Vol. 29 Issue 27
March 14, 2017 IN D EPE ND E NT
ST U D E NT
V O I CE
O F
B O I SE
STAT E
S I N C E
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Council bridges gaps in representation
The Arbiter
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@arbiteronline radio
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PATTY BOWEN / THE ARBITER
Students form Boise State Inclusive Excellence Student Council p.10
WEEKLY CALENDAR Mobile Mammograms Wednesday, March 15
9:00 AM - 3:00 PM, Norco Building Parking lot, cost dependent upon insurance The St. Luke’s Mobile Mammogram unit will be available for campus members.
Pride: Film Showing Wednesday, March 15
Student Union Building, Special Events Center, 6:00 PM, FREE Film “Pride,” on events related to LGBT rights in Britain in 1984, will be screened. Comments and discussion by Lisa McClain, an expert on British, gender, and sexual identity history, will follow the screening, and will be moderated by Jill Gill.
Mathematics Colloquium: Hypercubes Thursday, March 16
Interactive Learning Center, Room 402, 3:00 PM, FREE Dr. Nick Trefethen, professor of numerical analysis at the University of Oxford and a global distinguished professor at New York University will present “Cubature, Approximation, and Isotropy in the Hypercube.” This event is sponsored by the Math Department, and refreshments will be provided beforehand, at 2:40.
Bronco Softball vs. Colorado State Saturday, March 18
Dona Larsen Park, 4:00 PM, Free w/ Student I.D., $6 otherwise Bronco Softball will take on the Colorado State Rams at Dona Larsen Park. If you’re looking to start off your spring break with a spring-friendly activity, perhaps consider attending.
Treefort Music Fest
Wednesday, March 22 - Sunday, March 26 Various times, Various locations, Various prices Along with hundreds of musical performances, Treefort Music Fest boasts such hund events as Alefort, Comedyfort, Filmfort, Foodfort, Hackfort, Kidfort, Performance Art, Skatefort, Storyfort and Yogafort. More specific scheduling and pricing information can be found at treefortmusicfest.com. A tip for those attempting to save money: there are secret in-store concerts—for free—at the Record Exchange each day of the festival. Be on the lookout for more information on that on the Record Exchange’s facebook page.
SEND EVENTS TO DARBYEBELING@BOISESTATE.EDU. DESIGN BY NANCY FLECHA
EVENTS
INSIDE: 3/14/17
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Patty Bowen
editor@stumedia.boisestate.edu
OPINION EDITOR Sierra Williams
sierrawilliams659@u.boisestate. edu
INVESTIGATIVE/ENTERPRISE REPORTER Jacob Palmer
BRANDON RASMUSSEN / THE ARBITER
jacobpalmer@u.boisestate.edu
Roll the dice on student-lead D&D Workshop : pg.15
NEWS EDITOR
Samantha Harting
news@stumedia.boisestate.edu
NEWS REPORTER Taylor Munson
taylormunson@u.boisestate.edu
CULTURE EDITOR
Brandon Rasmussen
culture@stumedia.boisestate.edu
CULTURE REPORTER Michael Paquin
michaelpaquin@u.boisestate. edu
SPORTS EDITOR Evan Werner
sports@stumedia.boisestate.edu
SPORTS REPORTER Rylan Kobre
rylankobre@u.boisestate.edu
DIGITAL CONTENT MANAGER Jared Lewis
digitalcontent@stumedia.boisestate.edu
COPY EDITORS
Darby Ebeling Maxwell Peterson
DESIGN MANAGER Ted Atwell
JARED LEWIS / THE ARBITER
ALEC FOEGE / THE ARBITER
GRAPHIC DESIGNER
Broncos score placement in NIT Tournament : pg. 18
Contact Us:
Health Service fee proposal denied : pg. 5
A r b i t e r o n l i n e . c o m 1 9 1 0 U n i v e r s i t y D r. B o i s e , I D 8 3 7 2 5 P h o n e : 2 0 8 . 4 2 6 . 6 3 0 0
Nancy Flecha
Distributed Tuesdays during the academic school year. The Arbiter is the official independent student newspaper of Boise State University and a designated public forum, where student editors make all content decisions and bear responsibility for those decisions. The Arbiter’s budget consists of fees paid by the student body and advertising sales. The first copy is free. Additional copies can be purchased for $1 a piece at The Arbiter offices.
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NEWS Trump versus tradition: a former Ambassador’s perspective on emerging foreign policy Derek Shearer, who previously served as an Ambassador to Finland, spoke at Boise State on Tuesday, March 7 about the foreign policy President Trump is developing. Jordan Erb Staff Writer
News@stumedia.boisestate.edu
Derek Shearer, former Finnish Ambassador, spoke at Boise State on Tuesday, March 7 about the foreign policy President Trump is developing. Shearer’s presentation was largely focused on soft and hard power policies, centering on Trump’s affection for the latter—a slight divergence from past U.S. presidents. Hard power policies, in contrast to soft power policies, is a country’s military and economic might, according to Shearer. It is military action and the influence of the economy on the global stage. Though powerful, it isn’t exclusively effective. In Shearer’s eyes, President Trump’s decision to not assemble a board of advisors while running for president, his use of social media, his vaguely isolationist “America First” campaign and his apparent taste for hard power policies— using military or economic force—make him different. “America’s influence doesn’t rest solely in our military power or our economic power—it’s our culture, it’s our history, it’s our values,” Shearer said. “It’s the Statue of Liberty on Ellis Island, welcoming immigrants. It’s our freedom of the press, our investigative reporters. It’s our jazz and rock ’n’ roll, (and) our fusion of cultures.” Trump tends to place more value on the nation’s military and economic power, rather than its cultural power, according to Shearer. This has been exemplified in the President’s proposed budget, which
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Garry Wenske, of the Frank Church Institute, Ambassador Derek Shearer, and Wendy Jacquet in the Student Union Building. (Photo courtesy Boise State School of Public Service’sFacebook Page).
increased army funding and minimized funding for soft power institutes, such as the State Department. Associate Political Science Professor Justin Vaughn and Director of the Center for Idaho History and Politics, invited Shearer on behalf of the organization, and acknowledged the role Trump’s budget is playing in his affection for hard power policy. “You can tell what a politician cares about by what they put in their budgets,” said Vaughn. The State Department— which would experience serious budget cuts—issues cultural programs such as the Fulbright Scholars program and the Peace Corps.
These entities are very popular in their host nations, according to Shearer. Awaiting potential cuts alongside the State Department are the Environmental Protection Agency, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the National Endowments for the Arts and the Humanities. While nothing is set in stone yet, Trump’s budget would leave the United States’ military well-funded. As stated by Shearer, this generosity toward the armed forces is due to Trump’s high regards of accomplished military officials. This attraction is reflected not only in his budget, but in his appointments as well.
