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THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE NORTHEASTERN COMMUNITY www.HuntNewsNU.com For the students, by the students since 1926 September 17, 2015

Gamers, NU professor join at festival Funding lawsuit resolved

By Anmolpreet Kandola News Correspondent

said. “The indie spirit is very do-ityourself, very punk and the kind of mentality that you are doing what you can do with the resources you have.”

The keynote speaker for the

Northeastern University has agreed to pay the federal government $2.7 million for failing to properly allocate and document research funds received from a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant between 2001 and 2010.

The university received the grant to support former physics professor Stephen Reucroft’s high-energy particle physics research at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva, Switzerland.

Northeastern failed to comply with the conditions of the award, disbursing NSF grant funding without documenting that they were used for authorized purposes, according to the settlement agreement. Unauthorized advances were made to CERN accounts for salaries and travel expenses.

“A recipient of NSF award funds must have documentation of salary payments, purchases of equipment, travel expenses and all other items charged to the awards,” the university said in a statement to The News on Sept. 14.

The settlement agreement provided by US Attorney’s Massachusetts Office explains that grant regulations require recipients to “have documentation for all claimed expenditures from each of the Awards to ensure both that

Indie, Page 2

Science, Page 4

Photo by Robert Smith

This year’s Boston Festival for Indie Games drew game lovers and designers alike. As the keynote speaker, NU Professor Susan Gold spoke of her 2008 creation Global Game Jam, the evolution of gaming and how the culture was expanding within the city.

By Jose Castillo News Staff

From the most dedicated combo breakers to the most casual button smashers, gamers packed Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) Johnson Athletic Center on

Saturday for the fourth annual Boston Festival of Indie Games.

Two floors of booths housing tabletop and digital games hosted swarms of overwhelmed gamers and eager developers. Exclamations of glorious virtual victory and cries of heartbreaking defeat

vocalized the overall sense of community and passion for which indie culture prides itself.

“An indie game is a game you make independently, more or less without a big publisher giving you money,” Andrew Baillie, game developer and festival attendee,

CAMD welcomes new dean

By Alejandro Serrano News Correspondent

Photo by Brian Bae

A weekend on the road brought a win and two losses to a struggling NU volleyball team, bringing the season record to 3-9.

Volleyball’s hard season continues

By Tim Foley News Staff

Northeastern University women’s volleyball took on three opponents at the Columbia Invitational over the weekend. The Huskies dropped the first two matches but rallied to win the third in four sets.

After struggling in both games on Friday, the women finished on

a positive note with a victory over New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) on Saturday. The win brought the Huskies’ record to 3-9.

“We’ve always had the mindset that we want to be tested out of conference. We were up on two teams and let them back in,” Head Coach Ken Nichols said. “Going into this Invitational, Page 13

The College of Arts, Media and Design (CAMD) welcomed a new dean on July 20 after a search that lasted more than a year.

The new dean, Elizabeth Hudson was previously the inaugural director of the New Zealand School of Music (NZSM) at Victoria University of Wellington for seven years.

Before that, Hudson worked in the music department at the University of Virginia (UVA) as the director of undergraduate programs.

Hudson is replacing Xavier Costa, who served as dean from the college’s founding in 2010 until 2014. Bruce Ronkin, professor of music and the current vice president of undergraduate education at Northeastern, acted as interim dean until Hudson’s appointment.

“The two interactions that I’ve had [with Hudson] have been very positive, personable. She is very willing to listen to your ideas, thoughts and concerns,” Susan Conover, administrative coordinator in the School of Journalism, said. “I think she is going to be able to lead the college into great things and hopefully put our college on Hudson, Page 3

Photo by Scotty Schenck

Elizabeth Hudson took over Xavier Costa’s position as the dean of CAMD in July, becoming the second person to hold the position.

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T h u r s d ay , S e p t e m b e r 17, 2015

news

H u n t N e w s NU. c o m

NU drops in college rankings University falls from No. 42 to No. 47

By Elise Harmon News Editor

Northeastern University’s ranking has dropped in US News and World Report’s National Universities Rankings, breaking an explosive upward streak that took it from No. 115 in 2006 to No. 42 last year .

The university dropped from the No. 42 spot to No. 47 in the 2016 rankings, which were released last Wednesday. Northeastern tied with three other schools for the placement: Lehigh University, Pennsylvania State University at University Park and the University of Florida.

“Rankings are never the goal, they are simply the byproduct of success,” Renata Nyl, assistant vice president of communications, said in a statement to The News on Tuesday. “The full measure of any institution is best captured by its successes.”

In Boston, Northeastern lagged behind Boston University (No. 41), Boston College (No. 30), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (No. 7) and Harvard University (No. 2).

“In my perspective, I don’t think that [the university’s ranking going down] is a big deal,” Morgan Helfman, a third-year political science and sociology major and executive vice president of the Student Government Association, said. “I think Northeastern focuses way too much on the numbers when I think we should put more effort into education.”

Helfman doesn’t think Northeastern’s appeal has anything to do with rankings.

“I wasn’t too concerned with rankings when applying to schools,” she said. “What sold me and a lot of my friends was the coop program.”

Despite dropping slightly in the rankings, the university was still ranked No. 6 in US News’ first

Most Innovate Schools ranking.

The list was based on nominations by other college presidents, provosts and admissions officers.

To rank national universities, US News weighed a variety of qualitative factors. This methodology was unchanged from the 2015 rankings, according to the US News website.

A large majority of the weight of the scoring system goes to three factors – a peer assessment by the leadership of other universities and high school guidance counselors (22.5 percent), the university’s first-year retention rate and six-year graduation rate (22.5 percent) and “faculty resources” (20 percent). These resources include class sizes, average faculty salary, the student-faculty ratio, the proportion of professors with the highest degree in their field and the university’s proportion of full-time faculty.

Other factors included freshmen students’ admission test scores, high school class rankings and the college’s acceptance rate (12.5 percent), financial resources (10 percent), graduation rate and performance (7.5 percent) and alumni donations (5 percent).

Al McCready, a professor who teaches in Northeastern’s Doctor of Education program, doesn’t believe that these factors accurately reflect universities’ quality.

“When you look at the factors that make up the rankings, and you see how potentially flawed they are, and then you look at the simplicity and generality of it, you know it doesn’t really tell you too much about the factors that could be really important,” he said.

“Like the culture of the school.

Northeastern differentiates itself greatly [with its co-op program].”

Kim Chorosiewski, a consultant at educational planning company McMillan, Howland & Spence,

has made a career out of helping students through the college admissions process. Chorosiewski is currently completing her doctorate at Northeastern and teaches in the sports leadership graduate program.

College rankings may be a starting spot for students looking at schools, according to Chorosiewski, but the difference between No. 42 and No. 47 is a matter of splitting hairs.

“I don’t think it’s even a blip on the map for Northeastern,” she said.

“Had they dropped 20 or 30 [spots] they may have raised an eyebrow.”

Last year, a Boston Magazine article suggested that Northeastern had manipulated the college rankings system to make its score higher in a number of ways, including by making its admissions process easy in order to artificially inflate the university’s acceptance rate.

Northeastern has generally refuted these claims.

“Over the past several years, Northeastern has pursued a strategy of building excellence across every dimension of the university,” Nyul said. “We have enrolled high-talent students, recruited path-breaking faculty and doubled down on the ‘Northeastern Advantage’ — experiential learning and research that is in tune with the world.”

Elan Axelbank, a third-year sociology major, believes that Northeastern fell in the rankings simply because they had to fall sometime.

“I think that the way that Northeastern has been climbing in the rankings has been to some degree superficial,” Axelbank said. “This shows us that that type of progress is unsustainable.”

To students already enrolled in the school, the ranking rarely matters.

“Our primary concern should be the best education possible,” said Axelbank. “Not what’s going to make us the most money.”

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Photo by Robert Smith

Gamers and designers gathered at the fourth annual Boston Festival of Indie Games on Saturday.

Photo by Robert Smith

Susan Gold, a professor of game design in the College of Arts, Media and Design gave the keynote address at the Boston Festival of Indie Games.

Indie, From Page 1 event was Susan Gold, a professor of game design in Northeastern University’s College of Arts, Media and Design (CAMD).

“In game development, what we do is very strange for a lot of other people who work in the world,” Gold said to a crowd of festivalgoers. “Our business models are strange, the fact that we work for years but have no return, yet are still proud and happy that we did them.

We are typically very intense, devoted and focused in what we do.”

In 2008, Gold founded the Global Game Jam, a hackathon dedicated to game creation. The event seeks to connect the world through game development. Participants from 72 countries have 48 hours to create a video game, producing innovations in storytelling, game design and overall player interaction.

As an academic in photography and visual studies, Gold originally sought to explore narrative storytelling through pictures. Thrust into an education-related gaming project, she soon became involved in the world of game design.

Gold recalled the days before such programs existed.

“We got to see this evolution in gaming. Most people who worked in games had degrees in anything but games, there was no game degree,” she said. “The city of Boston said, ‘Hey, we we’re going to try to figure out a way to keep the brains from leaving Boston, since everyone is leaving for the west coast to make games; we have a brain drain and we have to fix it.’”

Gold praised the diversity of the community that expanded in Boston and explained that it is simply a trademark of game development communities everywhere.

“I try to tell my students, ‘you know, you could be a seven foot, transgender, Mohawk, doing any-

thing you want in gaming, and you are still welcomed because you do good work, and that’s all people look at, that you do good work,’” Gold said.

The diversity of this community truly embodied itself in the games presented at the festival.

Baillie created the game “Remember You Will Die”, a role-playing game that he said challenges the gamer to ponder what really happens to the characters the protagonist kills. “‘Remember You Will Die’ takes a traditional 16-bit action adventure format that people are familiar with and uses it to explore the high concept of death in games,” Baillie said. “In this demo I have here, in this dungeon [which the player starts in], there’s a lot of snakes that are not aggressive, and you don’t need to kill, but most people, without any prompt, will kill them on site, and I want people to think about that.”

“Remember You Will Die” is just one of over 150 games present at the festival. Others challenged conventions of both design and content.

Dan Roy, founder of Skylight Games, produced “Lyriko”, a learning game that teaches players a language through music. He presented the game at the festival.

“A long time ago, the people in learning games were a bit more forward-thinking,” he said, naming “Oregon Trail” as an early example of innovative game design. “Basically what happened was big publishers got involved and wanted to make money without really innovating. So instead of pushing the bar, they basically repackaged and resold the same thing over and over again.”

In her presentation, Gold encouraged gamers and developers to help grow the local gaming community.

“I see this enormous growth of people wanting to make games and play games,” she said.

H u n t N e w s NU. c o m

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T h u r s d ay , S e p t e m b e r 17, 2015

news

Hudson takes over CAMD

Photo by Brian Bae

Youth sports teams and Northeastern’s club and intramural sport teams regularly use the William E. Carter Playground to practice.

Photo by Scotty Schenck

Elizabeth Hudson is the new dean of the College of Arts, Media and Design. She hopes to create new programs that will get CAMD noticed nationally and internationally.

Hudson, From Page 1 the map.”

At Victoria University, Hudson led a merger of Massey’s Conservatorium of Music and Victoria’s School of Music to create NZSM. “Professor Hudson was a colleague who was consistently open with me and my colleagues on the board of the [New Zealand] School of Music. She was committed to enhancing the academic and performance of students in the school,” Alick Shaw, former head chair of NZSM, said in an email to The News.

