The Spectrum Volume 62 Issue 24 by The Spectrum Student Periodical

the Independent Student Publication of the University at Buffalo, Since 1950

The S pectrum ubspectrum.com

Volume 62 No. 24

Friday, October 26, 2012

Kendrick Lamar album review

Story on page 5

Getting to know a Stampede driver

Story on page 4

COACH BO Oliver takes setback in stride, mentors young Campbell AARON MANSFIELD Editor in Chief

Photo illustration by Haider Alidina /// The Spectrum

2 Corinthians 12:9 – My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Junior running back Branden Oliver was on his way to the best rushing season in UB history for the second straight year. On Sept. 19, on national television, the all-everything back exited UB’s game against Kent State with a left-leg injury. He missed the second half and his team lost, but the damage appeared minor. He had never missed more than two weeks in his life and was listed as day to day, expected to suit up the next weekend against UConn. He has not played since. The Bulls have not won a game since he went down. Until last weekend, Oliver’s status remained day to day and nobody knew why he wasn’t playing. The athletic department kept his status secretive to bewilder opponents. Oliver is in the final stages of recovering from a grade-two left MCL tear. Essentially, he was the offense. It seemed only an injury could slow Oliver, who was on pace to break his own school record for rushing yards. It would make sense for him to be frustrated, devastated, depressed. But that is not Oliver’s style. The star back – who was named to three national award watch-lists before the season and made first-team all-MAC last year – counters adversity with positivity. He says he relies on his Christian faith to get him through arduous times. He has taken the misfortune as a chance to guide explosive-but-inexperienced

freshman Devin Campbell – the current starter who was fourth on UB’s depth chart at the beginning of the season. Judging by Campbell’s performance, Oliver might have a future in coaching. James 1:2-4 – Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. The Bulls’ monumental struggles – punctuated by a 45-3 embarrassment at Northern Illinois two weeks ago and an uninspiring 20-6 loss against Pittsburgh in UB’s homecoming game last Saturday – are no coincidence. Oliver, who set the school’s modern Division I record with 1,395 rushing yards last season, is clearly the Bulls’ biggest offensive weapon. He had 425 yards through two and a half games. He was competing with the NCAA’s best backs and could have won some national hardware, not to mention his NFL stock was burgeoning. Then he got stuck between two defensive linemen on a draw play in the second quarter against Kent State. He said he should have gone down but fought for extra yards and tore his MCL as a result. Sounds like enough to get a normal college athlete down. But Oliver doesn’t see things like an everyday 21-year-old. “It’s hard watching on the sidelines, but I’ve just got to keep my faith and keep motivating my teammates,” Oliver said. “I’ve just got to be patient. I know God has it all in his plan and something great is going to come out of it.” Continued on page 2

State-of-the-art dining hall Folks named engineering dean opens in Ellicott Complex CALEB LAYTON Staff Writer

SAM FERNANDO Staff Writer After narrowing the field to four candidates, the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) has selected Liesl Folks as the new dean of the engineering school. Folks’ position will be effective at the beginning of the Spring 2013 semester. She will be one of seven women in the nation serving as dean of a school of engineering. “I am very excited to be joining the UB team next month,” Folks said in an email. “I look forward to gaining an understanding of the great depth and breadth of activities underway in SEAS and to working with the excellent students, staff and faculty on achieving the strategic goals of SEAS and UB. I am sure it will take some adjustment for me to migrate from industry back to academia, but I have already received many kind offers of help from the UB team, for which I am very grateful.” Folks will replace Harvey G. Stenger Jr., who stepped down in April 2011 when he became the interim provost and eventually the president of Binghamton University.

Courtesy of UB Communication

Liesl Folks is the new School of Engineering and Applied Sciences dean. She is one of only seven women in the nation serving as an engineering school dean.

Rajan Batta, an industrial and systems engineering professor, has served as the acting dean since Stenger’s departure. Folks has 15 years of experience in the private sector as a nanotechnologist in the magnetic data storage industry in Silicon Valley. She is an internationally recognized leader in scanning probe microscopy.

UB students have never seen a dining hall like the newly built Crossroads Culinary Center (C-3). On Thursday, Oct. 24, UB unveiled C-3, the new $10 million student dining facility located in the Red Jacket quadrangle within the Ellicott Complex. The facility has attracted attention for its environmentally friendly technology, its unique restaurants and its Marche-style kitchen where students can watch the food being made in front of them. “It’s the best dining hall [in the country],” said Jeff Brady, executive director of Campus Dining and Shops (CDS). “[Campus dining] has never done anything this big before ... It’s going to give students a different type of dining experience.” The dining hall consists of nine different eateries, eight different restaurant-style seating sections, a fireside lounge and it features an executive chef. Students can order gourmet items like lobster and prime rib. Brady, who has been involved in the center’s creation for over four years, said C-3 was designed to benefit the students.

Continued on page 2

Inside

Opinion 3 Life 4

Alexa Strudler /// The Spectrum

On Thursday, Oct. 24, UB unveiled C-3, the new $10 million student dining facility located in the Red Jacket Quadrangle within the Ellicott Complex. The dining hall consists of nine different eateries and eight different restaurant-style seating sections.

