October 9, 2018

OCTOBER 9  OCTOBER 15, 2018

FEATURES

UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA ANCHORAGE

SPORTS

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Student debaters make UAA’s presence known at national competition

THENORTHERNLIGHT.ORG

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Kristian Stead joins UAA hockey team as goaltender

Red Zone: Students rally to Take Back the Night

By Marie Ries

news@thenorthernlight.org

PHOTO BY MARIE RIES

Students rally against sexual violence by marching across campus and Lake Otis on Sept. 28.

UAA students rallied for the third annual Take Back the Night march on Sept. 28. Along with representatives from the Student Health and Counseling Centers and some community members, the students protested sexual violence by marching across campus and on Lake Otis

Parkway.

“Whatever we wear, wherever we go, yes means yes and no means no,” the students chanted in unison. They met before the rally to make signs and posters in the Student Union Den, where some student artwork was on display. A conversation among the participants in the Student Union Den followed the march.

The event was put on by Generation Action at UAA with help of the SHCC. Generation Action is a student club dedicated to raising awareness on issues relating to sexual violence and reproductive health. They also educate students about on campus resources and work on voter engagement programs.

UAA student Liz Rangel serves as president of the group.

SEE NIGHT

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UAA painting professor provokes thought at museum

By Caleigh Jensen

arts2@thenorthernlight.org

“When I first walked in, the thing that struck me was the level of skill that I saw in the paintings. They are incredibly well done regarding technique and the scale was impressive,” Steve Godfrey, chair of the department of art, said. “The paintings are collages of images and the images are very striking and

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provocative. That in combination with the scale and skill ended up being a pretty impressive experience.”

Godfrey was one of the many attendees at the opening reception of UAA assistant professor of painting Thomas Chung’s exhibition “Everything is Sacred” on Sept. 28. The exhibition features a variety of mural-sized

SEE SACRED

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PHOTO BY CHRISTIAN CIELO

Thomas Chung’s murals from his current exhibition, “Everything is Sacred.”

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NEWS

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Future of Wells Fargo pool to be discussed

By Marie Ries

news@thenorthernlight.org

The university administration is currently considering repurposing the swimming pool in the Wells Fargo Sports Complex. A review by UAA Facilities found that the pool facilities are in need of refurbishment.

The report also identified potential concepts for the future of the area.

“There are significant issues with the existing pool that need to be addressed in the very near term in order to maintain pool operation,” Chris McConnell, interim director and facilities planner for UAA Facilities, said in an email.

The maintenance backlog of the pool is about $9 million, according to the report. This estimated number includes the costs for the repair of exterior walls as well as the replacement of the pool tank, the supporting pool systems and mechanical systems.

“The unfortunate reality is that if we do nothing, we likely will be faced with closing the pool in the next five to seven years due to insufficient funding to fix significant failures,” McConnell said.

Besides the possibility of keeping the swimming pool and addressing the maintenance is-

sues, the report lists other concepts which would require the are to be converted.

Journalism major David Sramek worked at the issue cage in the sports complex over the summer. He found that the majority of visitors came to the complex because of the pool.

“I don’t think students would be happy about [the conversion of the pool area] because a lot of people use it – and not just students,” Sramek said.

UAA students, faculty, staff and the general public can access the pool during scheduled recreation hours. The public is paying an admission charge by session; for students enrolled in six or more credits, the admission is covered by the Athletic/ Rec fee.

Swimming teams and other water sports groups are also using the pool regularly, Sramek explained.

The goal is to find a concept which tackles the maintenance backlog, reduces operating costs and uses the space of the pool to “support programmatic growth”, according to McConnell.

The swimming pool is part of the recreation opportunities in the WFSC. To keep it a recreational space, UAA Facilities suggested to in-fill the pool and turn it into a volleyball court.

Other possible concepts in-

PHOTO BY CHRISTIAN CIELO

clude the pool’s conversion to a space either designated for student services, classrooms, retail or a combination of all alternative concepts.

Several departments like Enrollment Services, the Institute of Social and Economic Research and the Office of Equity and Compliance are currently

in more decentralized locations; they seek relocation due to growing space demands, accessibility of resources and proximity to students.

The pool is close to many buildings on campus, neighboring the Student Union and the skybridge system connecting the west side of campus to the east side.

UAA Facilities has now included the estimated maintenance costs in UAA’s budget request for the University of Alaska system. However, decisions have not been made yet.

“There are currently no approved plans outside of this study for anything other than Facilities’ continued support of the maintenance of the pool,” McConnell said. “Any further action would... require broader conceptualization and community engagement opportunities.”

The issue was also discussed by the Faculty Senate. According to their agenda, the next steps will be to “meet with stakeholders and document concern and impacts” of the pool’s future.

FEATURES

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Homecoming Breakfast recognizes alumni, encourages support

By Malia Barto

arts@thenorthernlight.org

Homecoming week offers plenty for students, as well as staff and faculty, but what about those who have finished their time at UAA? Well, those UAA grads can join in on Homecoming festivities with this year’s Homecoming Breakfast, put on

by Alumni Relations.

Every year, Alumni Relations hosts events to get alumni back to their alma mater and support current students. This year, they will host their second Homecoming Breakfast on Friday, Oct. 12.

The event includes an awards

ceremony, ways to support current UAA students and, of course, breakfast provided by Seawolf Dining.

