WHY WAIT TILL THURSDAY? READ MYTJNOW.COM.
Zombie make-up skills earn grad student cold, hard cash. See Arts & Entertainment, page 8
THURSDAY February 16, 2012
Friends immortalize deceased friend with social media. See News, page 3
U.S. military budget too high, student advocates change. See Opinion, page 5
WINTHROP UNIVERSITY
Issue 18
SPORTS
NEWS
Police reports lack match in assault
Eagles conquer Coastal Carolina Winthrop beats rival Chanticleers 67-57, move to #5 in conference
JONATHAN MCFADDEN DAVID THACKHAM
mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com
thackhamd@mytjnow.com
Contrary to an email notification released by Campus Police last week, the victim of a February 8 armed home invasion at 309 Union Ave. was in fact a student, according to both the student victim and an official Rock Hill Police report. Another contradiction found in the email drafted and sent by Chief of Campus Police Frank Zebedis is that the three assailants that broke into his home and held him at gunpoint fled when the male warned he would call the police. In reality, the victim— a male student at Winthrop— was pistol-whipped twice by one of three black males who barged into his home, according to the police report. While sitting on his couch studying, the student victim heard a knock at the door. He told police it was not unusual for neighbors to “drop by and hang out,” according to the report.
See ASSAULT page 4 SCIENCE & TECH.
Science grabs updates, new equipment FRANCES PARRISH parrishf@mytjnow.com
The Biology and Chemistry labs are getting an update in technology this year and have big plans for next year. “We are trying to keep the science laboratories fully modernized,” said Dr. Patrick Owens, professor and department chair for the chemistry department. The Chemistry department bought several pieces of lab equipment this past July and has just installed some of the items this January. Among the new lab instruments are two GCS Mass Spectrometers, four major Centrifuges, which can mutate cells and make protein, and a Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (NMR) for organic chemistry. Flammable storage cabinets and new fume hoods were also recently bought according to Owens. “The equipment is like our library. You need a library to do history and other subjects, well you need science equipment to do science,” Owens said.
See SCIENCE page 6
George Valentine shoots a free throw against the Chanticleers Saturday at the rivalry game. Photo by Jenni Buker • Special to The Johnsonian
Fifteen minutes after securing a 67-57 upset win over hated rivals Coastal Carolina, Winthrop guard George Valentine could only dwell on what could have been- an even higher lead over the conference’s #2 ranked Chanticleers. After all, head coach Randy Peele had to send his first team back onto the court for the final 55 seconds to close out the win on Saturday. “I just got on the team,” he said. “When the coach sends the front guys out and sends the bench in, then we’ve got to clean it up; it’s embarrassing to clean up with a minute left.” Self-criticism aside, the Eagles (22-58, 37.9 FG% on Saturday) can take the win as a massive confidence booster two weeks before the Big South Conference Tournament begins. Winthrop (11-16, 8-8 BSC) currently lies in fifth position in the league, all but secured of a first round bye, but faces two more decisive matchups against 10th ranked Presbyterian College and last year’s tourney winners UNC Asheville.
See RIVALS page 10
CULTURE
Tales from a Presbyterian doctor
Christianity in Iraq: SARAH AUVIL auvils@mytjnow.com
In a country like Iraq, religious affiliation means more than flapping your gums. It means leaving your house every morning knowing you may not come back. Two years ago Mazin Alsaqa left Mosul, Iraq – traditionally the historical city of Nineveh – with his two sisters and mother for Detroit, Michigan after the murder of his father by extremists. He plans on starting his medical residency in the next few months after speaking all over the U.S. for Presbyterian Peacemakers. Alsaqa is a 7th generation Presbyterian in Iraq. His family’s church dates back to 1840 and still has the official registration documentation from the state. The church proudly served the needs of its community, such as providing $7.50 a month for struggling families, he said.
While that may not seem like much –Alsaqa’s job as a government doctor only paid $10 a month. One meal at Thomson could help support an Iraqi family for a month, Alsaqa said. Iraq is made up of many different religious backgrounds and minorities, including Arab Suunis and Shi’ites, Kurds, Jews and Christians. These groups solved their disagreements with words, until 2004, when Muslim extremists took hold in Iraq. Al Queda began to raise their voice with hate and anger, killing people in the streets. Alsaqa showed a video
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See IRAQ page 9
It means leaving your house every morning knowing you may not come back.
NEWS
State senator’s bill details more ACAD-like courses JONATHAN MCFADDEN mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com
Just when you thought ACAD 101 was over and the wait to graduation long enough, a South Carolina senator has introduced a bill mandating that all four-year institutions require its students to take an additional one-credit hour course before receiving their degrees. According to a document presented to Winthrop’s Board of Trustees earlier this month, the bill —divvied into two versions— is the brainchild of Sen. Glenn Reese (D- Spartanburg), a former high school science teacher and now 21-year-long representative for the state’s 11th district. One version of the bill, if passed, would require that state funded universities —Winthrop included— make their students take one more one-credit hour class teaching skills already taught in Winthrop’s mandatory Academy (or ACAD) 101 class. Another version proposes that schools make students take a series of one-credit classes for eight consecutive semesters —or the equivalent of four years of college— in order to earn a degree from the institutions.
Questions? Contact us at editors@mytjnow.com Serving Winthrop since 1923
The proposed bill would add more ACAD-like classes to colleges, but Winthrop is concerned about the associated costs. Screenshot from the S.C. State House website Each class would teach study and time management skills, stress management, positive thinking, the importance of life choices and setting goals and other similar subjects ACAD 101 covers. It’s a proposal that’s provoked Winthrop to speak out. The university is reaching out to Reese, expressing
I N D E X
CAMPUS NEWS
concern about the costs of such state mandates, said Rebecca Masters, assistant to the president for public affairs. Moreover, the university hopes to show Reese that Winthrop already requires all freshmen to take and
See BILL page 2 2-4
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
OPINION
5
CULTURE
SCIENCE & TECH
6
SPORTS
7-8 9 10-11
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THURSDAY February 16, 2012
JONATHAN MCFADDEN News Editor mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com AMANDA PHIPPS Assistant News Editor phippsa@mytjnow.com
More ACAD???? Senator’s proposed bill for consecutive ACAD-like classes interferes with academic, faculty freedoms, professor says BILL • from front pass ACAD 101. And, the existence of the Academic Success Center helps provide individualized approaches to student academic needs beyond ACAD, Masters said. Adding more fuel to the flame is that little to nothing has been said about the state providing funding for such an endeavor, Masters added, creating an unfunded mandate state universities would have to fund themselves. Winthrop estimates that the version requiring the classes for eight semesters would cost the university anywhere between $650,000 to $700,000 annually while the version requiring one extra semester would cost around $165,000, Masters said. The state would also be directing universities’ curriculum, a role traditionally belonging to each public institution’s own faculty. Such a situation would be an abridgement on higher education curricula freedoms, said Karen Kedrowski, political science department chair and director for the John C. West Forum for Policy & Politics. “Issues of the curriculum are really within the purview of the faculty — and that is everything related to the curriculum,” including what courses students take, course content and major requirements, Kedrowksi said, “since they are the experts and they understand the educational mission best.” Academic freedom doesn’t only include what’s said or taught in the classroom, Kedrowski said, but also the freedom
to “be able to control the curriculum that the university offers.” Yet, it’s not uncommon for state or national leaders to push similar legislation, feeling that they have the right to demand certain things from institutions since they provide state money, she said Ohio state legislators have mandated that Ohio State University accept any and all transfer credits from any college, four year and technical, in the state, she said. Texas requires all state universities to offer courses in Texas government, and Florida requests that all university degrees require no more than 120 credit hours. Nine states, including South Carolina, have required universities to offer curricula in the Constitution or American government. Even the federal government’s gotten in on the demands, requiring all federally-funded institutions to hold some kind of event commemorating the signing of the Constitution. Though it may seem small, it is indeed an abridgment of academic freedom because “institutions do not have a choice on whether or not they think it is advisable to celebrate Constitution Day or not,” Kedrowski said. “They’re told they have to do it or jeopardize their funding.” “This is an opportunity for Winthrop to tell its story” about the Academic Success Center, TriO, McNair Scholar’s and ACAD 101, all programs Winthrop’s put in place to gauge student needs without the shove of a state
mandate, Kedrowski said. As for an extension of course credit, it would impinge on students’ abilities to take courses that may better prepare them for their careers. “We can talk about how this will not be an unqualified good, how it could be burdensome to the university...” “Why should a highly successful student... have to take a course in study skills and time management when you already know how to do that? You [students] should feel resentful about that because you’re paying tuition for a course you don’t want and you don’t need,” Kedrowski said. Her opinions aside, Kedrowski did say Sen. Reese’s proposal is most likely a “benign” intention. “He wants to see that students succeed, he wants to see that they don’t drop out of college, he wants to see that they develop the skills that they need,” she said. She also said the senator probably wants to know what institutions are doing to ensure student success. Nevertheless, the issues are apparent. The proposal is a “one size fits all” approach and doesn’t differentiate between students,” she said. “There are some students that need financial advice, time management skills, study skill advice and things like that, but I think what’s better is that the university take steps” to identify which students need further help, a function Winthrop’s Academic Success Center already fulfills. “It would be an enor-
Graphic by Amanda Phipps • phippsa@mytjnow.com mous misuse of resources to mandate this for all students, because some of it is going to be wasted effort,” she said. And, for students, it would mean adding more time to completing their degrees, which “is at odds with current public policy trends toward encouraging students to complete degrees more quickly as a means of reducing overall student costs,” Rebecca Masters added. But, the bill is still in its nascent stage and four months away from becoming an approved law at least for the duration of the General Assembly’s legislative session, which ends in June. Any legislative gathering, whether at the state or federal level, sees far more bills introduced than actually passed, said Kedrowski, who added that the numbers that do get pass are usually in the 10 percent range. Members of Winthrop’s lobbying firm have in-
dicated that the senator hasn’t pushed the bill aggressively, Masters added. “The Commission on Higher Education did ask institutions for comment and fiscal impact information about three weeks ago, however, and that prompted the concerns that such a request might be near,” she said. For such a bill to even pass and become a law, it must go through a long process of vetting from committees and, in some cases, subcommittees before it is debated on by members of the House of Representatives, voted on and then moved on to the Senate. From the Senate, it goes to the governor, who can pass, reject or veto the bill. The governor’s veto can be overridden if two-thirds of the House and SenKaren Kedrowski ate support the bill. Department chair, political science
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Why should a highly successful student . . . have to take a course in study skills and time management when you already know how to do that?