Before working for NZSM, Hudson held both faculty and administrative positions at UVA. Students expressed their desire for a dean who would expand opportunities and create a sense of community within the college.

“An ideal dean would listen to staff and student feedback and work with the CAMD community to make the college an even better place,” Amelia Oon, third-year graphic design major, said.

The News had an opportunity to converse with Hudson about her history and her aspirations for CAMD and the university via email.

The Huntington News: Where do you see yourself and the college in five years?

Elizabeth Hudson: I see CAMD disciplines to be broadly understood as central to the Northeastern student experience and education; and we will boast an array of innovative new programs that will ensure CAMD is widely recognized as a leader in a number of key strategic areas, nationally and internationally, in terms of both faculty reputation and student success.

HN: How was the process of being hired and moving to Boston from New Zealand?

EH: In a word: long! Boston and New Zealand are far away from each other, so it has been an exhaustive (and exhausting) process. But it is terrific to come back to the US

after living out of the country for so long; and I am loving getting to know the Boston area.

HN: Coming from being the inaugural director of the New Zealand School of Music, what is the biggest difference in atmosphere that you have encountered?

EH: The New Zealand School of Music was a unique institution in New Zealand, which allowed me to create programs and structures that were new and exciting, but the general atmosphere was one in which change was viewed with trepidation and sometimes even dismay. What I love about Northeastern is the general tone that has been set, from President [Joseph E.] Aoun on down, which encourages all of us to think outside the box, to incorporate innovative thinking across the board in a thoughtful way.

HN: With a rich musical background, how do you plan to incorporate what you know to non-music-related studies within CAMD? EH: As someone who has worked within the field of opera studies for years, I have actually had to learn a lot about theatre, art + design and even architecture, and I have been embedded in the humanities and media and critical studies throughout my career, which gives me a basis for understanding communication studies and media and screen studies. In many ways, then, although of course I still have a lot to learn, I’m not really starting from scratch. The fields that are most new to me are journalism and maybe game design; but I find learning new things to be very interesting and great fun. I am not afraid to be frank about what I don’t know.

HN: Why are you excited?

EH: There is so much potential here in CAMD, so many fantastic faculty, staff and students doing fascinating things. And the Northeastern University educational

model is one that has particularly interesting implications for the disciplines that make up CAMD: if we are ready to take experiential learning to the next level, so that we fuse experiential learning and creative practice with the critical reflection that stems from academic research disciplines, we can participate in the transformation of our disciplines and industries that is needed in the new century.

School to revamp park on Columbus

By Elise Harmon News Editor

larly practices on the field. The team will benefit from several changes being implemented, including the addition of a turf field and scoreboards.

“Having a turf field would be great,” Sophia Showalter, a defense player on the team, said. “Currently it’s grass, and it’s really muddy most of the time, which makes practice hard and sometimes dangerous.”

Showalter, a sophomore environmental studies and economics major, said she would also like to see lines on the field, benches and a scoreboard.

In May, the university announced that it would invest over $26 million to add an artificial turf soccer field, football field, two baseball/softball diamonds, brand-new tennis courts and a playground.

According to the Northeastern website, the project is a part of the Institutional Master Plan, which Northeastern submitted to the Boston Redevelopment Authority in Playground, Page 4

HN: What advice would you give the entering undergraduate class to maximize their time at Northeastern University?

EH: Northeastern is so rich with opportunities, I would encourage them to explore as widely as possible, to extend themselves in unexpected ways. So take a class that sits far outside their comfort zone; enroll in a dialogue as well as a co-op; get to know their teachers and the staff as well as their fellow students.

After announcing that it would partner with the City of Boston to revamp William E. Carter Playground, Northeastern University will present the final plans for the project at a community meeting in October.

The date has not yet been set for the meeting, which is the third official dialogue that the university has had with the community about the renovation. Carter Playground, which consists of multiple fields and tennis courts, is located on Columbus Avenue and is a popular spot for local youth sports, as well as for Northeastern club and intramural teams.

“Northeastern is leading the whole design and construction effort,” Ryan Woods, Boston Parks and Recreation Department’s director of external affairs, said. “Boston Parks is just reviewing the design.”

The club girls’ lacrosse team is one of the organizations that regu-

HN: Which lone, non-work-related experience would you accredit to feeding your determination every day when you have to work?

EH: That is the hardest question for me to answer! One thing I love about my work is that it requires me to be involved with things that I am genuinely passionate about — things I would be involved with whether or not it was part of my job. So there is such a continuity for me from work to non-work that it is hard to isolate out a nonwork-related experience. Like anyone who works in arts-related fields, I can point to a couple of transformative moments — for me, musical experiences — that I always remember. Remembering the texture of those experiences is a crucial reason that I like to challenge how we do things in higher education, because often what we work for in promoting excellence leaves out critical aspects of those experiences—and it is those experiences, that, for me, must always define excellence.

Construction of the Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex (ISEC) on Columbus Avenue continued over the summer.

Photo by Brian Bae

ISEC labs to enable interdisciplinary studies

By Marissa Allen News Correspondent

Construction of the Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex (ISEC) is on schedule after a summer of building.

In 2013, Northeastern unveiled plans to construct the six-story, 220,000-square-foot complex. Since then, the former Columbus Avenue parking lot has transformed into the skeleton of a state-of-the-art, Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED)-certified facility.

“What’s going up now is called the curtain wall,” Stephen Director, the senior advisor to President Joseph E. Aoun, said. “Glass is being in-

stalled, wrapping around the building.” Inside, contractors are working on piping.

According to the ISEC website, the structure was designed by Payette, a Boston-based architecture company.

Payette has implemented several unique features to the complex, such as The Arc, an organically flowing curved bridge that will connect the facility to research buildings on the other side of the Orange Line.

“It’s good that they’re dedicating a building to lab and research because I’ve noticed that a lot of research is done in different buildings,” Adam Harsch, a sophomore chemical engineering major, said. “It’ll be cool to have it all more centralized.”

The building was designed with a focus on interdisciplinary collaboration.

“Rather than trying to divide up the building into a bunch of small labs, it’s big, open spaces,” Director said. Specialized equipment may be located in separate rooms, he said, but will be open to all.

Olga Vitek, a professor in the College of Computer and Information Science, is looking forward to the interdisciplinary nature of the ISEC. “I have a joint appointment between computer science and chemistry so I have to choose whether I am sitting in a computer science or a chemistry lab.” she said. “It’s

nice to be in the building where you have both sets of things in one place and you can turn around and ask a question about a chemistry experiment or you can turn around and ask a question about the computing.”

The building, according to Director, is designed to hold approximately 114 principal investigators – faculty members in charge of labs – and about 700 people total.

“A lot of the space in the new building will be for either groups on campus that have to expand… or for new groups and new faculty hires and so forth,” he said.

“The building will not be filled on

day one. It was designed to allow us to continue hiring for a number of years after.”

The university’s current budget for the project is set at $225 million. The ISEC is slated to create 630 construction jobs and about 700 full-time positions once the complex opens, according to the website.

“Great research happens when you talk to people,” Vitek said. “I think it’s a luxury to have an environment where you can have people from different departments and different colleges working together. Not every university has that, and I think this building will be useful.”

Varun Goyal contributed to this report.

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T h u r s d ay , S e p t e m b e r 17, 2015

news

crime log

Compiled by Stephanie Eisemann, News Staff

ENTRY OF THE WEEK

NU PD NU PD NU PD NU PD NU PD NU PD NU PD NU PD NU PD NU PD NU PD NU PD

Northeastern University Public Safety Division Saturday, Sept. 12 @ 8:33 p.m.

A Northeastern University Police Department (NUPD) officer stopped a suspect for larceny at 132 Hemenway St. The party, unaffiliated with Northeastern, was placed under arrest at 8:43 p.m.

Northeastern University Public Safety Division Monday, Sept. 7 @ 1:35 p.m.

A Northeastern University (NU) student reported locking his bike in the front of Speare Hall on Sunday and was unable to find it. A report was filed.

Northeastern University Public Safety Division Monday, Sept.7 @ 4:42 p.m.

An NU student reported his bicycle stolen from the bike racks in the North Lot. He had locked up the grey mountain bike on Saturday at noon and when he returned on Monday, he noticed the cable lock had been cut and the bike was stolen. A report was filed.

Northeastern University Public Safety Division Tuesday, Sept. 8 @ 2:32 a.m An individual reported that his friend was very intoxicated and struggling to breathe. Emergency Medical Services (EMS) was notified and NUPD officers responded to speak to the distressed student. When EMS arrived, officers reported the subject was conscious and alert and denied transport. The student signed a medical waiver and was referred to the Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution (O.S.C.C.R.).

science,

From Page 1 ensure both that all expenditures were related to a particular Award and that the expenditures were reasonable.”

Universities that are recipients of NSF grants must make sure that funds are used only for their intended purpose.

Accounts controlled by Reucroft made up to 48 unauthorized advances using NSF grant funding.

Additionally, Reucroft submitted fraudulent claims for personal expenses, depositing money without requisite verification.

“Northeastern also failed, for more than two years, to notify NSF when it discovered significant problems with the accounting for award funds paid and knew that at least some of the funds were used to pay Professor Reucroft’s personal expenses,” the US Attorney’s Office said in a statement.

The foundation claims that lack of much-needed oversight made it impossible to know whether expenditures were justified.

Jim Akula, a professor in the psychology department, weighed in on why the dispute resulted in a heavy fine.

“What it sounds like is that the PI (principal investigator) was spending government money where he shouldn’t have been,” he said in an email to The News. “It is not hard to get away with this kind of stuff for a while. The university eventually caught him and took some countermeasures, but didn’t report it in a timely manner to the NSF. That makes it smell like a coverup, and that’s why huge fines were levied.”

The District Attorney claimed that the university, as a recipient

H u n t N e w s NU. c o m

of government funds, had both a financial responsibility and public trust responsibility.

“In this case, Northeastern failed to protect the government’s interest and lacked adequate control over a researcher’s ability to spend millions of taxpayer dollars,” Allison Lerner, inspector general of the NSF, said in the statement from the District Attorney.

In response, the university claimed that it has made improvements to its financial management system.

“The university has made significant enhancements to its personnel, procedural and financial controls to support its robust research enterprise,” the statement said. “The university takes compliance seriously in all aspects of its operations and is proud of its successful and ongoing partnership with the National Science Foundation.”

Multiple professors and administrators at Northeastern had no knowledge of the matter or felt they did not have enough experience with grants and declined to comment.

The University External Affairs department could not be reached for comment.

“We cannot afford to waste the little money we do have to conduct government funded research,” Amar Fernald, freshman political science major, said. “A lot of money may have been wasted when it could have been used for something productive.”

Although the integrity of research conducted by Northeastern has not been brought into question, it remains vague how much funding was actually used for projectrelated expenses.

Northeastern University Public Safety Division Tuesday, Sept. 8 @ 9:26 p.m.

A Residence Director (RD) on duty in Kennedy Hall reported that an NU student reported a knife in their roommate’s belongings. NUPD responded and confiscated the small knife. A report was filed.

Northeastern University Public Safety Division

Wednesday, Sept. 8 @ 11:30 p.m.

Someone reported the smell of marijuana coming from a room in Willis Hall. NUPD officers responded and spoke with the residents, as well as two guests – one an NU student and another who is unaffiliated with the university. A small amount of the substance and a grinder were confiscated. A report was filed.

Northeastern University Public Safety Division

Friday, Sept. 11 @ 2:09 a.m.

