The Signal: Spring '13, No. 6

check out this week’s business briefs

Jack August defeats Dickinson College opponent

see News page 7

See Sports page 19

Vol. CXXXVIII, No. 6

Serving The College of New Jersey community since 1885

February 27, 2013

Housing waiting game Ceremony extended Finding out what is next

Photo courtesy of tcnj.edu

Campus townhouses are a housing option for upperclassmen at the College.

By Amy Reynolds Managing Editor While students are guaranteed on-campus housing for their freshman and sophomore years, juniors and seniors are not granted this luxury.

Last year, all students who applied for housing received a time slot, even with Cromwell Hall being closed for renovations.

This year, however, approximately 140 rising junior and senior students did not receive a time slot in the upcoming lottery, according to Emily

Dodd, communications officer for Media Relations & Marketing.

“Students that did not receive a time slot but remain interested in on-campus housing are encouraged to apply to the housing wait list,” Dodd said. “We have been very successful in moving through our wait list and I suspect that will remain consistent this year.”

However, students who do not wish to wait for on-campus housing are encouraged to visit the housing web page for off-campus living, where a link is provided to local landlords to post vacant properties.

Students can also consult with current students who live off-campus or visit ewingrentals. com to view available listings.

Sophomore psychology major Gabriel Rojas applied for housing, but because he did not receive a time slot, he has applied to the wait list.

“I’m also looking into off-campus housing, but I am going to study abroad in the spring so I’m not sure how that will work out,” he said. “I also don’t have a car to get to campus so hopefully I can get a time slot from the wait list.”

Katie Seaman, sophomore psychology major, had a similar experience.

“Depending on my spot on the (wait) list, I’m going to wait to see if anything opens up,” she said. see HOUSING page 5

Tim Lee / Photo Emeritus

Read about this May’s graduation ceremony being extended from one day to two days on page 3.

Dream revisited From MLK to today

CCS develops confidence

By Amy Reynolds Managing Editor For many young adults with intellectual disabilities, attending a college or university simply isn’t within reach. However, the Career and Community Studies program at the College gives these students the opportunity to attend classes and participate in campus activities as any other college student would. “(The CCS program) is a liberal arts course of study for students with intellectual disabilities who would not otherwise be admitted into college,” said Rebecca Daley, the director of the CCS program. “(It) gives these students the opportunity to engage in a college experience that is, as close as we can, mirrored to an experience any other student would have on this campus.”

At the College, students in the CCS program attend two different types of classes.

CCS classes are specifically designed to support independent living skills, self-advocacy skills and skills they may need for adult living. In addition, they also take regular College classes, of which there are approximately 90 to choose from, that are based on

INDEX: Nation & World / Page 9 The Signal @TCNJsignal

their interest and career path.

Typically, students take one CCS class along with one other regular College class each semester; however, some students take two other classes, depending on their ability to do well in those classes.

Each year, 10 students are accepted into the CCS program at the College. In addition to showing an apparent intellectual disability, prospective students must also show a willingness to learn.

“We are looking for students who have basic literacy and math skills,” Daley said. “But we’re looking for students who are highly motivated to go to college and who will show the social skill development and the motivation to attend classes like any other college student would.”

All CCS students live in one of nine offcampus houses that are all within walking distance of the campus. A house mentor, a typical student at the College, also lives in each CCS house in order to help problem solve, make sure each student is being responsible, and to be a role model of what a good college student needs to do to be successful.

Editorial / Page 10

see CCS page 5 Opinions / Page 11

Brian Kempf / Features Assistant

Michael Eric Dyson speaks to the College about MLK’s dream as it applies to today’s society.

By Brian Kempf Features Assistant Michael Eric Dyson, who spoke at the College on Thursday, Feb. 21, had a tall order — comparing Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream to the reality of race relations and equality in the 21st century.

Dyson, the renowned public intellectual and author on books about King and African-American culture, noted the “knocking down of doors that were previously bolted” and “blacks and minorities sitting together with whites, maybe not at the table of brotherhood, but maybe dining.”

Indeed, a black man holds what is arguably the most powerful elected position in the world. But, inequalities

Features / Page 13

still prevail. The prison industrial complex is alive and well, as is racial profiling (as evidenced in the NYPD’s “stop and frisk” policies).

Meanwhile, this year the Supreme Court will be deciding about affirmative action, which has helped countless students whose identities have been systematically discriminated against. Yet, legacy admissions maintain “the persistence of inequity,” according to Dyson. When measured against Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream, society is not too far away.

Yet, as Dyson noted, many choose to ignore King’s later years, as he spoke against the Vietnam War and for progressive causes. see MLK page 5

Arts & Entertainment / Page 15

Sports / Page 24

White Collar Fraud Ex-convict says it’s not the money, but the game

Anti-bullying lecture “Last Comic Standing” draws from experience

Girl’s Hall of Fame Exhibit opens in ribboncutting ceremony

See News page 3

See A&E page 15

See Features page 13

page 2 The Signal February 27, 2013

Student attacked in dorm by drunk stranger

By Natalie Kouba News Editor

Campus Police responded to a report of assault on Saturday, Feb. 23 at 1:05 a.m. in Phelps Hall. According to police, the victim was in his dorm when someone knocked loudly on his door.

He opened the door, and the suspect yelled, “You’re the fucking guys that were talking shit through the window!” He then preceded to swing both his fists in the victim’s face. The victim said the suspect appeared to be intoxicated and missed striking his face.

Attempting to close the door, the suspect grabbed the victim’s left shoulder. The victim then kicked the suspect’s legs and closed the door shut. When closing the door, the victim struck his head on the metal door frame, causing minor bleeding.

Desk attendants said they did not see anyone matching the description of the suspect, who was said to be a white male about 5’11” and 235 lbs.

Neither the victim nor the witness could identify the suspect and did not know if he was a student at the College. The witness said he appeared intoxicated and had a large tear on the inseam of his jeans.

Lions’ EMS arrived and evaluated the student. He refused to go to the hospital. There is no further information on the case. …

A blue Vera Bradley satchel was reported missing on Sunday, Feb. 17. A student evacuated her room for a fire drill in Wolfe Hall at 6 p.m. and returned to her room around 10 p.m. Police said she then noticed her satchel containing her passport, black wallet, student ID, EOS pink lip balm, Visa debit card, non-driver’s license and $45 were missing. The missing property was valued at $154. There are no suspects in the case. …

A possible break-in was reported on Monday, Feb. 18 at 8:15 a.m. The area secretary of the Allen Hall Area Office Room 110 arrived at the office and saw the 5x7” glass panel of the office door shattered, with glass spreading across the surrounding area. According to reports, the door was locked and nothing was missing from the office. There are no suspects. …

Two students left their laptops unattended on the second floor of the Library on Tuesday, Feb. 19 at 6 p.m. to go to Eickhoff. According to reports, when they returned an hour later, the Apple MacBook Pro and Dell 17” Inspiron were missing. They reported the theft to Campus Police and searched the area with negative results. Police watched the camera footage at the Library, but noticed no suspicious activity. The stolen property was valued at $2,420. …

A black Nike windbreaker containing a white iPhone 4S with a black Otter Box case was taken from the Brower Student Center. The student told police he left the jacket on a chair by the pool table around 9:30 p.m. and when he went to retrieve it at 11 p.m., it was gone.

He searched the area and contacted Verizon to have his service disconnected. The property was valued at $365. …

A student left his black Rayban sunglasses on a coffee table on the first floor lounge of Townhouses South Unit 6 on Saturday, Feb. 23 at 3 a.m. When he returned to retrieve them at noon, they were not there.

He searched the area with negative results. The glasses were valued at $100.

Starving and suffering in Coffee Crisis Solutions discussed at ‘Buying into Fair Trade’

By Julie Kayzerman News Assistant

While the memory of the devastation brought on by Hurricane Sandy and Hurricane Katrina are still fresh in our minds, the victims of the Coffee Crisis, which outnumber the victims of both storms combined, are often unrecognized.

College alumnus Keith R. Brown brought this issue to attention through his personal experiences with a man who sacrificed his entire financial status in order to promote Fair Trade as the solution to the crisis. Brown’s book, “Buying into Fair Trade,” was discussed during his lecture, “Crafting a Moral Reputation through Fair Trade” on Friday, Feb. 22 in the Education Building.

“When I was there in 2005, it was very hard for me to make sense of an experience like this. I was a tourist,” Brown said, talking about his fieldwork in Nicaragua where much of the Coffee Crisis affected.

Brown talked about his “re-

ality tour” to Nicaragua and the culture shock he underwent as he witnessed the local children picking coffee beans instead of going to school because their families were starving and suffering from malnutrition as a result of the Coffee Crisis.

“The story she said still kind of haunts me,” Brown said, speaking about his flight home sitting next to a woman that spent time with a family in Nicaragua who’s youngest child died from malnutrition during the crisis. “She prepared herself for the funeral, but nothing prepared her for the moment when the child’s older brother came up to her and said, ‘I guess this means there’s more food for the rest of us.’”

As Brown used this anecdote to leave the audience with a lasting impression of the devastation brought on by the Coffee Crisis, he proceeded to dive into the importance of buying Fair Trade through the story of Joe Cesa and his Fair Trade coffee

shop, Joe’s Café.

“These issues still get categorized as hippie products,” Brown said, talking about the negative stigma Joe’s Café received for only selling Fair Trade coffee.

Brown then proceeded to quote Cesa who responds to this stigma by saying, “I only sell high quality coffee and no children picked these coffee beans.”

Brown explained that Cesa’s identity was all about changing the world through his Fair Trade coffee shop, a concept largely represented in Brown’s book. However, according to Brown “the emotional high did not give him the economic rewards to keep him in business.”

As Joe’s Café ultimately failed due to its poor location, negative stigma of Fair Trade products and bigger competition, it was taken over by a Dunkin Donuts.

“He was digging his own financial grave,” Brown said.

“But by Joe going broke, he became more pure.”

Brown concluded by ask-

Vicki Wang / Photo Assistant

‘Crafting a Moral Reputation through Fair Trade’ author. ing the audience to think about whether moral capital and being socially responsible can also work economically.

Nic Freschi, freshman physics major, offered his own solution to the negative sale pattern of Fair Trade products during the Q&A portion of the lecture.

“I feel like companies should

be morally right without using the idea of moral capital as their reason for selling,” Freschi said.

“People aren’t going to buy the product just because it’s moral.”

But as coffee farmers and their children continue to starve and suffer from malnutrition, there may be a reason to start “Buying into Fair Trade.”

Diversity benefits academic experience Lauren Del Turco / Staff Photographer

Students of many races come together.

By Annabel Lau Correspondent

Countless students of various ethnicities, seated in a circular formation to inspire feelings of unity, gathered in the Brower Student Center last Tuesday, Feb. 19 for a presentation on a school-sponsored diversity report, part of the Negro Achievement Week activities on campus.

Three College faculty members led a presentation, followed by a discussion, on

the climate of diversity on campus, in the hopes of creating action toward cultural diversity, acceptance and equal opportunity for all.

Jamal T. Johnson, assistant director of Admissions and a College alumnus, spoke about his experience as an Equal Opportunity Fund student at a predominantly white TCNJ over 15 years ago.

Johnson described a sit-in he led as a student to protest threats against minority students. To Johnson’s surprise, other organizations joined in, triggering a legendary week of speeches, protests and widespread media attention.

Kim Pearson, professor of journalism and professional writing and chair of the African American Studies department, explained that a diverse living and educational environment, not solely within the student body but also in the faculty and curriculum, makes for a better academic experience. It is also a matter of social justice.

“Race or class should not preclude the opportunity to attend an institution like this and take advantage of it,” Pearson said.

After getting accepted, some students lack the “social and cultural capital to understand what’s here to be taken advantage of,” Pearson said.

The problem partially lies in the relative lack of diversity within the faculty, in addition to financial obligations that prevent students from devoting time to extracurriculars, research and internships.

Tabitha Dell’Angelo, professor and coordinator of the urban education master’s program, admitted that the College is relatively diverse, but a greater focus needs to be put on equity.

Citing an alarmingly large gap between the percentages of white males versus black males that graduate within six years, Dell’Angelo advocated for providing resources and personalized attention to minority students to help them succeed.

The problem often lies in a phenomenon called “solo status,” in which black or Latino students are often the only minority students in a classroom. Because they are afraid of enforcing stereotypes, an anxiety occurs that hinders their ability to perform, she explained.

Dominique Gadsden, senior English major, expressed the difficulty of always being singled out in the classroom.

“You have to be the black person in the class that has to be the smartest, because you always have to work that much harder,” Gadsden said.

Others, however, saw an advantage to standing out.

“I was able to interact with people who had different perspectives as me and … grew up in different backgrounds (from) myself,” said junior psychology major Leonory Rodriguez. “And then I go into the classroom and it was a chance to shine, like show them, ‘I’m different, but I’m smart.’”

February 27, 2013 The Signal page 3

Graduation is two-day ceremony for seniors

By Amy Reynolds Managing Editor

This year, graduation will take place over the course of two days rather than just one, as it has been in the past.

According to an email sent to graduating seniors by Vicky Triponey interim vice president for Student Affairs, departmental ceremonies will be held in five sessions occurring on Thursday, May 16 and Friday, May 17. The main ceremony will be held on Thursday, May 16 at 6 p.m.

According to Heather Fehn, executive assistant to the president and secretary to the Board of Trustees, in case of

tcnj.edu

The Class of 2013 will partake in a two-day commencement this year.

severe weather, the main ceremony will be moved to Friday morning, which will allow the ceremony to remain in the stadium rather than the Recreation Center.

There were numerous reasons for implementing this change, according to Christina Kopka, Student Government president.

For example, there is lack of adequate and attractive space for all departmental ceremonies to be held in one day. Some departments graduate students in tents and others in less attractive parts of campus.

In addition, in case of severe weather, ceremonies that take place under tents must be moved to inside rooms, resulting in overlap.

The field is also about 10 degrees hotter than other outside areas. Avoiding heat-related issues on the field during the main ceremony and keeping families comfortable and safe was also a main concern.

“Graduation has never happened this way before so, like all students, I don’t know what it will be like,” Kopka said. “I think the overall success of both days is going to depend on the attitude students have and how willing everyone is to be flexible and embrace change.”

According to Kopka, many logistical issues have made a one-day graduation difficult. The College does not want to limit the number of guests students can bring

to the ceremonies; however, this means a greater need for large spaces that don’t exist in large numbers on campus.

Also, the schedule for graduation in one day previously left students and families running from one ceremony to another, which made for a stressful experience rather than an enjoyable one.

In addition, traffic has been a major concern in the past because parking is limited and the number of vehicles coming to campus has backed up surrounding roads.

Although there are some advantages to separating graduation into two days, many students have voiced concerns about their families having to choose between attending just one day of graduation or staying in a hotel overnight.

“Students have been pretty vocal about these changes and are frustrated that the change was made with little student input and that the announcement hadn’t been made sooner,” Kopka said. “I have brought this issue up with the organizers of graduation to ensure that students are heard and that the process is more transparent next year.”

Students should expect to receive more information regarding graduation in the beginning of March.

“Our primary goal for commencement is to ensure you and your families have the very best experience and most fitting opportunity to celebrate your accomplishments,” Triponey said.

Ex-con gives advice State of Campus given

‘Remorse doesn’t matter’

By Mike Ferrucci Correspondent

Just because white-collar criminals don’t use violence to commit their crimes doesn’t mean they have regrets when they get caught. At least that was the attitude of the ex-white collar criminal, Sam Antar, who gave a lecture at Mayo Concert Hall on Wednesday, Feb. 20.

“Remorse doesn’t matter, actions matter,” Antar said.

Antar lectured students and faculty about his involvement in the infamous “Crazy Eddie” scandal. He quoted the character of Gordon Gekko from the film “Wall Street” to explain why white-collar criminals commit their crimes: “It’s not the money … It’s the game.”

Antar boasted about his role in the crime and claimed to possess no sense of guilt. Despite claiming he has no sense of guilt, the endeavor he has undertaken after his arrest can be considered admirable: educating people about white-collar crime, and helping them understand how to avoid being manipulated by frauds.