“(Trump) values (military) people, and the kinds of things they do. He doesn’t value diplomats, and he doesn’t value the kinds of things that diplomats do,” said Vaughn. Past presidents have blended hard and soft powers throughout their terms, according to Vaughn, but Trump has no interest in this mix. Trump’s appointments and proposed budget may seem worrisome to some Americans, but Assistant Professor of Political Science Michael Allen pointed out the necessity of hard power policy in foreign policy. “Military and economic power often can set the
stage for both negotiation and the effectiveness of other tactics, like soft power,” said Allen. “The capacity for military strength can buy a state a seat at the bargaining table and to be taken more seriously as a party.” The use of economic or military force in international policy can prove useful, but as stated by Shearer, it cannot be the only tactic used—there must be a delicate balance of hard and soft powers. In issues regarding the Middle East, Russia and climate change, Shearer cited the near impossibility of reaching resolutions solely by military or economic intervention. “The idea that there is a
hard power—or military solution—to most of our foreign policies is an illusion. There are no easy, simple answers using hard power,” Shearer said. In accordance with this, Vaughn offered a metaphor of using a stick to get one’s way in an argument. Vaughn said if someone is doing something the other disagrees with, they can’t use brute force to assault the other with their stick in an attempt to make them agree. “(The use of force) is only one tool in your tool box, and probably not the tool you want to use all that often,” Vaughn said.
Health Services fee proposal denied by Executive Budget Committee: A student activity fee increase approved to provide counselors instead Samantha Harting News Editor News@stumedia.boisestate.edu University Health Services’ Director of Business Operations Tara Brooks presented a proposed fee increase at the Spring 2017 Tuition and Fee Hearing on Tuesday, Feb. 21 to the Executive Budget Committee (EBC) to raise the Health Services fee from $37.50 to $62.50—this increase has since been denied. One of the main reasons for the proposed fee increase was to provide funding for three additional mental health counselors. Boise State currently has about one counseling provider for every 3,000 students— based off of the published enrollment numbers. This is half the recommended ratio of counseling providers to students—one to every 1,000 to 1,500 students—according to Brooks. With this disparity, students may wait as long as four
weeks to see a counselor during busier parts of the semester. The increase also intended to add more peer educators within the area of prevention—and graduate assistants to work with them—and to investigate technological resources that will help better communicate prevention efforts with students, according to Brooks. The EBC met after the hearing to discuss these items— along with other departments’ proposals—as mentioned in the Feb. 27 Arbiter article, “Campus departments propose increases at Tuition and Fee Hearing.” Associate Vice President for Budget and Planning and Chairman of the Tuition and Fee Hearing Ken Kline said the EBC agreed there is a need for additional counseling providers to be hired. “The general consensus coming from the Executive Budget Committee was that there is a need for health counselors—and specifically there
is a recommendation for additional funding for the counselors—but not to increase the Health Service fee to address any deficits,” Kline said. The deficit Health Services is experiencing is partially due to changes in health insurance policies, according to Kline. As of now, the Health Services fee—paid by each full time student per semester—will remain $37.50, as it has been since 2011. According to Kline, the recommendation from President Kustra—which goes to the Idaho State Board of Education—will include an increase in the student activity fee, so one full time and one part-time counselor could be hired. “As long as the funding has been sufficient for (Health Services), we certainly didn’t want to ask for more unless we needed it,” Brooks said. When finalizing the Tuition and Fee Hearing proposal, Brooks went to the Associated Students of Boise State
University’s (ASBSU) Student Assembly to seek input about where the new funds would be allocated. “We found (the suggestions) very valuable, and we took their recommendation and we switched our proposal,” Brooks said. “We had already submitted everything, and we switched our proposal, because we felt like, ‘These are student dollars, and we went to (ASBSU Student Assembly) for a reason.’” Junior psychology major, Zacharyah Harbauer, was at ASBSU Student Assembly when Brooks came to ask for suggestions about the Health Services fee proposal. Harbauer said he was pleased to see Brooks used the suggestions to allocate more funding toward mental health, rather than outreach—as it was originally presented. “We have a lot of people come to assembly and request opinions, but don’t do anything with them,” Harbauer said.
HEALTH FEE REQUESTS
Data collected from 4,500 randomly selected students in 2015 through the Boise State College Health Assessment— conducted by the American Collegiate Health Association—showed students are struggling with mental health related issues. Of the 986 students who responded, the top two factors “reported by Boise State students that negatively impacted academic success within past 12 months,” were anxiety and depression at 42.4 percent, followed closely by stress and other mental health at 41.4 percent, according to data presented in a PowerPoint by Health Services. Harbauer, who also is president of a peer-run mental health support group called Tender Thoughts, said students don’t always know about their options for seeking help on campus. “(Students) hear the words counseling center, but they don’t know what counseling entails,” Harbauer said. “They
don’t know how it would help them, if it would help them.” The Tender Thoughts group meets at 5:30 p.m. on Thursdays, in room 124 of the Mathematics Building, to provide a safe space for students to discuss anything they need to talk about. Harbauer said he feels it serves as preventative health care, as well as crisis intervention, which is important when students have to wait weeks to see a counseling provider in Health Services. Moving forward, Brooks said she is happy to hear additional resources are being allocated toward hiring counseling providers. “However, we have concerns without additional funding to address the financial needs of Health Services as a whole, we will have to decrease services,” Brooks said. “We will continue to work with student groups to ensure we understand their healthcare needs and will remain dedicated to addressing them to best of our ability.”
COST PER SEMESTER IN DOLLARS
Information Sourced from Boise State Health Services
Current Fee
UNC Greensboro
University of Louisville
San Francisco State
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NANCY FLECHA/ THE ARBITER
Portland State University
159
Fresno State University
136
University of New Mexico
150
Idaho State University
129
69.23
62.50 Boise State University
113
University of Idaho
95
Boise State University
60.68
37.50
New Proposed Fee
NEWS Online survey given to psychology students over e-mail Spring 2017 Commencement to Student survey explores the value of trigger warnings in psychology classes Jacob Palmer Investigative/Interprise Journalist News@stumedia.boisestate.edu
Landrum said. Senior psychology major Megan Devaney took the survey and expressed support for warning students prior to the introduction of distressing issues, but also acknowledged some difficult issues need to be discussed in psychology for educational purposes. “There is a lot of controversy around trigger warnings,” Devaney said. “It’s important to give a heads up in either an informal or formal way to students to let them know there might be difficult content in the course, while at the same time, not avoiding certain topics—especially in a field like psychology.”
