04 17 2015

"Jerry" Dishes on Ice Cream Brand Ben and Jerry's co-founder Jerry Greenfield shares how he and his partner Ben Cohen founded their best-selling brand.

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Friday April 17, 2015 • Volume 98, Issue Number 23 • An Independent, Student-Run Newspaper

the rocket

www.theonlinerocket.com

SRU leads PASSHE in four-year graduation rates

By Haley Barnes News Editor

Thirty-seven percent of students who began their undergraduate degree at one of the 14 universities in the Pennsylvania System of Higher Education (PASSHE) system in 2010 graduate in four years, according to PASSHE System Research Office.

Overall, Slippery Rock University ranks first as about half of the 1,568 students who began their undergraduate degree at Slippery Rock University in 2010 were able to graduate in four years.

Carrie Birckbichler, Associate Provost for Ac a d e m i c F i n an c i a l Management and Institutional Research, said that SRU’s that statistics for graduation rates are very high in comparison to other PASSHE universities.

Birckbichler added that the numbers do not reflect transfer data.

PASSHE universities on the east side of Pennsylvania and in close proximity to SRU include California University, Edinboro Un i v e r s i t y, C l a r i o n University and Indiana University.

Of students who began at each of those universities in 2010, about 64 percent didn’t graduate in four years from Clarion, about 64 percent didn’t graduate from Indiana in four years,

about 63 percent didn’t dn’t graduate from California rnia in four years and aboutt 72 percent didn’t graduatee in four years from Edinboro. ro.

PASSHE universities ties on the west side of Pennsylvania include ude Bloomsburg University, sity, Cheyney University, East Stroudsburg University, sity, Kutztown University, Lock Haven University, Mansfi field University, Millersville ville University, Shippensburg urg University and West Chester.

West Chester University ity comes in second in comparison to SRU as about 45 percent of their heir students who began n in 2010 graduated in four years. An outlier in the PASSHE system is Cheyney yney University, as 95 percent nt of students beginning in 2010 didn’t graduate in four years. ears.

The other seven universities average a total of about 64 percentt of students not graduatingg in four years.

Amanda Yale, Associate ciate Provost for Enrollment ment Services, said that there here are several reasons why hy a student may not graduate uate in four years. Changee of major, dropping out to take care of family or for medical dical reasons, the amount of time it takes for the student nt to declare a major, lackk of success in major and need ed to improve GPA, the addition tion of a second major or a minor inor

and students not being able to receive all the classes that they need can all affect a student’s chance at being able to

graduate in four years.

Yale said that within the past few years, many efforts have been made to ease the transition from high school to college at SRU U and the efforts help distinguish SRU from other PASSHE universities.

GRAPHIC BY KARLEIGH SANTRY

According to PASSHE System Research Office, about 50 percent of SRU students that began as freshmen in 2010 were able to graduate in four years. SRU ranks first with having the highest graduation rates.

SEE SRU'S, PAGE A-3

High traffic in Spotts World Culture Building results in relocation of classes

By Haley Barnes News Editor

Starting next semester, the utilization of Spotts World Culture (SWC) Building will be kept to a minimum, as classes will not be offered on the second and third floors of the building due to large amounts of people in the building at once during busy times.

The 59,671 square foot SWC Building currently houses the English Department, the History Department, the Philosophy Department, the Political Science Department, Interdisciplinary Programs, classrooms that correspond with each department and the Office for Global Engagement.

Members of the Slippery Rock University Master Plan Committee, Amir Mohammadi and Mary Ann King explained the purpose for this decision.

Mahammadi is the Vice President for Finance and Administration and Mary

Ann King is the Director for Academic Resources.

King said that the building is not deemed as ‘closed’ because faculty offices will still be located inside SWC Building.

Mohommadi explained that between classes, there are too many people in the hallways at once.

“There have been some concerns over the traffic of students coming in and out of the building,” Mohommadi said.

He said that the main reasoning behind the decision is to re-purpose the building in the interest of students, staff and faculty. He said that the future of SWC Building will be addressed by the Master Plan Committee very soon.

Mohammadi said that the committee is trying to determine how many classes are reasonable to be held on the second and third floor at once.

ALEX MOWREY/THE ROCKET

SEE RECONSTRUCTION, PAGE A-2

A crowd forms outside of an entrance of Spotts World Culture Building, as the stairwell fills with students entering and exiting the building.

Specific Students Schedule Early

Wage Inequality Remains Problem

Rock Softball Sweeps UPJ

SRU staff explains why certain students need priority scheduling.

With Equal Pay Day on Tuesday, find out one student's opinion on wage inequality.

Page B-2

The Rock softball team wins both games of the doubleheader against UPJ Monday.

Page C-1

Page A-3

Student App Hits Google Play Store Computer science students' app wins big at annual tech competition.

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NEWS

A-2 7-DAY FORECAST FOR SLIPPERY ROCK

NATIONAL FORECAST FOR THE WEEK

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

MONDAY

TUESDAY

WEDNESDAY

THURSDAY

A brief morning shower or two

Pleasant with clouds and sun

A couple of afternoon showers

Breezy with rain and a t-storm

Mostly cloudy, a shower or two

Times of clouds and sun

Variably cloudy with a shower

66°

44°

43°

70°

REAL FEAL TEMPERATURE

Fri.

Sat.

Sun. Mon.

Tue.

Friday HI LO W 69 47 pc 68 49 sh 68 44 sh 65 47 pc 58 43 sh 71 48 c 66 43 sh 63 44 sh 70 55 sh 68 48 sh 65 46 sh 67 45 sh 69 46 sh 69 45 sh 66 43 pc

Saturday HI LO W 72 48 pc 74 43 pc 71 40 pc 65 47 pc 59 42 s 75 43 pc 72 44 pc 68 42 pc 76 50 pc 73 47 pc 68 38 pc 71 40 pc 74 50 pc 73 38 pc 70 44 pc

43°

36°

59°

Fri.

Sat.

Sun

Sun. Mon.

Tue.

Wed. Thu.

The higher the AccuWeather.com UV Index number, the greater the need for eye and skin protection. 0-2 Low; 3-5 Moderate; 6-7 High; 8-10 Very High; 11+ Extreme.

Sunday HI LO W 67 56 r 64 45 pc 58 49 sh 66 55 r 61 50 pc 62 49 pc 61 51 sh 55 48 sh 64 49 pc 63 52 sh 61 47 pc 58 48 pc 68 54 sh 62 47 pc 64 53 sh

Monday HI LO W 69 46 sh 57 50 r 64 48 r 69 48 sh 65 45 r 62 52 r 67 47 r 64 45 r 63 54 r 69 47 r 57 49 r 61 49 r 70 50 t 59 49 r 67 45 r

Tuesday HI LO W 58 39 sh 63 43 pc 63 39 sh 58 40 sh 54 37 sh 68 43 pc 62 39 sh 59 38 sh 71 48 c 61 41 sh 65 40 c 62 39 sh 64 42 c 64 39 sh 59 38 sh

57°

35°

Wednesday HI LO W 57 38 pc 62 42 s 57 38 s 58 40 s 52 35 pc 60 41 s 58 38 pc 54 36 pc 66 44 s 60 38 pc 57 38 pc 56 38 pc 61 41 pc 60 38 pc 57 35 pc

Thursday HI LO W 58 37 pc 63 45 pc 56 35 c 55 40 c 50 36 pc 59 39 pc 59 36 pc 54 33 c 62 43 sh 64 38 c 55 36 r 54 36 c 64 43 c 56 35 c 58 35 sh

P

Friday Saturday Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday

Moon

Friday Saturday Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday

Rise 6:39 a.m.

6:37 a.m.

6:36 a.m.

6:34 a.m.

6:33 a.m.

6:31 a.m.

6:30 a.m.

Rise 5:58 a.m.

6:37 a.m.

7:18 a.m.

8:02 a.m.

8:49 a.m.

9:40 a.m.

10:34 a.m.

MOON PHASES

34°

Above Near Below Normal Normal Normal

Set 8:02 p.m.

8:03 p.m.

8:04 p.m.

8:05 p.m.

8:06 p.m.

8:07 p.m.

8:08 p.m.

Set 6:58 p.m.

8:10 p.m.

9:21 p.m.

10:27 p.m.

11:29 p.m. none 12:24 a.m.

New

First

Full

Last

4/18

4/25

5/3

5/11

Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2015

PRECIPITATION

Above Near Below Normal Normal Normal

National Summary: A storm system will move across the Mississippi River Valley Saturday, producing numerous showers and thunderstorms. Some of these thunderstorms will be heavy and lead to flooding concerns for some areas. A weak disturbance across northern New England produce cause some rain showers. Areas of high pressure across the mid-Atlantic and West Coast will keep these regions of the country generally dry and partly to mostly sunny. The storm system over the Mississippi River Valley will move eastward into the Great Lakes, Northeast and Southeast Sunday and Monday. Expect periods of rain and thunderstorms to form and prolonged rainfall could lead to potential flooding problems in these areas each day.

NATIONAL CITIES

Friday Saturday Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday CITY HI LO W HI LO W HI LO W HI LO W HI LO W HI LO W HI LO W Atlanta 69 58 c 79 65 t 73 65 r 81 56 t 76 53 s 75 54 pc 78 56 pc Boston 63 50 sh 68 41 pc 55 43 s 52 46 r 57 45 sh 61 43 pc 55 42 sh Chicago 74 50 pc 70 51 pc 62 48 r 61 39 sh 54 35 c 55 35 s 53 35 c Cincinnati 74 49 c 77 58 pc 72 59 r 67 46 sh 63 40 pc 64 40 pc 64 45 pc Dallas 78 63 t 79 60 t 82 55 s 72 52 pc 72 56 c 74 60 t 75 65 r Denver 52 34 sn 57 32 c 52 31 c 53 32 pc 62 36 s 70 39 t 69 35 r Detroit 73 49 pc 70 44 pc 61 54 r 67 43 c 58 37 sh 58 36 s 55 36 c Houston 80 67 t 79 64 t 88 64 pc 81 62 pc 81 64 c 79 64 t 82 68 r Indianapolis 75 51 pc 76 58 c 75 55 t 64 43 sh 59 39 s 60 40 c 60 43 pc Kansas City 77 59 t 68 53 r 66 43 t 59 38 c 59 40 s 64 44 sh 62 47 r Los Angeles 78 57 s 75 57 s 71 57 pc 68 56 pc 68 58 c 67 54 pc 67 54 pc Miami 88 74 t 87 75 t 86 76 c 88 75 sh 87 74 t 86 74 sh 87 74 t Nashville 78 58 c 81 64 sh 80 61 t 72 47 sh 72 48 s 73 51 pc 72 50 c New Orleans 79 69 t 77 70 r 84 70 t 84 65 pc 79 64 s 77 65 c 79 67 r New York City 64 54 sh 74 50 pc 62 46 s 55 50 r 67 48 pc 63 46 pc 58 44 pc Orlando 85 67 t 86 70 t 88 71 t 85 69 t 85 68 pc 83 66 r 83 66 t Phoenix 84 60 s 90 62 s 91 63 s 90 63 s 89 64 s 89 63 s 82 61 pc San Francisco 71 49 s 69 50 pc 69 53 pc 67 54 pc 65 53 c 63 50 r 63 50 c Seattle 65 46 pc 65 46 s 68 46 s 72 48 pc 71 51 pc 62 48 s 61 46 pc Washington, DC 76 57 sh 79 56 pc 66 58 pc 73 57 r 73 49 pc 67 48 s 64 47 pc Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain, sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice.