His advice is geared toward financial matters, but applies to all human relationships. He stressed above all else, “Be careful about the sincerity of praise.” He said people are easily manipulated as a result of vanity, and because people trust

Janika Berridge / Photo Assistant

Sam Antar, an ex-white collar criminal, warns about the sincerity of praise.

a “genuine” smile.

Sam Antar and his cousin, Eddie Antar, were raised without any sense of ethics in a household that promoted manipulating others for their own benefit. Eddie Antar was the mastermind of the “Crazy Eddie” scandal — he desired wealth and fame and did not care who he hurt along the way.

Eddie provided Sam with an accounting education, and Sam’s involvement was integral to the scandal’s success.

Through his knowledge of the U.S. economic system and the powers afforded to him as a certified public accountant, Antar insured rookie auditors were sent to perform inspections into Eddie’s business and, moreover, helped mask the skimming of money in the form of taxes from the U.S. government.

The U.S. government discovered the fraud perpetrated by the cousins, and, after Eddie Antar fled to Israel, Sam Antar decided to come clean and help the government.

“I didn’t want to bend down, pick up a bar of soap, and figure out who my boyfriend was going to be,” Sam Antar said.

Ultimately, Sam Antar served six months under house arrest and paid a $30,000 fine, a mere slap on the wrist for helping to steal millions of dollars from the government, investors and consumers.

Over the years, he worked with the FBI and other government agencies to expose corruption and provide insight into the complex psyche of white-collar criminals. In addition, he took it upon himself to expose corruption in other companies such as overstock.com.

Sam Antar praised the College for hosting him, characterizing the decision as brave.

“People think education has to be sugar-coated,” Sam Antar said. “One thing this school is very brave about is that they brought in a criminal. I’m not here to tell you that I’m a remorseful character or that I’ve found God. “I said I committed my crimes simply because I could. You don’t have to be like me, but there’s a lot to be learned. What it teaches you is that there are people out there who have no empathy whatsoever for their victims.”

Sam Antar’s efforts to educate people on resisting financial scandals resonated with students.

“He helped to do a bad thing, but he’s not a bad person,” said freshman openoptions business major Liz Rozansky. “He learned from his selfish actions and is now making amends.”

Janika Berridge / Photo Assistant

Kopka delivers the State of the Campus Address.

By Natalie Kouba News Editor

Christina Kopka, Student Government president, gave the State of the Campus Address on Wednesday, Feb. 20 at the weekly SG meeting.

Kopka opened with a clear intention for her speech, “to clarify a vision for the future so that the legacy of our work will continue on for years to come,” and continued by listing several achievements the College has earned in the past year.

The College has been recognized by the U.S. News World Report as the number one public college in the northern region and Kiplinger’s once again ranked the College as the state’s Best Value Public College.

The College has also been recognized for the students’ dedication to service by the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor roll.

“These accolades should come as no surprise to us, as it is the hard work of our students, faculty and staff as well as the strength of our community that has earned us such recognition,” Kopka said.

Kopka noted new staff members who were welcomed to the College community in the past year. The Cabinet of Student Advisors and the Community Engagement Internship program were implemented under the leadership of Vicky Triponey, interim vice president for Student Affairs.

With the direction of Susan BakewellSachs, the interim vice president for Academic Affairs and provost, the College has “moved forward on the strategic planning process … This planning is critical to the future of our institution,” Kopka said.

Jackie Taylor will be joining the College as the new provost and vice president for Academic Affairs, having previously served as the associate vice president for Academic Affairs and the associate dean of Graduate

Studies in liberal arts and sciences at DePaul University in Chicago.

Kopka updated SG on the advancements in construction projects around campus.

Campus Town is expected to be completed by the end of summer 2014, while Cromwell Hall will be reopened for students this year. Kopka stated that Centennial Hall is also in need of renovations. The Building Our Futures Bond referendum granted approximately $22-26 million to the College for academic building construction.

“TCNJ will be utilizing these funds to replace Holman Hall with a state of the art STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) facility, which will give TCNJ students the competitive edge they need to excel in the constantly changing world of science and technology.”

Kopka additionally addressed issues at the College regarding space for the growing student body. She said resolving this problem is a priority for SG. “As a student body, we have outgrown our Student Center, the lounge spaces in our residences halls and the Recreation Center, and no student should have to forgo an opportunity to plan an event or skip a workout due to a lack of the right space,” Kopka said.

Here for Home, the College’s effort to aid in Hurricane Sandy relief, raised over $5,000; over 220 volunteers dedicated 1,300 hours in service and donated 4,500 pounds of food to Sandy victims, Kopka announced.

“We will continue to serve our neighbors at the shore with bus trips to the areas still recovering and we stand in support of all those who are rebuilding their lives,” Kopka said.

Kopka addressed the success of the individual SG committees. The Committee on Advancement has worked toward improving the relationship between the College and Ewing community.

Adam Bonnano joined SG this semester as their vice president for Academic Affairs and is working on promoting the use of on-campus resources through the Norm Campaign.

The Committee for Governmental Affairs worked on the Election Awareness initiative and the Building Our Futures referendum in the fall.

“We must continually commit ourselves to facing the challenges that lie ahead with action and ardency, never forgetting the purpose of our work. In this way, we will transform the vision in our hearts into a reality for our campus,” Kopka said.

page 4 The Signal February 27, 2013

PAID POSITIONS ON THE

STUDENT FINANCE BOARD

2013-14 Executive Board Elections It’s time to apply for SFB’s 2013-2014 PAID Executive Board positions!

All positions are trainable, and are open to ALL classes and majors.

Operations Director:

Approves all SFB vouchers and works with club treasurers to monitor spending. Works with QuickBooks Accounting Software and provides great business experience. ***POSITION IS STIPENDED FOR 15 HOURS PER WEEK

Administrative Director:

Handles all bus trip bookings, as well as the Loop Bus. Also oversees insurance, the newspaper, as well as copier and phone expenses for student organizations. Provides valuable administrative experience. ***POSITION IS STIPENDED FOR 10 HOURS PER WEEK

Programming Director:

Manages the SFB Equipment Center and is responsible for assisting organizations with the process and intricacies of putting on events. Applicants with technical experience and/or management experience are preferred. ***POSITION IS STIPENDED FOR 10 HOURS PER WEEK

Assistant Financial Director:

Cuts all checks to reimburse students and pay businesses/performers for their services.

Works with QuickBooks Accounting Software and provides great business and private accounting experience. Please contact Michael Palantone at palantm1@tcnj.edu if interested. ***POSITION IS STIPENDED FOR 12 HOURS PER WEEK

Executive Assistant:

Responsible for making agendas for SFB’s weekly meetings and helping with various tasks around the office, such as updating the SFB website. ***POSITION IS NOT PAID! 5 HOURS PER WEEK.

Applications can be found on the Student Finance Board website at www.tcnj.edu/~sfboard Completed applications should be returned to the SFB office, BSC 231 Applications are due by Friday, March 1st at 5:00 PM

February 27, 2013 The Signal page 5

CCS / Program builds friendships, success continued from page 1

“It’s a job that requires a lot of responsibility, but it’s also been very rewarding,” said sophomore house mentor Jon Michaels.

“And you make new friends doing it.”

In addition to house mentors, the CCS program also provides academic mentors, job coaches and social mentors to help CCS students succeed. While academic mentors help students make the connection between what they’re learning in class and what their assignments are, social mentors help students become a part of the College community by making sure they are involved with clubs and other social activities on campus.

Eric Santora, a freshman in the CCS program, does intramural wrestling and is a member of the Harry Potter club as well as Best Buddies.

In addition to social mentors, Best Buddies at the College is a chapter of an international organization that helps form friendships between students with disabilities and typically-developing students.

Through an interview process, students are paired with one or two “buddies” and these “buddy” pairs participate in social

activities such as pumpkin picking, flag football with the varsity football team, game nights, holiday celebrations and the annual Buddies Ball.

All CCS freshman are required to participate in Best Buddies; their involvement after that is optional, but nearly all CCS students continue to participate in social events in the years following.

“Without a doubt, Best Buddies’ biggest accomplishment thus far has been its ability to form such strong, lasting friendships among its members,” said sophomore Best Buddies treasurer Niki Haas. “Alumni remain close to the organization, are still friends with their original buddies years later, and often come back to visit the current members.”

Through the CCS program, students with intellectual disabilities gain confidence, become more independent, and create lasting friendships among their peers.

“We see a huge increase in self-esteem and confidence that makes them more mature and more able to be independent and better problem solvers,” Daley said. “Our students become better self-advocates and more self-determined based on the confidence that they have developed over four years of saying, ‘I go to college.’”

Photo courtesy of Rebecca Havens

Best Buddies joins the football team for a game of flag football.

In addition, the CCS program also provides students on campus, especially in the education field, opportunities to understand disability, be with people with disabilities, and become better prepared them as teachers.

“I think this type of experience strengthens who they’re going to be when they go into their occupations,”

Daley said.

Overall, the CCS program gives students the opportunity to attend college just as any other student would.

“I think the kids in the program benefit greatly from it,” Michaels said. “Basically, they get a fun college experience … they have the opportunity to be like regular college students. It’s awesome.”

Housing / Off-campus Social psychology study Students go rental continued from page 1 “If not, I’m going to start looking for houses in the neighboring area with other students who did not receive housing. Hopefully luck is on my side!”

According to Dodd, students are encouraged to do their research when investigating off-campus rentals, as off-campus housing is not endorsed or approved by College officials.

“Historically, we have always had more students apply for housing than the number of available beds,” Dodd said. “However, this year we weren’t sure if that would be the case considering the closure of Cromwell Hall for renovations. There was no way of knowing for sure how many students would come back on campus.”

Janika Berridge / Photo Assistant

Crawford explores the relationship between psychology and political intolerance.

By Emma Colton Web Editor

Lianna Lazur / Photo Editor

Cromwell Hall reopens for sophomores after a year of renovations.

MLK / Dream not yet fulfilled continued from page 1 Mentioning Gore Vidal’s “United States of Amnesia,” Dyson invoked Barbara Streisand — “What is too painful to remember, we simply choose to forget.”

He then smiled, asking the audience, “Anyone know her?” before tossing in a 2 Chainz quote for good measure to relate to the Generation Y’ers in the crowd. But the point was clear: “Knowledge should bring you both comfort and discomfort.” Education that insulates the learner from the unjust and ugly truths in life is no education at all.

Dyson used this as a pretense to discuss Barack Obama as a black president.

Himself discriminated by his peers and constituents, he has not used his “bully pulpit” to tackle issues like poverty, much less advocate for them. Dyson called upon the black community to

criticize President Obama, noting that the community should say, “Hey, what about us?” He noted, however, that the chasm between president and prophet is a wide one.

Dyson’s message was one of hope, tempered by the truth laid bare: America may be a land of dreams, but Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream hasn’t come fully true just yet. By using one of the only aspects inherent in humans ­— the voice — change can be made.

King himself was but a private citizen, but his vision had much wider, nobler implications. In addressing a question at the end of his speech regarding starting movements and being discouraged by poor showings, Dyson encouraged optimism. Indeed, Jesus had but 12 apostles.

The challenges to fulfill Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream are daunting.

But having gotten this far, as a reality, we are closer than ever before.

Every chair in room 223 of the Social Science Building was filled on Thursday, Feb. 21 for “The Social and Psychological Roots of Political Intolerance in the United States.”

Students and professors who missed their chance at a seat lined the classroom walls, eager to hear about Jarrett Crawford’s research.

Crawford, psychology professor at the College, presented the third installment of the Politics Forum, which discussed his research findings on the relationship between psychology and political intolerance in U.S. “I consider myself a political psychologist.

I sort of straddle political science and psychology,” Crawford said.

Before diving into his research, Crawford familiarized his audience with background information and previous research conducted on the correlation between political intolerance and psychology.

According to Crawford, authoritarianism is the political intolerance indicator at the individual level. The construct Crawford used to measure authoritarianism is known as Right Wing Authoritarianism, or RWA, which Crawford defined as an ideological attitude associated with traditional morals and obedience to authority.

“The research I’m going to be presenting to you seeks to determine whether or not there are other motives and conditions outside of authoritarianism and normative threat that will increase political intolerance,” Crawford said.

Social Dominance Orientation is another ideological attitude with a set of social values that psychologists study. SDO is a motive to enhance the dominance of one’s own social

group over others.

In an original research study, Crawford created a single, fictitious target group to prove whether or not psychological motives and social conditions motivate political intolerance.

The fictitious target group was called the American Immigration Alliance. A group focused on immigration was selected because, according to Crawford, immigration could be perceived as both a threat to social cohesion and group dominance.

Thus, both RWA and SDO could be political intolerance indicators.

In the study, there was a sample of 132 subjects who were broken into two different focus groups. When the AIA was described to the RWA focus group, it was manipulated in a way that made the AIA appear to be a normative threat. When the immigration group was described to the SDO focus group, it was manipulated to appear as if the fictitious group was gaining status and power.

“And isn’t it nice when data works out the way you want it to?” Crawford asked.

The study was a success. RWA was a strong predictor of political intolerance under the conditions of normative threat. SDO was a strong predictor under the conditions of status and power.

“This research shows that political intolerance has reasons both psychological motives for social cohesion, and group dominance and social conditions that make these motives salient,” Crawford said.

Now, after the success of this research, Crawford and his student, Bryan Furman, senior psychology and international studies double major, are conducting follow-up research on the process that underlies social and political intolerance.

page 6 The Signal February 27, 2013

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February 27, 2013 The Signal page 7

Synergy Dance will bring Spring Spectacular Funding for a pair of Women’s Center events

By Julie Kayzerman News Assistant

The Student Finance Board met on Wednesday, Feb. 20 to discuss the funding of All College Theatre’s fifth annual ROCK improv comedy festival and several other requests.

SFB motioned to fully fund All College Theatre for $3,750 to go toward ROCK, which will provide “Three hours of non-stop laughter for a campus wrought with mid-semester blues,” according to the club.

The event will include performances from visiting college’s improv groups and UCB Touring Company, a professional improvisational association who will also be teaching a two-hour workshop on improvisational comedy.

“I think the fact that they bring in groups from other schools is pretty cool,” said Brian Hurler, SFB’s administrative director, during discussion.

SFB’s financial director, Michael Palantone agreed with Hurler.

“I think improv comedy is awesome,” said Palantone, who then proceeded to motion for full funding of the event.

The event will take place on Saturday, March 23 in Kendall Hall at 7 p.m. and will be free to all students.

In addition, SFB funded Synergy

Dance Company for $1,240 to be used toward their Synergy Spring Spectacular annual dance recital after a very split vote.

During discussion, SFB heavily deliberated on whether or not to fund new costumes for the team to use during their show. Members argued that Synergy can reuse costumes from previous years and that new costumes wouldn’t benefit the student body as a whole.

However, senior representative Joseph Lacerda argued that $400 was a reasonable amount to ask for and that getting new costumes would better the show in its entirety and, therefore, would benefit the student body as a whole.

The Women’s Center also presented two special appropriation requests that were both fully funded by SFB. SFB funded the Women’s Center for $1,300 to bring Kim Miller to the College to speak about “Militant Women and Symbolic Violence in South Africa’s Public Sphere” in order to engage students in a discussion on the realities of non-violent activism and the importance of women’s political roles on Wednesday, March 20 at 4 p.m. in the Library Auditorium.

The Women’s Center was also funded

for $1,500 to bring Marina Goldovskaya to the College for a two-day event which will include the screening of “A Taste of Freedom, & A Bitter Taste of Freedom” on Wednesday, March 27 at 6 p.m. and “Solovky Power” on Thursday, March 28 at 7 p.m. Both events are free to students and faculty. They will be held in room 115 of the Education Building and will be followed by a discussion.

SFB also tabled a conference request from the New Jersey Christian Fellowship to attend Basileia, a regional conference.

“We’ve learned a lot of instrumental things at this retreat,” said Daniel Balevski, presenting for the club. “We get a lot of great keys and tools in the area of leadership to bring back to the College.”

