4.11.2016- Fourth Estate

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FOURTH ESTATE April 11, 2016 | Volume 3 Issue 19 George Mason University’s official student news outlet gmufourthestate.com | @IVEstate

PEACE

IS THE WORD

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TEAMWORK MAKES THE

DREAM WORK

FOR MEN’S CLUB LAX

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(AMY ROSE/FOURTH ESTATE)

Fourth Estate

2 04.04.2016

CLASSIFIEDS Help Wanted

Help Wanted

Steiner Vision Pt/Ft - Office Work .

Will Train, Excellent pay, low stress work environment-many George Mason and NOVA students over the years have gained valuable work experience in our 7 Corners, Falls Church, VA office.

For more info call Dr. Steiner at Cell 571-276-1534 or ask for Maria at Office- 703-237-1770

HIRING Summer Camp Counselors to teach and lead Summer Camps at Curiosity Zone in Ashburn.

Part-time and Full-time shifts available. Must be able to work at-least 20 hours a week. Email resume to: employment@ curiosityzoneashburn.com or apply online www.czoneashburn.com

Seeking Part-Time Teacher to teach Science & Robotics Classes to Kids ages 5-10 at Curiosity Zone in Ashburn.

You will be using a defined curriculum with laid out lesson plans. 10-20 hours a week on a fixed schedule.

Great learning opportunity for an Education major.

Email resume to: employment@ curiosityzoneashburn.com

Crime Log Mar. 31

Editor-In-Chief

Darian Banks Managing Editor News Editor

Natalia Kolenko Assistant News Editor

Assault / Dating Violence / Stalking

Savannah Norton

Complainant (GMU) reported an incident of intimate partner violence. Officers responded to the scene and found the victim (GMU) in need of medical attention.

The suspect (Non-GMU) turned himself into police shortly after the incident and was arrested and transported to Fairfax County Adult Detention Center for committing robbery and assault against an intimate partner. Subject also attempted to contact the victim on multiple occasions following the arrest.

Hampton Roads / Cleared by Arrest / 12:35 AM

Lifestyle Editor

Tatyana White-Jenkins Assistant Lifestyle Editor

Courtney Hoffman Sports Editor

Ben Cowlishaw Assistant Sports Editor

Amy Rose

Apr. 02 2016-011196 / Destruction/Damage/

Photography Editor

Katie Morgan Design Editor

Vandalism of Property

Megan Zendek

Subject (GMU) was referred to Office of Student Conduct (OSC) for damaging an elevator.

Barbara Brophy

Hampton Roads / Referred to OSC / 12:42 AM

Apr. 03 2016-011295 / Drunkenness / Subject (GMU) was arrested and transported to Fairfax County Adult Detention Center for being highly intoxicated in public and refusing to pay a taxi driver.

Starbucks Loading Dock / Cleared by Arrest / 3:46 AM

Apr. 06 2016-011723 / Reckless Driving / Eluding Police Two subjects (GMU) were referred to Office of Student Conduct (OSC) for driving recklessly on campus and running from police.

Lot C / Referred to OSC / 2:25 AM

Apr. 06

Students participate in Mason’s annual International Week Parade, representing countries from all over the world.

Alexa Rogers

2016-010905 / Robbery / Aggravated

Defrauding a Taxi Driver

ON THE COVER

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Ellen Glickman

For Sale 50cc Scooters Sold and Serviced. Great for getting around on and off campus.

No license/insurance req. www.metroscootersva.com; 571-418-2025.

GMUFOURTHESTATE.COM @IVESTATE

2016-011815 / Hit and Run Complainant (GMU) reported that a vehicle struck their vehicle and then fled the scene causing approximately $1,500 in damage.

Roanoke River Rd @ Mason Pond Dr. / Pending / 8:58 PM

Visual Editor Copy Chief

Ryan Adams Distribution Manager

Kathryn Mangus Director

David Carroll Associate Director Fourth Estate is printed each Monday for George Mason University and its surrounding Fairfax community. The editors of Fourth Estate have exclusive authority over the content that is published.

There are no outside parties that play a role in the newspaper’s content, and should there be a question or complaint regarding this policy, the Editor-in-Chief should be notified at the email provided.

Fourth Estate is a free publication, limit one copy per person. Additional copies are 25 cents payable to the Office of Student Media.

Mail Fourth Estate George Mason University Mail stop 2C5 4400 University Drive Fairfax, Va. 22030 Phone 703-993-2950

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News

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Provost office hosts event to examine diversity versus inclusion

(VINCE GOMES/FOURTH ESTATE)

ANNELISE JENSEN | STAFF WRITER

Last Tuesday, Mason’s Office of the Provost hosted an event to discuss student and faculty inclusion within the Mason community. The event, “Doing What Matters: Pathways to Inclusive Excellence,” will be the first in a series of several events addressing questions of inclusion at Mason.

President Ángel Cabrera opened Tuesday’s event by introducing keynote speaker Dr. Tricia Rose, professor of Africana Studies and the director of the Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in America at Brown University. The public event filled Dewberry Hall with equal parts Mason students, staff and faculty gathered to listen about the sensitive subject of inclusion and diversity on campus.