College Libertarians talk abortion, U.S. military By Andrew Robinson Special to The Johnsonian
A group of College Libertarians have agreed that the government’s power should be scaled down and U.S. military intervention in foreign countries may not serve Americans’ interest during a first-time meeting on Feb. 6. Emerging as a viable alternative to the College Republicans, College Democrats, and the Socialist Student Union, Club President Trey Stokes described the Libertarianism political ideology as being a “redistribution of power from the government to the individual within society.” During their first meeting, topics such as the government’s role in regulating abortion, the war on illegal drugs, and free market environmentalism were talked about at length. However, the topic that most members seemed most passionate about was American military intervention in foreign countries. The later third of the College Libertarian’s first meeting was focused on U.S. military’s interventions in Iraq, Afghanistan, and the potential conflicts in Iran. Winthrop’s College Lib-
intervening in foreign affairs. It’s also more financially and economically pertinent to the country as a whole for the government to maintain a smaller military. I think One of many Libertarian symbols, we should keep the porcupine represents an anithe boarders of mal that on the surface is cute and the American cuddly, but is armed nonetheless. Military within the borders of America.” ertarians largely believe The Libertarians believe that the U.S. troop presin limited or minimal ence in other countries government involvement overseas does not always within the affairs of the serve the best interest economy and personal of the average American lives of citizens. taxpayer. They believe The cornerstone of that if this is the case, Libertarianism is the the money taken out of belief that individuals are the pocket of the aversovereign entities unto age American that goes towards maintaining all of themselves and that they should not be forced by the United States armed their government to sacforces across the world can be an infringement on rifice their own rights or values for any other group that individual’s rights. or individual. Other members have Libertarians are also proposed that the foundknown for promoting ing fathers would support an individual’s right to their opinions if they were participate in any activity around today on the basis they wish to involve themof honest foreign policy selves, so long as it causes and economic pragmano harm to the rights or tism. safety of any other indiTreasurer Andrei Bovidual within society. tescu said: “It was origiLibertarians believe nally an idea of George the government has Washington to stay out of important roles within entangling alliances and
society but that it should be limited. According to the official Libertarian platform, “The only proper role of government in the economic realm is to protect property rights, adjudicate disputes, and provide a legal framework in which voluntary trade
is protected. All efforts by government to redistribute wealth, or to control or manage trade, are improper in a free society.” Flaunting strong views, the Libertarians have finished with the preliminary measures needed to establish themselves as a
legitimate political interest group on Winthrop’s campus. Over the next few months they will be seeking to expand their influence further through various events in and around campus.
Members of the College Libertarians (from left, standing): Jordan Elizabeth Steele, Trey Stokes (president), Kyle Steele, Raistlin Holland, Andrei Botescu, (from left, sitting) Ricky Mackall and Joseph Feaster.
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THURSDAY February 16, 2012
Collin Truesdale: Gone but not forgotten
Friends immortalize deceased student’s memory on Facebook By Amanda Phipps
phippsa@mytjnow.com
He may be gone, but the friendships he forged and the lessons he taught others still live on. Business administration major Collin Truesdale, a Chester native who was well-known around campus, passed away June 14, 2011, after being hospitalized in Charlotte. He was 22. While Truesdale is no longer here, his friend’s continue to rely on each other for support and have nothing but good things to say about the kind of person he was. Truesdale’s best friend, senior history major Brandon Truesdale, said while he was not related to Collin, they were close. “We were like brothers,” he said. Brandon and Collin have known each other since the eighth grade. “He was friends with everybody,” Truesdale said. “He would do anything for you.” Truesdale’s friends show their continued support for his family through posting on his facebook and the facebook created in his memory. “It’s a good way to remember him by,” Truesdale said. Truesdale wasn’t just a good guy, he was someone who brought others together. “The biggest lesson he taught me was how to treat other people,” senior business administration major Sara Prosser said. Prosser met Truesdale when their high schools
played each other in sports and they both went to Winthrop. She said Truesdale would do anything for anyone. “He wouldn’t even have to know you,” she said. Facebook helps bring Truesdale’s friends together to support each other, Prosser said. “It puts us all on the same page,” she said. Even with support, Prosser said things haven’t been easy. “I really miss him,” she said. “It’s just as hard as when it happened.” Truesdale formed close relations with many people while at Winthrop. For two years, senior art major Laura Hernandez hung out so much with Truesdale and the members of the golf team, she thought he was one of them. Though Truesdale was not on the sports team, he
had a close bond with the members and the friends they shared. Hernandez said Truesdale always put others before himself. “He forgot about himself up to the last few weeks before he died,” she said. Hernandez said it’s still hard to think about Truesdale. “I know talking is supposed to help, but it’s really hard,” she said. “(Collin) was one of the most caring, unselfish people I met in my entire life.” Senior integrated marketing major Courtney Amos met Truesdale her first week at school through a mutual friend on the golf team. “We all became really good friends,” she said. Amos said Truesdale and her friends hung out together every weekend. She said Truesdale would also go with her as her
date to sorority events. “We just clicked,” she said. “I have never met anyone that had such a kind heart.” Amos said that when Truesdale got sick, it all happened really quick. “It was unexpected,” she said. “One week, he was fine, and the next, he wasn’t here anymore.” While Amos still hangs out with the friends Truesdale and her shared, it is different. “We all notice he’s not there. It’s an unspoken thing,” she said. “I try to think of all the fun times we’ve had together.” At Truesdale’s funeral, Amos said many people focused on what made him such a good guy. “His parents were overjoyed about the positive comments people had about (Collin),” she said.
While Amos hasn’t posted on Truesdale’s facebook in a while, she continues to rely on her friends for her support. “We’re still there for each other,” she said. “It strengthened our friendship.” While Amos and the friends she and Truesdale shared try to focus on the positive, she said it is helpful to reflect on the times she had with Trues-
dale. “It feels good to talk and think about him,” she said. Amos said Truesdale will be missed for being the great guy he was. “(He was) one of the best people I have met in my life,” Amos said. “It’s hard to find a friend like that.”
Left: Friends of Collin Truesdale have nothing but positive things to say about how great a person he was. Truesdale, seen left with senior business administration major Sara Prosser and top with senior IMC major Courtney Amos, died in June. Pictures courtesy of Sara Prosser and Courney Amos.
On-campus sources provide help to stressed students Stories by Amanda Phipps
Residence Life Residence Life is a resource for students dealing with mental stress. Resident Assistants (RAs) are trained to help recognize and deal with students who are struggling with stress, assistant director of Residence Life Julianne Schrader said. RAs go through a 10-day training period in August and a three-day training period in January and have to attend four sessions throughout the semester, she said. The sessions included a program on bullying, stereotypes, eating disorders and mediation. Since the majority of this year’s RAs were new, they went through in-depth training, Schrader said. Mediation was an important focus of training. “A lot of RAs need help on how to approach someone without it feeling scripted,” she said. While RAs may be able to recognize when students may be struggling, they can’t force anybody to seek help unless they feel the student’s life may be in Jeopardy, Schrader said. “It’s a matter of getting them to realize when they need to get help,” she said. While someone may express the desire to hurt or kill themselves, many times it does not mean they have a real intent to do so, Schrader said. However, the RAs must treat any threat seriously and act as if the person will go through with it. “We don’t have the luxury of (looking for grey areas),” she said.