The presenters for NJCF explained that they’ve brought back ideas including “Here for Home” at the College as well as the Eick Outreach Program that helps serve the workers in Eickhoff Hall.

“I really like what they’re doing,” said senior representative Lacerda. “I think they’re bringing a lot of good things to the College.”

However, SFB policy dictates that they can’t fund students who already went to the conference, so the request

Janika Berridge / Photo Assistant

SFB funds ACT’s improv show.

was tabled in order to get a new list of prospective members to go.

Finally, the Black Student Union was not funded by SFB to bring A’Lelia Bundles for The Gloria Harper Dickinson Annual Lecture. SFB doesn’t fund departmental events and members agreed with SFB’s Student Government representative C.J. Gutch who said, “I’m getting the feeling that this is really the african american studies department’s event and we’re just footing the bill.”

Greek life advisor awarded Counting sleep

By Christopher Rightmire News Editor

Contributing to over 23 student organizations that represent over 20 percent of the College’s students with distinction has landed Dave Conner, the College’s assistant director of Fraternity and Sorority Life, the Phillipi Outstanding Advisor Award at the Northeast Greek Leadership Association.

According to the Northeast Greek Leadership Association, the award recognizes a Greek affairs professional who makes significant contributions to the Greek community within the Northeast region by advising any governing council.

Conner was nominated for the award by a group of the College’s fraternity and sorority

members, according to the Office of the Dean of Students.

“Through his support in our leadership and development, his encouragement toward personal growth, his creativity, his intelligence and his acceptance of nothing less than the best, Dave has helped us to stay true to the principles that we are meant to live by as members of a long lasting and historic tradition,” said Monica Ross, a former officer of the Panhellenic Association executive council.

Dave Conner is a member of Theta Chi fraternity, and was honored earlier this academic year by students who established the David E. Conner Panhellenic Excellence Scholarship at the second annual President’s Ball, according to the College.

A&F to close 40-50 stores

By Courtney Wirths News Assistant • Google Inc. is currently in the process of developing retail stores. The stores would sell Google hardware such as tablets and Chromebooks, according to the Wall Street Journal.

• The National Hockey League was deemed “recession proof.” The sport is the only one of the big four (football, baseball, basketball and hockey) to have a higher number of ticket sales now than before the recession, despite an increase in the price of tickets, according to CNBC. • Reader’s Digest Association filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last week for the second time in four years. The magazine’s struggles are another example of the stress on print media, according to the Wall Street Journal.

• Office Depot and OfficeMax confirmed the rumor that the two office supply companies are planning to merge. The merger comes as the

two companies fight to survive against larger competitors such as Staples and Amazon.com, according to the Wall Street Journal.

• The British government’s bond rating was downgraded from AAA to AA1 by Moody’s Investor’s Service. The bond-rating agency cites Britain’s slowing growth and rising debt as main contributors to the decision, according to CNBC.

Student campaign

By Christopher Rightmire News Editor

In order to raise awareness about the detrimental nature of sleep deprivation, a team of the College’s marketing majors have started a campaign to raise awareness about the effects of lack of sleep for marketing professor, Karen Becker’s, Competition project.

“Most college students have extremely busy schedules between studying, extracurricular activities, socializing, athletics, job hunting, etc., and if everyone could just get one or two extra hours of sleep each night it would make a huge difference in their lives,” said senior marketing major and team member Becky Gilman.

The team uses Twitter and Facebook to publicize facts about sleep deprivation from The American Academy of Sleep Medicine, the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times.

According to Gilman, the team’s efforts have gotten them recognition from TCNJ Student Health 101, the College’s weekly health newsletter, and the Sleep to Live Institute, a state-of-the-art sleep research center based in Joplin, Mo. “Our inspiration for the project was to make our followers think twice before only getting one to five hours of sleep per night. Adequate sleep (eight to ten hours per night) can actually help improve your grades and your ability to pay attention in class,” Gilman said.

According to Gilman, the campaign will run until March 1, and its goals are to have 200 followers on Twitter, have 50 people in pajamas in the Student Center on March 1, and have a contest for students to send in their craziest sleep deprivation photos.

Follow the campaign on Twitter @Need_Sleep #sleepdeprived to get more information on sleep deprivation.

• Dick’s Sporting Goods has been growing at a consistently high rate over the last decade and has also been keeping itself well above the competition in the sports equipment market.

The company is being declared “the safest way to invest in the sports merchandise industry,” according to Barron’s Magazine.

• Abercrombie & Fitch Co. had a relatively strong fourth quarter, but the teen clothing store still struggles to increase same-store sales. The company is expected to close 40 to 50 stores over the next year, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Photo courtesy of Need Sleep Twitter

It is common to see students sleeping in the library.

page 8 The Signal February 27, 2013

February 27, 2013 The Signal page 9

Nation & W rld

How the drug trade in Latin America gives rebels power

By Cait Flynn Staff Writer

The Mexican and South American drug trade is estimated to be about $13 to $39 billion per year. Latin America’s trade pushes most of their heroin to the United States and has brought 90 percent of the cocaine and 67 percent of the marijuana found here today. The amount of money being made in these illegal ventures, however, has permitted a steady rise in power for Latin American cartels.

Hence, it is logical that the power of drugs in Latin America has spilled into public policy. Colombian, Marxist, guerilla

groups like FARC and ELN that have hopes of overthrowing the government and often make violent attempts to do so, are primarily funded, at this point, by money from the drug trade.

But the effects of the drug trade can’t only be measured monetarily. As a result of the violence that has stemmed from drugs, 60,000 people have died in Mexico alone since 2006. This includes the deaths of gang members, security forces and innocent bystanders caught in the violence.

Many attempts have been made to stifle the production and trade of drugs throughout the region. Latin America’s governments have sprayed pesticides in

order to destroy the illegal crops, but the pesticides unintentionally killed many local produce crops as well.

The United States gave more than a billion dollars in aid last year to the governments of Latin America in order to suppress the region’s key drug trade forces.

These efforts were relatively successful in expelling rebels from urban areas, but cartels are still gaining a following in the rural atmosphere. This success has been perpetuated by the destruction of arable land, and has forced workers looking for employment to turn to guerilla groups — seemingly a more realistic alternative for many men and women of the region.

AP Photo

A U.S. soldier scours an illegal marijuana plantation in Mexico.

Experts discuss the humane roots of political conflict

AP Photo

A 2012 AP poll shows that only 19 percent of eligible voters approve of how Congress is run.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Turns out politicians are people, too, only worse.

Just ask pros who make their living in the trenches of everyday human drama such as divorce, family feuds or

New Jersey Report

New Jersey Economy: The state’s economy has been growing at just under four percent through the first seven months of the fiscal year, but that’s less than half of the growth projection on which Christie built the current budget.

Superstorm Sandy’s fiscal aftermath: The storm hit New Jersey hard in lost revenues from property taxes, income and business taxes, and casino revenues, which are 10 percent below last year’s collections.

Eventually, however, the state is expected to see a boom in construction jobs and its portion of $60 billion in federal stimulus money for the recovery.

All information from AP

schoolyard scraps. They recognize in Washington’s bitter budget standoff a hint of human nature as they know it, but with the crazy pumped up to absurd levels.

“We’re seeing middle school behavior here,” says Barbara Coloroso, who crusades against childhood bullying. Psychologist Piers Steel, an expert on procrastination, says Congress has the worst case of it he’s seen.

Divorce attorney Sanford Ain’s assessment is blunter: “It’s nuts!”

A sampling of conflict-savvy professionals and scholars interviewed by The Associated Press finds dismay that the nation is in political stalemate after two years of showdowns and near-misses for the economy. Not that they have any easy solutions, either.

Some dream of locking up President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner. R-Ohio, together until the nation’s tax and spending issues are settled.

“That’s my fantsy: To go into a room and tell them what to do, right or wrong, and make them do it,” said Marvin McIntyre, a prominent financial adviser in the District of

Columbia who writes political novels on the side.

With lawmakers and the president on the brink of yet another compromise-or-else deadline Friday, the nonpoliticians shared their take on the all-too-human behavior in Washington.

Historian Altina Waller is reminded of the Hatfields and McCoys. Of course, she would be: Waller’s an authority on the deadly 19th century feud.

Despite the myth, the Hatfield-McCoy conflict wasn’t primarily about clan hatred, Waller said, and she doesn’t think today’s acrimony between Republicans and Democrats is fully explained by partisanship or ideology.

The Appalachian feud grew out of economic anxiety as farming declined and logging and coal moved in, she said.

These days, Democrats and Republicans worry about the economy and the loss of American jobs and influence to foreign competition, and blame each other.

“Like the Hatfields and McCoys,” Waller said, “they are personalizing a problem brought about by larger economic forces.”

Around the World:

Mexico

In pervasive drug trade, women at risk

GUAMUCHIL, Mexico (AP) — Maria Susana Flores walked up to the microphone in a sequined black dress, showing the judges of the Sinaloa Woman beauty contest the smile and the strut she had perfected in pageants since preschool.

“Women, no matter how hard you try, you cannot change your past,” the 20-year-old contestant said in a sweet, high voice. “But you can choose today what your future will be.”

But Susy, as she was called, had chosen another path at the crossroads of power and beauty in a state known for drug lords and pageant queens. It was a fateful choice.

In November, Susy died like a mobster’s moll, carrying an AK-47 assault rifle into a spray of gunfire from Mexican soldiers. Hit below the neck, she dropped into a dirt field and bled to death, her carotid artery severed.

Sinaloa, with its acres of corn and tomatoes, is the birthplace of Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, the head of the Sinaloa cartel who is one of the wealthiest men in Mexico and one of the most-wanted men in the world.

A long narrow state, it hugs the Gulf of California and the Pacific Ocean, though Mazatlan, its most popular resort town, has lost its luster under the violence of the drug wars.

The cartel’s internal battles over the international cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana trade has given the state one of Mexico’s highest murder rates, while the drug business

AP Photo

‘Susy’ advocates during the Sinaloa Woman beauty contest for women escaping an inevitable fate in the drug trade.

has provided its riches. Thousands of Sinaloans are drawn wittingly or unwittingly into the narco economy, with vague titles such as “farmer” or “businessman” often serving as code for the more pedestrian jobs in the drug trade. Thousands more, from accountants to bar owners to musicians, cannot escape the reach of the drug cartels.

The city is peppered with shopping malls of shuttered stores and empty restaurants, known as “narco plazas” because they are little more than fronts for money laundering. Across this foreboding landscape bloom the beauty queens. The Miss Mexico title has been won seven times by the tall fine-featured women of Sinaloa. And beauty queens and drug lords have

been drawn to each other for as long as the illegal narcotics trade has flourished in Sinaloa.

“Do you want beauty queens who are not involved in the state’s dominant industry? Look for them in heaven,” said Nery Cordova, a local university professor and author of “Narcoculture in Sinaloa.”

Miss Sinaloa 2008 was forced to give up her crown after soldiers caught her and her boyfriend, an alleged cartel leader, with an arsenal of guns and wads of cash.

And Susy too, fell for a narco whose violence was so legendary his name is featured in “narco corridos,” the brass band songs devoted to a culture that glorifies drug traffickers and their bloody exploits.

page 10 The Signal February 27, 2013

Editorial

Happiness on the College campus

It has come to my attention in recent weeks (mostly via the various TCNJ-related Facebook pages) that many people in the TCNJ community are not entirely happy. I’m not sure if this is because they’re bummed out about that recent holiday with the naked cherub, or maybe because midterms are coming soon, or perhaps they’re just upset about the weather.

For whatever reason, many people here at our school are not currently happy, so I’m here to help. Not that I’m qualified in any way — my only references would be the many people who’ve told me “Be less happy, it’s annoying” during times of duress — but I do have some advice which may help.

My advice is simple, and in two parts: If there is something in your life that is making you unhappy, change it. If there’s a specific event or predicament you aren’t happy about, then find the most ridiculous aspect of that trouble, and laugh about it.

Radical concepts, I know.

And I’m well aware of the cries which must be echoing through the halls right now. “I can’t just change this problem or that, you don’t understand!” is intermixing with “Yeah, yeah, find the silver linings, haven’t heard that one before. How stupid is this guy?” Only here’s what I’ve learned in my journey through this strange, frustrating and wonderful thing we call life: Nothing is out of our reach as individuals.

And absolutely everything can be funny if you look at it the right way.

The keys to happiness, as it turns out, are in your hands, sad person reading along right now. The idea is that most people in this world know what makes them happy. It’s just that most of us don’t really focus on it too much.

This is where the “change” part of my advice kicks in.

If there is something in your life which makes you unhappy on a regular basis, then do whatever you can to change it. Unhappy in a relationship? End it, or at least tell the person they’re making you feel unhappy.

Don’t like your courses? Ask yourself if you’re in the right major, and change it if you aren’t. Not sure you belong at TCNJ at all? Then look into transferring, or dropping out and pursuing whatever it is you love to do (as long as it’s, you know, legal).

I know, there are alarm bells ringing in your head right now. “I can’t just change big stuff like that, it’s crazy!” I’m going to tell you something right now, so you may want to hold onto something because it’s a biggie.

You are in COLLEGE. For heaven’s sake, this is the time of our lives when we’re SUPPOSED to be crazy! College is all about finding what you want to get out of life, so don’t be so concerned with what other people may think. So long as you’re doing what makes you happy, forget about them, they aren’t as important as you.

Now for the second part of my advice — namely making the bad seem ridiculous and funny instead. That’s definitely an individualized solution, as every problem is unique. But trust me when I say that everything, and by that I mean everything, has a funny side somewhere. You just have to find it and focus on it. You know what makes you laugh far better than I do, clearly, so just take a second and think about something that’s troubling you. Now blow one part of it way out of proportion (I’m talking Mt. Everest out of an anthill here), and focus on that now-absurd part. It’s funny now, that problem, isn’t it?

Now the only problem you’re having with buying my pitch is that I haven’t “Been there” so I “Don’t know” what you’re going through. Allow me to reassure you: I’ve gone through just about every problem. Being alone, losing a loved one, having bad luck in general, having your life changed by an injury that won’t ever go away, feeling like you just don’t belong where you are, wishing that you could just go back and change things. I’ve done it all, and came out smiling on the other side. How? By focusing on what makes me happy.

I’m not special, everyone can do it. It’s a choice you have to make, to forget about the world and do what’s right for you.

Trust me, as someone who’s been there — the decision is totally worth it.

— Mike Herold, Staff Writer

Editorial Content Unsigned editorial opinions are those of the Editorial Board, which consists of the Editor-in-Chief, the Managing, News, Features, Arts & Entertainment, Opinions, Photo and Sports editors and the Business Manager, unless otherwise noted.

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

AP Photo

If students take the time to focus on what makes them happy, and make the bad things seem ridiculous, they will be happier overall.

tcnjsignal.net Email: signal@tcnj.edu Telephone: Production Room (609) 771-2424 Business Office (609) 771-2499 Ad Email: signalad@tcnj.edu

Mailing Address: The Signal c/o Brower Student Center The College of New Jersey P.O. Box 7718 Ewing, NJ 08628-0718

Editorial Staff Brendan McGrath Editor-in-Chief mcgrat28@tcnj.edu Amy Reynolds Managing Editor reynola1@tcnj.edu Christopher Rightmire Natalie Kouba News Editors rightmc1@tcnj.edu kouban1@tcnj.edu Chris Molicki Sports Editor molickc1@tcnj.edu Shuan Fitzpatrick Features Editor fitzpa28@tcnj.edu Thalia Ortiz Arts & Entertainment Editor ortizt1@tcnj.edu Tom Kozlowski Opinions Editor kozlowt1@tcnj.edu Lianna Lazur Photo Editor lazurl1@tcnj.edu Jack Meyers Nation & World Editor meyersj2@tcnj.edu Katie O’Dell Review Editor odell4@tcnj.edu

Colleen Murphy Production Manager Emma Colton Web Editor Peter Fiorilla Sports Assistant Brian Kempf Features Assistant Julie Kayzerman Courtney Wirths News Assistants Janika Berridge Vicki Wang Photo Assistants Mylin Batipps Andreia Bulhao Michael Oliva Angela De Santis Jamie Primeau Melisa Easaw Copy Editors Emilie Lounsberry Advisor Business Staff Dan Lisi Business/Ad Manager Emmett Slobodzian Matt Napoli Business Assistants

Quotes of the Week “Our students become better self-advocates and more selfdetermined based on the confidence that they have developed over four years of saying ‘I got to College.’”