“Yes we [the Mason community] are diverse, but are we inclusive?”

Cabrera asked in his introductory speech.

Mason welcomed Rose back to campus to speak on this divisive topic. Rose has previously spoken at Mason on social inequality issues, including speaking at the university’s Black History Month events in 2015. She is internationally renowned for her study of post-Civil Rights Era culture and social inequalities within AfricanAmerican communities.

According to Rose, the challenges of new structural racism and stereotyping in American society are preventing social equality.

“A lot of institutions have fallen asleep behind the wheel,” Rose said in reference to recent racial inclusion and diversity conflicts raised at unversities across the nation. Rose told audience members

that they must look at the diversity and inclusion issue as a societal problem, not merely an issue isolated to academia.

Here at Mason, the recent removal of Dr. Shaoxian Yu from his position as associate director of the Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Multicultural Education (ODIME) incited student protests over what some saw as an existing inclusion problem at Mason.

According to Rose, the way society missuses egalitarianism, the principle that all people are equal in society and ‘color blindness’ has created a “gap between what we think and what we have In Cabrera’s opening statement Tuesday, he stated that the goal for since the 1960’s [civil rights movements].” She said people today Mason’s inclusion efforts is to “increase cultural proficiency of our believe themselves to be racially unbiased, but this only masks staff.” Cabrera said Mason prides itself on being a multicultural the truth. This line of thinking is making it difficult to have an honest conversation about how statistics show “Yes we [the Mason community] are diverse, but are we inclusive?” social inequality in areas like - University President Ángel Cabrera higher education, the criminal justice system and wealth, she said. She also said there is fear among universities that “inclusion will drag down their excellence.” In the U.S., African- university compared to many other higher education institutions, American women hold only 0.3 percent of the PhDs; Rose is but Mason’s faculty population is less diverse than its student body. included in this minority.

Recently, Cabrera has made strides toward greater inclusion on Rose suggested that college education itself could be a way to fix this disparity. “Our curriculum is our biggest weapon to confront these issues,” Rose said.

The event took place at an opportune time when students are questioning their universities’ inclusion and diversity policies. Last March, Princeton University faced protests from students for failing to rename its public policy school, the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Woodrow Wilson, the 28th president of the United States, was a supporter of the Klu Klux Klan.

campus by establishing a Diversity and Inclusion Leadership Council to advance these goals.

“The council is charged with recommending and promoting policies, programs, and other initiatives that will attract and retain a diverse mix of faculty, staff, and students,” he announced in a school-wide email on March 21. The effectiveness of these new policies is yet to be determined.

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Mason stirs up Earth Month with food sustainability MACKENZIE EARL | STAFF WRITER

Mason’s Sustainable Food Systems Symposium on April 1 was one of numerous events that will bring together students, staff and faculty to examine emerging food systems during the university’s Earth Month.

The symposium was a chance for Mason students and regional sustainable food experts to discuss how the university can improve its commitment to sustainability by increasing the presence of local food on campus.

90 registered participants attended the event. The symposium included an opening keynote speaker, a series of panelists, small group discussions and a networking lunch.

According to the program’s statement of purpose, the event was designed to give students the opportunity to network and “engage with panelists in pursuit of opportunities for internships.”

Michael Gilmore is the principal investigator on the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) grant that founded the symposium. The co-principal investigator is Andrew Wingfield, associate professor for New Century College. Danielle Wyman-Castellano from the Office of Sustainability and Emily Bowman-Lipton, an undergraduate intern also with the Office of Sustainability, assisted with the planning of this event.

The symposium was funded by a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant that was also intended to develop a Food and Agriculture concentration within the Environmental Studies and Sustainability major.

Wingfield has been planning the curriculum for the new concentration since January 2015 and it will be available to students next fall. This concentration will include Sustainable Food Systems, Food Policy and Professional Pathways courses in addition to food system electives. The symposium not only served as an event to inform students of the new concentration, but also to expose students to the wide range of careers in the food systems field.

Through the symposium, Wingfield hoped to “create an event that would give everyone in attendance a snapshot of the diversity of issues” involved in food systems. He selected panelists that work in food sustainability in the immediate region to expose students to “informal educators.” According to Wingfield, students often view professors as their primary sources of knowledge and fail to take

advantage of other learning opportunities. The decision to invite professionals from differing age cohorts and career fields was done to attract as many students as possible.

The symposium’s keynote speaker, Tanya Denckla Cobb, director of the University of Virginia’s Institute for Environmental Negotiation, spoke regarding the community-building effects of local food systems.

According to Cobb, grassroots food systems, such as community gardens, have the ability to heal neighborhoods. Community gardens can increase camaraderie within a neighborhood, leading to a decrease in crime and an increasingly enriching community, Cobb said.

Through local food systems, “we will be achieving the definition of communal food security, which is about justice,” Cobb said. She also hoped to “entice you [students] into the world of the food movement where a world of possibility awaits you.”

The first panel presentation was on sustainable food production. It included opening statements from professionals involved in the development of sustainable farms, food access programs and food safety.

