NDSU Spectrum | Nov. 12, 2015

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2015 NDSUSPECTRUM.COM

VOLUME 119 ISSUE 22 SPECIAL EDITION

NORTH DAKOTA STATE UNIVERSITY | FOR THE LAND AND ITS PEOPLE

THE DIVERSITY ISSUE

Editorial As of this fall, only 16 percent of North Dakota State’s 14,516 students identified as anything other than white.

Though this percentage is slightly greater than the state’s overall 13 percent, it’s still far behind other national universities.

In 2015, NDSU ranked near the bottom of U.S. News and World Report’s Campus Ethnic Diversity Index — continuing its streak as one of the least diverse campuses in the country.

As an institution created with the goal of preparing students with the

INSIDE

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necessary knowledge and skills to succeed, it’s important NDSU uses its power to broaden its students’ perspectives on the world.

The Internet is omnipresent and has made it even easier to reach out to people across the globe with a touch of a button. Multinational companies are the new norm, and students entering the work environment need to be prepared for this change.

Students must learn how to effectively communicate and work with the international community, now more than ever.

Beyond this, it’s essential that students begin to appreciate the many contributions people from other cultures, beliefs and backgrounds make to the communities of which they are a part.

The diversity issue is the second of eight special editions The Spectrum staff will publish this year. In our small way, we hope

Campus Celebrates 100 Years of Native American Heritage Month

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to highlight the people working to create a culturally diverse and thriving campus.

But even as we celebrate what we have, we recognize that we have a long way to go.

In recent weeks, local media outlets have made a show of informing the community’s refugees that they are unwanted here.

This sends a dangerous message not only to the vulnerable population but also to international students and young people of every minority.

As a newspaper, we will continue to share the stories of the many students, faculty and staff, organizations and programs across campus who help to increase students’ knowledge of the world outside Fargo-Moorhead.

As a campus, we must choose to send a message that fits the Bison name: You are wanted. Your presence is celebrated. We are stronger because of you.

Students Brings Indian Festival of Lights, Diwali, to NDSU Campus

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A Loss of Sight, A Love for Life: Allan Peterson, Veterinary Science Faculty

2 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2015

Native American

NDSUSPECTRUM.COM

100 Years of Native American Heritage Month Contributions of Native Americans recognized, appreciated Jack Hastings Staff Writer

GABBY HARTZE | THE SPECTRUM

Earlier this month a Teepee was erected as part of Native American Heritage Month’s opening ceremony.

The month of November is Native American Heritage Month. The entire month is designated as a tribute to the efforts and contributions of the first Americans.

Celebration regarding the recognition of Native Americans started at the beginning of the 20th century.

Arthur C. Parker, of Seneca descent, convinced the Boy Scouts of America in 1915 to set aside a day with the purpose of appreciating and respecting the first Americans.

Native American appreciation has grown from one day to a whole month, and has been adopted nationwide.

President George H. W. Bush officially declared November Native American Heritage Month in 1990.

As well as being celebrated on the national level, Native American Heritage Month is equally present locally, especially on North Dakota State’s campus.

Native American culture is incredibly prevalent and formative in North Dakota’s history and culture. This month offers many opportunities for one to learn about the legacy of our nation’s people and be immersed in an educational, cultural experience.

The NDSU Office of Multicultural Programs is sponsoring a series of educational events throughout the month in celebration of Native

American Heritage Month.

The first of these events was an opening ceremony that took place this past Thursday in the Hidatsa room. This event consisted of tribal leaders from the area speaking about their homes.

This year’s campus events pertaining to Native American heritage are emphasizing on regional affairs and topics.

Upcoming events include “Tribal Nations Research Group, Data to Knowledge in Native American Communities” at 1 p.m. Wednesday in the Memorial Union Mandan room.

On Nov. 19 Eric Longie presents “Spirit Lake Tribe and Native American People” at 10 a.m. in the Hidatsa room. The next

day at noon, the NDSU American Indian Public Resource Center staff will detail their experience with North Dakota tribes in the Hidatsa room.

Many other Native American Heritage Month events continue throughout the entirety of November and can be found online on NDSU’s website.

The overarching goal of Heritage Month is to give Native Americans an opportunity to share their rich culture and tradition with the rest of the country.

What began 100 years ago as only a day of recognition has now turned into a whole month of celebrating the positive impacts Native Americans have on the formation of modern America.

American Indian Public Health Resource Center Spreads its Wings Young, NDSU-based center partners with tribal communities to better access to health resources Casey McCarty Co-News Editor

A young organization housed at North Dakota State is tackling big issues 17 months after its founding.

The American Indian Public Health Resource Center addresses inequalities found within the American Indian population, using public health as a main tenant.

“The role of public health is to prevent disease and promote health, whereas in medicine, the goal is to treat disease,” said Dr. Donald Warne, chair of the AIPHRC. “In public health we’re working

“For all people, all residents of North Dakota, even though we have tribal specific disparities, we’re all North Dakotans, and these issues should be a priority among all residents of the state.

Not just the American Indian population.”

- Dr. Donald Warne, American Indian Public Health Resource Center chair

further up stream.

“And we have unfortunately terrible health disparities among American Indian populations, and the vast majority of the disparities are preventable

issues, so that’s why the focus on public health rather than just medical care.”

The AIPHRC was started in June 2014 by a $1.4 million grant provided by a charitable trust and

over $720,000 matched by the North Dakota Higher Education Challenge Fund.

The goal of the center is to provide technical assistance and work in partnership with tribal communities to increase access to public health resources.

The AIPHRC works primarily in North Dakota, but also works with other tribes in Minnesota, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming and Nebraska.

Though the work of the center is mainly within tribal communities, the center also has programming for Native Americans in Fargo and other cities.

Areas of focus within this goal are public health

services, public health policies, public health education and public health research.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has illustrated the needs of the American Indian population: As of 2009, American Indians and Alaskan natives have a higher rate of motor vehicle related deaths than any other ethnicity.

From 1999 to 2010, drug-induced death rates in the 30-39 year age group were the highest among American Indians and Alaskan natives as compared to any other ethnicity.

As of 2010, the unemployment rate for American Indians and

Alaskan natives aged 18 to 64 was 15.8 percent. As of 2011, the percentage of American Indian and Alaska natives living in poverty was among the largest when compared to non-Hispanic whites.

In 2011, American Indians and Alaskan Natives were among those with the largest prevalence, frequency and intensity of binge drinking, compared to other ethnic populations.

“For all people, all residents of North Dakota, that even though we have tribal specific disparities, we’re all North Dakotans, and these issues should be a priority among all residents of the state. Not just the American Indian population,” Warne said.

Native American Student Association: A Look Inside Association works to build Native American community, provide resources to students Kelsey Dirks Features Editor

In addition to the every day challenges college students face, an added struggle is trying to create a new feeling of home.

The Native American Student Association works to build the Native American community, as well as provide resources to students and events around campus.

“Having a community is really important to us and we place a high value on family,” says Nicole Welch, NASA vice president. The group’s goal is to have a space where Native students can feel at home in a tightknit community. NASA is involved on and off campus and encourages others to join.

Welch emphasizes the importance of misconceptions and stereotypes there are about the Native American

“Having a community is really important to us and we place a high value on family.”

– Nicole Welch, Native American Student Association vice president community. A common fallacy is how funding works for Native American students. It’s urged one to does some research on the subject before making bold claims.

“There are over 500 tribes in the U.S. We may have a lot in common, but every tribe is different,” Welch says. Many people do not realize that just because they share the umbrella term “Native American” they do not all share the same culture and belief system.

Although Natives are commonly known for their gift of storytelling, there are also many great artists

skilled in everything from painting to bead working.

In addition, “Natives are known for their sense of humor. Befriend a Native and you will find out … really we’re pretty great!”

Welch says.

