The Signal: Spring'15 No. 11

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Vol. XLII, No. 11

April 15, 2015

Serving The College of New Jersey community since 1885

Winning team of Mayo Business Plan ‘on a roll’

Ice-T’s refreshing lecture Sandwiches for a good cause

By Mackenzie Cutruzzula Review Editor

By Nicole Ferrito Staff Writer

An electric longboard, an innovative social network platform and a South Asian-style restaurant were the top three ideas presented by students during the final round of the annual Mayo Business Plan Competition on Wednesday, April 8, in the College’s Library Auditorium.

Tikka Roll, a campus restaurant which would feature a combination of South Asian, Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisine, was envisioned by senior finance major Mekah Aswani, senior psychology major Pauleena Pal and senior finance major Shinal Parikh. The team took first place in the competition, receiving a $22,000 reward toward their plan.

The judges had “passion” for their idea, Parikh said. The way in which the team engaged the audience in their plan also set them apart from the other competitors, according to Parikh.

Their idea was inspired by a South Asian on-the-go, take-out style restaurant at Rutgers University called Kati Roll.

The menu at Tikka Roll would involve a see MAYO page 2

family out in Los Angeles, Calif. These circumstances caused Ice-T to fraternize with a gang in which he felt as though someone always had his back. In this lifestyle, he committed crimes like robbing banks and jewelry stores.

“We robbed so many banks

Only a club like TCNJ Student United Way could unite teams for a greater cause while simultaneously pitting them against each other in the name of competition. During four rounds, 16 teams gathered in the Brower Student Center to make and pack a total 1,353 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in less than two hours for Trenton Area Soup Kitchen (TASK) and other local nonprofits, on Wednesday, April 18, at the second annual Student United Way PB&J race.

This competition, however, was not without its own twists — and not just in the name of good fun. Each round consisted of different rules that encompassed the larger theme of the night. In the first round, each team was provided an uneven amount of resources. Some groups were given wasteful amounts of resources while others were missing a key ingredient all together. Groups were given two minutes before they began the sandwich making process to trade resources with other teams.

The team-building exercise surprised some students with the generosity that

see ICE-T page 4

see PB&J page 3

Photo courtesy of Luke Schoener

Ice-T talks about his history with gangs and how rap turned his life around.

By Matt Iannaccone Correspondent

Not to be confused with the popular beverage, Tracy Marrow, otherwise known as IceT, took the Main Stage Theatre in Kendall Hall on Wednesday, April 8, as the College Union Board’s spring lecturer. Most well-known for playing a detective on the hit show “Law &

Order: Special Victims Unit” and for his influence on hip hop, Ice-T gave the audience background on his journey and ended the night with important life advice.

Before Ice-T became famous, he experienced an extremely harsh childhood, losing both of his parents.

He was left with no choice but to live with extended

‘Breaking Bad’ star discusses overcoming adversity

By Sydney Shaw News Editor When R.J. Mitte started elementary school, he didn’t think his leg braces were abnormal. He believed everyone had to go to occupational and speech therapy, just like he did.

Mitte learned very quickly that was not the case, however, when a fellow classmate asked him, “What’s wrong with you?”

The “Breaking Bad” co-star, who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy as a toddler, spoke at the College on Thursday, April 9, to discuss how he has learned to turn adversity into strength and how to prevent fear from taking control of one’s life.

“Adversity can be as simple as someone blocking your way and preventing you from going where you want to go,” Mitte said in an interview with The Signal. “I never really looked at any of my challenges as adversity. I always looked at them as strengths and as knowledge.”

Cerebral palsy (CP), a condition marked by impaired muscle coordination, can result in muscle tone that

is either too tight or too loose. Mitte counts himself lucky that his form of CP causes his muscles to contract.

“That means I could try to fix it,” Mitte said. “I grew up having leg braces and going through casting. I went through feet binding for years, just constantly working on taking control of my body. That in itself is an adversity, but that’s part of life. That’s my normality. I grew up with this. I know this. I can handle this.”

Although Mitte’s condition is something he’s always been able to handle, it hasn’t always been easy.

“I’ve dealt with bullies and with people who didn’t understand me,” Mitte said. “I dealt with people who thought I was weird.”

Because of this, he urged students to be aware of their surroundings and aware of others.

“We are all capable of amazing acts,” Mitte said. “But we are also capable of evil acts.”

During the lecture, Mitte told a story about an elderly woman who he watched slip and fall in a hallway. He expected someone to rush

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to her aid, but instead, he saw the opposite — people moved away from her. Some even stepped over the woman to continue on their way. When Mitte hurried over to assist her, he realized something about people.

“No one wants to be the first to step out of their realm of comfort and take a risk,” Mitte said. “’But you can’t let that fear rule your life.”

He described the fear one of his friends felt after applying for a job and not hearing back from the company for a while. Finally, Mitte’s friend was called to the office and told why he did not receive the position.

“They gave him a booklet of all his Facebook posts, all his tweets, everything he had posted online,” Mitte said.

He advised students to carefully monitor their online presence, explaining that even if a page says it is “private,” it might not be. Posting irresponsible or inappropriate content online can have severe consequences, according to Mitte.

Opinions / Page 11

Samantha Selikoff / Photo Editor

Mitte doesn’t view his CP as a disadvantage. see MITTE page 3

Features / Page 12

Arts & Entertainment / Page 14

Sports / Page 24

Relay For Life Annual event raises over $80,000 to fight cancer

Delt Week Fraternity raises money and awareness for JDRF

Lacrosse Ava Fitzgerald scores her hundredth goal

See Opinions page 11

See Features page 12

See Sports page 17

page 2 The Signal April 15, 2015

Mayo / Winners receive $22,000 to plan for their business continued from page 1 system, which is not offered at Rutgers.

Their vision is to offer “ethnocentric” dining on campus and to “foster a sense of community at TCNJ.” After talking to some of the architects of Campus Town, the team detailed a possible location and floor plan for Tikka Roll.

The students consulted Lorraine Allen, Regional Director at the Small Business Development Center at the College, for guidance and advising throughout their planning.

Aswani and her mother wanted to open up a restaurant last year, she explained.

Although Aswani, Pal and Parikh will be graduating this May, they plan to stay local and hope to carry through their Tikka Roll dining plan.

One of the most challenging parts of the competition was finding time to meet, according to Pal. “We’re all friends. It’s challenging figuring out how to set a line between friendship and being ‘business partners,’” Aswani said.

The Tikka Roll team presented thorough research on their competitors as well as extensive customer loyalty programs. Proximity, affordability and timely service were terms the team used to describe some of the major strengths of their idea in order to make their business successful.

Thor Electric Longboards came in second place, pioneered by senior mechanical engineering major Jamie LeRoy, senior mechanical engineering major Ian Nolan and senior accounting major Jenna Wilson.

Thor’s product is an electronic pack that longboarders can purchase, assemble and attach to their boards. The pack, which comes with a controller for the longboarder to moderate the speed, allows the rider to safely travel up to 12 mph.

Following in third place was ProjectSpotter, developed by senior marketing major Patrick Kelly, senior marketing major Eric Sawyer, senior psychology major Jessica Gorham and senior finance major Matthew Hellenbrecht.

Hellenbrecht described their online professional platform as a “think-tank for students” and a website that would “facilitate collaboration among students.” ProjectSpotter provides an virtual space for students with an “.edu” address to share any projects or research they are working on with other college students from around the world.

The Mayo Business Plan Competition was established and sponsored by Professor Herber B. Mayo with support from Eric Szabo, class of 1997.

The panel of judges included Joseph Haddock, class of 1997 and director for Operational Risk Management at Annaly

Brendan McGeehan / Photo Assistant

Thor Electric Longboards places second in the competition.

Management Company LLC; Mary Lauria, class of 1986 and vice president of Global Talent Management at Johnson & Johnson; Stacy Mattia, senior banker and SVP in Middle Marketing Banking for Chase Bank; Morayea Pindziak, class of 1999 and vice president of Marketing for The Agency Inside; and Eric Szabo, chief

risk officer for Annaly Company, LLC. Giving advice to future Mayo Business Plan participants, Aswani suggested tackling a personal interest rather than a project that’s merely lucrative in theory.

“Don’t do a business plan just to do it,” Aswani said. “Do something you’re passionate about.”

Using the stories of literary characters to analyze your life

By Meghan Coppinger Staff Writer

In consuming works of literature, characters bring fresh ideas, experiences and perspectives to the reader’s world.

A literary critic and theorist noted this at the College’s inaugural lecture as part of the Visiting Speaker Series on Tuesday, April 7, in the Library Auditorium.

Peter Brooks, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Scholar at Princeton University, spoke to students and faculty of the English Department about “persons and optics” in novels and other literary pieces.

Brooks described “our understanding of ourselves” as something that can be helped when reading a novel. This theory comes from the work of several novelists, historians and experts, including Marcel Proust, T.J. Clark and Mark Twain.

“We need the novel because it changes our view of the

world and the people in it,” Brooks said.

In other words, when you read and immerse yourself in a literary character’s world, you gain insight and reflection on who you are and how you would feel in a real-life scenario.

“It’s interesting to think of seeing the world through a different person’s eyes when you read a story,” said Morgan Romba, a senior education and English double major who attended the lecture.

An important tip Brooks had for the audience, many of whom were aspiring educators, was to assist young readers who analyze characters too simply. They should neither believe characters are real people nor believe characters are black and white. Characters represent an opportunity to look at your own life, and the lives of others through a new lens.

“The more you read, the more insight you gain into other people’s lives,” Romba said.

Faculty welcomed the scholar and novelist with a warm speech, stating Brooks has multiple “identities” that make

him a well-rounded and impressive expert.

“There is so much to admire in the identities of Peter Brooks,” English professor Michael Robertson said.

Brooks, described in his biography at the event as “one of the most prolific and highly regarded literary critics and theorists of his generation,” has authored many books and novels, with interests in “19th and 20th century novel, psychoanalysis and the interrelations of law and literature.”

In a lively discussion with the audience after the lecture, Brooks spoke of the excitement which crafting novels can bring.

“For me, trying to create a narrative was simultaneous with creating characters — it had to unfold,” Brooks said.

The event served as a useful networking experience for students to get to know more about literature beyond the textbook.

“It was very informative to get an expert’s opinion on what we read in class,” senior English major Whitney Hendrickson said.

PRISM fully funded for its last event of the year

AP Photo

The Mexican Cultural Institute is in Washington, D.C.

By Jackie Delaney News Assistant

The Student Finance Board was met with requests for a sustainability event, as well as a trip to Washington, D.C., at its meeting on Wednesday, April 8.

First, PRISM requested $1,044.53 for its last event of the year, a “Transgénero en Nueva Jersey” brunch. This event will

provide an open discussion between trans-Latina individuals from the surrounding Ewing and Trenton area and students from the College. There will also be food from Mexican Mariachi Grill. PRISM said that this event would allow for “discussion about the issues that (these individuals) are faced with daily.”

The event, which will be held on Wednesday, April 22,

in Loser Hall 123 from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., was fully funded by the board.

The Black Student Union then approached the board for more funding for its Black Castle fashion show, which was funded last week for $1,150. BSU asked for more money for a stage rental and another designer, following the loss of one of its previous designers. The event was fully funded with $620 more by SFB and will take place on Friday, April 24.

Next, Water Watch requested $750 for the “Sustainability Education Initiative Kickoff,” which is being held by the School of Education in celebration of Earth Day on Wednesday, April 22. The event will feature booths from both on-campus and off-campus organizations.

Water Watch’s booth plans to educate about upcycling and recycling. Club members hope to bring Dan N. Smith as a keynote speaker to campus. Smith, the director of the Kateri Environmental Center in Wickatunk, N.J., worked under Al Gore in 2007 and has “been educating about climate change, green technology

and other things” for a long time, according to Water Watch. The event was fully funded.