The second panel, on sustainable food distribution, included professionals working in the U.S. Department of Agriculture and food systems developers.

Jen Hawse, regional market manager for Relay Foods in Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, spoke on the importance of developing regional food accessibility and buying local. She works with more than 200 producers to provide products for Relay Foods, an online regional food hub with pickup locations or home-delivery options.

“We source what we need. We don’t source to make it abundant for the consumer,” Hawse said.

Sustainable food consumption, the third panel topic, discussed farm-to-school programs and food accessibility issues.

Natalie Talis, policy associate for the National Farm to School

(MEGAN ZENDEK/FOURTH ESTATE)

Network, focused on the importance of early nutrition education.

“It is about enticing people to feel empowered to make their own healthy food choices,” Talis said.

The symposium concluded with open group discussions that allowed students to discuss food sustainability with the panelists and address how Mason can improve the promotion of sustainability both on and off campus. Many of the groups suggested adding more elective courses that would introduce sustainability to students in any major and increasing promotion of Mason’s existing sustainability initiatives.

Emily Novak, resident advisor for Mason’s Sustainability Living Living Learning Community, was excited to see so many food-centered professionals gathered in one place. Although food is mentioned in sustainability classes, she said courses do not spend much time discussing regional food issues. Novak was happy that Wingfield “noted there was a need for this kind of event.”

Wingfield also emphasized that the panelists benefit from successful relationships with universities and students by gaining valuable

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internship applicants and forming personal connections.

“I found it really energizing to have these people from off campus come to campus as educational resources,” he said.

In addition to the Sustainable Food Systems Symposium, several other Earth Month events are centered on local food systems and the development of sustainable food markets.

Wyman-Castellano has spent four undergraduate years and seven professional years at Mason. In that time, she said, Mason’s responsiveness to food systems has changed dramatically.

When Wyman-Castellano first came to Mason as a freshman, there was “no mention of sustainable local foods, organic foods, nothing.” In the past six years, however, there have been huge turnovers in management of Sodexo, the contracting company that runs Mason Dining.

She attributes some of Mason’s progress to Michel Wetli, general manager of Mason Dining. Wetli is a “front-runner and huge supporter of sustainable foods,” Wyman-Castellano said.

According to her, Mason Dining dedicates six percent of its annual budget to purchasing locally-sourced foods. The work done by Mason Dining to increase food quality and decrease food waste has transformed the dining halls since her time as a Mason student, she said.

Wyman-Castellano believes the development of local food systems is especially important to the Fairfax area because of its dense population and scarcity of local farms -- there are only two in the region. Thus, the majority of Fairfax residents rely on food from farms that are not nearby. In order for people in Fairfax to gain access to food, huge quantities of it must be shipped. This can hurt the environment, since fossil fuels are used to transport food items.

The combination of a dense population and lack of local farms “doesn’t create a resilient system,” Wyman-Castellano said. In the event of a shortage of fossil fuels or a breakdown in the ability to transport goods, she explained, people in Fairfax County will not be able to feed their families. To illustrate the social impact of such a breakdown, Wyman-Castellano explained that “hungry people are angry people.” She said building resiliency within regional food communities is vital for long-term sustainability.

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change in regards to the food system here at Mason is really student-driven.” Mason’s chapter of the Real Food Collective has been very involved with increasing the sustainable foods available through Mason Dining. According to its mission statement, the National Real Food Collective is a “student group working to maintain a national network of student food activists.”

The Real Food Collective assesses whether ingredients used by Mason Dining qualify as “real foods.” Mason’s chapter is working to get 20 percent of Mason Dining’s budget dedicated to “real foods.”

“It could be really powerful if we could get student support for something like that,” Wyman-Castellano said.

“Connections are my office, and that’s really all that I see being done,” Wyman-Castellano said.

Above all, she emphasized that “students need to realize that the food choices they make really do matter.” When students purchase food on or off campus, they are voting with their dollars, she said.

She added when students take time to consider the economic, social and environmental stability of certain products, they can influence the abundance of responsible products in the market.

Some of the connections the Office of Sustainability has organized are Mason’s Community Supported Agriculture program and Mason’s Farmers’ Market.

According to Wyman-Castellano, students are “starting to develop a little bit of awareness and asking, ‘Where does your food come from?’.”

Mason’s connections to local food systems are few and far between.

Wyman-Castellano also emphasized that “any really significant

2016 EARTH MONTH EVENTS

need to register.

See the list below of upcoming Earth Month events where you can learn Bike Blender more about sustainable food. Also, read the list to get a sneak peak of events where you can expect further Fourth Estate coverage.

Sustainable Food Speaker Series When: Thursday, April 14 from 4:30 PM – 6:00 PM Where: Piedmont Residence Hall Rm 104

When: Wednesday, April 20 and Thursday, April 21 from 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM Where: North Plaza (April 20) and Sub I Quad (April 21)

Make a smoothie by riding a bike. On April 20, the flavor will be strawThroughout the semester, this has been open to the public every other berry banana. On April 21, the flavor will be pineapple and greenhouse Thursday. On April 14, Juju Harris, who spoke at an earlier session, will greens. All smoothies will be vegan. return to campus and talk about local food systems. Harris wrote that she “works to increase community knowledge and familiarity with the uses and Sustainable Foods Day preparations of seasonal vegetables, herbs, and unprocessed foods.” Harris When: Thursday, April 21 from 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM intends to discuss her role as Coordinator of the Supplemental Nutrition Where: Southside Plaza Assistance Program (SNAP) and her passion for nutrition education and Mason Dining will host this sustainable food showcase and plant-based food justice. cooking competition.

