Issue 7

rooms on campus IN THIS Escape SSU hosts CSI Crime Scene and Medieval Museum escape rooms.

ISSUE PAGE 7.

Stay at “Scream” House

The house from the movie “Scream” is open for an overnight stay this Halloween.

PAGE 5.

Aim to end hazing

SSU’s panhellenic organizations aim to end hazing within Greek life.

PAGE 7.

SINCE 1979

VOLUME 88 // ISSUE 7 OCTOBER 12, 2021 - OCTOBER 18, 2021

THE UNIVERSITY’S STUDENT RUN NEWSPAPER

STAR // Nicholas Roth Waves crash on the rocks on the Northern most end on an empty Salmon Creek Beach.

@SONOMASTATESTAR

STAR // Nicholas Roth Surfers safely surf at Schoolhouse Beach, a secluded cove just north of Salmon Creek Beach, where local surfer Eric Steinley was attacked by a great white shark.

Bodega Bay surfer survives attack from great white shark

JHERY MAE MONTEZA STAFF WRITER

O

n Sunday, Oct .3, Eric Steinley, a 38-year-old surfer was attacked by a great white shark north of Bodega Bay, sustaining injuries to his left thigh. He is in critical condition, but is expected to survive with the help of the surfing community and strangers.

According to an interview with NBC Bay area, Eric Steinley reported that, “All of a sudden [I felt] just this clamp. Not that fast, but this heavy, heavy clamp on my leg. I looked down and all of a sudden we were going down. I hit him in the nose...this thing was huge. He let me go and I remember swimming up and I got up on my board and I think he went for the board one more time because he hit me twice.”

During the attack, he believed the shark chomped down three times. He was about 50 yards away from the shore, and had enough strength to paddle back. He was convinced that he was going to lose his leg, but numerous surfers and visitors on the beach hurried to assist him. Luckily, one of the visitors ended up being a doctor and was able to tend to his wound because he had a medical kit in his car. They made a tourniquet, which is a device that applies pressure to a limb or extremity to limit blood flow. It made a huge difference and increased his chances of surviving.

Bodega Bay Fire Protection Division Capt. David Bynum told NBC News, “He’s fortunate. He had a lot of help right from the start.” He was airlifted to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, and authorities closed the beaches within two miles of the attack. His doctor expects to perform many surgeries on Steinley’s right leg because a nerve was severed and partially

crushed. Steinley’s recovery could take a year, and doctors are not sure if his leg will be fully functional again.

Steinley grew up and currently resides in Santa Rosa, and ever since he was a teenager, he has been surfing off the Sonoma coast. His daily routine includes driving alone along the Bodega Highway coast four days a week in search of some waves. He reported to the Press Democrat, “Surfing is such a big part of my life and it really calms me down. But I just don’t know if I’ll get that feeling anymore sitting out there. I’ll go out again in the future and see if it’s still there.” Steinley is very thankful for the care he got from the surfers, lifeguards, paramedics, doctors, and others who helped him.

Officials from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife tested the DNA and confirmed the bite was from a great white shark about ten feet long. In California, shark attacks are extremely rare, but when it happens it almost always includes a great white shark. Since 1950, there have been fewer than 200 occurrences involving all species of shark. Especially at this time of year, sharks are drawn to the Bay Area coastline because it is feeding season, which creates an atmosphere full of confusion when human beings are in the ocean since seals and sea lions pups are starting to grow.

Mark Jensen started a GoFundMe on behalf of Eric Steinley and the funds from the campaign will be used for hospital bills, home care, daily physical therapy, counseling, and living expenses due to the decrease of income. They have raised about $32,000 out of their $50,000 goal. They want him to go back to his “normal, active lifestyle, spreading good vibes, building

Stabber of Rohnert Park man pleads “open” during sentencing in Humboldt SIERRA HARVEY STAFF WRITER

L

ast Tuesday, Oct. 5, Brian Leiteritz,42, was sentenced in Humboldt County after pleading “open” to manslaughter in the stabbing of a Rohnert Park man, Dylan Liakos, outside his McKinleyville home in Aug. 2019.

After over two years since the initial incident, Leiteritz entered his plea to manslaughter in front of Humboldt County Judge John Feeny on Tuesday. His plea of “open” meant that the case would settle out of court without agreeing to a deal offered by the prosecution.

“An open plea means our office leaves the sentencing decision to the judge,” Humboldt County District Attorney Maggie Fleming told journalists at the Times Standard.

Leiteriz was sentenced by Judge John Feeney in a Humboldt courtroom on Tuesday.

After the sentencing, DA Fleming released the following statement: “On October 5, 2021, Humboldt County Judge John Feeney sentenced 42-year-old Brian Jon Leiteritz to seven years - execution of sentence suspended - plus five years of probation and 365 days in jail for voluntary manslaughter with use of a deadly weapon. The sentence means Leiteritz can be sent to prison for seven years if he violates the terms of his probation.”

The sentence also means that Leiteritz will serve one year in county jail at some point that has yet to be determined, and his suspended sentence of seven years in a federal prison will only be carried out should he violate his 5 year probation.

Fleming’s statement continues to include a description of the initial crime that led to Leiteritz’s arrest.

“The conviction stems from a 2019 incident in which Leiteritz killed Dylan Liakos with a kitchen knife in front of Leiteritz’ McKinleyville home, after Leiteritz had called 9-1-1 to report that someone had cut his power and was now at his front door. Injuries to the victim included a stab wound to the back; law enforcement officers found the victim on the sidewalk.”

The Humboldt County Sheriff original police report from that day, Aug. 10, 2019, reports that they were familiar with Leiteritz house: “Deputies were familiar with the residence and some of the involved individuals, as there have been repeated calls for service at that location in the recent past.” see LEITERITZ on pg. 4

COURTESY // @robmachado on Instagram The oil spill in Orange County has all of California concerned for the environmental impact on the coast.

Major Southern California oil spill disaster threatens coastal environment and businesses in Orange County

MARY HELEN ROWELL STAFF WRITER

S

outhern California was hit with the largest oil spill in California since 2015 on Saturday, Oct. 2, as over 126,000 gallons of oil leaked into the ocean.

The pipe, owned by Amplify Energy, “an independent and natural gas company,” is located off the Orange County coast, around five miles from the shores of Huntington Beach.

It has been over a week since the major incident occurred and many Southern California beaches remain closed as officials and volunteers work to clean up the mess left behind.California Governor Gavin Newsom issued a state of emergency in Orange County on Oct. 4 in which he ordered all hands on deck to assist in cleanup and prevention of any further damage.

In a quote from his website, Newsom says, “The state is moving to cut red tape and see ORANGE COUNTY on pg. 4

2 Editorial THE STAR Editorial Board

Kylie Rose Lawrence, Editor-in-Chief Callie Adams, News Editor Moragh Graf, Opinion Editor Cheyenne Carroll, Arts & Entertainment Editor Myles Grabau, Student Life Editor Emily Cripe, Sports & Health Editor Isabelle Barkey, Photo Editor Corinne Asturias, Faculty Adviser Staff Writers Jayline Alvarado, Alexis Gonzalez, Jhery Mae Monteza, Adrienne Moon, Pedro Ortega Perez, Mary Helen Rowell, Dana Scacco, Joshua Silva, Addison Smith, Jessica Sternfeld, Clea Upcher, Daniel Dinerman, Isabel Epstein, Diana Ortiz, Payton Mullaney Photographers Nicholas Roth, Jake Morrissey, Ileana Aleman

Nichols Hall 323, 1801 East Cotati Ave Rohnert Park, CA 94928 Telephone: 707-664-2776 Business & General Inquiries: sonomastatestar@gmail.com Corrections and News Tips: star@sonoma.edu

Editor’s Pick This week’s can’t miss article:

“Transfer students report mixed experiences with how SSU handled their transfer” Read the article on page 4.

Have an opinion?

We’d like to hear from you!

The STAR welcomes letters to the editor

Publication The STAR is published every Tuesday during the fall and spring semesters. Printing is done by Sonoma Media Group. The weekly publication of the STAR is made possible by Instructionally Related Activities Funding.

