The Lumberjack -- September 15, 2016

l u mb erjacks on i ce PAGE 22

T H E L U MBE R JAC K

SEPT. 15 - SEPT. 21, 2016

Online at JackCentral.org

From the Editor

C

ampus Heights Apartments is the international house on NAU campus and the place I call home. This tight-knit community immerses students in various cultures while expanding their knowledge of global issues.

When the NAU Alert was sent out late Sunday night, my apartment atmosphere changed instantly. A friend was visiting from Phoenix, and my international roommate read the alert aloud to us. We all began to panic because we were in the affected area.

What exactly is the imminent threat? Should we flee the area or should we stay indoors and take cover?

This was not my first experience with the NAU alert system but this text message alert was by far, the most vague one I have ever received. The fear that filled my body was paralyzing. My international roommate assumed it was a mass shooter based off their understanding of United States media. I thought it might be a possible bomb threat. In the past, the alerts always identified the threat as a person. This case was very different from anything we had encountered.

Upon reflection, we overreacted by grabbing kitchen knives and hiding in the bathtub with the lights off. If the first alert had been more detailed, we would have been better prepared for the situation.

SUNDAY However, I was impressed with the speed in which we received the MILLER alerts and the compassionate emails sent out from our resident assistants.

NEWS EDIITOR I think it should be mandatory for every NAU student, U.S. and international, to receive these alerts and be educated on how the system works. Read more about the NAU Alert story online and in this issue as well as an opinion piece on campus safety.

In news this week, we covered controversial topics from uranium mining in the Grand Canyon to the sudden closure of the University College on campus. Passionate protests have been happening all across the state regarding police brutality and the Dakota Access Pipeline. News also highlighted World Suicide Prevention Day this past weekend in Heritage Square. This event was held to reduce the stigma surrounding mental illness.

In culture, read about the award-winning film, Almost Sunrise, showing and a 9/11 photography exhibit by our very own School of Communication professor, Eric O’Connell, who was in New York during the attack. The first home football game is this Saturday Sept. 17 against New Mexico Highlands, so come support your fellow Lumberjacks and join the tailgate party at Pine Ridge from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Thank you for reading.

LJ

T H E LU MBE R JACK

Editor-in-Chief Grace Fenlason Faculty Advisor Mary Tolan

VOL 103 ISSUE 4

Managing Editor Scott Buffon Faculty Advisor, Visuals Jennifer Swanson

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T HE L U M BE R JACK

SEPT. 8 - SEPT. 14, 2016

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AUG. 25 - AUG. 31, 2016

A celebration of hopi culture PAGE 16

T H E LUM BE R JAC K

JULY 28 - AUG. 24, 2016

Digital editions of The Lumberjack at JackCentral.org!

On the cover The NAU IceJacks raise their sticks together following the end of their first practice of the season, Sept. 12, at the Jay Lively Ice Arena. (Photo by Keely Damara)

Corrections & Clarifications The last edition of The Lumberjack featured a photo of a Free the Nipple Rally in Hertiage Square. The article accompanying the photo in the print edition was an opinion piece and the article accompanying the photo in the online edition was a news feature about the event.

The Lumberjack is committed to factual correctness and accuracy. If you find an error in our publication, please email gracefenlason@nau.edu.

PoliceBeat Sept. 6 At 2:07 a.m., a vehicle was stopped at a stop sign violation near San Francisco Parking Garage. The driver and six passengers were in possession of marijuana and received criminal deferrals.

Sept. 8 At 8:44 a.m., maintenance reported someone stuck in an elevator in Ardrey Auditorium.

The subject was released from the elevator in good health.

COMPILED BY SCOTT SANDON

At 11:54 p.m., a police corporal contacted a large group of people. The group dispersed and one subject was given a ride to his off-campus residence.

At 11:17 a.m., a student reported their bike stolen near Sept. 11 At 9:54 p.m., three Morton Hall but later reported At 12:10 a.m., an subjects were reported finding their bike. intoxicated student was smoking marijuana near transported to Flagstaff The Suites. The officer made At 11:31 p.m., a student Medical Center and given a contact with two subjects who with a diabetic problem was criminal deferral for underage denied usage. The report was reported at Wilson Hall. consumption of alcohol. unfounded.

The student was deferred for underage consumption of At 1:57 a.m., FPD At 10:43 p.m., Sechrist alcohol and transported to reported seeing subjects Hall staff reported the odor Flagstaff Medical Center. possibly tampering with of marijuana. Five students sprinkler heads near the J. were deferred for possession Sept. 9 Lawrence Walkup Skydome. of marijuana and other drug At 12:26 p.m., a staff The subjects were gone upon paraphernalia. member reported almost being arrival and no criminal activity hit by a city bus near Babbitt was found.

Sept. 7 Academic. The staff member At 8:47 a.m., a subject was okay.

At 2:06 a.m., an officer reported someone using a contacted two subjects in the megaphone in the area of At 7:16 p.m., a suspicious roadway near the Health and Mountain View Hall. The area male was reported refusing to Learning Center. The subjects was searched and the subject leave the duBois Center. The were educated about roadway was gone upon arrival. subject was given a ride to a safety. homeless shelter.

At 12:02 p.m., an officer At 9:46 a.m., an employee received a report from a staff At 7:21 p.m., South reported a co-worker receiving member at Southwest Forestry Village apartments staff threatening messages at the who was getting threatening reported several subjects Social and Behavioral Sciences phone calls. The staff member smoking marijuana in the building. The investigation is had a restraining order against wooded area north of the ongoing. the caller. apartments. The subjects were gone upon arrival.

At 2:09 p.m., a subject At 5:54 p.m., a passerby reported a pedestrian hit by reported a suspicious subject Sept. 10 a bicyclist. The pedestrian near Sechrist Hall. The subject At 2:33 a.m., FPD refused transport and was was located and no criminal requested backup for officers given a ride to McConnell activity was witnessed. responding to a fight on Hall.

Phoenix Street. Assistance was At 9:26 p.m., a passerby provided.

At 8:16 p.m., a resident reported a subject screaming. reported a subject loitering The subject was contacted At 8:57 a.m., an Allen in front of Taylor Hall. The and was in good health. The Hall resident adviser reported subject was a resident of the subject was put in touch with a student who had passed out. dorm. counseling services.

Student was transported to Flagstaff Medical Center for At 11:27 p.m., NAUPD At 11:56 p.m., a subject further evaluation. and FPD responded to a was reported attempting to suicidal subject at Knoles gain entrance to a vehicle At 3:34 p.m., a student parking garage. NAU Alert in Lot 5. The student was reported that they were was sent out. Two officers were contacted. They had locked sexually assaulted at Gabaldon called in to assist. The subject their keys in their vehicle.

Hall. The assault occurred on was detained without incident.

Sept. 8 and an investigation has been opened.

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NEWS

Suicidal man triggers NAU Alert, campus told to take cover JESS HUFF, SUNDAY MILLER

N

AU Alerts have, for many, become a sign of ill-boding.

Text messages warning students to stay indoors leave many with flashbacks from the near stabbing and fatal shooting last year. Sept. 11, students received an NAU Alert at 11:49 p.m. warning them to stay in their rooms until NAUPD could provide more information.

Kimberly Ott, assistant to the President for Executive Communication and Media Relations, explained what happened Sunday night.

“In the case of the incident from last night [Sunday], NAU police were notified of a suicidal subject with a firearm, who was immediately adjacent to the campus,” said Ott. “This incident would pose an immediate threat should that subject decide to run onto the campus or force an encounter with NAU or Flagstaff police.”