“This is [the students’] dining hall – not ours – and when we made this dining hall we got the students involved,” Brady said. “We had 70 focus groups with students, asking them what they were looking for. We found out what they wanted, and we heard [them] loud and clear: healthy food, fresh food, a restaurant style atmosphere and food that served all cultures.” C-3 offers a diverse selection of dietary options including Greek, Chinese, Italian and Brazilian cuisines, along with tradi-

tional college campus meals, such as New York-style pizza. At a special preview of C-3 on Tuesday Oct. 22, students were impressed with the variety of options and the overall quality of the food. “The food was great,” said Jeremy Ferris, a senior political science major. “At first I was almost overwhelmed with what I should eat first, then I just ended up eating everything ...With this place just opening now, maybe I won’t graduate [this year].”

Arts & Entertainment 5

Classifieds & Daily Delights 7

Sports 8

Continued on page 6

ubspectrum.com

Continued from page 1: COACH BO

Election Cheat Sheet: The Economy JAKE STEINMETZ Freelance Writer With high rates of unemployment and sluggish economic growth, the fate of the economy is among the most important issues of the presidential campaign. Here’s a breakdown of what President Barack Obama and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney are offering as solutions. Taxes Romney proposed to lower all income tax rates by 20 percent and make the Bush tax cuts permanent. He plans to reduce the corporate tax rate to 25 percent and promises to prevent taxes on dividends. He also plans to prevent capital gains taxes for those earning less than $250,000 per year. Obama plans to let the Bush tax cuts expire for households with an income over $250,000 but keep them for households earning less. Obama also pledged to eliminate tax breaks for companies that move jobs overseas. Spending Romney proposed to cap federal spending at 20 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) and pledged to introduce a constitutional amendment that requires a balanced budget. He continually condemns Obama’s decision to bail out the auto industry. He vowed to reduce federal funding to several programs including Amtrak, PBS and the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for Humanities. Romney has also been adamant in overturning Obamacare and returning healthcare decisions to the states. Obama has remained firm on his decision to bail out the auto industry and the financial sector and believes stimulus spending and tax cuts are viable shortterm solutions to help the economy grow. Obama was at the forefront of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which attempts to provide universal health coverage throughout the United States. The clause, which mandates the purchase of healthcare coverage is said to be modeled after Romney’s healthcare system in Massachusetts and has been especially contentious. Romney said Obamacare would not work at the federal level. The Federal Reserve Romney promised to replace Federal Reserve Chairman Benjamin Bernake and his adherence to quantitative easing. He said reduced interest rates are necessary in stimulating the economy. Many have speculated the economist and academic Glenn Hubbard would be Romney’s first choice for chairman. Though not clearly stated, many believe Obama would keep Bernake as chairman of the Federal Reserve. Email: news@ubspectrum.com

Proverbs 22:6 – Train up a child in the way he should go. Even when he is old, he will not depart from it. Campbell was thrown into the fire after injuries to Oliver, back-up sophomore James Potts and third-string junior Brandon Murie. He has not disappointed. No true freshman in UB’s modern Division I era had ever rushed for more than 100 yards in a game. Campbell has done it twice. “We feel good about where Devin is,” said head coach Jeff Quinn after the Bulls’ loss to Pittsburgh on Saturday. “He’s performed as well as any true freshman I’ve coached at the running back position.” The young back said his success is thanks largely to Oliver. “He’s been guiding me along, keeping my head in it,” Campbell said. “He teaches me my reads, how he did it and what he does in certain situations. It makes me feel really good, really comfortable on this team, to know that I have somebody who is mentoring me in a way that I can be just like him and be as successful as him.” Before Green Bay Packers running back James Starks left UB, he said he knew Oliver would break his rushing records. Now Oliver is passing on the tradition to Campbell. Campbell thinks the two can complement each other when Oliver returns. The freshman said he has the speed and Oliver has the power and vision. Either can decoy and confuse the defense. Quinn is putting together a two-back system to integrate both backs. “I came up here to get on the field in some way,” Campbell said. “I knew Bo was the guy, he was the big-time player, so I just wanted to get on the field any way I could. I’m thankful I’ve gotten this opportunity.” Oliver’s biggest advice for the freshman? He reminds Campbell of it constantly: attack the edge and don’t be afraid to cut back. “He has the speed to do it all,” Oliver said. “It’s been great to see his development.” The 5-foot-11, 195-pound Campbell will likely be even more dangerous when he has put in time with the Bulls’ worldclass strength and conditioning coach, Zach Duval, who helped Oliver become the player he is today. Quinn told Campbell to “make himself noticed” every day on the practice field. UB’s coach knew the youngster was special before he ever stepped into UB Stadium.

“He’s a very mature young man who comes from a great family,” Quinn said. “I loved recruiting him just because he fit everything I look for in a young man: someone who understands the value of an education and work ethic and the demands this game at this level places on these kids. “He’s been able to handle it and go out there and show us his stuff. Given the opportunity, he took advantage of it.” Quinn’s favorite moment of Campbell’s season came on Oct. 6 at Ohio – a game in which Campbell rushed for 160 yards and a touchdown. A linebacker stepped right in front of Campbell, but the back lowered his shoulder and ran over the larger defenseman. Quinn said Campbell “pulled a Bo.” 2 Corinthians 4:16 – Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. Oliver limped through the hardest season of his life two years ago when he was a freshman. He ran for 336 yards and no touchdowns. He said he knew what he was capable of but just couldn’t make it happen. Today, it seems Oliver is right back where he was in 2010 – he has had to watch from the sidelines, as he recuperates, knowing his team would likely be sitting much prettier than 1-6 if he were healthy. The Bulls have not beaten a Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) team this year. Oliver can’t do anything about it. He sees 2010 and 2012 as two completely different situations, though. The 5-foot-8 junior has embraced his responsibility as a role model – in good times and bad. “I can coach Devin Campbell and help him out, so there’s a big difference,” Oliver said. “It’s always hard watching, you know? You want to be out there with your brothers contributing, but I feel good because I can sit back and see what [the coaches] see. It’s been a beneficial experience.” Oliver said there is one thing he can’t wait to experience again: winning. “[My teammates] keep asking me if I’m playing since I got hurt,” Oliver said. “They ask me: ‘Are you playing this week? Are you playing this week?’ They want me to come back, but I just keep telling them: ‘It’s your turn, y’all gotta grind, it ain’t all about one person.’” Oliver is targeting Saturday’s home game against conference powerhouse Toledo (7-1, 4-0 Mid-American Conference) for his return.

