Digital Edition 11/20/15

the rocket

Friday November 20, 2015 • Volume 99, Issue Number 11 • An Independent, Student-Run Newspaper

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Senate candidate brings progressive views to SRU John Fetterman shares tattoos, education and experience at town hall

By Chris Gordon Assistant News Editor

Fighting inequality is John Fetterman's mission. Shown by the work shirts he frequently dons, this mayor of Braddock, Pennsylvania has spent the past 10 years of his career applying a hands-on approach to building the recovering Pittsburgh suburb "back up." Now, he's entered thee Democratic te, hoping to primary for United States Senate, on get to work for Pennsylvanians the federal level.

"I don't consider myself a politician," Fetterman told the crowd at a townippery Rock hall meeting he hosted at Slippery nsider University Monday night. "I consider myself cs to achieve a social worker who uses politics community goals." me aware of Fetterman said he first became oined the "lottery of birth" when he joined the Big d received an Brothers Big Sisters program and ts were dying eight-year-old boy whose parents of AIDS as his "little." e?" he "Why was I so lucky in life?" it asked. "The way I grew up, was hy expected that I go to college. Why should this young boy have two dying parents and so fewer opportunities less than eight years into his life?" pted This experience prompted Fetterman to peruse a graduate degree from dy School of Harvard University's Kennedy hen enlist in Public Policy, he said, and then gram, which AmeriCorps, a civil society program, lead him to Braddock, where he started a GED program.

"I'll never get used to the idea of an 18-yearvel," he said. old reading at a fifth grade level," t "Every child deserves to start out with certain ." opportunities available to them."

Fetterman said he decided to run for mayor when two of his GED students were gunned down and killed.

"I wanted to have an impact on the issues that weren't being addressed," he said. "I'd like to think I carry the same banner today as I did 10 years ago and that's why I'm running for Senate."

During the town-hall, Fetterman discussed a host of issues with those in attendance, ranging from education to foreign policy.

On education, he said he believes the United States should move from 12 years of guaranteed schooling to 16.

"I believe there should be free or drastically reduced tuition at public universities," Fetterman said. "A tax on Wall Street would be one way to pay for this, but in this country we have always found ways to pay for the things we want and believe in."

When discussing the minimum wage, Fetterman said he is a strong supporter of moving to a living wage of $15 an hour and that he believes paying workers less than that is "un-American."

"We're going to be paying for it somehow," he said. "Prices might go up at Walmart, but, when

"As a small town mayor, I don't receive benefits," he said. "I get a $150 paycheck once a month, but I don't even keep that. I write it off to someone who needs it."

Fetterman said he believes healthcare is a basic human right and that the Affordable Care Act's future will be limited by Republicans who have voted 63 times to repeal the law without offering an alternative solution.

Speaking on immigration reform, Fetterman, whose wife was once an undocumented immigrant, said immigration is America's backbone.

"I believe there should be a clear path to citizenship for the 11 million people who are in this country undocumented now," he said. "Immigrants commit crimes at a

drastically lower rate than the native-born population and they take on the jobs in this country that most people don't want. It's a myth that immigrants are stealing jobs from Americans."

Fetterman said that when his wife's family came to the United States, all they wanted was a better life.

"My mother-in-law worked 12 hours a day and never received any kind of government assistance," he said. "The contribution that she's made to this country has been an incredibly positive one."

Fetterman said that those who argue for mass deportation and the elimination of birthright citizenship base their claims in fear and racism alone.

SEE CANDIDATE PAGE A-3

their workers are paid a decent wage, they won't be on public assistance or food stamps."

When asked about healthcare, Fetterman called the Affordable Care Act a "great piece of legislation" and indicated that, without it, he and his wife would be uninsured.

KENDALL SCOTT/THE ROCKET

John Fetterman bears his forearm, revealing tattoos of the dates of Braddock deaths.

SRU faculty to continue work following healthcare disagreement

Township proposes sound, nuisance ordinances to limit community disturbances

By Amber Cannon Campus Life Editor

By Chris Gordon Assistant News Editor

Slippery Rock University's faculty union rejected the state system's Nov. 6 contract proposal over healthcare concessions that were not asked of any other university employee union.

Ben Shaevitz, the president of SRU's Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties (APSCUF) chapter and a professor of physics at the university, said five other university employee unions received contract extensions from the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) without healthcare concessions.

"It's unfair that we should have to take on more for healthcare while the other unions don't," he said. "I don't know why the state didn't ask the other unions for concessions too."

APSCUF submitted a contract proposal to PASSHE on Oct. 14, which was rejected without explanation on Nov. 6, Shaevitz said. PASSHE issued a counter proposal the same day, which APSCUF immediately rejected.

SEE APSCUF PAGE A-2

The Slippery Rock Township supervisors held a meeting Tuesday evening to discuss and hear public comments about two proposed ordinances that will manage and control outdoor amplified sound systems and nuisances that create disturbances among the Slippery Rock community.

Supervisor Paul Dickey said the ordinances came about because of the amount of parties that have gotten out of hand at the student housing complexes.

Township Solicitor Wil White explained what the sound ordinances mean, and how students will be affected by them.

If the ordinances are approved, the host of the gathering or the property owner hosting the gathering is said to become a “nuisance” and will be issued a fine of no less than $500, but no more than $1,000. The host will also be obligated to reimburse the cost of the responding services that arrived at the event. If the host is the one who called about the gathering getting out of hand that host will not be subjected to a citation.

In order for one’s gathering to be defined as a nuisance, it must be comprised of at least 10 people and two or more prohibited acts must take place at that gathering, such as loud noise, disturbance of the peace, littering, criminal mischief, open lewdness, possession of a controlled substance, fights, public drunkenness, public urination and illegal sale and consumption of alcohol.

The ordinances would be put in place starting at 10 p.m. Friday through Sunday. This ordinance will not apply to political and religious gatherings.

SGA Vice President of Financial Affairs, Michael Farrah said in order for the sound ordinance to become clearer, there needs to be a specific decibel level of how loud the music can actually be until a gathering is labeled a nuisance.

White said the ordinance isn’t set to a specific decibel level because there’s always going to be noise and nobody can control that.

Farrah opposed this statement and said that if a student was outside and listening to the radio, and if someone decided that they didn’t like the music that this student was playing and they reported this student for their music, he questioned if there was a chance that this student could be cited for being a nuisance.

White said the music being too loud isn’t what triggers this ordinance, but whether or not there is an outdoor event going on and whether the event is using temporary outdoor amplified sound systems.

“Think of this from a business perspective,” White said. “If I’m a business and I want to have a sale outside with flashing strobe lights and maybe some amplified sound to draw some attention to my sale, you need to apply for a permit and you can do that Sunday through Thursday between the hours of 10 a.m. and 10 p.m. and on the weekends from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m.”

Irreverent Comedy Rock Football Wins Conference Helps Society A Rocket staffer comments on how offensive comedy can help open sensitive discussions.

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Slippery Rock defeats West Chester 61-12 to win its second consecutive PSAC Championship Page C-1

SEE ORDINANCE PAGE A-3

"Wild 'N Out" Laughs With SRU Entertainers from the television show played games and did skits for students.

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NEWS

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November 20, 2015

Criminology, criminal SGA grants $10,000 to wind ensemble club justice program ranks nationally

By Haley Barnes News Editor

By Mandy Feldbauer Rocket Contributor

Slippery Rock University's criminology and criminal justice program was recently ranked in the Top 50 Best Value Criminal Justice Programs of 2016 by Value Colleges.

According to Value Colleges' website, “The department of criminology and criminal justice offers a bachelor of arts degree, from a group of scholars and experts who have ambitions to make Slippery Rock one of the premiere criminal justice schools in the northeast.”

Patrick Harvey, chair of the criminology and criminal justice department at SRU, agrees with the testimony on the website.

“I think it’s the level of commitment and even diversity that we exhibit within our department in terms of faculty expertise, faculty interests and research, not just demographic diversity, although I think we have a good share of that too," Harvey said. "We are a group of professionals that bring a passion to what we do, and I think what we do is exciting and we exhibit that in our classrooms.”

Harvey explained that the department brings in real world expertise.

Harvey continued to explain how SRU was able to maintain some of the part-time faculty that brings in this experience even in times of budget crisis.

“I think it’s a direct reflection of the hard work that our [faculty] does here,” Harvey said.

Tessa Haneline, senior criminal justice major, said it is "pretty cool" that the program ranked nationally.

"It makes our money worth the degree,” she said. “Multidisciplinary studies are forcing us to look at different perspectives of the criminal justice system.”

Tom Webster, senior criminal justice major, said he is grateful to be in a position that allows for such fantastic educational advancement.

“I like that the university employs professors that have field experience," Webster explained. "These professors are able to convey useful information and ideas that students will be able to use for the rest of their careers."

Carrie Sealey-Morris, editor of Value Colleges, stated that there were over 500 different programs in the initial list which then was narrowed down to 50.

“Programs were then ranked by our formula mainly using these three metrics," Sealey-Morris said. "Payscale’s 2016 college salary report, U.S. News and World Report’s 2016 Criminal Justice rankings, and tuition rates as reported by each individual college.”

Harvey is very proud to be the chair of a department with such advances.

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

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The Slippery Rock Student Government Association passed the motion to grant the wind ensemble club $10,000 Monday night to bring in a series of four musicians with headlining tubist, Roger Bobo, during the spring semester.

Junior music education major and treasurer of the wind ensemble club Emily Brumbaugh said that the money would bring in Bobo, Tucker Jolly, Travis Scott and Ed Zadrozny, and would cover the collective fees, transportation and lodging for the artists. She said that all of the artists would offer a combination of recitals, concerts, guest lectures and master classes to students during the spring semester. She said each concert will be open to the community and possibly ticketed to offset the costs.