Student leadership and campus involvement aid student transition

By Bridget McClure Rocket Contributor

Catch something exciting happening on campus? Want your Insta-photos to be featured in The Rocket? Just follow @SRURocket on Instagram and use # in the caption for your chance to be featured here every week!

Student leadership and involvement is a big part of the college experience. Being a member of a student organization can play an important factor in the success and enjoyment of one’s time in college, but is simply being a member enough?

John Rindy, director of the Office of Career and Education Development, said the idea of something looking good on your resume is not enough. It comes back to the existing leaders to make sure they are training new leaders and getting them excited to be one.

“To some degree I suppose at the college level a lot of people have bought into the idea that you just have to be in an organization and that is all you need because it looks good on a resume,” Rindy said. “I always disagree with that because if you’re not involved, what story are you going to tell?”

Rindy said from working in the corporate world and higher education, he believes the level of student leadership and involvement on campus year to year has a lot to do with transition.

"I always say that one of the responsibilities of a leader is to train the next one,” Rindy said.

“Many people get wrapped up in their own leadership and how good they are doing, that they leave the organization in shambles because they did everything themselves.”

Organizations that consistently have this type of leadership are S p o r t s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C - 1 doing a full range of things such as holding people accountable, Campus Life...........D-1 not doing it all by themselves, and training the next generation, Rindy

INDEX Blotter.................A-3 Opinion................B-1 Comics...................B-3

51°

TEMPERATURES

IN THE SKY

™

The patented AccuWeather.com RealFeel Temperature is an exclusive index of effective temperature based on eight weather factors. Shown are the highest and lowest values for each day.

CITY Akron Allentown Altoona Cleveland Erie Harrisburg Indiana Johnstown Philadelphia Pittsburgh Scranton State College Wheeling Williamsport Youngstown

67°

UV INDEX

Wed. Thu.

REGIONAL CITIES

51°

62° ®

April 17, 2015

said.

“A great example on our campus would be Alpha Kappa Psi, year in and year out that organization is solid,” Rindy said.

Other clubs and organizations Rindy said he has seen stay consistent or even grow in involvement over the past couple years is Psi Chi, Early Childhood Club, and FLSP (First Year Leader Scholar Program). Community assistants, pride guides, orientation ambassadors, the Green and White Society and any of the other major organizations like Greek Life he feels offer great leadership roles.

President of professional business fraternity, Alpha Kappa Psi, Amy Swartz, said the fraternity currently has 100 members. When she pledged four years ago, her pledge class was around 15 people and ended with five being initiated. Last semester, Alpha Kappa Psi had 69 people interested in pledging, ending with 37 being initiated. Swartz believes the popularity increase is because each of their officers are in charge of different responsibilities. AKPsi even has a specific public relations position that focuses on promoting the organization the entire semester.

“I think it also has a lot to do with word of mouth,” Swartz said. “People have such a good experience in AKPsi that they want to tell others about it. They want to say how they’ve progressed and what they’ve learned from it.”

Campus Recreation program participation has also seen involvement numbers grow over the past couple years. ARC participation rose from 302,582 participants in 2012-13 to 318,791 in 201314. Between ARC participation, aquatics, group exercise, intramural sports, outdoor adventures and

safety certifications, participation reached 345,895 in 2013-14.

Director of Campus Recreation, Greg Sferra, said one thing that gets their volume up is tradition.

“Intramurals are the roots of campus recreation because contemporary programs evolved from there,” Sferra said. “Every year we add or delete from our menu of programs based on participation and what’s trendy.”

Sferra said campus recreation offers a lot of leadership opportunities; participants, club sport officers, intramural captains, intramural officials and student employees. Sferra also believes a good leader quality includes training the next generation.

“People are in their roles because they enjoy it and they want to improve it and make it better,” Sferra said. “You want to hand your position off in a better place than it was when you inherited it and you want the people coming in to understand so they can keep it successful.”

Swartz said her college experience would not be anything like it is today if she was just a regular student. She believes SRU provides students with many opportunities to get involved and learn much more than you could from a class room setting.

The main thing Rindy would stress is that a leadership role doesn’t have to be president or vice president.

“A lot of employers will want to know how you handle being under pressure or how you deal with people who disagree with you,” Rindy said. “Well if you never put yourself in a situation where that never happens, how are you going to talk about it?"

Reconstruction of Spotts Bridge being considered CONTACT US Newsroom: (724) 738-4438 Advertising: (724) 738-2643 Fax: (724) 738-4896 Email: rocket.letters@sru.edu

220 Eisenberg Building Slippery Rock University Slippery Rock, PA 16057

Nationally recognized as one of the top 10 four-year weekly broadsheet newspapers by the Associated Collegiate Press.

Continued from Page A-1

According to the 2007 Slippery Rock University Master Plan, 46 percent of classes are in Eisenburg Classroom Building (ECB) and SWC Building. King said that adjustments have been made to relocate classrooms off of the second and third floor of SWC Building.

“All of those classes [on the second and third floor of SWC Building] have already been relocated to either classes on the first floor [of SWC Building] or other buildings within the quad,” King said. “We are just trying to utilize our classrooms as much as we possibly can.

According the Master Class Schedule, classes that were originally housed in SWC building, will now be relocated in Vincent Science Center, the Advanced Technology and Science Hall and ECB. King added that the Criminology and Criminal Justice Department is housed in Patterson, but that currently a lot of classes in that department are located in SWC Building.

She explained that these classes will be moved

to the upper end of campus in buildings like Caruth Rizza Hall and Strain Behavioral Science Building. She also added that a few honors classes have been moved to Maltby.

Mohammadi said that the rebuild of the SWC Building Bridge is currently up for discussion by the Master Plan Committee.

“The rebuild of the Spotts Bridge is being reviewed,” Mohammadi explained. “The decision is going to be made soon.”

In November of 2013, the SWC Building Bridge was closed, as it was determined to be dangerous to walk on. The rebuild of the bridge was estimated to cost over 100,000 dollars.

King said that it is very important to understand that the bridge was taken down for safety reasons and that as soon as the bridge was declared unsafe, action was taken immediately.

Mohammadi explained that the building of a new bridge will require specific regulations and that it is already a very costly project.

“We have to follow rules and regulations,” he said.

NEWS

April 17, 2015

A-3

POLICE BLOTTER April 12 – A hair straightener set off a fire alarm at Building F. The alarm was reset.

Campus April 10 – Police were called for an alcohol violation at Building E. The incident was referred to student standards.

April 10 – There was a call for a female who passed out the Aebersold Recreation Center. The female refused medical treatment.

April 13 – A metis alarm was accidently tripped at the Advanced Technology and Science Hall. The panel was reset.

April 12 – Police received a call for an intruder alarm going off at Old Main. Officers checked the area and secured offices prior to leaving.

April 13 – Nathan Wilson, 19, was issued an alcohol violation for a previous incident.

April 12 – There was a call for a male with a possible broken ankle at the Aebersold Recreation Center. The male was transported to Grove City Hospital by ambulance.

April 13 – There was a call for a female who passed out at Patterson Hall. The female was transported to Butler Hospital by ambulance.

April 13 – Police were stopped by a worker who found suspicious items on the ground at North Hall. The items were removed and the case is under investigation.

April 14 – Burnt toast set off a fire alarm at Building F. The alarm was reset.

April 11 – Jacob Kronenwetter, 19, was issued an alcohol violation for a previous incident.

April 11 – Steam from the shower set off a fire alarm at Building F. The alarm was reset.

April 11 – Burnt food set off a fire alarm at Watson Hall.

The alarm was reset.

April 12 – Police received a notification from an E-Phone at Patterson Hall. Officers checked the area and no one was around.

April 13 – Mitchell Conklin, 18, was issued an alcohol violation for a previous incident.

April 13 – Police were called to meet a person who saw a male grabbing a girl by the arm and neck in the quad.

Officers found the person and referred him to student conduct.

April 14 – Burnt food set off a fire alarm at Building E. The alarm was reset.

April 15 – Police received a call from 911 that a fight was occurring at the tennis courts. Police checked the area and there were no fights happenings.

Compiled by Amber Cannon

Priority scheduling gives advantage to students that meet qualifications

By Chris Gordon Rocket Contributor

Veterans, students with disabilities, athletes and honors students are four groups of students that receive priority scheduling at Slippery Rock University.

Elliot Baker, the executive director of Academic Records and Summer School at SRU, said that, aside from veterans, these groups have traditionally received scheduling privileges from the university.

“November was the first time veterans received priority scheduling,” Baker said, stating that a recently passed Pennsylvania law gave veteran students at public universities priority scheduling over other undergraduates.

He explained that the law wasn't required to be implemented until July of 2015, but a test run was done to see how it would work out.

Baker indicated that, while graduate students schedule before anyone else, veteran undergraduates schedule second, followed by undergraduates with disabilities, who are also given priority scheduling by law in some circumstances.

Linda Quidone, the director of SRU’s Office for Students with Disabilities, noted that priority scheduling is only one service

offered to disabled students and that not all students with disabilities are eligible for the same services.

Before a student is eligible for disability services, they must schedule a meeting with the Office for Students with Disabilities to discuss their classroom needs and submit documentation from a medical doctor, licensed psychologist or other medical professional confirming their disability and required accommodations, Quidone said.