whether they want to stay and learn or not. They’re paying for their education—it’s their choice.” Colin Shillingburg, a sophomore kinesiology major, didn’t have a problem with professors giving a heads up if sensitive topics were to be discussed, but also stressed the academic importance of learning tough topics. “(Sensitive topics) should be taught in psychology classes, because it’s a course (where) you’re learning about things that can be difficult to talk about. If you try to make everyone happy by taking out certain sensitivities, you’re going to take away
Psychology students are being encouraged to take an online survey regarding the use of trigger warnings in the classroom, as part of a larger nationwide study. The survey asks students to give their opinions on whether trigger warnings should be used in psychology classes. It will be open until April 8, and has already gotten about 150 student responses, according to psychology professor Eric Landrum, who is overseeing the project. Trigger warnings are notices given to students— either spoken or written— It’s important to warn students about (senwhen a class is about to cover a topic which might sitive topics) and for them to have their own be personally distressing choice about whether they want to stay and or damaging, based on an individual’s personal ex- learn or not. They’re paying for their educaperience. The survey is tion—it’s their choice. examining the debate over whether these warnings ” are helpful for accommo- —Hannah Anderson, junior political science major dating certain students or hurtful in keeping the class Around campus, stu- a lot of the educational from studying difficult dents have had varying value,” Shillingburg said. topics. “I’m helping some re- opinions as to the balance “The teacher might say, searchers nationally do a of maintaining academic ‘We’re going to be talkmulti-site study to look at goals, and catering to the ing about this if anyone trigger warnings in psy- needs of some individu- needs to be dismissed,’ but chology classes. It’s to help als. Hannah Anderson, a That should be it, and the researchers understand junior political science course should continue.” Devaney believed in a what situation students major, showed support think trigger warnings for implementing trigger compromise between the should occur. What types warnings in the classroom. two viewpoints of using “It’s important, because trigger warnings and covof topics do you think might be helpful to have a different students have dif- ering controversial topics. trigger warning? Are trig- ferent mental illnesses or She expressed support for ger warnings harmful? situations,” Anderson said. teaching difficult topics in Does it actually shy away “It’s important to warn stu- psychology, while offering students from having a dents about (sensitive top- an alternative assignment conversation they might ics) and for them to have on the topic for students actually benefit from?” their own choice about who might not be com-
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fortable with discussing it in class. “There are a lot of other situations that (are) better (for) a student, don’t have any trigger warnings (and) professors are more than willing to work around,” Devaney said. “Going and talking with a professor should be reasonable from both an academic standard, as well as a content standard.” Landrum also stressed the importance of communicating with professors to work out alternative assignments. While he wasn’t sure specific topics could be replaced, the way in which students studied them could. “I would encourage (students) to come by my office and talk about it personally,” Landrum said. “I’m not sure you can really substitute content, but you can change the way the topic is discussed.” Landrum couldn’t say exactly what would happen when the results were published or if any policies would come out of the study. He said this survey is mostly a fact-finding mission. “Once you publish a paper, you don’t know what other people are going to do with this. Other people could look at the results and make policies. I think it will be good to know (the) prevalence and frequency (of trigger warnings),” Landrum said.
be held in Albertsons Stadium Samantha Harting News Editor News@stumedia.boisestate.edu Due to a surplus of guests attending graduation at Taco Bell Arena, graduates at Boise State’s 100th Commencement ceremony will walk across the Blue in Albertsons Stadium to receive their degrees on Saturday, May 6 at 10 a.m. The 10 to 12 thousand seats in Taco Bell Arena can no longer accommodate all of the family and friends coming to watch the ceremony, prompting the switch to the new venue, according to Associate Vice President of Communications and Marketing Greg Hahn. Departments across campus have been collaborating to plan for the first graduation ceremony in the stadium, which will hold approximately three times as many guests as the arena. “Commencement is always one of my favorite moments, because everybody walks in and everybody is there for (the graduates),” Hahn said. “That’s the first time—unless you’re on the basketball team— you’ve ever walked into Taco Bell Arena and had the crowd there for you.” Hahn said in previous years, the departments had tried making commencement a ticketed event, with each student having six tickets to give to friends and family. Unfortunately, students did not
promptly return tickets they weren’t planning on using. Since ticketing wasn’t successful, other solutions were considered. With the change in venue, Hahn said it will likely cost more to host, because of the additional staff and security needed, as well as the possible cost associated with buying chairs that won’t harm the turf if it is not covered in a protective layer. The expected arrangement has positioned graduates on the field, facing the North End Zone, while family and friends watch from the stadium seats. Each student will be displayed on the jumbotron so audience members can see the graduates in detail as they receive their degrees. According to Hahn, the Convocation tradition to have students form the shape of a “B,” on the blue turf started in the Fall of 2013—the year the members of the Class of 2017 were freshmen. This means students who are graduating in four years will be the first class to both pose on the Blue for Convocation, and graduate on the Blue. “You can start your journey on the Blue and end it on the Blue,” Hahn said. The gates to the field will open at 8:30 a.m. the morning of commencement. No tickets are required, as there will be open seating on a first-come, first-seated basis, according to Boise State’s Commencement Web page.
around a group of people I don’t know,” Nutting said. “I plan on getting a place with my sister, and that is a better option for me— both are valid options.” Students interested in learning more about oncampus housing options can visit the Housing portal on Boise State’s website. “It’s completely up to the individual. There is no one size fits all suggestion,” Nutting said.