Through the month of November there are many events around campus to honor Native American Heritage Month. A few that Welch was most looking forward to are the “Poetry Reading and Open Mic Night” as well as the “American Indian Public Health in North Dakota” presentation. Both of these events are held on Friday, November 20. The Public

NATIVE AMERICAN STUDENT ASSOCIATION | PHOTO COURTESY

Members of NASA pose outside of the tipi set up last week as part of the Opening Ceremony for the month’s festivities.

Health presentation will be in the Hidatsa room of the Memorial Union from noon-1 p.m. Poetry and Open Mic Night will be in the Mandan room of the Memorial Union from 7-8:30 p.m.

There are many other programs and events happening around campus whose information can be found in the Office of Multicultural Programs located on the main floor of Memorial Union or on its website. Members of NASA will be attending all of the events, “So if you need anybody to sit by, come and find us!” Welch said.

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3

Black No, You Cannot Touch My Hair

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2015

NDSUSPECTRUM.COM

One black student explains why the small action packs a larger meaning

Listen carefully to Pheafrisia Strachan speak, and you might catch the way she drops the ‘g’ in words ending in ‘-ing.’ You might notice the way she holds her ‘o’s a bit longer, and maybe pronounces all her vowels just a little differently.

You might even pick up on her use of ‘ax.’

But then, you’d have to listen carefully.

The sophomore veterinary technology major mostly sounds like any other student on the North Dakota State campus.

Still, she said as a black student, the way she talks is just another means by which others pinpoint her as different.

“People say that you speak black,” she said.

“And speaking black is seen as speaking uneducatedly, but it’s just ebonics. It’s just the way people grow up.”

Strachan is one of 379 students on the NDSU campus who identify as black or African American.

Though the days of segregation have passed, these students still experience the effects of microagression – lingering, everyday forms of racist interactions, whether intentional or not, that communicate negative messages to minority groups.

For Strachan, the form she’s most commonly experienced involve touching her hair.

is being told she should straighten her hair. She said no matter the intent, the sentiment says: “I should change myself just to please you.”

Once, as a high schooler, Strachan was told she would need to change her hair in order to be successful.

“One of my teachers told me, ‘You’re gonna have to relax your hair because natural hair isn’t professional,’” she said.

“That hurt my feelings so bad, and I went home and I cried to my mom,” “That was, at least for me, one of the biggest things because my hair is a part of my identity. This is just a part of me, so when people sort of make a big deal about it or make me feel uncomfortable or like I’m so different because my hair is different, it’s just …

I don’t like it.”

Strachan said questions and touching related to her hair are the most common form of microaggression she’s experienced. But she’s heard of much worse.

She said one of her friends was called the N-word while he was off campus in Fargo.

Other friends, while talking to each other in their native language on a local bus, were interrupted by a group of fellow passengers with: “You’re in America. Speak English.”

Strachan said she thinks her experience has been more positive because she comes from an Englishspeaking country and her skin is lighter than others.

“Brighter is seen to be beautiful. The darker your

Colored Lines An African-American perspective on a fairly white state school

OPINION

Taylor Kurth Staff Writer

Have you ever stepped out of your comfort zone?

Have you ever been to a place where it seems that the harder you try to fit in, the easier it is for you to stand out?

When we attempt to step outside of our comfort zone, it can be challenging trying to find where exactly we fit in.

North Dakota State boasts a student population of 14,516. About 86 percent of that population is Caucasian. That leaves a slim 13 percent left as all other ethnic groups combined. Just 2 percent of the total population is African-American.

For contextual purposes, imagine being in a lecture hall of 200 students. Out of those 200 students, statistically there will be roughly five AfricanAmericans.

Have you ever looked around a room of hundreds of people and only saw four other people that slightly resemble you? It can be intimidating.

There is a complete difference of cultures between people who were raised in the flat lands of the Midwest as opposed to someone raised in the urban city. Regardless of color, we are all different.

Different experiences make different people.

However, being AfricanAmerican at a historically Caucasian school is difficult. Each and every day an African-American wakes up, he or she has to overcome the color of their skin before he or she can even brush their teeth.

For instance, a good number of the 86 percent of Caucasians have not had regular interactions with people of color prior to being admitted to college.

Because of this, we often get silly questions asked to us.

“Can I tell my friends back home that I am friends with a black person?” or “Can you teach me how to Dougie?” or “What sport do you play?”

You may see these questions and think, “What is wrong with these questions?” And for the most part, yes, they are harmless questions on their own. The problem lies in why there is a situation where these questions are the norm.

Why do some see skin color and automatically associate it with things such as acting, dancing and athleticism as if making friends with someone of color is equivalent to seeing a unicorn?

The strange looks walking along campus as if we should not be here grow tiresome. Walking at night

and seeing multiple people completely go out of their way to cross the street to avoid an interaction with you begins to daunt on you.

How can people see me as a threat to their safety when I have done nothing to give them that impression?

There are less than 2,000 people of minority at NDSU. Of those 2,000, only about 376 are African-American. There are less than 400 AfricanAmericans that can relate to each other.

Even though we are so different, we are all still the same. We all have aspirations to graduate from college and make something out of our lives.

It is time to quit seeing color and start seeing souls.

Lets get this straight.

This is not racism.

We are all of the human race.

This is tribalism.

Somewhere along the line, we were categorized into tribes and were inappropriately named by the color of our skin.

So no, you cannot tell your friends from home that you are friends with a black person, tell them that you are friends with a good soul. No, I can not teach you how to Dougie because I don’t know how to myself. And no, I do not play any sports.

If a color is all we see, then a color will be all we ever are.

GABBY HARTZE | THE SPECTRUM Pheafrisia Strachan’s hair is part of her identity. “So when people sort of make a big deal about it make me feel uncomfortable ... I don’t like it,” she said. skin is, the more ‘evil’ you her purse, set it on the other become more aware is ask are or something,” she said. side of her body and slid to questions and listen to the “I don’t get it.” the other end of the bench. answers.

She hasn’t forgotten her “I am just like, ‘’Lady, “Even if you speak first racist interaction and I am 110 pounds, soaking differently, this is your the way it made her feel. wet, I’m only 5 feet. I can’t chance to learn the way As a 16-year-old in do anything.’ I don’t know another person speaks,” she Nassau, she said she sat on what could have possibly said. “If they eat different a bus stop bench next to scared her, but that was just food than you do, this is a white woman. Strachan like, ‘Oh my gosh, people a chance to eat another watched as the woman are actually like this.’” food that you never tried looked out of the corner of Strachan said the best before.” her eye, slowly picked up thing students can do to “Listen and learn.”

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“People are like ‘Oh, can I feel your hair? It must feel like cotton,’ she said. “And that’s a horrible reference to use with a black person.”

As a native of the Bahamas, Strachan was not used to these sorts of interactions. She said in Nassau, New Providence, the city she grew up in and the capital of the Bahamas, the majority of the population is black.

Though she said she’s normally very open and willing to brush comments off, she said this is one topic where at times she’s needed to tone down her temper.

“Over time, it’s gotten progressively more annoying because I am still a human being,” she said.

“I don’t ask to touch your hair. That’s not socially acceptable.”

Strachan said she has experienced people touching her without her permission or questioning her if she tells them they can’t.

“Because it’s my body,” she said. “You don’t go around grabbing my boob.

That’s not a good thing to do. It’s an extension of me.”

She said it’s also the one form of microaggression she’s found the hardest to accept.

“We all have hair.

It’s just that it comes in different forms,” she said.

“It’s the same thing, it’s just that our follicles are shaped differently so it comes out differently and it stays in one shape. What’s on your head is on my head.”

The most frustrating

EDITORIAL STAFF

Erica Nitschke

The Spectrum is a student-run publication at North Dakota State University in print since 1896. New issues are published Mondays and Thursdays during the academic year, except during holidays, vacations and exam periods. Each enrolled student is entitled to one copy. Additional copies are available for $1 by prior arrangement with the Business Manager.

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4 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2015

Hispanic/Latino

NDSUSPECTRUM.COM

The Spectrum

Sociology student Marisa Mathews and her mother Araceli in Manzanilo, Mexico.