Friday, October 26, 2012

Continued from page 1: Folks named engineering dean Folks is looking forward to leaving a mark on UB in her new position and plans to use real-world experience to achieve her goals for SEAS. Provost Charles Zukoski was crucial in the selection process. He said the 12 deans of all the schools at UB report to him and, as a result, he has a primary responsibility for their appointments. It was the combination of Folks’ experience in the private sector and academia that ultimately led to the decision, according to Zukoski. “Dr. Folks has a unique blend of academic and industry experience and is the ideal candidate to lead the SEAS,” Zukoski said in an email. “Her credentials in managing research organizations, her association with academic institutions and her energy and enthusiasm about the educational enterprise led me to offer [her the position].” Bruce Pitman, the dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, was on the search committee that was responsible for interviewing candidates and reporting findings to Zukoski and President Satish Tripathi. Before the selection was made, Pitman said “the next dean needs to develop a vision for the School [of Engineering and Applied Sciences] and a pathway to increase the prestige and reputation for SEAS.” Zukoski agrees and believes Folks is the candidate who exemplifies what UB and SEAS are looking for. “Dr. Folks brings a clear and ambitious vision for the future direction of engineering education and research,” Zukoski said. “With this vision, she brings deep experience in understanding the needs of the private sector and how the research undertaken by faculty and students can have an impact both regionally and globally.” Email: news@ubspectrum.com

Email: sports@ubspectrum.com

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Opinion

Friday, October 26, 2012 ubspectrum.com

EDITORIAL BOARD Editor in Chief Aaron Mansfield Senior Managing Editor Brian Josephs Managing Editor Rebecca Bratek Editorial Editor Ashley Steves News EDItors Sara DiNatale, Co-Senior Lisa Khoury, Co-Senior Ben Tarhan Lisa Epstein, Asst. LIFE EDITORS Rachel Kramer, Senior Lyzi White Keren Baruch Jacob Glaser, Asst. ARTS EDITORS Elva Aguilar, Senior Adrien D’Angelo Duane Owens, Asst. Lisa de la Torre, Asst. SPORTS EDITORS Nate Smith, Senior Joe Konze Jon Gagnon, Asst. PHOTO EDITORS Alexa Strudler, Senior Satsuki Aoi Reimon Bhuyan, Asst. Nick Fischetti, Asst. PROFESSIONAL STAFF OFFICE ADMINISTRATOR Helene Polley ADVERTISING MANAGER Mark Kurtz CREATIVE DIRECTOR Aline Kobayashi Brian Keschinger, Asst. Haider Alidina, Asst. ADVERTISING DESIGNER Joseph Ramaglia Chris Belfiore Ryan Christopher, Asst. Haley Sunkes, Asst.

October 26, 2012 Volume 62 Number 24 Circulation 7,000 The views expressed – both written and graphic – in the Feedback, Opinion, and Perspectives sections of The Spectrum do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial board. Submit contributions for these pages to The Spectrum office at Suite 132 Student Union or news@ubspectrum.com. The Spectrum reserves the right to edit these pieces for style and length. If a letter is not meant for publication please mark it as such. All submissions must include the author’s name, daytime phone number, and email address. The Spectrum is provided free in part by the Undergraduate Mandatory Activity Fee. The Spectrum is represented for national advertising by both Alloy Media and Marketing, and MediaMate. For information on adverstising with The Spectrum visit www.ubspectrum.com/ads or call us directly. The Spectrum offices are located in 132 Student Union, UB North Campus, Buffalo, NY 14260-2100

The power of words Stephens’ open letter should serve as an example We should all learn a lesson from John Franklin Stephens. Ann Coulter, the Conservative queen of political punditry, has once again been receiving backlash for the last week following a couple of unsurprisingly offensive tweets. During Monday night’s debate, she wrote, “I highly approve of Romney’s decision to be kind and gentle to the retard.” A day later, she struck again: “Obama: “Stage 3 Romneysia” - because cancer references are HILARIOUS. If he’s “the smartest guy in the room” it must be one retarded room.” While the “Twitterverse” reacted with equally harsh retorts, Stephens, a 30-year old Special Olympics athlete with Down syndrome, responded with humor, poetic guilt, and kindness. He reasoned through her use of the r-word, wondering if she meant to describe the President as somebody “who has to struggle to be thoughtful about everything he says, as everyone else races from one snarkey sound bite to the next” Now that’s how you respond to viciousness. The letter has been circulating for the last three days with good reason. Stephens put more into that letter in less than 400 words than Coul-

ter has been able to do in nine books and countless articles. She will probably never address it and maybe never pay it any attention, but despite all that and despite her words, Stephens ended his letter with a chance to let bygones be bygones, addressing it as “a friend you haven’t made yet.” Anyone can respond in the heat of the moment with anger and outrage, and many people – especially through social media – proved that. But that moment can’t be changed or taken back. Unlike Coulter, some people don’t want their legacy to be negative or hurtful. So in the heat of the moment, Stephens responded not with anger but with love and pride. The good in people prevails. There’s so much to admire in Stephens’ piece because not many people could or would react like that. The old adage of “sticks and stones” will never be true. Words are the most powerful weapons we have – they can heal us and hurt us, inspire us and destroy us. Every bruise and cut will heal, but an insult hurled on the wrong day can cause so much more damage. But with our words, we also have the power to come back from those insults and respond so much more beautifully and eloquently.