Mason Stream Clean-Up

When: Saturday, April 16 from 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM Where: TBD The facilities department will sponsor a clean-up of Mason streams.

President’s Park Hydroponics Greenhouse Tours When: Monday, April 18 and 25 from 1:00 PM – 5:00 PM Tour start times: 1 pm, 3:30 pm, 4:30 pm.

Where: President’s Park Hydroponics Greenhouse Doni Ward, greenhouse coordinator, will be leading the tours. There is no

Let’s Talk About Climate Change

When: Thursday, April 21 from 8:00 PM – 9:00 PM Where: Research Hall 163 The discussion is sponsored by Mason’s Center for Climate Change Communication.

To view the entire list of Earth Month events, visit http://green.gmu.edu/community/ earthweek/.

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Web Of Lies

RACHEL SHUBIN | STAFF WRITER

“My dog ate my homework.”

If that excuse didn’t for you in elementary school, what makes you think a college professor is going to believe it?

We’ve all been there. You feel like you can’t finish an assignment -- or you simply don’t want to finish it -- so you come up with an excuse that is not the slightest bit true or even reasonable.

While a little white lie might seem like an easy way to get an extension or sympathy, honesty is always the best policy. Many professors are very understanding when students tell them the truth and are willing to work with students for a resolution.

circus comes to town each spring. For two weeks, the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus takes up vast portions of the parking lots students use.

Senior history major Madina Niaz does not appreciate when the circus comes to town. “It upsets me that I pay upwards of $400 for parking to only have elephants and other animals take up my spots along with the traffic of people who come to watch,” she said. “I was late to class last week because of parking. In earlier years I would have skipped my classes, but now in my final semester I just have to deal with it.”

Sickness is another common excuse for missing class.

“I rarely skip class, [but] if I ever have a dire circumstance, like I completely blanked on an assignment, I will just pretend I was sick,” an anonymous student said. “There have been times where I just needed more sleep, so I told my professor I was sick and couldn’t make it to class.”

This excuse really only works if you use it sparingly, but it can be easily regretted if you actually get sick later in the semester. Be careful with your web of lies!

But if you do choose to disregard the truth of your situation, don’t think that whatever clever excuse you’ve come up with hasn’t been heard before!

French professor Nadia Duchelle said she has heard every range of excuses students have to offer.

“I used to save all the student excuse emails I received since there were so many,” Duchelle said. “They’ve told me about car trouble, their alarm didn’t work, dog ate my homework, death of a family member, being sick, having migraines and so on.”

And while many students often suffer the loss of family members in college, using that as a phony excuse is no laughing matter. “Some students have killed their grandmothers over and over and over again,” Duchelle said.

Believe it or not, “dead grandmother syndrome” is a real thing according to Mike Adams, a biologist at Eastern Connecticut State University. Adams collected data for 20 years and concluded that students’ grandmothers were far more likely to die before midterms than at any other time of the semester.

Professors use their own discretion about whether or not to ask for a death certificate if a student claims a family member or close friend has died.

Technology problems are also common, whether it’s spilling coffee on a laptop or forgetting to save an assignment. Students cannot rely on technology wholeheartedly, which is why it is important to start early enough that there can be time to combat any issues that arise.

Remember to save early and often, and always back up assignments.

In addition, while your printer might actually fail on the day you have a huge paper due, this is not a good excuse.

Mason students have the ability to print work at different spots around campus.

Similarly, though Mason’s Wi-Fi has been known to falter at the worst times, the university has been working on improving the situation this semester. If you were planning on using poor Wi-Fi as an excuse for not submitting an assignment on time, you might want to think again.

An issue that is particularly unique to Mason is when the (MEGAN ZENDEK/ FOURTH ESTATE)

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lifestyle Allergies v. getting sick

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A guide to springtime sickness

ISSMAR VENTURA | STAFF WRITER

Spring is an enjoyable season for many, but for others, it can be a season of feeling lousy.

Many members of the Mason community get sick this time of year.

Some attribute it to allergies that attack right when spring starts, while others assume they are just more prone to getting colds as temperatures change.

There is not an exact answer as to why people get sick as winter ends and spring begins, but News in Health, a monthly newsletter from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, said in a recent article that it has to do with the overlap of allergy season and flu season.

detecting the three illnesses ahead of time. Colds and flu are caused by different viruses.

is a great way to combat this illness beginning in the fall season so come spring season, students are less prone to get sick.

As a rule of thumb, the symptoms associated with the flu are more severe. Allergies are a little different, because they are not caused by a virus, instead it is your body’s immune system reacting to a trigger, or allergen, which is something you’re allergic to.

