonnell said from there, the VP club received e-mail confirmation from the organizations who wanted to participate, and in turn the VP club is e-mailing them the specific time slots from the song so students can come up with something pre-planned to do during the shoot. “You can sing to it, you can dance around,
you can represent your club with signs or t-shirts or whatever,” McDonnell said. “But it’s something specific that way you know what you’re doing and it’s not just random.” McDonnell said they already have a few groups of students who are just friends that wanted to be in the video. “People are more Video Production club president Kalene McDonnell said the music for the video than welcome to is a mash-up of popular songs from 2011, created by DJ Earworm (above). Photo show up because courtesy of Google Images we’re going to have a lot of show up on the after Emerson said. “It would be a random shots, and Green to help put its video up great way to bring lots of ‘extras,’” answer questions so on YouTube, in new recruits if McDonnell said. everyone will know the music was people wanted to do “So the more what they are doing. revoked because one next year.” people the better. Editing-wise, of copyright At the end we’re McDonnell said infringement. The going to have a the VP club plans video is still on giant wide-shot of to use “hopefully YouTube, minus the the Campus Green three or four” audio (“that kinda and everybody cameras, depending defeats the purpose involved.” on the availability of the video,” For the random in the mass McDonnell said). people that show communication Therefore, up, McDonnell said department. She McDonnell said she they will probably also said editing the hopes the music be positioned in a actual video could video will be a big specific location on take up the month hit…but not too big. the Campus Green. of April because “I don’t think it’ll You can sing “If someone wants the VP club will be that big a deal – to break-dance or be using the video we’re hoping to fit to it, you can do a magic trick in to help teach new that disclaimer on two seconds, they’re club members there,” she said. “So dance around, more than welcome how to edit on the as much as I want you can repreto show up and join computer. our video out there, the fun,” she said. sent your club “We’re going to I don’t want it to The hard part try to get it (the be too big, so we with signs or tof organizing the video) out before don’t get copyright video, McDonnell shirts or whatthe end of the year infringement.” said, has been or else people will Otherwise, ever. communicating with forget about it,” McDonnell said she the student clubs McDonnell said. is looking forward Kalene McDonnell and organizations in Video Production club Another concern to finally revealing president order to figure out for the overall the music video to who is participating. process is how the students. On March 23, there to keep the audio “I’m just excited will be VP club with the video; for the overall members assigned McDonnell said music video,” she to the groups that
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THURSDAY March 8, 2012
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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Family-themed play delves into the loss of ‘love and protection’ Staff photographer reviews ‘A Fractured Sanctum,’ a dance-theatre performance that debuted two weeks ago John Rhodes
rhodesr@mytjnow.com
What happens when the safest place for you growing up turns cold? The love and protection that it once provided is hard to grasp. Everett Johnson and Norman Burt did an amazing job working through this problem in their two act play, “A Fractured Sanctum.” The script was mature and well thought-out. The music was perfectly fitting, and the story being told was one that could relate to every audience member at some point in their lives. The audience is given a nuclear family (a mom, dad, sister and brother), and watches as it falls apart. The dad is a workaholic who can’t balance work and family. The sister struggles with intimacy with her fiancé because of a rape that hospitalized her two years previously. The brother is hav-
ing trouble coming to terms with his sexuality which in turn causes problems with his boyfriend. Most moving is the mom who has buried her emotions so deep that she cannot see the damage that her cold routines have done to her family. Both children have alcohol problems, the dad has distanced himself so much that all he can do is run away from his children’s problems and hide from his wife, and the mom has become a slave to her strict schedules. The love and security has faded from the family. The children are left to overcome their own issues without the support and advice of their parents, helped along the way by a gentle and caring fiancé scared to touch the love of his life, and the fabulous and outspoken live-in boyfriend who falls victim to a spousal dispute which turns ugly. Each struggle is
portrayed marvelously through dramatic lighting, brilliant acting and the personification of inner feelings and battles through dance. “A Fractured Sanctum” includes three beautifully choreographed and performed dances, which intensify and illustrate the mental anguish that the characters are experiencing. The ongoing dance between the mother’s outer and inner selves is a push/ pull game that carries on throughout the entirety of the play. The mother is everyone’s least favorite character because of her harsh tone and cold nonchalance until the dance is revealed in full. It’s power lies in the fact that it gives everyone’s “bad guy” another softer, more vulnerable and oathetic nature. It makes her real. The other two dances take place between the sister and her husband and are just as moving. The
Ethan Goodman and Kate Meyers as Noah and Ellie. Goodman and Meyers performed a dance in a “wet street at night.” Photo by John Rhodes • rhodesj@mytjnow.com. View more pictures at mytjnow.com first is lit like a wet street at night. The couple storms out and as much as they want to hold each other, they continue to pull away and drift apart. The dance takes place after the coupe argues, so they are naturally and literally pulling away, but it has another, deeper meaning. The sister was raped, and she is pulling away physically. She can’t give her entire self to her
fiancé because of fear, but fear is what makes him pull from her too. He is scared to try to love her entirely because he doesn’t want her to see him as equal to the man who raped her, he only wants to show he respects her more than anything. The second dance between them takes place in their bedroom, and is rock bottom. They fight, shrug each other off and mourn their
love. Out of their sadness they finally give in to each other and fall asleep blissfully in love. The only negative thing about Johnson and Burt’s production was its short stage life, no fault of theirs, of course. “A Fractured Sanctum” deserved to run longer so that it’s raw, powerful portrayal of family could be seen by many more.
