Volume73 issue6

Page 1

Diynosaurs perform at Phoenix Theater

P. 7

Time to kick it with Kappa Delta Zeta

P. 8

Women’s volleyball wins out in series

P. 11

Sonoma State Star SINCE 1979

VOLUME 73 // ISSUE 6

SONOMASTATESTAR.COM

SEPTEMBER 30 - OCTOBER 6, 2014

Trustees receive feedback on success fee Kayla E. Galloway News Editor

L

STAR // Maud Busson Cecilia Sifuentes, freshman defender, attempts to gain possession against the Monterey Bay Otters on Friday.

Women’s soccer undefeated at 9-0 Jake Tucker Staff Writer

T

he lady Seawolves continue their season with another successful weekend, collecting wins from Cal State Monterey Bay and Humboldt State giving them a 9-0 record to begin the year. On Friday Cal State Monterey Bay traveled to Sonoma State University to face the undefeated Seawolves. The game remained scoreless until minute 37, when Margi Osmundson assisted Melissa Lafranchi for the first goal of the game. The lead was quickly diminished when Taylor Greenwood and Regan Porteous scored goals for Monterey in minute 43 and 55. Lauren Curtin had a quick response with a nice goal just three minutes later. The game was locked at 2-2 until minute 73 when Sara Van Wagoner gave Sonoma

State the lead with a goal from about 25 yards out. The game would ultimately end in a 3-2 victory for the Seawolves. Ranked 20, the Seawolves improved their flawless record to 9-0-0 (2-0-0 CCAA). This was the first time this season that goalkeeper Allison Hadidian had allowed more than one goal in a game, but she also provided a season-high six saves. It was a strong offensive game for both teams, as Monterey shot the ball 14 times, eight of which were on goal, and Sonoma State got off 13 shots, and also had eight shots on goal. Osmundson led the way with three shots, all of them on goal. Lauren Curtin and Alex Sifuentes also added three shots. “Monterey was a great team. Even though we won, we didn’t play our game,” said Curtin. “We definitely made it harder on ourselves.”

The Seawolves looked to maintain their perfect record on Sunday against the Humboldt State Lumberjacks. The game remained scoreless until 21 seconds before halftime when McKenzie Maher headed a pass from Kristal Luna into the net for a goal. However, the Lumberjacks would tie the game with a goal just 71 seconds into the second half. Just four minutes later, Melissa Lafranchi scored the gamewinning goal, as the game would end in Sonoma State’s favor 2-1. The Seawolves shot 17 times, nine of which were on goal, while Humboldt only shot seven times, four of which were on goal, but were unable to get a shot off in the entire first half. The lady Seawolves extended their winning streak to nine games, and look to protect it against Cal State East bay this Friday night. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.

ast spring Sonoma State University was one of the many California State University campuses considering the implementation of an Academic Success Fee. On Friday the campus welcomed representatives from the CSU Board of Trustees and students from all across California for a forum in which the board asked for feedback from the campus community on the future implementation of fees at Sonoma State. Serving on the working group on student success fees and present at the forum was Chancellor Timothy White, Board Trustee Doug Faigin, California Polytechnic University President Jeffrey Armstrong as well as a Student Trustee Talar Alexanian. The working group for the success fee was formed in response to the reaction from students, faculty, trustees and California legislators to the potential implementation of an academic success fee at universities across the CSU system. An academic success fee is considered a mandatory campus-based Category II fee within the CSU system, meaning it’s separate from students tuition fees, considered Category I fees. The purpose of this public forum was to analyze the positive and negative impacts of success fees at other CSU campuses and to get feedback from SSU students and faculty on how a success fee in the future would affect campuses. At the forum, President Ruben Armiñana addressed the toll that the lack of state funding has taken on the CSU system in recent years. “I believe the student suc-

cess fee is a legitimate, local approach to our dismal failure of our political leadership to fund higher education appropriately in California,” said Armiñana. “Unfortunately, I do not foresee in the next few years, an improvement in the level of funding.” Armiñana also discussed the influence that students had on the decision not to implement a success fee in the spring semester. He also emphasized how the success fee was created by administration, not students. “These fees need to be created, led and campaigned for by the students,” said Armiñana. Following the introductions by Armiñana and the working group of the success fee, audience members including students and faculty from Sonoma State and other CSU campuses were given the opportunity to voice their opinions and concerns regarding success fees. Cheyenne Aldridge, a fifthyear psychology and women and gender studies major spoke at the forum and expressed her concern regarding debt as well as the rise of homelessness among students. “My current debt is $30,000 and I cannot afford to pay a dollar more,” said Aldridge. “We’re facing an increase of homeless students at Sonoma State who cannot afford to pay fees that we have already. Students don’t know where they’re going to lay their heads at night and with a fee increase it might force students to have to drop out.” Aldridge also expressed how she believes Sonoma State is lacking the basic necessities of a state university. “We don’t have proper materials in class for our teachers to teach. [Last] Tuesday, I had See SUCCESS on Pg. 5

Sacramento Semester Program calls for students

T

Gustavo Vasquez Staff Writer

he Sacramento Semester Program opened its doors for California State University students to apply for Spring 2014, a unique internship at the state’s capitol. The program is open for all California State University students within the 23-campus spread. Students within the program plunge into academic study, discussions, seminars and internships with the executive branch, legislative branch, interest groups and lobbyists. Each student has to work a minimum of 25 hours a week in his or her

internship at Sacramento. Every year the program opens its registration process and accepts students for the spring semester session, which students in the CSU system of any major can apply to. “We accept around 30 students each year from the CSU system,” said Michael Wadle, director of the program at Sacramento State. “We also offer scholarships through the scholarship office.” There are grants and scholarships for students; the Sacramento Semester Program offers 10 scholarships of $4,000 for students who qualify. Registration for the Spring 2015 session is currently open until Nov. 17. Students who are accepted into the

program are notified in early December. “It’s a way to get into the capitol, maybe not into politics so much, as to one of the entities involved around Sacramento; it presents a tremendous opportunity,” said David McCuan, professor of political science and alumni of the program. According to McCuan, Sonoma State University has sent people off and on over the years. Not many are sent, but when they do send people they tend to be highly qualified. Currently only two students at Sonoma State are applying to the program for the Spring 2015 session. One of which is Hayden Ludwig, a senior and political science major.

“It’s a really interesting program that unfortunately not very many students know of,” said Ludwig. “I encourage anyone who is remotely interested being in Sacramento to apply and attend this program. It’s an excellent way to spend your last semester, especially if you only have a couple of classes left, why not?” The program consists of four components, which are internships, seminars, guest speakers and the social and recreational components. Students usually have three different choices when applying for their internship portion of the program. The executive branch and commissions is one choice, which students intern in the office of the governor.

Southern California band releases new album

Professor shares passion for human equality

Read the review on Pg. 7

See the spotlight on Pg.9

The Legislative branch is another option in which students intern with individual legislators in the state capitol. The last is students can intern with interest groups and lobbyists. There are alumni from the Sacramento Semester Program throughout the state, like Candace Nafissi, now the education and policy manager for the Chamber of Commerce in Los Angeles. Nafissi joined the program from CSU Long Beach in 2006. “This is such a great opportunity for me with great mentors, I learned so much about being in government,” said Nafissi. “In the political field, half the challenge is getting into the door.” See SACRAMENTO on Pg. 5

Player Profile: Haley Whitbeck

Check it out on Pg. 11


Page 2

Editorial

Sept. 30 - Oct. 6, 2014

sonomastatestar.com

THE STAR Fall 2014 Editorial Board

Dylan Sirdofsky, Editor-in-Chief Kayla E. Galloway, News Editor Aryssa Carvalho, Asst. News Editor Rachel Keigley, Opinion Editor Brandon Stachnik, A&E Editor Alexis Mills, Features Editor Kayla Webster, Sports Editor Connor Gibson, Photo Editor Megan Kleszcz, Copy Editor Peter Njoroge, Copy Editor Brennan Chin, Online Editor Amanda Saiki, Advertising Manager Anika Jess, Marketing Coordinator Eddie Blake, Editorial Cartoonist Paul Gullixson, Faculty Adviser

Star Production Lab Sonoma State University Salazar Hall 1053 1801 East Cotati Ave Rohnert Park, CA 94928 (707) 664-2776 Advertising: sonomastatestar@gmail.com, attn: Amanda Saiki

Subscribe to the STAR!

Get Sonoma State’s student-run newspaper delivered straight to your door this semester. Perfect for families, friends and alumni of Sonoma State.

star@sonoma.edu Editor’s Pick This week’s can’t miss article: “A gaming collaboration for the ages” What happens when two popular video game franchises join as in as one? Total awesomeness. Staff Writer Natalie Bergman reviews “Hyrule Warriors,” a game which crosses Nintendo’s “The Legend of Zelda” and Koei Tecmo’s “Dynasty Warriors,” leaving both fan bases to wonder whether it’s worth the purchase.

Turn to page 6 to read the review Letters to the Editor

A letter to the editor forum will be open to the expression of fact or opinion that will be of interest or importance to readers of the STAR. Letters which fit within the scope of First Amendment protection, and that meet other stipulations spelled out in this document, will be published on a space available basis as explained below. Each edition of the paper will include a letters column if letters are available. Letter writers may expect prompt publication of their letters in the paper’s opinion section, as space is available. Letters of up to 500 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 editor is also responsible for making decisions as to the pertinence of the letter to the SSU community. The STAR reserves the right to refuse publication to any letter and to edit for length. Letters must sign all contributions and the editor must verify the signer and the writer are one in the same through personal conference. The STAR will honor requests for anonymity at the editor’s discretion. To send a letter to the editor email star@sonoma.edu. Letters received in any format other than by email will not be published.

Corrections/Clarifications

STAR // Eddie Blake

Straight from the administration’s mouth Read more about the STAR’s exclusive interview on page 4.

W

hen important questions arise, students at Sonoma State University are given the option to approach members of the administration. Sure there are always circulating rumors throughout campus in accordance with controversial issues, but one doesn’t know the full truth unless heard directly from the individuals who make the decisions. Last week, the staff of the Sonoma State STAR was able to sit down and ask President Ruben Armiñana and several other administration members a variety of questions face-to-face. The staff had prepared a list of questions to ask, and overall the administration seemed eager and ready to respond. The beginning question was the high enrollment this year and how it would affect students graduating on time. Armiñana said the university’s master plan is to have 10,000 full-time students. To be considered full time, students must be enrolled in a minimum of 15 units throughout a semester. This raised concern amongst the staff, because many felt they had trouble receiving a minimum of 12 units per semester, which is necessary for financial aid. Armiñana’s response was truthful, yet tough. He had no problem describing how many students only take classes during days and

times convenient for them. While it’s somewhat true a Friday class isn’t ideal for many students, there was mutual agreement that when it comes down to it, a student would always take a Friday or early morning class instead of having no units at all.

He mentioned if this were a campus such as San Francisco State University, students would appreciate SSU’s parking areas a lot more. Graduating in four years is perhaps the ultimate goal students strive for. Armiñana said achieving that goal takes a certain degree of planning and sticking with a major. If he could have everything go his way, all the courses offered at SSU would be four units, meaning all students would be full time and taking four courses a semester. However, this is something that is extremely difficult to make mandatory since not all students have the ability to maintain being a full-time student each semester.

In regard to parking on campus, it’s no secret students feel there aren’t enough spots. Armiñana said students aren’t open to parking somewhere such as the Green Music Center lots, due to walking the longer distance to classes. He mentioned if this were a campus such as San Francisco State University, students would appreciate SSU’s parking areas a lot more. While it’s a possibility to find other places to park, it isn’t necessarily the safest idea. Parking lots like the ones across from the GMC are usually vacant and dimly lit at night. With the recent sexual assaults and ban on protective items such as pepper spray, many agree they wouldn’t be comfortable on that walk. There were suggestions among the administration to use the buddy system, and a staff member proposed hiring more police patrol around the GMC lots during late hours. In short, Armiñana and the rest of the administration members were kind enough to speak with the STAR, answering questions they surely hear on a daily basis. While the questions weren’t answered exactly how the staff would have liked, it was an informative, eye-opening conversation that many students don’t get a chance to have.