Total Male Total Female
Total Applications
Canceled
2016 FIRST YEAR APPLICATIONS
Application Demographics Over Time
Total Male Total Female
Total Applications
Canceled
Pending Male
Pending Female
Pending Total
2017 FIRST YEAR APPLICATIONS Pg 7
NANCY FLECHA/ THE ARBITER
As Boise State opens up the portals for campus housing applications for the 2017-2018 academic year, students are deciding if living on campus is the right choice for them. National trends looking at where students are living have shown a consistent rise in college students choosing to live on campus—with roommates— rather than living at home or in an off-campus housing option, according to Director of Housing and Residence Life, Dean Kennedy. Similar trends are being seen at Boise State. The high encouragement of on-campus housing has helped contribute to this rising trend. “Overall, we are seeing a 17 percent to 21 percent increase in applications from this year to last year,” Kennedy said. “Last year we received 400 more applications than anticipated for the first time in years. There was nothing in the past trends that could’ve closely predicted this.” This is in part due to the collaborations between admissions and housing, according to Kennedy. “Admissions counselors are now encouraging living on campus more compared to five to six years ago. Many admissions staff members either lived on campus or have a close connection to someone
stores and being very close to downtown is a benefit,” Parker said. However, living on campus is still not the only viable option. Freshman biology and pre-medicine major, Nikole Nutting, is a local student who lives at home and sees it as an equally important option. “I still wouldn’t live on campus, because I don’t think I would like the idea of consistently being
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news@stumedia.boisestate.edu
who did. As they are recruiting students, they are talking up what it is like to live on campus,” Kennedy said. This encouragement is then followed by promotion of the academic benefits of on-campus living. These advantages are outlined in the Boise State “First Year Student Success-Expectations for Living on Campus” report summary of 2015, including an increased possibility of earning a higher GPA, a better likelihood of graduating and a stronger chance of getting a job in the student’s desired field. “These benefits are prevalent nationally, and at Boise State—it is proximity based,” Kennedy said. “If you live where all of your resources are, then we believe you are more likely to succeed. Luckily, with the new building, we will still open with some vacant rooms in the fall to satisfy the high demand.” Students, such as freshman biology major Luke Parker, agreed living on campus has benefits. “Living in housing allows people to experience college life by meeting new individuals that they normally may not associate with,” Parker said. Parker is originally from Colorado, so living on campus was a more convenient option. “This is more efficient for me since I do not have a car. All amenities are very close— food, classes,
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Ximena Bustillo Staff Writer
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Boise State sees continuous increase in housing applications as students pick their best options
OPINION Creation of inclusive excellence council is needed to enhance voice of underrepresented Queen Alexander Health Sciences major
SierraWiliams659@u.boisestate.edu
There is no room for debate on whether or not students of color on Boise State campus feel safe; the answer is evident. NO! When faced with the issue of marginalized students feeling unsafe on campus, admin, faculty and staff and even other students use their experience of privilege to essentially make a mockery of the fact that this is even a possibility. It is as though people who make up the majority, who come from a position of privilege, who have had the fortune to never have experienced discrimination, assume they can speak on behalf of those who are different, those who have been judged with one look, and those who are affected by systemic racism. It’s almost like they don’t understand that just because someone is unharmed, and their physical being is fine, doesn’t mean they feel safe. This
lack of mental, physical, emotional and psychological safety stems from years of rooted institutionalized distrust between admin, campus leaders and student groups on campus. This makes it challenging to put trust into a system and people who continuously prove that you shouldn’t. There have been a number of students who have come together to create a safe haven within student government so that marginalized students have a seat at the table, and to ensure that issues we deem relevant are not pushed under the rug as they have been thus far. We took it upon ourselves to create a position within ASBSU that deals specifically with marginalized students on campus and, more importantly, a council that the position would report to in order to ensure accountability. We are calling this position VPIE, which stands for Vice President of Inclusive Excellence. When we introduced our idea to the As-
sociated Students of Boise State University on February 8th, we were assured by current ASBSU staff that this position and council was something they were willing to fund and support so long as the Vice President and President elected for next year wanted the position and supported it as well. Support is defined as: give assistance to, especially financially; enable to function or act; a few synonyms are assist, help, aid, endorse and sustain. The definition and synonyms of support are extremely significant as we embark on our journey with ASBSU and its representatives. It seems as though Boise State’s precious Associated Student Body Government is trying to perform a coup; take our idea and claim it as their own in order to try and give the impression that this is something they’ve taken the initiative to do for the good of underrepresented students.
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Talk is cheap and so are lunches Chieka Celeste Political Science major
SierraWiliams659@u.boisestate.edu
The Associated Students of Boise State University (ASBSU) is one of the numerous entities on campus that marginalized students distrust. Seemingly operating as the puppets of the administration, ASBSU is constantly reassuring marginalized students of their efforts to create a more diverse and inclusive campus environment. That’s rich coming from an Executive Council that doesn’t even have a Student Diversity Outreach Coordinator or some variation of that position. Brace yourself for some reality checks. We need to address the elections of the President, Vice President and Secretaries of next year’s Executive Council. Let’s start by calling a spade a spade. The ASBSU Elections are essentially a popularity contest in the non-multicultural Greek community and, once elected, they speak to very important issues such as recycling, bike lanes or further enhancing the Greek experience. There was noticeably one particular “thing” that many of the candidates were adamant on creating or improving: luncheons. This is such a superficial suggestion as it’s clearly indicative of their disconnect with marginalized students on campus. We’ve been having lunches and conversation with administration; nothing comes of it until a few months later when another luncheon is held and marginalized students are asked to speak of their experiences on campus
again. Enough is enough. It’s time to see tangible action take place. We want ASBSU to recognize the Inclusive Excellence Student Council (IESC). We want the Executive Council to reserve a seat at their table for the Vice President of IESC. We want ASBSU to take a strong position on the Boise State Nationalists instead of providing some ambiguous comment about “free speech” like the administration. We want to see a clear response from ASBSU when racist actions are directed towards student groups such as the Afro Black Student Alliance. We want to hear from ASBSU members
of diversity and the marginalized community. During the debate, when asked to define what a marginalized community is, both pairs of the Presidential/Vice Presidential candidates provided weak, watered down responses; there was not a single mention of “students of color”, “queer and trans students” or “students with disabilities.” In fact, they landed on the other end of the spectrum with a semi “All Lives Matter” style rhetoric that tinged our ears with the repetition of the phrase “We are all Broncos.” There were a few additional questions specific to the marginalization of students and diversity
“How many lunches does it take to
actually make a change?” when their motives aren’t driven by winning the “minority vote.” However, according to the candidates running for ASBSU, it’s still all about lunches, conversation and a positive attitude in order to solve the tense, palpable issues at Boise State. No, thank you. Sorry, not sorry, that we don’t want to participate in your lunches anymore. It’s just that we’re too busy being dehumanized to want to prove our discrimination to you. The time for luncheons is over because, at the end of the day, how many lunches does it take to actually make a change? The evidence is clear: ASBSU is not equipped to deal with issues
that the candidates stumbled through with their answers, providing vague answers that were open to interpretation based on the listener’s biases. ASBSU does not represent marginalized students. Sure, they may have a token or two in their back pocket to refer to when they’re questioned but they are disconnected. They do not know the struggles of marginalized students and, if they don’t know the struggles, they are certainly incapable of doing any effective work for our benefit. You do not have our vote for this election; maybe you’ll step it up next year. Hopefully, by then, you won’t be so far removed from us.
Tokenism belittles the appreciation of individual identity SierraWiliams659@u.boisestate.edu
If you have ever seen a movie, watched a television show, or read a book you have probably been exposed to some form of tokenism. As a term “tokenism” is something that may not sound familiar, but it is hard to miss once you realize what it is. By definition, tokenism is the recruitment or inclusion of underrepresented populations as a means to make it appear like there is diversity. That being said, virtually anyone can be tokenized, but there still lies incredible differences in how this tokenization plays out.