One of the best ways to help protect yourself and the Mason community is to get your flu shot each year. Student Health Services offers flu shots for students, faculty, and staff at the Fairfax, Arlington, and Science and Technology Campus clinics for twenty dollars for students and twenty-five dollars for faculty and staff.

Other Mason students, like sophomore Kera White, also tend to get colds during the spring. White said she does not have allergies.

“I usually get seasonal colds, therefore I’m used to it. And having allergies is triggered by nature because a cold is usually something from germs or a virus in the air,” White said. “I also think that higher pollen levels influence this because I see people get really puffy and sneezing around this time.”

According to Dr. Carol Filak, nurse practitioner at Student Health Services at Mason, students should check the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website to find more precise information on what makes allergy symptoms different from common cold symptoms or the flu.

According to the CDC page, The Flu: What to Do If You Get Sick, if you have allergies and breathe in things like pollen or pet dander, the immune cells in your nose and airways may overreact to these substances. Your respiratory tissues may then swell, and your nose may become stuffed up or runny.

NIH’s Dr. Teresa Hauguel, an expert on infectious diseases that affect breathing, says that knowing which of the three you have (allergies, common cold, or flu) helps in knowing which medicines to take.

Hauguel also said in the News in Health article that allergy symptoms usually last as long as you’re exposed to the allergen, which may be about six weeks during pollen seasons in the spring, summer or fall. Colds and the flu rarely last longer than weeks.

“If you know what you have, you won’t take medications that you don’t need, that aren’t effective, or that might even make your symptoms worse,” Hauguel said in an article about flu treatment published by NIH News in Health.

“Allergies can also cause itchy, watery eyes, which you don’t normally have with a cold or flu,” Hauguel said in the article.

Junior Ryan Frey says he tends to get sick this time of year, but it varies from year to year.

“I tell other students to look into their illness because my colds usually don’t last more than a few days, but they are frequent. I usually just take cold medicine that you can buy at the store such as Robitussin,” Frey said. “If the person is allergic to pollen because there is more stimulus, that could cause an allergic reaction.”

“I usually just get small colds around this time of year, but nothing too major. I think it’s mainly due to the sudden change in temperature,” Frey said. “As far as I know, I am not allergic to pollen.”

Frey also said people can usually tell the difference between cold and allergy symptoms.

“I think the main difference is that people who have allergies will typically have some kind of reaction to certain things whereas having a cold is just feeling under the weather and has more common symptoms amongst everyone,” Frey said.

News in Health’s website also explains the main differences in

Frey said he thinks Mason students should visit Student Health Services if they are feeling sick.

Student Health Services’ website explains that a flue shot

The News in Health article on cold and allergy treatment states that many symptoms can be treated with over-the-counter medicines.

It explains that to treat colds or flu, one must get plenty of rest and drink lots of fluids. If you have the flu, pain relievers such as aspirin, acetaminophen or ibuprofen can reduce fever and aches.

Allergies can be treated with antihistamines or decongestants.

Student Health Services at Mason advises that students need to read medicine labels carefully for the warnings, side effects, and dosages; If one has questions to always ask the pharmacist.

The most important thing to do, however, is to read the medication label because it will tell you what the medication treats, which ingredients it contains and about how long you can consistently use it before consulting a doctor.

Student Health Services also has an Allergy Clinic for those who have been advised by an allergist to get an allergy shot. It is open exclusively at the Fairfax Campus for Mason students or employees. Shots are given year-round, including in the spring, all by appointment.

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New club promotes peacemaking at home, abroad

(ALYA NOWILATY/FOURTH ESTATE)

MIA WISE | STAFF WRITER

Among the many organizations popping up at Mason, newcomer club Patriots for Peace offers a place for students to promote peace.

Sophomore conflict analysis and resolution major Mena Ayazi and senior global affairs major Shauna Triplett founded the club.

Patriots for Peace is the first college club of its kind in the country and it was even written about on the United States Institute of Peace (USIP)’s website.

“Being the first club of its kind, not just at Mason but in the nation, Mason students have a very unique opportunity to get involved in the creation of what a peace club with United States Institute of Peace (USIP) will look like,” Ayazi, who serves as the club’s president, said. “This will be the first time students at Mason will have the opportunity to put their conflict resolution and peacebuilding skills to work outside of the classroom with a think tank as prestigious as USIP. This club will also give Mason students the opportunity to engage in the global conversation on peaceful conflict resolution.”

Ayazi’s parents, who escaped to the United States from Afghanistan after the Soviet invasion in 1979, inspired her to form Patriots for Peace.

“I was lucky enough to have been born and raised here, however, dinner conversations always revolved around stories of the war that is still ongoing,” Ayazi explained. “Intrigued by the effect that this conflict had on my family, I knew that I wanted to spend the rest of my days studying and working to prevent, mitigate, and resolve violent conflict.”

Ayazi said joining Mason’s School of Conflict Analysis and Resolution Mason has given her a “scholarly perspective on violent conflict.”

Still, Ayazi felt she could do more.

“I knew that a club in which we have the opportunity to physically try and achieve such goals was necessary. As soon as I heard of the opportunity to start a Peace Club with the United States Institute of Peace, I knew I had to jump at it,” Ayazi said.

