Volume 82 // Issue 11

IN THIS ISSUE

Title IX hearings

Earth Week

Read about a student petition on the new hearing policy for sexual assault cases on PAGE 4.

Read about what Sonoma State is doing to celebrate Earth Day, with a week full of events, on PAGE 8.

Art exhibit

Learn more about what’s in the art gallery now, and how graduating students were given full freedom to create it, on PAGE 6.

SINCE 1979

VOLUME 82 // ISSUE 11 APRIL 23 - APRIL 29, 2019

THE UNIVERSITY’S STUDENT RUN NEWSPAPER

@SONOMASTATESTAR

Student starts Autism Club at SSU MANDELA LINDER STAFF WRITER

COURTESY // Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety The rifle, seen above, was actually an airsoft gun, which fires plastic pellets, made to look as if it were a real assault rifle.

High school student arrested for fake gun threat

ASHLEY GIESEKE STAFF WRITER

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ohnert Park police arrested a high school teenager last week responsible for posting a photo online that suggested he may commit a school shooting the following day.

Public Safety personnel at Rancho Cotate High School received word that a student was posting explicit content on his Snapchat account for other students to see.

The content was a photo of an assault rif le sitting in someone’s lap with the caption, “Don’t go to school tomorrow.”

Snapchat was the first to receive information about the post when it was f lagged. An investigator who is in charge of monitoring these kinds of incidents contacted the FBI to report the

post as a threat.

FBI agents immediately started to track the IP address of the account and discovered it was coming from Rohnert Park. The account belonged to a 17-year-old Rancho Cotate student whose name was not released due to him being underage.

In a press release from the Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety, the department praised the collaborative effort of all involved.

“Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety officials are appreciative of the swift actions by Snapchat Inc. as well as the collaboration with the FBI and the school district,” the press release stated. “Had this posting not been intercepted, it would have caused undue see THREAT on pg. 5

S

onoma State University will soon be adding the Autism Club to its list of on-campus groups.

English major Garrett Winters is working to get the club set up in order to provide support for students like himself, who are autistic. He also hopes the group will be able to provide information for autism allies (people who are not autistic but who want to learn and support those who are).

Winters, who considers himself an autism activist, attended Anova, a K-12 for autistic children and teens.

There he found a supportive community. It is his goal to provide that same type of support for Sonoma State students with autism.

“What really helped me was having a sense of community, both through Anova and online,” Winters said. “Quite often autism leads to isolation from allistic, or not autistic, peers. It can lead to a kind of self-hatred. Having a space with other autistic people allows you to not feel alone.”

Although Winters is setting up the club independently, Sonoma State’s Disability Services for Students is helping to promote it by providing information about the club. Christy Giambastiani, senior disability management advisor, thinks that the club

will be able to give students facing the special challenges of autism a way to connect with one another.

“Some students who identify as having autism spectrum disorder have to navigate the extra challenges of being very sensitive to their environments, having different communication styles, finding social rules confusing at times, and being very focused on their interests and particular ways of thinking and navigating situations,” Giambastiani said. “The club can provide a safe space for students to share their experiences with people who innately understand.”

Winters said that the club will meet weekly, with the first and third meetings being for autistic students only. The second and fourth meetings will be open to anyone who wishes to attend. “I’m hoping that by allowing allies in for two of the meetings a month it will give them a view of autistic issues,” said Winters.

One of the biggest issues Winters hopes to address is communication.

He said that people with autism lack the ability to read voice tone and body language. He said that because people often use those nonverbal means of communication to convey irritation or dislike, misunderstandings are comsee CLUB on pg. 5

New program offers consent education WILL HAHN

STAFF WRITER

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onoma State University is now accepting applications through May 3 for the Consent and Respect Education Students (CARES) program that will be starting in the 2019-2020 academic year.

The program is a one-year commitment where students will receive one unit of internship credit both semesters to participate in intersectional social justice projects and engage in campus outreach and program planning.

Susan Pulido, a confidential advocate in the department of health and wellness at Sonoma State, wants to join a team of students whose goal is to end sexual violence on campus through awareness and education.

“We want to create a culture of consent and respect on campus. That’s going to involve programming and these students going into classrooms, meeting with student clubs and organizations and fraternity and sorority life,” said Pulido.

Pulido has been at Sonoma State for just over a year and has done sexual violence and prevention work for about 15 years, both as a volunteer at a rape crisis center and a confidential advocate at the University of Massachusetts in Lowell, Massachusetts.

Being both an educator and an advocate, she wants the emphasis of the program to be on both prevention and education in sexual violence.

Pulido wants to emphasize the value of peer-based education and how it has more of an impact on students being informed about what consent means and how rape culture can be explained through the eyes of a student, rather than a professional.

“I’m a staff person at the university. I think there’s going to be more buyin when it’s peer-to-peer and I think it’s heard better,” said Pulido.

Pulido is looking for students who represent a positive image for the campus community, as well as those who are from marginalized populations and have a passion for educating others on

STAR // Braden Cartwright Voter turnout in elections for Asssociated Students president has steadily dropped. It went from 25% of the student population voting in 2017, to about 12% last year, then to 5% this year.

STAR // Braden Cartwright Victim’s advocate Susan Pulido is spearheading the effort to establish a program, where students can earn course credit, with the goal of ending sexual violence on campus. consent, sexual violence and prevention.

Even though this is a pilot program, she wants to be able to adapt to new ideas and to see what the program can hold for the future.

She wants students to create their own presentations and projects, allowing them the creative freedom to present awareness and education in meaningful ways to university classes, fraternities and sororities, and athletics.

“I want people who are passionate and who are wanting to create this culture of care and respect. I want students who this is meaning to, to do this,” said Pulido.

Counseling and Psychological Services, faculty from the Department of Women and Gender Studies and undergraduates have helped her to jumpstart the program.

Sexual assault and rape culture continue to be an ever-present issue on campus, and now that hearing procedures are being allowed for sexual assault cases, this is a step in the right disee CARES on pg. 5

Low turnout in student elections

HOLLY CHANDLER STAFF WRITER

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onoma State University’s Associated Students 2019 Elections voter turnout hit an all-time low with only 4.98 percent of the student population to vote for this year’s new AS president.

“Unfortunately, low voter turnout is a trend across the CSU system and nationwide,” Student Government Coordinator Libia Castro said. “Sonoma’s voting numbers are actually at the standard that other CSUs have reported in the past few years. As to why, that’s a question that I spend time trying to figure out everyday.”

Many speculate that voter turnout improves when they have a strong reason to vote and overtime people become apathetic when they feel as though everything is okay based on the status quo.

In this 2019 AS presidential election, only 459 students out of Sonoma State University’s 9,201 student population voted.

Last year’s 2018 Associated Students Election had an 11.79 percent voter turnout and 2017 had a more than doubled turnout, with 24.75 percent of the student population to vote.

These numbers could be decreasing because students are satisfied with the way things are, or perhaps students do not feel as though their votes will make

a difference in their lives here at Sonoma State University.

Holly Witcraft, a sophomore pre-nursing student at Sonoma State, said, “I did not vote, because I do not understand what they really do. I don’t really feel like they have much say when it comes to this school.

When students speak up here on campus they get ignored.”

“I did not realize we even had student elections on campus,” said Isaac Florez, a junior computer science major. “I have been too busy trying to balance school and work.”

The Associated Student Board is in charge of managing student life issues, seeking student opinions, and representing the student body of Sonoma State University.

Some of the programs the Associated Students are involved in include Join Us In Making Progress (JUMP), Associated Student Progress (ASP), and early childhood education and development.

The Associated Student Board also provides funding resources for students clubs and organizations, offers transitional housing, and supplies short-term loans for Sonoma State University students.

Newly-elected AS President Breana Archie wants to achieve a goal see TURNOUT on pg. 5

2 Editorial

APRIL 23 - APRIL 29, 2019 sonomastatestar.com

THE STAR Editorial Board Braden Car twright, Editor-in-Chief Kasey Williams, News Editor Gillian Chaffer, Opinion Editor Alison Snider, Ar ts & Enter tainment Editor Haley Kara, Student Life Editor Brennan Craig, Spor ts Editor Natalie Dolan, Photo Editor Mandela Linder, Adver tising Manager Samantha Billingsly, Distribution Manager Corinne Asturias, Faculty Adviser Staff Writers

Kayla Allen, Samantha Billingsly, Kaylie Boettner, Kelly Britton, Holly Chandler, Giulia Chlarson, Clark Fahrenthold, Julianna Ferrara, Alexander Funchess, Ashley Gieseke, Teresa Gulli, Will Hahn, Garrett Kitchen, Emily Kowalski, Katherine Kur tt, Madison Lam, Cole McKeith, Jack Messier, Gabriella Novello, Thomas Peterschmidt, Joseph Piombo, Devon Pique, Sunday Simon, Brandon Sparks, Jonah Trosky, Marissa Ugar te, Jackson Waldron, Aaron Waskowiak, Mattie Williams Photographers

Christine Von Raesfeld, Jessica Rivera, Kaitlyn Bradley, Jacob Loher, Ethan Prins

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Editor’s Pick This week’s can’t miss article: “A student goes to Coachella” Staff writer Gabriella Novello recounts her experience going to the music festival with a bunch of people from Sonoma State.

Read the story on page 9.

Corrections/Clarifications 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.

STAR // Kevin Flores

New sexual assault hearing policy protects the accused

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n April 11, Title IX sent out an email to the campus community with information of their new hearing process regarding instances of sexual misconduct. The revamping of procedure doesn’t only apply to Sonoma State University, but the entire CSU system.

The updated process has raised some concerns as to how accessible and realistic a hearing would be for survivors of sexual misconduct, but it has also caused for question as to how the process was conducted before.

“Prior to the revised policies, a neutral Investigator would investigate and issue findings of fact and the Title IX Coordinator would make the final determination about whether CSU policy was violated,” stated Title IX Coordinator Sarah Clegg.

The change in policy comes after a lawsuit was filed by a Dartmouth College student earlier this year, who claimed he was “unjustly” expelled for sexual misconduct, claiming that there wasn’t a neutral party to investigate his case.

While there is no direct link between the California Court of Appeals decision to implement the CSU system change in policy and the Dartmouth lawsuit, it can be reasonably assumed that the lawsuit inf luenced the procedure change.