“For instance, a student who has ambulation issues would be scheduled for classes that are in close proximity to their other classes to avoid undue walking,” Quidone added.

Other conditions that may warrant priority scheduling include learning disabilities, health and medical concerns, ADD/ADHD, physical impairments, hearing and visual disabilities, emotional/ psychological impairments, autism and traumatic brain injuries, Quidone said.

Baker noted that the university is required to reasonably accommodate student disabilities or risk a lawsuit.

The honors program was given priority scheduling about 20 years ago as an incentive for students to register for the program and stick with it throughout their college career, Baker said.

“One of our associate vice presidents

thought that priority scheduling would be a reasonable incentive to keep students in this more rigorous academic program,” he continued.

QPA is not a factor in whether or not honor’s students receive priority scheduling, just that they continue to register for the program, Baker said.

Student athletes are given priority scheduling to prevent conflicts between class times and their team commitments and to ensure they are able to keep up their grades, Baker said.

Athletes use this priority to avoid late afternoon and evening classes, which conflict with most athletic events, he added.

“Our athletes spend a lot of time representing our university on the athletic field and are actually retained at higher rates than the general student population,” Baker said. “However, we can’t say for sure if this higher retention rate is the result of priority scheduling,” he continued.

For the past 10 years, senior athletes have been permitted to schedule one hour before the rest of the senior class, while junior, sophomore and freshmen athletes may schedule one hour before the junior class, Baker explained.

“All these groups received priority scheduling from outside interests,” Baker said. “Academic Records and Summer

School does not advocate for any of them.”

Baker acknowledged student concerns over priority scheduling and its effects on seat availability for SRU core requirements, notably Public Speaking.

“Public Speaking has always had a tremendous backlog,” Baker said. “It is possible that sophomores and juniors with priority scheduling have bottled it up.”

However, Baker noted that the root of this problem is the lack of Public Speaking courses offered, which winter and summer offerings have helped in recent years.

“Freshmen are not taking Public Speaking spots from sophomores,” Baker said, noting that most freshmen have not taken the prerequisites needed for Public Speaking. “One sophomore who has priority scheduling is taking the spot from another sophomore who doesn’t,” Baker acknowledged the quality concerns of some university professors over online public speaking classes, which the university has recently offered.

“My office also oversees summer school and I actually sat in on two or three student speeches, since they’re required to present to a small audience,” Baker said. “I actually thought the setup was kind of cool.”

Baker noted that priority scheduling is temporary, and that a student who discontinues any prioritized program will lose the right to schedule early.

SRU's retention rates have increased to 80 percent within past years Continued from Page A-1

She said that the creation of FYRST Seminar and the Living Learning Communities in the residence halls assist students with not only transition, but growth and development as well.

She said that over the years, the quality of the students has improved and the efforts that have been made have helped them succeed.

“We are one of only a few PASSHE institutions who have improved their retention rates to over 80 percent for the past five or six years,” Yale said. “Also, in comparison to national retention rates, SRU’s rates are above the national averages.”

Yale said that her office works very closely with incoming freshmen’s needs and uses strategic planning to satisfy those needs.

In addition to the creation of FYRST Seminar and LLCs, Yale explained that there has been an improvement

with advising for students, enhancement in technology with the improvements of self-ser vice websites and integration of social media in the classroom, which she feels also help students succeed at SRU. She also said that there is an expected new launch this summer for even further website improvements.

“We need to continue our efforts to intentionally and purposefully work campus wide with faculty, administrators, staff and students to continually consider what we are doing and how we are delivering these services now and in the future,” Yale said. “This means that assessment is incredibly important to these efforts as well as strategic planning.

SRU’s culture is very student centered and with that said, to be student centered, we always need to be focused on creating successful pathways to graduation.”

This is the first part of a three part series called 'The FourYear Myth.'

GRAPHIC BY KARLEIGH SANTRY

O

OPINION

Our View

Students abuse priority scheduling

OPINION rocket.letters@sru.edu Volume 98, Number 23

220 Eisenberg Classroom Building Slippery Rock University Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania 16057 Phone: Fax: E-mail:

(724) 738-4438 (724) 738-4896 rocket.letters@sru.edu

EDITORIAL BOARD Kevin Squires

Editor-in-Chief

Haley Barnes

News Editor

Katie Ellis

Campus Life Editor

Brian Hepfinger

Sports Editor

Alex Mowrey

Photo Editor

Andrew Conner

Web/Social Media Editor

Shelby Stearns

Copy Editor

Amber Cannon

Assistant News Editor

Janelle Wilson

Assist. Campus Life Editor

Ryan Barlow

Assistant Sports Editor

Rebecca Dietrich

Assistant Photo Editor

Emily Brown

Multimedia Reporter

Mark Zeltner

Faculty Adviser

ADVERTISING STAFF Karleigh Santry

Advertising Manager

ABOUT US The Rocket is published by the students of Slippery Rock University every Friday during the academic semester with the exception of holidays, exam periods and vacations. Total weekly circulation is 3,000. No material appearing in The Rocket may be reprinted without the written consent of the Editor-in-Chief.

The first copy of The Rocket is provided free of charge.

Additional copies may be purchased for 50 cents each.

The Rocket receives approximately 5 percent of its funding from the SGA Student Activity fee paid each semester by students. All other income is provided through the sale of advertising.

Advertising inquiries may be made by calling (724) 7382643 or by emailing rocket.ads@sru.edu.

GRAPHIC BY REBECCA DIETRICH / THE ROCKET

There are a variety of reasons that a student can obtain priority scheduling at Slippery Rock University, but students can easily abuse this system in a number of ways which we don’t think is fair. Members of the Honors Program, student athletes, students with disabilities and veterans have the opportunity to schedule before other undergraduates at the university and while we think all of these groups have reason to be allowed to schedule before other students, this privilege is easily abused.

For example, while no one is disputing that a student who is in a wheelchair should get to schedule around their specific needs, there are instances where a student could be registered with an anxiety problem and use that to their advantage to get their ideal schedule in a manner that does not relate to their disability at all.

We are not discrediting the impact of mental illnesses on students by any means, and there are definitely reasons why a student with anxiety would seek out the Office of Students with Disabilities so that they could schedule their classes

around the time they might have panic attacks.

But in our experience, we also see students who register as disabled, holding seats for students in other classes, or are freshman who use it take the last seat in public speaking, when seniors who have been vying the spot for years, are now unable to get into classes that they need.

What’s to stop a student who heard that students who register as having a mental illness get priority scheduling from going and registering as disabled for that very reason?

Another issue we have is with athletes getting priority scheduling.

While we understand the necessity of scheduling classes around practices and games, how often is it that athletes use priority scheduling merely to avoid dreaded 8 a.m. classes.

Instead, coaches should be able to communicate with athletes’ counselors so that they can be blocked into classes that are offered during the time they have games and practices, but not allow them to choose every class that meets their whim.

It’s inevitable that older

students will reserve classes for their friends who are underclassmen. When students who have priority scheduling reserve seats, it creates unfair advantages to students who have been waiting to take required classes and classes within their major, and can’t because the seats they wanted were taken up before they even got a chance to schedule.

The real issue here is a lack of regulation. There does not seem to be any monitoring of abuse of priority scheduling and even if they were to suspect a student of doing such a thing, it would be a difficult thing to prove.

Students receiving priority scheduling should be held more accountable to utilizing the service for their needs only, not the wants of their friends or as an opportunity to have a light and open schedule.

This could be accomplished by more discussion with academic advisors or closer monitoring of the priority scheduling use.

We hope that in the future this is a topic that is examined more closely by the administration with the best interest of all students at heart.

CORRECTIONS If we make a substantial error, we want to correct it. If you believe an error has been made, call The Rocket newsroom at (724) 738-4438. If a correction is warranted it will be printed in the opinion section.

In the Quad

SUBSCRIPTIONS Subscriptions to The Rocket are available. Subscriptions are $20 per academic semester and $35 for the full academic year. Inquiries should be directed to the Editor-in-Chief at the address listed here.

This week’s question: How do you feel about priority scheduling?

In the Quad is a segment in which random students, faculty and staff are asked for their opinions on a specific topic.

EDITORIAL POLICY The Rocket strives to present a diverse range of opinions that are both fair and accurate in its editorials and columns appearing on the Opinion pages. “Our View” is the opinion of the Editorial Board and is written by Rocket editorial board members. It reflects the majority opinion of The Rocket Editorial Board.

“Our View” does not necessarily reflect the views of Slippery Rock University, its employees or its student body. Columns and cartoons are drafted by various individuals and only reflect the opinions of the columnists.

LETTERS POLICY The Rocket welcomes letters to the editor and guest columns, but does not guarantee their publication.

The Rocket retains the right to edit or reject any material submitted. Submitted material becomes the property of The Rocket and cannot be returned. Anonymous submissions will not be published.

Those who submit letters must identify themselves by name, year in school, major and/or group affiliation, if any.

Please limit letters to a maximum of 400 words. Submit all material by noon Wednesday to: The Rocket, 220 ECB, Slippery Rock University, Slippery Rock, Pa. 16057. Or send it via e-mail to: rocket.letters@sru.edu.

Justin Murphy Junior, Athletic Training Major Kennitt Square, Pennsylvania

Kristen Zaitz Senior, Athletic Training Major Canyon Lake, California

“I think it’s unfair, there are some different ways that people get to schedule way early that aren’t even an athlete or have a disability. I think they should just give us a list of who gets to schedule when so we don’t find out that we’re last or something.”

“I think it makes sense for senors to register early because then you’ll have fewer classes you’re required to take.”

Sarah Bowser Senior, Athletic Training Major Fredrick, Maryland “I don’t think it’s a big deal.

Even if you’re a freshman, you’re eventually going to get classes you need throughout the year. People with disabilities need that priority scheduling.”

OPINION

B-2

April 17, 2015

Wage inequality remains problem in U.S. ago? Still women are earning about 22 cents less than men, and that isn’t accounting for the race wage gap, which can increase the disparity to over 40 cents. While 22 cents may not seem like a lot, in the big picture that means women earn over 11 thousand dollars less than men every year, and that is problem.