CrossWUrd Puzzle
Across
1. According to Jacob Wingard, who does the world need? 6. Pharmacy at the corner of Oakland and Cherry. 8. A “house” on campus that used to be a residence and a tailor shop. 9. This staff photographer has “A Fractured Sanctum” pictures online. 10. A traditional Middle Eastern dish that involves poached or fried eggs.
Down
2. The last name of the president of the Video Production Club. 3. They are starting an Islam club on campus. 4. Sarah Auvil says this is an art. 5. “House” on campus that is now home to the Office of Development. 7. VMI has advanced to the ___ ___ (two words).
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THURSDAY March 8, 2012
ALISON ANGEL Culture Editor angela@mytjnow.com
Saudis at WU start club on campus to teach about Arab culture, Islam ARAB • from front join in on Winthrop’s International Day this year. There are 600 clubs like this one at different universities across the country, with direct ties to the Saudi Cultural Commission in Washington D.C. through the Saudi Embassy, Alhussayen said. 15 years ago, there were only around eight universities in Saudi Arabia, creating a massive student unemployment problem and civil unrest, Alhussayen said. Around 2003-2004, the Saudi king decided to invest in education and send these students to study around the world to “open their minds, and learn from the best,” he said. With the increase of the price in oil, Saudi Arabia has been able to create dozens of universities since then to serve their population. There are currently 70,000 to 80,000 Saudi students studying in the U.S. alone, Alhussayen said. So how much money do Saudi students get? “For a single Saudi student it costs about $260,000 for a regular four year bachelor program plus a one year English program (at the beginning). This includes tuition fees, monthly allowance and national health insurance plus one flight ticket home every year,” Alhussayen said. If Americans should know anything about Saudi Arabia, it’s “don’t believe what you see on the news,” he said. It can portray a very different picture than everyday life. Saudi Arabia is considered a “dry” country, where alcohol is outlawed. Women also dress modestly and are covered. The transition from Saudi Arabia’s cultural norms to the American university atmosphere can be a big one. Classrooms are much more open to discussion and debate, along with openly talking about taboo subjects. How to deal with their newfound freedom and independence in lieu of their religious and cultural background is a choice that each Saudi must make. “It depends how you were raised,” Alhussayen said. He noticed that more conservative Saudis tended to continue to abstain from alcohol and hold onto traditional values, while Saudis from big cities were
what you are doing, they are still respectful and nonjudgemental or come in excited to learn the culture, share Saudi culture and get involved, he said. Although Saudi government and businesses have invested a great deal in sending students abroad, many other Arab countries do not, resulting in a large disproportionate Saudi Arab majority in many universities around the world, Kotaish said. For example, although Egypt has a much larger population, (about 81 million people compared to Saudi Arabia’s 27 million, according to the World Bank) there are currently 47 Saudi students and no Egyptian students at Winthrop, according to Angie Edwards, the director of the international center. Other Arab countries are much smaller, with Lebanon only having a population of about 4 million, A single Saudi student racks up about $260,000 of eduslightly less than South Carolina. cation costs in a regular four-year bachelor program, “It’s extremely rare for our government to provide Alhussayen said. The Saudi government and business scholarships for us to study abroad, especially for scholarships pay these costs, however, to students studiundergrad,” Kotaish said. “I got to study abroad beyng in the United States. Photo courtesy of Alhussain cause of my grades …[while at USC] I worked three jobs.” more “open to liberal ideas.” There were only two other Lebanese students durSaudi student clubs are not exclusive to Winthrop, ing his time at the University of South Carolina, he however – our very own chapter is just beginning. said. “I did like some of the events the Saudi Student Association put on, because they aim at breaking the stereotype(s) the West has about Arabs in general, and Saudis specifically … the events they planned Hisham Kotaish is a May 2011 University of South opened a door to me, [they were] very educated, Carolina alum, now living in Rock Hill and working as a smart and passionate.” business analyst for USA Today in Charlotte. He is from One event Kotaish recalls was a feast their chapter