The defense for this change is that Title IX advocates, coordinators and investigators are inherently partial towards the victim in cases of sexual misconduct, and therefore will tend to rule in favor of the victim. Defenders of the policy claim that before Title IX stood as judge,

jury and executioner.

The opposition of the new policy is that it will make it more difficult for victims to come forward and seek justice for the crimes committed against them, and that a hearing process would contribute further to the psychological trauma they’ve already endured.

The hearing policy ensures that the victim has to face their assailant, and although they can opt to video conference in, they are still digitally in the same room as their attacker. They’re also unable to have a third party supporter speak on their behalf, which would likely make it increasingly difficult to speak out. If a victim chooses to not participate in the hearing process, they’re absence may inf luence a hearing officers decision, and therefore lessen the school’s power of action.

Title IX Director Sarah Clegg said, while she is listening, she can’t speak to whether students’ concerns are warranted quite yet.

“We don’t yet have enough experience with live hearings at SSU to know what issues may arise with the new process,” she said.

Frankly, it is difficult to say whether or not the new Title IX policy will impact the school positively, negatively or not at all.

One could make the claim that hearing processes aren’t reliable in sexual misconduct cases when the case seems to be entirely “he said, she said.” However, when disciplinary action is involved, it’s completely reasonable to expect a fair trial, but are sexual misconduct trials ever truly fair.

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Opinion 3

APRIL 23 - APRIL 29, 2019 sonomastatestar.com

Rise in fentanyl addictions spread like wildfire

GARETT KITCHEN STAFF WRITER

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entanyl is a synthetic opioid that is used as a pain reliever for those who are suffering from extreme cancer pain, yet the effects behind this illicit drug are deadly.

Musicians such as the legendary Prince and rappers Mac Miller and Lil Peep are among the celebrities who have fallen victim to this hidden drug. Although this drug has affected the lives of the rich and famous, it also has a devastating impact on those who may not be aware

of its potency.

From 2010 to 2017, overdose cases from fentanyl rose by nearly 640% from 3,007 reported cases to a striking 28,466 cases, according to data provided by the US Department of State. Today, the drug is killing people at a rate of nearly 80 people a day. Dr. William Morrone, an addiction medicine specialist, stated that fentanyl has become more prevalent within the lives of people in our society explaining who might be using the drug, “high school teachers, homeless guys, satellite TV salesmen, GM workers, girls in tanning beds, pizza delivery dudes, parents, frat boys, and parolees...” This shows that nobody is necessarily immune to these devastating effects.

The drug first appeared once users could not afford drugs being sold over the counter. Heroin was an option for users, but soon fentanyl, fifty times stronger than heroin, became the drug of choice.

The CDC called fentanyl the deadliest drug in America. A small amount of 0.25 mg, while mixed with other drugs, could be catastrophic.

Killer counterfeits: the secret behind fake makeup

The source for these amounts of fentanyl can be linked back to the struggles to adequately regulate thousands of chemical and pharmaceutical facilities operating legally and illegally in China.

According to the U.S. China Economic and Security Review Commission, the inability to monitor these facilities has lead to increased production and export of illicit chemicals and drugs. While a portion of the fentanyl comes directly from China to the United States, Mexico and Canada are also bystanders of transporting this drug into the country. “According to reports, seizures of fentanyl at the JFK International mail center increased from seven in 2016 to 84 in 2017, all from China,” stated Charles Schumer, U.S. Senator.

This illicit drug fentanyl is also not exactly the cheapest drug on the market. To compare the prices between heroin and fentanyl, Affirm Health stated statistics regarding the buying and selling prices of these drugs. Heroin, can be bought for $6,000 and be resold to the public for about $80,000. Fentanyl, however, can be bought for the same

Plus size fashion still few and far between

SUNDAY SIMON

STAFF WRITER

T KATHERINE KURTT

STAFF WRITER

T

he makeup and cosmetic industry are some of the biggest in the world, and with popular makeup brands like Kylie Cosmetics and Too Faced that have high prices attached to them, they are hard to come by for the everyday person. Many beauty buyers will often try to find the best bargain when it comes to the products on the market, but some may not be as sanitary as one might think.

Websites like eBay and Poshmark will often sell these products at a lower price, but it can also come with questionable quality like pre-opened packaging or unsanitary conditions. This brings the question, is it worth getting a popular product for a discounted rate if the quality can result in infection due to the product’s ingredients?

According to Refinery29, the Los Angeles Police Department confiscated $700,000 worth of counterfeit makeup in the popular shopping district in Los Angeles known as Santee Alley due to the high levels of bacteria and even feces in the products. Many of the products look extremely similar to the original product and have a few minor changes like the name of the shade of eyeshadow or the order of the colors. However, for consumers that may not know the product very well could end up getting caught with an awful infection and may feel blindsided by the makeup creator.

James Charles, a popular makeup guru on YouTube, made a video comparing the difference between the makeup palette he created called the James Charles X palette versus the counterfeit product. When Charles’ palette sold out, many consumers were found scouring the internet for the highly sought-out palette. To combat the demand for the product, some companies made James Charles X lookalike palettes but they could not come close to the same quality as the original.

Charles found the counterfeit palette at Santee Alley in Los Angeles where many other counterfeit products from the clothing industry to the makeup industry can be found. In the video he compared both palettes in every characteristic from colors to shade names to the size of the palettes and even put the fake eyeshadows on his face. When comparing the two products, Charles found that the palette size was smaller compared to the original palette however the face of the product looked identical and could be misleading to the consumers.

When he opened the palette, the colors were not the same, not to mention the quality of the eyeshadows were not even close to the original palette.

As a consumer, it’s concerning that bacteria or feces appear in a product. There should be a level of ease and comfort that what the consumer is putting on their body is safe for them to use. In 2016 the US Customs and Border Protection seized 1.4 Billion dollars worth of knockoff makeup, according to CBS News, . As a consumer or a government official, it could be extremely beneficial to add a standard to the cosmetic or beauty industry that could be equivalent to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). By adding this level of standard, it would eliminate any bacteria from getting in the products and even improve the products in performance level which would compel the customer to buy the product as well.

Always use trusted websites and stores like Ulta and Sephora, and steer clear from resale websites and stores. It’s better to be safe than sorry.

price of $6,000 and can be resold for approximately $1.6 million. The outcome of these prices leaves fentanyl about 20 times more profitable than heroin.

The United States is taking steps towards stopping the transport of fentanyl to the country. By partnering with China, the U.S. hopes that the Chinese government will become more strict with their regulations of chemical plants. Chinese officials have also committed to cracking down on the distribution and transporting of the drug outside their country.

The U.S. Government is working with the International Postal Union to seize more packages suspected of bringing the drug into the country. By providing machinery that can detect traces of the drug, they can stop shipments before ever reaches the shorelines and boundaries of the United States.

The solutions to the fentanyl epidemic are only the beginning. It will take time for them to make a dent into reducing the number of overdose cases. If the US does not start taking action, the problem may become too overwhelming to stop in the long run.

here’s a saying: big girls need love too. Well, that includes love from the fashion industry. It’s 2019 after all, and still, many stores still refuse to put plus-size sections in their establishments.

What’s even worse: some will have people pay more just for wearing plus size clothing. The average size of a woman is a size 16 according to Today, which is considered plus size on the U.S. sizing chart.

Women 12 and up have difficulty finding clothes that fit them in most if not all fashion stores, and what’s worse, is that the prices are actually higher for plus size people. Why the discrimination against bigger bodies?

As fast fashion continues to rise, the plus size community continues to be left out of it (that’s cool, didn’t want to support the exploitation of sweat-

shop workers anyway). More and more shopping for plus size people is done online, as walking into a mall can be exhausting and limiting. Even the mannequins don’t represent the arrays of sizes and shapes that people come in.

“I don’t think a plus-size woman should have to make an emotional payment everytime she goes shopping,” says Alexandra Waldman of clothing brand Universal Standard. She spoke with the Washington Post about the representation of plus size people in the fashion industry and even how she is tired of the lack of spectrum when it comes to the U.S. sizing chart.

Waldman goes on to say “We can’t have a conversation and plus-size clothes without having a conversation about how a woman feels about her body. You don’t have that with a size 6.”

Plus size models are just breaking ground on the runway, and there are stores that target plus size women with fashion always in mind. Still, the garments aren’t cheap and neither are the finishing products. Back in 2014, a petition was created by Renee Posey, a plus size woman who was upset over Old Navy charging more money for plus size jeans for women, but not for men.

Posey told Today “Plus size women like myself are kind of fed up with being treated like second class citizens by retailers.”

Old Navy responded by saying that the upcharge is due to the fact that more fabric is costly when creating plus size clothing.

Designers find a way to make plus size clothing appealing, so consumers will have to pay more for that fourway stretch and waistband material.

Nevertheless, this upcharge doesn’t stop some consumers from buying the products, simply because the product is there for them. That doesn’t mean that the upcharge balances out the demand for more plus size clothing, it just means that being given what you ask for comes at a increased price.

Whenever a retailer drops the ball, there’s another one lurking around the corner, staging their opportunity to escort plus size people into their establishment where they offer people an array of options. Thankfully, there are stores that genuinely cater to plus size women’s bodies as well as pockets.

Stores and brands like ASOS Curve, PrettyLittleThing, and Boohoo are all here to cater to plus size needs not just in terms of clothing, but like Waldman said, to their personalities as people.

Plus size folks deserve stores and brands that cater to their bodies. Only time will tell when plus size women will no longer have to dread to mall trip that ends in utter disappointment.

In the meantime, I’ll be wearing my romper from boohoo if anyone needs me.

Drama exposes sympathies for killer

OLIVIA WILLIAMS STAFF WRITER

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new hulu docudrama has sparked a popular petition in support of shortening the convicted felon’s sentence. With the recent airing of Hulu’s “The Act,” a murder case from 2015 has resurfaced and has many people highly interested in the complex details surrounding the intentions behind the convicted killers. The television show, which is an anthology series based on real events, premiered on March 20th of this year.

“The Act” is a re-enactment of the life of Clauddine ‘Dee Dee’ Blanchard and her daughter Gypsy Rose Blanchard, focusing on the time surrounding Dee Dee’s murder on June 14, 2015. Gypsy Rose and her then-boyfriend, Nicholas Godejohn, were the suspects for the murder of her mother and are both currently serving separate sentences relating to their part in the actual murder of Dee Dee. Gypsy Rose pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and is currently serving a ten-year sentence, while Nicholas was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced

to life in prison.