There are three recipients who will be honored at the ceremony for their successes, chosen by a committee made up of past recipients. This year, Jennifer Thompson, president and CEO of Thompson and Co. Public Relations is the recipient of the Alumni of Achievement Award; Josie Wilson, director of strategic communications at HDR Inc., is the recipient of the Alumni Humanitarian Award; and Jason Hart, clinical practice manager at Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, was awarded this year’s Alumni Emerging

Leader Award.

In past years, the Green and Gold Gala was Alumni Relations’ homecoming event, but the department changed it to this breakfast in 2017 with hopes of reaching more alumni.

“The Homecoming Breakfast is a different format [than the Gala]. It’s still partially centered around giving and centered around honoring our alumni of distinction, but it’s free for alumni,” Chelsea Avichayil, Alumni Relations’ outreach specialist, said. “It offers us a chance to engage some [alumni] we may not have been able to engage before.”

Last year’s breakfast hosted just under 250 alumni. President

Jim Johnsen and Chancellor Cathy Sandeen will be in attendance with some students who are part of invited organizations and clubs.

“I would love to be there to be a supportive facet of UAA student body,” Elena Peyton-Jones, a member of the Glee Club, who will be singing at the breakfast, said.

“A portion of it is just net-

working and bringing a bunch of alums together to celebrate not only our achievements but their achievements,” Avichayil said.

The Breakfast will be held at Cuddy Hall, and doors will open at 7 a.m. with the official program beginning at 7:30 a.m.

Alumni interested in attending should call the Alumni Relations office at (907) 786-1942.

Seawolf debate team reaches semifinals in tournament

PHOTO BY CHASE BURNETT

John Macy and Robert Hockema represented UAA at the Hobart and William Smith Invitational in New York.

By Chase Burnett

features@thenorthernlight.org

Robert Hockema and John Macy made UAA’s presence known at a highly competitive debate tournament in New York last week.

The Hobart and William Smith Invitational (HWS IV)

consists of 108 debate teams from some of the most capable universities. Teams from Harvard, Princeton, Yale and more compete. All teams compete in six preliminary rounds that determine which 16 teams will advance to elimination.

Hockema and Macy placed second in the preliminary rounds, mere points below the

top spot occupied by Harvard.

Macy was also awarded the seventh best speaker out of 216 of the most competitive speakers in the country. After battling their way to the semifinals, they were unfortunately eliminated.

“This tournament is particularly important for two reasons,” Macy said. “It’s really the opening tournament for the season and everyone is trying to figure out who’s going to be competitive this year.”

Topics covered in the HWS IV vary widely and can range from politics and social justice to international relations. Topics are announced just 15 minutes prior to the round, leaving only a short time for preparation.

The partnership between Hockema and Macy began rather unsteadily two years ago.

The two were paired for a world championship that “did not go well,” according to Hockema.

They couldn’t agree on a cohesive strategy and were consumed by their differences. The partnership was abandoned until

just two weeks before the HWS IV when it was revived by Steve Johnson, head coach for the debate team.

The two-year break allowed them to improve and grow as debaters and come back stronger.

The pair capitalized on individual strengths for the tournament. Hockema first presents a magnitude of information that is difficult for the opposition to respond to. Macy will then respond to the material from the other team. Their unique constructive and deconstructive strengths work together to create a cohesive unit.

They also pointed to a committed practice schedule that contributed to their success.

“We practice a lot, more so than other teams in the country I would say. We practice six hours a week, mandatory, and then we attend office hours with our coaches,” Hockema said.

UAA has consistently proven its capability in debate over the past 20 years.

“We have been regionally

dominant, nationally competitive and, to some degree, internationally successful,” Hockema said.

Over the past three years the Seawolf debate team has placed in the top 16 in the HWS IV. A second team from UAA placed 17th and nearly made it to the top 16 with Hockema and Macy.

“There’s always skill to improve upon in competitive debating,” Hockema said. “It requires a willingness to improve and there’s always room to do that no matter how much you win.”

The UAA debate team is open to anyone who wants to experience debate, improve their public speaking or in the case of more senior members, travel and compete. As well, the Seawolf debate team hosts several public events open to all students to participate in, including the Cabin Fever Debates coming up in January.

Robert Hockema is also employed at The Northern Light as an opinion writer.

NIGHT: ‘It’s more important than ever to be vocal’ Continued from cover She was happy with the outcome of Take Back the Night and described the atmosphere of the event as a “humbling environment.”

“I feel like every Take Back the Night is just so different from the year before,” Rangel said. “In this case, we wanted to focus primarily on survivors... so we were really trying to make a personal and accommodating space to discuss it [sexual assault] in an honest way and to hopefully connect people to resources.”

Nursing major Jess Brocker was among the students protesting sexual assault at the event.

The participation in this event is part of her capstone class project about the health and safety of women, especially on the UAA campus. She is working on the project with three of her classmates and thinks that the event

helps increase awareness about sexual assault.

“It builds camaraderie between women and makes you feel safe. It’s good to know that everybody here feels the same way and that it’s an important issue that we’re all working on,” Brocker said.

Establishing a sense of community between participants was a goal of the event, Rangel explained. Generation Action wants to get more people to engage actively in the conversation around sexual assault and violence.

“It’s a difficult conversation, and there were tears that night, but it’s a really important one to have and I think it’ll benefit everybody in the long run,” Rangel said.

Rangel thinks that it is vital to make the issue personal to every student. “[Many students] don’t realize the role that they play even

if they are not a survivor themselves, or they think they don’t know a survivor; it is most likely that they do,” Rangel said.