She said Bobo is an internationally known tubist and head of brass pedagogy, who has taught in Japan, Italy, Switzerland, England and many other locations around the world.

"Have we all seen Star Wars," she said. "Indiana Jones? Superman one and two? Frankenstein? Roger Bobo is basically John Williams on-call tubist, so having his name here at Slippery Rock would just be such a major [piece] for our students and our campus."

Brumbaugh added that Bobo has collaborated with many artists like Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett.

Michael Farrah, Vice President of Financial Affairs, explained the breakdown of what each artist will be charging.

"Roger Bobo will be requesting $4,000, Travis Scott is requesting

$2,000, and Tucker Jolly and Ed Zadrozny are requesting $1,000," Farah said. "Eight thousand dollars out of the $10,000 is going to the honorariums."

He said within the finance policies that SGA does provide funding for lodging and transportation of guest speakers and artists as well, as all four artists are requesting a collective total of $2,000 for transportation and lodging.

"I think we should fund the entire thing," Farrah said. "Art programs, especially band programs, there has been lot of funding cuts throughout the year, especially within the past five to 10 years and it's starting to hurt the culture of the United States and I think this is one chance that we as a senate could say that 'Hey, we want to stick up with the band and bring in these top artists' and these are really good deals on their own, so I think that $10,000 is going to be well worth the investment."

Director of bands and assistant professor of music Jonathan Helmick said Bobo is offering a discounted price to SRU. He said Bobo alone could easily charge $8,000-$10,000 to appear at the event.

Jessica Johnson, Vice President of Student Affairs, said bringing these four artists to SRU would be a great advertising mechanism for the university.

Johnson also advised all members of SGA, as well as students, to attend the Tuesday night Slippery Rock Township meeting at 6:45 p.m.

"So essentially the township has created this ordinance that in my opinion targeting college students specifically and this was created to combat large parties and so they made this ordinance about noise and

disturbances and how to go about solving this problem," Johnson said.

"They are going to charging people for public nuisance at a gathering, and a gathering by their standards is 10 or more people."

Johnson said if the state police are called to an off-campus housing location, that everybody on the lease and the landlord will be charged $500-$1,000, regardless of everyone on the lease being at the location or not. She said this is a problem because this ordinance could create a double jeopardy issue for students and double jeopardy is in the bill of rights, as a person can't be for the same crime twice.

SGA faculty advisor Itzi Metzli said students should be concerned because students live at Slippery Rock nine out of the 12 months of the year and this could really affect them.

President Logan Steigerwalt announced the problems that other Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) universities are facing, as the budget has not been passed. He said that some students at East Straudsburg University were not able to register for their spring semester classes.

SGA also granted $280 to Pi Kappa Alpha and $588 to Phi Beta Sigma.

Steigerwalt also said SGA is celebrating Project Positivity Week at SRU throughout the week.

Farrah announced that Rock Apartments Senator, Blake Kramer, was awarded the SGA scholarship of $500.

The meeting was adjourned at 10:13 p.m. The next and last SGA meeting of the semester will be on November 30 at 8:45 p.m. in the theater of the Smith Student Center.

APSCUF president keeps possibility of strike in mind Continued from Page A-1

As a result, SRU's faculty will continue to work under the terms of the expired contract, Shaevitz explained, but since a new contract was not agreed to, coaches and professors will go without a raise.

"We only asked for a modest pay raise, the same as was in PASSHE's proposal," he said.

Annual raises for faculty are determined by a "step system," in which salaries increase by 2.5 percent each year, which is less than the annual increase in the cost of living, Shaevitz noted.

"All we asked for was one step and the equivalence of a step for those at the top of the ladder," he said.

APSCUF also asked for a one-time personal development fund of $25,000, which would allow professors to attend conferences with students, bring in guest speakers and conduct student/faculty research, Shaevitz said. "$25,000 is actually a very small amount of money for the state system," he said.

Shaevitz said APSCUF intended to provide PASSHE with a reasonable deal in light of the state budget crisis.

"We don't actually want a one-year

contract," he said. "We proposed the oneyear extension because of the budget impass in Harrisburg. Realistically, a one-year contract means we have to get back to the table very quickly."

A standard three-year contract usually takes between one and two years to negotiate, Shaevitz said, indicating that the current situation is normal.

These contracts act retroactively, however, meaning a three-year contract would "begin" at the time the previous contract expired and would not last three years from the date of the agreement, he explained.

Though he couldn't rule out the possibility of a strike, Shaevitz said it would be very unlikely for APSCUF to vote in favor of one and that any faculty that would individually walk off the job would be going "AWOL" and would not be supported by the union.

"A strike would only happen if the state broke off talks," he said. "I don't think the faculty likes the idea of a strike. We're committed educators."

Shaevitz concluded that, even in the event of a strike, university management would have the right to keep classes in session by other means.

"Realistically though, a strike has never happened," he said.

NEWS

November 20, 2015

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POLICE BLOTTER Campus November 12- Rachel Tuthill, 18, was charged with an alcohol violation after being transported to the hospital by ambulance.

Borough November 6- Devaughn Smith was arrested for driving under the influence of a controlled substance. Charges are pending following a toxicology report.

November 6- Devin Murphy was cited for disorderly conduct and disorderly house after being found under the influence of

alcohol and possessing drug paraphernalia.

November 7- Scott Rumbarger was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol. Charges are pending following a toxicology report.

November 7- Alan Chambers was arrested for robbery along Spruce Drive.

November 13- Zachary Morton was arrested for public drunkenness at Sheetz.

November 14- Joseph Carlisle III was cited for disorderly conduct for the possession of marijuana.

November 14- Jolissa Price was cited for disorderly house following an alcohol violation.

November 14- Florent Murtezi, John Jenkins and Jesse Woods were cited for disorderly house along Cornish Drive for alcohol violations.

November 15- Michael Cunningham was cited for underage drinking and disorderly house after being found under the influence of alcohol and scattering rubbish along South Main Street.

November 15- Joshua Crawford was cited for disorderly house in the parking lot of Giant Eagle following an alcohol violation.

November 17- Tannor Williams was cited for misrepresentation of age after trying to buy liquor with a fake ID at the Fine Wine and Spirits store.

November 17- Shawn Dewitt was cited for disorderly house following an alcohol violation along South Main Street.

Compiled by Chris Gordon

Candidate honors homocide dates through tattoos Ordinances pending Continued from Page A-1

On the topic of violence, Fetterman, a gun owner, said he advocates for reasonable guncontrol laws.

"If I were to sell you my car, I would have to show you my drivers license, proof of insurance and many other things, but if I were to sell you a 44-Magnum, you could hand me $150 in cash and I could say 'here you go,'" he said. "I don't think that should be legal."

As mayor, Fetterman, who tattoos the dates of Braddock homicides on his arm, said he personally invests in the safety of his community.

"I patrol with my officers all the time and I pay out-of-pocket if I feel we need more patrol," he said. "I'm proud to say Braddock hasn't had a homicide in six and a half years."

When discussing LGBT+ rights, Fetterman, who officiated one of Pennsylvania's first same-sex marriages even before it was legal, said this minority group needs more legal protection.

"The second you let the country deviate from the idea that all people are created equal you run into trouble," he said. "LGBT+ people are still victims of harassment, bullying and discrimination and I think that's disgraceful and something we need

to take up legislatively."

Fetterman said he also believes legislation should be enacted to prevent gender and sexual identity from being an aspect of employment decisions and that banning samesex adoption is based in prejudice rather than research.

Regarding the environment, Fetterman, who was selected by the Environmental Defense Fund in 2009 to push the idea of carbon caps, called the concept a "conservative" approach.

"The idea is that companies would have to buy permits on the amount of carbon they can release and they would have to trade if they needed to release more," he said.

Moving to clean sources of energy would also be good for American businesses, Fetterman said, indicating that a windmill has 135 parts all of which could be made from American steel.

Fetterman addressed what he called "environmental racism," in which multi-lane highways are more likely to be built through poor, African-American communities, rather than wealthier communities, and they result in higher asthma rates and pollution in the affected area.

"They tried to build one of these highways through my community

and I found that appalling," he said.

Discussing foreign policy, Fetterman said the United States should not put troops on the ground in response to the recent Paris attacks.

"Of the 143 people running for president on the Republican side, not one will stand up and say invading Iraq was a good idea," he said. "I believe there are better ways of doing things."

On the Senate race, Fetterman said many politicians act like telemarketers, spending hours on the phone asking people for money.

"I decry the transactional nature of what it costs to run for office," he said. "I've raised more money than my opponents, but I've poured it back into my community rather than using it to run a political campaign."

One member of the crowd asked why Fetterman would leave for the Senate if he was still needed in Braddock.

"I would never take a job in the public sector if I couldn't call the people of Braddock my constituents," he responded. "I can only do so much as a mayor, but a senator has a lot more power to get things done. I'm not moving anywhere, Braddock is where I intend to live the rest of my life."

final decision Continued from Page A-1

This permit can only be used by businesses once per month.

SGA Commuter Senator, Lainna Garrow, combated this statement and said the sound ordinances are completely focusing on the apartment complexes surrounding the Slippery Rock area.

“They are spinning it to make it about making the community a safe and healthy place, but if you think about it, we are the only township that doesn’t have police,” Garrow said. “It takes about 20 to 30 minutes for the [state] police to arrive.”

Garrow questioned how the township differentiates between what’s a sound ordinance and a health issue. She said in most cases, the health issue begins before the sound ordinance does.

“How does [the township] decide what’s a health issue versus a party, when you have to walk to The Grove without lights to get to a party,” Garrow said. “What is it going to take for them to get lights?”

Executive Director for University Public Relations Rita Abent said the university’s job isn’t to comment on Slippery Rock Township matters, but to make sure the students of Slippery Rock University are well informed on what the township supervisors discuss at these meetings. Abent said she was delighted to see students at the township meeting who have read and asked questions about the ordinances.