Counseling Services The intense training has made RAs, like Courtyard RA Elizabeth Goodin, feel more prepared to handle any situation. “The RLC’s work to prepare us for the worst situations so that we will be prepared for both the big and little events,” she said. “I don’t think many residents or commuter students realize how well prepared our campus staff (both professional and not) is prepared for the wide variety of situations that may come up on any college campus.” Goodin said acting out scenarios in training helps her deal with them in real life. She said being prepared for bigger scenarios helps her deal with smaller issues, such as roommate disputes. Goodin said she has had a few situations where she called Campus Police or on-call staff for help, but was prepared to do so. “I always knew exactly who to call,” she said. “During training, we learn a lot about how to communicate with people and to give specific details to get the best help.” Goodin mainly has dealt with small violations, such as noise violations or unapproved appliances in the building. “More often than not, my residents have understood that I am only doing my job and am looking out for their safety and that I am not out to get them,” she said. “Unfortunately, there have been times when people saw me as the
bad guy, and that is always hard to take.” Thompson RA Emily Bowie said they learn more than how to handle different situations . “We are not only educated on how to deal with certain important issues, but we are taught on how to help the resident on a personal basis,” she said. “I think that is something that a lot of residents do not understand about the RA position.” The V.E.N.OM. program, in which RAs act out potential situations, helps prepare the RAs to talk to students. “We really are trained, and trained well, on how to address and then provide adequate help and care for residents going through a rough time here on campus,” Bowie said. Residence Life compares how the Winthrop RAs are trained to what the normal procedures are around the country, Schrader said. “We feel confident we do really well with our RAs,” she said. “We are very proud of the job this year’s staff is doing.”
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We feel confident we do really well with our RAs. Julianne Schrader
Director, Residence Life
Mental stress can open students up to eating disorders and other problems, but resources are available to help students cope, psychologist Gretchen Baldwin said. Winthrop offers free counseling services for students that are arranged with licensed professionals, she said. Mental health is similar to physical health, she said. Counseling services looks for basic physiological changes, including disruptions in sleeping patterns. Any sleep outside of the 7-9 hour window opens students up for mental stress. Appetite changes, such as students eating too much or not enough, and behavioral changes, where students have low energy or abuse alcohol or drugs, are signs of mental stress, Baldwin said. Students with eating disorders have a hard time acknowledging it and being able to slowly and gently help the person understand that what they are doing isn’t helping them, she said. “It can be a slow process,” Baldwin said. Stress can lead to weight gain, stomach bugs and other illnesses, she said. It can also lead to an increased likelihood of suicidal thoughts. “Suicide is intense pain when people think things aren’t going to get better,” Baldwin said. She said that people don’t stay in that place for long, but need to see that other people care about
phippsa@mytjnow.com
Graphic by Courtney Niskala niskalac@mytjnow.com
them and that they care about others. Baldwin said people shouldn’t be afraid to ask about suicide, and it can be a relief for the person to admit they have been struggling. The academic success center and professors can help students deal with academic stress, Baldwin said. The office of the dean and the center for career and civic engagement (CCE) can be helpful as well. “(The CCE) helps students keel their mind around goals and directions,” she said. Counseling services refers students to the various
services the university offers and is a form of bringing everything together. “We talk about life skills and help students find balance,” Baldwin said. “Mental health is holistic.” She said students have to be willing to admit they need help. “Don’t be afraid to talk about it,” Baldwin said. “Acknowledge where you are and be willing to make changes and turn toward a healthier alternative.”
THURSDAY February 16, 2012
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Police: Armed home invasion drug related, 1 home invasion victim charged, arrested ASSAULT • from front As he was opening the front door, the victim told police three black males, all wearing black, forced their way into the apartment demanding money, watches and drugs, the report says. The report says that the student and his roommate —also a student— were ordered to the ground at gunpoint, where one of the assailants struck the student on the back of his head twice with a silver semi-automatic handgun. Police say in the report that both the student and his roommate said the invaders ransacked the home before leaving with an Xbox 360, the roommate’s wallet and nine grams of marijuana. When the students called police, officers dispatched a K-9 tracking team to locate the assailants. The K-9 was unable to find the three men, the report says. The roommate soon signed a consent form allowing the officers to search the apartment. During the search, authorities found marijuana “shake” throughout the apartment, as well as materials used to package and distribute marijuana, the report says. An officer also found a glass pill bottle containing 0.3 grams of marijuana and one Xanax pill under the roommate’s bed, according to the report. During the search, an officer with the York County Drug Enforcement Unit searched through the roommate’s phone to find several conversations and text messages between the roommate and others implying the roommate’s selling of marijuana. The roommate admitted to attending Winthrop and living on Union Avenue because of its close proximity to campus, the report states. Officers arrested the roommate, charging him with possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute. Last Friday, a lieutenant with the Rock Hill Police Department confirmed that the home invasion was drug-related, and the roommate was in police custody. He was released later that day. Hours after the incident occurred, Campus Police released an e-mail notifying students of the late-night debacle. The e-mail referred to the victims as non-students, as well as neglecting to include any mention of drugs. Reason being, campus authorities say, is because the victims failed to tell Rock Hill Police they were students until two hours after the incident alert was sent out. Replying to a series of questions by The Johnsonian, Chief of Campus Police
Frank Zebedis said Winthrop authorities confirmed twice with Rock Hill Police to ensure that any information sent to students was accurate. All released information is based upon the victim’s own report of the incident, Zebedis said. “If I put two people in a room and ask them to describe the room, I will get two different answers or at least some inconsistencies. The same happens when a crime is reported,” Zebedis said. Campus Police reports information as it becomes available, he said. In Rock Hill Police’s report of the incident, The scene of the crime was an apartment complex on Union Avenue, which intersects with authorities claim both Park Avenue. The two students victimized last week no longer live at the complex. Photo by students were instructed John Rhodes • rhodesj@mytjnow.com to drop to the ground when the three men other valuable items. “I was kind of waiting for the police ofbroke in. Scared for his safety, the student beficers to ask me what happened, but they But, for the student victim, it was very gan telling the assailants what they could immediately sensed that my roommate much of an isolated experience. take, including a laptop. may have more to tell than what was That Wednesday, he returned home That’s when the “gunman,” the student heard from the dispatcher,” he said. from campus at about 10 p.m. where he said, directed him upstairs and ordered This most recent incident makes the played a couple of games on his roomhim to go into his roommate’s room and third crime to occur within close proximmate’s XBox with his roommate and search for money, watches and guns. ity to Winthrop’s campus in the past two two of his roommate’s friends. Later, his “I told him we don’t have any guns months. This makes the second crime in roommate and the other two friends left and ‘I don’t know of any watches,’” the which a Winthrop student was victimto go to another friend’s house to watch student said. ized. a movie. Eventually, the gunman, slender and In December, a black male held a feThe student stayed behind to study for tall in stature, told the student to turn male student at knife-point in the parka Thursday morning quiz, he said. around and go back down the stairs, afing lot of University Place and forced About 15 minutes later, there was a ter which he hit him with the gun again. her to drive to the Innsbrook Commons knock at the door. Looking out the peepThe other two intruders, the student apartment complex away from campus hole would have been in vain because the said, remained downstairs and turned where he raped her. After finishing his porch light wasn’t working, he said. towards the door ready to leave. The assault, the man told the victim he had Figuring it was just the neighbors, the gunman ordered the student back to the just given her AIDS. student opened the door. ground and left with his two partners. University Place stands adjacent to “That’s when I saw three black men, The student immediately locked the the Courtyard, a Winthrop University one looked like he was charging, just door and called his roommate, who then property. ready to run into the apartment. That’s called the police. In late January, a Charlotte native and when I saw the gun,” he said. Once the police arrived, the student non-student female was approached One of the assailants instructed the and his roommate informed authorities by a black male and female, who held student to get on the ground and asked that they were both students, the student her at gunpoint, forced her to withdraw “where the money was,” the student said. said. $300 from a Wells Fargo ATM and then “I said ‘I don’t have any money, I don’t According to Rock Hill Police’s report stole her $200 cell phone. The incident know what you’re talking about,’ that’s of the incident, the roommate did not in- occurred in the area of 319 Park Ave., when he hit me in the head with the gun form officers of his status as a Winthrop which is just steps away from Winthrop’s and said ‘you better start talking,’” the student until after his arrest. campus. student said. Not so, says the student victim, who While on the ground, the stuadded that as soon as the officers ardent watched as the three intruders rived, he said he was a student. scrounged the apartment, searching He also said his roommate was more for his roommate’s wallet, watches and frantic than he when the officers arrived.