My concern is not only with the Victoria Davis disparity in pay but also the fact that Commentary I have heard more anger on campus about a bake sale promoting Equal Victoria Davis is a freshman Pay Day than anger about women English Secondary Education making thousands dollars less a year major from Pittsburgh, than men. As I have been promoting Pennsylvania. the issue on campus this past week I have gotten several responses from This past Tuesday was national students saying that if women want Equal Pay Day: a day that brings more money they should just work awareness to the differences in pay harder, but the idea that women between men and women, where a do not work as hard as men is woman earns approximately 78 cents outdated, wrong, and at the very core: to every man’s dollar. While I love that misogynistic. we have an entire day devoted to pay There are two main reasons for equity, I’m still a little confused on the gender wage gap. The first is why we need to have one. Didn’t JFK that men simply have higher paying sign the Equal Pay Act over 50 years jobs. While it is easy for some to

assume this is simply because men are harder workers, this just isn’t the case. From the start, women are typically offered less money when they start a job, putting them at an immediate disadvantage.

Furthermore, many women do not ask for raises or promotions because they are conditioned to think that they do not deserve them. When a man asks for a raise or promotion he is seen as ambitious or confident, whereas a woman asking for a raise or promotion is seen as pushy and aggressive. This all can be traced back to gender roles that make up the core of our patriarchal culture.

Even popular culture and media plays a part in this: the pushy female boss is a common stereotype in sitcoms across networks. The idea that women who know what they are worth and demand that to be expressed in their paycheck are pushy is an idea that is holding women back socially, emotionally, and economically.

The second main reason for

the gender wage gap is that even when women have jobs in the same positions or industries as male peers they are still paid less. Only 3 percent of the CEOs of the top 500 American companies are women, and even they are being paid less than their peers.

Recently women like Jill Abramson, former executive editor of The New York Times, have been making headlines as they rightfully call attention to the fact that they make less than their male predecessors.

In the case of Abramson, she claims she was even making less than a man who worked under her. Women like Abramson across the country are no longer putting up with being valued less because of their gender: a trend I hope to see continue to every industry.

While this year’s Equal Pay Day has passed, don’t forget to keep in mind that wage inequality is still affecting women everywhere. Check your privilege and check the facts because this doesn’t get better until we all insist it does.

4 struggles of having (and not having) a meal plan to live, instead of shelling out money to make sure that ramen isn’t their only food group.

2. Debit Cards People who use debit cards at Boozel

Janelle Wilson Commentary Janelle Wilson is a junior journalism major from Emon Valley, Pennsylvania and the assistant campus life editor of The Rocket.

1.The Meals Boozel for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner I mean, how many times can you walk from your dorm room to Boozel, only to have the same meal you’ve eaten since you arrived here? I get it, at first it can be appealing to scarf down a burnt Boozel burger for every meal, but that gets old fast, and when it does, you’ll have nowhere to turn to but the pasta bar, which is a solid six on good days.

Nothing for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner It can be easy to remember to eat three meals a day when they are prepaid meals, but when neither your food nor your rent are prepaid for, students will be more inclined to shell out money so that they have somewhere

When the line starts to wrap around the dining hall during common hour or breakfast and dinner rushes, you have no time to wait in line for those big-shot nonmeal planners to swipe their debit cards, and then wait an additional 10 minutes for it to process through. Why would you spend your cash at Boozel anyway?

Being the person who uses their debit card at Boozel.

“Please do not murder me.”

3. Flex Funds Trying to stretch your flex until the end of the semester.

your lifeblood. Now a non-meal planner, I miss the days when I could swipe away my money with my student ID instead of shelling out my hard-earned cash to consume a venti iced coffee within seconds. Long gone are the days when your coffee was topped with sprinkles and whipped cream, and Frappuccinos filled your Instagram feed. Who has the cash for that?

4. The Obligation Being forced to have a meal plan Isn’t it enough that you’re still living in the dorms after freshman year? What does Resident Life think they are, your parent and/or legal guardian? Being forced to have a meal plan when you’re a legal adult is equivalent to having a bedtime when you move back in with your parents after college. Though college students are usually looking for a quick fix when it comes to food, it’s easier to scarf down granola bars from under your bed than get out of bed and go walk yourself to Boozel.

Not being forced to have a meal plan

Between $5 drinks from Starbucks, buckets of wings from Quaker Steak and Lube and endless wraps from Rocky’s when you can’t eat one more Boozel burger, your flex can flare up faster than post-Weisenfluh heartburn.

Don’t forget to ask your cashier for a balance, you’ve probably only dollars left before you have to begrudgingly haul yourself back to Boozel, praying the whole way that the pasta bar has something good.

Wishing you had Flex to burn

While Boozel offers salads and fruit, your stomach (and bank account) prefer instead to fill up on mac and cheese bites (awkwardly raises hand). While the red baskets at Boozel don’t do a body any favors, living off of a diet of Bob’s Subs, Sheetz and MacDonald’s pack on pounds way faster than the Freshman 15. At least you can grab a banana from Boozel and pretend you’re going to eat.

Why spend $5 on a salad when you can spend $1 on a McDouble and call it a day? Yeah, I thought so.

If you’re like me, you go through coffee as though it is

Legalization of drugs, a better move than decriminalization his or her own consciousness.

Societies that have more lax drug laws end up having fewer drug abusers, addicts and underage users. It’s reasonable to assume that though the initial response to drug legalization may result in a brief, increase in use, ultimately are drug-abuser statistics will be as low as Joseph Szalinski Portugal’s or Amsterdam’s.

Commentary One commonly suggested alternative to legalization is Joseph Szalinski is a junior decriminalization. Though creative writing and professional a step forward in the right writing dual major from direction, it ultimately falls short.

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

For one, under Being an advocate for d e c r i m i n a l i z a t i o n , personal sovereignty, I fully individuals found with drugs support one’s decision to alter in their possession will not

immediately go to jail until they’re found in possession of a certain amount. Typically, in regards to Cannabis, this amount is around an ounce or so, in places like Oregon (before it was legalized for recreational purposes).

Receiving a fine instead of jail time can still be bad. Even with normal traffic tickets, people find themselves unable to pay them, and after they accrue, these people are sent to jail. A similar thing would happen with drugs Even worse is that no stores can sell decriminalized drugs.

Users still have to go through dealers and criminals in order to procure their substances. As we all know,

criminals are dangerous and are more concerned with profits than they are with someone’s safety. Drug purity is of no concern, and certain products can even be cut or altered.

Another downside is no tax revenue. Coloradoans made so much money, that after giving insane amounts to their educational system, they started giving money away! A nation in a recession should welcome the potential tax revenue. Another upside is not spending the insane amount of money on the War on Drugs. New drug-based businesses also provide new jobs.

Granted, drafting policies

for different classes of drugs is necessary, but we must reevaluate our opinions on drugs first.

We need honest and educated discussion, and we need money for studies.

Under legalization, we will have fewer kids able to obtain drugs and lower levels of abuse. A person’s health and safety will become a priority and we can address addiction as the health issue it truly is and not the crime that it is made to be. Decriminalization only substitutes problems for the ones we’re afflicted by now. Legalization is the only intelligent way to proceed.

B-3

April 17, 2015

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C

COMICS

Poppy

By Brooke Griffin

COMICS

Horoscopes Today's Birthday (04/17/15). Focus on fun at work and play this year. Discover (and generate) romance. Hone your skills and investigate a passion.

Release worn-out attitudes to raise your game.

An exciting collaboration flowers. Profits grow through communications. Make long-term plans for implementation after 6/14. Breakthroughs open new professional doors after 10/13. Get introspective after 10/27. Meditate on love.

Brooke Griffin is a sophomore communication major from Meadville, Pennsylvania.

Best in Show

By Phil Juliano

Brewster Rockit: Space Guy

By Tim Rickard

To get the advantage, check the day's rating: 10 is the easiest day, 0 the most challenging.

Aries (March 21-April 19) -- Today is a 9 -Postpone travel and expansion. Don't take risks or rush. Follow the routine. Make professional plans over the next five months, with Pluto retrograde.

Advancement on long-term projects seems slowed or suspended. Secure the ground taken. Revise career goals.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) -- Today is a 6 -- Don't let others make your decisions. Question authority. Get into scientific research and intellectual study over the next five months with Pluto retrograde. Review the data. Prepare reports. Plan an educational adventure for later in the year.

Gemini (May 21-June 20) -- Today is a 9 -- Fine tune shared finances over the next five months, with Pluto retrograde. Re-affirm and revise agreements. Review your investments and plan for growth. Research strategies for long-term gain. Consider advice from an elder. Grow family savings.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) -- Today is a 9 -- Assume new leadership. Review collaborative structures in a partnership. Refine techniques, strategies and procedures over the next five months, with Pluto retrograde. Reconsider habits and routines, and discover ways to refresh the spark. Schedule a break from regular responsibilities.

Leo (July 23-Aug. 22) -- Today is an 8 -- Explore today and tomorrow. Review and reaffirm your direction at work over the next five months, with Pluto retrograde. Make plans for action later in the year. Does your work feed your spirit? What would that take?

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) -- Today is a 9 -- Follow another's experience and avoid making the same mistake. Refine your winning strategies over the next five months, with Pluto retrograde. Make plans and calculations. Tune your instruments and prepare for a performance later in the year.

Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) -- Today is an 8 -- Talk with your partner. Stick with tested methods at home over the next five months, with Pluto retrograde. Make an inspiration folder with ideas. Research prices and confirm contractors. Plan a renovation or remodel for later in the year.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) -- Today is an 8 -- Re-send an important document. Chop wood and carry water.

Focus discussion around short-term projects over the next five months, with Pluto retrograde. Launch a major promotion later this year. Prepare plans and get your ducks in a row.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) -- Today is a 9 -- It's getting fun (and romantic) today and tomorrow. Find ways to earn more. Refine routines for efficiency over the next five months, with Pluto retrograde. Reassess your assets and develop what you've acquired. Learn from past successes.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) -- Today is an 8 -- Home comforts entice. The next five months are good for healing old wounds, with Pluto retrograde. Finish up old business. Release worn-out baggage. Review personal desires and alter course to suit. Plan a project for launch later this year.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) -- Today is a 9 -- Get the news out today and tomorrow. Revise and refine your practices for health and well-being over the next five months, with Pluto retrograde. Stick with the team you've got. Do what you practiced. Enjoy a retreat.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) -- Today is a 9 -- There's money to be made today and tomorrow. Over the next five months, with Pluto retrograde, secure what you've achieved. Do what worked before. Keep the current team roster. Prepare a community effort for later this year. (c)2015 BY NANCY BLACK DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE CONTENT AGENCY, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Bliss

By Harry Bliss

April 17 , 2015

B-5

S SPORTS

INSIDE SPORTS

Charlie Batch

Rock Lacrosse

Former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Charlie Batch speaks about overcoming adversity and how he would like to give back to the Pittsburgh community.