Tokenism is like meeting a diversity quota and emphasizing whatever qualities that makes that individual appear “diverse”. It is closely related to stereotypes, especially in forms of media, as it relies on stereotypes as a means to characterize that tokenized individual. Common characters of tokenism include the token black friend who always has something funny to say, the token gay best friend stereotype, the token blonde ditzy friend or the token angry Latina character, to name a few. You can almost always guarantee that these characters are meant to be a source of comic relief, but on a deeper level, it says a lot about the way in which we characterize cultures and identi-
ties. The commonality of this phenomenon, especially on such an influential platform like media, really sets limitations for the ways in which we explore culture. When we have the tokenization of cultures, we get comfortable with those ideas and it turns into an expectation. For example, we expect Sofia Vergara’s character, Gloria, on ABC’s Modern Family to always provide some funny comment matched with a delivery that is interrelated with the culture she is representing. During her time playing that character, Vergara had encountered criticism regarding how she was playing into the stereotype, but she argued that this was a way for her to express her culture. In this case, what is considered fair cultural representation on an indidivual level to Vergara was also deemed as tokenism
by critics. This is a fine line that is also pretty blurred because of its subjectivity. Although Vergara feels positive about her character playing into stereotypes, it does not mean that those who share a similar cultural background with her do as well. However, because this is what is being showcased, it also gives the illusion that everyone who shares a similar cultural background with Vergara also shares the same experience. This is the danger that lies behind the tokenized character. It fails to leave room for the individual to flourish, yet it is heavily used as a means to define what an individual should be like. It is kind of like a rule book that has
guidelines with the proper—or status quo—way to express your culture. The process of tokenism can be pretty subtle and hard to detect. As mentioned earlier, tokenism is something that is more likely to be experienced by underrepresented populations and suggests the illusion that there is equity within a social setting regardless of how an individual might identify. There are multiple levels in which tokenism can play out. A common one, especially in the university or professional setting, is the utilization of an individual from an underrepresented population as a means to showcase diversity for the benefit of that respective uni-
versity or workplace. It puts the underrepresented individual in an awkward position as they suddenly become the poster child for diversity. It also alludes to this idea of spokesmanship making them responsible for being the voice or go-to person in order to understand underrepresentation as a whole. While it can be argued that there is a level of truth in stereotypes, it is important to refrain from using cultural stereotypes as a means to gain a full understanding of the individual’s identity within culture. Tokenizing cultural identities keeps us from seeing the value in how an individual navigates through culture.
IMAGES COURTESY OF TENDER THOUGHTS FACEBOOK PAGE
Sierra Williams Opinion Editor
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FEATURE
Boise State Inclusive Excellence Student Council
Students form Council that will raise awareness o
Camille Eddy, Sierra Williams, Jay Nelson and Chandra Reyna discuss how discuss the campus climate moving forward. Eddy, Williams, Nelson and Reyna are all members of the committee that is planning the Boise State Inclusive Excellence Student Council.(Photo by Patty Bowen / The Arbiter).
Patty Bowen Editor-in-Chief Editor@stumedia.boisestate.edu Milaun Danclar, senior health science and psychology double major, is part of a select group of students that have spent the last several months working out the details of the new Boise State Inclusive Excellence Student Council. “(We are) putting something in place that has the sole purpose of advocating for marginalized groups,” Danclar said. “(The Council will be) questioning, challenging and raising awareness of social injustices and things implemented on our campus that may not be in the best interest of all students and promoting equitable allocation of resources.” The Council of Student Diversity and Inclusion is a student organization that will be actualized at the beginning of the 2017-2018 academic school year. The Council will serve underrepresented groups on the Boise State campus through education and advocacy in an effort to eliminate institutionalized discrimination. The Council will work in conjunction with the Vice President of Inclusive Excellence (VPIE)— a proposed position that is part of the Execu-
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tive Board of Associated Students of Boise State University (ASBSU)—who, if the position is approved by the incoming ASBSU Executive Board, would serve as a liaison between the Council and the Executive Board of ASBSU. “Basically we’re trying to establish a relationship across all of these (underrepresented) communities and work together as a united student community,” said Jade Donnelly, Vice President of ASBSU. The Boise State Inclusive Excellence Student Council The Council will be made up of five to seven students, all of which will serve as equal members on the Council. Danclar said the Council is the only organization on campus that is created to be “bottom up.” Administrative and academic changes at Boise State—which are top down—are made by people in positions of power for the majority of students. Students who don’t fall into that group can present complaints after legislation or bills have passed, but ultimately those students are not taken into consideration in the decision, according to Danclar. “Structurally ASBSU is like that too—a top
Members of the committee planning the Boise State Inclusive Excellence Student C
down organization,” Danclar said. “ASBSU is not designed to advocate for the minority of the school. It only benefits the majority, the majority being your heterosexual white students involved in Greek Life.” Fructoso Basaldua, a member of the committee planning the Council, said the Council will be able to address and change issues that groups like the Afro-Black Student Alliance, SHADES and the Martin Luther King Living Learning Community have been struggling to address on campus. “The Council will serve as an organizational entity that will provide pressure to the Executive Board and the administration to support all of its students and it provides that organizational pressure because right now we have a lack of power as organized students,” said Basaldua. “If this council becomes part of the structure that is powerful— having that be explicitly implemented into the bureaucracy.” According to Francisco Salinas, director of Student Diversity and Inclusion, the Council will be able to address institutional discrimination—discrimination we “have come to believe is a part of everyday society”—by continuing the efforts of the previous student organizations and not settling for
less. “One of the strategies for pushing out (institutional discrimination) is for us to not be satisfied with half measures or minimal project,” Salinas said. “We know there are effects of institutional discrimination that still exist today, and we have to
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Our University sees diversity as a when it comes up. Boise State treats when we deal with it in everyday life
— Chandra Reyna member of the committee
do more than we’ve done before because this (discrimination) is deeper than we thought.” Diversity in the Unversity and creating the Council Chandra Reyna, member of the committee planning the Council, explained it is counterintuitive for the University to not teach about diversity—and the discrimination that sometimes comes with it—and instead rely on the Council to teach
l will serve underrepresented groups on campus
of social injustice and institutional discrimination
students about it because both will undoubtedly show up in students lives after graduation. “Our University sees diversity as a separate thing that it will deal with when it comes up,” Reyna said. “Boise State treats diversity like it isn’t important when we deal with it in everyday life and I don’t
a separate thing that it will deal with s diversity like it isn’t important e.” planning the Inclusive Excellence Student Council
know why it’s not incorporated into your classes.” Reyna expressed concern that over time, if this council isn’t used correctly or is filled with students who aren’t passionate about eliminating institutional discrimination, it could make the situation for marginalized students worse. “What will happen is when marginalized students have issues, Boise State will now be able to point to International Student Services, Multicultural Student Services and even say ‘You even have a spot on ASBSU, you even have an entire commit-
Clarissa Abidog (left) and Milaun Danclar (right) sit together after the ASBSU Election Debates on Wednesday, March 8. Both are members of the committee creating the Council . (Photo by Patty Bowen / The Arbiter).