For Clarissa Ducie, an international student from London who is majoring in marketing, this was the first time she had ever dealt with any sort of potential harm.

“I’m English so the only thing we really hear about American university is massive shootings and it was quite vague so I thought we were all going to die,” said Ducie.

The message many received was vague: “Imminent threat reported on FLG campus near Knoles Parking Garage - Avoid the area. Take immediate cover - details to follow.”

Campus Heights, an apartment complex near Knoles Parking Garage, is home for many international students living on campus. Most of them are not at NAU for the full four years, which creates a disparity when it comes to understanding how our safety systems work.

“A lot of them were just really confused, it was more mixed

feelings about what happened because this was the first alert of the semester and nobody explained to them what a NAU alert was, so there were lots of questions,” said junior public health major and Campus Heights Resident Assistant Ashley Pena.

At around 12:26 a.m., a second alert went out to inform students police were on the scene and the situation had been contained. The situation had been contained, but students were

Illustration by Alanna Secrest

told to continue to avoid the area.

The Clery Act, passed in 1990, requires every U.S. university, without exception, to immediately notify the campus community upon confirmation of a significant emergency or dangerous situation occurring on or near the campus, which involves an immediate threat to the health or safety of students or employees.

The third and final NAU Alert came when NAUPD gave the all clear at 12:41 a.m.

The suspect was armed with a BB gun and was threatening suicide as police were working to prevent his escape from the parking garage and contain the situation. The BB gun was shot, but no injuries were reported.

Campus Heights employees were given more details because they called to get more information so they knew what to plan for.

“We all got together when we saw the alerts and decided exactly what we were going to do. We called the non-emergency number so we could inform our residents and they told us it was a possible suicide attempt, a guy with a weapon, they didn’t release too much but they released more than they did in the alerts,” Pena said.

The NAU Alert system has worked to keep students updated on potential harmful events for the past couple of years and has proven to keep students more aware on campus in times of emergency.

While many complain that they are not fully informed of the issues at hand from the alerts, they are grateful for the notifications and those working to keep them safe.

“I think it was really good they did tell people, I’d prefer to know there was something going on even if it wasn’t a direct threat to us,” said Ducie, the international student. “It was quite vague, they should have done a bit more detail.”

Despite the lack of information in this alert, it reached more people in a timely manner. During the shooting in October 2015, 700 of the 16,175 people signed up for NAU Alert at the time, received the alert. By the time everyone had received it, several hours had lapsed since the shooting, and alleged shooter Steven Jones was in custody.

Visit nau.edu/ready/ for more information on NAU’s Office of Emergency Management. There you can sign up for NAU Alert text messages, edit settings or add more recipients.

World Suicide Prevention Day: Reducing the stigma surrounding mental illness CHANDLER COINER

T

he National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Flagstaff chapter hosted an event at Heritage Square, Saturday morning to raise awareness of suicide prevention and reduce the stigma surrounding mental illness. The event hosted a variety of speakers and booths from different organizations working to combat the rising suicide rates.

“I, Jerry Nabours, declare Sept. 16 Suicide Prevention Day,” the Flagstaff mayor announced as an official proclamation at Heritage Square.

One of the first speakers was Annetta Koruh, a Hopi tribe member who reached out to the crowd with her story.

“I had a father that was very abusive. He drank. He hurt my mom … as a 5-year-old at that stage in my life, I had to grow up fast,” said Koruh. She then dropped a piece of pottery to represent how her life was shattered. “I started to carry burdens, shame, anger, bitterness.”

Koruh ended with saying she decided to come back to who her creator wanted her to be.

Lt. Paul Lasiewicki from the Flagstaff Police Department addressed the growing problem of suicides in Flagstaff. He reported

that five years ago Flagstaff PD received 467 calls for suicidal individuals, but this year is on track for 720.

“We’re at a crisis level,” said Lt. Lasiewicki.

City council member and mayoral candidate Coral Evans also spoke at the event.

“As a community we need to start having open and honest conversations without shame,” said Evans.

“Suicide is treatable. We just need to know how to treat it,” Nabours said.

Strider Schmitz, a student at Coconino Community College, performed on the bag pipes in between speakers.

In addition to the speakers, booths around the plaza gave out information and activities relating to specific organizations or general suicide prevention tips.

At the Native Americans for Community Action (NACA) booth, Marian Bitsui, a public education coordinator for NACA, encouraged people to create a message for a “quilt of hope.”

“Everyone is susceptible to depression,” said Bitsui.

Bitsui noted there are many factors that have the potential to affect soemone-- that the people around them might not even consider.

She told people to always stay vigilant.

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Peggy Sheldon-Scurlock, a bereavement counselor at Northland and Vista Hospices, talked about how she deals with suicide counseling.

Sheldon-Scurlock works with people who have loved ones who have attempted or committed suicide.

“You may have staved off one time, but people always have to think about how to deal with it moving forward. That’s what I’m there for,” said Sheld-Shurlock.

Sheldon-Scurlock believes a more open discussion about suicide is always a positive in that it brings people closer to the resources that they may need.

Vice president of NAMI Kay Brown has been with the organization since 2001. She works with nurses and other counseling programs on facts and strategies to deal with mental illness.

People at the event were encouraged to at 8 p.m. light a candle in their windows to show awareness for suicide prevention.

An NAU NAMI chapter was created last year to help combat the growing problem of suicide-related deaths in Flagstaff according to Brown. She says she hopes these different programs will help to create a “peer ripple effect.”

According to The World Health Organization, more than 80,000 people die by suicide every year.

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NEWS

Grand Canyon’s uraniam: crucial resource or source of anguish?

JESS HUFF

W

hile Native American tribes fight to protect the environment and sacred sites of the Greater Grand Canyon against pollution from uranium mining, energy companies insist that uranium is an essential source of energy.

Lawsuits, organizations and protests have all been part of the Native American effort. Then last fall, Arizona Senator Raul Grijalva released a bill to make the Greater Grand Canyon a national monument.

“The bill is mostly to provide language on the topic,” said Roger Clark, program director of Grand Canyon Trust. “Where many of the issues surrounding it are directly between tribes and the state, this opens up a narrative so the next couple of years there may actually be something done.”

The Grand Canyon is currently being protected by a 20-year mining ban that was enacted in 2012, on the creation of new mines in the greater Grand Canyon area. Only mines that had been previously approved are allowed to produce uranium. The result was two years of lawsuits from private mining companies that had been examining the area for potential exploits.

The lawsuits centered on new companies’ attempts to reopen the Grand Canyon to production.

Another big win for the Navajo tribe was in 2014 when the Arizona Supreme Court protected this act. Actions such as the 20-year ban have in part been the cause of the infrequent market

of uranium since the mid-1900s.

Uranium ore was found in the Grand Canyon in the 1950s when most of its product was given to the federal government for testing or production. The market for uranium is sporadic, and mines have been abandoned with nothing done to prevent further pollution. Contamination of underground water sources continued along with the streams and rivers through the gorges.

Studies were released nearly three decades later that linked cancer and respiratory diseases in the Navajo people to the pollution coming from the mine and effects of working in the mine. They have been dealing with these issues ever since.

Despite the impact on those who live near the mines, uranium is being used as an effective source of energy. Small amounts of uranium can be used to produce more energy, which can cut the use of coal and provide a way to move from non-renewable sources. Uranium is far more available and easily extracted than coal; there are several locations outside of the Grand Canyon that hold deposits and many throughout the world.

Energy Fuels is currently the only company working on mines in the area. They have released statements explaining current and future plans for the mines. In these plans, they provide information on new intercepts of deposits in the area and new techniques of mining that will be used this year.