Lebanon, a more liberal Arab country on the Mediterput on to celebrate the end of Ramadan fast. “Reliranean with European influences that is 40 percent gious things are not a Saudi thing, they’re an Arab Christian and 60 percent Muslim, he said. During his and Muslim thing,” he said. He felt the organization undergraduate studies, he got to know many Saudis. did a good job of representing Islam to the American “When you come from a culture where everyone public. dresses down, then come to America where girls wear skin tight jeans, it’s easy to think they’re all immoral,” Kotaish said. “Other [Saudis] are still respectful, but tend to shy away from cultural conflicts. It’s hard to find a balance.” He found that others he met were on the complete opposite end of the spectrum, and “go crazy” with the freedom here. “Some view this as a vacation,” he said. Kotaish preferred Saudis that were more moderately conservative or liberal – while they may not agree with
Another Arab Perspective
International Comforts: Taste of the World March 4 international students came together in the Roddey Apartments kitchen to cook favorites from their home country for everyone to enjoy. Foods on the evening’s menu included crepes, tea eaggs, and a Saudi dish called Shakshuka, which is a traditional Middle Eastern dish made with poached or fried eggs cooked in a sauce of tomatoes, peppers and other spices. Photos by Sarah Auvil • auvils@mytjnow.com
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THURSDAY March 8, 2012
JEFF BRODEUR Sports Editor brodeurj@mytjnow.com DAVID THACKHAM Sports Editor thackhamd@mytjnow.com
Women’s basketball snags Senior Day rout By Jeff Brodeur
brodeurj@mytjnow.com
Randy Peele • Courtesy of Winthrop Athletics
Students react to Peele sacking PEELE • from front more on the popularity of the program as a whole. “I wasn’t seeing a lot of school spirit,” junior Jennifer Dean said. “Something needed to change in getting people interested in the sport.” Dean said she felt the “morale” of athletics had changed and that she was never aware of how the basketball team was doing because none of her friends had talked about it. “I’m actually a little shocked,” the integrated marketing communication major said, “but I’m sure Winthrop will figure things out.”
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I saw it coming because of their bad record. It’s unfortunate for him, but the school has to do what it can to move forward. Elliott Jester Junior
On a night where most of Winthrop nation was talking about the firing of Randy Peele, the Lady Eagles gave the fans plenty to cheer about on senior night. Prior to the start of the game, seniors Kaitlyn Rubino and Taquoia Hammick were honored in their final game at Winthrop. The Lady Eagles, who recently clinched the # 3 seed heading into this weekends Big South Conference Championship, made a statement against Coastal Carolina in a 84-47 rout on Monday night. Freshman Samiya Wright led the way for the Eagles, scoring a career high 30 points, including back to back three-pointers as part of a 27-6 run mid way through the first half to put the Eagles up 35-12. Wright has come up big as of late, notching career highs in scoring the last two games with 26 points last week against Charleston Southern and 30 points on Monday’s rout. “I’ve been working every day during practice and its really showed off the last few games,” said Wright. “If we play how we played at the beginning of tonight’s game, I think we can compete with anybody.” In the midst of the first half scoring frenzy, sophomore Dequesha McClanahan knocked down a baseline jumper, followed by an unexpected whistle blown from the officials. The game came to a pause as McClanahan was honored with a ball on center court, signifying her 1,000th point scored as a member of the Lady Eagles. McClanahan finished the game with 23 points and nine assists, and will end the season as the Big South Conference’s leading scorer. “It feels good to know we finished off season with big win,” said McClanahan. “Im very grateful for award they gave me and it shows how hard I’ve worked.” Although strong performances by Wright and McClanahan highlighted McClanahan (22) reached her 1,000th point for Winthrop on the evening, junior Diana Choibekova Monday. Photo by Claire Van Ostenbridge • vanostenbridgec@ also chipped in with 16 points, gomytjnow.com ing 4-14 from behind the arc. Her
Assistant volleyball coach wins national honor By Jeff Brodeur