In terms of the sound ordinance, Abent said the Slippery Rock community is looking at the broader context in terms of businesses that disturb the peace later at night. She said it’s the township’s responsibility to make sure Slippery Rock residents are safe.

The Slippery Rock Township will hold another meeting on Monday, Nov. 23 to discuss the ordinances further and to possibly pass the bill.

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O

OPINION

Our View

Ordinance will end ‘Mega Parties’

OPINION rocket.letters@sru.edu Volume 99, Number 11

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 Janelle Wilson

Editor-in-Chief

Haley Barnes

News Editor

Amber Cannon

Campus Life Editor GRAPHIC BY KENDALL SCOTT / THE ROCKET

Ryan Barlow

Sports Editor

Rebecca Dietrich Shelby Stearns

Photo Editor Copy/ Web Editor

Victoria Davis

Assist. Copy/Web Editor

Chris Gordon

Assistant News Editor

Emma Pfeifer

Assist. Campus Life Editor

Cody Nespor

Assistant Sports Editor

Kendall Scott

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 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.

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.

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.

Ordinance helps borough Ordinance is unnecessary

The parties at apartment complexes have recently become a problem within our community. The complexes’ parties have encouraged underage drinking, led to students being hurt and there is technically nothing we could do about this problem, until now, that is.

Some Rocket staffers have agreed that the parties were doing more harm than good, and the new ordinance could prevent these parties from happening. The ordinance has several conditions surrounding what constitutes a fine.

This includes using an amplifying system outside, and then says that the gathering must be over 10 students. This is not all, though, as people who are attending parties must be exhibiting some lewd behavior in order for the person responsible to receive a fine.

Under this ordinance, students would be free to have parties outside with amplification systems, but as soon as the partygoers began exhibiting inappropriate behavior, then it would be shut down.

Typically, people who hold parties at their homes are careful about having people outside in the first place, so as not to attract police attention. It doesn’t seem as though the intent of this ordinance will be to shut down house parties, though if your party gets to the point where more than 10 people are outside exhibiting lewd behavior, it would’ve been shut down anyway, even without the ordinance.

This ordinance will hold apartment complex managers accountable for the type of behavior that is exhibited at their parties. Underage drinking and excessive drinking occur at these parties, and then when the party is over, the students attending are left to fend for themselves. I don’t think we have to explain why this is a problem.

If apartment complexes think that it is necessary to host these parties, then they will have to pay. This is not a crazy request, and we’re glad action is being taken.

For a college town, Slippery Rock is a quiet place. We have one bar, exactly zero clubs and the parties here clear out at the mere suggestion of police. On rare occasion, a local apartment complex will host a “mega party,” drawing a large attendance, but leaving little impact on the community. Therefore, some staffers on The Rocket feel that the two sound ordinances currently proposed before the township seek to remedy a problem that does not exist.

For instance, when “Pig Roast 2k15” and the University Village’s block party made the news, noise complaints were never listed as a concern. The Heights and the University Village sit in fairly isolated areas of the town, so it’s hard to believe that Slippery Rock locals were genuinely bothered by them. Considering the township has expressed a desire to ban “mega parties” in the past, we can only assume these ordinances are a round-about way of doing so.

It’s true that these parties garnered a fair amount of police activity, but the injuries that occurred at the Pig Roast could have happened anywhere and the block party’s alcoholrelated incidents, 29 in all, accounted for .005 percent of the 6,000 estimated to have been in attendance. The news stories these events generated had shock value, but a look at the facts, including police reports and eye-witness accounts, will show that “mega parties” are frequently well-regulated by the complexes that host them and are, overall, fairly safe. If the township hopes to ban “mega parties” to promote safety, we suggest they just be honest about it.

What’s more concerning is that the language of these ordinances could effectively ban any party with some type of outdoor amplification. If a party has more than 10 guests and at least two prohibited acts occurring, such as underage drinking or littering, which realistically, are commonplace, the host can be fined between $500 to $1,000 and must reimburse police for responding. Sorry Slippery Rock, no Labor Day cookout next year.

To conclude, we suggest the township review the facts.

Students make up two-thirds of Slippery Rock’s population; we’re the ones that are affected by the lack of a police force in the township and the lack of a sidewalk and lighting leading to The Grove. If safety is the goal, let’s talk about those issues, because noise and students who are just trying to enjoy the weekend aren’t the real problems. These ordinances will leave us with a boring town at no one’s benefit.

In the Quad

This week’s question: Do you think that the SRU Students Twitter account represents students?

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.

Jamé Reese Freshman Criminology Major New Kensington, Pennsylvania

“I think it does, it gives you information about things that go on around here.”

Lindsay Darcangelo Freshman Political Science Major Johnstown, Pennsylvania

Joe Rahn Freshman Chemistry Major Sharon, Pennsylvania

“No, it’s not really beneficial to me. If I wanted to see my friend’s tweets, I would follow their account.”

“If they opened it up to other majors, it would be better.”

OPINION

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QUESTION OF

November 20, 2015

Posts about veterans undermine the Syrian refugee crisis

THE WEEK @SRURocket

Dylan Vamosi Commentary Dylan Vamosi is a secondary social studies and anthropology major

Irreverent jokes open the door for discussion

Janelle J ll W ll Wilson il Commentary Janelle Wilson is a senior journalism major and is editor in chief of The Rocket

The war of political correctness wages on in our country. Some people argue that political correctness is a necessity, and helps people feel included and respected. Others see it as a harbinger of the end of free speech.

I fall on neither end of the spectrum, but somewhere in the middle. Political correctness has its merits, but when people are politically correct to the point that they do not, and will not, encourage discussion, or the opportunity to teach, then it becomes an issue.

We are becoming a more politically correct society as a whole, aware of every possible thing that might offend people.

In the midst of the discussion on political correctness enters comedian Anthony Jeselnik.

Jeselnik is a Pittsburgh native who became famous for his

highly irreverent and dark stand up routines.

Last month he was featured in an article by the New York Times that commented on his televised stand-up act that was shot in San Francisco. He said that he chose to shoot there specifically because it was the most politically correct city in the world.

No subject for him is off -limits, and it adds another element of discomfort to the inherent tension that his style of comedy creates.

He makes jokes about death, gender, race, religion and even tragic events like the Holocaust and 9/11.

Jeselnik’s stand-up is not my favorite, but what he’s doing with his comedy has merit.

He has crafted a persona that is expected to be irreverent, even cruel. He tweeted a joke about the Boston Marathon bombing almost immediately after it happened. His audience knows what to expect when they purchase a ticket for his show, and he often gets away with saying whatever he wants.

However, this treatment is only given to comics who tout themselves as irreverent.

Were a mainstream comedian who wasn’t known for their irreverent humor say something even slightly offensive, he or she would immediately be a target for backlash.

Comedy should be a forum for free expression, especially because people will always be

more receptive to opening a discussion if it is presented in a humorous way.

Irreverence, so long as it does not discriminate, is beneficial because it levels the entire spectrum of gender, race and religion and makes no one higher than the other.

If a comic is able to make fun of men and women equally, then it makes neither sex have the upper-hand. Likewise if he or she makes fun of Catholicism and Buddhism, then no one can be offended that he or she has singled out one specific group.

The biggest strength of irreverent comedy is that it demands critical thinking. The group that is being poked fun at may question their worldview after coming under question.

There is nothing wrong with challenging your own perceptions, and comedy can make you more receptive to confronting flaws in your belief system. People like to laugh at themselves, and laugh at things that are part of their everyday life.

In the event that someone is seriously offended by something that a comedian says, then they can open discourse about it with their friends and family.

No one wants to read an article about someone else’s dissenting opinion, but if it’s presented in the form of a joke, then they would be open to discussing it as opposed to an opinion in a serious medium.

Colleges shouldn’t censor students’ printed materials

Joseph Szalinski Commentary

Joseph Szalinski is a senior creative writing and professional writing major

A few weeks ago I was printing out a copy of my essay for my creative nonfiction class.

It chronicled my travels to and in China back in 2010. Pictures were included in the essay; one such picture was of me in front of a few marijuana plants. In place of the page the picture was on, was a substitute page, with the words, “content warning: illegal attribute”, written on it. The printing of the remainder of my essay was cancelled as well.

I was actually kind of amazed that the printer could process that kind of information, as were the people I told, especially since the picture was in black and white. No smoking was included in the picture; just me in front of some plants. Not only was it a hassle for me to

edit and reprint the essay, but also the picture really brought the piece together. I was a little bummed out, to say the least.

Excuse me, but I thought we were in college.

We’re all adults who are trying to better prepare ourselves for the real world. Cannabis is something most of us have been familiar with since high school. The picture was of me, at 15 years old. If I could handle that kind of content at that young of an age, then surely I can handle it now, at 21.

As well prepared adults, we must recognize that different cultures have different cultural norms. We are citizens of the world. After all, it was a travel piece about my experiences.

It would be wrong and untrue to omit part of my journey. It’s not that challenging of an idea; I didn’t even condone drug usage in my essay. And the most ironic thing is that the printer that’s responsible was in the University Union, right by the theater classrooms. Theater, at Slippery Rock, is one of the most openminded departments and it is shocking that their printers are so heavily censored.

To be fair, I hadn’t tried other printers after that, but it’s worth looking into. It’s still a little disheartening that a university heavily censors students putting out personal and creative work. We should be able to freely exchange ideas and experiences; this incident is not helping with that.

Reactions to disastrous events like the Syrian refugee crisis have become increasingly predictable and asinine. One reaction in the form of a meme for this particular crisis is to the effect of “We are aiding Syrian refugees?” What about our homeless veterans? We must take care of them first.”