WU Foundation decision affects endowments, possibly scholarships By Jonathan McFadden mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com
Board members with the Winthrop University Foundation have decided to join a fleet of state colleges and universities in adopting federal legislation that would change the way endowments — which birth scholarships— are funded and used. Exactly how much of an impact a sudden shift in the system would make on the way students receive scholarships is unclear, said Brien Lewis, vice president of university development and alumni relations, but the change is aimed at sustaining endowment funds amid an economic abyss. Under a 1970s model mandated by the Uniform Prudent Management of Institution Funds Act (UPMIFA, for short), endowments were created with a “corpus” or “nest egg” —a designated amount of the endowment’s money that could not be touched under any circumstances. Instead, only the interest and investment earnings from the corpus could be used, Lewis said. For example, if a donor wanted to create a gift of $100,000 to the Winthrop Foundation to create a scholarship fund for certain majors, that $100,000 would be invested, Lewis explained. Generally, one could expect to earn 4 percent on the investments each year, allowing the Foundation to award about $4,000 per year to the scholarship’s intended audi-
ence. But when the economy took a nosedive and plunged face-first into a shallow pool of deficits and dire tuition costs, little to no interest was being earned and many invested funds lost a third of their value, Lewis said. This left many endowment funds with set values bereft of interest earnings and without the ability to award scholarships. For students in the College of Arts & Sciences, the shock-wave of lowinterest endowments made impact when 12 of the academic college’s scholarships were cut last April. Now, the Winthrop Foundation’s board has decided to accept a 2006 model of UPMIFA, one which would allow institutions to dip into or “invade” an endowment’s corpus but with specific limitations. Since most endowed funds are governed by a deed or gift that specifically requests the corpus not be touched, the Foundation must ask the original donors for permission to change the deed for the use of at least a portion of the corpus, Lewis said. The second limit is in how much of the corpus may be touched. The Foundation, after considering several options used by different foundations across South Carolina and the nation, decided to limit the use of funds in the corpus to the point where the nest egg is at 85 percent of its original value, Lewis said. When the economy hit bottom in 2008, the Foundation rejected
the 2006 model in favor of keeping faith in “rainy day funds” that could be used to provide the funding for scholarships in the anticipation that the market would recover its losses within a few years, Lewis said. Lo and behold, the market has not returned to its previous levels and, because those “rainy day funds” weren’t meant to be long-term alternative funding sources, the Foundation wants to reserve them for their original purpose and focus on this newest solution. Because the Foundation is unsure which donors will allow their deeds or gift’s corpuses to be touched, Lewis was unable to answer with certainty how the distribution of student scholarships would be affected. As new endowments are created in the future, they will be adjusted to UPMIFA guidelines, Lewis said. The Winthrop Foundation is a charitable organization responsible for maintaining assets and gift records for Winthrop’s own benefit. The board consists of several business and community leaders —some of them Winthrop alumni—, three voting members associated with the Winthrop Alumni Association and three nonvoting members, which include Lewis himself, University President Anthony DiGiorgio and Debbie Garrick, associate vice president for university development and alumni relations. Find out more about them at their website: http://www.wufoundation. com/board.htm
– Police Blotter – POSSESSION OF MARIJUANA 1ST OFFENSE, CONSUMPTION OF LIQUOR UNDER 21 (1/28/12) At 1:44 a.m., a Winthrop reporting officer spotted an Altima traveling down Eden Terrace and crossing over the yellow line, according to the police report. The reporting officer pulled the vehicle over for a traffic stop. When the reporting officer approached the vehicle he smelled a strong scent of alcohol coming from the passengers. He did a sobriety test on the driver of the vehicle and concluded that the offender was over 21 and not intoxicated, according to the police report. The reporting officers then found that three of the passengers were under 21 and had consumed alcohol. The reporting officer cited and released the passengers for consumption of liquor under 21. The driver and owner of the vehicle gave the reporting officer permission to search her car, but then told the reporting officer that she had marijuana in her purse. They placed her under arrest for possession of marijuana and took her to Rock Hill City Jail, according to the police report. Compiled by Zoe Irizarry • irizarryz@ mytjnow.com
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THURSDAY February 16, 2012
Our Say
Student analyzes GOP CSL’s recent actions questionable battle among candidates Everyone knows House. about the coming Since the start of the presidential election GOP presidential primary as well as the current the rift between the old GOP presidential priguard Republicans and maries. Many people Tea Party republicans awaiting the next is clear. Members of the election want a change GOP keep looking for anto the current govern- Hampton Ballowe other candidate besides ment. According to the the moderate old guard Freshman Winthrop Poll, 60% of choice, Mitt Romney. It people believe the government is is not because of his Mormonism going in the wrong direction, and that people are shying away from several polls show that Obama him. Polls have shown that more has an approval rating below 50%. and more Republicans are starting Generally, this gives Republicans to care less about the differences a lot of enthusiasm and strength of Mormonism and Christianity. going into the election. Too bad The reason they want another for the GOP they could be batchoice is because Romney is one tling more than just Obama in the of the Politicians in the GOP that national election. has flip flopped on some of his There is a power grab happenviews to appear more conservaing in the GOP between the old tive. guard moderate Republicans and Even though there are still the very conservative young guns three conservative alternatives to in the Tea Party. Whenever a third Romney, he is not out of trouble party starts to form from either yet. Rick Santorum has the best the Democrats or Republicans chance at beating Romney in the it steals some of the old party’s primaries. As long as Santorum members. When the Tea Party wins six or seven of the eight started forming from the GOP, Re- Midwestern states. Santorum has publicans quickly started backing already won two Mid-western the new party and quickly tried states, Minnesota and Iowa, and is to engulf the new conservative thought to win a third in Michifaction. Alas, the GOP only had a gan. This would be a huge set few congressional members that back to Romney who was born in were actual conservatives or good that state, and his father was also enough politicians that they could governor of Michigan. easily switch over to being more But Santorum aside, Romney conservative. So, in 2010 when big is still strongly favored to become name conservatives and moderthe GOP Presidential candidate. ates were elected to the House, Even that is not refreshing when conflict was inevitable. you look at the reason why he Whether you like Nancy Pelosi has lost states like Colorado, or or not, one can not say that she how he has not won states as well was bad at being Speaker of the as he should have. Romney has House. Congress Woman Pelosi had lower voter turnout in many was great at mobilizing Demostates, showing a lack of enthusicrats to get bills passed and work asm in the GOP as a whole about together to get things done. She Romney and the other candidates. united her party in the House, So when, or if, Romney becomes which is what her job called for. the GOP presidential nominee, John Boehner is not as lucky as he will have to deal with a lack of his predecessor. Boehner is not conservative voter turnout, and just trying to unite one party, but possibly even a third party canditwo parties hastily crammed todate from the Tea Party. gether, to ensure victory in 2010. When Representative Weiner True, Republicans won the House, left the House in New York, there some seats in the Senate, and was a small election that could be many state governorships as well an interesting foreshadowing of as state legislatures. But look at a Romney versus Obama electhe job they have done when they tion. In the New York election, a had to work together in the House. Tea Party backed candidate ran When the government had to pass against the Republican and Demospending bills to ensure that there crat candidate and the Republican would not be a government shutended up winning. However, the down, Republicans had trouble format of New York’s county is agreeing on bills that Boehner put different from the format of the up to legislation. Nation. If a Tea Party candidate The young guns of the Tea Party ends up running against the Reclaimed that the bills did not cut publican and Democrat candidate enough spending. While initially in the National election, it will be some moderate Republicans did much easier for Obama to split the not oppose the idea of increasing south and win the election. Even taxes, they quickly rose against though Independents are startthe idea out of fear of being called ing to shy away from Obama, if un-conservative by the Tea Party. Romney is the Republican candiWhen it came to voting for the date then he will inevitably vie for spending bills, Republicans still the big conservative votes. That had to get help from the Demois what Romney has always done, crat minority of the House to pass and that is what he will always do. bills. The GOP is currently undergoFurthermore, Boehner has tried ing a power struggle and Amerito pass more than one bill that can progress is caught in the would once have been considered crossfire. If America had a GOP conservative. For each of these led government then it would bills the Republican majority of suffer from political stalemate, the House was split because the indecision and infighting. Who the Tea Party half believed the bills victor of this intra-party struggle were not conservative enough. will be is unknown, but one thing More than once has Boehner is for sure: the GOP is unpredicthad to take his own bills off the able. House floor because there was not enough support, despite his party having a large majority in the Editor-in-Chief CLAIRE BYUN
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More drama from CSl. Sydney Evans, senior political science major, recently stepped down from her position as Election Commissionaire on the Council of Student Leaders. She recieved an email from CSL leadership an hour and a half before Monday’s meeting, informing her of an amendment made to the election process. Evans was not part of that change, nor did she have prior knowledge of it. “I was surprised,” Evans said in an interview with The Johnsonian. “I was not aware that the president could initiate amendments because that’s obviously not written in the guidelines.” The amendment doubled the amount of campaign funds from $250 to $500, divisible among all candidates. No candidate can recieve more than $250, according to the new guidelines. Evans voted against the amendment, but 18 other members approved.