Opinions

Opinions expressed in the STAR are those of the writer and not necessarily those of the STAR or SSU. The editorial reflects the views of the STAR Editorial Board on issues it considers to be of particular relevance to the campus community.

Letters to the Editor

Letter writers may expect prompt publication in the newspaper’s op-ed section, as space is available. Letters of up to 400 words will be allowed and must be submitted no later than the Friday before the publication date. Published letters must be free of libel, since the publication is held legally accountable for all content. Although personal controversy will be tolerated, it is the responsibility of the editor to check statements purporting the facts.

The STAR reserves the right to refuse publication.

OCT. 12 - OCT. 18, 2021

sonomastatestar.com

Despite efforts of new police chief, some students still feel unsafe

E

very year, a distrubing amount of crime returns

9 burglaries and (added up along with other statistics)

to Sonoma State University. While the campus

placed SSU at 27th in the state and 233rd in the nation

police department claims they have taken mea-

when compared to other university’s crime statistics. One

sures to ensure student safety, there are still many students

year later in 2019, crime rates increased drastically, with

at SSU who do not feel safe on campus.

Sonoma State having 17 cases of rape and 28 cases of

Jasmine Haas, a second year theater major at Sonoma State, stated, “[The police] don’t notice what goes on in the dorms or around campus because they can’t. I never see any campus security walking around campus...”

burglary. Sonoma State jumped from 27th to 15th in the state in just one year.

Chief Oweis addressed the rise in the numbers of burglaries, rape, and dating violence cases, “In 2019,

Haas referenced a data report from redding.

there was a series of burglaries done by individuals who

com, “For example, burglary is a huge issue on campus.

were arrested and that is why you may see an increase in

In the 2019-2020 school year, lots of people stole each

burglaries on campus for that year.” Oweis also stated,

other’s hydroflasks and this was a problem. There’s also

“I think people have felt comfortable coming forward to

been a lot of burglaries on the first floor of the dorms be-

report domestic violence and rape cases. There was ob-

cause the windows are left open.”

viously an increase in cases that year and I assume we

Police Chief Nader Oweis, who was not chief at

wouldn’t see that unless someone reported it.”

Sonoma State during that time, says he never heard any-

Oweis continued, “The university as a whole has

thing about those specific thefts. He did comment, “My

brought about a lot of awareness around reporting not

officers are on foot all the time. They are asked (when

just domestic violence and rape cases, but all crime. If we

they are not busy) to be walking around campus and ob-

don’t know about it then we can’t warn the community

serve what is going on. I do not want anyone to think they

about what is going on. The Police Department is small,

are not doing it, especially at night. We do have two bi-

comparatively, and this is where the department relies on

cycles, and while no officers are using them right now,

the community at Sonoma State University to be its eyes

there is a plan to get police on bikes soon.”

and ears.”

Ronnie Lopez-Bazan, a math major from Sonoma

Nader Oweis was welcomed to the Police Depart-

State University, shared one experience they had with the

ment at Sonoma State University as the new Chief of Po-

Sonoma State Police Department. “There was this one

lice in December of 2020. According to a Sonoma.edu

night, right before this Fall semester began, I was walk-

news article, Oweis, a Sonoma County local, joined the

ing my dog, my friends were skating, and we were hang-

Seawolves with 26 years of previous campus law experi-

ing around GMC. There was a cop car that wouldn’t stop

ence.

circling us. We got the message that we should probably

According to a report on cbs.com, “Prior to his posi-

leave, even though we were on public property causing no

tion at UC Santa Cruz, Oweis served with the UC Davis

harm to anyone...”

Police Department, first as a student employee and later

Lopez-Bazan continued, “As we’re leaving, my

as a lieutenant. He was also recently selected as the Uni-

friend and I see the bright headlights shining from behind

versity of California (UC) Coordinator of Police Services,

us...I didn’t think we were taking up so much space, so it

which has him coordinating the Council of Police Chiefs,

confused me why this officer couldn’t just pass us and be

a governing body comprising chiefs at the UC’s 10 cam-

on his way.”

puses.”

“I just froze because I didn’t know what to do. [The

When he was first sworn in, Chief Oweis had a ‘100-

officer] began questioning me and I was feeling a lot of

day plan’ in which he went out and walked around cam-

emotions. One of the strongest emotions was disappoint-

pus, trying to meet as many people as possible. Addition-

ment. Disappointed that this police officer couldn’t recog-

ally, in August of 2021, about six months into his time

nize SSU students in front of him and one of them being

at Sonoma State, Chief Oweis introduced a program he

the Face of SSU,” Lopez-Bazan said, referring to the fact

had developed called ‘Meet the Chief’, which he hoped

that he is pictured on a promotional banner in front of

would strengthen his relationship with the community on

Ives Hall. “I was still questioned and felt unsafe at the

campus. According to Oweis, “This program has three

very institution I paid to attend.”

features: [it] allows anyone to set up an appointment to

“I tried reporting him since I wasn’t the only one

meet me one on one via Zoom, on a walk, for coffee, or

who felt uneasy after the encounter... I sometimes wish

in the office; [it] encourages you to invite me to events,

I never walked my dog because after that I contemplat-

special gatherings, organization meetings, neighborhood

ed coming back to this school, and unfortunately, I still

associations, department or division meetings to answer

do. I understand there are ‘good cops’ out there and I’m

questions or to provide training and education either via

thankful that all I got was questioned, but it’s hard to see

Zoom or in person; and lastly, [it] provides me an oppor-

the good when all you can see is the harm, trauma, and

tunity to meet with various community members in per-

systemic oppression that is so strongly affiliated with the

son to spotlight their programs in monthly videos.”

police.”

When asked about the success of the ‘Meet the

Izaac Limon, a recently graduated Sonoma State

Chief’ program, Chief Oweis explained that he had had

alumni, stated, “[Police Chief Oweis] was interviewed

lots of success with faculty and other individuals reach-

last spring semester about the assaults on campus and the

ing out to him. “I’ve met a lot of students and been able

poor lighting at night. He claimed that SSU was suffi-

to have good conversations with them. This is what I’ve

ciently lit at night. But, safety on campus has always been

done my entire career… I’ve done this prior to coming to

an issue for such a tiny school.”

SSU in other positions, including at UCSC,” Oweis ex-

In an interview with the STAR, Chief Oweis re-

plained.

sponded, “I think we have lots of lighting on campus.”

Oweis has gotten involved with the community in

He went on to explain that he believes the issues to be in

many other ways as well. He has worked to increase the

maintenance, including trimming trees back, keeping the

conversation between police and students by co-creating

electrics working, and keeping cobwebs or anything else

the ‘Black and Brown in Blue event’, which is a series

that might dim or constrict lighting under control. Chief

of guest speakers sharing information about their time in

Oweis said that he has staff members checking in on any-

professional law enforcement. Oweis also says that they

thing that might interfere with safety on campus and that

have a line up ready for next semester, and he and his

includes light maintenance, “This is...where I need the

partner in this, Dr. Wm. Gregory Sawyer, plan on con-

community to come forward and tell the Police Depart-

tinuing the series. According to a Sonoma State Social

ment about what is happening around campus,”

Sciences article, Chief Oweis and Dr. Sawyer “organized

According to Police Chief Oweis, there are also 36

this speaker series...with the goal of opening the lens to a

emergency police contact buttons across campus. This

more engaging and introspective look at Black and Brown

past summer, the department did an assessment to make

body people living, working, and serving while in blue.”

sure they were all working and took steps to fix the ones

Conversations between police and students are the

that were not. In the next couple of weeks, the Chief says

best way to go about creating a strong relationship be-

he plans on having interns go check to make sure they are

tween all members of the Sonoma State University com-

all working again. He has set a goal to check on the but-

munity and the Chief has been taking steps, as promised,

tons a couple of times each semester. Chief Oweis added,

to create a safe space to have those conversations. It

however, that he believes calling or texting 9-1-1 in a

seems, however, that not every student at Sonoma State

timely manner may be a faster way to reach the depart-

has heard about these programs and that there are still stu-

ment. “We can’t do our jobs if we don’t know about it,”

dents who do not feel safe in the presence of campus secu-

he emphasized.

rity. Lopez-Bazan said, “Bottom line: The [police] don’t

According to the report on crime statistics at Sonoma

make me feel safe and they never did. We have a saying

State University on redding.com, Sonoma State’s crime

in social activist groups: ‘We keep us safe’. We, meaning

rankings in the year of 2018 included 14 rape cases and

community, or as I like to call them: my homies.”