I am sure you or your peers have posted something to this extent online within the past week. The problems with this type of criticism, however, is that it intentionally marginalizes international laws regarding refugees, and it logically collapses upon itself when one considers the many other problems the United States faces internally.

When one issue becomes especially pressing, others arise to compete. Recent efforts by U.S. governors to reject the settlement of refugees in certain states reflects a broader impulse to neglect international obligations in favor of local interests. What governors do in policy, we do in memes.

Per the UN High Commissioner on Refugees, refugees are “people for whom the denial of asylum has potentially deadly consequences.”

Since 1951, refugees have had rights to asylum, personal liberties, and equal treatment almost universally recognized by international law. To betray these rights now would be inconsistent with how we have agreed to treat refugees.

The problem of homeless veterans is a deplorable and ultimately destructive example of how the United States neglects those who have selflessly fought on the front lines of war.

What is damning about criticisms like the aforementioned meme, however, is not the important problems they address, but the issues they consciously marginalize.

Just because addressing homeless veterans is important does not mean it takes precedence over internationally established law that every United States president has endorsed since 1980 (per the U.S. Department of State).

Furthermore, this same juxtaposition can be applied to any of the United States’ internal problems whether it be maltreatment of prison populations, the poor, etc. “Why do we pay attention to x when we can pay attention to y?” The attempt to neglect the Syrian refugee crisis, however, does not make its severity any less pressing.

Therefore, do not conflate plight brought upon by the United States’ unique politics with an entirely separate interpretation of how refugees must be treated. Issues such as homeless veterans and Syrian refugees do not have to be in conflict, but that is what has happened.

Wendy Mitchell of Patch.com perfectly captured this tribal mentality with her opinion piece: “Help 50,000 Homeless Veterans Before Helping Syrian Refugees.”

Why, however, would we stop helping one to exclusively help the other?

You do not like the way your veterans are treated? Me neither. However, do not marginalize those with international right to asylum in an attempt to shift the conversation.

Blame the backdrop politics which have allowed such issues to exist originally.

Disclaimer The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the various authors on The Rocket opinion pages do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of The Rocket or The Rocket staff

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COMICS Sharing Stalls

By Molly Huey

COMICS

Today's Birthday (11/20/15). Friends empower your game farther and faster this year. Keep momentum and money flows with ease. Stash some aside. Fun and romance sparkle this springtime, interrupting your peace. Community efforts build steam next autumn, impacting your home life. Play together for your heart.

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 7 -- Long distance communications improve for about three weeks, with Mercury in Sagittarius, so expand your territory. Travel beckons, but could get complicated.

You could struggle today, with Venus square Pluto.

Take the shortest route. Charm someone.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) -- Today is an 8 -- Saving money comes easier, with Mercury in Sagittarius. For about three weeks, set long-range financial targets.

Keep track. Don't overlook family obligations. Don't spend it all on a romantic whim. Love may seem far away. Nurture yourself.

Molly Huey is a freshman dance and communication major from Warren, Pennsylvania

Best in Show

By Phil Juliano

Brewster Rockit: Space Guy

By Tim Rickard

Gemini (May 21-June 20) -- Today is an 8 -- Rely on your team. Over the next three weeks, with Mercury in Sagittarius, the competition's extraordinarily fierce. Support each other and work together.

Get expert coaching and listen carefully. Ignore petty grievances and pull together. Place above expectations.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) -- Today is a 9 -- Create and discover efficiencies. It's easier to figure out professional solutions for the next few weeks, with Mercury in Sagittarius. Your work gets more interesting. Organize your home office for comfort.

Iron out wrinkles in written material.

Leo (July 23-Aug. 22) -- Today is an 8 -- Share your passion for the game. It's easier to express your love for the next few weeks, with Mercury in Sagittarius.

You're especially persuasive, and lucky with words.

Talk about beauty, truth and goodness.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) -- Today is a 7 -- Fix up your place. Over the next three weeks, with Mercury in Sagittarius, focus on household renovation. Talk over options with housemates and move things around. Resolve an issue that's been bugging you.

Communication unlocks doors.

Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) -- Today is a 7 -- Begin a three-week intensive study phase, with Mercury in Sagittarius. Your curiosity intensifies. Write reports and investigate assumptions. Consider ethics and consequences before acting. Guard against duplication of efforts. A potentially great idea needs work.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) -- Today is an 8 -- Money flows both in and out over the next three weeks, with Mercury in Sagittarius, so take care. The more you do, the more you're in demand. Keep fulfilling a vision, and your confidence inspires productivity.

Give thanks.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) -- Today is a 9 -- For the next three weeks, with Mercury in your sign, you have the mental advantage. Ask probing questions and discover. Listen to improve your skills and talents.

Strengthen your communications infrastructure.

Allow yourself some poetic license.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) -- Today is a 7 -- Learn from your dreams. Enter a three-week philosophical and spiritual phase, with Mercury in Sagittarius.

Ancient secrets get revealed. A female offers a solution. Listening is more powerful than speaking.

Focus on nurturing health. Contemplate beauty.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) -- Today is a 7 -Competition or romance? Enjoy a three-week social phase, with Mercury in Sagittarius. Group activities go well. Confer with others and discover hidden truths. Show appreciation for the work of your friends. You have what others want.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) -- Today is a 9 -- Professional opportunities abound. Begin a three-week testing phase, with Mercury in Sagittarius. Let others know what you want. Communication impacts your career directly. A rise in status is possible. You're already connected. Go ahead and ask.

(Astrologer Nancy Black continues her mother Linda Black's legacy horoscopes column. She welcomes comments and questions on Twitter, @lindablack.

For more astrological interpretations visit Linda Black Horoscopes and www.nancyblack.com) (c)2015 bY NANCY BLACK. DISTRIBUTED

BY TRIBUNE CONTENT AGENCY, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Bliss

By Harry Bliss

S SPORTS

INSIDE SPORTS

Men's Basketball

Cross-Country

Senior Cornelius Brown records a double-double in a backand-forth road game against Edinboro.

Sophomore Jeremy Parsons prepares to represent Slippery Rock at national cross-country competition.

See Page C-2

See Page C-4

COURTESY OF ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS

Senior quarterback Dante Nania hands the ball off to junior running back Shamar Greene in the PSAC championship game against West Chester. Nania was named the player of the game, throwing for 304 yards and five touchdowns in the game. Greene rushed 21 times for 179 yards and a touchdown.

Rock football wins second consecutive PSAC championship

By Ryan Barlow Sports Editor

Rock football stormed past West Chester 61-12 Saturday afternoon to win its second straight Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) championship, the third conference title in program history and the first 10-win season for the program since 1999. The championship game was also Rock football's 1,000th game played in program history.

"It was a great feeling," Rock head coach George Mihalik said. "Overall we played a fantastic game. We went in with a really positive mind set and we were ready to go."

Slippery Rock got on the board early as redshirt-junior running back Shamar Greene broke free for a 24-yard touchdown run just over five minutes into the game. Greene finished the game just the one touchdown and 178 total rushing yards on 21 carries.

Senior Julian Durden rushed for 63 yards and two scores, his 18th and 19th touchdowns of the season.

Senior quarterback Dante Nania had a dominant performance passing the ball, completing 18-of-27 passes for 304 and five touchdowns. His performance led to him being named as the PSAC's 2015 Conference Championship Most Valuable Player award.

"Dante is a very calm quarterback," Mihalik said. "He doesn't get rattled and keeps his composure. I think his composure and confidence level really rubs off on to the other guys on the offensive side of the ball."

Nania would not have been able to win that honor if he did not have targets to throw to, and senior wide receiver Marcus Carter had 54 receiving yards and one touchdown.

Redshirt-sophomore Cornelius Raye caught three passes for 51 yards while redshirt-junior Taishan Tucker hauled in two catches for 48 yards. Both Raye

and Tucker scored one touchdown on the day.

Senior wide receiver Jaimire Dutrieuille led all Rock receivers by catching four passes for 69 yards and one touchdown.

He became the sixth player in SRU history with at least 2,000 yards receiving in his career, and also became fifth all-time in career touchdown receptions with 18.

The Rock defense allowed 245 yards of total offense and just 52 yards rushing.

Senior Teven Williams led the SRU defense with nine tackles, wrapping up all nine Golden Rams unassisted.

Redshirt-sophomore Marcus Martin and redshirt-junior TJ Matrascia recorded one sack each while redshirtsenior Mike Grata recorded six tackles, one sack and recovered a fumble.

A standout performer for SRU's defense was freshman defensive back Kyle Hall who replaced sophomore transfer from Pitt, Titus Howard. Hall

made seven solo tackles, including one tackle for a loss.

Redshirt-junior Erik Johnson and junior Deonte Flemings each recorded one interception while senior Johnny Davis recovered and returned a fumble for 57 yards straight into the end zone for a score in the fourth quarter.

Following Saturday's win, The Rock learned its team earned a no. 2 seed in the NCAA Division II College Football Tournament. The seeding guarantees at least one home game for SRU, and it will host Virginia Union Saturday at noon at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium.

"Right now, we are considered as one the 28 best teams in the entire country.

After this Saturday, that number will be cut to 16 teams," Mihalik said. "It's always good to play at home, especially with our home record. To have this chance to host a national playoff game for the first time since 1999 is a special feeling and we hope to give everyone around here something to cheer about."

GRAPHIC BY CODY NESPOR/THE ROCKET

SPORTS

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Assistant Sports Editor

vs Sun. Nov. 22, Morrow Field House, 3 p.m.

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50-point second half lifts Fighting Scots over Rock

By Cody Nespor

Sat. Nov. 21, Morrow Field House, 3 p.m.

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Senior guard Malcolm Richardson rushes to the paint in a game against Gannon last season. Richardson scored 13 points in SRU's PSAC opener against Edinboro Wednesday.