The conversation in the Den also focused on the role of the university in raising awareness about the issue. However, a big part of responsibility remains with the students Rangel said.

“It’s a matter of... realizing that it’s not just a training that you have to do so that you can enroll in classes, it’s a duty that we all face as students,” Rangel said.

She also emphasized the importance of Take Back the Night considering current events, such as the Justin Schneider case in the state of Alaska.

“It’s just been a tough week for survivors in general, I think, and for anybody who holds stakes in sexual assault,” Rangel said.

With the upcoming local elections in mind, Generation

PHOTO BY MARIE RIES

Students hold up custom-made signs as they march through campus.

Action is working on increasing voter literacy of UAA students in October.

“It’s more important than ever to be very vocal to politicians... The indifference that a lot of students have in voting plays a role in the indifference that we have just as being a part

of this community and making it safer for everybody,” Rangel said. “There’s just a lot that we can be doing. But that does entail voting as well.”

Students seeking to get involved with Generation Action can email the group at generationaction@gmail.com.

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SACRED: ‘Art is not innocuous, art is not benign’ Continued from cover paintings depicting a celebration of different cultures while tying in some of their less attractive side effects, including racism and bigotry.

“The same words, if you yell them, mean something completely different if you whisper them,” Chung said. “These messages are being screamed and yelled, and they have to be.”

Chung worked on the paintings for “Everything is Sacred” for over two years, tying in the community, his family’s ancestry, his own experiences and multiculturalism. He surprised even himself with the end result.

“My life is an example of art being more than just a decorative thing on a wall,” he said.

“Art is not innocuous, art is not benign. It can communicate, it can change things and it has. It always has and it always will.”

Godfrey believes that students can learn a lot from Chung’s paintings.

“I think often times when people think about paintings, they have certain images in their mind of what it should be, and Tom [Chung]’s work moves beyond the stereotypical image of a painting,” Godfrey said.

“I think this can teach students how to have some guts… and have an opinion and a voice about something that is important to them beyond just a landscape or portrait.”

Brooke Vencill, a bachelor of fines arts pre-major in graphic design illustration with a secondary in painting, was also in attendance of the exhibition’s opening ceremony. Vencill was in awe of the detail and sheer size of Chung’s paintings in his exhibition.

PHOTOS BY CHRISTIAN CIELO

Booke Vencill, a fine arts pre-major, with Thomas Chung, an assistant professor of painting at UAA.

PHOTOS BY CHRISTIAN CIELO

The murals of “Everything is Sacred” explore themes of identity, community, spirituality, bigotry and addiction through motifs from a variety of cultures and experiences.

“He has an unapologetic way of using his mediums. He is a painter first and foremost,

but he has done everything you can think of, drawing, sculpture, performative art, and you

can see all of these things come through in his pieces,” she said.

“He has a very elegant way of

putting them together without it looking chaotic. It was just very grandiose.”

Chung has taught at UAA for five years, and hopes to stay there for the rest of his life, helping his students in the ways that his art teachers helped him growing up. “[My ceramics teacher] seeing something special in me made me think that maybe there was something special about what I was doing, so I just kept doing it,” Chung said. “It’s exciting because now, being a professor at UAA, I find myself in the same position that my teachers were in with me and it’s really meaningful to me because I don’t think anyone affected my life as much as those art teachers did.”

Vencill is currently taking her third class with Chung, and credits him for inspiring her to unexpectedly get into painting and continuing to pursue it.

“We have excellent painting professors here [at UAA], but I won’t take a class with anyone else,” she said. “He is such a humble artist…. and just a really great person. You can see it in everything that he does, the way he talks, the way he is. He’s the kind of guy you want to be around.”

“Everything is Sacred” is on display in the Anchorage Museum until Jan. 20, 2019. The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday - Saturday, and 12 p.m. - 6 p.m. on Sundays.

Tickets for the museum are $18 for adults, $15 for Alaskan residents, $12 for seniors, students and military personnel, $9 for children age 3-12, and free for members and children under the age of 2.

UPASS celebrates 20-year anniversary with art competition

By Caleigh Jensen arts2@thenorthernlight.org

The “Platinum Partnership” art exhibit, named after the anniversary metal for 20 years, is a component of a year-long celebration in honor of the 20th anniversary of the UPASS partnership between UAA Parking Services and Anchorage People Mover. The call for artists gives students an opportunity to display their artwork not only for the university, but also for the community as well.

“It’s important to recognize that we’ve reached this milestone,” Glenna Muncy, director of Parking Services, said. “This puts a spotlight on the relationship we have with People Mover and the ways the university is trying to be a good community partner not just with our surrounding neighbors, but also the city as a whole.”

Artwork submitted in the “Platinum Partnership” exhibit aimed to “capture the positive aspects of public transportation,” according to Parking Services’ web page. Pieces of all

mediums from digital to drawings were accepted for consideration. Submissions were open exclusively to UAA students.

The piece selected for the grand prize, or People’s Choice Award, will be featured on the cover of the 2019 People Mover ride guide. Other prizes include the Hungry Artist Award, rewarding the winner with both a Blaines Art and Spenard Roadhouse gift card.

“[The exhibit] is going to show how the younger minds view public transportation in their world,” Whitney Tillman, marketing supervisor for People Mover, said. “While a driver is frustrated because they get stuck behind a bus, a college student is thankful because they get to ride the bus for free and save their money for other opportunities that they come upon in college.”