An individual on Massachusetts Avenue reported that her boyfriend, a student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was intoxicated and vomiting. Officers responded and reported that he was conscious and semi-alert. EMS arrived and cleared the subject to stay with his girlfriend.

Northeastern University Public Safety Division

Saturday, Sept. 12 @ 1:33 a.m.

The proctor in Speare Place reported a large crowd being noisy. NUPD officers responded and spoke to the group, who agreed to quiet down and return home.

Northeastern University Public Safety Division

Saturday, Sept. 12 @ 4:41 p.m.

An NU student visited NUPD headquarters in Columbus Place to claim a wallet that had been turned in. He reported that his Husky Card, $20 and credit cards were missing from the wallet.

A report was filed.

Northeastern University Public Safety Division

Saturday, Sept. 12 @ 4:54 p.m.

An RD in Stetson East reported that a resident claimed someone threw a rock at his window.

NUPD responded and found the window open and glass broken outward into the North Lot, but no glass in the room. A work order was placed and a report was filed.

Northeastern University Public Safety Division Sunday, Sept. 13 @ 4:08 p.m.

The duress alarm from the turnstile at the Marino Center was triggered and NUPD received a call that reported two males fighting in the lobby. The parties, an NU student and an alumnus, were playing basketball when a fight began. They apologized and were asked to leave the gym for the rest of the day by Marino Center management. A report was filed.

Northeastern University Public Safety Division Sunday, Sept. 13 @ 4:48 p.m.

An NU student reported that four males in hoodies stole her iPhone and fled while she was near Kariotis Hall. NUPD checked the area and did not find the perpetrators. NUPD provided an escort for the student from Willis Hall to her residence on Hemenway Street. A report was filed.

Photo by Brian Bae

As part of Northeastern’s renovation of the William E. Carter Playground, the play area will be relocated to a different part of the park.

Playground, From Page 3 2013.

The university, Boston Parks and Recreation and Stantec, the firm contracted to design the site, held two meetings over the summer on May 12 and June 24. There, citizens gave their input on what they wanted in the park and helped revise and shape the overall design.

According to Woods, residents voiced their desire for an updated playground located in a new spot, a water feature for the hot summer months, walking paths and lighting.

The playground, currently located in a back corner of the lot, will be moved to a different location and there will be two separate structures – one for 2- to 5-year-olds and one for 5- to 12-year olds.

The project is expected to take about two years.

Jay Hong, a sophomore business administration major with a concentration in finance, often goes to the park with his fraternity, Kappa Sigma, to play pickup football.

“I heard through the grapevine that the city still owns the park but Northeastern is going to pay for the renovations,” he said. “It’s still pub-

lic property.”

According to Woods, some residents were concerned that the renovation signalled a privatization of public space. Boston Parks and Recreation worked to ensure that the community would have access to the space after the changes.

“We wanted to make sure that people who have used the park regularly will still have access,” Woods said. “First preference still goes to the youth sports and community sports [in scheduling what groups will use the park], and Northeastern will also have times.”

As for the university, the field will continue to be used by club and intramural teams, but varsity athletic teams will still use their existing facilities.

“It’s [intended] more for the university’s public and maybe campus recreation sides of things rather than our athletic department,” Mike Skovan, assistant director of athletic communications, said. “I think it’s great that Northeastern will be able to join with the City of Boston and put this in play going forward.”

Varun Goyal contributed to this report.

H u n t N e w s NU. c o m

T h u r s d ay , S e p t e m b e r 17, 2015

Page 5

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Staff Directory Staff Writers: Jose Castillo, Audrey Cooney, Stephanie Eisemann, Giovanni Gray, Matthew MacCormack, Alexandra Malloy, Jodie Ng, Ethan Schroeder, Madelyn Stone Staff Photographers: Kariman Abuljadayel, William Bryan, Ethan Kaley, Arzu Martinez Staff Copy Editors: Miharu Sugie, Sara Tucker Columnists: Ross Beroff, Gavin Davis, Alana Dore, James Duffy Alastair Pike, Angelica Recierdo, Gwen Schanker, Kyle Taylor Opinions expressed in The Huntington News by editorial writers, All Hail writers, cartoonists and columnists are not necessarily those of The News staff or of the Northeastern administration. Northeastern University undergraduate students conduct all operations involved in the production of this publication.

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Vol. VIII No. 13

Column: Studying activist groups Northeastern is home to many activist movements and groups on campus. One of the loudest is the Fight for $15 movement. Due to its prominence on campus and propensity for lying to promote its message, a closer Ross Beroff look at the organizations backing the movement is warranted.

In regards to last year’s referendum question to determine campus support for the movement, organizers have been saying that 75 percent of students voted to increase the campus minimum wage.This would be quite impressive, and show true popular support, yet this number is not representative of the student body as only 25 percent actually voted. This misrepresentation of support has led to an overestimation of the size of the movement as well as its grassroots nature.

Many of the ideas for, and the financial support behind, Fight for $15 comes from major union organizations, especially the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), an organization that has been trying to exert its outside pressure all over campus through adjunct professors, as well as the minimum wage issue. According to the website for the Socialist Alternative, in regard to aspects of the movement, the SEIU is “the driving force behind these actions.” The SEIU has been spending millions of dollars on the national campaign, sometimes in just one city alone.

However, there has been minimal success with few tangible results.

What occurred at Northeastern cannot be considered a success, especially considering the lack of acknowledgement by the administration or promises to move forward with raising wages. These millions of dollars have been wasted, while

it has been reported that the pensions for the union members are drying up. What many people don’t realize is that a lot of these workers were forced to join or risk losing their jobs. Due to the top-down organizational structure, many also have no say in the operations of the SEIU and are essentially being forced to pay for a campaign they may or may not support. This is all occurring while they are slowly losing guarantees of a safe retirement.

The SEIU is not the only large organization leading the Fight for $15. Alongside it is fellow union organization the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO).

Much of the work on this effort is done through the Working Families Organization (WFO). WFO has advertised a job opening for a field organizer to work on the 15 Now topic, yet only offered $12.25 per hour. They explained that the wage would be raised after a probationary period, a similar system to what token socialist, Seattle City Council member Kshama Sawant, has refused to accept. This is not to say that $12.25 is unreasonable pay, especially when an SEIU organizer, Kendall Fells, made the number seem rather arbitrary, saying “$10 was too low and $20 was too high, so we landed at $15.”

The loud voices on our campus are always complaining about how much Northeastern University President Joseph E. Aoun gets paid, ignoring the reasons for his pay such as to prevent him from doing the same job elsewhere. However, the executives are also getting paid outrageous multiples of the average worker based on the same standards to which Aoun is held. Basic economics and proof about the dangers of such a drastic increase in the minimum wage has done little to change the opinions of many, but hopefully seeing the truth about all this hypocrisy will finally get people to think twice and maybe finally see the light.

News illustration by David London

Uber mistreating drivers In 2014, Uber claimed it serviced upwards of 1 million riders per day.

In Boston, countless college students use Uber on a regular basis. It is a fast and convenient service, so as students leave the car, they don’t stop to consider what kind of negative effects may come from that convenience.

We live in a consumer era. Consumers are not asked to critically assess their purchases, and sellers will do everything they can to keep any immoral practices hidden. For their part, consumers are more than happy to ignore a bit of injustice if the service or product they receive is of high quality. What does it matter if the minerals used in iPhones are mined by slaves in the Congo, so long as the phone works? What does it matter that a large quantity of clothes made abroad are produced in sweatshops, so long as they look good? And what does it matter that your Uber driver receives low pay, no benefits and no job security, so long as you get a quick ride?

The treatment of Uber drivers may not be on par with sweatshops, but it’s happening on American soil, under the supposed protection of American labor laws, and it needs to be critically examined. Through an often-exploited loophole, Uber drivers are considered independent contractors instead of full-time employees. No matter how many hours a week someone works for Uber, they will never be eligible for benefits or job security. Uber drivers are

also forced to pay for all their own expenses, from gas to car insurance.

These costs would be expected to be fulfilled by Uber itself if drivers were direct employees.

There are also concerns over the tipping policy Uber holds. Tipping taxi drivers is a common practice, but tipping Uber drivers is actively discouraged by the company. A statement from the company read that there should be no tips because “the Uber experience means not having to reach for a wallet at the end of a ride.” If offered a tip, drivers are told to remind the passenger that tips are not necessary. The exception is the UberTAXI branch of the app, which adds an automatic 20 percent gratuity fee. There have been claims, currently being examined in lawsuits, that Uber holds on to half of this gratuity fee, both misleading customers and underpaying drivers.

Along with the issue of tips, Uber drivers are fighting for their right to be treated as employees. This would have multiple effects, including holding Uber responsible for paying the drivers’ expenses. Lawsuits raising these and other issues have been filed in several cities across America, including one in Boston led by accomplished labor lawyer Shannon Liss-Riordan, who has won several labor lawsuits against major corporations. In California, drivers were granted the right to pursue a class-action lawsuit, thwarting attempts by Uber to gain

a summary judgment.

Uber fights back by claiming most of their workers would like to remain independent contractors to avoid things like set hours. The truth of this statement is debatable, as Uber has declined in the past to reveal the total number of drivers working for their service. It’s entirely possible for the service to implement changes that would allow some drivers to work full-time while others remain independent.

Claiming drivers don’t wish for their statuses to change is a way for Uber to defend its own interests while propping some workers up as figureheads and throwing the rest under the bus.

Besides misreating workers, Uber has come under fire for encroaching on the taxi industry. In some cities, Uber has essentially created an oversupply of transport.

As more people use Uber to get a ride, it becomes more difficult for taxi drivers to get a fare.

No one can be expected to examine all of their purchases to confirm they have been created by fair labor.

Companies, however, rely on consumers and we can place pressure on these corporations to incorporate just labor practices. When workers call out unfair treatment, we should listen. And when we’re presented with two stories, one from the working people themselves and one from a corporation, it should be obvious enough where the truth is more likely to lie.

As we head into our second full week of the new semester at Northeastern, college students around the country are getting back into the swing of things: Hanging out with friends, going to class, and joining clubs. For many students, figuring out how to make money is another step added on top of all this.

At Northeastern, tuition, room and board and miscellaneous fees add up to over $60,000 per year.

College tuition everywhere is getting out of control, but more and more we are taught that if we don’t get a college education, we’re screwed. And the student debt crisis isn’t the only crisis we’re facing. In order to maintain their profits, the 1 percent exploits both people and the planet, putting us on a path to surefire environmental catastrophe.

Mass incarceration is the new Jim Crow, and it’s the police’s job to enforce this racist system by murder-

ing people of color continually. The 80 richest people in the world own as much wealth as the poorest half, or 3.5 billion people.

But at this moment, people are fighting back and the world is changing. Last September was the biggest climate march in history.

This past year saw the explosion of the Black Lives Matter movement, a major opposition against this deeply racist system. Bernie Sanders, with his left-wing politics and progressive message, is gaining momentum and poses a real threat to the corporate establishment.

But is electing one really progressive person as president enough to fix an otherwise deeply broken system? What else can we do to build a successful movement to change the system?

Last year, Socialist Alternative Northeastern led the first campaign in the country for a campus-wide

minimum wage of $15 per hour.

This year, we’re helping the Seattle branch of our organization to re-elect Kshama Sawant, the first socialist US city councilor in decades. We’ll also be participating in the #MillionStudentMarch national day of action against student debt on Nov. 12.

The people are the vehicle for progressive change and history has shown that when we fight, we win.