Munchausen syndrome by proxy is when a parent knowingly creates or exaggerates physical symptoms in a child, According to the American Psychological Association. Gypsy Rose, according to Dee Dee, suffered from many diseases and ailments such as leukemia, asthma, muscular dystrophy, as well as many other conditions that depicted her as being disabled and chronically ill. However, Gypsy Rose had absolutely none of these illnesses. She was told she could not walk and was bound to a wheelchair for almost her entire life when in reality she could walk perfectly fine.

Dee Dee also lied to Gypsy Rose about her age, once saying that she was 14 when she was actually 18 years old. Over the many years of lies and deception, Dee Dee received sympathy and attention from the public, benefitting from companies such as the Make-A-Wish Foundation and Habitat for Humanity, who actually built them a brand-new home after theirs was destroyed in Hurricane Katrina.

Gypsy Rose is now 27 years old and has gained the commiseration of over 100,000 people who have signed a petition on Change.org in a bid to get her released from prison.

Her father, Rod Blanchard, started the petition two years ago in hopes to gain more attention to her case and has called on Missouri Governor Mike Parson to reduce her prison sentence. “I’m petitioning for any relief to Gypsy’s ten-year sentence, a shorter sentence, or perhaps relocation to a mental facility where she

can get the better help she needs.

Gypsy has a loving family and community waiting, supporting her every step of the way to freedom,” her father writes on the petition’s home page. Rod also was led to believe his daughter was sick her entire life, after separating with Dee Dee during her pregnancy with Gypsy Rose.

Although continually paying child support for her, Rod’s relationship with his daughter was kept very limited because of Dee Dee’s control issues.

Signatures on the petition spiked in numbers after it was revealed that Gypsy Rose has been engaged to a pen pal that she has been in communication with. Her fiance has been not identified to the public, as this is something that she wants to keep private since she would have never been able to have a romantic relationship with someone with her mother around.

“Despite everything, she still tells me that she’s happier now than with her mom,” Gypsy Rose’s stepmother Kristy Blanchard says in a 2018 interview by the Springfield News-Leader. “And that if she had a choice to either be in jail or back with her mom, she would rather be in jail.”

Many believe Gypsy Rose has been through enough by enduring abuse for years. She was brainwashed, threatened and chained to the bed, which is why she was afraid to speak out, since she was under the control of Dee Dee. She was robbed of a normal life and the release of “The Act” may be just the thing she needed to get her voice heard.

4 News Title IX changes incite petition

APRIL 23 - APRIL 29, 2019 sonomastatestar.com

KAITLYN BRADLEY STAFF WRITER

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he CSU-wide changes to the Title IX sexual misconduct policy have left some students fighting for improvement.

Kelsey Maganaris, a 22-year-old Sonoma State student, along with seven of her fellow classmates, initiated a petition urging some changes to the policy which was enacted March 29.

This new CSU-wide change states that “a hearing will have to be held in sexual assault cases between the accused and the victim, with a trained hearing officer determining the final results.”

One of these problems has come from each party being allowed one advisor to be present while testifying. If necessary, it can be an attorney which would, ideally, be provided by the school. At this moment, this is not the case. “[The students] see a power imbalance in this process,” said Maganaris, “Imagine this: if there is a plaintiff and the victim cannot afford an attorney, they won’t get one, but if the person who is accused can afford an attorney, then they have more of an advantage at getting off.”

Title IX Director Sarah Clegg confirmed that students could hire an attorney to be their advisor.

She said, while this may create a scenario in which one party has an advisor and another student has a non-attorney as an advisor, “the role of the advi-

sor remains the same.”

Advisors don’t participate directly in the hearing.

They can only talk to the party they are advising and can’t ask questions or answer for the hearing participant.

“While the change to the Title IX process are mandated, we can and will continue to take every reasonable measure to ensure that parties receive fair, neutral, and unbiased treatment throughout the investigation and hearing process,” Clegg said.

Maganaris, along with her classmates, see this becoming a bigger issue and hope to stop it. They also believe that these hearings can be humiliating and intimidating. In addition, it makes the victim relive their trauma all over again.

“I picture someone going through the Title IX process, they have to provide all of this evidence, relive their trauma, send it in to the Title IX director and they have to sit through a hearing,” said Maganaris. “They can be potentially questioned by the other side and that’s traumatizing and wrong because we are not the law, we are not the court and not the criminal justice system and, to me, it really feels like this is what it’s mimicking.”

The group’s petition, created on change.org in order to rectify this new rule, has already gotten 100 signatures and the number keeps increasing. They are hoping to reach 500 signatures and then they will bring it to the Title IX office at the end of the spring semester. They want the people behind them before they approach the school.

“I appreciate the feeback and in no way want to mini-

mize the concerns or questions that anyone has regarding these changes,” Clegg said.

Kathleen Perry is one of the many Sonoma State students who has signed this petition. It is important to her because she knows students who have been assaulted or harassed on campus and feels the school is further protecting defendants from being held accountable for their actions instead of protecting the survivor.

“I’m worried it will discourage the few people who are actually willing to report from reporting at all,” said Perry.

Since these changes are CSU-wide, changing the rules is a challenge. Maganaris understands this but would like to encourage Sonoma State to at least consider these changes.

“My group and I can make a small difference for the victim, just to require a lawyer, and that’s what I think I am after here,” said Maganaris. “What I really want the school to do is either A: find the money to provide lawyers, or B: find a list of pro-bono lawyers who are willing to do the work for these students, providing that resource to the victim.”

For Maganaris, this petition means giving victims the ability to feel like they can voice their experiences and feel safe in their school environment. These victims could potentially have to be at school with the person who hurt them and it could damage their educational opportunities. Maganaris values education and the rights of students, making this a very important cause for her to fight.

Sexuality, disability the emphasis of new event JACOB LOHER STAFF WRITER

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he topic of sexuality, when brought up in discussion, simply makes people nervous, similar to the topic of disability. Shauna Farabaugh is a certified somatic sex educator who teaches about the topics of sexuality and disability.

In 2007, Farabaugh became certified in sex education at San Francisco Sex Information (SFSI), a nonprofit organization in the Bay Area. Sexuality and disability are very real aspects of identities that surround us every day and Farabaugh believes that sexuality is essential to our humanity.

“As a somatic practitioner we are always building our relationship with our bodies and increasing our capacities to hear what our body is telling us,” she said.

Disability awareness month will continue to supply the month of April with events like Farabaugh’s.

She wants nothing more than to share her knowledge with those who are struggling with their sexuality, living with a disability, or even those just interested in what she has to say.

Farabaugh started teaching sex education in 2013 and she is one of the five founding members of the Bay Area Sexuality and Disability Network. “I feel like my passions in life are sex and justice,” said Farabaugh. She focuses on the topic of “sexcessibility,” which is the concept of disability and sexuality combined.

Farabaugh emphasizes that somatic awareness focuses on five aspects, which are weight, temperature, movement, a quality, and an image. Somatic awareness is all about someone acknowledging their own self within an environment.

When in an environment, everyone is aware of their surroundings, but not everyone is always aware of their own body. “One part of our body can feel very heavy and one part of our body can feel very light,” Farabaugh said.

Sexuality in relation to disability is much more closely related than most are aware. Those who have disabilities still have sex as well as struggle with their sexuality. “Sex is one of the best parts of being human,” said Farabaugh.

One of the stereotypes surrounding sexuality and disability is the fear of passing on a disability in reproduction. This stereotype affects a large majority of those living with disabilities.

A disability can be permanent or temporary, but regardless, it should not stop someone from living their life

to the fullest extent. “The range of quote, unquote ‘normal’ in sexuality is vast,” said Farabaugh. When sexuality becomes a topic of discussion, individuals automatically feel nervous. Sexuality, sexual expression, and even sexual desire are experienced by everyone, even those who are living with disabilities.

“We need to admit that disability scares the [crap] out of people,” said Farabaugh.

Society continues to put this negative connotation on sexuality and disability, when in reality, it is just another part of almost every person’s life in some way. At least one person knows someone struggling with their sexuality as well as someone who is living with a disability. “Most of us carry an imprint of our upbringing,” said Farabaugh. The idea that what has been learned during adolescence is the way things have to be is not always the case.

Sexuality and disability hold similar connotations when it comes to topics society tries to push to the bottom of the barrel. As a whole, society has come a long way in being more aware on the topics, but there can always be more.

“The language of the body is sensation,” said Farabaugh. Society tries to keep sexuality and disability under this blanket that is unable to be taken off, but in reality, society is just becoming a more “sexcessible” environment.

Governor’s proposal increases school budget COLE MCKEITH STAFF WRITER

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or the 2019 - 2020 school year, Sonoma State plans to receive funding increases from several different sources, according to Laura Lupei, Senior Director for University Budget and Planning. The university expects to have about $300 million in increased funding from the Governor’s budget proposal towards the CSU system.

“The majority of those funds ($193M) would be for mandatory cost increases which is mostly compensation and benefits for our faculty and staff,” said Lupei. “There is also $45 million of new funding for GI2025 and funding for 2 percent enrollment growth at $62 million.”

GI2025 refers to the California State University’s

Graduation Initiative 2025, a multi-year plan to increase graduation rates and on-time graduations. “In planning at the campus level, we are expecting to receive about 2% of those funds, or somewhere between $6-7M,” Lupei said.

Sonoma State University’s operating budget for the current 2018 - 2019 school year added over $6 million in funds since the previous year, with these changes meant to focus on changes to employee salaries and benefits, graduation initiatives, campus budget changes, and tuition decreases. The difference between this and last year’s budget equals 4.4 percent, or roughly $135 million to $141 million.

The university’s plans for implementing these funding increases extend from and relate to Sonoma State’s Strategic Plan 2025, a set of guidelines established in the 2017 - 2018 school year that aim to model the University’s campus planning and direction for the upcoming school year and subsequent years.

“By building a strategic budgeting model, the campus is working to align our resources with our strategic priorities,” Lupei said, “This means that we aren’t only looking at those incremental increases to out budget that are coming from the state to put towards our priorities, but also looking at our current funding and examining how we can reallocate it more efficiently and effectively towards the goals and tactics outlined in out strategic plan.”