UAA was one of the first institutions to partner with People Mover. With UPASS, students registered on-campus and taking three or more credits have the ability to ride People Mover buses for free, along with Valley Mover and the Seawolf Shuttle, by simply swiping their Wolfcard. This is valid on any route, at any time and on any day the bus is operating. “[The partnership] is a mech-

anism to encourage the younger generation to take advantage of public transportation and build good habits now for the future,” Tillman said.

The exhibit will coincide with the annual “No Big Heads” juried exhibition in the Hugh McPeck Gallery. On the opening night of “No Big Heads,” pieces from The Platinum Partnership, along with ride guide covers from years past, will be on display outside of the gallery.

Anyone who views the artwork that night, whether they are affiliated with the university or not, will have the opportunity to vote on their favorite. The piece that receives the most votes will win the People’s Choice Award.

The “Platinum Partnership” art exhibit will take place from Oct. 18 to Nov. 6 outside of the Hugh McPeck Gallery on the second floor of the Student Union. To vote for your favorite piece, join in on the opening reception of “No Big Heads” on Oct. 18 at 5 p.m.

SPORTS

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Hockey opens up 2018-19 season

By Lauren Cuddihy sports@thenorthernlight.org

The Seawolves asserted their early season dominance in an exhibition game against Simon Fraser on Sept. 29.

After ranking No. 10 out of 10 teams in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association during the previous season, the Seawolves revamped their roster and coaching staff to start the season out strong.

With the departure of all coaching staff, the new Head Coach Matt Curley, his two assistant coaches Mark Phalon and Matt Bruneteau and a set of three new goaltenders, helped lead the team to a 5-1 win.

“It has been a long off season for all of us, myself included, and it is nice to finally get going. The guys have put in some great work in on the ice and in the weight room,” Curley said.

To kick the game off to a strong start, senior forward Nils Rygaard scored the first game of the night halfway into the first period. Rygaard’s goal was the only point scored during the first period for both teams.

Despite having a successful offense in all three periods of the game, the Seawolves excelled during the second period by scoring four of the five goals for the

PHOTO COURTESY OF SKIP HICKEY

Trey Degraaf celebrates a point against Simon Fraser.

night.

Only a minute into the period, junior defenseman Nolan Nicholas scored the second goal of the night, followed by junior forward Corey Renwick’s goal seven minutes later.

Renwick scored the only power-play of the night that put the Seawolves at a 3-point lead, 3-0.

Not even two minutes later, sopho-

more forward Jordan Xavier pushed the lead to 4-0 with another goal. Continuing the scoring streak, junior forward Jonah Renouf scored the final goal of the game for the Seawolves 13 minutes into the second period.

With less than 60 seconds left in the second period, Simon Fraser made an attempt at redemption, scoring their only goal of the game.

At 5-1, the final period was uneventful with neither team scoring.

In addition to the five scoring members, three goaltenders rotated in and out through the game to prevent Simon Fraser from scoring.

Sophomore Brody Claeys helped lead the group of goaltenders in the first season without previous standout Olivier Mantha, who departed UAA to play professionally.

Claeys was joined by freshman Kristian Stead and sophomore Kris Carlson.

Claeys played part of last season for the Seawolves finishing with a .898 save percentage. Stead redshirted last year due to injury, and Carlson just transferred to UAA after one year at Providence.

Despite the 5-1 win, the game did not count as a regular season game for the Seawolves. The following weekend lead them into regular season competition.

“I think the ability to open up at home against [Colorado College], in front of our fans here in Anchorage, is a great opportunity,” Curley said. “It is nice to start off on the right foot with, and then we can acclimate traveling on the road and getting into league play.”

The Seawolves hosted Colorado College on Oct. 6-7 at Sullivan Arena before traveling to Michigan on Oct. 26 and 27 to play against Ferris State University.

Meet a member of the goaltending trio

By Lauren Cuddihy sports@thenorthernlight.org

For the last four years, Olivier Mantha was the star of the UAA hockey team, setting records and winning awards. The Quebec local departed from UAA in 2018 with a final tally of 3,449 saves; his saverecord is the highest in UAA history.

Overall, he spent 6,973 minutes playing for the team to finalize his .908 save percentage before playing professionally.

With Mantha’s departure, the spot was left open with high expectations. A trio of young players were suited to play his spot with the starting position still up in the air.

Kristian Stead, eligible as a freshman, is now entering his second season with the Seawolves after suffering a seasonending injury in 2017, which forced him to redshirt for the 2017-18 season.

Originally from Merritt, B.C, Stead came to Alaska after playing two seasons on the Nipawin Hawks Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League. It was there that he posted an impressive .936 save average during his final season of 42 games.

Additionally, during the playoff games of his final season, he averaged an improved save average of .946.

Due to his impressive statistics, Stead was named SJHL’s MVP and Top Goaltender just before coming to UAA. He

PHOTO COURTESY OF DEVAN TASA

Kristian Stead returns this season after an injury in 2017.

also captured the CJHL Top Goaltender award by being nominated as the best netminder in Canada Junior A hockey.

However, just coming into UAA, Stead suffered an injury in fall of 2017 that prevented him from playing his first year. The 2018-19 season will be the first season that Stead is playing for the Seawolves.

This was the first time in almost his entire life that Stead wasn’t actively playing hockey.

“I’ve been playing since I was 6 years old. My parents signed me up because I always enjoyed skating with my family.

I played one year of player before giving goalie a try, and then I never looked back,” Stead said.