The Student New Jersey Education Association then proposed for $558 for the Leadership Matters Conference, the largest student education conference in N.J. The conference provides workshops for students to attend and allows them to build their resumes and learn more about the education profession.

SNJEA hopes to provide buses to this event so that underclassmen who may not have access to transportation can attend. According to the proposal, it is a “great professional development opportunity” for education students. The proposal was fully funded.

Chi Upsilon Sigma presented for “CUSSIE Boot Camp,” a program designed to give students a chance to experience a “boot camp” by Marine veteran gym instructors. According to the proposal packet, this event will “give people the opportunity to take a step in the right direction toward health and fitness.” The event, which will take place on Thursday,

April 23, in the Packer Hall South Gym, was fully funded $400.

The Spanish Club then requested $1,524.44 for a trip to Washington, D.C. to visit the Mexican Cultural Institute, which is celebrating its 25th year. The center will be holding an exhibition of 25 Mexican and MexicanAmerican artists. The trip, which was fully funded for bus costs, will take place on Saturday, April 25.

Lastly, the freshman class council presented its proposal for $8,173.30 for TCNJ Cares Week.

The event, according to the proposal, “seeks to unify the campus community with goals of raising awareness, breaking down stigmas and building support around the area of mental health.” The event, which will be held on Friday, May 1, was funded for $4,568.30 while the proposal for helium tanks were tabled to see if a rental is possible. *Even though SFB agrees to finance certain events, there is no guarantee these events will take place. The approval only makes the funds available.

April 15, 2015 The Signal page 3

PB&J / ‘It’s peanut butter jelly time’ for charity

Samantha Selikoff / Photo Editor

Student United Way members rush to complete a challenge. continued from page 1 other teams showed. The brothers of Phi Alpha Delta traded with the members of the Black Student Union and were grateful when they were given a loaf of bread for nothing in return.

“I was pumped because I love competition,” said Luke Pasick,

a junior biology major in Phi Alpha Delta. “But the competitive twist on volunteering was really impressive.”

The round captured the message that TCNJ Student United Way president Alyssa Blochlinger was trying to get across with the event — everyone in life is distributed with different

resources. It was clear that people can either use the resources they’re given selfishly or in the name of service.

“I think the different rounds that showed the inequity that exists in our community put the students in a position that many of them haven’t experienced before,” said Blochlinger, a junior accounting major. “We’re so used to the ability to swipe into Eick and eat enough food to make us full, but what we often forget is that many people right outside of our campus don’t have access to food or the same privileges as us.”

The following rounds continued the theme of being resourceful, even when faced with a handicap. Teams found it to be extremely challenging during a round where they were each assigned a different challenge that included tasks such as keeping one eye closed, standing on one leg, kneeling, using one hand or using your non-dominant hand.

All teams were required to provide a judge that would be randomly assigned to another team to

keep the rounds fair. This round taught teams that working together against a challenge was more productive than trying to overcome a huge obstacle individually.

TCNJ Student United Way hopes to give students a place they can go to tackle these worldly and local causes with a team to back them — that was Blochlinger’s goal when she founded the club in spring 2014. On making it her personal mission to help local nonprofits, she started the annual PB&J Race. This year, she wanted to strengthen the impact of the race.

After receiving the “Culture of Health” grant from United Way Worldwide and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Blochlinger used the money to buy better ingredients for the event including whole wheat bread and natural peanut butter and jelly. The ingredients were an important addition to the night because Blochlinger found research stating that almost 50 percent of Trenton children from ages three to 18 are overweight or

obese. A lack of healthy choices in neighborhood stores and the cost of these products were the main reasons why almost 44 percent of the parents surveyed do not shop in their neighborhood.

“I love community service, but it was more humbling listening to facts of the night,” freshman psychology major Lauren Dorvil said.

“It made me love working with a team for the greater good more.”

Returning team Circle K focused on the fun of the night bringing their very own cheerleaders.

They had been looking forward to the competition all year, and although they lost the resourcefulness round to NetImpact and most sandwiches round to Phi Alpha Delta, they were happy to help make as many sandwiches as possible to donate to TASK and other local nonprofits.

The 80 students involved came from a diverse number of clubs and organizations showing how universal and widespread the issue is because so many people wanted to come out to make the night a success.

Some clubs could face derecognition by SG TCNJ Red Cross gains club status without debate

By Alyssa Sanford News Assistant

A heavily-debated club derecognition bill was passed during the Student Government general body meeting on Wednesday, April 8, after members voted to formally recognize a new club.

B-S2015-04 was reintroduced by Jessica Glynn, vice president of Governmental Affairs, after the general body moved to table the bill for later discussion on Wednesday, April 1.

According to the bill, all clubs that have failed to respond to Student Government’s repeated outreaches to reapply for recognition at the end of the year will be formally derecognized by SG and will need to reapply through Governmental Affairs and Student Government next semester.

A new provision to the bill stated that “the deadline will be extended to April 18 at 11:59 p.m.” so that these clubs will have a chance to reapply before being formally derecognized. Instead of solely reaching out to club presidents through their official club email accounts and individual College

email accounts, SG will contact club advisors directly to expedite the process.

Vice President Michael Chiumento clarified in the last meeting that SG was not derecognizing clubs without cause.

He explained that this bill would give clubs in danger of derecognition a final opportunity to reapply without penalty.

Only clubs that have been reached out to “seven or eight times” without response will face possible derecognition, Chiumento said.

President Matthew Wells called for a vote on B-S2015-04, which passed after much debate.

As of yet, there is no official date set for when derecognized clubs can formally reapply for recognition.

Prior to the vote, TCNJ Red Cross presented before the general body in hopes of gaining formal recognition.

The student organization was approved

by Governmental Affairs on Sunday, March 29. GA praised TCNJ Red Cross for its “passionate e-board” and its affiliation with the Red Cross center in Princeton, as well as the National Red Cross.

General body members asked for clarification about the differences between TCNJ

Red Cross and Lions EMS, as both clubs provide CPR training. While Lions EMS CPR training is open to the campus community, TCNJ Red Cross provides CPR training for members only, but the e-board insists that their club focuses on disaster relief and service opportunities more than CPR training.

The club currently has between 25 and 30 members, but new members require CPR certification and formal training in order to be considered active members of the club.

Wells called for a vote to recognize TCNJ Red Cross, which passed with no debate.

Chiumento announced that SG elections will take place on Tuesday, April 28, but newly elected members will not take office until Wednesday, May 6, which is the last general body meeting of the semester.

Later, it was announced that “10 Days of Ewing” will be held from Thursday, April 9, to Saturday, April 18. Alternate Student Trustee Kevin Kim said that local businesses will offer discounts and limited promotions to students from the College during this event.

Vendors such as Dunkin’ Donuts, Mamma Flora’s, Philly Pretzel Factory,

Carvel, Uncle Ed’s Creamery, Sunny Days Tanning Salon and more will be participating in “10 Days of Ewing,” according to Kim. “Show up, show your ID. It’ll be a good way to build relationships between TCNJ and these companies,” Kim said.

Next, Glynn announced that Youth Outreach Day will be held on Saturday, April 18 from noon to 3 p.m.

Senior class council President Brian Garsh said that Senior Week currently has 520 registrants.

“We were a little scared because everyone waited until the last minute,” said Garsh of the late influx of registrants before thanking seniors for registering for the three-day event.

The senior class will also hold a combined senior/junior night on Wednesday, May 5, which will have a Cinco de Mayo theme.

Garsh also announced that on Wednesday, April 22, the senior class will host a TD Bank event that will be relevant to a lot of seniors and educate them on paying off student loans. Representatives from TD Bank will talk to seniors about starting the process of paying back the loans six months after graduation.

Mitte / Actor urges students to be wary of social media continued from page 1 “People can find you by the click of a button,” Mitte said, “and you have to be able to protect yourself and protect your family.”

He drew a parallel between protecting your loved ones and “Breaking Bad,” the AMC show Mitte co-starred on as Walt Jr., the son of a chemistry teacher turned drug manufacturer.

“The thing about ‘Breaking Bad’ which really is

amazing is that it does have so much realism to the show,” Mitte said. “The main concept of it, to me in particular, is, ‘How far are you willing to go to provide for your family?’”

Mitte thinks the violence portrayed in the show is realistic, as well.

“I think the violence and what we showed in ‘Breaking Bad’ wasn’t gratuitous, it wasn’t over exaggerated,” he said. “We’re not in a soft environment. This world is very dangerous. We do have

violence. We do have corruption, and we do have a lot of manipulation.”

Mitte encouraged students to fight against manipulation and fear by accepting the life path each individual is on and by remaining true to oneself.

“Don’t allow people to convince you that you’re wrong. Don’t allow people to manipulate you,” Mitte said. “If you continue to try to please other people, you will lose who you’re meant to be.”

Mitte says the violence portrayed in ‘Breaking Bad’ is realistic.

AP Photo

page 4 The Signal April 15, 2015 SAF FUNDED

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CRISTIN MILIOTI

HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, THE WOLF OF WALL STREET, ONCE ON BROADWAY)

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CUB MEETINGS ARE ON WEDNESDAY AT 3PM IN BSC 202 E

TCNJ College Union Board @TCNJCUB @TCNJCUB

Ice-T / The truth delivered continued from page 1 (that) we’d rob a bank on the way from robbing a bank,” Ice-T said.

He even got shot multiple times, but as Ice-T puts it, he “got shot before it was cool to get shot.”

Although Ice-T took many risks in his younger years, he made it clear that these experiences helped produce his music, and he even gave the audience a quick sample.

He created raps and rhymes to entertain his friends who gave him the nickname IceT. He also told the audience that his music warns against the potential dangers that the streets have to offer.

Ice-T went on to talk about how he transitioned from the music business into the acting world. In an interview with The Signal, he mentioned that he moved to the acting industry because “there was just like a shortage of hip, young, urban blacks kids, and they said, ‘Let’s go to the rappers.’ So they got me. It was a risk, but like anything, if what you do makes money, you’ll do it again.”

And so for the past 17 years, he has had roles not only on “Law & Order: SVU,” but also in several movies, including “New Jack City.” He mentioned that it really is quite ironic that with his past history of crime, he plays one of the detectives on “SVU.” But even so, Ice-T said that Dick Wolf, the creator and director of all “Law & Order” programs, admires his work ethic.

Ice-T has no plans to slow his busy lifestyle.

He will soon be starting a daytime talk show on FOX, and people can continue to see him in action on the next and 17th season of “SVU.” Besides this, he is working on another album called “Blood Lust” with his band Body Count.

However, during his interview with The Signal, Ice-T did mention that he might not be seen in too many upcoming films.

“It’s very difficult to do films when you’re on episodic drama, because we film 10

[

EXPLORING ECONOMIC

]

EVENT

April 15, 2015 The Signal page 5

19

JUSTICE

NEW JERSEY, THE NATION, AND THE WORLD

Photo courtesy of Luke Schoener

Ice-T tells students about his life.

months out of the year and they’re not gonna let me go to do a movie,” Ice-T said. “So I’ve put my film career on the backburner.”

During his lecture, Ice-T provided students with a lot of valuable advice and lessons, mentioning in his Signal interview that he likes talking to colleges, especially.

“It’s a blessing to be able to give somebody a little information about what they’re headed for, and by me being a little bit further down the road than you guys — maybe not even educationally, just life-wise — I have a lot of stories and experiences I can share,” he said.

One piece of advice Ice-T shared was to keep in mind that “no one else cares” — in other words, just be yourself. He also said that “you shouldn’t let someone make you feel inadequate about your successes. Compete against yourself. Keep bettering yourself.” He mentioned that to be successful, you must be dedicated, focused and passionate.