Similar to Ayazi, Triplett’s passion for her major prompted her to create Patriots for Peace.

“Unfortunately, George Mason did not provide an organization that appealed to future peacekeepers. We saw the creation of a Peace Club as a way to finally make a difference and act upon the issues that we were studying. We could finally have the experience of being peacekeepers and we could finally make a difference within our campus, our local community, and internationally.

Needless to say, this was the creation of Patriots for Peace,” Triplett said.

The USIP gave Ayazi and Triplett a Peace Club Starter Kit to assist them with setting up the club. This kit, according to the USIP’s website, provides information for students who were interested in peacebuilding.

According to the USIP website, “A Peace Club is a great way to make a difference. It can help you to connect and organize with others interested in peace. You can learn more about peace and gain skills to deal with conflict. You can also find ways to take action to make the world a better place.”

Although the club is new, Ayazi and Triplett already have some ideas for what kind of activities they want to participate in, as well as activities the USIP encourages the club to participate in.

“We have the goal to pursue the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals, specifically their goal for Sustainable Peace in creative ways.

USIP has also planned for us to video chat with a college peace club in Kabul, Afghanistan and a high school club in Chicago to have dialogues on different ways young people can promote nonviolence and peaceful conflict resolution,” Ayazi said.

Patriots for Peace focuses on one overarching theme each month.

February focused on modern-day slavery and incorporated the END IT movement, an anti-slavery campaign. March was all about Women’s History Month and April’s discussions will focus on environmental sustainability.

“For February’s theme we stood in the Johnson Center handing out information on modern day slavery and how to spread awareness

through social media,” Triplett said. “In March, we partnered with Women and Gender Studies as well as Housing and Residence Life to donate feminine products to women in Afghanistan and local women in order to give them access to these products and to serve as a symbol of empowerment. One of our main goals is to give back and promote peace, so we plan our activities according to this.”

The club is working with the USIP to develop a toolkit designed for colleges so that other students can begin peace clubs.

“The development of this toolkit is our main focus of this semester.

We have started to do little activities on campus to support different causes such as the refugee crisis, human trafficking, women’s issues and environmental sustainability. We held a feminine product drive in March to collect pads, tampons, and panty liners to send to homeless women in D.C. and Afghanistan, and we held fundraisers for human trafficking and refugee support groups as well,” Ayazi said.

Patriots for Peace allows for students to become involved in peacebuilding activities in their community and internationally. Because it is a new organization, students have the opportunity to spark change and have their voices heard.

“One of the biggest ways to get involved is by participating in our member meetings. We meet bi-weekly on Tuesdays at 6pm in Hanover’s multipurpose room,” Triplett said. “As a brand new organization, we are willing to listen to any feedback and our meetings tend to be an open discussion. It is important for us to see what our members want out of the organization.”

Students can also email patsforpeace@gmail.com with their name and email address to be added to the email list. They are also encouraged to follow @Patriots4Peace on Twitter and Instagram.

“Our monthly themes and events are centered around what kind of action our members want to take in the community and internationally. Everyone has a passion and feels strongly about different global issues and conflicts, so having so many diverse passions and ideas creates a really strong and powerful group. A little bit of passion and action can go a long way and make a true difference.”

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TO DO THIS WEEK: MONDAY 4/11

On campus:

Off campus:

International Good Deeds Day

“I’m still trying to lose the freshman 15 and I’ll be a senior next semester

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Paint Nite

Sub 1 Quad

On The Boarder

10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

7 p.m. - 9 p.m.

#damnu2hellalcohol

@kyrr0 Kyra Larson

“No disrespect to anyone’s culture but the JC smells so bad by the microwave from all the different food being reheated”

@Jspace202 Space202

TUESDAY 4/12 On campus:

Off campus:

Zumba-thon

Leyla McCalla Jammin’ Java

Johnson Center, Bistro

7 p.m.

5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.

WEDNESDAY 4/13 On campus:

Off campus:

Cultural Couture Fashion Show

Smart (Farmers) Market

Johnson Center, Dewberry Hall

Oakton

7 p.m. - 10 p.m.

“Excuse me, Starbucks I have a forensic chemistry quiz to go fail & you pushing my order back twice, making me late, is not helping me”

@_breezy4sheezy Bria

10 a.m. - 2 p.m.

THURSDAY 4/14 Off campus:

On campus: Inernational Week Dance Competition

Penn Social, Washington D.C.

Center for the Arts

7 p.m.

7:30 p.m. - 10:30 p.m.

“GMU geese run this campus let’s be real”

@sweberrr Sarah

Pancakes & Booze Art Show

FRIDAY 4/15 On campus: International Week Bazaar

Off campus: Truckeroo!

North Plaza

Washington D.C.

9 p.m. - 2 p.m.

11 a.m. - 11 p.m.

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04.11.2016

Sports

GMUFOURTHESTATE.COM @IVESTATE

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Men’s club lacrosse clamping strong season, thanks to leaders DARIAN BANKS | MANAGING EDITOR

Mason men’s club lacrosse team is currently 8-2, with seven games left in the season. The team’s upperclassmen have been crucial to the team’s success, taking on more than just regular seniority leadership to boost morale and win games.