Letter to the Editor Olivia Jolly
Freshman Human Nutrition major
This letter is in response to “Student takes another bite out of religion” by Jared Epps, published in the February 9, 2012 issue. As an opinion columnist, you have your right to state what you think and try to get people to respond, but I think your approach was done very poorly. Name calling is NEVER a good way to make a point. It’s your job to be opinionated, not rude. Another flaw here is your lack of research. I attended Rock Hill High School, and during my senior year I opted to take a World Religions class. While the class was not mandatory for all students, it was still in place and had an astounding amount of
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student interest. It wasn’t solely centered around Christianity, but taught some of the other big religions as well, such as Islam, Judaism and Buddhism. I feel that the class was extremely beneficial to me, because it makes me more educated in public situations when discussing religions so I don’t embarrass myself in saying (or writing in your case) that any particular religion is cult-like, or any of the other false judgments you made in your article. Also, this is me putting my religious bias aside as you so poorly did in your article after claiming you would. I’m not asking you to join my cult, just rethink your writing style next time you poke fun at a large part of the American population.
Student argues for decreased U.S. military budget, presence “. . . peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none.” –Thomas Jefferson
where we have only the most modest of interests and waging preventative and preemptive wars. We are endangering our troops, creating enmity with other nation, and spending billions and If people referred to the billions of dollars in the midst of an United States as the American economic crisis. Empire, most people would I believe the U.S. should adopt a Trey Stokes think they were crazy. However, policy of strict non-interventionism, Freshman I am going to give you some facts meaning that the sole purpose of the and let you draw your own conmilitary should be to defend against a clusion. direct attack against the United States. This Since the September 9, 2001 terrorist atobjective begins by the immediate withtacks, the amount of money the United States drawal of all American troops from the over has spent on defense has grown exponen135 countries worldwide in which they are tially. In 2008, we spent more on our milistationed. This withdrawal must be planned tary than the next largest forty-five countries carefully, to ensure that no lives are lost in combined. The whole of Europe only acthe process. Think how much easier our lives counted for 20 percent of spending, while we would be if we weren’t entangled with the were more than twice that at a 48 percent, majority of the countries on the planet. according to the Center for Arms Control and Next, the defense budget must be cut in Non-Proliferation. half, at least, so that maybe we only resemble The United States has ubiquitous military all of Europe in terms of military spending inpresence around the world. We have about stead of being twice as large. This can be eas1,000 bases in more than sixty countries, ily done if all of our forces were brought back including Iraq and Afghanistan. Excluding home; in fact, the lack of a global presence bases, we have troops stationed in over seven- would make a nearly trillion-dollar defense ty-five countries, which means that we have budget impractical. military presence in a grand total of more Lastly, we should place most active duty than 135 countries, according to Politifact. personnel on reserve and allow them to recom. It’s worth notation that many of these enter society and the workforce. Think of the “bases” are really barracks on the same main positive economic impact that so many skilled base, but counted seperately. workers could have. More importantly, it And how many foreign bases are on U.S. would mean a permanent end to the separasoil? Zero. tion that many military families endure. In light of all this information, an arguIt used to be said “the sun never sets on the ment could be made for an American Empire British Empire.” Today, unfortunately, it can of sorts. No other country in the world has be said that the sun never sets on the Amerithe global presence we have. We think we’re can military. the baddest country around, so we act as the policeman of the world, intervening in places
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Evan’s reason for voting down the proposal? Suspicious allocation of student fees. “It puts me on the defensive thinking someone already in the (president) position, and who plans to run again, would double the amount of student fee money they could use to run a campaign,” Evans said. After last week’s scuttle with CSL, Evans’ authority and position was circumvented by leadership and the Election Commissionaire responsibilities made moot. It’s fair to say CSL’s actions pushed away Evans, which causes suspicion about the other acts the council will make. It’s not wise to politic in the shade or usurp student authority, nor is it characteristic of mature, college educated students. We’re all too old for the seventh-grade bully routine; disagreement is no cause for scare tactics or intimidation. The recent actions of CSL is unbecoming to a body of student leaders.
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 February 16, 2012
CATHERINE ZENDE Science & Technology Editor zendec@mytjnow.com
Keeping science modern
Biology, Chemistry departments plan for updates SCIENCE • from front Owens explains that the chemistry and bio-chemistry programs follow the American Chemical Society (ACS) approved program. He further explains that the students graduating in chemistry and bio-chemistry receive ACS professional certification. Owens believes that it is important to keep the equipment up to date so, they can use the same technology that institutions use, like Medical school labs. “We are primarily research focused in chemistry and biochemistry… and 95 percent of our students have done research by the time they graduated. The instruments that we use in our courses are the same instruments used in research,” Owens said. Owens explains that some instruments from the 1980s needed to be replaced. Owens says that they have spent 95 percent of their money allocated to them for new equipment, and the rest is planned to be spent on a new faculty member, who specializes in growing crystals, coming in August. She will be teaching a physical chemistry course, and money is needed for her equipment in the classroom. Owens also explains that there are accessories, like computer programs and utilities, that have to be bought along with the instruments. “Our students run the instruments,” Owens said. Pam Jaco is the instrument manager, and she teaches the students how to use the equipment. “This gives students the hands on experience of actually doing science,” Owens said. The biology department is also updating their labs. “Science especially, is a continuing investment trying to keep up with technology, and Winthrop is good about updating its technology. We want our students to gain technological knowledge, so they can go out and compete in graduate programs and jobs,” said Dr. Dwight Dimaculangan, professor and interim chair of the biology the department. They began buying equipment in January and their instruments have already started arriving. Dimaculangan explains that a lot of smaller pieces of equipment
have been replaced such as large models of bones, muscles, and organs for the anatomy labs, cabinets and safety equipment. “We are replacing a lot of our microscopes in the classes, so that students will have the latest technology and the best microscopes possible,” Dimaculangan said. Dimaculangan said that the bigger and more expensive pieces of equipment they purchased include a fluorescence microscope in a box, the latest equipment for microscopy and a gel documentation system. According to Dimaculangan, BIOL 203, the freshman class for biology majors, is getting a significant amount of money towards the lab equipment. The cell biology lab is also getting updated says Dimaculangan. He says that they are buying two fluorescence microscopes and spectrophotometers. “We Chemistry majors Stephany Casasola and McKenzie Workman use current are trying to make it so that technology in lab in Sims. Labs like these are expecting new equipment to help our majors and non-majors students with their work. Photo by Jenni Buker • Special to The Johnsonian are excited about biology,” Dimaculangan said. Next year, Dimaculangan update microspectroscopy in which they will buy a new wants to obtain some hand-held devices that measure scanning electron microscope for the lab and update wind, temperature and pH. Dimaculangan hopes to current microscope with a digital camera. acquire these instruments and weather stations to keep Dimaculangan said that the department is hoping to at Winthrop Woods, the wetlands and the succession create a conservation track in the biology major, with a plots so the lab classes like 151 and 203 can be a part of new ecologist that has background in conservation. long-term research projects. According to Dimaculangan, they are also looking to
Editor advocates abandoning PowerPoint
The days of PowerPoint are browser during your presentation over. Well, at least they are for and wait for it to load. me. My reliance on the linear Instead, your video is in the structured, template based and presentation itself and ready to go conventional presentation forwith no more leaving the screen. mat has essentially disappeared. Prezi also allows you to move It is partly because the prothrough space as you deem fit, gram has become so overused rather than just moving laterally that almost any presentation from left to right. Go up, down By Catherine Zende (from business to academic and flip around! zendec@mytjnow.com to vacation slides) is copied Another site that has capand pasted into pre-fabricated boxes. It is tured my attention recently is known as also because I have become too comfortSlideRocket. It too is a cloud software able with the technology and have begun that allows you to create personalized and resorting to robotic repetition of paramodern presentations. graphs pasted on the screen. The main differences between Prezi But mainly, my desire to abandon and SlideRocket come in the style of PowerPoint stems from the fact that there creating the presentation. Prezi is a little are much sleeker ways of presenting the more simple to learn, but SlideRocket has same information (and they are free!). many more options for ultimate personThere are tons of websites offering alalization. SlideRocket also gives users the ternative presentation styles that include chance to make their presentations into the accessible features of PowerPoint in videos rather than click-by-click preseninnovative and interesting forms. tations. This trend has many advantages, My absolute favorite is Prezi, cloudone of which is the advent of the presume based software that lets users create ab(but I’ll save that discussion for a later stract and unique presentations that can issue). be shared and viewed online. No more The advantages of these presentation saving the file on the USB drive because it styles are clear: more modern appearis all on the Prezi cloud. ance, no cost and a certain trendy factor. Prezi offers you a zoomable canvas with Using this technology also helps you as almost no limits. You can design presena presenter. You cannot paste blocks tations to be linear, in a particular shape of thick, boring text so you will not be (like a cloud if you like) or in a random tempted to read sraight from the screen. chaotic mess. You can create text boxes, The training wheels are gone and you geometric shapes or just blocks of text, have to go it alone. then link them through a sequence that I have also found that professors apyou see fit. You can create your own color prove of the transition. When everyone palette and use unique fonts that modelse is boring the class to tears with ernize your presentation. garish PowerPoint slides, you can dazzle The absolute best part of this site is the them with something novel and worthy fact that it allows you to embed Youof an A. Tube videos. No longer will you have to That is, if you learn how to use it. paste the link into a slide, open it up in a
This graphic was made on Wordle, a site that allows users to turn blocks of text into an abstract graphic. The graphic displays the words used in this article—the more often a word was used, the bigger it appears.