With all this advice, it was Ice-T’s hope that students left with a revelation: “Ice-T told me the truth.”

-Colleen Murphy, News Editor, and Megan Kaczka, Correspondent, contributed to this report.

‘Gideon’s army’ FILM SCREENING

Thursday, April 16, 2015 at 6:00 pm Library Auditorium *Followed by discussion with Porfessor Mort Winston ‘GIDEON’S ARMY’ tells the story of three young public defenders in the Deep South: idealistic lawyers who challenge the assumptions that drive a criminal justice system strained to the breaking point.

Sponsored by: TCNJ Federation of Teachers, Local 2364 The School of Humanities and Social Sciences This program is made possible by a grant from the New Jersey Council for the Humanities, a state partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations in this program do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities or the New Jersey Council for the Humanities.

The College of New Jersey | 2000 Pennington Road, Ewing, NJ 08628-0718

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Nation & W rld

Guilty verdict announced for Boston Bomber

The federal courthouse in Boston where the trial takes place.

By Olivia Rizzo Web Editor Dzhokar Tsarnaev was found guilty of all 30 counts he was charged with in relation to the Boston Marathon bombing on Wednesday, April 8. It took 26 minutes for the verdict to be read in its entirety, according to CNN. The list of guilty charges included: using weapons of mass destruction, bombing a place of public use, conspiracy and aiding

AP Photo

and abetting.

During the trial the jury was presented with images of bombs exploding and gruesome injuries. They heard testimony from witnesses who told stories of how people tended to the dying and severely injured.

“I hope today’s verdict provides a small amount of closure for the survivors, families and all impacted by the violent and tragic events surrounding the 2013 Boston Marathon,” said Mayor Martin J. Walsh

according to the New York Times.

Although a verdict has been decided, a second phase is still left up to consideration, determining whether Tsarnaev will receive the death penalty or spend the rest of his life in prison.

According to the Times, Massachusetts abolished capital punishment in 1984 and has not executed anyone since 1947. Tsarnaev potentially faces the death penalty because he has been convicted of several federal crimes.

The prosecution will argue he should be executed due to the heinous and cruel nature of his crimes, that he betrayed the United States after he became a citizen and has expressed no remorse.

It is theorized that the defense will claim Tsarnaev was being manipulated by his older brother Tamerlan. They will also likely stress that Tsarnaev was only 19 at the time and had no prior criminal record in order to try and dissuade the use of the death penalty.

As each guilty verdict was read, Tsarnaev stood with little expression across his face, his arms folded in front of him as “guilty”

was repeated over and over again. The courtroom was packed with survivors, witnesses and their families as they gathered to hear the outcome of the trial.

“We’re obviously grateful for the outcome today,” said Karen Brassard, a survivor of tragic injuries from the blast. She felt the verdict put the bombing one more step behind her although it was not something that one could ever be over, according to the Times.

It was expected that Tsarnaev would be found guilty of most charges, his lawyers admitted that he had been involved in the bombing. Their defense was minimal only calling four witnesses who testified for five hours while the government called 92 witnesses over 15 days.

Despite the lack of defense, it still seemed possible for Tsarnaev to be acquitted of some of the lesser counts he was charged with.

However, the jury came back with their decision after a day and a half of deliberation with guilty on every charge and related question, making the challenge greater for the defense lawyers in the next phase.

Germany owes Greece billions in WWII reparations

By Gabrielle Beacken News Assistant

According to Greece, Germany owes them billions of dollars for unpaid World War II reparations, USA Today reported.

In 2010, Greece was offered a $260 billion bailout from the European Union in order to divert bankruptcy. The largest aid provider in the European Union was Germany, according USA Today.

According to Greek officials, cited in the USA Today article, Germany owes Greece approximately $302 billion with $11 billion in interest due to overdue monetary compensation for the Nazi occupation in World War II. This is the first time Greece has computed the monetary amount Germany owes Greece for “Nazi atrocities and looting during the 1940s,” according to BBC. The deadline for Greece to pay

back a loan of about $487 million from the International Monetary Fund was due Thursday, April 7. According to the BBC article, Greece is struggling to pay back their financial debt.

“To be honest I think it’s dumb,” German Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel told BBC. “I think that it doesn’t move us forward one millimetre on the question of stabilizing Greece.”

This is an “attempt to distract attention from Greece’s looming credit crunch,” according to USA Today.

Greece claims that Germany gave Athens a small portion of their desired payout for Nazi occupation damages in 1960, according to USA Today. However, Germany asserts that the country paid the required amount of 115 million Marks (a prior Germany currency replaced by the Euro) and additionally provided aid to

the victims of the Nazi regime, according to CNN. Lending Greece $56 billion euros, Germany’s public is “losing patience,” and German media have described the allegations against Germany as “bizarre” and “impertinent” according to CNN. Investing the most in Greece, Germany has the most to lose, said CNN. “Slashing salaries” and “introducing higher taxes” are two tactics Germany has pressured Greece into implementing for them to meet their financial promises, according to CNN. “Berlin’s hard-line approach has turned it into Public Enemy No. 1 among the Greek public,” said USA Today.

The war reparations claim by Greece has not aided ongoing talks between Greece and Germany. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras “appears to be courting

AP Photo

Greece sets a due date for the reparations to be paid.

Russia and China for financial help,” said USA Today, because of the Prime Minister’s accusation that the countries of the European Union, including Germany, have “blackmailed” Greece.

In January, an election of a new governmental coalition between Tsipras and Independent Greeks — a conservative political party — named “Syriza” formed. The Syriza government is “radically left” winged, according to BBC.

Germany’s Minister of Finance, Wolfgang Schauble, has “made little attempt to conceal his contempt for the Syriza government,” said USA Today. Schauble is upset with the new leaders because he believes they are “wrecking” the trust Germany and Greece have previously shared, according to USA Today.

“The new Greek government has totally destroyed the trust of its European partners … this is a serious setback,” Schauble said in a USA Today article.

White House computers breached by Russians

By Roman Orsini Staff Writer Russian hackers breached a White House computer system on Wednesday, April 8, CNN reported. The breach is considered among the most sophisticated attacks launched against government systems by the FBI and other agencies investigating it. Months prior to the breach, the hackers had infiltrated the State Department and used its systems as a platform to reach the White House.

According to CNN, “the intrusion was routed through computers around the world, as hackers often do to hide their tracks, but investigators found tell-tale codes and other markers that they believe point to hackers working for the Russian government.”

The hackers gained access to an unclassified system, which revealed nonpublic documents pertaining to President Obama’s schedule. Although the attack didn’t reap any classified information, such as details of the president’s day and real time whereabouts — both

Hackers gain access to sensitive government information. of which are considered sensitive information and sought by foreign intelligence agencies — like Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB).

Cyber warfare is understood as the use of computers to disrupt or destroy information systems, networks or infrastructure.

The breach of State Department and White House computers did not destroy their infrastructure, but may also represent a lesser cyber attack in the form of an intrusion

AP Photo

onto a sensitive government network.

In 2012, former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta warned the Senate Armed Services Committee about the threat posed by cyber attacks from abroad.

“I’m very concerned at the potential (of attacks) to be able to cripple our power grid, to be able to cripple our government systems, to be able to cripple our financial systems,” Panetta said.

The recent advent of cyberspace

technology and its weaponization by nations and non-state actors has proliferated evenly in recent years, leaving the United States without its usual strategic advantage or institutional framework for understanding this new frontier.

Gen. Martin Dempsey, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in an interview with Fox News, “In every domain ... we generally enjoy a significant military advantage, but we have peer competitors in cyber.” Russia and China are perceived as the most significant rivals to U.S. cyber capability.

With a more level playing field in such capabilities, the U.S. cannot deter sophisticated cyber attacks from other nations with the same overwhelming power it demonstrates in conventional warfare. Furthermore, the U.S. military remains undecided about its “rules of engagement,” with regard to cyber attacks.

Questions such as, at what level of damage does a cyber attack be considered an overt act of war, is unclear, according to the Washington Post.

page 8 The Signal April 15, 2015

April 15, 2015 The Signal page 9

Editorial

Paradise lost: hidden aggression and bias at the College

The College’s student body is less progressive and less tolerant than it is praised to be. This is a difficult misconception to swallow. On the one hand, college campuses have historically been breeding grounds for forward-thinking, action-oriented student groups. As a Northeastern school with a liberal arts agenda, the College seemingly follows the trend. On the other, students shy away from pointing the finger at the latent biases of their own campus, their own peers and, most of all, themselves. So when accusations arise about social backsliding at the College — incidents of racism, homophobia, sexism, Islamophobia and many more — students tend to brush them under the rug. “That’s not us. That can’t be us.”

Unfortunately, it can. And it is.

The malice of individuals at the College has become increasingly visible in the past year. In the fall semester, bigoted discourse erupted on YikYak over the “Black Lives Matter” mural outside the Brower Student Center. There wasn’t just a discussion about police brutality or race relations: outright racism ensued, with students slinging hateful comments behind the cowardice of anonymity.

Then, two weeks ago, 19 cars were vandalized at the College with racial slurs, sexist spite and general disdain for anyone that isn’t a white male scrawled across the vehicles. A campus-wide email from the Division of Student Affairs and the Office of Institutional Diversity stated, “We know that this behavior does not reflect who we are as a community, and those who perpetrated this crime do not reflect our institutional commitment to inclusivity.” I do not doubt the College’s institutional commitments. But increasingly I doubt the gross, hidden nature of our students, and this past weekend, that nature struck a new low.

YikYak flared on Sunday after an unsettling story emerged from the night before. Students reported that a gay student at the College was kicked out of an off-campus party due to his sexuality. As a consensus of observers noted, the student was allegedly verbally abused by a partygoer who called him a “faggot,” among other insults. When the student defended himself, the aggressor began to spread false rumors about the student to his friends at the party, and the hosts ultimately asked the victimized student to walk home rather than make a scene. As it stands, not a single observer has suggested that anyone attending the party actually tried to defend the student.

No one except the individuals involved will ever know the precise truth of what occurred. Even so, the aftermath on social media is just as heinous as the alleged incident itself. As some commentators denounced the treatment of the victimized student on YikYak, other students tried to discredit the story. One Yak argued that there are “so many gay people on TCNJ’s campus” that, if one were thrown out of a party, it could only be because of “drunken idiocy.” Another claimed the sports team that hosted the party would never discriminate based on sexuality and that the individual must’ve been “disrupting the party.” And another — gag me — claimed the aggressor could not be blamed for statements said while intoxicated. “It was a misunderstanding.”

Put simply, students are once again victim blaming. What other motive could there be to challenge eyewitness reports of the incident? Either nonbelievers are attempting to salvage the reputation of the hosts of the party or they truly believe this campus exists in a bubble of equality.

And yet, either way, their ignorance is disturbing and their homophobia showing. To claim an attack on someone’s sexuality could not happen because of our privileged, so-called “enlightened” position helps no one, especially not the LGBTQ community striving on campus. It only helps to protect the insecurities and fabrications of a few, shallow students.

Don’t believe the hype: This campus is not a post-conflict paradise.

Though the actions of a few do not represent the ideals of the College as a whole, bias and aggression do exist among us, whether on YikYak or in the mouths of drunken bigots. We are not immune, and we are not beyond responsibility for the actions of our peers. To claim otherwise is to be an accessory to the crime.

—Tom Kozlowski Editor-in-Chief

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Opinions expressed in signed editorials and letters to the editor are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Signal.

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The vandalism scrawled on cars last week is only one among many incidents of profane, unacceptable aggressions, and they cannot go ignored by students.