tee so your problem isn’t valid,’” Reyna said. Another member of the committee planning the council, Clarissa Abidog, also stressed the importance of implementing the council correctly the first time. She stated that if this council begins and then ends it “teaches generations of marginalized groups that ‘Oh they tried and they failed,’ and that will be a turnoff to all parties involved.” “(The Council) needs to continue past now, past four years, or it says something very telling about the entire institution,” Abidog said. According to Danclar, the five to seven positions on the Council will be paid. The funding to supply these salaries has not been secured; however, Danclar assured that the committee planning the Council was in the process of securing them. She said the committee would begin contacting organizations this week and have conversations about gaining support. “A lot of people say ‘We don’t need something like this on our campus’ and we can’t be the only ones saying ‘Yes, we do,’ because it will go to deaf ears,” Danclar said. “We need advocacy support and financial support as well. Every little bit counts.” According to Tommy Lippman, ASBSU Secretary of Community Relations, several members of
the committee planning the Council have asked for $30 thousand to cover all of its costs for next year. “Unless we figure out how to acquire the budget for the Council itself, we need to lay a groundwork as to whether the funds will be used for event hosting, programing and whatnot,” Lippman said. “To claim that those positions will be paid wouldn’t be ethical because a vote would have to go through (ASBSU Student) Assembly or have been worked out in some way with the department.” The Vice President of Inclusive Exellence According to Donnelly interviews for the VPIE position—which will be appointed rather than elected like the majority of ASBSU’s officers— would begin in April if the position is approved. Donnelly and ASBSU President Rebecca Kopp will work in conjunction with the Committee overseeing the creation of the Council of Student Diversity and Inclusion to “find individuals that can focus on ASBSU and this new council,” Donnelly said. “We’re working to build the relationship and we’re trying to create a budget, make sure there are procedures that can be taken by next year’s team,
but we can’t make sure they will be taken by next year’s team,” Lippman. ASBSU Government Relations Officer Josh Scholer said he had several questions about the VPIE position. He stated that the ASBSU Secretary of External Affairs Officer position had been originally changed to Secretary of Community Relations, because ASBSU wanted that position “to be able to do internal and external relations”—and function in a fashion similar to the proposed VPIE. Scholer, however, is in support of the Council and believes it will represent and advocate for the desires of marginalized groups, which he states, “we haven’t been able to do that as ASBSU.” “Obviously we’ll need to balance everything— overall, we do represent 24 thousand students, but at least it does bring in that marginalized voice of those students to tell ASBSU what they want, what they need,” Scholer said. Students can apply to be a member of the Boise State Inclusive Excellence Student Council from March 15 through March 31 by emailing boisestateiesc@gmail.com.
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PHOTOS BY JARED LEWIS / THE ARBITER
Council want to educate and advocate on campus. (Photo by Patty Bowen / The Arbiter).
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CULTURE Student Union Building Gallery presents “Inner Strength” exhibition
Boise State Top Chef winners glad they made the cut
Ajkena Cela and Sangam Sapkota win with their dish “King Salmon”
Ajkena Cela and Sangam Sapkota pose for a team photo at the Boise State Top Chef competition. (Photo by Zoey Nguyen / The Arbiter).
Zoey Nguyen Staff Writer
Culture@stumedia.boisestate.edu
Each photo is accompanied by a sheet of paper, giving context for the women featured in the exhibit. (Photo by Taylor Lippman / The Arbiter).
Savannah Willits Staff Writer
Culture@stumedia.boisestate.edu
The Student Union Fine Arts Gallery’s latest exhibition, titled “Inner Strength: Portraits of Basque Immigrant Women,” features work by photographer Peter Oberlindacher and interviewer Begona Pecharroman. The exhibit will be open to the public until April 9 in the Student Union Gallery, which is located on the second floor of the Student Union Building. The exhibit displays black and white portraits and stories of 41 Basque women
who immigrated to America during their lifetime. Side by side, the pictures and excerpts from Pecharroman’s interviews provide background information, such as the women’s names, when and why these they immigrated and memorable events they experienced along the way. “My goal was to capture the impressions that these Basque immigrant women left with me: determination, graciousness, enthusiasm, and pride. Most of all, I wanted to show their inner strength,” Oberlindacher said. According to Fonda Portales, University art curator
and collections manager, the exhibit is a celebration of the Eloise Garmendia Bieter Chair in Basque Studies “which is itself at an intersection of diverse campus and community experiences.” “The show centers on the tenacity and courage of these women as they emigrate to another country and learn new customs while still preserving their cultural heritage,” Portales said. “It centers on their hard work, both physical and emotional work, to create fruitful lives here.” Portales also commented that the exhibit complemented Women’s History
month “beautifully.” Pecharroman’s journey to record the stories of Basque women began around kitchen tables with a borrowed tape recorder and blank cassettes. During each of these interviews, the themes of immigration and integration into American society, as well as survival, hard work, war and the significance of home are explored. In her artist statement, Pecharroman said “I just hope that by looking at their photographs and reading about some of their experience, each of you may also get a glimpse into their wonderful immigrant story.”
Ajkena Cela, a junior kinesiology major, and Sangam Sapkota, a junior electrical engineering major won Boise State’s Top Chef competition on Tuesday, March 7. Neither Ajkena, who is originally from Albania, nor Sangam, who is from Nepal, expected their victory; both stated they joined the competition to have a good experience as well as a little fun. “When they announced our team, I was so shocked. I didn’t believe we won,” Sapkota said. “But it was great, I was very happy. I jumped from the seat. I felt like a chef. It was great to win the first cooking competition that I ever participated in.” The winning dish consisted of salmon, nuts, avocado, bell peppers, dried fruit and a lemon, cut in shape of a crown. According to Cela, the dish was
named “King Salmon,” which was a play on “King Solomon” from the Bible. “We had salmon and avocado, which was soft, so we needed something crunchy to balance it out,” Cela said. “That’s why we added walnuts, pine nuts and dried fruit. I want to show students that my recipes can be creative, nice and healthy. Not a lot of students express themselves through food, you know? Most choose to eat out or buy ramen at the store.” Ajkena is a more experienced cook, so she handled seasoning and techniques, while Sangam contributed to the aesthetics of the dish. “We wanted to make it more American, rather than Albanian or Nepali,” Sapkota said. “We also wanted to make it as nutritious as possible, so we had veggies on the side to make it colorful, which was another goal. I definitely like cooking, but, more than that, I enjoy making food look pretty.
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CULTURE Garage Art contest returns to Boise State
14 spots in campus parking garages now open for student submissions Michael Paquin Culture Reporter
Michaelpaquin@u.boisestate.edu
After a one-year hiatus, the Garage Art Contest is back at Boise State. The winning art from the previous contest can be seen adorning the locations in the Lincoln Street and Brady Street Garages, until May when this year’s winners are put on display. Alex Lange, who graduated last May with a BFA, is the administrative assistant for the Department of Public Safety and coordinator of the project. Lange that although Boise State has roughly 800 students in its art program, students do not need to be art majors to participate. According to Lange, prints are made of the submissions that are selected and the pro-
gram is open to all artistic mediums. Last year’s pieces were chosen from between 30 and 40 submissions. “From those, we chose 14 submissions, and they’re from a variety of different practices—so we had digital art, drawing, painting, printmaking, ceramic and sculpture,” Lange said. She also noted in the future they intend to include metal works and photography. Lange also received assistance from Michelle Railsback, manager of Communications and Special Projects for the campus Operations division. “I was just basically helping her with the communications of the project—getting the word out to folks that the contest is starting and we’re ready for submissions,” Railsback said.