selection and was named the Big South Tournament MVP in 2005. To this day, she still holds both the Winthrop and Big South career records It’s always great when one of our for kills and aces. coaches gets recognized for a national “The experiences I had at Winthrop award. It’s even better when their and in our volleyball program has a direceiving national awards just two searect relationship to the passion I bring sons into their coaching career. everyday to our program and these Volleyball assistant coach Mary young ladies,” she said. “I have been in Leventis has been named as the recipieach of their shoes as a student-athlete ent of the American Volleyball Coaches here at Winthrop, and I hope I can Association’s (AVCA) 30 Under 30 continue to be a mentor and example Award. Each year, the award is given for each one of them.” out to 30 up-andOf the 30 recipients, coming coaches from 19 were head coaches across the country, all and the remaining 11, who are under the age including Leventis, were of 30. The winners will assistant coaches. Since be featured in an upthe 30 Under 30 Award coming issue of Coachspecifically honors “uping Volleyball 2.0. and-coming coaches,” it “This award is a begs to ask the question tremendous honor,” whether Leventis would Leventis said. “To be ever be able to cut her recognized by other’s close ties with Winthrop in the volleyball comin order to further her munity is a huge comMary Leventis coaching career. Fortupliment to the work nately for Eagles fans, our players, coaches she is more than happy with her role and myself put in everyday.” and hopes to be around for a long time. This is not the first time that 27“I find Winthrop to be my home. I year old Leventis has excelled on the am passionate about the vision Coach hardwood floors of the Winthrop Torbett brings to the Eagles volleyball Coliseum. She is also considered one of program, and it is an honor to be recogthe best to ever don a Winthrop volnized as an up- and- coming coach.” leyball uniform. Before graduating cum Mary Leventis experienced nothing laude from Winthrop in 2006, Leventis but success as a player at Winthrop, helped the Lady Eagles to four straight and hopes to see that trend continue as Big South Conference championships her coaching career pushes forward. and NCAA tournament appearances as “Coaching is a dedication and a a player from 2002 thru 2005. relentless lifestyle, but the reward of Some of her notable achievements seeing young athletes succeed is asinclude Big South Player of the Year, tounding. was named to the NCAA East Regional brodeurj@mytjnow.com
Team and was an Honorable Mention All-American, all in 2004. She was also a three-time All-Big South First Team
four threes gives her 119 on the season, and a likely chance that she will end the season as the top threepoint shooter in the NCAA for threes per game average and total made. For head coach Marlene Stollings and co., the sky’s the limit in the upcoming tournament, given how well they have performed in the final stretch of the regular season. “We’re a completely different team than we were a few months ago,” Stollings said. “The team is much more comfortable with all the repetition we do in practice. Obviously we’re playing some of our best basketball here at the end of the season and that’s great for us as a team.” The Lady Eagles will hope to carry their recent success into Friday’s opening round of the Big South tournament against #6 seed Radford, whom the Eagles swept in the regular season. That game is slated for 7:30 p.m. at High Point on Friday.
THURSDAY March 8, 2012
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SPORTS
MILITARY PRECISION
The 2011-12 season ended in heartbreak at the hands of the Keydets in the Big South Tournament for the second consecutive year. Photo by Sarah Auvil • auvils@ mytjnow.com
Eagles crash out in BSC tourney semifinals to unrelenting Keydet attack By David Thackham
thackhamd@mytjnow.com
Late in the first half of the Winthrop Eagles’ 7555 Big South playoff loss Thursday to the Virginia Military Institute, freshman James Bourne drove hard into a crowded VMI paint with all eyes for the basket. As he extended his 6’8” frame above the rim, Keydet Ron Burks rose to meet the challenge, knocking the ball away and Bourne to the ground. By the time Bourne had picked himself up from the floor, Burks’ associate D.J. Covington had shaken UNC Asheville’s Kimbel Arena with a thunderous dunk on the other end to give his team a 12 point advantage with four minutes to spare in the first half. Bourne’s troubles were just a small snippet of Winthrop’s pain last week as the Keydets proved to be Winthrop’s (12-20) undoing in the Big South Conference Tournament for the second consecutive year. “It was a tough loss,” said (now former, see page 10) Winthrop head coach Randy Peele. “But I really want to thank these seniors for being a part of our program, and for what they have done. The hard thing about tonight is that we just didn’t play very well and we just didn’t make shots. All of the credit Duggar Baucom goes to VMI.” VMI head coach The Eagles’ inability to score, a problem all year long, manifested itself on Thursday. Their 32.8 percent (20-61 FGA) shooting percentage was nothing compared to VMI’s 53.2 percent. All five VMI starters pitched in a basket to kick off a 12-2 start right out of the locker room and Winthrop’s situation didn’t get much better. The team looked to leading scorer Andre Jones for help, but the senior (4-11 FGA) couldn’t snag more than 14 points due to foul trouble. Six of those points were from the free throw line. In a game where Peele relied on his four seniors to bail out the pressure of earning Winthrop’s first 20-