Not surprisingly, he has spent almost his entire hockey career playing as goalie, which has built his impressive record to come to UAA. Unfortunately, due to his injury, Stead has not had a chance to prove himself to

the Seawolves.

“I’m eager to get the season going.

I’ve got everything to prove after how last year panned out,” he said. “I look forward to showcasing what I can bring to the team and doing what I can to help this team succeed.”

Starting off slow, Stead was able to play just one period of the exhibition game against Simon Fraser. Kris Carlson and Brody Claeys are also goalies for the Seawolves.

“The starting job is up for grabs; whoever performs will get the chance to play,” Stead said.

However, compared to Stead’s previous .936 save average, Carlson is coming in with .890 average and Claeys had a .898.

Stead is unsure how the goaltending responsibilities are going to be distributed for the remainder of the season, but he is motivated and confident that he will play a significant role in the Seawolves’ success.

He explained that, with new coaching staff and new players, they have worked hard to rebuild their team culture and they are excited to have a fresh start for the 2018-19.

Stead and his teammates will be back in action and on the road for Oct. 26 and 27 games against Ferris State University in Michigan.

OPINION UAA Faculty Senate needs restraint

By Ben Edwards

opinion2@thenorthernlight.org

The Faculty Senate at UAA serves as a forum for faculty to discuss, vote and recommend policy to UAA leadership. In the best of cases, the senate can achieve effective representation by advising Chancellor Cathy Sandeen on problems facing the faculty. In the worst of cases, the senate clashes with leadership and overlaps on non-faculty issues. The senate must exercise caution in these latter cases. Its recommendations should primarily concern the welfare of faculty in the context of UAA. It should refrain from policies that resist necessary reform or transgress on similar representative entities like USUAA. Section 2 of the senate’s constitution authorizes its purpose of providing consultative and advisory services to the chancellor on budgetary matters. There is nothing disagreeable with this as it stands. After all, faculty should be recognized as the integral bulk of what the university consists of and provides. How the budget is designed is absolutely pertinent to the welfare of the faculty.

However, the senate acts as a legislative body and is therefore democratic to an extent. Democracy tends to be uncooperative with budget reductions and structural reforms since it requires voting against your best personal interest.

This problem has manifested in several clashes between the senate and the UAA executive leadership. The first incident involved the senate’s November 2016 resolution on Strategic Pathways, a university reform project that UA President Jim Johnsen supports. The reform would emphasize the comparative advantages in UAA, UAF and UAS and eliminate redundancies with the understanding that all three universities cannot financially provide everything to everyone. The senate’s resolution on this did not challenge the principle necessity of Strategic Pathways, but it did recommend the suspension of its implementation until the role of faculty is increased. The senate argued that faculty are not sufficiently included in the reform’s decision-making process.

The resolution calls for a plurality of representation among faculty in programs under reform consideration.

Although faculty input is valuable in any reform, I think there is a strong case to be made for executive primacy here.

This is not to say that executive leadership should mandate reforms without any consideration and accountability. It simply means that executive leadership is the strongest actor because it has the most flexibility to make tough decisions. Few faculty members will advocate for a reduction to their own program. It is likely that no faculty members will advocate for the elimination of their own program.

So if executive primacy is not exercised, then the budget will never be balanced. If executive primacy is exercised, then the faculty feels wronged. The worst culmination of this problem can be found in the senate’s January 2017 vote of no confidence in President Johnsen.

To the senate’s credit, most of their budget-related resolutions include language recognizing Alaska’s difficult fiscal situations. I make no claim that UAA faculty are unobservant of that reality.

However, the senate should be temperate when it comes to its role in reform or budgetary matters. It has a right to access information and influence decision-making, but it should always avoid obstructing the tough decisions that executive leadership needs to make.

The other issue that the senate should avoid is infringing on student affairs via curriculum changes. The mechanism in which the senate influences curricula is through resolutions in support or opposition to proposed changes. In October of 2017, the senate passed a resolution in support of the Alaska Native Themed GER Initiative. This initiative requires all students starting in the fall 2018 semester to complete three credits of an Alaskan Native-themed course in order to graduate with an Associate of Arts or Baccalaureate degree. The problem here is that the senate is advocating for a policy that would affect students more than faculty. It should be strictly the domain of USUAA, as the official representation for students, to advocate on matters overwhelmingly affecting students.

The University of Alaska has a clear structure that encourages localized power. Students influence USUAA, and vice versa. Faculty influence the senate, and vice versa. Executive leadership reserves the right to exercise its primacy in sensitive matters, such as reform. This is the best system for a functional university.

The senate is welcome to communicate freely, but it should exercise restraint in its resolutions concerning non-faculty specific issues.

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USUAA Presidential Message As USUAA, Union of Students of the University of Alaska Anchorage, we serve as your voice by protecting your rights, promoting general welfare and striving to enhance the quality of the educational experience. Today, we are thrilled to share with you the updates on the goals we set at the beginning of this academic year.

Advancing the Culture of Respect We believe a true advancement of the culture may be achieved by engaging in meaningful conversations with each other. Thus, UAA’s Office of Equity and Compliance is offering the series of Title IX In-Person Training as an alternative to the online module.

Increasing Transparency in the Student Fees Review Cycle To ensure every student has an opportunity to engage in the conversation as we evaluate and review student fees with campus departments, we will require all departments considering a fee increase to provide evidences of a student input to the General Assembly.

Promoting Awareness of Food Insecurity and Homelessness We fully support the Hunger and Homelessness Support Network committee as they research and evaluate ways to support individuals dealing with food insecurity and homelessness while attending classes.