— Rebecca Daley, director of the CCS program

“Everyone gave their best at the meet and we placed third. This only leaves room for our team to continue to improve and come back with a vengeance and win the NJAC title in the spring.”

— senior Kimberly Shelus, women’s track and field

February 27, 2013 The Signal page 11

Opinions

Hollywood: an activist, acting newsroom AP Photo

‘Argo’ wins Best Picture for chronicling hostages in Iran, but few know modern day prisoner Afridi.

By Emma Colton Web Editor It’s Oscar season. A time when gossip websites thrive and fashion experts sharpen their shiny swords of voguish justice. Like many Oscars before this one, celebrities have used the awards ceremony to tout their political activism. This year is no different.

Actors’ and actresses’ jobs are to, as you guessed it, act. Yet, set an actor in front of a few cameras, give them some praise for doing their job well, and nine times out of 10, a self-absorbed know-it-all is created.

With a sparkly name and a persona generated by the silver screen, an actor has a booming, national voice and a padded pocketbook for bringing public awareness to political activism.

Now my question: is this where America should be getting political and world knowledge? The answer should be an emphatic “no!” But, I look around and I’m starting to doubt where some Americans are getting their information.

This Oscar ceremony, one of the political foci is bringing awareness to Dr. Shakil Afridi’s plight in a Pakistani jail. When I asked around campus who knew the name Afridi, I was met with blank looks and nonchalant shrugs. Afridi is the man who helped verify the location of Osama bin Laden. Without Afridi’s help, the terrorist may not have been brought to justice.

He’s the guy who put his neck on the line to help out the United States and now he is serving a 33 year jail sentence.

Afridi has been written about in national and international articles. He has been discussed by government officials from Leon Panetta to Hillary Clinton. Representative Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) even introduced legislation to award Afridi with the Congressional Gold Medal for his brave service. Yet, most people don’t even know the name of this hero.

Left to be arrested and tried for treason by the Pakistani government, Afridi has received weak help from the United States. It seems Washington is afraid of the mercurial temperament of Pakistan’s government and the

threat of Pakistani militants attacking our soldiers in Afghanistan if the Afridi issue is pushed too far.

Now, back to Hollywood. A Californian philanthropist, Bob Lorsch, took an ad out in the Hollywood Reporter to bring attention to Afridi’s plight. His logic was that Afridi was depicted in the recent movie “Zero Dark Thirty” and that the people who worked on this Oscar nominated film should raise their voices at the event to bring freedom to “America’s Abandoned Hero.”

But, why does it take Hollywood to wake people up?

Hollywood is a place where movies are made. The starlets from la-la land are not the people America should be turning to to first learn about political or world knowledge.

Is the fact that many Americans will first learn of Afridi and his heroic actions through the Oscars a reflection of our country’s intellectual decline? Is it proof of a culture that rejects reading articles, or watching the news? A culture that needs to be constantly entertained, and learns of news events solely through entertainment?

Hollywood is not a news outlet. To have many Americans learn of critical information through the mouths of the modern day jester is a dangerous path.

The news, the real news, is there at our fingertips, and though it may not be presented to the public in a swanky Oscar de la Renta dress, the facts are there and ready for the public’s consumption.

‘Les Mis’ loses, defeat brings world peace

By Tom Kozlowski Opinions Editor

Pessimism can come naturally when watching the Oscars (especially if you were expecting “Les Miserables” to win Best Picture).

Upsets are even quite common. The Academy tends to vote with a particular slant that doesn’t match the winner of a true consensus — “Pulp Fiction” losing to “Forrest Gump” in 1994, Beatrice Straight winning Best Supporting Actress for just four minutes of film in 1976, and “Titanic” over anything else released since

my baby videos.

Yes, the pessimism is bitter.

Yet, even though I broke my sixyear streak of picking Best Picture correctly last night, every winner was justified in their triumph, every actor, writer, and even sound mixer worthy of their praise.

Rarely would I spill my love for winners that I didn’t pick, but 2012 proved a remarkable year for film. Daniel-Day Lewis embodied the spirit of Lincoln with such uncanny similarity that we may never picture the historical figure again. Jennifer Lawrence

mastered all range of emotions in “Silver Linings Playbook,” from guttural to impassioned. Even Ang Lee bumped the indomitable Spielberg for a Best Director Oscar. Consider that Lee is a man who once directed “The Hulk.”

This is either a comeback or a grave mistake. But an anomaly so strange also reflects the raw power of last year’s cinematic roster.

Still bitter? The fact that “Zero Dark Thirty” and “Skyfall” tied for Best Sound Editing is incredible. No one really cares about the category, yet all its nominees were

heatedly strong.

Still crying? The show itself was logistically the best in years.

Seth McFarlane hit all celebrities without remorse, ever edgy without desecrating a picture of the Pope (since Sinead O’Connor, that joke has resigned). Suave Sinatra numbers, Jennifer Lawrence tripping upstage, Michelle Obama on Skype, and Adele winning another award — well, at least the former three make a lavish ceremony.

And still trying to sway the Academy? The fact is that the Best Pic-

ture category was inundated with so many potential winners that selecting any one of them is some small injustice. “Argo” just so happened to be the best concentrated effort.

Snobby film fans (me and the one other dude who saw “Amour” in America) will still berate for debate’s sake, how nine-year old Quvenzhané Wallis was the real Best Actress and how Ben Affleck only won for that beard. But somehow, the world is at peace. And that’s largely because Quentin Tarantino is a winner once more while Kristen Stewart a winner nevermore.

PETA offers people as the sacrificial lamb

By Alexis McLaughlin

PETA is a jerk. Yes, I know they’ve brought about some positive changes in the meat industry, curbed medical testing on animals and other wonderful things of that nature. But when your brand of activism is kicking dirt in the eyes of the purported bully, you become a bully yourself.

Has anyone seen their advertising over the years? I’d call it a nice blend of dietary guilting and human shaming. That is, they guilt you out of your omnivorous diet while just making you ashamed to be alive, in general.

I think my favorite advertisement is one that ran a few summers back; it’s a picture of a scantily-clad obese woman sitting on a beach, with this caption underneath: “Save the Whales. Lose the Blubber.” I guess when you think about it, this campaign is pretty flawless. With all of the people that probably killed themselves after this ad ran, I’m sure the percentage of meat-eaters

AP Photo

If anything, the Japanese fishing industry is more to blame for whale deaths than obese American consumers. Don’t bully us on our whale-being. in our nation has dropped exponentially.

For the orcas!

When they’re not inducing eating disorders, PETA’s advertising team brings their fiery brand of justice to the cancer ward.

Well, “brought;” this fiasco happened over a decade ago, but it really should’ve tipped

off the universe that something was very amiss with this organization.

When former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani was diagnosed with prostate cancer back in 2000, PETA launched what is perhaps its most insensitive and ill-devised campaign to date. Spoofing the then-famous

“Got Milk?” ads, PETA plastered billboards with Giuliani’s face donning a milk mustache, with the following caption: “Got prostate cancer? Drinking milk contributes to prostate cancer.”

You know, PETA, I’m not even going to refute the basis for the correlation drawn here. Recent studies have shown a pretty significant link between dairy consumption and increased risk of prostate cancer. What I will refute is every other aspect of this campaign, which can best be described as “inhumane” — you know, like when something is exceptionally cruel for no real reason, not unlike the cock-fighting, seal-clubbing, dog-skinning practices that your organization condemns without the slightest hint of irony, because, you know, you’d need some self-awareness for that. But don’t feel too bad. It was only a person, after all.

So let us conclude with a final cheer for PETA, where “people” are left totally out of the equation.

Policies The Signal is published weekly during the academic year and is financed by the Student Activities Fee (SAF) and advertising revenue. Any student may submit articles to The Signal. Publication of submitted articles is at the discretion of the editors.

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Letters must be received by the Friday before publication and should not exceed 300 words. The Signal reserves the right to edit letters for space and clarity. All letters must be signed, with a phone number and address of the author. Requests to withhold the author’s name will be honored only if there is a legitimate reason.

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The Signal willingly corrects factual mistakes. If you think we have made an error, please contact The Signal at (609) 771-2424, write to the address listed above or e-mail us at signal@tcnj.edu.

page 12 The Signal February 27, 2013

TCNJ Faculty-led Study Abroad

Save Lives. Earn Credit.

Application deadline: March 1, 2013

Summer in Durban, South Africa Health Communication Internship During this 3-week credit-bearing internship, students will: •Explore cross-national efforts to promote HIV/ AIDS awareness, education, and prevention.

•Design their own health communication campaigns to save lives.

•Learn about “Entertainment Education” and how it is used to foster health awareness campaigns.

•Discover the Indian Ocean port city of Durban and the natural beauty of South Africa: see wild animals, visit national parks, go river rafting.

Information session: Thursday, February 28 11:30am - 12:30pm Kendall Hall 133 Faculty leader: Dr. John C. Pollock (pollock@tcnj.edu) http://www. tcnj.edu/southafrica2013

February 27, 2013 The Signal page 13

Features

Girls with some serious WILL power

Brian Kempf / Features Assistant

Dean Rifkin and Vicky Triponey embrace upon presentation of her award.

By Brian Kempf Features Assistant This past Wednesday, Feb. 20, was marked by the recognition of women who are heroines in their own right.

The ribbon was cut on the newest exhibit at the Kidsbridge Tolerance Museum in Forcina Hall: the Girls Hall of Fame. The museum, operated by Kidsbridge, is the only youth-oriented tolerance museum in the United States and aims to educate young students about diversity, anti-bullying and positive self-esteem among other skills needed in a 21st century life where the spectrum of people is wider and more celebrated than ever before.

The Girls Hall of Fame features exhibits that demonstrates true “girl power.” As part of a freshman seminar program,

“Rebel Girls: Social Change and Leadership — Girl Style,” the four girls took it upon themselves to add the exhibit to the Hall of Fame as an aspect of their community engaged learning.

“We just want to show the value of self-empowerment as well as accomplishing dreams and goals,” said Rebecca Flores, a freshman history major and member of Women in Learning and Leadership.

Rebecca was one of the four freshman, along with communication studies major Theresa Soya, international studies major Krista Liotti and psychology major Disha Dass, who worked on the project. Led by their women’s and gender studies FSP professor, Emily Bent, the new exhibit tells the stories of 13 girls and how they affect social change, exuding “girl power.”

Bent notes that the exhibit started as a class project for the WILL program, and hopes that the kids who come and visit will “come to think of themselves as leaders today,” as opposed to thinking of them as something to aspire to be when they are older. The exhibit places hope and urgency on making known girl activism and educating the next generation about girls as “powerful agents of social change.”

Along with the ribbon-cutting on the new exhibit was the introduction of two new awards: the UPstander of the year and the College UPstander of the year, which honors two individuals whose integrity and proactivity in standing up for principles has long deserved recognition.

The adult winner was the College’s own interim vice president of student affairs, Vicky Triponey. In the football-ingrained culture of Penn State, she stood up to Joe Paterno and her bosses when it came to light that the football program was not holding its players accountable to the same high standards as the rest of

By Johnanthony Alaimo Columnist

By Heather Hawkes Columnist Brooke Goudie, sophomore international business major & Annabel Davies, sophomore business marketing major Where are you both from?

Brooke is from Newcastle and I am from Sheffield.

How would you each describe your personal style?

Are there any particular shops in the US that you like?

Forever 21, that’s kind of like our Primark. We also really like Victoria’s Secret because we don’t have that in England … we recently spent so much money there at the one in N.Y.C. What are noticeable differences between English and American style?

The casualness. Here, it’s more like block colors whereas in England they dress it up with more textures and patterns. And I’d definitely say that the guys dress so differently. Back home they’re dressed more formally in boat shoes or dress shoes and play up fashion with mixed textures and colors.

What influences the distinctive fashion

Brian Kempf / Features Assistant

UPstanders and dedicated young women leaders cut the ribbon on the new Girls Hall of Fame.

Nicholas Cage still crazy

Campus Style

I’d say Annabel’s is more like “AllSaints” style (British retailer). She wears more dark colors and has a classic, chic look. I am more of the preppy type; I like brighter colors and anything with lace.

its students. This led to her career being washed away, while she inhabited the moral high ground. Benjamin Rifkin, dean of the school of humanities and social sciences, noted that, while this led to her castigation, the College saw it as “street cred.”

The student winner was senior nursing major Andrea Besaw. Her commitment to the WILL program, including the development and coordination of Young Women’s Empowerment Day, which brings female Trenton high school students to the College, is very strong and punctuated by her involvement and leadership in a number of events that empower women.

The day’s events prove that, as Bent remarked, “Gender isn’t a definition of who (the girls) are or a limitation of what they can be.”

Heather Hawkes / Columnist

British invasion: Goudie and Davies critique and adapt to U.S. style. in England?

France definitely influences our style.

Fur, studs and feathers are all incorporated into the fashion back home.

Does Britney Spears have a new man?

That’s what the latest reports are seeming to suggest. The unbalanced pop star was rumored to have been out with a new guy on Valentine’s Day. Apparently, a source revealed that they were set up by mutual friends.

Wait, hold on a minute. Cheetos don’t talk. Who are Britney’s friends??? I demand an inquiry! Listen, let’s not jump to conclusions. For all we know, this “boyfriend” is really just a man Brit hired to carry an extra Frappuccino around in case of emergencies. A girl has gotta have her whip ready.

In some macabre news, Nicholas Cage has purchased a pyramid to be buried in a New Orleans cemetery. Hm, strange. I always thought he was a trapezoid kind of guy, but hey! Cage wishes everyone to leave their favorite film of his at his gravesite. So hurry up and snatch all the

Have you tried to blend in with the American look, or do you retain your own cultural flair?

Yes, we bought Ugg boots in an attempt to fit in. We also purchased some TCNJ apparel … no one would wear that kind of stuff out in public in England.

What is the one American style that you simply don’t understand?

Timberland boots. My dad wears them … those are to be worn for gardening or construction work, not as a fashion statement. Oh! And trainers (sneakers) with jeans … why would anyone do that?

AP Photo

Buying a pyramid isn’t even one of Cage’s top ten worst decisions.

copies of “The Wicker Man” you can get!

As you’re at Target filling up your cart with Nicholas Cage novelties, prepare to buy some baby clothes! Fergie is pregnant everyone!

HEY MAMMA. Now are we sure it isn’t just Taboo hiding up there? But apparently it’s true.

Fergie and her husband Josh Duhamel are expecting their first child together. Fergie’s due date is expected to be less than the usual nine months because as soon as the baby hears The Black Eyed Peas it’s peacing on out of there.

Moving on, do you know that old saying, “Don’t let Lindsay Lohan borrow a dress.” Well, let me remind you. “Don’t let Lindsay Lohan borrow a dress.”

The former human being was allowed to wear a $1,750 dress to an event. What event? A probation hearing? WHO IS INVITING LINDSAY TO PLACES. Wasn’t she just barred from every high school party last week? Anyway, after she was done giving the dress a swirly, Lindsay returned it in complete tatters. Apparently, she ripped it at a club and “modified” it for repairs. What club?

Club Penguin? Didn’t they ban her from the servers last week?

I’d like to do something different this week to close my column: TALKING TO YOU! Yes, my avid readers. If you would like to shoot me a comment (i.e. hate mail) or request a specific story for me to cover, please do not hesitate to ask! E-mail me at alaimoj1@tcnj.edu and if it isn’t sent to the spam folder, I’ll check it out! I do this all for people like you. Because without you, I’d just be a kid talking to himself (which I promised not to do after my senior year of high school). Love you all!

Jessica Simpson Baby Watch: Jessica has challenged Fergie to a belly jousting! Oh my!

page 14 The Signal February 27, 2013

Rest your eyes to rest your brain

By Ruchi Shah Columnist As a college student, finally getting into the thicket of the spring semester, you find yourself slowly sinking back into your stressful routine. Deadlines are approaching quickly, and there simply aren’t enough hours in the day — you need the hours of the night as well. Your immediate response is to compromise your sleep in order to complete the multitude of tasks that tower before you.