The core values of the campus Strategic Plan 2025 include impetis on diversity and social justice, sustainability and environmental inquiry, connectivity and community engagement, and adaptability and responsiveness.

These values mirror the plan’s strategic priorities, which also include student success and community participation, among others.

All of these provide the university with a “road map” for Sonoma State’s plan implementation from 2019 - 2025.

NEWS IN BRIEF Sri Lanka

On Easter Sunday, a series of suicide bombings by Islamic extremist group National Thowheeth Jama’ath claimed nearly 300 lives in Catholic churches throughout the city of Colombo. Shortly thereafter, Sri Lanken security services captured at least 24 associated suspects, further implying that the country had prior knowledge of the organization’s whereabouts.

Sonoma State University

Sonoma State University Police issued a Timely Warning after someone’s Canon Rebel camera, skateboard and a lanyard containing personal keys including a vehicle key and fob were stolen. “The unidentified suspect entered the residence through an open window,” the Timely Warning stated. The burglary occurred between 8:45 a.m. and 11:15 a.m. on Monday, April 22. Police don’t have a suspect.

Washington D.C.

Last week, on April 18, Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s redacted report into the Trump Organization’s supposed Russian meddling was released to the public. There were several bombshell findings in the report -- such as Trump proclaming, “this is the end of my presidency,” when he learned of the appointment of Special Counsel Mueller and his campaign’s attempt to obtain Hillary Clinton’s private emails -- although there was ultimately no direct evidence of collusion with Russia during the 2016 presidential election.

News 5

APRIL 23 - APRIL 29, 2019 sonomastatestar.com

Juvenile arrested in shooting near campus

HALEY KARA

STUDENT LIFE EDITOR

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n Sunday, April 21, a 16-year-old gang member from Santa Rosa was arrested for shooting an 18-year old male during a party in the 5000 block of Snyder Lane in Rohnert Park, according to a press release by Rohnert Park Public Safety.

The victim is being treated for a non-life threatening gunshot wound in the leg after he confronted a group of three males who were trying to steal a backpack belonging to the victim’s friend.

Santa Rosa police’s gang detectives were able to identify the suspect based off of a nickname the victim provided them. The victim later confirmed the identity of the suspect as the shooter.

At 9:46 p.m. on April 21, the Santa Rosa police

found the suspect in his car with a loaded gun matching the victim’s description of the weapon. The suspect, whose name is not being released because of his age, was booked into Sonoma County Juvenile Hall after he was interviewed by the police.

The suspect was charged in the Rohnert Park shooting with robbery and assault with a firearm, and was charged by the Santa Rosa police with “Possessing a Loaded Firearm in a Vehicle, Being a Convicted Felon in Possession of a Firearm and Ammunition, and Providing False Identification,” according to Rohnert Park Public Safety.

Rohnert Park police are still looking to identify those who where at the party and the other two males who were with the suspect during the time of the robbery and shooting.

THREAT: Student says he did not think gun post “would be a big deal” continued from pg. 1

fear to all of the campuses in our community.”

Detectives quickly sprang to action and were granted a search warrant to enter the juvenile’s home.

They were unable to initially locate the weapon but the student said that it was just an airsoft gun, a replica weapon that fires plastic pellets, which belonged to one of his friends. The aforementioned friend is also a 16-year-old Rancho Cotati student who was not aware of the social media post. Detectives arrived to the friend’s house and confiscated the weapon, which did turn out to be an airsoft gun.

Airsoft guns, or “toy” guns, are required by law in California to possess a colored tip in wake of the 2013 shooting death of Santa Rosa native Andy Lopez, who was shot while holding one by Santa Rosa police. The weapon that was in the Snapchat post did not have the required tip.

The young man said the weapon was just made to look real and the whole thing was intended to be a joke. “I did not think it would be a big deal,” said

the student who initially posted the Snapchat post.

He was arrested and booked into the Sonoma County Juvenile Hall on suspicion of criminal threats.

In a quote given to the Press Democrat, Deputy Chief of the Rohnert Police Department, Aaron Johnson, said, “I don’t think they realized how fast social media spreads and how large social media networks are, or the magnitude of fear any time you talk about school safety.”

Rancho Cotate High School’s principal, Louis Ganzler, sent out an email after the incident explaining that police determined there was no threat to student safety. The email stated, “Our administration team will continue to monitor the situation and maintain constant communication with the police.”

Rohnert Park Police Chief Tim Mattos stressed the importance of school safety. “We must continue to work together to ensure that our schools are a safe environment where learning can take place,” he said.

“It is important our students know that any information regarding violence on a school campus, whether it be a hoax or not, will be taken seriously.”

CARES: New program starting in fall continued from pg. 1

rection for the accused to take responsibility for their actions. However, Pulido says this can also present a challenge.

“I think that for survivors, a hearing process can be a difficult thing,” said Pulido. “So as an advocate, I’m going to do everything I am able to do to help students through that process.”

The number of timely warnings being issued also causes some concern due to the fact that they are not issued if the incident involves acquaintances on campus.

Rather, timely warnings are issued so that students can avoid being a victim, and the warnings have ripple effects. Pulido is okay with timely warnings not being issued if there is not any risk to the campus community.

“If students are in a situation where they are acquaintances and they know one another, and there is really no risk to the campus community because this is something that happened between these two people, then I do not feel like a timely warning has to be issued because it has an incredible impact on the survivor,” said Pulido.

Despite the issues the campus has with sexual assault and violence, Pulido hopes to gain traction with CARES and to make sure that education and awareness on consent and sexual violence can be more publicized through the minds of students who are passionate about these issues.

Pulido will stop at nothing to create a culture of respect, consent, and good nature on campus.

“I love what I do. I leave my office every day and this nurtures my soul, the work that I do,” she said.

COURTESY // Google Maps The approxamite location of the shooting in relation to Sonoma State University. The shooting occurred Sunday morning on the 5000 block of Snyder Lane.

TURNOUT: AS Senate elections upcoming continued from pg. 1

of adding diversity to Sonoma State campus and, therefore, making the university more inclusive to all current and future students.

“The tactics that I used to incentivize people to vote for me was definitely social media and relying on the connections I made here, such as different staff or faculty and programs in order to spread the word about the election,” said Archie.

“Also I do outreach when tabling in order to spread the word.”

Archie then proceeded with a possible solution for student engagement and participation in voting. “I believe a few ways we can improve voter turnout is to maybe make elections look and sound interesting. Maybe we have to think outside of the box and be really creative in order to make it exciting.”

Archie also has a strong conviction that the Associated Students should make their presence well-known on campus in order to build relationships and connections. Therefore, allowing the students to receive a better insight on what they represent and what changes they can work towards in order to satisfy the student population.

All Associated Student meetings are open to the public and their agendas are accessible to university students through the Sonoma State University website.

CLUB: Weekly meetings on autism continued from pg. 1

STAR // Kayla Allen Sonoma State student Garret Winters started the school’s new Autism Club in hopes of providing support for students with autism and information for austism allies.

mon. These simple misunderstandings often lead to loss of relationships, and over time autistic people can feel isolated.

“We don’t really read body language and voice tone very easily, so people will use body language to convey that they’re upset or that they don’t like something you’re doing,” he said.

“But we do not pick that up, so we keep doing it... We do a lot of work to accommodate society and follow [social] rules that aren’t natural to us, but when we break them or we don’t know what they are, we end up losing people.”

Winters said that both the school of arts and humanities and the school of science and technology have contacted him to offer support for the Autism Club. The school of science and technology offered him a space to use in Darwin Hall.

Further information and news can be found on Facebook under Sonoma State Autism Club (@SSUAutism).

“I couldn’t have imagined this ten years ago,” said Hollis Robbins, dean of arts and humanities at Sonoma State. “I’d love to see faculty, staff, and administrators on the autism spectrum involved as well, particularly faculty members who may not know that their academic and research success—obsession with a topic, painstaking attention to detail—may be an aspect of their brain wiring that they haven’t recognized as neurodiverse.”

CAMPUS CRIME Crime

Date

Location

Status

Sexual Assault

April 5

Residential Community

Open

Sexual Assault

April 7

Residential Community

Open

Grand Theft

April 17

Stevenson Hall

Suspended

6 Arts

APRIL 23 - APRIL 29, 2019 sonomastatestar.com

BFA students graduate with one final showcase

THOMAS PETERSCHMIDT STAFF WRITER

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pening its doors to the the public, Sonoma State University Art students with the Bachelor of Fine Art (BFA) program are providing their best work for the University Art Gallery as they prepare to graduate.

The BFA program is an advanced degree requiring an additional year of focused study in their chosen medium. This exhibition runs from April 25 to May 18 from 4 to 6 p.m. Complimentary wine and cheese spreads will be present.

The BFA students can create what they want how they want as it’s a representation of their strength in the visual arts. That includes ceramics, painting, drawing, printmaking and photography.

“The opening reception for the BFA Exhibition tends to be well-attended and fun, due in part because students are celebrating their peers’ hard work,” said Exhibition Coordinator Carla Stone.

An art exhibition at Sonoma State is typical but this one is special.

“This is different than a professional art show,” said Stone. “There is more connection to the art because [the students] have been working right alongside [their pieces].”

The BFA Exhibition signifies a culmination of senior artists and their interests through many forms of media.

Through grant money, the program provides the artists’ opportunities that they are now able to pull off. Many of these works have been previoisly unacheivable for artists in the BFA program due to financial limitations. Now those ideas can come to fruition since financial obstacles are no longer a problem.

The amount of space the BFA Exhibition allows is very beneficial to the artist that creates through sculpture or any other three dimensional media. Aaron Milligan-Green’s project is taking advantage of the large swath of space as he constructs two large metal semi-circle halves

that will stand seven feet high with orna- next step for some would get their MFA Masters of Fine Arts or continue ments hanging off. Creating this project has their own passions. been on Milligan-Green’s mind for a while.

“After graduating I want to take a break and start to get my name out “A lot of salvaging for materials and re- there. Later on, [I want to] get my MFA in Painting,” Mendoza said. sourceful financial grant money that the For Milligan-Green, his plan is “continuing on with my life. Taking course gave, accompanied with my own the energy I’ve been investing here in school and redirecting it towards background of musical and personal inter- my own business of custom fabrication.” ests led to the creation of my project,” said With the culmination of so much work, this exhibition is a true mileMilligan-Green. stone for the students displaying their hard work and finishing the year The BFA exhibition is unique to other on a strong and successful note. exhibitons that are presented at Sonoma With so much work put into the BFA Exhibition undet its beautiful State, as there is a larger emphasis on the in- 25-foot tall ceilings at Sonoma State University’s Art Gallery, this is a dividual expression of the student artists. fantastic way to ref lect on the inspirational minds of the BFA artist.