Dan Butcher, midfielder, and Collin Kohlasch, attacker, are the club’s president and captain, respectively. Josh Wheeler, goalie, is the club’s vice president. The leaders are in charge of everything from planning practices to creating uniforms.

“We get refs, schedule fields, reach out to other teams because we have to make a full schedule, equipment, social media [and] budgeting,” Butcher said.

While the team’s officer structure mimics that common to most club sports, men’s club lacrosse has taken leadership a step further.

In times when more help is needed, the men turn to their teammates, allowing each player to voice input.

“The team’s structure is pretty loose. We try to include everyone’s thoughts in decisions we make,” Butcher said. “We talk about most decisions -- anything that has to do with the club.”

One decision that all the players help decide is when and how often to practice. The currently men practice three times a week at a set time, requiring players to balance their schedules around the team.

“When it comes to balancing everything, Sunday night practices are a big key because during the week numbers aren’t the greatest but every Sunday night from 9 to 11 p.m., we know everyone on the team can make that time, so that’s our main night,” Kohlasch

said.

It is important for any team to practice together, but Butcher said he also understands that school comes first.

“When I tell people about the beginning of the season, I emphasize that school is a priority,” Butcher said.

Individual motivation is key for club sports players, but open communication with one’s teammates are even more vital.

“My biggest thing ... is that there is an open dialogue between captains and the leadership and everyone on the team,” Butcher said. “If anything is going on, don’t just not show up.

Talk to us. That really builds the team.”

A team that practices together stays together, and a team that eats together also stays together.

Kohlasch said it is important to create opportunities for all players to get together amidst the busyness of practices and games.

“One time [when] we always do team dinners is after games when we win. That is a good time to capitalize on team chemistry. We’re all hyped up, and now we’re going to go hang out with each other for a few others. And then usually nights before games or mornings of we’ll usually have team dinner or team breakfast,” Kohlasch said. “That’s the biggest key to performing well on the field -- that we all like each other. When everyone likes each other it’s a lot easier to mesh.”

(PHOTO COURTESY DAN BUTCHER)

The team is composed of 30 players, the majority of whom are underclassmen. Only four of the men are seniors. No matter their ages, however, all the players want to win.

“I think how much the team wants to win is also important,” Butcher said. “This year, the reason we’re good is because people care more about whether we win or lose.”

Butcher and Kohlasch are two of the team’s four seniors. Thanks to their leadership roles, they have gotten more out of club lacrosse than just knowledge of the game.

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GMUFOURTHESTATE.COM @IVESTATE

“I’ve learned a lot through running the club and dealing with some adversity, [like] managing things [and] the amount of work that goes into making something happen,” Butcher said. “I can kind of appreciate making the gears turn, and I’ve made a lot of really good friends. Everyone on the team is friends with each other, and all of the alumni are friends. Everyone gets really close.”

Butcher and Kohlasch played lacrosse together in high school and at Christopher Newport University before transferring to Mason.

They understand the transition freshmen have to make when they choose play for a club team, and as leaders, Butcher and Kohlasch see themselves as responsible for making this transition easier.

“Some people look at a club team as come and mess around the whole time. Some look at it as an extension of high school -- we’re still competitive. And I think that falls on the leaders of the team,” Kohlasch said. “I wouldn’t say we’re as serious as a high school team, but we’re probably one of the more competitive teams in the league. That all comes from the leaders and how they portray it.”

Mason’s club lacrosse team is in the National Club Lacrosse League and competes in the Division II Capital Conference. They ended last season with a 7-5 record and are currently 4-1 with about seven games left before conference play.

The team’s goal this year, and every year, is to make it to the national championship and beat the University of Maryland at Baltimore County.

“Those [goals] are one in the same,” Butcher said.

The team’s record notes a loss to the UMBC Retrievers during the first game of the spring season, but Butcher contests their only loss thus far.

“The reality is that it was a two goal game, but the refs miscounted because there was no score board, and they chalked it up to a four-goal loss. But everyone -- and the film -- support that it was a two-goal loss,” Butcher said. “We gave it to them [UMBC]. We beat ourselves, but we’ll play them again at the end of the season, and we’ll get them that time.”

Though leaders like Butcher and Kohlasch are crucial for

sports managing the team, practices are mostly run by the team’s new head coach, Josh Alexander, who began coaching the team this spring. Alexander has been involved with the team since last year, when his son started playing lacrosse for Mason. “[Alexander] has a limited role because we like to do our own thing, but he’s definitely a leader when he’s there,” Butcher said.

“We look to him to have the coaching role like what are we doing at practice. He provides a lot of organization and is extremely knowledgeable of the sport. He’ll have us doing things that make us better every practice.”

Although the team is pretty self-sufficient, Coach Alexander brings unique knowledge and training. “[Alexander] is really knowledgeable about the sport and helps get the team excited,” Wheeler said.