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.

Letters to the Editor

Religious discrimination on campus

D

ear Editor, Thank you for the article and editorial about the disenfranchisement of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship on California State University campuses. I initiated the group that became IVCF at Sonoma State University in the fall of 1962. During the 1964-65 school year I had public debates with a sociology professor who wanted us kicked off campus in the name of “separation of church and state.” The professor lost the debates and IVCF has remained on campus until this year. Your article states, “The executive order was called to action with diversity in mind.” Since its effect is to deny groups

the right to remain diverse, it cannot be claimed to be a step toward diversity. It does nothing except discriminate against religious groups rather than treating them exactly as other groups. Nothing in the U.S. Constitution could possibly be construed to advocate treating Christians as second-class citizens. We do not have more rights than other citizens and, just as importantly, we do not have fewer rights. It is a sad day when a university, the most important meeting place of diverse ideas in our culture, must discriminate against one of the most important and influential sets of ideas in the whole history of western civilization. - Dr. Michael Hayes, Professor, Political Science

The STAR values accuracy and works diligently to check facts before publication. However, if inaccuracies occur, we want to know. Please report errors to the editor at star@sonoma.edu.

Publication

The STAR is published every Tuesday during the fall and spring semesters. Printing is done by Healdsburg Printing. 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.

Follow us on Twitter: @sonomastatestar


Opinion

Sept. 30 - Oct. 6, 2014

sonomastatestar.com

Fitting the mold Shannon Brown Staff Writer

G

rowing up in Southern California, and more importantly San Diego, there was a lack of diversity in my school. The mold could be difficult to squeeze into because of the ideal that you had to be blonde, skinny and most importantly have money in order to be what high school calls “popular.” Thinking back on high school, I never realized how big of a bubble I was living in until I drove my way up to Northern California. Introducing myself to my roommates on Facebook was a breeze. However after looking at their profiles on Facebook and their pictures on Instagram before move-in day, I suddenly felt selfconscious. I hate to admit it, but beneath all of the likes and throwback Thursdays, I saw girls that seemed like they had it together; they were popular, pretty and smart. The perfect recipe that could hurt a shy girl’s self-esteem. After spending a month with my roommates I have come to an

important and crucial idea: high school doesn’t matter anymore. Nobody cares if you were the cheer captain or the president of the world, all they relatively care about is your personality. That may sound a little cliché, but I truly believe that every human being has a significant story to tell. In college though, one does not have to share that story if they don’t wish to. They can be whoever they want to be and nobody can judge them on their past. I didn’t have to introduce my self to my roommates and say, “Hi I am Shannon and I used to be super shy in high school and my sister was in an accident and...” All I had to show was my true personality and I was fine. And by fine, I mean my roommates are now some of best friends. Even though we come from completely different lives, we are still able to stay up till 3 a.m. talking and sharing the stories we want to tell, not the ones that we want to forget. In high school, it seems as though one was born into their ranking. At an early age, it was basically decided who one would be

in high school. As soon as someone picked up that instrument, grabbed a pom-pom or chose that volleyball, it was decided. Yes, some are different and end up changing direction completely, but for the most part, people act upon what the societal mold has told them. In college, there are thousands of students who come from completely different backgrounds and places, one can be whoever they want to be. It’s always a concern for new college students if they are going to meet people and have that amazing social life that was always portrayed in the movies. But what they don’t understand, because of the bubble that was put around their lives from an early age, is how much diversity is in college. One can introduce themselves to whoever they want to. Regardless of what they look like or what they do. High school created memories that shaped who we are. Although this could be a negative or a positive effect, it is without a doubt true. It is one’s choice to let those experiences define who one really is.

four hours long depending on which class you take at Sonoma State, and there is only 168 hours in a week. One more thing that every human being has to spend time on is sleeping. It seems like there are not enough hours in the day to do something as simple as that. While there are benefits to working full time and going to school full time, they do not outweigh the obstacles that are created. Speaking from experience, working and going to school full time is nice when I get my paycheck, but regrettable when I have 10 hour days. At the end of the day, I feel drained and can barely keep my eyes open to do homework. This workload can also affect ones social life. Students must learn how to make sacrifices, like missing that fun event with their friends such as a concert. Doing this routine a couple days a week can get exhausting and at times is not worth it. College is supposed to be a rewarding time for students where they can receive a good education as well as enjoy themselves.

I would suggest that if a student must work, they should try to work only part time so they may use the rest of their free time for activities they relish. Students can participate in activities ranging from hanging out with friends, playing sports, attending Greek events and other engaging events. There is also a large group of the student body that belongs to a club, Greek organization or sport that requires time as well. It is not a bad thing to have a busy life due to all the great activities college campuses have to offer, and some can maintain this impacted schedule very well. If there were only more hours in the day, students could accomplish more of their goals and have more free time. Unfortunately, there are only 24 hours in the day and no one can get everything done. College goes by quickly so why not enjoy every moment of it? Instead of working, devote all your time to expanding your education and soak up all the memorable experiences you will obtain over these short years.

No time for fun Alexandra Rentoria Staff Writer

S

ome individuals might think it is easy to multitask, but it is not always possible to give 100 percent to each task. Going to school full time and working full time is not an easy endeavor, and I would not advise it to any student. Sometimes, it is necessary to work full time to earn money for necessities. While the money can seem very rewarding, the time students have spent working, may have taken away time from their academics. The time used while working full time, could have been spent on studying for exams, homework or required reading assignments. For example, a full-time student at Sonoma State University is considered to be taking 15 units, not to get confused with the required 12 units mandatory for financial aid. A full-time employee is typically working about 30 to 40 hours a week, but these hours may be extended during the holiday for certain work places. Classes are about an hour to

STAR // Marybeth Mondok

Page 3

blognoir.ca

Pumpkin spice, everything nice Veronica Benvenuto Staff Writer

T

he crisp breeze has finally made its way to Sonoma County. Summer has gone and fall is here, but with the sun always shining is that honestly the case in California? People only know its fall here when pumpkin spice lattes, fuzzy sweaters and knee-high boots are back. Due to the drought and global warming, it has not felt like fall except for the trends that have made their way. Even though it’s still eighty degrees, girls still want to live up to the fall trend by wearing their sweaters and boots. Don’t act like you don’t complain that you’re sweating when you’re climbing the three flights of stairs in Stevenson Hall while carrying your warm pumpkin spice latte and wearing your over-sized sweater. It is hard to resist the espresso blend with the unmistakable spices of fall. Ladies, we all know what this is called, nothing but the infamous pumpkin spice latte. This marvelous creation includes my two favorite things in a cup, which is latte and pumpkin. What’s not to love? Recently, my roommate was online shopping for boots and asked me what to buy. I told her there is no point because I’m still wearing my flip–flops for a good while. Not only is this weather going to affect the environment, it will affect California girls trying to act like are living in the East Coast. Even though we love our Califor-

nia sun, it would be nice to have a little taste of the season change. This is the struggle of living in California. Not only are we wishing for rain because of the drought, but we also wish to start enjoying the cold weather and getting into the spirit of the changing seasons. Spoiled Californians always want what they can’t have. I believe this time of year is something special because even though the weather has not changed, it means the holiday season will be coming soon. Which means getting into the spirit of the holidays, spending time with family and eating a lot of food. It’s around this time when you know the year is coming to a close, and things that you wanted to accomplish from your New Year’s resolution better start happening before the next year. I think something that people should focus on is giving back. Especially this time of year because the act of giving can be forgotten when getting caught up in presents and trends. Doing little things for the community can make a huge impact, especially for those who are less fortunate than us. This time of year can be difficult because everything surrounding us is materialistic. Like buying new boots and sweaters just because it’s a seasonal trend. Even though we have no control over the California weather, we do have control with making a difference and helping out the local community. Maybe instead of distinguishing fall as of its trends, we can distinguish it by helping the local community before the holiday season is over.

Addicted to social media Jalissa Tello Staff Writer

A

s I arrive on campus early in the morning, I glance around at all of the students who are rushing to class, or casually walking with a friend or two. 85 percent of the people in front of me are on their phones. What is so important that one doesn’t even focus on the ground that he or she is walking on? Everyone seems so robotic as they stare at the screens on their phone and ignore the life around them. I remember the days when cell phones were strictly used to make phone calls or send messages. The only way to know where a friend was, was to call, send a text or ask someone who might know. However, cell phones are much different than they were back then. Today, a cell phone is a prized possession. It acts as a computer, navigation device, video game, camera and of course a communication device. There are various experiments on YouTube, where a prankster asks different people to use their phone and then pretends to drop it. The

reaction that the cell phone owners have are as if they had just seen someone drop a baby. I can admit that my cell phone is the key to my daily life. I use it for everything and even feel a little empty inside when I leave it at home by accident. On the other hand, having a cell phone becomes a distraction in class or at work. Glancing around my class when it is in session, I frequently notice that along with a notebook and pen or pencil, there is a mini flat screenlike device sitting on many desks. I also notice my professor becoming more frustrated with every “put that phone away” he has to spit out. Students who are caught, quickly put the device away, only to pull it out again. How can students possibly pay full attention to the lecture when they are constantly checking Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat or email? I will admit, I have been one of the students. I can also admit that there have been times when I forget I was asked to put it away and I pull it out again, only to realize my professor is becoming angry at the fact that

I have completely ignored his orders. Then, I put myself in his shoes. How do professors feel when they are giving a lecture with constant interruptions? Though students may feel as though looking at their phone is not a real distraction, it is. Just imagine speaking in front of a group of people about something that has taken years to learn, just to find them ignoring you. The thing about being in college is that one is always on the go. People are busy and that is perfectly normal, but a vital part of success in college is being able to manage time efficiently. Many people run around campus like chickens with their heads cut off because they didn’t fully understand lecture and instead of raising their hands to ask questions. There have been a few challenges roaming social web recently. Lets try a new challenge; the “Turn Your Phone off in Class Challenge.” The rules: as soon as one steps into class, turn the phone off for the entire lecture period. After a week of doing this, people should feel a lot more focused and caught up with the rest of their classmates.


Page 4

News

Sept. 30 - Oct. 6, 2014

sonomastatestar.com

STAR // Gustavo Vasquez Left, President Ruben Armiñana addresses the STAR staff. Right, Provost Andrew Rogerson.

Exclusive interview with President Ruben Armiñana Ryan Estes Staff Writer

T

he STAR staff got an opportunity to sit down with Sonoma State University President Ruben Armiñana, Provost Andrew Rogerson and various vice presidents and deans last week to discuss recent issues surrounding the campus and its students in an exclusive interview. The administration offered insight on issues including student population, unit and class accessibility, parking, safety, sexual assault and an academic success fee. STAR: How does the high enrollment, especially with the largest freshman class, affect graduation rates this year? Armiñana: We do have the largest number of students at Sonoma State. Enrollment is the commitment a public university has to its citizens and the reason this institution was founded and is funded. To educate as many students from California as we can afford is the covenant between the public university and the citizenry.