“The bodies of work seen here are chosen by the BFA artists themselves, rather than their work having been selected by a curator in the traditional sense,” said Stone. Often, pieces in the gallery are chosen

by Michael Schwager the gallery’s director.

“Most of my pieces usually take about 25 hours of total time,” said Mendoza. “It takes a long time to make my pieces.”

As these eight members of the BFA move on after college, many of them consider what to do with their new Bachelor degree.

In the past, graduated members of Sonoma State’s BFA have gone to established art graduate programs.

Some have gone off to California College of the Arts, Duke UniverCOURTESY // Sonoma State University Art Gallery sity, University of Santa Barbara and many others The Sonoma State University Art Gallery will be hosting the final works of the to further their studies. graduating BFA students from April 25 through May 18.

For many, the common

Student Spotlight of the Week: DEVON PIQUE STAFF WRITER

Brynn Dally

er, ‘If you’re early you’re on time, if you’re on time you’re on the cello and Dally has certainly proved that. In April ith Sonoma State University’s beautiful con- late, and if you’re late you’re in the way,’ so I always try of last year Dally won the Sonoma State Concerto Comcert hall, it’s no wonder people are interested to show up early,” said Dally. “I have to make sure ev- petition by performing Saint-Saens “Concerto No.1 in in our music program. However, it’s rare to eryone has the same bowings, everyone has the music. I A minor.”

“It was slightly scary because I didn’t really want to see somebody as involved with the Green Music Center lead everyone in on time.”

Members of the local community are also in the do it, but my teacher told me to try,” said Dally. “I didn’t as junior Music Performance major Brynn Dally.

Not only does she act as the orchestra’s first chair cello section so it is her responsibility to ensure they get think I was going to win because the other people I cellist, Dally also performs in a string quartet, won the any changes to the music. Her sweet personality and pro- heard were really good, but the next morning somebody 2018 Sonoma State Concerto Competition, and works as fessionalism as first chair do not go unnoticed by those told me congratulations, and I found out I won.”

Now that she has won this prestigious award, the an usher in the Green Music Center. Dally’s attachment around her.

“Brynn is my favorite kind of leader – she leads her orchestra will be highlighting her by performing the to music began at an early age.

“My parents are professional musicians, so as a section by example with kindness and calm,” said Direc- concerto she played at the competition during their next little kid, I would grab my dad’s violin. There are a lot of tor of Orchestral Activities Alexander Kahn. “She is the performance on April 27. Winning awards is great, but pictures of me playing it like a cello,” said Dally. “When kind of musician who is generous towards other musi- it’s her motivation and drive that really convince people I was four they were like, ‘You have to start learning an cians, rather than competitive with them. She prepares just how amazing she is. her parts thoroughly, and this provides an example for “She’s very talented and she works hard. Those two instrument.’”

While it would make sense that a cellist’s first in- all of the rest of the members of the section to emulate.” in combination can create a really great musician,” said Being first chair cellist means having a lot of skill fellow Music Performance major Spencer Causey. “You strument would be a cello, that is not the case. At 4 can’t just have one without the years old, Dally took piano lessons, but other, you definitely need both.” decided she was not interested. After atOn top of orchestra, Dally tempting violin, she decided she wanted also is the cellist of a string to play an instrument where she did not quartet featuring two violinists have to stand. That’s when she found and a violist. Having these varian instrument that clicked. At just five ous activities keeps her busy, years old, Dally was surprised one day but even when she isn’t directly with the gift of a cello. performing at the Green Music “It wasn’t my my birthday or anyCenter, Brynn is working as an thing, but when I got home there was a usher at the events. cello right next to the piano,” said Dally, “I’m at the GMC pretty “I didn’t think anything of it because much every day, including the my parents both teach lessons as well as weekends,” said Dally. “I like doing gigs and stuff, so there’d be a lot getting involved with things of people in my house and a lot of small here because, I’m only here for cellos, so I didn’t get it until my dad told one more year.” me it was mine.”

As a leader and engaged From then on, Dally worked on bemember of the orchestra, Dally ing the talented musician she is now. She hopes to see more people sign performed in school orchestras from elup for the group next year. ementary school to senior year of high “If you think you don’t school. It was in these later years when have time, you probably do, as she found herself fulfilling major leaderlong as it works in your schedship roles, like in her senior year when ule,” said Dally. “It’s Monday she was president of the orchestra. and Wednesday nights from Now at Sonoma State, she is still four to six. I mean if you can leading the pack as first chair cellist in the orchestra. This important honor STAR // Brandon Sparks only make one rehearsal maybe talk to Dr. Kahn and see if somecomes with a litany of responsibilities.

Junior cellist and Music Performance major Brynn Dally smiles as she practices thing is possible.”

“I had this saying when I was young- along with her band The Circus Phreeks.

W

APRIL 23 - APRIL 29, 2019 sonomastatestar.com

Entertainment 7

STAR // Brandon Sparks The Circus Phreeks [(left to right): Pablo Robles, Cameron Shellnut, Jacob Robert, Brynn Dally, Spencer Causey, Matthew Bowker, John Mayer.] practice together in their rehearsal for Rock Collegium.

Music majors rock around like clockwork JULIANNA FERARRA STAFF WRITER

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hat started as a course final project in 2011 transitioned into a class based almost entirely on a new Sonoma State University tradition. Students performing in the upcoming Rock Collegium on May 4 take on their own approach to various classic rock genres in an experimental ensemble lead by Sonoma State Music majors.

In 2012, Music professor John Palmer organized a “history of rock” upper division seminar, which later turned into to the current experimental ensemble “Rock Collegium is a very fun and productive class that lets us play and sing covers of popular rock music from the last few decades, as well as create our own original music,” said senior Ryan Perry, one of the upcoming performers, who will be playing tenor saxophone and singing.

“There’s a lot of student direction in this,” said Palmer, who is now the chair of the Music Department and Musicology program. “I put them in a room, have them rehearse, then I leave, I just let them run it.”

At the heart of this MUS 481 special topics course, lies the exciting opportunity for Music majors to learn and play music from their favorite artists, as well as showcase songs they’ve written on their own.

This semester’s Rock Collegium features five different groups assembled together to play the show

students have been practicing for since January.

Each group will be playing a series of wellknown cover songs as well as a few tunes that they have written themselves.

“It’s such a unique class to be in and I’ve never been in an environment that is so inclusive and supportive,” said Maddie Kaminsky, a junior Music Performance and Composition major, who has participated in Rock Collegium since last spring.

There will be 10 to 12 cover songs from beloved bands such as Rush, Radiohead, Billy Joel, Kansas and will even feature an a capella set, but expect a few surprises.

“We do play things that aren’t on the program just to surprise people,” said Palmer.

For drummer Nick Carico, this will be his sixth semester performing in Rock Collegium.

“Rock Collegium tests my ability as a drummer as well as bolsters my effectiveness in working with many different bands,” said Carico. “I’ve made lifelong friends by being in Rock Collegium, and I cherish the experiences I gain by performing with my classmates.”

Rock Collegium will not only be a farewell performance for some seniors, but a celebration and appreciation for new and classic music tunes alike.

“It’s a lot of work that we put into these concerts, but at the end of each show, it’s always worth it when we see how many people come and support us,” said

Kaminsky.

Not only have students spent countless hours rehearsing and practicing for the show, but many of them are also playing instruments in the orchestra and/or singing in choir, all while keeping up with a 16 to 20 unit semester.

“This class is rewarding as it is fun and I look forward to Rock Collegium every week,” said Perry.

The course also delves into the history of rock and roll to help inf luence the performance.

The term “classic rock” is quite broad as under its umbrella are many subgenres such as psychedelic rock from the 70s, glam bands from the 80s and grunge from the 90s. Students have been able to use these concepts as inspiration for creating and writing their own original pieces of music.

“I have some very good students this time,” said Palmer. “I have students who I know if I put them in a room and just leave them alone, something good is going to come of it.”

“Dr. John Palmer, who leads the ensemble, plays a big part in making the class what it is,” said Perry.

“He is a great professor for this class because of his appreciation for all music and his willingness to give students the opportunity to play these songs while maintaining a high level of professionalism.”

Tikcets are $8 for the general public and free for Sonoma State students. The performance will begin at 7:30 p.m. May 4 in Schroeder Hall.

Orchestra ready to play out the season JESSICA RIVERA STAFF WRITER

ALISON SNIDER

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

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eady to play out the rest of the school year, the Sonoma State University Symphonic Orchestra is putting on their last show of the semester titled “Season Finale: Late Idyll” on April 27 at 7:30 in Weill Hall.

Organized by Director of Orchestral Studies Alexander Kahn, the ensemble will perform two extensive pieces, Saint-Saens’ “Concerto No. 1 for Cello in A Minor” and Brahms’ “Symphony No. 2 in D Major,” both containing several movements each.

“Concerto No. 1 for Cello in A Minor” will delight the program after Brynn Dally’s victory in last year’s concerto competition, where she performed the piece with just piano accompaniment. Now having won the competition, Dally’s piece will played with the assistance of the full orchestra. Both the Saint-Saens and Brahms pieces stem from the romantic period and respectfully pay tribute to the styles that came before them. “‘Concerto No. 1 for Cello in A Minor’ is really an amazing work, with intricate lines, fast passages and huge amounts of energy coming from both the soloist and ensemble,” said Kaylee Schneider, sophomore f lutist and Music Education major.

Sonoma State Symphonic Orchestra is putting together their second performance of the semester conducted by Kahn. Having created the Symphonic Orchestra in his very first year in the department, this is the fourth year that Kahn has been with Sonoma State, and he already has such a deep rooted connection with his students and members of the Music department.

Kahn has provided unique experiences to students through masterclasses, guest performance artists, and performance opportunities. No matter the ability level someone possess, Kahn offers ways for the student to advance to a higher level.

“I owe many of my most formative undergrad experiences to him. He is somebody I truly respect and admire,” said senior violinist and Music Education major Caleb Forschen. “Dr. Kahn’s students know that he is invested in their growth as a musician and as a person.”