MARISA MATHEWS | PHOTO COURTESY

Growing Up (Half) Latina

Sophomore celebrates her Mexican heritage

Erica Nitschke Editor in Chief

Sophomore Marisa Mathews’ family has a saying: “Si se puede.” Yes we can.

The sophomore sociology student said whenever she feels discouraged, hurt or uninspired, she thinks of the Spanish phrase her immigrant grandparents repeated to her as a child. “(It) will stick with me until I die,” she said.

Mathews, whose family is half Irish, half Mexican, moved to Fargo from Mission Viejo, a city in Orange County, California.

“It’s been quite the cultural shift from California to North Dakota,” she said.

California is one of the

only states in which Latinos outnumber the 14.92 million non-hispanic whites. It’s a different environment when compared to the 3.2 percent Latino population of North Dakota.

Mathews attributes this to California’s larger population, more liberal alignment and proximity to Mexico.

Mathews maternal grandparents moved to San Clemente, California, from Tamazula, Mexico, before her parents were born in hopes of providing a better life for their kids.

Still, the family remained closely tied to their Latino heritage and to their family and friends back home.

Growing up, Mathews said she and her brother Kevin spent the summers at her grandparents’ house

MARISA MATHEWS | PHOTO COURTESY

Mathews eating a freshly made taco in Mexico.

rather than in a daycare. It was here they learned much of their Latino culture.

“My grandparents often gave us Spanish lessons, cooked us Mexican food on the daily and raised us with the strict no-nonsense Latino style of parenting,” she said.

They instilled in her a sense of pride in her heritage, which she continues to celebrate today.

“I celebrate it every day whether it’s through watching the Mexico national soccer team play, cooking carne asada with my family or listening to Spanish music in my free time,” she said.

Both Mathew’s parents are high school graduates, but rather than furthering their education they opted for entering the workforce.

This was common for

children of first generation Americans: “Less emphasis on education, more emphasis on work,” she said.

Since they never went to college, Mathews’ parents stressed the importance of education for their children.

“My grandparents and my parents worked their whole lives just so I could get an education and apply my brain rather than my hands in the workforce,” she said.

Mathews said understanding her grandparents’ story, like the story of many immigrant families, is important to breaking down negative stereotypes.

“They worked and worked and worked,” Mathews said. “They raised kids. They worked. They learned most English. They

worked some more.

“They built a life for themselves and my mom from the ground up. And yet there are still some people who like to label Mexicans as ‘lazy’ when they are the most hard working and lionhearted group of people I know and am proud to be a part of.”

She said she’s frustrated by the conversations she hears surrounding both immigration and Latino people. She’s heard words like “lazy,” “dirty” or “job stealers” used to describe the culture from which she hails.

“These kind of culturally insensitive phrases and questions are what makes it difficult to hold my tongue in an academic setting and try to explain calmly to people that racism isn’t always as blatant as Donald

Trump,” Mathews said.

“I know people who have claimed to be antiimmigration and yet love Mexican food, so I’m curious as to if they think that the food just suddenly manifested out of thin air in the US,” “They only enjoy our culture when it’s beneficial to their taste buds.”

Mathews remains proud of her heritage in same we she is proud of her parents and grandparents who gave her the opportunities she has today.

“It’s a part of who I am,” she said. “I represent it proudly because my grandparents sacrificed everything to come to the US so that I could attend a university like NDSU and do what I was passionate about, not just what I had to do to provide.”

MARISA MATHEWS | PHOTO COURTESY

Mathews said her grandparents, Ninfa and Jorge Contreras, taught her much of her Latino culture growing up.

Asian

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2015

5 NDSUSPECTRUM.COM

The Spectrum

Cultural Insensitivity in Performance Art Use of yellow face in recent opera performance sparks necessary discussion Tessa Beck A&E Editor

Despite a successful weekend, the discussion surrounding the FM Opera’s performance of “Madama Butterfly” was marked by mixed responses due to the production’s use of yellow face in its lead soprano.

Yellow face, comparable to black face, is the ornamentation of a white persons face to resemble the features predominantly held by those of Asian descent.

The argument is divided.

Some feel the use of yellow face and the perpetuation of cultural stereotypes is insensitive, regardless of artistic importance. Others recognize the disparity yet argue the performance quality and historical impact of the work balances the political incorrectness.

Chelsea Pace, the assistant professor of movement in North Dakota State’s theatre arts department, noted the wide variety of historically important productions frequently using yellow face: The Mikado, The King and I, Madama Butterfly and others.

All important works, she said, but unless it can be properly casted, it should be skipped.

“We don’t just see the actors in yellow-face, we see cultural stereotypes like the ‘subservient Asian

woman,’ for example,” Pace said. “It perpetuates these stereotypes. And when we have white actors playing these roles, it makes them the joke.”

The concept of being responsible for the material being presented and taught is important from an educator’s perspective, Pace said.

An alternative for presenting these works, from a more culturally sensitive point-of-view, would be to contextualize the material’s offenses to force audiences to examine why the classic material is offensive today.

Pace also talked about the use of “radical inclusion” when writing and casting productions. It is a cyclical problem that can be solved at creation and casting.

She said the New York Metropolitan Opera casted a black Otello, rather than the continuation of a white performer in black face.

The opening of “Spring Awakening” marks the first combination hearing/nonhearing show produced on Broadway.

“The Curious Incident of the Dog in Nighttime,” another Broadway upcoming opener, will cast its first autistic lead.

Pace said the lack of diversity in performing arts isn’t simply a Fargo issue, but it can be worked on at a local level.

Alice Wu, a fifth year theatre performance major, said her theater career has provided opportunities minus the issue of typecasting based on her race. She’s held major roles in “Lysistrata,” “Bloody, Bloody Andrew Jackson,” “The Women of Lockerbie” and others.

“Typecasting is what I have feared as an actor, and I know I would not want to be labeled as ‘the Asian actor,’” Wu said. “However, if I were knowingly going into an audition for, let’s say, ‘Mulan the Musical,’ it would be almost ignorant of me not to believe that I would be getting cast based on my race.”

“As an actor,” she continued, “I know what I’m auditioning for and, in my professional career, if I didn’t want to be typecast, I would choose not to audition for shows where I would be.”

As far as “Madama Butterfly” goes, and other usages of yellow face, Wu said: “My opinions are just one person’s, but I really do believe that certain shows should not be done when there is not a means of producing them correctly, especially when it comes to race.”

Jonathan Lasch, who played Sharpless in the recent production of “Madama Butterfly,” offered a somewhat

From China

to NDSU A look at an international student’s last three years

Meghan Pegel Spectrum Staff

The Asian girl with long blue hair has a slight accent.

“You can call me ‘Yining.’ You know, like the baseball word,” she said.

We had been going around the circle and introducing ourselves in a group when she gave her eccentric introduction.

Months later during conversation, she admitted she had only recently learned that baseball term.

Yining Fang said she has found it very useful in clarifying the pronunciation to English speakers.

While initially studying statistics, Fang decided to switch and is now in her third year in one of NDSU’s most prestigious departments: architecture.

She has a contagious positive personality and is a very outgoing Chinese international student who isn’t afraid of holding a conversation with anyone, regardless of where they’re from.

All of her family is in China, and when I expressed my admiration for her adventure and spontaneity, she simply smiled and nodded.

“I feel like I’m doing everything positive here, something that I don’t think would happen in China.

“American has made me confident and brave,” – Yining Fang, junior architecture student America has made me confident and brave,” Fang said.

Like most students who study abroad, however, she was met with some initial difficulties and unique culture shock.

When she first arrived at North Dakota State during the 2013 spring semester alone and only 17 years of age, she recalled the language barrier to be the most difficult part of her transition.

Despite passing the Test of English as a Foreign Language exam suggesting her English was adequate enough to attend and learn in an American university, she remembers being confused and jet lagged during the three days of her international orientation, unable to understand most of what was presented.