The SRU lacrosse team scores a season-high 19 goals in their win over Edinboro University Tuesday 19-6.

See Page C-3

See theonlinerocket.com

Softball blows out UPJ in doubleheader sweep

REBECCA DIETRICH/THE ROCKET

Senior second baseman Taylor Welch attempts to throw out a University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown runner during SRU's game against UPJ Monday. Welch had one hit and scored two runs in game one of a doubleheader.

By Brian HepďŹ nger Sports Editor

The Slippery Rock University softball team (11-15 overall, 8-8 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference) scored a season-high 14 runs Monday in game one of a doubleheader sweep against the University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown (4-20 overall, 4-12 PSAC).

Both games were blowouts, with SRU winning the first game 14-1 and the second 10-2.

The Rock's offense was in full effect in game one, with 11 batters having at least one hit, and nine of them scoring at least one run.

"We're an offense team and we hit the ball regardless of the types of pitching that we're seeing," Rice said. "The game is going to go up and done. We were struggling in games before and couldn't get those clutch hits. It's part of the game; sometimes everyone is swinging the bat well. It just happened to be Monday that we put it all together."

This was the second game in which the Green and White have played five innings. In the first instance, they lost 10-1 against Seton Hill University.

"I think it definitely helps and gives you a confidence, but you also have to be weary of that and not get complacent," Rice said. "When a team changes pitchers, anything can happen. We wanted to take that momentum, but we didn't want to get

complacent from that first game."

SRU struck first in the second inning, scoring five of their 14 runs. They then continued the offensive output in the third inning, scoring nine runs. Neither team scored after the third inning.

Junior shortstop Katie Kaiser (1-2), senior second baseman Taylor Welch (1-2) and junior designated player Stacey Herzog (1-3) all scored two runs each.

Sophomore pitcher Carly DeRose got the start for the Rock, earning her seventh win (7-7) of the season. DeRose struck out four UPJ batters, while allowing five hits and one run.

"One of the things we emphasize is limiting walks and starting out with first pitch strikes, SEE ROCK, PAGE C-2

Rock baseball splits doubleheader with Shippensburg

By Ryan Barlow Assistant Sports Editor

REBECCA DIETRICH/THE ROCKET

Junior first baseman Kyle Vozar tosses the ball to a teammate to complete an out during SRU's game against Seton Hill University Sunday.

The Slippery Rock University baseball team (20-15) split a non-divisional matchup with Shippensburg University (19-19) Tuesday night, cruising to a 12-2 victory in game one before losing 10-9 in an extra innings thriller in game two.

"When you play those midweek games, pitching is always limited," Rock head coach Jeff Messer said. "We always use our top guys and save them for weekend series, so it was good to see other guys out there. We fought well but you can't win them all, but getting a win from a good PSAC-East team is always welcome."

The Rock's offense struck first, as redshirt sophomore Logan Brown hit a two RBI single to right field in the first inning.

The Green and White capitalized on its early lead by scoring six runs in the bottom of the third,

beginning with a solo home run from senior Adam Urbania.

The inning continued with a pair of RBI singles from sophomore Carson Kessler and junior Jordan Faretta, a two RBI double from sophomore Ty Zimmerman and an RBI double by senior Jake Nogalo. Urbania added an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth, followed by freshman Tyler Walters scoring off of an error and an RBI double by Brown.

Freshman Alex Pantuso earned his second win as starting pitcher in game one.

Pantuso allowed just two runs on six hits, while striking out seven through five innings of work.

Senior Zac Anderson came on for relief in the sixth and stayed in for the remainder of the game. Anderson struck out three Shippensburg batters.

Coach Messer praised Pantuso for his performance.

SEE SRU, PAGE C-2

SPORTS

C-2

April 17, 2015

Tennis dominates home match against Clarion Doug Gilghrist Rocket Contributor

ALEX MOWREY/THE ROCKET

Sophomore Kylee Woodman volleys with an opposing Clarion player Tuesday as she cruised to a 6-0,6-0 victory in number six singles.

The Slippery Rock University tennis team kept their Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference playoff hopes alive by dominating Clarion University Tuesday, defeating the Golden Eagles at home 9-0.

The win moved the Rock's record to 10-9 overall and 3-2 in conference play. SRU currently sits in fourth place in the PSAC West division, behind Indiana University of Pe n n s y l v a n i a , Mercyhurst University and California University of Pennsylvania. The top three teams in each division will compete in the PSAC playoffs beginning April 21.

The Green and White began the day by winning the three doubles matches with relative ease. The number one doubles team of freshmen Carla Corrochano Moracho and Nina Barbano won 8-3, while sophomores Kylee Woodman and Stephanie Fortier took an

8-2 victory. The team of freshman Ana Petrovic and sophomore Emily Munson won 8-2 as well.

The win by Corrochano Moracho and Barbano was their 10th win as a team for the season.

The Rock continued their dominance in the singles matches. All six matches were straight sets victories, with the closest match being Fortier's 6-3, 6-3 win in the number four slot. Number three singles player, Petrovic, took a 6-2, 6-0 victory, while Munson, playing number five singles, only lost one game in each set, winning 6-1, 6-1.

Corrochano Moracho cruised to a 6-1, 6-0 victory in number one singles, as two very impressive streaks continued in the number two and six singles spots.

Number two singles player, Barbano, won her sixth straight singles match, by a score of 6-0, 6-0. This improved her singles record to a teambest 14-7 on the year.

Woodman, who also won a 6-0, 6-0 match, also continued her good play as the number six singles

player. She is now 5-0 since returning to singles play following shoulder surgery, with three of her five wins being 6-0, 6-0 shutouts.

SRU head coach Matt Meredith loves the way Woodman is playing right now.

"Kylee has played very well," Meredith said. "She is a competitor and has done a great job since coming back from her surgery."

SRU's next match is against West Virginia State University Saturday, where they will face a team with a record of 11-3 overall and 7-0 in the Mountain East Conference. The Green and White will need to have another strong performance, like they did against Clarion, if they want to defeat the Yellow Jackets.

The Rock is also fighting to get into the regional tournament at the end of the year.

"We have to beat West Virginia State on Saturday to have a shot," Meredith said. "But, at least we're under consideration right now."

Men's outdoor track finds success in second to last meet

By Brittany Fagan Rocket Contributor

The Slippery Rock University men’s track team secured 28 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference marks and two NCAA provisional marks at the Bison Outdoor Classic Last weekend.

“It was a good meet with very good competition, and we were able to go out there and showcase what Slippery Rock track and field has to offer,” junior thrower David Reinhardt said. “We finally had nice weather to compete in and the team is making big strides every day. We are looking forward for bigger and better things to compete as the season progresses.”

The meet began with the pole vault group.

Jordan Pacheco placed third overall with a vault of 4.95 meters. Pacheco was the first Division II athlete finisher in the event.

His vault is currently first in the PSAC and eleventh among all Division II vaults.

Michael Horrigan, Cody Colagrande and

Andrew Koksal followed behind in seventh, eighth and ninth place respectively.

The throw crew also had a good day at the meet, with David Reinhardt meeting the NCAA provisional mark in the javelin with a throw of 58.76 meters. He placed sixth overall in the event. Reinhardt also competed in the discus and took 20th with a throw of 43.50 meters. Nick Garuccio took 24th in the event at 41.31 meters. Reinhardt and Garuccio both competed in the hammer throw, placing 15th and 24th with throws of 49.0 meters and 46.73 meters. Jerrod Galloway rounded out the top throws in the shot put, taking 13th with a throw of 15.28 meters.

Hunter Williams started the sprints off with a personal record in the 400-meter dash placing seventh with a time of 46.71 seconds.

James Chandler and Monte Chapman also competed in the event, placing 12th and 19th with times of 49.10 and 49.64 seconds respectively.

Jacob VanHouten and Logan Mooney

competed in the 400-meter hurdles and placed sixth and 10th at 54.20 seconds and 55.32 seconds. Andrew Schroder also ran in the event, taking 21st with a time of 56.64 seconds. Erik Record and Brandon Vanderbrook took 16th and 17th in the 200-meter dash with times of 22.51 seconds and 22.57 seconds respectively.

The 4x100 meter relay consisted of Record, Vanderbrook, Chapman and Williams. The crew took sixth place with a time of 42.42 seconds. The 4x400 meter relay was run

by VanHouten, Williams, Chandler and Chapman. The men took third place and improved their personal best time. The time was 3:15.83, just off the school record of 3:15.00.

The middle distance and distance men finished off the last of the events on the track.

Tyler Palenchak and Tyler Melius competed in the 800-meter run and finished with times of 1:55.56 and 1:56.49. Melius also competed in the invitational section of the 1,500-meter run and ran a personal best of 3:55.97.

Ryan Thompson, Palenchak and Stephen Shephard competed in the unseeded heat of the 1,500-meter and finished with times of 3:57.46, 4:00.04 and 4:00.80. Thompson took 12th in the run. Jeremy Parsons competed in the 5,000-meter run and finished with a time of 15:05.25. Charlie Frank also ran in the 5,000-meter run and finished with a time of 15:20.58. Theo Reynolds ran in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and took 18th overall with a time of 9:47.30.

Jaron Martin rounded out the distance events with a personal best in the 10,000-meter run with a time of 31:27.33.

“Overall, we had a good weekend,” SRU head coach John Papa said. “We finally had some good weather and we had a lot of new people reach qualifying marks and had numerous personal bests.”

The Green and White is set to compete in their last home meet of the season Saturday at the Dave Labor Memorial Invitational.

The Rock will compete at the PSAC meet in less than two weeks.

SRU unable to overcome Rock offense and pitching Raiders in extra innings leads team to pair of victories Continued from Page C 1

"Alex has big potential," Messer said. "It's a confidence booster, especially for a freshman. It's not whether a team is gonna beat Alex, it's whether he ends up beating himself. He's potentially a big time pitcher for us."

Slippery Rock used four different pitchers in game two, starting with freshman Stephen McKee. McKee pitched four innings, allowing five runs on nine hits.