However, do not be so quick to assume that the benefits will outweigh thecostsof these late nights. In fact, sleepless nights will ultimately be highly detrimental to your overall academic performance. Not only does your body need sleep, your brain does too. This statement might not be enough to convince you of sleep’s necessity. Or, you may just think that you are immune to the effects of sleep deprivation and feel that you’re fully functional on a mere four hours of sleep. Rather than listing the side-effects of lack of sleep, here are a few signs that are clear indicators that you do in fact need to sleep more.

• You’re not hungry for lunch or dinner. Sleep deficiency can result in a lack of appetite at the appropriate designated meal times. Irregular sleep patterns

interfere with your internal clock, causing you to either be too hungry or not hungry at all. This explains why staying up late can either make you gain or lose a noticeable amount of weight.

• You can’t remember where you put your phone or your keys. A lack of sleep takes a major toll on your shortterm memory. Your brain utilizes sleep as a means of refreshing and regenerating itself. Forgetful tendencies are the direct result of sleep deprivation, along with a diminished sense of alertness.

2007 found that sleep deprived brains are 60 percent more reactive to negative and disturbing images.

Find yourself exhibiting one or all of these signs?

Get more sleep. Staying up undoubtedly does more harm than good. Chances are that your tired brain won’t be able to retain all the information you stayed up cramming, and in addition, won’t be able to recall and apply the information you already knew. In order to rest your brain, be sure to rest your eyes for a minimum of six to eight hours a night.

• You can’t carry a conversation. If you find yourself reminiscing about your once quick wit or searching for your lost sense of humor, know that their absence is due to a lack of adequate shut eye.

Your brain won’t be operating anywhere near its prime if you haven’t allotted it enough down time.

• You feel sick, despite your stellar immune system. Sleep deficiency compromises your immune system. This is because your immune system repairs and strengthens itself while you snooze.

• You’re exceptionally emotional. While a well-rested, healthy individual isn’t apathetic, those who tend to forego the recommended amount of sleep find themselves to be overly emotional. In fact, a study done in

AP Photo

Spending a little more time counting sheep could improve your overall health and mood.

Get tongue tied at Trenton Guatemalan restaurant

Shaun Fitzpatrick / Features Editor

From left to right: tacos de lengua, guacamole and pork pupusas. All insanely good, all insanely cheap and all far superior to settling for a burrito at Taco Bell.

By Shaun Fitzpatrick Features Editor

I’ve been willing to eat some very strange things in the last few years. I’ve dined on haggis in Edinburgh, steak tartare in Paris and sheep’s head from a cart in Marrakech. There is little to nothing that is too unusual for me to try.

Some call my palate adventurous, others sickening; my mother just looks at me with a combination of wonder and deep disgust.

I wasn’t always this way, however. In fact, it wasn’t until about two years ago that, with the help of the tacos de lengua at Taqueria El Mariachi in Trenton, I was able to enter the world of culinary adventures.

That’s right, folks. Tacos de Lengua: Beef tongue tacos. I’ll give you a moment to process that.

When these were first recommended to me by a friend, my first reaction was, “Why? Why would I ever do that to my stomach?”

Luckily, I took his advice. That day I learned what it was like to have a foodgasm. I had been faking it before; this was the real deal.

Fast forward to two years later. After rhapsodizing about the restaurant, a friend of mine finally insisted that I take

him there. I like to think that his life has now been changed for the better.

Have you ever eaten something so good that you aren’t sure that you deserve it? That’s how I feel about the Guatemalan food at Taqueria El Mariachi. I will never do enough good deeds in my life to deserve to eat their food.

As usual, I ordered the tacos de lengua ($6.50), as well as a glass of melon juice ($1.50). My friends and I also split an order of guacamole and chips ($5).

This was my first time trying the melon juice, and I can’t wait to order it again. It tasted like a perfectly ripe cantaloupe, light and frothy.

The guacamole was, without a doubt, the best I’ve ever had. It’s made fresh, and they don’t waste your time with extra ingredients like tomato or corn. None of that nonsense here. This guac has huge chunks of avocado in it, making it extremely filling. It helps, of course, that the portion size was huge; the four of us could barely finish one order.

“Bigger is better” may actually be the motto of the restaurant. My order included three tortillas (six, actually, as each taco had two tortillas to support the filling) stuffed with chunks of tongue. No lettuce

or cheese needed; with a coating of the amazing salsa verde that comes with the meals I was ready to dig in.

People tend to freak out a bit over the idea of eating tongue, but it just tastes like amazingly tender beef. Sure, if you look close enough you can see some taste buds, but my advice? Don’t look that close. Just close your eyes if you have to and enjoy.

My friend ordered the pork pupusas, basically a corn tortilla stuffed with meat and cheese ($6). For the sake of research, I took a bite, and I can give it no higher praise than this: the next time I visit, I will definitely be ordering them.

It reminded me of a meat pie, but much thinner; imagining a savory stuffed pancake would also do in a pinch.

Another friend ordered the seafood soup, a weekend special (around $9). I mooched a few bites (again, research!) and while it was delicious, diners be warned: they take “seafood” very literally. As in, “anything that can be found moving in the ocean” rather than your normal chunks of crab or clam. These were included in the massive bowl as well, of course, but they were floating alongside unidentifiable ocean dwellers. Dear reader, there were eyeballs involved. This soup was not for the queasy.

It should be noted that Taqueria El Mariachi is not located in the nicest

of areas. There is, however, a parking lot around the back of the restaurant, so street parking is not necessary. The staff, though extremely nice, does not speak English, so be prepared to point at your menu item of choice. I’ve never had an issue, however; between a lot of smiles and hand gestures on both my part and the waitress’s, I’ve gotten the correct dish every time.

I can’t recommend this restaurant highly enough. The portions, the prices and, most importantly, the tastes are not to be believed. Don’t let the location turn you away; after one meal you’ll never confess an undying love for Chipotle again.

Taqueria El Mariachi Where: 109 S Olden Ave Trenton, N.J. 08609 Contact: (609) 989-8010 Hours Mon., Wed. - Sun.: 11 a.m. - 10 p.m.

Tues: Closed Overall Rating (4.5 out of 5)

February 27, 2013 The Signal page 15

Arts & Entertainment

Bullied and bashed but not broken

By Samantha Nader Correspondent

Warren Fields / Staff Photographer

Comedian Anthony Kalloniatis speaks out against bullying.

Anthony Kalloniatis, known by his fans as ANT, took the stage on Tuesday, Feb. 19 with a smile plastered on his face and a witty comment on the tip of his tongue.

No one would ever think that this man had suffered from alcoholism, drug abuse, homelessness and an attempted suicide.

Instead, his audience saw what he had become through all of these experiences — a loud and proud gay man, exuding self-confidence as he stated that everyone in the room is “frickin beautiful.”

ANT didn’t always have this positive outlook on life, nor did he even feel comfortable in his own skin growing up, surrounded by his peers who bullied him and made his life a living hell.

“I went into hiding,” ANT said, citing the first time he considered suicide at the young age of 13, and the shame he felt having his stomach pumped after swallowing an entire

bottle of sleeping pills.

After dropping out of high school and running away from home, ANT ended up living under a bridge in California with a small group of other homeless people. It was here that he met a woman who sometimes brought them all sandwiches, which he hated since she never put any condiments on them.

It turned out that this “dry sandwich lady” would be the one person to turn everything around in ANT’s life.

She asked to hear this troubled young man’s story, and when he told her all that had happened to him, her response took him by surprise: “Why did you believe all those lies?”

If there is one thing that ANT wanted to impart to his audience, it was that everyone has “infinite power and infinite potential” and that no one should be allowed to take that away.

No one should ever have to feel weak, or think that they cannot be themselves. It is important to defend yourself, but it is also

important to defend others.

No one ever spoke up on ANT’s behalf when he was young and lost, so he said that people need to “reach out, shout out, and help out” when they see others in need.

Even in the face of homophobia, ANT is still as sassy as ever.

If someone says that there’s something wrong with him as a man, ANT reminds them of one of the greatest, most masculine warriors of all time, Achilles: “The man broke a heel and DIED. Gay!” From his experiences, ANT discovered that “comedy comes from pain.”

Over the years, he has perfected this art form through becoming a star on “Last Comic Standing,” headlining in Las Vegas, and making numerous celebrity appearances as a comedian and an advocate not only for gay people, but for everyone out there who doesn’t feel like they belong.

As an inspiration, a comedian and a fabulous gay man, ANT is the epitome of everything he encourages others to be and so much more.

Addicting series ‘breaks’ new ground

By Thalia Ortiz Arts & Entertainment Editor

When I first heard about the television series “Breaking Bad” from my family and friends, I was urged to give the show a chance.

I didn’t understand what the big deal was and thought it had too much gory violence and action for my taste.

After catching up on it over winter break, I realized that the show is so much more than this and that I was completely wrong.

With each season better than the last, AMC brings viewers a television phenomenon that is difficult to pass up.

The show centers around Walter (Walt) White (played by Bryan Cranston), a high school chemistry teacher. Leading a normal life in a suburban town in New Mexico, one day Walt discovers that he has stage-three lung cancer.

Initially Walt attempts to hide his illness from his wife Skylar and son Walter Jr., but experiences a

series of health problems as a result of the lack of treatment for his condition.

Once Walt’s family finds out, Skylar urges him to seek out chemotherapy immediately. After a consultation with an oncologist, it becomes evident that Walt’s chances for survival are slim and that the treatment will be extremely expensive. In order to satisfy his wife’s request, Walt looks for unconventional means to cover his hospital bills.

After contacting one of his former students, methamphetamine dealer Jesse Pinkman (played by Aaron Paul), Walt decides that teaming up with Jesse in order to produce and sell their own meth is the most efficient and quickest way to earn the money he needs.

The two form a partnership and buy an RV trailer that serves as a meth lab on wheels.

Walt often sets his sights high and constantly pushes his business with Jesse to the limit, which often gets the two in trouble. As a

result, Walt convinces Jesse that in order to expand their operation, they must sell their methamphetamine product to a psychotic drug distributor who calls himself Tuco.

At many points throughout the series, it is hard to watch Walt’s desperation in keeping his double life under wraps. In an ironic twist, viewers learn that Walt’s brother-in-law, Hank Schrader, is a Drug Enforcement Authority Agent. In a nail biting first season finale, during a drug raid by the DEA, Hank almost discovers Walt’s secret.

However, there are moments of triumph throughout the series, like when Walt and Jesse’s product quickly becomes renowned as the best crystal meth throughout New Mexico. Over time, Walt learns to embrace his criminal identity and creates a street name for himself, Heisenberg, which earns him a great deal of credibility.

In his early fifties, Walt also has another baby on the way with

Skylar and justifies his business by using the money to provide for his growing family. Once his baby is born, Walt attempts to stop cooking for good. Nevertheless, he learns that severing ties with the drug industry is much harder than it seems — especially when a successful drug lord offers him a once in a lifetime opportunity to move up the ladder in a big way.

Jesse also emerges as one of the show’s most interesting characters. In a sense, Walt becomes somewhat of a father figure to Jesse by protecting him against the harsh threats of the drug industry. Jesse often frustrates Walt because he has so much potential, but fails to deliver it in a successful manner.

More often than not, he makes major mistakes that jeopardize the team’s business venture. It creates for several intense scenes where Jesse tries to impress Walt and seek the approval or praise from him that he never got from his own parents. Jesse also finds

AP Photo

Fans keep coming back for their ‘Breaking Bad’ fix.

himself in a romantic relationship with his neighbor that ends tragically and impacts the show in a critical way.

Ultimately, “Breaking Bad” is the kind of show that keeps you coming back for more. With a highly addictive plot line and intriguing season cliffhangers, it’s hard not to continue watching.

Now in its fifth season, “Breaking Bad” has definitively made its mark on television history.

‘The Postal Service’ reissues a fan-favorite

postalservicemusic.net

After a 10-year hiatus, The Postal Service rereleases its hit album Give Up.

By Caroline English Correspondent

The Postal Service has always been the leprechaun of the indie music word. They appeared once, creating the cult classic album Give Up in 2003 and were not seen again until Feb. 11 when they released a new song, “A Tattered Line of String.”

The Postal Service consists of a dream indie line-up with lead man Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie, Jimmy Tamborello of Dntel and Headset and vocal support from Jenny Lewis, solo artist and lead singer of Rilo Kiley.

“FYI, the new PS single is 1 of 2 new songs included with the Give Up reissue. Will be avail as separate downloads. Never a new full-length,” Gibbard said on his Twitter account after releasing “A Tattered Line of String.”

The 2003 album Give Up will be reissued on April 9 with 15 bonus tracks and two new songs, “Turn Around” and “A Tattered Line of String,” with the entire original line up, including Lewis. Pre-orders have already begun.

Give Up was produced by Tamborello and acclaimed producer and guitarist of Death Cab for Cutie, Chris Walla.

Walla has an impressive list of albums he has produced, such as all of Death Cab for Cutie’s albums and EPs, Tegan and Sara’s popular albums The Con and Sainthood, various albums by the Decemberists and Ra Ra Riot’s The Orchard, amongst many others. Many songs on Give Up have been featured in advertisements

for UPS, as well as on television shows such as Grey’s Anatomy. The track “Such Great Heights,” was covered by fellow indie band Iron and Wine and was on the Garden State soundtrack.

“It was 10 years ago today that Give Up was released.

Thank you to everyone who brought our imaginary band into their lives,” Gibbard said.

The band’s name was decided from the process in which Give Up was produced.

Tamborello and Gibbard, living far apart at the time, would collaborate by sending each other demos through the United States Postal Service.

Tamborello would send Gibbard instrumentals, Gibbard would edit, add vocals and finally send them back to Tamborello who would have his neighbor, Lewis, add backing vocals to the tracks.

Give Up is currently available, but the deluxe 10 Anniversary Edition boasts 2xCD or 3xLP. The band will also be playing various shows through Europe and the United States. The band will be in New York on Friday, June 14 and Philadelphia on Monday, June 17.

page 16 The Signal February 27, 2013

Brown Bag examines homelessness

By Rachel Adelman Correspondent Since poverty and homelessness are still major problems in American society, professor Lorna Johnson-Frizell and Karachi Ukaegbu decided to present a documentary that tells a brighter story regarding poverty. It is the story of Joe Lockhart, who turned his life around with the help of the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen.

While looking through videos about homelessness on YouTube, Ukaegbu, her professor and fellow students noticed how most videos focused on the depressing aspects of poverty and they wanted to show a different perspective.

They eventually became connected with the TASK and through there, they met Joe Lockhart.

The documentary is called “Concrete Rose: Joe’s Story.”

Joe Lockhart was born and raised in Trenton with his parents. At the age of 15, he dropped out of high school in order to help support his pregnant girlfriend so she could get her diploma. He worked at several jobs, mostly in retail.

He eventually married his high school girlfriend and together they had a second child. However, their marriage ended in a separation and Joe moved to New York where he lived on the streets.

He remained in New York until Sept. 11, 2001. He returned to Trenton where he continued to live without a solid home, until he began going to the TASK.

This soup kitchen offers more than food for the poor; with the help of volunteers, the kitchen provides health services, live music, computers and GED programs. Joe plays drums for the soup kitchen band. He commented in the documentary that, “drumming lets you be yourself.”

With the help of the soup kitchen and his own determination, Joe is now married to his second wife and has three children with her.

He owns a home and has a stable home life. He also goes and volunteers at the TASK. Joe noticed that more people began to go to the soup kitchen as the economy worsened and he wanted to go and help the people who went there in any way he could.

Despite coming from a rough past, Joe has a positive outlook on life and he is willing to help the people around him.

He volunteers at the soup kitchen and he stresses that people try to look past the appearance of homeless people and attempt to know them as a person. He works to teach his kids to know right from wrong and to be respectful toward others.

The idea of the “concrete rose” came from Joe himself.

He tells a story about how he would walk along the sidewalks of the city and he would examine the rose bushes that would grow on his neighbors’ lawns.