Safe at home UB needs to step up security in residence halls A late night incident at Buffalo State landed the college on the morning news. Just before 4 a.m., two students were robbed at gunpoint in their dorm room. The suspects took cash and a cell phone and then fled the scene. Despite our SUNY counterpart being on the other side of town, there’s an important correlation between the schools: security. Just how safe is our school? On a College Prowler list of the safest campuses in New York, UB comes in at No. 80. Buff State ranks 93 on the list. Getting into UB dorms doesn’t take much strength. Between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., anyone can get into the buildings – students and strangers alike – due to the flow of students coming in and out for classes. And after that, as difficult as it may seem to get through our incredibly high-tech card swipe security system, you could just wait around for someone to come waltzing through the door to take advantage of his or her late night meal plan. Other colleges in the area have much tighter security. D’Youville College notes “stringent security procedures are in place to ensure the safety of all residents and college visitors,” providing access control with offers posted at resident halls 24/7. Canisius and Medaille both enact similar systems. All of these schools have one thing in common besides efficient security: they’re all private schools. But just because UB is a public university doesn’t mean that everyone from the public should be allowed to come in whenever they feel like it. Why do we have a living space that an entire administration is responsible and liable for just open like this? It’s not like it isn’t impossible to get past the gates of other schools, but all you need at UB is to employ a little patience. We have basically nothing keeping us safe in our beds. Three public schools make up the top 10 on the College Prowler list: CUNY John Jay Criminal Justice, CUNY Baruch College and SUNY Empire State College. Closest to home is SUNY Fredonia at number 13, which at the very least staffs the front lobby to the residence hall and locks all but the main door during overnight hours. Once whoever is inside, the responsibility is on the students

to keep their personal items safe, but the university needs to be aware of who is trying to get in and who is in the buildings. That is the school’s responsibility. That’s not saying students need their hands held, especially since it’s obvious some need a quick reality check. College is a scaled-down version of society – a system within a system. Therefore, what you learn at college is supposed to prepare you for “the real world.” It would be unfair to just blame the school’s poor execution. College students are some of the easiest targets, and in our University Police blotters, we’ve reported multiples cases of students having items stolen from their rooms while they were sleeping with their doors unlocked. In fact, fluorescent-orange flyers in Fargo Quadrangle have been catching the eyes of the buildings residents, not just because of the color but also for the content. The flyers warn students that “a string of robberies” have occurred throughout the building and reminded them to keep their doors locked whether they’re out for the day or out to the bathroom. According to UPD, there have been no robberies reported in Fargo and the flyer’s developer probably confused the difference between larcenies and robberies. E i ther way, people are having their stuff stolen. You are not at home anymore; you are in a different world with people you don’t know living on the other side of the wall from you. Just as the university should protect you, you need to take some responsibility. The school and its students can’t rest on the fact they reside in Amherst, which is named one of America’s safest cities year after year. Clearly, not everyone who goes here is from Amherst. UB should take some action to make the residence halls safer and more secure inside and out. Safety shouldn’t be as simple as swiping a card that someone could’ve dropped on the street and was picked up. Until anything changes, just remember to actually keep your doors locked. Email: editorial@ubspectrum.com

In at least one point in your life, you have probably used the r-word as an insult. Hopefully by now you’ve outgrown it, but maybe not. Maybe you’ve used it to describe your friends, your homework, your town. It slips off the tongue and for you, it disappears in the air, but for some it lingers. For some it hurts, but if it did for Stephens, we will never know the full extent. As for Ann Coulter, her tweets just further show the content of her character. She will talk until people stop listening, fueled by justifiable outrage. It is pitiful. And pitiable. She wakes up everyday with everything going for her, and she takes it for granted. On the other hand, Stephens wrote this: “Ms. Coulter, you, and society, need to learn that being compared to people like me should be considered a badge of honor. No one overcomes more than we do and still loves life so much.” It’s all about how you react to such hate and nonsense, and he turned this into just a speck in time. That’s a badge of honor in itself. Email: editorial@ubspectrum.com