He was replaced in the fifth inning by sophomore James Divosevic, who allowed two runs in one inning of work. Redshirt junior Geoff Sanner entered the game in the sixth inning and remained in the game for four innings as the game moved into extras.

Sanner did not allow any runs and gave up just one hit with three strikeouts.

Senior Anton Constantino entered the game in the 10th inning, giving up three runs and allowing the Raiders to take a 10-7 lead heading

into the bottom of the inning. He was credited with his fourth loss of the season.

Redshirt junior Kyle Vozar hit an RBI sacrifice fly in the second inning to put Slippery Rock on the board in game two, and later hit a two RBI single in the third. Walters hit a two run home run in the the third inning, and Nogalo added another two run home run in the sixth. Junior Alex Bell hit a two run double in the bottom of the 10th inning.

SRU returns to action Friday, as it begins a four game home and away series with Clarion University (7-20).

"We are heading into this series with big expectations," Messer said.

"Going in, we'd love to win four, but we have to take it one game at a time and hopefully we get the best effort from our players. It's always difficult to win all four games no matter who you are playing, but we have the talent and we are going to be ready."

Continued from Page C 1

and she's really had great focus," Rice said.

"While you're seeing more success from her on the mound, when you limit those walks and let your defense work, you're going to get the outs and be more successful."

Freshman pitcher Brooke Dawson earned her fourth win (4-5) of the season in game two, pitching a complete game. Dawson allowed five hits and one run, while striking out four UPJ batters.

"Every day she's getting better, trusting herself and she's not over-pitching," Rice said. "A lot of the problems we saw with her early on in the season was a little bit

of self doubt in her capabilities. Now she's starting to trust her pitches, and with her being a lefty, she's got some different tools that a lot of hitters and teams aren't used to seeing."

The Rock's offense once again dominated, with seven batters having at least one hit. Kaiser (2-3) had one RBI, while junior third baseman Ashley Samluk (3-2) scored two runs and hit three RBIs. Senior right fielder Alaynna Beers (2-4) scored two runs and hit two RBIs. Sophomore designated player Caitlin Baxter (3-4) scored two runs as well.

"Any time your team plays at the level they can and not down to the

competition and keep their focus, it's definitely impressive," Rice said.

"After struggling on Saturday and Sunday, we were able to come back on Monday, bounce back and get two very important wins to clean the slate and stop that losing streak."

The Green and White's next game is against Indiana University of Pennsylvania (1012 overall, 8-4 PSAC) Saturday in Indiana, Pennsylvania at 2:30 and 4:30 p.m.

"We need as many wins as we can possibly get," Rice said. "Every team is different the second time through, and you can see that in their record. They're definitely a different team, but so are we."

April 17, 2015

SPORTS

C-3

Former Steeler speaks about adversity

By Ryan Barlow Assistant Sports Editor

The Student Union of Multicultural Affairs (SUMA) brought in former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Charlie Batch Tuesday at the Advanced Technology and Science Hall auditorium to speak to students about overcoming adversity and his experience with teammates who come from different backgrounds.

"We decided to bring in Charlie Batch because he is from the Pittsburgh area and he gives a lot back to his community," SUMA Historian Taylor Scales, who organized the event which allowed Batch to speak at the university, said. "Having played professional football, he was in a diverse environment. There were people who were different than him, didn't walk like him or look like him, but they were all part of the same team and worked together on the field."

In his presentation, Batch talked about the "Best of Batch Foundation," an organization which he began in 1999 while he was still a member of the Detroit Lions.

The foundation's goal is to improve the lives of children and families in distressed situations by building character, self-esteem and appreciation of their community. Having been a part of the Steelers organization for 11 seasons and growing up in the Pittsburgh area, Batch was motivated to build on the foundation in the area, although he was still a member of the Detroit Lions when it was formed.

"It was always important for me to be in Pittsburgh while we were building our programs," Batch said. "I love to be hands on. I don't just put my name on something and then decide I'm not going to be there. Being able to play so close to home allowed me to be very involved and probably allowed us to grow a lot faster than other organizations would be able to."

Batch also expressed how it is important to him to be able to come to Slippery Rock and universities to reach out to students about his organization

EMILY BROWN/THE ROCKET

Former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Charlie Batch emphasizes the importance of having five important people in your life, and relates them to the offensive line positions.

and the importance of education.

"If you play sports, eventually it will be taken from you," Batch said.

"Whenever that day arrives, it's always important to have an education to fall back on."

Other than talking about his foundation, Batch also spoke about his journey to the NFL and how important it was for him to become a role model for children in the inner city of Pittsburgh. While attending Eastern Michigan University, Batch received a phone call from his mother which notified him that his sister had been killed in a gang related shooting back

at home. Instead of seeking revenge on anyone who may have been involved, Batch used his anger as motivation to become the first person in his family to receive a college degree, and eventually go to the NFL and build an organization which helps kids stay off of the streets.

After 13 years of development, the Best of Batch foundation annually services 3,300 kids across five different counties in the Pittsburgh area.

SUMA's goal is to unite different cultures and eliminate campus diversity through a series of events which allows students to express their cultures and share with others.

Scan this QR code to watch an online video covering Charlie Batch's trip to Slippery Rock. Watch exclusively on theonlinerocket.com

Women's outdoor track finishes with four NCAA marks

PHOTO COURTESY OF JOHN PAPA

Junior Cassaundra Swartzbaugh competes in 400-meter hurdles during the Bison Outdoor Classic at Bucknell University.

By Cody Nespor Rocket Contributor

The Slippery Rock University women’s track and field team traveled to Lewisburg, Pennsylvania this past weekend to compete at the Bison Outdoor Classic. The meet, hosted by Bucknell University, provided the team another chance to see how they match up with some strong out of conference competition.

The Green and White performed well as a whole, reaching 24 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) qualifying marks. There were also several strong individual performances, as four women reached the NCAA provisional qualifying mark. SRU head coach John Papa sees this kind of performance as one of his team’s major strengths.

“Our strength is that we have outstanding performers in all the event areas. Sprints, relays, throws, distance, jumping,” Papa said.

“We have a decent amount of depth as well.

We can overcome some injury problems or other issues.”

The meet was highlighted for the Rock by several top ten finishes and the four national marks. Junior Sam Taylor was one of the standouts on the weekend, finishing first among collegiate athletes and second overall in the javelin throw. Taylor’s 46.35 meter throw was just shy of her season best and was over the national qualifying mark.

Winning a couple of awards form the event was junior jumper Ashley West. West earned both the SRU athlete of the week and the PSAC field athlete of the week awards for her second place finish in the high jump.

West cleared 1.71 meters, currently the eighth best jump in the nation and good for another national qualifier. Joining West was fellow junior Paige Kassab, who finished in 10th place and beat the conference qualifying mark with a 1.61 meter jump.

Kassab also earned a conference qualifier in the long jump, coming in 13th place with a 5.21 meter jump.

Also beating a national qualifying mark was freshman Courtney McQuaide who cleared 3.72 meters and finished in fifth place.

Sophomore Megan Matrisciano cleared 3.27 meters, beating the conference standard and coming in 18th place. With a 51.06 hammer throw, senior Brittany Christiansen earned her third NCAA provisional mark.

Christiansen has also set a new program record at SRU in the hammer throw this year with a 53.36 meter throw that currently ranks as the 19th best throw in the nation.

“Brittany has done a great job with the hammer throw. She has improved each year, Papa said. “This year all the hard work and the little things that she has done over the course of the past four years is translating to her outstanding performances.”

The final field PSAC qualifying mark was hit by freshman thrower Anna Frengel.

Frengel reached the conference mark in the

shot put with an 11.84 meter throw.

On the track, junior Jasmine Bailey reached multiple PSAC qualifying marks in both the 200-meter and 400-meter dashes.

Bailey finished in 12th place in 25.19 seconds in the 200-meter and fourth place in 56.85 seconds in the 400-meter. Joining Bailey in reaching the PSAC mark in the 400-meter was sophomore Lauren Harvey (59.38), freshman Aerial Dukes (59.82) and freshman Josette Dawson (59.9).

With a 13th place finish, Senior Janine Powis lead a pack of runners who earned a PSAC qualifier in the 800-meter run.

Junior Jenny Picot and freshman Tessa Dombi earned conference qualifiers in the 5,000-meter run. Picot finished in 13th place with a time of 17:22.74 and Dombi finished in 18:31.53. In the 10,000-meter run graduate student Stephanie Beaudette hit the conference mark with a time of 37:53.32.

Junior Casaundra Swartzbaugh (1:04.87) and freshman Katie Teed (1:05.45) reached the PSAC standard in the 400-meter hurdles while freshman Sophie Mazza (15.75) hit it in the 100-meter hurdles.

The final qualifying mark on the day was reached by sophomore Kaylee Haberkam in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Haberkam finished the event with a time of 11:58.36.

The Rock will return home next week to compete at the Dave Labor Memorial Invitational for their second of two home meets as they move ever closer to the PSAC championships.

“I think that since our PSAC Championships are during the last week of class and right before finals week, it is significant challenge to balance the PSAC Championships and finals week,” Papa said.

"Our student/athletes need to start preparing now by getting ahead with studying and other yearend projects all the while preparing for a significant challenge of competing at the PSAC track and field championships. With this being said, our athletes must focus and be ready to give their best efforts.”

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April 17 , 2015

Fall classes closed?

Think summer school

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CAMPUS LIFE

INSIDE CAMPUS LIFE

'Insurgent' Hits The Silver Screen

Fashion Gives Back

The second book of the 'Divergent' trilogy recently got the Hollywood treatment when its stars came together to film 'Insurgent.' Was the movie worth all the hype? Read on!

Students from Rock PRoductions create a side venture for those interested in fashion called "College Dress Relief." The site features looks of the day and gives to charities.

See Page D-2

See Page D-2

Ben and Jerry's co-founder talks ice cream, social justice and business

ALEX MOWREY/THE ROCKET Jerry Greenfield, co-founder of Ben and Jerry's, spoke to students about the foundation of the company and how it became a nationally recognized brand, their philanthropic efforts and how his partner, Ben Cohen, comes up with new flavors for the brand.