Moreover, when arriving in January, she was not prepared for the Fargo weather and immediately had to find the means to acquire winter clothing, a very stressful process when limited with a language barrier.

Her first experiences in America and NDSU weren’t all negative, however.

She recalls a time during

her first few weeks at NDSU when a student in the bathroom complimented her shoes while waiting in line.

She was in shock that someone would randomly say something nice, that she forgot to thank her. “That is not common in China,” she laughs, “People are usually shy and keep to themselves.”

In America, Fang finds freedom.

Over the past couple of years, she has developed a love for dancing in any form from salsa to hiphop, something that can more easily be practiced in America than in China.

When asked to give advice to incoming international students, she immediately responded, “Be open. People tend to only associate with their own cultural group, which is easier in the beginning, but regrettable in the end.”

Being alone on the other side of the world and trying to adapt to a new environment is a very vulnerable position to be in.

Readers, I challenge you to communicate and be mutually vulnerable with international and multicultural students and hear their unique stories.

The use of yellow face in the FM Opera’s latest production of Madama FM OPERA | PHOTO COURTESY Butterfly for its lead soprano was met with criticism. different perspective. on the operatic stage to be lucky in Fargo-Moorhead “What makes an operatic accessible and believable to to have a wonderful Opera singer most unique is that a modern audience, it is just company that presents many we are expected to sing our as important, if not more different styles and genres text and music, most often so, for the masterpiece that of opera yearly,” he said. in a foreign language, over was composed to be sung “There certainly will be an often-large orchestra into precisely, fully, beautifully some operas that are not a large auditorium without and powerfully.” for everyone, but with the amplification,” Lasch said.

He mentioned its quality of the productions, “Since this takes a special something he’s often music and singing should kind of talent and voice, this encountered, and noted draw an interested needs to be the first priority there are a variety of audience.” in opera casting.” alternative and equally The opinions are varied, He continued, “While it engaging performances but perhaps the simple is extremely important for available. the story and performances “We are extremely discussion is what matters.

6 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2015

International Students

NDSUSPECTRUM.COM

The Spectrum

Crossing the Oceans to Fargo NDSU foreign student-athletes tackle North Dakota challenges head on Pace Maier Sports Editor

The North Dakota winters surprised Marena Whittle when she first arrived on campus three years ago.

“The weather was something else I needed to get used to,” the senior said.

“My freshman year I was like, ‘What’s with all this snow?’”

Whittle is from Vermont South, Victoria, Australia, and the average temperature is about 73 degrees Fahrenheit. That’s 31 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than Fargo’s average temperature.

But temperature didn’t

scare Whittle away from NDSU’s campus.

“Everyone was very welcoming and very accepting of me,” Whittle said about why she chose to attend NDSU. “Everyone seemed super friendly and they really focused on a family vibe around the team and coaches.”

She’s apart of the NDSU women’s basketball program, and has started 83 contests out of the 88 she’s played in.

Bison basketball is her extended family. Because it takes 23 hours and five minutes via airplane to travel from Fargo to her hometown in Australia.

Whittle travels back home only once a year

during the summer.

She’s been spending Christmas with teammates and their families the last few years, but every year a special present has showed up in Fargo between the January and February months.

“I’ve been fortunate enough to have my mom visit me once a year,” Whittle said with a smile.

“So, she will be making that trip again this year.”

With Whittle being in her last year as a studentathlete at NDSU, she’s been able to get used to not seeing her family often.

Freshman year was the hardest on her because of not knowing her teammates that well and not knowing

anyone else on campus.

She didn’t have anyone she could vent to anywhere close to her.

“The initial transition, like understanding (my parents) are not here 24/7 and (that) I can’t talk to them because of the time zone change, it was definitely hard to get used,” Whittle explained. “Now this is my fourth year doing it; it’s easier, and I know there’s a time and a place where I’m going to see them so just appreciating that a lot more than I normally would.”

Whittle has found a friend on the men’s track and field team to share her American experiences with.

Junior Matti Mortimore

NDSU, a Great

from Ipswich, Suffolk, England, participates in javelin events for the Bison.

“I’ve spoken to him a few times,” Whittle said.

“It’s really cool to just get (his) take on it, and I can kind of relate to him what he sees different and what I see different of America.”

Currently at NDSU, there are three studentathletes that aren’t from the United States or Canada.

Whittle, Mortimore and NDSU volleyball player Erika Gelzinyte.

Like Whittle, Gelzinyte loved the family-feel that NDSU’s campus has.

“The environment is very welcoming,” the junior outside hitter, said early this fall semester.

With weather being one of the hardest challenges Gelzinyte and Whittle had to tackle, there have also been a few smaller ones.

“I had to get used to just different size meals,” Whittle said. “My stomach definitely grew when I came, so now when I go home I’m like, ‘Can you guys feed me more?’”

Without a doubt, Whittle misses her home, but the Bison family has welcomed her under its wing.

Beside her family, what’s the biggest thing she misses from the Melbourne suburb?

“Candy and the weather, it’s just a lot warmer in Australia,” Whittle said with a smile.

Conversational English Circles:

Choice for International Bridging the Gap Students

Blue Key

Coat Drive to

Benefit New International

Students

Donated jackets, winter apparel sought for students unfamiliar with ND winter weather Amanda Johnson Staff Writer

As winter is quickly approaching with the spring semester in tow, North Dakota State is preparing for the international and multicultural students who will arrive in January.

The Blue Key Honor Society will be hosting its first ever winter apparel drive to help the international and multicultural students when they arrive in winter as they may be unaware how low the temperature gets in Fargo.

The current goal for the organization is to gather 50 donated jackets and accompanying winter apparel, which is the pending number of international students who are set to arrive in January.

Monetary donations will also be accepted and will go towards purchasing cheap and gently used apparel.

Blue Key will be able to help most if not all the students who are in need of winter apparel as they arrive in the Midwestern

winter.

The sizes won’t be exact but they will be able to accommodate the discrepancies between different sizes of coats and apparel that is donated by using monetary donations to buy extra needed apparel.

The event is still in the brainstorming process and Blue Key Honor Society is hoping to begin within the next couple of weeks.

International and multicultural representatives for North Dakota State have been in contact with the Blue Key Honor Society about which steps to take in running the apparel drive.

The winter apparel drive is planned to be an annual event and a similar coat drive has happened in the past years by the NDSU Equity and Diversity Center for the international students who are coming to NDSU. Students who wish to be involved are encouraged to stay tuned to Listservs.

Students should also look for potential booths in the Union for more information.

OPINION

Meghan Pegel Opinion Editor

North Dakota State strives to efficiently accommodate international students in the best ways possible.

During my involvement with the organization “I-CORE,” a student group solely tasked with assisting international students with a successful transition into NDSU, we held many events to welcome and inform students.

Many of NDSU’s facilities gather during international orientation to present and provide their services, which streamlines the process for students to accomplish everything they need to prior to the beginning of classes.

Examples of these services includes Information Technology Services with internet access, Bison Card with identification and printing allocation, Student Health Services to update immunizations and Bison Connection for competency regarding money and loans among others.

In speaking with Alicia

Organization teaches American culture, conversational English

“People are impressed with the diversity of countries represented at our university and in the Fargo area” – Alicia Kauffman, director of international student and study abroad services

Madison Schill

Contributing Writer

North Dakota State serves students from around 46 states and 64 different countries.

To facilitate interactive learning, the English Club sponsors a program called Conversation English Circles. The organization focuses on bringing together resident students and international students and facilitating informal conversation between the two.

According to the program’s description, CEC meetings usually involve a short lesson designed to teach the international students something about American culture. Often, international students will also teach the group about their own culture.

Afterward, the group is separated into circles, where the students can talk about the lesson or about another topic of their choosing; the main goal is just to get these students talking amongst each other.

What these meetings do is give international

Kauffman, director of the international student and study abroad services, I’ve come to realize NDSU’s program for international students is one of the best out there.