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Turnovers and fouls ruled the game as the Slippery Rock men's basketball team fell to the Edinboro Fighting Scots 80-74 on the road Wednesday night. The game acted as both team's Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) opener and it was Edinboro's first game of the season. The loss drops SRU's early season record to 1-2 while Edinboro starts the year 1-0.

It was not a particularly clean game for either side as each team combined to give up 18 turnovers and commit 48 personal fouls.

Slippery Rock lost the turnover battle 14-4 and Edinboro led slightly in fouls 25-23.

SRU head coach Kevin Reynolds emphasized that he wants his team to play tougher and to cut down on mental mistakes.

"If there's one area that we need to improve on it's to get tougher when the contact is there and get tougher mentally. We just can't try to play soft," Reynolds said. "We have to do a better job of making free throws and we have to do a better job of not fouling."

The score was 35-30 Slippery Rock at the half, but the Scots went on to score 50 points in the

second half to claim their first win against Slippery Rock in the last seven games between the two. The Rock held the Edinboro to only a 37.5 (24-64) shooting percentage from the floor, but Edinboro was more efficient from the foul line, converting 26-39 (66.7%) free throws. SRU shot 49.1 (27-55) from the floor, but only made 1627 (59.3%) of their free throws.

Leading the way for The Green and White was senior center Cornelius Brown who led all scorers with 26 points on 9-12 shooting (7-12 from the foul line) and grabbed 12 total rebounds in 33 minutes for his second doubledouble of the year. Through three games Brown is averaging 18.7 points and 10.0 boards. "(Cornelius) is playing well, he's playing with energy and he's playing with enthusiasm," Reynolds said. "I think the thing that has really helped is that Cornelious has practiced hard so I think he's seeing the results from practice out on the floor."

Junior forward Chaquille Pratt finished second on the team with 17 points, going 5-13 from the field and 7-11 from the line. Pratt just missed out on a double-double of his own as he had eight total rebounds of his own.

Senior guards Malcolm

Top recruit to join Rock tennis in 2016

By Logan Campbell Rocket Contributor

vs Sat. Nov. 21, Morrow Field House, 1 p.m.

vs Sun. Nov. 22, Morrow Field House, 1 p.m.

Standings as of Thurs. Nov. 19 at 4:39 p.m.

Richardson and Dontay Jackson also finished scoring in double digits with 13 and 12 points, respectively. Richardson chipped in six defensive rebounds and both Richardson and Jackson has four assists. Both players struggled with ball control as Richardson led the team in turnovers with six and Jackson was second with three.

The final starter for The Rock, senior guard Jamal Gatali, matched a career high in blocks with four to go with his three points and two assists.

Turnovers are ultimately what cost the game for Slippery Rock as Edinboro scored 23 points off of SRU's 18 turnovers. Edinboro's bench also excelled, outscoring The Rock's bench 25-3. Slippery Rock was more successful in the paint, outscoring The Scots 3628 and held a slight advantage in rebounds 42-41.

Leading the charge for Edinboro were senior guard Henri WadeChatman (17 points, nine rebounds) and senior center Tommy Scales (15 points, nine rebounds).

Slippery Rock will take a couple days of before its pair of home games this weekend against Mansfield University Saturday and Lock Haven University Sunday.

The Rock is off to good start to the 2015-2016 season and have now added one of the top recruits in Pennsylvania for next season.

Lacey Cohen, a senior at Fox Chapel High School near Pittsburgh, has decided to continue her education and tennis career at SRU. Cohen comes to SRU as a three-star prospect, the number 12 ranked player in Pennsylvania and the number 53 ranked player in the Middle Atlantic Region.

SRU Head Coach Matt Meredith is excited to have Lacey on board for years to come.

"It feels very good to add Lacey to our team," Meredith said. "She will be a great addition to our young and up-in-coming team."

Cohen, who has mainly focused on singles the past two years, has also had great success in the doubles division. Alongside teammate Laurel Shymansky, they were crowned the 2013 WPIAL and PIAA doubles Champions for Fox Chapel.

Meredith has been impressed by Cohen's play and believes she will excel in both doubles and singles.

"She's very strong off of the ground, and is able to play at a high level of doubles already," Meredith said. "She competes very well, and she'll be at the top end of our lineup next year."

Cohen originally had committed to the University of Hartford, but the school decided to cut their tennis program altogether. Hartford is an NCAA Division I tennis school, while Slippery Rock is an NCAA Division II school.

Coach Meredith believes she chose SRU for several reasons.

"Because of us being close to home," Meredith said. "Along with great academics and the strength of our tennis program."

With Fox Chapel being fairly close to SRU, Coach Meredith has been able to see Cohen play quite and get a rough idea of how she plays.

"I have seen her play in a couple local tournaments and she was always on our recruiting radar," Meredith said. "With how she plays it will push everyone on the team to be better, as well as the team pushing her to be better."

The Rock has gotten off to a good start this year, finishing up the fall semester at a 3-1 mark.

The team looks to be just as strong in the spring semester, and move into the 2016-2017 season with their new recruit, Lacey Cohen, on board.

November 20, 2015

SPORTS

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Top ranked teams set the tone for D-II football tournament

COURTESY OF ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS

Junior running Shamar Greene back carries the ball against West Chester Saturday. Greene leads The Rock with 1,162 rushing yards on the year.

By Justin Kraus Rocket Contributor

This week marks the beginning of the NCAA Division II football playoffs in which Slippery Rock football will host Virginia Union in the first round Saturday.

The NCAA Division II football playoffs feature a field of 28 teams, as opposed to the Division I football playoffs that only

feature four teams. The Division II Football Committee then splits up these 28 teams into four “Super Regions,” giving each region seven teams.

The teams are then seeded according to record and strength of schedule. The No. 1 seed in every region receives a bye into the second round of the playoffs, where they play the winner of the five seed versus the four. The two seed plays the seven in the first round, and the winner plays the victor of the

three seed versus six seed matchup.

By this point, only two teams remain in each region, and they play each other in the Super Region title game, hosted by the team with the better record. Once all Super Region title games have been played, only four teams remain. The Super regions are matched against each other in the National semifinals.

Super Region 1 plays Super Region 4, and Super Regions 2 and 3 face each other. The host for these games is switched each year (Regions 1 and 3 host this year.) The national championship between the final two teams is held Kansas City, Kansas.

Super Region I, the Northeastern Region, features many programs relatively new to the Division II playoff. Fifth-seeded Indiana University (Pa.) is historically the most successful program in the region, but the overwhelming favorite is the No. 1 seeded Shepherd University. Shepherd is the only undefeated team in the region, and is ranked fifth in the nation. However, upand-coming programs, No. 2 seeded Slippery Rock University (10th in the nation) and No. 3 seeded Assumption University (19th) are also thought to have a good chance at winning the region.

Slippery Rock will play host to the number seven seeded Virginia Union University in the first round of the playoffs on Saturday.

SRU athletic director Paul Lueken is excited for The Rock to host its first national home playoff game since 1999.

"Any time you can host a national event it's positive for everything. It's positive for our students and it's positive for the university and it's positive for our team," Lueken said.

"I'm expecting a good football game with a lot of excitement and it'll be a lot of fun."

In the Midwest and Southwest, Super Region 4 is considered the best region overall. The No. 2 and 3 ranked national

teams are both in this region, No. 2 seeded Ferris State University and No. 3 seeded Ashland University respectively, but neither undefeated team is the one seed. That honor goes to the 10-1 Northwestern State University.

Last year's national champion, Colorado State University-Pueblo, is the No. 4 seed in the region. Ferris state is seen as the favorite, as they are led by last years’ Harlon Hill Award for the best player in Division II winner, quarterback Jason Vander Laan.

Out west lies Super Region 3. The No. 1 team in the country, Northwestern Missouri State University is seen as the overwhelming favorites to win the region, taking the No. 1 seed. Last years’ National Runner-up Minnesota State University, Mankato, the No. 2 seed, is looked upon as the only team that could challenge Northwestern Missouri State in the region.

Finally, Super Region 2 is located in the Southeast. This region is considered the weakest overall, featuring only two top-15 teams, No. 1 seeded West Georgia University, and the No. 2 seeded University of North Alabama. Either team could win this Super Region as neither one is a clear favorite.

Overall, the programs with a history of success are thought to be the favorites to win the national championship. Whoever comes out of the battleground of Super Region 4 as the champion will be the favorite to win the National Championship, due to the difficulty of the region.

However, with a lot of new faces in the field, it’s impossible to declare a true “favorite” in this year's playoff. Storied programs will look to continue their success while newcomers will look to make a name for themselves.

The National Championship will be hosted on Dec. 19 in Kansas.

Fill out this bracket and tweet your predictions to @SRURocket

SPORTS

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November 20, 2015

Women's basketball suffers first loss of the season

By Ryan Barlow Sports Editor

REBECCA DIETRICH/THE ROCKET

Sophomore Ciara Patterson looks to make a play against a Hawk defender in the team's 64-62 win over Chowan University Saturday.

Cross-country sophomore to make national race debut

Rock women's basketball got off to a slow start at Edinboro Wednesday evening, getting outscored by the Fighting Scots 20-10 in the first quarter ultimately leading to an 8366 defeat in its first Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) game of the year.

"At the beginning of the game, our shot selection was not good," Rock head coach Bobby McGraw said. "As far as dribble penetration, we were settling for too many open jump shots early, and not taking advantage mismatches."

The SRU defense was unable to find an answer to stop Edinboro guard Katie Fischer, who scored 26 points while making 10-17 field goals with seven assists. Boro was also led in the paint by center Aignee' Freeland who collected nine rebounds while scoring 18 points. Fischer played all 40 minutes of the contest. McGraw credits both players' performances to SRU's inability to lock them down as it switched to a zone defense.