Kohlasch said he and other players feel that the team -- and its talent -- have slipped under the Mason community’s radar. “[People] don’t know we’re good,” said Kohlasch. “Another thing I’ve found is that we get a lot of emails asking about our varsity team. People don’t know that this kind of is our varsity team. If you’re playing lacrosse at Mason you’re playing for us, so people aren’t aware of our status.”

The team only has one home game left in the season, due to a cancel and a forfeit earlier in the season. The game, against Old Dominion University, will take place Saturday, April 16.

“We’re ranked. They’re ranked. It’ll be fun,” Kohlasch said of the coming game.

As the men’s club lacrosse team prepares to take on Old Dominion, and eventually UMBC, Butcher says creating friendly competition during practice has increased morale.

This can look like “taking a drill that we’re doing and turning it into a competition like offense versus defense,” according to Butcher.

And the results are contagious: “It takes one person to start a fire, and then other people will follow,” Butcher said.between there.

What’s to come for Mason men’s basketball?

BEN CRISWELL | STAFF WRITER

In Paulsen’s first year at George Mason University, the Patriots finished with an 11-21 record, 5-13 in conference. A slight improvement from the 2015 campaign and important strides toward building a winning program.

Paulsen has had success building winning programs at both Williams College and Bucknell.

At Williams, Paulsen lead the Ephs to a Division III championship in 2003 and a championship runner up finish in 2004.

At Bucknell, Paulsen tallied four regular season championships and two conference tournament championships in 2011 and 2013, respectively. Paulsen has brought a winning and process-oriented mindset into his first year as the Mason men’s basketball coach.

“You can’t be so obsessed with results that you don’t embrace the process,” Paulsen said.

That process is still in its young stages and yet the Patriots showed that process working in many games this season, including against some of the premiere teams in the conference and around the nation. Wins against Ole Miss, Oklahoma State, Davidson, and the most exciting win of the season in the eyes of Marquise Moore, at VCU, show a team capable of competing with the very best around the country.

The team did, however, struggle in many spots over the course of the year, which is to be somewhat expected under any first-year coach. As a team, the Patriots shot just 29% from three-point range, an area that has become essential to any winning program.

Part of that low percentage, in Paulsen’s eyes, is simply the transition from high school to college.

04.11.2016

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04.11.2016

Freshmen Jaire Grayer, Otis Livingston and DeAndre Abraham led the team in three-point attempts and seem to be adjusting to the speed of the college game and the amount of time a player has to release his shot.

While Moore, as well as Livingston, was effective at drawing in the defense, the Patriots as a team were not as effective at converting these kick-outs into made shots. Shooting, no doubt, will be an emphasis for the Patriots this offseason, as it was during the regular season when the team spent an inordinate amount of time shooting the basketball during practices and workouts.

The Patriots will look to use more of a guard-heavy style of offense and possibly more the four-guard lineup going into next year out of necessity. Mason favorites Shevon Thompson and Marko Gujanicic will both be graduating at the end of the year forcing the Patriots into a new style of play.

Transitioning into leadership will be Marquise Moore. Moore played his best basketball towards the middle of the season, including seven consecutive games in double figures. Two of those games he recorded a double-double in points and rebounds. Moore, after a win against Richmond, was sidelined the next four games due to an ankle injury and was limited physically for the rest of the season. “[I’ll be] more vocal as a leader,” said Moore reflecting on the year to come. He also hopes to try to build on the developing chemistry displayed over the course of this season.

Paulsen said he liked the development of his team throughout the year, especially the play of Livingston and Grayer. The two freshmen were essentially thrown into the fires of Atlantic 10 play and responded admirably in many instances. The two guards were routinely tasked with guarding the opposing teams best offensive option and Coach Paulsen noted that he liked the way the two competed.

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IV

Livingston also played well enough to be nominated to the conference’s All-Rookie Team.

Jalen Jenkins will also be thrown into a bigger role as he transitions into his senior year. Jenkins played well, particularly in Moore’s absence when the Patriots went to a bigger lineup.

While he plays hard on the floor, Jenkins foul percentage needs to be lowered for him to benefit the team more.

“He fouls at an absurdly high rate,” Paulsen said.

Off the court, Paulsen is looking to bridge a gap between the teams relationship with the school and community.

A focus of this offseason recruiting-wise will be the current sophomore and junior classes. The foundation of Coach Paulsen’s philosophy is building relationships with players and coaches in order to create a winning environment – something he attributes to his early years being around Steve Fischer “If you keep knocking on the door, that doors going to open, “ Paulsen said.

The process and culture of Mason basketball is in its early stages.

Mason alumni, Kris Brown, thinks the program has room to grow and a bright future.

(DAVID SCHRACK/FOURTH ESTATE)

The foundation is there and next year will be a good indicator of the direction the program is headed. The expectation from the players and coaches is that this team can compete with the very best in conference. More so than wins or losses, the development of the team and the effort of the players are the barometers of how well this team will do.

If Paulsen’s previous success is any indication of things to come, the future looks bright for Patriot Basketball, plus it is always a good bet to hire a guy from a smart school.

“Rome wasn’t built in a day,” said Brown referencing the men’s team.

Photo of the Week

The rowing team takes off on April 3.

(DAVID SCHRACK/FOURTH ESTATE)