This is the first year that Kahn will be saying goodbye to graduating seniors he has had as students since freshman year. Kahn has impacted many through Freshman Learning Communities and or-

STAR // Brandon Sparks Ryan Contreras tunes his French Horn in rehearsal for the Symphonic Orchestra concert on Saturday, April 27. chestral teachings.

Seniors aren’t the only students who are deeply impacted by the sincerity of Kahn’s instruction.

“Dr. Kahn pushes me to be a better musician and person,” said junior trombone player and Music Education major John Mayer. “He has had lots of inf luences on me. Mostly, he made me really want to work on my ear training and really work on my intonation.”

During Schneider’s first year at Sonoma State, Kahn took time to focus his teachings on bringing awareness to how musicians can sustain instrument related injuries, which is an example of how his minor inf luences create a bigger impact over the years.

“Kahn’s definitely pushed me to my limits in orchestra,” said Schneider. “His expectations and how he runs the class is how the orchestra sounds as good as it does.”

The Symphonic Orchestra consists of a mix of Sonoma State students and community members.

Members from the community are welcomed to join any ensemble at Sonoma State. Auditions for a spot

in the orchestra, are held the first week of every semester and is open to all students regardless of major.

The orchestra contains four sections of instruments, wind, brass, string and percussion.

Extensive amounts of preparation have been put into this performance.

One thing not only guests but also students can look forward to is being able to utilize Weill Hall.

The uniquely crafted building is certain to showcase the complexity of the two pieces and delight audience and performer alike.

“This is a very difficult set and our orchestra has put in a lot of time trying to make it sound as good as possible,” said Mayer. “If nothing else come to hear how amazing some of your peers are. Brynn will blow your mind.”

Tickets are $8 for general admission and free for Sonoma State students. Students can use the code “SSUStudent” to claim their two free tickets, and faculty and staff can use the code “SSUFacStaff ” for discounted tickets.

8 Student Life Club Spotlight: Snow Club

APRIL 23 - APRIL 29, 2019 sonomastatestar.com

ALEX FUNCHESS STAFF WRITER

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f you’re looking to join a fun club on campus with little to no time commitments, Sonoma State’s Snow Club might just be for you. Any students of any skill level that have a passion for snowboarding, skiing, or any outdoor activities are more than welcome to stop by a Snow Club meeting.

The Club’s President, Lauren Bracken, has been a part of Snow Club since her freshman year and is proud of the organization’s accomplishments.

“I joined Snow Club because I knew sorority life wasn’t for me and I needed to be a part of something,” Bracken said. “One day I walked through the group’s tabling and two girls at the Snow Club table called me over and just started talking to me. I was hooked. They were the most inclusive and accepting people and we still are today.”

The sports club is run entirely by students that share the same passion for outdoor and snow-related hobbies.

Sonoma State students can find the club tabling often in Seawolf Plaza. The club dedicates itself to snowboarding and skiing. Members often find themselves at popular ski resort locations including Northstar, Kirkwood, and Heavenly. However, their club trips aren’t limited to just Lake Tahoe.

In addition to visiting the snow, the club gives Seawolves a chance to travel throughout Sonoma County, including fundraisers, bonfires, and camping trips.

“Although we’re the Snow Club, camping is by far my favorite event of the year. It is so incredibly affordable and so many people end up coming.” Bracken said.

“This was the event that hooked me as a freshman and it’s something I look forward to every semester.”

Previous Snow Club events have included Lagunitas Brewing fundraisers as well as trips to the Liberty Glen Campgrounds. The club plans to re-visit Lake Sonoma on

COURTESY // Sonoma State Snow Club Members of Sonoma State’s Snow Club table outside the Student Center in 2017. an overnight camping trip this Friday, April 26. Tickets are $25 as food and beverages will be included.

“I think the club’s biggest accomplishment was selling out two camping trips in a row,” Bracken said. “The club hasn’t done that in years and it’s awesome that I got to be in charge of that. My own personal accomplishment has also been being the first girl president of Snow Club.”

The club has been very successful by continuing to present Seawolves with safe, student-friendly events that preach socializing, and most importantly, fun. The club’s treasurer, Ben Sheiner, has truly benefited from Snow Club’s events and activities.

“I was a shy freshman when I went on my first camping trip,” Sheiner said. “The friends I made there actually converted me into treasurer of the club. My experiences in Snow Club have shown me that it is well worth to join and get involved on campus.”

While the club has always featured a diverse group of students, it’s ultimately a welcoming, judgment-free environment.

“I joined Snow Club because the inclusive, no pressure atmosphere was inviting,” said Nick Deleissegues, a senior. “Our biggest accomplishment would be continuing to offer a unique resource to Sonoma State students.

The amount of memories from camping alone outweighs the gift of my college memories and they are the most fun I have every semester.”

The club is always welcoming new members and meets monthly in the Student Center ballrooms.

Interested Seawolves can join Snow Club by paying a fee of $60. To stay up to date with events and activities, follow the club on Instagram under the name @sonomasnowclub, or contact Snow Club at sonomasnowclub@ gmail.com.

Fair creates a fun environment JACK MESSIER STAFF WRITER

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his week is Earth week, the perfect time to learn all the fun ways you can help our planet. This week kicked off the celebration with an Earth Day fair on Monday, April 21.

The first Earth Day fair occured in April 2017, when the student run Join Us in Making Progress, known as JUMP Sustainability, hosted a multitude of successful tabling activities in the Darwin/Stevenson Quad of the Sonoma State University campus, each with a drive towards enhancing student’s sustainability habits.

The event is officially back on the Sonoma State University campus and JUMP is eager for an even larger turnout in the push for a more sustainable future.

“The fair will include tabling by several student organizations campus who focus on sustainable efforts,” said JUMP President Peter Forte.

The fair also includes student activities amongst music and prizes. Forte maintains that the goal of the Earth Day Fair, like others, is to promote sustainability on and off Sonoma State’s campus.

The second annual Earth Week Stuff Swap Event, held this Wednesday, April 24, will carry on from 11 a.m. -4 p.m. at the Mt. McKinley Gym in the Campus Recreation Center.

Simply put, “leave something and take something” is JUMP Sustainability’s motto

for the second annual Stuff Swap. However, as the coalition underscores, these “somethings” must align with the practical desires of fellow college students alike. Whether they’re “used clothes, school supplies, books, dishes, appliances, or other useful things that you or your fellow college students would want.”

However, beyond the prize incentives, the fair aims to promote a student-immersed experience to promote critically important, widespread sustainability awareness and the sense of urgency through which it must be treated.

JUMP Sustainability has been engaged as a crucial community force in Sonoma County for several years. The impassioned work of its coalition of volunteers is certainly nothing new.

Often meeting for volunteer work and carpooling from our campus, JUMP is also credited for improving and maintaining other local community highlights, like Cotati’s Pocket Park.

In 2009, with the assistance of Daily Acts, a Petaluma-based non-profit organization, “Pocket Park—a 5,000sq foot piece of city property located in Cotati near Oliver’s Market—was transformed from an underutilized lawn to a community food forest. “ said JUMP advisor Amanda Hanson. “Removing the lawn helped to reduce the use of water, pesticides, fertilizers and lawn mower fuel while creat-

STAR // Kelly Britton Earth Day Fair had a large crowd with many different booths at the Seawolf Plaza on Monday, April 22. ing an educational community area with edible plants.”

JUMP has routinely brought volunteers to assist with the park’s maintenance to complete tasks including weeding, watering, and the like—each aiding in establishing and beautifying the community that surrounds us.

Just a few days following the Stuff Swap event, the Sustainability coalition is also hosting a volunteer event for mulch placement and padding for pathways, pruning, and possible “infill planting and irrigation fixe” at the Foothills Model Site in Windsor on Saturday April 27, from 10 a.m. -

2 p.m. Interested students can meet on campus at the f lagpoles first at 9:15 a.m.

While the Earth Week Stuff Swap on Wednesday, April 24, on the Sonoma State University campus is anticipated, JUMP still persists in its current off-campus sustainability efforts as well.

Student Life Calendar Tuesday, April 23

Wednesday, April 24

Thursday, April 25

Friday, April 26

Students with Autism – A Growing Population 1 P.M. Student Center Ballroom C

Earth Week Stuff Swap 11 A.M. Mt McKinley Gym, Recreation Center

Fuel the Food Truck 11 A.M. Green Music Center

The 3rd Annual Stroll Showcase 7 P.M. Student Center Ballroom A

Holocaust And Genocide Lecture Series: Genocide in Syria 4 P.M. Warren Auditorium, Ives 101

Take Back The Night Event 7 P.M. Student Center Ballroom A

Disability Services for Students Senior Recognition Event 12:30 P.M. Sonoma Valley Room

Movie: Hale County This Morning, This Evening 7 P.M. Warren Theater, Ives 101

Student Life 9

APRIL 23 - APRIL 29, 2019 sonomastatestar.com

A student goes to

GABRIELLA NOVELLO STAFF WRITER

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remember standing there overwhelmed with joy as confetti rained from the sky. It felt like a scene out of the movies—the kind that’s too special to pull out a phone and record.

I don’t know whether my joy stemmed from Kid Cudi’s voice illuminating the space within Coachella’s Sahara Tent, or the fact that no matter where I looked I was surrounded by the people I had grown to love so deeply over the past four years.

It was absolutely impossible to feel alone during that set; there wasn’t a person in that tent who wasn’t singing along right beside you.

Coachella is interesting because it can appear to be a really vapid place. As you’re walking around the 50-acre festival grounds, you see people posing so hard for Instagram photos that it looks like they’re constipated.

But then there’s other people who don’t go for the vanity of it. People who go for the music, the late nights with their friends, the art, the not so glamorous car camping, the food, the porta-potties—the whole experience.

And after camping and attending the festival with nearly 40 other students and alumni from Sonoma State, that is exactly what I got—the whole experience.

Everyone left Wednesday night around 9 p.m. and caravanned until reaching Indio at sunrise. After an eight hour drive and three hours in line, we finally made it to the festival.

There’s something about spending four whole days with a group of people that’s hard to describe.

You see each other at your best, having the absolute time of your life, and even at your worst too, in the mornings, when you’re sunburnt and exhausted. I wouldn’t trade any of it.