Upcoming events: Oct. 12 (9 p.m.-1 a.m.) - UAA Home-

coming Dance (Dena’ina Center) The event hosted by USUAA has become a UAA tradition that brings together more than 1,000 students.

Don’t miss a chance to purchase the tickets in advance with a discount!

Oct. 15 (5:30-7 p.m.) - UAA Gubernatorial Debate (Wendy Williamson Auditorium) For the first time in the USUAA’s history, we have organized a largescale political event that is a result of the astounding cooperation of individuals and departments of UAA. Special thanks to the UAA Seawolf Debate Program and University Advancement.

Oct. 25 (2-3 p.m.) - Student Fee Review Open Forum (Student Union Den) An opportunity hosted by USUAA to share with the student body proposed changes to the student fee and to solicit input prior to a campus-wide survey that will be conducted later in the fall.

Find more information and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram or at usuaa.org to stay up to date with what is happening.

Sincerely, Geser Bat-Erdene UAA Student Body President (907) 786-1206 | usuaa.president@ alaska.edu

OPINION

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Face Off: Should Palestinians have a state?

The ongoing struggle between Israelis and Palestinians has yet to be resolved.

Contentious debates and conflicts arise

over mutual recognition, borders, security, settlements and the status of Jerusalem. The international community

has attempted to broker the two-state solution, which proposes the creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel. The

set of agreements, called the 1993 Oslo Accords, set the two-state process in motion.

The two-state solution is unworkable The two-state solution is the only

By Ben Edwards

opinion2@thenorthernlight.org

Twenty-five years after the Oslo Accords, the two-state solution has yet to be attained. A cluster of problems have ensued: frequent eruptions of violence, the 2006 election of the extremist party Hamas and a systemic breakdown of negotiation between the relevant parties.

The Palestinian Authority was set up as the interim government responsible for addressing these problems. They have consistently failed at nearly every measure necessary for legitimacy, which explains why this interim regime has yet to evolve into a real state as the Oslo Accords intended.

Despite all of these obvious problems, the international community remains obsessed with the defunct two-state solution. This degree of diplomatic tunnel vision is so pervasive that it completely stalls any meaningful progress on the Palestinian question. It isn’t hard to see why. Borders, refugees and access to Jerusalem are all issues left unresolved, and the proposals for addressing them require concessions that neither side believes to be acceptable.

The two-state solution implies the creation of the State of Palestine. However, there is good reason to be skeptical about the stability of such a nation. From the lowest civil servant to the presidency, corruption and incompetence reign supreme in all echelons of Palestinian governance. The Palestinian security forces are over 83,000 strong, but Amnesty International reports that they frequently abuse the rights and welfare of the civilians they’re charged to protect. The rivalry between two Palestinian factions, Fatah and Hamas, entrenches political dysfunction and fosters violent infighting. The weakness of Palestinian institutions makes them prime targets for Saudi and Iranian influence, who are more concerned with thwarting each other in geopolitical chess than improving the lives of Palestinians. The two territories of West Bank and Gaza Strip share no border with each other, thus limiting the PA’s ability to maintain control over both.

If a two-state solution is declared today, then the new State of Palestine would immediately devolve into a failed state. Israeli national security cannot be gambled away on such a volatile neighbor.

Escaping our collective tunnel vision on this issue requires deeper consideration of the alternatives. The three-state solution is the best path forward. This proposal requires cooperation between Israel, Jordan and Egypt. It would invite Jordanian control over the West Bank and Egyptian control over the Gaza Strip.

Israel’s national security would be better served if its neighbors are established and predictable Arab states, as opposed to a turbulent Palestinian failed state that the two-state solution would conjure.

Jordan controlled the West Bank before 1967. It could easily resume administration over portions of the West Bank predominantly populated by Palestin-

ians. Israel and Jordan will have to work through a case-by-case process to decide which settlements are legitimate and which are not. The age of the settlement, its security and its population are some of the factors that would be pertinent to its legitimacy. The biblical-based arguments that some Israeli settlers use should be disregarded in this secular process. On the other hand, the argument that the West Bank constitutes occupied territory, and therefore all Israeli settlements are illegitimate, is flawed. Supporters of the occupied territory mantra point towards Israel’s invasion of the West Bank in 1967. Curiously, they do not apply the same attention to Jordan’s invasion and annexation of the West Bank between 1948 and 1950. Only two countries in the world at that time recognized the legality of Jordan’s conquest. Effective diplomacy recognizes that history is only useful as supporting evidence, not as an argument in itself.

If Jordan controls the West Bank, then the seat of government for Palestinians will be Amman. This renounces the Palestinian claim to Jerusalem as a capital. If Israel is truly committed to a sustainable peace, then it will need to retain its capital in Tel Aviv and treat Jerusalem with impartiality. There is already a tradition of collaboration between Israel and Jordan that will make Jerusalem’s neutrality realistic. The Hashemite dynasty that rules Jordan currently acts as the custodian for important Muslim holy sites in the city. This provides a guarantee that Palestinian Muslims will still have access to Jerusalem as needed.

Egyptian control over the Gaza Strip will be trickier, but it is still a superior option than continuing the irresolute blockade of the territory. However, Israel does have a common enemy with Egypt’s military dictatorship: terrorism.