The Socialist Alternative is an international organization that organizes in communities, workplaces and on campuses. We are not just students – we are people of all ages and formal education levels, all colors, genders and sexual orientations, and what unites us is our vision for a better world.

Letter: Call to action from Socialist Alternative NU

- Elan Axelbank is a third-year sociology major and a member of Socialist Alternative.

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T h u r s d ay , S e p t e m b e r 17, 2015

citypulse

Segregation plagues city neighborhoods

By Audrey Cooney News Staff

Boston residents are impacted by segregation more severely than people in all but six other US cities, according to a report that suggests the area is struggling with the continued consequences of past racism and discrimination.

“When I was living in Dorchester, everyone around me looked like me,” Antonio Banrey, a sophomore media and screen studies major who has lived in Boston his whole life, said. “I saw a ton of Latinos and black people, and basically no one else.”

A study released by 24/7 Wall St. on Aug. 19 suggests Banrey’s experience common. Four in ten people in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area live in segregated neighborhoods where at least 80 percent of residents are of a single race or ethnicity, researchers wrote.

Researchers used US Census Bureau data to examine 29 urban areas in the country that had populations of least 1 million and at least one non-white majority zip code. They measured residential segregation by analyzing the percentage of residents living in segregated zip codes.

“The idea that people simply choose to live with others like them is only partially true, and certainly not an explanation for neighborhood inequality,” Sarah Jackson, a Northeastern University professor of communications who has examined the intersection of race factors and social structure, said.

“Racial segregation is a result of both government policies and business practices in real estate.”

One of the most insidious of those practices is redlining, said Morgan Williams, Esq., a lawyer who works with the National Fair

Photo by Scotty Schenck

Boston was named the seventh-most segregated metropolitan area in the country by a recent study.

Housing Association. Redlining is the denial of financial services, such as housing loans, to members of certain neighborhoods based solely on the racial or ethnic composition of those neighborhoods While discrimination is subtler today, he added, the such practices is still being felt.

The legacy of those policies continues to shape neighborhood dynamics, Banrey said. His family moved from Dorchester to Roslindale when he was 14, where he again noticed a lack of diversity around him.

“When it started off, it was just us and one more family of color down the street,” Banrey said. “Roslindale still feels mostly white.”

Northeastern University sopho-

more Jatin Shome, who studies computer engineering, thinks Boston’s segregation problems aren’t surprising. However, he said, the diversity of the university’s students and the rhetoric of some of its officials can obscure Boston’s complex racial dynamics.

“Living on the Northeastern campus, you don’t see it,” Shome said. “I know it’s a big problem, but it doesn’t stand out to me at all.”

Noticeable or not, segregation has tangible socioeconomic effects on city residents, according to the authors of the study.

Black and Hispanic residents in the Boston area experience poverty at a rate four times that of whites: 21.5 percent of black people and 26.1 percent of Hispanic live be-

been known that smokeless tobacco, while marginally less bad than cigarettes, causes cancer.”

Officials’ choice to ban smokeless tobacco at sports venues will hopefully decrease the number of children exposed to the drug, Reid and Daynard said. The desire to emulate athletes’ actions is often the reason young people begin using smokeless tobacco products, according to Reid.

“There’s a link between watching our sports heroes chewing and spitting and then modeling that behavior,” Reid said.

“We want to minimize that risk.”

As role models who have an audience, athletes wield a fair amount of influence over public attitudes, according to Daynard, which can have wide-reaching implications. “[Chewing tobacco] is a bad thing for players to be doing in terms of public health, to be modeling this destructive behavior,” Daynard said.

“It’d be like if you had a player standing on the field being drunk.”

While Daynard, Reid and several city officials have expressed confidence in the ordinance, not all students are convinced of the measure’s necessity or efficacy.

“Does it seem like it’s actually going to stop it? To me it doesn’t at all,” said Jason, a freshman electrical engineering major who declined to give his last name. “I’ll just do it before or after the game [instead of at it].”

Another student raised the issue of free choice.

“It sucks,” said Matthew, a sophomore business student who preferred not to give his last name because he started using tobacco when he was underage. “I don’t think they have the right to tell me what to do.”

Matthew said that he watched baseball and hockey players using chewing tobacco as a kid, but

Mayor Martin J. Walsh signed an ordinance last Wednesday outlawing smokeless tobacco at all city sports venues. their use didn’t influence him. In- sound low, officials have been alarmed the industry over the past decades.” stead, he started using dip and snus by sustained upticks in use, Reid said.

Despite the concerns some while playing on his high school’s “It is interesting because while people have about governlacrosse team, both to focus before most tobacco use has been decreas- ment overreach, Daynard said games and to bond with teammates. ing among teenagers in the US, the public health response to to“Junior year and senior year, in smokeless tobacco has been on the bacco may not end anytime soon. the spring, it was before practice. rise for almost 20 years,” Reid said.

Some state officials, he added, We’d all get in my car, put in lips, The relative popularity of had expressed interest in a plan and drive over,” Matthew said. “And smokeless products is likely due called the Tobacco-Free Generation. before games everyone would put in to social pressures and a sense of “The simplest version says that a Red Man [brand] lip on the bus.” trendiness, Daynard explained. anyone born on or after the year Matthew’s story isn’t uncommon, “My sense is that cigarette smoking 2000 cannot ever buy tobacco prodaccording to a 2012 study by the Cen- has lost its cool—which is wonderful ucts,” Daynard said. “If it sounds ter for Disease Control (CDC). Ac- because you have in the United States like a crazy idea, ask any parent what cording to the data, smokeless tobac- a sense of, ‘Why would you want to age they would prefer their kid to co products are used by 3.7 percent of do that?’” Daynard said. “But the flip- start using tobacco. They’ll tell you people ages 18-24 in Massachusetts. side is, smokeless would never exist they answer is never. If that’s what While the raw usage numbers may without aggressive marketing from everybody agrees, why not do it?”

Tobacco banned at Boston fields

By Sam Haas City Editor Smokeless tobacco products will be banned at playing fields and in sports arenas across Boston starting April 1.

The ban, signed last week by Mayor Martin J. Walsh, prohibits the use of chewing tobacco, snuff, dipping tobacco, snus and other smokeless products at all sporting events and any sites that host them.

“I’m proud to sign this ordinance today,” Walsh said in a press release on Sept. 9. “The consequences of smokeless tobacco are real and can be devastating. We’re doing the right thing for our children and I look forward to continuing on the path to making Boston a leader in healthy and active living.”

Fenway Park, TD Garden, and high school and college fields are among the locations included in the ban. Violators of the prohibition will be fined $250. Professional athletes were not expressly excluded by the bill’s text.

The impetus behind the ban is a desire to limit the exposure of children and teenagers to tobacco products, said Margaret Reid, director of the Boston Public Health Commission’s (BPHC) Healthy Homes division.

“There is perhaps a misconception that smokeless tobacco is safer, but it’s not,” Reid said. “Smokeless tobacco is addictive and youth should be protected from it.”

Reid’s division, which encompasses BPHC’s anti-tobacco campaigns, worked closely with the City Council to draft the ordinance.

Some public health experts have spent years pushing for the measure, according to Richard Daynard, a Northeastern University professor of law who runs the school’s Public Healthy Advocacy Institute.

“As with a lot of these things, it’s about time,” Daynard said. “It’s

low the national poverty line, while the poverty rate for white residents sits at 5.6 percent, the study says.

“The myth of American meritocracy that suggests everyone can pull themselves up from their bootstraps ignores that not everyone’s metaphorical bootstraps are the same,” Jackson said.

Two zip codes in Lawrence house 10 percent of the metro area’s Hispanic and Latino population but account for less than 1 percent of the region’s total number of residents.

The average household in one of those zip codes earns $18,261 per year, according to the report.

The average white household in Boston, meanwhile earns $79,730 a year, while the median annual income for a Hispanic family stands

at $39,810, according to the report.

“It is not surprising that groups who have been historically disenfranchised from economic and educational opportunities continue to experience higher rates of poverty than those that have not,” Jackson said.

Racial minorities forced into segregated neighborhoods also have less access to quality education, the report found.

“Unfortunately neighborhoods with the best schools tend to be mostly white because of histories of things like redlining and other discriminatory housing practices,” Jackson said.

Without concerted effort from government agencies and community organizations, Jackson said, urban segregation is unlikely to improve on its own, leaving scores of minority residents disadvantaged by an unfair system.

Janine Anzalota, interim director of the city’s Office of Fair Housing and Equality, declined to provide specifics on how Boston might address its segregation issues. Housing segregation is too complex an issue to be handled exclusively by her office, or even city government as a whole, she said.

“The segregation situation is not unique to Boston,” Anzalota said. “We’re not the only one.”

While the damage from systemic segregation may be widespread, local communities are dealing with it as best they can, Banrey said.

“The neighborhood is segregated, but it’s not that bad when you start talking to people,” Banrey said.

Conversation alone, though, isn’t enough, Banrey continued.

“It’s not to say racial issues don’t still exist,” Banrey said. “I don’t really see much happening from the city.”

Photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons

H u n t N e w s NU. c o m

T h u r s d ay , S e p t e m b e r 17, 2015

citypulse

Page 7

Boston Public Library seeks new president

By Cassidy DeStefano News Correspondent

In a year that has already brought several changes, the Boston Public Library (BPL) is tackling an obstacle that could significantly alter the course of its future: the search for a new president.

The BPL has been without a full-time president since Amy Ryan’s resignation in June.

Ryan departed in the wake of a scandal involving two missing pieces of valuable artwork, worth $630,000 in total. They were later found, incorrectly filed, in a secure area within the library.

Last week, Mayor Martin J. Walsh announced that John Palfrey, headmaster of Phillips Academy in Andover and author of “BiblioTech: Why Libraries Matter More Than Ever in the Age of Google,” would lead the search.

“John is held in high regard in his industry and has inspiring ideas about the importance of libraries in the digital age,” John Hailer, interim chair of the Boston Public Library Board of Trustees, said in a statement released by the Mayor’s office on Sept. 9. “I’m thrilled he is taking a leadership role in our search for the next president of the Boston Public Library.”

Palfrey’s qualifications include previous positions with several libraries, according to Mayor Walsh’s press release. Palfrey served as founding president of the Digital Public Libraries of America, oversaw Harvard University’s library systems and currently chairs the board of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, a non-profit organization that funds libraries.

Palfrey has not yet released definite qualifications for poten-

tial candidates, although he says he has a general idea in mind.

“I have heard from prospective candidates already,” Palfrey said. “[Good] candidates must have great management skills as well as a vision for the future of the Boston Public Library.”

Palfrey declined to disclose the names and titles of these applicants, saying the guidelines of the search process have not yet been finalized. He did say he that the search board will consider internal and external applicants.

The library’s interim director, David Leonard, worked closely under Ryan for more than six years.

Leonard said that while many appreciated Ryan’s leadership, staff members have reacted quite well to the sudden change in environment.

“I was one of the people that she hired when she first came on board seven years ago,” Leonard said.

“I think that many of [the staff] worked closely with Amy Ryan and were sad to see her departure occur, but we all recognize that the library itself is bigger than one individual.”

Under Leonard’s direction, the BPL has made headway on several projects, including renovating its Jamaica Plain branch, launching the institution’s first mobile app and initiating a series of community engagement strategies and remodeling the Central Library in Copley Square.

Phase One of the Central Library Renovation was completed this spring.

Leonard said he will remain interim director for at least a few months while the board plans its next steps.