STAR: A lot of students struggle to get 12 units each semester, how does that balance with the goal of getting students to take 15 units? Armiñana: It’s a balancing act between classes that are offered versus the convenient [classes offered]. Sometimes classes are offered and not taken because they aren’t convenient to the students. Not all classes can be held Tuesday and Thursday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., therefore at that point it is a matter of balancing what is offered with what is convenient and it is a choice. Having said that, we have not been able to provide you with enough convenient classes due to the funding. Rogerson: Things have turned around this

year for the better. We have 9,300 students, 1,840 are freshmen, [the] largest class ever and we asked them to take four classes only. We now need them to ramp it up this spring and take the maximum amount. Out of all 23 CSU’s, Sonoma State has the highest four-year graduation rate and with the upcoming year of more faculty and classes we should be able to improve on that number some more. Armiñana: Twelve units is usually needed to have and keep some sort of financial aid, 15 units per semester, per year, is full-time for funding. To help with full-time status, I would like all courses at Sonoma State to be four units; meaning students would take four courses per semester. I have been on a failed attempt but this has been one of my main goals. STAR: With the increase of students, what is being done about parking? Armiñana: Have students ever thought about parking by the Green Music Center? It is never full. We have more parking than we need. It is not the lack of parking; it is the lack of more convenient parking. STAR: There are some safety concerns about the walk to the Green Music Center lot. Armiñana: During evening parking you do feel more isolated and the shortest route through the back, it could feel threatening, but at least during the day, that parking lot is pretty empty. Matthew Lopez-Phillips, vice president for student affairs and chief student affairs officer: We have a safety week coming up and the issue you have with parking, Nate Johnson (police chief of Sonoma State University) will be leading around a group of students to identify these areas that may need more lighting or blue phone, and

we can see about securing funds to accomplish this and provide a greater level of safety to all students. STAR: Any consideration of more bicycle officers? Lopez-Phillips: That is what the safety week is for and discussions with Nate [Johnson]. There will always be more community members around than police officers. Associated Students and Greek Life have both shown an interest in providing an escort service to students at night. STAR: Student conduct code disallows people from having pepper spray in residential areas for protection? How does this promote safety in the residential areas on campus? Lopez-Phillips: The university code of conduct states we are not allowed to have dangerous chemicals. Pepper spray can also be used as a weapon and we don’t want that. Again, the safety week is where we can start these dialogues to see what else we can do whether it’s self-defense classes or other things besides [bringing] weapons onto campus. I would want more lighting and patrols than allowing such items on campus. Armiñana: The amount of sexual assaults and violence that comes from the outside is almost zero. Almost all of the assaults and violence comes from the inside or acquaintances. We have a zero tolerance on this campus. STAR: On issue of sexual assault, what is the campus doing in response to sexual assault? Armiñana: We have to acknowledge that we have a problem [with assault] and 100 percent is tied to excessive use of alcohol and drugs. If you don’t attack that issue, you will fall short. Responsibility of everyone is to monitor usage.

‘It’s on us’ aims to stop sexual assault Nicole Detmers Staff Writer

W

ith a heavy sigh, her weary gaze looked up from the floor and began to tell her story. It was last year when she came home from a party and split off from her group of friends to meet up with a guy she had talked to earlier. The words didn’t come easily and she explained that they probably never would – having already explained the situation various times. “The incident” happened last year, and it’s not unique. It’s estimated that one in five women are sexually assaulted on college campuses. Statistics show that only one in 12 sexual assaults are reported. The idea isn’t to assign blame or push the taboo, instead recognizing an opportunity to take responsibility. A campaign by The White House and President Barack Obama deemed “It’s on us” was put into play to create awareness and prevent sexual assault on the campuses of colleges and universities. The campaign was launched on Sept. 19 and consists of a taskforce put together earlier this year. The eventual goal is to entirely prevent sexual assault on college

campuses. Obama recognizes that sexual assault doesn’t just apply to women. He assembled a taskforce in January of this year to initially address the problem. Promoting student, faculty and law enforcement leadership in confronting the issue of sexual harassment. The taskforce reinforces the idea that non-consensual sex is assault and promotes the identification of the crime as well as support for survivors. At Sonoma State University, statistics show that since 2010, there have been two sexual assault cases per year. Both the Student Health Center and Police Services remind students that in the incident of assault to get to a safe place and to not change one’s clothing. Report to police services immediately. The longer one waits, the more difficult it is to catch and prosecute the assailant. Support and counseling through the school is offered. The university’s official statement is as follows: Sonoma State University will not tolerate sexual assault in any form, including acquaintance rape. Where there is probable cause to believe that a student, faculty, or staff member has violated the university’s regulations prohibiting sexual assault, and with the consent of the victim,

the university will actively pursue disciplinary action through its own channels as well as appropriate legal channels. Even if criminal justice authorities choose not to prosecute, the university can pursue disciplinary action. President Ruben Armiñana told the STAR last week that the issue of sexual assault is serious. “Let’s be honest about it, the amount of violence – sexual violence that exists on this campus is almost zero,” said Armiñana. “Most violence on this campus and many other campuses are acquaintance issues, the amount of this is a serious problem on this campus and other campuses. It should not be tolerated.” He also addressed the repetitive nature of the crime and the importance of reporting it when found, as well as the services that are currently in place to help students. “Firstly, you must acknowledge the problem. Secondly, you have to address the problem that sexual harassment is attached to drug and alcohol abuse – third, it is important for everyone to take responsibility,” said Armiñana. “If you see someone getting into a difficult situation willingly and or unwillingly, speak up. Lastly the victim should report the assault truthfully and as swiftly as possible.”

There also needs to be a willingness of the victim to identify perpetrator and report crime quickly and provide all information for a proper investigation. Students need to know that there are university services to help with dealing with the matter. At all levels of the university, there needs to be a strong sense that any violence or acts of hate are not tolerated. Lopez-Phillips: We continue to do the interactive theatre peace at orientation; we have victim’s advocate to help students work through crimes. We now have a Men Against Rape and Sexual Assault Club on campus. The police, Counseling and Psychological Services, the administration all work together. We are doing the best job we can, even if it doesn’t result in an actual investigation. Armiñana: We [Sonoma State] have one of the country’s experts in reporting of sexual assaults, Officer Sally Miller. We are very good at investigating what is reporting, but I am not sure we are getting (all) reports of the crimes when they occur. STAR: Since there is no success fee, what is the plan to finance more staff, faculty and classes? Armiñana: We won’t be receiving the money from the outside. We will continue to be financed by state revenue and we will have to live with the state limits. Things are not that bad right now. The Student Success Fee was generated by the administration and not by the students so that in turn made people not like it. A lot of the CSU campuses are doing with the success fee what we already have; Student Center, Recreation Center, athletics. Sonoma State has all things therefore; there is no urgency for the success fee. A moratorium has been placed on success fees for the next two years for the schools who were considering them.

Grant program creates opportunity for students Jon Cappetta Staff Writer

P

ublic education is available to all, but once high school ends, the opportunities are seen less and less. For those coming from lowincome families, any level of secondary education such as college is simply not an option. The GEAR UP grants program was designed to target this specific problem. The program is a sixyear process that starts at grade seven and works its way through grade 12. It then financially supports members through their secondary education. Once a GEAR UP member becomes a secondary student, the student is given the opportunity to withdraw money from their own personal account, which is then used on their college academic expenses. The federal program GEAR UP stands for Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs; it was established in 1998 and is funded by the U.S. Department of Education. Bill Clinton signed this grant program in 1998 as it supported the Higher Education Act of

1965, which offers financial aid to students. Secondary education can be hard enough without having to stress about where the money for tuition and school supplies are going to come from. “Through middle school and high school, GEAR UP helped me know in the back of my mind, ‘I can do this,’ I’m going to have the money to pay for it so I don’t have to worry about it,” said Trae Barnes, a GEAR UP student from Roosevelt High school. Money from the program is awarded as an academic grant, which is put toward a secondary level of education and only to those who have made it through high school and received a diploma. The promise of these funds has encouraged students to push through school, and to not give up. “Having this [opportunity] made me want to not slack off. I want them to not regret giving me this money,” said Barnes. The program may be applied to any middle school and high school and later put into further action, as it will support a student all the way through the college of their

choice. The program provides funds for educational tools such as calculators, school tutors, books and other necessary school supplies that give the students the confidence they need to succeed. Money isn’t the only thing provided by the GEAR UP program. Academic and social support is provided for the students as they make their way through this challenging process. The program has diagnosed the student barrier to higher education and thus works to guide students and their families through the college search and the enrollment process. GEAR UP provides funds for expenses such as advanced placement class testing. These tests allow students to take difficult classes during high school that can later be applied at the college level, which in turn bring the student closer to a college diploma as well as save them time in their secondary level of education. The GEAR UP program funds visits to various colleges to help the student know what options they have, so they can choose their desired secondary education.


News

Sept. 30 - Oct. 6, 2014

sonomastatestar.com

Prize scholarship offered to student applicants Amy Lee Staff Writer

W

hen it comes time to apply for scholarships, it becomes a struggle for many people to find ones they are qualified to apply for. The Warren Court Prize, offered to Sonoma State University students, is open to all students who are in good standing within the university. The Warren Court Prize comes from the Center for Ethics, Law and Society. To apply, students must write a 1,500 to 2,000-word paper, doublespaced, on matters of ethics, justice or constitutional law. The paper can include textual analysis, empirical research or theoretical innovation, but must bring up a form of argument. Papers are graded based on the quality of the writing, originality, argumentative acumen, creativity, academic rigor and importance for and relevance to matters of constitutional law, justice or ethics. Students then must submit three final hard copies to the philosophy department office, Nichols 363, by Nov. 6 at 4 p.m. There are four winning awards for the scholarship. First place receives $500, second place receives $250 and two people receiving an honorable mention are awarded with $100. The prize was made possible thanks to the generous donations made by Professor Emeritus Ken Marcus. The second place winner from last year, Dan Lyman, really likes what this prize stands for. “It is definitely a neat thing to have such a broad prompt for an interdisciplinary contest,” said Lyman. “People went in all directions and it was fun to hear about other people’s topics.” Lyman graduated last year with his degree in philosophy and is now attending the University of San Francisco’s Law School. This scholarship was named after the famous Warren Court, which was named after

Earl Warren, the 14th chief justice of the Supreme Court of the U.S. Many important cases from the nation’s history took place in Warren Court. Some of these were Brown v. Board of Education, Griswold v. Connecticut and Miranda v. Arizona. This award goes out each year to a student whom greatly shows their drive and dedication to justice and ethics. Joshua Glasgow, an assistant professor of the philosophy department, has directed the Center for Ethics, Law and Society since 2012. He is one of three faculty members who judge the papers. The other faculty members, who have yet to be determined, will come from the political science department and the criminology and criminal justice studies department. Glasgow was one of the three faculty members who judged the papers last year as well. Partnered with him were David McCuan from the Political Science Department and Eric Williams from the Criminology and Criminal Justice Studies Department. Glasgow feels that this prize is incredibly important. “It provides the students with another real incentive to produce excellent writing on important questions of law, ethics and/or justice and it gives the winners a chance not only to work on their writing, but also to attain a significant feather in their caps,” said Glasgow. Prizes like these are considered important to those students who are driven to be academically successful and plan for a bright future ahead of them. Although there wasn’t an overwhelming amount of applicants last year, Glasgow is hoping for many more this year. Anyone is welcome to apply and take advantage of this opportunity. Many scholarships have an overwhelming amount of requirements for applicants just for the eligibility process. However, this particular scholarship is beneficial for students to apply to because it’s open to everyone.

SUCCESS: Fee positive among results on outside campuses Continued from Pg. 1

to sit on the floor because there weren’t enough chairs for everyone. These are the basic essentials that the school should be providing,” said Aldridge. The next Sonoma State student to speak, Matt Lindberg, expressed his perspective regarding commentary made earlier in the meeting by Faigin. “Earlier in this meeting, Trustee Faigin said that we [Sonoma State] could have a hot air balloon [at graduation] if we had a student success fee. I understand that was a joke, but my education is not a joke,” said Lindberg. Also in attendance at the success fee forum was professor and Chair of the Faculty, Richard Senghas. He expressed his perspective on the impact loan debt has on students across the CSU system and emphasized the affect loans have had on his career. “I am still paying student loans myself and I am a full professor and have been here 17 years. We have our students leaving here with an incredible amount of debt and student fees are going to increase [that debt],” said Senghas. “I hear the student fees have been wonderfully helpful in restoring all kinds of services and opening more classes. Yes we need that money, but on who’s dime? We are a state university, so I urge us to figure out a different solution for this.” Also present at the forum, Armstrong emphasized the positive impact that a student success fee has had at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. In a referendum student vote conducted in 2012, 57 percent of the university’s students approved the implementation of student success fees. The University also received a formal endorsement of the student success fee by 32 of 33 student groups. Following the implementation of a student success fee at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, an estimated 1,120 classes and labs were added across the university. This brings about the question of the affect a success fee could have at SSU. Despite much opposition to the implementation of a success fee, students still struggle to enroll in essential classes needed to graduate. Though Sonoma State is not considering the implementation of a success fee at this time, both the positives and negatives of success fees across the CSU system are evident.