He soon noticed how the plants would sprout between the cracks of the concrete sidewalk and blossom into roses.

Vicki Wang / Photo Assistant

Lockhart speaks to students at the College about his own experience with poverty.

This seems to be a metaphor to Joe’s struggle.

Despite coming from a rough past, Joe was able to flourish with his family and his friends. This documentary showed his ability to work their way out of poverty to an established lifestyle.

Adventure awaits in prequel ‘The Hobbit’

By Raya Brashear-Evans Correspondent It was no surprise that “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” was a huge success during its opening weekend.

It racked up $84.8 million and broke the December box office record.

This first installment of Peter Jackson’s new Middle Earth trilogy follows the adventures of Bilbo Baggins during his pre“Lord of the Rings” expeditions.

Bilbo has forgotten his thirst for adventure and now prefers a quieter, more simple life sitting by the fire, admiring the beauty of his mother’s antique dishes and basking in the beauty of the Shire.

He is soon sought out by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, who believes him to be the 14th member of the company of Thorin Oakenshield. Played by Richard Armitage, Thorin is heir to the throne of Erebor.

When the movie opens, he

and his band of dwarves have been exiled from their homeland by a fire-breathing dragon and are trying to reclaim their home from the beast.

The company faces a multitude of challenges, including trolls, goblins, orcs, wargs and the iconic character Gollum.

It didn’t shock me that there were numerous similarities between “An Unexpected Journey” and “The Fellowship of the Ring,” such as battle sequences, the ragtag gang of misfits and the fact that the main character was an underdog.

However, the movie matched up almost perfectly with the original words of J.R.R. Tolkien, so superfans should be quite pleased with the content, although the addition of some extra scenes was not needed.

Jackson’s decision to shoot the movie in 48 frames per second seemed like a good way to make the film feel more real and immersive, but accomplished

quite the opposite.

The human brain can only interpret reality from a span of 24-40 frames per second, so increasing the frame count to 48 diminishes the mystical fantasy world Jackson worked so hard

to create.

“An Unexpected Journey” contains the same ingredients that made the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy so successful — relatable characters, awe-inspiring scenery and exciting battles.

It’s definitely a must-see movie that can be enjoyed by an audience of all ages.

If the next two movies are as exciting as “An Unexpected Journey,” Jackson will have given Tolkien a great honor.

AP Photos

Staying true to J.R.R. Tolkien’s words, ‘The Hobbit’ is a delight for moviegoers. The film contains both an interesting plot line and visually appealing effects.

Novel takes nostalgic trip to wizard school

AP Photo

Fans of ‘Harry Potter’ may enjoy the magical world created by Lev Grossman in ‘The Magicians.’

By Katie O’Dell Review Editor

For a generation of grown-up Harrys and Hermiones, Lev Grossman’s “The Magicians” seems to be just what Madam Pomfrey ordered — a fun dose of magical escapism set in a more grown-up college setting. Fans of the Potter genre and other wizard school novels may be disappointed, however, by the cynicism that pervades Grossman’s writing.

“The Magicians” is boldly metafictional, invoking tropes from Narnia, Harry Potter and other traditional fantasy novels even as it gently mocks them. The novel follows the story of boy genius Quentin as he finds himself attending wizard school and seeking out the ending to his favorite fantasy series, the Pillory chronicles. When Quentin finds himself entering the Pillory series midway through the book, however, he is suddenly dismayed to find that his fantastic

heroes are not what he expected.

It’s clear that Grossman is a well-read fan of the fantasy genre, but what’s missing from his play on traditional fantasy is any real, astute commentary on the genre he is riffing.

The novel’s length is almost a commentary on the traditions of the genre in itself, but the long, meandering journey through pages begins to feel labored once the thrill of the novel’s concept starts to wear off.

Grossman takes a long time to get the plot moving, and once he does, it evaporates almost immediately.

Grossman is a gifted writer, and his decision to set a magical adventure in a collegiate setting can feel both timely and a little sad to college students who are fast outgrowing “Potter.” The novel is an interesting read for grown-up fans of fantasy, but it would be a mistake to expect the kind of whimsical escape that the genre offers younger readers. “The Magicians”

is doing a more serious task, and reminding us of our fast-approaching maturity in the process.

AP Photo

Grossman effectively crafts writing that appeals to college students.

February 27, 2013 The Signal page 17

Mumford’s live album disappoints

By Katie O’Dell Review Editor It’s been an exciting month for British folk-rock quartet Mumford & Sons. After snagging Grammys for Album of the Year and Best Long Form Music Video, the group saw a spike in record sales for their

AP Photo

Mumford’s latest Road to Red Rocks shows little growth.

2012 album, Babel, sending them to number four on the Billboard 200 chart.

This month also saw the release of a new album, The Road to Red Rocks, which consists of live recordings from a concert at the Red Rocks amphitheater in Colorado.

It’s hard to find a band with enough talent to replicate the quality of their recorded performances in concert, and fans will relish this opportunity to experience the sounds of Babel and the band’s 2009 album, Sigh No More, as they would sound in a live performance.

The recordings on the album are high quality, yet lead singer Marcus Mumford’s delivery of the songs varies little from the renditions on the recorded albums, rendering the live songs barely distinguishable from the tracks on Babel and Sigh No More, save for the clapping and cheering in the background.

This may be a testament to the band’s raw talent and engaging stage presence, but

it also renders the live album all but moot.

Why listen to an album full of background noise when the original recordings are not only easily available, but cheaper?

Unlike many live albums, The Road to Red Rocks contains no cover songs or B-sides, and all of the tracks are songs featured on Sigh No More and Babel.

It’s undeniably fun to hear the melodic gusto with which Mumford and his bandmates perform hits like “Little Lion Man” and “I Will Wait,” but hearing songs from the first and second album side-by-side drives home one of the only major flaws in Mumford & Sons’ work.

There has been little growth between the first and second album, and the bestselling mix of poetic lyrics and banjo-driven folk tunes has yielded no real change or experimentation since the band’s record sales have taken off.

Of course, it’s hard to argue with success, and Mumford & Sons is a band with enough appeal to linger in the (public)

AP Photo

The band earned album of the year for Babel at the Grammys.

conscience for quite some time.

This staying power notwithstanding, though, the conveniently-timed release of The Road to Red Rocks just a week before the Grammys can’t help but feel like a publicity ploy, and fans will have to hope that this lackluster addition to the band’s discography is just a bump in the road for a usually stellar music group.

Oscars bring together industry’s biggest stars

By Colleen Murphy Production Manager

Oscar night is somewhat of a holiday for me. I look forward to the ceremony all year, so when the awards are not quite up to par, it is almost like not getting what you want for your birthday. But Sunday night’s 85th Academy Awards show was like the mother of all birthday presents — this year’s Oscars were the best I’ve ever seen.

AP Photo

Some of the night’s biggest contenders, like Lawrence and Hathaway, take home the gold.

There was dancing, singing, great music, many laughs and deserved winners which were smoothly presented by the show’s charming and multi-talented host, Seth MacFarlane.

But before the show as a whole, I present the winners: It came as a shock when the Academy announced its nominations for Best Director and Ben Affleck was not on the list.

But Affleck more than proved himself as a Hollywood producer and director at the awards with his film, “Argo,” winning Best Picture, the biggest award of the night. The drama tells the true story of how CIA operative Tony Mendez used a fictitious movie to get US Embassy workers out of Tehran during the Iranian hostage crisis of 1979. It is the first time since 1989’s “Driving Miss Daisy” that the Best Picture winner did not receive the Best Director award. This year, that honor went to “Life of Pi’s” director, Ang Lee. The award for Best Actress went to Jennifer Lawrence, who plays a recent widow dealing with several problems, including self-confidence issues and job-loss, in “Silver Linings Playbook.” The Best Actor award went to “Lincoln’s” Daniel DayLewis, an Englishman who transformed himself into American hero President Abraham Lincoln.

Best Foreign Film went to “Amour,” Christoph Waltz won for Best Supporting Actor for his role in “Django Unchained,”

This Week in Photos

Tim Lee / Photo Emeritus

In ‘An Evening of Shorts,’ ACT performs entertaining skits, some modeled after classics like ‘Scooby Doo.’

and Anne Hathaway was awarded Best Supporting Actress for her performance in “Les Misérables.”

The most memorable and well-known movie scores played going into and out of commercials and also as presenters walked to and from the microphone. When the speeches went a little too long, the menacing theme from “Jaws” chased the award-winner off stage.

There were several performances throughout the night, including Catherine Zeta-Jones’ “All That Jazz” from “Chicago” and Dame Shirley Bassey’s “Goldfinger” from the James Bond film of the same name. In one of the most powerful moments of the night, the entire cast of “Les Misérables” sang a medley of songs from the movie.

There were also surprise visits throughout the night. Taking a break from the White House’s Governor’s Ball, First Lady Michelle Obama presented the award for Best Picture via satellite. Ted, the inappropriate bear, was also there to make the night a bit awkward and present an award.

The show might have gone well over the time allotted, but every extra minute was a treat. There was never a dull moment, and the theme of music helped to celebrate movies even further. Here’s hoping that next year’s Oscars, and the movies nominated for them, will be just as good.

Recital series educates

By Tom Ciccone Staff Writer

There are many phrases to use when practicing vocal scales, and according to the College’s Choral Ensemble, “LOL Goodbye” has been very useful recently.

The College’s Chorale Ensemble performed at the Mayo Concert Hall on Wednesday, Feb. 20, showcasing various scales and singing techniques to the audience.

Many high school students were in attendance to watch other groups perform as well. The Trentones had a performance earlier in the day.

“We want to show you some of the techniques we use,” said John Leonard, director of the ensemble.

“The key is to sing together.” Leonard was mainly addressing the high school students who provided a great turnout at the various other events of the day.

The student recitals that followed later on featured a round of great performances including a rendition of Henry Eccles’ “Sonata in G Minor” for the Double Bass by sophomore music education major Jasmine Chen with an accompanying piano part by Nick Gatto.

“I believe the recital was a great success and milestone for our music department, and the turnout was brilliant,” wrote Chen in an electronic interview.

The College’s first ever Double Bass Quartet also played with a performance of “Ave Verum Corpus,” by Mozart.

Consisting of Chen, sophomore music education majors David McNally and Ken Hamilton and freshman music performance major Christian Sabella, the polyharmonic prowess of this bold ensemble of instrumentation will likely put on many more interesting performances in the future.

Vicki Wang / Photo Assistant

Some musicians dress in funky attire at this week’s Student Band Night at the Rathskeller.

Janika Berrdige / Photo Assistant

The College’s Chorale Ensemble teaches high school students singing techniques at the afternoon recital series.

page 18 The Signal February 27, 2013

Fun Stuff

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Text “Mamma” to 91944 for VIP specials and freebies!

Congrats to “Argo” for winning best picture!

February 27, 2013 The Signal page 19

Tennis continues domination of foes Tennis

By Mike Herold Staff Writer

There’s a funny thing about domination in sports. Most of the time, it’s obvious, and everyone watching the game can see it unfolding clear as day. But sometimes, rarely, complete domination on the fields (or courts) of play is more sublime, almost as if those doing the dominating are simply allowing it to happen through them, rather than forcing it down the throats of their opposition.

It was that second type of domination, the sublime and quiet kind, which the College’s men’s tennis team displayed this past weekend against Dickinson College and Virginia Wesleyan College. The Lions (2-0) triumphed over the visiting Red Devils (0-1) 9-0 on Saturday Feb. 23, and followed up that performance by beating the Marlins (0-3) 8-1 on Sunday morning, Feb. 24.

“We’ve had a great month of practice, so I even said to the guys during warm-ups that I expected us to play really well,” said head coach Scott Dicheck. “(The team) played tremendously, just everyone did.”

Photo courtesy of the Sports Information Desk

Cruz spikes the serve.

His players agree with his assessment.

“I felt really good today,” senior captain Marc Nichols said. “I played really well, stuck with my game plan and just really hit big forehands and big serves.”

The women were dominant as well, picking up wins by the scores of 9-0 and 7-2 against the same schools, respectively. Senior Karisse Bendijo won both her singles matches, as did freshman Emma Allen and sophomores Alex Bologno and Sarah Lippincott.

The doubles play was solid, as the teams

of Bendijo and senior Allison Tierney, Allen and freshman Jasmine Muniz-Cadorette, and Bologno and Lippincott dominated Dickinson, while the Bendijo-Bologno and Allen Muniz Cadorette combinations were victorious against Virginia Wesleyan.

This kind of play is nothing new for the Lions, who were undefeated in the fall portion of the schedule and look to continue that streak.

For the men, Nichols was one of five players on the Lions who had wins in both singles and doubles matches on Saturday, alongside junior Howard Telson, sophomore Jack August and freshmen Billy Buchbinder and Pierce Cooper.

Seniors Jordan Cruz and TJ Riley walked away with wins in doubles and singles, respectively.

Nearly the same results occurred on Sunday, with Cruz replacing August in singles play due to August’s injury concerns, and with the only blight on their otherwise flawless record being a 9-8 (7-4) loss for Nichols and Telson in doubles.

“I played pretty well, but I let him off a bit in the second set,” Riley said on Saturday, after winning his match 6-0, 6-4 (Riley won his singles match 6-0, 6-0 on Sunday).

Nichols also saw some room for improvement overall, as he too had more difficulties in his second sets (which he won 6-3 and 7-5 in singles) compared to his first (both 6-1).

“The biggest thing is to stay focused and make sure you finish the match,” Nichols said.

Finishing out the match wasn’t much of a struggle for the Lions, but blowing away the competition in the opening matches of the season is a good start and nothing more.

“We just have to build off of this, obviously part of it is staying healthy,” Dicheck said.

That staying healthy part has been a concern for some Lions.

“I usually start doubles, but due to injury, I’m not doing that right now,” Riley said.

“I’m hoping to get back into doubles and keep playing solid tennis.”

Injury concerns or no, the future of this year’s team can easily be described as bright.

“I hope to keep winning and help the team, and as a team I hope we make nationals and do some damage there,” Nichols said.

Now that sounds like the kind of domination that’s the very opposite of sublime.

Cheap Seats

The nightmare at Daytona shocks sports

By Mike Herold Staff Writer Take a minute to imagine something for me. Picture yourself getting tickets to your favorite sporting event. Getting all excited about going, glancing at the clock every few minutes in the days leading up to it, wishing time would speed up so you could go sooner. Then imagine that you have great seats, close enough that you can almost taste — heck, you CAN taste it.

Then imagine a hunk of burning metal hurtling towards you at high speed, with no hope of escaping injury.

This is what happened to quite a few people this past weekend at NASCAR’s opening event.

Now, this isn’t a news story about what happened. You’ve probably seen or heard plenty of those recently, and I’m not about to add to them. So this is more of a question.

How the flying freak did that just happen?

Seriously, we live in an age of technology where the driver of the car that wrecked walked away with barely a scratch, yet 28 people were hit by the wreckage?

Do NASCAR officials think that

a lousy little chain-link fence is going to stop cars going upwards of 100 mph from hitting the fans sitting right stinking there?

There are a lot of arguments to be had about NASCAR. There are issues of driver safety, whether it should be considered a sport at all, and, of course, whatever the heck is up with Danica Patrick.

But this? Fans getting injured (two were in critical condition for a while, they’re stable

now) because no one figured out “Hey, maybe we shouldn’t have fans sitting right next to these racecars with nothing but a little fence in between” and decided to maybe do something about it?

That’s just so incredibly stupid that I can’t think of a proper insult to say.

So I’ll give them an idea on how to make sure this terrible event never happens again. Really really simple here: PUT SOME SPACE IN BETWEEN THE FANS AND THE TRACK. Or, you know, at least a second fence for protection.

AP Photo

Despite excitment, it was a scary scene at Daytona.

Tennis

Determination is personified by tennis player August refuses to be stopped by ankle injuries

Photo courtesy of the Sports Information Desk

August is looking to get back on track after injuries.

By Mike Herold Staff Writer

What is it that compels athletes to come back, time after time, to continue to play the sport that they’ve chosen despite injuries, setbacks and even (for student athletes) difficulties in finding the time to play? Is it, as the story often goes, their “love of the game,” or does sheer stubbornness play more of a role?