From Friday to Sunday, every day played out similarly to the others. We’d begin our morning by showering off the previous day’s sweat, eating overpriced burritos, and reminiscing.

Then we’d take on the challenging task of making ourselves look acceptable through our limited access to mirrors. After a few drinks, and of course our group photo, we entered the festival grounds for our daily adventure.

On day one, Fisher, a DJ, got the party started, and everybody lost it.

A stacked day one included hip-hop artists Anderson .Paak and Childish Gambino.

Them and artist Rufus Du Sol made for a perfect start to the weekend.

“Rufus Du Sol had beautiful transitional EDM music that sounded like the perfect mix of Coldplay and House music,” says Grant Peters, a marketing major.

Day two had everything. The lineup ranged from Yung Bae to Mac Demarco to Juice Wrld to Tame Impala. It was capped by the unforgettable Kid Cudi, who had us all reliving our middle school memories.

Day three featured artists like YG, Zedd, Khalid, Billie Eilish, Dillon Francis and Nghtmre, to name just a few.

The entire weekend, artists decorated the desert sky with beautiful melodies.

It’s a wonder how a group our size managed to not lose each other at a festival with 120,000 people.

We carried a giant inf latable tootsie roll, named Teresa at last year’s Coachella, and traded off dancing with it during the sets. We held it up in the air as a

beacon to people who wandered off to catch different sets, and it never failed to reunite us.

Teresa was our mascot, our day one, our ride or die, and will peacefully retire in Brady Wells’s closet until next year.

I believe that it doesn’t matter what you are doing in life, it matters who you’re with.

Coachella is a series of top-tier experiences.

There’s fascinating artwork and music that leaves you breathless. But if it wasn’t for the people I shared those experiences with, it wouldn’t have been anywhere near the same.

I won’t forget the value of baby wipes when camping, Lucas Pfeiffer trying to convince us all that the music was making him smarter, and never being able to truly decide if DJ Snake’s set was amazing or absolute trash.

The blisters still remain on my feet, but they were worth the moments next to my best friends that felt like cinematic masterpieces.

At Coachella, I experienced electric moments I wish I could bottle up forever and save for a classic Rohnert Park rainy day.

So, until next year, Coachella.

STAR // Gabriella Novello Sonoma State students, alumni and their inflatable tootsie roll named Teresa pose for a group picture at the first weekend of Coachella on April 12 in Indio, California.

Event follows up on conversation of consent SAMANTHA BILLINGSLY

STAFF WRITER

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he conversation of consent is happening on every campus, even at Sonoma State Univeristy.

Take Back The Night, a charitable organization dedicated to raising awareness about rape culture and domestic abuse, will make an appearance on campus on April 24, in Ballroom A from 7 - 8 p.m. Continuing to have an active conversation about consent is important to all students.

“I just think that a 11-by-5 inch poster in everyone’s dorm room isn’t enough. And there should be more of an emphasis for programs, people, or places survivors can go to for help, even if the assault wasn’t recent or on campus.” said Ella Andrada, a freshmen at Sonoma State. “And students need to know about it.”

The Take Back The Night event’s goal is to inform the students of Sonoma State how rape culture, domestic violence, and sexual abuse affects all genders and

sexual orientations.

The first Take Back The Night event at Sonoma State happened in 2014, and had generally positive feedback from students. Two main activities were an open conversation for the audience, and then a march afterwards. The audience was not required to tell their stories of their own experiences, however they were welcome to, in order to help the audience feel like they weren’t alone.

“Community can be an effective device when it comes to people healing. I don’t think I would share my own stories, but being there and listening to others tell their stories sounds like a good way to make connections and feel like I’m not alone” Andrada said.

After the conversation, they marched through the campus holding candles, and chanting “yes means yes, no means no.”

“I think that anything to raise awareness for that issue is a good thing to put on. It’s especially true since we’re on a college campus and it’s unfortunately not un-

heard of to hear about sexual assaults here,” said junior Maxwell Belote-Broussard.

The organization, Take Back The Night, came together around 2001 under the leadership of Katie Koestner, an American activist against sexual assault.

Koestner was a victim of date rape herself, and was the first woman in the United States to come out nationally and publically with her campus date rape story. Her goal, as well as Take Back The Night, is to raise awareness of sexual assault, sexual abuse, domestic violence, and more.

Take Back The Night events started in the 1960’s with women in Belgium and England protesting feeling scared to walk home at night.

“I don’t like walking alone anywhere at night. I do feel somewhat safer on campus than I do off campus, but in both cases I’d much rather be with people or just avoid walking at night in general, so that I can keep myself safe from possible bad situations,” said sophomore Sabrina Myers.

Student Spotlight: Brandon Leong MADISON LAM

STAFF WRITER

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ot everyone can juggle a Theatre Arts and Dance major, an Early Childhood Studies minor and dancing in two shows put on at Sonoma State University. But second year Brandon Leong has been doing that for two semesters. Performing in both the Spring Dance show and on Pacific Cultural Night, Leong’s love for dance is what keeps him going every day.

“Dancing in two shows is honestly quite difficult but worth the effort,” Leong said.

Leong began his passion for dance in the seventh grade after participating in his school musical “13”. After the musical, Brandon began taking dance classes at a studio where the choreographer of the musical taught at. Leong hopes to become a teacher and start his own dance program at his old high school in San Mateo.

“When thinking of my career path, I want to teach no matter what. If it’s adults, teens, or children, I just want my admiration for dance to be spread to all that are willing to accept the art form.”

Leong said.

Every week, Leong juggles 20 plus hours of dance rehearsals for two different shows. Currently, Brandon is working on the Spring Dance performance and is practicing for the Pacific Cultural Night, which is put on by the Filipino

American Association at Sonoma State (FAASSU).

The Spring Dance is put on by the Dance department, which allows the students to focus on their performance as dancers while Pacific Cultural Night is a completely student-run dance show.

When Leong isn’t at Spring Dance rehearsals or class, he is putting together a whole dance show with his peers.

“I’ve been able to see Brandon bring elements from both FAASSU’s Pacific Cultural Night and from the theater department to create art he thought he could never do.” said second year Ashley De La Cruz, the vice president of FASSU. “They’ve expanded his knowledge of dance and I’m grateful to watch him experience both these opportunities.”

Leong is not only a student dancer for the theatre arts and dance department and FAASSU, but he is a choreographer, a costume designer, a show coordinator, and much more. Brandon is constantly doing something dancerelated and making the most of his time.

“Both processes are so different because both of my professors and choreographers push me to do my best in spring dance, while Pacific Cultural Night is self-driven for me because I have the opportunity to choreograph and costume my own dancers, as well as perform traditional Filipino folk dances for our families.”

You can often catch Brandon on

COURTESY // Brandon Leong campus either at dance rehearsal, attending various administrative meetings to ensure Pacific Cultural Night happens, and hand making intricate traditional Filipino folk costumes.

Brandon’s favorite dance memories at Sonoma State have been choreographing his own dance piece in fall of 2018 and the numerous friendships he has

created through the dance department and FAASSU. You can see Leong perform in the Spring Dance shows every day this week until Saturday, April 27 at 7:30 p.m. in Evert B. Person Theater, or see him and his fellow FAASSU members dance on Pacific Cultural Night on Saturday, May 4, at 7:30 p.m. in Person Theater.

10 Sports

APRIL 23 - APRIL 29, 2019 sonomastatestar.com

STAR // Kayla Allen Sophomore Matt Hill drives home a run against Cal State East Bay at the Sonoma State University diamond on Saturday April 20th, 2019.

Baseball team comes up short

JACKSON WALDRON STAFF WRITER

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ith a conference record of 18-15 coming into the series against Cal State East Bay, the Seawolves were hoping to win the four game series. But, the men’s baseball team lost three of the games, all by two runs or less.

“This weekend we were excited to see if we could win a couple and move up in the standings,” said pitcher Kyle Stevenson. “We fell on some tough luck and didn’t play our best.”

Game one was a positive one for the team. They were able to secure a 5-3 win on their home field. Shortstop Dan Deely would open the scoring of the game, driving home Jack Pridy in the second. Two innings later, Deely would crush a solo home run that would tie the game at two.

Sonoma State would close the game out with a victory. Joshua Medina was the winning pitcher. Deely would finish the game with four RBI’s for the Seawolves.

Game two saw highs and lows for the hometeam. The visiting Pioneers would take an early 4-0 lead after a number of Seawolf errors. Sonoma State would keep the pressure on, bringing the game to a tie at 6-6 at the close of the fourth inning.

Sonoma State would eventually claim their first lead of the game after Kory Brown knocked a two RBI single in the fifth. The Pioneers would keep fighting and the game entered the tenth inning.

Cal State East Bay was able to score on a sac f ly to put them up 9-8 in the tenth inning, Sonoma State was not able to respond and the Pioneers had now tied the weekend series.

The third game of the series resulted in another narrow defeat for the Seawolves.

They lost 4-2 in the game. Seawolves starting pitcher would pitch the entire game, posting one walk, five strikeouts and four earned runs.

Sonoma State opened game four with a bang, scoring four runs in the first inning.

Three RBI singles and a RBI double gave the team a big boost to get such distributed offense. Cal State East bay continued to show their resiliency, scoring four out of the next five runs.

The game was tied heading into the ninth inning where the Seawolves got into hot water once again. The Pioneers would score three runs to start the inning. Although Sonoma State scored a run in the bottom of the inning, it was not enough and they lost 7-6.

The Seawolves fell short in some narrow defeats but overall still feel good about their game and what lies ahead. They will head on the road to play Chico in another four game series over April 26-28.

“We are eager to move on into Chico this week. Their obviously big school rivals and play good ball,” said Stevenson. “It’ll be fun to see if we can snag a couple games and get into the playoffs.”

STAR // Kayla Allen Junior Robert Towne pitches against opposing team Cal State East Bay.

Sonoma State lacrosse team grinds out overtime victory

JONAH TROSKY STAFF WRITER

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ehind a steady offense and defensive effort, Sonoma State lacrosse wins an entertaining back and forth affair in overtime 15-14 over Stanford.

Junior Joey Piombo was the star of the game, collecting five goals. “This game was a huge win for the team, knocking off the number 17 team nationally in the quarterfinals was great,” Piombo said. “We play the number 1 team in the nation next Saturday so we have to come into that game with confidence.”