Page 5

STAR // Maud Busson Bianca Zamora, Chair of the Senate for Associated Students, engages in discussion at the meeting on Friday

Associated Students address sustainability goal Jonas Brock Staff Writer

T

he Associated Student body met on Friday in the Student Center to discuss various campus issues. Sonoma State University’s director of sustainability, Paul Draper, began the meeting as he presented a mission statement in favor of making SSU a more sustainable campus in the upcoming years. Draper, through much of his presentation talked about the need to address creating a more sustainable world as climate change becomes more and more of an issue. In his mission statement, he presented both a two-year and a five-year plan for what he wants to see on campus. In his presentation, Draper addressed the senate on what we need to do in order to make SSU a more sustainable campus. Though no voting on the issue took place, if it does get passed in the future, the statement declares a set plan to achieve 90-100 percent composting from all campus buildings. In addition to that, Draper hopes that by the time the five-year plan is implemented, SSU will have hired a permanent,

full-time director of sustainability. Draper, in response to how his meeting went, said, “They [senate] were incredibly receptive and gracious. The questions they asked were great, and I definitely noticed a desire from the senate to get students involved.” After his presentation, the Associated Students unanimously passed the financial audit statement of the 2013-14 fiscal year. Adam Rosenkranz, the vice president of finance, said in response to the senate’s decision to pass the motion, “The Associated Students is extremely proud to have been issued an unmodified opinion on the presentation of our 2013-14 audited financial statements.” The next item on the agenda for AS was to find a resolution on the expansion of Walmart in Rohnert Park. This is an ongoing issue and with new developments pertaining to the matter coming to light, the Associated Students decided to table this topic until everything was resolved. Though this issue was tabled there, other community topics were also addressed. Kian Khatami, who is head of community affairs, said, “We’ve met with

police chiefs of Rohnert Park and Cotati to help them alleviate some of the risks that exist in the community.” After this was addressed, senators were given the opportunity to present issues that they had or problems they felt needed the attention of the student body. There was a unanimous understanding that the senate needed to focus on single issues at once, rather than on multiple topics. Certain members voiced their concern that not enough was getting done and that in order for things to get done fast, they needed all their energy and attention to go toward fewer topics simultaneously. As the meeting entered its latter stages, AS needed to approve the consent calendar. During this portion, the board unanimously passed the appointment of Brandon Mercer to Campus Re-engineering Committee, Dae-Sung Kim to the Fee Advisory Board and Luke Tesluk to the Student Health Advisory Committee. It was business as usual for AS. All matters were addressed in a timely matter and once they had been taken care of, they went into officer reports and then adjourned.

Weight loss study affects eating disorders Emily Hill Staff Writer

E

ating disorders are lifethreatening illnesses that require intense medical, nutrition and psychological treatment. Unfortunately, 17 to 22-year-old students around the globe struggle with acquiring some sort of eating disorder during their college years. “If there were a book, meal plan or magic pill that could ‘cure’ an eating disorder, someone would have discovered it by now,” said Jennifer Lombardi, the executive director for the Eating Recovery Center of California. Lombardi suffered from an eating disorder for nearly 20 years. Unfortunately at that time, there were very few treatment centers available for people struggling like Lombardi. In addition, insurance often didn’t cover the cost of treatment. However, much of this has changed. “We were motivated to create a program that not only provides research-based, effective treatment from a medical, nutritional and psychological

standpoint, but that most importantly has the needs of the patient always in mind,” said Lombardi. As director, Lombardi is very proud at how far they have come as a treatment community and of the unique services they provide. A new study, conducted by researcher Melissa Whitelaw, a clinical specialist dietitian at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne, Australia, revealed that teenagers don’t need to be rail thin to have dangerous eating behaviors associated with anorexia. “Not everyone with anorexia looks the same way. It is more about the amount of weight lost than the numerical weight,” said Lombardi. The study showed that many people don’t even appear as if they are anorexic, yet they suffer from the disorder. Emaciated bodies are the typical image portrayed in the media of patients with anorexia, but this new research confirms that even “normal-weight” looking kids can have anorexia. It’s not about the weight, but rather, the weight loss that can lead to a

serious eating disorder. Even more disturbing, the study found that there was a six-fold increase in this type of patient during the six-year study period. Lombardi believes it’s crucial for college students to be aware of this because for many young students, the pressure of the first semester of college creates the perfect storm for eating disorder development. In addition, it’s easy for teens to hide behaviors from their families, especially if they go to a school far away from home. Toni Barocchia, a health education nurse at the Sonoma State University Student Health Center, discussed how eating disorders affect the campus. “Our campus probably reflects the same amount of people with eating disorders as other college campuses with 9,100 students,” said Barocchia. “Eating disorders are not always identifiable due to cultural norming of dieting and the praise women get for being thin.” She mentioned how eating disorders are often related to an event in a person’s life and may

be the way the person is coping with it. “I think there is a great pressure as freshman not to gain the ‘freshmen 15,’” said freshman Stephanie Rodriguez, “because many people are self conscious of their bodies and want to prevent gaining weight, especially in their first year away from home.” Freshman Lyell Wycko also considers there to be a heavy amount of pressure as far as weight gain goes, and doesn’t feel the campus cafeteria offers enough healthy choices. “Salads, which people drown in dressing, and occasional veggies that are soaked in sauces don’t really cut it in terms of good options,” said Wycko. “I haven’t avoided any meals but I try to pay attention to what I’m grabbing and how much.” Sonoma State students seeking help with eating disorders are encouraged to call the Student Health Center, the Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) office, or the Eating Recovery Center of California phone line at 916574-1000.

SACRAMENTO: Program can lead to careers, internships Continued from Pg. 1

The Sacramento Semester Program is not the only one of its kind within California and the U.S. There is the Capitol Fellows Program, the federal-state relations fellowship program, and the University of California Washington D.C. program, or better known as UCDC. Many students who enter the program find careers through the internships they were in, like Mandi Strella, who participated in the program in Spring 2005. “I interned in a smaller office, that wound up wanting to hire me after I graduated,” said Strella. Principal consultant and office of assembly member, Cristina Garcia, said, “As a staffer I often make sure to recruit interns from the Sac Semester program. The program has a reputation for sending interns that are serious about their time in the building.” For more information, contact McCuan at (707) 664-3309 in the political science department of Sonoma State, or Wadle, the director of the Sacramento Semester Program at (916) 278-4012.

STAR // Gustavo Vasquez David McCuan inside his office at SSU.


Page 6

Arts

Sept. 30 - Oct. 6, 2014

sonomastatestar.com

Concertgoers shake ‘badonkadonks’ Ashley Ronsse Staff Writer

gmc.sonoma.edu Diana Ross performed at Sonoma State University’s Weill Hall on Tuesday.

Ross brings back the 60s Marisa Oliveira Staff Writer

T

he legendary diva Diana Ross brought Sonoma State University back to the 60s during her recent performance at Weill Hall. She had three back-up singers: two guys and one girl. A whole band played behind her including a guitarist, saxophone player, trumpet player, a pianist and a drummer. Throughout the performance, Ross sang many hits from her days with The Supremes as well as her solo career hits. As she walked out on stage the crowd began to shout for her, and just like that all of Weill Hall was back in the 60s. One of the classics that was played was “Stop! In the Name of Love.” A couple of people in the crowd were dancing on the balconies doing many of the same dance moves that The Supremes did over 50 years ago. Audience members were singing along with Ross, “Stop in the name of love, before you break my heart.” During this song Ross wore a red, long dress with glittery sequins all over it and her afro was extra frizzed up. She had about five different costume changes throughout the show. Later she came out in a bright green furry coat over another sparkly dress. One of her last outfits was a sleek black sparkly dress. Every outfit was bigger, f luffier and even more sparkly than the previous one. The crowd raved whenever she came out in a new outfit. At one point almost every-

one in the crowd was standing in their seats and dancing to “You Can’t Hurry Love.” With lyrics like, “But mom said you can’t hurry love, no you just have to wait, she said love don’t come easy it’s a game of give and take.” Another song that was a hit with the crowd was “Love Child.” “Love child, never meant to be, love child, born in poverty,” sang Ross. Another single that was played at the concert was “Upside Down.” The lyrics of the song were, “Upside down, boy, you turn me inside out and round and round.” Classic songs like “I’m Coming Out” and “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” were also played. Overall concertgoers seemed to be pleased with her performance. Ross has won many awards during her career. One of these include the Guinness Book of World Record’s title of “Most Successful Female Vocalist of All Time.” She has also won several other awards such as a Tony, a Golden Globe and plenty of American Music Awards. In 1988 she as inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as part of The Supremes. To this day she continues to win awards and put out new music for her fans. After the concert, sophomore Wilson Morris commented on Ross’ performance. “Seeing Diana made me feel young again,” said Morris. Looks like there’s no mountain high enough to keep Weill Hall concertgoers away from a Diana Ross concert on a Tuesday night.

P

eople dressed in flannel, plaid and denim filled Weill Hall of the Green Music Center on Friday night for the country artist, Trace Adkins. Though it was a cold night, many stood up and danced away any chills that they could have had. Adkins, age 52, is from Louisiana and has sold more than 10 million albums since his debut as a country star in 1995. This was the first country concert at the GMC venue, with the lawn seating opened for maximum capacity, despite the fact that it was wet due to the rain. “So it hasn’t rained here in what? Five years or something? You’re welcome,” said Adkins. The crowd erupted with applause and laughter as Adkins’ charismatic personality echoed through the GMC and throughout the lawn. Adkins’ opening act was Pete Stringfellow, a native from Santa Rosa and fellow country artist. Stringfellow sang some songs off his new self-titled record, which included a song titled, “Santa Rosa,” based on his hometown. References to Snoopy and the Peanuts’ gang were mentioned throughout the song. He also entertained the audience by beat-boxing, to which he said: “Why not be the first beat-boxer here,” and performed an impression of co-performer, Adkins. “You look up to him, literally,” said Stringfellow. He also sung a cover of the rock single by ACDC, “Shook Me All Night Long,” but changed the lyrics to “SSU shook me all night long.” Adkins strutted on stage wearing a black cowboy hat, black shirt and jeans. His hair was pulled back into a low pony-tail under his cowboy hat. The stage and set displayed a brick wall, like one in an alley way, and displayed Adkins’ songs graffitied on

the brick. Adkins worked the audience, as he walked across the stage. He had many pelvic thrusts and danced about while he would pull at his shirt and lift it to show his silver belt buckle. At this, many screams from some middle-aged women echoed throughout the hall. This was followed by some laughter from students. After a couple fast-paced and head-popping songs, including “Swing,” Adkins slowed it down with the song, “This Ain’t No Love Song,” on his black guitar. With every slow song that was played, hands were raised in the audience and swung back and forth. He continued with a couple older classic songs: his first single from 1996 and his “new favorite old song,” “There’s a Girl in Texas,” and his second single, “Every Light In The House.” “I came to have a good time tonight,” Adkins said before singing another older song from 1997, titled, “Big Time.” “I’ve been working on some new stuff. These days I am finding myself riding in my truck listening to the radio and it’s all happy, happy, happy, but sometimes I need a heartbreak song,” Adkins said. Immediately afterward he introduced a new song which goes: “ain’t about love gone wrong…she’s gone and sometimes you need a heartbreak song.” Adkins ended with an all-time crowd favorite, “Honky Tonk Badonkadonk.” The crowd went crazy. Though it wasn’t allowed, many people in the GMC audience, stood up and danced along. Many people even swarmed the front of the stage. Adkins ended his show but did return for an encore and the crowd erupted once more. “You’ve been awfully good to me tonight. I really appreciate it. This is a beautiful place,” Adkins said as he bowed.

gmc.sonoma.edu Country star Trace Adkins performed at Sonoma State University’s Weill Hall on Thursday.