The Egyptians are already struggling to tame an insurgency in the Sinai Peninsula. Israel’s highly effective intelligence agency, Mossad, can offer cooperation to the Egyptians on the Sinai problem. The fragility of that area is just as concerning to Israel as it is to Egypt. In exchange, Egyptian leaders should be open to finding a decisive conclusion for the Gaza Strip. Since Hamas is unlikely to willingly cede control, Israel should advocate for a coalition-based invasion to ensure the destruction of the terrorist organization. This coalition would include Israel and Egypt as core participants with Saudi Arabia as a possible ally on the promise of thwarting Iranian influence in Gaza.

If such an alliance can be arranged, even temporarily, then it would pave the way for future coexistence between Israel and its Arab neighbors.

Charting a realistic path forward for Israel and Palestine is not easy, but moving forward is better than being stuck on failed ideas. Twenty five years of intermittent violence and no diplomatic breakthrough has exposed the two-state solution as wholesomely unworkable.

Persisting on it amounts to kicking the can down the road.

path to justice for Palestinians

By Robert Hockema opinion@thenorthernlight.org

The story of the Israeli state is a tale of tragedy. Forced from Europe during the Second World War, Jews who were subjected to gruesome anti-Semitism came home to their native lands seeking refuge. Their return to the promised land was marked by celebration and rejoice and set a model for historic and religious claims for statehood that have lasted decades.

Unfortunately, the Israeli state is a tale of more than just one tragedy. What followed after the birth of Israel was also the disenfranchisement of a peoples who had long resided on the lands before Jewish refugees returned. Palestinian peoples were pushed from their homes after the failure of British partition in 1948 and again during the Six-Day War of 1967.

Defying agreements proposed by the United Nations, Israel blew past territory reserved for them and invaded Palestinian lands well past the historic ceasefire line.

The Israeli government then used their newfound authority to cement the presence of illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, violently pushing Palestinians from their homes in the process. The occupation of the Gaza Strip, beginning after the Six-Day War, threw the area into economic disarray and fomented deep divisions as a result of Israel’s violent enforcement of their territorial claims.

To this day, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip suffer atrocious human rights abuses. Though a primary culprit is Hamas, an armed insurgency governing the strip as the Palestinian Authority, their creation stems from Israeli subjugation of the Palestinian people. The Israeli government arbitrarily and routinely shuts down access to electricity and water.

They monitor who comes in and out of the state, which makes access to import and export markets more difficult. Human Rights Watch and other international organizations maintain a laundry list of abuses perpetrated by Israel that keep the Gaza Strip extremely poor and demoralized.

Palestinians in the West Bank to this day are in a slightly better position. But illegal settlements continue to squeeze families out of their communities, which the Israeli Defense Forces enforces with a brutal hand.

As a whole, Palestinians have been cut off from productive sources of wealth, freedom of movement and access to necessary institutions in society, like education. There is nobody to represent Palestinians but an uncompromising state that

enforces a 21st-century apartheid.

Solutions to solve this decades-long humanitarian catastrophe have stalled or failed. Most famously, the Camp David and Oslo Accords have proposed a twostate solution, which would guarantee a Palestinian state alongside the existence of Israel. This solution is difficult because it requires an agreement on whose territory is whose and a willingness by both sides to recognize each other’s right to national sovereignty.

However, a Palestinian state is far better than its alternatives. A three-state solution, which would cede Palestinian territories to Egypt and Jordan, requires neighboring states to co-opt the economic crisis ravaging the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

Another solution proposed is the formalization of Palestinian rights under the Israeli state, effectively expanding the state of Israel to include the West Bank and Gaza Strip. This idea is preposterous.

Israeli citizens fearing that their interests would be outvoted by Palestinians in the Knesset, the Israeli Legislature, would surely resent Palestinians. At worst, it could lead towards a larger conflict and exacerbate the crisis.

These are mostly practical considerations that make alternative solutions nearly impossible. But most importantly, rooted in these alternative solutions is an overarching principled issue at stake: these solutions fail to return any land to Palestinians. Anything other than a twostate solution concedes the system of colonization and apartheid that has shackled Palestinians to an unjust state. The only rightful restitution of that theft is a solution that places control of governmental, economic and territorial rights in the hands of the Palestinian people.

Challenges are certainly present in the two-state solution, but the Israeli government has the ability to cooperate with the international community in a way that alleviates concerns. Those who oppose two states say it is impossible to partition land in the West Bank being occupied by Israeli settlers.

I would remind those critics that the Israeli government not only incentivized the creation of those settlements, but that they also have the ability to remove them just as they created them. When Israel evacuated the IDF from the Gaza Strip in 2005, they removed many Israelis from their settlements. It was not easy, but other actors from the UN could send peacekeepers to ensure the safe passage of peoples to territory reserved for former Israeli settlers.

To this day, Palestinians are prisoners in a house that they built. Though the solution would not be easy, a two-state solution is the only way to free them.

10 | OPINION

Letter to the editor: 1 in 8 is too many From graduate student Mariah Seater, Young Alaskans for Anti-Poverty Initiatives.

According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is the nation’s most important anti-hunger program. The U.S. Census Bureau just released new data showing that 1 in 8 Americans lives in poverty.

Alaska is not immune to this struggle.

Currently, more than 73 percent of SNAP participants in Alaska are in families with children, almost 26 percent are in families with members who are elderly or have disabilities and more than 42 percent are in working Alaskan families. These numbers should shock all of us, especially since just a few months ago the House of Representatives took a vote that would make it harder for more

than a million low-income families to put food on the table. They proposed new requirements for SNAP (what we used to call “food stamps”) in their version of the farm bill, even though data shows that SNAP helped 21,000 Alaskans (including 11,000 children) and 3.4 million people nationwide move above the poverty line in 2017.