If you ask him, he’ll say he didn’t do it SARA DINATALE Senior News Editor It’s estimated 80 to 94 percent of sexual assaults go unreported. It’s taken me a long time to admit I fall under that statistic. For years, I compartmentalized what happened to me. I pushed it to the back of my mind. The few times it would creep back into my consciousness, I was quick to tuck it away. I wasn’t raped, so I told myself what happened didn’t really matter. People have gone through worse. It wasn’t a big deal. I just had to let it go. I justified never telling anyone. I was 13 years old. I sat in the back of the school bus. It started nearing the end of the route; only a few us were left. I was talking to a boy, someone I looked at as a friend. We were flirting as much as two awkward middle schoolers are capable of flirting. I remember it being fun and silly. He was a popular kid – I didn’t mind the attention. I was wearing a yellow tank top and a brand new turquoise-striped cardigan. I don’t remember what was said. I made some sort of joke. I remember laughing. So when he climbed into my bus seat, I wasn’t concerned – I thought we were just going to continue being goofy. But then he forced himself on top of me. When I told him to get off, it was like he didn’t hear me. Things stopped being funny. My back was against window and he was pinning me again the bus wall. He felt me up. He pulled down my shirt. He exposed my right breast. I didn’t consent. I told him to stop. He was on top of me for less than minute. The bus stopped. He stood up. I pulled my shirt up. He bounced down the aisle and out the bus door to his house. He didn’t say a thing. I didn’t either. I was in shock. I felt empty. I didn’t know what to do. I just knew I was angry. He was the first person to see or touch that part of my body. That was not what I wanted. He was not who I wanted. I confronted him the next day. I told him I was angry. I told him I wasn’t OK with what happened. “Don’t act like you didn’t want it,” he told me. That’s when I decided to keep it to myself. I played out what I thought were the possible scenarios in my head. What if the school administrators didn’t believe me? It would be his word against mine. He would tell them I led him on. I was flirting with him. I convinced myself it was my fault. I didn’t push him away aggressively enough. I must have done something to make him think it was OK. I must have sent the wrong signals.

If he got in trouble, it would be moments before the whole school found out what happened. He’d tell everyone I was crazy. All his jock friends would hate me. What if the whole school sided with him? The thought of everyone knowing how he touched me made me anxious. So I kept my mouth shut. I decided to stop sitting in the back of the bus. The cool kids weren’t that cool. The altercation didn’t shatter my existence. It didn’t tear me down or make me think less of myself. But it shouldn’t have happened. I’m disgusted we live in a society where he felt those actions were appropriate and felt no guilt. I’m disgusted I accepted the blame for something that was never my fault. I regret not reporting him. While the fallout following may have been horrible, no one knowing what a scumbag he was is even worse. I did a good job of avoiding him, associating with him politely when I had to in any classes we had together. Sometimes I was tempted to ask him if he remembered that day on the bus because I’m convinced it wasn’t a big deal for him. I doubt that day sticks out in his memory at all. Then there was the day during sophomore year he called one of my openly gay friends a “faggot.” My friend was collecting money for charity and he had the audacity to sling a derogatory slur at him. I flipped out. I lit into him. I told him off. I yelled in his face. It felt great. But having addressed why I truly detested him back in middle school would have felt better. I was young and scared, but I still wish I came forward. Thursday night was Take Back the Night – an event aimed at empowering those who have survived sexual assault. I don’t consider myself a survivor. I didn’t experience the same horrors other women have – but what happened to me is still important. I know there are so many girls just on this campus who have gone through similar things, who brushed them off as “minor” occurrences. But just because people have endured worse doesn’t make what happened to me, or anyone else, irrelevant. My story isn’t special or uncommon. That’s what makes it so awful. For every one person who is strong enough to file a report, there are dozens of us too scared or embarrassed to speak up. This is something I’ve kept to myself for the past seven years. I want to implore others not to minimize what they may have gone through. It matters. What you did was wrong. I don’t blame myself anymore. Email: sara.dinatale@ubspectrum.com

Friday, October 26, 2012 ubspectrum.com

Life

One credit may change your life ADAM LEIDIG Staff Writer

Alexa Strudler /// The Spectrum

Grace Armbruster is a mother, grandmother and UB Stampede driver. She has been a Stampede driver since last November and has used determination to overcome dyslexia.

The woman behind the wheel Stampede driver Grace Armbruster overcomes dyslexia AMI DIALLO Staff Writer At 9 years old, Grace Armbruster faced one of the most challenging obstacles in her life. After struggling with reading in her classes for years, she finally found out why she always felt left behind and wasn’t learning things as fast as the rest of her classmates. She is dyslexic. According to research done by Headstrong Nation, one in seven Americans is diagnosed with learning disabilities. Dyslexia is a language-based learning disability characterized by difficulty in reading. Symptoms include talking later than most children and difficulty in pronouncing and reading words.

Despite her dyslexia, Armbruster took control of her life. She is a mother, a grandmother and a UB Stampede driver. She wouldn’t be where she is now without her determination. After discovering she was dyslexic at such a young age, Armbruster was terrified and discouraged. Kids made fun of her because she was in special education classes. Despite the torment, Armbruster was determined to manage her disability and never let it get in the way of her future. She tried to maintain a positive outlook. “I can’t control other people’s attitudes,” Armbruster said. “I can only control mine.” She didn’t let her illness stop her from living a full life. She became a member of the U.S. Army straight out of high school.

“Basically, it was something my mother couldn’t stop me from doing,” Armbruster said. “I went out there on my own, and I made it through even though I was handicapped, and that was tough.” While working for the military police for eight years, Armbruster gained experience as a driver and also met the love of her life. They have been married for 18 years and together they have three children. Armbruster is a grandmother of six and two more are on the way. She considers caring for family to be her other full-time job. She spends as much time with her grandkids as possible. “[Grandkids are] like seeing your kids grow up all over again and getting to spend time with them,” Armbruster said. “It’s a real joy.”