“This is a 150-year-old establishment and a premier cultural institution, and with that comes a great deal of responsibility,” he said.

Photo by Scotty Schenck

The BPL Board of Trustees picked John Palfrey, author and schoolmaster, to head the search team for the new president.

Photo by Scotty Schenck

Palfrey has held leadership roles in the past, includingat the Digital Public Libraries of America and in Harvard University’s library system.

Photo by Scotty Schenck

The library has been without a president since Amy Ryan left in June after two pieces of expensive artwork briefly went missing under her watch.

Photo by Scotty Schenck

The first staage of renovations on the Central Library were completed earlier this year.

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T h u r s d ay , S e p t e m b e r 17, 2015

citypulse

H u n t N e w s NU. c o m

Legalization proposals gain support in Mass.

By Chelsey Meyer News Correspondent

Competing proposals to legalize marijuana in the Bay State are moving forward after gaining certification from Attorney General Maura Healey. The sponsors of the two proposals hope the measures will gain enough public support to become statewide ballot questions in 2016, which would give Massachusetts voters the opportunity to directly approve the drug for recreational use.

The ballot initiatives share the goal of eliminating the black market for marijuana through legalization but differ drastically in their proposed mechanisms.

A plan submitted by the organization Bay State Repeal calls for unregulated, untaxed access to marijuana for anyone over 21. A rival initiative, sponsored by the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol in Massachusetts, calls for a stricter, more controlled system similar to the one approved by Colorado voters in 2014.

“We believe that the voters are much more interested in a regulated system than an unregulated system,” Will Luzier, campaign manager for the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol, said.

Such a system would take the form of a series of permit processes and state taxes on the manufacture and sale of marijuana. The funds would be used to create and maintain a “Cannabis Control Commission” that would oversee the marijuana industry in the state. Municipalities would also have the option to add an additional tax.

Bay State Repeal’s initiative – which was certified in three separate but similar versions – would not enact an additional tax or create a new regulation system, according to Steve

Epstein, spokesman for Bay State Repeal. The most libertarian form of the group’s plan would legalize the possession and the production of the drug for people 21 and older.

Another key difference between the proposed laws is the amount of cannabis an individual would be allowed to possess.

The Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol’s initiative would allow people who are 21 years old to possess up to 10 ounces of marijuana in their home and one ounce on their person. People would also be allowed to grow up to six cannabis plants in their home. Bay State Repeal does not favor any such limits, Epstein said.

“There are risks associated with legalization [in either case],” said Samuel Kamin, a professor of law at the University of Denver and member of Colorado’s Task Force to Implement Amendment 64, which legalized marijuana in the state. “There is some reason to believe that marijuana use will go up, marijuana use among teenagers and youth might go up. The question is whether those costs outweigh the costs of prohibition,” Kamin said. The biggest costs of prohibition, he said, are enforcement costs and the black market.

Replacing an illegal market with a legal one does not change the fact that marijuana is a drug, said Gus Sanoja, a first-year graduate student studying project management at Northeastern.

“I don’t like the idea of marijuana being legalized because I believe that eventually, that will create damage to people,” Sanoja said.

When last surveyed, Massachusetts voters were split on the topic of legalization. In 2014, a public opinion poll conducted by the Boston Globe showed 48 percent of registered voters favor legaliza-

tion and 47 percent are against.

Both campaign groups are beginning to collect the 64,750 signatures from registered voters required for an initiative to appear as a question on ballots next year.

“We anticipate hiring a professional signature-gathering firm to help us,” Luzier said of his campaign’s approach.

Bay State Repeal will use volunteers to collect the signatures, Epstein said. The group’s biggest drive for supporters will take place at the Boston Freedom Rally on the Boston Common on Sept. 26 and 27.

“There’ll be thousands upon thousands of people there,” Epstein said.

“While many will be out-of-state college students, a lot of them will be Massachusetts registered voters.”

Public figures are mostly lining up to oppose the initiatives. Attorney General Healey and Governor Charlie Baker have publicly stated their disapproval of legal marijuana. A spokeswoman for Mayor Martin J. Walsh said he does not support the measures.

“The Mayor is opposed to the legalization of recreational marijuana,” spokeswoman Bonnie McGilpin said in an email to The News.

However, public officials in other areas of Massachusetts are demonstrating support. Senator Elizabeth Warren told Boston.com she was “open to the idea” this month.

A few local mayors have privately expressed interest in the economic benefits, according to Luzier.

Jessica Litman, a junior psychology major, said a reasoned compromise between prohibition and unfettered use would be most beneficial.

“I think it should be legalized to an extent, but I don’t think it needs to be treated like candy,” Litman said.

Photo courtesy Rafael Castillo, Creative Commons

Rival proposals to legalize marijuana are vying for enough signatures from registered voters to become ballot questions in next year’s elections.

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H u n t N e w s NU. c o m

in side Rustic restaurant brings diversity to Southie

By Mary Whitfill Editor-in-Chief

The exposed brick, concrete floors and repurposed wood tables are all part of the aesthetic, bartender Zack Emonds says of the newly opened Coppersmith restaurant.

“We are about social, global and handcrafted – that’s our mission,” he said.

Coppersmith, located on 3rd Street in the South End, manages a cozy feel despite the sprawling layout, large tables and a bar that wraps around an outdoor patio. Nestled into Southie’s industrial district, the new eatery would be easily missed by those who weren’t looking for it, but its deliberate decor creates the rustic feeling that matches what Executive Chef and Creator Chris Henry was shooting for.

“We wanted to bring a restaurant to Southie that we felt the neighborhood was missing,” Henry said.

“We’re still figuring out what the neighborhood wants us to be. Our goal is to be agile enough to be what we need for the community.”

For now, that includes creating old favorites with slight adjustments to turn comfort food into a noteworthy dining experience. The current menu, launched with the restaurant just last week, includes a Vermont cheddar grilled cheese, grilled naan with curried oyster and a Cuban sandwich that trades the traditional ham for thinly sliced duck. However, that’s all subject to change.

“We aren’t going to say ‘I’m Chris Henry and this is my food and that’s how it’s going to be,’” Henry said. “We want to look at what’s selling, what’s not and make people happy.”

These main dishes are complemented by off-the-wall appetizers with flavor combinations such as Canary melon topped with mint leaves and ham, skewers of crispy pork belly with watermelon and falafel balls on a bed of hummus topped with a generous pile of bean sprouts.

“All of our food is handcrafted,

T h u r s d ay , S e p t e m b e r 17, 2015

farm to table,” Emonds said.

This mindset is reflected in the vibe of the restaurant, from the high ceilings and skylight to the indoor food trucks that provide diners a glimpse into the kitchen.

While the back of the trucks open into a full-sized, industrial kitchen where Henry’s dishes are prepared, the kitchens in the trucks are fully operational and will be used to produce complementary dishes such as global street food and casual sandwiches.

The truck’s walk-up windows face the main dining room, which opens to the outside through industrial garage doors.

“The food trucks are used vehicles, even the winnebago on the roof is from the 1950s,” Emonds said. “The wood on the bar is an Indian wood that has been cut down – it’s all been repurposed.”

The main dining room seats 88, and a 75-person bar serves both indoor and outdoor guests. A patio, located on the ground floor, is open to the street, and guests can also take advantage of a roof deck that seats 80 – offering views of the Seaport District.

Other edible highlights include tempura-fried blooming mushrooms, Southern-style smoked pork chops and buttermilk-fried chicken sandwiches with Pimento cheese and green tomatoes.

“My favorite thing on the menu is our chicken dish,” Henry said.

“You get organic house chicken served three ways – a seared and roasted breast, a braised thigh and confit leg. It’s served with wilted kale and seared spring onions.”

A variety of creative egg benedicts dominate the breakfast menu, and a café, which doubles as a private dining room, opens at 6 a.m. every day for coffee and takeout.

The bar selections mimic that of an everyday restaurant, with no extensive craft beer or wine list to speak of. Save for a few signature cocktails, like the Boston Sidecar made with rum, brandy and triple sec, the bar options are typical.

Coppersmith is open until 1 a.m. every day of the week with full dinner service starting at 5 p.m.

Page 9

“Cubano” sandwich with duck, mustard, cheese and pickles.

Falafel balls with hummus and bean sprouts.

Vermont cheddar grilled cheese with tomatoes on sourdough bread.

Photos by Scotty Schenck

Top and bottom: One wall of Coppersmith is lined with repurposed food trucks where chefs can serve street food from walk-up windows. Center: The new restaurant is decorated in exposed brick, industrial-stlye lighting and repurposed wood on the tables and bar.

Photos by Scotty Schenck

Crispy pork belly with watermelon and a balsamic glaze.

BØRNS energizes crowd with indie-pop

By Rowena Lindsay News Staff

Photo by Scotty Schenck

BØRNS performed at afterHOURS for Northeastern’s Welcome Week.

Indie pop singer-songwriter BØRNS, known for the hit single “Electric Love,” played a sold-out show in afterHOURS last Wednesday.

Organized by Northeastern’s Live Music Association (LMA), the concert was part of the university’s Welcome Week programming. The afterHOURS show was the first stop on Garrett Borns’ — BØRNS is his stage name — tour to promote his new album “Dopamine,” which will be released Oct. 16.

“We chose BØRNS because [he] had a lot of widespread appeal and [was] trending over the summer,” Peter Fuoco, senior marketing major and vice president of LMA, said. “We thought that [he] would be a very accessible artist for all the new freshmen and all the returning students.”

Borns records all his music himself with the help of guitarist Thomas Schleiter, but he plays with a four-piece backing band at live shows.

BØRNS started off the show with the upbeat track “Seeing Stars,” followed by “10,000 Emerald Pools,” a dreamy single that launched his music career in November 2014. The band then transitioned into BØRNS’ recent singles “Past Lives” from EP “Candy” and “The Emotion.”

Still a relatively new artist with limited discography, BØRNS filled

out the middle of his set by playing a series of covers. This included Led Zeppelin’s “Four Sticks,” which allowed him to demonstrate his vocal range, and David Bowie’s “Moonage Daydream,” which showcased the inspiration of his ethereal sound.

“My folks listen to The Turtles and The Zombies and The Beatles and Bowie, stuff like that, and those guys are the reason I am doing music,” Borns said.

The audience couldn’t fully relate with the two dated covers, however.

“I was super into it, but a lot of people were really confused the whole time,” Heather Leahy, a sophomore chemical engineering major, said.

BØRNS brought the evening back with a cover of Lesley Gore’s “It’s My Party.” Encouraging the crowd to sing along, he brought the audience to full energy.

The set list featured new songs “American Money” and “Broke,” both of which are from his upcoming album.

“I have been trying to finish this album while I’m on the road and it has just been craziness,” Borns said. “[‘Dopamine’] is kind of a homage to a lot of like, 60s and 70s psychedelic world. All the production is very new, but it has a lot of classic kind of modern feel. I feel like it is a classically melodic, fun, sensual album.”

BØRNS finished off with his most popular song, “Electric

Love,” which got the entire crowd going crazy again and brought the show to a high-powered close.

Despite his recent rise in popularity, BØRNS is still fairly new to the music business.

“I never expected to do music as a career,” Borns said. “I went to film school for a little bit and was planning on doing that, and then I started interning with a filmmaker and we were making music videos for me and then music kind of took hold.”

The concert was a success for the Live Music Association. Over 1,000 people responded to the Facebook event, and the number of people in line before the show far exceeded the venue’s 276-seat capacity.

“I think we got [him] at the perfect moment,” Joe McGurk, senior computer science major and president of LMA, said.