“If we are to achieve continued growth in renewables, while maintaining 24/7 reliability, grid stability and clean air, we absolutely need to increase our exposure to nuclear power here at home. Remember, our current fleet of nuclear power plants already generates about 63 percent of all low-carbon/low-

emission energy in the U.S., [and] boasts an unmatched record of reliability and safety, and avoids billions of tons of air emissions,” said Stephen Anthony, CEO of Energy Fuels.

There are efforts on both sides to make the extraction and use of uranium cleaner and safer for all involved. Lawsuits from tribes and other locals in the Grand Canyon area are working to enforce stringent safety standards on the current mines. Several organizations have also begun training and work on old or abandoned mines in order to clean up what contamination they can.

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals began training Navajo workers in the necessary fields to start clean up projects. This has given the Navajo Nation opportunities for professional work and has been recognized by the Enviromental Protection Agency for its work to clean up abandoned mines.

Roberta Tohannie, the coordinator for the Navajo Nation Environmental Workforce Development Program, explains the reason for this program.

“There is a legacy of mining in the area and involvement of the tribes because of how close it was to home. But the long-term effects of having to endure living near these [mines] has almost given a sort of want to be a part of the clean up process. They have a strong connection to the land, along with a need to protect the land, water, air and wildlife,” said Tohannie.

Many within the tribes have plans to continue in their individual protests and working to minimize the pollution where they can.

First-year students lose guidance of University College SCOTT SANDON

T

his semester’s freshmen class of 5,492 is the largest in the history of NAU. It’s also the first academic year that NAU’s University College was closed.

The college — which was dedicated to providing the tools that freshmen needed to navigate university life — has closed to them.

Last spring, NAU’s President Rita Cheng, called in a consultant to assess the University College.

“Things were not where they should be,” said professor Terence Blows referring to the curriculum. Blows works in NAU’s mathematics department and was a faculty fellow with University College. Blows was given the position to foster student success.

Programs such as undergraduate research, which was mainly for upperclassmen, were housed in this college as a program intended to aid freshmen. The consultant made multiple visits and “by the second or third time, the [interim] dean [Cyndi Banks] quit because she knew her job would be going,” Blows said.

Once the decision to close the college was made, many professors felt uncertain about their jobs. Banks now works at a Vancouver university.

“These people I’ve worked with, I was worried, ‘Have some of them lost their jobs?’” Blows said.

Despite later finding out that his colleagues were still employed, problems concerning the closure were still present.

For example, the programs that were formerly housed in University College had to be assigned to new departments.

The programs have been split among the jurisdictions of the vice provost for academic affairs, the vice provost for teaching, learning design and assessment, the associate vice president in student affairs and the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences.

Undergraduate research, along with programs similar to freshmen advising, has been put under the jurisdiction of the vice provost of academic affairs, instead of under the vice president of research.

“A few things are still … imperfect,” Blows said.

For many incoming freshmen, this restructuring could lead to confusion or a lack of awareness. Freshman computer science major Grayson Amores said, when asked if he had heard about the Academic Transition Program that was formerly housed in University College, “it rings a bell.”

Freshmen who utilized these services, that were previously centralized, may not be aware of which service they need, where to find it or even the existence of such a program. Regardless, many of these classes still exist.

Amores believes there has been a lot of miscommunication.

Senior psychology major Kirsten Derosa was in a first-year seminar offered through University College.

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“It definitely helped me because I was struggling with my grades and after that class I had straight A’s,” said Derosa. The course provided her with a planner, a way to calculate her GPA and handouts on organizational skills.

Some students have cited budget management as the reason for the closure, though this is unconfirmed.

In a newsletter to faculty and staff in August, President Cheng wrote, “student success remains the shared and paramount goal of our university. We have determined that we can best meet that goal by aligning the programs within the University College more directly with other university initiatives.”

According to the president, the closure of the University College was a result of work over the summer to streamline efforts and strengthen focus.

Though the process of closing University College started last spring, emails sent to incoming freshmen during the summer listed the Gateway Student Success Center as a part of University College.

In the newsletter, it was not announced that University College would be closed, but in sentences such as “University College was an effort to improve and better coordinate the firstyear student experience,” the use of the past tense was noted.

The Lumberjack reached out to the Office of the President about the University College closure, and has been told to expect a statement in the near future.

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EDI TOR IAL & OPINION

Hate preachers hated in schools ALEX RAND

I

was 17 years old and I was walking out of my final class of the day and headed toward the bus stop. I was stopped the second I left the school gates by a man in a neon green shirt and a megaphone. I kept my head down as I walked past the man. He was screaming awful, obscene things at the growing mob of high school students exiting campus. His smug declarations of who God does and does not hate, who is and is not worthy of help and who should and should not consider suicide rung in my ears long after I got home. I was sick to my stomach all night, and hardly able to talk to anyone the next day. I wasn’t sure if it was out of revulsion or shame.

This happened to me before I was even an adult. He had a huge impact on my self-esteem and the way I viewed others like myself. This kind of thing happens every day to so many people across the nation that it’s ridiculous that it’s allowed to continue.

There are no words to describe the kind of fear hate preachers inspire. It’s the sudden, horrifying reminder that there are people in the world who hate you unabashedly just for being you. And yet, it’s 100 percent legal for them to do everything they get away with. People will cite the First Amendment every time one has to be stopped, but aren’t there lines that shouldn’t be crossed? Aren’t

Illustration By Alanna Secrest

there things the First Amendment will not protect? Shouldn’t bullying be one of those lines?

Hate preachers are merely playground bullies who grew up and bought bullhorns. Why do we allow them to get away with being so incredibly awful to groups of people that already have the rest of the world against them? And why do we allow them to impose that method of thinking on children?

I’m not saying we ban hate preachers entirely, despite other

countries having already gone that far. According to BBC, a counter-extremism strategy has been put in place in the United Kingdom to ensure that, “Radical preachers will be banned from posting material online and anyone with convictions for extremist activity will be barred from working with children.” Whether or not this is effective in preventing anything remains to be seen, but I don’t think this is the correct approach.

Schools in the United States, such as James Madison University (JMU) in Virginia, have dealt with hate preachers in their own way. The Breeze, their student newspaper, ran a story on one who was issued a no-trespassing notice. The hate preacher, Ross Jackson, was summonsed for assault and battery, but was quickly released. The JMU chief of police would not give details about why Jackson was summonsed. Jackson was, however, issued a no-trespassing notice and told never to return to the JMU campus.

As much as people disagree with the opinions of hate preachers, they are still allowed to have those opinions. But when I walked out of high school and saw him, one of the first things I heard was, “If you are suicidal, it is because you are gay.” It should not be a controversial idea that this kind of rhetoric has no place being said to children. Those opinions have absolutely no place near schools, higher education or otherwise.

Protect the Grand Canyon to protect sacred land THEODORE JEMMING

T

he Grand Canyon is both a beautiful and resource-laden environment. Due to this, various corporations want to harvest minerals and natural resources from the area, while many inhabitants who have a history with the region have disagreed with any sort of degradation of the aesthetic and intrinsic quality of the land itself.

According to the Grand Canyon Trust (GCT), an organization founded in 1985 to protect the environment, the Grand Canyon is sacred to Native Americans. To mine the Grand Canyon is to desecrate land which holds deep spiritual and intrinsic value to thousands of native people who descend from people who used to live sustainably on the land.