"Freeland has the ability almost every time she touches the ball," McGraw said. "We had to go to the zone to somewhat contain her. After that, Katie Fischer just ripped our zone apart. As a unit, we decided we weren't going to play defense.

We had to pick our poison and our poison was the zone defense. All of the credit to Katie Fischer in this one, we weren't able to stop her."

Junior guard Lexi Carpenter led all Rock scores with 22 points in 33 minutes of work. Sophomore Ciara Patterson chipped in 16 points with three steals and two assists. Senior Erica Aiello helped The Rock's cause with seven points and five assists.

Although The Rock got off to a poor start, the team did bounce back in the second quarter by matching the Fighting Scots with 21 points. The team actually outscored Edinboro in the third quarter, before the Scots posted the advantage in the fourth quarter 28-21 to ensure victory.

Despite his team's early struggles, McGraw is preparing his team to look past this game and focus on its upcoming match Saturday against Mansfield.

"Our preparation and focus right now is on Mansfield," McGraw said.

"Edinboro is done and over with.

We know that no team in the PSACWest is going to go undefeated, so losing one game in the West isn't going to kill anybody. We don't just play in what is arguably the toughest conference in the country, we might play in the toughest division in the country. We just have to focus Mansfield and get our team back on the winning track."

Volleyball season ends, growth expected in future

By Brittany Fagan Rocket Contributor

Slippery Rock University's Jeremy Parsons will travel to his first Cross-Country National Championship this weekend to compete in Joplin, Missouri. The 10K race will be held at the Tom Rutledge Cross-Country Course, the home course to Missouri Southern State University.

Attending the event will be 32 teams from eight regions, as well as 24 individual qualifiers.

Division II regions that will be in attendance include the Atlantic, Central, East, Midwest, South, South Central, Southeast and West regions.

Shippensburg, Lock Haven and Edinboro are the three teams from the Atlantic region that will compete at nationals. These three teams are also part of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference that SRU is a part of.

Parsons was the first individual qualifier from the Atlantic region, joined by Steve Maine from Kutztown and Alex Hampel from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Lock Haven's top seven runners will compete at Joplin, including Dylan Mountain who won both the PSAC and Atlantic Region title this season. Shippensburg's Kieran Sutton, Alexander Balla, Braden Bruning and Calvin Conrad-Kline will also make an appearance as a team. Lock Haven and Shippensburg were a tight pack at the Atlantic Region race and are expected to keep a tight pack in Joplin and compete together.

Earlier in the season the cross-country team traveled to Anchorage, Alaska and had the opportunity to compete against the University of Alaska Anchorage on their home course. The team has just been ranked in the NCAA DII National Coaches' Poll to place third at the event, a new record for the Seawolves. UAA will be a top team to keep an eye on Saturday morning.

Parsons is looking to make a new personal record at Saturday's race after running a fast 30:36.4 10K at the Atlantic Region race.

"I'm definitely excited to run at Nationals and represent The Rock," said Parsons. "My plan is to stick with the guys from the PSAC and go from there."

Jeremy explained that his goal for his first nationals race is to place in the top 40 men. Head coach John Papa and sophomore Jeremy Parsons will travel to Joplin, Missouri Thursday morning to prepare for the 2015 Division II National Championships.

KENDALL SCOTT/THE ROCKET

Sophomore Haley Defibaugh sets the ball as freshman Shayla Ray prepares to go up for a spike in a game against AldersonBoraddus on Sept. 22.

By Jordyn J. Bennett Rocket Contributor

In its last attempt for a win, Slippery Rock volleyball lost to California University of Pennsylvania and Seton Hill University over the weekend in its last games of the season.

“We didn’t win, but we saw some things out of the players we have been looking for all season,” Rock head coach Laurie Lokash said. “We played to our potential.”

On Friday night, SRU went to Cal and lost 3-1 (25-27, 25-10, 25-20, 25-14). The Rock traveled to Greensburg the next day to face Seton Hill.

The Rock lost to the Griffins 3-1 (25-22, 25-17, 23-25, 25-18) Saturday afternoon. The Rock had to make some early adjustments when sophomore setter Hannah Lombardo suffered a high ankle sprain before the game.

The Rock lost the first set in a close 25-22 bout, eventually losing the second set 25-17. The third set sparked a Rock comeback with a 25-23 victory, but it would not last as they lost the final set of the season 25-18.

Freshman outside hitter Beth Stumpf led the offensive attack with a team high 19 kills.

Sophomore setter Haley Defibaugh had a team high 49 assists and also added two blocks as

well, but it was another performance by the sophomore transfer from Seton Hill, libero Courtney Oberlander, that stood out on defense.

“Courtney had a really good year as a defensive specialist,” Lokash said. “She is one of the best liberos in the PSAC.” Taking her normal role, Oberlander had a team high 18 digs and also contributed two assists.

The Seton Hill transfer said she did not expect to take the role she did this season, but she said it helped her to become a better player. Even though she has proven herself this year, a humble Oberlander said that she still has to keep working hard to maintain her role.

“I’m not sure how many more defensive specialists we will have come in, if any,” Oberlander said. “But I have to keep fighting because you never know who will come. Your spot is not guaranteed.”

Her coach, Lokash, agreed. With a new season ahead of them Lokash is glad that the team will be more experienced, and said that this group will really be able to develop its own team culture, but that does not mean that anyone is entitled to a spot.

“I’m expecting growth from everyone next season,” Lokash said. “Whoever grows will be on the court. That growth will bring us a more successful season.”

B-5

November 20 , 2015

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CAMPUS LIFE

INSIDE CAMPUS LIFE

TimberCreek Opens In Grove City

@srustudents Shows Student Experience

TimberCreek Tap and Table opens their doors in Grove City offering the community a new place to dine and drink home-brewed beer.

The SRU Twitter account gives students a chance to voice their opinions and gives perspective students a look into the average college student's life.

See Page D-2

See Page D-3

UPB PRESENTS Television show guests play games and do skits with SRU students unattractive couple on a train once,” Williams said. “I was like ‘aw’ and ‘ew’ at the same time.”

Campus Life Editor Wayans started off her section of the event by telling the audience that she identifies as a lesbian and she's currently 123 days sober from drinking alcohol and doing drugs.

The Slippery Rock University Program Board (UPB) During her section of the event, Wayans urged students invited three of the stars from the MTV2 sketch comedy about the importance of staying in school. show "Wild 'N Out," Emmanual Hudson, Jacob Williams "I went to be a computer scientist or a hacker, and a and Chaunte Wayans, to perform skits and play games lawyer," Wayans said. "I went to school for a semester from their show with the audience on Monday night in and then I left." the Robert M. Smith Student Center Ballroom.

She also informed the audience of her recent arrest for Hudson, who was the emcee of the event, said he got driving under the influence, for which she had to serve his start as an entertainer about four years ago with his 10 days in jail. little brother. He said he started posting videos locally Throughout her whole skit, Wayans diverted her on Facebook and other popular social media platforms. serious something comical and funny.

Hudson the popular Huds Hu dson ds on ssaid aid th aid he popu p po opu pula laar video vide vi deeo that that he he and an nd his hiis brother brot rothe herr seri se rio ous lillife ife fe stories sto tori r es es into ntto so "Wild made, “Ratchet Girl Anthem, began spread made ma de,, “R de “Rat atch at ch hett G i l An ir Anth them th em,,” b em egan eg an tto o sp spre read re ead ad rrapidly. ap pid i ly ly..

Thee "W Th Wilild d 'N Out" Out ut" cast ca members played two games with “Next thing you know, videos “Nex “N extt th ex thin in ing n yyo ou kn know ow,, I pu ow putt vi vide deos de os on on YouTube YouT Yo uTub uT ub be and and wi ith h the the audience aud udie ienc ie ncce from nce frrom m the television show, "Let Me Holla" that was probably said. that w as p rob ro babl bly th thee be best st tthing hing hi ng I ccould ould ou ld eever verr do, ve do,” he he sa said id.. id H Ho llla" a" and and "Family "Fa Fami m ly Reunion." mi Reu e n Junior watching his Aft fteeerr wat w wa atc tching tchi hing h is vviral is iral ir ral al videos vid ideo eos on eo n YouTube, You ouTu ouTu Tube be, Hudson be H ds Hu dson dson Juni Ju nior aaccounting ni c ou cc ount ntin ing major, in maj Ronnie Johnson was one of ma participated in the "Family Reunion" said Nick Cannon, off “W “Wild said that tha h t was waas wh when e N en ickk Ca ic Cann n on nn n, th thee ho host st o “Wil ilild d 'N many ma ny sstudents tude tu d nt de ntss wh who o pa part rtii rt game.

Out, O t,,” contacted Ou co ont ntac acte teed him him and and asked a ke as k d him him to be hi be on the the show. sho how. w. game ga me.. me "Family “Nick up, Hudson “N Nic ickk hit hiit me u p”” Hu p, H dson ds on ssaid. a d. ai d. ““Th There ere isn’t isn’ is ntt a long n’ lo ong "Fam "F amilililyy Reunion" am Reun Re unio un ion" io n" is is a game where members of two erent story, pull stor st ory, yp y, ulll out ul out the th he Bible, Bibl Bi ble, e none e, non ne off that. tha h t. Nick Nic ickk hit hit me up up diff di ffer eren entt teams en team te am ms try try to look loo oo for members in the audience favorite and like, on “Wild Out'" did. an nd wa wass lilik ke, ‘hey, ke ‘h heyy, co come me o n “W ilild ld ‘N ‘N O ut'"'"" and ut and nd I d iid d. I that th hat rresemble e bl esemble blee th their hei eir ir fa ffavorit favo avo v ri ritt "family relatives," but they take twist have base. have a vvery eryy lo er lloyal oya yal fa fan n ba base se..” se a tw twi ist on iitt to ttry ry and and make m it funny. During the game, the supposed Hudson favorite play on “Wild H Hu dson ds o ssaid on aid hi hiss fa favo vori vo riite t ggames am ames mess tto o pl lay ay o n “Wil “W Wilild d ‘N N th he audience au udi ud dien ence en ce iiss su supp ppos pp ossed to sing the jingle, "At the family osed reunion, who wee in introducing, who we introducing."