By Kevin Squires Editor-in-Chief

At 13 years old and in their local gym class, the two “fattest, slowest” students running the track would become best friends and the future co-founders of Ben & Jerry’s. Jerry Greenfield knew that he would become friends with Ben Cohen when he heard Cohen exclaim, “Gee coach if I couldn’t run the mile in under seven minutes the first time, I’m certainly not going to run it in under seven minutes the second time!” after having a coach push him to run a mile in under seven minutes.

Greenfield introduced the company’s history, how they became a nationally recognized brand and the importance of social justice in business when he addressed students as part of the University Program Board’s (UPB) event at Slippery Rock University Tuesday in the ballroom of the Robert M. Smith Student Center.

After a series of odd jobs, failures and a $5 correspondence course at Penn State University, the duo was ready to enter the ice cream business.

“We started in Vermont because we began with a homemade ice cream parlor, we wanted to find a place with no other ice cream parlor,” he said.

Greenfield said that everywhere that was warm already had an ice cream parlor. He was fine with having a place that had no competition because he “had no idea what he was doing.”

“We didn’t have a lot going for us,” Greenfield admitted.

The company became a spotlight of national news after HaaganDazs, which had been recently

purchased by Pillsbury at the time, was threatening to stop allowing businesses to sell their ice cream if they sold Ben & Jerry’s.

The company went after what Greenfield described as “the most beloved mascot of any food mascot in America” and he began the “What’s the Doughboy afraid of ” campaign with a one-man picket line, protesting the injustice Ben & Jerry’s was experiencing.

Eventually the campaign exploded with national attention and a win for the small business, HaaganDazs agreed to stop trying to hinder distribution of Ben & Jerry’s. In time, the ice cream was sold across the country.

GETTING A SCOOP OF THE ACTION Against the advice of their business advisors, the two men sold public stock in the company in an effort to avoid traditional business growth and maintain their ethical views and values.

“Normally public offerings are reserved for so called sophisticated investors that have several thousand dollars. That’s not what we were looking for. We were looking for our neighbors. We advertised it in the first section of the newspaper right next to the clothing ads and the supermarket ads,” Greenfield said.

With a $126 minimum purchase, one of every 100 families in Vermont became owners of the company. Later, national stock was sold with the promise of the Ben & Jerry’s foundation, a charitable group aimed at giving back to the community.

business lends a hand also, ” he said.

BETTERING THE WORLD Criticized by the media for WITH BROWNIES “cynically trying to manipulate customers into buying more ice cream With the foundation in place, by doing good deeds,” Greenfield Ben & Jerry’s worked to integrate defended that “our actions are based social and environmental concerns on deeply held values.” He said that into the business in addition to the this philosophy is one that provides foundation. great benefit to the company.

One way this was addressed was “It provides added value to the through purchase of brownies from company. It’s a unique selling Greyston Bakery. The bakery has proposition that helps with recruiting an open door hiring policy, and, employees; it helps with retaining according to Ben & Jerry’s website, employees; and best of all it helps “anyone that comes through the front with customers,” he said. door of the bakery is given the chance “As we help others, we can’t help but to work, regardless of educational being helped in return,” Greenfield attainment, work history or past said. “For business and people, it’s all social barriers, such as incarceration, exactly the same.” homelessness or drug use."

“Simply by purchasing those “MANY ARE COLD, FEW ARE brownies from Greyston, we’re able FROZEN” to support the work that they do,” Greenfield said. He added that last “Most new flavors don’t make year the company purchased more it,” Greenfield said. He later added than $8 million worth of brownies that some of both his and Ben’s from Greyston. Ben & Jerry’s favorite flavors were retired because recently decided to follow a 100% they failed to sell. There is a flavor fair trade agreement. There are also graveyard with all the old flavors on no genetically modified organisms in the company’s website, but where do their products. the flavors come from?

“I think it’s important for any “In the old days, Ben used to come company to be not just looking out up with all the flavors," Greenfield for making as much money as you can said. Flavors including Cherry Garcia but to be looking out for the general and Chunky Monkey were customer welfare,” Greenfield said. “Ben & suggestions, and The Tonight Dough Jerry’s happens to be interested in was inspired by a Jimmy Fallon skit. social justice, but business is really He said that when public figures are the most powerful force in our selected for featuring they often have country and it’s not sufficient for some influence on the flavor. businesses to say our purpose is to “We want them to like the flavor,” make money.” Solving social and Greenfield said. environmental problems is an issue UPB members served Cherry for businesses as much as it is on the Garcia, Chocolate Chip Cookie hands of an individual, according to Dough, Chocolate Fudge Brownie Greenfield. and Americone Dream flavors to “We’re never going to solve social those in attendance following and environmental problems unless Greenfield’s presentation.

CAMPUS LIFE

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Ask Andi

Film adaptation of 'Insurgent' strays from novel, confuses fans of the science-fiction trilogy

Andi is a senior at SRU giving advice to those who seek it and occassionally to those who don't.

Question: Dear Andi,

I've been spending a lot of time with my best friend's boyfriend lately because we're in a group together for a class project. There are two other people in the group with us, but he seems to find an excuse to meet up with me early or stay late to work with me on a part of our project. I can't deny that we've had a few 'moments' when we've been together, and he's definitely attractive, but he's my friend's boyfriend. I don't want anything to happen that messes up the friendship that I have with her or him. What can I do to steer things back to the friend-zone?

Sincerely, Resisting Romance

Answer:

Dear Resisting Romance,

I think the best way to approach this situation is slowly stop hanging out with him as much.

If he asks to come early or stay late to help with a project, just say that you don’t need the help. Make up any excuse you can so that you don’t develop any more feelings for him. This could put all three of you in a really awkward situation and it could hurt all of you. If you do actually need his help, it’s not just a time for you two to hang out. Maybe only hang out with him in public places and more in the middle of the day. This way you two might act differently towards each other, and then it’s seen more as schoolwork and not hang out time. I think that making those changes could work, but if not, your safest bet would be to just stop talking to him as much. It might hurt at first, but someone else will come along!

Hope things work out!

Andi

Question: Dear Andi,

I recently celebrated a birthday, and so did my old best friend from high school. Our birthdays are actually five days apart, and for the first time ever, she didn't text me to wish me a happy birthday. She just wrote on my Facebook wall, which I was a little upset about, but I guess we're more like acquaintances now, so I can't be too upset. Then by the time her birthday came around, I honestly got so busy that I forgot to get in touch with her, which I feel so bad about, despite the status of our friendship. Should I still get in touch with her to say that I hope she had a nice day, or should I just forget about it? I feel bad that she made an effort on my day, and that I didn't on hers.

Sincerely, Birthday Blues

Answer: Dear Birthday Blues, I think it would be nice if you did. Just explain what happened and I’m sure she’ll get it. We all have busy lives in college with homework, clubs and organizations, socializing, etc. Things happen but there’s no reason you can’t apologize and tell her that you were thinking about her. I think it’s nice to get texts from people saying that they’re thinking about you, whether it’s for her birthday whether it’s late or not. The fact that you feel bad about missing it and not saying something shows that you care. If you didn’t care, you wouldn’t be asking me about this, so I would just say go ahead, apologize for missing it and tell her that you hope she had a good day. It can’t hurt!

It’s better late than never!

Andi

April 17, 2015

Harmony Kasper "The Film Buff" Harmony Kasper is a senior journalism and creative writing major and film and media studies minor and a regular contributor to The Rocket.

I saw “Divergent” before ever picking up the book. I knew people that had read the series and raved about how good the books were. Some people even liked them more then “The Hunger Games.” I saw the first movie, really liked it and figured why not read them?

Let's just say I couldn't put the book down. Now I am currently on the third book, “Allegiant,” but I’m more invested in the films. After seeing the closeness of the first film and book, I knew I had to compare “Insurgent” to its popular young adult book.

Let's just say, the two books couldn't be more different, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Actors from the film have quoted that the changes in the movie were necessary to tell Veronica Roth's story on screen. “Insurgent” stars Shailene Woodley (“The Secret Life of the American Teenager”) as Tris Prior and Theo James as Tobias "Four" Eaton. Ansel Elgort (“The Fault in Our Stars”) portrays Tris' brother, Caleb Prior.

The film also includes the returns of Kate Winslet as Jeanine, the enemy of Tris and Four and Miles Teller as Peter, the annoying Dauntless who gives Tris

a tough time. Some new actors to the film include Octavia Spencer, Naomi Watts and Daniel Dae Kim. The film begins where the first left off; Tris, Four and Caleb are on the run for their lives. They hide out in Amity territory until they are discovered and are once again on the run. They end up taking shelter with the Factionless, whose leader is Four's mother, Evelyn (Watts).

Tris and Four decide they can’t stay, and take off for Candor where the other Dauntless are. At Candor, they agree to be subjected to truth serum to prove their innocence in the simulation attack (happened in “Divergent”) and Tris reveals she killed their friend, Will.

Meanwhile, Jeanine (Winslet) has discovered a mysterious box in the Prior’s home that she believes holds the message to living in a faction society, given by the founders. This box does not exist in the book, but makes for an interesting motive for Jeanine to come face to face with Tris.

After killing multiple Divergent, it's discovered that Tris is the only one that can open it. Back in Candor, it's decided that the Dauntless and Factionless will come together to build an army to fight Jeanine and her men.

Tris sneaks out one night and heads to Erudite to turn herself in after Jeanine has programmed Dauntless to commit suicide. Tris is strapped down and the process of her opening the box begins. While there, she finds out that Peter (Teller) and her brother Caleb (Elgort) work for Jeanine.

Four comes to rescue Tris, but is captured. Peter injects Tris with a serum that makes it look like she has died from the simulation of opening the box. All three attempt to escape Erudite, but Tris wants to find out what is in the mysterious box. She straps herself to it again and undergoes the simulation, where she fights "herself" and wins.

The Dauntless/Factionless army

comes to the rescue and the message from inside the box is played on every monitor inside the walls. It's of a woman from outside the wall, explaining that this was all an experiment and Divergent were the key factors in saving civilization. Everyone begins to run for the wall and hopefully see the life they have been missing out on. The final scene is Evelyn shooting Jeanine in the back of the head.

Packed with action, romance and death, “Insurgent” appeals to many ages and both genders. For fans that only saw the movies and did not read the books, you're going to love it. For fans who did both, you're going to love it, but will be really confused.