In 2012, the GCT and other environmental groups convinced the Secretary of the Interior to issue a 20-year ban on any new uranium sites on more than 1 million acres surrounding the Grand Canyon. This is only new sites, so old sites can continue to be active if there is no further expansion. Even after this, there are still new political and legal challenges implemented by the mining industry to eliminate this ban and other regulations.

According to the Huffington Post, the National Mining Association’s president wrote that the impact of uranium mining on the Grand Canyon National Park is “virtually nonexistent.”

This is a ludicrous and inaccurate claim. Most uranium mining operations hold the potential to affect surface water quality and quantity. Tailing disposal sites become a significant potential liability for thousands of years due to complex systems of life consuming resources in regions where mining and disposal is

occurring.

Imagine a worm lives in soil where uranium mining waste is disposed. Then picture that worm being eaten by a larger creature, and so on. In the process of biomagnification, the effects of radioactivity can exponentially rise as one larger animal eats many smaller animals who are tainted with any foreign substance.

As this radioactivity makes its way into ecosystems, mutations in DNA can occur and impact them in ways most could not even fully comprehend.

There are simply too many factors at risk of becoming imbalanced. Humanity lives in a very fragile web of biotic and abiotic factors playing together to form a fluid, ever-evolving system. It is humanity’s job to admit their impact and set their intentions in alignment with long-term sustainability rather than short-term profits and business.

Tragically, businesses and large corporations that want to sap the world of its resources and manipulate the landscape to make profits do not necessarily care about the aesthetic value of the land.

One figure who offers hope for the future of the United States and the world is President Barack Obama, who is an advocate of stricter environmental regulations and preservation efforts.

Recently, Obama visited Laos, becoming the first sitting U.S. president to do so. In his speech at a university in Luang Prabang, Obama discussed the effectiveness of sustainable environmental regulations and how companies and people can work with environmental mandates.

“Usually when you see the environment destroyed, it’s not because it’s necessary for development,” said Obama. “It’s usually because we’re being lazy and we’re not being as creative as we

Illustration By Alanna Secrest

could be about how to do it in a smarter, more sustainable way.”

Even if environmental protection costs companies more, companies must find compromise between long-term sustainability and yearly profit margins. Just as companies must compromise, environmental activists and scientists must find a balance between short-term economic gain with preserving the ecosystem.

Repeatedly bringing up environmental standards for businesses to follow, it is very clear that a top priority of some of the most prominent world leaders today is to preserve the fragile ecosystem and complex world around us. I agree with Obama, and I believe movements to mine more resources like uranium are unjustified at best. For the sake of a culture which considers the land to be sacred and for the sake of preservation, uranium mining should be indefinitely banned around the entire Grand Canyon area.

SEPT. 15 - SEPT. 21`, 2016 | T HE LUMBER JACK 9

EDI TORIAL & OPINION

Letter to the editor: NAU Air Force Detachment gives back on 9/11 SUBMITTED BY STEPHANEY SOZA AND AIR FORCE ROTC DETACHMENT

F

ebruary 1993 there were six individuals who were killed and thousands were injured in the first attack at the World Trade Center. The twin towers had 110 stories in each building, both holding about 35,000 people and 430 companies. They were one of the tallest buildings in the world, and attracted nearly 70,000 tourists and commuters everyday.

It was just like any morning to countless United States citizens on Sept. 11, 2001, but the time struck 8:46 a.m. and every single U.S. citizen’s life was affected from that point forward.

Flight 11 crashed into floors 93 to 99 and then at 9:03 a.m., Flight 175 struck into floors 75 to 85 in the other building.

It was not over. At 9:37 a.m., Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon and at 10:03 a.m. Flight 93 crashed into an empty field in Somerset County, PA. Flight 93 was believed to be intended to crash into Washington, D.C, but passengers on board were determined to not let this happen and fought back. All U.S. citizens were affected by this terrorist attack. We as a nation, as a united force, were determined to make sure that those who were responsible were found and brought to justice under our terms.

It has been 15 years since we have lost a total of 3,042 lives on Sept. 11, 2001, and the U.S. Air Force ROTC Detachment 027 Highlanders were determined to make sure they took the time to remember and reflect. On Thursday, Sept. 8, the cadets and cadre members went out on a silent memorial run. It was cold and windy out but that was nothing to them.

You could see the steam coming from the top of the group as they ran on the urban trail in Flagstaff in silence as a unit, together, leaving no one behind.

There was nothing else on their minds other than to reflect on why they want to be in the

armed forces, why they put on the uniform and, most importantly, why they chose this path for themselves. The answers would all vary but they all had one important thing in common: They loved their country and wanted to be sure nothing like what happened on Sept. 11 would ever happen again.

Friday, Sept. 9, there were a total of 76 cadets and four active duty officers all a part of the Air Force Detachment that woke up early to reflect again. Cadet Martin and cadet Soza, up and organizing things at 0400 to ensure that all the logistics for the day, were set and ready for the cadets arrival at 0500. Silver Wings, composed of civilians and cadets working at the J. Lawrence Walkup Sky Dome at 0530 were ensuring every single picture of those lost in the twin towers were placed on a seat for the participants to see and remember as they climbed for 2,071 steps.

Color guard team led by cadet Conn were at the event almost an hour prior ensuring our nation’s colors were given the proper respect. It was the 9/11 Memorial Tower Challenge in which the Highlanders climbed a total of 165,680 steps as a team. Assuring all first responders that they respect all of what they do for our country here at home as our military members are overseas.

J.P. Vicente and the 100 Club of Arizona put on a phenomenal event throughout Arizona in Tucson, Phoenix and Flagstaff for our great state. We will never forget all those who were lost. We will always stand tall. We will always fly our flag. We are Americans and this is our country. God Bless the United States of America. Heroes are never forgotten. Lest we forget!

NAU counseling offers students a supportive path SHERIDAN HATCH

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e may all be living in the same world, but we don’t all need the same help. In light of this, NAU’s Counseling Services have updated their counseling policy to “express [their] commitment to supporting students in the midst of recent race-related tragic events and related upheaval” in the United States.

This is admittedly a bit vague, but in conjunction with the availability of a variety of support links, it offers a great range of supportive resources to students. We may all be living in the same world, but we see it through different lenses formed by our struggles. The new policy endeavors to embrace that. Among the diverse resources for online self-help offered is the article Showing Up for Racial Justice in Student Affairs. It encourages educators to actively fight oppression even when there isn’t a set of procedures for it. The author, Aaron Hood sums it up with “we make the road by walking.” The inclusion of such a resource shows how Counseling Services want to include faculty in its endeavors to support students.

Counseling Services seems to have taken this sentiment to heart in the spirit of their new policy. Their list of links is not a systematic lesson plan on how to deal with issues, but a variety of things from discrimination to tone policing that can point students in a variety of directions they can explore to determine what will work for them individually. This is certainly in a shared feeling of Hood’s quote regarding there not being a set road, but that walking a little and exploring can build options.

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Not only do Counseling Services preserve their reputation by avoiding hypocrisy, it is also good in building a consistent and supportive environment for students struggling with mental and emotional issues. Such an environment reduces confusion and turmoil for processing concerns.

Also, the new policy, and how it has been executed so far, shows how aware and flexible Counseling Services are in regards to students. Georgetown University released a report on higher education perpetuating white privilege, which revealed that most Hispanic and African-American students attend open-access colleges, while most white students attend more selective colleges. Due to this, the former group is less likely to graduate on time, or even earn a graduate degree. Whereas if they had gone to a more selective college, their earnings advantage would increase by 21 percent.

That is a significant disparity and a general social issue.