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“You shouldn’t let someone make you feel inadequate about your successes. Compete against yourself. Keep bettering yourself.“ — ICE-T, actor, rapper

“Don’t allow people to convince you that you’re wrong.

Don’t allow people to manipulate you.

If you continue to try to please other people, you will lose who you’re meant to be.”

— R.J. Mitte, “Breaking Bad” actor

“We need the novel because it changes our view of the world and the people in it.”

— author, Peter Brooks, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Scholar at Princeton University

page 10 The Signal April 15, 2015 Meet with Faculty and Students about Public Health Degrees and Careers

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Make a Difference With a Graduate Degree or Certificate in Public Health For More Information and to RSVP, call 973-972-7212 or email barnesrb@sph.rutgers.edu sph.rutgers.edu • facebook.com/RutgersSPH • @RutgersSPH Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

Students enjoying Ramapo College’s beautiful 300-acre campus.

Use your summer to get a jump on fall.

Summer is not only a great time to go to the beach and hang out with friends, but it is also a great way to get some of your required courses and pre-reqs completed – giving you flexibility – and a head-start for your fall schedule. Ramapo College’s Summer Session offers undergraduate courses across all disciplines, both on campus and online. Courses are available to visiting students from other colleges and universities*.

Featured in the Princeton Review’s “Best in the Northeast”

Listed by Kiplinger’s as one of 100 Best Values in Public Colleges

Registration is currently open to visiting students.

Explore course offerings at: www.ramapo.edu/summer1

Explore summer course offerings at: www.ramapo.edu/summer1 *It is your responsibility to check with your home institution’s credit transfer policies and requirements to determine eligibility of courses and the acceptable transfer of credits.

Ranked by U.S. News & World Report as one of the Best Regional Universities North category for public institutions

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As a College of Distinction, Ramapo attracts and supports engaged students, great teaching, a vibrant community and successful outcomes

April 15, 2015 The Signal page 11

Opinions

Silence in the library: a necessary measure

Time for students to show mutual respect and pipe down

Courtney Wirths / Business Manager

Excessive noise on the quiet floors of the library has caused an uproar.

By Ellie Schuckman Opinions Editor If you have spent any time on the third and fourth floors of the College’s library within the past few weeks expecting to work in a quiet, relaxing environment, you have probably struggled to do so as noise

violations have become an issue.

It has long been assumed that the higher the floor number, the quieter the floors are supposed to be, thus allowing adequate working areas. However, certain individuals and groups have made the “quiet” floors anything but silent.

Contrary to how it is supposed to be,

there have been many complaints from students about individuals abusing the study rooms on higher floors and being obnoxiously loud and disrespectful.

Just last week, an email was sent out from Bethany Sewell, chair of the Library Building and Safety Committee, warning students of a newly proposed policy, designed to benefit all involved. It was stated that loud conversations are not permitted in open study areas. Also, cell phones should be turned on silent or off, and noise from headphones must not be audible to others. It was also noted that “groups or individuals being disruptive or noisy will be asked to move to a different area of the library.”

While this problem won’t be solved by one simple email, it should be used as a wake-up call for individuals to begin thinking of other people around them.

Although the policy stated in the email affirms that the quiet floors are indeed meant to be quiet, the fact that this note had to be sent out is appalling.

As legal adults in college, there should be a certain maturity among students,

a certain level of common respect and courtesy. Everyone is here at the College for the same reason — to get the best education possible. Any hindrance of doing so should not be tolerated, yet when that hindrance is caused by students themselves, it is simply disrespectful.

Naturally, there will not be perfect silence on the top floors of the library.

However, that doesn’t mean large groups need to be obnoxiously loud. It is easy for those wishing to work together to use the private study rooms on each floor of the library while still keeping their voices at a low volume. After all, the rooms aren’t soundproof, either.

If the only thing that can prevent loud noises are the eventual implementation of penalties, students who are being loud should be ashamed. It is embarrassing that college students, preparing for careers in the “real world,” need to be reprimanded for being too loud.

The solution is quite simple — show common respect and courtesy for your peers who are trying to learn and take the loud conversations elsewhere.

Students encouraged to volunteer through clubs

By Samantha Selikoff Photo Editor Just like many universities, the College has a community service requirement for students.

However, after our freshman year, most are not obligated to volunteer any further. But with countless clubs aimed at helping others, there are many opportunities to give back to our community, on and off campus, that students do partake in.

This past weekend, it was evident that the College was more than a community when over 1,500 students gathered for Relay for Life, raising over $80,000 for the American Cancer Society.

There was no requirement or obligation to go, yet students did, showing how dedicated they are to helping others.

Like many others here, the College is truly my second home because of the organizations with which I chose to get involved. College in general is what you make it, and heading into freshman year, I knew that I wanted it to be the best four years possible. To do so, that meant I would continue to give back and volunteer. The College has countless opportunities to benefit those less fortunate, which I as well as many others, participate in.

There are many organizations to volunteer with on campus,

including Water Watch, a club devoted to protecting the planet; Student United Way, a community service club which works closely with the local community; the Bonner Scholars, an application-based organization that works with Ameri-Corps and even Greek life, which all contribute to different philanthropies.

“I joined Water Watch because I thought it would be a great opportunity to get involved on campus and help to save the environment,” sophomore history major Brett Peters said.

“Community service to me means making a difference.”

As a member of Alpha Phi Omega, a co-ed fraternity dedicated toward community service, I feel that it is important to give back to the community as a whole.

One of the volunteer spots Alpha Phi Omega members serve is the Mercer County Food Bank, and it is amazing to see all the donations that come in.

Alpha Phi Omega also regularly teams up with other organizations such as the Bonner Scholars. Here, members of the fraternity volunteer with after-school programs at local schools such as HedgepathWilliams. There, parents truly appreciate the volunteers and look to us as if we are the students’ teachers. They, in turn,

even often respond positively to us, the actual volunteers.

While some organizations are dedicated solely to community service like Water Watch, Alpha Phi Omega and Bonner Scholars, others incorporate community service into their annual activities.

This year, the College’s Inner Greek Council organized TCNJam — a dance-a-thon to raise money for the B+ Foundation — raising a total of $50,566.54. “(Inner Greek Council) had our heroes and their families come to be recognized and dance Samantha Selikoff / Photo Editor with us, and the founder of the Students make sandwiches for TASK, a local soup kitchen. organization came to be with us as well,” senior special education that I love to do. Being the event, where students could pay and psychology double major reason behind someone’s smile $1 to pie whipped cream into a Emily Weisman said. “(The is all I need to do it again. That’s brother’s face.

Greek community) could really what community service is -— a Alpha Phi Omega is set to see how our fundraising affected passion to make our world a better hold their annual Kids Day Out these people’s lives.” place for everyone to live in.” event on Saturday, May 2, where Even though the College is There are many different organizations on campus come a smaller scale school, students events happening on and off together to put on a free event here still have the ability to campus that give back to the for children from the surrounding make a big difference with the community. Student United Way areas to come and participate in. surrounding communities and held their second annual PB&J Volunteering is a part of me, even the world at large.

Race last week, where many and it will always be a part of Like many other students, I different teams were created me, no matter what. Participation believe that volunteering is a for organizations to truly come in these organizations is simply great way to help other people. together to make as many peanut proof of that.

“I don’t partake in community butter and jelly sandwiches as Winter may be the season for service for recognition or a possible. They were then all giving, but it seems that April is certain number of hours to boast given to the local soup kitchen. the month of giving back. about on my resume,” said This year, participants made These clubs and organizations junior accounting major Alyssa 1,353 sandwiches. only show that students here Blochlinger, who founded Student In addition, Alpha Epsilon Pi at the College do not volunteer United Way at the College. “I just raised over $200 for Heroes because they have to, but because volunteer because it’s something to Heroes with their “Pie AEPi” they want to.

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page 12 The Signal April 15, 2015

Features

Delta Tau Delta raises money for JDRF The College’s newest fraternity leads Delt Week

By Marc Friedland Correspondent

The College’s newest fraternity, Delta Tau Delta, held its first Delt Week on campus from Monday, April 6, to Thursday, April 9, to raise money and awareness for its philanthropy, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, or JDRF. The week’s various philanthropic events included fundraisers with local restaurants as well as prominent guest speakers to advocate for the cause.

“We’re making a profit, and people are showing up to the events,” Delta Tau Delta Philanthropy Chairman and sophomore sociology major Brian Hardie said. “There has been a lot of positive feedback from both the Greek and

non-Greek communities.”

The brothers of Delta Tau Delta hosted a carnival as their first event on Monday, April 6, at the Brower Student Center. The afternoon was filled with student participation in several carnival games in hopes of winning prizes, with all proceeds going to JDRF. Program Director for the New Jersey Chapter of JDRF, Maggie Ford, and her associate, Maryann Malak, spoke at Roscoe West Hall on Wednesday, April 8, to educate students and raise awareness about Type 1 Diabetes. The event saw a big turnout and proved to be very informative to the campus community.

“We learned a lot about how impactful Type 1 Diabetes is and what JDRF does with the money,” Hardie said, noting that the foundation funds the most promising

Photo courtesy of Michael Palughi

Students participate in carnival games to help raise money for JDRF.

Photo courtesy of Michael Palughi

The brothers come together to bring awareness to their philanthropy.

research projects to both look for a cure and improve the quality of life for those who have it.

The week also involved two fundraising events, the first being an event at Five Guy’s Burgers and Fries as well as a Rita’s Italian Water Ice sale in the Student Center, with all of the proceeds from both events going to JDRF. Sophomore history and secondary education major Katie McLaughlin, who attended both the carnival and the Italian ice sale, complimented each event’s success.

“They drew attention, and the campus has definitely been receptive to Delt Week,” she said.

The fraternity was testing the waters through Delt Week to see which events were most popular in order to help plan future events, Hardie said.

“This is one of the first big events that included a lot of planning, and we definitely learned a lot about ourselves from working together for this great cause,” said Oscar Nazar, Delta Tau Delta brother and sophomore computer engineering major, who was heavily involved in preparation of Delt Week.

Nazar hopes to see another Delt Week take place in the future following this year’s success.

As one of the many attendees of the week’s activities, McLaughlin is hopeful the event will be a long-lasting tradition, as well.

“It’s a great idea to make Delt Week an annual event,” she said, noting the fun she had at the activities and in helping raise money for such an important cause.

Benjamin analyzes the global healthcare system

By Margaret Mcelwain Correspondent

Ruha Benjamin, an assistant professor in the center for African American Studies at Princeton University, gave an eye-opening analysis of global health care in this year’s Dr. Gloria Harper Dickinson Memorial Lecture with a talk entitled, “Discriminatory Design: From Park Bench to Lab Bench, Who’s Designing Our Future,” on Thursday, April 9, in the Library Auditorium.

Benjamin received her bachelors from Spelman College in sociology and anthropology and went on to receive her doctorate in sociology from University of California Berkeley.

Currently, Benjamin’s work is raising awareness of the obvious flaws in the global health care realm as she encourages a more social atmosphere in these decisions, where concern for everyone’s health is included. She believes that many of the decisions made by people in the field are created with more affluent individuals benefits in mind because the wealthy are typically the ones in control of these decisions.

Benjamin’s lecture began with the catalyst that drove her interest in the makeup of how things are designed for the public: a park bench. While she was sharing her work in California, Benjamin went to lay down on a park bench when she realized she couldn’t because of the arm rests that were placed intermittently throughout the bench.

This simple detail, she said, reveals a lot about the culture of America and even that particular region: They are people who value their personal space.

Benjamin displayed various pictures of park bench designs from all over the world to illustrate how, as she said, “There are many ways to design the bench.”

