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@bupipedream Tuesday, January 22, 2019 | Vol. XCV, Issue 1 | Binghamton University | bupipedream.com
The Free Word on Campus Since 1946
Storm forces students to change travel plans Classes start on Tuesday, despite snow, ice and wind chill
had the option of driving back to the University during the storm, many chose to accelerate or postpone their travel plans. Kelly Ma, a senior majoring in fine arts, said she decided to drive to Binghamton on Saturday instead of Sunday. “I initially planned on going back to school on Sunday, but decided Saturday would be better to avoid the storm,” Ma said. “When we reached the Binghamton area, the roads were filled with snow, since the storm had just started. We had to drive really slowly and even then, it was hard to keep the car from skidding.” Others, like Abby Kress, a sophomore majoring in biology, traveled on Monday. Kress, who lives on campus, said she decided to come back to school after the storm because she was concerned that her parents might hit snow while driving home. By the time Kress arrived on campus on Monday, she said the roads were fairly clear. “I actually had to wait longer to go back because even with campus opening on Saturday my parents would have been stuck driving straight into the storm on the way back,” Kress said. “They did a good job cleaning off the streets and it was pretty dry.” Alex Baker, a senior majoring in English, said she waited until Monday to travel back to avoid the snow, but that she would have liked to come back a little earlier to get ready for classes. “The roads honestly weren’t as bad as I was expecting,” Baker said. “It was windy but that was about it. I would’ve liked to have been back a day early to settle in more but it really isn’t that big of a deal.”
Amy Donovan
assistant news editor
rebecca kiss photography editor Binghamton University saw roughly 11 inches of snow from Winter Storm Harper, which hit the area over the weekend.
The spring semester got off to a snowy start last weekend with Binghamton accumulating almost a foot of snow, derailing students’ travel plans and leading Binghamton University to open dorms a day early. The University sent out a B-Line statement to the student body on Thursday announcing dorms would open a day early on Jan. 19 at 8 a.m. Students were instructed to notify Residential Life if they planned on coming back early. “The main storm is expected to arrive late Saturday afternoon and continue into Sunday, bringing more than a foot of snow to the Binghamton area,” the B-Line statement read. “Students are urged to take this into consideration when determining when to travel to campus and are reminded that classes do not begin until Tuesday.” While the storm was slightly less intense than forecasters initially predicted, it still delayed Escape buses until Monday and resulted in a ban on tractor-trailers and buses on the New York State Thruway and most interstate highways in central New York. The ban, which started at 3 p.m. on Saturday and ended on Sunday afternoon, impacted travel plans for students who rely on buses to return to campus. While students driving personal vehicles
21 Savage concert canceled, tickets to be refunded Students voice disappointment about lack of fall concert Lakhsmi Chatterjee pipe dream news
After almost two months of uncertainty, Binghamton University’s fall concert with rapper 21 Savage has officially been canceled. The concert, originally scheduled for Nov. 15, was canceled after a winter storm hit Binghamton, dropping roughly 10 inches of snow and canceling classes. In a B-Alert statement sent out minutes before doors were set to open for the concert, the University announced that the concert would be “rescheduled for a later date.” The announcement of the cancellation arrived in the inboxes of ticket holders on Jan. 7. According to Michael Majewski,
ticket sales manager for Binghamton University Athletics, all ticket holders will receive refunds, a process that began on Jan. 8. While those who paid for their tickets with a credit card will receive refunds automatically, ticket holders who
representatives of 21 Savage came to the cancellation after finding it impossible to successfully reschedule; however, Courtney Mitchell, the Student Association’s vice president for programming and a senior majoring in computer science, wrote in an
schedules — the academic calendar where you can’t fit in dates with the school year, 21 Savage’s tour schedule and the Event Center’s game schedule,” said Majewski. “With so many moving pieces, it was hard to find a date that works with everyone.”
max samson editorial artist
paid in cash will need to return their tickets to the Events Center for a refund to be issued. It is unclear what ultimately led to the concert’s cancellation. Majewski wrote in an email that the Student Association Programming Board (SAPB) and
email to Pipe Dream in December that he could not “legally disclose” any information about the concert’s rescheduling or cancellation, raising questions of legal complications between the University and the artist’s representatives. “It was difficult to work with three
Mitchell could not be reached for comment about the cancellation of the concert. Daniel Morales, an undeclared freshman, said he’s disappointed by the cancellation but appreciated efforts to reschedule it after the show was postponed.