Part of Counseling Services’ policy is to seek and empower students. The report lists race as an added vulnerability in succeeding at college. Counseling Services’ new policy takes this to heart being that NAU is one of those less-selective institutions. Counseling Services therefore helps combat all race’s increased vulnerability on campus, and consistently aspires to keep doing so. This also fits with their agreement and their attitude to “make the road by walking.”

While the new policy is supportive of a variety of needs and tactics, the inclusion of online support also recognizes students who aren’t ready or comfortable to discuss their concerns and problems with another human. NAU’s Counseling Services may be trying to build the road by walking, but they also recognize that their students will walk it in different ways, and at different speeds.

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POSITIVITY, EMPOWERMENT AND ROCK ‘N’ ROLL THE EXTRAORDINARY LIFE AND IMPACT OF VANESSA SILBERMAN DARRION EDWARDS

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harismatic attitude and positive thinking helps an independent artist not only keep her happiness, but gives her the energy she needs to express her love for music.

As a guitarist, singer and engineer, Vanessa Silberman is in the middle of her crosscountry tour and loving every second of it. NAU students and Flagstaff locals will be able to witness Silberman’s outstanding vocals and charisma when she performs Sept. 21 at the Hotel Monte Vista in downtown Flagstaff. Her passionate voice emphasizes her unique vocal style, and she connects to her audiences and fans on a sincere level.

“I’ve been in the business for so long, for 15 years or so. Now more than ever music is all I do and all I focus on,” said Silberman.

Born in Berkeley, Calif., Silberman has been involved with several successful bands. She has given opportunities to many local artists by allowing them to perform in her shows. Silberman took up other successful roles within the music industry like being a record producer, an independent Artist and Repertoire, graphic artist and was even responsible for the founding of the band Diamonds Under Fire.

For Silberman, the inspiration to pursue a music career began at a young age, while living in Hawaii. Her first experience with the band Nirvana gave way to her love of music.

“When I was in Hawaii, the first band that I really heard was Nirvana,” Silberman said.

“At the time we didn’t have TV or radio. I learned about them through my friends. They would actually have the records and would play them. I remember listening to Nirvana with no idea of what they even looked like.”

Silberman used the time spent with her friends to listen to the artists who would inspire her career. Today, she uses their inspiration to produce music from the soul.

It is evident that after working for more than a decade within the music industry, that music is a main reason for Silberman’s happiness, whether it is the connections she has with other musicians or the nostalgia songs provide.

What makes her unique as an artist is her ability to provide the electric feeling in her music and capability to cope with a crazy life a musician has, all without drinking or smoking.

“I’m so involved with music that I don’t have time for the extracurricular activities or whatnot outside of that,” Silberman said.

Music is one of the tools people use to cope with everyday life. It can help set the mood for situations and events, motivate a person to achieve their goals and it can even bring treasured memories from the past. Silberman understands the power music has in everyday life and uses it to help her fans, as well as herself.

“Music is such a surreal thing that can really map out someone’s life,” Silberman said. “No matter what, a 5-year-old or a grandfather can relate to it.”

A big part of the music industry is the performances bands and artists are able to provide for fans. One way Silberman uses her performances to impact her audiences, and create connections with other artists, is by having different drummers perform with her.

This past March, Jimmy Dias, the founder, vocalist and guitarist of the band Love Dimension was given such an opportunity and was astounded by how genuine Silberman is.

“I would say she has gratitude to be performing,” said Dias. “She is so happy to be doing music and has a lot of positivity and good energy. I just realized I would like to be a part of that and help out in any way I can.”

Dias, who is also a drummer, will be performing with her on her West Coast leg of her tour.

“It is going to be pretty cool to see how Vanessa does her thing,” Dias said. “I can learn from her by observing how she interacts with the audience and how she runs a tour. It will be

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(Photo courtesy of Vanessa Silberman)

things that I can apply to my band and our tours.”

Silberman enjoys the connections that playing with local artists creates and believes open invitations are a way to spread positivity in the music scene.

Local Flagstaff musician Amaal Daas was able to perform with Silberman and recounts her vibrant attitude.

“I really enjoyed playing with her,” said Daas. “She sent me some songs, some of her new solo stuff she was working on.”

Given the opportunity to perform with an artist such as Silberman allowed Daas to witness her gratitude to play.

“She has a lot of original material, and is really approachable at her shows. She has this positive energy with all her music and how the whole show is run,” Daas said.

Although music and touring consumes most of her life, Silberman enjoys some of the simpler things. If a chance to have some free time is ever presented, she does her best to travel,

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watch movies and enjoy fashion.

“Sometimes if I do have time, I sit down and watch Netflix,” Silberman said. “I’m crazy into Western and war films. I’ve seen probably every Western there is.”

In the future, she hopes to continue as an independent artist, engineer and producer.

She hopes her success with connecting to other artists and bands will help her make records. Most of all, she hopes to keep providing positive messages.

“Be yourself. Empower yourself. You can do anything,” Silberman said.

is such a surreal “Music thing that can really

map out someone’s life.

No matter what, a 5-yearold or a grandfather can relate.

— Vanessa Silberman, L.A. musician

”

ALIE WILKINS

T

oday is Sept. 15, which to most of us just means another Thursday. Maybe there is a quiz to be taken or another annoying group project to do today. While it may just be another day here in Lumberjack country, today is actually special in history. Today is National Thank You Day, National Felt Hat Day and National Linguine Day. So go put on a cool hat, eat some pasta, thank someone and learn about some cool things that happened on this day in history.

Sept. 15, 1620 — Mayflower departure Three hundred and ninety five years ago, the Mayflower prepared for its departure from Plymouth, England to the new world. Originally, it was supposed to travel with another ship, the Speedwell, but ultimately ended up making the journey alone. Christopher Jones, who was the captain of the ship, sailed the Mayflower for more than three months until it finally made land in Massachusetts, Nov. 21. The people on the Mayflower then started the first colony in America.

Sept. 15, 1830 — First person killed by train One hundred and eighty five years ago, the first person was killed in a railway accident. William Husskison, a member of the Liverpool cabinet at the time, was one of the passengers aboard the first train that traversed the Liverpool and Manchester railway through what is now a suburb in Manchester. While the train was stopped, Husskison wished to enter the Duke of Wellington’s carriage, which required him to climb from one train on the North track to another on the South. While Husskison was between trains, the engines on the North track started to move and he found himself running to catch up. He made an attempt to open one of the doors, but in an instance of poor timing and momentum, the force of the door opening as the train was moving, threw Husskison under the train.

Sept. 15, 1928 — Discovery of Penicillin Alexander Flemming discovered Penicillin 88 years ago by chance. Flemming did not clean the petri dishes in his lab before he left on his two-week vacation, causing mold to grow in his absence. When he returned he noticed that one of the mold samples had completely killed the bacteria that had been on the petri dish. He teamed up with mycologist C.J. La Touché and they soon discovered that the bacteria killer was a Penicillium mold, which is known for growing on bread. Penicillin did not make its debut as a life-saving drug until 1940 when the troops of World War II were desperate for an effective way to treat infected wounds.

Sept. 15, 1997 — Google’s domain name registered The domain name Google.com was registered 19 years ago. The two men behind Google, Larry Page and Sergey Brinn, met in 1995 at Stanford University where Brinn was assigned to show Page around the school. The two collaborated on a search engine called BackRub, which ran off of the Stanford servers for about a year until it began to take up too much bandwidth. The two launched Google on this day in 1997. The name Google is a play on the word “googol,” a term used in math for the number one followed by 100 zeros. The two chose this name to reflect their desire to organize the almost infinite amount of information on the internet. Happy Birthday, Google!