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loss record since 1997-98, the right shots never came. The seniors ended their final game in Winthrop colors with a combined 31 percent shooting from the floor. Although Reggie Middleton and Jones picked up 14 each, guard Matt Morgan and center George Valentine combined for a single point in 16 and 32 minutes on the court, respectively. Put nothing against VMI, though. The Keydets, who had played seven games in five days, showed no sign of fatigue and seemed to enjoy spreading the scoring around. Covington (5.0 ppg all season) exploded for a game-leading 16 points, shooting a perfect 6-6 from the floor. Jordan Weethee (6.3 ppg) was an unexpected force from the three point line early, contributing a third of VMI’s long bombs. “I don’t know what was different,” said Jones. “Everybody went into the tournament 0-0. We went through with the same routine, the same attitude. The only thing that changed was they outplayed us.” Although Winthrop won the rebound war (42-29), an aggressive VMI defense guarding the painted area led to 15 Eagle turnovers, one of which led to Covington extending the visitors’ lead to 10, a cushion Winthrop wouldn’t break for the rest of the game. Keydet Rodney Glasgow completed the play of the game, an acrobatic, over the head layup to cap off a 12-3 run in the middle of the second half, to the thrill of VMI coach Duggar Baucom, who punched the air with joy. “Getting Covington and Glasgow back has changed a lot for us,” Baucom said afterward. “Having DJ means Stan (Okoye) doesn’t have to do it all inside. He flirted with one (double-double) yesterday, and got one tonight. He made some timely plays tonight when we needed them.” Freshman pair Larry Brown and James Bourne were able to knock in eight points in the last couple minutes, but their contributions were merely cosmetic in a game where the Keydets led by 24 as late as 2:50
Getting Covington and Glasgow back has changed a lot for us. [Covington] made some timely plays tonight when we needed them.
UPCOMING EVENTS SCHEDULE HOME GAMES IN BOLD Baseball 3/7 vs. College of Charleston - 6 p.m. 3/9 vs. Holy Cross - 6 p.m. 3/10 vs. Holy Cross - 3 p.m. 3/11 vs. Holy Cross - 12 p.m. 3/12 vs. Valparaiso - 6 p.m. 3/14 vs. The Citadel @ Charleston, SC- 6 p.m. 3/16 vs. Rider - 6 p.m.
Softball 3/9 vs. St. John’s - 12 p.m. 3/9 vs. Bowling Green - 2 p.m. 3/10 vs. Albany - 11 a.m. 3/10 vs. UNC Wilmington 3/14 vs. #8 Texas @ Honolulu, HI 7:30 p.m. 3/15 vs. #16 Texas A&M @ Honolulu, HI- 5 p.m. 3/16 vs. Marist @ Honolulu, HI - 7:30 p.m. 3/16 vs. #8 Texas @ Honolulu, HI- 10 p.m.
left. “It’s hard,” Peele said. “You want to build everything around your seniors, but tonight, our best players were our freshmen.” Although Winthrop’s Peele has won three Big South tournament titles (tied with UNC Asheville’s Ed Biedenbach for most among active Big South coaches) Thursday’s tough loss spelled the end of the fifth year head coach’s reign in Rock Hill. “We carried our game plan out to a ‘T’,” said Baucom. “We’ve slowed down a little bit from where we used to be, we’ve toned down our defensive pressure somewhat. But we think we still play pretty fast offensively.” VMI advanced to the Big South tournament final hoping to become the first ever #7 seed to win it all, but were foiled by UNC Asheville on Saturday. The Bulldogs won their second straight tournament title on their home court by a score of 80-64.
2011-2012 in review • Winthrop ends the year with a 6th place finish in the Big South Conference • The team scored an average of 63.6 points per game overall, but only 62.9 ppg in conference play. • Winthrop’s seniors Andre Jones, Reggie Middleton, George Valentine and Matt Morgan combined for 45.5 of those points.
Women’s golf 3/9-11 @ Spider Spring Break Invitational 3/17-20 @ Del Monte Invitational Men’s tennis 3/10 vs. Furman - 2 p.m. 3/15 vs. Bethune-Cookman @ Daytona Beach, FL- 3 p.m. Women’s tennis 3/10 vs. Brown @ Winston-Salem, NC
Men’s golf
Indoor Track and Field
3/17-20 @ Furman Intercollegiate
3/9-10 @ NCAA Indoor Championship
THURSDAY March 8, 2012
THE JOHNSONIAN
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