Out” Fift h” and the Out” are are “Let “Le L t Me Me Holla, Hol olla la,,” “Plead la “Pllea ead d Th Thee Fi ift fth” and aalllll th hee h re eun unio ion io on, n, w ho w intr trod tr odu od u song so ong ng games. gam mes ess..

JJohnson Jo hnso nson n sa said id tthat hatt ga ha ggame m was fun because it caused “Let “Let Me Me Holla” Holllllla” Ho a” is is a game game where wh heere re the the h entertainers eentertain n errta nt tain iner in erss er him hi m to think think hink from hi fro rom m the the top t of his head on what to say. on each pitch best eac ach h team team ttry ry tto o pi pitc tch tc h th thee be b est He said sai aid d he eenjoyed njoy nj oyed oy ed tthe he event overall, especially the interaction 'N Out" cast members and pickup one off th “Wild pick pi ckkup u lline inee to o in ne o thee “W “Wil illd inte in teera ract ctio ct io on between betw be twee tw een ee n the the "Wild " ‘N Out” “Plead Ou utt” models. m de mo dels ls. “P ls “Ple l ad Th le Thee thee audience. th audi au dien di ence en ce.. ce Victoria sophomore psychology major, said Fifth” Fift Fif Fi fth” fth” h” is is a game game where where heree he V Vi icttor o iaa Coleman, Collem eman an,, so an sop p thought event was set up well and that it the have the entertainers ente en tert te rtai rt ain ai ners erss h avve to she th she sh thou ough g t th gh tthee ev ran come up with diff come u p wi ith hd iffeerent iff ereent rra an very very ssmoothly. moot mo otthl hly. y She said UPB also made a good y. decision to bring. questions ques qu essti esti tion onss to on to ask ask tthe he d de eeci cisi ci siion o on on what what entertainers en Coleman her team te am m ccaptains. ap ptaain ins. ns. s. The The C Co lem lema le maan an sa said said dh er ffavorite entertainer of the night er Wayans because captains capt ca ptai pt a ns either ai eitthe herr answer answ an swer sw er wass Wa wa W yans ya ns b ecau ec au use s she s was real and turned who she the the question, ques qu e ti es tion on,, or if on if wass in wa into to a jjoke. oke. ok e.

Brendan Whitney, they thee they can’t can an’t’t handle han andl dlee th dl B Br en nda dn nWh Whit Wh itn it ne freshman sports management major, said Hudson question, they “plead ques qu e tiion es on, n, th hey e “plea plea pl ead ad majo ma majo jor, r sai aid Hu Hud d was his favorite entertainer because he had the fi ft h. ” the fift fth. h. beca beca be c us usee he h good jokes and he didn't censor Hudson said Hu Huds u ds d s on dson n s ai ad c ns ce nsor or himself. him imse s He also said he hopes UPB se hosts an event “Plead The “Ple “P lee ad lead a Th hee host ho stss eve like this again soon. st Forr aspiring comedians and Fifth” is Fift Fi fth” ft h”” i s Fo entertainers, Hudson said the best starting ente en tert te tert rta t advice he could give someone is to to grow gro ow advi ad vicce vi be themselves.

He said it’s more on him him th important imp im po po for individuals to be themselves today because once you the th hem em create something, it’s yours and you crrea can take credit and ownership of it. can “For example, I don’t like to do “ everything else that everyone is evee ev doing, ” Hudson said.

“If you look do do on n social media today, you see this th hi get reenacted and this get reenacted.

I don’t like when people reee re are are ccopycats.”

Hudson also urged students to be Hu original orig or iggin inal al when coming up with content.

“Be way more original, that way, you “B Be w get get more mo money because it’s all your ideas idea id eass and -you know it’s genuine,” ea Hudson said. "You don’t have to be Hud Hu d compared to anybody. Stay true to cco o yourself and I promise you’ll go y a long way.”

At the end of the event, Hudson announced that there EMILY BROWN/THE ROCKET will be an eighth season of An SRU student hugs Emmanual Hudson of "Wild 'N Out" after playing the game, "Let Me Holla" during UPB's event Monday evening.

“Wild ‘N Out” on MTV 2.

By Amber Cannon

because he’s gotten better at it over the past few months.

Because of his appearances on “Wild ‘N Out,” Hudson said people automatically think that he has a lot of money.

He said people should stop assuming that he has it all just because he’s on a television show.

“Every time I go to a strip club, the DJ is always like, “Oh, it’s Emmanual Hudson, he’s about to make it rain,’” Hudson said. “No, if you send some strippers my way, it will be sunny.”

Williams, another cast member of “Wild ‘N Out,” also took the stage to entertain audience members.

He recalled a time in his life where he got fired from his jobs while he was in college.

“I got fired from an unpaid internship once,” Williams said. didn’t know that s a id d . “II d di dn n t eeven ven kn ven now o tha h t ha could co ou ulld happen. happ ha pp pen en..”

Williams also said al so s s ai a d every evver er y time time ti he h e takes t ak akes es the th he train trai tr an ai in New in N ew York, York Yo rk,, he always all waa ys seems to odd o see see e o dd things th hin ngs g and and people. p pe op ple le.

“I found “I fou ound nd a ve very ry

CAMPUS LIFE

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Ask Andi

November 20, 2015

TimberCreek Tap and Table brings new dining to Grove City

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

Question: Dear Andi,

I'm currently a full time graduate assistant, I work a part time job and I am playing a varsity sport. I didn’t realize how tough managing everything I did in my undergrad would be while pursuing my masters degree. I have no me time and I'm really getting stressed and unhappy. What can I do to ease the stress?

Sincerely, Masters In Stress

AMBER CANNON/THE ROCKET TimberCreek Tap and Table featuring their glass floor that looks into the basement where the brewery is located.

By Emma Pfeifer Asst. Campus Life Editor

Answer:

Dear Masters In Stress, Deciding to pursue a masters degree is a challenge in itself. It sounds like you have a lot going on, which you may be used to, but it might be becoming too much to handle. It is probably best to remember to make time for yourself, which should be a priority.

Although juggling school, sports and a job may be stressful, allowing some time for yourself every day will benefit you in the long run. Also, be sure to try to create a strong support system. Don’t block out the people who care about you most. Remember that your friends and family are there to help, not to hurt you.

Although it may seem like your happiness depends solely on your success, happiness is often found in the most unexpected places. Open your eyes to all the great things around you and appreciate the little things. Work your hardest and remember everyone is allowed to have a limit. Don’t overwork yourself.

Best Wishes!

Andi

Question: Dear Andi,

I really hate overachievers. It seems like every time I have to work on a group project, I get stuck working with someone who feels like we have to go above and beyond what the assignment asked. It takes up so much of my time that I want to dedicate to other classes. I have a hard time disagreeing with any of my group members, so I just do whatever they say.

Is it wrong of me to want to just do the minimum amount of work?

Sincerely, Underachieving Undergrad

Answer:

Dear Underachieving Undergrad,

I must admit, that I, too, am a minimalist. The college workload can seem overbearing at times, so it becomes easy to just slide by with the smallest amount of work humanly possible. However, group work is a whole other challenge. There is almost a guarantee that there will be that one person in the group who you speak of who is destine to create an insane amount of work for all group members that doesn’t even seem to make much sense. But this is when we remember what our parents taught us in grade school and stand up for ourselves. Speak up. Why would anyone want to do an unnecessary amount of work? The answer seems to be unknown to all except for those overachieving group members. Do your part to the best of your abilities and leave it at that. If that person wants to, they can critique your work all they want. As long as you don’t spend all of the hours you could be spending watching Netflix, then it’s their problem now. Maybe one day the rest of us will understand but until then continue binge watching and eating your feelings.

Best Wishes!

Andi

The TimberCreek Tap and Table recently opened its doors to the public in the new Grove City location last week. The restaurant is an expansion from their Meadville location that the owners opened in 2012.

The reasoning for the expansion to Grove City was to bring in more business for the owners and their family. With the traveling clientele that the Grove City Outlets brings in along with the locals, there is a lot of room to grow.

Kami Ruffo, TimberCreek waitress said it’s nice talking to the locals who are happy to have another option now where they can eat out and for the tourists shopping at the mall or in town for work.

The owners of the restaurant, joined forces in 2014 with a company that enables them to buy land and expand their business.

General Manager Devin Kelly said that expanding the restaurant was definitely a struggle at first because the TimberCreek team had no experience with a big space, but that they learned from experience.

The Grove City location can seat up to 500 people. There are 50 tables that can seat anywhere from two-12 people at each table.

There is also bar seating.

Family friends helped design

the aesthetic look of the timberbased building.

"It is an extension of a warm feeling and quality service,” Kelly said.

Kelly also stated that they are big supporters of local businesses and they try to help out their neighboring businesses as much as they can.

The restaurant has a glass floor attraction that looks into the basement where the brewery is located. The beer that is on tap is home-brewed by the Brew Master, Jacob Vorisek.

"The customer's favorite homebrewed beer is the 'Fully Loaded IPA',” Kelly stated.

There are always 10 beers on tap, five of those being homebrewed. The decision of what beers are brewed is left up to Vorisek and what he feels like making that day.

There is a s elec t ion of domesticated bottled beers as well. The beer is also distributed to local towns around Meadville, and TimberCreek is hoping to expand that distribution to more places in the future.

Along with the assortment of beers, there are also a number of wines and liquors available.