Sept. 15, 2013 — First openly gay mayor in Mexico Three years ago, the first openly gay mayor in Mexico was sworn in. Benjamin Medrano made history when he was elected in the city of Fresnillo on a platform of social equality. After Medrano finished law school, he began a career as a professional singer and opened the first gay nightclub in Fresnillo. Medrano told BBC Mundo that his agenda was “based on achieving human and social development for all of us who live in Fresnillo, regardless of sexual orientation.”

(Photo courtesy of Vanessa Silberman)

SEPT. 15 - SEPT. 21, 2016 | T HE LUMBER JACK 13

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9/11 seen through a camera lens DOMINIQUE DIERKS

E

ric O’Connell’s love for photography began at a young age.

“As a kid, I would just consume pictures in National Geographic, and magazines and books and I wouldn’t bother reading, I would just look at the pictures,” said O’Connell, assistant professor of practice in photography and photojournalism at NAU. It comes as no surprise that O’Connell’s love for capturing images turned into a career in photography. Starting out as just simply having fun with cameras in high school, his hobby soon turned into his passion when entering college.

“My first year in college, I took an art photo course, and that was it. I just loved it,” O’Connell said.

Fast forward to 2016: O’Connell’s passion for photography has only grown stronger.

“I love being out, experiencing, traveling, seeing, looking at someone’s story — that is what it is about. It touches me like some other things don’t,” O’Connell said.

As of today, O’Connell has had photos published in Forbes

and The New York Times. However, the most memorable day — a day he can still clearly recall down to the smallest details 15 years later — started out beautiful and crisp in early September, 2001.

O’Connell had just moved to New York from an extended overseas trip when two Boeing 767 airplanes crashed into both then north and south towers of the World Trade Center, killing 2,977 people and injuring more than 6,000.

When O’Connell saw the news about the first plane hitting the North Tower, he intuitively took his camera with him as he exited his apartment to investigate what had happened.

In a personal artist statement accompanying the exhibit, O’Connell said, “As I entered what would become known as ‘ground zero’ it became clear I was now dangerously close. The debris fell and mixed with heavy ash and bodies, broken concrete, and steel. Bodies and mammoth pieces of steel slammed into the ground around me with intermittent, violent crashes. I looked up to see bodies draped, contorted, over building walls and precipices.”

As O’Connell surveyed the scene, he soon realized he was in grave danger.

“I suspected the tower might fall. I can’t say towers because I could only look at the one. I looked at this gaping hole and realized: That could fall. And that forced me to move my position, which saved my life.”

Indeed, the tower fell, and he and other bystanders took refuge in a lobby on West Street — a decision that saved their lives, because the falling tower destroyed most of the buildings around.

“I heard it, and I never looked up. I knew exactly what was happening: The building was falling. I turned, I pushed people and just screamed ‘Run!’” O’Connell said. “I didn’t know how I could process what I was seeing. I am not a war photographer.

And what I was looking at was war — the results of bombing a civilian population.”

O’Connell found sharing the pictures of that day as a way to process the event. His photography exhibit opened at NAU’s Riles Gallery last Thursday, almost exactly 15 years after the events of 9/11.

The pictures shown at “A New Reality” are powerful, and especially moving for people who remember that day — such as

LEFT: Students view Eric O’Connell’s work on Sept. 8 in the Riles Gallery. O’Connell’s collection of black and white photos were taken on Sept. 11, 2001, when he was living in New York City. ABOVE: Marcy Krueger listens as O’Connell presents his photos. Soon after these photos were taken, the first tower fell, and O’Connell was forced to take cover in a lobby on West Street. The exhibit opened almost exactly 15 years after the attack in New York. Many attendees at the exhibit were emotionally moved by the photos, as some were personally affected by the attacks, or remembered them clearly. (Photos by Holt Frazier)

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Dr. Dorothy W. Nelson, who teaches merchandising at NAU. While Nelson did not live in New York City at the time, she was deeply shaken by the attack.

“I moved to New York several years after 9/11, and seeing Eric O’Connell’s first-hand documentation of the event was very difficult. 9/11 not only destroyed a magnificent city, but also devastated our nation,” said Nelson in an email. “It was difficult to see the place I once called home reduced to such rubble and despair. Eric did a wonderful job of documenting a tragic story that is difficult to see, but needs to be heard.”

This is exactly what O’Connell hopes the gallery’s visitors will take away from his exhibit: a piece of history.

“This is an eye-witness account. This is what a person experienced, and this is what a person that was there saw,” O’Connell said.

Diane Rechel, a content specialist and editor in the College of Arts and Letters, played a crucial part in making this exhibit happen. She found O’Connell’s 9/11 work after he helped her with a photography assignment.

“When I came across his first-person account and images from 9/11, I was moved to tears. Right away it seemed like something that had to be shared with campus — especially with the 15th anniversary approaching,” said Rechel. “The photos are compelling on so many levels. They are artistic and artfully done.

Eric knows how to tell a story with his camera, and that’s what great photojournalism is all about. “ O’Connell’s exhibit “A New Reality” will be on display in the Riles Gallery until Dec. 21.

Eric O’Connell stands next to one of his photos at the exhibit at Riles Gallery, “A New Reality.” O’Connell teaches photography at NAU. The New York depicted in O’Connell’s photos is in the midst of a disaster which continues to influence people and politics today. (Photo by Holt Frazier)

Hope on the horizon: ISAAC DUDLEY

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any war veterans experience anger, isolation and guilt after returning home from combat. On Sept. 11, the Arizona Trail Association premiered the award-winning documentary Almost Sunrise.

The documentary follows two Iraq war veterans, Tom Voss and Anthony Anderson, on their search for inner peace. Almost Sunrise follows Voss and Anderson as they walk across the country from Wisconsin to California on a 2,700-mile adventure dubbed the Veteran’s Trek.

Most people have heard of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD); however, a new concept is quickly coming to the forefront of how we treat recovering war veterans. This new concept is called moral injury, the result of drastically breaking one’s moral code. Almost Sunrise focuses on holistic healing practices that are designed to help alleviate the pain of moral injury, leading to emotional release and true recovery.

Voss and Anderson — who were also battling demons from their time in the military — were finding it impossible to readjust to civilian life.

“I was in such a low place that I knew if I didn’t change something I was going to kill myself,” said Anderson.

The film emphasized the shocking statistic that every 65 minutes a veteran commits suicide. This means we lose more veterans to suicide than to combat.

Millions of dollars are spent on veteran mental-health programs every year and yet this statistic makes it staggeringly clear current efforts are not working.

Almost Sunrise explores veteran experiences

“Traditional treatment includes talk therapy or drugs, which simply doesn’t work for everyone,” said David Kurneta, a veteran who served as a medic in the Navy and was on the ground during the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

“When I returned home I didn’t think about my time over there, but years later it started to take a toll on my relationships,” said Kurneta.

Kurneta was then accepted by the Warrior Expedition program and hiked the Arizona Trail from the southern border of the United States to Utah. The Warrior Expedition program, a non-profit, uses nature as a resource for deep self-reflection.

The program emerged in 2013 with 13 veterans who hiked the full length of the Appalachian Trail. Since then, the program has grown to include every national scenic trail, including the Arizona Trail, and even paddle and bike programs.

PTSD has been treated since 1980. However, moral injury is not yet being treated regularly. Moral injury is becoming increasingly recognized as one of the key issues faced by veterans, and possibly the signature war wound of our generation.

“I think everyone knows of someone who struggles with these issues, a friend or family member, but it seems like [PTSD and moral injury] should not be in the same category,” said Jeremie Dalaba.