Editorial Policy: The commentary expressed in the unsigned editorial represents a majority opinion of the STAR Editorial Board on a topic facing the campus community in keeping with journalistic precedents of other major newspapers, and may not be shared by all staff writers. The board encourages readers to write letters to the editor about all topics, including the editorial.

Opinion 3

OCT. 12 - OCT. 18, 2021 sonomastatestar.com

Facebook blackout shows dangers of monopoly

Return of football to SSU nowhere in sight

ALEX GONZALEZ

JESSICA STERNFELD

STAFF WRITER

STAFF WRITER

F

or people in the U.S., the internet brings many things: memes, cute animal videos, unrealistic body standards, etc. But for people in developing countries, Facebook is the heart of internet use. While Americans lost their ability to view racist rants from relatives on Monday when Facebook went down for almost six hours, many other countries basically lost their Google.

It’s so easy to think of Facebook as an American institution as it was started in America by a Harvard student. However, Monday’s blackout proves Facebook is not just an American monopoly.

This is made clear by the Wallstreet Journal stating, “More than 90% of monthly users are now outside the U.S. and Canada” and, “Nearly all of Facebook’s new users are coming from developing countries, where Facebook is the main online communication channel and source of news.”

Though Americans have other options for social media, Facebook has set itself up as the website in other countries. Facebook has demonstrated monopolistic tendencies in the U.S. and has established itself as a monopoly abroad.

Mark Zuckerberg wrote in a public post on Facebook on Tuesday, “The deeper concern with an outage like this isn’t how many people switch to competitive services or how much money we lose, but what it means for the people who rely on our services to communicate with loved ones, run their businesses, or support their communities.”

While Zuckerburg talks about how communities were affected, there is no acknowledgment of how this blackout was truly devastating to those who rely on it most.

Meanwhile, in the US, Facebook and Instagram offer Facebook Marketplace and Instagram Shop, which no other social media sites have been able to replicate. How long until an established competitor, like Twitter, decides to go the same route and buy up smaller companies to further establish dominance? What laws are in place to stop these monopolies?

In July, the Biden Administration announced an executive order that set out to limit big corporate mergers. However, since it’s an executive order and really only offers guidelines for the Federal Trade Commission, it’s only so effective, especially because it cannot stop deals that have already happened, like the Facebook-Instagram merge.

This puts a burden on the FTC to find evidence which proves big companies monopolize. In August, the FTC amended a complaint against Facebook that was first brought up in 2020. So far nothing else has come from the FTC’s claim from an August press release that Facebook “is a monopolist that abused its excessive market power to eliminate threats to its dominance.”

Unfortunately, blackouts that take out three major sites are just the tip of how unchecked companies can put the consumer at a disadvantage.

The Wallstreet Journal, in an expose on Facebook, found evidence of many problems, from favoring celebrities to harming young girls’ self-esteem to not cracking down hard enough on criminal activities, the latter of which happened primarily in developing countries.

Many may argue that Facebook does more harm than good, however, it is clear that at this point the site isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Even if everyone in America were to stop using Facebook’s products, they would still have a chokehold on developing nations.

It’s not a matter of shutting down the company, but one of figuring out how to rein them in.

The problem started in America, and the solution needs to start from American legislation and scrutiny. At the very least, Facebook needs to be held more accountable.

V

isible as you walk into Sonoma State University’s gymnasium is a banner of a famed football player, Larry Allen. Allen dominated football at Sonoma State between the 1991-1992 season and was inducted in the pro football hall of fame following a stellar career in the NFL. Despite this athletic history of SSU, many current students are completely unaware of the school’s former football team.

Sonoma State publicly announced they were discontinuing their football program altogether in a press release on December 10, 1996 due to budget limitations within the Northern California Athletic Conference.

Nearly 25 years later, athletic programs at SSU are showing less variety than before. Sonoma State disbanded the water polo and tennis program in April 2020, with reasoning similar to that of the football program.

Sonoma State Associate Vice President of Strategic Communications, Paul Gullixson, stated in a press release that the removal of the program is, “Part of a continuing strategic effort to focus on the university’s institutional mission while addressing current budget challenges.”

Even so, it leaves many students to wonder how life would be with a school football team. How would matchups be between UC Davis or UNR? What would school spirit be like if a football program were to exist?

Ross Goldschlag, a political science student at Sonoma State, believes having a football program could potentially boost school spirit for students, but also acknowledges that having the program revived, “Would negatively affect athletics as a whole and just doesn’t seem feasible for a state school of our size.” Putting the school’s financial complication aside, Goldschlag would be excited, like many, if Sonoma State’s football program came back into the picture,“[It] would be very fun to have a football team to get behind.”

In the rare occasion that a football program were to come back into play, there’s no doubt that students would be excited to attend games against competing schools.

Veronica Sandoval, a senior at Sonoma State, stated, “I think Sonoma would benefit from the team, there are a lot of local high schools around so there definitely would be lots of kids to feed into the school,” regarding how a football team may spark enrollment interest in high school athletes.

Sandoval adds, “...the school spirit would really improve and bring more students together.”

Having a football program could potentially enhance school spirit, but given the fact that SSU had to cut women’s water polo and tennis programs just last year, it’s clear the athletic department is struggling financially.

Having a football program would certainly be a significant added expense that would likely stretch the department’s available assets much thinner than they already are. Although many students would love to cheer on an SSU football team, the negative effects may be too much.

Though the return of football is a possibility, many factors are to be considered. A majority of the school’s games would not be played on campus, as SSU does not have a football field up to the standards of the National Collegiate Athletic Association. Moreover, equipment, travel cost, and other expenses would come from the students participating in the club if established.

Many students would be excited to see football return to SSU. However, the time and money required to reestablish the program is more than most people realize. The risks may be too great for it to be a possibility at this time. For now, the football program remains as nothing but a memory.

Southern California oil spill raises climate change concerns among residents

DIANA ORTIZ

STAFF WRITER

S

outhern California is typically known for its sunshine and beaches, but with over 125,000 gallons of oil spilled into the Pacific Ocean last week, police and beach officials were quick to close off beaches to the community members and begin their cleanup process.

With the lives of numerous wildlife endangered and millions of dollars going into the cleaning process, concerns rise among uneasy California residents who wonder how the spill may impact climate change.

Although authorities initially had difficulties identifying the source and

cause of the spill, officials soon concluded that it was directly linked to an offshore energy and oil platform called Elly. According to the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, platform Elly sits on top of the Pacific Ocean, above a “rich supply of oil in federal waters managed by the Interior Department.”

The spill itself is believed to have occured because of a broken pipeline off the coast of Huntington Beach.

The platform has since been shut of, but many residents still fear that another spill is likely to occur.

Oil spills are nothing new to California. In previous cases, and for most oil spill cases in the U.S, the party found responsible for the accident is in charge of paying, with some supportive assistance from the federal government to ensure the most efficient and safe practices are being followed. However, in this case, many Californians are left wondering whether the oil platform company will ultimately pay for their damage or if the state will be forced to clean up its mess. Oil spill cleanups range in price depending on the amount of oil spilled,

how far it has spread, and the type of oil that spilled; Cleaning them up can cost over $2 billion dollars.

Although it was determined that the spill was caused by the oil platform Elly, cleanup efforts are being led by the Coast Guard.

The Tuesday following the spill, Governor Gavin Newsom arrived at Bolsa Chica State Beach in Orange County and made a statement regarding the catastrophic event. Newsom stated, “As California continues to lead the nation in phasing out fossil fuels and combating the climate crisis, this incident serves as a reminder of the urgent need to usher in a cleaner and greener future that safeguards public health, the economy and our environment.” For many Californians, especially younger residents, climate change is a major concern.

The latest oil spill in Huntington Beach only further raised their concerns about the greater impact fossil fuels have on our environment, and whether or not California is on the right path to eliminating fossil fuels and ensuring a greener future.