“I think it’s both,” said Jack August, a

freshman-sophomore player on the men’s tennis team at the College (as a third-semester student in his first year of athletic eligibility, defining his year is one of the difficulties August faces). “It’s just that I’ve put so much time into it, I don’t want to stop, and I really do enjoy it when I can play, so it’s frustrating when I can’t.”

August is returning to play for the Lions after a year away from the team, the result of a painful injury and the complications to life that injury caused. Despite the setbacks, August comes back as a starter in both singles and doubles matches, proof that he has more going for his game than stubbornness alone.

Primary among August’s playing woes is his left ankle, which, as one can probably imagine, is somewhat important when playing a sport requiring quick turns and hard stops. August’s ankle has not been the best at taking on the wear and tear of its owner’s sport. “(I’ve had) three stress fractures in that ankle,” August said.

A stress factor is described as a small sliver or crack in a bone, brought about by continuous and unusual pressure, or “stress,”

and is a common sports injury. August is unfortunately no stranger to this injury.

“I’ve had six (stress fractures) in the past six years,” August said. “No doctor can really figure out what the problem is, they just say tennis isn’t really great for your body. It puts pressure on your joints and bones.”

The most recent of these fractures has been the cause of August’s playing difficulty at the College, starting in the fall of 2011.

“I played my first semester,” August said. “I ended up in-season developing a stress fracture, which they didn’t find until after the season. They decided I needed surgery, and as it turned out I had a bone graft in my ankle that kept me out for the spring semester.”

The resulting aftereffects of the injury could be described as a stress fracture in August’s life, where unusual pressure causes tiny cracks that lead to bigger issues.

“I was still having some physical issues,” August said. “So I didn’t end up coming back to the school at all in the fall. I took the whole semester off to earn some money and let my body recover.”

After a year like that, it would be easy for most college students to stay away

from their sport. August, as it turns out, is not like most college students, as he’s back at both the school (as a math major) and on the tennis team.

“It feels really good (to be back),” August said. “I’m just hoping my body holds up.”

According to August, he’s not the only one who hopes it either.

“Coach wants to take it slow, because I’m somewhat injury prone,” August said. “But I’m playing in both singles and doubles in our opening match. I’m excited to get back into it. I haven’t competed in over a year.”

Coming back to school after his time away, August said he has been busy.

“I’m still working about 30 hours a week and I commute from an hour away, so this semester is pretty full,” August said.

Busy or not, August clearly thinks he made the right call in coming back.

“Being back has been better than I expected, it’s been really fun,” August said. “I worked full time last semester, and that really can’t compare to being here, being in college and playing tennis.”

Maybe a love of the game is as great of a factor as the cliché implies after all.

page 20 The Signal February 27, 2013

Lacrosse ready to get back to winning Lacrosse

NCAAs are in the sights of the College

Photo courtesy of the Sports Information Desk

Spark is looking to lead the team to new heights in her senior season.

By Peter Fiorilla Sports Assistant

Coming into another season with contender-caliber expectations extending beyond control of the conference, the women’s lacrosse team aims to continue its NJAC dominance and reach its 29th consecutive NCAA tournament under head coach Sharon Pfluger this spring.

The Lions, who made it to the third round of the NCAAs last year, have won 11 Division III titles since Pfluger took over the program in 1984 and have consistently made runs at a 12th division title since last being crowned champions in 2006.

“Coach Pfluger has created a family-like atmosphere amongst her players and a team dynamic where every player strives for success, works hard for the girl next to her, and will accept nothing but the best,”

said junior defender Lauren Pigott, one of Lacrosse Magazine’s five finalists for preseason player of the year. “Playing for Coach Pfluger I have learned so much more about the game. She strives to see her players succeed, both on and off the field.”

Pfluger has coached more than 130 All-Americans in her tenure at the College, including a pair of returning upper-classmen that combined for 143 of the team’s 467 points last year: Pigott and senior attacker Alex Spark.

Pigott picked up 38 goals, 11 assists, 92 draw controls and forced 10 turnovers along the way, while Spark found the back of the net 76 times in the fourthbest scoring season in the program’s history.

“Alex Spark is not only an incredible lacrosse player, but she is one of the best athletes I know,” Pigott said. “It’s comforting to know that we have an attacker on our team like Alex, and I have complete confidence when she has control of the ball. Her sharp, quick and forceful cuts to goal can fool almost any defender she comes up against, and it is truly amazing to watch her on attack.”

Other players back on the roster include junior goalie Kelsey Zinch, who had a conference-best 6.46 goals against average last year, and junior attacker Jen Garavente, whose 45 points last year are the thirdmost among the returning athletes.

Success for these players has been elephantine in NJAC play, where the team as a whole is 18-1 since the conference’s inception in 2009 — only a narrow loss to Rowan University in 2010 mars the mark — leaving the Lions heavy favorites.

Four of the conference’s six coaches tabbed the College as the top NJAC team in a pre-season poll, with rivals Rowan and Montclair University splitting the other two votes, and the Lions were ranked third in Division III by Lacrosse Magazine.

“It is definitely a great feeling going into each season knowing that we are expected to be top in our conference, and we expect nothing less from ourselves,” Pigott said. “Winning our conference is definitely our first step every year before reaching our ultimate goal of a national championship.”

Part of the team’s success can be attributed to their intense approach to the game.

“Before stepping onto the field before every game, we like to remind ourselves to play every game with no regrets — give everything you got every minute and leave nothing on the field,” Pigott said.

The Lions will start giving everything they have in their season opener at 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 2., when the team will host FDU-Florham in Lions Stadium for their first of 17 regular-season contests.

“When we put our jerseys on, we know that we have a reputation to uphold and we play for the players before us,” Pigott said. “I personally feel that our on-field philosophy is to play with pride, play for our teammates, and give nothing but our best every second of the game. When all of this comes together, we play as a dominating unit.”

Photo courtesy of the Sports Information Desk

The Lions have high expections this season, as usual.

Cheap Seats

Depleted Hoyas playing special basketball

By Chris Molicki Sports Editor In the face of adversity, teams have two options. The first is to crack under pressure and fall apart, becoming a shell of their former selves. The second option is to come together and actually elevate their level of play. Rest assured, the first option is much easier than the second one.

The Georgetown Hoyas were faced with this issue. John Thompson III’s squad had to deal with the loss of Greg Whittington (academically ineligible), the team’s second best player. This came right after back-to-back losses to open the Hoyas’ Big East schedule at 0-2.

Georgetown, not a preseason Big East favorite, very easily could have just rolled over and blamed a disappointing season on the loss of Whittington.

However, the Hoyas had another plan in mind. They turned their play up a notch, winning 11 of 12 Big East games and moving into sole possession of first place in the conference. And this all came when things looked bleaker than ever.

This amazing run was capped off this Saturday with a defining road win against Syracuse in the Carrier Dome.

The game was sluggish throughout with neither team able to pull away, but the Hoyas used a late surge and a career performance by sophomore Otto Porter

to bury the Orange.

Georgetown is certainly not high on talent. Porter is one of the best in the nation, but because they’re lacking in that area otherwise, many have been waiting for the team’s inevitable collapse.

It hasn’t come yet. And it may not come at all.

It’s a bit hard to explain a phenom-

AP Photo

In Porter and their defense, the scrappy Hoyas trust.

enon like this. How does a team all of a sudden play its best ball missing one of its best players?

Analyzing Georgetown is a good way to try to make sense of everything. First, we’ll start with Porter. The dude is a straight stud. Porter is a lottery pick and potential POY candidate, but the way he has led this team shows he’s even more special than that. Porter has been completely dominant, carrying the team on his back for stretches and doing it all. Sometimes, when you have a player like Porter, you’re simply unstoppable. Syracuse found that out the hard way after Porter dropped 33 points on them, while collecting eight rebounds and five steals.

Here are Porter’s season averages: 15.9 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 2.0 steals, 0.9 blocks, 1.6 turnovers, 51 percent shooting from the field and 45 percent shooting from behind the arc.

Those numbers alone tell you that he’s truly something else.

Another explanation for the Hoyas’ success can be attributed to their tough defense. Playing defense is not necessarily something you need talent for. If a team commits to playing hard on the defensive end, they can do so without superior basketball talent.

Georgetown comes in at No. 5 in the nation in Ken Pomeroy’s adjusted defense efficiency rankings, showing the tenacity they have on that end of

the floor. They haven’t let a team score more than 66 points on them since the loss of Whittington, and have routinely held teams under the 60-point mark, most notably against Syracuse, muzzling the Jim Boeheim’s squad to a mere 46 points. The Hoyas’ desire to defend is a huge reason they keep winning.

Aside from having a star player and stifling defense, there’s one other area to give credit to for the Hoyas’ dominance. In the wake of Whittington, other players have been able to step up and take their game to another level.

Markel Starks has taken over Whittington’s role as Porter’s right-hand man, and has thrived in it. D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera, a freshman off the bench, has been averaging double figures in the last dozen games, including a 33point outburst against DePaul. Finally, Nate Lubick has given the team solid production on the offensive end and on the glass, something he hasn’t always done in his career at Georgetown.

All of these factors make the Hoyas so intriguing. Come tournament time, is it safe to pick them despite them possibly being outmatched by an opponent, or do you trust this team and the roll it’s on right now?

With the way they’ve been able to win under the circumstances they’ve been under, the Hoyas have gained my trust. Come March, they may gain more than just that.

4 6

February 27, 2013 The Signal page 21

LIONS

AROUND THE

DORM 5 3

Chris Molicki “The Ref”

Shaun Fitzpatrick Features Editor

Amy Reynolds Managing Editor

Jamie Primeau Former EIC

In a special matchup of Around the Dorm, the “Ref,” Chris Molicki, challenges Features Editor Shaun Fitzpatrick, Managing Editor Amy Reynolds and former Editor-in-Chief Jamie Primeau to answer questions about what to change about the NBA All-Star weekend, which Eastern Conference NBA team can make a playoff push, and what Jadeveon Clowney should do with the NFL draft. dunk contest. Two full minutes is far too long to have for a dunk. If I was given that amount of time, I’d probably even get one in. Limit the number of shots they take or lessen the time. Overall, make the contests more entertaining and challenging. Here’s my best idea: Invite some Looney Tunes characters — like Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck — and team them up with Michael Jordan. Call them the Tune Squad. Pit them against a group of bad guys named the Monstars. Maybe Marvin the Martian could be the ref? We’d get to see if Jordan can make a comeback (he just turned 50 after all). I’d pay to see that! In fact, you could probably make a movie about it.

Amy gets 3 points for pointing out the lack of star power in the All-Star events.

Shaun gets 2 points because there’s really nothing more exciting than human sacrifice. Jamie gets 1 point for her “Space Jam” reference.

AP Photo

1. The NBA All-Star weekend was incredibly dull across the board. What ideas do you have to make the festivities more exciting?

SF: Two words: Human. Sacrifice. Let’s raise the stakes a little bit. In my high school Spanish class, we learned that in certain pre-Columbian Central American civilizations, whichever team lost (or, some scholars argue, won) a game of ulama would be put to death. Let’s take this concept and implement it into the NBA. Ratings would increase and teams would work a hell of a lot harder. Every game is exciting when the players are competing for their lives! And, since it’s arguable whether the losers or the victors were the ones who were killed after the match, the NBA could switch this up as well! Teams would never know if they should be trying to win or lose! How has no one thought of this before?

AR: People enjoy watching the best of the best compete — that’s why the All-Star Game exists in the first place. However, not enough players participate in the AllStar Weekend. In order to make it more interesting, all players should be required to participate in all All-Star Weekend events.

In fact, this year, neither LeBron nor Blake Griffin was in the Slam Dunk Contest. In addition, players should have to participate in all activities during the All-Star Weekend or they should not be able to play in the game itself. Unless star players are in the Slam Dunk Contest, the public will not take that competition seriously. This year, James White, Gerald Green, Kenneth Faried, Eric Bledsoe, Jeremy Evans and Terrence Ross all competed in the Slam Dunk contest.

However, only die-hard NBA fans will be able to recognize those names, whereas casual fans won’t be interested.

JP: The most interesting thing about this year’s All-Star Weekend was Lil Wayne’s claim that he’s banned from the NBA (which wound up not even being true).

Why not make all parties happy and add a Lil Wayne concert to the agenda? Even better, since Jay-Z owns the Nets, you could get Jay, Bey and Kanye on board.

Maybe a Blue Ivy cameo? We all saw what Beyoncé did for the Super Bowl!

More realistic suggestion? Spice up the

2. With the second half of the NBA season beginning, the eight East playoff teams are nearly set. Or are they? Give me the team currently outside of a playoff spot you think can make a push into the postseason.

SF: I’m going with the Charlotte Bobcats, because I love an underdog. So what if NBA.com is telling me that they’ve lost 41 games? That just means that no one will see their victory coming. There have been plenty of movies made about scrappy teams that, with a great training montage and the help of a coach who believes in them, have been able to go from worst in the league to champions. Maybe they could get Denzel Washington to coach them. Or Rick Moranis! He did such a great job in Little Giants! Wait, those were both movies about football, weren’t they?

and Toronto, currently 10th. According to the latest ESPN projections, the Raptors have a 32 percent chance of making the playoffs while the Bucks have a 38 percent chance of missing them. Every team ahead of Milwaukee has at least a 95 percent chance of making it while only Philly, at seven percent but playing poorly, would have even a remote shot at moving up.

JP: I think the Toronto Raptors definitely have a chance at making a push into the postseason. First of all, they have the most awesome mascot. Nothing beats dinosaurs! Sure, their record (23-33) may have more losses than wins, but they’re still one of the top-10 Eastern Conference teams.

Just this past week they beat the Knicks, who are ranked third. The final score only had a two-point difference, but it shows how Toronto can keep up with the best of them. This was also the Raptors’ sixth win in their past seven games! The team also has three rookies on the roster, meaning they have some fresh potential for greatness. During the All-Star Weekend, Raptors rookie Terrence Ross even won the Slam Dunk Contest. He took the title over past champions and runners up. Long story short, it looks like the Raptors won’t be extinct when the postseason rolls around!

Amy gets 3 points for her analysis of the percent chance that the Raptors make the playoffs. Jamie gets 2 points for pointing out the current Raptors’ hot streak. Shaun gets 1 point because, let’s face it, the Bobcats aren’t going anywhere.

3. It has been suggested that South Carolina’s Jadeveon Clowney sit out his junior season and prepare for the NFL draft. Do you think it would be wise for Clowney to do that and protect his draft stock?

SF: I’m torn. On one hand, I think it’s smart to look at the bigger picture. If Clowney thinks sitting out is best for his chances of a future career, then he should absolutely do that. It’s practical. On the other hand, he made a commitment to his team! South Carolina is HIS TEAM and he would be letting it, as well as all of his fellow players, down by not playing. Doesn’t loyalty mean anything anymore? (I mean that as an actual question. Is loyalty in sports important? I’m a little “out of my league” with these questions.)

AR: Clowney should play, but he should also buy a large insurance policy in case he gets hurt. If he doesn’t play, many NFL teams will hold that against him. Playing insures him being the No. 1 draft pick in 2014 barring injury. Clowney could also challenge the NFL’s rule that makes a

player ineligible to play in the NFL until three years after high school. However, a previous challenge by Maurice Clarett of Ohio State was unsuccessful. There is no reason to think Clowney’s chances of winning in court would be any better.

AP Photo

JP: The smartest decision would be for Clowney to sit out and prep for the draft. Sports Illustrated’s website called him the “presumptive 2014 No. 1 Draft Pick.” Because people are already discussing his potential as a sophomore, he must be pretty darn good. It would be wise to sit out his junior season to avoid the risk of injury. He should train privately to prepare for the NFL while still staying in school and finishing his college education. There is such a high risk of injury in football, regardless of whether he plays his junior season or heads into the NFL draft. Football could turn into a career for him, but at the same time, it’s important to have something to fall back on afterwards. I think if he chooses to train for the NFL while still getting his degree, he’d have the best of both worlds. He wouldn’t be ruining his draft stock and he’d also be setting himself up for a solid future.