“21 is one of my favorite artists, but the concert was just too good to be true,” Morales said. “If it took this long to announce the refunding of tickets, the SAPB must have been trying to work out a rescheduling that just fell apart.” Others, like Allison Suttenberg, an undeclared freshman, are relieved to hear the confusion and uncertainty surrounding ticket refunds has been resolved. “We were kept in the dark for so long and I was worried that refunds would never be issued,” Suttenberg said. “I’m disappointed in the cancellation but glad that our money is back at least.” Chloe Levine, an undeclared freshman, said she hopes that this cancellation will lead to a more extravagant Spring Fling. “Maybe [the] University can make up for the lack of a fall concert by booking more musical guests to the Spring Fling,” she said.
Women’s March not held in Binghamton
University focuses on smart energy
Students join marches in New York City, Seneca Falls
Jacob Kerr
Laura D’Angelo news intern
With no Women’s March in Binghamton, students gathered in cities across New York state to advocate for women’s rights on Saturday. The march commemorates the worldwide protest on Jan. 21, 2017, the day after U.S. President Donald Trump was inaugurated, and aims to rally for legislation regarding women’s rights and equality. While thousands of people marched down the streets of Downtown Binghamton for policy change at last year’s march, local organizations did not organize a march this year. Shanel Boyce, community organizer
of the Southern Tier Chapter of Citizen Action and the primary organizer of last year’s Women’s March in Binghamton, wrote in a message to Pipe Dream that the Women’s March had “served its purpose here in Binghamton.” She declined to comment further on why a march would not be held in Binghamton this year. Last year’s Women’s March in Binghamton saw controversy after Citizen Action posted a message on Facebook asking attendees to “refrain from engaging or fraternizing with state and local law enforcement stationed at the event” and “not bring or wear ‘pussy hats’ or any other genital-themed accessories.” In the message, which was shared more than 40 times and garnered more than 50 comments, the group cited
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ARTS & CULTURE
BU contributes to state, local plans to protect environment pipe dream news
Since 2016, Binghamton University has implemented measures to fight climate change through energy storage research, clean energy initiatives and policy changes. Now, the University is contributing to state and local initiatives that are emerging to tackle the issue. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, climate in the Northeast is projected to rise up to 10 degrees Fahrenheit by 2080, an issue that has pushed the University to take steps to reduce its environmental footprint, primarily through retrofitting buildings with energy-efficient technology and building new structures to net-zero energy standards, which require a building to produce as much energy as it consumes.
One example is the net-zero building project in the Nuthatch Hollow, a parcel of land near campus. The University is currently constructing an environmental research center that will have a Living Building certification, which means it will produce more energy than it uses. There are currently 22 buildings in the world that hold a Living Building certification. In 2017, the University also finished construction on its Smart Energy Building, which is LEED Gold certified and produces some of its energy through renewable sources, such as solar panels. At the opening of the Smart Energy Building, BU President Harvey Stenger said the building would house the University’s increasing clean energy research. “Smart energy. That’s going to be our focus,” Stenger said. “The fact that these faculty are here and many are doing research in the areas of smart energy is a great advantage that we have.” It has quickly become a focus at the
OPINIONS
state level as well. At the 2018 State of the University System Address, SUNY Chancellor Kristina Johnson announced that the entire SUNY system will aim to power 100 percent of its electricity from renewable sources as quickly as possible. SUNY also published the “Clean Energy Roadmap,” which states that each SUNY campus will have an individualized plan to reach 100 percent renewable sources by the end of 2020. The University has also focused on advancing its academic efforts into clean energy fields. BU created a smart energy transdisciplinary area of excellence, placing smart energy as a focal point during the hiring process for new faculty and for deciding which research will be supported. The majority of the University’s smart energy research has centered around the search for efficient energy storage, an area of smart energy research in which M. Stanley Whittingham, a distinguished
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SPORTS
Discover something new with this album by Sharon Van Etten,
Start the year off right with these new tunes,
Contributing columnist Tiffany Dun reflects on the impact of excessive phone use,
Wrestling earns first two dual wins of the season,
Men’s basketball blown out by conference-leading Vermont,
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