Regardless of where the oil spill occurs, the frequency of spills raises

one important question in the minds of California residents: Is digging for fossil fuels more important than preserving the ecosystem and saving the state billions of dollars? For many, there is no doubt that preserving the state’s wildlife is more crucial than the fossil fuels that are negatively impacting the state. However, many are still in denial that there is any issue at all, making the future of California’s look awfully dim.

COURTESY // @jgritchenphoto on Instagram

4 News

OCT. 12 - OCT. 18, 2021 sonomastatestar.com

Orange County oil spill endangers southern coast continued from pg. 1

mobilize all available resources to protect public health and the environment. As

California continues to lead the nation in phasing out fossil fuels and combating the

COURTESY // @ssutransferstudentprograms on Instagram SSU was ranked as a top university for transfer students in 2019.

Transfer students report mixed experiences with how SSU handled their transfers

ISABEL EPSTEIN STAFF WRITER

S

eawolves that have transferred in from other institutions are starting the school year feeling misguided by Sonoma State University as the transfer process is proving to be no easy feat.

Transfer student Madison Ables has transferred to multiple schools within her academic career. However, she has never struggled this hard before with getting credits approved until coming back to Sonoma State over a decade later. Ables spent all of last school year submitting petitions and fighting for lower-division units that were completed at University of Oregon to be transferred over and honored. This school year, Ables is facing complications with her upper-division transfer credits, which may consequently push back her projected Spring 2022 graduation.

Ables said, “I’m not giving up. I’m doing my best to play the game, but this push back I’ve had to give is very frustrating and disheartening.”

Luckily, the obstacles that some transfer students are experiencing seem to not be applicable to every student’s situation.

Before transferring to Sonoma State, Tim Pickard attended De Anza College, a public community college in Cupertino for five years. Pickard’s transfer to SSU has been a lot less stress-inducing than others have experienced, however, De Anza consistently ranks at the top in the state for the number of students who transfer to four-year universities.

“I’m not sure if De Anza’s transfer program picked up some slack, but I experienced no difficulties transferring to Sonoma. All of my important credits were transferred and I was able to get classes.” said Pickard.

The institutional barrier that many transfer students are struggling with is that SSU does not honor credits in the way that one might think the university would. Colleges have a strict guideline and process to follow when it comes to the transferability of courses, as they must adhere to policies put in place by Title V. This review process is known as articulation, and it involves generating formal written agreements between universities to accept particular courses from a sending campus that are equivalent to specific courses at the receiving university.

“Their intent [with articulation], in my opinion, is to ensure the integrity of a degree by ensuring the quality of the curriculum which a student must master in order to obtain that degree” said the Sonoma State University Registrar Sean Johnson. “Having said that, it is my opinion that the process of transferring credit between institutions can and should be made simpler. Our governing bodies have opportunities here to make this process less of a burden on students, while maintaining the quality of curriculum and individuality of institutions who participate.”

Transfer students are also finding that their credits completed at other institutions are being transferred over as elective units. This means that the units from a course completed at another school, which could be applied towards a student’s major or a GE requirement, would instead be counted towards their elective units. This problem is not specific to Sonoma State, as differences within each curriculum across all California college campuses can make it confusing for students to determine exactly what courses transfer, as well as what requirements and units will still need to be satisfied.

Additionally, students that transfer from a quarter-unit system to SSU’s semester-unit system will experience unit conversions leaving them with no choice but to take extra classes to make up these units.

“I essentially have holes in my Academics Requirements Report (ARR) because all my units [the school] has decided to honor are only worth 2.66 units rather than the four. I still have about 15 units within my actual major to complete for next semester when I really should only be doing senior seminar,” said Ables.

As every transfer student has their own story and experience to share about the transition to a new school, there is no doubt that each student is deserving of the same amount of academic support at their new institution.

climate crisis, this incident serves as a reminder of the enormous cost fossil fuels have on our communities and the environment.”

Many California residents share this concern on the lasting impact this spill is likely to have.

Peter H. Gleick, hydroclimatologist and member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, wrote an opinion piece for The Washington Post on Oct. 4 which emphasizes the detrimental effects oil spills like this are having on bird populations and the planet as a whole.

Last week’s oil spill took place in the middle of fall migration in which millions of birds head South along the coast for the winter.

“The Southern California spill is the worst sort of disruption. It tarred beaches and fouled a rare, fragile coastal wetland. And it happened at the peak of fall migration, in a spot especially important to the Pacific Flyway,” wrote Gleick, “Southern California’s beaches and remnant marshes offer sanctuary for thousands of migrating birds, including threatened and endangered species. Oil from the spill penetrated these marshes before adequate protective barriers could be put in place, raising the prospect of long-term damage. Birds are already dying.”

Along the Coast of Southern California, October is widely known to be the best time for surfing. Not only has this spill posed a major threat to the environment, but also to the coastal businesses that rely on the tourism these popular beaches bring in.

Orange County State Senator, Dave Min, posted a video to his Twitter account on Oct. 5 which showed all the empty beaches that have been closed as a result of the oil spill. “I have never seen, nor do I ever again want to see, the beaches of Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, and Laguna beach this empty,” wrote Min, “I am 100% committed to doing what I can to ensure California’s coastlines never experience another oil spill.”

According to a CNN article, coastal businesses are filing a class-action lawsuit against Amplify Energy, “The lawsuit accuses the company of failing to safely maintain the pipeline and promptly respond,” read the article.

The United States Coast Guard posted a news release on Oct. 7 explaining that they, alongside other agencies, would be conducting an investigation into what may have caused the pipeline to fracture.

“Marine casualties are categorized based on their severity to include reportable marine casualties as the lowest level of severity, serious marine incidents as the next level, and major marine casualties as the highest level,” read the news release, “The Pipeline P00547 Spill has been deemed a Major Marine Casualty due to the potential involvement of a vessel and the resulting damages estimated in excess of $500,000.”

Since the news release, it has been reported that the estimated 13-inch crack in the pipeline was caused by a ship’s anchor dragging the pipeline across the floor of the ocean for over 105 feet sometime within the last year.

The U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration issued a corrective action order to Beta Offshore, a division of Amplify Energy Corp. in which the timeline of the oil spill was highlighted.

According to the document, “At approximately 2:30 a.m. on October 2, 2021, Beta Offshore’s control room personnel received a low-pressure alarm on the San Pedro Bay Pipeline, indicating a possible failure.” However, the document then goes on to state that the pipeline was not shut down until around 6 a.m., three hours later, and the incident was not reported to the National Response Center until around 9 a.m., six hours after alarm had first been raised about the pipeline.

In response to the massive oil spill, Amplify Energy released a brief statement to their website on Oct. 4 in which they stated that, “As a precautionary measure, all of the Company’s production and pipeline operations at the Beta Field have been shut down.”

COURTESY // @pigneriphotography on Instagram Dedicated workers comb the beach to help clean it up on October 8 after the oil spill.

Leiteritz gets probation for death of Rohnert Park man continued from pg. 1

Aug. 10, 2019, reports that they were familiar with Leiteritz house: “Deputies were familiar with the residence and some of the involved individuals, as there have been repeated calls for service at that location in the recent past.”

Although the report does state that deputies had responded to calls at Leiteritz residence recently, they do not specify the quantity or nature of any of these incidents or whether deputies made contact with Leiteritz.

When deputies arrived on scene, they “located an unresponsive male on the sidewalk. Lifesaving efforts were started and the subject was transported to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.”

Deputies were called to the scene after a 9-1-1 call from Leiteritz claiming that unknown persons had cut his power and were attempting to break into his home on Boss Road.

He told dispatchers that he was going to confront the person outside his home, then came back and told dispatchers “I think I stabbed one of them.”

It was later discovered that the victim was dating Leiteritz’s ex-girlfriend, who reportedly brought them to the McKinleyville home, but failed to appear in court in 2019, leading to a warrant being sent out for her arrest.

In 2019, crime in Humboldt county was down significantly, the above case being on a list of only 10 homicides that year, prompting DA Fleming to call the decreasing crime rate “a blessing” to reporters with a Lake County news source.