“He seems to have a lot of good shows coming soon, so I think we got him right… before he breaks into the super mainstream and it is too expensive for us to afford in afterHOURS.” Based on her experience at this show, Leahy believed that BØRNS’ career is ready to take off.

“No other male artist sounds like him,” she said. “He has a very niche sound, but it’s so widely liked. He’s going to go places.”

BØRNS is returning to Boston Oct. 20 to play at the Sinclair, and the band will be touring the U.S. throughout the fall.

T h u r s d ay , S e p t e m b e r 17, 2015

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inside

H u n t N e w s NU. c o m

Boston Comedy Art Festival delivers laughs

By Gwen Schanker News Staff

Laughter brings people together, but a comedy festival brings the laugh makers together.

Last week, ImprovBoston brought more than 300 comedians to the city as part of the Boston Comedy Arts Festival (BCAF), an annual showcase that features sketch comics, standup artists and improvisational groups. The festival included more than 30 actionpacked shows from Wednesday to Sunday, and the impressive variety meant there was something funny for everyone.

“Boston is a place for people to see comedy and do comedy on a weekly and daily basis,” Kevin Quigley, associate producer of the BCAF, said. “[The festival] is a way to showcase all that and to showcase ImprovBoston as one of the centers for comedy in Boston.”

This is the seventh year that ImprovBoston, a nonprofit theater in Cambridge, has hosted the BCAF. The theater’s coordinators now have the tenure to bring in artists from around the country.

That includes everyone from big name celebrities – this year’s festival featured Tim Meadows from “Saturday Night Live” and Greg Proops from “Whose Line is it Anyway?” – to up-and-comers with the potential to become future stars.

These range from college improv groups like Emerson College’s Swollen Monkey Showcase and Boston University’s Liquid Fun to more seasoned acts like the Ladies of the People’s Improv Theater in New York City.

The innate creativity of the per-

formers means that every act brings something different to the table, creating a dynamic experience for the performers and audience alike.

“Going to the BCAF really cements how important exposure to other genres of comedy is,” Dana Jay Bein, head of the standup department at ImprovBoston, said.

“It’s a great opportunity to see what’s out there nationally but also locally.”

For Will Luera, ImprovBoston’s former artistic director who relocated to Florida last year, performing at this year’s festival was a laughter-filled homecoming. Luera was part of the team that built ImprovBoston from a small group in Inman Square to the large, creative community it is today. He also worked closely with Bein to plan the first BCAF six years ago.

“I really wanted to do a festival that brought together the community and was also able to bring some of the best artists from around the world into the city,” Luera said.

On Friday night, Luera and his group, Big Bang Improv, took the stage at the Cambridge Public Library Auditorium to perform a freeform montage that they call “follow the funny.”

“We put together such a diverse mix of performers, which improves the art because we’re all learning from one another,” Luera said.

“We’re not only trying to make a good impression to our peers but also to colleagues from all over.”

Like those of many great comedy troupes, every Big Bang show is random, and no performance is ever the same. On Friday, the audience was treated to a show about sweaters, countdowns and steakfilled watermelon.

Photos by Joseph Thomas

Sketch comedy troupes Wussy Riot (above) and After School Grandma (below) performed this weekend as part of the Boston Comedy Arts Festival.

For Quigley, the festival is the perfect manifestation of how the comedy scene in Boston has developed over the years.

“One of my goals is to promote stuff like sketch, which has traditionally not been a huge part of the comedy community,” he said. “The sketch community is so robust, and it’s getting even more interesting.”

Besides being able to spread the word about great Boston comedians, Quigley enjoys his job because it satisfies a basic human need: laughter.

“The reason I do this is because I love to laugh,” he said. “Because there’s such a variety, it never stops being funny.”

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T h u r s d ay , S e p t e m b e r 17, 2015

inside

Crafts take shape in new MFA exhibit

By Mayeesha Galiba News Correspondent

Photos by Brian Bae

“Crafted: Objects in Flux” will be on display at the MFA until January. Top left: “The Judgement of Paris” by Pierre Fouché. Top right: “Mining Industries: Downtown Boston” by Norwood Viviano. Bottom: “Lilium III”

by Joseph Walsh.

P a g e 11

The Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) challenges conventional crafts to take a different form in its new exhibit, “Crafted: Objects in Flux.”

In the 50-piece collection, traditional materials and processes are modified from their conventional application to fill a new role. According to Emily Zilber, curator of “Crafted,” the modifications show the constantly changing state of craftsmanship.

“All the artists are using skilled making in traditionally considered craft materials or forms,” Zilber said.

Ceramics, furniture, wood, jewelry, glass and fiber are all being used in new and innovative of ways.

Three questions are written on the wall of the exhibit: how might an object be made through performance, perform in the world or perform its own making? How do new modes of fabrication, whether digital or analog, expand artistic possibilities? How can shifting the physical encounter in the gallery change our perception and understanding of the crafter object?

For months, Zilber said she has worked to split the exhibit into three main themes that align with these questions.

The first theme focuses on performance. Many everyday objects require some form of movement, whether it be picking up a cup of water or putting on a piece of jewelry.

Exhibit artist Etsuko Ichikawa highlights this almost choreographed movement in her pieces of pyrography, the act of writing with fire. By dragging a 2000-degree Fahrenheit molten glass poker across the paper, Ichikawa etched designs into a sheet to create ashy calligraphy. She used blown glass as her tool rather than treating it as her final product, emphasizing both performance and retooling.

“I’m here for a sculpture class and we are looking at different forms and basic primitive forms.” said Lou Whiting, a freshman at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design, said. “A lot of the pieces here are very cool and different in the way that they are functional as well as decorative.”

The next section highlights the retooled. Focusing on unconventional creation, re-tooled works incorporate new technology into traditional craft. Grethe Sørensen’s piece “citylight 10/Hong Kong” features a video of a hazy vision of Hong Kong at night. She used a still from the video as the basis of a digital thread weave, displaying both the video and the woven image next to each other.

“When we throw a vessel on a wheel, nobody thinks of that as not being a handmade vessel. It is a tool,” Zilber said. “Craft is centered in the hand as much as it is centered in the tool. So here, video, moving images, photography are impacting craft practice weaving.”

Artist Nathan Craven created an on-site installation for an existing gallery window to round out the exhibit’s last theme, immersion.

Installed over a day and a half, six thousand uniquely shaped ceramic bricks frame sunlight coming through a window.

“Someone who lives by the ocean may see coral or a med student may see the lattice structure from the cross-section of a bone,” Craven said in an interview conducted by the MFA. As the ceramic sits in the window frame, patrons pass by and connect with a piece of art that changes the light of their environment. This change in surroundings makes the work immersive.

“I think [“Crafted”] is a great exhibition which is completely inspiring you to think out of the box using different tools in different ways than they are usually used,” Hana Augustinova, a frequent visitor of the MFA from Boston, said.

“It just sparks your imagination.”

“Happy chaos” comes to Huntington Theatre

By Megan O’Brien Deputy Inside Editor

Fredrik Egerman (Stephen Bogardus) lifted a glass to his past love interest Desiree Armfeldt (Haydn Gwynne).

“I have always associated you, happily, with chaos,” he said.

“Happy chaos” is a fitting phrase to describe the Huntington Theatre Company’s production of “A Little Night Music,” a musical

by Stephen Sondheim, playing at Boston University Theatre.

“It was a lot of fun,” Tamika Wagner, a Boston theatregoer in attendance, said. “Everything is wonderful.”

Set in Sweden at the turn of the 19th century, the musical follows the intertwining romantic lives of six individuals.

The theater welcomed a nearlyfull house on Wednesday, Sept. 17 for its press opening night.

Tony Award-nominee Gwynne led the cast as famed actress Desiree Armfeldt, commanding the stage with equal parts energy and maturity.

However, it was Bobbie Steinbach and Lauren Molina who stole the show. Either actress could simply walk on stage and likely elicit a laugh from the audience. Both Steinbach’s rendition of Desiree’s mother, Madame Armfeldt, and Molina’s portrayal of Countess Charlotte Malcolm brought impeccable delivery to their characters’ slew of one-liners.

All cast members held their own and delivered strong performances. Pablo Torres played Fredrik’s

son, Henrik, and keyed into the internal conflict of his character.

As Henrik bowed his head into his shaking hands during “Later,” a song lamenting his inability to be heard, audience members could be heard emitting sighs of sympathy.

Morgan Kirner played Anne Egerman, Fredrik’s 18-year-old bride, with appropriate naivety.

Anne’s youthfulness was also accentuated by the costuming – she exclusively wore varying shades of pink. To further contrast Fredrik’s two lovers, Desiree wore mainly rich jewel tones.

These color cues were seen in the lighting design as well.

In the first act, Anne’s room is accompanied by warmer light.

During the well-known Sondheim tune “Send in the Clowns,” Desiree’s room was lit with colder hues to reflect her distress. At the close of the piece, a single spotlight shone on her while all other lights dimmed, emphasizing her solitude.

“It was the best lighting design I’ve ever seen,” Ali Witten, a Boston theatregoer, said. “If you’re not seeing this show in Boston, you’re wasting your time. [Lighting designer] Jeff Croiter is a genius.”

The more technical elements of the show were also praised by those in attendance.

The performance opened on a sparsely-decorated stage that looked almost industrial but became more complex as the musical progressed. Curtains served as the backdrop for the first act, while a series of tree trunks scattered around the stage served as the set-

Photo courtesy T. Charles Erickson, Huntington Theatre Company

The cast of the Huntington Theatre Company’s production of “A Little Night Music” performed at the Boston University Theatre. The show will run until Oct. 11.

ting for the second.

“The scenery was very beautiful,” Abby Phillips, another audience member, said.

The technical and artistic elements went hand-in-hand. In one scene, Desiree Armfeldt played a member of 18th-century French nobility in front of a two-dimensional curtain. The end of the

scene was met with pre-recorded applause and cast members applauding in slow motion. This combination of elements, most likely derived from the relationship between designer and director, was successful.

“We promise to make this a gorgeous night,” Artistic Director Peter DuBois said in a press release

on Sept. 15. “One that pulsates with love, the complexities of human desire and the mischief one finds on a weekend in the country.”

Keeping true to its title, “A Little Night Music” began with one man at a piano and continued to build, using the full sonic force of its live orchestra and cast. The closing note? One definitive “ting.”

Page 12

T h u r s d ay , S e p t e m b e r 17, 2015

calendar

Utilizing Airbnb

Entry of the Week

Mixfest bringing big names to Boston Saturday, Sept. 17 With Boston Calling still a week away, those in need of a concert fix may find themselves heading to the Hatch Shell on Saturday.

Rain or shine, Mixfest will bring together five musical artists for this annual event. Headliner Rob Thomas will be joined by “Riptide” singer Vance Joy, Third Eye Blind, Andy Grammar and Rachel Platten, voice of the chart-topper “Fight Song.” Gates open at 11 a.m., and a suggestion page about the event on the Mix 104.1 website advised listeners to arrive early, as the area tends to fill up fast. 47 David G Mugar Way; 2 p.m.; free.

Photo courtesy Luke Addison, Creative Commons

Calendar compiled by Megan O’Brien, Deputy Inside Editor Thursday, Sept. 17

The 31st Annual Boston Film Festival (BFF) opens this week. In the past, the BFF has earned national press coverage and boasted a star-studded list of attendees, including Adam Brody, Greg Kinnear and George Clooney. Films aim to educate, entertain and enlighten audiences. The 2015 BFF will commence with the premiere of “Papa.”