The mysterious box is almost the main plot of the story, but doesn't exist in the book. Other changes occur, like Tris being 100 percent Divergent (all five Factions) instead of just being three. Johanna and Marcus (Four's father) are barely in the film and they had larger roles in the book. Four and his mother, Evelyn, get very close at the end of the book, worrying Tris. In the film, Four still doesn't trust his mother.

No matter the changes, the film is another blockbuster hit amongst young adults and will only fuel the fire for the release of the third film, “Allegiant: Part 1,” which will be released March 18, 2016. The final film, “Allegiant: Part 2,” will be released March 24, 2017.

Splitting the final book into two films is typical now in Hollywood, following the footsteps of “The Twilight Saga,” “The Hunger Games,” “Harry Potter” and “The Hobbit.” Some argued that this was unnecessary for some of the book to film adaptations because they don’t contain enough material to be two movies. I haven't finished “Allegiant” yet, so I can’t make that determination, but I am confident that the popularity of “The Divergent Series” will only continue as the last two films are released.

Fashion bloggers use website to connect with student body and raise awareness

Katie Ellis "ROCK'n Fashion" Katie Ellis is a senior journalism major and the Campus Life editor of The Rocket.

Philanthropic outreach, student involvement and fighting poverty don’t typically come to mind when thinking about fashion, but the minds behind College Dress Relief (CDR) are on a mission to make fashion accessible for students all while trying to make a difference in the world.

Junior public relations majors Danielle Wetzel and Lexi Caccese, both 21, met through Rock PRoductions and bonded over their love of fashion, but found there was a lack of opportunities on campus to become involved with something fashion-centric. They created CDR as a way to combine fashion and Public Relations and to give students with the same interests the chance to join their team. Wetzel and Caccese also created the site to get some experience in the field, and to serve as a resume boost to help them break into the industry.

“Especially for fashion PR it’s so important to have some experience in the fashion world, which is something that we learned at the conference we went to,” Wetzel said. “When I was a freshman and even a sophomore

I didn’t know what I wanted to do, and you can do so much with PR, and we wanted to give students more opportunity to experience and explore their interest in fashion.”

Wetzel and Caccese recruited 10 students from Rock PRoductions to join their team who had the same appreciation for fashion, and were also interested in event planning, blog writing and social media. The team’s focus is what sets them apart from other fashion blogs, because while trends and student style are important features on the site, the members of team CDR are also focused on sustainable fashion and finding ways to give back. They’ve become campus representatives for nonprofit FashionABLE, an organization dedicated to bettering the lives of women living in poverty in Africa, and have started their own initiative happening in the quad on Earth Day, Swap Don’t Shop, where they plan to raise funds for Planet Aid and clothing donations for Goodwill.

“Students will bring in their clothes which we’ll donate to Goodwill, and we’ll give them a swap ticket for each item of clothing they bring in which will allow them to shop the already donated clothes,” Caccese said.

“One swap ticket equals one item of clothing, and each person can receive up to 10 tickets. If they don’t have clothes to donate, they can buy tickets to shop with instead.”

T h e i r p ar t n e rsh ip w it h FashionABLE and their Earth Day event show how they plan on using CDR as a platform to spread awareness of social issues and as a way to fundraise for charities. Wetzel and Caccese would like to host more events in the fall, like a fashion show, in order

to break down some of the stereotypes associated with the fashion industry.

“We wanted to give back and have a community relations aspect of our site,” Wetzel said. “There’s so many fashion blogs that just show pictures of people’s outfits and there’s always a stereotype with fashion that’s materialistic and vain. We wanted to show that fashion can help better and change the world.”

Aside from keeping students updated on fashion news, informing their readers on how to get celebrity looks for less and spotting the sartorially inclined students on campus, CDR’s founders are checking the social media accounts of their favorite bloggers and industry insiders.

Earlier this month, they attended a conference in New York City hosted by two of their favorite insiders Danika Daly and author of “Ready to Launch: The PR Couture Guide to Breaking into Fashion PR: How to Begin a Successful Career in Fashion Public Relations,” Crosby Noricks, where they were given firsthand advice from experts on topics from how to break into the business to how fashion shows operate to how PR agencies work.

Style and Communications Director of Keep, Dria Murphy, and social media strategist Cannon Tekstar also made appearances at the event and shared how they transitioned from college to starting their careers working in fashion New York City, which is a career path that both Wetzel and Caccese would like to follow.

Both have aspirations of working for agencies, while Caccese plans on using that as a stepping stone to starting her own business and following in the footsteps of her favorite bloggers.

April 17, 2015

CAMPUS LIFE

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Urban Gaming Club places 11th at Pennsylvania State University's Humans vs. Zombies Invitational

PHOTO COURTESY OF JARED BONAMINIO From left, Patrick McDermott, Shaheer Delaney, Derrick McCain and Aristotle Piso in last year's Humans vs. Zombies game

By Janelle Wilson Asst. Campus Life Editor

Slippery Rock University’s chapter of the Urban Gaming Club travelled with five members to Penn State University’s Humans vs. Zombies invitational last weekend, an event that garners hundreds of people from different schools each year.

Sophomore political science major, Jared Bonaminio, 21, travelled to Penn State University to participate in its chapter of Urban Gaming Club’s sixth annual invitational, where they took 11th place.

Bonaminio joined the Urban Gaming Club three years ago, and has been to both Ohio State University and Penn State University’s invitationals in the past.

“There’s one thing you have to understand

about Humans vs. Zombies, and that is that zombies always win,” he said.

President of UGC and senior public relations and creative writing major, Aristotle Piso, 23, said that in comparison to their game, which lasts nine days, the invitationals are boiled down to two days, which amplifies their intensity.

“I recall one invitational at Penn State, where we were at an intersection, and zombies were coming from at us from every direction,” Piso said. “We all hid in the bushes between the pathways, and when the zombies found us, we all took off in different directions, and although we didn’t see each other for hours, we ended up making it through the entirety of the game.”

Piso said that the most common misconception about their game is that it’s nerdy and for a niche group.

“Everyone has something different they can bring to the game,” Piso said. “Whether it’s stealth or speed, it gives everyone the opportunity to play up their strengths. It also gives adults the opportunity to have fun outside with their friends.

Bonaminio said that unlike Penn State’s game, SRU’s Humans vs. Zombies match is undiversified.

“In Penn State, there are nerds, athletes and fraternities and sororities who get involved with the game and have a blast,” He said. “I’d really like to see more of that here. We’d like to get 100 new people so that we can make that diversification happen.”

In order to move toward that diversification, Piso worked hours on amendments to UGC’s rulebook, which included two types of missions instead of one. Bonaminio also said that the group has added special infected, which is based off of the videogame, Left 4 Dead, and a segment based off of Nazi Zombies, to appeal to Call of Duty players.

Piso also said that he’d like to reach out and involve more clubs in game making decisions for UGC. “We’d like to start up quidditch again, and will be in touch with the club Dumbledore’s Army soon,” he said.

The official Humans vs. Zombies game will take place from April 20-29 after night classes, and a recommended introductory meeting will take place tonight from 8-10 p.m. in Advanced Technology and Science Building 132.

Student-developed apps win scholastic challenge

By Kelsey Phillips Rocket Contributor

Three SRU entries placed in the mobile and web categories in the Future POS Second Annual Scholastic Challenge at Butler County Community College on Saturday, April 11.

Future POS is a point of sale software design company specializing in the hospitality industry and judged local high school and college student entries on creativity, difficulty, graphics and user interface. This year, Future POS continued to award scholarship money to all category winners.

First place in the mobile and web categories received $3,000, second place received $1,500 and third place received $750. Future POS has also offered participants paid internships that have led to full-time positions in the previous competition.

SRU’s Computer Science Department students have consistently ranked in the top three for both the mobile and web categories.

The winning app in the mobile category, Common Squirrel Runner, was designed by SRU students William Botzer, Zachary Petrusch and Steven Zamborsky with guidance from Mr. Hongbo (Bernie) Zhou, associate professor of computer science.

“The game features a squirrel who runs indefinitely up trees dodging a variety of obstacles which include bee hives, bird houses, forest fires and poisonous mushrooms,” Zamborsky, a junior computer science major and information technology minor said.

While brainstorming ideas for a game, the team was following the parody Twitter account Common Squirrel, which ultimately led to the squirrel being the main character of their app.

“We discussed adding mechanics to make this a more fullfledged game such as the obstacles,” Zamborsky said. “We really liked that the concept could be targeted at all ages and decided that the game's learning curve should be as short as possible to ensure that people of all ages could enjoy it.”

Winning first place in the web category was Ronald O’Dell, Eric McAlpine and Jacob Dunn with their personal financial tracking application, “Wallet.” Wallet allows users to input their spending habits and produces a line chart so one can visualize their spending trends over time, team member senior computer science major and information technology minor, Ronald O’Dell, said.

After SRU won first place last year, the team was motivated to make sure it happened again, according to O’Dell.

CASEY SQUIRES/THE ROCKET William Botzer, Zachary Petrusch and Steven Zamborsky test their app, Common Squirrel Runner, at the POS Scholastic Challenge.

“We want it to be something we never lose,” he said.

Senior computer science major and member of the web team Eric McAlpine also shares his team’s hope that SRU continues to take home the gold in the Future POS competition.

“We really enjoy working as a team and developing software beyond the classroom, as it really enforces what we learn, as well as allows us to learn so much more,” McAlpine said. “I feel that SRU’s Computer Science Department is encouraging students to live up to a higher standard and making [winning the competition] a very reachable goal,” he said.

Although the competition has ended, the team plans to continually make improvements on the app by expanding the length of the tracking, adding prediction software and implementing an achievement system to “game-ify” the app and keep users motivated to improve their finances, McAlpine said.

Nic Hawley, a freshman computer science major, entered

the competition independently and won second place for the mobile category developing a “fast-paced platformer for Android devices,” he said. The project took about a month to create and the next step is to make it available on the app store, Hawley said.

As far as other projects he is working on post-competition, Hawley is working with the Oculus Rift and Unity Engine software on immersive games and utility applications, he said.

Common Squirrel Runner is available to download on the Google Play Store and Wallet can be found at http://granite. sru.edu/~rbo1234/wallet/splash.html.

While some of the team members will be graduating this spring, they still want to see the Future POS competition become a staple of SRU’s Computer Science Department, according to O’Dell.

“New ideas for next year are already being discussed and planned, and recruits to fill our spots are being scouted,” he said. “I want to see SRU take first for many years to come.”

D-4

April 17, 2015