However, the violent crime statistics in Rohnert Park show an increase in violent crime in 2020, the last year data was COURTESY // McKinleyville Sheriff’s Office available. “The Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety saw a 4.9% increase in violent crimes reported in its city, from 267 Brian Leiteritz, now 42, was arrested after murin 2019 to 280 in 2020.” dering Rohnert Park citizen Dylan Liakos.

OCT. 12 - OCT. 18, 2021 sonomastatestar.com

Arts & Entertainment 5

“Scream” House open for Halloween overnight stay

JEFFREY AVIÑA

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STAFF WRITER

irbnb announced that they are offering a new experience at the house from the movie “Scream” this Halloween for the film’s 25th anniversary. Guests will have a one-night experience to stay and explore the house that has terrified and delighted audiences for a generation.

Airbnb will be offering one-night stays for up to four people in the “Scream” house in Tomales on Oct. 27, 29, and 31. David Arquette, who played Sheriff Dewey Riley, will virtually greet the hosts when they arrive to begin the “Ultimate Halloween overnight stay.”

According to Airbnb’s press release, the house will be restored to its former glory with all the details from the film like the knife marks on the door from the death of Dewey’s sister, Tatum. A VHS marathon of the “Scream” series, nineties-inspired snacks, and a dedicated phone line for reaching Ghostface for any questions or requests are included in a onenight stay of the house.

The 1996 classic used many locations around Sonoma State to create ‘Woodsboro.’ The homes of Casey Becker and Sidney Prescott are located off of Route 12 near Glen Ellen and to the north of Santa Rosa on Calistoga Road, respectively. Woodsboro town square is in reality the Healdsburg town square. Just 22 miles north of campus, serves as the spot where the teens talk about the murders terrorizing their town. All of the locations were listed on movie-locations.com, a website featuring an archive of thousands of movies and the locations featured in them.

“Scream” director, Wes Craven, did run into trouble filming. Santa Rosa High School was set to be the backdrop for Woodsboro High, but the Santa Rosa city school district governing board had a problem with the script and ultimately opted to not be featured in the film. Craven thanked the Sonoma Community Center, the actual setting of Woodsboro High.

During the end credits of the film; Craven thanks all the locations for filming, and put, “No thanks whatsoever to The Santa Rosa City School District Governing Board,” at the bottom of the screen.

“It’s funny because it seems like such a random place to film such a famous horror movie and I’ve never even heard it mentioned,” says Bella Boggio, a fourth year student, about filming in Sonoma County. Interestingly, Craven is not even the first horror director in Santa Rosa. Horror legend Alfred Hitchcock filmed his 1943 film, “Shadow of a Doubt,” in many locations around Santa Rosa.

Themed Airbnb rentals and experiences have become more popular on the site with other offerings. A St. Louis’ apartment was decorated by the owner to resemble the Byers home from the first season of the Net-

flix Original, “Stranger Things.” Most themed experiences are done by the host, but the “Scream” rental is one of the first sponsored by Airbnb directly.

“I never saw the movie, but things like this definitely make me want to go back and watch it,” said Maddie Bonner, a fourth year student, about the uptick in themed Airbnbs.

Bookings for the “Scream” house will open on Oct. 12 at 10 a.m. For more information, visit Airbnb.com.

COURTESY // @screammovies Instagram page The “Scream” house in Tomales will be available to rent on Oct. 27, Oct. 29, and Oct. 31 through Airbnb. Guests will be greeted virtually by Sheriff Dewey Riley when they arrive at the property.

Jazz band performs debut Jazz Combo Concert at the Green Music Center

ADRIENNE MOON

STAFF WRITER

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he Music Department Jazz band and Latin band performed at the Green Music Center on Friday at 7:30 p.m. The performance, “SSU Jazz Combos Concert” was directed by professors Ian Carey and Kendrick Freeman. According to the music department website, it was their debut performance of Fall 2021. The theme of this concert was improvisation, and how musicians can get over the hurdle of wanting everything they play to be completely perfect.

“It was great hearing live music in person again. For the past year and a half there has been a dull spot, where in person concerts used to be… but now it is exciting and exhilarating for there to be actual live performances” said event attendee and parent of performer Melia Zimmerman, Leina Zimmerman.

The track list was “Fungii Mama” by Richard Allen “Blue” Mitchell, “Whisper Not” by Benny Golson, “Improvisation” by jazz band, “Like Sonny” by John Coltrane, “I Ain’t Got Nothin’ But the Blues” by Duke Ellington, “Larry Fotine” and Don George, and “Milestones” by Miles Davis.

Professor Ian Carey, director of the Jazz band said that he wanted a diverse setlist in order to show the different subgenres that are within jazz.

He continued by saying, “I want someone who has never experienced jazz to see that jazz is much more than the popular songs in today’s modern society.”

The Jazz band includes Martin Contreras on tenor saxophone and bass

clarinet, Brendan Corr on trumpet and vocal, Jonathan Deciccio on alto saxophone and flute, Jomei Greer on piano, EJ Hardy on tenor saxophone, Nick Lucido on drums, and Melia Zimmerman on bass.

Carey was there to help guide the audience on the different songs that were played. He provided insight on all the songs before the band played them. He wanted the audience to know that the group was its own autonomous group that once they play, they have to face anything that comes up unexpectedly, and make decisions on the fly.

The third song they played was the “Improvisation”; Professor Carey wanted the band to see “how they feel in the moment, thus meaning that they can sound like anything they want, rather than thinking and feeling as though they have to play like a trained musician.”

The song was played in duos before they improvised as a group. The first duo was Zimmerman and Hardy, the second duo was Lucido and Greer, and the last duo was Corr and Contreras.

Alexander Brown, a music major at SSU stated that “the improvisation gave me the vibe of a purple alien space world, that has a peaceful society with little or no war.”

While talking with Melia Zimmerman, the bassist, the topic of gender inequality came up because she is a woman in an all-male jazz band. She stated that “she was very thankful and grateful that she has found a group of guys that do not look down on me, just because of my gender.”

STAR // Ileana Aleman The jazz ensemble performed on Friday night at Sonoma State University’s Green Music Center. (Left to right) Martin Contreras, Brendan Corr, Jonathan Deciccio, EJ Hardy.

STAR // Ileana Aleman The Jazz Ensemble begun the night by playing “Fungii Mama” by Richard Allen “Blue” Mitchell. (Left to right) Jomei Greer, Melia Zimmerman, Nick lucido, Martin contreras, Brendan Corr, Jonathan Deciccio, EJ Hardy.

6 Student Life

OCT. 12 - OCT. 18, 2021 sonomastatestar.com

Sonoma State Alumni Association hosts virtual Latinx Alumni Panel DANA SCACCO STAFF WRITER

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n Thurs., Oct. 7, the Sonoma State Alumni Association celebrated Latinx Heritage Month with a virtual Latinx Alumni Panel. Five SSU alumni honored their Latinx heritage and shared their personal backgrounds, educational journeys, and professional careers with students and faculty.

The panelists included Chicano Studies and Organizational Development graduate Richard DeLeón, Hutchins Liberal Studies graduate Jesús Guzmán, Sociology graduate Ariana Aparicio Aguilar, Psychology graduate Cerbelio Rodas-Reyes, and Psychology graduate Monica Cornejo.

Roughly 40 people attended the event, and the crowd was mostly made up of SSU students and faculty. A facilitator asked questions to the panelists, and the audience could respond or ask their own questions directly through the Zoom.

Alumni Association Director Tiffany O’Neil expressed the significance of the event, and stated that, “hosting these panels is one of our favorite things to do. The alumni joining us today are providing opportunities that volunteer and support the advancement of Sonoma State. We are proud to be honoring and recognizing Latinx Heritage Month through this event and conversation.”

The panelists described how SSU helped them individually, while also discussing how the university provided various opportunities and prepared them for their future professional careers.

Jesús Guzmán graduated from SSU in 2015 with a Bachelor’s in the Hutchins Liberal Studies program. Guzmán went on to share how SSU benefited his personal and educational life. “As an undocumented student, I faced a lot of challenges and struggled to pay for college out of pocket. I had to work two full time jobs, but Sonoma State allowed me to work and get an education in the Hutchins program at the same time.”