Directed by Bob Yari, the movie tells the true story of Ed Myers, portrayed by Denne Bart Petitclerc, as he ventures to 1950s Cuba after receiving a response to his fan letter to Ernest Hemingway. Different films will play every night until Sept. 21. 175 Tremont St.; 7:30 p.m.; $5.

Monday, Sept. 21

September through April is slam season. Every Monday evening, Massmouth, a storytelling nonprofit organization, will host a Story Slam at Cambridge’s Club Passim. Slammers may sign up to recount a fiveminute story based on the weekly theme. This week’s theme: starting over. Every week, two winners will be awarded prizes and the chance to compete in the “BigMouthOff” at the season’s close. 47 Palmer St., Cambridge; 7 p.m.; $10.

Friday, Sept. 18

In 1970, former US figure skating champion John Misha Petkevich and his Harvard University classmate John Powers founded “An Evening with Champions,” a figure skating exhibition to support cancer research and treatment. Now in its 45th year, the show has raised nearly $3 million total. Friday and Saturday night, audience members will see the likes of two-time Olympian, World Bronze Medalist and three-time US champion Johnny Weir, two-time Olympic and four-time World Champion figure skating pair Ludmila and Oleg Protopopov and more. 79 North Harvard St., Allston; 7 p.m.; $10.

Tuesday, Sept. 22

Hockey fans can get their fill in anticipation of the coming season when the Boston Bruins launch their 2015-16 preseason. Although the Bruins technically play their first game on Sunday against the New Jersey Devils in Providence, R.I., those who wish to witness the sixtime Stanley Cup-winning team at TD Garden can do so on Tuesday.

The Bruins will go head-to-head with the Washington Capitals. Discounted student tickets are available but going fast. 100 Legends Way; 7 p.m.; $49.

Sunday Sept. 20

H u n t N e w s NU. c o m

Instead of taking the T to explore Boston this weekend, join Hub on Wheels and bike around Beantown. The ride begins at City Hall Plaza, where participants can opt to bike a 10-, 30- or 50-mile loop that winds through the city, the harbor and Boston’s green space. Upon registration, each biker will select one of three organizations to receive 10 percent of their entrance fee: Tech Goes Home, Boston Bikes or Special Olympics Massachusetts. In addition to the ride, those who sign up will also receive bike support, snacks and a gift bag. 1 City Hall Square; 6:30 a.m. - 2 p.m.; $50.

Yes, I’ll remember the gondolas parked at every canal and the colorful face masks stocked in every gift shop, but I’ll never forget searching all of Venice for toilet paper. It was a mission that had to be done after I discovered my Airbnb only had a toilet and a bidet, with the nearest paper waste products probably in North America. By agreeing to stay with a local, this is the type of thing bound to happen, but there are ways to utilize Airbnb to minimize surprises in your travels.

1. Be as specific as possible in your search.

Instead of searching Los Angeles, type in North Hollywood. Instead of searching Brooklyn, type in Williamsburg. If you know you want to see the Alhambra, know the address in Granada where it is ahead of time.

Narrowing down by neighborhood allows you a smaller scope to better plan other parts of your trip like transportation and where to eat or visit.

2.Check off every filter you require.

Does your puppy need to come along on your trip? There’s a way to search for pet-friendly places only. If Wi-Fi and air conditioning are musts for you, express that in your search. You set the standards for the place you choose, and if it doesn’t list the items or features you need, message the host about it.

3.Seek out “Superhosts.”

These are the host professionals on Airbnb. They have hundreds of reviews and have been deemed by the company as going above-and-beyond the normal host requirements. Their prices may be a little higher and they definitely get booked up faster, but these are the people to trust with making your stay seamless.

4. Weigh the reviews.

Does the place you’re considering have two reviews or 60? More reviews means the host has had more guests and more chances Angelica Recierdo t o The Annotated Muse improve their place and hosting skills. If the 60 reviews are a mix of positive and negative experiences then it could be a toss-up, whereas a few strong reviews could mean a host with the beginnings of a good track record.

5. Be wary of photograph quality.

We all know that the photos of these places were posed in photo-shoot fashion. They’re taken when the listing is at its cleanest state. There are also others that are grainy, low-quality photos, which could mean a host was just sloppy in putting their listing up. Use your judgment when browsing through.

6. Titles, descriptions, and bios are revealing.

“Bright, central room” and “Quiet rural getaway” mean two different things. The more specific and creative the title, the more thoughtful the host is in providing details about staying with them. Long, detailed descriptions of their place and neighborhood means they’re proud to live there and willing to share their space with you. You can learn a lot about your host just by getting a feel of the whole profile. These are real people inviting you into their homes, and every little detail offered or omitted can affect your trip.

Staying with locals is the whole point of Airbnb. You have an insider guide and friend in a strange, new city if you need one. Be kind and leave nothing but gratitude.

-Angelica Recierdo can be reached at Inside@HuntNewsNU.com.

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Wednesday, Sept. 23

Nearly every Wednesday, Boston University (BU) hosts a public program at the Coit Observatory.

The weekly public event allows the community to learn about astronomy and observe the night sky through binoculars and telescopes.

Now is a good time to experience what the night sky has to offer before Boston heads into another winter. 725 Commonwealth Ave.; 8:30 p.m.; free.

Photo courtesy brongaeh, Creative Commons

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H u n t N e w s NU. c o m

T h u r s d ay , S e p t e m b e r 17, 2015

sports

Photo courtesy Jim Pierce, Northeastern Athletics

Photo by Brian Bae

Sophomore outside hitter Brigitte Burcescu, 9, tallied a team-high 14 kills in the Huskies’ victory over NJIT.

Page 13

Volleyball earns third win of the season, beats NJIT Invitational, From Page 1

Setter Kristen Walding, 20, gets set to serve. The sophomore had three aces against NJIT on Saturday.

weekend we’re about where we want to be in terms of being tested.”

The women came out strong against host Columbia University in the first game on Friday. In the first set, the Northeastern attack generated 17 kills and took an early advantage in the match.

They carried the momentum into the second set, capitalizing on a few of Columbia’s attack errors. Northeastern jumped out to a promising 5-1 lead.

Outside hitter Brigitte Burcescu posted four kills and a block, and the Huskies took the set 25-20.

But the turning point came in the third when Columbia took control early and won the final six points to take the set 25-12.

Junior setter Jamie Bredahl added five assists, two kills and a block in the fourth set, but the Lions scored seven of the last nine points to take the set 25-21 and send it to a decisive fifth frame.

Midway through the fifth set, the Columbia women strung together four points in a row to build their lead and won the set 15-9.

Shortly after battling Columbia, the Huskies took on American University, and Nichols said fatigue played a factor in the game.

“Any time you go five sets, I think people tend to take our sport for granted when it comes to caloric expenditure,” he said. “Particularly for some positions – the setters and the middles – there’s a tremendous amount of work.”

The Huskies lost in straight sets and could only manage 15 points in two of them.

The team had its best chance to push back in the second set but gave up a 12-8 lead and trailed the rest of the way, losing 25-20.

After a night of rest, the Huskies re-took the court Saturday afternoon against NJIT. This time, Northeastern looked sharp from the first serve. Ju-

nior outside hitter Cherylain Dizon earned the first point, landing one of her seven kills, and the Huskies built a 4-0 lead.

Northeastern won the first set, giving up only 16 points.

NJIT battled back to take the second set 25-23, coming back from a 17-13 deficit. The Huskies finished out the last two sets strong, and the Highlanders couldn’t manage more than 18 points in either frame.

Bredahl’s defensive contribution was integral, as she led the team with 17 digs.

The Colorado native also finished with a team-high 28 assists.

Burcescu punched home 14 kills, while sophomore middle blocker Carmen Costa added 10 – her first double-digit performance of the season.

Caterina Rosander was stellar on the front line as well. Rosander landed nine kills while registering a hitting percentage of .600 – her best of the season.

The junior middle hitter was error-free in the match.

“It was [Rosander’s] best match in a while,” Nichols said. “We’re running a 6-2, and for a middle to connect with both setters is always a challenge, but she matched up well and did a nice job stepping up.”

The 6-2 is a style of play in which two setters are used instead of just one. The setup allows for a full front line of hitters at all times as well as a more versatile offense.

With a week and a half until the first Colonial Athletic Association game, Northeastern will need to pick up some steam over the next week.

Although NJIT holds a 2-7 record, Saturday’s win was an important confidence booster for the Huskies, who will take on Boston College in Chestnut Hill on Thursday.

“I told the team today, ‘[Boston College] will feel like conference,’” Nichols said. “The teams are constant rivals. They see us in a position where we’re younger and they are not going to back off. So it should be really good preparation for us.”

NU field hockey bests Dartmouth

By Bailey Knecht Sports Editor

The Northeastern University (NU) field hockey team (2-4) split a pair of road games this weekend, beating Dartmouth College on Friday but falling to the University of New Hampshire (UNH) on Sunday.

The Huskies narrowly snuck

by Dartmouth with a score of 2-1, thanks to goals from sophomore forward Kellie Stigas and junior midfielder Natalie Stewart.

Stigas scored off an assist from Stewart in the first half to put the Huskies on the scoreboard at 30:36.

“I didn’t have a great angle, so I flung it to Kellie and she was in perfect position,” Stewart said.

Stewart continued her strong play in the second half. She scored the eventual game-winning goal, her second goal of the season.

“I have to give a lot of credit to my teammates,” she said.

“Our defense has been rocksolid getting it up the field.”

Dartmouth scored as time ran out, but it wasn’t enough as the Big Green fell to NU by one.

“Dartmouth is a tough team to play, they’re pretty aggressive,” Head Coach Cheryl Murtagh said.

“I thought our defense played well and settled them down on offense.

We had a good counterattack.”

Two days later, the Huskies lost

to UNH 2-1, despite shutting out the Wildcats for the first 50 minutes. UNH outshot NU 13-3 in the matchup.

“I don’t think we played as well, in general, as a team,” Murtagh said. “I was a little disappointed.

We’ve been playing consistently, but we played below our standard.”

Despite posting a 1-1 record this weekend, junior goalkeeper Becky Garner’s save percentage improved to a solid .722.

“Becky played very well,” Murtagh said, referring to Garner’s five saves against UNH. “She stayed composed and poised, and we need to help her out more. Our defense broke down, and we also didn’t sustain enough attack.”

Stewart spoke to a number of areas in which her team can improve before its next competition against Harvard University.

“UNH got us back on our heels a bit, so we need to work on good distribution, not throwing the ball away and having good, positive energy,” she said.

Up next for the team is a home game against Harvard at 5 p.m. on Friday and a match at Boston College at 3 p.m. on Sunday.

“Harvard’s always a good opponent,” Murtagh said. “I think we need to get back to our standard of play and have more positives on the attacking side and get more pressure on defense.”

Photo courtesy Jim Pierce, Northeastern Athletics

Junior midfielder Natalie Stewart, 8, scored her second goal of the season against Dartmouth on Friday.

Page 14

T h u r s d ay , S e p t e m b e r 17, 2015

H u n t N e w s NU. c o m

sports

Women’s soccer splits weekend games at BC, URI

By Giovanni Gray News Staff

The Northeastern University (NU) women’s soccer team had its five-game win streak snapped by crosstown rival Boston College (BC) before they earned a 2-0 win over the University of Rhode Island (URI) this weekend.

The Huskies took on BC in Chestnut Hill on Friday night, a day late due to weather delays.