If he were to stay and play at college, he would be gaining experience but increasing his chance of injury.

Jamie gets 3 points for pointing out the importance of a degree. Shaun gets 2 points for discussing Clowney’s loyalty to his team. Amy gets 1 point for talking about the chances Clowney could get hurt.

Amy wins Around the Dorm, 7-6-5 AP Photo

AR: If any East team currently not in the playoff spot can make the playoffs this season, it would be Toronto. All of the East teams currently not in a playoff spot have significant weaknesses. Only a collapse by either Boston or Milwaukee will get one of them in. The closest are Philly and Toronto. If any teams are to switch positions it would be Milwaukee, currently eighth,

page 22 The Signal February 27, 2013

Lions Fantasy World

By Mike Herold Fantasy Guy

League Standings

Nothin’ But Net

One of the many knocks against the NBA is that nothing matters until the final two minutes. And it’s true to some extent — the end of a basketball game is usually more important than the beginning.

Of course, the same could be said of all sports.

That’s not what this column is about.

Fantasy sports are all about numbers. Numbers are absolutely the only thing that matter — if a player puts up ridiculous stats but kills his team down the stretch by making stupid decision after stupid decision, he’s still a better fantasy player than the guy who gives you lesser numbers but also carries your team on his back and wins games. It’s just that simple.

That’s not what this column is about either.

Here’s what this column is about: last week, there was a Cheap Seats which claimed that LeBron James is the best basketball player in the world, better than one Kevin Durant.

I’m here to tell you that this isn’t true.

I know, I know, the stats. Yes, James puts up monster numbers, and Durant is known more as a pure scorer. Then again, Wilt Chamberlain put up the most insane stats of all time, and pretty much no one puts him ahead of (wait for it, here’s where it gets interesting) Michael Jordan, who was thought to be a pure scorer during his first several years in the league.

The game was skewed towards a big center like Wilt in his time, just as it’s built for a man with LeBron’s size and speed (and whistle-summoning power) now. So stats aren’t everything.

Here’s what is: in the final two minutes of the Olympic Gold Medal game (you know, the one with the whole world watching, with the two best teams in the world up against each other, where players put everything on the line for their country), Spain used a box-and-one defensive scheme against the USA. For those unfamiliar, the box-and-one is used when one player on the opposing team is so dangerous that he demands a double team at all times, while the other players on the court can be left somewhat open.

Team Spain focused, during the most important two minutes of their sport (that opening was going somewhere after all!), on defending one man.

They made sure that Kevin Durant didn’t touch the ball without at least two men in his way.

LeBron? They kind of left him open.

So go ahead, make your arguments. Bring up PER, mention the recent dominance, throw in the Finals argument (a debate for another day, believe me I’ve got one).

At the end of the biggest game in basketball, Kevin Durant was the most dangerous man on the court. And that means a heck of a lot more than whose statline looks a bit more impressive.

In real sports, unlike fantasy, numbers aren’t everything.

Place 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Team Name Team Allen Team Matos Team Friedman Team Molloy Team Nichols Signal Squad Team Vazquez Team Gannon Team Caputo Team McG Team Myshkoff Team Jha

Team Owner Gabe Allen Rob Matos Remy Friedman Kyle Molloy Marc Nichols Chris Molicki Victor Vazquez Andrew Gannon Joe Caputo Brendan McGrath Zach Myshkoff Ashray Jha

Points 23449 22134 21660 21457 20800 20516 20458 20314 17601 17479 15933 12854

Top Performer (Season) Top Performer (Past Week) Jrue Holiday (2767) Zach Randolph (218) Russell Westbrook (3429) Russell Westbrook (204) David Lee (3217) David Lee (258) James Harden (3367) James Harden (204) Kobe Bryant (3373) Kobe Bryant (219) Joakim Noah (2839) Goran Dragic (275) LeBron James (4063) LeBron James (325) Kevin Durant (3885) Kevin Durant (233) Al Jefferson (2710) Dirk Nowitzki (177) Greg Monroe (2872) Deron Williams (211) Chris Paul (2722) Stephen Curry (210) Dwyane Wade (2556) Dwayne Wade (209) All standings are accurate as of 6 p.m. Monday, Feb. 25

Moves Made This Week Team Molloy: Added Gerald Henderson, Jeff Green, Vince Carter Dropped Marreese Speights, Eric Bledsoe, Tayshaun Prince Team Friedman: Added Moe Harkless Dropped Derrick Rose Team Caputo: Added Bradley Beal Dropped Kyle Korver Team Allen: Added Emeka Okafor Dropped Spencer Hawes

AP Photo

Good Moves, or Bad?

Team Molloy made some very solid moves, the Henderson pickup especially was a great one, since he’s been going off recently.

Team Friedman made the right choice in losing Rose, who doesn’t appear to be coming back soon, and Harkless has been doing well on a lousy team, always good for a fantasy team.

I’m always one for adding a rookie on the rise over an older player slowing down. Team Caputo just did that.

Team Allen’s move makes sense too. Sheesh, can’t anyone do something dumb? I’ve got nothing funny to say...

I May Be Wrong, But...

Here are the moves I would make in Fantasy Basketball this week: Add: How about that Dirk Nowitzki? Hardly anyone is talking about it, but the big German has been getting back to his old self recently, and with all the injury problems he had to start this season he just might still be available in some leagues, at least at a discounted trade price. Pick him up if you can, he’ll prove worth it.

Be Cautious Of: Possibly the biggest trade at the deadline this year (a lame one overall) involved JJ Redick going to the Milwaukee Bucks. This is a team which already had two shoot-first guards on the roster (Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis), so the fantasy value of all three is likely to decline while they figure out playing time and working together.

Drop: The recently injured players. If you picked up Andrew Bogut, who just came back, drop him again, he’s hurt (again). Jameer Nelson was also hurt recently, adding to the ever increasing number of good fantasy point guards to fall this season. I’m beginning to think it’s an epidemic of a sort, Tony Parker and Russell Westbrook would do well to start playing carefully.

Look Out For: I wrote before about how my words on this page appear to be jinxed somewhat. I think that my early decision to say that James Harden would slow down and not be worth the hype was a major part of that curse. He’s been destroying everyone recently, and his numbers are simply off the charts. I feel silly now.

AP Photo

February 27, 2013 The Signal page 23

ports Week In Review

Preview

Women’s Lacrosse -Has won 11 D-III titles and has reached the NCAA tournament every year since head coach Sharon Pfluger took over in 1984 -Is 18-1 in the NJAC since the conference’s 2009 inception -Went 16-4 last year and won two NCAA games, before being bounced, 9-7, by NJAC rival SUNY Cortland -Has two returning All-Americans: forward Alex Spark, who netted the fourth-most goals in Lions history with 76, and defender Lauren Pigott, one of five finalists for this year’s Lacosse Magazine’s DIII preseason player of the year

Treat the Rookies Right ... and other Division III stories

-Skidmore College, a liberal arts school of 2,500 students in upstate New York, has cancelled its spring men’s soccer season after an internal investigation showed players were Skidmore College, where hazing is serious business hazed at a November party called “rookie night,” according to USA Today. Four non-player students and 24 members of the team are facing further punishment, including suspension from the Fall season.

-A study by the NCAA earlier this year said athletes at D-III schools graduated at an 86 percent success rate, while the rate for non-athletes at surveyed schools is 62 percent.

-Montclair State’s women’s basketball team continued its dominance with a win over William Paterson University in the NJAC finals, improving to 27-0 ahead of nationals.

More lacrosse

Season Win Percentage

Wins at the NCAA Tournament

Win Totals

Follow @TCNJSignal on Twitter to get all the latest sports updates, Oscar discussion and more!

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AP Photo

STUDENT ATHLETE OF

THE WEEK

The Horizon For

Sports

Billy Buchbinder Men’s Tennis

Among the Lions to earn four wins

Billy Buchbinder, who played at No. 3 and No. 4 in singles and No. 2 in doubles for the men’s tennis team, contributed four points in his first two career starts for the Lions.

Buchbinder earned a 6-0, 6-0 result at No. 3 over Dickinson College, a 6-0, 6-1 win at No. 4 against Virginia Wesleyan and partnered with Jordan Cruz for a pair of 8-3 victories.

Buchbinder was one of four Lions to go 4-0 during the week.

This week’s picks from the staff Michigan vs. Winnipeg Jets Chicago Bulls N.Y. Red Bulls vs.

Point leaders Michigan State vs. N.J. Devils vs. Brooklyn Nets Portland Timbers Peter Fiorilla

3

Chris 2 Molicki

Wrestling March 2 @ NCAA East Regionals (Gettysburg College), 9 a.m.

Lacrosse March 2 vs. FDU-Florham, 1 p.m.

Track and Field March 1 & 2 @ ECAC Championships (168th Street Armory) Softball March 1 @ Messiah College (DH), 3p.m. & 5 p.m.

Mike “H” Herold 2 Amy Reynolds1

Baseball March 2 vs. Immaculata University, 11 a.m. & 2 p.m.

March 3 vs. SUNY Oswego, 1 p.m.

Jamie Primeau 1 Brendan McGrath 0 Andrew Grossman0

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Signal Trivia

?

Last week, this NBA player popularized the phrase “You tryna get the pipe?”

Last week’s Signal Trivia Answer:

In the 2012 Olympics the U.S. had four medalists, with half taking home gold and the other two bronze. The IOC removed wrestling from the guaranteed list of sports at the 2020 Olympics, which would hit Russia (11 medalists in 2012 and 77 gold medals all-time) harder than any other country.

AP Photo

Signal

Sports

Sweet sixteen for men’s track in NJAC

The College wins conference title yet another time

Photo courtesy of the Sports Information Desk

Alorro focuses on the pole vault, as he places second.

By Julie Kayzerman News Assistant

Following their team mindset of “the crown being returned to the king’s head,” the men’s indoor track and field team took the NJAC title with 191 points, continuing their 16-year streak at the New York Armory on Friday, Feb. 22.

“Being the NJAC champions 16 years in a row, we have former teammates that we don’t want to let down,” junior Michael Spekhardt said.

Spekhardt was part of the men’s 4x400meter relay that placed first with a top time of 3:19.74, meeting ECAC qualifying standards, alongside freshman Laron Day, senior Alex Brown and sophomore Erik Moutenot.

“I felt that I left everything I had out there on the track,” said Spekhardt, who also placed third in the 200-meter with a personal best of 22.52 and anchored the second place 4x200meter relay with freshman Peter Okoh, sophomore T.J. Kelly and senior Kyle Magliaro.

The women’s team, however, wasn’t quite as successful as the men, finishing third at the NJACs with a total of 126 points.

“We had a lot of great individual performances,” senior Kimberly Shelus said.

“But overall we didn’t end up where we wanted to be.”

However, despite being disappointed in taking third, the women had several top ECAC qualifying performances, including one by senior Mary Chismar, who defended her title as the NJAC Champion in the shot put by winning the event with a throw of 11.80 meters.

The men’s distance medley relay was another first place finish with a time of 10:45.58, ran by sophomore Patrick Waite, freshman Michael Larkin, freshman Roberto Guiducci and sophomore Jeremy Garrell.

“It felt good to help out the team in the

small way that I could,” Garrell said. “Winning the NJAC championship is always a team goal.”

The women’s distance medley relay, consisting of sophomores Alyssa Silver, Joy Spriggs, Meghan Kocher and freshman Kayla Glynn, took second place in the 4x800-meter relay with a time of 9:32.87 The men and women also both had first place successes in the 4x800-meter relay.

The men’s team, consisting of senior Michael Berti, junior Dominic Tasco, senior Andy Gallagher and junior James Seyffart, ran an ECAC qualifying time of 7:53.1, while the women won with a time of 9:32.87. The women’s race was run by junior Anginelle Alabanza, sophomore Liz Johnson, sophomore Megan Stack and junior Sarah Polansky.

On the jumping side, senior Steve D’Aiutolo won the triple jump for the second year in a row with a distance of 14.33 meters and took third in the long jump with 6.66 meters, qualifying for ECACs in both events.

Junior Erica Roberts took third in the triple jump with a mark of 11.00 meters, while junior Brigit Roemer took third in the high jump with a height of 1.58 meters. Both athletes achieved ECAC qualifying marks.

“Everyone gave their best at the meet and we placed third,” Shelus said. “This only leaves room for our team to continue

to improve and come back with a vengeance and win the NJAC title in the spring.”

Following the pattern of ECAC qualifiers for the men, junior Julio Alorro took second in the pole vault with a height of 4.70 meters.

Sophomore Abayomi Arowolo also took second place in the weight throw tossing a distance of 14.82 meters.

The men gained second place points with Tasco in the 800-meter, sophomore Andrew DeMaria in the 3,000-meter and freshman Jonathon Stouber in the 5,000meter races.

In addition, the Lions delivered a strong team effort in the mile with three runners placing in the top five. Gallagher led the Lion pack in third place with a time of 4:21.23, followed by Berti’s fourth place and Seyffart’s fifth place finishes.

“The characteristics from the team and coaching staff that contributed to the win would be pride and aggression,” Spekhardt said. “We felt that competitors go out and compete but champions go out and rise above everyone else.”

The athletes for both the men’s and women’s team who received ECAC qualifying marks will return to the Armory for the championships on Friday, March 1 before heading to Illinois for the NCAA Division III Indoor Championships.

Basketball falls in NJAC tournament Lions lose in playoffs, miss NCAA tourney

By Chrissy Onorato Staff Writer

In what was a heartbreaking loss, the Lions fell 55-39 to William Paterson University in the NJAC tournament, but it was a well-fought game. This concluded the College’s season, but left the team with something they could be proud of.

The game began with both teams displaying excellent defense, allowing very minimal scoring and making it hard to get any numbers on the board at all. The Lions were able to break through their opponents’ defense as junior guards Tiffany DeTulio and Kelly Roddy each scored, making the game 6-3.

However, the Pioneers dominated in an 11-0 run, advancing their score and beginning to run away with the game. At the half, the Pioneers were leading 20-12. The Lions were hopeful they could turn it around in the second half.

Lions’ Lineup February 27, 2013

I n s i d e

Warren Fields / Staff Photographer

The team could not advance to the NJAC finals.

“I thought it was a great defensive game for each team being that the score at halftime was only 20-12,” DeTulio said.

The second half was quickly taken over by the Pioneers again as they scored another 11 points against the Lions. Despite relentless hustle and determination, the Lions were not

able to beat their opponents’ defense and get many points on the board.

The Lions refused to go quietly, however. With 6:58 left in the game, they went on a 13-0 run led by DeTulio. They closed the gap to 55-39, but ran out of time as the buzzer sounded.

DeTulio showcased her talent

as she led the team with a total of 17 points with five steals and four rebounds.

The loss to William Paterson unfortunately marks the end of the College’s season, as they missed out on getting an at-large bid for the NCAA Division III tournament when the field was released on Monday, Feb. 25.

William Paterson, as well as NJAC champion Montclair State University both got bids, one atlarge and one automatic.

With the talent and record that the Lions had, they were likely one of the last teams left out of the field of 64.

Even if the team left the court with heavy hearts, they still look back on the season with positivity and pride, as they should. They cannot look with regret on their performance in any of this season’s games and can only use this as incentive to play harder next year.

“We had a great run this season with this group of girls and

I think that we came one step closer to our goal (as NJAC champs) than we did last year,” DeTulio said.

Some members of the team have been recognized for their stellar play this past season. Roddy and DeTulio were both chosen for the All-NJAC Second Team, a high honor for the College.

Roddy had a remarkable season, scoring an average of 8.7 points per game, while DeTulio contributed 8.5 per game.

DeTulio made a start in all 26 games of the season. Without either of these players, the Lions could not have fared as well as they did all season.

The team looks forward to some much-deserved downtime, but rest assured, they will be right back to practicing and conditioning in preparation of next season very soon. They have much to be proud for, advancing far into the NJAC tournament and further than the College has in recent years.

46 53 Around the Dorm page 21

Jack August Feature page 19

Tennis Starts Hot page 19

Lacrosse Preview page 20