Fortunately, the Senate seems to understand what’s at stake and passed a bipartisan farm bill that protects SNAP. Now, though, both chambers are negotiating a final version of the legislation. I hope I can count on them to do the right thing and stand up for a program that helps over 40 million people, including 89,000 Alaskans, put food on the table.

Making cuts or changes to SNAP won’t help anyone find work or move out of poverty; it will just make people hungry.

Gubernatorial Debate

By Geser Bat-Erdene

USUAA President

In accordance with our strategic priorities of service and advocacy, USUAA is thrilled to provide a forum for students, faculty, staff and community members to hear directly from the gubernatorial candidates prior to this important November election. This event is a result of an unbelievable cooperation of many people and organizations who came together to make it happen.

Candidates in this year’s race for Alaska governor are participating in the first true debate-style format of this election. The event is designed to allow maximum time for the candidates to outline their position on the

chosen topic, which is “What role should the Permanent Fund Dividend play in addressing Alaska’s fiscal crisis?” Afterwards, a panel of journalists from the Anchorage Daily News (ADN), moderated by Steve Johnson, director of UAA’s Seawolf Debate program, will question each candidate on their respective position about how the PFD should be managed relative to the State of Alaska’s current fiscal woes.

We encourage you to attend in person on Oct. 15 at 5:30 p.m. in the Wendy Williamson Auditorium, but as an alternative, this event will be live-streamed by ADN. USUAA would also like to express deep appreciation to the UAA Seawolf Debate Program (Atwood Foundation), Anchorage Daily News, UAA Economics Club and University Advancement.

THENORTHERNLIGHT

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2018

The United States needs a Permanent Fund Dividend

By Robert Hockema

opinion@thenorthernlight.org

For Alaskans, few things are sweeter than the sight of $1,600 in Permanent Fund Dividend money rolling into our checking accounts. Many of us will spend our cash on new laptops, plane tickets and snow machines. With Black Friday quickly approaching, there’s no doubt we’re due for long lines at Fred Meyer and the outlet stores at malls.

Yet, many of us forget that, for many Alaskans, the PFD is the difference between getting by and being unable to afford basic expenses. Though we often splurge on products and luxuries, much of the $1 billion distributed on Thursday won’t circulate through the Alaskan economy. Only 8 percent will end up in Alaskan businesses, and luxury spending on non-essentials usually only occurs in the short-term.

Far more common are the Alaskans who set aside their money to ensure their kids can afford college or who lodge their money in savings accounts to weather financial troubles. Without the PFD, basic needs like food, housing amenities and school supplies are out of reach for poorer Alaskans. New research from the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Institute for Social and Economic Research finds that the PFD lifts somewhere between 15,000 and 25,000 Alaskans above the poverty line each year. The same research concludes that those effects are most evident in rural populations, particularly among Alaska Natives.

By all means, the PFD serves as a universal basic income for many Alaskans.

It has even been successful in closing the income gap between rural Alaska Natives and urban Alaskans. But for the more than 40 million Americans who remain in poverty outside Alaska, little is being done to bridge the growing income divide.

Perhaps it’s time for the federal government to take the Alaska model to the national level. It’s far better than alternatives failing in the status quo: underfunded and broken welfare programs, stateled spending and tax-breaks for wealthy Americans and corporations don’t seem to be doing it the trick.

A national PFD might even be easier to fund than our own. Taxes on certain types of wealth, such as property and bequests, could be used to disburse across income levels, which would eliminate poverty for millions of Americans. Matt

Bruenig, founder of the People’s Policy Project, suggests a “social wealth fund” that accumulates stakes in equity, property and bond markets and then disburses a share of its investment. This is quite similar to the way the PFD works: royalties from oil revenues are thrown into a diversified portfolio which is spread to Alaskans through a yearly dividend.

A national PFD surely has its concerns. Many fear that free money would discourage people from working. To the contrary, not only is there no evidence that our own PFD discourages labor participation, but also that the capital spent on goods and services promotes the creation of jobs. A 2016 report from ISER showed that capping the PFD would have a net negative effect on jobs on 892 jobs.

Areas that would benefit the most in U.S. are communities suffering from structural unemployment. Midwestern states like West Virginia and Michigan that have been ravaged by automation and outsourcing are unlikely to see their jobs come back anytime soon, leaving citizens stranded in economic wasteland. A national PFD would alleviate increasing rates of poverty, allowing those left behind to afford basic needs. The proliferation of crime and opioid use that comes as a result of mass job loss and poverty would also likely slow down.

Additionally, historically marginalized communities would disproportionately benefit from this policy. Governments have actively disenfranchised communities of color through discriminatory housing policies, educational inequities and mass incarceration. As a result, African Americans, Hispanics and Native Americans are far more likely to be poor than whites are.

More importantly, policies to rectify these inequities have been either counterproductive or negligible in effect. The most immediate, tangible way to address systemic poverty resulting from racist policies is to give capital back to those communities.

Alaska is known for doing things differently. We legalized abortion years before Roe vs. Wade passed, spearheaded a successful automatic voter-registration program that’s becoming the norm across the country and implemented the first and only successful social wealth fund in the U.S. The federal government should try things the Alaskan way and adopt a universal policy that would benefit millions of Americans trapped in structural poverty.

CONTACT

THENORTHERNLIGHT

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2018

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