“When attending conferences with colleagues regionally and nationally, in talking about the international student population we serve at NDSU, people are impressed with the diversity of countries represented at our University and in the Fargo area,” Kauffman said.

When I studied abroad in Korea last year, I truly wish I had the amenities available that are offered through NDSU’s program.

Although students will eventually learn to adapt in the new environments regardless of the program, it is comforting to know that NDSU truly cares about the success and transition of our international students.

students some practice using casual, conversational English; something they might not always do on a daily basis. It’s also a way to teach these students about American culture.

The president of CEC, John Roach, says there are also benefits for the non-international CEC attendees. Roach mentions that the CEC helps these students develop cultural awareness by allowing them to learn about the different cultures through the international students.

Overall, the Conversational English Circles are a benefit to everyone involved. What’s important is that this program is bridging the gap that can sometimes separate international and resident students through something as simple as casual conversation.

Though the attendees of these meetings are from English and English education majors, anyone is welcome to attend the events. For more information, contact John Roach or other members of the English Club.

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7

THE SPECTRUM | INTERNATIONAL | THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2015

ASI Brings India’s Festival of Lights to NDSU

Association of Students from India invites all to Diwali Night

Linda Norland Spectrum Staff

In November, students and faculty at North Dakota State have Thanksgiving on their mind. But for some, this month brings more than just turkey and the unavoidable shopping insanity that follows.

For students from India, the biggest celebration of the year occurs during this time of the year. Diwali, also known as Deepawali or the Festival of Lights, begins around Nov. 7 and lasts until Nov. 11. Dates differ depending on the year and region, dictated by the

Hindu calendar.

Diwali Night will be 5:30 p.m. Nov. 21 in the Great Plains Ballroom in the Memorial Union.

It is separated into three segments, each of which features a different aspect of Indian culture.

At NDSU, the Association of Students from India has put on a Diwali Night off and on since 1989. It is a chance for them to get together, but also to share this unique festival with other students from around the world.

“It’s like a free journey to India,” ASI public relations officer Bharat Verma said. “Or you can say

it’s Indian Thanksgiving.”

Diwali Night starts with a cultural show, where dancers will perform in the Bollywood style. There will also be a puppet show and a fashion show with examples of traditional outfits from every state in India.

“See, my favorite part of Diwali is the cultural show, in which we bring the culture of India, through the performance, to the people,” Verma said.

After that comes the food. Verma said the meal showcases many classic Indian foods, including chai tea, a main course and desserts. NDSU Dining is helping them prepare the

meal.

The night finishes off with a DJ and the dance floor opens to all. As ASI president Achintyamugdha Sharma said, this gives everyone a chance to dance and socialize.

“In my personal opinion, I love the DJ part, because it gives the people a chance to relax,” Sharma said. He added that he also enjoys being able to “make some moves” on the dance floor.

It takes the association, one of NDSU’s largest with around 300 participants, more than half a year to prepare for this event. This year they are focusing on making this holiday a shared experience. They are

inviting the community to take part and get a sense of what Indian culture is really like.

“Although this event is done by ASI, we do have involvement and participation of people from different nationalities,” Sharma said. “This event gives an opportunity for kind of socializing and breaks a divide. (It’s) an attempt to bring people closer.”

In addition to the three main parts, there will also be photos, art, speeches from their sponsors and NDSU faculty and several short skits.

Most importantly, Diwali Night offers a

chance for students to get together during a time when they may be feeling homesick. At this event, students can celebrate with their friends, as well as make some new ones.

“It’s like NDSU family we create that we celebrate with,” Verma said.

Those interested in attending can purchase tickets from Verma by emailing him at bharat. verma@ndsu.edu or stopping by ASI’s booth in the Union from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Tickets cost $10 for tri-college students, $12 for alumni and $15 for nonstudents.

Bend it Like the Brazilians Majority of intramural soccer team doubles as NDSU student

Karson Sorby Staff Writer

Known across campus as “Brazilian Talent,” this intramural soccer team is expected to be big time.

While this team is made up of mostly Brazilian players, it is more diverse than that.

Also represented on the team is NDSU senior Erika Carrillo (who has an Ecuadorian father and Colombian mother) and grew up in Ecuador.

“I’m playing with my fellow Brazilian friends; we are representing South

America,” Carrillo said.

Along with players from South America is one American teammate with a Vietnamese background.

Eight out of the 10 members on the team are at North Dakota State as a part of an exchange program called the Brazilian Scientific Mobility Program.

Team captain Pedro Mayerle Queiroz explained that, while this group wasn’t specifically planning on coming to North Dakota, they are grateful for the opportunities provided here.

“I can assure you that any of our universities in Brazil have half of the

infrastructure and support that NDSU is providing us,” Queiroz said. “We are having the time of our lives here; we are only scared about the winter.”

While soccer is obviously a big deal to the team, soccer isn’t always their main focus.

Queiroz said along with the population of around 80 international students at NDSU, they rely on friends they knew prior to the experience for tips.

“Before coming to the United States, we were already talking to friends who were living here, trying to understand a little bit more about the University

and life on campus,” Queiroz said.

The small populations of different ethnic groups at NDSU create a bond for these students that bring them together while they remind each other to keep up with paperwork and homework throughout their time here at campus.

“As exchange students, we have to deal with a lot of paperwork, and having someone to remind us about limit dates and help us manage this situation is a blast,” Queiroz said.

The strong bond formed on and off the soccer field provides an example of why sports are so meaningful.

Being a part of the same exchange program, the eight Brazilian players knew each other prior to the formation of this team.

Standout player Queiroz explained how soccer has helped them to meet new people and create lifelong friendships.

“Making friends throughout soccer is really easy,” he said.

Whether it be making new friends, exploring campus or playing the game they love with teammates, this group of talented student athletes will always have each other to lean on and adjust with — though they do miss a few specific

things from home.

Queiroz said Brazilian food is missed.

“We have fresh food in our tables every time. And we don’t have our best chef here: our moms,” Queiroz said.

One last thing that is greatly missed from home is the amount of support they receive here.

“People from our countries (Brazil and Colombia) are more into soccer than the Americans, so our friends would come to the game day and cheer at us even if it is a friendly or an Intramural game. That gave us energy to play even more.”

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LGBTQ

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2015

NDSUSPECTRUM.COM

The Spectrum

NDSU Campus Offers Some LGBT Gay Marriage is Legal, Protections in State that Offers None Gender identity, expression added to university’s non-discrimination statement in 2008 Hailey Colbrunn Contributing Writer

In a state lacking legislation against discrimination based on sexual orientation, North Dakota State is a bastion of protections.

The university was the first North Dakota University System institution to offer protections against discrimination based on a person’s sexual orientation.

Despite the campus’s nondiscrimination action, North Dakota does not offer such protections.

The state legislature struck down a spring senate bill banning discriminatory action against LGBT individuals in regard to housing, government services and the workplace.

According to S.B. 2279, “sexual orientation” means “actual or perceived heterosexuality, bisexuality, homosexuality, or gender identity,” while gender identity is defined as “actual or perceived gender-related identity, appearance, or mannerisms

or other gender-related characteristics of an individual, regardless of the individual’s designated gender at birth.”

The bill was approved by the Senate and was brought to the floor of the House where it was killed in a 56-35 vote.

This move in April was the third time in six years that North Dakota’s legislature has killed legislation prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation.

The Forum reported that 21 states, including Minnesota, have laws protecting against discrimination based on a worker’s sexual orientation.

Seven years ago, NDSU added gender identity and expression to its nondiscrimination statement.

“Some people felt that when the Supreme Court ruled that marriage rights be extended to everyone that this was fantastic, but that there were certain ramifications to people taking advantages of their rights that would put them at risk for housing or in

the workplace,” said Kara Gravley-Stack, university initiatives director and LGBTQ coordinator.

The Associated Press reported Indiana and Arkansas both approved revisions to religion freedom laws regarding discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender and identity.