For example, she found that there were single-occupancy benches in Helsinki and cagedin benches in France. Every culture subconsciously designs their systems around their own social norms, which Benjamin said “is imbued with a broad range of social values.”

Benjamin shared multiple examples illustrating the hierarchy involved in our global healthcare system, from Henry Eta Lax’s overlooked fame for her stem cells to the stories of

nonconsensual vasectomies being performed in the 1990s in Georgia.

However, the prison assessment brain scan controversy was particularly provoking.

Currently, certain prisons are running “risk assessment” brain scans on their prisoners to test their brain for “impulsivity,” a characteristic they have found correlates with breaking the law.

This comes at a huge disadvantage to the prisoners who will be labeled as more of a threat to society, at times even elongating their prison sentence.

Meanwhile, many Wall Street brokers have had a hand in creating a global economic crisis, yet people do not find them eligible for risk assessment brain scans.

“Why prisoners?” Benjamin asked, frustrated by who is labeled worthy of scientific research and who is not. “Let’s take these brain scans and line them up and down Wall Street.”

In the lecture, Benjamin discussed a trend that is coming about in the global health realm that is particularly catastrophic — the world’s interest in genetics as the answer to every problem in health.

Humans prefer the idea of genetics

as the scapegoat for problems in health because no one is specifically to blame, she said.

Benjamin will soon be studying the caste system in India, where she will be learning about the “biology of castes.” She is interested in finding if genes are racial or if we make them real because we continue to act on them, excluding and racially dividing.

Benjamin asks the question, “Genomically the same or are they the same through political and social mapping?” Unfortunately, theories that take the blame away from anyone or anything

and places the blame in genetics is more appealing and often receives the grants.

Benjamin wants to create a revolution in how we design our systems, to make sure that the people who create the systems ask themselves, “Who are we designing this system for?” She wants to avoid medical abuse and systemic forms of exclusion. “(My goal is) a material and social world that includes input from everyone,” Benjamin said. “(Otherwise we) risk steering this ship into (a) future that is even more unequal.”

Park benches reveal a lot about cultural values.

Flickr

April 15, 2015 The Signal page 13

: Sept. 1974

The end of Travers parties

Kimberly Ilkowski / Features Editor

Residents of Travers Hall hold a 250-person ‘beer party.’

By Kimberly Ilkowski Features Editor

If you thought this year’s group of freshmen were wild partiers, you must have not heard about the freshmen class on campus in 1974. In the September 25, 1974 edition of The Signal, staff writer J. Stryker Meyer wrote a front-page story on a massive rager that was shut down in Travers Hall after hundreds of students and outsiders flooded the building, often illegally.

Thursday nights were notorious as the wild party night on campus, and word spread like wildfire, resulting in the outrageous final party.

“There’ll be no more beer parties on the third floor of Travers this year,” said the Resident Director of the Travers-Wolfe dormitory complex, Fred Worsfold.

This action was taken after some students on the third floor held an illegal beer party, charging an admission fee of $.75 for men and $.25 for women, in a party where 200-250 people were “floating through it,” according to Signal sources.

The illegal party, held last Thursday night, was also a contributing factor to an invasion of the Travers-Wolfe complex by some 500-700 outsiders, according to Signal sources. A student working at the desk estimated that approximately

300 outsiders were registered at the desk, in accordance with dorm regulations.

Outsiders tried to break down the iron guard gates which blocked the staircases in the basement of Travers. When the outsiders found they couldn’t break it they tore apart the gate support structure in the ceiling.

They then crawled over the structure to get into the building, according to Signal sources. “A lot of damage is done by people who don’t even live here (Travers-Wolfe),” said Worsfold.

Other outsiders climbed up to the second floor roof of Travers and climbed through the corridor window to gain access into the building. Another student had six males open her first floor window and tell her they were only going to the party and not to be upset.

The outsiders will “do anything to get into the dorms on Thursday nights,” said the Signal source. “That night has become a party night and apparently word is getting out about the parties in the dorms.”

A student told The Signal, “Thursday night is the biggest rip-off night of the week. People just walk around in the halls looking for open rooms and are taking whatever they can. Others are just looking for some fun. The problem is we can’t tell the difference.”

This invasion of outsiders on

Campus Style

By Heather Hawkes Columnist This spring is all about creating elongated shapes with select textures and fabrics. This Calvin Klein 2015 spring runway look on my right is the perfect example of using clothing to create new shapes. This seamless blend of elegance and minimalism has dominated the Spring 2015 fashion scene across the globe. Calvin Klein has reestablished its runway presence by creating long, elegant silhouettes with neutral sheer fabrics and silks. Though this is a high-end look, it can easily be recreated on a low budget with minimal effort — all you need is the right guidance.

Elle.com

Sheer fabrics dominate spring.

This Asos ‘One Fashion by Vera Moda Gingham Print Pencil Skirt’ on my left is only $16 online and has the perfect shape and fabric to recreate Calvin Klein’s runway look. It is a very simple shape with a minimalistic structure that lies right below the knee, making it more wearable.

Asos.com

Effortless pencil skirts are in.

This elongated ‘Project Social T Double V Cami’ on my right from Urban Outfitters is only $29 and pairs perfectly with the Asos skirt to mimic the featured runway look with a more casual and cool vibe.

The key to recreating runway styles is to make sure that your materials and shapes flow seamlessly into one another. For this particular ensemble, you want to keep the skirt light and simple, not bulky and texturized. This allows the sheer top to flow elegantly over the skirt, creating that sophisticated and elongated

Thursday nights, causes a lot of Security problems. Last Thursday, Security had to have four extra men in the towers while four extra student workers were added to the normal shift to help control the traffic.

“TSC students really hassle Security

Urbanoutfitters.com

Try a cool and casual cami.

shape. To complete the look, wear a sleek, pulled-back hairstyle and slip on a pair of neutral sandals or heels.

by letting non-residents into the dorm.

What happens is, residents aren’t concerned enough about their own safety.

The non-residents hurt the entire operation of the dorm, especially the Security and housekeeping of the dormitories,” said Worsfold.

The Hollyword: Many Manson Mishaps

AP Photo

Manson encounters violence at a Canadian Denny’s.

By Johnanthony Alaimo Columnist

Tragedy struck Canada this past week when Marilyn Manson was PUNCHED in the face at a Denny’s. First off, I was not aware that Canada had a Denny’s. Second off, I was not aware Marilyn Manson had a face.

Third off, you should totally expect to be PUNCHED in the face

when you’re at a Denny’s.

There is a complete hierarchy of restaurants and what happens to you when you go to them.

Denny’s has physical violence, Perkins has quiet and depressing self-reflection and Friendly’s has explosive diarrhea.

But poor Marilyn. Apparently, this is what went down according to People Magazine: “On April 5 around 2:45 a.m.

Lethbridge Police responded to a report of an altercation at a Denny’s restaurant along the 400 block of Mayor Magrath Drive South in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada. Investigation determined that three people had been involved in a physical altercation and sustained minor injuries. No charges were laid and the file has been concluded.” I hope he was able to enjoy his first Grand Slam before he got his unexpected second one.

DirecTV has been forced to pull its Rob Lowe commercial campaign ads, which feature Lowe playing himself as well as an alter-ego that’s not so hot.

Apparently, Comcast — DirecTV’s main competitor — filed a complaint with the National Advertising Commission which, as a branch of the Better Business Bureau, then recommended DirecTV pull the plug on the ads.

Good, honestly. Pull the ads. In fact, get rid of all commercials.

Replace them with cute dog videos or that clip of Britney Spears high and talking about time travel. Much better use of time.

And there’s another Duggar in the world. Jill Duggar and husband Derick Dillard have welcomed their first child into a world where you can be PUNCHED in the face for walking into a Denny’s.

The child’s name is “Burning Talking Bush Hallelujah Jesus Mary and Joseph Swiper No Swiping Dillard.” OK fine, it’s actually just Israel David Dillard, but don’t tell me they weren’t thinking about the first one. I cannot wait until the child is able to say his first anti-gay statement, and I hope they record him burning his first batch of birth control pills! So sweet, the young.

AP Photo

DirecTV commercials featuring Lowe will no longer air.

page 14 The Signal April 15, 2015

Arts & Entertainment

DeSomma crowned Slam Poetry queen once again

By Kelly Corbett Staff Writer Verses about the American Dream, online dating and even the Fourth Amendment were read on Friday, April 10, at INK’s “Slam Down the Walls” Poetry Competition. Poetry lovers gathered in the Bliss Lounge for a night filled with rhymes and competition as seven hopefuls took to the mic, each sharing three original poems. Judges were randomly selected from the audience, facing a difficult task as they scored each poem and ultimately chose which slam poet would walk out with a special recording session.

The night began with Patrick Lin, a sophomore economics

and international studies major, who graced the audience with his poem “The Architect” about a love that just didn’t quite work out.

“Loving you made me play hopscotch in my chest,” Lin read.

“Don’t you see, this place is beautiful. I built this. I built this life around you.”

Lin’s poem employed a central metaphor in which falling in love was compared to the work of a designer.

“The Architect builds his life’s work knowing that one day it will be abandoned,” Lin said. “I am just a visitor in my own creation now.”

On a lighter note, Andrew Edelblum, a junior psychology major, shared his experience

Heiner Fallas / Staff Photographer

Edelblum reads about his humerous personal experiences.

with making an online dating account on OkCupid during winter break. With lines such as “This is the future of love,” he took the audience through the experience of creating an OkCupid profile. Being asked questions such as “Are carbohydrates something you think about often, yes or no?” listeners got a feel of the process of online dating. “‘Will you teach your kids to believe in Santa Claus, yes or no?’ Well, I was raised Jewish,” Edelblum said, which elicited laughter from the audience.

Other poems read throughout the night touched on more personal issues such as suicide and abusive relationships.

Reigning “Slam Down the Walls” champion, Kira DeSomma took the slam stage again touching on issues such as mental illness and eating disorders in her work.

“One of the reasons I write is so that other people who struggle with similar themes will know that they are not alone,” the junior English major expressed.

In her piece, “The Poem You Told Me Not to Write to You,” she gave a realistic approach to having a crush that didn’t work out well.

“I am trying to forget the conversations he and I had in my

Heiner Fallas / Staff Photographer

DeSomma wins for her inspiring words on past struggles.

head. I am trying to let go of whole cities, whole countries.

It is time to unplug. It is time to uproot,” DeSomma read.

It was clear that her lines resonated well with the audience, for they were quiet and rapt as she went through her work.

“I don’t want to tell him my secret names, not to him nor the ocean, not to anyone else. Not anymore,” DeSomma read. “I just want to eat plums with him.

I never promised I wouldn’t write this poem, so like, he can’t even be mad?”

Later on, DeSomma also read to the audience “Desperate Facebook Msgs I Never Send To the Guys I Am DTF.” The poem sheds

a light on some of the speaker’s intended messages—“I don’t even know how to pronounce your last name,” or “I’m sorry to bother you tonight, but I’m exhausted and drunk with disappointment” — that never made it to the other recipient’s inbox.

After all the performers had read, the judges tallied up their scores and crowned the poetic winner.

DeSomma, with her truthful and beautiful verses, was once again crowned the “Slam Down the Walls” winner.

“I love poetry because it gives me a voice,” DeSomma said, “and competing gives me an opportunity to share that voice with others.”

The Decemberists rock sold-out New York show

By Sydney Shaw News Editor

It is no surprise that Colin Meloy began The Decemberists’ concert in New York City on Monday, April 6, with the opening track from the band’s latest album, “What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World.”

It was, however, a revelation that before “The Singer Addresses His Audience” ended, Meloy had managed to make the soldout Beacon Theatre — with a capacity of nearly 3,000 — feel like an intimate space.