Review

A gaming collaboration for the ages Natalie Bergman Staff Writer

N

ewly-released “Hyrule Warriors” is not one’s typical “The Legend of Zelda” game. “The Legend of Zelda” is a staple in the video gaming world that might possibly never go away. Nintendo and its franchise have the longlasting, towering legacy that only a few other companies can claim to have. “Hyrule Warriors” was released Friday exclusively for the Wii U console as both a physical and downloadable game for $59.99. What makes this game so bizarre is that the game is a collaboration between Nintendo and Koei Tecmo, as it’s a complete crossover of both Nintendo’s “The Legend of Zelda” series and Koei Tecmo’s “Dynasty Warriors” series. “Hyrule Warriors” honors elements of both game franchises to offer a unique hack-and-slash experience on a grand scale. It mixes the hackand-slash gameplay of “Dynasty Warriors” with the settings and characters from “The Legend of Zelda.” It may not be too deep or challenging, but there are certain aspects of the title that will hit a handful of the right chords for fans of both series. Before venturing out to purchase this game, it’s important to note that fans need to keep their expectations in check. Nintendo doesn’t feature “The Legend of Zelda” in the title of this game for a reason. Although familiar faces may be present throughout, the gameplay of “Hyrule Warriors” is a lot more like “Dynasty Warriors” than anything else. Players are tasked with wiping out hordes of enemies, regularly tearing through 1,000 foes during each stage. It gives fans an enjoyable power trip, however, once the thrill fades it begins to feel quite tedious. Locations from other games in “The Legend of Zelda” series such as the games “Ocarina of Time”, “Twilight Princess” and “Skyward Sword”, make up most of the battlefields. Fans can look forward to slaughtering thousands of enemies at Lake Hylia, Gerudo Desert, Skyloft, Ganon’s Castle and many more.

facebook.com Nintendo’s “The Legend of Zelda” and Koei Tecmo’s “Dynasty Warriors” have been combined to create “Hyrule Warriors.” For the first time in a “The Legend of Zelda” game, multiple characters with fully unique moves are available to use, rather than just the classic hero protagonist, Link. Each playable character can also use up to six different weapons. They are set to be unlocked as the player progresses through the Story Mode, Adventure Mode and some are gained

through downloadable content that must be purchased. The playable characters included in “Hyrule Warriors” are Link, Princess Zelda/Sheik, Lana, Impa, Darunla, Princess Ruto, Midna, Agitha, FI and several more. “Hyrule Warriors” contains various chests that are scattered across the battlefield, some

of which are hidden under boulders or in secret areas. The chests contain nostalgic items from “The Legend of Zelda” series that serve as weapons and tools on the battlefield, such as heart containers and pieces of heart that increase health and other various items like sealed weapons. Swords, bombs, the hookshot and other items can uncover secrets on the map or allow players access to previously unreachable areas and shortcuts. The main gameplay mode for “Hyrule Warriors” is the story mode. However, there is also an adventure mode which is an alternative game play mode that takes the form of a grid in the shape of the over-world from the original “The Legend of Zelda.” Each block on the grid represents a mission, like defeating a certain number of enemies under a specific time limit. Completing missions unlocks the adjacent squares on the grid, and allows players to advance. Special exploration items like the compass, the candle or bombs can be used to find rewards in certain squares of the grid. Players will then have to complete a battle to obtain that particular reward. Some characters and special weapons can only be unlocked via adventure mode. “Hyrule Warriors” also features a local coop mode, where one player uses the Wii U gamepad as their screen and the other player has the choice of using the Wii U pro controller or Wii remote with nunchuk attachment. Overall, “Hyrule Warriors” is an odd move for Nintendo, but it’s one that will make a specific audience of the gaming world very happy. Fans who love “The Legend of Zelda” will appreciate all of the references this game makes to the franchise, even though the gameplay is geared more toward the “Dynasty Warriors” franchise. This game is a strange crossover that quite possibly could be the best “Dynasty Warriors” game while simultaneously being the worst Zelda game, depending on which franchise fans favor to begin with. Depending on one’s specific fandom preference, one can choose to either fight or flight when it comes to purchasing this game.


Entertainment

Sept. 30 - Oct. 6, 2014

sonomastatestar.com

Page 7

The Growlers’ sophisticated new persona Meaghan Whitehorn Staff Writer

T facebook.com Comedians Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader star in “The Skeleton Twins.”

New ‘dramedy’ at Summerfield Cinemas Sara Molenda Staff Writer

L

inked by depression and the same birthday, Maggie (Kristin Wiig), and Milo (Bill Hader), are reunited after not speaking for 10 years. These twins have a lot of catching up to do. While “The Skeleton Twins” did not seem to gather as much attention in the larger movie theatres, Santa Rosa’s Summerfield Cinemas offers a quaint and historic seat from which to watch a film about the trials and tribulations of a brother and sister as they navigate through life’s obstacles. Director Craig Johnson partnered dark lifemoments with sarcastic and humorous reactions. The film offered quirky one-liners from all characters as both comedic relief and as a way to illustrate the nature of the twin’s relationship. The “dramedy” starts with Maggie and Milo’s reunion due to unforeseen circumstances. Although both admit that there were reasons for not speaking to each other, the chemistry between the two sparked immediately as they realize how good of a team they were together. The addition of Maggie’s husband Lance (Luke Wilson) offers even more opportunities for giggles amongst the realities of the drama. At first, the story seemed to be just another film featuring the mess-up child, the perfect child and the spiritual mom who reads chakras. However, as the plot unfolds, the character’s true

personalities are revealed. Milo struggled with a career and the right love prospect and Maggie struggled with her identity and her marriage. In “The Skeleton Twins,” two things are certain. First, Johnson and his team created an inspiring representation of the relationship between Maggie and Milo: a relationship that demands acceptance of the other’s flaws. Through the smiles and tears, Wiig and Hader flawlessly delivered a very accurate representation of real life. A huge part of the twins’ relationship lied with their ability to cheer each other up when one felt down. Abilities such as a duet to Starship’s “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” accompanied by some epic dance moves. Second, Wiig and Hader offered a glimpse on the very serious and almost self-destructive effects of depression on everyday life. More importantly, the two comedians offered a way to understand and cope with their low moments, using the power of family. Maggie and Milo showed audiences that life is guaranteed to test everyone and that failure is inevitable. The two actors showed audiences that with a little humor and whole lot of courage, it is possible to avoid that inevitable failure. “The Skeleton Twins” offered something for fans of Saturday Night Live and the opportunity to laugh when one only wants to cry. The film is currently playing at Summerfield Cinemas in Santa Rosa. For more information on showtimes, visit: summerfieldcinemas.com/ coming-soon.

Digital emotion at the Phoenix

facebook.com Jenna Fischer Staff Writer

L

oud, rhythmic music vibrated the inside of the Phoenix Theater as a teenage crowd gathered around the DJ table on Friday night. The Phoenix is a small theater with one main stage, walls covered in graffiti art and arcade games: a haven for teenagers. The first performance was by “Diynosaurs,” a new and upcoming trio of DJs from Santa Rosa, who were clad in homemade cardboard dinosaur heads while playing music from three sound tables. This was the opening performance, so the DJs had set themselves up in the center of a small room in which the audience had gathered around. A member of the audience, Eric, who did not disclose his last name, described Diynosaur’s music as “experimental, textural and atmospheric.” The majority of the music was based on the mixing of different beats, sounds and distorted noises. However, when lyrics were involved, one of the DJs used a muffled megaphone. To distort some of the noises, another DJ used the rim of wine glasses to create a humming vibration in addition to the beat.

“We all went to school together and had a mutual interest in music,” said the Diynosaurs. The group spoke of the inspiration of their music being the transition from crazy sounds to a cohesive beat. “We would describe our music as funk, swag, velocity, post-music, experimental and industrial,” said one member of the group. Diynosaurs said most of the instruments they remix on their tables were their own creation, and they spend a lot of time creating the right sound. They said they were very excited for the chance to play at more venues. Currently, most of their shows are held at C454 V0ltron and the Arlene Francis Center in Santa Rosa. After Diynosaurs, the main performance by the solo DJ, Stirling, took main stage. As soon as he began to mix his music, the crowd flocked to the dance floor in front of the stage. Stirling’s music had a beat similar to that of a drum with intermittent long hums and chimelike sounds. During some of his pieces, he would start with a soothing, piano-like tone and then drop the bass to create a vibrating drumming which was almost tribal-esque. All of his music was created with only one sound table. Stirling would move to his own beat; swaying to the music which was almost mirrored by the engrossed and captivated crowd. Kate Houser, a member of the crowd and local teenager, described the performance: “It was so completely awesome, it felt totally out of this world, as I’m sure you could tell by my dancing.” The Phoenix itself is a well-known destination for the teenage population of Petaluma. It is obvious the theater is multipurpose, as there were skateboarding ramps along the walls and a small arcade near the front entrance. The audience of the performances were almost all teenagers, which a specific punk, indie feel to the crowd. The regulars to the Phoenix express themselves with the art lining the walls and the support for the local upcoming artists. Music by Diynosaurs can be found on their website, diynosaur.neocities.org.

he Southern California band, The Growlers, released their newest full-length album, “Chinese Fountain,” which is a new venture for the band, who are known for their unique sound and dreamy, psychedelic songs. This new album proved The Growlers are getting serious about their music, while stuck to their roots. Hailing from their recording studio in Costa Mesa, Calif., The Growlers featured Brooks Nielsen as the lead vocalist, Matt Taylor on lead guitar, Scott Montoya on drums, Anthony Braun Perry on bass and Kyle Straka playing the keyboard and guitar. Nielsen and Taylor handle the songwriting, and have been band mates for eight years. “Chinese Fountain” was a step in the more “grown up” world of the music industry. It was the first time in the band’s history that they used quality equipment and a professional studio to record their music. The overall sound of the album has a lot more polished and a lot less experimental and garage bandesque, but the jangly instrumentation and the folksy vocals that The Growlers are known for, are still emphasized. The album is kicked off with “Big Toe,” a song about falling in love with a destructive woman. The choppy guitar kept in tune with the crash of the drums and provided a catchy backdrop for the clever lyrics: “she’s a lost cause, so count your losses.” Next was “Black Memories,” a song with a dreamy, pop quality to it with a light guitar-playing and backup vocals. This song had deep, somber lyrical content: “sure as the wind keeps blowing, nothing’s gonna heal these scars.” The title track, “Chinese Fountain,” proved The Growlers were indeed maturing with their music. The song unfolded through the singer’s reflection on society and the world around him. Nielsen sung: “We are the miners of another generation, hills scraped dry with no choice but being creative. Everybody’s sick and tired of waiting, couldn’t get any harder to be patient,” The easygoing rhythm blended nicely with the meaningful and angsty lyrics, which made it a great title track for The Growlers’ grown-up album. “Dull Boy” is another track like “Chinese Fountain” that speaks against aspects of modern culture, as Nielsen puts it: “pulling out while there’s still time.” The gentle reggae beat matched the melancholic mood of the lyrics and created a very indie-esque coolness within the song. “Going Gets Tuff” is a realistic and honest song

about something college students can easily relate to – money and career struggles – based on Nielsen and the rest of The Growlers’ experiences of living life on the road. The lively and upbeat instrumentation of this song paired nicely with the chorus: “Still always remembering when the going get tough, that the labor of our love will reward us soon enough.” “Love Test,” the eighth track of the album, was an easygoing song with somewhat skewed lyrical content. Nielsen sung about an experience with the well-known trope “love isn’t easy.” But he also remarked on the culture and women of Los Angeles, as Nielsen sings: “All these women in LA look like they’re fading away, a woman should be strong with big legs and big arms.” The slightly graphic nature of the way women are represented in the song is a little off-putting, but again, the nice beat and the plain fact that, hey, love really isn’t easy credit the track. The band’s unique sound led to the coinage of the term “beach Goth,” known loosely as a blend of Californian surf music of the 60s and pyschedelia of the 70s. A large music festival was created in lieu of this new musical phenomenon, which made this year’s Beach Goth Party the third annual celebration at the Observatory Grounds in Orange County on Oct. 25. The Growlers will be part of the lineup for the Treasure Island Music Festival on Oct. 19 in San Francisco. All in all, the direct and honest songwriting and a more polished sound featured on “Chinese Fountain” has boosted The Growlers to a new, sophisticated level while still remaining true to their trademark “beach Goth” essence.

facebook.com The Growlers released “Chinese Fountain” under Everloving Records on Tuesday.

facebook.com ABC’s “How to Get Away with Murder” premiered on Thursday.