In an LGBT policy tally map on Movement Advancement Project’s website, North Dakota, as well as Arkansas and Indiana, is categorized as a low “policy tally” state.

The site uses “policy tally” to count the number of laws and policies that help drive equality for LGBT people within each state.

A low policy tally is scored as 0-3.99. North Dakota ranks at 1.50 for number of positive policies within the state for the LGBT community, remaining in the majority as one of over 25 states that do not offer policies against discrimination for housing, government services and the workplaces.

Gender-Neutral Locker

Rooms Coming to Campus NDSU works toward a more inclusive environment

OPINION

Kelsey Dirks

“(The aquatic center is) creating a safe and inclusive space for all members of our campus community.”

– Kara Gravley-Stack, director of diversity initiatives and coordinator of LGBTQ programs

Features Editor

North Dakota State’s campus and staff are continually evolving to fit the students’ needs.

As part of this, the Wallman Wellness Center is adding an aquatic center, with a new addition. The new aquatic center will have two swimming pools, a hot tub, a wet classroom and male and female locker rooms.

However, unlike the current Wellness Center, this $11 million aquatic addition will have three gender-neutral locker rooms.

“We need more spaces like these on campus as in recent years. Here at NDSU we have seen an increasing number of transgender students who wish to be active and fully participate in college life,” says director of diversity initiatives and coordinator of LGBTQ programs Kara Gravley-Stack.

Gender-neutral bathrooms on campus show NDSU’s deviance from the traditional binary, a binary that separates on the assumption that there is only man and woman, boy and girl, masculine and feminine.

The new aquatic center is “creating a safe and inclusive space for all members of our campus community,” says GravleyStack.

It is true that talking about bathrooms is usually not the go-to topic of conversation for students, but it should be. Having a

restroom and especially a locker room is something many take for granted. It is a basic need that should be made accessible for all.

Addressing this issue head on can help prevent the numerous negative experiences transgender students face at school.

Everyone benefits from gender-neutral bathrooms and locker rooms. It provides a safe restroom and changing place for those who do not feel they fit in the traditional male and female binary roles.

The aquatic center’s genderneutral locker rooms are not just for transgender students. They are open for all whether it is parents

or caregivers who have children with them or a woman breast-feeding.

There are many conditions people experience in which they need privacy, and gender-neutral locker rooms provide that.

The opportunity to use a gender-neutral bathroom or locker room is a right.

No one should be forced or pressured into using a specific bathroom.

The gender-neutral locker rooms in the aquatic center will be no different than a single occupancy locker room.

These locker rooms are an important step for NDSU in growing our safe campus and welcoming staff and students.

Yet so is Discrimination North Dakota is one of 29 states where you can fire someone because he or she is gay

“But when someone is born with a genetic preference, they are miraculously no longer granted these freedoms.”

OPINION

Erik Jonasson II Staff Writer

North Dakota is a great state. If you are looking for a state where you can go to the mall and have the luxury of smelling a cow’s rear at the same time, this is the place to be.

Despite how great North Dakota is, there are some issues in this state that must be addressed as well. Not only do we have issues with wood chippers and UND, we also have issues with discrimination.

In this state, we can evict, fire or use any other form of discrimination against anyone based solely on his or her sexual preference.

As an American citizen, this is disturbing. It sounds like a direct attack against our freedoms.

The freedom of others isn’t important it seems.

We have the freedom to not fear wrongful termination

or eviction and the freedom to marry whomever we please.

We have all of these freedoms. But when someone is born with a genetic preference, they are miraculously no longer granted these freedoms.

I think a great example of just how stupid we have let this all become is that we label it as a way to protect “religious freedom”. Let’s call it what it actually is, “asshole freedom.”

I am a Christian. I was baptized, went through conformation, attended church picnics and am to this day a true-blooded Lutheran.

Yet I refuse to understand how throwing someone out of my place of business or firing a gay member of my employment staff, specifically over sexual preference, is anywhere near my Christian duties.

I don’t remember the Sunday school lesson on that sadly. We must confront this.

In our state, gay people are allowed to marry. That is great, for with marriage comes a great sense of happiness and pride. But for same-sex couples, there also has to be a sense of fear.

Fighting for equality isn’t easy, it’s messy. Let’s just leave it for someone else. That isn’t fair, though.

We must challenge this.

Think about your average North Dakotan- we aren’t malicious. We live in the state of please and thank you, not the state of “get out”.

I think it is high time that we change this and restore religious acts.

“Love your neighbor”…

I remember that from church.

Maybe you don’t believe in marriage equality, and that is fine.

Just recognize that if you feel an urge to fire/evict/ remove a gay person from your place of business, you are not being friendly.

You aren’t stopping progress- you are simply being a jerk.

NDSUSPECTRUM.COM

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2015

9

Religion

NDSUSPECTRUM.COM

Oveis Hassan Ijalilian, left, carries the Iranian flag during the 2015 Homecoming Parade in downtown Fargo.

UNIVERSITY RELATIONS | PHOTO COURTESY

NDSU Muslims Accepted, Excel on Campus Students of different backgrounds share beliefs, struggles Benjamin Norman Spectrum Staff

The first-year radiology major sees you staring.

Ibtisaam Mustafa realizes practicing Islam in North Dakota can be an eyecatching expression.

“You get used to it,” Mustafa says of people gawking at her hijab. “ ...

People sometimes look at me. And I’m OK with it.

Before, I was self-conscious about (my religion), but … you get over it.”

Oveis Hassan Ijalilian’s faith is more inconspicuous.

Hassan Ijalilian says he has yet to be treated

differently in Fargo based on his race or Islamic faith.

The doctoral student studying agriculture and biosystems engineering wears street clothes warm enough for a chilly bike ride to campus. He says while he doesn’t follow the Quran verbatim like more conservative Muslims, the religion undoubtedly shaped his morals and worldview.

“But, basically, that can be said about all religions,” Hassan Ijalilian said.

Mustafa says she is more liberal in her faith, too, though she tries to uphold Islamic customs. This itself can be challenging enough.

“Not everybody is perfect,” she says. “(Your

faith) depends on you.”

Mustafa says her faith can be demanding, especially as a student at a secular university.

Muslims strive to pray five times at specific times every day. Mustafa says she will go when she can to the library to complete her prayers, but it’s “difficult.”

“Sometimes if I don’t have time, I go pray at home after I finish classes,” she says.

Mustafa says she has found support through other Muslims and organizations on campus.

The Muslim Students Association, a student organization on campus, hosts prayer gatherings

“I can’t believe like they’ve never seen other people that are black or have scarves on. They haven’t experienced other religions.

It’s not their faults, but they need to get educated more.”

– Ibtisaam Mustafa, freshman radiology student throughout campus. This includes Muslim Jumma on Fridays at the Memorial Union.

Though different than in the Middle East — Mustafa was born in Yemen, Hassan Ijalilian in Iran — the students say campus has been supportive of all faiths.

“It’s more acceptable here at NDSU. It’s more acceptable here of different religions and cultures,”

Mustafa says.

Hassan Ijalilian says religious and racial tolerance is a staple in the community’s culture. Most of his friends, he says, are Christian.

“As I see here in Fargo, people are not racist because they grew up, maybe, in diversity,” he says, adding that faith shouldn’t hinder.

Acceptance is what Mustafa continues to want

to see.

“I can’t believe like they’ve never seen other people that are black or have scarves on,” she said of those who may struggle with her race and religion.

“They haven’t experienced other religions. It’s not their faults, but they need to get educated more.

“Other people exist too, you know.”

A Call to Non-Christians A student-athlete’s take regarding the lack of diversity on campus Maggie Crippen Staff Writer

In many ways, North Dakota State is a microcosm of the United States.

This is especially true when it comes to religious diversity in athletics. In the long run, I think it would only benefit NDSU students and student-athletes to experience any sort of religious diversity.

Sixty-one percent

of student-athletes are from Minnesota or North Dakota, where the dominant religion is some form of Christianity.