The Seawolves trailed Stanford from the start never having the lead until overtime. “I think we played our best game of the season today,” senior Brent Tovrea said. Playing the number 17 team in the country forced the Seawolves to play their best game to win and they did just that. They played together more than ever with all the second half assisted goals.

The Seawolves should be well prepared for a hostel game next Saturday in the Semifinals against Cal because they have been playing important games for a while now. “We have been playing for our lives every game in win or go home scenarios and that’s the mentality we have been bringing to every game and we’ll do the same this week when we play Cal,” Torvea said.

The Seawolves hope to get off to a

better start next time, alleviating some pressure off of their goalie. Once the Seawolves felt they could get some stops their offense f lourished. “Our goalie had some great saves stopping their momentum and our offense took care of business,” team captain Angelo Lagomarsino said.

The Seawolves felt that today “had nothing to do with talent, but heart and hustle,” Lagomarsino said. There was a reason Stanford was ranked number 17 in the country and they played like it. Sonoma State just always seemed to have an answer. “We played as a team for the first time and I am beyond proud of the amount of heart our team played with,” Lagomarsino said.

The Seawolves were down 10-4 at one point and kept fighting back until they were down 12-9 headed to the fourth. The fourth quarter was all Sonoma as they won it 5-2. It took a buzzer beater shot to send the game to overtime, however. “The biggest part of the game I think was the team energy,” Lagomarsino said. The energy fueled Sonoma’s comeback and they played “more as a team” during the second half.

There is always room for improvement, especially since the Seawolves got down by 6 early. “I think that we could do better-starting games, if we get a couple of goals early it would be helpful

for our team,” Piombo said. Without the rough start, Sonoma State may have cruised to victory. The players know the difficulty is going to be at a new level against Cal, making them play this best game from start to finish if they are going to win. “I think we could do better-pushing transition plays (odd man offense) and just stay aggressive throughout the game,” Tovrea said.

Last time Cal and Sonoma State squared off was April 5 where Cal beat the Seawolves 19-9. The Seawolves must play a better defensive game next Saturday against the Golden Bears if they want to head to the championship.

COURTESY // ssulacrosse.com The men’s lacrosse team celebrates their win against Stanford.

Sports 11

APRIL 23 - APRIL 29, 2019 sonomastatestar.com

Women’s water polo shakes off tough loss before postseason CLARK FAHRENTHOLD STAFF WRITER

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common saying in the world of sports is that the best offense is a good defense. In Saturday's water polo match against Fresno Pacific that notion would be put into question.

Much like the last meeting between these two teams, the game would be a high scoring affair. Freshmen Madelyn Potts said, “In previous games, we played against Fresno and they had very strong offensives. The same can be said for our game Saturday.”

The Seawolves would open the scoring as they would take an early 1-0 advantage over Fresno Pacific.

But the Sun Birds would strike back in a big way, as they would respond with four straight goals of their own.

Putting the Seawolves in an early 4-1 hole.

However, Sonoma State wasn't going to go away easy, as they would add two goals of their own, one coming from sophomore Haley Gellert and the other from senior Jordan Williams, making it a 4-3 game.

Unfortunately, with just thirty ticks left on the clock, the Sun Birds would scratch a pair of goals across mak-

ing it a 6 to 3 game and bringing an electric first quarter to a close.

Things would not get any better for Sonoma State as the Sunbirds would string three goals together early in the second, making it an 8 to 3 game early in the second quarter.

The defense for Sonoma State was clearly not at it best on Saturday in the first half. “I think with this week being so close to WWPA’s, the stress levels were high so defensively we were not at our strongest,” said Potts.

The Seawolves would again try to mount a comeback as Failner and Potts, who scored 3 goals in Saturday's game, would find the back of the net in the second quarter making it and 8 to 5 game.

Sonoma State would never get closer than this margin for the rest of the game, as the offense for the Sun Birds would prove to be too overpowering as they would tally 3 more goals before the end of the half making into and 11 to 6 game.

Failner said, “our half-court defense was alright, but

what killed us was our high amount of ejections. They got most of their goals from being up a player in the half court.”

In the second half, both the Seawolves and the Sun Birds would slow down on offense as only 4 combined goals would find the back of the net in the last 16 minutes.

Sonoma State lone goal of the half would come again from the freshmen Potts.

The Seawolves would end up dropping their final regular season to Fresno Pacific with the final score reading 14 to 7.

However, after the game the team didn’t hang their heads since they have the postseason coming up. “We have been practicing and working hard for this specific tournament and I hope it shows in our upcoming games,” Failner said.

Sonoma State will have to recover quickly as the team will travel to Ohio to take part in WWPA championship tournament, which starts this Thursday, April 26.

COURTESY // sonomaseawolves.com Sophomore Hailey Gellert gets up out of the water to try and set the ball.

Men’s tennis places 5th in tournament JOEY PIOMBO STAFF WRITER

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he Sonoma State men's tennis team traveled to Surprise, Arizona for their conference tournament on April 18 to 20. After sweeping the University of Santa Cruz just a week earlier, the Seawolves came into the tournament with confidence.

In Surprise, the eight conference teams made the trip in hopes of coming home with the conference championship. The Seawolves were looking to battle and stay hot against their competition all weekend.

The eight teams that had the chance to compete were: Sonoma State University, Hawaii Pacific University, Hawaii Hilo University, Azusa Pacific University, Concordia University Irvine, Point Loma Nazarene University, Biola University, and Holy Names University.

This group of teams is very competitive with multiple universities being high in the national rankings. Hawaii Pacific is ranked number three nationally and Azusa Pacific come in at number eighteen in the country.

The Seawolves brought their whole roster to the tournament last weekend. The tournament was played throughout three days which meant the team had the opportunity to bond with each other outside of tennis.

The three-day tournament consisted of a match Thursday, Friday and Saturday. With a number of great programs competing for the first place spot, the Seawolves took the competition one match at a time.

Senior Igor Pissarenko explained the rules of the tournament when saying, “The tournament is played as a bracket with four seeds. One seed plays the last team. Seed two vs seed seven, seed three vs number 6; seed four vs number five.”

The rest of the teams are unranked. Since there are eight teams, whoever wins the first match will have a chance to play in the Semi-finals on Friday.

The two teams that won their semi-final matchups participated in the championship game on Saturday.

The team ended up finishing in fifth place overall.

The teams first match was played against Concordia Irvine. They ended up losing the match 2-4. After the tough match, the team had two opportunities to make up for the loss. They first faced Holy Names University and won 4-0. The next day the team beat Point Loma 4-0. Despite the two big wins the teams overall ranking was not the finish they wanted.

The conference tournament was a chance to qualify for the regionals in Hawaii early next month. When asked about the final outcome the team felt fairly confident. Alec Wong described the outcome of the tournament when saying, “We were pretty unsatisfied with our performance in day one...But after winning 4-0 yesterday and today it helps a lot.”

The teams next match is unknown. The Seawolves are still unsure if they will qualify for regionals. After the committee decides their fate the team will either travel and compete or their season will be over. With the team’s performance this weekend it is very likely they will get the opportunity. When talking to Max Nudell, he was optimistic when saying, “The next step for us is advancing to regionals which is out of our control, but we need to be as professional as possible and prepare as if we are playing the regional in Hawaii.”

The team will hopefully be back in action at regionals early next month. To follow their future tournaments visit sonomaseawolves.com.

Women’s tennis end season in 4th place MARISSA UGARTE STAFF WRITER

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he Sonoma State Women’s Tennis team competed in the Pacific West Conference Championship tournament this past weekend in Surprise, Arizona. The tournament took place April 18 to April 20 with the weather reaching 100 degrees out on the courts.

The Seawolves left it all out on the court last weekend as they completed their 2019 season.

Ranked nationally in the top 20 is senior Jensyn Warren who completed her career in college tennis last weekend. She has planned to continue training and eventually play professionally.

“My hard work for the team paid off in my opinion. I helped the team recognize our potential and ensured we were always loud and present at all times,” Warren said.

Warren played with a strained Achilles, an injury from the previous weekend.

Although she suffered a great amount of pain, Warren was able to persevere and ended up winning all her singles matches throughout the tournament.

The teams battling it out for the conference champion title were Sonoma State, Stanislaus State, Point Loma Nazarene University, Azusa Pacific University, Cal State L.A., Hawaii Hilo University, Concordia University Irvine, and Academy of Arts San Francisco. The 8 teams competed for a spot in the top bracket and the top 4 teams in the tournament would move on to regionals, with their season record accounted for as well.

Thursday the Seawolves took on the Point Loma Sea lions and earned a 4-1 victory. Doubles partners Jensyn Warren and Carolyn Brooner defeated Gabi Armer and Ellie Gamble 6-3 in set 1, but lost the remaining 2. The Lions were placed in the lead at 1-0. The Seawolves responded by winning all their first set singles matches.

The final match was played by an exciting duo, nationally ranked Warren and Sealion Shelby Groeneveld who is also nationally ranked. Warren captured the match winning 6-4.

The Seawolves beat Point Loma 4-1.

Friday of the tournament the Seawolves took on the Academy of Arts Urban Knights in the semifinals but ended up losing in a close score of 3-2, which is the closest the Seawolves have ever gotten to making the conference final. Finally, on Saturday the Seawolves played Azusa Pacific for third place and lost 4-2.

“This tournament helped us have confidence for next season to beat these higher level teams again, now we know how close we are to beating these teams,” Warren said.

The Seawolves placed fourth overall in the tournament but wasn't COURTESY // Sonoma State Athletics able to able to advance to regionals Junior Jenna Deturk gets ready to due to their season record. serve.

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APRIL 23 - APRIL 29, 2019 sonomastatestar.com

Seawolves destress at Doggy Play Day

STAR // Kaylie Boettner Sunny Singleton is all smiles while petting each dog.

STAR // Kaylie Boettner Amber the dog gets all the pets from Nate Moneda at Doggy Play Day.

STAR // Kaylie Boettner Elijah Alberto (left), Hannah Alfred (middle) and Isabel Magat (right) swarm around Tequila the dog to give him pets.

STAR // Brandon Sparks Kaylee Schneider follows a sheet of music as she perfects the flute.

STAR // Brandon Sparks Brynn Dally practices her cello for the orchestra concert on Sunday.

STAR // Jennifer Spence Jet Glover plays his violin while standing in between the rows of seats inside Weill Hall, to prepare for the orchestra concert.