Ariana Aparicio Aguilar graduated in 2011, and went on to credit her positive experiences with Sonoma State to the Sociology Department. “The Sociology Department was supportive and they really cared for me. The department was a gift, and I was able to make long lasting connections. SSU taught me to hustle and to navigate things on my own, but also to push forward and keep growing. Now, I hope to become an administrator in higher education so I can be a resource and mentor to other students.” The alumni also encouraged audience members to take advantage of school opportunities and utilize resources.

Richard DeLeón graduated twice from the university and spoke on the ways he became involved on campus. “I wanted to take advantage of all the opportunities that came in my direction. I got involved in everything I could and took on leadership roles. I worked at the EOP office, I did summer orientation work, I was involved in my fraternity, and I was elected vice president of student government. My undergrad experience was a stepping stone to get me to do the work that I am achieving now.”

Guzmán voiced, “For me, a tremendous resource at SSU was using professors’ office hours. Having those one on one conversations with your professors influences you and opens doors for the future.

Take office hours seriously and use them to your advantage.”

The panelists engaged in conversation about the obstacles Latinx individuals face. They reflected on their hardships and gave the audience advice about what they learned as Latinx students. 2017 graduate, Monica Cornejo, conveyed that, “the Latinx community faces impos-

COURTESY // ssualumni.org Sonoma State’s alumni association opened up the floor via Zoom for a Latinx Alumni Panel, with all guest speakers detailing their experiences both during and after their time at SSU.

ter syndrome and feeling like they aren’t good enough or don’t belong. Don’t be afraid to knock on doors, and if those doors don’t open, knock them down yourself. We have the power ourselves to make change. It is very important to have these panels to talk about more opportunities for Latinx.”

DeLeón mentioned that the support and connections he made with others helped him persevere. “There was a small number of Latinx students, but we were able to build such a strong community with those who stuck around. Tell yourself to keep going and remember that you have people to help you figure it out.”

Audience members expressed their thoughts on the conversation and thanked the panelists.

SSU alum and foundation board member, Anita Christmas, commented, “you are all so inspirational and I am so proud of you. Stay strong and keep moving forward.” Marge Limbert, Senior Director of the Green Music Center, said, “I am so inspired by this incredible group of humans.

Thank you for all you do.” To stay informed and connected with SSU alumni, be sure to visit ssu. alumni.org. For more information on Latinx Heritage events at SSU, go to diversity.sonoma.edu.

Sonoma State highlights Black Student Union PEDRO ORTEGA PEREZ STAFF WRITER

COURTESY // @ssu_bsu on Instagram While visiting the Black Joy Parade, members of SSU’s Black Student Union pose for a coordinated photo.

COURTESY // @ssu_bsu on Instagram Sonoma State’s Black Student Union tables in the Seawolf Plaza before the COVID-19 pandemic.

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onoma State is home to a multitude of clubs ranging from Academic, Greek life, Faith/Spirituality, Gaming, Music, Identity, Sports, and more. Among those is the Sonoma State University Black Student Union. SSU’s BSU aims to create a safe space for those of Pan-African Diaspora. The club also focuses on empowering, supporting, and achieving higher education.

Crystal Jiminez, now a Sonoma State graduate and a former RA, was invited to BSU through tabling. She was welcomed with open arms during her Sophomore year, which helped to create meaningful connections within the club. “[BSU] came together to create a safe space for black students that needed a space to talk about feelings regarding coming to predominantly white institutions. It was also created as a space for individuals who don’t necessarily identify as black individuals to learn about culture, microaggressions and allyship,” Jiminez stated.

Looking at the CSU system as a whole, African American students only make up four percent of the entire system-wide population. SSU has almost 9,000 students, but out of the whole student population, Black students only make up about 2.2%. While Black students are one of the smaller demographics at Sonoma State, the Black Student Union proves to be a large asset to students of color at Sonoma State.

Jiminez went on to state that, “the opportunities created were not only for black individuals, but those who have misconceptions about black identity and stereotypes. It allowed a space that could be navigated through the viewpoint of black individuals. This also allowed us to feel empowered seeing professors and staff who also identified as the minority striving for more.”

BSU caters to that two percent by hosting a multitude of workshops and having a safe space for them. Along with these, they also have an active Instagram page for a virtual safe space. Hosting a multitude of game nights and other interactive events, this gives everyone a chance to meet each other and interact, in an effort to create an even closer campus community. They host mental health workshops to ensure that all topics on students’ minds are being discussed, and explore better ways to manage the stresses of going to a predominantly white school.

Along with the workshops that BSU hosts, they also educate the campus community on important topics, such as what it means to Black and educated, as well as bringing awareness to what Black history represents.

The club is student led, which allows for students to hold different leadership positions and contribute what they can to the club itself. This enforces the pursuit for leadership and empowerment. Having it being student led allows the club to execute the demands of students in a more accurate and personal manner. Students often have a more clear understanding of students’ demands, with resources and opinions from their peers available at every turn.

When asked about BSU’s end goal, Jiminez stated that “the end goal is educating and creating equality for individuals who identify as black. Not only educating those who want to learn but learning more about our own culture, and growing to love our own culture even through our hardships!”

Overall, The Sonoma State Black Student Union has become an inclusive and empowering space for students of color who often feel underrepresented. To many, college can create an imposter syndrome, as well as even causing a sense of culture shock. While these situations can be tough for many students to deal with, BSU aims to provide a safe space, as well as another support system for students to better navigate the hardships that college can create.

OCT. 12 - OCT. 18, 2021 sonomastatestar.com

Student Life 7

Sonoma State’s Panhellenic organizations take strides to end hazing within Greek life PAYTON MULLANEY STAFF WRITER

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ach year, when recruitment rolls around, students of Greek Life are faced with the task of ensuring student’s safety, while still upholding the Greek Life reputation. Due to some fraternities’ past actions, the school has started to become much more strict on the dangerous recruitment activities that students participate in. Hazing will not be tolerated at all here on our campus, and the school is well aware that actions happen behind closed doors, and cannot always be monitored. In honor of Max Gruver passing away 4 years ago due to a hazing incident, Sonoma State Sorority and Fraternity life has stepped up to stop hazing.

When it comes to Sonoma’s Sorority and Fraternity life, these organizations take pride in treating each member with respect. Proving that this is not just a statement, Sonoma State has issued five-year bans to campus fraternities due to hazing related incidents. While Sonoma State works hard to take the stigma away from hazing, students interested in joining Greek life should not have to worry about what types of dangerous activities lie in front of them when they are getting to know a brand-new fraternity. Joining Greek Life means that you should be finding people that will keep you safe and care for you regardless, and these incidents have historically proven otherwise.

Max Gruver’s life came at the cost of reminding students of how we need to treat our Greek life brothers and sisters. The Max Gruver Foundation has worked with the state of Louisiana to “create an updated felony hazing law”, so that no family or student will ever experience the pain that was caused by hazing. The foundation has been able to distribute over “100,000 wristbands” all over college campuses to spread the word that hazing needs to end.

As for how this is playing a role on Sonoma State’s campus, Panhellenic organizations are taking initiative to keep their members safe. Rachel Beckmann, president of Alpha Delta Pi, wants to “create a safe environment based on friendship, academics, and strong moral values.” The “stereotypical sorority” is so far from actual Greek Life, and Beckmann is taking great strides to “eliminate the reputation.”

She never wants her sisters, or potential new members, to feel uneasy when going through recruitment, and these hazing incidents have definitely caused a rift within the society of Greek life. The overarching theme of Greek life is to create lifelong relationships that help better your college experience, and we will continue to learn from Gruver to be safe and respect our brothers and sisters.

When joining an organization, new members are required to attend a lecture about hazing. This helps students and new Greek life recruits to be able to identify the dangers of hazing, and encourages students to put a stop to it, by getting help from people they can trust.

It is important to note that not every organization will be perfect, or follow these rules behind closed doors. However, for the ones that are prioritizing the safety of new members, the experience that new Greek life recruits would get is much safer and positive. Ultimately, the safety and comfortability of their members should be these sororities and fraternieies’ priority in the long run. Sonoma State will not tolerate if someone is being treated unfairly, and wants to enforce the ideology that going through recruitment is a healthy experience, focusing more on brother/sisterhood, philanthropy, and academics.