On “Singer,” Meloy belted out in his clear, incisive voice, “We know we belong to you. We know you built your lives around us.”

This acknowledgement precedes a confession: “We know you threw your arms around us in the hopes we wouldn’t change, but we had to change some.”

The Decemberists’ evolution since its formation in 2000, both lyrically and instrumentally, is particularly conspicuous on its latest LP. The band has moved away from its trademark folksy sound, in addition to utilizing less of its infamous literary finesse.

There were far fewer “parapets” and “irascible blackguards” than on past albums. It is a topic the band recognizes on a few new tracks, including “Anti-Summersong.”

Meloy sang, “I’m not going on just to sing another summersong,” referencing the catchy track from 2006’s “The Crane Wife.”

“I know New York is a city full of shy people who have a hard time expressing themselves,” Meloy said, gently mocking the crowd for remaining in their seats during that particular song. “I will break you

AP Photo

Meloy and band play tunes from their expansive musical career. before the night ends.”

And he did just that with a chilling performance of “Make You Better,” a powerful track fraught with nostalgic pining from the new album. Here Meloy sings, “I needed you to make me better, but we’re not so starry-eyed anymore.”

Besides the several songs pulled from “What a Terrible World,” the band performed an artillery of tracks from its back catalog, including an extensive, four-song block from the 2009 rock opera, “The Hazards of Love.”

The audience furiously clapped along to “The Rake’s Song,” a pucky track during which Meloy — bathed in a malicious red light — plays a widower who feels no remorse after killing his children in order to

be rid of the responsibility of raising them.

Before the band returned for a double encore, it ended, ironically, with “A Beginning Song.”

Not only have The Decemberists changed over the past decade and a half, but the world they live in has, as well — a fact Meloy pointed out during the first song of the encore, “12/17/12.” The song serves as a poignant reaction to the Newtown, Conn. school shootings.

“Here with my heart so whole while others may be grieving, to think of their grieving,” Meloy sang. “And O my god, what a world you have made here. What a terrible world, what a beautiful world.”

For the final encore, The Decemberists returned to “The Mariner’s Revenge

Song” from 2005’s “Picaresque,” a gypsyfolk odyssey that boasts the band’s knack for storytelling.

“The first thing written was the scream, and I wrote the song around it,” Meloy said. “I worked on the scream for a long time, alone in my room, screaming.”

Multi-instrumentalist Jenny Conlee played the anguishing mother who, on her deathbed, instructs her son to avenge her death by finding her runaway, roustabout lover. At the end of the song, both the son and his mother’s lover miraculously survive a whale attack when they “slip between his teeth” and end up together in his belly.

“Three-quarters of the way through this song,” Meloy directed, “I want you to scream like you’re being swallowed by a whale. But since you’re New Yorkers and you’ll do whatever you want, and since time is relative and you won’t know when it’s three-quarters of the way through the song, there will be a signal.”

The signal came from guitarist Chris Funk, who made a giant biting motion with his arms. The whale itself made an appearance in the form of a gigantic wooden cutout, chomping his jaws across the stage and eating up the entire band as Conlee’s order escalated in tempo: “Find him, bind him, tie him to a pole and break his fingers to splinters, drag him to a hole until he wakes up, naked, clawing at the ceiling of his grave.”

The audience may not have left the show “rioting all up the Upper West Side” as Meloy had intended, but it is safe to say The Decemberists’ first New York show in four years was an epic one.

April 15, 2015 The Signal page 15

‘American Crime’ features powerful performances

By Elena Tafone Correspondent While the new series “American Crime” has no relation to the national sensation that is “American Horror Story,” it’s not without its own chills. It’s less supernatural and more realistic, making it all the more terrifying.

The story takes place in wake of the death of Matt Skokie, a returned war veteran who was murdered during a home invasion that left his wife Gwen beaten, violated and in a coma. It follows those affected, from Matt’s divorced parents (Felicity Huffman and Timothy Hutton) to those who are suspects of the crime and their family members. “American Crime” is like a car crash: brutal, but intriguing, so much so that you may have trouble looking away.

While shows about crime, police investigation and courtroom procedure are nothing new — like “Law & Order,” which has been running for over 20 years and spawned innumerable spinoffs — “American Crime” is different.

“It’s not a procedural,” said John Ridley, the show’s creator, in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.

“It’s not about the next piece of DNA evidence — it’s

about people dealing with a situation they never asked for, they don’t want to be a part of and will not resolve itself in a week, in a month and sometimes even a year.”

Ridley, who is known for his work on “12 Years a Slave” — which won him the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay in 2013 — wanted the show to examine race relations among other things. These issues are centered around the character of Anthony “Tony” Gutiérrez (Johnny Ortiz), who is initially suspected of having some kind of involvement in Matt’s death and Gwen’s assault. Tony, the son of Mexican immigrants, is forced to face how his heritage paints people’s perception of his involvement in the crime and how he is treated by the criminal justice system.

“I honestly hope that it doesn’t deliver a verbal message,” Ridley told The Hollywood Reporter when asked about how the show addresses these issues. “I believe and hope the writing is good, but it’s not about preaching to people; it’s about having an emotion and people getting pulled along and not even knowing how they arrived there.”

The series is an anthology, meaning each season will focus on a new story with new characters. The first season, which centers on the Skokie murder, made its premiere

on Sunday, March 15, and consists of 11 episodes, six of which have already aired. With its beautiful cinematography, artful editing and powerful performances, it’s sure to be a major contender at this year’s Emmy Awards.

AP Photo

Huffman and Hutton lead ‘American Crime.’

Rifkin leads readings of classic Russian poetry

By Kelsey Leiter Correspondent Amid Eickhoff cookies and fresh beverages, students and faculty alike took some time out of their day on Thursday, April 9, to celebrate a piece of European literature — Russian poetry.

Benjamin Rifkin, dean of Humanities and Social Sciences, along with Benjamin Jens and Colleen Lucey, instructors of Russian at the College, helped bring to life the words of famed Russian poets in honor of National Poetry Month.

The College’s very own proponents of Russian poetry selected nearly a dozen poems — half from the 19th century and half from the 20th century, Rifkin explained — to convey moods ranging

from silly to serious.

Both Jens and Rifkin earned their doctoral degrees in Russian literature, while Lucey is currently creating her own dissertation on Russian literature.

“It is no surprise that the three of us were excited to share our love of Russian poetry with the campus,” Rifkin said.

The professors took turns going line by line through each poem, with translations featured at the front of the room for students to follow along in order to read and recognize the “emotional charge of each line.”

Poems by Pushkin, Lermontov, Fet, Tiutchev, Balmont, Blok, Akhmatova, Tsevetaeva, Pasternak and Brodsky were all recited in the original Russian, because the professors believe that though

the authors are relatively well-known throughout the world, there is a something extremely important about keeping the text in its original language.

“Russian poets don’t have the same recognition, and it’s a shame because Russian poetry is so beautiful,” Rifkin said when describing the event.

Between readings of each poem, students had the opportunity to discuss what they thought of the verses and learn more about each particular poem’s historical and cultural context.

Rifkin believes students were most moved by two poems of very different emotional dialects. The first of which, Balmont’s “Skiff of Langour,” can be considered a dark sound poem.

The second, “Incantation of Laughter”

by Khlebnikov, is a funny piece that uses gibberish words all derived from the root of the word “laughter” in Russian. The poem begins, “We laugh with our laughter, loke laffer un loafer, sloaf lafker int leffer, lopp lapter und loofer, loopse lapper ung lasler…”

“Russian poetry is amazing. Before the 19th century, no Russian writers entered the world literary canon,” Rifkin said. “But since the beginning of the 19th century, no study of European literature, music or art is complete without the inclusion of Russian writers, composers and artists.”

The purpose of the event was to develop a better appreciation of Russian poetry on campus, and it’s evident that students left the reading with a different appreciation of the genre.

‘Fast 7’ stirs emotion with touching tribute to Walker

By Joe Passantino Staff Writer

If the box office numbers for “Fast & Furious 7” are anything to go by — it has already grossed over $500 million worldwide — the movie franchise is as strong as ever. This particular entry carried a special significance, as it was the late Paul Walker’s last installment after having passed away in a car crash in 2013. So how, exactly, did “Fast” retire Walker’s Brian O’Conner? (Stop reading here to avoid spoilers).

As it turns out, it did so in as classy a manner as one could possibly imagine. Throughout the film, viewers learn that O’Conner’s love interest, Mia

Toretto (Jordana Brewster), is pregnant with the couple’s second child. Given that she mostly discusses this new pregnancy with brother Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and in a phone conversation with O’Conner, it seems fair to guess that this storyline was written in posthumously as a way to explain Walker’s exit. While O’Conner does flirt with death a few times in the film, he does not die. Given the nature of his actual demise, the calm nature of his departure seems much more appropriate than killing him off in an automobile-related stunt.

The film concludes with a faraway shot of O’Conner (played by a stand-in for Walker) and Mia on a beach, playing with their first

Walker’s character, Brian, has a moving send-off.

AP Photo

child, Jack. Most of the key characters, including Letty (Michelle Rodriguez), Roman (Tyrese Gibson) and Tej (Chris “Ludacris” Bridges), watch the scene and reflect on their time with O’Conner.

But it is Dom’s struggle to accept the notion of “goodbye” that is truly moving, as he departs the scene without saying a final farewell. As he drives away, O’Conner catches up with him in a white Supra, and the two share “one last ride” together. Following a montage of O’Conner’s best scenes, Dom says that O’Conner will always be his brother – and it seems obvious that these words are really from Vin to Paul. The two part ways at a fork in the road, and O’Conner drives off into a bright sunlight.

This was a perfect ending, one that encapsulated the overarching “Fast” theme of family and the real-life bonds the cast members shared. Anyone watching should have been able to tell that, although Diesel plays an often-stoic tough guy in the movies, he is a real person with real emotion. That emotion came right through the screen and caused many fans to tear up.

The imagery of the final parting was beautiful, as it optimistically suggested that Walker is not gone, but has simply taken a different road.

AP Photo

Diesel brings both action and emotions to ‘Fast 7.’

Thankfully, the entire movie was not as much of a tearjerker as the closing five minutes. It stayed true to the spirit of “Fast” with lots of action, beautiful women, fast cars and absurd stunts. Dwayne Johnson made a brief but entertaining return as Luke Hobbs, hitting villain Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) with a Rock Bottom (his wrestling finisher) through a glass table and powering a cast off his arm through the sheer might of his will. Statham himself did an unsurprisingly fantastic job of playing the bad guy, always on the heroes’ tails and a participant in several exciting fight scenes.

Roman, portrayed by Tyrese Gibson brought his amusing brand of humor to the film, asking to check his email during a

complicated tech procedure and denying his obvious fear when asked to drive a car out of an airplane. The latter brought a human element to one of the film’s ridiculous stunts, a stunt which was matched later by Dom and Brian crashing a car through three skyscrapers.

Naturally, many of these antics seem far-fetched, but “Fast” has never been a series that prided itself on realism. It is well aware of how wacky it is and, if anything, thrives on it. That endearing ridiculousness and the excellence of the other cast members mean that “Fast” can feasibly continue successfully without Walker.

But he will live on through his work, always remaining part of the family.

page 16 The Signal April 15, 2015

April 15, 2015 The Signal page 17

Sports Baseball

Lions win five of six to get back in NJAC hunt

Photo courtesy of the Sports Information Desk

Turner has a big day at the plate with 7 RBI.

By Jessica Ganga Nation & World Editor

After having a tough few games in the previous week, the College’s baseball team was able to bounce back last week by adding five wins in six games.