Hundreds of students pile into the lecture hall, take their seats and open up their computers to Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter. Conversation buzzes throughout the room. The last thing on anybody’s mind is what is going on in the front of the classroom. Unfortunately, this is the environment of many large three-credit lecture courses at UB. However, the Discovery Seminars Program is going to change that. The Discovery Seminars began in 2007 under the direction of then Provost and current President Satish Tripathi. The goal of the program is to enhance the undergraduate experience for UB students. The program provides students the ability to interact with a distinguished senior faculty member in a narrow focus in a small class environment. Danielle Vegas Kuroski, program coordinator for the Undergraduate Academies, plays an instrumental part in the logistics of the program and ensuring its continuing success. The American studies department offers diverse and thought-provoking courses such as Vampires and Zombies: Lives of the Undead and (In)famous. The department hopes more students will be drawn to the program due to these class additions. “We aim to offer between 20-25 seminars each semester, with an enrollment of between 15-20 students in each seminar,” Kuroski said. “This means that in any given semester, there could be between 300-500 students enrolled in the Discovery Seminar program. Approximately 100 distinguished faculty have taught in the Discovery Seminar program since its inception.” The program has been consistently growing since it began in 2007 and is now pulling professors from diverse

disciplines, such as oral biology and the SUNY Buffalo Law School. Dr. Donald McGuire, a professor in the classics department, is working to build upon the already vast program. He hopes to add new and innovative courses for the Spring 2013 semester. “So many students come into the university and face large courses across their curriculum and don’t have any positive, direct interaction with senior faculty, which is also a point of frustration for faculty,” McGuire said. McGuire faces these frustrations through his own experiences with teaching very large three-credit courses in massive lecture halls. “I get students coming to me their senior year and their first words out of their mouth are, ‘you probably don’t remember me but…’ They’re going out into the job world without any personal and functional interaction,” McGuire said. When students go to a professor for a letter of recommendation, many times they have not seen this professor since their freshman year and have no relational bond with them, which creates a disconnect, according to McGuire. The Discovery Seminars Program is attempting to change this. The classes given within the program are only one credit. Professors hope this will be less threatening and intimidating than the large three-credit courses and will encourage more students to enroll. The program aims to give students better insight into a discipline they might have interest in, without bombarding them with a sizeable workload that will overload their studies. Many of the courses also deal with very specific and in-depth concepts of the field they wish to enter, which gives them a taste of what it might be like to either be in the major or take a larger course in the field.

Continued on page 6

Continued on page 5

Tuesday October 30th: Haunted House, 11 am3pm AND 7pm11pm

[145 Student Union] Pumpkin Carving Caramel Apple and Cookie Decorating 122pm [Student Union Lobby]

Wednesday October 31th: Haunted House, 11 am3pm AND 7pm11pm [145 Student Union] Pumpkin Carving Caramel Apple and Cookie Decorating 122pm [SU Lobby] 12:30pm, Pumpkin Pie Eating Contest

Pumpkin Toss Competition 12pm2pm [SU Terrace] Office Trick or Treating 122pm [throughout SU] Psychic Fair 10am3pm [SU Social Hall] Trick or “Eat” 4:30pm7pm [SU Lobby] Halloween Movies 5pm, 7pm, 9pm, 11pm [SU Theater] Masquerade Ball, 11pm2am [SU Lobby]

UB Experience Scavenger Hunt & Scaredy Cat Photo Contest Begins 9am, 10/31 on Facebook!

Friday, October 26, 2012 ubspectrum.com

Arts & Entertainment

Courtesy of Aftermath

Alexa Strudler /// The Spectrum

UB Zeal practices for the Indian Student Association’s (ISA) 19th annual Muqabla intercollegiate dance competition. The event on Saturday will feature 12 teams – hailing from as far as Houston, Texas – at the Center For the Arts Mainstage Theater.

Cultures clash at CFA

ISA’s 19th-annual Muqabla brings competition from around the country ELVA AGUILAR Senior Arts Editor A tradition that lives almost two decades is a force to be reckoned with, especially in the fickle minds of college students. But it’s the camaraderie that comes along with the competition that makes the experience worthwhile. This Saturday, the Indian Student Association (ISA) will host its 19th annual Muqabla intercollegiate dance competition, which will feature 12 teams hailing from as far as Houston, Texas, at the Center For the Arts Mainstage Theater. According to senior biological sciences major and ISA President Mira Pandya, Muqabla has been a major reason for the growing popularity of Indian culture in the United States, especially in the Northeast. Eight of the 12 teams performing will travel from Binghamton, Albany, Geneseo and Rochester, N.Y. – the other four teams come from Massachusetts, Ohio, Texas and Pennsylvania – proving how much of a phenomenon Indian dance and culture has become. Each year, the competition introduces a new theme to the contenders. This year, ISA will pull inspiration from a popular aspect in Bollywood film: a lovestricken paradise.

“We want to see how these teams use love in their performances and [see] how creative they get,” Pandya said. “Whether [it be with] their props, choreography or songs – that’s how they’ll be judged.” Two UB dance groups will perform this weekend but not with each other. UB Bhangra, a dance group founded at UB in 2003, will showcase solely the Bhangra genre of dance and music. The Punjabi-influenced music incorporates loud drums and lyrical improvisation from its dancers and is common music in the Middle East. UB Zeal, a South Asian fusion dance team at UB, will be the other on-campus contender. The members have high expectations for their performance. UB Zeal was founded in 2009 and will return to Muqabla with a total of 14 members, and six are veterans of the annual competition at the CFA. Unlike UB Bhangra, UB Zeal includes multiple genres of music into its choreography. According to UB Zeal secretary and sophomore biological sciences major Vrinda Tarneja, the dance group’s musical selection includes not only Bollywood, punkra and other Indian-based music but also Latin, burlesque, contemporary, hip-hop and jazz music as well.