ABC’s killer new drama Kirsten Reeves Staff Writer

T

hursday night held the series premiere of ABC’s newest show “How To Get Away With Murder,” which pulled in over 14 million viewers. The show, of course, opened with a murder. However, viewers would soon find that by the end of the hour the body count would be upping, with just the first episode of the series introducing two different dead bodies and one case of attempted murder. “How To Get Away With Murder” follows several different plot lines that ultimately bleed into one; the main one involving Professor Annalise Keating (Viola Davis) who worked as a tough Criminal Law professor as well as a brilliant defense lawyer. The show focuses on five students in particular: Michaela (Aja Naomi King), Wes (Alfred Enoch), Connor (Jack Falahee), Asher (Matt McGorry) and Laurel (Karla Souza), four of which viewers first meet in the introduction as they carry a dead body across their university campus wrapped in a rug. These students also become especially involved in Keating’s current on-going case: clearing a CEO’s mistress from an attempted murder charge. Every player in this dangerous game of legal wits achieves their means in very unorthodox ways, using sex, manipulation and inappropriately utilizing their personal relationships to get their preferred verdict. Due to their assistance in Professor Keating’s case, these five students are invited to work for her

in her law firm. Connor, who was able to illegally obtain an email to introduce a new suspect, “wins” the top student slot and receives a statue of Lady Justice as a reward that can be used as a trade in for an exam. This Lady Justice statue ironically also serves as the murder weapon in the opening scene that takes place three months in the future. While all of this is occurring, there is also a side plot involving a missing sorority girl named Lila Stangard who has not been seen or heard from for a few days. Wes’ neighbor seemed broken up about her disappearance, and at one point is seen fighting with Stangard’s boyfriend. In the last few moments of the premiere, Lila is discovered floating dead in her sorority house’s water tower, and the audience is lead to assume that Professor Keating’s husband may just have something to do with it. Critics have been raving about Viola Davis’ performance, with HitFix’s Alan Sepinwall going far enough to say, “The characters involved are so much less compelling than Annalise that it feels like a magic trick gone awry…Viola Davis is a star, and it’s long overdue that she got to frontline a show like this.” “How To Get Away With Murder” had big shoes to fill, with it being another “Shondaland” series. Executive producer Shonda Rhimes has previously worked closely with shows such as “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Scandal,” both of which have done very well rating and viewer wise. That being said, the “How To Get Away With Murder” series premiere actually added viewers from its lead in “Scandal,” and received a rating of 3.8 in the age 18-49 demographic. Be sure to tune into the legal drama airing Thursday’s at 10 p.m. on ABC.


Page 8

Features

Sept. 30 - Oct. 6, 2014

sonomastatestar.com

Kickin’ It with Kappa celebrates teamwork Lauren O’Malley Staff Writer

K

ickin’ It with Kappa is a major philanthropy for sorority Kappa Delta Zeta. On Saturday, 12 teams gathered at S Section Park to play a game of kickball. Every team was made of different people from Greek organizations, the women’s club soccer team and CSA’s. With a fee of 90 dollars for a team of 7, Kappa Delta Zeta would then combine two of teams together to create a team of 14. If a team was not playing or had a break, they were encouraged to buy raff le tickets. With raff le prizes from Buffalo Wild Wings in Petaluma, Red Boy’s Pizza, Redwood Café, Chipotle, Mary’s Pizza Shack, Shari’s, Driven Raceway, Knimble and County Fresh Café, there were many opportunities to win. People had the option to buy three tickets for a dollar, an arm’s length for $5 or a person’s wingspan for $10. The first game played was at 10:30 a.m. between Alpha Delta Pi and Phi Delta Theta on one team and Alpha Sigma Phi and Alpha Xi Delta. Alpha Sigma Phi and Alpha Xi Delta took the win with a 3-2 score.

This match-up would meet again in the Championship game later in the day. Four teams would play at one time, so that the event could wrap up before 4 p.m. “This is our third year doing Kickin’ It with Kappa, my big Shelby actually started [this philanthropy] two years ago and every single year we raise money for a different organization,” said Libby Cunningham, a senior and member of Kappa Delta Zeta, “and this year we are doing the Sonoma County Wildlife Rescue.” Each year Kappa Delta Zeta has raised money for different charities such as Mothers against Drunk Driving and Verity. “I got to play Kickin’ It with Kappa last year, now I’m coaching Alpha Xi Delta and Alpha Sigma Phi,” said Olivia Milne, member of Kappa Delta Zeta, “all the proceeds will go to Sonoma County Wildlife to help rescue, rehabilitate, and release animals in Sonoma County.” Last year, Kappa Delta Theta raised more than $1,000 for Verity and is excited to see the amount raised this year for Sonoma County Wildlife. “Hanging out with beautiful girls and supporting a great cause is something you can’t pass up,” said Conner Mckenzie, a senior and member of Alpha Sigma Phi, “And we love Kappa Delta

Zeta for putting this on, and we love Alpha Xi Delta for being beautiful.” There was music blasting to get the teams pumped up while playing and sunglasses with the words “Fade On” were being passed out for free. “Fade is an social media app, that is kind of a mix between Instagram and Snapchat, it has a geotag in it so all students of Sonoma State are on the same exact feed and you can post a picture that lasts for 24 hours and if you get more likes then it will last longer,” said Cunningham, also an intern for Fade. “And if you get a lot of likes it will go to the Hall of Fades, which is where all the schools are connected online.” The tournament was double elimination, so in order to be dropped from the tournament each team had to lose two times. Only one team was undefeated the entire tournament and that was the team with Alpha Sigma Phi and Alpha Xi Delta. In the championship game, tension was high because of an altercation that had taken place during the first game against Phi Delta Theta and Alpha Delta Pi between two male players about a base run. Alpha Sigma Phi and Alpha Xi Delta took the win in the championship game with a score of 4-0.

STAR // Alyssa James Players and teams work together to do their best at kickball while also raising money for Sonoma County Wildlife.

Sonoma connects with its roots L

STAR // Edward Goquingco Sports clubs came together to show all the variety of clubs that students can join.

A spectacular Sportzapalooza Kimberly Paasche Staff Writer

O

n Thursday, the Seawolf Plaza was crawling with students as the sports clubs showed off their sports and achievements. “It’s all about spirit and support, a big shout out to ASP,” said Rob Smith, a campus life adviser. “They put a lot of work into helping with the Lobo Alliance and letting us offer students who don’t want to play sports to still go and support our sports teams,” The Lobo Alliance is a group of students who do not necessarily decide to play on a sports team or in a sports club, but want to show school spirit and support of the SSU college sports teams. “I think it is good there getting out and having people more interactive with the different clubs there are,” said freshman Emily Buchner. The Spike Ball Club had the front row table in front of Lobos. Spike ball is a game similar to volleyball, but on a much smaller scale. “I think it’s a game everyone can enjoy, it’s a great game to play with your friends. It’s simple, but competitive,” said sophomore Gage Stout, president of the Spike Ball Club. The Triathlon Club made an appearance with a road bike and all the gear one would need to race in. “You don’t have to race if you don’t want to, I think people are intimidated by stuff you have to do, but it’s about doing your best and pushing yourself to get as far as you can,” said senior Erik Zaro, the Vice President and Safety Officer of the Triathlon Club. The Triathlon Club does not just participate in triathlons, but relay races and duathlons as well. A duathlon is a race where just two of the three events of swimming, biking or running are used together in a competition. The women’s Volleyball Club was spreading awareness and informing students of the

upcoming tryouts. The Snow Club also had a big presence. It plans week long and weekend trips to Tahoe and to the snow almost every weekend during the snow season. They welcome boarders, skiers and anyone who likes the snow. “Snow Club kicks ass,” said senior Dylan Brubaker a member of the Snow Club. The Equestrian Club rides and competes on horses. The team competes with other schools in California and across the U.S. Students do not need to have a horse to join. The buff Rowing Team Club was also at the Sportzapalooza event. The Rowing Club informed all that they compete just as any other NCAA team and compete with other big schools. The team travels all around the California coast and all around the country for national races and competitions. There were frisbees flying though the air in the Seawolf Plaza as the Women’s Ultimate Frisbee Club informed students of their field sport. Each team must have seven girls on the field at a time and the goal of the game is to get the Frisbee into the team’s end zone. “I have been doing archery for 15 years, I was surprised we had an archery club when I started here at SSU,” said Shawn Kelly, the Archery Club president. Kelly explained the goal for the club this year is to participate in more community archery events in the area, and even go to the Lake Sonoma Recreational area twice a month to play archery golf. Kelly expressed the club is chill and relaxed. The Sapphire SSU dance team tore it up with a sneak peek performance. The team attends basketball games, soccer games, rallies and performs for sororities and fraternities. The Seawolf Plaza was packed with students as the Sapphires began to collect into formation. They moved in sync and hit the moves hard. “We just put together a short performance to show people what we are about,” said Erica Pecho the Sapphire’s co-captain.

Jonathan Angulo Staff Writer

ast weekend farmers opened their doors all across Sonoma County to the public. The event was called Sonoma County Farm Trails and its history is dated back 41 years ago. This year, the event had many farms and businesses participate. Each location had something different to offer. Many farms led people through their grounds and took a moment to talk about the crops. Other farms simply told newcomers to pick up apples and feed the goats. The event’s main purpose was to let the public meet the people who grow the local products that are seen in grocery stores. Burnt House Farms, one of the many farms participating in the event, had three generations of the Danielson family that lived on the land. Their family had been farming that land for more than 100 years. “We are really happy with the turnout today and looking forward to even getting more people coming for next year,” said Bonny Danielson, part owner of Burnt House Farms. Danielson welcomed every person who came by to visit as if they were the next-door neighbors and she was not alone. She was accompanied by her husband, Lance, and daughter Pepperwood. Her husband not only worked the land, but also crafted wooden spoons from the apple trees that no longer produced fruit. “He carves everyone by hand and he even made that bench outside,” said Bonny Danielson. Pepperwood Danielson could be found selling flowers alongside her mom or running around with a friend. Burnt House Farm has La Mancha goats. The goats kept the children entertained as they were eager to pet them and feed them apples. The air radiated with the sound of laughter as the children called out, “Come here goat.”