STAR // Taylor Clark Cosmo Kasapligil (left) and Mitch Burns (right) discuss upcoming events within their fraternity at the Seawolf Plaza .

STAR // Courtney Bagg Alexa Woo, Cameron Monroy, and Regan Lavin (left to right) show what their sorority has to offer to freshmen in the Seawolf Plaza.

Sonoma State hosts CSI Crime Scene and Medieval Museum escape rooms for students CLÉA UPCHER

STAFF WRITER

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n Fri. Oct. 9, Promoting Events And Programming Services, or PEAPS, hosted their annual escape rooms in the Student Center from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. The escape rooms offered students the chance to try their hand at working out puzzles, piecing together clues, and sorting through evidence in order to solve their choice of two different mysteries.

“We do escape rooms every year we’re able to in person, it’s one of our traditional events. Tonight it went really well, it was a little bit different… with the green screen [for COVID-19]… We filled out all of our time slots, everyone got a chance to participate, some people more than once,” said Will Montgomery, third-year SSU student who leads a team of student assistants for Student Involvement.

“We get hired to run all over the country and set up short-term escape rooms, they’re sort of like an appetizer of an escape room. They’re fifteen minutes long, for five people. Not fully immersive, but it gives a little bit of a taste, gets your mind flowing, working on some puzzles and figuring out some problems,” said Alex Brock, the person who is in charge of setting up and facilitating the escape rooms.

“Each room is a little bit different, we certainly don’t just copy the same set of puzzles and put a different graphic to it. Each room’s got its own unique flare. Expect to show up and have to work together. A lot of our puzzles force you to have more than one person involved, that way one person can’t just drive through the room and figure everything out for the group… If it’s folks who have never met before, It melds the group together and [helps you] meet new people,” continued Brock.

Friday’s rooms had two themes: CSI Crime Scene, and Medieval Museum. In the Medieval Museum room, teams had to solve puzzles in order to unlock the padlock on a case, using a single word. There was a heat-sensitive canvas with numerous letters and numbers on it, and a self-heated bean bag, which when pressed onto the canvas, revealed hidden clues. There was a puzzle box that revealed a clue once teams figured out how to open it, as well as a book of photos teams had to sort through in order to find missing pieces to a word puzzle.

“We just thought it was a good opportunity to have fun, hang out with people, and escape rooms are really fun,” said third year SSU student Leah Vallespin, regarding their motivation to visit the escape rooms. Leah and their team successfully completed the Medieval Museum room in only 12 minutes, leaving plenty of time to spare.

The CSI Crime Scene room offered participants a chance to put themselves in the shoes of a detective. This room offered a bag of evidence, including surveillance photos with suspects’ descriptions on them, eye witness reports, criminal history reports, a mysterious jacket, employee badges, timesheets, and more. The room even had a laptop labeled as a “Police System Interface”, with a timer countdown, and different tabs for various clues to be entered.

“We heard about escape rooms, and I used to work at an escape room, so I wanted to see what was going on. It was really fun … getting to hang out with my coworker and her roommate. Just a nice, casual social thing,” said Eryn Lang, a third-year SSU student, after trying their hand at the CSI room with two other group members.

STAR // Ileana Aleman During the CSI Crime Scene-themed escape room, students are tasked to help a local crime boss discover the identity of two criminals.

PEAPS is in charge of planning entertaining events just like this one, for students to enjoy on the weekends. “We try to focus on giving people things to do on campus... We offer movies… DIY crafts… We will bring back “Get A Way” trips in the spring, and on Friday’s we typically host a variety of events… Our home base events are karaoke, open mic, trivia, game contests, and bingo/grocery bingo. This year we are mixing it up a bit by hosting a casino night, spirit events at athletic contests… escape rooms… We have really gotten a lot of people at the weekend programs thus far!” wrote Mo Phillips, Director of Student Involvement, in an email.

“I lead the team of student assistants that help Mo run all of the events [and] research the events. It’s my job to make sure the students have the best experience they can, things run smoothly, and that the students and the vendors have everything they need to have a good time,” said Montgomery. With an event like this one, PEAPS was able to achieve their goals of promoting a fun and entertaining event for students, providing an engaging Fri. night for all students involved.Be sure to check out the “Events” tab on the Seawolf Living website to find more Fri. and Sat. events facilitated by PEAPS and its student-led team.

8

Health

OCT. 12 - OCT. 18, 2021 sonomastatestar.com

The COVID-19 Compliance and Monitoring Team: What they do and who they are

The COVID-19 Compliance and Monitoring Team uses data from the daily wellness check surveys to help keep everyone on campus safe and aware.

STAR // Isabelle Barkey

ADDISON SMITH

STAFF WRITER

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t Sonoma State, the health and safety of students is top priority, now more than ever due to the ongoing pandemic. Over the course of this semester, SSU has had good control over COVID-19 and has not seen any massive outbreaks like some other schools. This is all thanks in part to SSU’s COVID-19 monitoring team who work day in and day out to track the spread and contain any potential outbreaks.

The team uses data from daily wellness checks to track where the outbreak started and if anyone on campus made contact with an infected individual.

“The COVID-19 monitoring team helps ensure our campus is safe and following the health guidelines administered on the local, state, and federal level,” said an anonymous member of the monitoring team.

The COVID-19 monitoring team invites students to go about their day to day lives and live in this new “normal” that many are still readjusting to. The team doesn’t want the school to be ruled by COVID-19, rather they want people to be cautious of it while also living out their lives as college students. They are very aware how difficult that can be, but they continue to diligently monitor the spread of COVID-19 at Sonoma State to help our healthcare workers at the Student Health Center pinpoint where an outbreak may have started and who was the cause of the spread.

Andrea Vanderschoot, a senior at Sonoma State, discussed the e-mails students receive on campus, “I think the emails updating us on the spread of COVID-19 are helpful, I am just not 100% sure on how accurate they are. I can see how the emails can be alarming for some students because it seems like we get the emails more often than not, but that’s what we signed up for when we took the gamble of moving back

to campus.”

The gamble of living on campus was one many students took in order to channel the “normal” school year they’ve been craving for so long, especially students in their final years of college.

A way that the COVID-19 Compliance and Monitoring team helps create a safe and “normal” year for students is by supporting individuals who may have been exposed, are experiencing symptoms consistent with COVID-19, or who have tested positive for COVID-19. The team gathers this data through the health center and students’ health portals. That data then gets used to pinpoint where the COVID-19 positive individual spent time on campus. Once that’s done, the team then sends out emails to people who may have been exposed, and further monitors the situation to contain the outbreak by sending people who got positive tests to Sauvignon to quarantine.

Tenaya Pauly, a junior at Sonoma State, to discuss her view on the pandemic and how the monitoring team is handling it: “I would say Sonoma State has done an excellent job with limiting outbreaks on campus, I mainly feel like that is attributed to less facilities being open and a smaller student population coupled with the work the COVID-19 monitoring team has done for us.”

The COVID-19 Compliance and Monitoring Office has done a lot for the school, bringing a normal year and bringing everyone closer together as a student body.

Throughout the school year, the team will be working closely with the student health center and the school’s health center staff on campus to further provide an unprecedented level of safety here at Sonoma State.

The COVID-19 pill is the newest form of treatment for the virus and is still being tested by manufacturers and the FDA.

COURTESY // @kywnewsradio on Instagram

Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics testing new COVID-19 pill JAYLINE ALVARADO STAFF WRITER

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he molnupiravir pill, developed by Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics (Merck), is the newest innovation in the search for the most effective COVID-19 treatments. This experimental drug is an oral pill that is said to treat COVID-19 positive patients.

The New York Times describes how the drug works: “Molnupiravir tricks the coronavirus into using the drug to try to replicate the virus’s genetic material. Once that process is underway, the drug inserts errors into the genetic code.”

According to the New York Times, Merck already sold 1.7 million treatment courses to the US, despite not having been approved by the U.S Federal Drug Administration (FDA). Merck has applied to the FDA to receive authorization for emergency use and they’re still waiting on a response. They’re already looking to other countries to market the pill to and plan to offer different price points for different countries.