With Indian and Bollywood culture expanding across the country, it’s not uncommon for teams to travel as far as they are for these types of competitions. However, according to junior psychology major and UB Zeal co-captain Henna Khanijou, the teams at Muqabla have yet to meet and socialize with each other until now. “Until you’re part of the circuit, you never realize how many teams exist,” Khanijou said. “Almost every college has a dance team … [and this is] the first year we’re actually getting to mingle.” The competition will be limited to the stage, however. UB Zeal began practicing for Muqabla when the school year began. With the show quickly approaching, the group of 14 has built a bond the members believe will live long past their time at UB. “[Our] passion for dance and the social part [is fun but], these are my sisters,” Tarneja said. “This is our sisterhood.” Tickets for Muqabla are available at the CFA box office. Presale tickets will cost $8 and tickets will be $10 at the door. Email: arts@ubspectrum.com

Continued from page 4: One credit may change your life “We have a wide range of courses being given this spring. We have psychology courses, including one on bullying, and oral biology is going to [offer] a course called ‘open wide,’” McGuire said. With the wide range of courses offered in the spring semester alone, McGuire hopes more and more faculty will propose courses from their field because of the overwhelming response from professors across UB so far.

With many different fields of study engaging in the program, Dr. McGuire said the effects of every field will be diverse. “Different professors see different programs in different ways. We just want students to take an interest and bring something away from the program,” McGuire said. Geoff Brown, a sophomore pharmacy student, said the Discovery Seminars Program helped him choose a field of interest.

“I took a class that was on research with gastric acids and it definitely made me want to get into research in the field,” Brown said. Dr. McGuire, along with his distinguished colleagues, are excited to see the turnout of the spring 2013 Discovery Seminars Program. Email: features@ubspectrum.com

good kid, outstanding album BRIAN JOSEPHS Senior Managing Editor Album: good kid, m.A.A.d city Artist: Kendrick Lamar Label: Interscope/Aftermath Release Date: Oct. 22 Grade: ALast year’s Section.80 wasn’t perfect. It just feels perfect. Some of the hooks on the album were a bit shaky, and the production on some of the tracks was shallow. But it worked in Section.80’s context. In an album that’s essentially a critique of Generation Y, it would be easy to devolve into an hour’s worth of finger-pointing admonitions that give off an illusion of self-perfection. Part of the reason the album – and most of Kendrick Lamar’s catalog – resonates with fans because those minor flaws make his triumphs in tracks like “A.D.H.D,” “Ignorance is Bliss” and “Cartoons & Cereal” that much more rewarding. Lamar never claims to be perfect. It’s like he says in Section.80’s “Ab-Soul’s Outro”: “I’m not the next socially aware rapper/I am a human mother****ng being over dope ass instrumentation.” It’s that same sort of relatability that carries the excellent good kid, m.A.A.d city. The album is a story known all too well: the story of a young adult struggling not to go astray in a world of madness. But this story transcends your average coming-of-age tale. Rather than playing the role of storyteller, Lamar draws the listener into a body of work that is as thrilling as it is deep. The result is one of the greatest hip-hop albums in recent memory. The listener isn’t simply a listener for the duration of the album, but a bystander in Lamar’s travels. The Compton rapper’s lyricism and charisma has gotten to a point where he immerses the audience within the story instead of just telling it to them. The listener is right there with Lamar as he commits various reckless activities (“The Art of Peer Pressure”), having conversations about alcoholism in the outstanding “Swimming Pools (Drank)” or lusting “Sherane a.k.a Master Splinter’s Daughter.” Even the more boastful tracks are a joy to listen to. “Backseat Freestyle” is about as cocky as Lamar gets,

but it’s hard not to laugh as he switches from boastful wishes to premature ejaculation defenses (“And her body got that ass that a ruler couldn’t measure/And it make me [expletive] fast but I never get embarrassed”). What makes the accessibility of these tracks even more impressive is that a majority of these songs are unconventional in structure – eight of the 12 tracks are over five minutes. “m.A.A.d city” switches into a West Coast sendoff, interludes break up the solid “The Art of Peer Pressure,” while the line between hook and verse blurs in “Backseat Freestlyle” because of Lamar’s undeniable energy. It would be a disservice to call this unconventionality experimental; the majority of the album sounds too concise and fully realized to warrant such a title. Plus, even though it’s a concept album, each song is strong enough to be played on its own. This blend of accessibility and originality comes to a head in good kid’s centerpiece, “Sing About Me, I’m Dying of Thirst.” In the track, Lamar raps from the perspective of his slain friend, the sister of a murdered prostitute (who was a character in Section.80’s “Keisha’s Song”) and himself before switching to a more staccato beat to reflect on his own temptations. The whole track makes for an extremely compelling 12 minutes. “Fighting for your rights, even when you’re wrong and hope that at least one of you sing about me when I’m gone,” Lamar raps. “Now am I worth it?/Did I put enough work in?” “Real” comes after, and the song may be a bit too sing-songy for multiple replays. The album closer, “Compton” with Dr. Dre, is good in its own right, but it has that cliché sense of pride seen in many albums of this kind (Jay-Z’s American Gangster and Raekwon’s Only Built 4 Cuban Linx Pt. II). But the previous ten songs make good kid, m.A.A.d city one of those rare releases that actually live up to the hype. The struggle with making a debut is the conflict between commercial accessibility and creative control. That conflict is irrelevant here. It’s the story of the kid from Compton that matters the most. Email: arts@ubspectrum.com