We see Bison footballers run out of the locker room and take a quick knee in the south end zone for a quick prayer, and we also see Bison basketball players pointing toward the ceiling after a big play.

I wonder if there are any non-Christian prayers being said, or any other gods

being thanked.

Former Bison athlete Brock Jensen was wellknown in his beliefs; he would often give credit to God. When asked about the opportunity to continue football in the Canadian Football League, Jensen said he was “blessed.”

Current Bison sophomore offensive lineman Grant Morgan sends out a tweet saying, “The Lord’s day” every

Sunday morning.

Looking bigger, religious American athletes are most typically Christian.

Tim Tebow became famous from his on-field disposition also known as “Tebowing” at the University of Florida. He gained both respect and hate from people around the country for being publicly Christian.

Probably the most famous non-Christian Amerian athlete is

Muhammad Ali who joined the Nation of Islam in the 1960’s. He even evaded the Vietnam War draft and cited being a Muslim minister as his reason.

Other than Ali, I couldn’t think of another non-Christian professional athlete from any time period, let alone even one in today’s sports world.

In such a non-diverse religious setting, NDSU and NDSU Athletics as an entire program seldom

experiences religious diversity or knowledge.

It is comforting for the majority of students from Minnesota and North Dakota, but hardly prepares them for real-life situations.

When conversing with people different than you, it could create tension or acceptance, and I think that with knowledge of other religions there comes power. And with power and knowledge, the possibilities in life are endless.

North Dakota Lutheran NDSUSPECTRUM.COM Meets His First Catholic Culture shock occurs without incident SATIRE

Jon Lipp

Staff Writer

Dear readers, I come to you today with quite the human-interest story. I recently met Billy, a freshman from Bowman, N.D., who experienced an important first this week.

The young political science major encountered his first Catholic.

“I really had no idea what was going on,” Billy explained to me over a piping-hot cup of knoephla soup. “I thought just spending some time in a city where I didn’t know everyone’s name would help me grow as a person, but I was unprepared to experience such a culture shock!”

The young man had apparently been working with this acquaintance on a group project, when they began to casually discuss the finer points of their respective worship services.

At this point, Billy quickly realized that his partner was not who he thought he was.

“It was so weird. We clearly agreed on the existence of Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, but then he started rambling about something called the Eucharist, and I knew we weren’t on the same page,” Billy said. “I mean, you think you know a guy, and then he goes and outs himself as a Catholic.”

Thankfully, this revelation didn’t seem to cause too much stress for

either party. Billy said he saw a news article about Pope Francis on Facebook and decided he was a pretty cool guy. This was evidently more than his partner had expected, and the two remain cordial.

As far as I can tell, this was Billy’s only experience with such a culture shock. I attempted to ask him about potential interactions with any of NDSU’s Muslim or minority students, but as soon as I did, he shouted “I have a really tan friend!” and departed.

It is my sincere hope that he, and all of you dear readers, takes the time to branch out and meet people of different backgrounds.

You literally have no idea what you’re missing.

Warmly yours, Papa Jon

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10 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2015

Non-traditional students

NDSUSPECTRUM.COM

The Spectrum

Diversity

Outside of Fargo Rio Bergh

Contributing Writer

While growing up in North Dakota and going to college at North Dakota State is a wonderful experience, the vast majority of the people you meet while living such a local life are (believe it or not) fellow North Dakotans. This isn’t a bad thing, it is just a fact of life when living in North Dakota — you may not meet a particularly large number of people from countries or backgrounds that are different from yours.

This isn’t the case when studying abroad. When you are transplanted from your homeland, you become a tiny minority in a sea of people with cultural backgrounds that differ from your own. You very likely might feel out of place (to varying degrees, perhaps depending on which country you find yourself in); however, this feeling will likely dissipate as you spend more time in your new (if temporary) home.

I am currently studying in the UK, and, at least at the university I am attending, I have found the population to be highly multicultural. There are students from all parts of the UK, along with students from a multitude

of countries. I have met people from Australia, Germany, France, Spain, Sudan, India, China, South Korea and I even live with a student from the Philippines (and three students from the UK).

As an international student, you will likely find yourself surrounded by other international students, in addition to the locals. There is a definite benefit to this. It seems like a significant amount of international students share a similar interest — travel.

I found myself with a group of other international students early on, and we have done a significant amount of exploring and traveling together. Our travels have drawn us closer together, but they have also opened up places (and people) that never truly existed for us before.

It seems as if distant lands, places and people existed only in our heads.

In the past, I knew that England existed; I knew that London, Paris and Amsterdam existed, but I never really knew what they were like. When you find yourself in a new place for the first time, it is as if reality blossoms and replaces whatever you once imagined it to be. The food, smells, sights, people and languages all become a reality that they never were in the past. The world gets bigger (or smaller; I’m not

really sure which).

Another aspect of diversity when studying abroad is language. While a tree is still a tree in the UK, I know students for whom a tree always used to be ein baum or un arbre.

While briefly visiting a few countries in which English wasn’t spoken much, I wondered how different (or how similar) the world would be if I had to look at it through the lens of a different language. For any of you that go to a country where a tree becomes ein baum, un arbre or any of the thousand other options, I wish you the best of luck, and please let me know what it is like.

Regardless of where you go to study abroad, there is a certain uprooting effect where you are relocated from everything that is normal into a place where everything is new. It is a feeling that I have trouble describing, but it seems as if the very world opens up. You get the wonderful opportunity of experiencing the beautiful diversity of this world, not through a screen or a book, but through living in it.

Rio Bergh is an NDSU student studying abroad in Europe. In his “A Bison Abroad” column, Rio gives his first-hand account of what it is like living in Europe as a student from Fargo. His column is published every Thursday.

Accessibility as Easy to Change as Diapers Information for students with children sparse, difficult to locate OPINION

Meghan Battest Staff Writer

Frequently overlooked when it comes to diversity is a group of people juggling two roles: student and parent.

Along with the trials of keeping up with coursework and working part-time jobs, these students also must worry about needs like daycare, funds for diapers and formula and so on. I tried to look into the resources that North Dakota State offers.

NDSU provides a few accommodations for those students with children, the most known of which is the Wellness Center Child Care facility. During the year, the center is open from 7:15 a.m. until 6 p.m. every day of the week and is closed on weekends.

The Center is open to NDSU students on a firstcome, first-served basis.

They accept children aged 6 weeks to 6 years whose parents are engaging in campus activities while their children are at daycare.

Parents can make reservations ahead for childcare at a lower price ($3.40 per hour for income-eligible students and $4.40 per hour for all other students), or can drop their children off, if space allows, for $5.40 per hour.

These reservations are based on the parent’s class schedule.

Like any daycare, restrictions do apply, so if a child is ill or not up-to-date on immunizations, he or she will not be admitted. Of course, illness happens, and it can be taxing on a parent who has no other option but to miss class to take care of their sick child.

When it comes to funding, it was more difficult to find assistance online without a search on NDSU’s homepage.

Eventually, after sorting through information for the parents of NDSU students, a link came up through Bison Connection’s Financial Aid page entitled “Resources for Students with Children.” This page included a screening tool to track qualification for federal financial aid, as well as links to other resources in North Dakota and Minnesota, like the Women, Infants and Children program.

Another accommodation overlooked by those who are not nursing mothers and is difficult to find online are lactation rooms. Since the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was instated, NDSU is required to have lactation rooms to accommodate nursing mothers. The act states that these must be a place (other than a bathroom) that is shielded from view and

free from intrusion from coworkers and the public where a mother can go.

Currently, NDSU has three official lactation rooms that are up-to-code, with a few optional rooms not entirely meeting the law’s guidelines also available for use. These are accessible by students or staff. The Affordable Care Act was written specifically for the rights of employees, but the availability of lactation rooms has consequently benefitted student-parents as well.