7
THURSDAY February 16, 2012
MONICA KREBER Arts & Entertainment Editor kreberm@myjnow.com
‘Re-vamped’ Poetry Open Mic tonight 2012 Orientation Leaders will be hosting tonight’s DSU-sponsored event -- which has undergone some changes Monica Kreber
kreberm@mytjnow.com
Tonight DSU is hosting Poetry Open Mic Night in Dina’s Place starting at 8 p.m. Though a DSU event, Poetry Open Mic Night was organized by two students. One of them, senior psychology major Sabrina Blue, said she and senior modern languages major Andre Isaac both agreed to team up with Boyd Jones, director of Student Activites, to make the event happen. “Andre and I are not part of DSU,” she said. “We were both 2012 Orientation Leaders,so that’s how we know each other. We are however good friends with Boyd Jones, so we both agreed to host because we love participating in things around campus, and any chance we get to work with Boyd is awesome.” Poetry Open Mic Night, Blue said, is a fairly popular event hosted on
campus throughout the school year; the last one was hosted close to a month ago. “It was hosted by the Homecoming King and Queen,” she said. “I’m not 100-percent, sure but I think we have them almost once a month or so.” Although they are hosting the event, Blue said she has no plans to recite any poetry during the night. “I am not very poetic, and I will not be reading any of my own work. I’m not sure if Andre is a poet, but I’m almost sure that he won’t be reading any of his work if he has any just because he’ll be hosting the show.” Since this is a DSU event, it had to be approved by Boyd Jones. Jones said DSU hosts Poetry Open Mic Night “every now and then” throughout the semester. “The students felt like trying something new,” he said, “so instead of
mixing poetry/music/comedy/guitar playing/etc. as we do most Open Mics…[we decided] to have a poetry beatnik type of night and see how this will go over.” What is also different about tonight’s open mic, Jones said, is that instead of inviting MC’s from off campus, DSU is using current Winthrop students to serve as MC’s. Like Blue said, last time it was the Homecoming King and Queen. Jones said one year the winners of the Talent Show hosted the event. Now it is Blue and Isaac’s turn. “For our February Open Mic, we are choosing two Orientation Leaders who I hope are well known and have many WU friends who might come to support them,” Jones said. Tonight’s open mic is something DSU is trying on a “one-time basis” and the organization will evaluate it to see if it continues in future. “It will give Winthrop students
a chance to hear the talents/writings of their fellow Winthrop students,” Jones said. “This is something we’re trying and we’ll see how this goes over. If it does not, we’ll just have Open Mics where you can share a variety of talents, as that has worked well in past.” Blue said although Poetry Open Mic Night has been held before, this is the first time she will be attending one. “I’m hoping that students will come out to have some nice relaxing fun,” she said. “I’ve actually never been to a poetry night, so it’ll be interesting to see how the crowd responds to the energy.” On that note, Blue said she looks forward to seeing how the night turns out. “If this one goes well, I would definitely like to see more poetry nights,” she said.
CrossWUrd Puzzle Across
2. A well-known restaurant that used to be inside Dinkins. 4. What is the last name of the student who is remembered on Facebook. 5. Last name of one of the students who is hosting Poetry Open Mic Night. 7. The Johnsonian’s website (_____.com). 9. Where you would get a bagel on campus (_____ Bros.) 10. What basketball team did Winthrop beat over the weekend (just the first part of the name)?
Down
1. Last name of a grad student who is pictured doing a visual representation of “Beauty and the Beast.” 3. The last name of a person who is coming with “Hookers” tomorrow. 6. This shaped Seth Goldwasser’s view on humanity. 8. The first name of our Managing Editor. -compiled by Monica Kreber
Friday, Feb. 17
Thursday, Feb. 23
Blair Crimmins & The Hookers
Craig Karges
Just in time for Mardi Gras weekend, Blair Crimmins brings the Hookers out to blast the room with Dixieland horns, rowdy ragtime piano and gypsy jazz guitar. Songs jump with a 1920’s gaudiness, reminiscent of tawdry, dangerous jazz. While devious lyrics can mirror the sinister Charlestons they accompany, Crimmins also has a grab bag of torch songs at his disposal, spotlighting the loneliness of a life spent in the shadows. Where: The Edge - DiGiorgio Center When: 8 p.m. Price: $5 with Winthrop ID, $10 without, Free with Spring Pass
Craig Karges is truly extraordinary. The “extraordinist” is an award winning entertainer, a nationally recognized speaker and an author. Karges combines the art of magic with the science of psychology and the power of intuition to create the impression that nothing is impossible. Tables float, minds are read, metal bends and your imagination is challenged; you won’t believe your eyes. Audiences may be mystified when it comes to understanding how Craig Karges accomplished what he does on stage, but his popularity is no mystery at all. Where: Dina’s Place - DiGiorgio Center When: 8 p.m. Price: $5 with Winthrop ID, $10 without, Free with Spring Pass
THURSDAY February 16, 2012
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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Talk on movie ‘Amadeus’: shaping view of humanity Writer states movie is one of the few films that have managed to shape his view of humanity Seth Goldwasser
Special to The Johnsonian
Few films have shaped this writer’s opinion of humanity as much as the film Amadeus. Based on Peter Shaffer’s play, the plot follows Antonio Salieri as he aspires to become a top composer in Vienna, Italy. At the beginning of the movie, Salieri is an old man who tries to commit suicide for allegedly killing Wolfgang Mozart 32 years prior. He is sent to an asylum and is visited by a young priest who insists on a confession. Salieri eventually gives in spitefully and begins his story about his God given dreams of being a great composer. His dreams become reality as he instructs and is the composer for Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II. He is a Godly man, and thanks the Lord for his success. It is during this time that he hears of a young prodigy from Salzburg named Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. He has heard fascinating stories about Mozart’s
childhood, including the fact that Mozart wrote his first concerto at four, symphony at six and an opera at twelve. Antonio attends a performance at the court of the Prince-Archbishop of Salzburg and looks for Mozart among the guests. He finds Mozart, only to find his expectations of a righteous gentleman shattered by an immature promiscuous boy. Further, his music is magnificent, and Antonio believes God mocks him with Mozart’s genius. He slowly turns from a Godly man with poise and standards to a manipulative devil, seeking to destroy God’s gift. He uses his status and influence to diminish Mozart, in the hopes of eclipsing Mozart with his own music. He drives himself insane at the thought of surpassing Mozart through destroying him, and, in the end, is tortured for thirty-two more years by his own inability to succeed. This movie delves deep into the human psyche. It
shows how easily earned greatness can turn to determined evil. It also harps on the product of overbearing instruction mixed with constant spoiling of the noble class. Mozart’s lack of righteousness is caused by the lifestyle his father and his society created for him. He values his work as perfect because his father demanded it and his audience praised it. It may not be his fault that he is the product of his father’s work. Antonio, on the other hand, has no one to blame for his mediocrity but himself. Yet, he cannot truly accept it as long as Mozart and his immature absent-mindedness stands before him. The true struggle in the movie is between the nature of two starkly different men. Is one man born with talent, but lacking in humility more deserving than a man of mediocrity with bounds of humility? Is it fair to destroy a man because he commits subconscious mockery to the hard work of another?
Grad student scores cash through hobby and class
“”
Is one man born with talent, but lacking humility more deserving than a man of mediocrity with bounds of humility?
Seth Goldwasser Senior
Interested in writing a movie review? E-mail Monica Kreber at kreberm@mytjnow.com.
Ready to move UP?
Monica Kreber
kreberm@mytjnow.com
Winthrop 2011 graduate Zade Patterson has been paid to apply stage make-up for people for different events. The task, he said, has been given to him “multiple, multiple” times – particularly Zombie makeup at Halloween. “It’s a very cool thing to have under a belt for quick cash sometimes,” he said. Patterson learned such makeup techniques from a class he took while at Winthrop – a theatre class that can be taken by theatre majors and minors. He said the class is usually required for the theatre majors, but it is mostly used as an elective for others. Patterson said the class challenges students with the basics and then goes on into more intricate techniques. “It starts with working with shading and how it changes on a person over time (aging),” he said, “then going into basic make-up of highlights on the face, then into imitating faces of animals and other styles (clowns).”
Goldwasser states the movie travels deep into the human psyche, and it shows how easily-earned greatness can turn to determined evil. Photo courtesy of Google Images
Zade Patterson sports his “Beauty and the Beast” makeup interpretation. Photo provided by Zade Patterson Part of the class requires focusing on and reading facial expressions – depending on the design you want, Patterson said (for example: students learn to tell the difference between how to make an “always sad-faced” clown or “always happy” clown). “For facial expression in general, its more about what muscles are used in the face and how to draw to heighten those muscles,” he said. Patterson said he took the class to help “hone” his hobby – as well as assist him with his drawing ability with caricatures.