ubspectrum.com

Continued from page 4: The woman behind the wheel After she left the army, she heard about an opening for a bus driver position through an ex-boyfriend. Armbruster jumped at the opportunity and devoted her time to working to pass her driving test. When she did, she was ecstatic. She drove for companies such as Carrier Coach, Joe Valley Ranch and Adventure Call for 15 years. She has been a Stampede driver since last November. She looks forward to her job every day. It’s never boring on the Stampede, Armbruster said. With shifts ranging from five to nine hours, Monday through Sunday, Armbruster’s schedule leaves little room for leisure. But when she does get some down time, crocheting is her preferred release. Her job is a demanding one. She has to deal with college students and many diverse people with different personalities. Sometimes, this is an obstacle. But for Armbruster, the joy of the job comes from meeting new people every day with unique stories, especially on the infamous drunk bus. Weekends at UB usually mean one thing: parties. With the convenience of a “designated bus driver,” driving intoxicated students between campuses Friday and Saturday nights can get a little chaotic. “You see people fighting and making out,” Armbruster said. “But when I see people

making out, I usually just try to mind my own business.” According to Matt and Andy, frequent passengers of the drunk bus who requested their last names be withheld, calling the weekend “wild” is an understatement. They rarely experience a quiet ride home. “One time, they stopped the bus for a pretty long time, but it was for a good reason,” said Matt, a sophomore biology major. “Someone lit up a [joint] on the bus and they called the police.” As long as people follow the unspoken rules of the “drunk bus,” Andy and Matt don’t mind the rowdy transportation. “The number one rule to riding the drunk bus is to handle your business,” said Andy, a sophomore undecided major. “The worst part is dealing with belligerent people always trying to start a fight with you. I’ve been in a few altercations myself and it’s never a good thing.” Some nights are crazier than others, but Armbruster is always prepared to handle the situation – from the smallest incidents to more serious ones. Her main priority is getting the students to South Campus and back safely. When things get out of hand, Armbruster calls the police. “It’s important to have a good attitude about it,” Armbruster said. “If not, this isn’t the place to be.”

Most kids get on and off the bus without paying much attention to the bus drivers, but some do value the work drivers put into getting kids safely to their destinations. “The bus drivers are angels,” Andy said. “They put up with so much and they’re doing the best they can. Personally I could never do their job; it has to be one of the hardest jobs.” At 48, Armbruster doesn’t have any retirement plans of yet, but she doesn’t mind having to put it off for a little longer. “I would be close to being retired now if I stayed in the army, but I left to start a family,” Armbruster said. “It would’ve been hard to do both but raising a family was important to me.” When she does eventually retire, she plans on spending her free time with her family and grandchildren who will surely keep her busy, she said. Armbruster has conquered her disability and the torment she received as a child. She feels she has been able to accomplish a lot – from raising a family to being a part of the army to getting UB students where they need to go. She hopes to move on to the future the same way she’s been living her life: taking things one stop at a time.

Friday, October 26, 2012

Continued from page 1: State-of-the-art dining hall opens in Ellicott Complex In order to get the restaurant atmosphere the students desired, Brady and his team scrapped some traditional dining hall customs. Plastic silverware and paper plates cannot not be found in C-3. The food is served on real china made especially for the facility by a local company. C-3 also avoids the feel of a typical dining hall by having rooms secluded from one another instead of one large open area. The facility is divided into different sections and each represents its own restaurant and each having its own individual style. In the area by the New York-style pizza, there’s an elevated dining room, lined with grey guard to exemplify the look of a subway station. A few steps farther is an area filled with lime green chairs and dim lamps, surrounded by tinted green glass; this is to give the impression of candlelit dinner. Construction on the 32,000 square foot C-3 facility began in Jan. 2011 after extensive extensive research on the best university dining halls around the nation. “We had to be cutting edge,” Brady said. “When we first started the project, our team went to between 15 and 20 universities around the country. We looked at the dining halls that were awarded winning for design, for menu development and for speed of service to see what worked and what didn’t work.” Brady and his team ended up settling on designs and technology that are beneficial for the environment. The C-3 facility has taken steps to reduce waste, including implementing a sophisticated waste management process in

which excess food is not thrown out, but instead the waste is put through a recycling process within the facility. This process turns the excess food into compost, which is used in UB’s gardens or given to support the community gardens, according to Brady. These environmentally motivated steps have enabled C-3 to achieve a silver rating from the Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design (LEED) rating system, which Brady said is impressive. The creation of C-3 will benefit the UB community in more than one way, Brady said. C-3 replaced the Richmond Dining Hall as the main dining hall for the Ellicott Complex’s 3,800 students. The move from Richmond to the much larger C-3 adds 15 staff positions and 60 student positions. The C-3 facility is already garnering attention from other universities. According to Brady, nine universities have asked to view the facility and students from other universities are envious of the new dining hall. “I’m definitely jealous,” said Michael Socie, a junior business management major at Buffalo State College, who attended the preview as a guest. “We have a buffetstyle dining hall at Buff State but nothing like this – nothing this cool.” For the cost of a meal credit, students can access the facility and eat at as many of the restaurants as they want. Email: features@ubspectrum.com

Email: features@ubspectrum.com

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