The Lions started out their week playing at Stockton University on Monday, April 6, in a game that ended up going into extra innings. The Lions had an early lead, scoring three runs in the fourth and following that up by scoring two more runs in the fifth. Stockton tied it all up later in the bottom of the eighth. With the score still tied

after the ninth, the game went into a 10th inning.

Seniors Josh Limon and Michael Murray hit back-to-back doubles to break the 5-5 tie in the 10th. Junior John Rizzi stepped up to the plate and hit an infield single to bring Murray home, which proved to be the difference in the game as Stockton went on to score only one run in the bottom of the 10th.

Sophomore closer Eric Teesdale came out to pitch the final two and two-third innings — making it the first win of his collegiate career. The starter of the game, junior Steven Volpe went seven-plus innings for the Lions, putting them in position

for their win.

However, following the victory, the Lions suffered a crushing loss against Rowan University when they were home on Thursday, April 9.

The trouble started in top of the third for the College. Rowan University scored five runs off of three errors, making it a 7-1 game. The Profs used three consecutive bunt plays — two of which were mishandled and one of which was beaten out by a Rowan player for a single — to build their lead. A passed ball scored another player, putting the Lions in a difficult position.

No matter what the scoreboard read, the Lions still battled back to try and take a lead. Senior Anthony Cocuzza was one of those players, ending his night with three RBIs on three hits.

“I try and work the pitcher a little bit more and try and see if I can see some more balls and just kind of get on base,” Cocuzza said. “I’m usually a pretty aggressive hitter.”

In the fourth, junior Matt Facas led off the inning with a single.

Rizzi followed by hitting into a fielder’s choice and then sped down the base line to steal second.

Cocuzza earned his second RBI of the game, smacking the ball to right to bring Rizzi home.

Junior pitcher Evan Edelman went six and a third innings, handing the ball to freshman pitcher Chris Barcas in the top of the seventh.

Despite the loss, the Lions will move past forward and keep a positive mindset going into their next games.

“Our saying is ‘flush it’ kind of like a toilet because it’s kind of a stinky game and we got to forget about it,” Cocuzza said. “And that’s the game of baseball, you get knocked down time after time and you’re never going to be any good if you can’t come back from it.”

The Lions came back from the loss on Saturday, April 11 with a doubleheader sweep against William Paterson University.

In the first game, the Lions started off by scoring three runs in the first inning. Junior Garren Turner hit a two-run single, and Limon followed with a sacrifice fly to give the team an early lead. During the fifth, three straight singles off the bats of juniors Mark Mari, Patrick Roberts and Cocuzza loaded the

bases. Turner drove in a run and sophomore CJ Gearhart reached on a throwing error, and two more runs came into home, making the score 6-4 for the Lions.

Cocuzza finished the game going 4-5, while sophomore Ben Varone, Rizzi, Turner and Roberts each got two hits.

WPU started off the second game with a 1-0 lead. The Lions answered back, scoring two runs in the bottom of the first off of two ground balls hit by Roberts and Limon to score the runners on base.

In the eighth, WPU had the advantage once again, scoring one run in the top of the inning, but it wasn’t enough. The Lions came back in the bottom of the ninth when Gearhart reached on an error with one out. Varone hit a bullet to left and Rizzi drew a walk.

Mari entered the batter’s box and came up clutch, hitting a twostrike ground ball passed second.

Sophomore Ed Guippone, who was pinch-running for Gearhart, scored along with Varone to have the walk-off win for the Lions.

The Lions now stand at 12-10 on season and 5-4 in the New Jersey Athletic Conference.

Lacrosse

Tennis

Women suffer first loss Lions extend home win streak Men’s win streak snapped

By Josh Kestenbaum Staff Writer This week, the men’s tennis team finished with a win and a loss as the Lions defeated the Wilkes University Colonels on Monday, April 6, by a score of 9-0 and lost to the Skidmore College Thoroughbreds on Saturday, April 11, with a score of 6-3.

Five of the six singles players who started both matches for the Lions finished the week with a 1-1 record. Sophomore Mike Stanley was the only Lion player to come out of the week with a perfect record, having secured two wins each in singles and doubles. In his singles matches, Stanley only dropped four games over four sets. Stanley and fellow sophomore and doubles partner Jack August won both of their matches at No. 2 doubles, each by scores of 8-6. Freshmen Chris D’Agostino and Sean Fernandez also had two wins in doubles during the week. They defeated their Wilkes opponents with a score of 8-5, and their match with Skidmore ended at 9-7.

The loss to Skidmore ended the team’s eight-game winning streak. The men’s team is now 8-2 on the season.

The women’s team experienced similar results, finishing the week with a win and a loss. The women earned a 9-0 victory over Muhlenberg College on Thursday, April 9, but fell to Skidmore College by the same score.

Sophomore Anna Prestera only surrendered one game in her No. 5 singles match versus Muhlenburg and

forced her match against Skidmore to three sets, losing a close match with 4-6, 6-2, 10-5.

Freshman Maddy Stoner also had a relatively successful week. Against Muhlenberg, Stoner was victorious, recording a 6-0, 6-2 win. In her match against Skidmore, Stoner was defeated but sent the match to three sets. After winning the first set, 6-4, she lost the second in a close tiebreaker by a score of 9-7. In the third set super-tiebreak, Stoner lost 10-4, but the fight through three sets was impressive enough, even without a win at the end.

“I always tell myself to keep fighting no matter what is happening,” Stoner said. “Because at the end of the day, the win not only means something to me but means something to the team, as well.”

With the loss to Skidmore, the women’s undefeated season came to an end, dropping them to 9-1 overall.

Photo courtesy of the Sports Information Desk

The women soundly beat Ithica.

Photo courtesy of the Sports Information Desk

Karpovich scans the field in a win over Salisbury.

By Anthony Caruso Staff Writer

The College’s women’s lacrosse team had two blowout wins this week, both on the road and a tight win at home on Thursday, April 9.

The Lions are now 10-2 on the season. With the win on Thursday, they are a perfect 5-0 at home this season.

On Tuesday, April 7, at Rowan University in Glassboro, N.J., the Lions defeated the Profs, 12-4.

Traditionally, Rowan has been a tough opponent for the College. However, this year, the Profs have struggled.

The Lions jumped out to a 7-3 lead in the first, then 5-1 in the second half in front of the 78 people in attendance for the game at Coach Wackar Stadium.

Senior Ava Fitzgerald led the Lions with six goals, including the 100th of her

career, while fellow senior Kendal Borup added five.

Junior Cortney Natalicchio scored the other point.

Sophomore Lions goalie Kelly Schlupp made four saves and allowed four goals in 60 minutes for the win.

Her counterpart, Profs freshman Erin Horner, made eight saves and allowed 12 goals in the loss.

On Thursday night, the Lions escaped with a two-goal win over the Stevens Institute of Technology Ducks. The College won 7-5 in front of 51 fans at Lions Stadium. The loss snapped the Ducks’ eightgame winning streak.

Both teams scored three goals each in the first half, as there was a dominant defensive effort on each side.

Stevens jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the half before the College battled back to score the next three goals to make it 3-2. Stevens scored

in the final minute to make it 3-3 with a goal by freshman Julianna Ricci.

Borup and Fitzgerald went on to score right after halftime to give the home team a 5-3 lead. After trading goals throughout, the game stood at 7-5.

The Ducks cut the lead to 7-6 with 1:18 left in the game. However, the goal was waved off following an illegal stick.

Then, after getting possession, the College ran out the clock for the win.

Schlupp made five saves and allowed five goals in 60 minutes for the win. Stephanie Schneizer, a freshman from Stevens, made seven saves and allowed seven goals for the loss.

On Sunday, April 12, the Lions rolled past the Salisbury Sea Gulls in Salisbury, Md. They won, 10-3, at Sea Gull Stadium in front of 200 fans.

On the road, the College jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first half. In the second half, they also scored five goals, but the Sea Gulls added three of their own.

Fitzgerald and Borup each scored three goals. Sophomore Mia Blackman scored twice, while senior Erin Healy and freshman Amanda Muller scored once. Schlupp made two saves and allowed three goals in 60 minutes for the win.

page 18 The Signal April 15, 2015

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April 15, 2015 The Signal page 19

AROUND THE

DORM 5 3

George Tatoris “The Ref”

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Kevin Luo

Sports Editor

Staff Writer

Michael Battista Sports Assistant

In this week’s Around the Dorm, the “Ref,” George Tatoris, asks our panel of experts three questions: Will the MLS ever become as popular as European leagues, what does the hiring of the first female ref mean for the future of the NFL and which MLB team impressed the most on Opening Day?

1. Will the MLS ever reach the prestige of European soccer leagues?

Kevin: I don’t believe the MLS will ever be as popular as European soccer, or at least never in my lifetime. The fact of the matter is the MLS is the fifth-most popular professional American sport, while soccer is far and wide the most popular sport in all of the major European soccer nations. Even if the MLS grows exponentially in popularity, it would require the NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL to all decrease significantly in popularity. The MLS just doesn’t have the star power and money that the European leagues have. In 2014, the highest valued MLS team by Forbes was valued at $175 million. In comparison, Forbes ranked the top 20 European clubs, and they were all more valuable. All in all, the money, star power and popularity of European soccer is head and shoulders above the MLS. Matt: The MLS will never be close to being considered prestigious. Americans have no interest in soccer, except for every four years when we pretend to care

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for two weeks and then go back to caring more about where Gronk partied the night before. Americans will never care for soccer, specifically a league with such little talent as the MLS. Messi and Ronaldo could come to the MLS in their primes,

and people would still rather watch football, basketball, baseball, hockey or even squash. Soccer is just too low-scoring to keep Americans’ interests. Nobody wants to sit through a game that ends in a 0-0 tie or see a player fake an injury every two

minutes. This is America — land of the free and the home of the brave — where only Communists fake injuries.

Michael: Yes, but it will take a lot of work on their part. Right now, the league has a lot of older players who can’t find teams to pay them in Europe and younger guys who are good, but not Chelsea or Manchester City good. If they’re able to lure over players who people know and are really good, like Tim Howard or Wayne Rooney — which they have no shot of but we’ll use — more people will want to see them play. I’ll end this with a personal story; after a New York Rangers game awhile back, I was waiting for a PATH train at 33rd street in New York. All around the station, I saw people wearing New York City FC jerseys, scarves, hats, etc, and I wondered what was going on. Turns out it was their first game, and that’s when it hit me.

A brand new soccer team in the U.S. was moving merchandise like that, and this, my friends, is what gives me hope it can reach high levels of popularity here in the U.S.

Matt gets 3 points for calling out soccer as the commie sport it is. Michael gets 2 points for optimism, and Kevin gets 1 point for bringing up the money side of the issue.

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2. What does the hiring of the NFL’s first female referee mean for the future of the league?

Kevin: I don’t think it will be a big deal in the long run. There will be a small period

where it’s a little awkward, but if she’s a quality referee, that period won’t last that long. There are plenty of women who are heavily involved in the NFL via the media, so the idea of women not

understanding football is a thing of the past. I don’t think this will lead to a huge influx of women in the NFL, but it may lead to a few more women involved in the league here and there which won’t be the end of the world.

Matt: The hiring of Sarah Thomas is a long overdue step in the right direction for the NFL, just in time to repair the league’s image after the mishandlings of multiple domestic violence cases.

Thomas’ performance will be magnified compared to other refs because the NFL would like to make an icon out of her, and drunk idiots everywhere can’t wait until she messes up. Thomas has proven she is a very good referee because she has already climbed the referee ladder to the top. She can’t be worse than the replacement refs a few years ago. In the future, more women may aspire to become referees in any professional league

because of her, but for the immediate future, not much changes.

Michael: To be honest, all it’s going to do is give drunk fans more ammo for insults which they claim are justified because of bad officiating. The game isn’t going to change because of this, and no one should really pay it any mind. If the league hires more female refs, that’s totally fine. It’s not like they can’t call games better or worse than male ones.