The Danielson’s sell their apples to Tilted Shed Ciderworks and love seeing their apples go to good use. Another farm that was a part of Sonoma County Farm Trails was Laguna Farm, also located in Sebastopol. Jennifer Branham is part owner of the farm. Branham had been working for Laguna Farms for nine years and took over the business about four years ago. They are going on their 30 year anniversary and are happy to be a part of the community. “During the rainy season, we can just put our kayaks here and this whole area will be underwater, it happens every year,” said Branham. The namesake of this farm is due to this annual flood. However, even when part of the farm is underwater, the other part is put to good use because Laguna Farm sells food year round. Laguna Farm sells their produce at some farmer markets and a couple whole sales. The majority is sold directly to the consumer. Laguna Farms participates in Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). They have upwards to around 430 customers but are currently hovering around the 400 mark. Every week or every other week, people can stop by the farm and pick up a box of seasonal vegetables that are organic, wholesome and delicious for $20. “Last week we were really lucky and had beautiful, stunning cauliflower. I thought… wow, how many people will be sharing this meal with me tonight? How many people am I breaking bread with?” Branham said. Scott Mathieson, the previous owner of the farm was not worried about getting the biggest bang for his buck. He wanted to pass the farm over to someone who took the farm to heart. When the two parties made the transaction, sweat equity was also considered. “This place is a little piece of paradise for us,” said Branham.

STAR // Jonathan Angulo Jennifer Branham, part owner of Laguna Farms, poses in the pumpkin patch that is almost ready for fall season.


Features

Sept. 30 - Oct. 6, 2014

sonomastatestar.com

Grocery shopping on a budget Megan Minturn Staff Writer

C

ollege presents students with the opportunity to learn a variety of skills beyond academics. Most college students learn how to grocery shop on a budget. In order to grocery shop on a budget, one must learn where to shop and what to buy. It is important to know where local grocery stores are and which have the lowest prices with quality produce to effectively make use of a small budget. “For me, it is easiest to shop at Safeway,” said junior, Alicia Pieper. “It is really close to campus, has some good prices, has everything I need and I really like that it has self-checkout.” Safeway or Vons are all over California and a lot of Sonoma State University students have them in their hometown. All of these stores have a similar layout, which can make it more comfortable for students to shop. Another grocery store that is similar to Safeway is Raley’s. Raley’s is located right behind Safeway, off Rohnert Park Expressway. Although some of their name brand foods can be more expensive, their Raley’s brandname food is similar to prices of Safeway. Raley’s also has

a weekly deal they call “$5 Monday.” “College students can benefit from $5 Mondays because a lot of the things on sale include produce and frozen food, which I’m sure they buy a lot of,” said Assad, a cashier at Raley’s who wanted to keep his first name anonymous. One of the most inexpensive stores in this area is Trader Joe’s, located in Santa Rosa and Petaluma. Although it is a little bit more of a drive than the previously named grocery stores, their produce is fresh, local and cheap. What makes it so cheap is that most of its products are under the Trader Joe’s brand name. Trader Joe’s has a large variety of vegetarian options and organic foods. They also have a large frozen food section, which college students who have busy schedules or do not want to cook can take advantage of. If students at Sonoma State are looking for a natural food store, Oliver’s is the way to go. Located just down the street from the college on East Cotati Blvd, it is a convenient way to shop after a long day of classes. Oliver’s is a little on the expensive side, but their food is local and healthy. Oliver’s is set apart from other grocery stores because

they have a sandwich and burrito delicatessen. Along with a soup and salad bar, pre-packaged sushi and a café with healthy fruit smoothies. These are all fitting options for students who want to get something quick. “I love that Oliver’s has ready-to-eat dinners,” said junior, Christiana Ratto. “They are quick and easy, but they are healthier than your average microwavable meal.” Costco is probably less used by college students. When it is used by students, it can be very cost effective because their produce comes in bulk. However, if roommates are comfortable with sharing food and making meals together it is the perfect way to grocery shop. “We [my roomates and I] go to Costco every two weeks and split the cost between the four of us,” said senior, Christiana Thomas. “It has saved us a tremendous amount of money by buying groceries in bulk and making meals together.” With the abundance of grocery stores in the Rohnert Park area it can be overwhelming for Sonoma State students to find how to get the most out of their buck. Regardless of where students grocery shop, the most important things to remember while on a budget are to shop local, make a list and look out for good deals.

Professor Spotlight: Don Romesburg Nataly Estupiñan Staff Writer

W

hen looking back at what one learned in their U.S. history class throughout the K-12 years, memories flashback of learning about Martin Luther King Jr. fighting for equality, Hitler trying to take over the world or the Native Americans and the Trail of Tears. What many students do not learn about is Harvey Milk and his accomplishments for the LGBT community or the Lavender Scare, which led to the largest firing of members of the U.S. government because of their sexual orientation. When taking a closer look, one will notice the lack of inclusion of the LGBT community in their U.S. history books. Currently, Don Romesburg, the department chair for women’s and gender studies at SSU, is fighting to change the lack of inclusion of the LGBT community in K-12 U.S. history classes. He is currently working with two other scholars, Leila Rupp and David Donahue, to change the California K-12 U.S. history framework and include events in history involving the LGBT community. “In the summer of 2011 SB 48 the FAIR education was signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown. It, among other things, mandates the inclusion of the roles and contributions of LGBT Americans in K-12 U.S. history education,” said Romesburg. “It was supposed to be implemented in January of 2012 but the California department of education did not put any funding toward the implementation and did not tell anyone how to implement the FAIR act.” Professor Romesburg along with Rupp and Donahue, have created a new framework, which they hope becomes the California U.S. history framework within the next five to 10 years. They also hope that by doing this, California becomes a model for other states across the country and follow suit. “The function of U.S. history in grades K-12 is to make young people into engaged and informed citizens,” said Romesburg. “Exclusion of LGBT people from how we teach about the past has meant that, effectively, LGBT people are not considered a part of the tapestry of American history.” He believes that the lack of inclusion of the LGBT community has essentially provided students with a false version of the past. Other than just providing more honest accounts of U.S. history, Romesburg believes that including LGBT materials in the classroom will help create a more accepting and understanding society. Meaning that LGBT students will have an easier time in schools and all students will have

COURTESY // Don Romesburg Professor Romesburg, from women’s and gender studies department, stays passionate with human equality. a greater sense of awareness of the LGBT community. Aside from spending his time trying to make history with these new revisions to the California U.S. history framework, Romesburg has spent a lot of time changing the lives of students. “He inspired me to declare WGS [womens gender studies] as a major from the first course I took with him,” said Katrina Pimental, former student of Romesburg. “He challenged me academically and as a person in the ways I had always hoped college would. His professionalism and warmth enabled me to feel like I had a worthy voice in the classroom while reminding me to leave space to learn from others.” Nadia Paniagua, also Romesburg’s former student, said, “Professor Romesburg is amazing, without a doubt he was one of the best professors I had at SSU. He is very passionate about the topics he teaches about and he definitely enriched my college experience. His class was something I looked forward to every week.” “One thing that makes woman’s and gender studies special and important as a field is that social justice is at the center of why we do what we do,” said Romesburg. “Every class and everything we study and write about has some kind of eye toward making lives more livable, and how we can make the world more just. I love being able to be a part of that project day in and day out.” If anyone would like to help pass this new framework, Romesburg is encouraging everyone to go to surveys2.cde.ca.gov/on the California Department of Education’s website, and leave comments about how they feel this framework would change society. To view the whole report of these changes visit clgbthistory.org/resources/fairframework.

Page 9

facebook.com

Campus plans to serve with JUMP Brittany Finley Staff Writer

E

ach year Join Us Make Progess, known as JUMP, hosts a campus wide event called Sonoma Serves. This event is an opportunity for Sonoma State University students to give back to society and grow together as a school community. JUMP is the community service program of Sonoma State’s Associated Students. The group is student-run and is truly about the student body and their involvement in the campus and the community. One of the mission statements of JUMP is to provide Sonoma State University students the opportunity for personal growth, leadership and education through service to the campus and the community. Sonoma Serves is just one of the many events JUMP gives the student body to illustrate this mission. Sonoma Serves is an annual event that encourages students to volunteer one

day of service to Sonoma County. Students register online and create teams with a team captain. On the day of the event, there is a rally where students will learn the significance of the work they will be doing. Each student will also receive a free Live United T-shirt. Then, each team will be assigned a service project in Sonoma County. The number of students that participate and the use of teams, allow for multiple locations throughout the county to be served. Last year, over 600 students participated and this year JUMP is planning on even more students to participate. Students have the opportunity to step up and play a role in our community through Sonoma Serves. Students from all over campus, including clubs, athletics and Greek organizations all come together for a common cause. “I’m looking forward to participating in Sonoma Serves again this year,” said

senior and member of Alpha Gamma Delta, Krystina Anderson. “It is a good opportunity to give back to the community and meet members of other organizations and students on campus.” Sonoma Serves will start with a kick off at Seawolf Plaza the morning of Oct. 11. This is where participants will check in, meet with their teams and get assigned their service project. There will also be a few words from students and JUMP about the importance of Sonoma Serves and the progress that will be made. The team captain of each team will get an assigned a project for the one day of service. Projects range from painting to animal shelter work and gardening to beach clean-ups. These projects around the city will allow students the opportunity to get involved, volunteer and help make Sonoma County a better place. Sonoma Serves will take place on Oct. 11 and registration closes on Friday.


Page 10

Sports

Sept. 30 - Oct. 6, 2014

sonomastatestar.com

Men’s tennis suffers loss in season opener Aubrie Tolliver Staff Writer

W

ith brand new resurfaced courts and an even newer roster, the members of the men’s tennis team brushed off their shoes and rackets and launched themselves into their fall season. The Seawolves began their fall season this past weekend in Los Angeles at the USTA/ITA Fall Regionals, hosted by Cal State LA. Head Coach Steve Cunninghame sent three pairs of doubles into play on Sept. 18. These pairs included Blaine Mengert and Noah Lee, Daniel Holz and Logan Liddell, and Vincent Paganetti and Sullivan Roche. The Mengert-Lee pair beat their opponents Linus Grasel and Daniel Minami from UC San Diego in the first round by a decision of 8-6 and advanced to the quarterfinals the following day. However, they weren’t as successful against Azusa Pacific’s Jan Mayer and Gary Yam, and were eliminated in an 8-2 decision. Unfortunately, Mengert and Lee were the only pair to advance to Friday’s play. The duos Holz-Liddell (8-4) and Paganetti-Roche (8-5) both lost on Thursday against APU’s pairs Ben Eger and Pascal Engel and Meyer-Yam respectively. Nevertheless, the weekend was not yet over. Six different Seawolves competed in singles play this past weekend. However, Roche (6-3, 1-6, 10-12), Liddell (6-7, 1-6) and Mengert (2-6, 5-7) were all eliminated after their first match.

Holz, Lee and Paganetti all had successful first matches. Holz won by 6-0 and 6-2 decisions while Lee did so by 6-3 and 6-2 decisions. Paganetti had a tougher time taking out his opponent Ivan Parra from Holy Names, but he eventually did so in three sets (6-0, 5-7, 10-4). In spite of his previous performance, he was later swept (0-6, 3-6) by APU’s Engel, which ended his weekend early. Holz went into the second round facing Martin Blaho from Point Loma. Holz came out of the gate strong against Blaho; however, he couldn’t keep the momentum on his side and after winning the first set 7-6, Holz dropped the next two by 6-2 and 10-5 decisions. He was then eliminated from the competition. Unfortunately, Lee had a similar fate and fell short in his match against Yehven Zakharov from BYU-Hawaii by 6-3 and 6-2 decisions. This loss concluded the Seawolves’ weekend in Los Angeles. Cunninghame is returning for his 23rd season with the Seawolves. After taking over the program in 1988 from previous head coach Jay Potter, Cunninghame has accumulated a total record of 170-266 in that span. After only five seasons of Cunninghame’s reign, the men’s tennis team was cut in 1992. However, the decision was not permanent. Just five years later, the athletic department reinstated the program and re-hired Cunninghame as head coach. Since the program’s revival, Cunninghame has led his team to six NCAA West Regional appearances. The

most recent one was in 2010. Coach Cunninghame has surely made a name for himself and his program. For example, he has already made a lasting impression on sophomore Blaine Mengert who transferred from Northern Arizona University this year. “I love the program and coach here at Sonoma,” said Mengert. “That is a huge reason why I chose to transfer.” Mengert is one of the newest players to the roster and is excited to begin his athletic career as a Seawolf. During their previous season, the Seawolves sported a 13-11 record and ended the year with a national rank of 48. The team qualified for the Pacific West Conference Championship in Surprise, Arizona last May but they were eliminated by ninthranked, Fresno Pacific. “Last year we were very successful considering our level of scholarship funding,” said Cunninghame. “We played hard.” As for the fall, he is busy preparing his team for their upcoming season. Junior Garret Gooch, who is resuming his athletic career after about a two-year absence, is one of the eight players on the fall roster. He and his teammates are working hard at preparing for both their fall and spring seasons. “We are all improving, getting stronger and challenging ourselves mentally,” said Gooch. “We are confident that our coach will prepare us for the season as he always does.” The Seawolves continue their fall season on Friday, where they play at the Aggie Invitational hosted by UC Davis.