It was not just me who had difficulty. Ingrid Grande, a senior majoring in Hospitality and Tourism Management, said finding any information was challenging for her. When asked what would have improved the accommodations NDSU offered, she said, “Openly provide the information; I wouldn’t even know where to start looking for a list of the services.”

The first step to improvement could be grouping all the informational links onto one webpage. While students with children still make up a small percentage of NDSU’s enrollment, enhancing accessibility to the limited resources NDSU offers would not be a massive undertaking and could help this small, diverse group of students.

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Disabilities

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2015

NDSUSPECTRUM.COM

The Spectrum

A Loss of Sight, a Love for Life

Eye disease doesn’t stop Allan Peterson from academic, advocacy work

Jack Dura

Head News Editor

For Allan Peterson, the world around him has long been dark, but he’s working to brighten it for those like him.

Diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, a progressive degenerative eye disease, soon after he joined North Dakota State’s veterinary science faculty in 1977, Peterson lost his sight over 10 years.

“My retina doesn’t work and so I don’t see,” he said. “I don’t see at all at this point. I’ve lost all my sight.”

Despite this disability, he continues to serve the NDSU campus and others living with disabilities through his work with various organizations.

“I enjoy life. I enjoy a challenge,” he said. “I’ve certainly been presented with one.”

Trained as a veterinarian, Peterson attended the University of Minnesota’s school of veterinary medicine before his post-doctoral work in veterinary microbiology and pathology at NDSU. His advocacy work is just as extensive.

“I work a number of projects that help people with disabilities,” he said.

Peterson has served as a board member for Handi-Wheels Transportation, a nonprofit providing transportation to North Dakota Medicaid

“I enjoy life. I enjoy a challenge.

I’ve certainly been presented with one.”

- Allan Peterson, veterinary science faculty customers.

He’s also a longtime board member of the North Dakota Association of the Blind, with whom he served as financial chair for five years and board president for four years.

That’s not his only board membership either; he’s on his second term as board member for the American Council of the Blind, where he’s served for five and a half years.

He’s also a board chair for NDSU’s Lutheran Center.

His numerous projects are all geared toward helping those living with disabilities or who have lost their sight like him.

“I like to see achievement,” Peterson said. “I like to see things happen, the cause of people with disabilities advanced.”

Peterson found his independence following his loss of sight by finding new ways to interact in his environment.

He learned how to use a cane to walk and a computer to communicate using speech.

“I learned my way around campus without the advantage of sight,” Peterson said. “I rely on my computer and rely on my

cane and my other senses.”

He added he can get disoriented due to noise or construction and can get confused if someone tries to lend a helping hand.

“A lot of students don’t know how they can help,” Peterson said, adding with a laugh, “Often a student will open a door for me and I don’t know it’s open.

They don’t say anything and that can be a bit of a challenge.”

Peterson added he does appreciate people asking how they can help him rather than assuming they know what to do or grab him.

At 71, Peterson said he is past retirement age.

He and his wife Judy, a retail outlet employee, live in Fargo and have three children, Lisa, Neil and Kurt, all NDSU graduates who live in Oregon and Minnesota.

And the NDSU campus is what Peterson calls home.

“I like the college environment,” he said.

“I like my contact with faculty, staff and students ... This has become my life that I enjoy doing.”

Filling in the Cracks A primer on accessibility at NDSU Christian Weber Contributing Writer

As an incoming freshman, it can be difficult to transition into university life. As an incoming freshman with a psychological, intellectual or physical disability, it can be next to impossible.

In 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed. One of its most important provisions requires that public facilities, such as college campuses, provide accommodations for people with disabilities. Some of these now-ubiquitous accommodations include wheelchair-ramps and Braille signs.

Additionally, the ADA explicitly prohibits any form of discrimination against people with disabilities. Under the ADA, more people with disabilities have gained access to housing, education and employment.

The passage of the ADA marked a victory for

OPINION

diversity and inclusivity in public life. It protects from discrimination not only individuals with visible handicaps, but also those who suffer from psychological or intellectual disabilities.

Since the ADA took effect, fewer of the nearly 20 percent of Americans with some form of disability have had to live on the margins of society.

In accord with ADA guidelines, North Dakota State offers a number of services for prospective and current students with disabilities through its disability services office.

Every building on campus is handicap-accessible, and disability services helps students with physical disabilities construct class schedules that require a less rigorous commute.

Disability services also provides accommodations for those with sensory impairments, including deaf/hard-of-hearing and blind students, as well as students with learning disabilities, cognitive

impairments and chronic health problems. According to the NDSU Disability Services webpage, some of these services include sign language interpreting, alternative testing, assistive technology access and a reduced course-load option.

Under the ADA and with the help of programs like NDSU’s Disability Services, fewer people with disabilities fall through the cracks and more people with disabilities succeed, which, in turn, promotes a more inclusive and successful public environment.

With enough help, making the transition doesn’t have to be impossible.

For more information about individual accommodations, please visit the Disability services webpage at www.ndsu. edu/disabilityservices, or contact Disability services directly at ndsu. disabilityservices@ndsu. edu.

GABBY HARTZE | THE SPECTRUM Allan Peterson joined NDSU’s veterinary science faculty in 1977. Soon after, he was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa and lost his sight over 10 years.

12

THE SPECTRUM | NORTH DAKOTA STATE UNIVERSITY | THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2015

STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS African Students Union

Contact: damilola.kosa@ndsu.edu Facebook: African Student Union, NDSU

American Indian Science & Engineering Society Contact: Gabriel.brien@ndsu.edu Facebook: American Indian Science and Engineering Society- NDSU Chapter

Association of Students from India

Contact: achintyamugdha.sharm@ndsu.edu Facebook: NDSU Association of Students from India - ASI

Association of Students from Bhutan

Contact: abi.adhikari@ndsu.edu Facebook: Association of Students from Bhutan-ASB NDSU

Bangladeshi Student Organization

Contact: mdmizanur.rahaman@ndsu.edu, mdfaisal.kabir@ndsu.edu Facebook: Bangladeshi Student Organization, NDSU

Bison Abroad

Contact: Austin.j.foss@ndsu.edu Facebook: Bison Abroad

Black Student Association

Contact: ateh.ekinde@ndsu.edu Facebook: Black Student Association

Chinese Students & Scholars Association Contact: yusheng.chen@ndsu.edu

Hispanic Organization of Latin Americans Contact: juan.francocoronado@ndsu.edu Facebook: NDSU HOLA (Hispanic Organization of Latin Americans)

International Student Association

Contact: anuj.teotia@ndsu.edu Facebook: NDSU International Student Association (ISA)

Korean Student Association

Contact: jusung.lee@ndsu.edu Facebook: NDSU Korean Student Association

Malaysian Student Association

Native American Student Association Contact: t.payer@ndsu.edu Facebook: Native American Student Association at NDSU

Nepalese Student Association (Chautaree) Contact: roshan.sharmapoudel@ndsu.edu Facebook: Nepalese Student AssociationChautaree

PAK, the Organization of Pakistani Students Contact: adnan.iftikhar@ndsu.edu Facebook: PAK

Persian Student Association

Contact: tayebeh.anajafimarzi@ndsu.edu Facebook: Persian Association at NDSU

Contact: weikang.lim@ndsu.edu Facebook: MaSa (Malaysian Student Association) NDSU

Pride Alliance

Mongolian Student Association

Prism

Contact: batuul.tumurkhuyag@ndsu.edu

Muslim Students Association

Contact: sajid.asif@ndsu.edu Facebook: NDSU Muslim Students Association

National Society of Black Engineers

Contact: oluyemi.abodunrin@ndsu.edu

Contact: colton.d.bruhn@ndsu.edu Facebook: NDSU Pride Alliance Contact: ana.huertalopez@ndsu.edu Facebook: NDSU GradPRISM

Sri Lankan Student Association

Contact: ishanka.wimaladharma@ndsu.edu Facebook: SriLankan Students Association (SLSA) – NDSU

Vietnamese Student Association Contact: steven.p.ly@ndsu.edu

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