Even so, Head Coach Tracey Leone said that did not impact the game.

“We actually practiced in place of the game inside. We were crazy, they

were so excited and ready to play that I said ‘Oh my goodness, I wish we were playing tonight,’” Leone said. “But to be honest, they had the same level of energy and enthusiasm [against BC]. I think we would’ve been just as ready to go either night.”

The Huskies kept the game close, ending the first half against BC in a 0-0 deadlock, but in the 66th minute, BC’s Hayley Dowd scored what would be the game’s lone goal.

The loss marked the first time the Huskies have been shutout since a 3-0 loss to No. 2 Florida State University in the second round of last year’s National Collegiate

Photo courtesy Jim Pierce, Northeastern Athletics

Junior Mackenzie Dowd, 13, scored in NU’s victory over URI on Sunday.

NU cross country runs at Nassaney

By Bailey Knecht Sports Editor

The Northeastern University (NU) men’s and women’s cross country teams both had strong showings at their first meet of the season on Saturday. NU travelled to Smithfield, R.I. to compete in the Nassaney Invitational hosted by Bryant University, coming home with a pair of fourth-place team finishes. Although the teams could not match their first-place results at last year’s meet, the runners showed some promise for the upcoming season.

In just their first collegiate 5k, the newcomers to the cross country team have already proven to be strong competitors. Freshman Dan Romano raced to a team-best 11th place out of 99 runners, finishing in just 15:17. Sacred Heart University’s Sean Ferguson finished first overall with a time of 14:50.

Freshmen Michael Potter and Bobby Dunn came in 24th and 30th place, respectively, to contribute to Northeastern’s 108 total points.

On the women’s side, freshmen Liz Harrington, Edlyn Gu-

lama and Cortina Camila all finished in the top 30 to help the women to 125 total points.

Northeastern’s veteran runners also put on impressive performances. Sophomore Christian Stafford finished four seconds after Romano to earn 14th place, while sophomore Dan Condon posted a 29th-place finish.

Junior Jordan O’Dea finished in eighth place in 17:55 for the women. Her standing dropped from last year’s Nassaney Invitational where she finished first with a time of 17:53. Providence College’s Catarina Rocha took home the firstplace time with a 16:48 finish.

Providence swept the men’s and women’s races. In the men’s race, Brown University took home second, while Sacred Heart placed second for the women. Boston University earned third overall in both races.

In recognition of his notable debut, Romano was named Colonial Athletic Association Men’s Cross Country Runner of the Week.

Next up, Northeastern will compete in the Battle of Beantown on Sept. 25 at Franklin Park in Boston.

Athletic Association tournament.

Despite the loss, Leone was encouraged by her team’s performance.

“Our team was great in terms of defensive organization and possession against a really great team,” she said. “We reached a whole new standard and level that night, where we started that game and where we left that game, we were two different teams…I was super impressed with our team. I couldn’t have been more proud. They were amazing.”

The tide turned just a few days later when the Huskies traveled to Kingston, R.I. to take on URI on Sunday. A strong second half saw goals by junior defender Mackenzie Dowd and sophomore forward Kayla Cappuzzo.

Dowd’s goal came on a penalty kick in the 25th minute, while Cappuzzo’s came shortly after in the 38th minute. The Huskies were held scoreless in the second half but completed the shutout of the Rams. Although NU won the game, both the players and Leone agreed that they had room to improve.

“We were a little fatigued after playing BC Friday night,” Cappuzzo said. “I think URI played a better second half as well and held the ball more, we just couldn’t find a rhythm in the second half. We struggled a bit.”

Leone also commented on the difficulty of playing two games in three days.

“The URI game was a big challenge for our team mentally and physically, the BC game took a lot out of us,” she said. “To come back two days later and play against a team like URI on the road was tough.”

Leone noted that the team missed a few opportunities to shoot the ball against BC. Shot selection was something that they excelled in against URI, which contributed to the two goals being scored in the first half. The Huskies managed to outshoot URI 10-7, while they were outshot by BC 15-11.

This weekend, the Huskies take on their last two opponents before conference play begins. On Friday night, Dartmouth College will come to Parsons Field in Brookline. The Huskies will then travel to take on the University of New Hampshire on Sunday afternoon.

“It’s always a good game against [Dartmouth],” Cappuzzo said. “Last year we lost with 15 seconds left, so we’re looking to seek revenge and come out on top Friday night.”

With a few days of rest before NU’s next match, Leone is looking forward to the upcoming games.

“Our team is in a great place, playing exceptionally well,” she said.

“We just need to stay on our rhythm.”

Photo courtesy Jim Pierce, Northeastern Athletics

Photo courtesy Northeastern Athletics

Above: Sophomore forward Kayla Cappuzzo, 17, has five goals this season. Below: Before losing to BC, the Huskies were on a five-game win streak.

Photo courtesy Zack Williamson, Northeastern Athletics

The men’s cross country team raced to a fourth-place finish at the Nassaney Invitational on Saturday.

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T h u r s d ay , S e p t e m b e r 17, 2015

sports

Photo by Ethan Kaley

Sophomore forward Khesanio Hall, 9, fights for the ball against a Fairfield defender, 18, on Saturday night.

Photo by Ethan Kaley

Freshman defender Andrew Lombard, 13, clears the ball up the field after the Huskies win possession.

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Park renovation neglects D1 teams

Northeastern University (NU) did something this May that it hasn’t done in almost two decades: made a commitment to begin working on a brandnew athletic complex.

The $26 million Carter Playground project, a joint effort with the City of Boston, is the first major construction of an athletic center through Northeastern since the Marino Center was erected in 1996.

The proposed project is, in many ways, different from its predecessor. For one, it will be an outdoor facility comprised of two fields and several tennis courts as opposed to Marino’s compilation of gymnasiums and fitness center.

Also, because a majority of the land required to be built on is an existing Boston public field, the Carter Playground will be open to the neighboring communities’ recreation and youth sports.

The two recreation centers do share one thing in common, however. Though the Marino Center and the Carter Playground are both athletic facilities, neither of them contributes any direct benefit to varsity athletics at Northeastern.

The Columbus field will only be open to Northeastern’s club and intramural sports teams upon its completion. So, if any of you Husky faithfuls were excited by the idea of not having to hop on a bus and travel to a different zip code to watch your favorite varsity teams play, don’t get your hopes up.

The plan is to continue to use Parsons Field in Brookline as the home turf of men’s and women’s soccer in the fall, as well as baseball Bailey Putnam in the spring. The field hockey team will conBailey’s Clubhouse tinue to commute to Dedham for their home facility.

Sure, the Columbus field project will provide an excellent opportunity for Northeastern to continue its involvement with the neighboring community.

Anyone who has lived on Columbus Avenue knows just how much that field is used by the surrounding youth, and how much of a facelift it truly needs.

But to invest such a large chunk of money in an athletic facility that doesn’t include an area for our varsity sports teams to play is a missed opportunity and a misallocation of resources.

The facilities at Parsons and in Dedham are in good condition, but their one vital flaw is their distance from campus. Not only does it make it more difficult for players to practice on their home turf, but it also makes it extremely difficult to motivate fans to travel that far to watch games.

For this reason, NU home crowds, with the exception of those during Welcome Week, are very small for a D1 team. Not only does that affect the attitude of players, but it can also have consequences on the ability of programs to recruit.

When choosing a university, players are more likely to pick an academically-similar school that has great facilities on campus over Northeastern because that’s where student athletes spend a good chunk of their time. Not only that, anyone who has played competitive sports knows that playing in front of cheering fans is better than empty stands and students are much more likely to show their support at home games if the games are actually on their campus.

The Carter Playground is a welcome addition to Northeastern’s growing campus and will surely benefit many within and beyond our university’s community. It’s just a shame that, yet again, it seems our student-athletes are getting left out to dry… two towns away.

NU men’s soccer goes into double OT against Fairfield

By Ethan Schroeder News Staff

The Northeastern University (NU) men’s soccer team continues to search for its first victory of the season after a 0-0 tie against the Fairfield University Stags at Parsons Field on Saturday night.

Returning to Boston after a twogame road trip in California, the Huskies (0-2-2) took to the pitch against the Stags (1-1-3) in front of a crowd of 753 spectators. NU fans made their presence known early on with a barrage of chants supporting their team. Though Northeastern was unable to build on its home advantage and earn a win, the team displayed a strong showing of defensive ability.

NU sophomore goalkeeper Jonathan Thuresson needed only three saves in net to earn his first shutout of the season. Fairfield freshman midfielder Diego Casielles led the visiting team with three shots, but due to the efforts of the Huskies’ back four, only one made its way to Thuresson. Freshmen Martin Nygaard and Andrew Lombard, junior Marc Greenblatt and redshirt senior Mike Lobben started at defense for Northeastern. Fairfield’s seven total shots are the least the Huskies have allowed thus far this season.

“We’ve got a great back four,” Thuresson said, impressed by the defensive effort. “I think Saturday night really proves that we’ve been working on our defense. It feels good to see the practicing pay off, and it really boosts our confidence.”

Saturday was Thuresson’s second

start of the season. He and senior goalkeeper Dylan Faber have been splitting games in net this seasonpart of a coaching move that Thuresson believes has helped the team.

“Dylan and I both carry ourselves professionally,” Thuresson said.

“We know that just because we’re not playing, we’ve always got to prepare properly. In practice, we’ve been pushing each other to be better because each week, we are not sure who is going to get the start.”

Head Coach Brian Ainscough said that he was happy with Thuresson’s performance on Saturday and throughout the season thus far.

“Jonathan played well, even though I’ve been using him and Dylan both in games so far,” Ainscough said. “His organizational skills back there have really improved this year, and that helps.”

The Northeastern attack was led by freshman forward Khori Bennett and sophomore transfer forward Khesanio Hall. The two newcomers recorded four and three shots, respectively. Only two of the team’s nine total shots were on goal, however, making for a game of minimal offensive production.

Bennett nearly broke open the scoring soon after the game’s start with a seventh-minute bicycle kick, but the strike missed wide right.

In the 23rd minute, Bennett struck again with a headed ball off of a corner kick, but the attempt suffered the same fate as his first. The Huskies earned five corner kicks in the match.

“We brought in a big class this year, and we knew that about five

of the guys were special and would make an impact right away, which is not always the case,” Ainscough said. “We haven’t had Khesanio and Frantzdy [Pierrot] play together yet, but Khesanio and Khori have played together and I was pretty happy with how they played Saturday. Obviously I would have liked to see a score, but they still played pretty well.”

It appeared that a victory was not in the cards for Northeastern in the 64th minute. A through ball from Hall found Bennett in an optimal position of attack, but Bennett sailed his shot over the net.

With only one shot apiece in overtime, NU and Fairfield brought the game to an anticlimactic finish.

The Huskies will have to put in a formidable effort in their next game if they hope to earn their long-awaited first victory. They take on the Providence University Friars (3-2-1) this Saturday. Providence made the semifinals in last year’s Division I National Collegiate Athletic Association tournament and is returning a large portion of players to this year’s squad. “[The Providence game] will show what we’re capable of,” Thuresson said. “We just need to find the level of playing we had against Stanford and Cal Berkeley [Califonia Berkeley] and push from there. We need to be more efficient and focused in final third.

Once that first goal comes, I really think everyone will get going.”

For more photos, visit huntnewsnu.com

Photo by Ethan Kaley

Redshirt senior Mike Lobben, 26, was a defensive anchor for the Huskies.

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