The winning art for this year’s contest will remain up for the rest of the May 2018., The contest is annual every year a new set of prints will be displayed starting in May, after the pieces are selected by a panel. Lange pointed out being selected to have your artwork displayed by the panel can have long-term benefits for those who are interested in pursuing a career in the arts. “We consider what’s in our garages exhibition space, so that way (the artists) are able to put in their resume, ‘I was shown in an exhibition.’ It’s really a great stepping stone for those applicants who are professional artists,” said Lange, who is an artist herself and has had her pieces displayed at Ming Studios in Boise as well as exhibitions in Illinois and Georgia.
Guidelines for submissions are open ended. According to Lange, there is no existing policy on what the artwork must depict, as long as it meets Boise State’s criteria of what is appropriate out of consideration for wide audience that uses the stairwells. If students are interested in submitting their work, the deadline to do so is April 6. Submissions must be at least 300 pixels per square inch and must be either 36” long or 36” across to fit the metal frames they’ll be displayed in. Studentsm must also include two sentences describing the content of the work with their submission which will appear with it in its final display. Applicants are restricted to a total of four submissions and the submissions can be emailed to GarageArt@boisestate.edu.
A broke college student’s recipe for a grilled cheese sandwich and tomato soup
USING ONLY A COFFEE MAKER
Natasha Williams Staff Writer Culture@stumedia.boisestate.edu
As a first-year college student on my own for the first time, I’ve learned a lot about resourcefulness, particularly when it comes to ways to prepare high quality—kind of—cuisine. broke, hungry and limited on cooking equipment, I turned to the one thing all college students can rely on: my coffee Being b maker. I learned to make meals for a decent price, all using this handy little machine. Here’s a recipe for grilled cheese and tomato soup I’ve found tastes delicious, is easy on your wallet and can be made anywhere you can find a coffee maker—even a dorm.
What you’ll need: Cooking spray 1 can of tomato soup 2 slices of bread Butter Aluminum foil A few slices of cheese
Directions: Cover the hot plate of the coffee maker with aluminum foil and then coat it with cooking spray. Butter one side of one slice of bread, and place it butter-side-down on the foil. Place however much cheese you want on the other side. Butter the other slice of bread on only one side, and place the non-buttered side on top of the cheese. Use a fork or spatula to flip the grilled cheese until the cheese is melted and the bread is golden brown. Meanwhile, pour the contents of the tomato soup can into a bowl. Brew your desired amount of water into the coffee maker, to dillude the soup to your liking.
Check out the full article with two additional recipes at thearbiteronline.com!
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“Nebulous,” by Dani Lee, currently hangs introducing stair travelers to the third floor of the Lincoln Parking Garage. (Photo by Brandon Rasmussen / The Arbiter).
Dorm rooms and dragons
English majors organize event to teach fellow students to play Dungeons and Dragons
Coming Soon: Your new favorite band
What not to miss at Treefort Music Fest Darby Ebeling Copy Editor Culture@stumedia.boisestate.edu
It’s Treefort time—well, technically, Wednesday, March 22 through Sunday, March 26 is Treefort time— which means we’re all scrambling to create the perfect listening schedules for this year’s festival. If you’ve procrastinated as much on building your list as I have on my midterms, you might need a cheat sheet. Hopefully you’ll find this one to your pleasing.
English majors Kirby Carlson and John Barrie put the finishing touches on their plans for the upcoming D&D Workshop. (Photo by Brandon Rasmussen / The Arbiter).
Brandon Rasmussen Culture Editor
Culture@stumedia.boisestate.edu
A variety of oddly-shaped dice were scattered across the table among small stacks and manuals as members of the Boise State English Majors Association (EMA) exchanged banter on the first floor of the Albertons Library. One of the many large manuals, bearing the name “Adventurer’s Guide,” was laying open, revealing sketches and detailed analyses of several magical creatures. Though this easily could have been a scene of a group preparing to play the famous tabletop role-playing game “Dungeons and Dragons,” this particular scene was of the final planning meeting preceding the EMA’s Dungeons and Dragons Workshop, taking place on Wednesday, March 15.
According to the event’s organizer, junior English major Kirby Carlson, the workshop has been designed for students who are unfamiliar with the game. D&D veterans running the event hope to convey what makes the game fun for them, as well as walk new players through the nuts and bolts of a typical adventure. “It’s a huge stereotype that nerds play D&D—I’m not ashamed of that stereotype, but some people who are interested might be scared away by that,” Carlson said. “Our main hope is to introduce them to the game in a unique and fun way.” The workshop will also include a few guest speakers, who will give short presentations on various aspects of the game they think students would find interesting. One of these speakers will be Professor in the English Department Linda Marie Zaerr, who
will be speaking on a topic explored in her new course as of the Spring 2017 semester, titled “A Gamer’s Guide to Medieval Literature.” “Many modern games like D&D are intensely steeped in medieval culture,” Zaerr said. “The whole idea of the quest and all the stages of getting there—people just know what to do in those stories.” To best utilize this aspect of storytelling, the EMA students decided to split the workshop into two sections: one for regular players and another for those wanting to take on the task of being a dungeon master—the one who leads the rest of those players through the story. According to sophomore English major John Barrie, who will be leading the dungeon master portion of the workshop, this section will focus mainly on thinking on one’s feet.
“I’m going to focus a lot on improvisation,” Barrie said. “In D&D, you can really do anything—and that includes some messed up, unexpected stuff. You can even burn down a daycare, if you want to. Not that you necessarily would.” Barrie went on to add this aspect of freedom is crucial and unique to the game, which he hopes will appeal to those who wander into the workshop on Wednesday. Zaerr echoed this sentiment. “It’s possible to go through life and not see the adventure in everyday living,” Zaerr said. “The medieval notion of adventure means going toward whatever comes. That’s why D&D is so interesting—you construct these plots and zones where adventure can happen.” The workshop will begin at 6 p.m. in the Jordan C Ballroom in the SUB and is free to attend.