One reason as to why there’s so much focus on this new pill is because it means COVID-19 treatment is on its way to being more accessible than ever. If this new pill were to come to fruition, people won’t have to go to health centers and be jabbed with needles. Instead they can take a painless treatment plan from the comfort of their own home.

Wellcome Foundation Director Jeremy Farrar told Bloomberg, “While yet to be

cleared by regulators, Merck’s molnupiravir has been hailed as a potential breakthrough, as it could be relatively cheap and easy to make, doesn’t require infusion and has shown it reduces the risk of hospitalization in a trial. Yet it may need to be combined with other drugs to head off resistance.”

With all that in mind, it’s important to mention that the molnupiravir pill shows a 50 percent lower efficacy, or the ability to produce the desired result, than the intravenous cocktail from companies like Regeneron or Eli Lilly. Because of this, it seems that once it’s released, the pill would only be available for those who have COVID-19 but aren’t in the hospital, those who are unvaccinated, or have chronic medical conditions.

Sonoma State student Julissa Ledesma believes, “...a pill that can help ‘cure’ mild symptoms is a huge improvement during the pandemic, [and it] will benefit people in the long run if it does come out with more studies on how effective it is.”

When asked about how this COVID-19 pill could impact Sonoma State students, Ledesma said, “There could be a possible decline in COVID-19 cases on campus, perhaps allowing more students to attend more in-person classes in the spring semester.”

Other companies like Pfizer are also developing pills to combat COVID-19, but they won’t be available until next year and have not even begun the lengthy process of getting approved by the FDA.

Sports 9

OCT. 12 - OCT. 18, 2021 sonomastatestar.com

The SSU men’s golf team poses after the NCAA Division II Championships in Florida last May.

COURTESY // Brian Tirpak

SSU men’s golf team takes on the Wildcat Classic DANIEL DINERMAN STAFF WRITER

A

s one of the only acceptable socially distanced activities during the reign of COVID-19, it has become no surprise that golf has recently blown up as a recreational activity for all to enjoy. Open grass fields, peaceful settings and a laid back etiquette are what encompasses the age old game for us recreational golfers.

However, for the golf team at Sonoma State, strictly acting recreationally is something that is not meant for the course. The team will be travelling to Chico for their second tournament of the year to play in the first Wildcat classic since 2019, where they will compete against 10 other collegiate golf teams for their chance at a tournament win.

A practice round Sunday should familiarize the five Seawolf golfers, Lucas Happy, Tom Jenkins, Aidan Oliver, Griffin Pace, and Charles Taylor, to take on the 45 other contestants in Butte County on Monday and Tuesday. While the course is fairly straight up with minimal gimmicks, the real difficulty will come as players deal with twenty plus mile an hour winds as they try to direct their ball through these tough conditions.

In preparation for the tournament, the team has spent countless hours around the greens trying to improve their short games, as well as playing practice rounds three to four times a week. The team also spends a lot of time ensuring that everybody is taking care of their classwork, getting enough sleep and paying attention to their diet/ nutrition. It takes a lot of physical strength and strain to the body to play any sport at such a high level.

However when asked about preparation for the tournament, Coach Val Verhunce

made an effort to say that the team, “Focuses on their sleep, diet, nutrition and school work,” more than anything else, and claimed that both individually, and as a team, “We gotta take care of our own business. The person most prepared for success is the most likely to end up having something to show for, so it is just so important to make sure everything is 100% before we even step out there.”

This overall grit and determination will hopefully send the team to the top, and at the very least will ensure these student athletes are able to maintain themselves outside of their sports.

The golf team’s preparation and attention to detail should hopefully propel them into the mix during the multi day tournament. After the practice round, players will be asked to participate in 36 holes on Monday, then the top scores from the day will compete in an 18 hole round where everybody competes for a chance at the lowest score and a chance at bringing home the win.

Back in September, the Sonoma State Golf team came up just short and finished second in the fall invitational at Valley of the Moon Golf Club. At the invitational, the collective team shot a 295 (+15) through their first 36 which is quite good shared between five people. In other words, the team is now familiar with more competing golfers and should better know what to expect going into the competition, and understand what it takes to bring in the win.

For tournament updates, head to the SSU Athletics website and select men’s golf Wildcat Classic live stats.

Athlete Spotlight of the Week:

Sebastian Bernal-Santos ISAAC LOPEZ

STAFF WRITER

S

onoma State University’s men’s soccer team has come across many great players in all their years of existence. While there are a number of eye-opening and respectable players that are currently in the 2021 men’s soccer roster, one player that seems to be getting a lot of attention is Sebastian Bernal-Santos, and for a good reason.

Originally from Sacramento, Bernal-Santos has been a big component to the team’s recent success and is hoping to contribute much more as he enters his final year with the team. Bernal-Santos always makes his presence known on the soccer field, playing as one of the team’s leading forwards.

In the 2019 soccer season, Bernal-Santos finished the season with three goals, a team high of four assists, and tied with fellow teammate Sean Rohane for a team high of 10 points each. 10 games into the 2021 campaign, Bernal-Santos has one goal, five assists, and 7 points so far. While the senior has caught the attention of many and earned much respect throughout his years, Bernal-Santos explained how his motivation has allowed him to make his way into playing at a collegiate level.

“I use my mom and family mostly for motivation just because my mom started playing soccer,” explains Bernal Santos, “My mom was the one who put me into my first game and she enjoys watching me play. It makes her happy because she had to stop playing once my brother was born. It also makes me a role model for my younger brother to look up and see that he can make it out in the world and do stuff.”

Since 2017, the Seawolves have struggled a bit to make much noise in their NCAA Division II bracket, with the men’s soccer team finishing 6-10-1 in their 2019 campaign. But with Sonoma State coming off an incredible 3-2 victory against Cal State San Marcos, as well as Bernal-Santos coming off the pitch with three assists, a much brighter season is now a reality as SSU’s record turns into 5-4-1. With more games to come, Bernal-Santos is doing whatever he can to get his team and himself ready to finish their season strong.

“On Saturdays we usually do light training and we get into a pool to help our legs regenerate faster for our next game,” explains Bernal-Santos, “We know that even though we are on a nice fancy trip for now, we are here for one goal and one goal only: to get our six points and get our results. We just need to focus on what to do and to get everybody on the team in the mindset that game day is going to be another war.”

Bernal-Santos is also well respected by his teammates coaches as he continues to be a great asset on and off the field. “His work rate is amazing and he is always positive and upbeat,” says Head Coach Marcus Ziemer. “He has a huge impact on and off the field. It’s been awesome to watch him grow physically, as a soccer player and as a person. I look forward to watching him as he continues to develop and move forward with his life.”

COURTESY // Justin Ferarri Sebastian Bernal-Santos eludes a Cal Poly Pomona defender where he assisted their lone goal in a 1-1 tie.

COURTESY // Justin Ferarri Sebastian Bernal-Santos, a senior on the mens soccer team, has been critical in their recent success.

10 Photo

OCT. 12 - OCT. 18, 2021 sonomastatestar.com

Seawolf sleuths race the clock in Escape Rooms

STAR // Ileana Aleman Students focused on figuring out how to solve their CSI puzzle with the given information.

STAR // Ileana Aleman In a group, participants discuss their findings on who the two criminals can be and continue to put the pieces together.

Salmon Creek Beach deserted after recent shark attack

STAR // Nicholas Roth STAR // Nicholas Roth A surfer catches a wave as the sun sets at Schoolhouse Beach, away from the site of Birds take to the sky while Salmon Creek Beach remains empty of people after the the shark attack. shark attack last Sunday.

STAR // Nicholas Roth The waves off of north Salmon Creek Beach continue to break on a deserted beach just days after Eric Steinley, a Sonoma County surfer, was bitten by a shark and survived.

Sonoma State students perform in Jazz Ensemble

STAR // Ileana Aleman Brendan Corr (center) sings “I Ain’t Got Nothin’ But the Blues”, accompanied by Martin Contreras (left) and Jonathan Deciccio (right).

STAR // Ileana Aleman Bass player Melia Zimmerman (left) switches off between two bass instruments during the Jazz Ensemble.