STAR // Sara Wildman The men’s soccer team is ranked 6-3-0 overall.

Men’s soccer splits series Ancia Purdy Staff Writer

E

nding non-conference play on Tuesday with a 2-1 victory over Hawaii Pacific, the Sonoma State University men’s soccer team (6-3-0 overall, 1-1-0 CCAA) started conference play with a record of 5-2. They ended up splitting the weekend and won the first and lost the second. The game against Hawaii Pacific started quickly, with SSU scoring within the first seven minutes. The Sharks failed to clear the ball from the goal, which gave sophomore Armando Coronel a perfect set up for an assist to sophomore Cedric Dinane, who headed the ball into the net. That was the only goal of the first half for either team. The next two goals, one for each team, were scored with under six minutes left of play. SSU was again the first to score. With less than six minutes of regulation left, Coronel was passed the ball from junior Brenton Frame. With only the goalkeeper between him and the net, Coronel shot to give the Seawolves the insurance goal they needed. A few minutes later, the Sharks netted one past junior goalkeeper Sean Taufer, though it wasn’t enough as the game ended three minutes after they scored. Taufer had five stops for the day, three of which were in the first half. “The win against Hawaii Pacific was a big confidence boost because we were able to go into conference play with a win under our belt,” said Coronel. Tuesday’s mid-week non-conference game was a precursor for the Seawolves’ first conference game. Despite the 45-minute lightning delay, the men’s soccer team outshot and made the only goal of the game against Cal State Monterey Bay on Friday. The goal came in the first half, before the lightning delay, from Dinane, assisted by sophomore Raspreet Sandhu and freshman Josh Sanchez. After returning from the delay, there were five yellow cards as well as two red

cards given, all of which came in the last 23 minutes of regulation play. The goal in the first half was the only goal needed to end the game with a Seawolves win. Going into Sunday’s game with a week record of 2-0, the Seawolves were on a high, but it just wasn’t enough to defeat Humboldt State on Sunday. The overtime loss was a constant battle between the two teams, with one red card shown against the Seawolves in the second half. The Lumberjacks started things off in the first half with a goal four minutes into the game. That was the only goal scored in the first half. Within two minutes of the second half, Coronel headed the ball with an assist from Frame past HSU’s goalkeeper to tie the game at 1-1. That would be Coronel’s third goal for the season. About 10 minutes later, SSU received a red card and was forced to finish the game down one player. After a save by goalkeeper Taufer on a penalty kick, the Lumberjacks scored on a corner kick, leading the Seawolves 2-1 eight minutes into the second half. “When we’re down we have to have a short term memory,” said Coronel. “We don’t dwell on it. We pick each other up and continue to work for a positive result.” The last goal of regulation play came 10 more minutes later from Frame; a shot assisted by Sanchez and junior Sean Callahan. That would be Frame’s second goal of the season, which tied the game at 2-2. Both teams were able to hold off each other and forced a 10-minute overtime. SSU received the first chance to net the ball, but sophomore Jose Avalos’ kick went high and to the right of the goal. Shortly after, HSU ended the game in sudden death with a controversial goal past Taufer. After beating the Otters, the Seawolves end their first conference weekend at 1-1-0. The men continue conference play on the road against Cal State East Bay on Friday at 4:30 p.m.

COURTESY // SSU Athletics Daniel Holz had a successful first match, winning 6-0 and 6-2.

STAR // Sara Wildman The Seawolves will face East Bay this Friday.


Sports

Sept. 30 - Oct. 6, 2014

sonomastatestar.com

Page 11

Player Profile: Haley Whitbeck Taylor Graham Staff Writer

H

STAR // Alyssa James The Seawolves are now ranked 6-4 overall.

Volleyball dominates weekend series Vasili Loufas Staff Writer

Tritons an “L”. The Seawolves hit .236 with 62 kills while UC San Diego hit only .189 with 55 kills. This upset advanced their record to 5-4 omen’s volleyball had two big which puts them above .500. matchups to deal with this past Cal Poly Pomona looked to keep themweekend, but ended both games in selves above .500 coming into the Wolves’ winning fashion only losing one set throughout Den on Saturday night to take on the lady Seathe entire weekend in the Wolves’ Den. The wolves. SSU took the first set with ease 25-17 lady Seawolves celebrated a 3-1 upset versus getting a one-match lead to start off. The secUC San Diego and swept Cal Poly Pomona ond frame came with a little more trouble as with a straight three-set match that ended in the Broncos took a 24-23 lead with game point the Seawolves’ favor. SSU stands at an overall on the line. The two teams exchanged points 6-4 record with a 4-2 record in conference play. back and forth until tied at 27 a piece. The Tritons of UC San Diego took an early Kelsey Hull dented the hardwood twice to lead winning the first set with a score of 25-22. cap off the 29-27 set victory that opened the The first set consisted of 17 ties and seven lead Seawolves to a 2-0 set lead. In the third set, changes. The Seawolves wanted to get back the Broncos stayed close early in the frame but into the game and did just that. In the second let the Seawolves slip away to seal the third set, Sonoma was losing 19-16 until they scored set 25-13 and take the win advancing their renine of the last 12 points to flip the script and cord to 6-4 and dropping Pomona to .500 at a end the second set 25-22 with the entire match 5-5 record. Cal Poly shot poorly at a rate of tied 1-1 in sets. The third set was led entirely .189 with only 39 kills and 15 errors in 127 atby Sonoma State and won 25-19 to take the tempts. Caylie Seitz, Kelsey Hull and Regan lead in sets 2-1. Richert together had 76 percent of SSU’s 54 The next match started and it could decide kills as the Seawolves hit .381 to take down the the game if SSU could manage to take this set. Broncos. The Seawolves got an early 12-7 eventually losThese big wins are creating big momening it later at 21-20 with the Tritons getting past tum for women’s volleyball as they look to end the Seawolves. SSU held strong and jumped to their five-game homestand on Wednesday night a 24-23 lead. Kelsey Hull had her 13th kill of against San Francisco State. The first serve is the night to end the game and give the No. 19 scheduled for 7 p.m. in the Wolves’ Den.

W

COURTESY // SSU Athletics Kaitlyn Haithcock defeated her first and second round opponents.

Women’s tennis dropped from ITA Fall Regionals Kyler K han Staff Writer

T

his past week, the Sonoma State women’s tennis team traveled to Los Angeles to play in a three-day tournament hosted by Cal State Los Angeles. The tournament hosted many players from the NCAA Division 2 West Region teams. Both singles and doubles tournaments were played. The champions of each group would go on to play in a National Event in October, and the winners in that tournament potentially have the opportunity to play in a “Super Bowl” event in New York.

Representing Sonoma State in the tournament were freshman Mariann Bukich and sophomores Karlee Budge, Kaitlyn Haithcock, and Jordyn Kearney. Haithcock and Kearney participated in the singles portion of the tournament, while Budge and Bukich took part in the doubles. Each of the players was eliminated in round 16, but not before posting wins in earlier rounds. Haithcock defeated her first round opponent in straight sets and hours after, continued with a win in her second round. Kearney, playing as a single, also took care of her first two opponents on her way to

an appearance in round 16. The doubles team of Budge and Bukich fell in their first round but bounced back with a win, leading them to round 16. All of the Sonoma State players coordinated against competitive seeds in their round 16 losses. Haithcock faced the two seeds from BYU-Hawaii and the pairing of Budge and Bukich was matched against the topseeded two-some from BYUHawaii. The team’s next action will most likely be during their Sonoma State Invitational on Oct. 11 and 12. The tournament is located at the SSU tennis courts near the Beaujolais fields.

aley Whitbeck is a sophomore standout on Sonoma State’s women’s golf team. After being a four-year varsity golfer at El Camino High School in Oceanside. Whitbeck decided to come to Sonoma State University. With the location in the heart of wine country and the influence of head coach, Val Verhunce, Sonoma State was the perfect fit for Whitbeck. “I love the location, wine country is absolutely beautiful, plus I love the fact that we are only an hour away from San Francisco,” Whitbeck said. “I chose this school because our head coach, Val, and I get along really well and I do really well with his teaching and coaching COURTESY // SSU Athletics styles.” Whitbeck started hitting balls at the golf Haley Whitbeck is a sophomore on the range with her dad when she was 7 years old and women’s golf team. hasn’t looked back. Now, in her second year as a Seawolf, Whitbeck has many achievements and my team made, is we all want to go to nationunder her belt. When she was 14 years old, she als and win this year.” Whitbeck is very excited with the talent they shot her first hole in one, when she was 17 she won a 4-hole playoff shooting 2 under par and have on their team and noted that their consisthis year she got second place in the teams first tency and close relationships as a team will make this year and this team very special. She also tournament. seemed very confident with their performance at their first two tournaments where they proved “Even though it is the that they are a team to be noticed. As for the rest of this season, Whitbeck is most challenging part really looking forward to having a successful of [golf], the mental season with her team. Personally, she wants to game is my favorite.” keep her putting on track, which can be difficult some days. She also focuses a lot on letting her “My mom and dad have been my biggest positive attitude help her golf game, and not let supporters from the start,” Whitbeck said. “They a bad shot or bad hole negatively affect her atwere never the type of parents who pushed me titude. Although her plans after leaving SSU are too hard. They always wanted me to be happy and only keep pursuing [golf] if that is what I undecided, Whitbeck wants golf as part of her life for years to come. really wanted.” “I have been considering becoming a teachThe support, on and off the course, from Whitbeck’s parents is evident in her strong, com- ing pro, but that is still a long ways away from now,” she said. posed and determined character. Other plans for her golfing future include “Even though it is the most challenging part of [golf], the mental game is my favorite,” Whit- golfing at Pebble Beach in Monterey, which has beck said. “It can make you hate the game at been a longtime dream of hers. As a sophomore, Whitbeck still has three times, but you will always come running back to it because no matter what, you want to find a years to continue to improve and to continue to help the Seawolves have success on the golf way to beat it.” Although she has achieved a lot of recogni- course. Whitbeck, and the rest of the Sonoma State tion as an individual, Whitbeck is more focused women’s golf team, are playing in a local touron her team and their success. “I would like to win a college tournament,” nament on Oct. 20 and 21 at the Foxtail Golf she said. “But the most important goal I made, Course in Rohnert Park.


Page 12

Photo This week in photos...

Sept. 30 - Oct. 6, 2014

sonomastatestar.com

For more, visit our galleries at SonomaStateStar.com

Sportzapalooza

STAR // Edward Goquingco The Archery Club, Equestrian team and many more came out to table in hopes of attracting new members to their clubs. Along with newer clubs, older and more established teams like the Sonoma State Sapphires came out to table and entertain.

Kickin’ it with Kappa

STAR // Alyssa James

Kappa Delta Zeta kicked it in the sun while playing kick ball. Kappa Delta Zeta held the first part of their event at Lobo’s in the Student Center to raise money for Sonoma County Wildlife Rescue.


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.