Treefort regional artists you shouldn’t miss: Americana Eilen Jewell - Boise, Idaho experimental Bijouxx - Boise, Idaho Storie Grubb - Boise, Idaho hazy/art rock GABI - Salt Lake City, Utah GROWWLER - San Francisco, Calif. Light Thieves - Fresno, Calif. Tango Alpha Tango - Portland, Ore. post-rock Red Hands Black Feet - Boise, Idaho rock ’n’ roll Skinny the Kid - Moscow, Idaho Treefort artists with recent releases you should check out: singles Mac Demarco - “This Old Dog” Oceans Are Zeroes - “Some Stay Young” JMSN - “Drinkin’” Kane Strang - “Oh So You Are Off I See” albums Clap! Clap! - “A Thousand Skies” The Dig - “Bloodshot Tokyo” Hideout - “So Many Hoops, So Little Time” Lounge on Fire - “Lips of Calypso” Shady Elders - “Inside Voices” STRFKR - “Vault Vol. 1” If you dance to a different drummer or if you’re looking for more direction, remember there is a Treefort Music Fest app, with the festival’s lineup and a build-your-ownschedule. If you’re attending the festival, have a blast and remember to stay hydrated. The same goes for those of you who have other Spring Break plans!
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SPORTS & REc Sports editor’s predictions for March Madness
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How social media influences the recruiting process tweet recruits, making up for the time when team staff isn’t able to be on top of it.
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Many recruits’ replies are chock full of different fans doing their best to convince the athlete to come to their school. Some fans create entire mock-ups of the recruit in the universities’ jerseys. Some fans will tirelessly
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tweet directly at an athlete. This makes a new fold to recruiting, making it more of an exhausting process with the constant need to keep in contact. With the amount of schools that are recruiting players, coaches can never really rest.
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Social media has changed the landscape for recruiting and retaining athletes. Whether it be coaches deciding to pull offers to a player due to something they said on Twitter, or the ability of fans to interact with recruits, a lot has changed with the evolution of technology. Although recruits may not be paying attention to what they are tweeting, their future coaches are. Jason Burton, the head football coach for Borah High School, explained he is always vigilant about keeping in touch with players on social media. “Constantly, we will show examples of players losing scholarships and/ or just stupid posts. I follow all of my players and will pull them aside if they make a stupid post or tell them to take it down,” Burton said. “The biggest problem is players don’t think they can be held accountable for a social media post. Or they believe that no one is following them besides their peers,” Burton said. Athletes are empowered through Twitter to create their own brand and should feel free to express their personality, but all that freedom comes with consequences. In a photo shown by Van Malone, defensive coordinator for Southern Methodist, every tweet recruits post is analyzed and color
According to a rule established by the NCAA and started Aug. 1, coaches are allowed to start liking, republishing and tagging on social media platforms of recruits. However, it is not acceptable for a coach to
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Sports@stumedia.boisestate.edu
coded for coaches to look at. Tweets are categorized into different categories deeming the risk factor behind each tweet. Recruits’ tweets have gone as far as being the sole reason they lose a scholarship to big name schools. In a tweet, Herb Hand, a line coach at Auburn University, said he “dropped another prospect this AM due to his social media presence.” Hand mentions that he is glad to meet athletes in person, before they are brought to him at Auburn. “In a perspective that is often ignored, there is a lot of accountability on coaches to produce a good product on the field, while also helping young men mold into respected citizens.” Derek Jones, the defensive back coach for Duke, tweeted that “Our jobs depend on the young men that we recruit. Your social media pages say a lot about your character, discipline and common sense.” While it may seem unfair to judge a person’s character based off their social media presence, it does highlight the significance of recruits needing to be conscious of anything they post and the impact it may have. Coaches are also under the spotlight with their social media behavior. Like the athletes, they also are empowered to create their own brand while still maintaining the brand of their university.
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Sawyer Beddoes Staff Writer
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SPORTS & REc
Broncos playing in 2017 NIT Tournament
Boise State lands NIT bid for first time since 2004. Fresno & Colorado State also in the field. Rylan Kobre Sports & Rec Reporter
Sports@stumedia.boisestate.edu
Heading to Las Vegas for the Mountain West Conference tournament in early March has not been Boise State’s forte since joining the conference. In 2017, a year that looked like the Mountain West Conference tournament was wide open, the Broncos went home early yet again, following their opening night loss to San Diego State, 87-68. Now, Boise State has to refuel and prepare for a National Invitation Tournament matchup with University of Utah, in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, March 14. “The NIT is a hard thing to get in. There is 250 schools that wish they were us. We feel pretty fortunate to still be playing in March,” said Head Coach Leon Rice. The NIT is the longestrunning postseason tournament in College Basketball, and was the main tournament before the NCAA Tournament began to expand to 64 teams and become the premier college basketball postseason tournament. The Broncos were on the bubble of getting into the NIT after their quarterfinal loss, but they will go into the tournament as a No. 6 seed and play the No. 3 Utes who finished the year 20-11, 11-7 with a fourth place finish in the PAC-12. Before the Broncos knew
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they were playing Utah, the wait was a different experience compared to 2015, when the Broncos sat around watching the NCAA Tournament Selection Show before finiding out they were selected for an at-large bid. “We kind of milled around the practice gym to see if we got in, and boom, we got in. I had no indication one way or the other,” Rice said. “You start to get like, ‘Oh we would have heard, there would have been something.’ It tells you how bad I wanted to keep playing with these guys, because I was starting to get pretty sad again.” The Mountain West will send Fresno State and Colorado State to the NIT while Nevada ends up as a No. 12 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Broncos were projected to finish fifth in the conference in the preseason Mountain West Media Polls. The year previous, Boise State was picked to finish second in the conference and possibly get into the NCAA tournament. Instead they finished third, did not play in any postseason tournament, and exited after their first game in the Mountain West Tournament. “It’s exciting. It speaks to the step we’ve taken this year. You talk about things like that, but an at-large bid to the NIT tournament is a big step for a place like Boise State in the Mountain West,” said senior James
Reid. This will be the first NIT appearance for Leon Rice at Boise State. The last time the Broncos played in the NIT, they found some success. In 2004, they beat UNLV and Milwaukee before falling to Marquette by three points. “Winning games in the tournament, like the NIT and some of those other tournaments this time of year is all about if you can get up for them. We know we’re good enough to make a run and so our focus is getting better and showing up excited to play,” Reid said. This will be the first time Boise State and Utah will have played each other since December 2013 when they played at Taco Bell Arena. The two schools matched up against each other for four straight years with the home team winning each game. This is the second time the Broncos have played Utah in the NIT. The first time came in 1987 and Boise State won, 62-61. “I know about (Utah) because they’re down the road and I watch a lot of PAC-12 games. Number one, I know they have gotten better throughout the year. They were a little bit like us as far as; they didn’t have a ton of guys with experience. They had one stumble that maybe cost them into the NCAA tournament,” Rice said. The game is set for an 8 p.m. tip on ESPNU.
Ajkena Cela and Sangam Sapkota pose for a team photo after winning the Boise State Top Chef competition. (Photo by Alec Foege / The Arbiter).
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