“I always loved doing animal face paint when I was really little,” he said. Patterson also said he would encourage other theatre students to take the class. “Unfortunately, only theatre minors and majors can take it,” he said. “ But… if you, the person, can see yourself doing something of the sort in their future to definitely take advantage of the opportunity.” For the cash aspect, Patterson found the class to be overall helpful. “[It’s] all about being in the right place with the right skills,” he said.
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THURSDAY February 16, 2012
ALISON ANGEL Culture Editor angela@mytjnow.com
Presbyterian Peacemaker shares tale of faith amidst hardship and oppression in home country IRAQ • from front clip of extremists walking back and forth by a row of civilian bodies, pelting them over and over with machine guns. Weapons and threats replaced peaceful religious negotiation and Muslims who disagreed with their use of violence were labeled “moderates” and murdered, Alsaqa said. In August 2004, six churches across Iraq were bombed in one day during worship. Extremists were ruthless and used tactics to increase the number of casualties such as setting bombs to trap fleeing civilians into another explosion, and continued bombing until the churches were rubble, Alsaqa said.
But that was not enough to satisfy the extremists; worshippers in the community slowly rebuilt and continued to meet, so next they began to kidnap and murder church leaders, he said. One of these leaders was Alsaqa’s father. The extremists demanded $20,000 in ransom (much more than the church had) and threatened to kill Alsaqa as well if he did not leave the country, he said. Alsaqa did not want to leave at first, and the church refused to pay the money, knowing that it would only be used to buy more weapons and fuel more violence. And as for Munthir Alsaqa’s only son, “If God decides to keep his gift, I doubt there is anything you can do about it,” Alsaqa’s father told the Al Queda terrorists on the phone.
“Faith is a big part of our identity,” Alsaqa explained. “Even if we have suffering or pain. Iraq without Christians is not Iraq.” In 2011, despite the dangers, Iraqi Christians from all denominations packed out churches to celebrate Easter. They figured since extremists were killing them for their shared belief in the deity of Jesus Christ and in his resurrection, they should celebrate together, regardless of denomination, Alsaqa said. Parents even risked bringing their children on the firm belief “it is important for our children to learn that faith is an important part of you,” Alsaqa said. A part worth dying for. To stifle the violence, the U.S. constructed 500 miles of cement walls separating neighborhoods all over Iraq. The walls made it hard for Iraqis to visit family members in other areas and sometimes their school or university, Alsaqa said. But local artists decided “if you cannot accept reality, you must work to change it,” risking their lives to cover the walls with messages of hope for unity in Iraq. Although Saddam Hussein was a dictator, his sole preoccupation with power led him to keep Iraq’s minorities united, staying out of religion and keeping extremists who might usurp him in check, Alsaqa said. While there was violence against anyone who would challenge his authority, it was not the same as the solely religion-based violence seen in the past decade, he said. Alsaqa hopes to return to Iraq someday, although he has been told by many it is not the same country he left, he said. Detroit is a very popular American city for Arabs, with the suburb of Dearborn estimated at 40 percent Arab, according to research conducted by the Arab American Institute Foundation. The Iraqi people are by no means pitifully begging for help, Alsaqa said. For students to have the experience to protect human rights and religious freedom in Iraq is the “chance to be a part of [creating] the world you dream of,” he said.
Dr. Mazin Alsaqa addresses Winthrop students and staff from Barnes Recital Hall Monday night. Winthrop University was one of Alsaqa’s many stops across the states as he speaks of his experience as a Chritsian in Iraq during the war. Photo by Sarah Auvil • auvils@mytjnow.com
Genes, color have no impact on value Sarah Auvil
auvils@mytjnow.com
People tend to still see the world in black and white, rather than appreciating the world in fullcolor vision and seeing race, while real, as merely the result of an exterior expression of a few genes. It is unable to fully define a person. Almost every race has set expectations of what you should act like because of your ethnicity, and if you do not meet them, you are stereotyped. “Oreo,” “Twinkie,” the list of slang terms is endless for people who do not seem to fit the stereotypes that go along with their skin color and choose to act differently. But ultimately these words are meaningless; race could never truly express a person’s full identity and everything that influenced them over a lifetime. I learned this the hard way, because personally I do not fully identity with my race and was teased about it growing up, even though I was the same outwardly as most of my peers. I was really into learning about diversity and minorities but went to predominantly white schools where my classmates just didn’t “get” me. I didn’t want to make other people uncomfortable, but I couldn’t not be
myself, either. An African-American is not less of a person or less authentic because they take on a more “white” way of speaking or behaving or has a lighter or darker shade than their peers. People come in more than just two colors, even within each race. Most of us grow up with peers, neighbors or maybe even in a country with different ethnic origins than our own, and we can choose to take on those characteristics. Or we may grow up in one environment and completely reject it, feeling that we instead better relate to another group. This is simply part of finding and understanding ourselves in a deeper way. Too many people just see themselves and others as either Black, White, Asian, Hispanic or Middle Eastern. There are so many different ethnicities and more complex subgroups within these categories, and this diversity needs to be appreciated. Few people in America these days are 100 percent anything anyway. Even among European Americans there is great diversity in originating countries and cultures. I think this is why biracial and mixed individuals confuse others so much; they physically cannot be packaged nicely into only
one of these categories the way people would like, so people over the centuries have tried to group them with the race they are most “like.” Even our own president is simply “black” even though he is biracial and had little contact with his African father. Tiger Woods is Chinese, Thai, Native American, Dutch and African-American. Try checking one box for that. Probably my least favorite white stereotype is the belief a Caucasian person is somehow incapable of relating to another culture. Anyone can study a culture and seek to understand its people and their sufferings in a deep and open-minded way, even if they’re not part of it. Somehow white people are portrayed as being “plain” and devoid of “color” or “soul.” This thinking proliferates the idea that being one race is “cooler” or better than another, which is racist. It’s great to be proud of your heritage, but this is not Skyrim; your race does not give you +20 natural dancing/singing ability or -10 science. Being born white is not the same as being an ignorant person: that can come in any color. Even in writing this column there’s probably someone
out there that is thinking, “She’s white, why is she writing about race and diversity?” It makes no sense that every color but white makes you a “person of color.” Last time I checked, I wasn’t translucent; I have a color and a cultural background, too. I recently saw an online blog called “White Girl Problems.” I read through it, and after a few minutes realized I could not relate to any of the things it was talking about. I don’t wear uggs, make the “duck face” in pictures, straighten my
hair or go to a tanning bed. I don’t think most “white girls” I’ve met at Winthrop fit that stereotype either. I’ve always marched to the beat of my own drum. Instead I like to eat pho with hoisin sauce as if I was someone from southern Vietnam and drink pu’er tea from Yunnan, wear curvy jeans and excessive amounts of eyeliner, think Lee Hom Wang 10 years ago is way hotter than Channing Tatum, say “y’all” and get offended at inferior sweet tea, watch Bollywood movies with my best
friend and tend to interject in random Korean and Chinese phrases like “jia you!” and “fighting!” This is who I am; it’s more than a stereotype, and I’m proud of it.
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THURSDAY February 16, 2012
JEFF BRODEUR Sports Editor brodeurj@mytjnow.com DAVID THACKHAM Sports Editor thackhamd@mytjnow.com
WHAT AN UPSET!
The Eagles came up with a big win Saturday night after dropping four of their previous six games. Photo by Jenni Buker • Special to The Johnsonian
Winthrop finds a way to win when it counts to drop #2 Coastal in home rivalry match-up for the ages RIVALS • from front “We’ll continue to grow,” Peele said in the postgame interviews, “but we can’t lose focus in games like that. I thought we did a lot of things well. We did well to guard effectively and we had a complete win.” Prior to Saturday, Winthrop had lost four of their last six matches, leading the Eagles to need to make an early impact. Yet after CCU’s Dexter Moore hit a long three-pointer to put the visitors up by six with only four minutes gone, the sense of “Here we go again” reigned in the Winthrop Coliseum. And Coastal might have been able to capitalize on the early advantage had they started their first team. Kierre
“”
How we closed the first half was huge. Randy Peele Head coach
Greenwood, Coastal’s second-leading scorer of the season (11.2 points per game), was suspended for “violation of Department of Athletics regulations.” “Sometimes when you have policies and they’re broken,” Coastal coach Cliff Ellis said, “you have to take the keys away. It’s like taking a quarterback off your football team or a pitcher off your baseball team.” Greenwood’s absence took nothing away from a sublime first half effort from Winthrop. The home team took a 11-2 run in four and a half minutes to regain the lead. Back to back threes from junior Gideon Gamble and senior Reggie Middleton gave the home team the advantage to push their defense further up the court, forcing an unprecendented 14 turnovers for Coastal. “It’s always been defense,” Valentine said. “We stop people, that’s what we do.” Valentine (4-8, 13 points) and company executed their job to perfection, holding the Chanticleers to 28 points in the opening half, their lowest scoring total since they shot 23 in the opening sequence against Campbell in January. The Eagles didn’t allow the break to disrupt their rhythm. Dual layups by bigs Matt Morgan (5-13, 12 points) and
George Valentine gave Winthrop an 8-0 advantage out of the tunnel, while Coastal was thwarted from the paint on their first six possessions. Winthrop also managed to break a bogey of theirs recently, shooting 80% (16-20) from the foul stripe. “We all had big numbers today,” Valentine said. “I think we did a pretty good job about that.” Coastal knew a lost cause when they saw it, refusing to press with 3:04 on the clock as freshman Andre Smith strolled down the court, seconds before nailing his own textbook trey. “It was a good win,” Peele said. “I feel bad about (putting the starters back in late), but I felt it was what we had to do. How we closed the first half was huge. We made adjustments on the fly pretty well.” As for Valentine, he doesn’t get tired with getting his 6’8” frame back into the mix. “It’s never frustrating going back in,” he said with a smile. “I love it, man.” Winthrop now trails 38-35 (W-L) in the all-time rivalry between Coastal Carolina. The Eagles now own a 21-12 record against Coastal at home. Reggie Middleton is just five assists away from reaching the 400th dish of his career.