Having watched Almost Sunrise for the first time, Dalaba was taken aback by the number of veterans who commit suicide.

“People just keep themselves busy, and don’t confront their issues. This film should go national,” Dalaba said.

The attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, lead the U.S. to engage in two separate wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“Lots of veterans have served three, four or even five tours, and this program seeks to help those veterans adjust to civilian life,” said Sirena Dufault, the liaison for the Warrior Expedition program and the Arizona Trail association.

According to those at the event, many veterans isolate themselves because they feel they can no longer trust people.

“I have seen such a change occur in these veterans from day one, to when they meet that Utah border nine weeks later,” Dufault said.

At the premier, Kurneta spoke passionately about his experiences on the Arizona Trail.

“After returning home, I felt like I couldn’t trust anyone after seeing the worst of humanity, but during the time we were on the trail, people would invite us into their houses, share their food, and even their beer, which allowed me to see the good in people again,” Kurneta said.

Almost Sunrise centers on hope.

“We want to change the narrative … Promote wellness and challenge the idea of veterans as ‘sick,’” Dufault said.

Part of an action campaign, the film strives to change the way people understand the challenges faced by returning veterans, and also to show other struggling veterans that they are not alone, that there are programs that can help, and to encourage them to not give up.

Thanks to programs like Warrior Expeditions and the Arizona Trail Association, many veterans expressed they had found peace at last, and, for them, hope truly is on the horizon.

SEPT. 15 - SEPT. 21, 2016 | T HE LUMBER JACK 17

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Let the Sol Drop MAKENNA LEPOWSKY

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family by choice bound together by an unbreakable adoration for music: punkfunk trio Sol Drop is a melodious force to be reckoned with.

Letting the band’s talent shine through with fierce sound, the punk authenticity of Sol Drop rings true more than ever in their most recent album, It’s Alright.

Like magnets drawn together, rock trifecta Sol Drops features the edgy flairs and talents of Kathryn Meyers, Brian Dorsey and Sean Buechel.

Each member of the group contributes aspects of individuality, distinct talent and passion, illuminating the “sol” that is projected through their most recent album.

“We all contribute a significant degree of musicianship to the band in our own ways,” said Buechel. “Kathryn is a blues guitar player, Brian is a punk drummer and I’m just a dude who fills the right spaces with bass.”

While the foundation of Sol Drop’s roots draw heavily from classic rock, It’s Alright mixes in various genres blues, pop, punk, folk, funk and the groovy, vibrant sounds of reggae.

Perhaps it is each member’s individual history within music that gives the band and the new album its identity and diverse sound. Whatever the reason, displays of the members’ combined talents are revealed from the album’s beginning to end.

“We each have a different history with music and learning our instruments that come together in an interesting way that almost creates a new genre,” Buechel said.

With the fierce rhythms reverberating from the thumps of Dorsey’s drums, Sol Drop lets their distinct and edgy rock-and-roll sound act as their guru, guiding them down the road to musical achievement.

With a hints of Janis Joplin’s attitude meeting Stevie Nicks tenor — the vocals of Meyers on It’s Alright is complemented by the deep, reverberations of bass guitar played by Buechel. With a voice like honey — soft and smooth — Buechel sings subtle back-up vocals, complimenting the feisty and energetic sound of Meyers’ voice.

Sol Drop continues to channel some of classic rock’s most entrenched and valued legends throughout the entirety of the new album from songs such as “Cemetery Chillin’,” “Why Do You Care?,” “Fake” and “Rewinder.” With these songs, their musical admirations for musicians such as the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix and Bruce Springsteen is

apparent.

Exemplifying their diverse sound and varietal use of music genres, drummer Dorsey plunges into new water. He infuses sounds that initially might sound unusual but when incorporated seem natural with their bold and risky sound.

“In ‘Cemetery Chillin’ I play a Latin-influenced beat over a grunge-style guitar riff, which was an interesting combination,” said Dorsey. “I try to incorporate my tom [drums] into my beats, not so much in the drum fills, but throughout the beat I will hit a tom instead of the snare.”

While the vocals, instrumentation and production of It’s Alright satisfied the band, the road of creation is not an always easy path to take.

It’s Alright represented a first of many for the group.

“Being in a professional studio was a first for us, and we learned how to perform as studio musicians,” said Meyers. “It was a challenge initially because we like to feed off energy of our crowds. We got used to it though, and now it helps us perform to our best.”

Along with development through studio time, the band’s sound has traveled the never-ending road of progression to where they are today.

“We have all improved as musicians,” Meyers said. “Especially when it comes to creating and playing together. Aside from practicing allowing us to be more proficient on our instruments, we’ve learned to book higher-profile gigs, produce quality media from recordings and to market ourselves.”

The stories and songs on the new album are derived from the band members’ experiences gathered over the course of adolescence — the sometimes rocky path into early stages of adulthood. Each song tells a story, echoing with teen angst and nostalgia — feelings that may resonate with many listeners.

“The stories and songs in It’s Alright document the experiences of the end of high school through the end of sophomore year of college,” Meyers said. “ Each song has its own little meaning — I know for all of us, this album represents success and achievement together in music.”

It’s Alright is a true representation of infused musical talents and one-of-a-kind souls combined.

As the band progresses down the road of musical exploration, expect Sol Drop to continue testing musical limits in future albums.

To share their latest music with the rest of NAU, Sol Drop will be performing at an open event on campus Sept. 16 at the central quad, around 5 p.m.

Things couldn’t be stranger ABIGAIL BIEKER

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he new Netflix original series, Stranger Things, has captured the attention of many avid TV-watchers, including college-aged audiences.

Science-fiction lovers have become engaged in an immersive storyline about a boy named Will, who disappears after a science experiment goes wrong and takes over the small town Hawkins, Ind. The tale, which takes place in 1983, centers on Joyce Byers — played by award-winning actress Winona Ryder — who is forced to go on a captivating hunt for her son Will. Jim Hopper, sheriff of Hawkins, dedicates himself to finding Will.

With the investigation, a horrific mystery emerges, pulling individuals into a secret, supernatural world.

With Will’s disappearance, his best friends — Mike, Dustin and Lucas — go on their own hunt to figure out what pulled their friend away. As the boys dig deeper, they come across a girl called Eleven, who ends up having a few secrets of her own.

Mike invites Eleven to stay at his house, caring for the estranged girl and providing her with shelter. Eleven then helps the boys cope with the bizarre and eerie events to follow, leaving the viewer wanting more.

Throughout the show, viewers become engaged with other characters who add to the story line, such as Nancy Wheeler — Mike’s older sister — and Jonathan Byers, Will’s older brother. Both characters experience their own strange occurrences, which later tie into the larger plot.

Stranger Things goes beyond the typical binge-worthy Netflix show because the ‘80s-inspired cinematography, the soundtrack and creative special effects.

The directing and writing is reminiscent of Steven Spielberg, John Carpenter, Stephen King and George Lucas. Stephen King is the author of many horror, supernatural and suspenseful fiction, while Spielberg — a director and producer — makes science fiction and adventure films. Devoted cinema fans will undoubtedly be drawn to the intensity of this show.

Aired on July 15, 2016, Stranger Things has gotten reviews of 9.1/10 on IMBD, 90 percent on Rotten Tomatoes and 9.2/10 on TV.com.

The show takes place over eight, enthralling 50-minute-long episodes in the first season — leaving viewers convinced some supernatural worlds may really exist.