There is a wide variety of food on the menu, ranging from sandwiches, brick oven pizza, seafood, burgers and salads.

Head Chef, Joe Roda said the cooks at TimberCreek put a lot of passion, time and effort into making their food.

“We make it with love and

quality," Roda said.

The ribs are slow roasted for eight hours and the pork is slow roasted for 12 hours.

“The Greek Chicken is the number-one seller,” Roda said.

T h e m e nu pr i c e s r ange anywhere from $8 to $30. A customer can get a burger for $8 to $9, sandwiches for $8, appetizers for under $10 and most dinners for under $20.

“We specialize in purchasing the highest quality of protein and products," Kelly said. "Our seafood is flown in from Alaska, each dish can be customized, and the beef in our burgers are from our own farm raised cows."

The restaurant is aiming to produce a warm and cozy enviornment with a modern feel.

The music played throughout the day ranges anywhere from a local rock radio station to a modern/ pop station.

“It’s very much like a family," Ruffo said. "Between the Kellys and the employees, we’re all there helping each other out and making sure we can give our customers the type of comfort they would receive if they walked into our house."

There is a possibility of live entertainment in the future for the enjoyment of customers while dining. The restaurant also has a back patio open when the weather is nice for more seating.

The restaurant is open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays and on weekends, from 11:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.

SRh"U"mans In this spinoff of 'Humans of New York' a reporter talks to members of the SRU community to find out what's interesting about them.

"I am a junior, safety management major.

I am on the executive board of American Society of Safety Engineers. I do the Honors program as well.

Something interesting about me is that I know the Greek alphabet. I learned it in fourth grade, our teacher was crazy and had us learn it.

I want to graduate and go into some sort of the safety field, probably construction. I would like to be a safety coordinator for construction and building projects."

November 20, 2015

CAMPUS LIFE

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Justin Bieber's new album trumps One Direction's "Made in the A.M."

By Amber Cannon Campus Life Editor

Justin Bieber and One Direction recently released their new albums on Nov. 16 and the two albums being released on the same day caused controversy among the "Beliebers" and the "Directioners" on Twitter, Facebook and other social media platforms.

Coming out with an album after a member quit, One Direction, comprised of Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan, had a big opportunity to show the world that they could survive without Zayn Malik, but their album fell flat.

"Made in the A.M.," featured the typical "One Direction sound," which includes pop, rock and "High School Musical"-esque songs. The opening song from their album, "Hey Angel," played like a song that should be featured in a movie with it's earthy vibes and "Drag Me Down" sounded like it was recorded at the last minute, with the unbalanced harmonies, missing Malik's high tenor voice. The other songs that stood out to me on the album,"Perfect," "Infinity" and "Never Enough" all offer the same pop/Indie rock vibe that One Direction is popular for, making this album lack a diverse group of songs. Also, the cheesy lyrics in some of the songs, such as "End of the Day," when One Direction sings, "All I know at the end of the day, is you want what you want and you say what you say," really ruins the overall song for me because I'm diverting my attention to the lyrics.

My favorite song on the album, though, would have to be "I Want to Write You a Song." The song is so subtle and soft that it's easy to listen to and the lyrics can make a listener feel like One Direction is talking to them personally.

VS. PHOTO COURTESY OF MCT CAMPUS Justin Bieber's album, "Purpose" and One Direction's "Made in the A.M." were recently released on the same day, with Bieber's album

I understand One Direction doesn't want to sway away from their particular sound, but as a lover of all music, I have to say, it got to the point where I didn't want to listen to the next song because I knew it was going to be severely similar to the one before it.

The album lacks diversity and it's evident that One Direction is still trying to appeal to their teenage audience.

Justin Bieber released his album, "Purpose," after going on a hiatus for a couple years and as a fan of Bieber's old music, this album didn't disappoint.

In comparison to "Made in the A.M.," "Purpose" offers a wide array of differ songs ranging from pop, hip-hop, R&B, and EDM (Electronic Dance Music). "We Are" features the legendary rapper, Nas, who brings that hip-hop vibe to the album. I could see "We

Are" being played at a club somewhere.

Another thing that differentiates "Purpose" as a better album than "Made in the A.M." is that the album actually had a prelude, which is an introductory piece of music.

The prelude, "Mark My Words" was the perfect song to start off the album, setting the foundation of the album by Bieber inferring to the listeners that they should start taking him seriously.

"Children" starts out as a pop ballad, then transitions into EDM track of the album, which is the perfect dance and club song. "Sorry" has a reggae bass line that swells to the chorus every time, making this another dance hit from Bieber. The two most powerful ballads on the album, "Love Yourself " and "Life Is Worth Living" showcases Bieber's quality songwriting

skills because in the lyrics, he reflects back on his past mistakes and how he plans to make himself a better person.

My favorite song on this album would definitely be "Life Is Worth Living." The songwriting is beautiful and anybody who has ever faced depression or hard times in their life can relate to this song.

Ever since both albums' were released, Bieber's "Purpose" has been on the top of the iTunes charts, topping both "Made in the A.M." and Adele's "25" in album sales.

Overall, Bieber's album offered a much more diverse array of song choices and his comeback was one of the best of our time. I can only hope that One Direction's next album offers different songs than the regular pop and rock that everyone is so used to.

SRU French Club SRU Twitter account hosts candlelight vigil features students' live tweets

By Nina Bracci Rocket Contributor

KARLEIGH SANTRY/THE ROCKET Students from the French Club gathered to honor those killed in the terrorist attack in Paris.

By Haley Barnes News Editor

Over 40 students and staff members attended the French Club's candlelit vigil Monday night to commemorate the terrorist attack that killed 129 people in Paris over the weekend.

Sophomore secondary French and Spanish education major and French Club president Lindsay Westwood said the French Club chose to do a vigil because the club felt it was important to remember the lives lost, and those who were wounded in the Paris attacks.

She said that the vigil was not solely focused on the Paris attacks, because the club wanted to be inclusive of all the tragedies that had happened.

"Instead of focusing solely on the attacks on Paris, we chose to include all the people that have lost their lives over the weekend due to ISIS activity in our thoughts and prayers," Westwood explained. "Although, most of the testimonies and reactions that we read were of those from the Paris attacks."

Music education major and vice

president of the French club Katie Steele facilitated the vigil.

"What happened in Paris on Friday and the other attacks that happened along the world were all very tragic events, but tonight we are gathered not to discuss these events, but instead to remember those affected by these attacks," Steele said at the the event.

"Tonight, we are gathered to remember the people and to provide some support to those who need it."

Steele said it is important to remember that these attacks could have happened to anyone.

"We may have also heard about the attacks that happened in places other than Paris," Steele said. "There were a lot of lives lost and a lot of people to mourn."

At the vigil, students read testimonies, a prayer was said and students decorated luminaries to show their support.

"The vigil was very successful for an event that was planned the day of and taking into consideration the smaller size of French Club," Westwood said.

"We were very happy with the turnout."

Slippery Rock University developed a Twitter account, @srustudents, which features SRU students who live tweet their experiences for a week in order to give other students, staff and faculty an insight on the average student's life.

The Twitter page was first created by the Online Design and Communication Specialist at SRU and account supervisor, Kayla Hersperger, who learned about similar concepts at other universities and wanted to implement a student-run Twitter account at Slippery Rock University.

Hersperger teamed up with Felicia McKinney, graduate assistant in enrollment management to launch the account as well as the daily maintenance.

Both women worked out a contract and application for the student tweeters and collaborated on the training presentation that is given to the selected student of the week.

“I look for a range of majors, interests, extracurricular involvement and personality when choosing the tweeters," McKinney said.

"I want students who are excited about social media and sharing their SRU experience."

The primary goal of the account is to showcase the current student experience to prospective SRU students.

As a recruitment tool, @ srustudents aims to give

prospective students an inside look to what student life is like, and that goal is best fulfilled by current students sharing their unique, authentic perspectives.

“We never tell students what to say; our goal is not to portray SRU as a perfect institution," McKinney said.

"We want the good and the bad."

Stephen Rickard, senior journalism major, said the SRU social media team has done a good job with keeping up with the Twitter account and picking the candidates for the account.

"They gave me the chance to have the voice of our students for a week and I did my best to run with it.

I had so much fun,” he said.

Rickard was one of the more successful students tweeters of the account, receiving over 300 likes on one picture and over 100 retweets on one post.

Senior communications major and current student tweeter, Samantha Jambor, explained that she wants to be able to share the secret side of SRU to her audience.

“It's such a cool platform that I've been given to discuss the nooks and crannies of SRU, such as the weird and small clubs that no one knows about, like The Harbor and Slam Poetry Club,” Jambor said.

Before taking their role, all student tweeters have the opportunity to meet with Hersperger to discuss the week as the student tweeter.

“Her goal for the account is for students' true voices to be heard,” Jambor said.

Both Jambor and Rickard said that the @srustudents account will open the student tweeter’s eyes to a whole new side of themselves that they never knew about before.

“I seemed to be more creative that week than I ever usually am," Rickard said.

"The students interacting with me and having fun while I ran the account motivated me to be that way."

Since every student has a different story, each student takes a unique approach to their week filled with tweets.

“Every single person that has taken over the account has done an absolutely fantastic job, so I wanted to try and do something different to see what would happen,” Rickard said.

Jambor also is taking a different approach to her tweets by informing her audience of the thoughts she has about SRU and her involvement in clubs and classes.

“I love art and my faith is extremely important to me, so I want students to be influenced by those two facets of my life," Jambor said. "I hope students get to see that there are so many things at SRU they may not know about."

Both tweeters encourage students to apply in order to engage themselves around campus and have their voice be heard.

“This account gives us the best marketing tool we have, which is to showcase our current students who are so unique and doing incredible things here at Slippery Rock University,” McKinney said.

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November 20, 2015