The senior guard is currently fifth on the career list. Meanwhile, guard Andre Jones has led Winthrop in scoring in 20 of 27 games in 2011-2012, including six times in the last ten.
“”
It’s always been defense. We stop people, that’s what we do. George Valentine Senior guard
TJ’s Q & A: Sitting down with baseball co-captain Matt Pierpont By Jeff Brodeur
brodeurj@mytjnow.com
The Johnsonian: Being a Pennsylvania resident, what made you choose Winthrop?
be doing
would like to before leaving?
TJ: Explain the difficulties of being a two-way player (playing both a field position as well as a pitcher)?
MP: I definitely want to win the conference tournament, get into a regional as a team and get as far as a super regional, Omaha, or anything like that would be great. It’s really what me and my whole team are trying to do.
MP: I’m actually not a twoway player anymore. but it’s hard because you’re doing both and it’s hard to split your time. You end up putting more time into one thing rather than the other and that’s what I was doing last year, putting in more time hitting than pitching. Pierpont aided in two I decided just to pitch this year beTJ: What does being named co-cap- shutouts last season • cause that’s what I thought I was tain this year mean to you? Photo courtesy of Winthrop better at and I thought I needed Athletics to put more time in. It’s definitely MP: It means a lot to me being a junior. hard, because pitchers are doing Most times you think it would be a senior, one thing and hitters are doing but it means a lot to know you have the respect of another and it’s hard to split the time evenly. your teammates, that they would choose you. I’m Matt Pierpont:I went to high school in Pittsburgh and it’s cold up there, so you don’t get on the field until April. The nice weather made me want to come down South, but it’s a good school, the facilities are great, it’s a great conference and I love the coaches.
just trying to help lead the team. I guess I am one of the older guys since we have a lot of young guys this year, so I just want to teach them what they need to
TJ: Is there anything you haven’t achieved yet during your time at Winthrop that you
TJ: What has been your best memory so far as a Winthrop Eagle? MP: I think all of our trips to the big schools. We went to Texas A&M my freshman year and I got to play three games there. Last year we went to Florida and I got to start pitching a game there and that’s pretty cool right there, to pitch against the number one team in the nation with all of their fans there.
THURSDAY February 16, 2012
11
SPORTS
There’s 0.6 seconds left in the game... Your team’s down by three... There’s only one thing to rely on...
Courtesy of Winthrop Athletics frostj@winthrop.edu
College basketball is observing the 25th anniversary this season of the 3-point shot that was implemented in 1986-87 and has changed the game forever. For programs like Winthrop, it has become the “great equalizer” in that it has given mid-major teams hope that they can compete with and sometimes defeat the powerhouse schools. Recent history has demonstrated that hope. Just look at Butler University and VCU over the past two NCAA men’s basketball championship tournaments. The 3-point shot has become Cinderella’s slipper for the mid-majors. Today’s players weren’t even born when the 3-pointer was implemented, but Winthrop men’s head coach Randy Peele and Lady Eagle head coach Marlene Stollings have their own memories and thoughts about the rule. Peele, who was serving as an assistant coach at Tennessee-Martin when the 3-point shot was ushered in for the 1986-87 season, has seen how the rule has changed the game. He has seen how the 3-point arc distance has changed over the years and he says when the 3-point shot was first introduced to the game, he was against it. “When the rule was first put in, I wasn’t in favor of it because I thought the distance was too close, but it has proven to be a great thing for college basketball. Ideally, I would like to see it moved a little bit farther back, maybe to the international line,” he said. “The 3-point rule and the shot clock have changed the game tremendously because it means that it’s not as hard to come back from a huge deficit early in the game. You are never out of the game because of the 3-point shot and because of the shot clock.” Peele says a good example of that is the Winthrop game against Charleston Southern back on Feb. 24, 2009 when the Eagles were trailing by 26 at halftime and rallied to win. “If you are down by let’s say 13 points going into the second half, you’re not out of the game, and so I think that’s the biggest thing that the rule has done,” said Peele. When the rule was first implemented, its intent was to create more working space in the paint or free throw lane for post players. Peele believes the rule accomplished that goal. “The intent is to create more one- on- ones inside, and it has done that. The 3-point shot has really stretched the defense out across the floor.” He says the 3-point line has also opened up the floor for more dribble penetration. “That, to me is where the game has changed. It is not a post-driven game anymore, but now it is a game that is played off the ball screen and dribble penetration,” he says. For Stollings, who was in the seventh grade when the rule was adopted, she remembers walking into the gym when they were painting the lines and getting so excited about having another avenue to score. “It became an immediate challenge to see how accurate I could become from long distance,” she said. “I spent countless hours in the gym perfecting my shot from behind the arc. In the long run, it helped pave the way for me to earn a Divison I scholarship to The Ohio State University and become the state’s all-time leading scorer with hundreds of those points coming from behind the arc.”
Besides the impact it had on her own game, Stollings says the 3-point shot has provided the opportunity for more scoring and as a result fan excitement. “From a strategic standpoint, the shot has changed offenses and defenses alike because you must account for it on both ends of the court. Games are more competitive because you always have a chance.” Both coaches agree that the advent of the 3-pointer has impacted the individual skill set and the mid-range game. “I don’t believe players work on the mid-range game as much,” Stollings said. “We see more players shooting threes or taking the ball all the way to the basket.” So, what is the biggest 3-pointer by a Winthrop player over the past 25 years? Winthrop Assistant Athletic Director Jack Frost has gone back in his memory bank to come up with the “biggest” three-pointer in the school’s history. Frost has worked 639 men’s basketball games in the past 22 years and has seen thousands of 3-pointers launched. He has witnessed many memorable 3-point shots, some of which he recalls went against the Eagles. “Among the 3-pointers that I remember most is the 3-pointer by Michael Jenkins at Wisconsin on Dec. 4, 2006 that gave Winthrop the lead with 10 seconds left in regulation, a 3-point buzzer beater by James Shuler on Feb. 18, 2006 against Northern Illinois in the ESPN BracketBusters game; the final 3-pointer of Chris Gaynor’s illustrious career on Mar. 20, 2008 NCAA tournament game against Washington State that gave him an even 1,000 points as an Eagle, and a buzzer beater three by Charles Corbin that gave Winthrop a 60-57 victory at GardnerWebb last February.” But the biggest and undoubtedly the most important three in Frost’s opinion came during the 2001 Big South Conference semi-finals against Liberty in the Roanoke (VA) Coliseum. Tywan Harris, a reserve shooting guard for the Eagles, hit the shot at the buzzer and Winthrop went on to defeat the Flames in double overtime and advance to the championship game. “I can still see that shot and remember how fortunate he was to even have a chance to shoot it,” Frost said. “Liberty had taken a 3-point lead, but we had the ball in the final seconds with a chance to tie the game. We had to have a 3-pointer to tie the game, but Roger Toxey drove the left baseline and took a 15-footer with about two seconds left that bounced off the rim. A two-point bucket would have done us no good. But rather than grab the rebound, the Liberty center slapped the ball out toward center court thinking that the clock would expire. Harris, however, was standing near the top of the key and just behind the 3-point arc and caught the ball. The shot was out of his hand just as the shot hit zero and the ball hit the bottom of the net. We won that game and then defeated a very good Radford team in overtime the next night to earn our third straight automatic bid to the Big Dance.” Without that shot, Winthrop would have just eight NCAA trips rather than nine. While the Harris shot proved big for Winthrop, Frost also remembers two 3-pointers that handed losses to the Eagles. “The 3-pointer by Tennessee’s Chris Lofton that beat us in the first round of the 2006 NCAA tournament in Greensboro (NC) still hurts,” says Frost. “To get that close to winning our first game in the NCAA tournament and losing that way is one of my worst memories of the 3-point shot. The other one I remember was a 35-foot desperation hook shot by UNC Greensboro on Dec. 21, 1999 ending an 11-game home court winning streak.”
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THURSDAY February 16, 2012
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