(Illustration by Alanna Secrest)

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IceJackin’, slap shootin’ and board checkin’ MATTHEW KIEWIET

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he Zamboni is buzzing, sticks are taped and the Jay Lively Ice Arena locker rooms reek of perspiration and possibly mold. Tryouts are over, rosters are set and the IceJacks are gearing up for their 2016-2017 campaign.

“There’s going to be some tough decisions this year,” said general manager A.J. Fairchild during tryouts Sept. 8 — two days before the final rosters for both division II (D2) and III (D3) were to be posted. “We need to cut the squad down to 50 and there aren’t 20 bad guys out here.”

Tryouts ran for two weeks. The first week was mostly for conditioning and drills so that everyone could get used to Flagstaff’s 7,000-foot elevation. The second week was spent scrimmaging. There were two, hour-long scrimmages per day Wednesday through Saturday (Sept. 7-10). The 78 hopefuls were split up based on position and then randomly assigned to teams. Essentially they just went out and competed in a game-like atmosphere and the coaches made evaluations determined by their performances.

“What we’re looking for here in gameplay is guys’ hockey sense, skills, abilities, hustle, effort, teamwork and things like that,” said division III head coach Kris Walsh. “So, that’s why we put them in game-like scenarios.”

With roughly half of their team returning from last season, the IceJacks are hungry for another playoff run after an early exit in the 2016 regionals for the D2 squad.

“We’re nationally contending teams — both teams,” Walsh said. “We fully expect to be back in the playoffs and compete for those opportunities.”

Teams can qualify for the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) playoffs through a ranking system. There are nine coaches in each region of the ACHA that rank teams contingent to how they compare to each other within a certain criterion.

“They’re voting based off of strength of schedule, wins and losses … all that good stuff,” Walsh said.

The University of Nevada Las Vegas took out the D2 IceJacks 5–0 in the first round of the

TOP: Sophomore forward Max Mahood and freshman forward Reise Keiffer fight for possession of the puck during the D2 Icejacks’ first practice of the season Sept. 12. LEFT: Sophomore defender Christian Foster crosses over while cradling the puck toward the net during the Icejacks’ first practice. RIGHT: Head coach Travis Johanson goes over drills with the team. (photos by Keely Damara)

22 T HE LUMBER JACK | JACKCEN T R AL .ORG

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regional playoffs — something that fifth-year right-wing forward and team captain Corey Briody has definitely not forgotten.

“Getting back against UNLV would be good — to get a little revenge on them from last year at regionals,” said Briody. “That was a bad exit for us. I think all of the guys have that one circled on the calendar.”

Briody is now a graduate student at NAU studying accounting and finance. Club sports allow for 10 semesters of participation, so this is his last hurrah. The combination of this motivation with his experience made him a natural team captain.

“Last year [I was] an assistant captain so I kind of had that responsibility already,” Briody said.

“I’m just taking on a little bit more, so more eyes are on me a little bit more — when I’m playing and off the ice. I’m just kind of keeping the guys on track and keeping everyone focused on the main goal is probably my main responsibility.”

In addition to the seasoned vets, the IceJacks possess another valuable asset: solid team chemistry among not only their returners but with the new players as well.

“You could just tell some guys just played really well together,” said freshman leftwing forward Rayce Miller. “Even some of the newer guys and the veteran players gelled really well. I think a lot of times that’s a hard thing to have right off the bat, so it’s good to see that that’s happening already.”

Miller, freshman defenseman Miles Lengyel, freshman wing Austin Gooch and junior forward Trey Gonzalez all grew up playing hockey in Flagstaff. Hockey has a narrow pool of players to draw from compared other NCAA sports such as football and basketball. The same is true in Flagstaff.

“We always had less guys on our team than the other teams,” Miller said. “But we were always really close and we were really good.”

This will be their first time skating together since Miller’s father was their coach, according to Rayce. He remembers the electric atmosphere of the IceJacks games he attended growing up.

“Oh yeah, yeah, they were always crazy,” Miller said. “Your parents always had to keep an eye on you because there were so many rowdy kids going.”

“Against teams like [Arizona State University], there are times it gets so loud that you can’t even hear the ref ’s whistle,” Fairchild said.

The D2 and D3 teams will face the Phoenix Knights — a Junior A hockey team from Phoenix, Ariz., with the goal to develop “elite ice hockey players aged 15-20,” according to their mission statement — on Sept. 17 to kick off the season. D2 will play at home at the Jay Lively Arena in Flagstaff at 8:30 p.m. D3 will head south to Phoenix for a 6:30 p.m. face-off.

(Bottom row, left to right) Miles Lengyal, Austin Gooch, (top row, left to right) Rayce Miller, Trey Gonzalez at the Icejacks’ first practice of the season. (photo by Keely Damara)

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY KEELY DAMARA

Volleyball puts on clinic in home openers KATHRYN HEFFERNON, MATTHEW KIEWIET

T

he NAU volleyball team continued their dominant play, breezing past Bethune-Cookman in straight sets 25–11, 25–13, 25–10 Sept. 9 and 25–5, 25–17, 25–15 Sept. 10 at the Joseph C. Rolle Activity Center.

Friday’s match was the second time this season the Jacks have set a school record for fewest points allowed with 34 (previous record being 36 points allowed versus Hampton).

“One of our strengths is reading the game and anticipating what’s next,” said head coach Ken Murphy. “No matter what level of competition we’re facing, we feel like that’s a strength of ours, it gives us some advantages and we definitely showed that tonight.”

Freshman outside hitter Sydney Lema wasted no time making her presence felt in her first collegiate home game with seven digs and four kills in the first set, much to the delight of the nearly sold out arena.

“It was really exciting,” said Lema. “The crowd was really engaged. It was really fun — it contributed to our win.”

Lema finished with a double-double, racking up 10 kills and 15 digs. Senior outside hitter Lauren Jacobsen added eight kills and 11 digs, while senior setter Jensen Barton had 27 assists and 14 digs.

As a team, the Lumberjacks hit the ball at a rate of .319 compared to -.057 for Bethune Cookman.

NAU was able to apply a considerable amount of service pressure with 12 aces. Lema and Barton combined for half of those aces with three apiece. The match was never in doubt, as it saw

only six ties and two lead changes.

“I was really happy with our consistent focus,” Lema said. “Over the past few weekends, we’ve had a few times where we lost our focus, but we kept our focus tonight and it paid off.”

The Jacks set another school record on Saturday with only five points allowed in the first set.

“We’re playing as hard as we can,” Murphy said. “The last two nights showed us that we are ready to be a consistent volleyball team.”

Barton continued her steady play with 35 assists, along with seven kills and nine digs. The Jacks brought great service pressure once again to keep Bethune-Cookman from getting anything going offensively. NAU finished with eight aces, four of which were from Jacobsen.

“We had great service pressure and we made them scramble,” said Barton. “We didn’t give them anything. We learned to play the same each game and to not play down to the other team.”

After the lopsided first set, the Wildcats added more pressure during the second and third sets. The two teams were neck-and-neck until freshman outside hitter Abby Akin’s kill swayed the momentum in NAU’s favor, giving the Jacks a 12–10 lead. They went on the finish the match with ease.

The Jacks hit the ball at a .398 rate, while the Wildcats hit at a rate of .061. Additionally, NAU finished with four team blocks and one return error compared to Bethune-Cookman’s two and eight, respectively.

“I feel great about how we played, but we still have a lot of room to improve,” Barton said. “I’m confident in us going into next week, and after next week we’ll be ready for conference.”

NAU will be away next week, taking on CSU Bakersfield on Sept. 15.

SEPT. 15 - SEPT. 21, 2016 | T HE LUMBER JACK 23

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