If I’m really thinking about it, sure, this could lead to more females in the sport ­— maybe a girl could be on the headset with a team’s coach telling him to throw that challenge flag, or hell, maybe a girl will be that coach! But seriously, for right now this doesn’t really mean anything and it shouldn’t. We shouldn’t be saying, “Let’s see how this girl does.”

We should be saying, “Let’s see how this new official does.”

Matt gets 3 points for bringing up the NFL’s image. Michael gets 2 points for saying female refs are equal to male refs, and Kevin gets 1 point for mentioning women in football.

3. Which MLB team had the best performance Opening Day? Kevin: I’ll say the best performance from Opening Day was by the New York Mets.

When I heard 41-year-old Bartolo Colon was going to be the Opening Day starter for the Mets, I thought it might be an ugly start to the season for the Metropolitans. However, it was the complete opposite. Colon beat former Cy Young award winner Max Scherzer and one of the favorites in the NL, the Nationals.

They ended up taking two of three from the Nats this week. Every year, I hear from Mets’ fans that this is the year the Mets become relevant. I’m not saying they’ll definitely make that leap, but Mets fans should definitely be happy with the good start against such a talented team.

Matt: Without a doubt the Seattle Mariners had the most impressive opening day, downing the Angels, 4-1. The Mariners are a team on the rise and one that is expected to compete for a World Series title. All the hype was confirmed on Opening Day, when the team shut down the Angels, a team that, along with Oakland, has owned the AL West the past few

seasons. The Mariners pitching held Trout and Pujols, two of the biggest stars in the game, to a combined 1-6 on the day, sending a message that its the Mariners’ time to shine in the west.

Michael: There was a lot to talk about Opening Day, from David Price of the Tigers throwing eight shutout innings against the Twins to Alex Rodriguez getting a standing ovation at his home return (I don’t know what animal the Yankees sacrificed for that to happen, but let’s hope they do it for Tanaka’s arm, too). But I have to give the best performance to the Colorado Rockies against the Milwaukee Brewers.

The team absolutely wrecked the Brewers, 10-0, and had an impressive day both offensively and defensively. Colorado allowed just eight hits off of 33 at bats. At the plate, the entire lineup helped play a role, but young third baseman Nolan Arenado really shined going 3-4 with four RBIs, including a two-run home run. All in all, I understand not a lot of people expect much from Milwaukee, so them losing isn’t a big deal. But this kind of strong start for Colorado is definitely worth mentioning, especially from a team I think is worth a watch this year.

Michael gets 3 points for bringing up statistics. Kevin gets 2 points for bringing up Colon’s performance, and Matt gets 1 point for mentioning the Mariners’ pitching.

Matt wins Around the Dorm via a Trivia Crack tiebreaker, 8-7-4.

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page 20 The Signal April 15, 2015

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page 22 The Signal April 15, 2015

April 15, 2015 The Signal page 23 Cheap Seats

Softball

Softball / Remains hot Spieth is the real deal Utter domination at the plate continued from page 24 In the first inning, Utter’s swing once again lifted the team as she belted a three-run homer to left center. The next inning Bartsch shined again as well, singling in another run, making it 4-0 after only two innings.

The Raiders struck back in the fourth, scoring a run off a double. But a series of singles and sacrifice flies from Bartsch, sophomore Colleen Phelan and junior Kristen Fitzsimmons brought in three more runs in the fourth.

Bartsch, who has been having a great season so far, said she only has one thing on her mind during games.

“I’m looking to help the team, and not really thinking much of (the stats),” Bartsch said.

After one more home run from Utter brought in two more runs in the sixth, the game was called, and the Lions scored the win, 9-1.

However, you can’t count a team like Newark out after a loss like that, and they still had one more game to play.

The Lions first drew blood, scoring off a Phelan fly-out in the first inning.

They would strike again in the next inning after a single by junior Steph Vuono brought in yet another run, making it 2-0 after two innings.

Rutgers would battle back in the third after two well placed hits — one double and one single — helped get the Raiders back in the game with the score tied.

Looking back at the play of the Scarlet Raiders, Bartsch said a few things factored into their play compared to the first game.

“They had a lot of timely hits when they needed it,” she said. “It also mattered whether or not they fell in.”

The ball fell in for the Lions later on in the inning thanks to a single by Stevenson to bring in a run, putting the team up by one. The team was able to expand their lead even further in the sixth inning thanks to singles from freshman Madison Levine and Phelan, which scored two more runs.

That was the final, as the team scored another win, 5-2. Now they look toward their next game on Tuesday, April 14, at Richard Stockton. As Bartsch put it, the team hopes to have some great games there.

“We’re really hoping for some good competition,” Bartsch said. “And we hope to come out fighting every time we take the field.”

Photo courtesy of the Sports Information Desk

Bartsch continues her stellar season.

Spieth wins his first major in dominant fashion.

By Matt Bowker Sports Editor

Jordan Spieth sent a message to the golf world over the weekend. He is the real deal and a threat to win every major he plays in for the next 20 years. Jordan Spieth has what it takes to become what the golf world expected Tiger Woods would eventually become before his injuries.

Many in the golf world thought Rory McIlroy, the current number one golfer in the world, to take Tiger’s mantle. but McIlroy was a non-factor for most of last weekend’s Masters Tournament.

McIlroy’s inconsistent play has opened the door for other golfers to become the next great one, and 21-year-old Jordan Spieth has answered the call.

Spieth went into Augusta coming off four consecutive top-two finishes. That fire carried over to the year’s first major, when Spieth ran the table, finishing at -18, tying

the tournament record for best score.

Spieth led from start to finish and had a stranglehold on the competition throughout. Spieth, in only his second Masters tournament, became the first wire-to-wire champion since 1976.

Spieth’s dominant victory has garnered him comparisons to Tiger Woods. Spieth became the second youngest winner of the tournament, second only to Woods.

The two share eerily similar results in the first Masters victory, finishing with the same score overall.

Such a dominant tournament hasn’t been seen since since Woods was in his prime. It can be argued that Spieth was more dominant than Woods, who won by 12 shots in 1997. Spieth only won by four, but beat out past champions, rising stars and even Woods, himself.

When all is said and done, Spieth will not be the next Tiger Woods. Spieth will surpass Tiger Woods, and we will be looking for the next Jordan Spieth.

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Sports

Softball wins three in conference play Utter blasts two home runs, five RBIs in win

By Michael Battista Sports Assistant

The softball team continued its impressive season, facing off against two Rutgers campuses, Camden and Newark, and earning three wins out of the four games they played at home.

Tuesday, April 7, saw the Lions coming off two straight wins against New Jersey City University, and they looked to keep this trend going against the RutgersCamden Scarlet Raptors.

In what can only be described as a battle between two great pitchers, both teams were held to less than five hits and were kept scoreless for most of the game. Junior pitcher Ashtin Helmer played through all seven innings, keeping the Raptors at bay with excellent arm work.

Camden’s pitching staff, lead by junior Brittany Scott, also gave the Lions a challenge. Junior infielder Deanna Utter says both teams should be extremely proud.

“Both teams played some great softball,” Utter said. “RutgersCamden’s pitcher did a great job at

Photo courtesy of the Sports Information Desk

Utter leads the charge against Rutgers-Camden with five RBIs.

moving the ball around the zone, and we did a great job at making the adjustments and driving the ball. Ashtin did a great job for us on the mound, and our defense was there to back her.”

Taking a cue from herself, Utter would be the first to step up, belting a home run in the fourth inning to give her team a lead. That rally seemed to spark the team, as

next inning freshman Bria Bartsch singled in another run, extending the lead.

The Raptors showed signs of a comeback in the last two innings, but the Lions were able to secure the win, 2-1.

The women hoped that this success could carry over into the next game, but the Raptors were not going to take that lying down.

The Lions struck first again in this game right away off a single from Utter, making it 1-0.

Camden struck back just as quickly, though, getting two runners on base in the second before slamming a home run to left center. They weren’t down, however, as they scored two more runs in the third.

Freshman Jess Stevenson later

singled in a run for the Lions during the bottom half of the third, but after that, both teams’ pitching took over once again. Both teams had chances after that but couldn’t capitalize, leaving the final score at 5-2 in a loss for the College.

Utter, looking back at the play, said the team needs to understand mistakes will happen and she hopes to correct them.

“Errors are going to happen. It is just important to learn from them in order to improve our future play,” Utter said. “We will continue to practice our approach to help us with our success in the box.”

Moving on from those games, the team looked forward toward two more battles against another Rutgers’ campus on Saturday, April 11, at home, and this time, it was Newark coming down for a fight.

The first game between the two teams was one-sided right from the start. While the Scarlet Raiders were able to keep the Lions down to only eight hits, it’s what they did with those hits that mattered.

see SOFTBALL page 23

Track returns home, both teams take first place

By George Tatoris Staff Writer For five straight weekends, the College track and field team has competed out-ofstate — in New York, Florida and Virginia — but they returned to Ewing on Saturday, April 11, for their first home meet of the spring season.

The College of New Jersey Tri Meet, so called because its competitors are all from the Tri-State area, saw both the men’s and women’s teams sweep their competition. The men had 261 points, and the women piled up 249 points, more than twice the total of the second place team.

Sophomore Brandon Mazzarella was happy to be able to cut out public transportation from his meet day.

“You wake up in the morning, and you’re already at the meet,” Mazzarella said of the comfort of being home. “When the meet’s over, you don’t have to think about or endure a long bus ride home which is one of the greatest feelings.”

Mazzarella was first in his event, the 1,500 meter, with a time of 4:07.33. Just behind, junior Roberto Guiducci took third with a time of 4:09.67. During the race, Mazzarella said he ran with his teammates — Guiducci included — for the first half of the race before

Lions’ Lineup April 15, 2015

I n s i d e

Photo courtesy of the Sports Information Desk

Giglio takes first in the pole vault with a height of 4.40 meters. taking the lead in the second half.

Mazzarella was just one of many successes that day. Senior Michelle Cascio gave amazing performances in two events — she won the 200 and 400-meter races with times of 25.16 and 57.99, respectively.

Senior Abayomi Arowolo had breakthrough performances in three events. He won the hammer throw with a toss of 51.53

meters and the discus throw with a sling of 42.74 meters. His toss of 13.19 meters in the shot put placed him in second.

Both teams saw a one-two finish in the 3,000-meter event. Senior Jillian Manzo and sophomore Andrew Tedeschi took first in their own 3,000-meter with times of 11:08.01 and 8:52.57 respectively. Soon after, sophomore Lara Straub and junior Scott

Savage took second in their respective races with times of 11:16.39 and 8:57.30.

In the 400-meter hurdles, senior Katelyn Ary, who was one of six Lions to go to Nationals for winter track in New York, toppled her competition with a season best time of 1:03.98. One benefit of a home meet, according to Ary, was the support from the College community.

“It was so great to run at our home track because of the support that the TCNJ community provides,” Ary said.

Mazzarella expressed similar sentiments.

“My parents and friends were able to come support and witness another day at the Oval Office,” Mazzarella said.

Ary wasn’t the only Lion to get a season best at the home meet — according to Ary, a plethora of Lions were able to beat season and even personal records.

Senior Joan Hales also had a season-best performance in the hammer throw with a distance of 43.84 meters. The effort placed her in first.

Senior Juan Giglio had his season best at the meet as his 4.40 meter height in the pole vault earned him first place.

This success follows five grueling weekends on the road.

“Traveling is fun, but there is nothing like our home track,” Ary said.

46 53 Around the Dorm page 19

Softball page 23

Baseball page 17

Lacrosse page 17